Okio B Designs

I am NOT the best sign maker. I am horrible at stenciling. I do not have a steady hand. Most of my signs have been epic fails. So when I saw Live Craft Love's post on making a reverse canvas sign, I was intrigued. (Click the link above to go to her post.)

I bought a rinky-dink canvas from Target for $2. First step was to remove the canvas from the wood frame - including all of the staples and glue. Check. Then you stain the wood. Check. The next step I kind of did on my own. I used my Cricut (Signatures Font cartridge) to print out my hi on vinyl paper.

I just had to peel and stick to get it on the canvas. Once that was done, I trimmed off the excess canvas and stapled it to the back of the wood. Seriously, how easy was that?! And now I have a cute, new decorative wood sign for the house.

Be sure to check out Live Craft Love's post for the full tutorial. I can't wait to make more of these adorable little signs.

Jeanine

1 comments

This year is the first time in years that we won't be away for July 4th. So I'm kind of going to town on the decorations.

This is our cozy Cape Cod and beloved porch. I love decorating it each season/holiday. The burlap banner is from Walmart. I grabbed it last year and I'm surprised at how sturdy it's been. I have one hanging on each side of the porch.

We painted the porch swing red last year and it really works well with the decorations.

This cabinet was a roadside find. Scroll through previous posts and you can see its before and after. It's the perfect size to display some of our festive goodies.

The little red wagon is from Hobby Lobby. I'm using it to display some red, white and blue candles. I think it's my favorite piece on the porch.

More reds and some Dollar Store pieces. I'm still adding more pieces, but so far I'm pretty happy with how it's turning out.

Jeanine

1 comments

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

No comments

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

1 comments

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

No comments

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.