Pink and Brown Basket

Every year I have two fundraisers I do a lot of crafting for...the first to happen is the Midway Heights Baptist Church Fish Fry Fundraiser (that is a mouthful, huh?). My church is working on building a debt-free building addition and the proceeds of the fish fry benefit that fund.

My new love is chocolate brown and pink. I decided to make a basket purely brown and pink. I needed a basket and found this produce basket at Goodwill for $1.
After a few coats of brown spray paint, I had this lovely basket...I removed the metal handle so it wouldn't get painted...then I painted the handle a bright bubble gum pink. Really cute and trendy too!
Then I filled it with all things pink and brown. Some of those things I made, some of them I purchased. I made this note pad out of chip board and scrapbook paper and a paper clip/clamp. My sister Sarah showed me some of these notepad holders on Etsy and I soon crafted my own (in pink and brown of course).

I made some note cards with a friend's Cricut machine (Thanks Julie!) and they turned out so cute I may need to buy this basket back!

I serged around two yards of brown and pink fleece from Hobby Lobby and tied it up with a ribbon for a fleece throw. I also found the little brown box in front of the basket at Hobby Lobby and it was 89 cents (90% off clearance late this summer)

I added a few other goodies and now it is ready to wrap up in some cellophane and sell in the silent auction, which is only 10 days from now!

$10 Garden Bench

This is a great garden bench I found at the Goodwill Store here in Columbia for $10. We jammed it into the back seat of my Toyota Corolla much to the chagrin of the two men who loaded it for me. It was in really bad shape, with the metal a bit rusty, and the oak slats were grey, but it was solid. Sam and I refinished it...yes, Sam actually took it apart, and sanded all the wood. I refinished the wood parts and gave all the metal parts a good coat of my favorite Rustoleum rusty metal primer. And then we put it back together last Saturday afternoon.

I think it looks great out on the deck although I originally thought I would put it out in the yard by the grove of Sweet William. Not sure where it will land now...

I failed to take before pictures, but here is the metal back inset before I did anything to it...it had that lovely fake verdigris finish

I used a satin finish Minwax marine varnish on the wood to waterproof it as much as possible.

I really like it and it surprisingly comfortable to sit upon.
The varnish was $4.50, the spray paint was $6 and I spent $1.50 on some new buttons to go in the screw holes on the slats.
That adds up to a nice solid garden bench for a mere $22!

My Gnarly GiveAway Rug...I love it!

I won something...actually won it!! That kind of stuff usually doesn't happen to me.

I was blog stalking one night as an insomniac and ran across this post: http://itsgreattobehome.net/2009/08/21/a-grown-up-kids-meal-and-giveaway-winner/

I was half awake and just skimming this post on ItsGreatToBeHome when I saw my name in bold letters. I couldn't believe it! I had even forgotten that I had entered at the end of this post: http://itsgreattobehome.net/category/gnarly-giveaway/.

Anyway, the rug is so much better in person...beautiful blues and exactly my style. CSN Rugs (http://www.csnrugs.com/) shipped it to me within a few days and it far exceeded my expectations! I have made a few rag rugs on my grandma's loom, but this rug is wonderful. In my entry I said I would put it in the bathroom, but this rug now lives just inside my front door, for all to see!!

Quilted Bible Cover

My old Bible cover was ragged, it was made from plastic-backed canvas and just plain and black and as old as the hills (sort of like me). Last week I found this prequilted fabric at Hobby Lobby for just $1.50, it was just a bit over 2/3 yard. I love navy, so I knew I would use the fabric some day. Well the day arrived Sunday afternoon when I was on the way home from church when I had the idea to make a "purse" for my Bible....so after lunch I started working on the project. I just measured around my Bible, and used a 22" zipper for the opening. I even put a zippered outside pocket so I could keep my notes and pen and what not handy! Anyway, I love it and put it to good use already on Sunday evening.

Covered Button Hair Barrettes

I made Elena some cute covered button barrettes. She modeled one of them for me...

After I painstakingly attached them to the outside pocket of her diaper bag for the picture, she immediately removed them for me and scattered them to the ends of the earth.

I did get her to hold still long enough to get an up close picture. She was very busy today and Sam and I got to keep her all day long.

Sam blew bubbles for her for a long time in a light rain...bubbles last a really long time in a light rain by the way...

Sam seemed to enjoy blowing bubbles...he hadn't done that in a long time...it's not really cool, you know!

Oooopps! Miss Priss fell down backwards, she fell against the rock surrounding the flower bed. But she was only concerned that she got mud on her hands. She is laying on a muddy driveway on top of the fern, but she is most concerned about the bit of mud on her hands.

Recycled Vintage Napkin Chair Cushions

This is my seat cushion for my computer chair...made from two vintage napkins with ties at two corners.
I love the prints of the vintage napkins...sometimes you can find them in pretty good shape. So I found these and they sort of went well with my bedroom decor, so here it is.

I just sewed two of them with wrong sides together along the edges, sewed in the two long grossgrain ribbons at the two back corners....I added some about four layers of batting cut exactly the size of the napkins and then sewed up the last edge.

I found these napkins with a round table cloth earlier this year at Goodwill. I think these four napkins will make great chair cushions for my kitchen. That project is on my to do list for now!

Fabric Flowers

I found a tutorial for making these fabric petal flowers (http://sewritzytitzy.blogspot.com/2008/11/from-annas-gardenfabric-flower-tutorial.html). The petals are each made from a half circle and that is a covered button in the middle!

Very easy to understand directions, very easy to make...I just can't wait to make more of them! I am thinking pinks and browns, Christmas colors, solids... The possibilities are endless!!