The Look For Less... Pretty Pricey Pumpkins

I don't know what my deal is, I have been possessed by Halloween decorating. Perhaps it's my inner witch trying to get out, but in my defense we have had the same decorations for YEARS, they are looking a little tired, and I think they need a little EEK factor.  There are gazillions of adorable decorations to buy... but why would you when you can make your own for so much LESS moola?  I mean really, I would prefer to save my money for something I can't make
(hello, new fall boots!)...

These are from two very popular home decor stores... 

So what's a girl who doesn't have a couple of hundred bucks to spend on pumpkins (and wouldn't even if I did)  to do?  Start with this... 

                                                            I picked up these two plastic pumpkins at Michaels for about $5 each, but they are EVERYWHERE this time of year. I already had the black tulip paint, mod podge and scrap fabric in my stash, but if you have to buy them all three could be had for under $10 total.  Now for the FUN part...

For the white pumpkin just grab your tulip paint and start dotting... I didn't use a pattern, just went to town swirling them freehand.  This entire pumpkin took all of about 5 minutes to finish.  My kind of crafting, baby! 

For the monogram I first printed a large font letter on my computer and then traced onto the fabric.  You could use scrapbook paper, but the fabric molds to the curves of the pumpkin so much easier.  If you do decide to use paper, LIGHTLY dampen the paper before applying to the pumpkin... it will smooth out nicer and help avoid bubbles.  One coat of Mod Podge to the pumpkin, place the letter and then let dry for a few minutes.  Slap another coat of Mod Podge on top and you are on your way to the store to buy those new boots...  I hit mine with a spray of clear acrylic sealer since it will be residing on my front porch.

Spidey is from the Dollar Store... I'm good, but even I don't think I could have made HIM any cheaper.

DIY: Junky to JAZZY!

Working on goodies for our booth yesterday and got a creative wild hair... I needed something seasonal and eye catching but didn't want to spend any money (trying to MAKE money here, people!).  Remember those Redneck Wineglasses I spied on vacay?  Well, that got me thinking... here's what I started with:

I'm sure you have a couple of old mason jars in the back of your cabinets... if not, they are uber cheap at the grocery store or Wallyworld.   

I have about a million lone candleholders, and again, if you don't you can find them for next to nothing at a thrift store or Dollar Store.  

The curtain finial is a castoff from a rod that now has new decor to match Dear Daughter's room.  I shoved them in a drawer hoping I would find something to do with them someday, and here is SOMEDAY!

Next I dug out a couple of varieties of clear but ever so powerful glue, my trusty Mod Podge and some coordinating scrapbook paper...

I hammered a little hole in the mason jar lids and then screwed the finials right into the lid with the screw that was already attached. I applied a little Super Glue to the screw to keep it securely in place.  

Since I only had two finials and wanted to make three jars (groupings always look better in odd numbers, don't they?), I Mod Podged (that is a verb at my house) the matching scrapbook paper to the top of one of the jars. 

For all of them I glued the inner lid piece to the outer lid so that it became one solid top.  

I found the actual Super Glue worked best to attach the jars to the bases (and I suppose you could then hang yourself from the ceiling from them).  I got a little crazy and for one used an upside down soda glass as the base, and for another a $1 thrift store pewter candle holder that had no partner.  I filled them with some bright colored Halloween candy (but any seasonal candy would be cute), and VOILA!

Makeover Monday: DIY Fabric Embellished Vintage Shelf

I mentioned a a few posts ago that I have an issue with keeping things my mother (a.k.a. Mimi) gives me to sell.  Some things just never seem to find their way out of my house...  Recently she sent two boxes of goodies over with the intention that they be sold. I really do have intentions of selling MOST of it... but this little vintage shelf/paper towel holder caught my eye and I just decided it was entirely TOO heavy to ship (that's my story, anyway) and it needed to find a new purpose in Dear Daughter's bathroom.

I forgot to snap a pic before Handsome Hubby sanded and wood puttied, but here it is just after he worked his magic...

It was a cute little oak colored shelf like it was (before the sanding, you get the idea)... but I have bigger plans.  Hubs gave it a light sanding to take the finish off and make it easier for the paint to stick, then filled any nail holes or obvious cracks with wood putty.  Now it was my turn to get busy. My vision is for it to match Dear Daughter's fabulous new shower curtain ...

I have quite a bit of the fabric left over, and that VISION in my head... out comes my trusty spray paint.  I painted a couple of coats of this pretty blue, and decided to paint the rod a contrasting green color, just for fun.  

Of course, you know this is likely to involve a little Mod Podge, which I used to apply the fabric.  I use the pastry roller (yeah, Handsome Hubby who is also the household chef was not so happy about that) to smooth down the fabric.  I have looked high and low for a craft brayer for this purpose, to no avail, but the pastry roller seems to do the trick just fine.

After I played around with some fabric combinations, I measured the inside of the shelves and cut the fabric to fit.  I also traced the top and cut a fabric embellishment.  Then I applied one fairly thick coat of Mod Podge, smoothed down the fabric and let dry for 15 minutes.  Finally I went back and applied a nice layer on top to secure the fabric.  

Here's the finished product... 

It makes me so happy when the end result turns out better than my VISION (not always that lucky, but this time VICTORY)... here it is hanging in her bathroom.   Isn't this more fun than a boring old wooden shelf?  It is so easy to make things for your home that are original and can't be found on the pages of the Big Box store catalog... find some ordinary and make it extraordinary.   In the wise words of the good Dr. Seuss, "Why fit in when you were born to stand out?"

More GREAT Mod Podge projects here:

DIY: Scrapbook Collage Pendant

It's Spring Break here so I've got more time than usual to work on some fun little projects... hence, another DIY!  I happened upon this miracle product at Hobby Lobby last week:

YIPPEE!!!  I have been looking for this stuff forever... no clue what I was planning to DO with it, but it just looks like fun.  The trick to the MAGIC is it creates a thick, completely clear layer over your project that gives it dimension (hence, the name)... great for jewelry, etc.  As a practice I tried making some bottle cap magnets... first lesson learned, I needed to glue the fabric down to the bottom of the cap.  It still worked, but some of the fabric "floated" up a bit...

Did some research and found a project to make Collage Charms with Family Photos... oh, this got me thinking... and headed straight to the craft store.

The pendant was on the clearance rack (don't you just LOVE the clearance rack!) for $2.50.  It is mirrored, but the plan is to cover that up with some of that cool scrapbook paper, a pic of my kids and one or two of those stickers.  The stickers are those nifty raised plastic bubble type.  The key to the pendant is that it has a slightly raised edge, so when I cover it with the Dimensional Magic there will be a lip to keep it from overflowing.

Searched around on my computer until I found a couple of digital pics of my kiddos from the beach and printed them off in various sizes on a piece of card stock.  After a few trial and error attempts at cutting a circle to fit inside the pendant, I created this little scrapbook style collage...

The pic is from one of our beach photo sessions in which I torture my children to get that perfect Christmas card photo... SMILE, DON'T SQUINT, PUT YOUR ARM AROUND YOUR SISTER! Anyway... the "Joy" and flower stickers are from K&Company and I will use the rest of them in other projects.  I did tack the paper and photo down this time with a glue stick to avoid the floating issue.

Now comes the MAGIC... I didn't get a pic of this part, but here is one of a bottle cap after I filled it... wanted you to see it because it might freak you out when you pour it in the first time... TOTALLY cloudy and looks like you just ruined your project, but I PROMISE this stuff dries completely clear.

Now the hard part... set it someplace that your dog or cat or toddler (or husband who gets tired of your crafty messes) won't pick it up or bump it and leave it COMPLETELY alone for at least 24 hours.  This is torture for me because not only am I a messy crafter, I am ridiculously impatient.  When I did the bottle caps I was checking them and Dear Daughter yelled at me... MOM, it's only been TWENTY MINUTES.  Sometimes we have a serious case of role reversal...

Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.

Ok... now, here is the thing about trying new craft projects.  TRIAL AND ERROR.  I didn't snap to the fact that the pendant had a crack between the frame and mirror for the Magic to seep through... so I didn't get quite the "bubble" I was hoping for over my collage, although it did end up with a nice coating.  Also, the pic smeared... which really bummed me out but Dear Daughter says she likes it that way, makes it look old and artsy.  Ok, I'll go with that... ha!   I'm going to try again now that I've learned a few lesssons.  Back to the craft store... I LOVE spring break!

DIY: 10 Minute Framed Photo Gift

Having been homeroom mom and/or team mom more times than I have been able to keep track of over the last 15 years, I have come up with some fast, easy, inexpensive and always appreciated teacher and/or coach gifts.  This is one I just did for our awesome Aggie coach, thought I would share...

I started with this frame and set of stickers I picked up on a recent trip to Target (who doesn't LOVE Target?)... the frame was $6.00 and the EK Success stickers were $1.99.  Just be sure the frame has some kind of large flat surface...

Then I whipped out my ever trusty Mod Podge and a foam brush... no need to even use a paper plate, just dip the brush directly into the Mod Podge bottle.

I used the letter stickers to spell out the word AGGIES and found a couple of basketball/team themed stickers in my existing scrapbook sticker stash... since they already stick, I didn't need a base coat of Mod Podge, just put them directly onto the frame.  With the foam brush I put a medium layer of Mod Podge over the entire front of the frame to protect the stickers and keep them in place for all of eternity.

I took the frame to one of our games, and with a fine point Sharpie had the girls each sign the frame with their cute little signatures, popped in a 5 x 7 team picture I had taken at a previous game, and VOILA!

Adorable!  This would be a great project for a teacher, coach, Sunday school teacher, Scout leader... you name it!  This would even work for a wedding gift for a bride or members of a bridal party, with a pic of the wedding party and all their John Hancock's...  It's a perfect personal memento, and in our case takes the place of a card to go along with the SWEET gift card the team purchased for Coach J... for more mad fun Mod Podge project ideas, check out Mod Podge Rocks!

Drab to Fab

Every home has things we've had for years that are functional, but no longer "work" with our decor or just look TIRED... kind of like me.  HA!  My mom says we should all get to have another wedding shower after 20 years to replace all the stuff that doesn't work or is just outdated.  I think some men call that a mid-life crisis... but I DIGRESS.  Since I haven't talked any of my friends into hosting that shower, I've found there are some quick ways to spruce up things around the house.  Here's an easy little project I just finished for my etsy store to give you an idea...

This is a CUTCO Kitchen Tool Holder... these retail for $39, have lifetime guarantee,  are made of sturdy oak and there is NO reason to get rid of it except the oak color is kind of drab and doesn't have much POP.   What it looked like to me was an awesome blank canvas...

One coat of spray primer, and 2 coats of black satin spray paint got me started... digging in my stash I found this scrap of toile scrapbook paper and a leftover "jewel" I had from another project.

Trimmed a piece of the toile to fit one side and whipped out my trusty Mod Podge to apply... one coat of Mod Podge, then lay down the paper, smooth it out, wait 15 minutes and apply a second coat on top.  The smell of Mod Podge always makes me feel like I am in 3rd grade doing a paper mache pinata out of a blown-up ballon... remember?  Here's a cute Easter Egg Version with a link to the EASY How-To:

Easter Egg Pinata How-To

There I go digressing again!  Back to our project...

I attached the "jewel" to the front with this Super Glue Gel, which I love because it has a very controlled dispenser and doesn't run everywhere (thus gluing your fingers together)...

I finished the entire thing off with a coat of satin varnish and here is the finished product...

Upcycled Cutco Kitchen Tool Holder

So fun, and so many uses... pencil holder, craft supplies, q-tips... you name it.  I'm sure there is something in your home just waiting for a facelift, or a new "purpose"... have fun with it!  If you're just not feeling so crafty, this and other "upcycled" and repurposed items are available in my store... Orangie's Attic  Come see me!

Everything old is new again...

Good morning!  I wanted to share a project my hubs and I completed recently... having a TWEEN daughter (her word, not mine!) who wanted a big girl room we tackled a room re-do over the holiday break.  Her little girl pepto pink walls were transformed to a cool blue and her entire room was given a beach, vintage, PBTeen vibe.  At 11 she already loves an eclectic mix of old and new, just like her mama.  That said, she needed a small desk... first I searched etsy, but no luck finding something that was both JUST RIGHT and affordable to ship.  So, off to the thrift stores I went... first I found this chair:

Great bones, sturdy and only $6... SCORE.

But, no desk... on to another thrift store... WAY in the back, hidden in a hard to find room I stumbled across this little desk, which was clearly a shadow of it's former self:

Ok, this definitely needed some work... LOVED the shape, perfect size, but it had chunks and splits in the wood, and of course there are those gang signs spray painted on the side.  NICE.  But, only $15 and I had faith my handy husband could do something about the other ailments.  Took this home and hubby set to work with some wood glue, clamps and wood putty while dear daughter and I hit Hobby Lobby for lavender and apple green spray paint, Hard Coat Mod Podge (Hard Coat is best for furniture), new orange porcelain drawer pull and  5 different coordinating scrapbook papers... 2 days, several coats of spray paint, Mod Podge, and sealer later THIS is the finished product...

Seriously... I am in LOVE with this desk set!  So is Dear Daughter... The entire project cost about $35 and I didn't find a single desk remotely close to this perfect for her room anywhere else for less then $200.  If you have never attempted Mod Podge, it is a wonderful EASY way to transform something great into something spectacular.  There are tons of youtube videos with instruction, but I got most of my inspiration from this great  blog:  http://www.modpodgerocksblog.com/  Since we had some paper left over, we mod podged a few other things in her room to match, and she is thrilled with the results.  The really great thing about Mod Podge is it is non-toxic and so harmless, you can let your kids jump in and help... they LOVE it.  So, go get creative and find something to jazz up with some pretty scrapbook papers or great wrapping paper... have fun!

More GREAT projects here: