Recycling Vintage Photos

One of the{{many things}}I love to collect is Vintage Photos. I've picked them up at Estate Sales, Antique Shops & Flea Markets for years. Even though I had no idea what I was going to do with them I still couldn't pass them up. My favorite are hand painted/tinted photos.

I've seen tutorials about printing on fabric but wasn't sure if it was simple enough to do with what I had on hand{or if my printer would work- because it's not fancy at all}.

It turned out pretty good except not all the colors came through, I'm guessing because I was low on ink.

I thought it would be perfect for a pillow cover....

How crazy is it that a photo taken in 1937 at a 4 H Picnic is preserved on a Pillow that now sits on my bed.Very cool!!

Rescued Recipes

I was flipping through the March 2012 Ladies Home Journal and saw this article. It's always exciting finding people with a love and appreciation of other peoples pasts. Susan LaRosa rescues vintage cookbooks, then bakes the found desserts. She also has a Blog where she shares these wonderful recipes.

It inspired me to look through my Great Grandmothers cookbook{which was originally her Mothers~ my Great Great Grandmother} from 1894.

I was hoping to find a handwritten recipe to make. I found one for Pieplant Custard Pie- sounds yummy....until I googled pieplant{because I had no idea what it was} and found out it was Rhubarb- yuck! 

So I settled for a Bread Pudding recipe that had an X next to it. Maybe a favorite?

I made a couple of small changes: I added raisins & left out the layer of Jelly.

Y-U-M! Everyone loved it♥

Domino Inspiration...

I'm so glad I held onto my Domino Magazines especially since they're no longer around. I remember flipping through this 2005 issue and falling in love with an office they were featuring....

Ever since then I've wanted a Hutch like this. I'm not sure if it was the color or how awesome the piece was, but I've been keeping my eye out for something like it ever since.

I've learned that usually when you're looking for something specific, that's when it's the hardest to find OR you find it when you can't afford it. So, sometimes you just have to work with what you have.

What I did have was white paint{left over from a project}and a swatch of the color I wanted. I took my can of paint to Home Depot and asked if they could match it~ they did, and the best part= it was free :)

I also had this Hutch that I've had for about 11 years~  even though it's more country than modern.... it would have to do for now. 

Even though it's not what I originally wanted, I think it turned out pretty cute~ it gives the room a nice pop of color! Since I used what I already had: paint, hutch & knobs, the only thing it cost was my time :)

101 things to do with vintage sheets...

Well, I haven't come up with 101 things to do, but here are at least 10 ideas.
A few summers ago I made this duvet, and since I've been on a sewing kick lately I thought I'd make some envelope pillow covers to match.

♥Summer Bedding♥

There's that time a day when the sun hits our patio that makes a long hot summer day even hotter, so I thought this might be a good idea: a patio sunblocker/shade maker/super-bright-light around 4p.m. detractor! Made by sewing vintage sheets together~ pretty & functional♥

As usual, you can always find the best inspiration on flickr!

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
You can seriously get lost for hours browsing around this site~ no joke, I just did and now my butt's asleep so I gotta get up and move :/

Time + fabric= awesome pillow covers!

Last week my car broke down, which left me stranded at home. I had way too much time on my hands and nothing to work on for my Etsy Shop{no frames- because of course my car broke down the day before the flea market}. I needed to do something productive, so I thought I'd try using whatever fabric I had left over from past projects & make pillow covers for my couch cushions. I can sew 4 straight lines and make a pillow, but I wanted to make envelope pillow covers so they could be removed and washed. I went on Youtube and searched: How to make an Envelope Pillow Cover, and this is what I found. Now, I totally expected it to be too difficult, and she almost lost me at "you need to fold 1/4" and iron" and "pin your fabric pieces"...

I love to sew, but loathe patterns or anything that's too detailed or time consuming when it comes to a sewing project. After watching the video, I really felt like it was do-able. What I loved was that she explained how to make it work for whatever size cover you needed, and walked through each step. Once I did the math for what I'd need fabric wise, I wrote it out on a piece of paper, just so I wouldn't miss any steps. My pillows are pretty big: 25" x 25", and I quickly realized I didn't have any pieces large enough, ahhhhhhhhhhh!! I was already set on making them, so I decided to piece together the sizes I needed.

Here's the back{envelope side}, I still can't believe I made them....if I can do it, anyone can! Thanks to The Crafty Gemini her tutorials are awesome!!!

It's like having a bouquet of flowers on my couch♥

Seriously? This is not what I had in mind when I spent days making these! Does he think if he doesn't look at me I won't see him? Sheesh!

The BEST Swap EVER!!!

When I was asked if I was interested in a trade for something in my Vintage Shop{for a Boopsie Daisy Doll}, I was thinking..."Seriously, are you kidding me?" YES!! She asked what kind of doll I'd like, I said: I love anything cute, pastel{pinks, blues} pretty much your whole Shop rolled up in a ball!! And this is what she came up with♥
 AND not only is she the cutest thing I've ever seen but she smells good enough to eat!!! I'm not sure I feel right about calling it a swap~ it's like I sent a bag of rocks & I received a bag filled with gold!
 
I mentioned last year in this post how I was lucky enough to stumble onto two of her dolls. 
Completely handmade~ that is amazing! To top it off, Missy is probably the most sweet, bubbly, positive, enjoyable human being I've ever come across~ it's like she's made up of Rainbows, Sunshine & everything in your favorite Candy Shop :)
I thought my little shelf made me smile before, but now I'm constantly grinning like a mental patient! If your not familiar with Missy Munday's{BoopsieDaisy}Shop you can check it out here. And if you want to see the most incredible collection of dolls ever then go here .

What Eye Candy!!!

Multifunctional

I'm a list maker. For years before going to bed I'd make a list of what I needed to do the next day{I also couldn't go to be without making sure the kitchen was cleaned, dishes done and the living room picked up....then I started getting old and climbing into bed at the end of the day started sounding much better than my need to have everything nice & tidy~ that is until waking up to a mess the next morning!}.
 
I started making Chalkboards for my Etsy Shop after making one for my home. Now I use them around the house to keep organized & remind me of important things that I know I'd forget if I didn't jot it down.
 
 At a recent trip to Joann's Craft Store I came across Martha Stewart chalkboard paint. I fell in-love with a couple of her shades~ which are so different than most options out there. Two of my favorites: Blue{similar to aqua} and Green{a soft mint}.

My fridge is on it's last leg. It's a great fridge: it's huge{holds a lot}and I love that the freezer's on the bottom, but it's almost 10 years old and recently the handle on the upper door broke off. My first thought when I saw the Chalkboard paint was doing this..... For now, making my fridge multifunctional makes it's other issues a little more bearable :)
 This is what I'm dreaming of replacing my old fridge with someday.
 

Vintage Chair spruce up!

I picked this chair up at a Thrift Store about 7 years ago. I loved the shape, the size and the legs{plus it was really comfy & squishy to sit on}. My plan was to re-cover it...but clearly hadn't gotten around to it. So, finally I decided to do something to it!

The original floral fabric on the back of the chair was in great condition 

so I decided not to cover it up. Until I learn more about furniture upholstery

this will have to do for now{and maybe some paint on the legs}. 

The next thing I'd love to learn is piping~ I can't imagine that being easy!

 

I thought these were some pretty cool before & after re-do's.

1. Before and after: Wreck to gorgeous, 2. Lovers Computing Chair, 3. How I spent my Saturday night, 4. before and after 1, 5. "Circus" chair - before after, 6. Upholstered arm chairs
WOW~ what a little paint and fabric can do :)

Painted Night Stand: Chalk Paint Project

I finally got around to trying out CeCe Caldwell's chalk paint, and I'm really happy with how it turned out!

It's extremely easy to use~ very quick drying, so not a lot of wait time in between coats{if you choose to do two coats, I found that you don't necessarily need two}.

**Color: Santa Fe Turquoise**

I had some paint left over so I painted this old frame{I added a little white to lighten it up a bit}...

then turned it into a Chalkboard.The finish on this frame{after lightly sanding it & sealing it in wax}is SO unbelievably smooth!

Now I'm starting to look at furniture around the house thinking "Hummm, maybe that could use some color". I'm so happy I gave this paint a try♥ I had pretty much given up painting furniture because of all the time consuming steps{not to mention the toxic fumes}, now I'm loving taking something that could use a little TLC and turning it into something wonderful!