Purple Ribbon Bucket Bag

Just a simple bucket bag embellished with purple, lavender and silver ribbon.

Vintage Dragonfly Fabric ... so cute.

I just love this vintage dragonfly pattern. It gives this preppy little tote bag a little something special. My sister agreed and asked for it for her birthday. I have plenty of dragonfly fabric left, maybe I'll make another one.

The Latest Bag

My husband's late grandmother was a clothing designer ... and she left behind a lot of fabric, thread, buttons and zippers ... Nice stuff too. Awesome wool plaids, bright silks, crazy prints. They've 70's and 80's written all over them! And there's enough to keep me busy making bags for quite a while. It's all been living in giant Tupperware bins in my in-laws garage for years and years. Until now.

Here's the first bag made from Grandma Helen's bounty - a small reversible gray corduroy tote bag with a floral flannel reverse side, a removable hard bottom and a pocket on the floral side. (height = 11 inches; width = 8.5 inches at the base; depth = 5 inches at the base)

My Latest Obsession: Handmade Handbags

... I might see an Etsy.com store in my future. A little more practice, and I'll be ready to put these cuties up for sale. Stay tuned.


Graphic Floral Clutch with Matching Lining

















Orange Paisley Handbag with Solid Burnt Orange Lining

















Cranberry Paisley Tote with Solid Cranberry Lining

Bowling Pin Lamp Project

This project took me forever. I got the idea about a year ago ... and finished it today.

Here's what I did.

Got my hands on some old and discarded pins. A little bumped and bruised, but that gives them character. I gave one a good wash and roughed it up a bit with sand paper.

The most difficult part of this project is drilling through a pin. I needed a very long drill bit, a vice, and my husband's help.

I primed with spray paint primer. They're coated in plastic and spray paint can be tricky on plastic.

All in all, it has about 5 coats of paint. This is because it smudged a lot. This pin drove me crazy. Every time i painted it, it smudged, no matter how long i let it dry. Still, it's not perfect, but I think it looks cool.

The base is something i found at Michael's. I actually think it's supposed to be used for a clock face, but it seemed perfect for my lamp's base. I drilled hole through the center of this piece to match the hole through the pin and notched out a groove for the cord to sit in so the whole thing will sit flat. Finally, I attached the base to the pin using 2 in. screws.

Then I fed the cord through the base and the pin, fixed the cord in place with some heavy duty tape, and covered the bottom of the base with felt.

The wiring is the easiest part. I just followed the instructions on the lamp kit I got at Home Depot. Piece of cake.

The shade is simply a plain white shade that I covered in fabric. I liked this print so much, I also made a throw pillow to go with the lamp and a big summer tote bag.

It really wasn't a very complicated project and now that I've finished one and learned a few lessons, the next ones will be easier. I've got a new one in mind already.

Ceiling Fan: An update

August 2010 - An update to my update ... this fan is currently sitting out front for tomorrow's trash collection. There really was nothing left to do to make this fan not-so-ugly. The new fan is much easier on the eyes. :)

*******

Previously I posted my bombed ceiling fan rehab project. It was done on the fly without much consideration... and it showed. So, I went back to the drawing board and came up with a new concept. Actually, I took some advice from a commenter and a couple facebook pals. Take a look.
I know what you're thinking... why didn't I replace the ruffly frosted glass shades? Well first, I haven't found any that are that much better and second, they're expensive!!! So, for now we'll stick with what we've got.

What do you think? Better?

My lazy Dog

I'm always complaining about how lazy my dog is. He won't go for walks with me. I can barely get him out of bed in the morning. All he does is sleep all day. Here's a little taste.