Bowl Fillers America 250 Years

Just over here getting ready to celebrate 250 years of Independence.

I adore the little bell next to the flag and sign that says, "Let Freedom Ring"

 Here are a few goodies I made for  bowl fillers.

This little stuffed flag is just a piece of canvas with some red acrylic paint stripes. The back is a piece of denim. 

I used hot glue to secure three sides then added a bit of stuffing. 

Then sealed the last side with more hot glue.

I tore 1" strips of fabric,  created a stack of strips varying the colors, folded them in half and tied them off to create tassels.

I made a beaded strip of torn fabric and added a big star to the top. Just a few wooden beads , painted white added to a torn strip of fabric.

From the Graphicsfairy.com, I printed this Uncle Sam image and adhered it to a small scrap of wood. I added a bit of gold paint around the edges to give it a little lift.

I like to practice getting the layout of my lettering , so I write above the strip of paper to see how to get it correctly positioned and then I copy it below onto the strip of paper. I crinkled the paper to make it look weathered and then I used some distress ink around the edges to make it look distressed.

With love and gratitude

Michele

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Thrift Store Porch Light Faux Patina RE- Finish

I love an easy makeover and  this is an easy one you are gonna love. Plus, once you get the idea behind creating the faux copper patina you'll have it in your toolbox for a lifetime. And if you are anything like me and copper, well, let's just say there is a lot of copper patina around this house.

Here's the original beat up fixture.

On one of my thrifting excursions, I picked up this exterior light fixture for $7.99

When I saw this exterior light I knew exactly it had to be upcycled in copper with a faux patina. I've created this finish before and it always holds it's color and to me, it's exciting to see an aged piece. The brick on our house has a pinkish hue and copper ties into it nicely.

Let me take you through the simple process of this finish. Unfortunately we'll need to use a few other photos since I only took pics before and after.

I start with a common craft paint , in this instance the Folk Art brand metallic finish copper. Don't be surprised, it lasts. And I never spray an exterior finish. 

Once I have several coats that have dried, I apply a wash of black paint and then I spritz water over the top to get the look of dripping water. This wash needs to be dabbed at to remove the excess and you need to make sure there isn't too much black wash as to take away from the copper. It's a little bit of a balance and you can test this out on something else before you use it on a finished piece. The wash is very forgiving and it's not the last step, so keep at it and believe in the next step.

The next step, is the turquoise craft paint for the patina. Again, creating a wash and going over the top applying the watery mix with your brush, and spritzing it to create the look of dripping water .  Dab dab dab until you have a look you like. To complete the look , take a paintbrush dipped in the turquoise wash and speckle the piece in a few areas to create the pitting in the patina.

That's all for now folks. I hope you enjoyed this upcycle.

With love and gratitude

Michele

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Upcycled Ceramic Pumpkin

It started with a $1.99 grey ceramic pumpkin from a thrift store. Yes, ugly grey! It's actually much  larger than it appears in the photos. It's 7 " tall. 

I have upcycled a lot of ceramic pieces with chalk paint and I did the same here. I had some from my stash when I repped a line of chalk paint a few years back. 

So a nice coat of chalk paint .

Then a fall style napkin from Dollar Tree was decoupaged to the painted pumpkin.  The best way to do this is to remove all the layers of napkin from the printed top sheet of napkin.  Cut strips and apply with Mod Podge . Cover the entire pumpkin.

Next, I used my finger to add a highlight of gold paint to the ridges.

Glitter and done. 

Thanks for popping in for a spell.

With love and gratitude

Michele

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Garden Sign Made with Grapevine

I have had this piece of scrap wood in my stash for some time and I was thinking , for some time , that it would make a cute sign. So I painted it pink.  Ok, you know me , I jumped into my project and forgot to take a photo of it before I painted it, so I need you to use your imagination.

Now, take a look at this bucket of grapevine twigs. I had these aside to create some sort of fire starters but alas they are needed for my sign. Things have a way of working out around here.

To start , I chalked my design onto the wood.

I left my twigs outside in the rain to get them pliable for installation.

Using a nail gun I  attach my grapevine twigs.

Don't forget to wipe of the chalk with a brush and some water.

I'm not sure where this will be hung in the yard but it is currently on this post until I find it's home.

Thanks for popping in. 

With love and gratitude

Michele

Find me partying here all week, at these link parties, with some great bloggers.

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