Recycled wood birdhouse

My friend and I decided to build a whimsy birdhouse one day and this is the place so far. The front, back and bottom are made with a cedar plank from an old garden planter. It was cleaned then ran through a planer that we have. The roof was made with the redwood lattice that was cut out of yurt to put in windows. The lattice was cut apart the cut into 1/2" strips that were then cut into 1/4" thick pieces. Last but not least the door and window frame were made from old dowels 1/4" dowels that were cut in half. 

It is not water proof but is going to be hung under our homes eaves. 

I love the way it is coming out.

Corset back dresses

 This custom made black dress came from a pattern I purchased from a gal called Pineapple Pop. I can't believe I took her dress design and made it our of all recycled fabric. Sometimes you have to wait a little bit of time until you find the perfect fabric but when it is done you will even amaze yourself.
I would highly recommend the Pineapple Pop patterns.

Re-usable bags made with recycled materials

I have an obsession with re usable, made with recycled fabric bags. I thought I had made a few but my few is turning out to be many. I have given many away but I have my favorites that I use for everything. All my bags can carry at least 2 gallons of milk. The red/ white striped one in the middle is the perfect size for bringing your lunch to work. 
All the large bags have a recycled piece of corrugated plastic in the bottom for extra strength and is easy to wash with some soap and water. 

Lake Tahoe art with a 1947 newpaper

We found a newspaper from Thursday Sept. 4, 1947 and had to find something awesome to use it for.

So my hubby grabbed a piece of wood left over from another project and went to work. The next thing you know he has Lake Tahoe cut out. 

So I grabbed the old newspaper and decided to highlight it on his piece.

The piece came out amazing. 

Lake Tahoe serving tray

We had a boring old serving tray that had been in our home for a while and was well loved and used. 

SOOOOOO my hubby grabbed some brown paper bags, Elmers glue, a sharpie and some paint and made it into an amazing pise of functional art. 

A bonus is that is that it has the main roads of Tahoe on it.

It has many coats of polyurethane on it to protect the artwork.

Lake Tahoe Guitar

My husband was given a non-working guitar. So he worked worked his magic on it and then the picture came :-)

My husband LOVES to draw and doodle. This one came out amazing, a piece of art that you can use !!!!

Pill bottle veggie garden markers

While getting ready to plant some seeds in the mini greenhouse my hubby made me I was trying to figure out a way to mark my veggies. So I did 2 things. The 1st things was to save all out toilet paper cardboard tubes. Then I put them in the soil and planted my seeds in the middle of the tubes. This way was things grow if it is outside a tube it is most likely a weeds and the worms love eating them, 

The second thing was to grab my old pill bottles and some skewers. I drilled a little hole in the bottle of each bottle and then put it on a skewer. I then wrote the name of the plant on a scrap piece of paper and put that in the bottle then the lid. All done just put the skewer in the dirt to identify your plants. 

Now I realize I can write the main info on the paper inside also, things like watering, feeding, harvest days etc. 

100% recycled garden containers

This was Rubber maid shed that the shelves just would not hold any weight anymore. So as my hubby was gonna make it go away he realized that it might just hold some of my veggies pots this year.

This is my amazing little green house my hubby made with a corner sliding door piece. It is raised so I can work in it easily and the back will be painted black to get more heat in it. This summer we will have the most amazing crops. :-)

Recycled T-shirt quilted maxi dress

 


This dress started because of a piece a small fabric a friend left me. Also at the same time my new serger arrived so I came up with this dress.
I was once told that you cannot quilt with t-shirts. or better yet recycled t-shirts. Well I think that is 100% wrong.
Since the strap fabric was little to thick tie behind my neck I grabbed my LARGE jar of buttons and things and found a magnetic clasp for the back instead.
The bottom needed something a little more so I ran a strip around the top of my ruffle, I love ruffles!!!!!

Recycled Denim creations

I found a box of denim jeans that I was saving for that just right project, and I had enough for a project. I took the box of denim and gave myself 1 week to do something. Well instead of one creation I made three :-) The first blanket was made with just strips sewn together and then the edges frayed. 

The center picture is of hot pads made from the seams of all the denim jeans I had. I hot glues them in to circles that are the perfect size and look more like art then a hot pad.

The 2nd blanket is my favorite and took the longest, but well worth the extra time. Each line of stitch is a different stitch that my sewing machine can do. I wanted to play with those most forgotten stitches. 

1 box of denim jeans and one week, I wonder what my next box will be full of :-)

Recycled t-shirt maxi dress black to white with lace straps

I have acquired quite a few black and white t-shirts that I wanted to use up. So I grabbed them and found a base foundation dress that I went off of http://ofdreamsandseams.blogspot.co.at/2012/08/t-shirt-refashion-extravaganza-grand.html and here is what I came up with. I now feel the need to make a blueish one.

Old flannel sheet gathered top

I saw a pattern on this website http://so-sew-easy.com/free-sewing-pattern-drape-top/ and decided I wanted to make one. So I did and it fit my smaller size friend perfectly.
I have been holding on to this super soft old flannel sheet I had to made something with for a while now. As soon as I saw Deby's shirt again I knew it was it.
So here is my version of that pattern with am old flannel sheet and a few alterations to make it a little bigger for my larger framer :-)

Wiener Pinback pin cushion/ door stop

I had an old flannel sheet that acquired holes so I made a new dog, the Wiener Pinback. It is stuffed with loads of scrap fabric from others projects. I really hate to waste things and, at first, had no idea what to do with my bags of un-usable fabric scraps. Now not only to I have an amazing pin cushion, I have a door stop when needed.

Earth toned, ruffled bottom, recycled t-shirt skirt

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I LOVE making recycled t-shirt skirts to see what I can come up with next. I have made many t-shirt skirts but was never happy with just a standard straight bottom, so along came the ruffle.
I think the neutral earth tones of this skirt and the ruffled bottom make it a perfect match and fit. I am thinking about making some brighter ones and selling them on Etsy.
So keep your eye out for the newest colors and styles I have come up with.
I still cannot believe all this started when my friend, Amanda, showed me a gals work names Katwise. I loved the look of her sweaters I bought the pattern and have let my imagination go from there.

Ball Spider Versus a Paralyzed Wiener Dog

When it is cold and wet outside you have to be creative. So my husband and I came up with a Halloween spider costume for our paralyzed wiener dog, Slinky. Once on mt husband realized Slinkys favorite toy, at that moment, was a busted tennis ball. So he put the ball on, without SLinky realizing and here are the results.

Recycled T-shirt Maxi skirt

Having 36" legs it is hard to find a Maxi skirt that does not end mid calf. So I grabbed old t-shirt and scrap pieces and came up with this skirt. I love love love this skirt and it is sooooooo comfy. Since one end of the skirt tie is held down with a button, you can cut slits in the other end of the t-shirt string and attach to the button.
I had to applique a mushroom to the bottom, just because it was so darn cute. It is made with red and white t-shirts and bleach for the little white dots. I am now in the process of making a blue Maxi skirt.

100% FREE tutorial to make paralyzed wiener dog drag bags

http://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/paralyzed-dog-detailed-drag-bag-instructions
Meet Slinky, he is 9 years old, he jumped off a bed almost 4 years ago and has been paralyzed in his back end since. He has no idea he can't use his back legs, and is just as much as a handful as he was with his back legs. DO NOT feel sorry for Slinky, he as ramps all over the house, inside and out, he plays fetch until you are tired and loves to play tug of war. 
When he first got paralyzed we had no idea how to deal with it, so I did lots of research and found that there was very little out there for him. So after many trials and LOTS of errors I have come up with a FREE way to make our little guy happy and safe. 
Anyone who can sew a straight line and has some extra clothes that they can separate with, or ask friends for clothes we had so many offers I finally had to turn away clothes meant for Slinky bags. 
If you are anything like us you do not have lots of extra money for your little guy/ gal to buy bags for them. So finally here it is free for the world to make and keep their little friends.happy I call them Slinky Bags :-) He wears Huggies size 4 diapers, We found they held his wiener up and stayed on the best, for an ACTIVE dog 
One more thing, you can use the same pattern to make Slinky PJ bags, just omit steps 6 and 7. Or just use the sleeves from sweat shirts for the tube part, if you are only making PJ' s it is the easiest way to go. 
If you have any questions, or comments PLEASE share. If you make your own Slinky Bags share your pictures so others can be inspired to make their own. 
To wash the bags I just throw them in the washer, with a little bleach, and detergent. I have washed, suede, leather, denim, etc and they might wrinkle, but so what they work for your friend and the bleach helps sterilize the bags.
Slinky was a real trooped. He would have been 14 in January 2018, and was paralyzed for 7 years, but sadly Slinky passed away 9/12/17, When we found out he was paralyzed we did not think he would survive 1-2 years, boy were we wrong. We changed his Huggies size 4 everyday, and he had more outfits then I did at times. 
The little guy will be missed by all he touched, a real inspiration !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Recycled fabric Quilt

My beautiful niece graduated from high school last Friday. I had such an awesome visit. Here was my gift to the Kelley. The pattern is called X's & O's aka kisses and hugs. It is made entirely with recycled fabric. Took a while to make it but Kelley is so worth it and now she can wrap herself up in kisses and hugs  Many of my friends will see their contribution to the blanket. If you only have a little bit of fabric take all the little bits and make an amazing quilt :-)

Backyard pallet oasis

We are redoing our little back yard into a little oasis where you can sit and read or just take a nap. I love what a little paint will do. It is still a work in progress but it is already become the favorite place to sit and visit with friends now.
UPDATE The back yard is getting better and better, with the help of friends it is quick work also. We can now have a little fire in the evenings and it is becoming a magical place where everyone wants to hang :-) Our next move it to put a little cover over the bed area. Right over that area is a place the birds love to sit, and shit, over us. Have a bird poo on me yesterday LOL

Leftover yarn into colorful crocheted blanket

My good friend Edith brings me yarn from thrift stores all the time. I have known her for over 16 years and decided to take some of the left over yarn that she has given me over the years and crochet a blanket for her. She is stopping by after work today and has no idea why. I just told her I have something to give her and when I do the only thing I am gonna tell her is "Thank you for being my friend"