My Gnome Little World

Bunches of wonderfully rusty old window weights!

Weeee!

I can see these sassy sharp blades painted vibrant colors adorning walls around the nation!

Can you come up with something to do with the these BBQ blasts from the past?

I have a neato idea for this one, but I will not tell you about it as it will most likely be an upcoming blog post!

I really like these…one day soon a “GRATE” idea will come to mind!

Love the coloring of the rust on these shovels who are now waiting for a new life!

Thingies, widgets, pieces and bits are useful…for something!

I love the needlepoint hoop. I just may have to switch to these circular sassy’s…for future pieces!

I will just say, “Galvanized Metal!”

Does anyone love nails…. Like I do?

Could make a cool light, eh?

And this one is just fun…let your imagination go wild!

I see a bird house, do you?

And what is not fun about a bunch of Periclean?

Windows and Doors…Windows and Doors!

Love the shine!

And I think these are just tiny piece’s of art!

Not only did I buy pieces for my projects, I even bought a vintage handmade wood tool box for Jim! He loved it!

And get this…everything is on sale until Spring!

Give me a…Wooo Hoooo!

Find a renew shop, a salvage warehouse or even a Habitat for Humanity Restore (which just happens to be Jim’s favorite place) in your area.

And recycle the old and give it a new life!

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STRAIN YOUR LIGHT!

Posted: November 8, 2012 in Crafts, Upcycle
Tags: antique, antiques, art, arts, arts & crafts, ARTS AND CRAFTS, crafts, crafts arts & crafts, felt crafts, folk art, food strainers, homemade christmas trees, homemade lights, interior design, lighting, lighting crafts, metal vintage stariner, pendant lamps, Pendant lights, recycle, strainer, Strainer light, upcycle, upcycle vintage lighting, vintage lighting, vintage strainers

UPCYCLE LIGHT!

EASY PEASY!

To start the hole, I used pliers and a hammered it just a bit in the centered dot in the centered star of the bottom of the strainer.

You can see the finished hole in the photo.

Oh, and yes, those pliers have a pink rhinestone on them!

To help enlarge the hole, I snipped from the inside with wire cutters.

Then I would push this vintage soda bottle into the hole to make it more round!

Picked these up at IKEA for $5.00 each the other day!

Put lighting through hole, put in lightbulb…

And there you have it…and cool hanging lamp that casts spotted star shapes!

That was fun!

But I was not done creating!

Back to Gnome Christmas Trees!

I so need a gnome for under that tree!

Now, let’s see if these things sell!

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CIRCLES & CROSSES

Posted: October 29, 2012 in Crafts, Upcycle
Tags: antique, antique maps, antique metal frames, antiques, art, arts, arts & crafts, ARTS AND CRAFTS, crafts, crafts arts & crafts, fabric, fluer de lis, folk art, frames, interior design, map art, map crafts, maps, material, metal frames, needlepoint, needlepoint hoops, needlepoint hoops crafts, old maps, recycle, retro fabric, upcycle, vintage, vintage frames, vintage maps

I have a thing for circles, balls, orbs, globes, pizzas…anything round!

So I buy needlepoint hoops, lots and lots of needlepoint hoops.

Mind you, I do not do needlepoint!

But I do love cool retro looking material.

So, I put the two together and this is what I got!

From Button Up

This little cutie consists of three different size hoops, 3 different sample pieces from JoAnne’s and some twine.

I did glue them together, so it is a just hang one thing wall decoration!

Note to self, iron material next time!

For those that can not commit to 3…I give you this:

From Button Up

Not attached for cases where just one or two will do!

PS…the lint and stuff on the floor do not come with hoops!

I have saved the largest hoops (one really big…others quite large) for the wall on our new dining room.

Now on to something different.

I like frames, and I could not pass up this little metal one with tiny crosses!

From Button Up

I found a map, which I also love..and this little fleur de lis was calling my name.

From Button Up

All together, and they make an interesting conversation piece!

Circles, Frames and Maps…I wish I only like those 3 things!

Whatever it is for you…find new uses for your favorites!

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BUTTON UP!

Posted: October 26, 2012 in Crafts, Upcycle
Tags: antique, art, arts, arts & crafts, ARTS AND CRAFTS, Buttons, crafts, crafts arts & crafts, folk art, interior design, recycle, storage, storage containers, upcycle, utensil vase, vintage, vintage buttons

Buttons aren’t just for clothing anymore…

Especially cool old Buttons!

I pulled out my small collection the other day when I wanted to snazz up a few other things.

And here is how it went!

The below were just plain old round colored cardboard boxes.

From Button Up

AND NOW THEY ARE FANCY RESPECTABLE DECORATIVE CONTAINERS!

So easy…old buttons and some burlap!

From Button Up

Oh, and Mod Podge, gotta love the Mod Podge!

Wait, and some glue!

I used the Modge Podge to adhere the burlap and after that was dry, I glued on the buttons.

From Button Up

Sassy & Brassy!

From Button Up

Golden Girls!

They were so cute, I did not stop there!

From Button Up

This nice piece of pottery had the word “Utensils” across the front.

Why? I mean, if the utensils were in it, couldn’t you tell what was in it?

So, I got rid of it and prettied it up with some vintage white buttons!

From Button Up

I really like how it came out!

Can’t wait to use it now!

Any button will do…glue it on, sew it on, or even use wire for jewelry…

JUST BUTTON UP!
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BELT CHAIR!

Posted: September 25, 2012 in How To, Upcycle
Tags: belts, leather belts, Mid Century Furniture, Using belts for seating on a chair, vintage chair, Weaving with belts, Weaving with leather belts, Wood chair

I have been collected leather belts from thrift stores, for this very thing!

I had to wait for the chair!

The chair finally came my way!

From Belt Chair

After I shined the wood up, I took off the seat!

From Belt Chair

My trusted basket of leather belts, don’t you have one?

From Belt Chair

Then I was a’belt weaving away!

From Belt Chair

Not sure if I will keep the belts on this chair or not yet…

as well if I should cut the ends of the belt off or let them hang!

From Belt Chair

Love how the colors in the belts bring out the colors in the wood!

From Belt Chair

Belt Weave!

From Belt Chair

I think this technique turns a plain chair into a conversation/center/art piece!

I love the chair so much…I think I am not going to leave the belts on it as the shape of the back and the wood speak for themselves.

So, I will go back to waiting for the perfect chair again!

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OLD FRAME + STRING = ART

Posted: August 22, 2012 in Crafts, Uncategorized, Upcycle
Tags: art, arts & crafts, Metal Frame, Old Art, string art, String Flowers, String Weaving, The Last Supper, The Last Supper Art, upcycle, Vintage Metal Frame, Weaving, Weaving Art

What do you do when you have a funky piece of “art” in an old cool frame?

Find some string…

And…

START TO MAKE SOME ART!

Figure out your design…

And your color pallet!

Oh, and we can’t forget…

The Accessories!

String and Felt Flowers!

I have to admit…I luuurve these!

Now find the perfect place for the flowers!
(Ahem…maybe where you may think there are imperfections…Maybe?)

And there you have it…

A new bright cheery piece!

And yes…everything is for sale!

But right now…

It is happily placed on the wall in our living room until I am ready to let it go!

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TEAR IT DOWN TO BUILD IT UP!

Posted: June 4, 2012 in Crafts, Upcycle
Tags: antique, antiques, art, arts, ARTS AND CRAFTS, balls, baskets, craft moss, crafts, d, decorative, decorative balls, fake flowers, Floral display, flower arrangements, folk art, garbage, interior design, metal wire baskets, moss, moss ball, outdoorsy design, pool balls, upcycle, vintage, wire baskets

Sometimes I buy things that I have to take apart to make better!

This is a story about a cute little metal basket with some fake flowers stuck inside it.

I freed the basket!

And made something from the removed “stuff!”

I love decorative balls, but I have never made one for myself.

So, to add this “mossy” one to my collection, that I made, is quite exciting!

And now, how cute is this metal wire basket?

And I will use the flowers for displaying my “book” vases!

For 75 Cents, I got a basket, a ball, and extra flowers to boot!

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THE GARBAGE WREATH

Posted: May 29, 2012 in Crafts, Uncategorized, Upcycle
Tags: art, arts, ARTS AND CRAFTS, craft wreaths, crafts, crafts arts & crafts, Crafts for kids, crafts with garbage, crafts with toilet paper rolls, Easy Crafts, folk art, garbage, garbage art, interior design, recycle, upcycle, upcycle crafts, wreaths

100% FROM RECYCLED MATERIALS…

AND IT LOOKS GOOD!

UPCYCLING AT ITS BEST!

AND DOES NOT SMELL!

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SUPPLIES YOU WILL NEED:

– Toilet Paper and/or Paper Towel Rolls (lots of them)
– Old Magazines
– Glue Gun
– Scissors
– Spray Paint
– A paper plate

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START CREATING!

1) CUT ROLLS!

Toilet Paper rolls can be cut into 5 pieces. They do not need to be perfect or the exact same size.

The paper I buy seems to stick to the roll at the end, and taking it off is the hardest part of the whole thing!

2) START DESIGNING WREATH!

Start to lay pieces around the plate.

Get your design down.

3) GLUE PIECES TOGETHER!

4) START YOUR MAGAZINE PAPER FLOWERS!

Tear out pages of magazines, I go for the most colorful. I cut each page into 3 strips.

4) FOLD STRIPS OF MAGAZINE PAGES.

Fold them in the width that you would like your flower to be. Honestly, they do not need to be the same size…I just fold them up, and used the glue gun to keep the edges down. I have done it without gluing them down…saves some time.

5) ROLL YOUR FLOWERS!

Just start rolling. I glue down the last edge of a strip and then the beginning of the next edge strip. And you can make them as big or as small as you want!

6) LAY OUT WHERE YOU WANT THE FLOWERS TO BE ON YOUR WREATH.

Do not glue yet!

7) SPRAY PAINT YOUR WREATH.

I picked yellow, which worked well on that white paper, but did not come out that yellow on the brown paper rolls!
So pick your color wisely, or test it. Or you can just go plain…I have another piece hanging in my living room with no color!

Let Dry!

8) ATTACH YOUR FLOWERS!