the craft begins absolutely wins the prize for cleverness ... an old metal ironing board transformed into a magnet message board and more!
her story about obtaining this family heirloom is heartwarming ... read her story here!
... with vintage bow ties?
need i say more?
this has created such a pleasing look in my shop ~ and my customers love it!
... with an old ornate frame?
Ok ... before you put that old ornate frame in the yard sale ... maybe you should take a look at this uplifting transition!
Isn't that great? I especially love the green ribbon. To keep your frame secure, you may want to fasten it to the wall, and have the ribbon simply as effect. This idea is the crafty Monica's at CraftyNest ... via non other than design*sponge.
There's a great old frame in my shop just begging to be freshened up ... best get out the paint!
... with cloches?
First off, if you are like me, I had to look up what the dictionary meaning of the word 'cloche':
cloche | klo sh |
noun
a small translucent covering for protecting or forcing outdoor plants.
(also cloche hat) a woman's close fitting bell-shaped hat
ORIGIN late 19th century: from French, literally "bell" (see cloak)
But creative Lanette at Cottage Elements has taken these beautiful pieces to another level with these wonderful ideas!
I LOVE how she had incorporated vintage this and that ... like the classic brown glass door knob as a flower vase in the first photo. The old colanders as bases in the second photo. The old machinery disc as a fruit bowl ~ clever and oh so attractive! The scales in the next image .... and I left my favourite til last ... the soaps and vintage hair tool ~ a lovely display for your vanity.
Oh! And Lanette doesn't use the typical cloche as a cloche ... she uses any clear glass vessel as a way to display what is underneath ... you really should check out Cottage Elements for inspiration.
... with a vintage weigh scale?
Oh my gosh, if you want to see a multitude of delicious displays of florals, here's the place to visit! housemartin is the design blog of ink&peat home and florals. For 'spring at ink&peat - conservatory', click here.
As you know, I love to incorporate vintage anything into my home and you can too! Come by my shop and let's see what neat thing could be part of your spring 'look'!
... with rusty old outdoor furniture?
If you are lucky enough to have a rusty old gem sitting in the back 40, then you've got a project! Let the stacks of fabric that you bought years ago be the inspiration for the colour of paint you choose. The brighter the better! Don't you love the old slider style bench ~ might need some oil, but not too much ~ the odd little squeak is part of it's charm. (I think the blue bench, as well as the white chair with the mod black & white covering are both wood pieces ~ oh, what a bit of paint will do!)
These and other fun, but now functional pieces I found at the wonderful MINT! Originally, they are the workmanship of Gardenhouse ~ well done!
As the days warm, the pull is strong to be 'living' outdoors again ... yum.
... with a collection of vintage bottles?
All junk lovers seem to have a thing for vintage bottles! Whether we find them in our favourite treasure shop (wink, wink) ... or at the upcoming garage sales ... or some of us get a kick out of excavating them from the ground in an abandoned yard (with permission of course!). You know that feeling of glee when you see a rusted bottle top poking it's way out of the ground and you giddily but gently pull the dirt away hoping that the bottle is in tact! And if it is, well then the archeologist in you sets out to discover more ...
Now, what the heck are you going to do with your treasures? How to display them? And do you want to clean them first?
Fortunately, I have wonderful windows in my home and take great pleasure in placing a collection of all colours and shapes and size of bottles on the window sill to catch the light.
I tend to like the look of the bottles as they are, with only a gentle exterior cleaning. If you are looking for a pristine clean look, then you want to take great care when cleaning these old timers ~ they somehow have survived years of being in the hard frozen ground in winter and the warm summer earth ... but if you should put too hot or too cold of water on the glass, you run the risk of breaking the glass.
Here are a few cleaning suggestions that I found on American Bottle:
1. Room temp water only. Anything other than that can cause bottle glass to crack.
2. Always turn bottle up-side-down and leave in box over night to drain all excess water
3. Vinegar and water 50/50 is a good cleaning combo.
4. Coca-Cola works well too believe it or not.
5. If you use muriatic acid be sure to wear eye protection and gloves. ALWAYS keep your muriatic solution covered with a lid. The fumes will cause steel to rust up to 40 feet away.
Here are just a few of the bottles I have displayed. I have grouped the brown and green varieties in this window and in my other arched window, I display my blue and clear collection!
The afternoon sunlight glows on this amber glassware on a shelf in my shop. If you don't feel like digging in the dirt, then come on by and let's find you a few bottles ...
... for a delightful Easter?
Martha would fold up napkins into delightful bunny shapes to adorn the Easter table ... and she would delicately dye eggs to the softest shades and use the shells to display sweet spring flowers. I found Martha's ideas at the lovely Lidy's French Garden House where she has more refreshing ideas for Easter, including yummy recipes!
Visit Martha Stewart for her many inspirations. Good Housekeeping has wonderful directions for folding the bunny napkins as well!
This photo, from my friend at Prairie Girl Studio, is the true depiction of all things hopeful at this time of year ... Happy Easter everyone!
... with pretty teacups and candelabras?
Just a few of the prettiest teacups in my shop ...
And this is a candelabra that has been beautifully transformed into a centerpiece by gluing teacups to the candle holder parts. Note that different cup sizes and shapes are used ~ each have their own unique purpose from candle holders to flower vases ~ even fruit bowls! Although differently shaped with different purposes and patterns, the cups match in colour! Wouldn't this be pretty at a bridal shower?
Speaking of weddings ~ these creative and lovely centerpiece ideas come from Ellie at Mint. The single candlestick design was created by Ellie and her friend Amy for Amy's wedding last summer. What a special way to repurpose the teacups, candlesticks and candelabras ~ certainly cost efficient and oh so attractive and individual. You can find Ellie and Amy's creations as well as other neat ideas for a 'green' wedding at Portovert.
... with that old chair in the corner?
Aren't those delightful? I mean, how many old office chairs get discarded to the dump on a regular basis because they really have no appeal. But that's not what Joanie and James saw ... they saw an opportunity to recover with fabulous fabric and make it useable again! BRAVO!
And Melanie and Ariel gave 'father's chair' a wonderful lift by putting this wonderful print on it! You just can't buy that style.
Credit to Joanie, James, Melanie and Ariel and the many other 'before and afters' found at the very fun and inspiring Design*Sponge ... check it out!
... with a coffee pot past it's perking prime?
Place it in the garden as a fun and whimsical accent! This idea and more, along with steps on 'how to' are from garden writer and Better Homes and Garden field editor Helen Yoest who was guest blogging at The Casual Gardener.
Now's the time to start gathering items to repurpose into garden art and accents. If you are close to my fair town of Rivers, Manitoba, I would love to have you pop in for a visit and see what treasures would be ideal in your garden this summer!
... to set a cheerful spring table?
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Until the spring posies push their way through, there are an abundant of colourful silk beauties that you can add to your table in many ways!
1/2 Add a bright napkin to your bouquet in something tin, or perhaps an old cheery yellow jug.
3 I have a bunch of light wooden stars on strings that I sanded, gave a spot of paint and added buttons to make napkin holders. I thought I might still add a bit of decorative white paint to soften up the edges ... maybe little dots to border it? Little wee silk flowers would also look nice to keep with the spring theme.
4 Then, there the cute little egg cup flower holders ... you wouldn't need many fresh flowers to fill them! I do have a few egg cups in my shop which would work nicely. If you want to see many more fresh spring table setting ideas, visit Suzanne at S.HOP Talk where she has posted the egg cup idea as well as many other ideas from Country Living.
5 No foolin! You don't have to look far to find something as pretty as a teacup to place flowers in as well. Happy April everyone!
... on the last day of March?
Celebrate, of course! Winter may finally be on it's way out ... gently ... like a lovely little lamb!
These cute 'melt your heart' lambs are from Catskill Merino Sheep Farm.
... with a bit of paint?
First you take a look around and see what 'old' thing could use a sprucing up. What about this red bench?
A little pretty blue paint and some lively coloured cushions and oh my gosh ... isn't this like a breath of fresh air?
Suzanne of S.HOP Talk gave this bench new life with just a bit of paint and as you can see below, she roughed it up a bit to let the old red show through. I found this delightful DYI project at Knack Studios where Suzanne has been guest blogging.
Isn't it amazing what paint can do? From where I am standing in my shop, I can see a few fine pieces of furnishings that would look wonderful with a coat of colour ...
... with cast away spindles & feed sacks?
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... a handy flower trug! Isn't this brilliant? Only Ki at Junk Camp could come up with such a great idea ... and she gives you all the step by step directions at her blog as well. A little project to whip up while we wait for the winter to pass.
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A nice way to give new purpose to cast away chair spindles.
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Ki has used an old feed sack and attached the tabs, but I was thinking you could use burlap sacking or heavy linen tea towels. It won't matter if your flower cuttings are dripping with dew, you can simply hang your trug up to dry ... and this method will be a gentle way to transport the most delicate of posies.
Excuse me while I scratch ~ I've got a terrible itch for spring!!
... with old wooden shoe forms?
I'm not sure! How about you? They are just so neat and I am sure they could be repurposed into something unique. Notice the little wooden heart shapes at the heels of the pair on the right? Let me know if you have an idea!
... with little metal wagon wheels?
How about this? Make them into a 'wheely' cool lamp! I found this Art and Light Gallery creation via the lovely Blue Moss Girls.
To add character to this newer lamp, old bead and coins were added as a fun fringe. A little something that my sister and I did!
If you have any light to shed on recreating lamps, please leave a comment!
... with an old kitchen strainer?
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Make it into a planter of course!
Ki's idea from Junk Camp has us all itching for spring and a chance to get digging in the dirt.
I have strainers of all varieties in my shop ... and many well-loved red handle kitchen utensils begging to be made useful again ... maybe in the garden?
