wine & redesign -

PROJECT: Silverware Pillows

A while ago I stumbled upon these really cute pillows by Beth Cummings at her Etsy Shop FourEyesHandmade.

I decided I would need something like this for my breakfast nook. Although these pillows are adorable, I needed a different size and color. I also wanted to try my hand at screen printing with an at-home solution. So, here’s my first try:

Here’s how I did it:

1) First, measure your pillow and add an inch on either side.

2) Cut out the pattern pieces based on the pillow’s measurements. I created an envelope-style pattern. You can see how I make the pattern on another post of mine, Slipcovers for Your Pillows.

3) Create stencils for your artwork. Once complete, I print them out and trace them with a permanent marker on a plastic sheet, ( for the plastic sheet I destroyed a couple old folders I wasn’t using anymore).

4) After cutting out your shape, center it on your front pillow pattern piece. Tape it down on the sides, so it doesn’t slip away, and then blot the empty shape with your paint using a sponge. The sponge texture actually gives the artwork a worn look. Make sure to dab on top of the stencil and don’t rub. This helps keep the shape of your stencil.

5) Remove the plastic sheet and let the pattern pieces dry.

6) After the fronts of the pillows are dry, sew your pillows together.

My breakfast nook is still a work in progress, but these three pillows add a touch of cute to the space.

Here’s the BEFORE (with seller’s furniture):

My next project will be to re-finish the table.

Now it’s time to celebrate!

CELEBRATORY WINE: Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet, $10. This is a great wine for the price! It had just enough berry along with the rich, deep taste that comes with a cab. I selected this to go with today’s project because combining two things, (ie. screen printing DIY and sewing DIY) can be a good thing. CHEERS!

PROJECT: Custom Clock

After remodeling our kitchen, I had a big empty space above my cooktop. See below:

Since the majority of my kitchen is earth tones, I really wanted to jazz it up with a bright cobalt blue. I had my heart set on a big blue clock. The down side was that all the clocks I found were either too small, too expensive, or too much of a blast from the past, (ie. eighties - and not in a good way). While at Hobby Lobby, I stumbled upon a clock that was half off, ($60 total). I’m mad at myself because I was a bad blogger and I didn’t take a before picture, (ARGH)! I was so excited I just started painting….

The area I’m painting over had some text written on it. Something like, “Old Clock Co. est. 1842.”

I carefully painted within the clock lines.

Here it is on the wall drying. Then I noticed…the hands disappear!!! So, I colored the clock hands with oil-based silver marker.

The blue looks slightly darker in these pictures than in person. Here’s what it looks like in the kitchen:

Now I need to put out various blue plates to tie it all in. I’m also working on my breakfast nook which carries this blue. See pillow pics here.

WINE RECOMMENDATION: Duck Pond Cabernet Sauvignon, about $14.50 per bottle. This is a friendly cab at a great price. My husband and I really liked the 2009, but the 2010 doesn’t disappoint. CHEERS!

QUICK TIP: Extended Curtains

One issue I have found with moving is that you always need different lengths of curtains for each new place. The first home my husband and I lived in, the standard 84” length was perfect, so most of my curtains are 84” long. Then I moved to San Antonio. I needed about 100” curtains. Now we are in another home in Colorado and I need anywhere from 100-140”. Crazy! I can’t keep up with it! Then I had an idea …

I pinned two of my 84” curtains together and concealed where I pinned them with a matching tie-back cord. I love how the fabric billows on the floor - very elegant!

Make sure to align the pattern of each panel together when you’re pinning. This plaid was easy to match up. My finger is peeling back the end of one panel in the below picture so you can get a better look:

Safety pinning the curtains together is faster than sewing and you can always take out the pins if you move again and need 84”. Also, stores don’t really sell lengths longer than 120”, (if you’re even lucky enough to find that length in the pattern you want). Furthermore, paying a seamstress to make extended curtains like this would get VERY pricey…let alone the price of the fabric. I purchased the tie-back cords for $3 each at Hobby Lobby and I already had the curtains. Hope this inspires you to take out those “too short” curtains and make them work.

CHEERS!

PROJECT: Deer Art

I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ll mention it again … I’m obsessed with deer! I have to really edit myself from decorating EVERYTHING in deer decor. “Simmer, Anne, you don’t want your house to look like Rudolph’s family reunion!”

Anyhoo, I had this great idea for an art piece in my music room. It’s super easy and I did it in about 1-1.5 hours, (while waiting for the moving truck to arrive).

First, you start with two vertical canvases that will fit your space side by side. I purchased my canvases at Michael’s because they were having a half-off sale.

Materials:

2 vertical canvases

Paint for Antlers

Paint for Background

2 pieces of Frisket about the same size as your canvas, (frisket is basically painter’s tape and stencils in one)

Pen

Scissors

Paint Roller

1. Place one piece of frisket on top of your canvas. Trace one of the antlers. I had a faux antler I used as reference. Once you are happy with your traced shape, cut it out and set it aside for later.

2. Paint the entire top of the canvases the color you want your antlers. I wanted mine a very light “griege,” (grey/beige). Set your canvases in a place to dry.

3. Once the canvases are dry, peel of the backing from the antler-stenciled frisket and place it on one of the canvases. I started from the bottom of the canvas and slowly stuck/peeled my way up. Think, “cell phone screen protector.” You don’t want any bubbles - especially on the edges.

4. Now that the design is stuck to one of the canvases, use the leftover antler-stenciled frisket backing paper to trace the same antler reversed. I added a couple more branches to differentiate it from the other one. Here’s an image of the antler-stenciled frisket backings once I cut and peeled each sticky piece to the canvas. I will most likely save these non-sticky backing pieces for reference for future projects.

5. With both antlers stuck to the canvas, you can now paint the entire canvas, including the sides, with your background paint. I chose a brownish gunmetal metallic paint. I used a roller with a lot of nap on it to create texture.

6. Once the paint is dry to semi-dry, you can peel off the antler stencil. My edges were a little hairy, so I touched them up a bit.

Here’s the finished product in my music room:

This project is fast, easy, and, of course, cheap!

CELEBRATORY WINE: La Crema Chardonnay, $10-15. This is your typical California chardonnay with its popular oak/butter taste. Chardonnay and deer may be in abundance, but I’m not complaining. CHEERS!