Fancy Floral Frame

Check out our dollar store frame makeover in this week's Woman's World. All you need are some metallic paints, silk peonies, and glitzy rhinestone buttons. Dollar Store Chic!

Folky Flag for the Fourth of July

Make a folky flag out of paint stirrers! (It was just featured in Woman's World Magaine!)

What You'll Need:
9 wooden paint stirrers
Plaid Folk Art paint in Cardinal Red, Wicker White, and True Blue
masking tape
sandpaper
wood glue
hand saw
Plaid Outdoor Sealer
assorted buttons 3/8" to 7/8"
(we used 57 red, 47 white, and 20 blue)
Beacon Glass, Metal & More glue
2 thumbtacks
16" copper wire

What To Do:

Step 1. Paint 2 paint stirrers Cardinal Red and 1 Wicker white and set aside. Mask off the indented end of 4 stirrers and paint True Blue. Let dry. Mask off the blue end, and the paint other end of 2 stirrers Wicker White and 2 Cardinal Red. Sand the edges and surfaces of the stirrers to get a distressed look.

Step 2. Cut the 2 remaining stirrers down to 7" with a hand saw and sand the sawed ends smooth. Arrange the painted stirrers into the flag then turn the flag over. Glue the 2 short stirrers vertically to the back of the flag 1" in from each side using the wood glue. Let dry several hours.

Step 3. Turn the flag over and glue buttons to the front using glue.

Step 4. To make the hanger, push a thumbtack into the top of each short stick on the back of the flag. Twist each end of the wire around a thumbtack and trim the ends.

A Pillow With A Past

We just got back from A Room With A Past, a flea style home decor and furniture collective. Once a month the "Roomies" load up a warehouse space near us in Walnut Creek with cottage-style flea market finds. We always find great ideas for decorating (they do fabulous displays) and crafts, too.

We love this patchwork pillow covered in antique lace, buttons, and brooches. Why keep your collections tucked away when you can put them on display?!

Monogrammed Pendant for Mom!

Create a personalized pendant for Mother's Day featuring Victorian vintage roses and gold leaf accents!

Materials
1 Darice Rectangle Frame Charm, 20x25mm

1 Darice Clear Charm Cover

1/2" Letter sticker on clear background
Scrap of printed text from book
Vintage Victorian Rose clip art

Krylon Gold Leafing Pen

30" Ribbon

Tools & Supplies
Darice Scrapbooking Micro-Scissors
Beacon’s Premium Tacky Glue
Toothpick

Steps
1. Cut a square background image from the printed paperback text. Glue into the Frame Charm with a toothpick and Tacky Glue.

2. Trim the Victorian Rose clip art to fit in the bottom third of the Frame Charm. Glue in place.

3. Use the Krylon Gold Leafing Pen to add gold accents to the clip art.

4. Peel off letter sticker and place over background.

5. Peel the back off the Clear Charm Cover and adhere it to the front of the rectangle charm covering the collage inside.

6. Thread the ribbon through the loop at the top of the rectangle charm.

Scentsational Lavender-Rose Sachet

Create a fancy, floral sachet scented with soothing botanicals. A simple and lovely gift for Mother's Day!

YOU’LL NEED

Materials & Embellishments

Teal silk shantung, 11” x 11” square.

White iridescent organdy ribbon, 1½” wide, 18” long.

Magenta silk rose, 4” diameter.

Small rubber band.

Scented Herbs & Essences
Dried rose buds & petals, 1 ½ cups.
Rose fragrance oil.
Lavender essential oil.

Tools & Supplies
Scissors.
Ruler.
Wire snips.
Bowl.
Spoon.

WHAT TO DO

1. To create the scented sachet filling, pour the rose buds and petals into a bowl. Add 10 drops of the rose fragrance oil and 10 drops of the lavender essential oil and stir.

2. To make the sachet, lay the silk shantung square out on a table. Spoon the sachet filling onto the center of the square. Gather the corners and edges of the fabric square tightly together to create a ball. Secure the fabric at the top with a small rubber band.

3. To embellish the sachet, snip the stem of the silk rose 2” from the base of the bloom. Stick the remaining rose stem down into the center of the sachet.

4. Finish the sachet by wrapping the organdy ribbon around the top to conceal the rubber band. Then tie the ribbon in a tidy knot and trim the ends at an angle. Scentsational!

Make Something Pretty For Mother's Day

A teacup missing its saucer is practically a flea market freebie! With just a little candle wax, a wick, and some gardenia fragrance oil, it has the potential to be a pretty scented candle for the boudoir. And what a delightful idea for a Mother's Day gift!

You Will Need:Vintage Teacup (3” diameter at top) Yaley Medium Flat Braid Candle WickingMicrowaveable Soy Wax
Lavender Fragrance oil (5 drops)
What To Do:Step 1. Cut a 6-inch piece of candle wicking. Feed through wick clip until end sits just inside. Clamp the wick clip closed with pliers.
Step 2. Rest a pencil across top of teacup. Dangle the wick into the teacup and rest the wick clip in the bottom. Tie the end of the wick to the pencil to hold it in place.
Step 3. Measure 1 cup soy candle flakes into microwaveable container. Microwave on high 1 minute, then stir with a craft stick. Heat 1 more minute, till all clear and runny. Add 5 drops of lavender oil to the melted wax and stir.
Step 4. Pour the wax slowly into the teacup leaving ¾” at the top – make sure the wick is still centered. Let cool and trim the wick to one half inch. Let the wax cool. The old-timey style of this teacup candle looks sweet on a vanity. And smells so good!

Welcome Spring!

When the flowers start blooming and the birds start singing, you know spring fever is catching. Greet this season at the front door by swapping out that snowman doormat for a cheerful one covered in cherry blossoms. Then place a bouquet of tulips to the side, and open your door to spring. For more ideas to welcome spring, check out this photo gallery we did for Parents.com. Just click here.

Steampunk Chic Necklace

The Queen's Flying Machine

You can make our Steampunk Chic necklace! It is featured in the current issue (June 2012) of Crafts 'n things magazine. Get it at Joann's or Michael's. Or see it for free on the web! Just go to www.craftsnthings.com and sign up for the digital edition. You can flip through the whole magazine online!

Old Time Easter Basket Centerpiece

Create a colorful centerpiece for Easter! 

Create a vintage-inspired centerpiece for your Easter brunch. We started with a metal pail and nostalgic clip art. We photocopied Dover's Old Time Holiday Easter Clip Art with a Laser copier, and then we cut out images of eggs, bunnies, and chicks. We decoupaged them all over the pail using Mod Podge. To fill it up, we dip-dyed wooden goose eggs in teal RIT dye. (Wear gloves!) 

Easter Bunny Candy Boxes

Easter Bunny Candy Boxes

This Easter make these delightful bunny candy boxes. Start by painting a round craft box a pastel color. Create a scene on top with a glittery bunny, shiny plastic eggs, and silk daffodils. Add sparkle with strands of iridescent Easter grass. Embellish the sides with strips of pretty scrapbook paper, doilies, paper flowers, and self-adhesive rhinestones. Finish it off with a chenille stem handle and fill it with Easter candy!

Go bunny, go!

Steampunk Airship!

This steampunky zeppelin by Globecraft Memories was far and away our favorite thing at the Craft and Hobby Show in Anaheim! The clear center is two bubble frames back-to-back making a clear round center. The gears and things are embedded inside! (This is a kit and can be found here.)

The company makes all kinds of bubble frames which are perfect for Victorian shadowbox displays. Of course, we love those too!

A Little Birdy Sold Me

Spring is the perfect season for birdwatching at the flea market, so our latest Flea Market Gold column in Create and Decorate magazine is for the birds!

We love the Treasure Island Flea Market in the middle of San Francisco Bay because it combines our two favorite activities: birdwatching and shopping. When you’re into birding like we are, you can’t help but I.D. every bird you see, even when they’re collectibles! Click here to see what we found!

A Home With Real Heart

Bring a little romance into your home with these heartfelt decorating ideas.

Get A Little Soft-hearted: Inspire romance in the bedroom with a simple but luxurious pillow embellishment. Just twist ribbons of raspberry and purple silk into a heart. Scrunch the ribbons as you tack them to the pillow cover with matching thread. Who knew ribbon embroidery could be so easy and look so good? (See more of this Valentine's Day inspired piece we did for Ladies' Home Journal by clicking here.)

Can The Clutter

New year, new resolution! For us it's time to can the clutter. Tin cans are tiny containers just waiting to be put to use. To recycle them into versatile storage, all you need is your imagination and a clean-edge can opener.

Chef’s Special

Turn pretty pie-filling cans into a piece of folk art that doubles as a cooking utensil holder. Bolt three eye-catching blueberry cans to a wooden cutting board with a frame hanger on the back. Display your clever work on the wall near the stove, and you’ll never search for your favorite spatula again. Bon appétit!

The Great Dividers

No matter how hard you try to keep drawers from collecting junk, they seem to be the vortex of miscellany. Get control over the odds and ends by cleaning a dozen tuna cans and nestling them into a drawer. Each little compartment can store thumbtacks, rubberbands, clips or twist ties. Junk drawer no more!

Clutter Cups

Corral the clutter in the kids’ room with magnetic tin cans. Hot glue heavy-duty magnets to ten soup cans and stick them to a steel cookie sheet. Hang it within kids’ reach using a plate hanger. Use the cups to hold crayons, chalk, markers and even Legos. Label the cans for easy clean up.

Closet Can Do

Organize your accessories with a scarf display made of sleek silver cans. Arrange seven soup cans to create a tight circle with one can in the center. Tightly wrap a long sash around the bundle of cans, secure it with a knot at the top, then hang your new organizer on the wall. Each cubby stores a colorful scarf and adds stylish organization to your closet.

Cannery Row

Keep the weeds out of the seeds by organizing your potting bench with bright vegetable cans. Choose a brand with gorgeous graphics of tomatoes, corn and green beans, or whatever you plan to plant. The clean-edge can opener creates nice fitting lids, too, so your seeds will stay high and dry.

Decorate Your Bathroom With Thrift Store Finds

Drawer Buster: Create art that doubles as storage and storage that doubles as art. Find a mini dresser and a few old black-and-white snapshots. Mount the drawers on the wall and tack a picture in each one using photo corners. Use the drawers as shelves, or hang earrings from looped pieces of wire. (See more of this fun piece we did for HGTV by clicking here.)

Tiny Winter Wonderland

Create a little Christmas cheer with a snowscape and a miniature reindeer.

YOU'LL NEED

Materials

* Glass cloche, 6" tall.

* Teacup saucer, approx. 6" diameter.

* 2 gold foil pipe cleaners, 12".

* Peat moss, 5" circle.

* Crushed velvet flock (Doodlebug): Lily White, 5.5 g.

* Styrofoam disc, 3" diameter, 1" thick.

* Red satin ribbon, 1/8" wide, 3" length.

* 8 mini jingle bells.

* Red metallic bead, 1/4" diameter.

* Miniature reindeer, about 2" tall.

* Wire-stem bottle brush, white.

* Snowy blue organdy ribbon, 1/2" wide, 18" length.

Tools & Supplies

* Spray adhesive.

* Metal cutting snips.

* Goggles.

* Red thread.

* Sewing needle.

* Hot glue gun and glue sticks.

WHAT TO DO

1. To create the base for the winterscape, cut a 5" diameter circle of peat moss and glue it onto the Styrofoam disc using the spray adhesive. Trim the edges of the peat moss with scissors. Hot glue the Styrofoam disc onto the center of the teacup saucer.

2. Don your goggles and cut the wire handle of the bottle brush with the metal cutting snips, leaving a 1" trunk. Make the bottle brush into a tree by trimming the bristles into a tree shape with scissors. Press the wire "trunk" into the peat-moss-covered Styrofoam so the tree is standing towards the back of the scene.

3. Dust the surface of the peat moss and the tree with the spray adhesive and sprinkle with white flock to create a snowy look. Hot glue the red metallic bead to the top of the tree.

4. Sew 7 mini jingle bells onto the red ribbon. Hang the jingle bell necklace around the deer's neck and crisscross the ends. Sew the last jingle bell over the crisscrossed ends to hold the necklace together. Hot glue the reindeer onto the peat moss in front of the tree.

5. Place the cloche over the winterscape and hot glue the bottom edge to the saucer. Hot glue the gold foil pipe cleaners around the base of the cloche and trim the ends. Tie the snowy blue organdy ribbon into a bow around the knob at the top of the bell jar.

Saved By The Bell: Bell jars or cloches are used to protect tiny plants from cold weather. Look for them at garden centers or Google the words "glass cloche." Or repurpose a glass-domed cheese plate. We see them at thrift stores all the time! 

Deck The Halls With Flea Market Finds

The flea market is our go-to place for bargain holiday decorating. Although Christmas items pop up year-round, vendors bring out the bulk of their decorations in September. On this trip to the flea market, we were on the hunt for Shiny Brites and other colorful ball ornaments to display in a glass bowl on a coffee table. Jennifer was on the lookout for pinecone elves to add to her growing collection, and Kitty was hoping to get a deal on a few Mercury glass ornaments (the heavy ones with mirroring inside) to showcase on ornament hangers on a bookcase. 

Although the Mercury glass was too spendy for our pocketbooks, we did find two-dozen Shiny Brites for $9. (They wanted $5 a box, but since we bought two boxes, we got a dollar off.) We found three pinecone pixies for Jennifer ($3 each!), and the vendor threw in a tiny bottlebrush tree that we admired. 

We also stumbled upon a bunch of hilarious old Christmas cookbooks. We think it’ll be a kick to set them out at our annual cookie party––we might even make some of the kooky cookie recipes. (What are Molasses Crinkles?!)

Crafters’ Delight

As crafters, we like to snatch up old craft books at the flea market. The methods are timeless, so we update the looks with modern materials and embellishments. This visit, we wanted holiday books with retro projects that are back in style, such as felt appliqué Christmas stockings. Jennifer found instructions for an old-fashioned pom-pom wreath that she plans to make in trendy teal blue with a lime silk shantung bow on top. 

We were thrilled to find a shoebox filled with vintage Christmas cards. We picked out a few with gold embossing, die cuts, and glitter accents. Kitty had the idea to cut the fronts off with pinking shears, punch two holes in the top for a ribbon, then tie them to wrapped presents. Jennifer thinks the cards will look great strung on a satin ribbon as a garland for her tree.

Hark! The Bargain Hunters Sing

We’re always looking for a big, unique item to turn into a conversation piece, and on this trip, Kitty was in search of some spectacular holiday find for her living room. We spotted a vintage store sign for Bennett’s Egg Nog Ice Cream that had a great holiday feel. And when we saw a neighborhood’s worth of lawn ornaments, from toy soldiers to reindeer, Jennifer toyed with the idea of placing one by the hearth as a focal point.

But the find of the day was a charming old wooden sled. We thought it would look festive leaning by the front door tied with a red velvet bow, or would make a great display for wrapped Christmas gifts. Kitty was careful to hide her enthusiasm for the sled before she knew how much it cost. (If they know you love it, the price will go up.) A cheerful gal in a cowboy hat said she was asking $38 for it, saying it was an authentic, vintage Flexible Flyer. We carefully looked it over and noticed the steering bar was broken and got the price down to $30. The sled didn’t quite fit in our cart, especially since Jennifer had just purchased a pair of giant illuminated plastic lawn candles (only $5 each!), but it was worth the extra trip back to the car!

Thanksgiving Finger Puppets

Make pipe cleaner finger puppets and put on a Thanksgiving show! Make the finger puppet body by wrapping your finger with a pipe cleaner. Glue a pompom onto the top for a head and decorate it with two googly eyes. For the pilgrim, spiral a black pipe cleaner into a hat. Give the Indian a headband with a bent pipe cleaner feather in the back. For the turkey, bend striped pipe cleaners in half to look like feathers and glue them into a fan-shaped tail. 

Pie, Oh My!

The fall harvest is upon us and suddenly we have a hankering for pie. Pie collectibles, that is!

The flea market is the place for all things pie—from bake-off cookbooks to painted pie safes. Right off the bat, we found a pile of old pie crimpers, perfect for making decorative edges. Vintage pie crimpers can run upwards of $100 if the handle is made of Bakelite, but Kitty picked out a wooden-handled one and got the price down from $18 to $12. We also saw rolling pins by the dozens. Kitty fell in love with a marble one with red handles. It set her back $15, but it comes with the good blessing of every pastry it has ever rolled out!

Along the way, we saw some larger “pie” pieces, including a rustic sign that read “Mom’s Homemade Pies Baked To Perfection.” But the find of the day was a lemon-yellow pie safe with a wonderful weathered look. Pie safes are cabinets with chicken wire or punched-tin doors that keep the varmints out while the pies cool. The vendor was asking $325 for the antique one we found, but Jennifer bargained her way to $275. Easy as pie!

                      

Four and Twenty Blackbirds
Since Victorian times, professional bakers (and grandmas!) have used ceramic pie birds to funnel steam out of pies and prevent them from bubbling over. Blackbirds are the most common pie vents, but if you keep an eye out you might be lucky enough to spot a blue bird, a rooster, or even the elusive red cardinal. These little birds are bursting with personality so get yourself a classic crow for about $15 and place it in a niche as a whimsical objet d’art. But be warned, pie birds are so cute you may wind up with a whole flock!

Flying Saucers

No country kitchen is complete without pie tins, especially ones embossed with phrases like “Mello Rich Pie” and “Flaky Crust.” Back in the day, bakeries had their names embossed in the bottoms of their pie tins. A homemaker who reused the pan would be reminded how much easier it would be to buy a fresh pie from “Mrs. Smith’s.” Legend has it that college students used to play toss with tins that read “Frisbie’s Pies”—a game that led to the invention of the Frisbee! These days, Frisbie pie tins can sell for $50 apiece, but we found a “Py-O-My Ice Box Pie” pan for just $3!

Decorating A La Mode

Ice cream scoops look cheerful even when they’re not serving up sundaes, so why not add a scoop of fun to your pie décor with a few of these old-fashioned dippers? Collect ice cream scoops in turquoise, green, and yellow, then hang them on a narrow wall, one over the other. You can get scoops for as little as $1 at the flea market so pick up an extra one for your gadget drawer, and you’ll be ready to serve anything a la mode!

Expect To Pay

Ice Cream Scoops $1 to $20

Embossed Pie Tins $3 to $50

Rolling Pins $5 to $20

Recipe Pie Plates $5 to $25

Silver-plated Pie Servers $7 to $25

Wooden-handled Dough Crimpers $12 to $40

Pie Carriers $15 to $35

Pie Birds $15 to $75

Pie Safes $250 to $2500

Get Jiggy With It!

When we went to The Southern Women's Show in Orlando, we met the folks from Purple Cows and got to see their CraftGeek Wind It. What a cool tool! We just used it to make napkin rings for Thanksgiving. It's a wire jig with templates so you can easily bend wire into smooth spirals and swirls. (If you've done any wire bending with round-nose pliers, you know this is tricky!) We embellished the wire loops with fall leaves, but we couldn't help adding a little steampunk touch--a skeleton key charm!