Re-purposing Archives - Yearning to Create

Beaded Curtain Tiebacks

Beads can make beautiful curtain tiebacks. It’s true! Especially if you use beads that have sentimental value to you (like Grandma’s old costume jewelry that you would never wear!)

So I went and chose some very sentimental bracelets from the dollar store. (Actually, I was just looking for colours I liked.)

Now, I thought this was brilliant . . .

. . . I packed up my beading supplies . . .

. . . and divided up the beads, to work on my project in the car! I had two daughters playing in a softball tournament, and I knew there would be some time between games where I could do some crafting (it was either that or Sudoku!).

The center console and my lap made the perfect work station (be sure to sit in the passenger seat so you don’t have a steering wheel to deal with!).

I just tied my string to a starting ring and started beading.

No pattern was the pattern, with a small pearl between each larger bead.

When I was finished with the beads, I simply tied a ring to the other end. I was almost finished the second one, and then the games began again. (This was the tournament where my daughter on the pitchers mound got hit in the eye during the final game – check her out here. And this was six days before her high school graduation!)

I finished the last two at home and aren’t they pretty!

Final step was to attach a little nail or hook to the window casing and tie back the curtains.

So much prettier than just hanging! Now they just hang at night.

This is an alcove off the master bedroom – a little room I really love! Right now it’s purpose is to be my baby’s bedroom – my baby who is two and a half! Someday it will just be my sanctuary!

And there she is – sitting there reading in her lovely little alcove – with the lovely new beaded curtain tiebacks!

How to Use Household Items as Wedding Decor

With seven daughters, we often get comments like “Hope you’re saving up for those weddings!” Well I am here to tell you that you can still have a beautiful wedding without spending a fortune. I was able to find some great deals in thrift stores and off the local buy and sell, and with a little paint and effort and imagination, turn some things into wedding worthy items. Add a few borrowed items, and items from around the house and voila, the decorating is done!

Here are a few things I found . . .

First item:

This little bench came from our local Facebook Buy and Sell group. The bottom part was all dark burgundy so all it needed was some paint in the right colour (Grey Morning – leftover from my laundry room). I left the top natural, just the way it was. Her colours were teal, lime and light yellow, with lots of earth tones thrown in too.

See it there peeking out behind the flowers? We placed the bench up on the food table, with the lamp on it to help illuminate the food. Three beverage dispensers were on one side, and the platters of food were on the other. It divided up the 18 foot long table (three six foot tables) very nicely! I had a 19 foot lace tablecloth that was from my little sisters wedding that I just kept packed away because we all figured we would have the next wedding in the family – and we did. Speaking of the tables, notice how one is taller than the other? There was no way we could get those tables even, so we had to put a little block under the leg of the bench and place that brown tile in front of it. The tile was a gift to the bride and groom from their stake president.

Choose your Love – Love your Choice.

The big flower arrangement also came from the Buy and Sell. I just took out the coloured flowers that didn’t match and rearranged what was left.

Our second reception had a slightly different arrangement, with my Willowtree figurine added in, and some Scrabble tile messages – check that out here. The lamps belong to the bride and there were four of them used in various locations at the reception.

Next item:

This little bench seat with the lift up seat also came from the Buy and Sell.

My original plan was to paint it white and antique it, but I literally ran out of time. From the time the ring was on her finger, we only five weeks and six days til the wedding day!!! Lucky for us, the groom asked our permission about a month before that, so we were already working on things before the official engagement. So all we had time to do with the bench was give it a good clean and re-upholster the seat in a matching wedding colour (fabric came from a thrift store!). Our bride said she was perfectly happy with it in its natural colour, and besides, it was going in the hallway!

This is how it ended up looking. The teal blanket came from my living room and the Mr. & Mrs. pillows came from my bedroom (check them out here). The little chest and flowers came from Michaels – always with a 40% or 50% off coupon. The little chest was on the end of season clearance shelves and cost me something like $1.77. My favourite little white ampersand came from Walmart, but I already had that too!

The bench greeted you as you came down the hall. To the left was a spot for gifts, and to the right was the entrance into the reception. I made those spindles from old stair railings. They were perfect for directing “traffic” – just like what you’d see in a bank or movie lineups, only prettier!

The gift area, featuring the first gift, and a handmade quilt by Aunt Diana over the couch. The bench did its job well and maybe I’ll tackle painting it this summer – then for sure it will be ready for our next wedding!!!

Last item:

I didn’t take a before shot of this radish picture in an ugly reddish brown frame that I found in a thrift store – but trust me, it wasn’t a pretty picture! I dismantled the picture and tossed the poor radish. Painted it, using my leftover Grey Morning paint again, then sanded and distressed the edges. We printed a favourite photo in black and white, and that was it. The perfect picture to hang over their favors table. We wanted a matted picture so the bride could write a message on it.

Here’s the wedding favors table. The table came from my dad – he used to have it in his storage room and they were shocked that we made it wedding worthy! The table runner and baby’s breath came from the thrift store. The green, yellow and blue baskets were already owned by the bride, and the wreath and holder were from my dining room – check the wreath out here.

The finished frame – so much better than radishes! The happy couple now have this hanging in their apartment, without the words though. Pictures are a great way to decorate – prints are very inexpensive and it’s amazing what you can do with old frames and spray paint.

Hope this has given you some ideas! If only I knew what colour schemes our next six weddings will be!!! In the meantime, I’ll keep my eyes open for any other treasures that could become wedding worthy!

How to Make a Chalkboard from a Cupboard Door

Before my daughters wedding, I was scrounging around in the garage, looking for stuff that we might be able to up-cycle into something wedding worthy. Well, I found a cupboard door!

I painted the outside edge in my leftover laundry room paint (Grey Morning by Behr), which happened to match her wedding colours perfectly! I sanded the edges a little and distressed them with my tube of Burnt Umber Oil Colour (best and easiest way to distress anything!)

The middle part I painted with chalkboard paint – two coats. Super easy!

The result was a chalkboard!!!

This was the perfect way to greet our wedding guests as they came through the doors. And it was perfect for pointing out which way they should go.

This was our practice set-up at home in our unfinished basement. Looking at it now, I realize it was quite the recycling project – old cupboard door, old chair, old topiary, old spindles – all up-cycled to become . . .

. . . the perfect wedding entryway!

Now my plan is to either hang it horizontally above a window or door in my house, or vertically on a narrow wall. Since it’s a chalkboard, I can make it say anything I want! And I can take it down and use it again as a welcome sign. It’s already had “Welcome to New Beginnings” written on it. It also fits very well in a small easel – the kind you would use to hold a 12 x 12 tile – which is how we propped the chalkboard up for New Beginnings.

I think this old cupboard door is loving it’s new life!!!

My Little Tin

This cute little tin was a Christmas gift – filled with delicious homemade chocolates. Mmmm, someone knows my weakness (and yes, I ate them all myself – but not all at once!).

My mom grew up in NZ and used the word “tin” all the time. But it doesn’t seem all that common here in North America in the context she used it.

English lesson time here: when I say “tin” I’m referring to the noun, meaning “a pan, box, etc., made of tin” as opposed to the adjective – eg. a tin can. Tin, as we all know, is “a soft, silver-white metallic chemical element”. My guys says that not everybody knows that, but now that I’ve typed it, you all know now!

Anyway, I liked the tin – it’s a nice size and the lid is hinged in the back. I’ve got plenty of things already that are just for Christmas, so I decided to give this little tin a new look so I could use it year round.

Bring on the spray paint!!!

This was after three coats of spray paint. I know it looks like you can still see the red showing through – but it only looks like that in the picture with the flash. In real life it looks like . . .

. . . this – nice and dark. I used Oil Rubbed Bronze Krylon spray paint that I got in Walmart for about $4.64 a can (that’s a pretty accurate estimate!). I used maybe $1.02 worth of spray paint on this.

As you can see, I prettied it up a little with some natural hemp twine.

And now it sits on my dresser, being a cute little catch-all for those things we collect like buttons, pins, pennies, library cards . . . etc.

Love my tin (the box, not the metallic chemical element).

It really is amazing how spray paint can transform anything – how did I not discover it years ago? Stay tuned for some more spray paint projects!

Oh, and you can check out my Forget Not project here.

Now, go spray something!!!

One Huge Frame

I found a treasure – big old ugly brown frame at our band garage sale for about $0.25. I just knew I’d be able to get a lot off use out of this frame once it was prettied up!

It looked so cute after a few coats of spray paint. I believe the colour was Ocean Breeze by Krylon.

The first time we used it was part of a photo wall at Grad . . .

. . . it’s the big one with the blue couple inside it.

Then we used it during engagement photo’s for my daughter.

I love the sky, the wheat, the frame, the couple!!!

And finally, we turned it into a chalkboard for their wedding!

My guy cut me a piece of 1/8″ melamine in whatever measurement the back of my frame was. Then I gave it two coats of chalkboard paint. Now this was the hard part – attaching the chalkboard to the back of the frame. I used duct tape and taped it on!!! That way I can easily take it out when I just want a frame again.