April showers, as the old saying goes, bring May flowers, and I’m offering you an early bouquet with this flowery First Friday Freebie!
This metal art wall hook from Hobby Lobby is just the thing to set the tone for warmer weather in your home. Subtle shades of pinks and yellows, along with green leaves give this rustic hook a bit of “happy”. It’ll be the perfect place to hang a fun tote bag, basket, scarf, or serve as a catcher for that jacket you can’t wait to stop wearing. It measures 12 inches tall and 8 ½ inches wide.
I do love a great Hobby Lobby find and this one is cute, cute, cute!
To enter to win the
flowery wall hook, all you need to do is “Leave a Comment” on this
post, saying, “Bring on the spring thing!”
You’ll need to do that before midnight TONIGHT, April 5th,
2019!
First Friday Freebies happen every month for email SUBSCRIBERS ONLY, so hop on over to the right sidebar or use the menu to navigate to the “Contact” page and subscribe to Midwest Storyteller if you haven’t done so already.
Share this post
with all your friends and family through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest
so they can enter to win, too!
Subscribers win every single month! My “Freebies”page has past freebies. Take a look at all the free gifts and the wonderful people who’ve been winning them.
Remember, a winner
will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight tonight
by leaving a comment which says, “Bring on the spring thing!”
For the complete First Friday Freebie rules, CLICK HERE.
Subscribing is
simple and FREE, but don’t forget to go immediately to your email to confirm
your subscription or it will not go through.
If you do not receive a confirmation email for some reason, please email
me and let me know at barb@midweststoryteller.com
The clock is
ticking! Enter now so you don’t forget
to do that before midnight tonight!
I hope we all get to enjoy many more glorious spring days! Phoebe June and I spent some time outside working and playing before this last round of rain. Would you care to guess which one of us worked and which one of us played? She’s enjoying spring as much as I am, except for being irritated at her humans for not spending entire days outside with her. She lets us know, loud and clear, what she thinks of our disobedience. Sometimes it’s just a mere glance, but even that is enough to convey the message in her eyes as, “You nitwit!” She shares her opinions on my Phoebe June page.
Thoughts? Questions? I’d love to hear from you! Please leave a comment.
My most recent First Friday Freebie went to a familiar face! Let’s take a look at the winner –
Donna
from Bunceton, Missouri!
Donna has won once before and her name popped up again this time when Smuffy did his duty, following my instructions to and “picked a card – any card”.
Congratulations, Donna! I hope you enjoy your “Love Deeply” word art plaque from Hobby Lobby, not just as Valentine décor, but all year round!
Here’s
another view of Donna’s gift.
If you’d like to see the original freebie offer, click here.
A freebie offer appears the first Friday of every month. Check out the freebie page to see what people have been winning here at Midwest Storyteller.
Subscribe now and you’ll be notified via email
of March’s drawing. You never know what
it might be.
The
next First Friday Freebie drawing will be on Friday, March 1, 2019 and only
SUBSCRIBERS can win!
A
winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before
midnight on the day of the drawing by leaving a comment as instructed in
the post. See the recently revised rules
below.
And now, here are the Freebie Rules.
These
four simple steps will have you ready to enter to win on March 1st.
“Share”,
“like” and “pin” this post! You’re friends will want to enter to win,
too!
Enjoying
the Freebies? Leave a comment! If you’re on your computer, scroll back up
under the title of this post and let me know what you’re thinking. On various devices, you may find “Leave a
Comment” at the bottom of the post.
Welcome to
February! I love gift-giving and I wish
I could send this First Friday Freebie out to all my subscribers as my Valentine to you. Ah, if only…
But, I can send it
out, as always, to the winner of the February drawing!
Let’s take a look –
During this month when we celebrate love and take special time out to tell people how much they mean to us, this wooden plaque serves as a great reminder. It measures 5.91”X7.87” and has a hinged easel attached so you’ll be able to tuck it in amongst the décor on your mantle or anywhere else you choose.
I love that it is
not “seasonal”. After all, love never
goes out of style or out of season, does it? You can display it year round and it will add
a great “farmhouse touch” to your home’s décor.
Roaming through aisles of home décor never goes out of style either and I hope you enjoy this Hobby Lobby find.
To enter to win
the “Love Deeply” plaque, all you need to do is “Leave a Comment” on
this post, saying, “I LOVE First Friday Freebies!” You’ll need to do that before midnight
TONIGHT, February 1st, 2019!
First Friday
Freebies are for email SUBSCRIBERS ONLY, so if you’ve not become a subscriber
to Midwest Storyteller yet, give yourself a little love gift by heading over to
the right sidebar or using the menu to get to the “Contact Me” page
and subscribe if you haven’t done so already.
Share Midwest
Storyteller with all your friends and family through Facebook, Instagram,
Twitter and Pinterest so they can enter to win and begin enjoying all the great
stories, recipes, tips for healthy living, product reviews and more!
Subscribers win every single month! Visit the “Freebies”page to see what they’ve been winning.
Once again, a
winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before
midnight tonight by leaving a comment which says, “I LOVE First
Friday Freebies!”
And now, here are
the complete rules:
Four simple steps!
The clock is
ticking! Subscribe if you haven’t
already, confirm in your email and comment to enter before midnight tonight,
February 1st!
Enjoy this
sparkling winter month by letting those you love know just how special they are
to you. Hint: This First Friday Freebie
would make a great gift for your Valentine!
My little owl has been flying across the country, but he’s finally ended up here –
He’s made his new home with Jan in Greeley, Colorado!
Jan tells me that she sometimes forgets to enter to win my freebie on the first Friday of the month, but this time she remembered. Good for you, Jan!
October marked the first time that I’ve had to do the drawing twice. That is because our first winner did not respond to the email notice and provide me with contact information so that I could send out the gift. After waiting a week, we conducted the drawing again from those who had previously entered.
Jan tells me that she’s already named her new little friend “Ollie”. I hope the two of you will be very happy together, Jan! When you introduce Ollie to your friends, I’m sure he’ll be happy to have you tell them that he came all the way from Midwest Storyteller so they can subscribe and enter to win also.
If you haven’t subscribed, you’ll want to do that now.
To see the original freebie offer for this adorable owl from Hobby Lobby, click here. I know there’s a store near you with more awesome fall décor. Or, you can order online here.
The next First Friday Freebie drawing will be on Friday, November 2, 2018 and only SUBSCRIBERS can win!
A winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight on the day of the drawing by leaving a comment as instructed in the post. See the revised rules below – I am trying to make certain that I do my best to make contact with the winners.
And now, here are the Freebie Rules.
First Friday Freebies are available to SUBSCRIBERS ONLY. That means if you come to the post through social media or someone has emailed you a link to it and you haven’t become a subscriber yet, you’ll need to hop on over to the right sidebar and do that really quick. If you are on a phone or tablet, the easiest way is to go to the “About Me” page. All it means to be a subscriber is that you’ll receive an email each time Midwest Storyteller has something new, which won’t likely be more than once or twice a week. It keeps you from missing out on all the fun and FREE STUFF! And, I’m not sharing your emails with anybody.
IMPORTANT: After subscribing, you MUST check your email to confirm the subscription or it will not appear. Then, sadly, you won’t be eligible to enter.
To enter the drawing, scroll back up to the top of this post and under the title, click on “Leave a Comment”. Subscribers who comment as directed before midnight on the first Friday of the month will enter the drawing, provided they are already on the subscribers list and live within the continental United States.
The drawing will be conducted the weekend after Friday’s freebie offer. The winner will receive an email at the address they’ve provided in order to subscribe. ENTRANTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR CHECKING THEIR EMAIL so they can receive notification. If the winner does not respond within a week of the original contest date to provide name and mailing address, they will forfeit the freebie and another winner will be selected from those who have already entered according to the rules. Follow these four simple steps and subscribe now. Then, you’ll be ready for November 2nd.“Share”, “like” and “pin” this post! You’re friends will want to enter to win, too!
Have an opinion on the Freebies? Leave a comment! If you’re on your computer, scroll back up under the title of this post and let me know what you’re thinking. On various devices, you may find “Leave a Comment” at the bottom of the post.
Yes, Jamie – where are you? Normally, I do love a mystery, but…
The winner of October’s First Friday Freebie is “Jamie E.” Jamie has been notified with a reply to a comment on the blog post as well as through a personal email. However, Jamie has not responded to me with contact information to claim the free gift. It’s been over a week.
So sad.
Since I have no way of knowing whether Jamie is male or female or whether Jamie lives in my own hometown or anywhere else in the continental United States, it makes it impossible for me to send out the free home décor from Hobby Lobby.
So, my dear readers, please help! Share this post and if you have any idea who Jamie might be, please contact this person and let them know they’ve won. I’ll give it a few more days. If I do not hear from “Jamie E.” by Friday, October 19th, I’ll have Smuffy choose another name from among others who have entered.
Check out what Jamie is missing out onhere. This owl is wondering “whoo” will give him/her a new home!
Thanks for sleuthing with me! Leave a comment, but be sure not to share any personal information. If you have any such details to share, please email me at barb@midweststoryteller.com.
Welcome to Midwest Storyteller’s first installment of –
If we analyze our friendships, we’ll often return to the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover”. I found this to be especially true of Kathy. We estimate that we’ve known each other about five years. Prior to that, I knew she existed, but I didn’t “know” her.
The things we miss out on! It’s happened before. Years ago, a lady named Rebekah showed up at my writers’ group. Soon after, she volunteered to help with the Youth Theater I directed. I discovered not only that she’d been my neighbor two doors away for the last two years, but that she and I were twin souls! (Is that what you call it when you each think the other is riotously funny?) She encouraged me and inspired me, helped me and then, as sometimes is the way with life, she moved away, darn it all. She has a blog, too! Be sure to check her out at “There Will Be a $5 Charge for Whining”.
Kathy has proved to be another of those rare souls who has moved from the fringes of my life and taken up residence in my spirit. I’ve been hoping she’d succumb to my hints and agree to be a guest at Midwest Storyteller, so I’m thrilled to welcome you to her debut!
I misjudged Kathy at first. When a friend of mine invited her to a monthly food and fun night, she seemed to fit right in, but, my-oh-my, she took a lot of notes! As we all chattered away, sharing life, tips, ideas, stories, recipes and more, Kathy seemed to be jotting down everything we said in a little notebook that already bulged with previous notations. “Type A”, I thought. “Hops out of bed at the crack of dawn, rounds up all her ducks, requires them to salute as they line up in their rows and that’s the way they march. All. Day. Long. (Without making a mess).”
Then, one night we played a fun personality game. Kathy shocked me! By the time we finished, I could tell that the only thing I’d gotten right in my assumptions about Kathy was the possibility that she might have a collection of actual ducks! I looked at her, astonished. “The reason you carry your little book and make all those notes is so that you can keep all these ideas and go home and do them all!”
Smiling, she nodded. That’s when I knew that Kathy’s brain is every bit as “squiggly” as mine and bursting with creativity! I knew she had a “stash” – a treasure trove of things yet to be. I knew she had a messy room brimming with projects at various gestational stages. I love this woman! I’ve come to know I can count on her for understanding, prayer, hands-on help and she’ll probably adopt any ducks I find because not only does she have a pond – she loves animals!
Having delved into arts and crafts “forever”, Kathy is now retired from the insurance industry and has time to use all her hoarded supplies. Her favorite adventures usually involve a splash of paint as Kathy’s specialty is reclaiming old objects and making something new out of them. Take a look at a few of her fun projects –
And, how about these innovative ideas?
Kathy’s life is built around Christ, her husband, Robert, three children and five grandchildren. Although all the animals in the world would love to belong to Kathy and Kathy often dreams of this, she draws the line at the dog, Bre and the cat, Trixie. I’m grateful that she’s taking time out for us here at Midwest Storyteller to share her latest adventure – wood burning.
After seeing the set of beautiful wooden spoons she created for her mom with a wood burning kit, I wanted to try my hand at it, all the while muttering to myself that all I needed was one more hobby. Nevertheless, I took the plunge with Kathy holding my hand. Take a look at how her project turned out –
Let’s get started. Here’s what Kathy recommends:
Take a little time to watch some tutorials. YouTube always has lots to choose from and Kathy got great ideas and tips from CreativeBug.com
Put down something to protect the surface if you are doing this on your dining table, countertop or some other surface that you don’t want to risk getting a burn mark. Wood burning tools are hot! We used cardboard.
Gather your supplies. Needless to say, you’ll need a wood burning kit. Kathy found this Walnut Hollow Creative Versa-Tool at Hobby Lobby for $29.99. Of course, it’s always a good idea to watch for their great half-price deals or use their weekly 40% OFF coupon. Needle-nose pliers are great for removing tips from the tool that will be way too hot to touch, and a small tube of graphite powder keeps the tips turning smoothly when you screw them in and out of the tool. Safety glasses are a good idea if you’re tackling a project that will take you a while. Remember that oldies tune, “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.” Well, it does. (We worked on a nice day with the windows open and didn’t really notice a problem.) A piece of scrap wood for practicing with the tips will reduce the “oops factor”. I couldn’t find any, so I grabbed a couple of paint stirring sticks and that worked just fine. Food grade mineral oil, rubbed on your finished project, will bring out the beauty of your work. An extension cord will probably be helpful to allow you to position your work comfortably.
Practice with your tips on your scrap wood. Also, practice with your temperature control so that you’ll be able to get a clean look when creating your design. The paint sticks were “raw” wood and had no coating. The spoons were bamboo and seemed to have a coating or polish on the handles that required higher heat.
You can transfer a pattern if you need to or take off free-hand like a dare-devil! I chose middle ground by placing my spoons on the cardboard surface and drawing around them. Then, I penciled in whatever pattern came to mind when I practiced with the tips, offered up a prayer and gave it my best shot.
Once you’re satisfied with your artwork, erase any stray pencil marks, brush away any eraser crumbs or stray wood fibers and rub with mineral oil.
I know you can do it! All you need are supplies and bravery. My spoons aren’t perfect, but for a first project, I’m pleased! I thought Kathy’s were a masterpiece!
Here are a few more tips that Kathy shared with me and things we learned as we went along –
The shading point is great for leaves and flowers with pointy petals. It helped to rock it back and forth so that the wood burned all the way to the edge of the pattern because the spoons, like many other things you might use this tool on, look pretty flat but have a slightly curved surface.
The tapered point worked nicely for thin stems and small dots, while the flow point, though it looks too big for the job, draws nice lines and is best for cursive writing.
The hot stamping points added a lot of fun. The kit came with three – a square, a round and one with concentric circles. I used the circles for centers of flowers. The square one, pressed carefully along in a line, created the diagonal pattern you see on one of the spoons. The circular one, for some strange reason, reminded me of dandelion fluff, so I used it in clusters to create flowers that resemble those.
Neither of us may have every single duck in a row, but we did manage it with our spoons. Here they are –
Kathy and I both recommend Pinterest for tons of wood burning ideas. You’ll be inspired to create something fabulous! We hope we’ve helped do just that here today.
Thank you, Kathy, for teaching me how to do this! Wood burning turned out to be much more fun than I expected and I’m so pleased with the results.
Kathy and I would both love your comments. Have you tried wood burning? Are you inspired to give it a try? Let us hear from you!
Subscribe now so you don’t miss out, because we’ll be Creating with Kathy again soon!
A reminder: June is about to come busting out all over and you know what that means – There’s a First Friday Freebie coming right up!
A huge dose of yard work, a dash of distraction and a computer apocalypse has made this announcement a little slow in coming. Among those who commented on May 4th, saying, “Send the birdie my way!”, a winner has been drawn and she is –
Tanya from St. Clair, Missouri!
Each freebie offer requires a specific comment and Tanya’s was among those who went into the drawing, which was conducted by Smuffy when I placed the entries in front of him, tapped him (he was resting his eyes) and told him to pick one. We like to keep it on the up and up around here.
This little Spring Shop birdie from Hobby Lobby did, indeed, go Tanya’s way and now it can greet her when she takes her daily “tour of the estate”, which is how I like to refer to my daily trip around the grounds to say hello to all my flowers. I’d tell you how they answer, but one of you would be bound to feel obligated to turn me in to the authorities, so we’ll just skip that.
If you’d like to see the original freebie offer, click here.
Congratulations, Tanya! I hope it makes your garden look even lovelier than it does already.
The next First Friday Freebie drawing will be on Friday, June 1, 2018 and that, dear friends, is just days away!
Share this post with all your friends so they can SUSCRIBE and enter to win. A winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight on the day of the drawing by leaving a comment as instructed in the post.
Take a look at our “Freebies” pagewhere you’ll see some of the other gifts subscribers have been winning. It pays to SUBSCRIBE!
And now, here are the Freebie Rules.
First Friday Freebies are available to SUBSCRIBERS ONLY. That means if you come to the post through social media or someone has emailed you a link to it and you haven’t become a subscriber yet, you’ll need to hop on over to the right sidebar and do that really quick. If you are on a phone or tablet, the easiest way is to go to the “About Me” page. All it means to be a subscriber is that you’ll receive an email each time Midwest Storyteller has something new, which won’t likely be more than once or twice a week. It keeps you from missing out on all the fun and FREE STUFF! And, I’m not sharing your emails with anybody.
IMPORTANT: After subscribing, you MUST check your email to confirm the subscription or it will not appear. Then, sadly, you won’t be eligible to enter.
To enter the drawing, scroll back up to the top of this post and under the title, click on “Leave a Comment”. Subscribers who comment as directed before midnight on the first Friday of the month will enter the drawing, provided they are already on the subscribers list and live within the continental United States.
Three simple steps! Subscribe now, before you forget, and you’ll be ready for June.
“Share”, “like” and “pin” this post. Your friends deserve a Freebie, too!
Opinions on the Freebies? Leave a comment! If you’re on your computer, scroll back up under the title of this post and let me know what you’re thinking. On various devices, you may find “Leave a Comment” at the bottom of the post.
Don’t you love it? Spring has finally arrived! In my neighborhood, it showed up late and all at once, but that’s just fine as long as it’s here.
And, don’t you love it! Freebies, I mean. It’s the first Friday of the month and you know what that means. Let’s take a peek at May’s free gift –
I know you’ve been out filling those porch pots with blooming annuals and nestling happy little plants into your flower beds. This cute little metal birdie yard décor by Spring Shop offers that little extra touch that makes things inviting and well – let’s go ahead and overuse the word – cute!
The total length is 14 ¼ inches and the above-the-ground portion measures 10 ½ inches. (See inset photo.)
A word to the wise (or perhaps the clueless) – If this little birdie is not calling your name, you should enter to win anyway because Mother’s Day is 9 days away and you know she’d love a little something thoughtful. If you don’t tell her you got it for free, I won’t either. All you have to do is follow the instructions in this post carefully.
SHARE this post through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest or send the link in an email to all your friends so they can enter to win!
REMEMBER: A winner will be chosen at random from those subscribers who enter before midnight tonight by leaving a comment which says, “Send the birdie my way!”
And now, here are the complete rules:
First Friday Freebies are available to SUBSCRIBERS ONLY. That means if you have come to this post through social media or someone has emailed you a link to it and you haven’t become a subscriber yet, you’ll need to hop on over to the right sidebar and do that really quick. If you are on a phone or tablet, the easiest way is to go to the “About Me” page. All it means to be a subscriber is that you’ll receive an email each time Midwest Storyteller has something new, which won’t likely be more than once or twice a week. It keeps you from missing out on all the fun and FREE STUFF! And, I’m not sharing your emails with anybody.
IMPORTANT: After subscribing, you MUST check your email to confirm the subscription or it will not appear. Then, sadly, you won’t be eligible to enter.
To enter the drawing, scroll back up to the top of this post (or all the way to the bottom, depending on your device) and click on “Leave a Comment”. Subscribers who comment as directed before midnight on Friday will enter the drawing, provided they are already on the subscribers list and live within the continental United States.
Three simple steps!
Now hurry! Go! Go! Go! Subscribe if you haven’t already, confirm and comment to enter before midnight tonight, May 4th!
And, as much as I tried to resist saying this – May the 4th be with you!
Do you ever feel as I do – that you’ve just recovered from a volcanic eruption of decorations back before Christmas, only to experience the aftershock of trying to put it all way? No? Well then, I guess it’s just me.
I’m tired of overhauling the whole house just to satisfy my seasonal whims, so as I’ve already mentioned here, I had planned to do a re-mix on some of my winter décor and share the spring results with you.
Remember my winter mantle?
I’m still just all over that terrarium! I knew it would stay. So, with a few simple changes, we’re feeling springy inside, even if there was snow – yes, I said S.N.O.W. on the ground outside as I began this post and more in the forecast for tomorrow. I’m trying to keep my chin up, reminding myself of all you folks out east who just endured their sixth nor’easter.
Here’s how I switched it up for spring while keeping my favorite things –
As you can see, I didn’t make drastic changes. Switching out a few things seemed to be all I needed to take away winter and invite spring into the room. I took the photo at dusk to highlight the candles, but things look much more airy during the day.
Other than the terrarium, the thing I’m enjoying most about my spring décor is my sheep! Aren’t they fun?
I told myself as I stood toying with those in Marshall’s that they would make an ideal First Friday Freebiefor one of my loyal subscribers, but once I got them home, I weakened. I sat them here. I sat them there. They just got cuter and cuter! I confess! I crumbled under their vapid gaze and kept them for myself.
Nobody’s perfect. And, a little whimsy never hurt anybody.
The most amazing thing about these little sheep? They sit in plain sight, just inches off the floor and Phoebe Junehasn’t eaten them. Come to think of it, I don’t think she’s even noticed them, which is odd because she pretty much pounces on anything with a “face”.
Here’s how much money I didn’t spend –
The mirror. It stayed – a family treasure described here.
A bunch of forsythia wound into a not-too-perfect wreath – a Hobby Lobbyfind – maybe $4.00.
A metal wreath stand – another Hobby Lobbyfind – half-price at $12.00. I’ll use this year-round.
A topiary bunny purchased years ago at a garage sale for next to nothing.
Set of 3 flameless candles (the really cool ones with the realistic moving flames). I found these a couple of years ago at TreesNTrends. The whole set was $29.99! I see on their website that they’ve gone up a little in price, but they’re still worth it. They have timers and a remote and the batteries seem to last a long time. They come in ivory or red and you can find them here.
Our mantle clock – it stayed just as in the winter mantle. The clock, as well as the other “keepers” are described here.
Green glass candle-holder. Strangely enough, Smuffy found them. He comes home with odd things some days and that’s all I’m sayin’.
The terrarium! Another Hobby Lobbyfind that I describe here.
The contents of the terrarium. These were all items I already had – a small fake plant, also from Hobby Lobby on half-price sale; two brown ceramic pillar candle-holders with twine and bead accents that I picked up at Cargo Largo a couple of months ago for $2 each and have been waiting to use somewhere; perched on the candle-holders – a set of white alabaster doves we received as a wedding gift; and a string of tiny battery-operated lights that I taped around the inside frame of the terrarium to light it at night.
The word-art sign stayed – another Hobby Lobbyfind described here.
Fake yellow tulips – a rummage sale find I had on hand.
Rustic bucket (my tulips needed to be “re-potted” from the ugly container they came in) – a recent Hobby Lobbyfind – around $5.
Glass candle jars with pillar candles – they stayed also. I shared how I updated them with sisal rope here. I had the candles on hand.
Wooden box with lavender silk crocus. I gave this to my mom when I finished doing some re-decorating for her. Now that she’s gone, they’re another sweet reminder of her and her favorite color.
Those boogey-woogie, not-too-intelligent-looking sheep – Under $5 at Marshall’sseveral months ago.
Vintage Black wooden suitcase. It’s something that was always around the house when I was growing up and holds special memories. Mom kept things through the generations, so I have no idea how old it is and, of course, wish I had asked. It was one of the few things I asked my mom to “put my name on”, if you know what I mean.
I’m happy with this budget makeover. All the items that I consider “new” came to around $20 and all of them can be re-purposed for various seasons and different rooms. I hope it inspires you to work with what you have.
Keeping family treasures where I can see them makes me happy no matter what the trends are. My house does not look like the latest magazines. Perhaps it did once, back in the 90’s, when designers, on a Victorian flight of fancy, took a turn at decorating with everything old. All I had to do back then was pull out Mom’s and Grandma’s stuff and artfully arrange it all.
Designers moved on, but since my décor and my inheritance were one and the same, I stuck with the look that I like to refer to as a cross between Grandma’s attic and a rummage sale. I’m thrilled that Joanna Gaines has done much to bring back the popularity of “old”. (I was digging around in dusty old flea markets and toting home “junk” way before she came along!) The farmhouse style so often featured on “Fixer Upper” is making it easy and inexpensive for me to plan my upcoming kitchen makeover. All I’ll have to do is dig a new batch of “old” out of the closet and, once again, artfully arrange.
A major remodel job is coming my way soon and the “fireplace” in these photos may or may not be staying. I’d love to hear your comments and ideas on this. (It’s not a real fireplace anyway, so we can do something else fun if Smuffy and I have any strength left after conquering the kitchen.) I’ll chronicle all that here, which might prove to be therapeutic amidst the rubble, so as they say, stay tuned…
Let me hear from you. Scroll back up to the top of this post and “Leave a Comment”.
Remember – First Friday Freebies happen the first Friday of every month, so fun stuff is just around the corner – as in tomorrow! Share this post with a friend and if you haven’t subscribe NOW, because freebies are for subscribers only. Check out the Freebies pageto see past gifts and their winners!
They call it “voluntary simplicity” – that thing where you rid yourself of all but the items you need to function on a daily basis, freeing your family to embrace experiences rather than stuff.
While I envy the wiggle room this lifestyle provides to its adherers, I don’t think I’ll ever hop on board the minimalist train. For starters, what few items of my precious stuff would I pack for the journey?
I prefer to blame it on a combination of frugality and creativity. Eventually, I get around to doing way cool projects with the things I’ve kept and a pleasing part of the outcome is that I haven’t wasted any money.
I do, however have an artist/writer friend who keeps nothing. I recall her bare-bones medicine cabinet. If no one in the family had a headache, stomach ache or cold, she’d throw all the over-the-counter meds in the trash (expired or not). I saw this as an act of faith. I preferred, however, not to take the risk of waking in the middle of the night moaning, “Where, oh where is my Pepto!”
If I must erase the excesses from my life, I’ll skip the latest movie or restaurant and surround myself with books, antiques and fodder for my next creative whim.
For years now, I’ve had a stack of stained and tattered vintage tablecloths, given to me by my mom. Cute in their day, they’d long ago become something you wouldn’t want out for everyday, much less entertaining. Add to that the fact that they didn’t fit any of my tables and they’d become nothing more than closet filler.
Recently, I decided to do something about it. I gave a couple of the really tattered ones to a creative friend, knowing that they’d undergo some transformation that I couldn’t imagine. That left me with my favorite – an aqua blue tablecloth with pink and gray ferns and a white border.
I took my idea and my tablecloth to Hobby Lobby and spent under five dollars.
After hauling out the rotary cutter and mat, I released a deep sigh, promising Mom and the tablecloth that it was all for the best. Here’s how I dissected it.
The white border was tattered beyond repair, so I trimmed it off. It is already gone in the above photo. There were no holes and stains on the corners because, having hung off the table, they’d been out of the way of spills. The center looked good, but the area surrounding it had plenty of wear and stains.
I removed the corner pieces, cutting them into 12” squares. Then, I cut the center into a perfect square around the fern pattern.
Next, I took the center square to my serger and finished the edge, not only to keep it from unraveling, but also to create the straight line of stitches that would give me an easy guide for turning over the edge for finishing.
(If you do not have a serger, use any wide stitch on your sewing machine that will give a nice, straight line for folding.)
Now for my Hobby Lobby find. I happened across this gross-grain ribbon. It’s scalloped pattern in the colors of my tablecloth made it the ideal trim and the black edge gave a nice touch. Turning the serged edge of the cloth toward the RIGHT side of the fabric, I stitched the ribbon carefully along the edge so that when I finished, the edge of the fabric would be concealed under the ribbon.
Each time I reached a corner, I lifted the presser foot and rotated the fabric, pulling the ribbon around to keep the edge of the ribbon even with the folded edge of the fabric. Once I made it around all four sides, I stopped, cutting the ribbon straight across so that I could turn the end under.
Next, I attended to the corners, carefully cutting the ribbon almost to the stitching line, allowing one of the cut ends to lay flat while folding the other under at a 45 degree angle to give the corner a mitered appearance. I top-stitched over this, tacking the corners into place.
Now, just as I stitched the other edge of the ribbon, I changed my thread color and stitched all around the inside edge.
This encases the edge of the fabric neatly inside the ribbon between the two rows of stitches and finishes this part of the project. How cute is that to place in the center of any table – round or square?
But what about those four corners I sliced off? I took those to the serger as well, adjusting it to apply a picot edging to all four pieces. You could do a rolled hem or just a narrow hem on the sewing machine if you prefer.
The result? A centerpiece cloth and four of the cutest luncheon napkins, minus all the tatters and stains!
I’m more than pleased. I especially like how the fern pattern, flowing from one corner of each napkin, gives them a different look depending on how you fold them. Above, they’re shown four different ways. Now redeemed from life in the linen closet, this lovely set is ready to be used, admired and passed on. Mom would approve. She was adept at making something out of nothing and you can get a glimpse of that here.
I won’t tell you, however, how many more treasures like this I own that hide way in the dark, waiting for my next brainstorm. I don’t really know how many. Another of my rescues, a battered, old clothes hamper, can be seen here. I’ve been known to rescue things that would otherwise be nothing but compost and you can check that out here.
You can help by sharing your ideas! Scroll back up to the beginning of this post and leave a comment. What treasures have you rescued and how did you do it?
Maybe I can help! Tell me what you’ve got and, who knows! I might get an idea. If you’d like to send a photo, go to the “Contact” page and email it to me.
Maybe together we can, as the old song says, “Rescue the Perishing”!
