Vintage goodies

Have you noticed the changes to my blog? Well, it will probably change more as I tweak things – kinda fun! As I posted yesterday I cleaned screens and windows. . . and also warred with the weed wacker. After using that *&##@ lovely mother’s day gift from a couple years back :) my arms are SORE! Also all that vibrating caused my hands to go numb for a little while. But the yard sure looks nice!!! ha ha

Here is a picture of a vintage suitcase I got at a garage sale for $2.00 – what a deal. It’s some kind of painted metal – tin maybe? I think it will be great for camping – when the lid closes it holds everything in place – and the whole works can sit on the picnic table. I didn’t give it a great cleaning because it was going into service right away – and it’s for camping so the sitcker gunk is still there. Oh-well. See, I’m not compulsive!!

Cleaning schedule for today -

Have you washed your window screens yet this year? WOW does it make a difference!! Just remove the screen (do I have to say that?) get a bucket of soapy water and a scrub brush and brush them down (outside lol) - then hose off and let dry. Easy peasy. While I was at it I washed the outside of the windows on the side of the house that was in the shade. Then you can sit back, relax, and check that chore off your list!!

Free vintage embroidery designs -

Check out these wonderful vintage embroidery designs – they’re free! Thank you Doe-c-doe!!

Condiment Tray

I purchased this tray at the dollar store.  I thought I’d taken a before picture but I guess I didn’t. Grrrrr. We needed it because we are a condiment kind of a family – the tray holds cinnamon, salt, pepper, a pepper grinder, garlic salt, sugar, toothpicks, and napkins. It makes it much easier to wipe the table when everything is on a tray! And prevents me from having to hop up and down at mealtimes to get whatever it was we forgot! Anyways, it was stained (badly) a reddish brown and had a chicken/rooster on the bottom. I thought I could do better. ha ha! So I painted it and applied scrapbooking paper to the bottom with modge-podge. I love how it turned out! And don’t you just love the retro salt and pepper shakers I got at a thrift store?!

Oh – I also added a bead of wood glue to all the seams before I painted. It really made it much sturdier! The wrinkles you see in the top picture are defects in the tray. No biggie. And, if you decide to do this project I would recommend using a light-weight paper for the base – the scrapbooking paper I chose was double sided and really thick. Also in the top picture do you see the flower pot on the lazy susan? I painted it the same color – and by painting it on the lazy susan I could turn it any which way to paint. Cool!

Also – to family and friends – if you see cool vintage sheets at garage sales or the thrift store please pick them up for me – I’ve got a plan! (I’ll pay you back of course)

Close-up of owl and squirrel

I was asked for a close up of the owl and squirrel – so here they are!

The coloring is correct in the top photo – not the bottom. huh.  Well, I started this day with good intentions to get a lot done – the kids are done with school as of tomorrow at 1 PM, then will be home for the entire summer. (I’m actually excited about that – but the projects just don’t get done as fast when they’re home.) Turns out I didn’t get anything done! How does that happen?!!! I just might start a cleaning routine that I saw posted on another blog – it’s easy – a monthly checklist. Anyone with me? (I know you don’t like to comment – it would be nice – but if you just can’t give me a call and I’ll tell me ya or nay!)

Squirrel added -

Well, I added the squirrel – I tried to add some acorns but they looked ridiculous. So, no acorns. By the way mom do you recognize the squirrel and owl bodies? They were used using Carol’s scraps! And the border I picked out (at the top of the tree – not sewn on yet) is from the same stash – ahhhhh. Now how do I quilt this? Or do I quilt this?  I think I need to make some potholders and practice free-motion quilting. I sure wouldn’t want to start on this one – even though it didn’t take too much time – I think it’s too cute. Soooo, I’m going to be bringing this one up to you mom – you can help – I’ll bring it just as it is.

And I got the squirrel appliqué from here – what did I ever do before the internet? There are just so many good resources! Thank you!

New appliqué

I got this kit at a garage sale – what can’t you find at a good yard sale? The pattern came with the fabric and templates. Anyways, it looked a little bare so I got out the embroidery floss and added the outlining in a stem stitch around the leaves and a blanket stitch around the tree, and then added the owl. I think it needs something else – my son, Gabe, suggested a squirrel and nut at the base of the tree so if I get time today that is what I’m going to do.  Can you think of anything else???? I’m having fun!! It will be a wall hanging when it’s all done, so won’t get much wear at all.  I think when I’m all done I’ll do it again in summer colors with butterflies and birds – sew much to do – so little time!!  PS: I got the owl pattern via here – Thank you!!

The weekend!

What a wonderful weekend!! We went camping! For three nights and four days we were at the beautiful campground. I just love camping – even when the campground is only 9 miles from our house. ha ha! Especially when the campground is only 9 miles from our house!!  My husband had to work most of the weekend but managed to join us Saturday night and he only worked a few hours on Sunday. We went with our dear neighbors so we weren’t all alone. Here are some pictures of what we see at our favorite campground:

See! No other houses on the lake!

Gnarly old trees clinging to the shoreline:

 

The views from our campsite:

Our own dock: 

We get lots of rest time:

And some fishing gets done:

While packing up to go camping I wanted to put my craft room into a trailer and take it with me. I really didn’t want to leave all my projects behind. . . I’ll admit that a part of me kept thinking of all the other things I could be getting done if we spent the time at home instead. . . thank goodness we didn’t stay home – and thank goodness I didn’t bring a ton of projects with. . . I did bring my beads because they needed to be organized – and I did organize them. And then I put them away. We built some great memories instead!!

Vintage Kitchen Utensils

There is so much going on around here my head is going to start smoldering. This blog post is a much-needed break. I have a growing collection of vintage kitchen utensils.

(Don’t let the gorgeous Amy Butler fabric distract you too much) Here are some of them. The big wide spatula is to help lift a roast out of a pan. It’s best to have two. (I only have one right now.) Then there is a potato masher, a wisk, and a pizza dough roller. Isn’t that neat!! We make our own pizza sometimes and that roller is a prize! Well, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!! We will be camping – brrrrr!

I couldn’t decide on which image to share so you get to look at both – God Bless!

Not done yet!

Have many projects in transition, but nothing is completed. Part of me gets frustrated by that but a bigger part is trying to be patient and do a good job. It was such a beautiful day yesterday that we spent most of it outside messing around in the back yard. I’ve been digging up the dandelions, grrrrrrr, I probably got about half a garbage bag dug up. We don’t have much grass but we are blessed with dandelions and creeping charlie! However we are all looking forward to this evening – we are starting the weekly Tuesday night campfires again. For the past few summers we have a campfire every Tuesday evening and our neighbors join us. It has become one of the highlights of the summer. From around Memorial Day to Labor Day we can count on the campfire. We’ve gotten to know our neighbors so much better than we ever would have without the campfires, and found out what wonderful people they are! It seems like a big extended family on our block.

Here is a snapshot – you don’t have to worry about “wrecking” anything in our yard. Remember the friend’s homes that were a mess that you visited when you were a child? And you just didn’t have to worry whether your shoes were on or off? Well, that is what our back yard feels like right now. . . someday it will be pretty – but for now it is just a great place to hang out with the kids and friends and relax – let the kids run all over the place – bring your dog – have a good time!

Cup Hooks

Have I ever told you how much I love cup hooks? I really, really love cup hooks. I’ve put them everywhere! Here are some examples:

Under the kitchen sink – my pot scrubber brush, latex cleaning gloves, and toothbrushes used for cleaning -

Other side of the kitchen cabinet – metal skewers, big and small strainers.

Inside little cabinet: spaghetti strainer.

Inside little cabinet by the stove: round cake pans, and inside the cabinet the splatter guard.

 

Inside the ring-a-round: bread pans.

These are all the items that are often a jumble in the cabinets. Just use care when installing the cup-hooks! Don’t drill through the door! (Learned from experience!)

Pillow Cover

Well, sewing hasn’t gotten boring yet! I made this pillow cover. After cutting all those little squares I decided to actually MAKE something. I like the “deconstructed” look and left the edges of the appliqué raw although they have been fused down with fusible webbing and stitched. Look -

It’s hard to see in the photo but the pillow body is green, then there is a floral stripe, and then a blue stripe. Now look at the back – I attempted an invisible zipper! It is almost invisible – was I supposed to top-stitch? While sewing it I was timid about getting the needle too close to the zipper. It always scares me half to death when a needle breaks.

I see more zippers in my future. . . I will not let them get the best of me! Happy Crafting!!

It was a special day!

Today my daughter participated in the Special Olympics. She ran the 50 meter dash and also threw a ball as hard as she could in the soft ball throw. I stood down-field from her and told her to throw the ball and hit me! What an opportunity for her! lol! She didn’t. She sure tried hard though!

This is the motto – makes me tear up every time I hear it. . .

 

The school where the Special Olympics were being held also held a plant sale. The students plant and sell these. I got this HUGE tomato (Roma) plant, and these three perennials for a total of $4.00! What a deal. The plants were just flying out of there. The perennials are called Dame Rocket. After I got home I googled them and found out they are very invasive. Huh. In a neighboring state people are encouraged to pull them up by the roots as they find them while hiking or camping. Huh! Now what do I do? Where I’d plant them they wouldn’t have far to spread – and they would be protected on three sides so the seeds wouldn’t fly around. . . Our yard is so brown and run-down I almost think it would take an extremely invasive plant to survive! It will be a couple weeks before I plant so I’d really appreciate any comments and advice.

I’ve gotta be crazy -

Really – I’ve gotta be crazy! I’ve become obsessed with 2 and a half inch squares. See – I got a Moda Scrap Bag a while back and didn’t know what to do with it. Then I saw this quilt and became obsessed. I LOVE the colors in this quilt! Well, I don’t have the Wee Play line from Moda Fabrics but I did have these two scrap packs and both have been designed by Sandy Gevais so the colors match. . . what the heck. . .  I started cutting them up. Now I need MORE FABRIC!! Isn’t that always a problem. Here is a picture of all the squares so far (a couple hundred of them):

Then you start to sew nine-patches like this:

Then you cut them up – like you see in the above photo. Then you rotate and switch everything up and sew things back together like this:

You’ll notice I haven’t sewn it together yet – that’s cause I need MORE FABRIC!  I don’t want to sew the patches together until I have the new fabric because there might be different patterns etc. . .

Have a good day!!!!

Chipboard Basket

Did you notice this little basket sitting on the dresser in the post I did about the hat rack? Well, I saw this tutorial via Craft Gossip (thank you!)and thought it was a great idea! As my husband would say – I’d put everything into a container or a keeper and cover whatever is left in this world with fabric – I love containers. (and fabric, and paper, and . . .) Anyways, this one is made with two cereal boxes. It is sturdy! I’ll have to admit they are a bit time consuming – but you aren’t sitting there forever working on this – it’s more a matter of you do a bit, let the glue dry, do a little more, let the glue dry – like that. The pinecones inside are for a future project – so many projects – so little time!! Happy Crafting!!

Happy Mother’s Day!!

Happy Mother’s Day to all!! I hope you have a great day!

Hat Rack

OK – here is tomorrow’s blog post today! Aren’t you lucky!! ha ha. Are you a hat-wearing family? We are. We have hats all over the place. And I mean all over the place! I always have a hard time finding my hat when I want to wear it. I’m always putting it in a “safe place” so it won’t get stepped on or dirty. And we know about my “safe places” AKA the BLACK HOLE! So I made this hat rack to sit on a dresser in the front entry. It isn’t big enough for all the hats – but it’s a start. To make this I simply predrilled some holes in a scrap piece of plywood – stapled fabric over the whole thing – poked out the holes with the pointy end of my scissors – attached the drawer pulls – leaned it against the wall – hung my hat - and DONE!!! Easy peasy. Gotta make a lot more. My husband needs an entire wall like this – ha ha!

Last Wall Pocket

This is the latest wall pocket. I made it for my oldest son. He is too old for something “cute” – I thought this was a good compromise. As you can see this is just one big pocket. It works just as well as the others at keeping the clutter off the stairs. I tried reverse appliqué on this one. I have to say – I’m not fond of all that zigzag stitching. Next time I think it’ll just be raw-edge appliqué. I did this reverse appliqué by attaching the fabric you see peaking through (the skull design) to the bottom of the main fabric with a lot of pins. Then traced the design on the main fabric with a pen. Then all the zigzagging on the traced design - then cut out the design without cutting through the fabric on the back. Make sense?

Happy crafting!

Kiddie Mail Swap

Here is a great idea!! I am going to sign up a kid or two! I think my kids will be very excited to get mail – especially mail from another country! My youngest has always been fascinated by “where things come from” – country wise – this will really thrill him. I only wish it was open to adults. lol. Please go check it out – could be a lot of fun! Thank you Pigeon Pair!

Bathroom sign

I am tired of the bathroom always looking like a pack of wild animals has taken up residence in there. Trying to keep it clean is like trying to nail jello to a tree. So, I made up this sign and taped it to the door. Maybe I’ll embroider something more permanent this winter. ha ha

In case you can’t see it well it says: Warning – Enter this bathroom at your own risk. I will no longer be accepting responsibility for the appalling condition of this bathroom. Sincerely: The Frustrated Management.

String Bag

Do you ever get an idea in your head and it just never goes away? That is what happened here. I saw this string bag on a website that I can’t even remember now and the idea of it stuck in my head. So I had to make one over the weekend. Really this took less than a half an hour. No pattern was used – just simple straight line sewing. I got a little fancy and added a gusset to the bottom. That was way easier than I imagined. (The string is pulled through eyelets) This also gives you a sneak peak under the counter curtain. This is behind what is the bank of drawers on the other side. Not a whole lot of room depth wise – but perfect for this! If it was something that I’d be looking at every day I maybe would have fancied it up a little – but it will just be hidden – good excuse to keep it simple.

 

Here is how it is hanging under the counter by using cup hooks. I love cup hooks.

Counter Curtain

When we purchased our house there were/are many things that weren’t finished. One of the things is this counter. It was never “backed” with anything. I’m really kinda glad. There is a lot of valuable storage space under that counter! I keep extra chair pads, notebooks, magazines, . . . on some are ugly metal shelves under there - so they had to be covered. Over the years I’ve stapled up tablecloths, and raw fabric. Well, I finally got to it and made these curtains. I sewed them by hand! I wanted to experiment. I really like how they turned out. By using a blind hem stitch there are no hard stitch lines. 

 

And here are some pictures I took outside today. Yay!!!! I didn’t kill off all my plants last year!!!!

 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!!