Rad Repurposed Roundup: A Green Xmas

Hey, there's just time for a new Rad Repurposed Roundup.  A quick mini-tour of some eco-friendly holiday ideas I have spotted lately.

From Betsy at My Salvaged Treasures, these amazing junky trees made from old lamp parts!

From Pillar Box Blue, some adorable mountain cushions made from old sweaters:

From my friend Sandra in Italy (tutorial in Spanish - so international!), another sweater upcycle, these especially sweet snowpeople:

From Carol at The Answer Is Chocolate, this smart idea to make gift tag sets as gifts.  Great for giving to busy people who would not have time to make their own.

From Kim at Hunt And Host, these hand painted ornaments made from old silver spoons.  A very cool way to upcycle vintage flatwear.

From Kathy at Petticoat JUNKtion, this awesome wall art: a 'sparkle and rust' tree from old hardware!

From Amy at Stow and Tell U, another unique wall tree that made me grin.   So fun and so green...this rustic lighted tree is made from recycled tuna cans.

Aren't people brilliant?  Thanks to all these incredible crafters for inspiring me.

Oh, and in case you missed it, here's one from me - a slightly demented ornament made from an upcycled squeeze-pouch lid:

And to display your special ornaments (demented or otherwise), here's my tute for a rustic little ornament stand you can make in 2 minutes, made from some discarded garden wire and a scrap of twine.

Hope you guys enjoyed the roundup - see you again soon, crafty people!

Rad Repurposed Roundup 2

Hello again, little buckaroos!  I thought it was high time to feature a new bunch of repurposed ideas that have caught my eye recently.  It's rad and it's a roundup!

Ready to be enchanted?  Here goes.

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This brainwave from Jill in Australia is so dang brilliant.  She created re-usable holiday cards, with a clear window inside.  Insert your own message and pass it on to a new recipient.  She made hers from recycled blue jeans.  They are adorable - and can be used over and over again.

Click here to go to there.

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From Aunt Peaches who needs no introduction (she has become a Cher-like single name entity of crafting), a deliciously simple tutorial on painting thrift store clutch purses.  So striking and chic!  And I bet every one of us has at least one plain little 'pockabook' tucked away, just begging to be jazzed up.

Click here to go to there.

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A cool idea from Khadija in Pakistan: apply henna designs to a pumpkin!  She used real henna and a traditional applicator cone.  But if you have somehow run out of henna, or possibly your neighbor hasn't returned the cone she borrowed, why not Google easy henna designs and use a Sharpie?  A lovely and different Halloween look!

Click here to go to there.

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From Divya in India, something so beautiful you will blink in shock.  She makes custom wedding and celebration jewelry from real live flowers.  Maybe not what is normally thought of as repurposing, but I had to include it.  This photo of her most recent set says it all!

Click here to go to there.

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From Sara in Israel, this mini chandelier, made from colored paper clips and a slice of plastic bottle.  I like her idea of making several to create a  unique mobile.  You could have fun with these in all kinds of places - hey, how about hung from the ceiling of a school locker?  So delicate and lighthearted - love it!

Click here to go to there.

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Finally, an awesome post from Betsy, the world's greatest inventor of new antiques.  She takes old homeless window screens and stencils upon them, with the classiest results.  What a beautiful way to reclaim something vintage.

Click here to go to there.

That's it for this time!  Did you love something you saw in today's roundup?  Go tell the creator!  We all appreciate a compliment, ya know?

Hope you enjoyed the rodeo.  Have a day!

My Future Repurposed Entryway: In Search Of Ideas!

Hi, guys!  I haven't said much about this, but I am working on a very cool house renovation project IRL.  (IRL = In Real Life.  You're welcome, mom!)

It's an old adobe house in the desert Southwest (just outside Tucson).  You might call it a mini-mini-ranch.  A mini slice of cactus-studded ranch land, where the original owner raised miniature horses.

We have finally gotten all the beautiful adobe walls painted a nice creamy white, so at last it's time to decorate!  Here's the inside of the foyer, showing the decor so far:

Yep, one rug and a hat rack.  About that hat rack...want a closer look?

It's made from a fireplace-tool caddy I found on the curb, and a tree branch from the yard.  Total cost: $0.00

I want everything in my entry to be repurposed, upcycled, rustic and funky.  I assembled a clipboard of ideas from Hometalk, which is sort of like Pinterest but more project-oriented, and exclusively for house and home.  (It's also a fun forum where you can pose technical or design questions, and get lots of friendly advice.)

Just click on the graphic to check out some great upcycles that caught my eye.  Let me know your thoughts, 'cause I am open to ideas!  If you were me, how would you furnish the entry?

Repurposed Rad Roundup

Hiya, everybody!  I thought you all might like a peek at a few terrific repurposed ideas I've seen recently.  It's rad and it's a roundup!

Ready?  Here goes.

From Aunt Peaches: a mega-awesome sugar skull necklace, so simple to create 'cause it's made from iron-on patches.

From My Salvaged Treasures: a plethora of chandelier crystal earrings, upcycled from the wreckage of a vintage fixture she rescued at a flea market:

And a genius one-minute project from The Beading Gem: how to make a crazy easy scarf ring, from just a button and a basic split key ring:

Talented craft addict (and longtime blog reader) Shannon created this wonderful, ethnic-inspired double-tiered necklace:

I just had to show you guys a closeup of those flat green disks.  Nuthin' but circles cut out of plastic bottles!  Don't they look great, the way she strung them between similar color beads?

The brilliantly frugal Jill over at Creating My Way To Success used two ski clip doohickies as handles on a washable, reusable trash bin liner.  Even cooler, the bag is upcycled from a swimming pool salt bag:

Over at Saraccino, I was gobsmacked by these romantic, truly one-of-a-kind folk art bottle cap earrings:

Finally, from The Answer Is Chocolate: Carol delighted me with this very clever off-label use for a Christmas snowflake form.  She converted it into a beaded Halloween spiderweb!

So that's what I've been admiring around the web this week.  I sure hope you enjoyed these random finds...let me know if you think I should make this a regular feature!

See ya next time.