Making the old things new

I haven't had much luck lately at the thrift stores. In fact, my most recent thrift store tripIs have been a giant bust. I did have some luck in a really unlikely place this weekend- my mama's garage.

This is unlikely because my mom and dad have a garage that is fairly neat and organized- it's way more organized than mine, for sure! It's just not likely that my mom would have things in her garage that she doesn't use.

A friend of ours had recently given her a really cool lantern, but she really didn't know yet where she wanted it.

I took one look at it and thought about how it had a neat shape about it, but that the floral swag attached to it really didn't match anything I had. I took a closer look and realized that the floral pieces were attached with zip ties. 

Needless to say, I brought it home and took some scissors to those zip ties. It only took me about two minutes to chop those guys off and then I was left with this:

I really like the shape of this candleholder. I am thinking of putting something at the top- something simple, like a burlap bow. I have this sitting by our TV cabinet at the moment, but that is not its permanent spot. It would look great on a fireplace hearth (which we don't have) (#firstworldproblems) or maybe even paired with other lanterns. 

The possibilities are kind of endless. Can't wait to show you what I do with it! 

Upcycling: plastic food and cleaning product containers

Last week, I showed you some of the ways I have used tin cans to organize and decorate. Now, I'm going to show you some of the ways we re-use plastic food containers.

We have upcycled cottage cheese containers to plant small plants.

We also have covered them with paper and used them to store things, just like the cans. I use a oaoer-covered Chlorox wipes container to hold Boxtops for Education in my classroom.

Recently, I got an even better idea. I had an old Chlorox wipes container in my kitchen that I had saved for one reason or another. I decided it would make a great headband holder for the baby's room, but I wasn't sure exactly how I wanted to do it. I started by wrapping the can in pretty paper.

Then, I found a dollar store candleholder and attached it to the bottom of the can with some Locktite super glue to give it some height. I added some pretty ribbon to the top and bottom of the can.

I had a pretty cute little headband stand then :) What do you think?

Linking to Stonegable, Worthing Court, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, Confessions of a Plate Addict, and French Country Cottage!

DIY'ing with upcycled "garbage": tin cans

One man's junk is another man's treasure. We go through a lot of cans at our house, and while we usually throw them away or recycle them, it recently occurred to me just how many things we could do with the cans. I decided that it would be a good idea to see what I could do with those cans.

1. DIY storage:
Put some pretty scrapbook or contact paper on those cans and use them for storage. I use the black and white cans in my crafting cabinet to hold scissors, Sharpies and paint pens, and even a contact paper-covered Oatmeal can for storing pipe cleaners.

2. Turn them into decor!

I found these great printable vintage can labels on Pinterest, and I printed several of them off on our printer. Wrap them around your cans and you've got some "antique" cans you can display! I am going to ask the cafeteria at my school if they'll give me one of the large cans so I can wrap a pretty label around it and use it as a vase.

How pretty would the pumpkin can be with some light pink flowers in it?

3.Candle holders/tea lights

 I didn't do this one, but I may try it soon- I'd love to make these tea light holders for our porch this coming summer!

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Here is another similar idea: 

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4. Seasonal decor: 

I didn't make this one either, but I'd like to. Here are some cute seasonal craft ideas you can make from tin cans. 

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And how cool is this advent calendar? 

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Have you made any neat things with tin cans? 

Linking to Stonegable, Worthing Court, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, Confessions of a Plate Addict, and French Country Cottage!

DIY Friday follow-up: The ironstone planter that isn't.

Remember last week's post where I showed you this flower vase and talked about how I'd found it in a thrift store?

Well, two coats of primer, two coats of white spray paint, and one orange mum later, here is what I ended up with:

You'll have to excuse the crappy picture quality, as I was taking it with my cell phone. Also, I know the mum is a little big for the pot, but I do really like this planter painted white. I think I'll be using it a lot in the coming seasons. It's currently brightening up my entry way, and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. 

What do you think? I think I want to go buy more mums and plant some of them outside now.

Linking to Stonegable, Worthing Court, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, Confessions of a Plate Addict, and French Country Cottage!

A quick and easy DIY: dresser tray

I am a bit obsessed with trays. I have a silver serving tray in our bathroom to corral our glass canisters. I also have a wooden tray in our kitchen with a grain sack print, an apothecary jar and some spring decor. 

"Antique" tool bin

Most of us can't afford a lot of real antiques. This leaves us no choice but to get creative, and get creative we shall.

I recently found these cute toolboxes in the "outdoor" section of a local dollar store. Two of them came home with me.

High/low knock-offs: Ballard Designs

I'll be the first to admit I have a bit of an obsession with designer clothes, house wares and furniture. That in itself is not a problem, until you consider the fact that I am a teacher. I don't have champagne taste on a beer budget, I have champagne taste on a tap-water budget! I joke, but it is true.

I feed those obsessions with really good knock-offs or DIYs. This week, I am posting my top 5 favorite Ballard Designs knock-offs.

DIY: A knock-off Pottery Barn kids vanity stool

My daughter is outgrowing her nursery, so we are working to prepare a big girl room for her. We have painted it and are almost finished, except for buying a dresser and getting some artwork for her walls.

I had a sweet little white vanity sitting around from when I was growing up. I gave it a fresh coat of paint recently and a new drawer pull, but decided it needed a little something else.

Upcycling: diaper boxes and wipes containers

Upcycling. I must confess that I absolutely hate that word. It sounds so pretentious.
While I hate the word, I love what it means. Clearly, it's an invented word, but in today's world where costs are increasing and salaries are not, finding new uses for old items is a must.

I love organizing, but buying storage items can be so expensive. If you're like me and you have champagne taste on a tap-water budget, you probably have to get a little creative. I have to get creative quite often.

I'm a mother of a two year old. She is potty trained (mostly), but still wears Pull-ups at night. You know what we have at our house? Diaper boxes. Lots of them. I hoard them, because they are such good boxes for storing/creating things. All you need is some spray adhesive, Modge Podge, a pretty fabric, bookplates (optional), and something for handles (still optional), and you can make some pretty nice storage bins. All of the bins in my daughter's closet were made by me. This picture was taken before I lined the boxes with white fabric and added the handles.