Beach Week: Craft Inspirations Day 2

No trip to the beach would be complete without collecting some seashells by the seashore. It's always interesting to see what you'll find washed up ashore.

Here are some of my finds for this beach trip:

In addition to shells I found some awesome-looking sea glass - would make for some great new Ring Bling rings :)

I used some of the larger shells for display in a round glass on a wall ledge. I was curious to see what other craft projects utilized shells and found a good roundup on the Better Homes and Gardens and Martha Stewart sites. The possibilities are endless!

My wall ledge (and shells!)

Shell wreath

Sand jars

Seashell candles

Shell lights

Shell stationery

Beach Week: Craft Inspirations Day 1

I was so excited to go antiquing yesterday, though to be honest I didn't expect I'd be buying much if anything. Living in a small studio apartment, I'm constrained for space (not to mention budget!). But most of the thrill of antiquing is through the hunt, and I found a couple of fun finds.

As an Archie comic book aficionado in my younger days, I felt the nostalgia hit as I combed through a stack of old comic books in one shop.

I picked up a Chili comic book, which looked like a precursor to the Archies. Wikipedia tells me that Chili was a redhead who was a nemesis to Millie the Model, whose comic series ran from 1945 to 1973. Chili received a spinoff series that ran from 1969 to 1973.
My other great find from antiquing were these lovely vintage keys:

I love the shape and detailing on these. Even though the first is a little rusted, I'm hoping to spray a silver finish to make it look good as new. I'm hoping to turn these into some sort of jewelry, but what? Seems like a perfect Pinterest project for me!

Earth Week DIY: Growing Green Onions

In honor of Earth Week this week, and also out of sheer curiosity, I decided to put my green thumb to the test. My latest Pinterest find was about growing your own green onions. And it's just about the easiest thing you can do.

Step 1: Purchase one bunch of green onions.
Step 2: Cut green onions for use, but save the whitish bulb portion.
Step 3: Keep bulbs in a glass and fill with some water. Place on a windowsill to get some sun.

Ta-da! Good thing I remembered this when I was cutting up green onions for my turkey chili this week. It's only been a couple days since I saved the bulbs but I can already see a little bit of growth. Check back later for further updates!

Day 1:

Day 3:

DIY: Metallic Letter Decor

Looking to start decorating those plain beige walls? For something budget-friendly, easy-to-do, and eye-catching, try making your own "metallic" letter wall art.

I purchased these letters from my local Jo-Ann store (sold at their online site as well). Click the "T" to be taken to the link.



The letters are paper mache, and therefore nice and light and easy to hang. I struggled for a bit trying to figure out the best way to hang them on my walls, and I ended up using Velcro by adhering one side to the letter and nailing the other side to the wall.

Along with your letters, pick up a can of matte silver spray paint (or another color - up to you!) and you should be able to take it from there.

Be sure to spray in a well-ventilated area (outdoors would be best), and give enough time for the letters to dry. I did a couple of coats of paint on my letters, and I like that they came out with a very metallic-like finish. Along with the "LOVE" letters, I made "DREAM" letters for over my bed.

Finally my walls are no longer naked!

DIY: Circle Scarf

I found this tutorial for circle scarves from the blog come on, ilene! and knew I had to try it. Not only are these scarves super cozy and versatile, they're a cinch to make!

So I saw this beautiful soft cotton print at my local fabric store (on clearance no less!) and quickly snatched it up.

The instructions were all fairly straightforward and easy to follow.  I will say this, however: if you're not using a knit fabric, as I was not, I would suggest reducing the width to make the scarf less poofy. Since knits tend to hang/drape more, you can get away with more width than with standard cotton.

But I was still happy with the end result, and can't wait to make some more!

craftgawker

You can expect new merch from me posted soon, but in the meantime I wanted to share a site that should satiate your crafting needs. As described on the site, "craftgawker is a photo gallery that allows you to visually search and discover handmade arts and crafts to inspire your own projects. We publish photography submitted by craft bloggers from around the world. Our editors review submissions daily and choose the highest quality, coolest images to showcase." Here's the link and some of the inspiring things I found on the site:

craftgawker | look to inspire

Belt Buckle Bracelet

DIY Heart Gloves

Brass Valentine

DIY Apothecary Bottles

Hello Kitty Hand Warmers: A Tutorial

Want something adorable and practical to get you through the blustery winter? Even better, want to be able to make one in about twenty minutes? You just pop these hand warmers in the microwave for about 30 seconds, slip them into your jacket pockets, and your hand will stay nice and toasty! Here are instructions to make your very own Hello Kitty Hand Warmers:

Materials:

- Fleece fabric (I found some awesome Hello Kitty fleece at my local fabric store, but any fleece should work. Each handwarmer used two squares of fleece measuring about 3.75 x 3.75" and I cut an extra 0.5" around the perimeter of the square, but you can also experiment with different shapes and sizes.)
- needle and thread
- pins
- scissors
- sewing machine
- uncooked rice (I've heard that buckwheat or flaxseed also does the trick for retaining heat but I haven't tried using these)
- funnel (helpful, but not absolutely necessary)

Instructions:

1) Lay out your fleece for cutting.

2) Cut out two squares of equal size, remembering to add about a half inch of extra fabric around the perimeter of the square as an allowance.

3) Next you will want to pin the two squares together. As my fabric was a print only on one side, I made sure to pin the squares with the reverse sides facing out. You will ultimately be turning this inside out, so keep that in mind as you pin the squares.

4) Now you're ready to sew! I'd say it's easiest to start in the middle of one of the sides (I'll explain why in a bit). Taking your pins out one at a time, use your sewing machine to sew where your pins were in place. I like to reinforce the corners by reversing and going back over them.

Remember not to sew your square shut! Leave at least an inch open from where you began. Once you flip your squares inside out and fill the pocket with rice, you'll be hand sewing the hole. That is why I find it easiest to have the hole be on a side of the square, as opposed to a corner which would require more maneuvering.

5) Now trim the excess fabric and the corners, being very careful not to cut through any of your stitches. This will help you lose any unwanted bulk once you turn the pocket inside out.

6) Through the hole in the seam, turn the pocket inside out. Use a blunt object, like the eraser end of of pencil, to push out all the corners.

If you have a funnel, place the funnel into the hole of the pocket and begin pouring in the rice. If you don't have one, you can always pour with a cup (but do this over a sink or tray to catch any strays). There's no set measurement on how much rice to use, but I would say don't fill the pocket up all the way. I like to fill it up to about 2/3 to 3/4 full.

7) Close up the hole in the pocket using a simple blind stitch. If you're new to this, a simple YouTube search of "blind stitch" will teach you all you need to know :)

And that's all there is to it! Now you'll have warm hands and an awesome new accessory!

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Mason Jars

While I cannot claim to be a true Southerner, there are certain things from the South that I just adore. Some of these loves are pecan pie, pearls, seersucker, sweet tea, and good ol' Southern hospitality. Another such item is the Mason jar. An iconic glass jar, the Mason jar was originally designed for canning food. Of course, what's old becomes new again, and clever new functions for these jars are thought up.

I was in Williamsburg, VA recently, having dinner outside at Berret's Seafood Restaurant and Taphouse Grill. I ordered a drink that was essentially sweet tea vodka with lemonade. This is usually my go-to summer drink but what made the drink 10 times better was the fact that it was served in a Mason jar.

Since then, I've been trying to come up with ways to incorporate the Mason jar more often into my everyday life. Lucky for me, my fellow Pinterest members have provided me with some ideas:

Cake in a Mason jar

Mason jar wall planter

Mason jar hanging lights

Mason jar sewing kit



Mason jar wall storage



Does anyone have other Mason jar-inspired ideas?

My New Obsession

My friend Kimberly recently sent me an invite to Pinterest, a site at which I'm now a complete addict. Pinterest lets you accumulate all the beautiful things you come across on the web (a virtual pinboard if you will), and organize and share them with your network. That way, you can find inspiration and ideas from others.

My favorite section to browse? The "DIY & Crafts" section, of course! Through my Pinterest perusing, I found this amazing DIY arrow belt that I can't wait to make. Check it out: