Bedspring Snowman

We recently threw away an old bed spring , but before we did, I had my husband cut off a bunch of the springs. I knew I would get around to using them soooner or later.



Meet my Bedspring Snowmen...

Here's what I did....

gather supplies..   old bed springs,

styrofoam balls, soft white fabric, scrap fabric for scarf, black seed beads, bells, Christmas greenery, orange wood noses, hot glue, needle and thread, sticks, floral tape and wire.

First, I covered the ball with the white fabric and then I made a hat out of the sleeve cut from a child's shirt - they are very inexpensive from the thrift store and just the right size. Tie the top with yarn or ribbon and add a bell and some greens. The eyes are beads glued on and the noses I bought years ago  from the craft store- wooden cones I painted orange.

 Glue the head to the spring and cut scrap fabric to form a scarf and tie it around the neck, glue in place.

 I had to wire on the buttons and stick arms or they would have just popped off the metal. I covered the wire with brown floral tape.

 I added  more greens and I made a sign out of cork board and paper,
stamped  "Merry Christmas" and hung with red wire.

 Loooove these guys.......... What do you think?

T-Shirt Change

I really don't like t-shirts. Yes they are comfortable and yes sometimes they have really cool designs or messages on them but it's not those things that bother me -  it's the neckline. I think most women look better with a lower cut neckline than what is usually on t-shirts, I know for sure that I do. Some
t-shirts do have lower necklines but not the case with this one.

Like many moms, when our kids are in different activities we like to support them and sometimes we get the t-shirts for the activity they are in.  My son is in a teen choir called IMPACT. It is a wonderful ministry that our church facilitates. Teens from all over north east Ohio gather once a month to worship at different Nazarene Churches in the area. It's a great way for them to build friendships, use their talents and most importantly to draw closer to God. I love the back message on the shirt:

Let me show you how I changed the neckline.

First I put it on and drew a line where I wanted the neckline to be. This shirt was also too long so I made a mark to shorten it. Don't guess! T-shirts stretch and fit different when put on.

Cut the shirt where you made the mark. The cut doesn't have to be purfect

because it will be covered up.

This next step probably should be the first step. You need more t-shirt fabric. It could be the same color ( buy 2 shirts) or  you could use different colors. I used the fabric I cut off the bottom and some fabric I cut from an old white t-shirt. This is a great way to use up old t-shirts.

Cut lots of circles. I cut about 24 of each color and made them about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. The more you use the fuller it will be.

Lay out the pattern you want to sew on just to make sure you have enough circles. It won't look like this when it's finished. The circles will be gathered and closer together.

Use thread to match the color of fabrics.

This is the tedious part. Start in the center. Layer 2 circles, off center, and sew on t-shirt near the neckline, gathering as you go so the circle puckers. You only need a few stitches.

Place the circles close together - depending on how many you have, the more you add the fuller it will be. When you think you are done, check it for empty spaces. Fill in until you think it's full enough.

 

The nice thing about t-shirt fabric is that it doesn't frey so you don't have to worry about finishing the edges.

Doesn't this look so much better? I think so.

Linking up to What's it Wednesday

 

Purse storage/display

Does anyone else have too many purses?!

 There's just something about a cute purse that I just can't pass up especially if it comes from a yard sale and only costs $1.00. And I do like to match my purse to my outfit. And there are seasonal purses - some I would never use in summer or winter.  Well , where to put them all is the problem. I wish I had a great big (or small for that matter) walk- in closet but I don't.  I did have them in my closet but my closet is soooo tiny  they were piling up. Some were on the top shelf and some on the floor of the closet which made it a pain to get to, so I was thinking that I could hang them on the wall. But where? I really don't have much wall space.

                                                             Behind the door!

 

I was going to use nice hooks but I thought that would cost too much and besides you won't see them anyway so I just used long screws. The purses are light enough so I didn't have to find studs. I started at the bottom, one purse at a time, and just put the screw where I would hang the strap. These are the ones I use the most ( there are still some in the closet) and just my summer ones. I will have to switch it out in the fall. But I do love the way it turned out - easy access and I can see what I have and the door still opens - yes!

 And yes I have too many necklaces! I have them hanging on the back of the door which makes them easy to see and they don't get tangled.

I sure would like to hear how you store your purses.

Strawberry Tea

Nothing like having an outdoor Tea Party with some lady friends and using all the fun things you've collected from garage sales, thrift stores and ebay. Todays theme is STRAWBERRIES!

I set up 4 tables - one rectangle for food and one square  for tea, 2 round for seating:
The large rectangle table was quite wide so I was able to really have some fun with my strawberry collection :
 A picture painted on slate, canisters,a white basket filled with books and vintage fabric,and a strawberry toothpick holder - leaning up against a picnic basket

 

 

A vintage makeup case, a strawberry teapot (missing the lid) filled with flowers, strawberry salt and pepper shakers, red doilies, a strawberry serving dish and a yellow bee hive

 

 

A pillow, a  welcome sign, a tin sign,  more canisters and a potted plant and another picnic basket

I layered a red checked sheet with a vintage table cloth I bought off ebay

 

I used 2 round outdoor tables and pushed them together so we were close, more red checked table cloths with squares of vintage fabric in the center, white plates, white napkins with red holders, vintage avon strawberry dessert plates and green water glasses( though they look blue in the picture)

 

I found 8 red petunias, still fairly nice, at the garden center for only 50 cents and put them in white cups from the dollar store with red checked ribbon and a strawberry tag - they made a nice favor for everyone. The tags read "You're So Berry Sweet!" You can get the picture from the Graphics Fairy

 

 I used some other strawberry finds to decorate the tables - like these potted plants and candle rings and a large red strawberry cookie jar

and of course my strawberry tea cup - I wish I had a set of these but everyone always brings their own tea cup so it was fine

oh - and of course- Strawberry tea:

I wore my newly made apron and put red checked bows on my red shoes - and we're ready...

 

Tea,good food,  the outdoors and fellowship with friends - God is good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Linking up to

 

http://betweennapsontheporch.net/beach-table-setting-in-yellow-and-cobalt-blue/#

Strawberry Apron

Well, after seeing all the cute aprons I could find on pinterest, I decided to make my own. I will be hosting a tea soon and  I've been collecting all kinds of  strawberry dishes and such so I thought I would have my party be strawberry themed - so why not make an apron to go with..

Everytime I go to the thrift store or yard sales I look for pretty fabric, I've especially have been loving red lately, and anything checked.  And doilies are always a must

I picked up some vintage strawberry dish towels on e-bay. They will be perfect to use for the apron - right size and edges are already hemmed.

I didn't use a pattern. Just laid out some red checked fabric I had left over from the table cloth I made for the tea. The bottom edge was already hemmed. I also had a dark red sheet I cut and folded for the waist band. A sheet is always nice because you get such a large amount of fabric.

I cut a square of the red and checked for a pocket. The doily was just folded over the top. Hand sew on a couple of buttons - heaven knows I have plenty of buttons to choose from.

After sewing the skirt to the waistband I sewed on the pocket to the dishcloth and then sewed the dishcloth to the band, gathering and leaving a checked border

I added some red ric-rac and done

Love, love, love it! I'll take a pic of me wearing it at the tea and then share it with you.
What do you think?

Stairway wall

Just something I've been playing with.....

  Pick a few colors , depending on your decor, I went with green, black, white and yellow.

Find some of your favorite family photos and copy them in black and white -

find old frames and paint them either black or white.

Gather some thrift store finds -

an old dish...

a picture that I couldn't think of where to hang...

an iron wall hanging...

fill a sconce with flowers....

use some scrapbook paper and make a sign....

frame your last initial...

a tin star, a wire cross, an old mirror, and what ever else you can come up with
and artfully fill the wall

stand back and take it all in

fall in love

everytime I go to the basement ....

Now it's your turn :)