4 Awesome Projects from Thrifting Finds This Week

#1 – I have a French Country look going on in this first thrifted find – a bird cage item which needed some repair and a metal basket. I painted a Dollar Tree peat pot and decoupaged with tissue paper.

The metal finial on the birdcage was just hot glued on and popped right off after I got it home. Not only was hot glue alone not good idea but there was hardly any surface area for gluing. I used E6000 and hot glue to attach a small wood round to the birdcage and I painted it white. Then I used E6000 and hot glue to attach the finial. I added jute around the wood round where I had glued it together. I also stuck my hot glue inside and upside down dropped some hot glue along the inside. It is on for good now.

The birch round came from a fallen branch and that cute bird I found in a thrift store. The faux flowers came with the birdcage.

I love putting this kind of thrifting together.

#2 – Next up is this awesome cutting board/serving board. I love cutting and charcuterie boards. When I found this wine bottle shaped bamboo cutting board, I knew immediately that I wanted to add a stencil to one side for decor purposes. The other side could still be used as a cutting board or both sides could be a specialty charcuterie tray that would make a beautiful cheese and fruit spread serving board.

I stenciled just a part of the board and then seasoned both sides with food safe Howard Cutting Board 0il.

Dimensions approx. 21″ x 7″ x 1/2”

#3 – I like thrifting, but I really like it when I find something just for me. I don’t have a lot of storage space in my pantry so things like cereal and crackers and chips, etc. always seem to end up on top of the refrigerator.

I found these awesome Harry and David copper colored metal baskets at Goodwill yesterday for $7.87 each. I knew they would go perfectly with the copper colored tin on the wall behind them. The one on the left holds snacks and the one on the right, cereal and crackers.

I saw them listed online anywhere from $14 – $46 each so these were a pretty good price. Yay!

#4 My final thrifted item project for the week came about because of the stalk of dried wheat I found at Goodwill. They had just put out several bunches of these. I only bought one bunch but now wish I had gotten more. I used several pieces in this beautiful tall vase a friend gave me. It will be going on the floor next to my fireplace. I do have enough left over for several future projects. so that’s good.

That’s all for now. I thrifted more things, but haven’t decided yet how I will use them. So keep checking back. I will be sharing when the inspiration comes.

Working on an Art Deco Dresser

We’ve been working on an Art Deco dresser. Danny has taken it all apart and is rebuilding it. It is going to be beautiful! The detail is so pretty! But the drawer pulls are spectacular! They were so worn and discolored but still all in one piece. The red Bakelite inserts are in perfect shape and by themselves are valuable. I cleaned them, scrubbed them with Bar Keepers Friend, then waxed them and applied gold leaf RubnBuff. They are amazing!

The dresser had been painted in an earlier life. The only thing now is to decide what color to paint it. My thought right now is to paint it a bluish green color with our Missouri Limestone Paint Company chalk paint color we named “Something Blue”. Then highlight the details on the front, the trim on the back of the top, and the feet with gold leaf RubnBuff.

Projects in January – 1st through the 20th, 2023

Still busy creating so I haven’t had time to post how we did some of these projects. Here they are, though, for inspiration for you.

This is a vignette I put together for winter decor. I had a Christmas transfer on one side of this pitcher and a winter one on the other. I turned it around and added some branches from a tree in my yard then added lights. I made the snowman last year and added the Winter sign I’ve had for a long time.

Danny cut this cute gnome out of a scrap piece of plywood, drew the details and painted and sealed him. He added some stakes so we can put him in the pot’s dirt.

I crocheted another bunch of hats to sell to a friend’s daughter. She adds them to the baskets of herbal remedies she sells.

And more crochet… which begat more crochet that I’m still working on. I made a couple of gnome towel rings. I had made some boho type ones for a couple of friends and then decided to find a pattern for making more. I’ve sold 10 so far of them.

And then I saw a post for a group called Random Acts of Crochet Kindness and cute little worry worms to make and spread around town so I had to make some of those. I plan on making more later on. But I figured out a way to make a cute Valentine one for kids and ended up with 86 orders. Still working on those.

Then my cousin sent me a video of someone crocheting a woven heart. I had to find the tutorial and make one. Then I saw a video on making a heart with wine corks so I had to do that, too. And then someone else told me about decoupaging on a candle with wax paper. Yep! I had to do that, too. I’ve used the hot iron method with parchment paper before, but not on a candle. Worked like a charm. And the little tag- I wrote love on it with a s or h marker and burned it and then painted it. That worked, too.

Whew! I’m getting tired just typing all we’ve done so far this month. But wait! There’s more!

And then came a couple of jewelry boxes. I have a huge stash of them but haven’t painted any in awhile. These sold quickly so plan on painting ring more soon.

I saw an idea for a date night jar on Pinterest. This is my version. Jar from Dollar Tree. I painted the glass lid. If you spray glass with a clear sealer first, chalk paint will adhere well.

I don’t have staged pics of this beautiful library table. It is going to one of our booths this week. Danny sanded the top. I stained it with a w at teenaged stain. It has five coats of Varathane Crystal Clear Water based polyurethane in matte finish. The rest is painted with our Missouri Limestone Paint Company “Cupboard Green” and sealed. I love how it turned out.

Danny created this white washed hanging rack from a vintage ladder.

Another project is this gorgeous half table console. This is a long description but hopefully will inspire those who like boho with some ideas. I think this is one of my most favorite projects ever. I had so much fun with it.

We’ve had this table (and matching lamps) since soon after we built our house in 1985. Holy cow! That was 38 years ago!! The other day, I decided we didn’t need them anymore so decided to paint them. Danny suggested painting the top with our Missouri Limestone Paint Company “Bourbon Street”, a dark teal color. I thought Rustoleum metallic gold on the metal legs would look good with the teal. I also painted the metal on the lamps with it. They all turned out gorgeous!

Then, when I showed the table to a friend, she said I should style it as a boho piece. I agreed.

So pretty much all day today, I have been creating items for it to sell from things I have in my supplies:

1) Picture frame: gifted by a neighbor- funny thing, my mom had our pictures in frames almost exactly like this growing up. The back is velvet. It can still stand up, but it makes a great tray, too. This frame is old!
2) This awesome fabric which was once valances with bead trim, was gifted by a friend. I’ve already used it as a curtain, as you can see, to hide Danny’s power tools and to create a little boho hanging. Lol I simply put a piece of the fabric under the glass of the picture frame for an instant boho tray!
3) A bowl of boho goodness. I had all the ingredients including this cute wood bowl I thrifted. I just added the beads around it for a true boho style. It took me a good bit to figure out how to do it to look finished, then decided to rip it out (it was sewn in with nylon thread). But when I got it all out, it was attached to this beautiful piece of fabric tape in this awesome color! I just hot glued it around the bowl!
4) Picture frame: gifted by the same neighbor: I did a line drawing on the glass of similar leaves in the table and put a piece of scrapbook paper behind it in a coordinating color and now have a boho print!
5) Bottle of peacock feathers: the bottle I think came with fragrance oil and bamboo sticks at some point. I did paint the lid that sits around it metallic gold this morning. I’m pretty sure I picked up the peacock feathers at a yard sale.

And then, we came up with a few more boho accessories.

And when we found this mirror shopping, we knew we had to get it! Danny painstakingly covered all the mirrors. I painted it metallic gold and then he removed all the tape. I cleaned it and….it is just stunning!

We also found this cute little kid’s drawing table. We added a couple of stools to it and took it to our booth at Sweet Repeats in Sullivan.

The wood base on this candle holder is a bed riser I turned upside down and painted. the dish for the candle is a vintage ashtray.

Coming up…. Danny is working on a new project. We are busy figuring out a way to make a table top for it. Stay tuned!

You probably wouldn’t want to use both lamps on the table, but maybe in the same room would be perfect!

Olaf Found His Head!

This is why I seem to never get anything other than crafting done. Lol

I made this Olaf out of wood slices last year and still had him. One of my favorite enablers, sent me this inspiration Olaf this morning.

I knew I could adapt him to hold up his head with his little arms after he lost it, so I did. Lol

My Olaf now belongs to her. 🤪

Spiral Jute Rope Christmas Tree

I found another way to use some of the roll of jute rope I thrifted. I created a spiral tree with it. 🙂

I used a long stem piece of green floral wire and using craft glue to secure, twisted the jute around the wire.

I then shaped it into a spiral form. The center of the spiral I thumbtacked into this chunk of birch tree I had. I used craft glue to glue the rest of the bottom edge to the base. I added sprigs of faux cedar and daubed on white paint to represent snow. I also daubed a bit of paint on the jute.

I added little balls of a muted green, red and cream color from a garland I had. They had wire attached so I just wired them on.

I cut a star from a piece of aluminum foil I spray painted copper and daubed white paint on it. I used a small piece of Velcro to attach the star to the top.

I sat the tree on a little round base then sprinkled some of the fallen copper dried hydreanga blooms I had left from another project around the base for the photo.

I’m having so much fun finding ways to use my big roll of jute rope I thrifted. 🙂

Stenciled Cutting But add Book Stand

Another morning project. I paid more than I usually do for a thrifted item, but this piece was in perfect condition.

This book stand is perfect for propping your phone, your iPad, the book you are reading, or an old fashioned cookbook.

I added the Dollar Tree stencil, using a light gray chalk paint. One trick for getting crisp lines with no bleeding is to use a clear sealer first. Let that dry and then paint over the stencil with your color of choice. The front is sealed with Wise Owl Salve.

What Grandparents are for….

What Grandparents are for….

Today we will drive to St. Genevieve, MO (about 2 hours one way) to give Grandson Ben’s mom some sample bottles of paint. She’s at the bank there today so we don’t have to drive all the way to their house. Because, of course, he needs it by tomorrow. Lol

5th grade Middle School and Ben has an Entrepreneur class. 😳

He was to create a business and will sell items in the school store. Of course he chose to sell paint. 😂 He said his teacher approved of it. We will see. 😬 At least we seal the bottles so hopefully they won’t open them at school. 🙏

He plans to donate 1/2 of his profit to charity and keep the rest. This boy is smart. He knew we would give him the paint so he will have more profit. 😂 The other part of his business is that he will have a donation box where people will drop off broken items and he will try to fix them and sell them. He has learned a lot from his PopPop. Lol

But no problem. We will thrift shop on the way there and back.

Of course, I made him a display for his paint. I had a half of an old globe. It fit perfectly into a Dollar Tree hanging basket. I added a bunch of shredded paper my sister-in-law gave me. Instant display.

Ben also knows once he is in middle school we will pay $5 for any As each grandchild gets per semester. He needed a clarification on that the other day as he got all As this first quarter. He was hoping it was every quarter. Lol He’s a planner. He says he needs a new laptop so…..

Farmhouse Animals w/Rub on Transfers

I had a bit of a brainstorm this morning. I was inspired by a YouTube video where someone decoupaged napkins on animal cut outs.

I had these cool pig and rooster wood cut outs. They stand alone. The rooster is 4 3/4“ tall x 4 1/2” w. The pig is 4” tall x 5 3/4” w.

I also had a sheet of Dollar Tree rub on transfers with farmhouse images.

So….. I gave them a coat of white paint so the transfers would stand out and then applied the transfers as they were on the sheet and filled in where needed. They are protected with Mod Podge matte spray. Sorry, forgot to get a pic of spraying them.

I love how they turned out!

Fall Decor Galore

I have been a bit busy the last few days creating fall decor. Some days are just like that. You can’t stop. We’ve had some beautiful fall days in Missouri this week so I took advantage of the weather. It felt good to be outside working on my projects.

First up…. I was going through my fall decor boxes and ran across a box with a bunch of wood cut outs I hadn’t seen since I stored them. It was a jackpot of pumpkins, ghost, cats, and a few other goodies. One pumpkin had a very unique wood grain on the front and back. I just saw someone posted one very similar. It looked like an ostrich! I could see an ostrich in this one, too! Not only that, I saw an owl on the back!

I wasn’t sure what to do with it, but finally settled on using Howard’s Restore-a-Finish to bring out the grain and then I sealed it with Wise Owl salve. I named the Ostrich in a Pumpkin Woodette and the owl Woodsy. Soooo cute!

Then my friend, Midge, had an idea: flowers, a tiara, or crown for Woodette. I happened to have some small sunflowers and with just a dab of glue, they will come right off. I can change them out for each season! I think I might need to make Woodette a princess for Halloween and find a little crown for her.

In the same box as my Ostrich in a Pumpkin, I ran across this little shelf sitter or hanger. I passed over it at first, thinking….Wow! The 80s!

But then, I got this fall dish drying mat out of the Dollar Tree bag I just purchased. I realized some of the colors went so well with it and the other fall things I have in the corner of my kitchen. So..now, it is out of the box and in the corner of my kitchen counter. 🙂

Oh no! Another gnome …. after I said no gnomes this year! But the Gnome and Backyard lady had this idea I couldn’t resist. She made a quick and easy gnome out of the small plastic ghosts from Dollar Tree. I spray painted one for the hat with a copper color because that’s what I had on hand and added tiny Dollar Tree sunflowers for embellishment. The other I left white and glued it upside down to the hat. I gassed a wooden bead for his nose. I bought two big ghosts, too, to make a larger gnome.

I spray painted a Dollar Tree wire pumpkin form white with a green stem and attached my cute little gnome to it with jute twine and now have a cute fall door hanger for my front door. He hangs from a magnetic hook on my stork door by the stem

Here’s Gnome and Backyard’s tutorial!

https://fb.watch/fNGj7CnIBk/

This awesome creator also had a tutorial for making a pumpkin out of a Dollar Tree soap saver. What? Check it out! https://fb.watch/fOIcejAF2x/

Of course I had to make one, too. This one I left gray and put it inside a Dollar Tree shadow box. It looks so cute with my gray pumpkins I made (the striped fabric came from DT), but I bought a few more to paint! 🙂

I still hadn’t gotten to my other pumpkin cut outs, so onto more decor!

I made this arrangement in three different sizes and used a Dollar Tree napkin decoupage technique. I was going to add embellishments but I love the rustic vintage look of them just as they are. They stand up on their own and are perfect for shelf sitters or tiered trays.

I also decoupaged a little 3 1/4” square natural wood trinket box. I made the little leaf ladder tall last year. It goes perfectly with this arrangement.

This next project is one of the larger pumpkin cut outs and will stand alone. I glued one of the Dollar Tree faux tin panels to it.

For this finish I did a kind of an aged terra-cotta color I’ve been seeing others do. I painted it with a color I mixed and added just a bit of baking soda to it. Then I sprinkled more baking soda on it while still tacky. After the paint dried I blended the baking soda on with a bit more paint then sealed with a matte sealer. I used a bit of the napkin I was using earlier on the stem.

So pretty! I really enjoy creating a more neutral look for fall decor.

And finally, I ended my marathon crafting this morning. Maybe. Lol I started this project last night and finished today. I still had more pumpkin cut outs in 3 different sizes so painted the face of each with the terra-cotta color I mixed. I used a bit of left over napkin for the stems.

I distressed them a bit with sandpaper and then used the new Dollar Tree brown parchment paper rub on transfers on them. I apologize in advance for finding more of these transfers in different designs. They are so hard to find, but I found these in the same store I found the others in Ballwin, MO on Manchester Road. But, oh how I love working with them and hope they make more. I’ve not seen them online yet, either.

That’s not all! I’m now working on a natural wood napkin decoupage riser and it should be finished soon! 🤷🏼‍♀️

Update: The last of this grouping is complete. 🙂

I had this 12” round wooden plate. I had the fall napkins. I had the decoupage medium. I had some little rub on transfers and the wood beads from the foot exerciser I bought a couple of weeks ago at a yard sale to use for feet. I have items to display.

So I made a riser.

Updated a DT painted pumpkin with a Rub On Transfer

I’m a little obsessed with the Dollar Tree parchment paper rub on transfers. They are a bit different than other transfers as they seem to rub on ink rather than vinyl. I’ve used them on several things, including drop cloth!

I painted this DT pumpkin last year to look like galvanized metal with copper to go with my copper kitchen tin backsplash. The copper leaf was from something I had thrifted.

This morning I applied this transfer. What a difference! I love it.

The last pic shows what one looks like on a drop cloth tag I made.