I never ever pass up the bargain aisle at our local Michael's. It's filled with treats usually starting at $1 up to no more than say $5. I scooped up a bunch of these pretty shabby frames with my store credit and gave each a French touch: I love the shabby, chippy feel of it. I added the faux pearls and flower embellishment. It would not be complete without the fabulous French image from The...
**There is still time to enter my giveaway here.** If you saw the February issue of Romantic Homes, then you saw these little cuties from Ikea. So cute and I love the colors! I'm the world's worst cake baker so I appreciate the non-stick, squishy plastic they are made of. However, my husband claims I failed on my New Year's Resolution not to buy stuff, but I gently reminded him it was: not to buy...
Mama's Got a New Set of Wheels!
January 25, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Remember that old soda crate I found at a junk barn a couple of weeks ago? The one that set me back a whole $5?! Well, today I finally got my husband to put the wheels on the bottom. Sure, I could have done it myself but I was afraid of splitting the wood. Besides, you know how men like to feel needed... Love it now that it's mobile! I'm trying to figure out whether to...
A Few More Valentine's Day Touches
January 24, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
**Don't forget to enter my giveaway here.** I'm pretty much done with my Valentine's Day decorations. Mainly because I've run out of places to display them! Last night I did a peat pot in pink which I thought would be a nice departure from white, and make for a nice Valentine's Day touch: I used my Cricut to print out the French script heart and then tied it on with some tea-stained seam binding. The...
Sew Happy
January 22, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
There is just something about winter that puts me in a sewing mood. I broke out my sewing machine this week and made a few new pillows and pin cushions. I really love this great French-y image from The Graphics Fairy. I printed the image onto my fabric and then just sewed and stuffed. I printed it out in a 5x7 size so I was able to get two images onto the fabric. Kind of like...
Here Comes the Snow...
January 21, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
We're in the midst of our first snow fall of the season. It looks so pretty! While, I'd love to hunker down and spend the morning and afternoon crafting, one of my boys has a birthday party to go to today. Pinterest via Between Naps on the Porch I've been very lazy the last couple of days but I do have some projects to post later today/tomorrow morning. For now, I'm going to enjoy the quiet...
Decided to treat myself to these sweets earlier this week. I had a store credit for Michael's and couldn't scoop up these little candle holders fast enough: Aren't they adorable?! They would even make for cute candy bowls. So happy to be adding them to my crown collection! Jeanine ...
Thrifty Find of the Week
January 16, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
I confess. I splurged a whole 5 bucks this weekend when we went to a salvage barn by my parents' house. Well, they actually have three barns of "junk." We didn't have time to sift through everything - mainly because it was freezing but I did see this vintage soda crate: It's in perfect condition. A little dirty on the inside but it's basically perfect! I'm planning on adding some wheels to the bottom. I...
Valentine's Day Bags
January 15, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Who knew a paper shredder could come in handy for craft projects?! I just love the look of shredded sheet music and I have used it in a number of projects. I decided to use it for these sweet Valentine's Day bags too. First I printed off the images from The Graphics Fairy. I used my Cricut to cut them into circles. Then I used some Sticky Dots paper to make them into stickers. Place...
Sweet Lavender Sachet
January 12, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Sticking to my new year's resolution to use what I already have for future craft projects, I whipped up this sweet little lavender sachet today. I have a gazillion of these little glassine bags and thought they'd make for a nice sachet: I simply hand-stamped the French script on the front. I added the little birdy as an after-thought and I quite like it now. Then I added some lavender buds. I stitched the opening...
My craft room/office is a disaster. There, I said it. I'm slowly trying to get things in order starting with some of these jars: I'm really loving this chalkboard paper. I wish I had heard about it sooner. I used my Cricut to cut it into these cute tags. Now I can easily identify what I need instead of digging through a pile of everything. I'm just giddy over how organized I am now! Now to...
Mini Bedspring Board
January 10, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
**Update: the blogger I mention below is Susan from HomeRoad!** I visited a blog last week (of course, now I can't remember which one!) that reminded me about this decorative bedspring I had ordered from Somerset Living a few months ago. I had originally planned to use it in our bedroom once my husband re-painted it but when I saw the other blogger had added her's to the kitchen, I decided to do the same:...
Paris Tool Caddy
January 08, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Paging the lost and found! While we were packing away our Christmas lights yesterday, I found this little tool caddy that I bought a while ago and totally forgot about. It was in pretty bad shape and needed a white spray paint makeover stat. Thanks to yesterday's warm weather, I was able to give it a few coats of paint in just a few hours. Once it was dry, I broke out this graphite transfer...
A few weeks ago my sister, Kathy from Creative Home Expressions mentioned chalkboard paper in a comment on my blog. Well, of course that got the wheels turning for this garage sale mirror I got over the summer: I loved the gold frame and used chalkboard paint over the mirror. Unbeknownst to me, when the paint dried and I tried to prime it, the scratches and scribbles were awfully noticeable. Look closely, you can see the epic...
Shabby French Journal
January 04, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
One of my new year's resolutions is to cutback on buying things I just don't need. That includes clothes, home decor and yes, even craft supplies. That's not to say I won't pop into an estate sale or two, or my favorite church thrift store - or Michael's! - from time to time. I just want to de-clutter and use things I already have in the house - returning to my previous alter-ego: One Cheap...
Can You Feel the LOVE?
January 03, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Adding a little more LOVE around the house in preparation of Valentine's Day. If you saw the recent cover of Somerset Living, you'll know exactly where this little pretty came from: I can't wait to make a few more of these! I used a skinny strip of dyed muslin and hand-stamped je t'aime on it. Tape it onto the spool and add a colorful safety pin for a finishing touch. Adds just a pop of...
Candy Land
January 01, 2012 / BY Okio B Designs
Happy New Year! It's hard to believe it's twenty twelve. Here's to hoping this is everyone's year to win the lottery...ha! =) Since I spent a quiet new year's eve at home, I was up bright and early picking up some treats to add to my vintage milk bottle holder: I'm dubbing this our Valentine's Day Candy Land. It's filled with clear mason jars which I then filled with various heart-shaped candies and vintage Valentine's...