Christmas in July-Candy Jars

July 25, 2016July 24, 201615 Comments

We are in the last week of July, and I am finally getting around to posting a Christmas in July post! I have a huge collection of glass jars, so this was a perfect way to use them. In fact, I didn’t have to buy anything for this particular project, I had it all on hand. That’s the way I like it!

*For my co-workers who follow me here on the blog, you might want to stop reading. These are going to be your Christmas presents. You can decide if you want to know now or not!*

I went through my jars and found 10 that were approximately the same size. I made sure they all had a lid that would fit. As you can see, these jars are from all different sorts of food items. I also picked out 3 different colors of spray paint and found some small wooden beads.

I spray painted the lids using the 3 colors and then had to figure out a way to paint the beads while getting good coverage, and not just on my fingers! I finally (it probably took me 10 minutes to figure this out!) found a long screw that would fit into the end of the bead. This way I could hold the end of the screw and spray the paint all around the bead.

Once everything was dry, I took it all inside to assemble. I had these tacks left over from my chair makeover so used them to cover the hole in the top of the bead. I used Gorilla Glue to attach everything. I squeezed out some glue onto a paper to form a little puddle and then I was able to dip the tack into the glue and place it into the hole. I did the same for the other end of the bead. I dipped it into the glue and then placed it on the top of the lid.

Here is everything all attached.

I sorted through my stash of scrapbooking paper and found pieces that would go well with my lids. There are so many different varieties of paper in the store. I’m sure you can find something you like! Even though these are Christmas gifts, I decided not to use Christmassy paper. I wanted my co-workers to be able to use these in there homes or classroom whenever they wanted, not just at Christmas.

I cut each of my pieces 2 1/2 inches wide and long enough to fit around each jar. I made sure there was enough to overlap a bit, so I would have somewhere to glue.

I also made coordinating tags. I used a 2 inch white square and then another 2 inch piece of printed paper which I attached at an angle. I also added a gold sparkly sticker with the recipients initial. These were all attached with a bit of colored string.

I plan on filling them with some candy when I give them as gifts, but since there is no Christmas candy out quite yet, they are still empty!

I love all the pretty colors and prints!

Of course, turquoise is my favorite!

Now I am all set and won’t have to think about something at the last minute! This would make a great gift for a teacher, a co-worker or a friend. Start saving those jars and you will be on your way!

How To Make a Super Simple Superhero Cape

June 20, 2016June 17, 20164 Comments

I have a super easy project for you today! As most of you know, I really don’t like to sew. I made this project without having to sew, but you could if you wanted to make it fancier! I used knit fabric so I wouldn’t have to worry about sewing seams or having the fabric fray. My kind of project! Here are a few of the fabrics I picked.

The size of the cape is going to depend on the size of your child. I made these for my preschoolers and for my 2 great-nieces. I started with a 25″ by 30″, but that looked too big for the kids. I cut them down to a 21″ long by 15″ neck for my 3 year old niece and 15″ long by 12″ neck for the 1 1/2 year old. The ones for 4-5 year old preschoolers were a little longer.

After cutting the rectangle, I cut in from the sides, about half way up, to the neckline. I cut in just enough so it would be a 15″ or 12″ neckline. You could also make a wide seam at the top and run a ribbon through it, but I didn’t want to have to tie it on the kids each time someone else wanted to use the cape. So I used velcro instead.

I attached a piece of velcro to the top, one on each side of the fabric so it would lay flat.

I also added emblems to the back. Every superhero needs an emblem! This one is the letters for the preschool where I work.

Here it is all done. You can see how it goes narrower at the top to fit around the neck.

I added a star to this one.

Here are the ones I made for my great nieces-Super ‘E’ and Super ‘L.’ L had just woken up from a nap, so she didn’t really feel like being a superhero, but E ran ‘really fast’ and ‘flew’ all over the house. It’s so fun to see kids use their imagination when playing! Who need tv when you have a 3 year old playing superhero! By the way, she was just pretending to sleep. No rest for this one!!

This is a great ‘super’ easy project to make for your kids this summer. Hopefully it will provide hours of enjoyment for both of you!

Steps to Painting Farmhouse Chairs with a Brush

June 13, 2016June 12, 20167 Comments

Happy summer! I have so many projects to do! Eeekkk! One at a time, right?

So I started with my kitchen chairs. I have the chairs that actually belong to my grandma’s table, but they were getting so much use, I didn’t want them to get too worn out. So when the girls were young, we bought 6 oak ones at a liquidation store. Nothing fancy, just something to have around the table. But by now, they were pretty worn too. Paint time!

I know there are lots of different ways to paint and products to use, but I thought I would share what works for me. This time I used just a good old brush and can of paint. I am going to try chalk paint next time and I would like to try a sprayer too, just sayin’!

I cleaned up the chairs, removing dust and any leftover food. I find it easiest to turn the chairs upside down so I can make sure all the underneath is primered and painted well. I didn’t sand this time, and the primer seemed to hold pretty well.

There are hundreds of different primers out there, but Kilz is the one I like the best. It goes on thick and covers really well. I have never had any problems with it not adhering or peeling off.

After the underside of the chairs was dry, I turned them over and primered the top. Be sure to let all the coats dry before starting a new one. I painted just one coat of primer on all the chairs.

As you can see, I had a very curious kitty come by to see what I was doing! I debated about leaving the pawprints because they looked so cute, but I did end up painting over them. The kitty does still have paint on her ear though!

Once all the primer was dry, it was time for the paint! I followed the some pattern as with the primer. Turn the chairs over and start underneath. When it’s dry, paint the top. I used Orchard Supply brand paint, Benjamin Moore’s Cloud White. I did paint a second coat of the paint, but I purposely did not do complete coverage.

I wanted the chairs to have more of a farmhouse look to them. A little worn. Plus I don’t have to worry if the dogs or cats do a little scratching on them.

Again, wait for everything to dry and then add a protective finish over the whole chair. I used Minwax Water Based Polycrylic Finish. It goes on very smoothly and dries quickly. It’s not tacky to the touch and it cleans up great.

They are all ready to sit at the table again! I love the white! What a difference! I have 2 more to paint and then the farmhouse table. I am going to do the table with chalk paint. I will let you know how that goes!

So fresh and clean! I think Ezzy likes them too!

I will see you next time with the table! Have a great week!

Corner News-June 11-2016

June 11, 2016June 10, 20166 Comments

Happy Saturday to you! How has your week been? This was my first week off and it was busy! I thought I was supposed to be resting! The shelter we volunteer at is holding a yard sale, so Haley and I have been helping to set up. We have gone to the gym a couple of times and have been busy cleaning out the house of clutter. You should see the pile of boxes!! My mom and I will be having a yard sale too, so I have to get it done before then. While cleaning out, what do I do? Go shopping for more, of course!

This gold platter/plate was at the shelter yard sale so I snatched it up. I love the scalloped edge on it. I have already painted it and plan to add a base so it can be a stand for goodies. I think I will cut some scrapbook paper for the bottom and then I can change it out for whatever occasion I use it for.

I also picked up this cute sweatshirt from the shelter yard sale. Do you recognize the seagull from Finding Nemo? Mine, mine, mine! I made it onto a dog bed using the directions from Handimania.com. I figured since the dogs fight over who goes where, this was perfect for them!

I found this plant at Goodwill this week. Sorry for the bad color, but it reminded me of the beach and now I really want to go!! Hopefully I will get a day or two to go enjoy the sand and surf.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and see you on Monday!

Recovering My Outdoor Swing Cushions (I cheated a little!)

June 6, 2016June 5, 201640 Comments

Last week was our preschool graduation. It’s so exciting for the kids and parents. The children are all dressed in their little caps and gowns, with tassels hanging askew. They can hardly hold still because of the excitement! We make sure all the caps are on securely, everyone has pottied (they are only 5!), hair looks good, and we are ready to go. We walk in a line to the sanctuary and the kids get really quiet. They aren’t quite sure what to expect. The music starts, we tell them to smile, and off we go! Up to the stage, climb the stairs and find the right chair to sit in. All the while, they are looking for their parents and waving. Finally we start. There is the flag salute, some verses recited, a song sung, and then a surprise for the children. Haley put together a video of pictures we had taken all through the year and the kids had no idea! When it started, one little girl covered her cheeks and whispered, ‘What is this?’. Another one actually started to cry and came over to stand by me until she could compose herself. I asked her why she was crying and she told me she just couldn’t believe she was seeing herself up on the screen. Such sweet moments and memories.

Another sweet memory for me is this project. This is one of my highest viewed posts! So I thought it would be a great way to kick off the summer. It’s pretty easy, especially since I cheated a little, and maybe it will give you an idea on how to refresh your outdoor cushions!

My project today was to recover cushions for my outdoor swing. Now, I have to tell you a few things before I start. First of all, I bought the fabric probably 2 summers ago and never did anything with it. Second, I bought it to cover 3 cushions that fit perfectly on the swing. Unfortunately, they got wet this winter and were completely mildewed. Yuck! Third, which I have already mentioned before, I hate to sew! So let’s get started!! Ha!

Here is the before and the pieces I am going to use (daughter not included)

So I had some other cushions I had purchased at a yard sale a couple of summers ago and decided to just make them work for the swing since I couldn’t use the others. Unfortunately, the fabric didn’t work the way I really wanted it to. In order to cover all the cushions, I had to have the stripes go across instead of forward to back. Not my favorite, but the only way it would work. I also was going to have the seam in the front of the cushion. Again, not my favorite, but I just went with it. I can maybe cover the seam with some trim later (yeah, right!)

The back cusion

I started by laying my fabric out. I did this outdoors since my house doesn’t have any floor space large enough, plus it was so nice outside. I placed 2 cushions on the fabric and then cut across, making sure the pieces would be large enough to go around the cushion.

Snip, snip!

Then I cut that piece into 2 pieces so I would have material for 2 of the cushions.

Cut down the middle so I have 2 pieces.

Here are the 3 seat cushions.

Once I had all my pieces cut I could start ~~sewing~~, I mean gluing! Here is where I cheated! I found this idea a couple of years ago on Pinterest and have used it several times since. I covered my other patio furniture this way and this will be the third summer using it. I have only had to re-glue a couple of places. I also glued the pillow covers on my front porch this way, here. With gluing, it is easy to change out the fabric on the cushions if they should get dirty, stained or mildewed, or simply because you changed your mind or color scheme (this is usually my reason!)

See my little helper!

I laid the first cushion on top of the wrong side of the material and wrapped the material around so I could see how it lined up. Once I had the fabric where I wanted it, I made a short line of hot glue and laid the fabric on it. I did this all the way across the cushion, laying the fabric and pressing it down onto the glue. I did about 10 inches at a time, so my glue would stay hot.

Line of hot glue to start covering cushion.

Then I pulled the rest of the fabric over and glued it down so my whole cushion was covered from front to back.

Finish the covering

Here it is glued to the back. I didn’t worry about making it all straight and perfect, because this part won’t show. It will be against the back of the swing and no one will see it. I like things to look nice, but I am not a perfectionist in how I accomplish this. Obviously, this could be done much neater and more professional if you wanted to.

All glued!

Now for the sides. I folded the edges in like you would wrap a present. Then I glued the long side on the bottom up to the top.

Fold the edges like a present.

This piece of fabric already had a folded edge, so it looked nicer when I glued it.

Nice and neat package!

Repeat these same steps with the other two cushions. Not too bad since I had to improvise!

3 little cushions all in a row!

Now for the back. I had to use a couple of different things for the back. I used an old wicker couch cushion and two pieces of foam I removed from another cushion. This was going to be interesting! I measured the fabric long enough to include the foam on the end. I started this part the same way as the seat cushions, by gluing the long piece around the couch cushion from front to back.

Seat cushion

I placed the foam in each end and then had to figure out how to add the fabric over it. I ended up cutting a piece that would fold over the end from front to back. I first glued on one side, putting the right sides together so it would make a neater seam.

End piece

Not sure how this is going to work!

Then I took the loose end and brought it up over the foam and glued it to the other fabric. I’m really not sure how to explain the corners, except that I tucked them in neatly the best I could and glued them in to secure. Here it is! There are definitely things I would have done differently. But because of the change of cushions, I just didn’t have enough fabric. I think it turned out okay, considering what I had to work with.

Here’s the finished project!

Since summer is quickly approaching and we have graduation and birthday parties coming up, I am just glad it is finished. I am probably more picky then most people in the way it looks-they most likely won’t even notice the mistakes!

Do you have summer projects you are getting done too? I really like how summery this looks and now it is done and ready for partying! If you have any questions about any steps I missed, please comment and I will do my best to answer. Here a few other posts about summertime and the outdoors. Have a great day!