Guest Post: Less Cake (more frosting)


What up CSI Challenge readers!?! My name is Ellie G and I blog at Less Cake{more frosting}. Well, that’s not entirely true. My real name is Lara. I thought it would be real cute to blog under an alias. (Made after my initials “LG”)
Don’t ask.
I dunno.
I guess I wanted an “aka”.
It still doesn’t make sense.

I’m a mommy. I’m a wife. I’m an enthusiast of all things Diet Coke, Mod Podge, Mickey Mouse, Neil Diamond, and polka dots. I actually do like Less Cake {more frosting}. Actually, I kinda like No Cake {all frosting} but that’s just between me, and my late night sugar binges.

At my blog you can find everything from a yummy food, to a hot glue project, to a room-makeover. And there’s almost always something fun to print-for-free.
What you will NOT find is crafts.
Just because I detest that word.
{and it reminds me of old women making rag dolls with forrest green dresses}
dry heave
So we’re just creative, in my town.
No crafts.

Something I do love….

Is WORDS!


Aren’t words fantastic? I might have had friends call me “Webster” in high school. Because I liked to show off my large vocabulary.
There’s just nothing more fabulous.

When being “creative” I love to incorporate words!
Even better than that, is the fonts you can use while creating.
Oh how I love fonts.
My collection has grown to 900+.
Not kidding.

I use words and quotes ALL the time. And the possibilities are endless! Put them on your wall, or put them on your clothes. And today, I’m gonna put them on my bag.
{because any self-respecting woman needs bags. And not under her eyes!}


  • I started by finding a quote I wanted to use.
  • Then I had my Silhouette machine (whose name is Miss Scarlett) cut it out of freezer paper for me.

you absolutely don’t need to have a craft cutter to use words on your projects. You can use an exacto knife….and a saintly amount of patience!

  • Then I extracted all the letters from my paper. CAREFULLY!
  • The hardest part of this process is getting your stencil set. Don’t lose ANY pieces to the insides of your letters. You have to keep the inside of “O” or the triangle from “A”
  • I ironed the freezer paper onto a PLAIN WHITE CANVAS BAG. Super cheap.
  • Set your freezer paper on your bag, and iron for about 30 seconds on the hottest setting
  • Make sure that the steam is not on!
  • When I’m doing Typography, I like to think of it in “layers”. You need to paint that way too. Which “layer” needs to go on first?
  • This time, my damask decoration needed to go on first.

I use regular craft paint, with a fabric medium added to it, when I paint on fabric. You can find it at any craft store. It makes the paint flexible, washable, and FABULOUS!

  • I did this with a paper towel, that was VERY blotted before use. It’s a cool look.
  • Continuing moving layer by layer, color by color.
  • I like to remove the freezer paper when my paint is still wet. It gives cleaner lines. But it also means risking getting wet paint all over. The answer? Tweezers. They work wonders!

After I got my “typography” done, I pulled out some fabric scraps to spruce up my bag just a little more.

Because I cannot leave well enough, alone….I ended up sewing a band of fabric around the top. Sewing ruffles to the handles. And adding some fabric flowers as well.

One cannot tote a PLAIN bag with a quote about “creativity” on it.
That would be complete madness!
The quote reads:
You can’t use up creativity.
The more you use,
the more you have.
-maya angelou

Nothing like a good, inspiring quote, to make me want to go out and Mod Podge something!
Thank you SO much for letting me play today.
And especially letting me talk about one of my favorite things.
Besides frosting, and Diet Coke, and Hobby Lobby…..
(geez, I might need to narrow down this list.
If Julie Andrews had to sing my “favorite things” song, it would take her 17 years!!)
*******

Thanks, Ellie G (Lara)!

We just love her blog and her cute projects!

We’re so happy to have her on The CSI Project. Visit her and all of her projects at Less Cake{more frosting}.

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