How Do You Do, Vicki Sue?

Glass candle/cupcake holders

2012-01-27T08:13:00.000-08:00

Super easy, super pretty, I made these from glass plates and glass candlesticks I found at Goodwill. The original idea is here: The Wandering Chopsticks When I round up some bigger plates I'm going to make a 3 tier masterpiece.

Gather your materials. Be sure and use glue that is made for glass and dries clear. Wash and dry everything. I used a little rubbing alcohol to clean the top of the candlestick and the bottom of the plate to make sure the glue would adhere well. This step may not be necessary but these stuck tight.

Add the glue to the top of the candlestick like so:

Place the center of the plate on the candlestick. If you're picky about it being the exact center you may have to do a little geometry, but since I have math and measuring, I just eyeballed it. My plate had a design that made it a little easier.

Press the two together and hold for a minute or two. Follow the directions on your glue for drying time. I let mine sit overnight before I picked them up.

Add a candle or cupcake and tada!

How do you...make faux mercury glass?

2011-12-04T21:47:00.000-08:00

I've seen this faux mercury glass everywhere...it's on Pinterest, at HomeGoods... I've even seen it already made at craft stores like Michaels. It's beautiful and I needed some. So what does one who is addicted to crafting do? Make it of course. Here's how. To start this project you'll need glass...clear or color (as long as you can see thru it). Thrift stores are full of it, cheap. The Dollar Tree is also loaded with it. A word of advice..look at the piece you choose, look at your hand, look back at the glass, Ask yourself, "Will my big hand fit in this piece easily without my knuckles bumping the other side?" If the answer is "no, I have man hands like you"... you might consider looking for a larger piece or a smaller hand... I used votives for this project but I've done a larger piece also. While you're out go to Hobby Lobby (only place I could find it). Don't forget your 40% off coupon, it's a little pricey at $11.99 a can.) You'll need a spray bottle with equal parts water and vinegar (I read this on a blog somewhere, I don't know the science behind it. Plain water may work for all I know)

Wash and dry your pieces. The can recommends spraying the inside of the glass with a light coats...easier said than done. This stuff is THIN...by thin, I mean SUPER THIN.

I couldn't spray without it running. I sorta put the nozzle inside and sprayed a light puff as I was pulling the nozzle out. I couldn't keep it from running but trial and error had me spray and immediately turning them upside down to dry.

This is after 6 or 7 coats. Be sure to wipe the tops off when you pick them up. It has a tendency to run down the sides. It needs to be dry between coats. It dries fast, a couple of minutes or so.

After it's dry, lightly spritz the inside with the water/vinegar mixture. Allow to sit for a minute or two.

This is the fun part. I tried using a paper towel but I found my fingers worked the best. You have to be careful not to wipe too much of the silver off. This is where small hands come in handy. If it's too dry it may take a little more rubbing to get the silver to come off. I used my index finger and sort of pushed and pulled the paint around. I wanted it to have a cracked look to it, Occasionally bigger pieces came off but it still looked ok. Before:

After:

Work all the way around. The directions recommend a light top protective coat of something (you're on your own there) but I haven't gotten to that step yet.

on blue:

...and that's how I did it.

How do you...make a burlap wreath?

2011-11-02T08:14:00.000-07:00

Well Halloween is over and the door was looking a little naked after taking down all the Halloween decorations. Since Pinterest invaded my life, I've sworn my front door will never be naked again.

I had a roll of burlap that I've been saving just for that time between Halloween and Thanksgiving. I found my inspiration here: at this Etsy shop.

So.... I made my what seems like daily trip to Michaels with my 40% off coupon and bought this stuff. The burlap was $7.99 for 10 yards. Pictured here is the 12" wreath but I actually used a larger wreath. Of course I forgot to start taking pics until I was halfway done. For a larger wreath you'll need two rolls of burlap.

Without cutting the wire wrap it several times around the end of the burlap.

Holding the wrapped end of burlap on the wreath form wrap the wire around the burlap a couple of times so that it is attached firmly.

Measure a length of the burlap...I used 10 inches, smaller loops will have a tighter look, larger loops a more "loopy" look. Loop it and wrap it with the wire next to where you attached the burlap. Not too tight not too loose. You don't want the wreath to show thru but you don't want it to be too tight either. You will want to make each loop the same size and they need to be approximately the same distance from each other. (an inch or so)

Continue measuring and looping and wrapping the wire tightly (another pair of hands will come in handy to wrap until you get used to how to do it) until you get all the way around the wreath.

When the wreath is wrapped it will look like this. The loops will be all lined up in a row. Tie off the wire, leaving a large loop for hanging.

Holding two loops pull them in opposite directions. Do this all the way around the wreath, fluffing up as you go.

And that's how I did it. I added a fall garland but you could make it simple and add a burlap bow, a letter, a flower etc.

How do you...make a door look old?

2011-10-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

This is my fist blog and I'm not really sure how all this blog stuff works but hey, nobody's looking so I can screw it up and nobody's gonna notice, right?

I blame Pinterest. I saw a door I had to have and it's evolved into an entire bathroom redo....starting with the door. So here we go. I found this door at the Habitat for Humanity Thrift Store. It was $50..could have been $25 if we'd gotten there a day earlier. We just missed "half price door day". Oh well, it's a good cause. I didn't start blogging until mid door project but you didn't miss much. I used a chain, a rake, tin snips and beat the door up, I mean really smacked it around. I wanted to make big enough dents that they'd really show up. I sanded all the angles using my handy dandy mouse sander. I used a 50 grit sandpaper...it worked really fast.

I used a Behr turquoise paint with an eggshell finish. It almost looks tiffany blue.

I painted the door but not solid. The more you paint on the more you have to sand off. I went a little heavier on the panels and less on the edges.

I tried to avoid getting paint in the cracks and the "holes" I created with my destruction earlier.

I let that dry for a couple of hours. Ok, I'm impatient. I let it dry for 30 minutes. I took my handy dandy mouse sander and went over all the edges again. I didn't sand any of the middle.

I don't know if you can tell here but I am holding the sander at an angle. I only wanted to sand the paint off the edges like this

BEFORE:

AFTER:

After sanding, I used the blower and a dry paintbrush to remove the dust. Then wiped it down with a t-shirt.

I know there are lots of recipes for glazes and stains out there but this is what I had, so this is what I used. I don't even know if they still make it. It's a dark brown.

I used the brush, making sure to get it into all the cracks and the exposed wood. I used a damp sponge to wipe off all the excess.

The glaze is designed to dry slowly so there's no need to rush. After I added/removed the glaze, I wiped the whole thing down with a tshirt...cause I have a billion t-shirt pieces left over from other pinterest projects.

Some of the dents and dings needed more glaze to make them darker. The more coats you apply the darker it gets. Just be sure to wipe off the excess. Are those my hands?? Wow, I could use a moisturizer.

And that's how I did it! Here's the finished door....and my helper.

a close up:

We're going to hang it on a track at the top and add some antique hardware. Check back for pics of it when we get the bathroom done.

Vicki Sue