Message in a Letter Tray

Soooo, if you haven't guessed by now, I love thrift stores. I love them more than garage sales. Because I don't have to drive, stop, drive, stop, haggle, drive, stop, etc. And typically the prices are fair. I visited one of my favorite thrift stores of the past and was disappointed that their prices went up so high. But, I did find this wooden letter tray that I really did like. It was in good shape and I loved the color.

I knew I wanted it to have a simple message and it is between our kitchen and dining table. So, EAT seems appropriate and to the point. I printed the letters, cut them out, and then traced around them. Tip: To conserve printer ink, change your font to outline only.

I then painted the letters in and applied my favorite antiquing gel on top. Simple, cute and cheap at 99 cents.

Ballard Inspired Mosaic

I REALLY love this picture from Ballard Designs:

SOOOOOO, I was thrilled when I found another blogger who was inspired from the same print and made her own version. http://hopestudios.blogspot.com/2010/07/paint-chip-mosaic-tutorial-tuesday.html
As a matter-of-fact, my crafty friends and I are getting together and making one ourselves. However, my friend Lisa and I agreed we like the variation the original has a bit more and I was determined to get closer to the 'original' look. So, I began making a mini version to test some ideas out.
I followed the guidelines that Hope Studios gave. I laid out my paint chips then numbered them on the back so I knew which order to put them in. I used Elmer's spray glue to adhere them to my almost 12 x 12 scrap wood piece I found.
Hope Studios mentioned they had a problem with the edges of the paint chips curling up. I didn't. So, I don't know if it is the spray glue I used or the pine wood board. Once the glue chips were in place, I scratched up the chips using an X-Acto Knife and sand paper.
I applied my decoupage glue and let it dry. Once that was done, I painted on the Plaid Antiquing Gel that I have mentioned in the Metal Frame project on March 27th. I still didn't have the effect I wanted. So, after the gel was dry, I got out the sand paper again. OH YEAH! It was perfect. Once sanded and roughed up a bit, I then decoupaged again. I LOVE this soooo much, I am going to make another, 24" x 24".

Double Cloche

It's common in the craft/blog sphere to see a zillion different cloches people have made. I have created my own little design using globes from 2 light fixtures. I found this globes at the Salvation Army for $4 each and knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. I had candle holders I wanted to cut down for a base. I just needed wooden platters/plates to make a platform. I was surprised how much a round piece of wood is $10+. Sooooo, I was on a hunt. We went to a rummage sale and finally found them! Yeah! So, here is what I started with: 2 Domes, 2 wooden plates and 2 candle holders:

My husband cut down the candle holders to make them a more stable height. I sanded and painted my wooden plates. Only to discover they were from Pier 1 for $10 each. (Did I mentioned I paid a whole BUCK each for them??)
Anyway, I painted them green and then applied my favorite antiquing gel from Plaid.
I also painted the candle holders. I had a much harder time. The finish was difficult to sand, and quite frankly, I am just a little too impatient. Soooooo, I the end result is equal to the amount of effort I was willing to put into them:

I then screwed the plate to the candle holders and tah dah! I've got my cloches. NOW, I jut need to figure out what goes inside them. You seeeeeee, the beveled glass does make things distorted a bit. So my birds just look like white balls. So, that again, requires patience from me. But, I couldn't wait to share my little project with ya!

Metal Frame Re-Do

First, I am so thrilled to finally post something again on my blog. I love doing this. I have oh so few followers, but I don't care! It's been over 5 1/2 months. Nina-Li is here and adjusted well to us as her new family and I can begin doing things again slowly that I love to do!

A few weeks ago my girlfriends Sheri & Sarah and I went to a High & Dry Home Goods sale. Sarah cashed in some B-Day money and I took in some ideas. One was I loved the way she used red on old metal pieces and antiqued. So easy, & oh so cute! So, when I was at Goodwill and found a scratched-up white metal frame, I had just the idea.

My plan was simply to do what I stated above, spray it with red and antique. Quick & Easy! In the middle of the short project I had idea #2. Unfortunately, like many project I forget to take a before picture, I get so anxious sometimes. So, this is the proof it was old ugly and white, the back part that I didn't finish.

So, after I spray painted this metal frame red, I added chalkboard paint! The metal part of the frame that is typicaly behind the picture got three coats.

Once everything was dry, I antiqued it using this antiquing medium from FolkArt. I have used this product for years and love it. But, it is becoming harder and harder to find. Even on the plaid paints website. I can only find it at Hobby Lobby & afraid it will be unavailable eventually. So, if you find it, stock-up! The color is apple butter brown. They have one or two other colors, and I do like them all. This is just my favorite. All you do is put a few drops on it and paint it on. Let is dry for a minute or so and wipe it down. It is easy to use too much. I advise only using a little bit, allowing it to dry for a short time; before using a lot and allowing 2 or 3 minutes of drying time. You can always add more but cannot take it off as easily. I also like to use this for decoupage projects.

What I love about this is that I can use this as a small magnet board, hold pictures in it, or use it as a mini-chalkboard. I LOVE IT!


I believe in inspiration. I believe taking one idea and turning into something a little different. I believe that the highest form of flattery is duplication. Sooooo MANY of my ideas come from something I have seen. However, this little, simple project I thought of all on my own. Well, other than the red inspiration. So, I hope you are inspired and I really hope that I will be back soon. I have a headboard and a small bench I want to combine into one large bench. Can't wait!