Finding the Time to Unwind

We just hit 50 posts with the previous post!  Woohoo!!  This has got to be some sort of landmark.  Other bloggers start giveaways and whatnot, but I think we'll wait until around 100.  That will actually give us some time to make something to give away and not just spend all of our time on house stuff.

Before we began to do house renovations, we actually worked on other projects.  Over the course of limited free time in the past week/end, I found some things I had made before and finished others that were new projects.

Earrings that are not made out of broken electronic pieces (OHMen Jewelry on etsy):

I know it isn't recycled, repurposed, saving the world, but every now and then, I like to make things that are a more "traditional" pretty.  Plus, the bee earrings are great for pretty much all the women in my family since they are all beekeepers. 

Now onto my beautiful new jewelry display board that was a boring old cork board...but an excellent $1 garage sale find.  It needed a little spice.

As for the fabric projects...

Buying sheets from Goodwills and thrift stores is the best way to get inexpensive fabric.  Several yards for under $5, typically.  As you may be able to see, there is a mix of some vintage sheets along with some more modern cutesy stuff to make skirts and dresses out of. 

Don't discount the fitted sheets, pillowcases, bed skirts, curtains, tablecloths or anything else you can find at a secondhand store, especially if you love the print.  Just get a simple stitch ripper or a pair of scissors and you have a few yards of fabric.  Voila!  Speaking of vintage sheets, if you are interested in other projects to create with them, check out Jen at The Vintage Sheet Blog.  She has a ton of ideas, tutorials and advice on all things vintage sheets. 

My pile of pillowcases and shams to disassemble.  Though sometimes tedious, if I just turn on a movie (actually, it is typically "The Office" or "How I Met Your Mother") and shut my brain off for a bit, I can whip through several of these babies.  Some will go to quilts, potholders, bags/clutches while others to dresses and skirts...of mostly my size and style.

What I can't use for bigger pieces, I use for making rosettes.  When the little 4"x4" square can't even fit on the fabric, I know it's time to cut the leftovers into strips and make some rosettes.  This is my first REAL batch of them.  Last time I made them, they were so incredibly tightly twisted and instead of adhering them with a glue gun, I decided it would be fun to put myself through the torture of sewing them together.  Never again.  Anyway, here is just a scrap rosette that is about a total of 3"x1.5".  The plan is to make this into part of a necklace.  With all the weddings coming up (the season continues!), I figure there will be at least one occasion to wear a cute necklace. 

In conclusion, I don't JUST demo and build and refinish.  Here comes the confession: I'm also a girly crafter too. *sigh*  My secret is out. 

Anyway, I'll pester Tom into posting something soon to break up all of this non-construction talk.

Jessie 

Currently Listening to "Day After Day" by Badfinger