Love is in the air!

I've been working on all kinds of projects. From upholstery to freezer meals to quilting. But I panicked when I realized I had taken down the Christmas wreath from the front door and had nothing to put up for Valentine's Day. I went to the basement checked out all my wood scraps and a project was born. Now, I will admit, I don't have alot of original ideas. Pinterest is so amazing, so I usually see something I like and tweek it to be my own. 

This heart being sold on Etsy is what caught my eye and I thought I can make that! And this is how you can too! Or let me know and I'll make one for you because I just checked and this item is no longer being sold on Etsy. I still have wood scraps in the basement so your cost is bound to be good.

What you'll need:

a piece of wood to accommodate your heart size

wire (I used No.19 soft galvanized)

burlap

red paint

polyurethane

Tools needed:

jigsaw

drill

wire cutter

sandpaper

pliers
scissors
scrap paper

Ok, I have to apologize, I did not take many pictures of putting this together. I know, I am a bad blogger. So you are going to have to pull out the creative portion of your mind and put it to work. You can do it! I have faith in you!

First using your scrap paper cut the size and shape of heart you like. As I stated in my Fall Burlap Wreath my house sits a ways back from the street so I want to make a statement with what goes on my front door. Your heart can be smaller but mine measured about 29" tall by 21" wide. I then taped it to the door to see how it sized up. The Etsy heart is very small, you can see it hangs from a door knob. 

Next I ripped my piece of scrap wood down the center using the table saw. I love using my big girl tools whenever I can. I then took the heart pattern and cut it in half. Lay the pattern on the wood and trace with a pencil. Use your jigsaw to cut the two pieces out. 

Now grab your drill with a big enough drill bit that will allow the wire to pass through. I drilled 3 sets of wholes down the center of the heart. This is where you will run your wire to hold the two halves together. Once those are done drill two holes at the top of each heart section. This is where the wire will run to hang the heart. Great! Almost done with the drill. Think about bow placement. Drill two holes about an inch apart where you want the center of the bow to be. 

Sanding- I sanded the edges so I wouldn't get splinters but other than that I did not sand it. My piece of wood was a really nice piece of oak I'd bought for another project and then cut it too short. Ugh, I know. Hence the saying measure twice, cut once. But I knew some day I'd have a use for it.

My red paint was left over from Red Door of Welcome. Red always takes a few coats to get an even tone. Be patient and give it all the coats it needs. You'll thank yourself later. My front door is exposed to the elements so I always try to protect my projects best I can. Here I used polyurethane. Two really good coats. After it drys completely you may choose to sand it a little to make it look distressed. I kept mine as is.

Cut 3 lengths of wire long enough to attach the heart halves. Poke the wire through the holes and double back on it. Bend the wire on the front side and then use a small item like a pencil to wrap the wire around to make pig tails. I used needle nose pliers and wrapped it around them. 

Once the heart halves are connected you can cut a length of wire to hang the heart from. I added an extra length to again make pigtails. I took the paper towels off its holder and used that to make the big pigtails.

Burlap, You can buy it in a spool of ribbon. The wire edged kind makes it a little more durable. I had yards of burlap in the craft closet so I cut strips in 2 1/2" width. I reeaaallllyyyy wish I had a good video on how to make a bow. It is super easy but if you are like me, you are such a visual learner it is hard to imagine. I know there are some on Pinterest but I just did a quick search and some of them practically have you turning handstands to get it done. I promise I will give a tutorial soon on my super easy bow making. But for now if you need help you'll have to turn the handstands to get it done if you don't already know how. :( Because I cut strips of burlap instead of using burlap ribbon it frays a little. I think that adds to the character of the project. 

Cut a piece of wire to attach the bow, draw it through the two drilled bow holes and secure it in place. You can also pigtail the wire ends on the front side if you wish. You're ready to hang your heart. Now if you made your holes too far apart for the wire to hang it from it may make your heart a little 3 dimensional. Which at first I was a little worried about but now I am really loving it.

What a fast and easy project and I love it!!! I hope you do too. I hope your Valentine was good to you this year. Mine fed me Chicago style deep dish pizza. YUM!!! Reminded me of our dating days. 

Thanks for checking in on me. 

Linda

Burlap Wreath

Like many, I caught the bug to make a burlap wreath. After trolling through several "Pins" this is how I made mine. I had 4 - 15 feet by 8 inch rolls of burlap in the craft closet for 6 months. Time to put them to use. My starting point.

Head to your local craft store and decide what size of wreath you want. I went big. My house sits back from the street and I wanted my wreath to be noticed. This ring is 24" diameter. So what you'll need is:

wire wreath ring

burlap ribbon or cut your own (messy)

florals, letters or whatever you want to embellish you wreath

You could use a smaller width of burlap if you are making a smaller wreath.Tie the end of the burlap onto the ring.

Now pull the burlap up in between the wire and make a bubble for the lack of another term. Twist the burlap. This helps it stay put. So you're basically pulling the burlap up and back down in the same spot. Twist and do it again in another spot. Continue until you come to the end and tie off. Do this until your ring is fluffy with burlap to your liking.

I used hot glue to adhere the embellishments.

When you drive by, slow down and take a look. Happy Fall!

Thanks for checking in on me.

Linda

Wire Storage

This is what I see when I look under my craft/sewing table. I'm afraid the dogs will get wrapped in them and get hurt or I'll get wrapped in them and pull the sewing machine off the table. A quick run to Lowes is what would fix the problem. I purchased some cup hooks and screwed them into the under side of my table. To get a good placement I held the shelf upside down on the bottom of the table and made a little mark where I wanted the hooks to be. Make sure the cup hooks all face the same direction.

I also purchased a wire rack. This is typically used as a shelf to hold plates or whatever in a cabinet. place it on your hooks.

Gather up all those cords and set them on your new under the table shelf. I used twisty ties to hold some of the cords together as they are pretty long.

So I went from this....

To this!

The Girl Cave floor is now cord free. Neat and tidy.

Thanks for checking in on me.

Linda

Spaghetti Squash with Tomatoes and Olives

New Recipe Wednesday!

Spaghetti Squash with Tomatoes and Olives

1/2 of a 2 to 2 1/2 lb spaghetti squash

2 Tbsp olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 - 14 1/2 oz cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano (undrained)

4oz dried whole grain spaghetti

1/2 cup pimiento stuffed green olives, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup snipped fresh basil (I skipped this and it was still super tasty)

2 oz feta cheese crumbles (1/2 cup)

1. Halve spaghetti squash. Remove strings and seeds. Place up half upside down on plate in microwave. Cook on high 12 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork. Cool slightly.

2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic, cook 1 minute. Add tomatoes; bring to boiling. Boil gently, uncovered for 15 minutes, stir occasionally.

3. While tomatoes are cooking, in a large pot cook pasta according to package directions; drain and return to the pot.

4.When the squash has cooled slightly, using a fork, scrape the pulp from the squash into strands. Add squash, tomato sauce, olives, raisins and basil to pasta in the pot. Season to taste with black pepper. Serve topped with feta and additional snipped fresh basil, if desired. makes 4 servings.

Enjoy!!!

My Boys

I have been on a journey this year to add to my bare walls. My boys are older now and moved or near move out age, but I will always be their Mom and always be so proud of them. They will always be my babies. I took several pictures of them together through the years and had them matted and framed. Add in a couple of the pieces of art they created in elementary school and a P. Buckley Moss entitled "Brothers Together" and there you have it. I see this every morning when I wake up.

No matter how old they get I'll love them forever!!

Thanks for checking in on me!!

Linda

Sweater Skirt

I've been looking at all these "pins" that showed how to make a skirt out of a sweater and my love of sewing just wouldn't be complete until I made one. So while Mom-in-law was getting her hair done while here on a visit I slipped down to the thrift store. I ended up buying to men's sweaters and and chair and only spent $29.00. So after throwing the sweater in the wash and buying 2" wide elastic here is what I did...

First cut off the sleeves.

Then, decide how long you want the skirt to be, measure and cut. Remember the waist of the sweater will be the new hem of your skirt.

If you have a serger you can serge the cut waist of your skirt. But if not then you can zip zag stitch it so you can control the unraveling. I bought a sweater that was a little too big so ended up cutting down the sides and sewing to fit. My suggestion is to find a sweater that will give you the fit you want and leave the original side seams. 

Next grab your 2" wide elastic, cut length to fit and sew short ends right side together. Here it is already attached to the skirt but it gives you a visual.

Now zig zag or serge it to the waist of your skirt. Just lay the elastic wrong side to the right side of the skirt. I put the elastic seam in the back. Remember when stitching it to the skirt stretch the elastic and sweater otherwise when you go to put it on it will rip your stitches.

And there you have it. A new fall skirt. I used this "Pin" to guide my steps. Check it out. Kelsey H, if you have questions give me a call. :)

Thanks for checking in on me. 

Linda

Patriotic Letter

I decided I didn't have enough patriotic decorations around the house and it was almost the 4th. Nothing I saw in a store would be coming home with me so I took on a new project.

This is how you do it:

buy: A large wooden letter at your favorite craft store. Don't forget to use your coupon! This one is 18" tall and about 1/4" thick made of pine.
Paint of your choice. This is what I got. I love working with these acrylics. Easy clean up and dries fast.

Painters tape. Mine is almost 2" wide. Don't cheap out on this. Get the good stuff. It's worth it in the end.

Polyurethane, satin finish, if you want to hang your letter outside.

You'll also need sandpaper, fine grit, and small craft paint brushes. Don't use a foam brush!!! I tried it, the wood is too rough and tore foams bits all over my project. :(

Let's get to it:

Paint the front side of the letter with white. Give it a good coat, 2 or 3. Remember it dries fast so this will take no time at all. Let it set overnight (or several hours) then grab the painters tape. Tape off desired stripes. Really press the edges of the tape down firmly so the paint won't seep under it.

Start painting the red stripes. Remember, less is more when you paint the taped edges. Light coats until you get the desired look. Once that's done go for the field of blue. Let dry and use the white again to paint your stars. It's a handmade item, the stars don't have to be perfect. After the stars are dry give the front and back 2 or 3 coats of polyurethane. I like to do this whether it'll be outside or note. It just gives it a shiny finished look.

I got fancy and cut some wire hangers to let them dry without sticking to anything. These particular letters have keyholes to hang them, however you may want to do what I did. I used the tiny screws that attached the hanger to display them at the store. Without screwing them in all the way, take some picture hanging wire or any light weight wire and wrap around each screw.

As you can see once I took mine to work, several more folks wanted one.

And this is for my friend that didn't know if a "D" would look good. This is going to knock her socks off. ;)

But wait! There's more. One friend asked if I could do a letter in a college theme. So with a little thought and some fun painting I came up with this. 

Ya, I'm probably breaking some kind of copyright laws but what's the internet for if you can't print the free coloring pages that are out there.

I have another order for 4 more letters. And a slipcover to make. So check back in on me and see how the Big Ugly Chair is coming along.

Leave me a note and let me know what you think. Remember I monitor your comments so if you don't see it right away that's because I haven't seen it yet. Thanks for checking in on me.