Chair Redo Part 2

Remember this chair? Well I have a total of 4 chairs which means 3 more redo's to try. Here is part 2. This time I started by spray painting the whole chair white satin. I wanted something totally different than the first redo. Next I recovered the cushion in a yellow chevron pattern. I love the yellow and white together.
The next part was a little tricky. I have made pillow covers before but not for a long time. I figured it would take me maybe an hour at the most. I was wrong.

Here is my inspiration for the pillow.
I wanted a ruffled pillow with the chevron back. Then I thought it would be fun to add flowers along the top of the pillow. And finally I wanted to add ribbon ties on the side that will attach the pillow to the chair.

Here are my hang ups. I didn't cut the pillow cover correctly. It was too big for my pillow. But the white was too small, hence the yellow. I found a tutorial on the flowers but they aren't exactly what I wanted. Other than that I think the idea is really cute. I will probably redo the pillow cover (maybe) but I looks really cute in my living room for now.

Chair Redo-Wowzer Wednesday

This week I decided to take some initiative and change the things around my house that I hate! I have had these chairs since I got married, the first piece of furniture we bought as a new married couple. A table and chairs from Walmart (broke students). We have kept the set for years passing it around our house. Using it as a computer desk, a kitchen table, a patio table, and now my sewing table. It is old, ugly, and not very sturdy but it's all I've got so I need to make the best of it.

I decided to start with the chairs. Here is the before:

Grungy, stained, plain.

I started with a cushion recover. I found this swirl orange fabric on sale at Joann's and fell in love with the orange. My original plan was the recover the cushion and then maybe spray paint the chair. However, I couldn't decide on a color to spray paint so I went with something totally different. Mod podge. My best crafting friend. I cut some 1 inch strips of scrapbook paper that went with the cushion fabric. Then I mod podged the paper to the back of the rungs on the chair. I love how it turned out. Exactly what I wanted fun and funky. And now I have a theme for the rest of the room. Tune in to see the other makeover adjustments.



I'm linking up HERE

Rubber Band Jar-Wowzer Wed.

WOWzer Wed, a simple solution to an everyday problem. Actually this was a several times a day problem. In my kids bathroom I put all their toiletries in the drawers of the vanity. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, hairbrushes, etc. Most of the stuff the kids don't touch or I don't mind if they touch them; in the case of the tooth brushes I encourage them to use them often (it doesn't happen).

Anyways, the newest addition is colorful rubber bands for my little lady's hair. It is finally long enough to put in pony tails. The kids love the rubber bands. They get them out of the drawer every day and spread them all over the floor. So annoying!

Hence the rubber band container. A decorative container that belongs on the counter out of reach but still is aesthetically pleasing in a guest bathroom. Very simple.

A jar (this one contained paper flowers that I got from Hobby Lobby)
Ribbon remnants
Paper scrap booking flowers
Colorful rubber bands

I'm Bored Jar

Summertime is finally here! It is all exciting and grand at first but now that school has been out for about 2 weeks the summer moto has become, "I'm BORED!" for many kids. Which means trouble for mom. As a teacher I love summer break but as a mom I know it is hard to keep the house clean, the dishes done, and the children entertained all summer long. That is where the idea of the "I'm Bored" Jar was born. This is a special jar that mom's can use to keep their little ones busy. The best part about the "I'm Bored" jar is that it is totally random and never what you expect.

Here's how it works... when a child says, "I'm Bored", all they need to do is go to the jar and pick a stick. Then they have to do whatever the stick says. But the pure delight is that it is not always something the child might want to do, and it is not always something mom might want to do. BUT YOU HAVE TO DO WHATEVER THE STICK SAYS! It is a bonding time for mom's and kids to do activities together as well. I think it is fun to have a surprise, you never know what you might get.

Now my kids are too young for this but I can see it coming in handy in the future. So I made an example based on a 6+year old. Here is a list of the activities I included in my jar.

Clean your room

Read a book or your scriptures

Practice your flashcards

Clean the bathroom

Organize the food storage

Organize your closet

Weed for 30 minutes

Take the dog for a walk

Write in your journal

Unload the dishwasher

Go to a movie

Make homemade play dough

Make some cookies

Vacuum the house

Dust the house

Play a board game

Make a card for Grandma or Grandpa

Have a picnic

Make some finger puppets and have a puppet show

Go to the pool or the beach

Make a giant sand castle

Go get ice cream at the ice cream shop

Do a puzzle

Go on an adventure to some place new

All you need for this little project is:
-a jar (I got mine from the dollar store)
-some flat wood sticks or tongue sticks (Hobby Lobby)
-scrapbook paper
-mod podge
-embellishments

Cover one side of your sticks with the scrapbook paper. Then print out a list of activities, some that the kids will like some that the moms will like. Glue 1 activity to each stick. (I used mod podge for both sides). Put your sticks in the jar, embellish the jar, and enjoy endless "I'm Bored" activities. Even my little 3 year old had fun helping me decorate and put the jar together. I did put 2 blank sticks in as a free stick, where the child could choose the activity of their choice. You will never have to be bored again.
I am linking up HERE

Fun Find Friday-Father's Day 2x4

Need a last minute idea for a Father's Day gift? I found this adorable block project that is perfect for Father's Day. It is really very simple and cheap. I made one myself but I changed it a little bit. The best part is it cost me a whole $3. HERE is the tutorial.

I went to Home Depot to buy the wood and the guy asked me what I was making. I told him a Father's Day gift. Then to my surprise he gave me the two pieces of wood for FREE. All I bought was the clips that I found at Staples.

I tried to drill the holes for the ribbon but my drill was not cooperating so I skipped that part and just glued them on. My husband isn't much of a ribbon guy anyway and I made it for his office at work so I wasn't too upset about the drill. I need to work on my staining technique as well (obviously I need more practice). I spray painted the clips and used my cricut to cut out the I Love My Dad.

My only complaint is that the 2x4 isn't very big. The original's pictures make it look great but in truth the pictures are very small and the clips are REALLY small. I bought the smallest ones I could find and they were still a little big for the wood. Other than that, it is a great project. You all know how much I love blocks.

Thomas Puzzle Bag

Right now MADE is doing another one of their great BOY series and after perusing their ideas I came up with a few of my own. Sometimes I feel bad because my son doesn't get as much sewing attention as my daughter. What can I say? Sewing little dresses and tops are so much more fun than shorts and pants. However this week I did make a few things for my son. The first is a bag for his puzzles. He has 3 Thomas the Train puzzles that don't have any cases or boxes. Before I had them in plastic bags. But then I had a great idea to make him a bag that he could carry the puzzles around in. It is Thomas material (of course) that he picked out himself with red grosgrain ribbon handles and a zipper in the top to keep the puzzles in. I also added his name to the front, just so he can learn what his name looks like and be proud that the bag is his.

Needless to say HE LOVES IT. He was so excited that I made him something and has been carrying it around the house all week. It was difficult to make it BOY and not just a purse but I think it looks pretty manly for a bag.

A Necklace from Home Depot?

I am being a little selfish this week because all my projects are for MEEE. But I think that sometimes moms need some special attention, even if it is from themselves. I was inspired by WIWW to create some projects to pump up my wardrobe and make me feel pretty.

I got this idea a long time ago and actually made it with the young women of my church. It was originally just a one washer necklace with scrap paper mod podged to the outside. I thought it would be fun to take several washers and make a chain out of them. It is so easy and fun to make, plus very cost wise since it only costs about $3. (I am all about being thirfty these days.)

All you need is some washers from Home Depot or another hardware store
Ribbon
Scrapfabric
Glue gun

I bought 3 bags of washers in varying sizes. Mind you that the larger the washer the heavier the necklace will be. I laid the washers out on the table and rearranged them until I saw a pattern that I liked. Then I took some ribbon I already owned and started weaving it through each washer hole making sure to overlap the washers so they stay in place. Sorry I don't have pictures but I did find this site that had a similar idea HERE a year ago. Once I was done with the weaving I made a few rolled roses. Then I glued the roses to some felt and glued that to the end washers. One tip I have is to make sure all your washers are facing the same way, there is a shiny side and a dull side.

I wore it yesterday and I can't believe how many people complimented me on it. It is fun and creative and you will definitely be noticed when you are out and about. I think it would be fun to add scrap paper to the outside of the washers or even break up the roses so they are on both sides. There are so many options.

Picture Blocks

Welcome to BLOCK WEEK hosted by A Couple of Craft Addicts. Blocks are so versitile, and great for crafting. What a perfect shape, right? Well...we decided that this week would be devoted to the block. Every project this week will have something to do with the block shape in one way or another and we will be having a great giveaway at the end of the week. So make sure you take notes and pay attention to each craft (jk). But do tune in each day for a new idea.

The first craft I wanted to share with you is a simple craft but very useful and has a great impact. It is picture blocks.

Here is what you need:

Go to Home Depot or your local hardware store and buy a 2x4. I had the wonderful people of Home Depot cut my 2x4 into 6 inch pieces and I ended up with around 15 pieces for around $3.

-3x5 inch pictures that you would like to display, make sure you print them in matte finish not glossy (the glossy will smear)

-a hand sander
-sand paper
-acrylic paint
-mod podge
-stickers or embellishments of your choice


STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

1. Use your hand sander to sand all the sides of your blocks. Just get rid of the rough edges.
2. Paint your blocks on all the sides leaving a square on the face of the block. If you want to put pictures on both sides leave a square on each face side.
3. While you are waiting for the paint to dry use a corner punch to round the edges of your pictures (optional but it looks finished)
4. Once the paint has dried use the sand paper to distress the edges of your block by hand. You can do heavy distressing or light or none. It just depends on the look you want.

5. On the unpainted square apply a layer of mod podge and glue your picture to the block. Make sure you smooth out any bubbles. Then apply a thin layer of mod podge over the top of your picture.
6. Once your picture is dry apply your embellishment or sticker and enjoy.

Vintage Style Earring Rack

As some of you may know I recently moved. I hate moving. I have been married for almost 5 years and we have moved 5 times in those 5 years. So what does that mean? First I am really good at moving and packing. I have a system and I am a super organized person so I am really good at moving. Second, I have consolidated a lot of our family's stuff. We don't have junk, because junk is not fun to move. During this last move, space was really tight so we had to evaluate everything we owned and throw anything out that was broken, busted, or not worth taking. One piece of furniture we threw out was an old tv stand with three front doors that opened for cabinet space. It was very rickety, missing a lot of screws and had several pieces of bent wood. I probably could have fixed it but honestly, it wasn't worth it. So instead I took it apart and saved some of the pieces for myself including the three cabinet doors. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them but I knew that I wanted to do something, maybe frames or something?

One area that I did not clean out during our last move is my jewelery. So I got this wonderful idea from Heather to make an earring rack to hang my dangle earrings on. Enter the cabinet doors. I used the middle door to make the frame for the earring rack. It had a separate piece that slides into the frame that was perfect for my base and no glass so that made it easy too.

I wanted to dress it up a bit so I began with taking all the hinges off and sanding the outside of the frame.

Then I painted it vintage white.

Next I sanded the edges and sides to give it a vintage look.

Finally I added ribbon to the top via staple gun to hang it from.

The next step was the insert. I used spray glue to glue a fabric that coordinated with my bathroom decor (green and teal). Then I covered the fabric (again using spray glue) with wire mesh. The key is only gluing the mesh to the outside edges so that you can slide the earring hooks on the mesh. Then I covered the back with the same ribbon to make it look finished, again using spray glue.


Finally I slid the insert into the frame, added some cute touches (paper flowers and butterflies) and put all my earrings on the mesh.





I did throw out a lot of old earrings that I never wear but I found some oldies that were still goodies like these purple chandeliers that were specially made for my wedding day. Maybe they will make it into my WIWW wardrobe sometime this week.