Snippets

It's Friday and I've survived another week.  Just a few thoughts to share today.  First, I went antiquing a few weeks ago and added to my key collection.  It's truly a sickness.  You simply wouldn't believe the number of old rusty keys I've amassed but I can't stop now. 

We recently visited a boutique with a table front & center, and the bottom of each table leg was wearing a high heel.  Not a real shoe of course; just made to look that one.  But you know I went wild over the idea of it and now my mother is buying me wacky shoes at the thrift stores.  One pair looks just perfect for a witch so I've decided to add something new to this year's porch decorations for Halloween.  Those shoes, a black hat and a broom. 

Saw the Cake Mix Doctor on GMA this week and now I'm dying to make her crushed Oreo brownies.  Have mercy, I'm not a fan of chocolate, but they looked so good I think I won't be able to resist.  Went right to the library last night and put my name on the list for both her books, along with some new fiction, of course.

Tomorrow we're off at oh-dark-thirty for IKEA in Charlotte.  A bonus to reward me for rising while it's still dark outside:  they're giving away a free breakfast to everyone.  I was going anyway, but I'm telling myself it's a reward, so don't rain on my parade.

The queen-size bed in guestroom #1 is on a Hollywood frame with no headboard and it's making us crazy.  You know that's the only room on the first floor that's received a new coat of paint (Butter Cream), so it deserves a proper bed.  Since we can't decide on one we like around here, we're off in search of one, plus new bedding as well.  And I'm thinking I want new curtains for my bedroom, and a new long runner for my kitchen. 

I've got so many ideas in my head for classes right now that I dream about them!!!  Backgrounds, collages, books, techniques, and of course a new specimen box surprise.  And I've got a big order of new goodies on the way, so that's always a big treat.

One final note...I've had enough candy corn.  For today.

Fall is in the air! October has arrived

October's here already?  How'd that happen?  I've been distracted by several things in recent weeks.  My TV shows are back.  House is still an all-time favorite.  Liking the new Flash Forward...for now.  Old Christine is still a winner and so is the new Modern Family.  Hank and The Middle were both dreadful out of the gate and I'm not sure I can give either of them a second chance.  I've recorded 5 episodes of Dancing With The Stars and the season premiere of Grey's Anatomy, but haven't watched them yet.  I've decided Jay Leno at 10 isn't much different from 11.  Tick tock.

I hate to even say it out loud, but we might have found the color for the first floor.  And you'll never guess where I found it...in the new pantry.  It hit me this weekend when I turned on the lights and walked in there, realizing it was a nice creamy color.  We painted some on several walls of the kitchen so I can try living with it.  Might want to go a shade darker, but I think I'm onto something. 

I've been using my new convection oven.  (It should come with a warning.)  In one week we had chicken casserole, spaghetti, beef stroganoff, and London Broil.  Might be a record in my house.

Gotta say it again:  2 dishwashers are NOT a genius plan.  Both were filled with dirty dishes at once which means both had clean dishes at once, which meant dirty dishes went in the sink til they could be emptied.  And this is the funny bit.  I unloaded both and began to refill the one on the right after lunch on Saturday.  Guess who cleaned up after dinner and began to load the one on the left?  All I'm sayin'...

I've been busy on class samples, which has been lots of fun.  And my stamp club has decided to make 10 ornaments to swap in 2 weeks.  I've known for over a month what my ornament would be so it's time to get started on those.  We've also decided to do our holiday container swap again for November's meeting.  Any container with a tiny gift inside.  In the past I've disassembled Chinese take-away containers and decoupaged them with tissue paper painted with metallic paints, then reassembled them and filled them with Oriental goodies.  Another year I gave tiny wooden trunks inked & stamped, filled with push pins I made using flat glass marbles showcasing tiny works of art attached to the tops of the pins.  Others have made paper mache bowls, crocheted baskets with lids, decorated paint cans, altered books that were hollowed out and filled with ephemera...just lots of clever ideas.  I'll have to put on my thinking cap for that one but it's hard to think of holidays beyond Halloween.  That's my favorite holiday ever!  I've got to hang the skeleton and spider web on the front porch, pull out the big things for the porch, buy the pumpkin and get it carved, find that little witch that makes the eerie sounds as she moves around the floor with her flashing eyes.  Last year I was so tempted to buy costumes for the puppies but didn't, so this may be the year.

And while I'm designing new classes I've decided to make up kits for old classes, creating an online class  Will let you know as soon as that's ready to post, so check back.

I bought a new Fall wreath for the front door and I'm so glad I did.  Hope the neighbors are enjoying it as much as I am.  You can tell it's Fall in the neighborhood.  First a little cheerleader came around selling pizza boxes as a fundraiser (you take the empty box to the pizzaria to be filled) and then a Cub Scout selling caramel corn.  Worthy causes with bonuses.  Lovin' that!!

Shopping for a fire pit for the lower level patio so we can enjoy these cooler evenings.  Wish me luck.

And if you find time to read a good book or two, I recommend 2 by Maeve Binchy.  First read Tara Road and then read Quentins.  Loved them both.  I'm waiting for Scarlet Feather now.  I also read A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick and I enjoyed some of it but don't know that it would ever be in my top 100, so if you read it, let me know what you think.  I don't like a slow book and I don't like them when the ending is less than what I imagined.  Also on the waiting list for Robert B Parker's The Professional.  I just love his Spenser series and can't wait for that one.  But while I was waiting I read 2 of his that are westerns: Appaloosa and Brimstone and enjoyed both.  (Just thought you should know I don't limit myself to TV this time of year.)

Til next time, hope the colors of Fall are reaching your corner of the world.

Storage Flea Market Style

I'm a collector.  And I'm always trying to be better organized.  Which is why these ideas have such great appeal.  Why not combine the two loves into one and create some great projects?

An old tin can can easily be transformed into a lamp.  And I can see something like this on display in my studio, can't you?








This is an old metal heating grate that's been mounted on the wall with screws, transforming it into a really cool magazine rack. 

Wouldn't you love to find several of these?













This is my favorite idea of all time.  If you visit antique stores and flea markets as much as I do, you've stumbled across a lot of old drawer pulls.  Isn't this a simply fabulous idea? 

I should tell you all these ideas & photos came to me in an email from Better Homes & Gardens. 












I see old shutters at the Habitat Reuse Center all the time and I can never envision a use for them.  But once I saw this one painted yellow, I knew it would be a great display piece in my studio for displaying cards, ATC's, postcards and more.














Most bird cages I've seen didn't look quite this nice, but clearly they have potential.  Dowels have been run from side to side with a piece of glass (or plexiglass) resting atop them to create shelves. 

I probably wouldn't use this for mail, but instead as another display space for my dimensional art.  And since wall space is well gone in my studio, I could certainly suspend this from the ceiling in an unusual place.  Oh how I love these great ideas!








Now if you have a corner or wall space a tall shutter would work.  I'm not sure I have such a corner, but I still love the idea.

Add a bulletin board or chalk board at the top, and tuck in art work in the bottom. 

I'm inspired.  How about you?  This will be the last weekend of the flea market in Raleigh until November because they're shutting down on Sunday in preparation of the State Fair.  Maybe you should venture out and see what treasures you can find.  And there's always the local thrift stores & consignment shops. 

Let me know if you find anything.

DIY Bangle Technique #1

Today's technique is a favorite of mine for journal pages so it was an obvious choice 3 years ago for my bangles.  First collect your supplies:
unfinished wooden bangle bracelets
Spectra brand art tissue which bleeds when wet
Mist It spritzer filled with water
styrofoam tray or plate

Begin by turning off the ceiling fans.  I have 2 going in my studio 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, but with tiny bits of tissue blowing everywhere, it had to be done.

They sell this tissue in rainbow packages as well as warm and cool color combinations, so choose your favorites.

Regular tissue paper will not work because the color doesn't transfer when it gets wet.



I separate my bits of tissue by color as you see here, though this is far more than I needed for one bangle.  This is a 1" wide domed bangle.

Spritz the bangle with a mist of water so the first piece of tissue paper will adhere when placed on the bracelet.

I began with red for no particular reason and I make sure it's wet by spritzing it again once it's in place.  The transfer of color begins immediately but still needs to be left overnight, or for several hours minimum til the water has evaporated.  When the tissue paper is dry it will turn a dreadful gray color and fall off the bangle.  If you've torn long strips and wrapped them around inside and out, you'll need to pull them off when dry.

If you don't want dye on your fingers, wear latex gloves.  But it will wash off so I never wear them.

I continue around the bangle alternating colors to give it a rainbow effect.  But remember your color wheel and kindergarten experiments.  When yellow & blue overlap, you'll get green.  Just as red next to yellow will give you orange.

One other note: when you place the tissue on the bangle and don't press it down flat, your end result will be spaces with no color, as you'll see in a photo below.

Once I have it covered inside and out, I store all my tissue paper in a ziploc bag.  Then I mist the bangle one last time, patting down as needed to make sure I have contact with the wood, and set it aside to dry.

If you pull the paper off too soon you'll have very pale colors.  By waiting overnight they're far more intense.

Can you see the areas on this bangle with no color? That's because I didn't press down everywhere with the wet tissue. Sometimes I leave it like this, but usually I'll spritz those areas with water and add more tissue paper, as I've done with this one.

Here I've gone back and added more tissue paper to get complete saturation of color on the entire surface. 

Once this is dry I seal the bangle.  Choices of sealant include Diamond Glaze by JudiKins, Glossy Accents or Matte Accents by Ranger, or even Mod Podge or Delta Ceramcoat Satin Sealant.  Just depends on the look you want.  Most of my bangles have been sealed with a gloss.

In the first photo of my last post the bangles haven't been sealed at all.  Hope you've found this helpful and that you'll give it a try. 

And if you're searching for the bleeding tissue paper, I've found it at Michael's on the far wall near the front check out counters where they have wrapping paper, ribbons and tissue.  Good luck!

Bangle How-To's Coming Your Way

Last month at both CHA and the CHA Consumer Super Craft Show I had lots of inquiries for more bangle instructions. This weekend I'll be making lots of bangles and taking photos throughout the process so please come back.

And for those of you who took my classes at Stampfest and at Stampaway, you'll be pleased to see several designs. Hope you've ordered some bangles to play with by now!

And if you haven't, please visit www.diybangles.com/shop to see one how-to slide show and also to place an order. Mention that you took a class with Lovely Linda, or that you visited my blog.

My plan is to decorate several different styles of bangles: flat, pentagon & domed, so you might want to order some of each.