Creative Dawn

Today was a day of getting things done.  Cleaning, cooking, baking and errands, whew tired now!  I was just going to make some banana bread, but half way through that I decided to make some peanut butter cookies, my favorite.  My banana bread recipe is from the mother of an ex-boyfriend.  I love making it and the house smells so wonderful afterwords.  There are quite a few cookie recipes that I use, but today instead of making a traditional peanut butter cookie with the criss-cross top I added peanut butter chips.  Wow are they good, I had four!  Yummy for the the tummy, but not so good for the waistline. The painting here is large.  Normally I don't get to paint pictures this size because the materials are a bit more than my budget allows, but this was free, the best price of all.  It is about 3 feet by 4 feet, the wood isn't cut perfectly so if you look close you can see the border is uneven.  The paisley shape just seemed like a g...

Yesterday, while organizing some stuff, I came across a sketchbook that I had no more use for.  The pages were filled with doodles from past projects and scribblings that I do when I'm bored.  Before things like this are tossed, I remove the spiral binding and toss the rest in recycling.  The one from yesterday was a larger one and after I looked at it, decided it would be a cool simple bracelet.  The thought of attaching beads was something that sounded good at first, but didn't work out.  The best solution was to keep it simple.  Using a needle nose pliers I cut the binding down a bit then twisted and attached the ends together.  It is not something for everyday wear, but it is unique and would be a great addition to a fun outfit. 

It's amazing what you can make out of a few odds and ends.  I always have ribbon on hand and the red jingle bells were in my miscellaneous box.  The corks were gotten from a past restaurant job.  Put them together and you get a charming wreath ornament that cost next to nothing.  I used the end of a ribbon spool for the circle background, just cutting out enough of the middle for the wreath shape.  The cardboard was also sturdy enough to support the corks.  Then I wrapped the silver ribbon around the circle hot gluing it in various spots on the back.  Next the corks were glued on and then I attached the red ribbon for a hanger on top.  The bells were tied onto another length of ribbon and then attached to the bottom. FYI:  If you need corks, any restaurant that serves wine would be glad to save them for you and they are free. 

The holiday season is upon us and my project list seems to grow everyday.  I am extra strapped for money this year and although I love making things and being creative, sometimes it is out of necessity.  I wish I was like Oprah and could give away what she does, but, I live in the real world and so I make gifts and bargain shop.                                               When you make your gifts, you can also personalize what you give.  There is one here with a golf theme for my step-dad and Snoopy for my niece.  Just think about what the people in your life like and it makes your gift even better. I made tin can gift containers this year and guess what!  They were free!  My job that pays the bills, is in a restaurant and all I h...

I did a side table with some left over curtains from where I used to live, but a lot of the fabric was still left over.  I decided it would be a great curtain by the front door.  Previously, it had the standard white sheer panel that many people put up.  Well, I need a bit more of a dramatic look, so, I took down the old one, put it on the floor next to my fabric to measure the length and added a few inches on each end for the pocket that fits the curtain rod.  It took all of 30 minutes and now my front door has a look that is me and it was a free project.

  This clock has been hanging in my bathroom for months and has not worked.  Why I left it there I don't know.  Well today, I tried a new battery and it didn't work, then I started to get an idea.  What if I use it like a frame and take out the clock parts.  Hm... I gathered up some supplies and started working on today's project.  I took my box o' buttons out and hot glued them on the wooden frame.  It started to look good!  Then I was drew out some lettering that said sewing room and put it in the frame.  Not good, I didn't like it at all.  So, I stared at it for a while and grabbed some ribbon.  Yeah, a wreath!  It's simple, but creative and very unique.  Now instead of a clock, I have a button wreath decorating my bathroom!  I may in the future try the frame idea again, maybe the results will be better next time.  It never hurt to experiment.