Okio B Designs

Inspired by my friend, Susan from Homeroad, I whipped up some quickie, patriotic, mini pillows last night.

We were away for Memorial Day weekend, so I had a bunch of Dollar Store mini flags that were just sitting around. With Flag Day and the 4th of July right around the corner, I decided to make a couple of these adorable mini pillows.

First, I ironed the flags to make them flat. Then I carefully removed the staples holding them onto their sticks. I chose Osnaburg fabric for the backing and cut it to size. A few stitches from the sewing machine and some stuffing, and voila! - mini American flag pillows!

Jeanine

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Today I'm sharing a quick makeover I gave to this thrift store wooden "frame." I wish I had taken a before picture so you could see the full transformation. It was a really ugly turquoise hue. So first things first, I gave it a few coats of white spray paint.

Once the paint was dry, I gave it a good sanding. Next I added some vintage sheet music to the back. It's hard to see, but that is a touch of French book paper on the bottom.

I plan on using it as a shadowbox of sorts, so I added some random embellished match boxes and a small bottle. I'm still playing around with it, but overall I'm loving the new look!

Jeanine

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Now that spring is in full swing, I've been busy doing a little bit of this and a little bit of that. So many random projects going on at one time and I'm loving every minute of it!

First up is this wood cheese board. This is the before. Yuck! I gave it a few coats of white spray paint. I found a great French image on The Graphics Fairy and added it using waterslide decal paper. Above is the after. Can you believe it's the same piece?

I added a French touch to some Dollar Store erasers while I was on a conference call during the week. You know how those can go...Yawn! I simply broke out my Staz On ink and got to stamping using different French rubber stamps I have.

I also dressed up these petite French laundry hangers too. It's hard to tell, but I added some Carte Postale wording to them.

And then I painted an old chalkboard, attached some twine with chalk and added it to my tea room/she-shed for a whimsical touch.

Last but not least, I added some tied clothes pins to this ceramic berry dish ala Miss Mustard Seed.

All this plus my day jobs, being a mom & wife and exercising. No wonder I'm pooped!

Jeanine

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I picked up these Pier 1 wood charger plates from our local thrift store months ago. I finally got around to spray painting them white two weekends ago. And then they sat for a few days...until today.

After sanding them down a little for a more aged look, I broke out some Waterslide Decal Paper and searched up some of my favorite French bee graphics.

If you've never used Waterslide Decal Paper, you basically print out your image on the sheet (I used inkjet paper because that is the type of printer I have, but they also make it for laser printers). I was able to get both of my images onto one sheet. Before using it, you'll need to give it a few coats of clear spray paint to preserve the image.

Once that's dry, simply add to a bowl of water (be sure to cut your image to size first!) and in a matter of seconds, your image will separate from the backing and be ready to use. Add it to your piece and smooth out any air bubbles. It needs to be wet to adhere. Once it's dry, it's basically like a clear sticker.

Here is one of them on my nightstand. It's exactly the look I was going for! You can find Waterslide Decal Paper on eBay and Amazon.

Jeanine

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It's almost here! The weather forecast is for spring-like weather this weekend and I'm ecstatic. Perfect timing too for this sweet spring sign I whipped up earlier this week.

I used a frame that I found at our local thrift store and...paper! Yup, paper. I did not stencil those letters or use my Cricut. After I painted the frame white, I simply found a font I liked, spelled out my phrase and printed it out on plain white paper.

I cut it to fit my frame, broke out the Mod Podge and just glued it on. Seriously, it doesn't get any easier than that. And the best part is you can't even tell it's paper. Well it fooled my husband and two boys anyway.

I'm looking forward to starting some new projects this weekend so stay tuned!

Jeanine

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I know I've been a little MIA lately. I wish I had some fabulous reason - like I jetted off to Paris or that we won the lotto. Sadly, the reason is a lot less interesting. It's the weather.

I'm not a winter girl and this year's weather has certainly put me in a funk. I've had zero inspiration and zero energy. I've long suspected that I have SAD (seasonal affective disorder). I'm trying to shake it, but when they are forecasting snow - AGAIN! - it's hard to get back into your groove.

So where've I been? Home, working the day jobs, being a mom, posting on Instagram and perusing Pinterest. I did manage to put together this cute little Paris postcard wood plaque today. I found the Dreams Factory image on The Graphics Fairy. I simply printed it out on waterslide decal paper and added it to a wood plaque I had painted months ago.

And I put together his bucket of faux cotton for our livingroom. Not a lot, I know, but it felt good to do something creative. I'm hoping things will warm up in the next couple of weeks and I can get back to doing something I truly love. In the meantime, I'll just keep reminding myself: winter can't last forever...

Jeanine