• Blog

    Upcycling projects

    We all know how to recycle and I’m sure most do it daily. Newspapers, cardboard, glass and plastic are all readily recyclable in most cities, at least across the USA.

    This is wonderful! But I’ve been really focused on upcycling lately.  Finding a new use for something that would ordinarily be tossed out.  Wine corks, bottle caps, worn out clothing, stained linens, broken plates…you get the idea.treesI showed a sneak peek of these a while ago. I made a wine cork tree last year but this time I decided to change things a bit. I used a Champagne cork cut in half for the trunk.  I think they turned out really cute.

    sewing

    I’ve also been using some scraps from previous projects such as the denim remaining after completing a quilt or two.  As well as the remainder of the dress shirts that I made wine bottle gift bags from.

    cards

    In addition I’ve been making a bunch more cards. I’ll show more of these last two projects at a later date. The cards have much less upcycling in it’s truest sense but I am still attempting to include elements that might otherwise be considered unusable such as tiny scraps of fabric and yarn. As well as photo trimmings. I have a cigar box full of photo trimmings…they have such vibrant colors that it’s a shame to toss them out.

    It doesn’t have to be Earth Day to be a little “green”. Do a little more every day to be kind to our planet. Last time I checked…it’s the only one we have. 🙂

  • Blog

    T-shirt scarf

    You may recall that I showed this sneak peek of a project that looked pretty much like a pile of rags. Well…not quite.

    upcycled shirtI was inspired by a friend who sent me a link to this upcycled t-shirt scarf after making one for her daughter. It’s a quick and simple no-sew project.

    20130916_3418 The boy had just outgrown yet another shirt, so it was perfect timing.

    20130917_3432

    The shirt I used had seams on both sides. The tutorial didn’t allow for this. I decided to take extra bits of shirt and tie a knot to cover each seam that was exposed.

    20130917_3430

    Next time I’ll use an adult size shirt to make the loops longer that way it won’t be as tight when doubled up.

  • Blog

    Retreat weekend

    You never know what you’re going to get in Minnesota.

    Little J and I traveled 2.5 hours north to a camp for a weekend of Mother Daughter quality time. The lake was still iced over when we got there. Frozen Lake in MayIt was cold and drizzling but we decided to make the best of it…even horseback riding in the rain. We wore several layers of coats, topped with rain-gear, hats and gloves.horseback riding

    There were 14 in our group all sharing our cabin which incidentally had no bathroom but at least it had a furnace!! It was wonderful getting to know this group of women more over the weekend. All of our daughters got to know each other and fostered some new friendships.

    There were over 400 women and girls at the camp!! I’ve never been a part of anything like this before. So much fun. I can only imagine that it would have been exponentially more fun if the weather was better and Little J had been feeling better. But she was a trooper and didn’t whine or complain or beg to go home. We had ridden with a friend so leaving would have been a major issue.

    We did lots of crafting…fabric headband Fabric headband

    leather craftLeather stamping

    picture frame

    Painted frame

    mousetrp note holder

    Mousetrap note holder

    caterpillars

    Clothespin caterpilars

    We skipped most of the outdoor activities. We spent enough time in the cold drizzle walking from building to building for activities.

    Tomorrow I’ll show one last weekend craft that is a technique that I’ve seen others, such as Elizabeth, demonstrate on their blogs. Super fun!!