Recycled Store Hanger

You know those hangers you get when you buy pants or lingerie?  (undies to the rest of us)
They have two clips at the end, short hanger, plastic, presumably useless after you take off the underpants and toss the hanger in the garbage or you tell the cashier to keep 'em!

STOP!  This lowly little hanger can do so much more. #1...If you take pliers and pry off the two ends where the clips are...you have two strong clips that can be used for chips, bags, etc. Smoosh, break, file or whatever it takes to give you a smooth edge.

#2~Then...the little wimpy hanger that is left can be turned into an infant clothes hanger! Brilliant!!!

Today's project:
recycled hanger

What you need is:

store hanger

pliers

batting

fabric

ribbon

 First go out and get some new undies. You know you need them. Splurge! or buy some new pants, winter is on its way. (OR just go into the store and ask for those hangers.)

 

Keep ALL the hangers they come on. Take pliers and bend, bend, re-bend in the opposite direction til the ends come off. Stash those for future use with loads of things you need a good, strong clip for. (That pile of bills? maybe, perhaps you have a big pile of cash you need to clip? Wouldn't that be nice?!)

 

Cut the batting, I used 2 pieces of 4" X 8"  that would fit the length of one side of the hanger. I also cut 2 pieces of fabric about 12" long, and about 3" wide.

I wrapped the batting around the hanger. It stuck pretty good on it's own, no need to sew, but if you like you can handstitch it to itself. Then I sewed the long fabric piece, back stitching only ONE end. So that I can pull the free end threads and shirr the fabric.

Pull the bobbin thread GENTLY on both sides of the fabric until it reaches the length of the hanger. Turn right side out and snuggle this fabric onto the batting covered hanger edge.

Then hand stitch the two edges of the fabric together. Last touch is to add a ribbon over the stitching and tie in a cute bow at the top. So now you have a cute hanger using a recycled item. Yay!

 

tip of the day:

I don't remember if I used this tip before...but if I did - it's worth repeating. Save the pickle juice you get in your nice big jar of dill pickles. You can make easy pickled asparagus or beans with this. Blanche the asparagus or string beans in boiling water for 2 min.  Then plunge into cold water to stop cooking. Take the veggies and put into the jar with pickle juice. Let it sit in this for about 2 weeks (or longer). I use these pickled veggies to garnish my tray of deviled eggs, or eat for an antipasto.

 

That's all for now!

:D

 

 

 

 

 

 

Words, words, words

   What a crazy time of year. School is back in session, which means, yes...Christmas is right around the corner. I know, you are thinking, is Dee crazy??? But you just wait, you'll see. Time will fly by and soon we will be talking about Christmas gift giving.
     With me, it's when craft fair season really starts revving up. Why? Well, because people are starting to think about...yes, Christmas! And that's a good thing for me, because I like making gifts for people.
   This project was squeezed in between filling up my stock for the fairs. I was visiting my daughter, Dana. And she has a kitchen table which was in pretty rough shape on it's top. So on the spur of the moment I got inspired to decoupage it. I had a bunch of old dictionary pages with me that I thought she could use in her paintings, and they were perfect to use on the table.

Today's project is:

decoupaged table top

You will need:

papers to decoupage, (these can be anything from magazine clippings, to newspapers, to gift wrap)
Spray Mount (spray adhesive)
Mod Podge decoupage glue
sponge brush

First clean the surface you will be decoupaging on. This can be anything: chairs, tables, trunks. I have even used glass plates (see previous post for that one)

Then arrange the pieces you want to use. In my case, I laid out the dictionary pages and decided which way they would go. Some of the more yellowed ones were scattered around to give it depth and interest. And I tried to make the ones on the edges (where people would be sitting) easy to read. Something fun to do while eating, learn a new word!!!

Then I took the pieces outside, and over some old newspapers, I sprayed the adhesive on the back of the page. This is messy, because the spray will get on everything, so spray down close to the newspaper. You can skip the spraying part, and spread Mod Podge on the table and smooth the paper down on that also.  But I did not have enough Mod Podge to cover the table twice.

Then lay the pieces down, smooth out any air bubbles. If you have a brayer this work well, a dowel, or a rolling pin might work too.  After these have dried, take a sponge brush and apply the Mod Podge to an area, covering completely.

This may wrinkle or bubble up a bit as it dries, but don't panic. It will flatten out again when the decoupage glue has dried.
* One word of warning: Do NOT put anything hot on this surface you it has dried. I accidently put my tea cup down on it, and it started to bubble up.  IF that happens, take some steel wool, smooth down, and apply more Mod Podge. 

If you want to make it more durable, cover the top with a varnish or an acrylic sealer.

If you have some old chairs, like the ones I found at a garage sale, that were in bad shape as far as the paint was chipping off. You can see in the picture at the top, Dana and I sanded them and then she painted them with fun stripes on one and polka dots on the other, and put new fabric on the seats. And voila, you can make some fun chairs to go with your fun new table!  Paint words on the chairs to match the dictionary pages, if you use dictionary pages.

tip of the day:
My friend came up with some great uses for coffee filters. She uses them to hold small snacks like popcorn or goldfish.  You can fold up a couple, stash in your purse for the next time you take a little one to the movies. You buy a popcorn for yourself and pour some out for their own little bowl. Then you just toss them when finished.
 And she also puts them over bowls when microwaving to prevent splattering. Clever girl.

That's it for now...
:D

Glass Slippers

Want to get rid of those fabric scraps? Have those long pieces that you can't figure out what to do with?
Then this is your project...
WINE GLASS COASTER/COZIES/

These sweet little coasters fit on to the bottom of the wine glass. Not only do they catch the moisture, but you can use them as 'wine charms'. Since the linings are different colors, drinkers will be able to tell their glass from the other party goers. They make GREAT gifts! Add a nice  bottle of wine, and you have it made. See wine gift bags in my previous blog....

 

You will need:

1 piece of solid colored fabric for the base: 24" X 6"

1 piece of print fabric for the top: 24" X 6"

and 4 pieces of solid colors (different colors) 6" X 6" each for the lining

CD

scissors

sewing machine

sharpie markers

Use the CD to trace around the four solids, four prints and four asst. colors. You can stack them, pin in middle and trace and cut.



Put the print and the lining right sides together. Pin both sides and use your iron, fold in half to find the middle line.

 

Sew up one side of fold line, turn fabric and down the other side, about 1/4" apart. Then take your scissors and cut in half.

You will now take your iron and open up the halves, press open.

Then you will fold the solid underside under, leaving a bit showing (to differentiate from the other glasses). Now take these folded pieces and place side by side and stitch around the outer edge, about 1/4" from edge.

Now trim the excess fabric off about 1/4" from edge.

Then you will turn this inside-out, press open and voila, you have it!

Your party goers will be able to tell their own glass from the lining color peeking through the middle of the coaster. Plus the hostess will keep her table 'ring free".

Great way to use up scrap fabric. And what a wonderful gift. Make 12 or more if your recipient hosts lots of big parties. I made 20 for my neighbor's birthday for her big bashes. I used a different design for each one: zebra, parrot, stripes etc. Easier to remember your that way.

They are great, no worries about looking for coaster to set your glass on.

Then stash those wine charms. Who can remember which colored bead they had anyway!

 

Tip of the Day:

Grab one of those 6 pack cardboard wine holders from the grocery store, pick up a couple of nice bottles of wine. Then go to the dollar store, and get 4 wine glasses and a cellophane gift bag, slip on your wine coasters and wrap each glass in colorful tissue paper. Wrap up the wine bottles in tissue. Then put all 6 pieces in the holder, wrap up in a cellophane bag with a nice big bow, and you have an inexpensive (for you) yet unique and special gift for that lucky someone~!!!

 

That's all for now,

Dee

 

 

a remote idea

Well, I was reading one of my fav. mags: Country Living. It has lots of recycled type crafty ideas and I saw this one and thought, cool!
But once I got into it...I texted my daughter, Betsy, and said "arg". And she also thought the idea was a neat one, but the labor involved was immense. So she gave me a better idea, which you will see at the end...
today's project is:
BOOK - REMOTE CONTROL HOLDER

You will need:

a big old book (large enough to hold your remote control)

a ribbon, about 12"



a sharp exacto knife
Elmer's glue

First you need to glue the back page to the back cover, and the front page to the front cover. Close book and let dry for an hour. Then you will have to cover all the three outer edges with glue. I used a sponge painter brush and liberally spread white glue over the edges. Close and let dry several hours (overnight)
Then you have to take your remote, and trace it with a pencil, onto the first page. I would add 1/2" all around to that, since when you start cutting, you will see that you taper inward as you go. And it was hard for me to cut away more, after the fact.
So after several hours of cutting a few pages, and then cutting a few pages, and cutting a few pages, arg! I texted Betsy and said, "ARG"! She suggested that I take off the cover of a book and make my own box with cardboard.
Thanks kiddo....Brilliant idea, wish I had thought of that!....SOONER
Anyway, I have a remote holder, and a better idea for a gift. Who do you know that needs to corral those remotes? Visit the thrift shop for a good old fat book to use.

Tip of the day:
summer is coming, and out come the flip flops. Unfortunately these don't last too long because the little round toe holder comes out of the rubber bottom. So take a plastic bread tag and put it around the bottom of the toe holder. The bigger size will now not slip through the rubber sandal bottom hole.


That's all for now...
Dee

Cat and mouse

I have a new cat since November. My old buddy passed away and a new baby found her way to us.
Her name is Sedona, and she has been adjusting to us and we to her. She is not like my old gal, but sweet in her own rite.
I do craft fairs, and the few things I always sell are 'cat' items. So today's project is for the cat lovers and their cats or friends who have cats...
today's project is:
Cat Nip Mouse

You will need:

gray felt, fabric scraps (4" square), 6" ribbon, cat nip, fiberfill stuffing

 

 Cut two pieces of fabric (I use cotton, something thin so the kitty can smell the cat nip through it).
Place them wrong sides together.
Cut two ears from the felt, about 1 1/2" long. Place them inside with the ends sticking out just beyond the seam line.
Place the tail inside the mouse with just the tip sticking out of the end. Pin.

Now sew three sides encasing the ears and tail. Turn right side out. Fill with about 4 teaspoons of dried catnip. Then stuff the rest with fiberfill.
Hand stitch the remaining side shut.
Your cat will LOVE this, just like mine....

tip of the day:
When doing laundry, make sure you unfold any pieces and also unfold and unfurl before throwing into the dryer.  I washed some napkins without unfolding them, and they came out of the dryer with the same folds in them. Telling me that perhaps they didn't get washed all the way inside.
That's all for now...
Dee





wine bottle gift bag

I have some great sewing buddies who pass on fabric. And I love to figure out ways to recycle it. I got a particularly fun batch of fabric samples that used to be attached to a large sample book.     

                                                                       They have two grommets in the tops and all four sides were serged and finished.  I figured out that the height was a perfect size to fit a wine bottle in. But what about those grommets... so what I did was use them to put a ribbon through to close up the gift bag around the neck of the bottle.  And to minimize the amount of sewing, I turned the top down, stitched a casing into which I threaded the ribbon. If you look at the photo at the right, you will see that the top part is a little different than the bottom part. That's because it's the 'inside' pattern of the fabric.

The ribbon comes out of the grommets and they give a nice finished touch to the gift bag. I also made four wine glass coasters to match the bag. So now when I go to someone's house for dinner, I can bring a bottle of wine in a gift bag that can be recycled over and over. But the coasters can be kept by the first recipient as a hostess gift.  The coasters were made by zigzagging a circle of heavier fabric. Then trimming away the outside close to the zigzag edge.

 

If you don't have access to fabric samples, but have some fabric that would make a nice bag, you can still make some simple cloth wine bottle gift bags very quickly and easily.

Measure the fabric 18" X 13", and a length of ribbon about 24" long. (The ribbon in this picture was a little too short, it was 18" and I couldn't tie a bow with it when I finished. So I would rather have a longer piece) Fold the top down 3" toward the wrong side. Fold the ribbon in half and tuck it inside with the folded end extending out a little bit.

Sew up the bottom and up the long side, catching the ribbon into the seam. You don't even have to hem the top down. Because it will be hidden inside. Turn the bag right side out. Put your wine bottle in, take the ribbon ends, wrap around the bottle and tie. And tell your hostess that she could pass on the gift bag to THEIR next dinner party hostess.

tip of the day: I have an ivy plant which is getting a bit leggy. So I took a wire clothes hanger, curved it into a circle, straightened out the hook and stuck it in the middle of the pot. Then I wound the ivy around the circle to create a faux topiary.

That's all for now...

Dee

picture perfect

The daffodils are blooming everywhere here in California.
I love it, that means that winter is on its way out. I know some of you love the snow,  but it ain't me, babe!
April Fools Day has always been a fun day for my mom and me. She always tried to fool me (usually first thing in the morning) with silly things. Like: 'You have a spider on you', or when I got older 'Your sister is getting married', etc. Usually I figured it out and she couldn't fool me. Well, this year, I got one daughter, but not the other (but it was close). But my hubby got me, and my neighbor got me. ARG!  How did this happen? I'm slipping. Have to be more aware of the day next year... Look out you guys, I'm putting in my phone to remind me...APRIL FOOLS DAY!

Anyway, this nice weather makes me want to be outside and taking pictures. And of course, when you get that one great photo, you will want to put it in a cool frame. So today, we will be making our own frame from recycled materials....
Today's project is:

Picture frame
You will need:
cardboard (from cereal boxes, etc.)
paper, fabric or old maps
glue, scissors, xacto knife or box cutter

First, decide how big your photo is, and measure it, so you know how big to make your "open" area on the frame.

After that, measure a couple of inches larger and that will be the outside edge of the frame.

Cut two pieces of cardboard of the outside edges of your frame. And one long rectangle for the frame easel base.

Then cut out the inner area where the photo will be displayed. Make sure you leave about 1/4" all the way around smaller than the photo. So when you slip in the photograph, it will have a nice nest to rest in.

Now you need to cut three pieces of paper (scrapbook paper, old maps, magazine page, etc.) to cover the cardboard. It will have to be at least 1" larger than the cardboard pieces. Because you will be folding it around and gluing it so it covers the ugly cereal box cardboard.

For the easel and backing: lay the cardboard down on the plain side of the decorative paper.
Fold the corners  down and glue. Then fold down the edgesd and glue.

For the "open" frame, you will lay the cardboard frame down onto the plain side of the decorative paper. Cut an X from inner corner to inner corner, you will fold and glue these edges down. And then fold over and glue the outer edges.

Glue the front and back together on 3 sides. Leave the top unglued, so you can slip in the photo.
Then fold the easel back about 2" from the top, and apply glue to this top edge, and glue to back.

This works great on purchased notebooks. You only have to make the "open" frame, and glue to the front of the notebook (leave top open to insert photo), and you have a custom notebook! Cool!

tip of the day:
Lots of you are trying to get a jump on planting those veggies. Here's a little tip to help you out ~
Protect your seedlings from the wind by planting them in paper bags, partially filled with soil. Dig a hole in your garden for each paper bag. Place the bag in the hole, but leave about 2" of the bag sticking up. The paper will protect your little plant from the wind and will disintegrate as the plant grows, letting the roots unfurl into your garden's soil.

That's all for now...
Dee