Junk Le Bells February Project

This is my February Project for Junk Le Bells. To find out more about "Junk Le Bells All Year Long" and join in on the fun visit Jill Ruth & Co. here.

This is a quick easy project that would be fun to do with kids. I used heavy weight cardboard for my bird base and wings. I decoupaged music paper to the bird base. I added a little cinnamon to my decoupage medium to give my bird a vintage look. I used a heavy coat of red glitter on the wings and attached them to the bird. I attached a red sequin for the eye. As a finishing touch I outlined the bird with a coat of silver glitter. I love the way it sparkles and can't wait to see it on my Christmas Tree in December. Well, I guess I can wait... I am ready for spring....

Have A Great Week.....

Keep On Junking
Nora

Thrift Store Tins

Happy Monday Everyone. I have a small collection of some unique tins and have been looking for a way to reuse them. I don't like to store items inside as I need my junk visible. These tins are widely available at my local thrift store and very inexpensive. Imagine my surprise when I found this upcycled treasure at Good Will. What a great way to repurpose your favorite or vintage tin and showcase some of your delicate keepsakes. I immediately purchased the tin and have been studying and examining in hopes to eventually craft my own version. I wish I knew who the original creator of this project was, whoever you are wonderful job.

For starters, wadded up paper (like a brown grocery bag) was placed inside the tin and then covered with a heavy weight fabric. The lid was attached and supported with the help of the sturdy paper and heavy weight fabric.



Trim was attached around the outer edge of the tin.



Finally, keepsakes were added such as a ceramic boot, small lace doily, tatting thread, embroidery floss, pocket watch, vintage perfume bottle, buttons and glass beads, lace, tea stained glove and some floral accents.





I hope this gives you the jest of the project and has inspired you to create your own....

Recycle, Reimagine, Repurpose, Reuse...............

Keep On Junking
Nora

Meet Tyler

I want to introduce you to Tyler, my new crafty friend. Tyler is a 19 year old college student who enjoys several different craft techniques. I ran across Tyler in the Etsy forums. She was looking for upcycled items to feature in an article for her blog. I replied to her post and was very honored she selected my monopoly purse as one of the items for the article.



Click here to view the full article. She has several pictures of upcycled projects and a few tutorials as well.

Have a good weekend...

Keep On Junking
Nora

Blue Jean Quilt

Happy Monday Everyone... I have always loved the look of frayed quilts. I finally made one for my daughter. I love the fact that the quilt does not need to be lined. I made a four inch square template from cardboard. I traced around the template on my vintage flower fabrics and old blue jeans. The squares do NOT have to be perfect since the final seam allowance is frayed and a bit forgiving. I sandwiched one flower square and one jean square wrong sides together and sewed an "X " through both layers. Next I assembled rows from my sandwiched squares using a generous seam allowance. I used a fleece throw to gauge how many squares I would need in each row and how many rows I would need to complete the quilt. Once the quilt was assembled I sewed approximately one inch from the outside edge of the quilt. I clipped all my seam allowances and laundered the quilt which frays the edges. I love the look of the vintage flower fabrics with the blue jeans. Tracing and cutting the squares is time-consuming, but once the squares are cut the quilt assembles very quickly. You can make your square template larger or smaller than four inches, just don't make it too small as you need a hefty seam allowance for the fray process. This makes a very warm quilt and is a good use for scrap jeans.....

Recycle, Reimagine, Repurpose, Reuse...............

Keep On Junking...
Nora

Organization Helpers

If you are in need of some quick shelves to display or hold supplies think about using some old discarded drawers. I always snatch up mismatched ones from garage sales and thrift stores. I love the way they display my Hodge Podge collections. I seem to be drawn to the little animal figurines lately. I can't quite put my finger why... Do you ever wonder why you are intrigued with some of the things you hoard and collect?? I know my buttons are not very handy stored in the glass containers, but I think they look so pretty. I have learned to deal with the slight inconvenience.....

Recycle, Reimagine, Repurpose, Reuse...............

Have a wonderful weekend.

Keep On Junking
Nora

Burned Fabric Flowers

Happy Monday Everyone. I seen this on Jill's blog and decided to give it a whirl. What fun. To make the flowers you cut out various sized circles from fabric, burn the edges of the fabric, sew the circles together and add a decorative button to the center. So simple... I used a candle to burn the fabric and tongs to hold the fabric. I had a wet rag handy to extinguish the flames. It is fun to experiment with different types of fabric, some just melt while others are very flammable, so be careful. I used 14 circles of fabric for each flower. Make your first fabric circle around 4 inches. Cut additional circles of fabric slightly smaller than the previous circle. Have fun...

Keep On Junking
Nora

Kids...

Kids, you gotta love em. No, really, I read somewhere that you are required to love your children. I love my kids, most days. Okay, Okay, just kidding. I love my kids every day. Having children has been the most demanding, terrifying, yet rewarding experience of my life. Demanding because I am overwhelmed with the day to day struggles. Terrifying because I age five years every time they are hurt or sick. Rewarding because I am overjoyed when they succeed... So many things change when you have kids. Like did you ever wonder what happened to all your stuff. All the things that have come up missing over the years. Let's use silverware as one example. A very long time ago, before kids, you know you had a full set of bright shinny silverware. One day you just happen to realize you are missing one spoon. Well, isn't that the strangest thing. I mean how do you lose a spoon? After a while, you notice a few more spoons are missing and a fork as well. By this time you really don't find it unusual. As parents you are slowly becoming accustomed to the fact that everything you own has depreciated since the kids came along. You are well-aware that by the time they are grown and gone you will be lucky to salvage any of your beloved treasures. My best guess, my missing silverware is most likely buried out in my yard somewhere... Have you ever been dusting (something I avoid as much as possible) and pick up your prized possession only to have it crumble in your hands? You instantly wonder "when" did this happen, and "who" did this? If your dusting schedule is done on a regular basis you can narrow down the "when" rather quickly. If your dusting schedule is like my schedule you might as well forget the "when" and concentrate on the "who". Good Luck with that. Let me know how it turns out for you. My personal favorite is "Yeah, I am pretty sure Dad broke it"... I can't begin to tell you how many times I have explained to them that the microwave is not self-cleaning. To please hang up their coat, pick up their clothes and take care of their dishes... We sure thought we had it made the year we gave them cell phones for Christmas. Oh boy, now we've got them. Finally, something to hold over their heads. We had the power back. Or so we thought. I very quickly realized giving them a cell phone gave me peace of mind. I only punished myself by taking away their phones. Naturally the kids figured this out as well. Our master plan and new found parenting tool faded away... Oh, and those teen years. What fun. When I say fun I mean fun like a scary carnival ride that last way too long... They push and push and then it happens. That golden moment of parenthood when you realize you just recited a phrase your mother used to say. Yeah, you know, the one you vowed you would never say to your children. Yikes! You begin to wonder "What has happened to me and when did I become my mother"? Funny how things change. How many times have you said: "I WILL NEVER,"or: "MY KIDS WILL NEVER," only to find out you were wrong. Yes, having children is like a circus most days, but I can't imagine life without them. Kids, you gotta love em.

Note...

My oldest is 29 years old. He is extremely intelligent with a sarcastic sense of humor.

Next is my 27 year old. She is very beautiful and exceptionally talented.

Next is my 16 year old. He is the artist of the family and my most respected critic.

Finally, we have my 14 year old. The apple of my eye. She is and always will be my baby...

And I love them all very much...

Keep On Junking
Nora

Chess Game Mirror

Happy Monday everyone. I love games, another one of my addictions at thrift stores and garage sales. In this project I have transformed a discarded chess game into a wall hanging. To start I attached a frame to the chess board. I spray painted the plastic white game pieces silver. Next, I lightly added glitter to the black and silver pieces. I glued the game pieces to the chess board. In the center of the chess board I added a small silver mirror. I embellished with trim, a tassel and some colored glass marbles. Finally, I attached a wire hanger to the back of the frame. I was very pleased with the way it turned out.


Recycle, Reimagine, Repurpose, Reuse...............

Keep On Junking
Nora