A Halloween Quickie

I know I said I'd be light on projects but I can't help myself. I'd rather be painting and making a mess in the garage than packing. I can't stand packing! Especially since now I have to pack for not only myself but for the 2 boys, our dog and cat (and occasionally the Hubs but don't tell him I told you that.)

Anyway- Happy Halloween!! I thought I could take down my Fall Wreath for one night to celebrate the evening. I saw this idea on Curbly and knew I had everything on hand to make it. 

Make a Statement...

Bracelet!

One thing that having a newborn has done is made me focus on smaller projects that I have been putting off for a long time. I have all these ideas in my head but don't always get to them. 

This is one project I can cross off that list.

A friend of mine gave me a few small decorative tiles a long time ago- knowing that I like things like that. I hadn't done much with them until now. My favorite one is a Fleur De Lis one (I love Fleur De Lis- they remind me of home in Louisiana!). I thought it would be cool to make a piece of jewelry out of it.

I've dabbled in jewelry making before but this is my favorite piece so far!

To make the tile a little more decorative I decided to add some glass beads around the edges to finish it off. I used Gorilla Super Glue and some glass beads I bought at the craft store.

Then just glued them all around the edge of the tile.

To make the leather wrap I simply cut out a piece of leather to the size and shape I needed. Once the beading around the tile was done and dry I needed to adhere the tile to my leather bracelet. I used snaps and Gorilla Glue Epoxy for this task. 

I used the Epoxy to glue one part of the snap onto the tile.

Then connected the snap into the leather band.

After snapping my tile onto the band I treaded a piece of suede ribbon through the leather to use to tie the wrap down.

Then it was done!

I used the suede ribbon to tie the bracelet off.

What things have you been crossing off your list lately?

Doggie Bookcase

So I was thinking more about that scroll saw wasting away in the shed and thought I should do something with it. But what?? Well after some research I saw this super cute Elephant Bookcase on Design Public. I wondered if I could make something like it with the scroll saw for Con-Man.
I don't know if Con-Man likes Elephants or not, but I know he loves Gracie, she's a dog, so maybe he likes dogs? After some thought I though a wiener dog might make cute bookcase.


If you think you'd like to make one of your own you'll need:


1 piece of Pine Board 7" tall (Try to look at a few and find one that is not warped and has few knots)
A scroll saw or jig saw with a fine blade
Wood Glue
Sand Paper
Paint and Pencil


 I sketched an image of a wiener dog to the size I needed- approximately 7" tall by 12" long. Then I traced out the shape on a piece of wood. (Download the Dog Templates to trace here: Dog Bookcase Templates )


My saw can't handle wood much larger than 1" so I traced the dog template 3 times then cut each out with the saw.




Once I had my 3 shaped cut out I glued them together with the wood glue and set it under some heavy books overnight to dry.

Ta da! I then sanded it down with the attachment on the saw to smooth out the edges. (It didn't dry perfectly straight and since its my first time using a scroll saw I had some jaggedy edges..) If you don't have a power sander sanding by hand will work just fine but may take a little longer.

Using some leftover paint I painted and sealed the bookcase. Check out the finished product in Con-Man's room:




The wood was only $5 and this didn't take a incredibly long time, I just had to spread it out over a couple of days because of work and taking care of Con-Man. And getting the hang of the scroll saw wasn't that bad either. You can tell which was my first and last cut out. It might be fun to try some other shapes- a dinosaur, snail, strawberry. I'd love to see what other people come up with!

Viva Fiesta!

It's Fiesta Season here in San Antonio. So that means Fiesta decorations! They are popping up all around our neighborhood.

One of the main symbols of Fiesta is the Fiesta Wreath hung usually hung on the front door. Stores around here sell wreaths from $60- 80. I thought I would make my own wreath to get into the Fiesta spirit and try to save some money along the way. I bought a bunch the least expensive flowers, a wreath and some extra glue- about $30 worth of supplies and got to work.

All my supplies

1/2 way there

C.C. trying to help me out.



Finished product! Yay- now we're ready for Fiesta!

Muses about Welding

I didn't have time this weekend to work on anything because of Easter. So I thought some more about welding. I really enjoyed it. I have these Fleur De Lis bars from an old fence that I would like to do something with.

I'm having trouble deciding:

A curtain rod maybe?

Wall Art?

Any other ideas or suggestions?

Whatever I end up doing with them it won't be any time soon. I don't know when I'll have access to the welding machine again. Unless I find one of my own- not sure how much those cost though. :/

Maybe I can find one on Craigslist?!