Editor’s Note: Today’s craft month project of the day is the first post in an exciting new series called Junk to Jewel by C&T author and editorial team member, Sue Astroth. Junk to Jewel will chronicle Sue’s upcycling adventures with thrift store finds.
Unlike our other craft month projects, this post doesn’t offer a specific materials list or step-by-step instructions. What it does offer is a look inside the mind of C&T’s resident upcycling queen, and the inspiration needed for you to set out on your own thrift store expedition and find that perfect piece of junk to turn into a jewel.
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Once a week my friend and I go thrift store shopping…what a blast! As we help each other select our purchases, we brew up all sorts of creative uses for our finds. There’s nothing more exciting than visualizing the transformation of an item into something completely different! I thought I’d chronicle my journey of altering and upcycling thrift store items here on the C&T blog.
The Junk
At lunch time a few weeks ago, I headed to the thrift store. I went through the housewares section and nothing was jumping out at me. I even went through the clothes to see if I could be tempted by a designer shirt for a fabulous price…but no such luck. I was about to gather my friend and leave the store when I saw IT.
Lying there on the pile of old notebooks and tupperware containers was a wooden tennis racket and frame. Now I wasn’t too interested in the tennis racket, but the frame…boy did I instantly see the possibilities. An oversize “pincushion” of sorts, it can hold notes, objects of inspiration, jewelry, and anything else you can tack to it. I just loved how the wooden frame was held together with a screw in each corner. So simple, honest and clean-looking.
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When I first saw our Inchie Ruler Tape, I thought…boy I wish I’d had some of that a few years back, when I was doing all that hand-quilting I used to do. It sure would have been SO much easier to use than masking tape! But being that I’m into paper crafting these days, I thought the product wasn’t for me…. till I had a recent brainstorm.
Seems of late, paper and fabric tapes are all the rage in the scrapbook world, so why not use Inchie Rulers the same way? I played around with some – writing on it, and just to see what might happen, I also tried ink, paint and glimmer mist. The tape took all of them beautifully. In the end, I kept my projects simple and sewing related, and used the tape in it’s original form. I just love how this tape makes covering the edges of heavy chipboard super easy.
Wouldn’t the tape be a great accent on teacher gifts too!
So whether you just have a few scraps left over from a quilt project, or want something a little different, Inchie Ruler Tape just might be the ticket!
On a recent thrift shop trip, I found a fabulous linen dress in a not-so-lovely shade of chartreuse. Think neon yellow. The low price outweighed the hideous color and the style is perfect for our over 95 degree summers. No worries, I thought, I’ll just ask our resident Dye-it-Yourself Diva, Lynn Koolish if she has anything planned for the dye pot and see if my dress could join in the fun for an over-dye.
Lynn was pleased to have me join in her next dyeing project. She had been planning to dye a shirt but her environmentally responsible, water conservationist conscience (not to mention the high prices for water that are inflicted if we go over the mandatory minimums around here) would not let her dye just one lone garment. But two…? You bet!
Lynn hadn’t yet picked out a color and asked for my thoughts. I would have been happy with black, but she, being a little, OK A LOT, more adventurous than I, pulled me out of my comfort zone. After careful consideration of our garments’ original colors as they were, we settled on a lovely shade of what the Dharma Trading catalog called aqua marine.
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To wear or display this hat features my love of ribbons and Halloween. Fancy yet ghoulish this hat nestles a crow and hovering arachnid amongst layers of ribbons and sparkling embellishments. Tip your hat Halloween style.
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While in a recent trip to Denver, Colorado to attend a mountain top wedding, we stayed over night in a little town called Frisco. We didn’t have lots of spare time to shop, but we did mange to get out and “stretch our legs” for a bit. During our walk down Main Street, we went into a shop called “JUNK-TIQUE, INC.”
I was taking in all the fun Rocky Mountain gifts they offered wondering if I would find some small treasure to bring home from our trip, when my eyes fell upon a little round, white tin wearing a sign that read – “Free Buttons” I was instantly focused. I picked up the tin and fingered through the offerings. There were black, golden, brown, pearl and metal buttons – even a few vintage spools of thread were in there too! I just couldn’t put the tin down.
But, they couldn’t really mean all of this was free…could they? Indeed they did! The sales associate came up to me and asked me if I was taking the buttons home. I think I nodded yes, as I clutched the tin. The woman said she was glad to see the buttons going home with someone who obviously loved buttons! She then put the tin and all it’s contents into a shopping bag and wished me a good day and a safe trip home as she handed me my treasure.
We went along to the wedding; it was beautiful and unique to the couple. A truly once in a lifetime experience that I’ll never forget….. but then, I won’t soon forget the little tin of buttons and the kindness of the ladies at Junk-Tique. What a delightful and unexpected treat…
Here’s a charming new way to way to celebrate springtime!
Making an egg basket is a great project to do with children—have them decorate the “eggs” while you make the basket. After Easter, the basket becomes a handy holder for decorative soaps, candies, or other small items.
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I enjoy decorating my studio for the holidays. I spend a fair amount of time working on last minute gifts in that room and I like being surrounded by the holiday spirit. All I need to go with is a cup of coffee and an old Christmas movie to keep me company and I’m well on my way to finishing up my holiday gifts!
Last weekend while I was putting the finishing touches on my studio tree, so I could get busy on my gift list, I realized I needed a tree topper. I didn’t just want a bow, and the one I used last year was really just too small. I figured something would come to me or I would just have to go without. Besides I really needed to FOCUS on my gift list!
While initially making room for the tree I ended up moving a fair amount of the eye candy I keep in the room for inspiration—things people have given me, needlework tools, and even a few things I’ve made. One group of treasures that refused to move gracefully, by falling to the ground in total disarray, were the magic wands I made for my Super Simple Costume book. One of the wands came totally apart with the top to my left and the handle to my right. While being frustrated that I had to bend over to pick one more thing up off the floor, I suddenly had a great idea – one of these wand tops would make a perfect Tree Topper complete with ribbon streamers. Good thing I forgot to glue that wand in place!!! It was the perfect last decoration for the tree and studio. Better yet it didn’t cost me any additional time or money! I love when stuff like that happens.
Check out Super Simple Costumes for the wands, I mean tree toppers, and other project ideas you can use to decorate for the holidays! Let me know what you come up with…..
Give your gifts a festive touch with these charming, personalized gift tags. They’re so easy to make using the Ready-to-Go!® 5″ x 3″ Tag-shape Blank Board Book, you can create one for everyone on your list!
Materials
- Ready-to-Go!® Blank Board Book 5″ x 3″ Tag 2-Pack
- Designer paper—background
- Chalk ink—background
- Design materials: diecuts, photos, glitter, brads, rhinestones, etc.
- Ribbon for attaching tag
- Craft knife
- Metal-edged ruler
- Paper adhesive
- File or sandpaper
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I love giving handmade gifts at the holidays… the sense of satisfaction, the smiles on their faces, the justification for being able to buy new patterns, fabric and yarn all throughout the year with the reasoning that it is for my dear friends Christmas present. Priceless!
It was in college when I discovered that I could make presents for people that they honestly enjoyed receiving. I remember it distinctly. I made a friend a flannel nightgown, complete with inset lace and ruffles. I even had to set in a third sleeve after a major scissors mishap took the life of one sleeve. She was thrilled, in fact, I remember tears of joy, both hers and mine! I learned that day handmade gifts were a very cool thing!
I start collecting ideas for my holiday gift projects early in the year. I check out new patterns, various magazines (past and present), and even make a few trips to the library to see what the many new books have to offer. I sketch out ideas or make notes about what people have said they want, their sock size or their favorite color. This year, I got this crazy idea to really get organized and keep a notebook of all my proposed holiday projects so everything would be in one place. (Maybe this is a carry over from the holiday wishbooks of my childhood!)
I started out with a 1˝-wide binder that I found for all of a 25¢ at a local thrift store. It’s the kind you can slide your own cover inside. It was in great shape all it needed was some personality. I raided my holiday scrapbook papers and came up with a fun cover using a happy mix of some Christmas papers and embellishments, I was well on my way to a well throughout and successful hand made holiday.
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From pretzels to the always-favorite chocolate, from Brach’s to See’s (a California favorite); from hot cider in the winter to ice cream bars in the summer, this office is fueled by goodies, snacks, and treats of all shapes and sizes.
Chocolate in various forms and intensities is available in our office at all times. Between the holiday specialties and the ever-popular snacksize, ready-to-eat candy bars, rarely does someone want for a sweet diversion. A Production Coordinator, in order to expose us to more adventurous chocolate treats… brought us a chocolate bar—get ready for it—with BACON in it! We all enjoyed the opportunity to taste test… but most decided they’d stick with the less unique varieties.
We are equal-opportunity snack consumers. Our fondness for snacks is not limited to chocolate. We are fortunate in that we have a couple weekend bakers on our staff. Every now and then some fresh cookies or zucchini bread straight from the oven make their way to the office—such a decadent treat.
On occasion, though I admit less frequently, we go for a healthy snack. If someone recently made a trip to a local Farmers Market, they might bring in a bunch of the fruits in season. Some of the group has a big backyard, or at least a green thumb, and they, too, share the bounty of their gardens throughout the year.
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