Scrapbooking

Sometimes I need a little inspiration and ideas to help me get started when I'm scrapbooking so here I have listed some of the pages I have recently done for my Best Friend. ENJOY!

 

Sewing Room Organization

 

 

I recently added a sewing nook in my office and needed to whip up a quick way to organize the many tangled spools of thread piled in boxes. Keeping things organized will help you get things done faster and honestly it just feels really good! This is one of the quickest and easiest projects I've done yet.   

 

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Wood board (thick enough to nail into without going through the opposite end)

Nails (Preferred size depending on your thread)

Hammer

Spray Paint
 

 

What makes this project so quick and easy is that I DON'T measure. I pick up the hammer and nail and get to work! If you are looking for perfect than I suggest you measure your spacing BUT I don't feel that it really matters. I did use a variety of sized nails because I know my thread will vary in size. After I hammered in each nail I used my (Rust-oleum) Key Lime spray paint to add color and let it dry before hanging it up.

                           

Below is a clear kitchen canister that I got at a tag sale (probably for cents) and filled it with my spools. Another great organizing trick!!

 

                                          

Organizing and designing closets

Since I have already organized both of my walk-in closet's (twice), I moved on to helping one of my best friends. 

This is how we spent our Friday night, a sign of getting old ((sighhhhh)). So we filled, I mean poured wine in our glasses and got to work. We started by ripping the closet apart. I like a blank canvas to work with. My friend is not experienced with power tools so it was a fun night of drinking wine and teaching her. 

In the "before" picture you can see the ample wasted space! The broken spinning shoe rack that, in my opinion, was better used as a tool rack for myself ... Don't ya think!?

I wanted to give you ideas I use when working with cluttered closest and are perfect for ANY closet clean-up. 

If you have room for any size shelves, DIY some that are a perfect fit for your items. Home Depot has the perfect scrap wood pile and the wood for these shelves cost about $3!! 

If you are an organized freak just like me... Clear tacks!! There are so many cute ideas to organize your jewelry BUT the tacks are the easiest and make the less damage to your walls. You can rearrange your collection as you add pieces (which face it, happens way too often). 

Long curtain rods are the perfect display for a large collection of scarves.

Cute baskets and containers are great for storing anything from hats to purses.

Be creative when organizing your closet. Design it around you and your needs. I myself need everything on display and and in my face just so I use or wear it. I have no problem spending time rummaging through drawers and bins at tag sales but I don't like doing it in my closet.

 

If you have odds and ends you need to organize and you aren't sure how, leave a comment! I'd be more than happy to help! Happy organizing!! 

Wine themed party centerpieces

 

 

 

These easy DIY centerpieces were used for my sister's bridal shower but would work great for any wine themed party. You can choose to use the bottles as they are but I wanted to tie the bottles in with the rest of the decor and even stand out a bit.

 

Materials:

 

     -Wine bottles (as many as you drink... I mean Need!)

     -Painters tape

     -X-acto knife

     -Spray paint in desired color

     -Flowers of your choice 

 

 

 Step 1: Clean and dry the inside of all bottles. Remove any unwanted foil around the neck. Using the painters tape cover all the labels you want to remain exposed (I covered both the back and front). Using the x-acto knife carefully cut around the label removing an excess tape to shape the label.










Step 2: With the spray paint color chosen place the bottles in a well ventilated area and spray away! You made need to do two coats to cover smoothly.

 

Step 3: After letting the bottles dry completely (if you don't want fingerprints left on your bottles then I stress .. completely!), CAREFULLY remove the painters tape. The tape did start to stick to one of my labels on the wine bottles and begin to rip it off as well so go very s..l..o..w..l..y. And Lastly... arrange your flowers in the bottle as desired! Easy right!?

Chevron bookshelf

 

For all DIY crafters out there looking to experiment with fabric this bookshelf is an easy fun way to add color and textiles to your room. This shelf wasn't in bad shape but needed some sprucing up. Spackle and sanding were the first things on my list for this project. Then I gave it two coats of paint followed by a poly finish. The back was measured, cut and and primed white to brighten the fabric. I measured the fabric and stapled it to the plywood. Before attaching the back I added two coats of water based polycrylic to make it firm and durable. After nailing the back onto the shelf I added a piece of trim to frame it and make it look complete.

D.I.Y Chevron Wall Art

 

So I really needed some inexpensive wall art to match the very bright blue my boyfriend picked out for our living room walls. When I grabbed these frames from the side of the road I didn't think they were in such bad shape, but then again I do think that about much of the items I snatch up! ...  anyway... boy was I wrong! As I tore through the back and took them apart piece by piece they got worse and worse! Being an optimist I knew the outcome would be worth the effort and I plunged in!

 

First order of business was to put the frames back together... they literally fell apart as I took the back off. This was nothing a little glue and staples couldn't fix! When the glue was all dry I grabbed a dark grey (Rustoleum of course) spray paint and gave it two coats. While the paint dried I cleaned the glass and measured and cut the chevron fabric. The poem "You are my Sunshine" was actually part of my inspiration for this project so I went searching online for the perfect image. When I found them I printed them on glossy  photo paper. I replaced the backing with new (not moldy) cardboard and voila!

Rock Away!

 

Entering into the business of repurposing I knew there would be oodles to learn. Sorry but I can't seem to find a word that fits the amount of information there really is to discover! Every day I retain so much new and exciting information. It could be about antiques, paint, fabric, a new process...I'm sure you get the point. I am getting exceptionally better a measuring ONCE and BAM it fits! Which is why I was proud of myself when working on this piece. Such little accomplishments can feel so big sometimes!

 

So with this rocking chair I kept it pretty simple. I didn't want to add to much craziness since there are so many places people like to put rocking chairs and this wasn't a custom piece. I really thought this one was perfect for a nursery so I went with a gender friendly color and fabric.

 

I had to gut the chair since the springs were sticking up your whoha when you sat down. Not very comfortable so that had to be taken care of. Instead of springs, I opted for a more comfortable approach. I cut plywood to fit and covered it with lots of foam and batting. The most time consuming part of repurposing this rocking chair was the sanding... there are lots of little nooks and crevices on this pretty piece. But, once that was done I was so excited to started with the new look!

 

I'd like to know from you...

Do you have a rocking chair in your nursery? What made you choose it?