Creative Collections: Repurposing T-Shirts

I know there are lots of people who are cleaning out their closets and finding all sorts of t-shirts that aren’t making the cut for the spring and summer. And these are some great projects if you have some shirts that you’re like “Well, MAYBE I’ll wear them…” Yeah, you’re not going and they’ll get lost in the back of your drawers. So here are some ideas to spruce up tees that are still in good shape.

Ruffle Waterfall Tee by In Honor of Design

Anthro-Insprired Hip Cinched Blouse by Recycled Lovelies

V-Neck into Gathered Cowl Collar by Trash to Couture

Lace T-Shirt Refashion by Ma Nouvelle Mode

Ruffly Shirt Refashion by Ruffles and Stuff

Emma Pillsbury T-Shirt Refashion by iCandy Handmade

Pencil Skirt by Trash to Couture

Creative Collections: Father’s Day Gift Ideas

We’ve already had the chance to celebrate all those great Mommies out there, and not it’s time to celebrate the Daddies! Emily has the most wonderful daddy, and I can’t wait to remind him how much we love him.

Smelling the flowers

But thinking of good handmade gives for men is always a challenge for me. So here are some great ideas I’ve collected!

Homemade BBQ Sauce by Inner Child Fun

Super Hero Platter/Plate by Not Just a Mommy

Coffee Sleeve by All Free Sewing

Photo Bookmark by Martha Stewart

Photo Cube by Balancing Home

Ipad Case from a Recycled Book by Man Made

Golf Cupcakes by Innovative Sewing

Lego Cufflinks by Instructables

Etched Beer Glasses by The Shed

Tool Tub and Tote by Sew4Home

Thanks daddies for loving your babies so much!

Flip Flops

Ahh, the time for flip flops has finally come to Indiana! There were a few weeks that I was wondering if warm weather would ever come!

Since I’m in the process of ending the school year AND moving classrooms (third grade, here I come), I decided I’d repost some of my favorite summer posts during these next two weeks. I hope you can find something to get you ready for hot weather, pool days, and sunshine!

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From July 11, 2012

I love flip flops! So comfortable, go with anything, inexpensive, no fuss. Just perfect for summer. But sometimes it would be fun to make them a little something special! So here are some fun ways to jazz yours up!

Keep in mind, some of these are more designed for little kids’ flip flops. But you can absolutely do these with your own! Just add more ribbon/fabric!

Stretchy Knit Straps with Flowers by Make It and Love It

The Knot So Hard Flip Flops by The Mother Huddle

Ribbon Wrapped Flip Flops by Mi Bello Boutique

Braided Flip Flops by By Wilma

Gladiator Wrap Flip Flops by Cut Out + Keep

Beaded Flip Flops by Trinkets in Bloom

Hmm, time to look for some sales on flip flops to try all of these!

Creative Collections: Wreathes

Last weekend, I painted my front door. Blue. Bright blue. We’re no longer “the brick house with green shutters.” We’re the “brick house with a blue front door.”

Love that.

But now I really want to put a springtime wreath on that beautiful bright door.

Shim Wreath by Tattered and Inked

Jute Twine Wreath by Brunch at Saks

Rainbow Wreath by Wine and Glue

Frame Wreath by A Glimpse Inside

Burlap Wreath by Domestic Superhero

Pinwheel Wreath by The Cards We Drew

Here’s a great idea for using pool noodles as your wreath base. So inexpensive then!

Pool Noodle Wreath by Home Stories A to Z

So which one should I make for my front door? Suggestions appreciated!

Creative Collections: Ikea Hackers

Ikea hacking has become a huge thing:  taking Ikea furniture and customizing it. Much as I love Ikea furniture, I do love the idea of reinventing basic pieces and creating something even more creative. None of my new Ikea furniture will be hacked anytime soon…but here are some great ideas to spruce up those pieces (or any pieces with similar features/dimensions)!

Lack Ottomans from Ikea Hackers

Mudroom from Entirely Smitten

Table into Desk by Matsutake

Chevron Trim Dresser by House & Home

Nailhead Side Table by Clementine & Olive

Greek Key Rug  by Tatertots and Jello

Bubble Chandelier by Ikea Hackers

Mail Station from Homes

Jewelry Box by aka Design

And don’t forget about these great ideas that have been featured on Creative Collections before…

Lego Table by Kojo Designs

Play Kitchen by Ikea Hackers

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How are you going to customize/repurpose?

Creative Collections: Play Kitchens

Emily turns one in 21 days. Twenty. One. Days. I’m tearing up just thinking about it! So not ready for my little baby to be a big girl!

Logan is building Emily a play kitchen, which is turning out great (though I can’t wait for it to be finished so I can park in my garage again). We’re doing a trip to Ikea at the end of the month to get some of the finishing touches… yeah, any excuse to go.

Here’s the play kitchen we’re making her…
from The Crafting Chicks

Here are some other cute kitchens I considered as we were looking for Emily…

from Narrating Life

from EcoCrazy Mom

from Ikea Hackers

from Living the Swell Life

from Craftiness is Not Optional

And because all kitchens need food, here are a few felt food tutorials (this is my goal for Emily’s Christmas present next year–there’s no way it’s going to happen for her birthday, too bad!):

from Helping Little Hands

a variety of tutorial links from The Busy Budgeting Mama

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Logan has nearly everything built. Now just to cover screws, paint, attach hardware (buy hardware), sew the curtain. I’ll finish, right???

Make Your Own Ottoman

Right before Christmas, I ordered the cutest knitted ottoman for Emily’s room. My sister was there when I opened the box (much squealing and excitement on my part!) and said she didn’t have an ottoman for the nursery. Well, that’s uncomfortable!

from Target

So I made her one! Because what else are you going to do?

This was a really easy project, and a great scrap buster. This was right around the time that I was purging/cleaning/organizing our office, so I had committed to purging my scraps/random fabric by half. But I hate throwing away fabric. Problem solved!

This and one tub of fabric. That’s what I consolidated to!

What you’ll need:
*fabric
*LOTS of stuffing (I even used two extra pillows, plus all my scraps)

1.  Cut 6 squares. Mine measured 20″, because I used two decorative pillows as the top and bottom. I know, two fewer pillows in my house! You think that means I get to buy 2 more? But you could make yours any size that works for you.

2. Sew your cube using this cloth block tutorial from Make It and Love It. I skipped the step of clipping the corners, because with something so big, you’ve got some flexibility.

3. Stuff and stuff and stuff. Sit on it to press it down. Then stuff some more. It’s going to take lots more than you think, because you want it to be pretty solid. Hand sew the opening shut.

With all that fabric, your ottoman will be pretty heavy!

The little miss testing it out. 

Creative Collections: New Life Out of Onesies

After finally writing the post about updating Emily’s onesies last week, I realized that I had pinned a few ideas on how to upcycle some of her outfits. But not wanting leave the boys out, I searched for them too!

Bubble Dress by Make It and Love It

Necklace Onesie by A Couple of Craft Addicts

Onesie to Dress by Smile and Wave

Faux Vest by B is for Boy Creations

Tie Onesie by The Thrifty Craft Junkie

Bow Tie and Suspenders Onesie by Go Ahead and Make a Bid on That

And don’t forget about appliquéing something cute on the front… superhero logos, flowers, animals, team logos. Just search Google Images and be creative!

Family Room Art

I feel like it’s been ages since I posted about the projects I’ve been doing at home! I’ve loved all the Christmas ideas and the New Year’s Organizing Revolution! But as I’ve looked through some of the pictures I’ve taken, I can’t believe how many projects I have to update (there are some pictures of Emily that are from months ago, oops).

Just before Christmas, I got some new curtains from Target. I love the trellis/Moroccan pattern. And the gray-blue color.

Farrah Fretwork

But I didn’t really like them with the orange in the room. I decided to shift to just blues and greens, leaving the room a little more monochromatic and very soothing.

Which meant that I had to change out my art. Okay, I searched through all of my pictures. I swear I took a picture of my old art… or not. So I’ll try to explain it–they were two vertical panels painted green. Each panel had a navy blue branch and an orange branch.

I cropped a random photo to get this shot. Imagine it taller and with a second one beside it.

I had found a variety of art ideas on Pinterest that I decided to combine. Three picture ideas, 2 books, lots of Mod Podge, 2″ circles,  some paint, and bird cutouts later…

I love it! It still looks handmade, but it’s a little more sophisticated than what we had before. And right now, I’m all about birds (I have some little wire ones that are so cute) so this ties it all together nicely.

I have to laugh a little whenever I look more carefully at the background. I originally used a copy of The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks as the background. And then I ran out of pages. With about a third left to finish. A canvas this big takes more than I thought! I looked through my donate box for another book with pages similar in color and size. So the other third (and some overlapping at the beginning) is from Cat and Mouse by James Patterson. Yep, a love story and murder mystery. 

Stay tuned Wednesday for other art ideas that you can do!

New Year’s Organizing Revolution: Family Room

Our family room does double duty–living room and playroom. And oh my, little Emily has quite a collection of toys. Already. Let’s please note that she’s not even a year old yet. Yikes!

But I think we’ve done some smart furniture buying to do double duty.

This shot is a good combination of our storage ideas. The wicker cube holds our dvds. The large basket on the shelf holds most of our board games. Then the other basket holds Emily’s burp clothes.

More baskets! The top two are PS3 and Wii games (one for Logan and one for me). The baskets on the bottom are Emily’s toys. The shelf on the left is her library.

Yeah, Emily decided she needed to kiss the camera as I was taking pictures.

This ottoman was one of our smartest buys. Cushy so we don’t have to worry about her hitting her head. Then there’s storage on the inside–some of Emily’s toys and our weights (to keep it in one place).

I’m still on the lookout for an inexpensive dresser at a thrift store. I’d like to do something like this, just with clear plastic tubs. I’m thinking a bright blue like this one though.

from BHG

Add it to my list of projects!

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What smart storage solutions do you have in your family room?