Old Art Easel = Recycled Jewelry Holder

My friend, Jodie, found this old art easel in a thrift store for $20 and had the most wonderful idea to turn it into a jewelry holder!  She got the idea when she was shopping in Urban Outfitters and saw these:

If you ask me, our version is way better AND it cost a lot less!  Here is how we did it:

Logan and I had some old chicken wire left over from the garden last summer, but you can buy it any home/building supply store (Menards, Home Depot, Farm & Fleet) for about $15 a roll. We took a wire cutter and cut the chicken wire to fit the back of the easel.  We then took a power stapler and stapled the chicken wire to the back of the easel, trimmed up the wire around the edges and we had ourselves a very unique jewelry rack!  You can do this same thing with a vintage picture or mirror frame.  It was super easy and took about 20 minutes!

Here are some other images for inspiration:

Image 1&2: A Paperless Scrapbook, Image 3: Recyclart, Image 4: ModCloth Blog, Image 5: Cameo 24, Image 6: Easy DIY at Home

EVERYONE needs a hobby!

My husband, Logan, and I are pretty much complete polar opposites. Some might think that is a bad thing, not me! Yes, it can have its challenges, but in the end we make a great team. We make up for what the other one lacks. That is how I look at it.

I will not list all of our differences because neither you nor I have the time it might take; I will name a few though. I have creativity coming out of my ears. I love out of the box (or shall I say blue) ideas and creating something beautiful and unique out of something worn out, boring, and ugly. I simply love to create. My husband, on the other hand, might not have a creative bone in his body. Although, when it comes to CRAZY organizational skills, some of the best people skills I have ever seen, and being an all around good person, he takes the cake. My life would pretty much be chaos without him. I also tend to get overly excited about things, where he is as laid back as they come. He needs a little energy (me) in his life and I need a little bit of organization (him) in mine. All in all, we seem to fit just right.

Our very different hobbies
Logan comes home from work the other night and says to me, “You know how you have all these projects you are working on, well I have one of own!” He then whipped out this:

It is his father’s model aircraft from the early 80s. I guess it has only been flown twice successfully and during the last attempt there was a bit of a mishap. It needs some work, but my husband is determined to fix it and learn how to fly it. From what we hear, it is pretty hard to fly.

I come home from work the next night and say to Logan, with my over-the-top excited voice, “I think I bought all of craigslist today!” The look on his face didn’t exactly reflect the same excitement I was feeling, to say the least.

So, the next night we headed out to Columbus, Wisconsin in the middle of a snow storm. His father lent us his giant SUV to pick up what was posted on Craigslist as, “white cupboards on wheels,” aka a PERFECT storage unit for my creative workspace in the basement! Yippee! Our next stop was on the east side of Madison where a man was clearing out his grandfather’s old workshop. To sweeten the deal and convince Logan it was a perfectly sane idea to drive an hour in the middle of a snowstorm, I did not forget to mention that the man had a whole bunch of metal shelving units that would be perfect for ORGANIZING the basement. (That word wins every time.)

I was like a kid in a candy store in that workshop. It was full of junk, junk, and more junk. The quote “One person’s junk is another person’s treasure” might sum it up. It was full of old vintage orange crates, metal baskets, old wooden doors, bookcases, storage units, antique metal filing cabinets, and the list goes on and on. So, we DID come home with a metal storage unit, but we also came home with this:



1.) An old makeup display case from an American Eagle store
2.) One side of an old wooded shipping crate
3.) An old pink metal bookcase
4.) A long wooden bookcase
5.) The side to an old wooden crib (strange, I know)
6.) Old wooden filing shelves that used to be in a post office years ago
7.) And, as a bonus, the guy threw in an old window washer squeegee thing….. HAHA!
(Logan thought that was pretty cool!)

As we packed everything in the back of the SUV and tied the shelving unit to the roof rack, Logan asks, “what are you seriously going to do with all this junk!?!” I replied, “No worries, Hun. I will make it all beautiful!” That comment was closely followed by a semi-sincere promise not to look at craigslist for another 3 months. (Shhhhh!)

What I am trying to say is that I might not care about airplanes and he might not care about refinishing old furniture, but we both realize that making something work again or making something your own, can make a person really happy. So I encourage all of you to find the DIY project that works for you. I believe everyone needs a hobby, an escape from the every day grind of life.

I will keep you updated as to when my husband’s DIY project takes flight and my many transformations of trash to treasures!

I hope you all have a lovely weekend. I plan on making my favorite white bean chicken chili and corn bread this weekend, so look for the recipes on Monday!

Out of the Blue Idea #2: Personalized Jewelry Marks a Moment in Time

Triggerhappy
Valentine’s Day will be here before you know it, so listen up! Etsy designer, Triggerhappy offers two necklace designs that can be personalized to reflect the wearer's story.  You can mark a special date or place with a unique piece of jewelry.  Now does that scream romantic or what?

Triggerhappy's Narrative Cartography series features a tag made from recycled bits of silver and inscribed with the latitude and longitude coordinates of a location that's significant for the wearer. Not only that, but a secret password comes with each one-of-a-kind necklace, inviting the wearer to share the story behind the location on an interactive Google Map. The Narrative Cartography necklace is priced at $36.

Then there are Moon Shines, made-to-order sterling discs that reflect the moon phase on a particular date. Each 3/4-inch disc is fabricated in silver and then hammered and oxidized to indicate the lunar phase. Available on either a 16- or 18-inch chain, each necklace also comes with a handmade card featuring an accurate picture. Moon Shines have been used to commemorate births, anniversaries and even a burial, triggerhappy says.  Each necklace goes for $38.

Info: Springwise

Office Space - Let's Get Creative!

As you can see from the picture above, my “creative” workspace is anything but creative. It consists of a table with some junk on it and an old loveseat that my husband had in college.  Step one would be to junk the loveseat and step two would be to research some inspirational images to get some good ideas.  I have boxes and boxes full of art and crafting supplies sitting in the closet that I need to somehow organize in my workspace.  Two things I would like to incorporate into the space are a pegboard wall and chalkboard paint.  Here are some inspirational pictures of actually “creative” workspaces.  Enjoy!

Here is a tutorial of how to make a pegboard wall organizer that I found on Apartment Therapy.  Click HERE to view.  It only costs about $30 and that I LOVE!

Images 1-3: Apartment Therapy, Images 4-8: You Are My Fave Jr. , Image 9: A Pretty Trip, Images 10-12: Better Homes and Gardens, Image 13: Niken, Image 14:Flickr

Old China Cabinet = Shabby Chic Linen Storage

I am finally done refinishing the old china cabinet that has been sitting in my basement and I couldn't be happier with the outcome!  I cannot take all the credit though.  My husband and I worked on this project together.
I had originally thought I would use it as a china cabinet, it's original purpose, but after thinking about it, I have decided to use it as storage for linens in the lower level bathroom we are planning on finishing off this summer.

Here are a couple pictures showing the process.

First, take the entire piece apart.  Take all knobs, screws, nails, pulls, hinges, and doors off.  Remove all drawers.  Put all of the hardware in a plastic bag so you do not loose anything.

Fix any broken parts. I had to repair the cross bar between the legs.It had been broken completely in half. 

I used wooden pegs, wood glue, and wood putty to repair the cross bar.


After you have repaired all broken pieces, you will need prepare for priming by lightly sanding the surface of your piece.  After you have sanded, take a damp cloth and wipe down your piece to get all of the sawdust off.

You are now ready to prime. After the primer has completely dried, lightly sand and wipe it down with a wet cloth. You are ready to apply the paint.

I decided to roll on the paint b/c it is less messy. I would have sprayed on the paint if it were summer and I could have been outside, but b/c I had to refinish the piece in my basement, where there is little ventilation, I decided to go the safer and less messy route. Rolling on the paint worked really well.