Mother’s Day re-purposing project for today: Mother/Daughter apron.
We found this really large pillow sham. It didn’t fit any pillows we had, so we decided to turn it into matching Mother/Daughter aprons.
This was an easy project. We simply cut the sham, leaving the ruffles, added a pocket and a string for tying.
Today’s Mother’s Day re-purposing project: Place mat to Tote
Melany had this really cute place mat. The problem was she only had one. We decided to turn it into a cute picnic tote for Mom. We cut the top off and added two straps. Now, with our reusable sandwich wrap and snack bag, we are ready to enjoy a spring picnic.
T-shirt Flowers
These t-shirt flowers are easy and do not even require a sewing machine. We cut strips from an old t-shirt and rolled them into flower shapes hand-sewing them together. We covered a cappuccino tin with fabric and hot-glued the flowers on.
Fill the tin with some fresh cut flowers for your mother and she can re-use it for a small decorative container.
Mother’s Day Family Tree Brooch
This project was a little time consuming but really fun to do. I took some plastic-coated wire twist ties (the kind that hold toys into their packaging just to make parents crazy!) and stripped the plastic off with some scissors (the time consuming part). I cut five 3†pieces and left one long piece to wrap around the branches. Next I “borrowed†some beads from one of my girl’s many costume necklaces. Using needle-nosed pliers, I bent the wire into small circles and holders for the beads. Last, I hot-glued the branches to a brooch pin and wrapped the long wire around the bottom.
This is a nice alternative to birthstone rings and necklaces.
Today’s Mother’s Day re-purposing project: Plant-able Paper
During a recent school day off, we had the kids help us make paper from old newspaper. The kids really enjoyed the process (and putting their hands in the slimy pulp) and the great thing about making paper is the tangible result at the end.
To make this paper even more fun, we put some wild flower seeds into it.
Then we made Mother’s Day cards. The really special thing about these cards is that once Mom is done admiring them, she can plant them and watch flowers grow.
This week we are celebrating Mother’s Day all week.
Our first project is envelopes made from old magazines. Before the magazines go into the recycling bin, you can cut them out using an envelope template or a regular envelope cut apart. Glue it together and you have a custom made envelope to put your card for your mother in.
Tomorrow we will show you what you can make to put in your re-purposed envelopes.
This project is for those of you who remember VCR’s and VHS tapes.
I (Carol) have been taking a wonderful art class with my good friend, Mary Gibilisco. She paints with this special kind of oil paint that won’t dry out unless it is heated. When we began the class, paint storage was an issue. Mary pulled out plastic video cases. They were the perfect container for a small pallet and tubes of paint.
Check out Mary’s website, her beautiful art and more about the heat set oils at http://www.kingslan.com
Ever wonder what to do with the plastic bags that cereal comes in? Well we have a solution for you.
You can use the plastic as an alternative to wax paper. Here, we are freezing bananas for smoothies. The “wax†paper helps the bananas not stick to the pan.
You can also use it most times you would use wax paper; refrigerator cookies, cake decorating, and to line and stack treats.
Our Citymade guys, (Christian and Jeff), enjoy a good beer now and then and now. That leaves Melany and I with a whole lot of bottle caps. Rather than throw them away, we turned them into nifty refrigerator magnets.
Here’s the double re-purpose: for the background we used paint card samples that we had lying around from various painting projects.
We cut a small circle from the paint card, glued that to the inside of the cap, added a decoration, (we used beads, brads and sequence), then glued a magnet to the back. Easy, fun and practical.
Crease-free Pants Hanger
A wire hanger, a cardboard tube (I used the tube from my aluminum foil when it ran out) and a little tape is all that you need for this re-purposing project.
1. Cut a slit across the cardboard tube
2. Place tube on wire hanger
3. Place a couple of pieces of tape over the slit to keep the tube from falling off
This nifty hanger will keep your pants neat and crease free.
