Works in Progress...

I am joining another Make~over party this month on the 25th. Hooray! Just enough "fire" under my butt to actually get motivated to accomplish something around my home! Anywho..... this month I am going to be making over my front patio area. I've been working on a table cloth and pillows for the table and chairs I have under my gazebo....here is a sneak peek of the "before"Here is the after of the table & chairs. I used a potterybarn duvet cover for the fabric :-)Here are some things that I recently picked up for my front porch make-over. All of this is from yard sales... the cement bird bath $15 bucks, the two rose bushes in pots $3 bucks each. The large mosiac bird house $2 bucks (I know what a steal!) The angel sitting on the edge of the pot was $5 bucks.
...stay tuned for more of the "after" pictures coming up on March the 25th. It is very pretty once its all set out. The funny thing is, I never sit out there and enjoy it because I've always got something I'm working on. I've also been making over an Easter Tree. I'll give a tutorial on how I did this...hopefully before Easter. I am hoping to make it more "toddler friendly" as those darn spiral branches and the long strings on the ornaments were to much for my 23 month old grandson to hang the ornaments from. The carnival soiree is fastly approaching.... I've got some things put together as little vinettes. I guess thats what I'm suppossed to do? Who knows.... and I don't think anyone cares!Lastly, of course....a crocheted project is ALWAYS sitting around somewhere as a work in progress. I wish I could stress to everyone just how easy it is to crochet and to start to learn today. There are excellent instructional videos on Youtube.com... just type in "how to crochet" in the search box. Sometimes when I come across a stitch I've never heard of before I google it...and up pops thousands of sites that show how to do that stitch. Now...go grab some yarn and a hook and please give it a try, you'll thank me I promise

Altered tins~

I've started working on my altered tin for the "Altered tin Swap" I joined. I have no idea when I've to mail it out. The devil is in the details right? Well.... lets just say, I don't believe in the devil lol

Here are my two tins I've been working on:

I've never made an altered tin.... so my partner is in for it lol. I've made two, one was to practice on. However-- I worked on them both at the same time, and I could never remember which one was the "practice one" I think they both are turning out kinda cute if I do say so myself. All of the altered tins I've seen are rectangle.... so of course I had to do a round one.

One tin has a woven nest with eggs.... I think this one I'll mail to my partner. The papers...not that you can see them are from an old school text book from 1818.

The other tin is smaller...

Being that I firmly believe in "more is better"... I am about half way finished with these.

W.I.P.'s

Here are a few "Works in progress"
A brown & pink baby blanket for one of my daughter's friends who is having a baby in a few months. I am using one of my favorite patterns that consists of mindless crocheting (I've got the pattern memorized) then attaching the flowers made with my vintage daisy loom....and a pirate photo album....This album is made from one of those photo pocket books that you just insert photos into the cut outs for an instant album. Well.... I used some sand paper and sanded the pages printed design to get it roughed up to paint. I have never in my life used gesso...so why start now? lol I first painted each page with a thick, even coat of black paint and let that dry. Then I used a stiff old brush and painted on some brown (and let that dry)--- then using the same old brush I painted on some red that I added a touch of black to.(and let that dry) I then stenciled some pirate themed images onto each page, and dry brushed around each photo area with the same color (and let all that dry) Once that was all done I put a coat of sealer on each page and that really made all the colors pop. After letting the sealer coat dry, I sanded the edges of each page to make it look old. I purchased a brown faux suede-like blazer at a thrift store to use the fabric on the cover of the photo album. This is as far as I've gotten. I am wanting to create either a beaded or embroidered cover for the front of the photo album....in a pirate them of course! I added a piece of torn muslin to the front & back cover to help keep the book bound. After sanding all those pages it loosened up the glued binding somewhat. The muslin just adds to the old world look :-)

Cutie-pie!

I got this male body form at a yard sale for .50 cents...hubba-hubba!
It was a stark white when I brought it/him home. I've covered it with this fabulous aged sheet music fabric which I decoupaged on the form. (bought at Walmart!) I had to snip it in a few places so it would go over some of the curves, but for the most part it is one solid piece covering the form. It is a work-in-progress mixed media piece, but for now its going to be nice to just have in my studio!

Work In Progress

Here is a snapshot of the blanket I'm making to enter into the local fair this upcoming October. I love the look-- but I don't ever think I'm going to be making this one aGaIn! To much starting & stopping and "hiding tails" for me~ I probably would have had this completed by now if not for all that! I better at least get a third place ribbon on this one or I'm going to come unglued lolThese glass "blobs" I recently purchased (from several different thrift stores this past Saturday) are going to be put to good use...soon... I have been wanting to do a mosaic bird feeder for my backyard. I was thinking I was going to use old rose patterened plates and do a loosy-goosy random pattern-- but who am I kidding.... I prefer things to have symmetry so I am hopeful this will do the trick so I won't get bored and not finish it lol

Work in progress....

I was needing some cups for the pirate party I'm hosting, so I came up with this idea. I had bought these cups about 4 years ago and had them in my garage all these years. Something to be said for "using what you got"....(I SELDOM DO lol)The cups you can pick up at any craft store for around a dollar each. I used a super thin bamboo beach mat ($1) which I cut to fit each cup. I used some card stock to make circles which I then glued to the bamboo mat-- cut out and glued to the bottom of each cup. I then hot glued the bamboo around the whole cup insert. I used some ultra suede for the oval which I then cut out a skull & cross bones image from yardage I bought from Walmart, added red felt for the top & bottom and then I just popped the insert with the "art" on it into the plastic holder and taaaaaaaaaaa-daaaaaaaaaa instant cute!

WIP

Ok, here is my first attempt at making a doll. Not to shabby..... the basic shape is one that I can live with :-) so much so....
That I've made the very same doll but in a larger form.
I gave her a little nose. I want to give her some ears as well...but I think ears would be hard. Maybe the next doll :-P
Now, I'm off to make fingers and toes :-)

W.I.P. Wednesday

I've been feverishly working on serveral projects at once. Ok, thats a fib, I'm not "feverish"...its just getting hot here in California! I am lucky enough to have access to a large cache of die-cuts :-) I'm talking hundreds.... Yesterday I spent over an hour cutting shapes. I took along some old books that have beautifully aged pages...that along with some cardstock and I was in die-cut heaven~ I cut out some letters to create the words...Comfort, Merry Christmas and Artsy Fartsy. I've glittered the bunch and now I've just got to string them up for some added room bling! Thats my first WIP....

A while back while browsing blogs, I came across a photo of one of those small take-a-long shopping carts that someone had made bag insert for to hold odds and ends that normally slip out. Well...needless to say, I HAD to have a bag for my cart as well. :-) I bought a vintage lightweight bedspread at a local thrift store, along with some textured white fabric (total $7 bucks) I think the color combination and texture of both fabrics are perfect together! I am putting two pockets inside and I am going to whip up a small plastic bag holder to match. (Sometimes at block sales and swap meets the vendors don't have any bags left... so I thought having a small bag full of plastic bags would be a fabulous idea!) Thats WIP number twooooooo~ Here is the pocket.... don't you just love the lime green fabric? Soooooooo cute~Numero three WIP..... Christmas stockings~ I've got the stockings

traced, the embroidery finished...now its just a matter of adding lace/buttons and then sewing it all together!

WIP number four.... Felt. Red & white felt. I love it! Nothing screams Christmas like the colors red and white (to me anyhoooo) I have finished one of the penny-rug doilies (one more to go...for me ;-P) and I made a red/white felt frame piece (made with a blanket stitched edge) to go atop a book for my daughter for her yearly Christmas family portrait and Christmas memories....

Okokok....one more WIP.... the Partea tea swap.... I've gotten everything, now its just a matter of wrapping it all...... and shipping it off!