Front Deck Flower Planters

Last year, soon after we moved here and while I was still undergoing radiation therapy, my son and grandson built us a new front deck. Here's what it looked like last July.....

Molly Brown, our chocolate lab, started enjoying it right away. I didn't have many flowers last year but I knew I'd hit on a winning color combo with the hot pink petunias and turquoise blue railings. So this year I went all out/completely crazy.

THIS year I've got a few more flowers, lol! Everything is in roomy planters so I can move them around as each pot fills in with colorful blooms.

I've redone that wreath at least 4 times and I really like this fresh green look. The glass marble balls are sitting on a candelabra built by the Welding Man. The corner plant stand is also one of his designs. On the top shelf is another marble covered ball in the perfect turquoise color.

More petunias in box planters, with creeping jenny and sweet potato vines. Needlepoint ivy on trellis towers built by the Welding Man. More planters with petunias, alyssum, dianthus, snapdragons, coreopsis and impatiens. And, of course, more blue glass marbled garden balls!

I love the golden lime green contrast of the creeping jenny against the hot pink flowers. Lavender, petunias, miniature roses, coreopsis, ivy, coleus and succulents are in these pots along with more balls and garden art. The green glass globe in the bottom planter is a "crackled glass" ivy bowl disguising a solar light.

I made the tall pillar for the blue garden globe out of a two foot length of PVC pipe. I glued on the glass marbles and other glass bits with Silicone II adhesive. The smaller blue glass pieces are Christmas ornaments which I've repurposed for the garden. The fleur de lis trellis tower is also the Welding Man's design.

Weed cloth and a layer of gravel keep grass and weeds in check around the groups of planters. I like the contrast of the exuberant plants with the zen look of the pebbles. This photo shows dwarf nandina, alyssum, succulents, "bamboo" grass, creeping jenny, dianthus, salvia, petunias, vinca and ivy on another tower.

I love how the cool cobalt blue glass cools down the hot colors of the pink and purple petunias. Can't have too many blue glass garden accents OR hot pink flowers!

This dining room chair had seen better days, so I dry brushed it white, popped the cushion off and found a planter to fit into the hole. Golden creeping jenny and dark green vinca spill over the sides and a pink snapdragon adds contrast. The Green Man planter is filled with ferns.

This blue ball is made from a bowling ball! The same Silicone II adhesive holds the marbles and sea glass in place. I am always on the lookout for different size balls to use in the garden, with and without glued on marbles. I've used different sized Christmas balls, styrofoam balls, light globes and ivy bowls. Anything spherical will work!

So pretty! Many of the plants I've used will return next year and the petunias are easily replaced each spring. The creeping jenny and ivy are so prolific that I'll be dividing them into even more containers next year. And of course, the blue garden balls will look good all year long.

Between a HUGE amount of family activities, my continuing treatment, my Etsy shop and this front yard project, my time has disappeared in great chunks. But as you can see, I have something to show for the time spent outside.

AND, this year we've planted all our vegetables in big planter pots in another part of the yard. Gardening in planter pots works so well for me, next year I plan to use even more. Because with beautiful plants and flowers, more is better, right? I'll let you know when I reach my limit!

Wind Chime Rescue

When we moved from our mountain side to our new home a year ago, the Mountain Man saved a few of our many wind chimes and brought them with us. I thought I would buy new wind chimes for our new yard but the prices shocked me! 

So, you know how I roll; I told him I was ready to take a look at repairing the old ones and he gave me this "wind chime stew" in an old canning kettle. (A wonderfully dented, chippy, rusty and blue enamel canning kettle which would look great holding a big bushy lavender plant and maybe some cascading petunias and alyssum....ahem, I digress. )

Whoa. What is in there? I see parts of four wind chimes! I sort of wondered if I'd really be able to salvage four complete sets out of this smorgasbord.

Here is my wind chime rescue kit...four and six pound clear fishing line, plastic beads, a yarn needle, split rings from 1/4" to 1", plastic rings, scissors, jewelry pliers, wire cutters and needle nose pliers. 

Just a note-Light fly fishing line is also excellent for wind chime repair and it is not expensive. It is very similar to the cord used in commercial wind chimes.One roll will give you enough to make/repair LOTS of wind chimes.

For these repairs, though,  I used clear fishing line and a 2" long yarn needle with a large eye. 

I set up on the front porch on a warm summer morning and got to work.

                                        

I had a gorgeous view of my 3 barrel fountain with ivy and flowers cascading around. It's just me and the hummingbirds and the butterflies out here. With a little Pandora on my Kindle and a big cup of coffee, it was a wonderful way to start the day.

So, DON'T do this first thing. Yeah, how pretty the shiny rings look against the porch boards! I couldn't believe I did this.  Moving on.....

I untangled a surprisingly intact wind chime that we'd made out of flattened and drilled kitchen ware and some light metal rods. I hung it inside this trellis tower and went to work. The top is a soup ladle that the Welding Man drilled to hold everything in a balanced design. He also drilled a hole in the middle to hang the "clapper," which is a spoon. I added more beading to each peace and triple tied the fishing line back and forth thru the mounting holes. One down!

Here is a light and airy metal wind chime that I am surprised is still around. I reattached all the pagoda pieces and the hanging chimes with fishing line. If you are repairing a wind chime, take a close look at how the chimes are attached. The lines for the chimes should not be rigid and should let the pieces swing freely. When in doubt, tap your hanging chime parts and listen for the best tone. You will soon hear the difference that long or short lines make to the sound of your chimes.

Since both of these wind chimes sounded good but  still looked beat up, I hit them each with a coat of silver metallic spray paint. 

 Ooh aah!

The silvery paint made all the metal look just shiny enough and the colored plastic beads are a perfect blue touch. The flatware by itself is not too "chimey" so the addition of the metal rods gave this a beautiful, tinkly tone. I like this so much I think I'll have to make another!

And here is the "pagoda" wind chime after a shot of that silvery metallic spray paint. Pretty and delicate and perfect for a gentle tone when the wind blows.

Here is the largest wind chime, the parts of which you can see scrambled up in that canning kettle. I put it back together with fishing line and the Welding Man made a new "sail" for the bottom out of a scrap of wood and an eye bolt. The metal and wood were grungy so I primed it with white spray paint followed by a good coat of that same silver metallic spray paint. Now this wind chime looks almost brand new!

Here's what's left after all the other chimes were put back together. The soup ladle is already drilled and we saved two pieces from an old wind chime. I gave the Welding Man three pieces of yard sale flatware to drill so I can get this chime repaired and hung up. Since I don't have any small metal rods left I am thinking of using some old keys and other metal hardware. I hope it comes out as neat as my mental image!

I'll post pics on my blog if it looks good. And if it doesn't it will just quietly go away, never to be mentioned again. :o)

I'll be joining the parties in my sidebar, come visit and link up. You never know what cool, creative and interesting ideas you will find!

Damask Countertop Redo

I am always looking for ways to improve my craft studio, and last month I decided to cover the long counter in oilcloth. I found the black and white damask remnant for $2.50 and grabbed that baby up, because I knew it was perfect for my space.

Ooh aah!

My room has lots of black and white prints and book page covered storage boxes, plus several covered in black and white damask print tissue paper. With lots of turquoise and red pops of color, this room makes me happy everyday. I'm so lucky to have this space!

The Welding Man and Insanely Creative Christy built the counters and shelves for me. This is a ten foot long counter and perfect for craft storage and projects. I used yardsticks on the edge of one shelf and like it so much I'm going to put them all around the rest of the shelves, too.

And we scored big time when we found this shelving for $2 each at the Habitat store. We bought everything they had in stock! I used double stick carpet tape on the edges to hold the oil cloth in place. This is strong and sticky stuff.

Once the tape was in place I laid the oil cloth down and smoothed it over the edge. This went so fast and was so easy.

It looks good, it goes with my whole design mix in here and it cost less than $3!! That's a win win. The oil cloth wipes clean with a damp cloth and since it is not permanently fixed, I can use it later for a cute black and white tote bag if I want.

I'll be linking up to the parties in my sidebar. Come visit and enjoy the creativity in blog land. You'll be glad you did!

On Sale in my Etsy Shop....

Yes, dear readers, like many of you I have an Etsy shop! I just finished setting up the special sales on my listings this month. If you're a fan of my burlap pillows....or rosette necklaces....or my original vintage style Halloween banners, click on over there!

A set of two shabby chic burlap pillows

https://www.etsy.com/listing/101723779/sale-until-june-30thfree-shipping-when

A vintage brooch centers this pretty rosette necklace!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/83317763/sale-free-shippingteal-blue-and

A pretty red and black necklace with a Steampunk vibe and a teeny tiny skull with red crystal eyes!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/83313808/salesave-free-shippingtiny-skull-w

One of my popular Halloween banners hand painted in a vintage carnival style.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/30684636/free-shipping-painted-just-for-you

Click on over and check out my shop. You never know what you will find!

Clever and Pretty Craft Containers....

...using Dollar Store adhesive shelf vinyl (or, contact paper).

In my craft studio I use lots of black and white prints along with recycled book pages and the colors red and turquoise. This is my happy, creative place!

A year ago for my ladder shelf I covered one box with Dollar Store contact paper in a neat black and white print. I had enough to do a few boxes but when I went back to the store they didn't have it anymore. Bummer. I kept checking back and finally this week they had it in stock again. Score!

I had been using this unadorned creamer container to corral the scraps on my work table, but with the new contact paper I styled it up, baby!

Oooh aaah!

And of course I didn't stop there. From left to right...the creamer can, a Starbucks bottle, an alfredo sauce jar and a mayonnaise bottle. Don't they look pretty with that contact paper and some lace and rosettes?

These bright red coffee containers were perfect for my studio, except for those ugly, pesky labels. With my Dollar Store contact paper I jazzed them up in a hurry. I have some more jars and bottles and even a vase and possibly a metal coffee can....good thing I bought an extra roll of contact paper.

I love it when I find a design element that works so well for my decor and it makes the already practical containers pretty, too. And it's cheap! Can't beat that.

Gotta link this up to the fun parties in my sidebar. Come visit and link up, too. It's a fun and creative way to spend some time!

Save That Sweatshirt With Paint

I love my zippered hoody sweatshirts and wear one almost every day. Unfortunately, that means they are going to get stained with paint and sometimes bleach. So what to do? Paint a design on them to hide the mess and style 'em up at the same time!

Yup, this black one had white and blue paint AND bleach spots on it. No problem! I added the script and the dotted design and saved it.

And my grandson gives me his sweatshirts as he outgrows them. This dark grey one had a cool design that was almost worn out. This is what it looks like now that I've rescued it with paint.

And here is what it looked like before I worked on it. The light grey design was almost gone and it just looked worn out and grungy. Tho I understand, grunge is the new black, according to my grandson. Lol!

I used Patio Paint in silver metallic. See where I've started free form painting the cross design? Patio Paint metallics are the absolute shiniest craft paint out there and with a bit of fabric medium work perfectly for this project and others. The metallics come in gold, copper and silver and I love their durable shine!

Here is the front detail repainted. Love this!

On back I added curlicues and a flower, plus I redid some lettering to read "Mom." I didn't go for perfect coverage and kept the paint a bit blotchy as I worked on the design. I really like how it's come out and the silver really picks up the light!

On the black sweatshirt I used this pre cut stencil and chose which phrases and words I wanted. I added fabric medium to the plain white craft paint and pounced it on with a makeup sponge. Easy peasy!

And here is the link to the stencil page at  The Crafters Workshop, the company which makes this fun stencil. They have LOTS of cool designs.

http://thecraftersworkshop.com/The_Crafters_Workshop/New_Products.html

This says, "Art is just another way of expressing our innermost thoughts." Down the left sleeve I stenciled "today," "yesterday" and "tomorrow." I hope you can see the blue highlights I added to "Art." Then I added dotted swirls in white and blue plus some free form fireworks type flowers on the front and pockets. I really like how this design came out! Best of all, you can't see the bleach or paint stains on this sweatshirt anymore! :o)

UPDATE...I just washed this black sweatshirt with my regular laundry. I zipped it up and turned it inside out  and just let her rip, figuring if it held up to a normal wash it would be okay. It came out of the dryer unscathed and the paint is even a bit softer to the touch after laundering. Gotta love that.

Now I'm thinking of doing this to a new sweatshirt and see just what designs I can come up with. I remember way back when guys used lace to stencil designs on their cars. What if I did that on a sweatshirt using layered laces and appliques? Hmmm, now my brain is working on more ideas.

I'll be linking up to the parties in my sidebar. Come visit and join up. You'll have a fun time!

Birthday Gift in a Deli Tray

The family knows when birthdays roll around they are going to get a hand made gift. They even request what they want. And May is chock full of gifting occasions, with birthdays for my three girls (Christy, Kelly and Katy) and my younger sister (Dianne)...plus Mother's Day. Buying gifts for everyone would be hard on the wallet!

So, for my daughter, Kelly, the scrapbooking, cardmaking, senior and prom photo taking impresario of the family, I knew that scrapbook embellishments and trims would be the perfect gift. Also, she asked for them :o)

I started out making ribbon and fabric rosettes with hot glue on punched card stock circles. I even made a few with scraps from a Tiffany blue bridesmaid dress I sewed for her a few years back.

I usually hand sew all my rosettes but since these were for scrapping and card making, hot gluing was fast and easy. Also, fun!

I made LOTS of rosettes.

And I made more!

Then I made yo yos, and melted fabric flowers and twine discs and a twine daisy and ruffles out of crepe paper and strips of fabric and even some white satin roses like the 37 I sewed for her wedding dress 20 years ago. Why 37? Because even tho the pattern called for 50 rolled satin roses, I stopped at 37...because that's a lot of rolled satin roses and I was pooped, that's why.

The dress, by the way, was GORGEOUS. You never even noticed it had fewer flowers. That's the story and we're all stickin' to it.

Then I was casting about for a cool way to package these cool flowers and trims. I tried putting them in a big jar but it looked cluttered and chaotic. Part of the impact of a good gift is PRESENTATION, baby! Then I remembered this clear plastic deli tray I'd saved from a family picnic. SCORE!

I must have loaded and reloaded and rearranged that deli tray four or five times. I put the ruffled trims in the center with a package of flat lace tied with twine as a divider. It was twice this full when I got everything arranged just so.

I snapped the dome top in place and realized I had to cover the printed label. So with a bit more ruffled crepe paper and a rolled rosette with a button and bead center and more buttons around edges and a bit of burlap and a satin ribbon...okay, time to stop!

Does anyone else have that small problem? Lol

And here's something sweet. Here are two extra melty edge and beaded flowers that Insanely Creative Christy made for Prom. Whose Prom? Kelly's daughter, Rebecca's, Prom.

Becca wanted to wear that same bridesmaid dress I made for her mother, with a few additions. Like sheer caplet tulle straps. And lacing up the back. AND melty edge and beaded flowers made by her Aunt Christy!

Memories and nostalgia win in our family every time! The dress came out nicely and Rebecca loved the family story that came with it.

And Kelly? After she was done smiling and weeping over her daughter's first Prom and ripping into her Deli Tray birthday present, she went straight to work on this....

The Prom layout from Christy's daughter's Senior Year in 2010. It's not done yet, she says. She's got the ruffled crepe paper trim in place and that rolled satin rose and the kickin' pic of those beautiful girls....

And since today is National Scrapbooking Day, she's got lots of plans for the rest of her birthday gift. Ahem, "Her Deli Tray Birthday Gift!"

So what have you repurposed for a special occasion? Cake platter, jewelry box, recycled mailing boxes, pizza box? Come on ladies, tell!

I'm posting on the link parties in my sidebar, come visit and share some creative love.