This weekend I decided to give “On The Upcycle” a much-needed reboot. I felt the old blog layout was getting a bit stale. Last night I experienced an evening of insomnia, and decided it was the perfect time to explore new ideas. I hope you all like the new look! Happy 4th of July weekend everyone!
May is turning out to be a rather hectic month. My daughter’s 3rd birthday is just around the corner, not to mention she is about to start pre-school for the first time next week. At the risk of sounding cliché, time is flying by and filled with things to do, forms to sign, and errand filled lunch breaks. Despite this, I have been busy working in the background on a few projects though at a slower pace than usual. One of these projects was resurfacing my craft table and organizing the space. Despite my best efforts, my craft room has become a cluttered nightmare of various holiday decorations, toys and kids clothes which never made their way up to the attic. I was once again determined to clean it up and work on the craft table.
This old desk top computer table had seen better days but worked well as a crafting table. Of course a table used for this purpose is going to bare the scars of crafting, but I had a lot of left over fabric from an old bed skirt that I had used for a few previous projects. The pattern and color scheme also happened to match the room nicely. I cut two pieces of fabric to fit over the table surface. I applied Mod Podge generously with a foam craft brush. I carefully applied the fabric to the table surface creating a seam to connect the two pieces together. I then applied Mod Podge to the top of the fabric.
I applied several layers of Mod Podge allowing it to dry clear between coats. I painted the areas I could not decoupage black. Once it was dry it created a workable surface that was much more attractive than before.
Table Before and After
Craft Room Shot featuring “On The Upcycle” Projects
Getting better with organization Lets hope I can keep it that way-Finally!
One day I was standing in my kitchen staring at my boring cabinets when the idea came to me! My daughter loves playing with chalk and drawing. The hubby and I often have the need to communicate through various “notes” left around the house. We could really use a better way to communicate. What better way then to create a family chalkboard? I had often thought about modifying our kitchen cabinets in some way and this was a fun first step. I was eager to try one of the most talked about craft items on the web, chalkboard paint. My idea was to use the paint to create a chalkboard on the side of the kitchen sink cabinet, but the ideas for its use don’t end there. Be sure and check out Brit and Co 40 Creative uses for Chalkboard paint and you will be amazed at all the fun possibilities.
I went to Joann Fabric and picked up some black chalkboard paint. It was regular priced at around 6 dollars, but I used a 50% off one regular priced item coupon which knocked the price down to below 3 dollars!
When I got home I cleaned and prepped the area of cabinet I planned to paint. The bottle recommends 2 coats, but I used 4 total as I was attempting to paint over laminate.
The project was relatively easy. I used a brush to apply the paint allowing it to dry thoroughly between coats. The top side of the sink was damaged so I used a strip of fabric across the top to cover the area and add a little “pop” to the chalkboard. I applied the fabric strip using Mod Podge and covered it in Polyurethane since it could be exposed to water being in such close proximity with the faucet.
I waited about 24 hours for the final coat to dry before using the chalk. It worked beautifully!
Now we can leave each other messages, post holiday greetings, and our daughter can use her imagination and draw!
And yes if you are wondering those are Peeps on a stick my daughter is holding. Happy Easter Everyone!
Our diaper changing table was a very useful piece of furniture while it served it’s purpose. Once my daughter outgrew it however, I wondered how I would reuse it. For a while it took up space in the craft room as I contemplated what to do with it. It just so happened that I was looking for additional storage in our kitchen and I thought that the changing table could easily double as an extra set of shelves.
The family and I took a trip to Joann Fabric and I purchased a colorful floral fabric for the project. Since I had quite a bit of area to cover I purchased 1 1/2 yards of material. I decided to leave the areas free of material in its original dark wood color, or if desired it can be painted the color of choice. Just be sure and use a primer first especially if it is dark wood.
I cleaned the piece thoroughly before getting started. Once dry I used a small foam roller to apply Mod Podge generously to the table surfaces.
I cut the material with scissors allowing some extra fabric to hang over the sides. I then carefully laid it on top of the Mod Podge smoothing out any air bubbles or wrinkles. I generously applied Mod Podge over top of the fabric. I repeated this for each individual shelf, and used two coats of Mod Podge for each shelf.
Once the Mod Podge was dry and clear, I used a box cutter knife to carefully trim away any excess fabric from around the edges. I utilized the table groove as a guide while slicing the fabric. I then used two coats of clear polyurethane to seal and protect the table from moisture.
Now I have a bright and cheery shelf for the kitchen and desperately needed additional storage. The colorful fabric really pops against our bright yellow walls, and am happy to be able to continue to use what was once a very important and sentimental piece of furniture.
Materials:
Old Wooden Changing Table
Mod Podge
Foam Roller
Box Cutter Knife
Scissors
1 1/2 yard of Fabric of Choice
(Primer and Paint Optional)
Polyurethane clear sealer
I love vintage suitcases! I especially love all of the decoupage and repurposed vintage suitcase ideas I have seen while strolling through the web. I was eager to restyle a suitcase of my own, but hard case luggage proved to be a challenging find. Over the last two years, I searched for suitable suitcases in every thrift store, yard sale, and managed to stumble across only one along the way. You can imagine my surprise recently, when I came across not one, but three vintage blue suitcases in the same shopping trip. The small case was inside the medium case, and the large case was empty. The set was not priced. I asked for a price check and expected an individual price on each piece of luggage. Instead, Goodwill decided to price the small and medium cases together for only $3.99! I checked with them twice, because I could not believe it! The larger case (pictured below) was priced at a reasonable $7.99.
For my first suitcase decoupage, I decided to keep it simple. I purchased a yard of fabric from Joann Fabric. I searched for material that would blend with the color of the suitcase, and found a nice blue and white floral pattern. I cleaned the case to remove any dust or dirt. I generously applied Mod Podge with a foam craft brush.
I carefully laid the fabric on glue, smoothing out any wrinkles or air bubbles with my hands along the way. I carefully worked the fabric in the creases of the case, and covered the entire area with another layer of Mod Podge.
Once dry, I trimmed any excess fabric with a box cutting knife applying minimal pressure using the natural crease of the suitcase as my guide. I added a 2nd coat of Mod Podge. I repeated the same process for the opposite side of the suitcase.
Now, what to do with the other two?
It has been an especially harsh Northeast winter and many of my usual thrifting haunts have been light on stock especially when it comes to furniture pieces. Despite this, I certainly don’t mind the thrill of the hunt. You never know when you will find something unique. On such a trip, I came across an interesting kids bench (At least that’s what I think it was!) at a local Goodwill store. It appeared to be a surfboard and the painted design was hideous! Despite all of the negatives with this piece, I felt this would be a fun redesign, and I loved the detachable legs. This feature made the legs easier to paint. Nothing conjures up images of summer like a surfboard, and that is just the kind of project I needed!
I cleaned the entire piece with a Magic Eraser. It had an unidentifiable sticky substance all over it and the Eraser worked well to remove it. I used a white spray primer to cover the brightly colored design. I was planning on using a fabric decoupage, but felt the bright colors may bleed through the fabric. Using a primer first prevents this, and gives me a clean slate to work with. Once the primer dried, I used a foam craft brush to apply Mod Podge to the bench surface.
My daughter and I stopped by the craft store and I let her look through the aisle filled with different character fabrics. She seemed to like this Hello Kitty print and I happily obliged, being a Ms. Hello Kitty fan myself. When I was young the local mall had a store called Sanrio and they sold Hello Kitty and all her “friends” merchandise. It was one of my favorite stores to visit in the mall. I bought a half yard, and roughly traced the fabric to cover the table surface. Once the Mod Podge dries, any excess fabric left over around the edges and handles I trim with a box cutting knife. The glue stiffens the fabric and makes it easier to cut. I placed the fabric down on the Mod Podge soaked surface carefully smoothing out any wrinkles with my hands.
I placed it aside to dry, eventually I would add a total of three full coats of Mod Podge on the fabric table surface. I painted the legs with two coats of pink and white acrylic paint. Once the legs were dry I covered them in a Mod Podge layer. I then reassembled the table legs by screwing them easily back in to place.
My daughter loves sitting on it. It looks great in her room and it is a nice piece of kids furniture to use while helping her get dressed for her day.
Hello Kitty Girls Surfboard Bench
Before and After
A few months back, I came across a wooden bar stool at Goodwill for $5.99. I liked the size and design of the stool, and thought it would make a great decoupage piece.
I decided to upcycle the stool with a Rock N’ Roll theme, and since it was to be a gift for my husband, I chose the Irish Rock band Thin Lizzy as a subject. The band is one of our favorites and have a vast catalog of great music. This initial vision took a back seat to the holidays, and various other projects. The idea seemed doomed afer one mishap after another involving this project. I abused this stool, and used it to allow smaller painted projects to dry. When I attempted to prime it, the spray can malfunctioned splattering the primer. (I believe the can may have been too cold) After the bar stool was dry, I sanded off the “lumpy” paint by hand. Creating yet more work for myself, while attempting to smooth out an air bubble on the initial decoupage print, I tore a hole in it and had to scrape it off only to start all over again. Despite all of these blunders, the project managed to come together. Turns out I found a much nicer print, based on the album cover for “Nightlife” The print featured a black panther on the prowl like the one featured on the cover below.
I painted the entire chair in black and red alternating the colors. It took several coats to obtain good coverage. Once dry I applied Mod Podge to the seat with a foam brush. I carefully applied the printed logo and smoothed it out carefully with my hands doing my best to avoid tearing or wrinkling. I painted the area not covered by the print red, creating a bull’s eye effect on the seat. Once all the paint was dry, I used Mod Podge to cover the entire bar stool.
Finally, my crafting nightmare showed some “Nightlife” after much adversity. More importantly my husband seems happy with the result. Now we just need the bar..
Wanna see more chair restyles from “On The Upcycle? Click Here
Since my upcycle adventures started last April, the word has gotten out to family and friends. I am on a upcycling mission! The best part of all is that others are starting to see ordinary items normally discarded or not used in a different light. The original purpose of an item can be changed and restyled. Instead of discarding something that can no longer be used, it can be modified so that it may have a new useful new purpose in your life.
Such is with the case of this project I am about to share with you. My sister brought me a set of coasters she purchased during a trip to France.
They are lovely and feature famous scenes and landmarks, but she felt the beauty of these coasters was wasted, and she never used them for their original intended purpose. It seemed a total waste not to display these in some way. She asked me if I would I be able to do “something” with them. I love a challenge so I accepted the task, although at the time I really had no idea what the project plan would be, but luckily she was OK with that!
I held on to the coasters for a while, and kicked around a few ideas in my head. Then one night I was lying in bed unable to sleep when I remembered this little wooden wall plaque.
It was an item I had picked up at Goodwill a few months back. When I purchased it for a dollar, I had no idea how I would use it. Then it hit me! It would be great to create a vertical wall hanging featuring the tile-like coasters. She has a pink and brown french themed bedroom that I thought this would look perfect in. I created my first chair upcycle for her. A ladder back chair in pink and brown colors, known as The Pillow Case Makeover.
I cleaned and primed the piece with a while latex primer. Once dry, I painted the face of the plaque chocolate-brown. The edges I painted pink.
I applied Mod Podge matte finish to the painted areas. Once the Mod Podge was dry and clear, I used a high temperature hot glue gun to attach the coasters to the wood lining them up and allowing the same amount of space between them. I applied the hot glue generously and adhered them carefully one by one.
My sister seemed happy with the end result. I have never been to France, but have a feeling I would love it there. Everywhere you look is inspired by art, and hopefully looking at these images will bring back all the great memories of her trip!
Most of my recent trips to the thrift stores have been utterly disappointing. It would seem that spring cleaning is the last thing on anyone’s mind. It’s bitterly cold outside, yard sale season is long over, and the streets are blanketed in snow from our most recent weather event Hercules (Since when did we start naming snow storms??) Everyone seems to be walking around with a post holiday hangover causing many (myself included) to limp into the New Year. Luckily, I still have a few projects up my extremely bundled and layered sleeve to share with you.
Although most of my thrift store trips have been uneventful, Every once in a while I still manage to find something unique. I came across a really lovely and unique vintage wall shelf with a drawer. I especially loved the curved sides and the drawer for storage. It was in rough shape, but that didn’t deter me from placing it inside my cart.
When I originally purchased the shelf I had every intention of keeping it. A blunder made during another project intended as a Christmas gift changed that and I had shift the original intention of this piece.
I lightly sanded the item with sand paper, and used a white latex primer to cover the piece. I left the inside of the drawer alone as it was still in very good condition. I decided to paint the piece black. This shelf has the potential to be hung in any room, so I wanted the color to go with any decor, and black is neutral. I painted all of the piece except for the drawer and shelf. I planned to decoupage these areas later and didn’t want the dark color to bleed through the fabric. I used two coats of black acrylic paint and once it was completely dry added a layer of Mod Podge over top to seal it. I had some left over black and white damask fabric from a previous project. I applied Mod Podge to the front of the door and shelf with a foam craft brush, I cut the fabric to fit as best I could as I would trim away any excess fabric later. I made sure to line up the fabric design so that the piece would appear symmetrical. I applied Mod Podge over top of the fabric allowing my nail to work the fabric into any grooves and once it was dry, carefully trimmed any excess fabric with a box cutter knife.
I love damask designs and this was a tough piece to part with. My favorite project is draped in damask and this would match it beautifully. In the end I was happy to gift it to my sister to go with the chair I made for her in her bedroom, or perhaps it will go in her kitchen? We shall see, as I offered my services free of charge to help her hang it!
Looking for a great “personalized” gift that will keep you within your shopping budget? The holiday’s, and birthday’s can be tough, and it is more important than ever to get the most out of every penny. At the same time, It is also important to let those close to you know that they are appreciated throughout the year. I try to keep my ears and eyes open as to what matters to friends and family, by soaking in all of their interests and hobbies. I file these ideas away, and when I am trying to come up with gift ideas, I refer back to them.
As our extended families and circle of friends continue to grow, and the holiday’s become more and more about the children (As it should be, of course) It has become at times, a challenge to come up with gifts for friends and the adults in the family. This year, I decided to make personalized candles for some of those on my Christmas list. You can purchase candles anywhere, and they are reasonably priced. This year, I had many music lovers on my list, so I decided to decoupage some candles featuring the recipients favorite musical artists. The possibilities are truly endless. You can personalize and create any type of candle that you want. For the non-music lovers on my list, I refashioned the candles with fabric, or with a family photo. Making these is a simple process. I applied Mod Podge to the outside of the candle with a foam craft brush. I searched the internet for the images I planned to use and printed them out on my printer (the size of the images I used was 4×6) I trimmed the images to fit, and carefully applied them to the candles, smoothing any wrinkles. You can add Mod Podge over top of the image, but it is not needed. If you are looking for a shinier finish, you will need to complete this step. Once dry they are ready to be gifted!
Rock N’ Roll Inspired Candles
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Repurposed Candle made into a Tea Light Holder
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by Hamda
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