DIY jewelry displays

The majority of my recent crafty DIY projects have centered around spicing up the bedroom . . . .no, I haven't been knitting wool bustiers (itchy).  I mean spicing it up interior design wise. 

I determined that I wanted my jewelry on display instead of hidden away in my jewelry case. I find that when it's visible it gets worn a lot often, plus it seems a shame to keep things that I find so attractive and sentimental inside a drawer.

I started by displaying my necklaces.  This was as simple as screwing some cup hooks into the bottom of an already existing shelf.

 

Then I took an old photo frame, replaced the backing with a piece of foam core, wrapped it with a layer of quilt batting and white fabric and made my own mini pin board for my brooches.

 

Then it was on to my favorite things - my rings.  I have a recent obsession with what my friends like to call "big ass rings" and I needed somewhere to display them.  I solved that problem with some frames and felt:

Here's a quick how to in case anyone is interested.

I started with some fabulous IKEA frames - of course you can use whatever frames you have available.

I had to remove their backs and the glass (which was actually plastic).  Then I got out my stash of felt and started rolling up some tampons.  Or at least that's what they started looking like to me.  I had to do some experimentation to determine how much felt was needed for each roll.  My white felt was quite thick (super absorbency) and I only needed about 5 inches in length.  The width was about 1 inch longer than the width of my frame opening.  

 I used a line of hot glue to hold my roll together.

 

When I had enough I hot glued them to a piece of cardboard sligtly larger than my frame opening.  Be sure to hot glue them securely and as tight together as possible.

 

 This is when things got really high tech! I couldn't use the original back of my frame as it wouldn't accomodate the thickness of my felt, so I used the handyman's greatest tool - duct tape.  It looks classy though because I got the white duct tape to match my frame!!

 

It worked quite well.  I used some command strips to hold this one to the wall and it's been 4 months and it hasn't fallen apart yet so I'm calling that a success!

I used a nice burnt orange felt on my other frame. It wasn't as thick as the white so I ended up rolling up about 7 inches instead of 5, but aside from that everything else was the same.

 I wanted this one to stand on my shelf so I used my duct tape and some really sturdy cardboard to create a stand on the back.

 

Hope you can use some of these techniques to create your own jewelry displays.

Pinthetic? Bookends as floating bookshelves

I recently switched bedrooms with my children and so I've been spending some time redecorating it with Pinterest inspired projects.  One of these projects was this floating book, bookshelf idea.

Here's the original pin:

 

Now the original pin didn't have any instructions, but it seemed simple enough.  Get a metal bookend, screw it to the wall, add books and Bob's your uncle you're rocking out some sweet floating bookshelves right?  Well not quite.  But I got it accomplished:

 

 When I started planning on actually putting it together I asked myself, "How the hell is the bottom cover of that book attached to the bookend Also, as a sad consequence of the current state of our economy, the local Bookends R Us store went out of business so I couldn't even find a bookend that would work for this project.

I'm sure maybe I could have found something online but I have no patience so I just went to my local hardware store and found the thinnest metal brace I could find.  This was from the decking section and is intended to secure the posts to the frame or something along those lines.  It was around $4.

 

 I also got some small screws (about 1/2 inch long) and a lovely hard cover book from the dollar store. I had come up with several scenarios as to how to possibly attach the book to the bracket so that it wouldn't be permanent, but they all just seemed too complex.  I also contemplated just using some double sided tape or other semi-removable adhesive so that the bottom book could be removed, but since I knew I'd have other books stacked on top of it, I really wanted that bottom book securely fastened to the brace. 

 So if you attempt this project just bite the bullet and find some cheap book you don't care about, but like the cover of.  I removed the dust jacket, marked the center of the cover and just screwed the bracket directly into the book.  My screws went through the cover and a little bit into the pages to make it nice and secure. 

 Now all you need to do is slip the dust jacket back on to your book.  Mark and cut out a section from the back flap and then pry up the edges of the pages and slide it back in. This covers up your bracket and screws.

Then it's just a matter of screwing your bracket to the wall, adding your books and topping it with a gnome or two.  It's a requirement people, everything is better with gnomes!

Not bad eh?

Pinthetic?

I think the only thing more popular these days than Pinterest is the number of blogs about Pinterest projects gone awry. 

I'm shamelessly jumping on this bandwagon because unfortunately I spend a lot of time on Pinterest.  I wish I didn't, but then again I wish I didn't have to suck in my gut and lay flat on the bed every time I put on my favorite jeans either. However I'm finding my willpower is just as weak when it comes to sweet DIY pins, as it is when a Little Debbie snack is within arm's reach. . . . Anyway, my point is that I might as well make something productive out of all those wasted hours online - and why not turn my inevitable Pinterest project failures (or maybe even a rare success) into blog content?

That being said, today I'm launching my first Pinterest project blog post - aptly named: "Pinthetic?" (because I like to try and be clever -  and "Pintastrophe" was already taken). 

Let's start with my Pinterest inspiration:

 

Just look at this spooky eyeball wreath!  Perfect for Halloween right? I thought it was a great mixture of scary and gross and whimsical.  I couldn't wait to put one together and hang it on my front door. 

When I found plastice eyeballs at the Dollar Tree I knew that me and this wreath were meant to be.  I got my eyeballs, my glue gun, my grapevine wreath that I had spray painted black and I got . . . this:



It's not horrible right?  I mean it kind of looks like the original.  My eyeballs were smaller than hers, plus they didn't have the cool red veins and stuff on them that really made the original pop.   Oh, and you see those gaps here and there. Yeah, that's where my eyeballs popped off after the hot glue had dried and the cat batted them underneath the furniture and I just didn't have the energy to try and find them.

The original Pin showed the wreath hanging in front of a distressed window with chicken wire in it. Now if Pinterest has taught me anything it's that everything looks better hanging in front of distressed wood and chicken wire.  See below:

without distressed wood and chicken wire:

with distressed wood and chicken wire:

But unfortunately I didn't have any distressed wood or chicken wire lying around. I tried hanging it on my front door but it just looked really kind of sad.  Like some mentally challenged (oh sorry, it's "Intelectually Disabled" now) person had ranomly glued ping pong balls on a wreath.  So I ended up hanging it on the garage - which nobody can see from the street.  It's my eyeball wreath of shame.

What do you think?  How Pinthetic is it?

It was like being embraced by the entirety of Scandinavia

Recently I visited my mom in Phoenix and of course we made a trip to IKEA.  I adore IKEA.  If anyone has a petition going to get an IKEA into Iowa I will sign it. . . and then legally change my name and sign it again!  I suppose I could start a petition myself but hey, I'm busy.

Anywho, as we're strolling through the store checking out all the Lerbergs's and Ekby's and Byholma's, we entered one of the little mini house/apartment displays they have set up within the store.  If you've never been to IKEA, they usually have several small display "homes" which showcase what the economy and functionality of their furniure can accomplish in tight quarters.

As I entered the bedroom of the 380 sq. foot display, something on the wall caught my eye.

Hmmm, that silhouette on the right looks familiar....Let's take a closer look

No, it can't be!

 Yes, yes it is!

It was my very own Edward/R Patz silhouette that I offered the free jpeg of on this very blog, back in November of 2009!  They had printed it and placed it in one of their frames and used it as decoration in a display inside an IKEA store.

I literally almost crapped myself! I just kept circling this 380 square foot display space like a crazed maniac; snapping photos of the wall with my phone.  I mean in the grand scheme of things it's no big deal.  Who knows who found it or even where.  Maybe some designer from IKEA found it off this blog when she was looking for free artwork to grace the walls and blend with the black and white palette of the room.  Maybe they got it off Google Image. Who knows.  But there it was, my work being displayed in IKEA!

Now after I explained to my mother why I was circing this room like a vulture and squealing like a pre pubescent girl at a Justin Beiber concert.  She asked if I was sure it was mine.  I mean after all anyone really can put together a silhouette, especially of someone famous, whose image is everywhere on the web.  However, I know my work and I had obsessed enough about those front two curls of hair and whether or not they looked natural, that there was no doubt in my mind.

Here's my original jpeg I offered to all readers:



Oh yeah, it's mine (with flip and a little bit of stretch, but still mine), and I shall be forever giddy!

A Valentine's Day Lesson

I have two small children. So I'm no stranger to the vast and educational wonders of kids programming. One of my daughter's favorites is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Recently I picked up this Valentine themed Mickey Mouse book for her and I was awed and astounded by the real life lessons it bestowed. I couldn't help but share it with you.

Mickey has just remembered that it's Valentine's day. Here kids learn that fictional anthropomorphised cartoon mice suffer the same stereotypes as human men in that they are always unprepared for romantic holidays.

Mickey doesn't know what to get Minnie. This is probably because he doesn't really pay much attention to her and takes their relationship purely for granted since she's the only female fictional mouse of his acquaintance and while he fancies Daisy more, interspecies romance is apparently considered taboo in the clubhouse. He's obviously just coasting through this relationship.

Luckily a "stranger" appears at the door and offers to assist him with finding the perfect gift. (Is it just me or does this look like something else? Like maybe Mickey's thinking he might see a whole other side of sweet innocent Minnie? Hmmm.)

However, to set the correct expectations, and perhaps because he's slightly daft, she employs the use of visual aids.

"Knit that fine rodent a hat, man!" And so Mickey proceeds to locate a sheep, sheer it, spin the wool into yarn, and dye it. Thereby educating the youth of today on the wonders of the fiber arts and that a seemingly straight male can find enjoyment in making his own yarn.

The mysterious stranger even provides the knitting needles, though honestly they seem a rather small size for the weight of that yarn, but it is fiction so I'll let it slide.

And wouldn't you know it, Mickey is able to create the perfect gift for Minnie, therein bringing home the most important message of all to young girls.

Girls, if you want that perfect gift, you're better off just getting it for yourself. That is unless you enjoy wearing trench coats (and then having to make it clear, that no, you are not there to role play as a stripper), drawing pictures of exactly what you want and supplying all the tools for him to make/get it for you.

Happy Valentine's Day all! Go out and get yourselves something nice.

Intervention: Put down that virtual pushpin!

I, along with the majority of women in the world with an internet connection, am currently obsessed with Pinterest. I can’t even tell you the number of hours I’ve wiled away in front of my laptop screen scrolling through pin after fantastic pin.

Pinterest is great. I’ve gotten tons of inspiration, but that’s the problem. It’s inspiration overload, and I’m so drawn to finding that next great inspirational pin, that I never actually create anything based on an idea or pattern I’ve pinned. I don’t have time – I’m pinning too much other crap.

It’s taken me a while to accept my addiction and that’s the first step toward recovery. Are you addicted as well? Take the quiz below, and find out.

1. Have you even pinned a quote or image about pinning?


2. Do you find yourself jealous of your Facebook friends, not because of their great hair, flawless skin, or skinny ass, but because they’ve pinned more cool stuff than you have?

3. When someone at work sends you the recipe for that great dessert they brought in for food day, do you catch yourself looking for the “Pin It” button on your work computer?

4. Do you ever have a burning desire to crochet a rock cozy or glue plastic painted toy animals to the tops of jar lids simply because these items photograph well?

5. Have you ever sent your children to bed in their clothes and with unbrushed teeth, because, “Mommy just wants to look at one more thing – go tuck yourselves in sweeties.”

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be addicted to Pinterest. Seek medical attention as soon as possible.

My plan is to wean myself off slowly and try to cut my Pinterset browsing down by half. This time will be spent crafting instead of just planning on crafting by looking at pins of other people’s crafts. I’ll keep you pinned, I mean posted on my progress – right after I pin this one thing I saw earlier today…..

Because there aren't enough felt versions of the Hall of Justice in this world.

The best thing about making gifts by hand is that they are completely and totally unique. That's what I loved so much about this project that I created for my best friend's little boy for Christmas.

Now Avery is all about superheroes. The kid is frighteningly obsessed with them for a kid so young, and he's got tons of superhero dress up toys, action figures and playsets etc. What he didn't have, was portability...and a swamp made out of felt. That's where I came in.

Behold, the portable superhero felt playmat house.

I based most of my design on the old Justice League cartoons I used to watch. So I had to have some water for Aqua Man, a forest for the Amazonian, Wonder Woman ,the Hall of Justice and the Hall of Doom of course, and then since Batman is both a favorite of mine and Avery's I did a mini Gotham City complete with Bat Signal. I was a little stumped as to what to do next. I attempted Superman's fortress of solitude, but in felt it just looked like a really weird teepee. I ended up doing a section of space instead since superheroes are eager to share their powers with those on other planets as well.

Now I wish I had come up with the idea for this playmat on my own, but I didn't. Check out Cook Clean and Craft's awesome tutorial here for instructions on how to make your very own.

Hers is a more traditional car playmat but I changed a few things in mine. Obviously, I changed the theme of the playmat, but I also sewed all of my pieces on instead of glueing. I think in general glueing felt is fine. However, the child this is going to once pulled the descriptive plaque off of a museum display with his bare hands, and I've personally witnessed his little sister reduce a cell phone to nothing but metal filings and broken plastic chunks. So, it needed to be extra durable.

Plus, I loved being able to create texture, depth and interest with the stitching.

However, sliding this huge felt playmat under my machine while trying to delicately stitch around each tiny piece of felt got pretty tiresome after a while.

At about hour 12 of this project, I turned to my husband and said, "You know I don't really like that kid this much anyway."

I persevered though, if only for the glory of being able to claim that I recreated the Hall of Doom and it's swampy locale in felt.


All in all I'm thrilled with it and I think it's going to be a hit, especially since my kid's can't seem to stop playing with it.

The best part is that it all folds up into this cute little house/scyscraper and his guys can be stowed away inside.

All ready for a road trip, daycare or a trip to Aunt Amy's house!