I picked up a cable spool from the roadside a while ago and used it over the winter as a plant stand. Sitting on the bench in the screen porch recently I wanted to put my feet up, and realized the spool is the right height.
Some leftover primer and exterior paint, an over-the-top floral fabric sample and leftover upholstery stuffing, and some really fun handwoven band I received as a gift…eh voila! The perfect screen porch footstool.
Long incubation for the cover after inside came together quickly.
Felted wool from recycled sweaters hand and machine stitched, with needle-felting and embroidery.
Felted wool (from a vintage sweater) framing a found bit of beach art, beaded and stitched.
Playing with beach bits and electronics wire, some silver wire and chains….
Found a cheap old trunk at a thrift store and made a new home for my wool stash, getting it out of the paper/jewelry crafting space. Since the trunk really is “cheap” I just cleaned the outside and am going to braid new handles for it (as soon as I learn how!), but the inside had to be redone to get rid of the grime and mustiness. I learned that the smell is usually in the paper and the glue on the inside, so that was remove (fairly easily) with a vinegar-water solution and some scraping with a putty knife. Then it was scrubbed down to remove glue residue and spent a couple more days out on the screen porch getting air and some sun. Spray primer and painting with a mix of (leftover) exterior latex house paint = stash storage!
Found a fun paisley-patterned tunic at the flea market for a dollar. Discovered that although quite large, it had ridiculously tight sleeves, and the slit went down waaaaay too far. Black man’s tshirt from thrift store (another 3 dollars!) fixed the sleeves and the slit. Now if only it actually looked good on me….
At last, something to post: hammered recycled copper wire earrings for a friend’s big birthday.
After seeing the photo I realized I needed to flip one around so they mirrored.
copperspiralearrings-koamist
For a friend’s favorite work jeans = a use for the silly power tool print! Large patches stitched behind both knees, the one that was already torn through got additional tools fused on.
Found a lovely handwoven Irish mohair throw at the Thrift that someone had probably machine washed, causing it to felt. The colors are great and the fabric feels wonderful, with an intriguing bumpy texture.
I debated for ages what to do with it and finally settled on a long vest as a birthday gift. It was a bit too narrow to go over hips, so I knit inserts from some stash yarn. Deciding on closures took forever. Nothing suitable in the button stash. Hooks didn’t stay shut. Finally found these unusual buttons at a fabric store. Perfect.
I loved hand-stitching the seams and edges, it’s so soothing and satisfying.
