DIY - Mason Jar Soap Dispensers

Mason Jar Soap Dispensers

I love these Soap Dispensers!  I've seen them everywhere and since I'm in the redecorating mode, I decided to try my hand at these and make them for our Guest Bathroom.  After reading several tutorials, I knew that this wouldn't be too hard, but wasn't sure how readily, soap dispenser pump replacements would be to find.  Turns out you can get them at any hardware store and they're relatively inexpensive.  I think the whole total for this project cost me $7 for both dispensers.  (The spray paint might cost you extra, but I happened to have some around, so that wasn't an out of pocket expense)  I love the painted look of these little guys, but painting them is just an option.  They look great without the paint as well.

Here's what you need:

DIY - Mason Jar Soap Dispenser

1. Mason Jar
2. Soap Dispenser Pump
3. Spray Paint (Optional - You can leave them just the way they are)
4. Hamer
5. Screwdriver or Large Nail
6. Needle Nose Pliers
7. Hot Glue Gun (not pictured)

Take your Mason Jar lid and with your hammer and screwdriver, make a whole in the very center of your lid. With the Needle Nose Pliers, grasp the metal and pull back on it just a bit, to make the opening large enough for your pump.  Be sure to not pull back too far or you'll get too big of an opening.  You want the pump to fit in the whole snugly.
If you're planning on painting your jar, spray a couple of coats on it now.  For the lid, you can either leave it as is and buy a pump to match or you can use metallic paint (I used an oil rubbed bronze spray paint) to paint your lid and rim.
Once your jar and lid are dry, insert your pump into the top part of the lid.  Using a dab of hot glue, glue the pump onto the lid.  Be sure to wipe off any excess glue.
Fill jar with liquid soap and you are good to go.  Such an easy project and it really takes only the drying time and about 5 minutes to get a beautiful, re-usable soap dispenser.

DIY - Silver Cleaning

A few years ago, I was in some desperate need of cleaning some of my Sterling Silver jewelry.  I had run out of silver cleaning polish and really didn't feel like buying more, as it was kind of pricey.  So I went out looking for a way to do it myself, with stuff from home.  I cam across this great trick to clean my silver, with things I already have in my house  Here ya go, Deanne.  Put away the smelly Rhubarb!!  :-)

Silver Cleaning

What You'll Need:

Bowl/Baking Dish
Aluminum Foil
Salt
Liquid Dish Soap
Warm Water

This is all about magnetizing the tarnish away.  Just line the bottom of a bowl baking dish with a sheet of aluminum foil and fill the bowl with warm water.  Add a generous amount of salt (if using a bowl, add about 3-4 Tablespoons) and a little squirt of liquid dish soap.  Place the tarnished flatware/*jewelry or other silver in bowl/dish and watch the tarnish begin to disappear.  The natural chemical reaction actually magnetizes the tarnish right off, and you won't have to do any buffing!  Remove your silver items and wipe clean with a soft rag and there you go!
* This is only for Flatware, Sterling Silver and Silver Plated items.

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.

DIY - Tiny Flowers Wall Hanging

Made from misprinted business cards

I hate for things to go to waste.  A few months ago, I got some business cards, that the printer ended up doing a little off center.  The printer didn't want them back and they were sending out new cards, so I kept the bad ones, figuring maybe I could use them for something......someday.  So, they sat in my bottom desk drawer for a bit.  Then I got this idea.  What if I cut them up and did sort of a mosaic design out of them, to make out my business name?  After all, they were the colors of my logo and how fun would that look in my bakery room!  I cut out several cards, just randomly cutting little pieces, when another thought crossed my mind.  Why don't I use a punch, in the shape of a daisy (A couple of daisies are on my cards), and use those, instead of random mosaic pieces?  I loved how it turned out and believe it or not, it was a fairly quick and easy project.  The hardest part was, punching out all of the daisies.  Luckily, I always have a helper near by.  While my Husband was watching TV, I had him punch, while I was busy gluing on these cute little things.  I'm really happy with the way it turned out.  I might add a boarder around the canvas, but for right now, I'll just give you the instructions.  (This is my first tutorial, so please excuse any mistakes or omissions I may make.)

Here's what you'll need:

Tools

Blank Painters Canvas - (Any size you choose.  I used a 20x16")
Old Business Cards -  (Anything of your choosing...scrapbook paper, old calendars, old photos)
Crafter's Daisy Punch - Small
Hot Glue Gun
Pencil
Print out of your letters or Stencils - (I used Photoshop to print out large letters in the font that I use on my bus. cards.  You can print and cut out this way or if you have stencils, you can use them as well.)
*Optional* - Embossing Stylus


The first thing you want to do, is punch out a bunch of daisies.  While this takes a bit of time, you'll be grateful to get this part of the project over.  I think I may have only used about 20 business cards or so for the whole project.  Once you've got the daisies cut out, you have the option of leaving them flat or making them a little more 3D.  I choose to give them a little pop from the canvas, so I took an embossing tool (not pictured above) and just pressed down in the middle and the petals sort of just lifted up.

Now you want to take your paper print out of your letters (or your stencils) and line them up on your canvas, to ensure proper placement and adjust for size and height.

Aliegn Paper Cutouts/Printouts

Once you have it all aliegned, you now want to trace this onto the canvas.  Remove one section at a time and use your pencil to lightly trace the outline of the cutout/stencil.  If you make a mistake, you can always erase!  :-)  Be sure not to press to firmly on your pencil, as you only want to use your outline for a guide, on where to place your daisies.

Outline

Once you've got the whole thing outlined, you are ready to go and you can start glueing on your daisies.
I forgot to take a picture of the gluing process, but I think you'll understand how to do this.  Dab a SMALL amount of hot glue on the back of your daisy and quickly put it into position on your first letter.  Work your way thru the letter, making sure you cover up the entire letter.  Try to place your daisies within the outline, but covering up your pencil markings.  Place enough daisies on your letters, so that all white background is covered.  The beauty of this project is that you can't really mess up.  If you get a daisy on there you don't like, just tear it off and use another daisy to put over it.  Your final project will give your room that little personal touch.