50 Button Crafts: idea #33 – button spiders

Posted on August 31, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

buttons spiders from bethapalooze

Got a box or jar full of buttons carefully saved by your mother or grandmother? For 2015 I’m in search of great ways to put those buttons to use. Here is this week’s idea:

I know Halloween is still almost two months away but this little button spiders caught my eye today and I couldn’t resist. I’m actually afraid of spiders. Not so bad that I can’t function around them as long as I know exactly where they are and there is no danger of them ending up on me. But if you are having a family gathering for Halloween, these would be so much fun for the kids to make or you could put together a kit and send them off to far away families. You could also make some up and add a pin on the back and send them as gifts. It would be especially fun if your family has stories or traditions centered around Halloween or spiders. We lived next to a sugar cane field when I was little and the cane spiders made an indelible impression on me. These little button spiders would be a fun way to share memories of those times.

It would be a good idea to document where the buttons for your project came from and any relevant stories or information about that person or family. If you are looking for more button crafts, check out my Pinterest board.

50 Button Crafts: idea #32 – button clouds

Posted on August 24, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

button clouds by TheButtonzBoutique on Etsy

Got a box or jar full of buttons carefully saved by your mother or grandmother? For 2015 I’m in search of great ways to put those buttons to use. Here is this week’s idea:

Not sure why I chose to feature these buttons clouds this week but they spoke to me so here they are. I know I’m drawn to the simple white button crafts and I love this song. I even picked it as the ring tone for my “time to fix dinner” alarm on my phone. I think I might make a version of this for my husband for his birthday this year.

Pupdate: 3 dog household

Posted on August 14, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

Galaxy, Fable and Holly

Things have been crazy on the dog front around here lately. Before we knew that Galaxy was coming, I agreed to help out a guide dog user who was having foot surgery and needed someone to take care of her guide dog while she is recovering. So we have had a three dogs here for the last couple of weeks. Holly is a good dog but the mix of the three of them is a handful at times. We have put x-pens and gates to good use every day. The three of them love to play with the Jolly Ball in the back yard.

Galaxy, Holly and Fable

Galaxy is amazing in her resilience in playing with the bigger dogs. She never gets intimidated and jumps right back into the ruckus even when she gets knocked over. One thing for sure, is I’m not ready to have a three dog household for any extended period of time. It took me about a week to realize the alphabetical serendipity of having an “H” named dog to add to our “F” & “G” dogs.

Family Tree: 50 family trees

Posted on August 11, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

family tree from http://www.grillyourgranny.com

Looking from some interesting and decorative family tree? The Paper Tree at GrillYourGranny.com might be just what you are looking for. They have several family trees that you can order printed copies of plus they have a CD you can order with 50 family tree images that you can print your self or take to your local print shop.

8 generation fan chart from GrillYourGranny.com

50 Button Crafts: idea #31 – button rings

Posted on August 10, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

vintage button rings from holy-craft.com

Got a box or jar full of buttons carefully saved by your mother or grandmother? For 2015 I’m in search of great ways to put those buttons to use. Here is this week’s idea:

If you have some one of a kind buttons this idea would be a great solution. Click on the photo above for a step by step tutorial using a few basic supplies like 28 gauge wire and wire cutters. I can imagine pairing the ring with a photo and a story of the ancestor would make a priceless gift.

Printer’s Tray Shadow Box

Posted on August 5, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

vintage items displayed in a printer’s tray via Pinterest

I’ve got a couple of similar printer’s trays that I was luck enough to pick up at an auction in the Boston area more than 10 years ago. There are tons of ideas on Pinterest using printer’s trays. I shouldn’t be surprised but I never really thought about it. Maybe I’ll have to start a new Pinterest board to collect ideas. I’ll just let it percolate for now. What do you think?

Family Tree: Metro Map Style

Posted on August 4, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

If My Family Was a Metro System by Colville-Andersen

Here is an interesting variation on how to represent your family tree. I love the idea! Here is what the creator said about this project:

So I was thinking. What if my massive family was a metropolitan transit system? What would the map look like? Well… here it is.

Family trees are a tricky thing to make. They have a specific structure that is difficult to avoid. It took a good 16 hours to finish this design. Most of it was spent working out the system of how to represent the different lines – as well as the many quirky variations like different dads for two kids from the same mum, etc.

The symbolism is interesting and I haven’t figure what all of it means yet but it is a brilliant infographic on a very complex family structure. Many family structures are not straight forward and simple and I really like this solution. How would your family metro map look?

50 Button Crafts: idea #30 – button wreath

Posted on August 3, 2015 by tellingfamilytales

vintage button wreath by victorianpetals on etsy.com

Got a box or jar full of buttons carefully saved by your mother or grandmother? For 2015 I’m in search of great ways to put those buttons to use. Here is this week’s idea:

I’m coming to realize that I’m drawn to these ideas that use a bunch of white buttons. Why? Maybe because I figure everyone’s stash has lots of white or neutral colored buttons. Anyway, I think this is a really elegant look and timeless too. And what a wonderful way to honor an ancestor or ancestors by re-purposing their buttons. Make sure you document as best you can where the buttons came from. It will make the wreath have more value to your posterity if they understand the significance of these particular buttons.