Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Spool Photo Holders

Once upon a time, I bought a box full of wooden spools at an auction.  I wasn't sure what to do with them...so they have been stored in a box for about 100 years.  And then I saw a picture holder made from a spool and some wire and had to give it a shot!
Some had a whitish finish on them, I decided to go ahead and spray paint them all.  I used some leftover paint from my stash in the garage.  Guess I am still working on that stashbusting phase!
I gave them a good coat and then another and another and well, you get the idea.  The blue is a high gloss and the brown is satin.
Let them dry completely and then....
 I cut strips of scrapbooking paper (had it in my stash!), slathered on the Mod Podge and attached them to the skinny part of the spools.
I always try to make as a big a mess as possible.  I am still picking dried Mod Podge off my hands.

Overlap the ends of the paper slightly and slather on another layer of Mod Podge...I used the matte kind.
Next I cut a matching or contrasting circle to fit on the top of each spool, this will be the top of the photo holder.  Slather the Mod Podge again to attach it firmly.
Next I put them outside in the sun to dry completely.   And I stopped to admire my morning glory blooms alongside my moon flower blooms...this was early in the morning.

Then I used 16 gauge or 20 gauge wire (had it on hand) to make the wire part that holds the picture.  I made a non perfect circle pattern as in the picture.  Each one was a bit different, I just got some needle nose pliers and wire cutters and created one of these for each spool.  I varied the length of the wires, so some were taller. 
Using a yarn needle, I punched a hole in the top of each spool through the paper.  The Mod Podge made the paper hard to push through, but just push consistently and be gentle and it will pop through.
Then I turned the spool upside down and filled the center hole with hot glue.
Then turn the spool right side up and set it on a piece of foil to keep the hot glue from coming out the bottom.  I then carefully pushed the wire through the hole in the top of the spool and center it perpendicular to the spool base.
And that's it!
You could also use fabric to cover the spools or just stop after the painting.
These would be a great Christmas present for someone with an office!
Aren't they cute?

29 comments:

Macey at Olivia Renn said...

I might just have to make some of these, such a great idea!
Thanks for sharing over at Olivia Renn!

The Autocrat: Haley said...

Very inventive! Fabulous!

Unknown said...

These are fabulous!

American Homemaker said...

ADORABLE!!!

Anonymous said...

found you via Amy @ Mod Podge Rocks - this is such a cute idea!!

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Holli Yeoh said...

What a great idea. Thanks for the clear tutorial.

Michelle L. said...

Wonderful! I love them grouped like that!

Suzy Myers said...

Great tutorial- and love the finished product!

suzy
http://suzysartsycraftsysitcom.blogspot.com/

Doreen said...

Great idea - and love your colors! These would make great party favors also! This kind of craft is right up my alley! If you want to see similar altering of mundane and vintage items, take a peek at my blog. I am now one of your followers.
Have a great day.

EMBELLISH said...

I love that you could see this project in a simple thread spool.

Vern said...

love it. Looking for way to make name holders. these decorated could be color cordinated with theme tablescapes.

Anonymous said...

Now a reason to save my thread spools! Very cute! Thanks for linking to Fantabulous Friday!

Katie said...

AWESOME! I have been saving some spools because I just KNEW there had to be something cool to do with them. This is just my kind of craft, thanks for giving me something to do with them and sharing it at A Crafty Soiree! See you next time too:)

Anonymous said...

aw those are so cute and easy!! Come link up sometime to Handmade Tuesdays! It is a new linky I started with a tutorial :) www.ladybug-blessings.com

Megan Gunyan said...

These are SO CUTE! I'm going to use this idea for my daughters room! Love it!

Amy Meyer said...

Super cute! I will have to try these with the groups of girls at my church! thanks for the inspiration!

Jill said...

Oh so cute! great idea! Thanks for linking this one too!

malia said...

lady you come up with the greatest ideas!

Jennifer Leigh said...

I'm so glad you shared this. Just yesterday I was wondering what I was going to do with all my leftover spools and now I know. This is a great gift idea!

amy said...

Darling, darling idea!

Be Colorful Coastal said...

Very clever and so many pattern and color combinations. They look so pretty together.
Pam

memakingdo said...

What a cute idea! Come link up to my party memakingdo.blogspot.com

Melissa said...

Those are so cute. Thanks for linking up to Tuesday Tell All.

Unknown said...

These are so pretty and what a fabulous use for them!

creativejewishmom/sara said...

great project, thanks so very much for sharing this and the felted acorns on Craft Schooling Sunday! all the best and hope to see you again next week!

Kristin @ Yellow Bliss Road said...

Those are adorable. And what a great gift idea!!

Yolanda @ Miss Refashionista said...

Super cute. Great job!

michele said...

THANK YOU THANK YOU!! I TOO HAVE A LOT OF SPOOL AND I WANT TO USE THEM SOOO BADLY BUT HAVNT BEEN ABLE TO FIND THE PERFECT THING YET! UNTIL NOW! I LOOOOOOOOOOVE THESE! I HAVE A SCRAPBOOK/SEWING ROOM / ALL AROUND CRAFT ROOM AND THIS PROJECT USES THE BEST OF TWO WORLDS! I CAN'T WAIT TO MAKE THEM! THANKS AGAIN!