Working with Pallets

Over the past week and a half, I've gone scouring the backs of buildings and old farms, digging thru people's discarded pallets.  (I've had permission!  I wasn't just randomly trespassing, mind you.)  It's so much fun, finding that perfect looking piece and envisioning the many things you can make with it.  Since we don't own a truck, just an SUV, I've had to load these pallets into my very clean car and pray all the way home, that no random spider or bug had come as an extra "gift" with my findings.  Today, I made poor Chris go with me all the way across town (I mean a 45 minute drive each way) to get $2 pallets, that were in great condition.  He didn't seem to mind going, but what he did find objectionable, was me asking him every 5 seconds...."Do you see any bugs???  Look behind my seat!  See anything?  Are you sure??  Did you really look?  I think I have fleas!"  My poor Husband!!  I have no idea why he puts up with my goings on, but he does.  Thankfully, we made it home, without any "bug" incidents!  (Just a side note: Anna, Chris would like your mailing address????  I think he has a very special "Thank YOU!" he like to send you.  If you could just forward that on to me.................LOL!)
I We started the chore of taking each board off the pallets to begin rearranging them a little closer together.  I have become obsessed with each rusty nail, trying to save it, so we can hammer them back into the wood, you know, for authenticity's sake.  I've been wanting a recycled pallet headboard and now I have one.  It's taken shape pretty well.

Recycled Pallet Headboard

I am in love with how the wood looks, worn and weathered, with knots here and there.  I might add a burlap type of flag, spelling out the word 'relax', but I haven't decided yet.  Anyone know how to finish off this headboard, so when company comes, they aren't getting splinters in their heads?  We really can't afford someone else's medical bills and not exactly sure how to explain that type of accident to the insurance company......
Chris wants to find a giant compass to go above the headboard.  He thinks that will really give it the finished look.  His other suggestion was to cut off a front of a real boat and mount that to the wall.  He thinks he's Ty Pennington (Extreme Makeover:  Home Edition).  I asked him where he thought we'd get that and he said we'd just go down to the docks.  I'm not sure if Chris realizes it or not, but for the last 7 years, we've lived in ARIZONA, not California.  We don't have a lot of docks here!  Plus, what is his idea here?  Cut off someone's boat and run??  LOL!  Good thing I'm not letting him decorate this room!
Tried out a new dessert tonight.  Something fun, easy and light.  I bought some strawberry's and some Angel Food Cake, cut them up, skewered them and put some melted chocolate over them.  So good and definitely not overwhelming after a big meal.  Use sugar free Angel Food cake for an even healthier snack.

Strawberries, Chocolate and Angel Food Cake

Curtain/Window Covering

I think I've been rather productive since Chris has been gone.  Aside from the little paint disaster last night, I've got quite a bit accomplished.  Today, I was determined to finish my curtain for the guest bedroom.  Piece by piece, that room is starting to look completely different.  The curtain gives the room something it was so lacking.....depth!  I find it amazing how much one little item can complete a room.

Navy Blue & White Stripes with Knotted Rope

I saw something similar on my new favorite site pinterest, but didn't really care for the way they had done the top of the drawstring up.  So, I crafted my own version and came up with the knotted rope as my drawstrings.  It fits into the room really well.
Time to move on to my headboard.  I want to make a headboard out of old wooden boat paddles, but am having difficulty tracking paddles down.  Craigslist doesn't seem to have any and ebay has few and far between. I've looked at the local thrift shops, but am yet to even come up with 1.  I think I need 8-12.  If anyone has any ideas on where I might look for these, let me know.
I've started working on my t-shirt rug.  I saw a design (again on Pinterest) that was really fun, using old towels to make a knotted rug.  Well, towels just seem like they'd be a little rough, so I thought using old t-shirts might be a good idea.  And, while it is a fantastic idea, it's going to take me until next Christmas to get this thing done.  Two nights ago, I did 2 rows of knotted pieces and it took me over 2 hours.  I've only got 110 rows to go.  This is what I have so far:

Knotted t-shirt rug for guest bath

All I can see are all of the rows ahead of me.  It's a very large rug (27" x 43") I love how it looks, thus far, and it feels so soft.  Should be easy to take care of to.  Just throw it in the wash and go, that is, if I EVER get it done!!  With how long it's taken me so far, it will be time to redecorate again, once it's finished.  Any volunteers to finish this off for me???  Lol

Shower Curtain - DONE!!!!

First off, I have to give myself a pat on the back.  I am so excited that I could make my own shower curtain, exactly how I wanted it!  With my new machine up and running (there was no manual for the machine that I got, so I really had to study it, to even figure out how to thread the thing!), I wasn't sure I was going to remember how to sew anything.  But, I found that it's sort of like riding a bike.......You know what you know.
While I do remember the Sewing 101 basics, I have to say, that I'm not sure I ever knew how to sew an exact straight line.  Working on a project as long and as wide as a shower curtain, makes it difficult to be perfect.  But, it's close enough for me and I don't think anyone will notice my imperfections.  I am also thrilled that I sewed two panels together and you can't even see the seam, unless you're planning to make a study out of my shower curtain!  (If this is the case, don't come to my house and use my guest bathroom!)  Here's my first sewing project in 24+ years!

Red & White Striped Shower Curtain

I really do love this shower curtain and it turned out exactly as I pictured it in my head.  Now that this one piece of the project is complete, I can't wait to finish off the bathroom.  I'm working on a rope shelf that will go over the toilet and hope to have that finished before Chris gets home from Maryland.  Painting and sanding all takes work.  Who knew???
Finally finished my shabby-chic picture frame as well.  Some scrap wood, paint, material, burlap, printer, a starfish, and some rope.  Ties all in together to make this beach wall decor:

Beach Wall Decor

Evidently, I am moving too fast and something needed to slow me down.  I picked up some paint that was sitting in an old plastic tupperware container and was headed out to the garage to put on a final coat, on my shelving project......The rim of the tupperware broke off in the kitchen and paint went EVERYWHERE!!!!  I'm talking on the kitchen table, chairs, walls, grout and tile and on the kitchen cabinets!  Talk about mass panic.  I knew that time was not on my side and I needed to get all the wet paint up before it started to soak into things.  And, of course, the dogs weren't going to cooperate, by staying away.  I had to call the neighbors to come get them (John and Lori - Thank you!), while I frantically tried to mop, scrub and rinse all at the same time.  I was okay with getting the paint off of the tile and grout, but when it came to getting it off the furniture and cabinets, I was having a tough time.  I tried water and soap and that just made a circular mess.  Then I tried some goof-off.  Still nothing and I seemed to be spreading paint around farther.  (I'm not sure how much farther I could have spread it.  It was already all over the place)  Finally called my neighbor and she sent her husband down.  Did you know that you can get paint off wood with pledge and a scrubber?  I didn't.  Works pretty well and now our house has a pledge-y smell to it.  We are so lucky to have neighbors willing to help out so quickly.  I don't know what I would have done without the help.  It took almost 2 hours to clean up that mess, but I learned something about pledge that I didn't know.  Thanks for the lesson and help, Carpet Guy!

Armed & Dangerous!

I am beyond dangerous now......I'm armed AND dangerous!  I bought a sewing machine off Craigslist today.  Now granted, it was cheap, has no manual and will only do a couple of stitches, but that's really all that matters at the moment.  I'm just happy that I can actually sew things together with a running machine!!!  It has been years since I have put my skills on a machine to work.  I hope I can still remember the basics.  If I do, be on the lookout for an array of new decor for the house!  I'm going to start off with my shower curtain.  How difficult can that be.  Press and sew the ends under, sew down the middle, press and sew the top for the rod.  Seems like I've got it all worked out in my head perfectly......Now to translate this into the actual shower curtain....!

Here's the other project that I started and actually finished.

W-I-N-E out of Corks

I did this with wine corks that I've been saving for over 10 years.  Not ever sure what I was going to do with all of the corks, but now I know why I kept them.  This took me all of 10 hours to do.  It may look easy, but it's a lot like a puzzle, that involves a lot of cutting!  The first letter I did was 'I'.  Easy enough, right?  It took me 10 minutes at max!  Then I started in on the 'W'!  Ridiculous!!!!  But, I love how it looks.  When I have more spare time, I think I'll do the word 'bar' to go with this.
This project doesn't require much, but patience.  Here's some basic instructions:

Cork Letters

You'll need the following items:

MPI Wood Letters of your choosing  (you can find this at your local craft store.  I got these at Hobby Lobby for $1.20ea, on sale.)
Wine corks (new or used)
Hot Glue Gun
Xacto Knife (not shown)

Cut corks and arrange on lettering.  When cutting cork, be sure to save all pieces, as you can use the little pieces to fill in any gaps you might have.  It's best to cut and arrange your corks first, before gluing onto board, so that you can see what might work or not work.  Also, when cutting corks, remember that you want all different sizes and thickness of the corks.  Don't cut everything the exact same size and it will give the letters added dimension.  When you've got your corks arranged, glue each piece with a thin line of hot glue, using pressure to make sure it adhears to your MPI Wood.  There are no right or wrong ways to do this.  If you have a cork that sticks over the edge a bit, that's fine.  I doesn't have to be perfect.