Breaking the rules . . .

I have been purging for months, am not even close to being finished and have made a vow to not add to my "stuff" until I am done purging.

But, if I can't get an item out of my head, I usually give in and break my own rules.

I saw these striped table runners a few months ago and couldn't forget them so last week I headed to the shop to buy one.

At the last minute, I thought about how Steve tends to spill red wine on everything I put on the table and sometimes candles melt onto a runner, so I left the striped runners in the shop and went home to make my own version.

Quickly painted stripes transform a remnant of drop cloth into a runner that looks nice on the table, but I will not be upset if wine and wax drop onto it.

In my purging, I came across a bunch of wooden bead necklaces and bracelets that are no longer worn, but I just didn't want to toss them out.

So, the beads have been restrung and I am probably going into bead overkill in my vignettes, but I don't care.

I like the colors in this cloth bead necklace my sister bought me in Prague a few years ago.

The centerpiece on the dining room table is perked up with beads from 3 different bracelets -

red, black and gold wooden beads work beautifully with a bag of gourds I bought at the grocery store.

What I didn't mention when I showed great restraint in not buying the table runners was this metal basket that refused to be left at the shop.

Actually, it was a "think about it" purchase and I waited a whole week before heading back to the shop .

Right now, it's holding hydrangeas, but I can't wait to see it filled with Christmas ornaments in December.

I really didn't need the metal basket, but sometimes rules need to be broken.

No-Sew Table Runner

Several people asked me about making a table runner like the one I made for my Giveaway.

I think is my first tutorial, but considering that I was a teacher for more than 30 years, I should be able to give decent instructions.

 My materials are drop cloth , paint and stickers.

I am big on making things quick and easy so I simply tear the fabric - there will be a more detailed pictured later on in this tutorial.

For the method of stenciling on this piece, I needed to mask off an even stripe down the center of the runner - the white book in the left corner is my measurement - I'm obviously not an engineer!

I'm also big on crooked letters so that I don't have to be exact.

My runners definitely have a primitive homespun feel because it is difficult (for me at least) to get the paint perfectly even on cloth.

I remove the stickers and the tape right away - it helps to have a trash can right next to the table so paint doesn't get on anything.

After the paint is dry (Annie Sloan Chalk Paint dries quickly) I put the piece in the dryer to heat it.

The hardest part of the runner is the fringe because the long sides of the drop cloth tear and fringe easily, but the shorter sides are thicker and fringing is much slower.

To make the knots, I gather 4 strands in each hand and tie a knot and then a second knot.

After I used the sticker, I used the outer edges as stencils to make a pillow.

I get double use out of the stickers, but I don't save them for re-use because they lose their stickiness.

And now I just need to sew the pillow together.

Here is the finished runner just before I packaged it up to mail off this afternoon.

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What's gotten into me?

I am literally making something every single day - supplies and projects are stacked on the workbench ready for me to get started.

Yesterday's project was to make a bag for a friend who liked this bag 

I showed on my last post.

The lining for her bag is a remnant from our window seat cushion

and it is personalized it with letters and numbers meaningful to her family.

I don't know what triggered the thought to add a tag, but I like it.

In fact, I like the idea so much that I made a few more tags.

I attached one to a gift and think it looks cute - 

anyone getting a Christmas gift from me this year just might find a drop cloth tag attached.

When I cut the drop cloth for the bag, there was a long narrow strip left and that strip became today's project.

I can't believe I made a Christmas project in August, but I had the time and the materials so I went with it.

No sewing, 

just some stickers and red paint and voila -

a Christmas runner for the table.

We will  Eat . Drink . Be Merry - as long as I can remember where I put the runner until Christmas. time!

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Make Something Every Day

August is turning into a month of creativity - one project a day!

I went through my Pinterest boards and IG photos I have saved to choose projects that used up supplies I have on hand.

I saw this cute little swing on Instagram from Blueberry Jam Shop and I thought a swing would look nice in the garden.

It felt like something was missing

so I quickly stenciled a banner to hang above the swing.

The Be Silly part of the banner definitely fits with my swing and the teacup banner I made for the garden last week - lots of silliness!

Another Instagram sighting from @inspiration_and_styling is the It's a Good Day sign.

A good friend dropped off a bin of wood scraps for our fire pit and I saved a few pieces for projects.

My sign hangs on a bench in the garden reminding us that every day is a good day.

I needed some accent pillows for the sofa, 

looked everywhere for pillow ideas and finally remembered some dish towels I had purchased.

Two dish towels sewn together add a touch of blue to the sofa.

Another dish towel provides a bit of yellow to round out my primary color scheme.

Yesterday's project was to make a bag for my bicycle basket.

Left over drop cloth fabric forms the outside of the bag and  a scrap of buffalo check was used to line the bag.  

The letters stand for Steve Cook Fine Art which is Steve's business name and our street address 1162.

The only thing I am making today is "A Mess" - I am starting some of the changes in the kitchen.

But if time allows, this chalkboard I made for a baby shower my daughter-in-law gave last week will have an entirely new look tomorrow.

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