Category : Crafts

147 posts

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition

Welcome to another rousing edition of T stands for Tuesday where we grab a cup a and share what we’ve been up to. I’m taking a bit of liberty with that rule this week and I know our wonderful host, Elizabeth, won’t mind a bit.

Before we begin I must apologize for the poorly lit photos. My laundry room/craft room has both florescent and incandescent lighting. Choosing the right filter for proper lighting is nearly impossible.

Now on with the show…

As I was cleaning out the school supply shelf which holds both new and partially used supplies, I happened upon a spiral bound sketch book from one of the kids elementary school days. The cover and drawings were long since gone, the spirals smashed and many pages crumpled. I decided to salvage what I could before the whole thing ended up I the recycle bin.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

So now what. I thought binding them into a journal would be a good choice but boring white pages have never made me want to use them them. Aged pages always draw me in.

This technique isn’t new, I’ve used it myself on many occasions. The one thing that really appeals to me is the randomness of dyeing or staining. You never know exactly what your going to get.T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

Since I had a large stack of papers I wanted to make sure that there was irregularity of staining throughout the pages. I sprinkled instant coffee grounds every few pages in the stack.T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

I used a spray bottle to gently wet the coffee to start the staining process.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

After letting it sit for a while I poured in more water and used a second container filled with water to keep the papers submerged.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

I left the pages for a day…perhaps a little longer.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

Now I had a stack of really soggy papers. Since I don’t have the room to lay each out individually I had to come up with a quick and easy solution.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

I used old shower rings through the wire shelving to hold a metal knitting needle. They were able to drip dry over the laundry sink. Worked perfectly.

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

Just look at those yummy pages…the color and texture really make me happy!

T Tuesday: coffee stained edition | Halle's Hobbies

Now that I’ve got them all folded I have to decide what sort of book I want to make. The last book I made with coffee stained pages really turned out well. I cut up a suede jacket for the covers. I’m pretty sure I used all of the suede while making some Ren Fest pouches. It is garage sale season though so I might just get lucky and find something that speaks to me. Until then I will set these aside.

This should be my last really busy Tuesday for a while since most things are winding down for the summer break. I may start back with my knitting group occasionally which is Tuesday mornings. Of course.

Today I’m meeting girlfriends for a birthday lunch. Gosh, lots of May birthdays. It’s the last little hurrah before school is out on Thursday.

What are you doing today?

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Graduation card

It’s grad party season…that means is card making time too. This year I decided it might be fun to use the school colors for each of the graduates especially since both of them are really active in athletics.

I searched around on Pinterest for inspiration. I saw a few cards featuring tassels and thought that would be really fun. In fact it was the tassel in particular that prompted me to look up their school colors so it would be more meaningful.

school colors graduation card

I used my Cuttlebug with the Sizzix Bricked embossing folder to give the texture to the white layer of cardstock. It added that “school” look I was going for.  The tassel is embroidery floss. They are quite simple to make. I wrapped the floss around a card until I had the desired amount…personal preference here. I slipped a length of floss through the top and tied a knot. I then cut the bottom and pulled the card out. I cut another length of floss and tied it around bundle approx 1/4 inch from the top.  I poked a hole in the hat and threaded the top strings through and taped it to the back of the hat before mounting. I trimmed the ends nice and even to the desired length after attaching the hat. The hat was made using a 2 inch square punch which I then adhered with 3M foam mounting tape.  I also used the foam tape under the congratulations banner for interest.

I have one more card to create but that one will be blue and yellow instead of the black and gold. I think I may create a few more in our school colors as well as long as I have the supplies out. I know I’ll be needing the eventually.

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Refreshed flags

Several years ago I made a banner for the deck rail.  It added a bit of whimsy to the deck box garden.

Refreshed flags | Halle's Hobbies

 When we added a second garden I made flags for that as well. Over the years the elements have done a number on the flags. Up until last winter I always took them down at the end of each fall. Knowing that they really needed replacement I left them up to continue the whimsy throughout the cold months.

Refreshed flags | Halle's Hobbies

Today’s version of the flags are single sided. They still blow sweetly in the breeze adding a fun element to an otherwise boring fence and deck rail.

Refreshed flags | Halle's Hobbies

Refreshed flags | Halle's Hobbies

Next is the planting….

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The lost art of bartering

I don’t know about you but I love it when I am able to barter for something. It truly is becoming a lost art. People now days just go buy or hire someone when they need something. I feel it stems from our lack of community. People don’t know their neighbors. They come home, park in the garage and never step into their yard except to perhaps finely manicure the grass. We are lucky here as we DO know our neighbors and have a good sense of community at least on our block.

So with that in mind, a friend is finishing off their basement and is starting to buy accessories to match the rustic style of the decor they’ve chosen. She’d been telling me about wanting feed sack pillows for the couch but was overwhelmed by the price on Etsy. She purchased feed sacks at an antique store but then was stuck. She was afraid to cut them plus she didn’t have a sewing machine. I told her to bring them on over and we’d get it figured out.

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Marvin decided he really needed to “help”.

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After getting him interested in some toys we were able to cut them down and stuff the  pillow forms inside. I left the hand stitching to my friend to do at home.IMG_5348

Look how awesome they look!!

So what does this have to do with bartering…well they had leftover stone veneer from their fireplace. I got to take it home.

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I’m hoping that I’ll have enough to build a fire pit. The rain is supposed to clear out tomorrow so then I can lay things out to make sure before buying the materials to complete my project.

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T Tuesday: post birthday week edition

Welcome to another edition of T stands for Tuesday.

T stands for Tuesday

Last week I was lucky enough to stretch my birthday celebration out over several days. On Tuesday (which is one of the reasons I missed last week) I was treated to lunch with friends. We actually celebrated two birthdays. We had a great time although I never snapped any photos. I did receive this wonderful violet from the other birthday girl.

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On my actual birthday. May 5th, I was running errands in the morning and picked up my free drink from Caribou…the best chain coffee shop in my humble opinion. (not affiliation…just a very happy customer)

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Since it was a hot day, I decided on a cold press coffee with room for cream.

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Mr. G surprised me by not only coming home early that day but also with a lovely bouquet of flowers. I have no idea what the orange ones are but they are so cool! I was really worried Marvin wouldn’t be able to resist them but he was surprisingly restrained after a few initial attempts to get to them.

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The look of innocence.

I did see a very strange sight during the week as well.  I was taking J to the eye doctor when we saw the Mystery Machine from the Scooby Doo cartoon.

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Stranger yet was the very old police car ahead of it. It was as if it had rolled off a movie set or something. I’d guess late 1950’s classic black and white with a single cherry light on top.  When I shared this photo on FB, my cousin suggested that perhaps they were on the way out to Paisley Park which was just another mile up the road. No clue…just one of those things that really makes you do a double take. Glad I had J to quick snap a photo for me.

On Saturday, Mini-me and I went shopping using some of the birthday coupons and specials I had received then picked up yummy sushi to bring home. It was a really nice cap to a great week of celebration.

I actually have done a bit of crafting…

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I used a skein of cotton yarn to make 4 small dish cloths. I like them small so they can fit down inside skinny glassware more easily.

I’m also continuing work on the commissioned scrapbook album. I’m half done with the pages. Eventually I’ll show another little peek at it. It’s always a tough endeavor to show a scrapbook without showing photos.

I’ve got an outdoor project in mind with some leftover fireplace stone veneer I was given. Hopefully I have enough to do my plan. When the rain stops, I’ll have to lay things out and see.

What are you doing today?

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Catching up…again

I feel like I’m always behind in posting lately. Not sure why that is but it happens all too often in my opinion.

Last time at craft club,  I was trying to replicate this card that I had found many years ago in my dad’s room at the nursing home. It was such a sweet card with a clever design. I knew one day I wanted to try it for myself.

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I decided to use a pack of cards from Michael’s that were color-coordinated as my base.

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Of course this is just a start.

I’ve also started work on a commission. I’m making a scrapbook album from a children’s board book.

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I started by ripping the printed images off all the pages.

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So far I’ve only gotten the outside background papers in place. I realize that I can’t force it…either I’m feeling creative or I’m not. Evidently I’m not feeling scrapbooky right now. :)

Mini-me and I were out of town this past weekend for our annual mother daughter retreat. More on that tomorrow.

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A second look: Upcycling Projects

Secondlook

Since it’s April and this month is Earth Month I thought I’d share a second look at a bit of upcycling from a few years ago.

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Oct 6, 2013

Upcycling Projects

 

We all know how to recycle and I’m sure most do it daily. Newspapers, cardboard, glass and plastic are all readily recyclable in most cities, at least across the USA.

This is wonderful! But I’ve been really focused on upcycling lately.  Finding a new use for something that would ordinarily be tossed out.  Wine corks, bottle caps, worn out clothing, stained linens, broken plates…you get the idea.treesI showed a sneak peek of these a while ago. I made a wine cork tree last year but this time I decided to change things a bit. I used a Champagne cork cut in half for the trunk.  I think they turned out really cute.

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I’ve also been using some scraps from previous projects such as the denim remaining after completing a quilt or two.  As well as the remainder of the dress shirts that I made wine bottle gift bags from.

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In addition I’ve been making a bunch more cards. I’ll show more of these last two projects at a later date. The cards have much less upcycling in it’s truest sense but I am still attempting to include elements that might otherwise be considered unusable such as tiny scraps of fabric and yarn. As well as photo trimmings. I have a cigar box full of photo trimmings…they have such vibrant colors that it’s a shame to toss them out.

It doesn’t have to be Earth Day to be a little “green”. Do a little more every day to be kind to our planet. Last time I checked…it’s the only one we have. :)

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If you’d like to see more recycling and upcycling projects please use the tag cloud on my sidebar.

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