recycling

Farmhouse Table….New Kids Desk

Posted by

13

one thing I love about all the wonderful people blogging out there is that there is no shortage of amazing inspiration and the generosity of the same people sharing the how-to’s for said inspirations.  Once again I fell victim to a must create over at Anna White’s Site.  This narrow farmhouse table here, sent me into the garage once again to recreate the table.  I even had a place for it!!  Under the windows in the office, a perfect place for the kids to do homework and e near Jon and I when we are working in the office.

We made the legs out of reclaimed pallet wood, the top we bought the top and side boards.  I sanded the crap out of the top to make it look as much like a solid piece as possible.

I stained the top and put 3 clear coats over the stain.

I painted the legs white, then I distressed the paint with a hand sander.

I did a top coat of Trewax mahogany wood wax.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Markers, colored pencils, a small light, plain paper, lilacs and lillies out the window, bring your imagination to this table and put it on the paper kids:

I do have chairs for the table that are in teh process of being reinvented…I will add a post about them when they are home….but here are a few more shots of the table:

Easy, Beautiful, Inexpensive Teacher Gift

Posted by

0

In the words of a dear teacher friend, “please no more coffee mugs…they are great….I love coffee…not that much”. So I asked her what she would really want from her  students as a thank you.

Gift cards to places like Barnes and Noble, this way she can buy books that she can add to her classroom. Also teachers like to read adult non-curriculum books during their break.

Gift cards, to places like Panera or other little shops so she can pick out a fun treat during the summer. Pick one out to a fun boutique in your town, does not have to be much even $10.00 is a treat.

Movie passes so she can see a movie during the summer.

A bottle of wine, or other spirit, perhaps a parent should bring this in, yes teachers like to relax a bit too.

A hanging plant or potted plant that she can put outside to bloom all summer, or get really crafty and put together a small container herb garden.

So here is what we did, we went to Savers’….of course, to buy a vase. There is almost a whole aisle full of flower vases that are donated, the budget 99cents. Whatever one they wanted.

Next stop, Trader Joes’, LOVE this place and their flowers are amazing. $7.99 for each bouquet.

We cleaned the sticker off the bottom of the vase, the kids all trimmed the flowers to fit their vases:

I helped Tanna with her cards…she hepled cut them out;

Solomon went out to the yard and got some Hosta flowers to fill his vase in a bit:

Then they made their own cards, this is truly the sweetest part. I think flowers brighten everyone’s day, I know they will be enjoyed for a bit, and not left on a shelf, and totally not included the paper we had here for the cards, 99 cents for the vase $7.99 for flowers plus a little for the taxman = $9.70….handmade card = priceless…of course.

Unintentional Rule Breaker?

Posted by

1

I lieu of my resolution to upcycle/recycle clothing and ditch the consumption of new clothes from  retail stores, my shopping and treasure hunting need in full swing, I headed to Savers with my brother before he left for California and found some great items.  On the rack of treasures I found this dress:

I thought” how cute will this be for Miss A?”…check the tag and there it is, the Savers tag and the retail tag.  Oh the irony!  (But check out the sweet price!)

Well I snatched it up and than wondered, am I breaking my own rules?  Sure it was donated and technically I am reconsuming this dress , but it IS new.  So I let A try it on……done, it’s a keeper.  First addendum to the rules, no first hand new clothing;)

Reclothed Resolution..

Posted by

3

It has been awhile since I added to my blog. We had a full and happy couple of holiday weeks. I wanted to quickly get in a short post about my resolution this year.
My plan is to buy no new clothes for our family of 6!!! We will be buying and recomsuming clothing from second-hand stores, consignment stores, Ebay, and donation stores like Goodwill, Savers, and the Salvation Army. 
Disclaimer: this excludes underwear, socks (for obvious reasons, although I have seen them at SAvers….I just can’t!!), and possibly shoes especially for the kids.  I think little feet need to have the full support of new shoes while growing and developing walking, running and balance skills, not shoes that already have a wear path from someone else.  Also I am sure some of you shudder at the thought of used shoes, which lets my mind wander into thoughts of what my have been in a previous shoe.  Typically we also take the kids to a local shoe store that sizes them and checks the fit of the shoe on their feet, the way kids grow and as active as they, it gives us   parents peace of mind.  

This resolution is really exciting for me, I grew up going to auctions and basically treasure hunting with m y dad, I love finding what I consider a “treasure”!  My mom grew up in Santa Barbara and was/is a huge fan of second-hand stores and customizing clothing to make clothes, and accessories  personal.

For years I have sold our kids gently worn and sometimes worn to play condition clothes on Ebay for a small or surprisingly large return on investment, this has been a very fun and often lucrative hobby.  I have seen some of the wonderful items that other sellers have, and am sure I can find clothing for our kids here also.  However, my primary outlets will be the donations stores and local stores. 

What I hope to teach the kids, my husband and I gain from this is  that we can help the Earth by recomsuming great clothes that have been used and tossed aside, save money in the process and even great creative by making a pair of jeans with holes in the knees some great patched jeans. Or find an old wool sweater and make mitten or anew soccer bag.  Additionally, stores such as Saver, Goodwill and Salvation Armay all give to help others, for example, our local savers support the epilepsty foundation.

I originally thought that I would do a 365 of  our finds, but I think I might just do one post a week on how we are succeeding, struggling, and overcoming our reclothed resolution.  I will also include the total cost, and at some point perhaps continue the cycle and sell them on ebay when we are done with them if I deem them sellable, kids can really wear clothin out!

Happy 2011!!!