Washcloth Transformation

I love it when I find a project for something that I actually need- not just something that would be fun to make, but then what will I do with it?! Even better if I already have everything I need!

This project came at exactly the perfect time! I couldn't believe it! I had been trying to think of the best way to transport all of my teeth cleaning tools for an upcoming trip to Arizona when I stumbled across this tutorial for a Washcloth Toiletry Travel Wrap. I seriously couldn't believe my luck! It was exactly what I needed!

 All you need for this project is a sewing machine (though I suppose you could do it by hand), a washcloth, some ribbon, and any embellishments you might want. I decided to do a button snap closure on mine, rather than deal with tying and untying the ribbon.

 I trimmed the fringes off each end and did a zigzag stitch over them to prevent them from fraying. Then I folded up the bottom of the wash cloth, determined how many slots I wanted and how big they needed to be and did a basic straight stitch to create the pockets.  Finally,  I stitched the ribbon to one side of the cloth, sewed on my snaps and embellishments, and in under an hour:

 Tada!!!

 It snaps open and closed very easily!

Unrolls nicely to hold everything I need, including my toothpaste and floss!

I decided to add a flap to the top to ensure that everything stayed neatly in place, not to mention clean and covered. I was worried that this would be a nuisance, but it hasn't been a bother at all!

Even with everything tucked away inside, it folds up nice and neat! It worked out so perfect on our trip, and I am actually still using it now that I'm home. This was such a fun and easy project! Made better by the fact that it is useful!!

Cake Pan Transformation

Okay, I admit I felt a bit silly over this particular transformation project. However, I decided to persevere and see it through, regardless. Even knowing that it possibly would end up in the trash.

Weeks of work later, I now have a pretty and very sturdy cake pan serving tray.

For several years... yes, I said years.... I have been holding onto this rusty cake pan. It was a brand new pan, I just made the mistake of sending it through the dishwasher and it came out rusty. Argh! I was so annoyed, I simply couldn't throw it away. I tried over and over to get rid of the rust, and it would go away for a while, then come back. Rust does that. That's why when something is rusty, sometimes it's best to just throw it away.

The more I talk about this, the sillier I feel for holding on to that old cake pan.

However, I finally made up my mind what I was going to do with it! Step one, however, was to come up with a solution for the rust problem. Since I couldn't seem to make it go away, I was going to have to cover it up. After talking to an expert (aka, my dad), we agreed that if I painted the pan, then sealed it with poly-urethane that the rust wouldn't be able to come through.

 I'm not sure what made me settle on pink, but after trying several other colors, when I saw the final project, I am glad that I did.

 As I painted, new rust spots actually came through. I painted and I painted, but nothing was covering those rust spots. Finally, I decided that since the inside of the pan was going to be covered anyway, I wasn't going to worry about it.

Day after day, I painted this pan, layer after layer, waiting for a nice day in Northern Utah in spring (few and far between) so that I could poly-urethane the pan!  Finally, a half-way decent snow-free day came! My pan was ready, I'd finished crocheting the liner a week earlier... it was time!

I am really glad that I saw this project through to the end. For one thing, the crochet liner, my general conference weekend project,  was a lot of work and I'm not sure what I would have done with it had the tray not... "panned out".

Besides, it turned out so incredibly pretty! I love it! The liner covers up any rust spots that exist, and the polyurethane is preventing it from rusting anymore! I love my cake pan tray! It's useful, pretty, and I didn't have to throw away my cake pan!

Lamp Transformations

For my birthday, I bought myself a set of lamps. Wasn't that a sweet thing to do? I have been on the lookout for new lamps for over a year. Not just any lamps. Of course I wanted to create my own lamp, but I've had so many ideas running around in my head that I couldn't settle on just one! So, I've been looking, instead, for good, cheap bases that I could work with. Finally, that's exactly what I found!! For less than $10 for two, I finally found lamps with potential!

 Now, I don't know what image pops into your mind when I say "lamps", but these are so unusual that I doubt you are picturing anything like this:

 Weird, right? As soon as I saw them (and especially after I saw the price on the clearance sticker), my mind was racing! They had so much possibility! There was so much I could do! I could work with them as they are, or I could completely dismantle them for parts! I admit I wasn't overly fond of the green- it reminded me of the green shag carpet I had in my bedroom when I was growing up.

Yes, that's right. Green. Shag. Carpet. Pretty.

These lamps sat in my room for a while as I tried to decide exactly what I was going to do with them. Part of the problem was that I had so many ideas, I couldn't choose just one. I was hesitant to do anything permanent that I might not like. So, after much consideration, I decided to play with some ideas that could be easily undone when/ if I changed my mind.  These are my "first editions", and possibly will be changed someday. Until then, I love them!

I love oriental patterns and designs. My artistic abilities aren't the best, and this didn't come out as well as I had hoped, but given the fact that I drew it free hand, although it could be better, it could definitely be worse! (In case you are wondering, the script is Japanese for "Peace")

After working on this for a few days, I decided to do something a little different with the second lamp.

Both designs are super basic and simple. Both are easy to undo, should I change my mind. I started by covering the green base in plain black paper. In both cases, the design elements I chose- the drawing in the first and the doilies in the second- are simply slid underneath the plastic that is covering the lamp shades.

I love the way the base creates its' own shelf-like element. I love my birds but also considered stacking a few small books inside, or a bundle of flowers. What I love the most is that I can change them anytime, very easily! I love my $5.00 lamps, with all their potential!



The Jewelry Project

Ever since my divorce, I have found it impossible to wear rings, uncomfortable to wear jewelry in general. For me, this has been a bit of a struggle! My fingers feel naked! I can wear earrings, and even the occasional necklace, but rings just feel wrong on my fingers.What options does that leave?

I needed a bracelet.

I realized that I don't have many bracelets, and the ones I do have are pretty old and tarnished. So, I set out on the search for the perfect bracelet.

Easier said than done, especially since I didn't exactly know what the perfect bracelet would be! I tried many times to make my own bracelet at home, but none of them seemed right. So, I patiently held out hope that someday soon the perfect bracelet would find me!

I was at Walmart- of all places- browsing through jewelry, not holding out hope for anything, when I stumbled across these pretty beaded bracelets with silver tags. Each tag had a different word on it, "Faith", "Love", "Peace" "Family", and "Courage". They were very pretty, and I liked the idea, but none of them seemed quite right. Either I didn't like the tag, or I didn't like the color of the beads. But for some reason, I simply couldn't walk away. Right as I was getting ready to give up, I flipped one of the tags over and realized that there was writing on both sides.  I flipped over each tag, curious to see what they said. They were nice, but none of them were quite right. Until I came to the last one. "Courage". Underneath it read "to know yourself". This was not at all what I expected! But it was perfect.

When I started this "project", I didn't actually realize that it was going to be a "project", so I didn't take pictures of the bracelet before I did some construction on it.  My plan was to remove the beaded part of the bracelet, which was attached by metal rings, and string up a new set of beads. As I was going through my beads, I realized that I couldn't decide what beads to choose! Then it hit me. Why choose one?

These are the beads from the original bracelet. I removed the metal rings and attached lobster claw closures to each end. 

Once I got started, I realized that the possibilities were endless!  I made so many that I had to go back to the store to get more clasps! I also have a few charms that I can link on also. The little crown is my favorite!

 Each strand of beads are strung on plastic stretchy cord so that I can slip them on and off easily.

Because the message is meant more for me, I tend to wear the beads facing up, though I don't fret too much about how it sits.



I love that I can have a message of encouragement with me everywhere I go, and I can change it to fit my needs for the day! I had no idea when I saw this bracelet that it would turn into something more!

This is my favorite jewelry project ever! And the best part of it is, it can be ongoing! I know that there are more bracelets to come!

Journal Transformation

I don't know why, but for some reason, I have always been drawn to these silly composition notebooks. Really, I just love notebooks in general, there is something so appealing to me about those empty pages, begging to be filled. It must stem from my years spent dreaming of being a writer. So, of course they caught my eye when I saw them marked down at the beginning of this last school year. Did I need them? No. Did I have a plan for them in any way? No. Did I buy them anyway? You know I did.

Recently, I found myself in desperate need of a journal. I had some heavy thoughts, and I needed somewhere to put them all! That was when my mind turned to those wonderful composition books still sitting in a drawer in my craft room.  Perfect.

I call this a "transformation" project, because, of course, I can never leave well enough alone. I mean I love composition notebooks, but lets face it, they are boring! I planned on spending a lot of time with my journal. I wanted it to look nice.  A little bit of scrapbook paper and glue and Viola! Pretty!

 As you can see, I couldn't stop at one. The journal on the left, the one in black, is a "Thought" journal. This is where I write down all of the awesome, funny, and thoughtful quotes I hear, read, and see. It's perfect to have a place to keep them all, and nice to be able to skim back through them when I need an extra boost, or need a nice quote to share with someone.

The green journal is my personal journal. It can be a little scary in there, so I wanted it to look extra pretty and welcoming on the outside. Ah, deception!

The one problem that I had from the start was that the journals didn't want to stay closed. That's composition books for you. So, I crocheted pretty "belts" for them! Did you know that a book can wear a belt, too?

This is one transformation that is getting a lot of use! I love it!

Cute plant holder

We recently got back from a trip to Arizona to visit family before Christmas. As we were getting ready to leave my mother-in-law's house, she rushed out of the room saying, "Oh, I want to give you a plant!" My heart sunk. I have a history of murdering plants. However, when I walked into the kitchen and saw that it was one of those plants you put in water, not soil, I agreed to accept it.  I do okay with that sort of self-maintaining plant!

What I love about this particular plant that she gave me was what she had it in. Can you guess what it is?

 Really, it just looks like a rock, and I didn't think too much about it until she explained what it was.

Look closer.

It's a toothbrush holder!! Any style would do! There are so many cute novelty toothbrush holders out there, could you imagine the possibilities? I love this idea!! What do you think?

Snowbulbs

I am a saver. I can't help it. I look at things and see possibilities past the purpose they have already served. So, when a light bulb burned out in my bathroom several months ago, I couldn't quite bring myself to throw it away. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it, but I knew I would find something! Don't I always?

When I saw this tutorial , I knew I had found the perfect project for my bulbs (which multiplied fairly quickly!).

 Now, I will admit that I actually like Amanda's better. I love the plaid scarf that she used on hers. Way cute!! However, I really love love love how mine turned out as well!!

 This was such a fun and easy project, I will probably make more, even though I'll have to buy the bulbs! At 4 for  $1, what a cheap project! I like her penguin, too, so my little Snowbulbs may be getting some waddling buddies!

 Can't wait to get them on my tree!!!!

Un-Canny Transformations- aka "FALL" for cans

So I've had this project in mind for a while, but it just kept getting pushed aside. I haven't been crafting much, and  had other things I needed to do more. Finally, this weekend, desperate for a break from trying to get organized in a new church calling, I grabbed some cans and got started!!

Originally, I painted the cans a dark brown, but I didn't like how it turned out. So, I painted over the brown with cream colored paint. You'll notice, I wasn't careful about how I painted. I wanted the brown to show through. I liked the rustic feel it gave it.  Once the paint was dry, I took some strips of cream colored fabric and glued those around the middle of the can. You can't see this detail very well in the pictures. I probably shouldn't have done everything cream colored, but I actually really like the combination of beige, tan, brown, etc. I'm "beige", I guess!

After the fabric, I glued a piece of ribbon around, lace on one can, gross grain on the other, followed by two small doilies I had crocheted earlier.  Both of the doilies started off as the same pattern, but I played with them a bit and they turned out very different on the outer edges. I had so much fun playing with the pattern, tweaking it to work for me.

I played around with ideas for the final touches and finally settled on some raffia bows and soft peach colored buttons. I promise, the buttons are peach, they are just so light they look- what else- beige!

It wasn't until today that I realized that this project was a perfect "Transformation" project! I know I haven't done one in a while, and it hadn't even crossed my mind while I was working on these. Like any good "transformation project" it started out with a need. This was a need for something pretty to hold my markers for my note board in my dining room.  

 I liked the idea so much, I couldn't just make one!

 The second can will hang from my towel bar above my kitchen sink. The colors are perfect for fall, but they will work year round- because they are beige! Ah, see how that works? I can put different flowers and things in this second, larger can to add a splash of color to my kitchen.

It was while I was digging in my "recycling" box to find this second can, that I stumbled across several small tomato sauce cans. Another idea was born. I already had my supplies out, why not run with this "un-canny" project and have some fun with it!

For this project, I painted the cans with two coats of cream colored paint. The letters are nothing more than foam stickers. At first I painted over them in a variety of fall colors, orange, brown, soft yellow, and a peachy red color. I guess I really am beige, because I ended up painting over them in solid brown. I just didn't care for how the colors looked together.  They were too different in tone, some too bright and some too soft.  I know it's "boring" and beige, but I really like the solid brown.  Once the cans were dry, I glued cream colored gross grain ribbon around, glued down the now dry foam stickers and added some flowers and orange rhinestones for a splash of- heaven forbid!!!- color!!!

I had so much fun with this project. It was nice doing a transformation project again. I recently took two boxes of my "recycling" stuff to an actual recycling drop off. It was sort of sad, but I realized that I had to let some of it go! My husband was shocked. I guess he doesn't realize that I still have two more boxes in the closet.... More transformations? I think so!!!

Happy Fall!

Did you feel that?

It's coming. Can you feel it?

 

Milk carton transformation

The next project for my transformation series was more just for fun than anything.  I was playing around with some fabric scraps and decided to try this out. I've made fabric scrap wreaths before and just love how they look, messy yet pretty all at the same time.

 You may have noticed that the title of this post mentioned milk cartons.  Can you guess where the milk carton came into play? It's not where you might think.

It's not the butterfly, which I am in love with, by the way. No, this sweet little butterfly is actually made of a 2 liter soda bottle, cut, painted and glued together, then embellished.  Actually, the milk carton is inside of the wreath. I used some of the bottom half of the milk carton for the actual wreath form. Once the fabric strips are tied on, you can't even tell. Granted, this isn't the strongest form, but as I said, I was just playing around. Still, it turned out so sweet that I decided that, logical or not, it still belonged in the transformation series. Not all of my projects turn out as I'd hope, but the journey  was still fun!

Another pillow transformation

You may remember that I am working on updating my throw pillows in my living room using the existing pillows. Why buy new when the original ones are still in such good shape? Still, it was time.

 From boring, plain and yellow....

To new polka-dotty fun! Half a yard of material and a simple sewing job and I have all new throw pillows! I was happy to see this transformation complete!

Fireworks Flowers

When I realized that I was in charge of planning last weeks' Achievement Days activity, I felt that it was the perfect opportunity to discuss patriotism.  I had a lot of fun planning a lesson and learned an awful lot about our flag and all of its' symbols.  I wanted to give each of the girls something red white and blue to take home with them, but needed to use something I had on hand.  That's when I decided to make some flowers out of paper. There are so many cute paper flower ideas out there, but I finally settled on these:

 It wasn't until I had made several of them and fluffed them out that I realized how much they look like fireworks! An honest to goodness accident that couldn't have served its' purpose better.

Luckily this isn't a difficult pattern since we have 18 girls in our group. Ironically enough, only one girl showed up. Lucky me, I have a bouquet of fireworks in my living room!! Still, I wish more girls had come. I had lots of fun activities and a game planned. I made these for helping me split the girls up into groups:

 I was going to give each girl one of these sweet little star bobbi pins as she came in.

The color on each would determine which team she was on.  I thought this would be a fun way to gently  force each girl into a group that she may not have chosen herself. I think it would have worked too. Still, the one girl who came loved her pretty little star, though she never did understand what it was for.

Regardless, I enjoyed making these and am sure I will find another use for them!

4th of July transformations

I love the 4th of July and have a lot of great memories that coincide with this awesome day!  I have a 4th of July wreath, but needed something a little more sturdy. I had been playing around with some ideas when I decided to combine several old project ideas to make this one.

My new wreath is anything but typical- which is why I love it so much! I combined some of my soda can flowers with some stars cut out of soda cans and painted. Add those to a spare picture frame and you have a unique and unusual patriotic wreath. I deliberately curled the edges of the stars to mimic the waving flag. This particular project took well over a week, a lot of trial and error, some help from my husband, and a bit of frustration,  but I love the finished product. Now to hang it outside... where I won't be able to see it... Hmmm, maybe it will be an indoor wreath!

Transforming my garden

My husband decided that he wanted to try a little garden this year. I have a bit of a purple thumb and so was hesitant.

 Under my constant love and care, I can kill nearly any plant! Poor garden, never stood a chance!

Don't get excited about the little red tomatoes. They've been hanging there for over a month, never changing. No, these aren't cherry tomatoes.

Something tells me that a jalapeno plant isn't supossed to look like this...

The squash plant didn't last long enough to be photographed a second time. So, when it comes to plants, I tend to lean towards things that can't die. That's why I decided to make my own garden.

Once I got started, I was having so much fun, I couldn't stop!

This sturdy plant will last year round. It requires no water or food, but will enjoy some attention nonetheless!

Upon closer inspection, you may be able to see that the body of the flower is a soda can and the center is the bottom of a water bottle. The stems are painted barbecue skewers and the bow is part of a soda can. You can't see it here, but the flowers hang by the existing tab on the top of soda cans.

I made these flowers over a month ago and they are still as vibrant as the day they were made. This is my kind of garden!