Showing posts with label cottage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cottage. Show all posts

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Sweet Wreath - Inexpensive Valentine's Day Gift Idea

Few people see the value in gift wrapping like us crafty DIYers--am I right?  
...who else throws the sweater, scarf, pot holders, etc to the side as we inspect the beautifully colored tissue paper?  Yeppers, us crazy crafters.
The wreath form is made out of a gift box.

The flowers are made using tissue paper from Christmas gifts.

Some people see bags of trash...we see a plethora of crafting opportunities.  What types of fantastic-ness have you created from your holiday remnants? 

Thanks so much for all of your sweet comments about this wreath.  A tutorial for the paper flowers can be found here and the coffee filter wreath is here.  Depending on how you feel about your Valentine, you may or may not want to dye it black as in my tutorial.  The coffee filter wreath is pretty common, so if you do a search, you will be able to find other tutorials besides mine.  If you have questions, please let me know, and I'll be happy to help in any way I can.

Sharing at these linky parties...

MONDAY:
TUESDAY: 
Kammy's Korner (Trash to Treasure)
WEDNESDAY:
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:
FRIDAY:
Miss Mustard Seed (Furniture Only)
SATURDAY:
SUNDAY:

take care-
 

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Friday, December 16, 2011

Driftwood Jewelry Storage

While attempting to break some old rusty nails that I found (I wanted to shorten them for another project), I ended up bending them instead....light bulb moment....hooks!


Hmmm, now, what to put them on....I have a collection of driftwood that I've picked up whenever we take walks around the lake near our house. 


So I hammered several of them into the wood, and tied on a little twine...crazy, but I liked it.


I need to change the way it's hung on the wall so it won't slide to one side when something is placed on one of the hooks.


It was in my booth for about a month (see below), but obviously, it didn't sell...but it seems like there's more of a demand for this type of thing on Etsy.

While listing it on Etsy, it occurred to me that this would be a great place to hang jewelry or scarves from...or maybe belts or hats.  I put a couple coats of poly over the nails so the rust wouldn't rub off on anything.

 
Thanks for stopping by - hope you're enjoying the holiday season.  We finally put up our tree yesterday - and it's still standing.   It has suffered several run-ins with the Cozy Coupe, and several of the (plastic) ornaments have been ripped from the limbs to be used as projectiles (I tied them onto the tree)...but everyone still has all of their eyes...so far.

Shared here:
Hope you're having a wonderful holiday season.
MONDAY:

TUESDAY: 
Domestically Speaking (Paint Projects)
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:

FRIDAY:
take care -
 

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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Booth Update...And Need Your Advice...

Took the farm table over to my booth yesterday, and I finally remembered to take along my camera.  Here are a couple pictures from my space...


Wooden Chalkboard Toolbox


Chest #126



Can you believe the pink dresser is still there...I thought it would be the first thing to sell.  It would be such a shame if I had to bring it home and keep it!


Spot the toddler?  He's my Design Coordinator...

I'm still trying to figure out what buyers are really looking for here...I'm not from the area where my booth is located, so I'm not familiar with the demographic there.

Maybe I'm expecting too much too soon, but it seems like the things that are more my style (rusty, industrial, farmhouse) are getting more interest in my Etsy store.  I'm still deciding whether to try to sell my large items there.  I'm a little intimidated by trying to ship big furniture. Anyone have any experience with this? 
Would you change your "style" to fit with a shop, or would you try to find a shop that better fits your style?  Did you find that your booth became more successful after a couple months?  I chose this shop because the owner allows and encourages repurposing and upcycling, which is something I had trouble finding in other shops.  I'd love any advice you have to offer (on this or anything you see here).
Thanks so much!!

take care -
 

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Thursday, December 8, 2011

Cutest Christmas Idea - Vintage Toy Trucks


Yesterday, it snowed here for the first time his year.  Max, my 2 year old, was mesmerized by it, though he was pretty bummed when we wouldn't let him go outside in his Thomas pjs.

Wouldn't it be so fun and get to experience this time of year as a kid again?  The only thing better is watching your kids start to figure it out. 

This is the first year Max has really had any interest in Christmas...his favorite thing, by far, is the lights.  He gets SO excited.  He even "oohs" and "ahhs" if we drive by a house with their porch light on.   Right now, he's looking through the December Country Living Magazine...he is fascinated by the trains on the last page.

So yesterday, I came across the cutest idea by Michelle at Vintage Junky.  I asked her if I could share it on my blog because I think many of you will really like it:
Toy Truck Hauling Bottle Brush Tree

Toy Truck Hauling Bottle Brush Tree
Toy Car Hauling Bottle Brush Tree

Aren't these little toy cars with the bottle brush trees just one of the cutest things you've ever seen?   Michelle has all kinds of great things at her Etsy store, and she recently opened her own shop in Spring Hill, TN.

Just so you know - I wasn't paid or anything to do this post.  I just thought they were so charming and that others may enjoy them as well - I asked Michelle for permission to post about them.

Hope you're all having a lovely holiday season...I may link up at some of these parties if I have time -

take care -
 

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Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Pleated Wreath

Are you tired of all my wreath posts yet?  I promise I hadn't planned on doing another...but I've been spending a lot of time working on them to sell, and I came up with a little twist on my original rolled flower wreath that I wanted to share.

What do you think?  Have I been staring at coffee filters for too long and completely lost my mind? hmmm, maybe you shouldn't answer that. 

When you create things, do you have trouble deciding whether the outcome is good, bad, or just odd?

I do...have trouble deciding whether something I like is something that others might like...

At my ripe old age of 33, I'm pretty much over caring what other people think of me...but since I'm trying to sell many of the items I make and re-make...its kind of part of the job description to care what people think
 about those things.

Do you worry about what people think of your creations?  Be it crafts, your home, your style of dress, etc?

Maybe I've been spending too much time with my glue gun, but I like how this turned out...kinda vintage-y.
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to check out yet another one of my paper wreaths...I PROMISE...cross my heart...that my next post will have nothing to do with wreaths or paper flowers.





Just thought it best to get all of those out there so I didn't have the temptation of doing another wreath post any time soon.  I wonder if anybody has ever sleep-blogged (you know, like sleep walking, sleep eating...)...if my next post is about wreaths, then you'll know that sleep blogging is real. 

Sharing this at these parties:

MONDAY:
TUESDAY: 
Domestically Speaking (Paint Projects)
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:
FRIDAY:


take care -
 

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Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Design Style - Farmhouse vs. Cottage

Metal, wood, natural fibers, chippy paint, rust, old stuff...these are a few of my favorite things.  I have always associated these items with cottage style, but today I came across a blog, LaurieAnna's Vintage Home, that made me rethink the classification of my  tastes.  Described as "Simple Farmhouse Living," a look through LaurieAnna's blog made me think, "farmhouse...farmhouse....yes, that's it, farmhouse!"  I love it! 
 


[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="A display in LaurieAnna's Shoppe using an old camper she found on Craigslist.  Gorgeous! "][/caption]

I realize that style need not carry a title, but I'd always liked the cottage look, but I also love industrial items....and when I think about cottage+industrial = farm.  Right?   Charming porches with barn-style lighting.  Cozy dens with old barn-siding floors.  Bedrooms with chippy, rusted metal chests. 

 


 Farmhouse Barn door for bathroom - at thestir.cafemom.com


[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="424" caption="Buckets of Burlap bedroom using barn siding and a cowboy tub."][/caption]

 



[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="387" caption="Bookshelf made from wood crates/pallets"][/caption]

 



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="360" caption="Beautiful farm-style cabinet used for kitchen sink"][/caption]




 barnhousebh.com
  



[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="360" caption="Barn Style Bathroom from nskwood.net Rustic Cabinet as shown in Country Living"][/caption]

 

farm-style lights from LaurieAnna's blog

 

 

So I live in a retro 70s ranch-style home that has red formica countertops and brown carpet in the kitchen.  Not screaming fashionable farmhouse.




[caption id="attachment_31" align="aligncenter" width="459" caption="You know you're jealous...we do appreciate the sellers leaving us the matching tea kettle.I can't WAIT to tackle this badboy!"][/caption]

Does this peak your interest to see more of my beautiful new home?  Well, it just so happens that I did a whole post showcasing it in all her glory!


I'm so excited to start on my next project with all these fantastical (I know it's not a word) farmhouse fun in mind!!

 

  I have a BUNCH of farmhouse-y and industrial chic purchases that I've made recently that I need to photograph and share....so I'll get on that as soon as I can find a way to occupy my kids for 10 minutes....and when I can forge a path to that part of my garage!

 


I definitely suggest checking out LaurieAnna's beautiful blog and shoppe

 

I'd love to hear your ideas about style and design. 


take care -

 
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