Bleach Design Tshirt

This summer, the girls and I managed to get in one creative activity. Sigh. And now I'm not so sure where I put the photographs. Must be still in my camera...

Like most projects these days, I saw this idea on Pinterest. It didn't have a great deal of instruction, so we made a few things up and crossed our fingers.

All you need for this one-of-a-kind shirt is a solid color t-shirt and some bleach in a spray bottle.

You also need a cut-out of an image on card stock. You can draw your own picture, or find something online to print and cut out. I recommend a solid sillouette type image with thick lines. If you have an image with a lot of really thin parts to cut out, it may not work so well. Both of my girls went with a dragon theme.

Spread your shirt over a board, or something to protect the other side from bleed-through.

If you're lucky, the kitten will inspect your project to make sure you're doing it right.

The next step was one of those made up parts. I wasn't sure the best way to attach our image to the shirt and make it stay in place. We decided to use a glue stick. The glue would temporarily hold the image in place without leaving behind hard-to-remove residue.

I put 100% bleach into a spray bottle and we took our shirts outside and sprayed all around the image. Plenty of room to be creative with more bleach around the image and a little less as you get further away for a spatter effect.

We left them outside to dry in the sun. 

**The sun is an important element of this project. I had another shirt that was grey that I sprayed some bleach on, but by that time it was dark outside so the shirt dried in the laundry room. The bleach stains turned out redish on that shirt. The next day I added more bleach to the same shirt and allowed it to dry in the sun and those bleach stains were white. Also a great way to add some artistic dimension to your shirt, keeping in mind the original color of the shirt may bleach differently out of the sun.

When shirts were dry, we removed the paper and this is how they looked. My girls love them, even though they will not be seen in public as both girls decided they would be night-shirts. 


  


But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

Easter Basket Scavenger Hunt

HAPPY EASTER!

Gran mailed the girls the pieces to make their Easter Baskets. They painted faces on wooden bunny cutouts. We cut the tops off empty milk cartons and glued the wooden pieces to make these baskets.

It was going to be hard to top last year's Best Easter Basket Ever. So why mess with a good thing? I created more coupons for their baskets, but this year, I added a little twist.


A SCAVENGER HUNT!

In addition to coupons, I added clues that sent them outside to search for a prize. Instead of toys, prizes were a book, bookmark, book light clip, package of mechanical pencils, and a shirt/nightgown.

Some prizes were small enough to fit into large eggs, while others I put in brown paper bags (great for instant camoflauge!). I hid them in specific places in the yard and wrote rhyming clues to help the girls find their prize.

One clue sent them to search for a prize in the shed. They opened this clue at the same time, so they went to search for it together.

Another to look under the fire-pit cover.

Another to the flower garden (minus flowers).

They had so much fun, and I do believe the scavenger hunt topped last year's Best Ever Easter Basket.



EMPTY TOMB ROLLS

I really can't believe I have NEVER done these before. I guess Easter Sunday is always so busy with getting ready for church, I've just not had time to do them. This year I was determined to do it, but we made them Saturday morning instead of Easter Sunday.

We followed this recipe for Empty Tomb Rolls.

Some of them collapsed, but a few were perfect and the girls were surprised to find them hollow, just like the tomb was empty when the stone was rolled away.

And they were delicious, too.








The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name. Luke 24:46-47

Our Tennessee Snow Days

It's always super exciting for us to get snow. This year, we got some good snow! It started with a layer of ice, then a layer of snow with perfect conditions for some great sledding. The cold temperatures kept the snow around for longer than usual, so we got to enjoy sledding every day for the better part of a week.

Coke Bottle Penguins
Because of the 2-inch layer of ice plus 2-inch layer of snow on the driveway, we were a little stranded in the house. We decided to make these Coke Bottle Penguins.

We found this idea on Pinterest and followed the instructions from the image below. It's good to note that for each penguin you need 2 bottles from COKE products. The shape of the bottle from Coke products is imporant and necessary to this project. We'd have made these a long time ago, but I'd been saving bottles from other brands, and I quickly learned those wouldn't work. We rarely drink soft drinks, so I resorted to taking empty bottles from various gatherings where 2-liter Coke products were served.

These are our penguins. Aren't they so cute? We each made our own pom-poms, and I crocheted the two scarves, too.

Colored Ice Balls
As I drifted off to sleep one night during our snow week, I suddenly remembered another idea from Pinterest that I'd told myself I needed to remember should we ever have cold enough temperatures for it. Considering I'd already gone to bed before the rest of the family, I got strange looks when I walked into the kitchen and called the girls to come help me. We filled balloons with water and food coloring and set them outside to start freezing.

I used regular balloons. I put them outside close to midnight the first night when it was in the low 20s and the next day all day it stayed in the low to mid 20s. They'd been outside well over 12 hours when one of them broke and it WAS NOT frozen enough to keep the water from spilling all over my shoe. The second night got below zero and the next day stayed in the mid-teens, and it was only then that they were solid enough to unwrap.

I used big balloons, too. I suppose you could use smaller balloons with less water and it wouldn't take as long to freeze.

The picture above doesn't show at all how cool the color was inside each ball. You can see it more with this purple one below. As you can see, most of the color was in the center of the ball. But even the yellow, green, and red balls had a similar effect that the photo doesn't show.

They were a fun addition to our yard during those very cold days, and it was fun to see how they melted a little each day.


Cabin fever set in, and out of desperation we took a sledge hammer to the 2-inch layer of ice on the driveway to finally set ourselves free. True story.


When the next round of snow came, it was very powdery and not good for much more than snow angels. We decided it would be fun to shovel the driveway. As we shovelled, we made a large pile into which we dug a snow cave.

We couldn't build a snowman in the normal sense of building a snowman, so we made another pile of snow into which we carved a snowman.

The next day, sunshine and slightly warmer temperatures made conditions right for building a proper snowman.

He cheerfully helped with the shovelling.

The kids missed two weeks of school. Maybe more. I lost count. They did manage to have one full week of class before dismissal for Spring Break.








"Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

Old Window Makeover

If you're on Pinterest at all, you've probably seen people taking old windows and doors and shutters and other house parts and re-purposing them into something new for their home, or into pieces of art.

Oh how neat it would be to re-create furniture in every room in my house with old stuff like that! If I were still newly married and looking to furnish my home, that would be the way I might do it.

But I don't need a headboard or coffee table made of old doors. I don't have an empty wall that would benefit from an old window turned mirror. So even though I have wanted so badly to do a window project at the very least, I did not allow myself to buy any old windows.

Then, recently, I saw some folks who took old window frames sans glass and hung them from their covered patio area, giving the outdoor area the appearance of a room with windows. I didn't really need a lot of prodding to decide I needed a window to hang from the "ceiling" of my covered deck. It was game on!

The very best part was that I was visiting my Mom when I discovered I needed a window and we got to hit the junk stores together looking for one. She knew the perfect place to go.

I sanded the window just a little bit, and cleaned it up, but otherwise,
I left it in a rustic state.

I used a dry erase marker on the underside of the glass to draw my design.

My daugher helped with the drawing.

Using the drawing as a guide, I painted the correct side of the glass.
When I was finished, I washed off the dry erase marker.
I decided to make it a simple silhouette of tree limbs and birds,
so I just painted with black paint.

I used hooks and short pieces of chain to attach the window
to the frame of the deck.

I love the homey feeling of my deck. When the weather permits,
I like to bring my laptop outside and work from this tempory office.

We recently made some changes in the girls' bedrooms, and I needed to sell my old wicker furniture. This wicker etagere was the only piece I didn't sell. I painted it red and gave it a new home on the deck, adding to the homey feel.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." 1 Peter 1:3

Bistro Table Makeover

This afternoon, I'm sitting on my deck enjoying my "new" bistro table. Actually, my Mom bought this little set for me 17 years ago when I was newly married and we'd purchased our first home. As the years flew by, it began to show its age. I had been wanting to give it a makeover, thinking maybe I could put a mosaic design on the table top. But that seemed like a really tall order, too complicated and expensive of a project. I had no idea where to begin. To be totally honest, I was afraid to try it.

Definitely time for a makeover!

As Spring began to bloom and stores began to display pretty new sets, in the back of my mind I was shopping for something new. But the practical side of me told me that even if a makeover project was a little bit expensive, it wasn't going to be more than the price of something new. I'd need to get over my fear.

I started out by painting both chairs yellow and the table frame green. Thanks to my neighbor, Tony, for helping sand a few rusty places. My initial plan for the tabletop's mosaic design was to use broken dinner plates. I figured I could get some plates pretty cheap at Old Time Pottery and break them up. But I didn't find all the colors I needed and ended up looking at the stained glass at Hobby Lobby.

I asked a man at church who makes stained glass windows about how best to break the glass, and he invited me to get glass from his broken pieces. As a result, I was able to return most of what I'd purchased! Thank you, Mr. Summers!

First, I cut the glass and laid the pieces on a paper drawing of my design. 

Using a dry erase marker, I drew my design on the bottom side of the glass table top. Then I transfered the stained glass pieces to the table top and glued each piece in place using a glass bonding adhesive. It was easy to erase the marker once my pieces where all in place.

When the glue was dry, I added the grout. I had to add two layers of grout to build it up enough to fill between the pieces of glass. After the grout cured for 24 hours, I sealed it.

But that's only part of the transformation. Okay, it's most of it. But I couldn't put those old cushions back on. No way! I already new it was difficult to find small round cushions. I'd actually been looking for new ones for a few years. And by "looking," I mean when I'm in a store that sells that sort of thing, I glance over what they have to see if they have any to fit my set. I never really took the looking very seriously. But knowing that it might be difficult to find what I needed, I half decided I would either leave them cushionless, or try to re-cover the old cushions. But as I was perusing the back corner of Target, I came across their outdoor section clearance and found two pillows I happened to like. I decided I could add a center button and turn them into cushions for my chairs. Who really cares if they're not round? They would offer far more cushion than the old ones if I were to re-cover them, and I didn't feel I could make something for less than the clearance price I would pay.

Here it is! My new table with fat new cushions on the chairs!

The moral of the story? Whatever project you're afraid to start because you think you can't do it, don't put it off any longer! Go for it! You won't know until you try. Well, maybe within reason. You won't see me replacing the linonium with tile on my bathroom floor any time soon.





Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17

Garden Love - Topsy Turvy Planter

A few years ago a neighbor down the street put up a Topsy Turvy Planter, and I have wanted to make one since. Then they started popping up on Pinterest, and each time I would tell myself that this is something I MUST do. And now I have.

For the most part, I followed these instructions. I used a 14" pot for the base, then a 12" pot, two 10" pots, and an 8" (or maybe it's a 6") pot on the top. And instead of re-bar, I used a shepherd's hook as my central pole.

How, you ask, did you get those pots on that shepherd's hook?

My shepherd's hook has a fork at the bottom, as do most shepherd's hooks, for extra support that would prevent me threading my pots up from the bottom. So I planted the hook where I wanted to build, then I started by threading the largest pot over the hook through the drain hole. But in order to thread the pot through the hook itself, I had to chip away a little at the drain hole to make it an oval instead of a circle.

I used a screwdriver and hammer to gently chisel away just a tiny bit. That's all I needed to be able to thread the pot past the hook. I had to do this with all sizes of my pots, except for the smallest.

I added plants like Wave Petunias, Lantana, Moss Rose and Evening Primrose that "fall" out of the pots as they lean. Then as a final finishing touch, I added a birdhouse hanging from the hook.

And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. Isaiah 58:11

Craft Review: Spoonful's Curly Birds

Today we had my daughter's 10th birthday party. She had a Peacock theme, and we decorated in blue, green and peacock feathers. She didn't want cake, so I made a big Chocolate Chip Cookie Peacock "Cake" for her.

It's 3-D. The body is another cookie setting on top of the feathers. It looked beautiful and tasted yummy, too. I have a feeling we've started a new birthday tradition when it comes to cake.

______

For a party craft, we made Curly Birds from Spoonful. One girl at the party told me several times how much she loved making her bird, a sentiment shared by several of the kids. So I think that means we have a winner!

Click here for instructions on making these paper birds.

My only suggestion in regard to the instructions is that you glue the tail feathers to the body first, then glue the head in the appropriate place. I made my bird the night before the party as a sample for the kids to see, and having the tail in the right place first makes it easier to judge the appropriate location of the head.

I cut all the paper strips the night before to cut down on the time needed for the activity. The younger kids needed a little extra assistance assembling their birds, but for the most part, once I showed what to do as we went along, each kid was able to work on his/her own. I had to help a couple cut the tail feathers, so for younger kids, be prepared to pre-cut the triangle portion of the feathers (and beak), or draw cut lines for them to follow.

Our flock of birds turned out VERY cute, and several of the kids even used scraps left from cutting the beaks to make feet.




The one thing I ask of the Lord - the thing I seek most - is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord's perfections and meditating in His Temple. Psalm 27:4

Flower Pot Mushroom Fairy House

Several days ago while shopping at Hobby Lobby, my daughter saw a craft idea for a terracotta flower pot frog, so I purchased a 6-pack of the tiny pots. Today we sat down to make a frog but we couldn't find the instructions. I had most of it in my head, but I just wanted a little confirmation, so of course I turned to Pinterest. We found the frog... but we also found an adorable terracotta pot mushroom fairy house.

 
We couldn't resist the cuteness, and I happened to have what we needed to make them, so we decided to go for it!

The link to the Pinterest idea was bad, so we made ours just based off the photo.

In addition to paint, you need a terracotta pot and a Styrofoam ball. We used the small pots that are about 2" in diameter at the open top and the ball is the 3" size.

Cut the ball not quite in half.

We used regular acrylic paint to paint the balls. I have to admit I wasn't sure how to paint Styrofoam, but the acrylic paint worked great.

We used a toothpick and stuck it into the piece of the ball that we cut off so that the part we painted could stand up and dry more efficiently. Be sure to give plenty of time for it to dry, because it will take longer than other surfaces.

We used "Patio Paint Outdoor" for the terracotta. It's weather-resistant and adheres great to the terracotta. We painted them with a door and windows to look like a little cottage.

We used a round sponge brush for the polka-dots on our mushroom tops. When everything is dry, glue the ball to the pot, and your mushroom fairy house is complete. We used E6000 glue for that part.

Even though we used weather-resistant paint on the pots, I can't say for sure how well this will hold up if left outside. My daughter plans to put hers in her fairy garden, and it's outside, so we'll see. Mine will go outside, too, but probably on the deck were it will be a little more protected.

My younger daughter decided to make hers into an Indian girl.

Be on the lookout, because the frogs have not been forgotten...






By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches. Proverbs 24:3-4