My fifteen minutes of fame...

and I'd better not waste them!

Within the last week, I've been fortunate enough to have my work appear in two national magazines...

First up...an article that I wrote, styled and photographed for the spring 2015 issue of American Farmhouse Style Magazine...














its a quick tutorial on how to make these whitewashed wooden boxes...
a simple setting for spring inspiration...

And then...I discovered that my workshop studio is one of the featured articles
in this magazine that just hit the newsstands...

The feature was shot back in October when the Cottages and Bungalows magazine crew was here...
this magazine is one of their sister publications and my studio story certainly fits right in with the vintage theme...

With the new year right around the corner...
and with me ready to celebrate 5 years of blogging...how about a giveaway?!  


A signed copy of the Make it Vintage magazine...just leave me a comment...
but please...make sure your email address is included in your profile...otherwise I have no way to get in contact with you...deadline for leaving comments is Saturday January 3 at midnight...

And Happy Creative New Year to all!

it all comes down to this...

enjoy the day...spread love and good cheer to all...

Unconventional gift wrapping, part 3

Ok, its down to the wire...only three days til Christmas...
you're thinking, "I don't have time to glue paper on to tin cans...
or wrap up a bunch of weeds and make it look pretty...I am out of time and ideas!"

Quick and easy - here you go...

Let the present be the packaging...
Find a container - put stuff inside - tie it up - done!

These two metal lunchboxes - great examples...and what to put inside...findings from the dollar store...
For the gardener - garden gloves, twine or string to tie up plants, lotion to soothe hard-working hands
For the office geek - favorite pens, post-it notes, clips and magnets

Once you have everything inside the container, tie it up with a length of ribbon made from torn fabric...lightweight cotton or linen tears the easiest...I like the frayed edge that results...

my favorite to use...old white linen tablecloths that are stained beyond use...the fabric is lovely and once torn into strips, you don't even notice the stains...

Got a lone napkin or handkerchief?  Wrap it around two rolls of first aid paper tape from the dollar store as a gift for the artist in your life...the tape is ideal for making your own printed washi tape...details here...















So - no metal lunchboxes hanging around or orphaned napkins...ok, did you have take-out this past weekend...go rescue the containers...or pick up a few at a restaurant supply store...or better yet...beg at a local eatery if you can buy a few...

Same idea - put stuff inside...close it up...slap on a tag or some ribbon...done!

more ideas from the dollar store...
For the teenager - lip balm, nail polish, hair ties...
For the cook - dish towels, a kitchen gadget or two, maybe a couple of votive candle holders for those romantic dinners...













Still stuck for ideas...how about a gift of time...which is the most appreciated gift of all...baby-sit for an afternoon or evening, cook a special dinner, offer to run errands...take the dog for a hike...giving your time and your attention to a family member or friend can be the best gift...write it out on a slip of paper...and stick it into any random container...

fill it with love....wrap it up with bells and string...you're good to go...

and ready for the holidays...

Unconventional gift wrapping, part 2

I had two conditions for holiday decorating this year...to spend no additional funds on anything needed and to keep it simple...these gift wrap ideas satisfy both conditions!

It started in the fall...I had a lovely bouquet from farmer's market that dried beautifully...yarrow, rose hips, stattice I think...I didn't want it to go to waste...clippings from the yard...lavender, birch twigs, dried poppy heads were added in...

A snip here, a wrap of wire there, a bit of salvaged ribbon...
I ended up with about 12 arrangements...

I knew that I wanted some for gift wrapping...but the rest I stuck among the branches of the christmas tree...

Onto wrapping...I had this roll of paper I bought over a year ago at the Habitat for Humanity store in Yakima (one of my favorites places to shop when I am visiting my sister)...the texture and the lines drew me in...and there seemed to a sheen to it that was appealing...

It was $10 for the roll (a splurge for me) but with 500 square feet, it seemed worth it...and I loved the label...

Next up was gathering something to tie up the presents...can't beat a big cone of string...and a roll of japanese knitting ribbon that my friend Sue gave to me (a freebie she picked up at a yard sale)












Keeping it simple...wrapped present with paper, wound around 3-4 lengths of the knitting ribbon...
tied on one of the dried arrangements...

I love the texture of the ribbon with the subtle stripes of the paper...



















Next gift...wrapped with paper...used stickers instead of tape...so much prettier...

the tag is a remnant of torn muslin...the image of my noel bird composition was added with a bit of iron-on transfer paper...just print out your image with a ink jet printer onto the paper and iron it on...its that simple...























Last gift...I constructed an "envelope"...since the paper was heavy duty, I knew that it would hold up to the sewing machine...

oh look...someone is getting a copy of Inspirational Quotes Illustrated!

After sewing the sides, I used my pinking shears to add a decorative edge...

To secure the flap of the envelope, I punched a hole in the body of the envelope (with a cutting board in between so I wouldn't punch through the back of the envelope) with my awl and then inserted a paper fastener...






















Likewise, I punched a hole in the edge of the flap, threaded a length of string and then secured the flap by wrapping the string around the paper fastener...a quartet of french postage stamps in holiday reds and greens add the final flourish...

Festive gifts...a treat for the eyes before opening...
Linking up with Funky Junk Interiors Party Junk...its not too late to be inspired for the holidays...

Unconventional gift wrapping, part 1

You might remember (if you follow my blog) that the Southern Man had a nasty run-in with a tin can lid this past summer...due to an uncooperative can opener, the sharp, protruding edges of the lid gouged his finger...but after a trip to the emergency room and two months of healing, all is fine...

But...just to be on the safe side, we bought one of those can openers that is supposed to leave a clean cut edge...and yes, indeed it does. 

And then one day I noticed that since the opener cuts the edge of the can below the lip of the lid, you are left with a lid that sits securely on the can...my mind started racing...the eureka moment hit...

How easy would it be to turn these cans with their accompanying lids into little gift containers...
I gathered up a collection of empty cans...

See how smooth the rim is...no ragged edges here!
















Next I compiled a selection of coordinating papers...some vintage wallpaper, some papers from Cavallini & Co...  I'm not much into buying "new" art supplies, but the quality and design of the Cavallini & Co. products are first rate...its my art splurge...

Finally I rounded up supplies and tools...

and then I went to work...

My idea was to cover the cans with decorative paper with the crowning touch of a knob on the lid...after its time as a gift container, it could be used to store any number of things in one's office, studio or work space...

I measured the circumference of the can as well as the height to get the measurements for the paper to cover the outside of the can...

I used heavy duty double-sided tape...adhering it first to the can, around the top and bottom edges and one strip along the can seam...the seam is a good guide to use in ensuring that the wrapped paper is laid down straight... 

Once the can was wrapped, I added washi tape along the upper rim...

Next up...covering the lid and the bottom of the can...
I worked with a variety of vintage papers...old dictionary pages, french book text, vintage graph paper...even a scan of an old photo...
I used my circle cutter to get a clean cut edge...but first I did a trial run with a piece of plain white paper to ensure that the circle would fit...no use in using up precious vintage stock!  

Once I had the correct size, I glued the paper circles to the lid top and to the bottom of the can...
There was a major benefit in using my circle cutter for these paper circles...there's a pinpoint made by the cutter in the exact center of the circle...which came in handy when attaching the knob in the middle of the lid...I knew exactly where to punch the hole for the screw to hold the knob...




I used a variety of old knobs for the lid tops...searching in my metal banker's box of assorted knobs and pulls yielded a good supply...just needed to find shorter machine screws to attach each knob securely...and then...finished!

the tuna fish can was narrow enough that a length of wide washi tape encircled the can perfectly...

Pages from old books, run through a paper shredder, provide the filler for each can...giving a cushion of protection for the gift inside...

























Short or tall...plain or fancy...the possibilities are endless...
and it all starts with a simple tin can...and a little imagination...