Staz On Ink

I love this stuff.  It is ink that is permanent on just about any surface.  I have used it here on some pillows and a plate from Walmart. These little inspirational plates make great gifts.   I have seen it  used on tiles for coasters also.  I am thinking it would make a boring backsplash in a kitchen fun and unique.  Random stamping on the tiles with a cool stamp could really give a custom look for cheap cheap cheap.  I  like using the clear stamps because you can tell where the stamp will be applied without guessing.  So give it a whirl and see what you can come up with.

Here is the ink in black and a sample of a clear stamp collection.   Once you purchase a clear block you are able to stick these self sticking clear stamps onto the block  and use and reuse.

Here is just a fun simple pillow with a bird stamp. 

I really like this one.  I just stamped a piece of cream muslin (very inexpensive fabric) and I ironed the edges under and then sewed it onto the middle of my pillow fabric.  You could also use  Stitch Witchery to bond the muslin to the pillow.

  

Here is the example of the simple plate using an inspirational clear stamp and Staz On. 

I hope you can come up with some of your own ideas.  I would really love to see if anyone uses it on their backsplash!

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Whatever Goes Wednesdays at Someday Crafts

Cover a Book

Remember when you were in school and the first week of involved covering your books to protect them? Well, I decided to cover a book to make it look old and more my style. My lamp seemed like it needed some height so I found a book to help it out, but the green didn't work for me. I used brown paper and covered the book. I added some rub on decorations, small brads and stain to give it the aged look I wanted. I also made the frame with a Michael’s $1 wooden frame, scrapbook paper, Modge Podge and a cross from Hobby Lobby. I added the bead trim to the lamp to give it some whimsy. Here is a link for instructions on covering a book using a brown paper bag. How to cover a book.





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Kitchen and Barstool Makeover

We have lived in our home since May of 2004. It was built in the early 70s. The kitchen before pic isn't very good and it was from when the previous owners lived in the house. I know I have a different before pic, but I can't find it and I am tired of looking for it. (Update: I found a before pic taken after the wallpaper was replaced with paint so I am adding it.) So this shows you it had a "wonderful" floral 70s wallpaper with avocado and peach flowers. The good news is that the old rotary phone was avocado too...so they matched! The white tile was annoying because it never stayed white. The oak cabinets were in good shape. I know most of you hate the orangey color but I decided to work with it rather than get rid of it. It works for me. I do hate the orangey trim in my den and it is going away soon. Really really soon. So we had the tile, back splash, counter, sink and stove changed. I picked colors that went with the "orangey" cabinets.






Last summer I got tired of the bar stools. You can see in the previous owner pic that we inherited them. We are the 3rd owners. These bar stools where left by the original owners. They are sturdy and my son loves them. So I decided to put some color in the room and painted them red. The flash made them look a little brighter than I think they look on a daily basis. Here's the red bar stools.



So that's my kitchen.

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In Memory of My Mom

My mom was always very frugal and crafty. I never appreciated these things about her when I was younger. The older I get the more I realized how smart and great she was at making a home. My mom died 10 years ago. It was the toughest thing I have ever been through. She took her own life when she was 47 and I was only 29 years old. When I make something I think about how proud my mom would be to see me following in her footsteps. I had to learn to do things on my own when she died. I have her sewing machine, but never thought to take advantage of letting her teach me how to use it or enjoy doing projects with her. Each year I realize I like more and more of the same things she did. I wish we could enjoy these things together, but I can only enjoy my memories and some of her frugal finds. I thought I would share a few of my treasures that were my mom's with you.

When my mom died I kept looking at this photo of her at her lake place that she changed from a yucca plant infested desert looking lot to a lush oasis. The photo shows her holding my son while my nephew is playing in her pond. This was the summer before she died. I love this photo and it makes me happy so I had my boss' wife's dad do a pastel of the photo. He was a well known artist in our area named Ben Konis. You can click on his name to view his website. He passed away several years ago. I am so glad he transformed the picture below to art work that I will cherish all of my life and pass down to my son.

Here is my prized art work! Taking a photo of it just doesn't do it justice.


Old scale.

This is an old butter churner.

This cabinet has an old sewing machine in it.

I love my rusty old milk container. I am thinking I might make a table out of it someday.

These are some old ceramic jugs she had. My friend's dad gave me tho old metal fire water pumper thing because my husband is a fireman.

This is an old crock that I use to fill in the missing seat from the chair I love which was my mom's.

I am not sure what this is, but I use it to store blankets under my table. I like it...just don't know what it is.

Free Decorating

For the last two weekends I have been using stuff around my house to redecorate. It seems more times than not I buy scrapbook paper when I go to a craft store even if I don't need it. I am drawn to the prints and they scream buy me. I finally put some of them to good use today. I have had 2 boxes for probably 20 years. I use them to store extra candles and to decorate my fireplace hearth. I think I bought them at Pier One. I have been wanting to repaper them for awhile and finally took the plunge. I love when a project turns out better than you even hoped it would. I really like them.

Here is one of the before boxes with an after box.


Here is the before box close up. It had a world map print and an ugly tassel.


These are the after pics. The paper edges didn't meet up as well as I wanted them to so I used some paint to distress and age the edges. I think it makes the boxes look more interesting. I replaced those ugly tassels with a monogram which can easily be removed for a cleaner look. I painted the box lids off white and stained them and then distressed the edges with paint.




Last weekend I came across Susie Harris' blog that shows how she made the Pottery Barn typewriter wall art. Her project is amazing and I love it, but I wasn't brave enough to make it. Instead I just made one little "D" block using her instructions. I also repainted a frame and printed the Pottery Barn pic to put in it.