One woman's quest to salvage the world's castoffs, lock, stock and bauble
This week's project -- a DIY woven wreath -- has been on my to-do list for about a year and a half. That's when I dragged this wire frame home from a garage sale. Actually when I dragged it home, it was green, but I forgot to take a "before" picture until after I had …
Here's what I made this week: And here's what I made it out of: That would be the lath in the shower of our downstairs bathroom, which the husband had to tear out in order to attach cement backerboard to the studs, so we could tile the walls. Sadly, this is what the lath looked …
I finished one more turkey assemblage just in time for Thanksgiving. When I first got the idea for this guy, I thought assembling the pieces would be quick and easy because most of the parts were going to attach to the hole in the center of the coffee basket that would become the turkey's body. …
With Thanksgiving coming up, I thought I'd make a turkey. Technically, he's a "turkey assemblage," but I am calling him "Robot Turkey 2.0," because he follows in the footsteps of last year's original Robot Turkey (pictured below). Off and on over the last 12 months, I've been hunting for turkey parts at garage sales and …
So I was supposed to be packing and shopping and generally getting ready for vacation today. Instead I made newspaper flowers. Why? Because newspaper flowers don't make themselves, people. Plus, I had this little tray full of silver baubles sitting on my coffee table, and every time I walked past it, I would think, "This …
Meet my new state-of-the-heart bulletin board.This is what it looked like when I bought it (at a thrift store, of course). It had a nice beefy frame that was painted in a neutral cream color -- and the paint was chipping in spots, so there was a little bit of mint green showing through here …
Continue reading "Valentine’s Day | Wisconsin bulletin board"
Valentine's Day decorations are generally not my thing. Most of the mass-produced ones out there are way too saccharine sweet and frilly for me. So this year, I decided I'd make my own Valentine's Day decor: something with a vintage industrial vibe that I wouldn't mind actually hanging in my house. I started with these …
Continue reading "Valentine’s Day | Hearts on a string decoration"
For reasons that aren't entirely clear to me, my son decided he wanted a Wisconsin State University shirt for Christmas this year ... which posed a bit of a problem because, as those of you who live in this neck of the Midwestern woods know, there is no such school as Wisconsin State. Apparently there …
Continue reading "Stenciling | A (fictitious college) shirt"
I've been a little obsessed with "turkey robots" lately. Some people call them "turkey assemblages." Or "upcycled turkeys." Or "steampunk turkeys." Whatever you call them, they're out there, and I love them. I've been storing images of some of my favorites on Pinterest and keeping my eye out for parts to make my own. A …
With Halloween closing in, I decided to get in the spirit and make a double-double-toil-and-trouble sign. Here's what I started with: a thrift store frame I had bought a few years back, thinking it was the perfect size (11 1/2 inches by 36 inches) for a subway sign. I needed a sign blank, so I …
Continue reading "Halloween | ‘Something Wicked This Way Comes’ sign"