Upcycling Some Metal Wall Hangings

 During my most recent trip to the Salvation Army thrift store, I snagged a set of four metal wall hangings. They called to me, "Pat, you know you want to paint me..." Yes, I did. It was the quickest upcycle project because I knew what I wanted to do and I had ll the supplies at home already. And thanks to COVID and the weather (Chicagoland is being inundated with single digit temps, below zero wind chills and continuous snow), I had the time to craft.

I mixed my own paint colors, printed out the phrases I wanted to use and gave each two coats of varnish because some day the weather will turn nice and I can hang these outside. For now, they are in my windows facing out. At least the letter carrier will see them...

This last one I made for my daughter for Valentine's Day. It features Wilson the wonder dog, our 15 year old blind, deaf rescue dog with mega-esophagus and damaged kidney due to lime disease. Every day with him is a comfort and a joy.

Next up I have a date with a light switch cover and a rainbow palette of paints...

Happy crafting!

A HEART-felt Card for Valentine's Day

Today I created a card for Scribbles Designs. The theme is HEART-felt!, asking for projects whose main focus is HEARTS. I chose to use a digi image from Scribbles Designs called #890 Hearts Mason Jar  and my inspiration came from the Beatles' song All My Loving. I changed the one lyric I used for my sentiment from "I'll send all my loving to you" to "I'll save all my loving for you". And it's saved in the mason jar, of course!

After coloring the image with Copics and colored pencils, I adhered some tiny heart glitter/confetti to the jar along with some 3D heart embellishments. My loving is just bursting from the jar. I also used some Opal white Liquid Pearl for the twine around my jar, but then added a flower and button. So you can't really see the "twine" but its there. Really!

I've added the song lyrics below, so while you're reading and humming along, make sure you check out all the inspiration from the rest of the DT at Scribbles Designs Challenge Blog. And don't forget to create your own HEART-felt project and link it to the challenge blog for your chance to win a store gift certificate.

Lyrics from A-Z Lyrics:

"All My Loving"

Close your eyes and I'll kiss you
Tomorrow I'll miss you
Remember I'll always be true
And then while I'm away
I'll write home every day
And I'll send all my loving to you

I'll pretend that I'm kissing
The lips I am missing
And hope that my dreams will come true
And then while I'm away
I'll write home every day
And I'll send all my loving to you

All my loving I will send to you
All my loving, darling I'll be true

Challenges I am Entering:

Happy Valentine's Day

 

My daughter did a photo shoot of our 15 year old Silkie Terrier for Valentine's Day. Poor thing, he slept through the entire time! This is the best shot of them all...

I created this Valentine hanging flower decor. Lately I've been finding these metal containers just leaping off the shelves into my basket. By the time the year is over, I should have one created for every holiday. I wanted to hang it on my front deck alongside my door, but the last two weeks have been snow, Snow and SNOW!! It's snowing now, and while I put two coat of varnish on the container, the flowers are Dollar Store  items. I have about 3 feet of snow on my back deck, my grill is buried and the ramp in front of the house is impassable (luckily there's no one living here that needs to use it any more). So for now it's hanging in my living room.

This is the second metal planter that I've upcycled. The first one was Christmas, which I featured on an earlier post. Just this week I found another planter to play with some time in the future - YAY!!

I love thrifting for things to upcycle. I try not to go out too often. Not only is it unsafe due to COVID, but I already have stacks of things yet to paint, wire, frame and otherwise put my own twist on them. Most of the time, an item will inspire me right in the store, ad I already know before I get home what I'm going to do with it. Other times, I buy something because I get this feeling in my gut that it will make a great upcycle project. Do you thrift for art projects? How do you choose what to leave and what to take home? I'm always trying to downsize and declutter, and bring bags of items to the thrift stores, but unfortunately I bring home almost as much as I donate...

Hope you have a lovely day today! 

Playing with your Food

My girlfriend and I make a monthly trip together to our favorite thrift store. It's about a 45 minute drive and we take one car so that we can catch up on our lives. Because once we get in the store, we usually don't see each other until it's time to sort though our carts and make final decisions.

Last time we went, she found a set of salad tools - a wooden fork and spoon with a pineapple topping each. While the price was under a dollar for the two, she decided not to keep them. So they went into my cart. She asked me what I would do with them, and I told her I was going to give them some character.

I gave them a fresh painting, then used paint markers to draw on a face for each. I remember when I was a kid, my mom had a wooden apple hanging on her kitchen wall. The back of it was hollowed out and she put a ball of string in there and it fed through a whole at the bottom of the apple. My Kawaii salad utensils remind me of that apple and all the great family meals we had together. Those memories are especially precious since we just lost mom, especially since that apple didn't make it through the years.
 

I'm Loving the Outlet Covers

 I am really loving the look of my painted/altered light switches and outlet covers. They are a quick craft (except for waiting for the paint and varnish to dry). Today I'm showing you 2 kitchen outlet covers that I created over the last two days. Above, I painted a background and used my last remaining fish stickers. I used a white paint marker to create the bubbles and highlights.

Below, I used Mod Podge and some handmade paper for the back ground, then painted a nice chunk of cheese. I had some House Mouse stickers which worked perfectly.

By the time restrictions are lifted due to COVID, my outlet covers and switch plates should all be altered or hand-painted!! Meanwhile, I have a new sewing machine and a bed quilt to finish. All I have to do is open the box and read the instructions and watch the YouTube tutorials. (Since COVID restrictions, the free classes when you buy a machine are NOT available. Wish me luck!!

Trying Something Different

 Last month I received a 2021 calendar from my lawyer. It's the National Day calendar. Every day has a "national celebration" from January 1st through December 31st. Last week there was a "Plastic Straw" Day. I got this crazy idea to get inspired by the different daily celebrations and see how may crafts I can create for those days.

I rummages through my drawers and gathered up all my plastic straws. After all, I should be using paper or metal straws to lessen my ecological footprint. I also emptied (with the help of my daughter) a can of carrots that I found in the back of my pantry. First things first: I hot glued all the straws I could find. To keep my creation from looking like a kindergarten project, I spray  painted my can with Gold paint. Now I have a nice container to place my paint brushes to dry after I wash them.

P.S. (I even cut the creased parts of the straws and glued them to the top for a "rim"). I've got to check out what's next on that calendar. You never know where inspiration will strike...

Running Out of Things to Paint/Alter...

 

I was watching A You Tube video featuring Mariah Elizabeth. She's funny, and loves to revamp squishies. She also loves to paint and alter pretty much anything. A soul sister!! And some new inspiration for the days when I just can't settle on what I want to do. So I took out my screwdriver and removed a switchplate from the hallway and created this little gem. My daughter keeps reminding me that her spirit animal is a Sloth, so she really likes the new look.

I can't remember if I showed this one yet, but I drew and painted this switchplate first. I love how it has a Disneyesque look to it, and the colors really pop. This one resides in my guest bedroom (formerly called my craft room).

Since my hallway has two light switches, I thought I should alter the other one to make a matched pair, except they don't match (except for the fact that they're both altered/painted). This is my favorite one. Now I'm hunting throughout the house for other switchplates and  outlet covers I can play with.

What's on your desk today?? 

Challenges I am Entering:
2 Crafty Critter Crazies - Anything Goes w/a Critter
Crafty Animals - Anything Goes w/an Animal