Burlap Rag Wreath for Fall

"By all these lovely tokens
September days are here,
With summer’s best of weather
And autumn’s best of cheer."
- Helen Hunt Jackson

I love the end of summer in Texas. The weather is PERFECT this time of year. As unpredictable as our climate can be, it stays pretty comfortable until late November. Instead of oppressive heat, we have beautiful, balmy, weather and delicious breezes. 

To celebrate the first day of fall, I finally completed my wreath project! It took some time for me to gather my supplies. I couldn't find orange burlap anywhere! I finally ordered some online and it got here in a couple of days.  

I'd seen this one on Pinterest a couple of months ago and just fell in love with it. So, using it as my inspiration, I set to work looking for rag wreath tutorials that were easy to follow. I finally found one at Six Sisters Stuff that fit the bill. There's no need for me to do a write-up because they did a great job! 

I vaguely followed the instructions as I didn't really take time to measure my strips of burlap. I just eyeballed them and decided on a length that looked good to me. I also used their bow tutorial as a guideline for my own bow. Just like the wreath, I didn't follow it to the "tee" but I think mine turned out pretty well. 

The hardest part was tieing all that burlap! It's a rough material and my hands do ache a bit but it was worth it! I really love my new wreath and I'm proud that I can say I made it all by myself. 

Picture Plaques

"Sometimes God takes us into troubled waters not to drown us but to cleanse us."

We all have trials, challenges, and difficulties in life. Mine are no different than others. Mine are no worse than others. Mine are simply mine. My family and I have experienced several challenges in the past three years and each of these tests have resulted in a testimony. As times goes on, I hope to become more comfortable with blogging my personal testimonies. In just three short years, we have faced various cancers, infertility, an adoption journey, the stillbirth of our adopted son's brother, and more.

What I am able to say today is that I do feel that these tests have molded me into the person I've always wanted to be. Someone who relies on God and not self understanding. Someone who is stronger than she realized. Someone who continues to care for others even though her own life seems to be falling apart around her. Someone who forgives the unforgivable. Someone who loves without conditions. Someone who continues to keep the faith even when the enemy is at my doorstep.

All that being said, crafting has continued to be a way for me to focus my energies and clear my mind. I'm enjoying the brief moments of solitude and silence (aka naptime) when I can get messy with paints, glues, and other assorted crafting mediums.

I recently completed some wall hangings for my son's room. His room is *mostly* done. The walls are pretty bare, so I do need to work on more wall decor. I recently decided on a color and theme change, too, so I need to: make a new dust ruffle for his crib; make a new window treatment for his window; recover the glider in his room; and recover the storage ottoman in his room.

Here's the corner of the room that I'm currently working on. The wall color is a soft green...although the more that times goes on it seems to look more khaki to me.

 Since the new color scheme for the room is basically primary/bright colors, I am doing my best to accent his room with pops of color that will complement the walls as well as his new bed set, Vitaminer Rand, from Ikea.

After spending far too much time on Pinterest, I went to my local Joann's to see what they had that might fit the bill. I found several raw wood plaques in various shapes for $2.99 each. I already had acrylic paint and Command picture hangers at home, so I was good to go.

Our home office doubles as my craft room, so I placed my supplies on my desk and got to work.

I used 2-3 coats depending on the shade and consistency of the paint. I mixed my own orange and it ended up too red. I kept the color, though. I figure I can always add more plaques and colors to that wall.

After the paint had plenty of time to dry, I used Mod Podge to apply my pictures. We had our printed at Fed Ex but I am sure there are places that we can go to get it done cheaper. My husband happens to work for Fed Ex Corporate. Since we have a Fed Ex right down the street, that's just where we go to get our prints made. 

 Here are the finished plaques in Baby J's room.

I will say that if I were to do this project again that there are a few things I'd do differently:

• I'd cut the edge of the pictures to match the shape of the plaque. The rectangle picture on the oval plaque looks a bit strange to me.
• I'd be better about centering the photos. The picture on the white plaque is off-center and is bugging me quite a bit.

There's plenty of room on the wall for more plaques, so I am pretty sure I'll be adding to the collection pretty soon. Overall, I'm pleased with the end result and I look forward to adding more wall decor to his room to give it a more finished appearance.

Prayer Board

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Jesus Christ." -- 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

One evening I was browsing Pinterest and came across a prayer board. I thought this was such a cute idea and wanted to make one for our home.

With a vague idea in mind, I went to Hobby Lobby to see what I could use for this project. After a lot of searching, I finally decided on a cute picture frame. I wanted to be able to use chalk on my prayer board, so I bought chalkboard spray paint and happily carried my purchases home.

I then began to wonder what I would use as the surface of my prayer board. What could I spray paint that would hold up to chalk and lots of erasing? I then ordered some chalkboard Con-Tact paper. Of course, I then resigned myself to the fact that I'd have to wait for my supplies to arrive in order to resume crafting.

After an hour of daytime TV, I realized I was just itching to complete this project. So, I decided to paint the pane of glass that came with the frame.

First coat of paint.

It was over 100 degrees in the sweltering Texas summer heat. I was worried that the paint would bubble or not dry smooth. Thankfully, the first coat dried beautifully. The second coat went just as well.

I'd bought some chip board letters and used Mod Podge to adhere the letters to the painted surface. It was all I had on hand at the time and the result was great. I wanted to keep my prayer board pretty simple and without too many embellishments.

Finished prayer board.

Initially, I did use regular chalk on the board. However, I'd also ordered a chalk marker along with my Con-Tact paper. It works really well on the painted glass since it isn't porous. I like how neatly it writes and how cleanly it wipes off.

Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the end result.

No-Sew Drapes

"A clean house is the sign of a broken computer. "

Okay, my computer isn't broken. But our home office has been neglected for FAR too long. We recently had new floors installed and that set that wheels in motion to get the rest of the house all spiffy-fied.

Our office closet

Our office closet is an eyesore. The doors were removed for reasons I do not recall. I think it had only one door? Anyway, the shelf is sagging and the two litter boxes are placed on the floor of the closet since we have no other place to put them. As you can see, we're in the process of painting the walls (finally). So, I needed an easy way to hide the ugliness within the closet and still keep it functional for our three cats.

Hey! Drapes! That'll work!

Mind you - I do not sew. I never learned. I don't know how. I'm intimated by needles, thread, patterns, and sewing machines. Someday, I may brave a sewing class or two. For now, though, I need a no sew kind of project. Enter Pinterest.

I found this awesome step by step at Kathie's blog, Krafty Kat.

The supplies are pretty simple: fabric, scissors, fuse tape, measuring tape, pins, iron, and ironing board.

I won't write up a step by step as Kathie did a great job. I will say that my husband and I used Stitch Witchery instead of the Heat n' Bond that Kathie used with her drapes. We had to use a damp cloth when ironing the drapes to get the tape to work.

My sweet husband, J, helps by ironing the fuse tape to hem the drapes.

If I had to do it all over again, I'd definitely use the Heat n' Bond. That is why I've since purchased some and have stowed it away with my other crafting supplies.

Here are the finished drapes. Please keep in mind that the room is far from finished. We still have painting left to do, shelves, a window cornice, paint the wicker shelf (where our cats dine), and other decor for the room. To be continued...