I'm beyond giddy! I actually have a craft room!!!

Holy cow!  I have a craft room!!!  This is a dream I thought I'd have some year when my kids left the house...so you know like 10 years down the line...but no, I HAVE A CRAFT ROOM!!!

 

I'm just a bit excited if you can't tell.  It took a lot of work to get there, but we're finally DONE!

 

Here's how it all came about.

 

This was my husband's library/study/man cave right after we got it all put together for him.  We painted it, put in chair rail and a custom shelf for all his shot glasses.  Over the last 4 years he added to it with cigar paraphernalia, a couple of cube storage systems to replace the shelves, a different desk, a tv and more, but then he wasn't in there very much.  So one day earlier this year we were talking randomly about what I'd do if I had a craft room when suddenly he piped up and said "You can have my room."  I was like "WHAT?!?" and he couldn't take it back!  I grabbed ahold of that statement and held on tight.  Over the next several months I bought paint, picked up a bunch of this and that's to use for the rooms transformation while ideas just flew through my head.  Here's how it all turned out...just bear with me cause there are a ton of pictures!

 

Bright yellow with white trim lightens up the room tremendously.  I painted the black cube units with white paint and distressed it with a grey wash.

 

I reused 3 canvases I had from a previous project for silhouettes of my 3 kids.  I wear aprons all the time so I added a 3M removable hook that I had in a junk cabinet in the kitchen.  I've had the butterflies stored in my craft supplies for a couple of years.  They were the perfect little "family" addition to my room.

I added the kids' nick names to their silhouettes just to take them over the top.

The butterflies represent our family...Hubby, me, the two boys and my daughter!

The top of the door needed just a little something so I went in search of a crafty, creative saying to make a vinyl.  This one just grabbed me because creativity IS my life!!!

Here's a piece my husband and I made together.  This is a Pinterest inspired project.  I needed something to store all my paint and I loved the drawer idea.  This was a very inexpensive project since I found the drawer at Habitat for Humanities Restore for only $4.00 and we had most of the wood already.

Remember that custom shelf for shot glasses?  Here it is all crafted up!  I wanted several things that represented most of the crafting things I love to do.  I think I found a way to incorporate most of them.

I kept the wine glasses we used at our wedding.  They're special since they're Czech glass and our last name is Czech.  I added some of the insulators I had in the living room and then my two Willow Tree figurines.  I wanted two big wooden spools of thread, but they're SO hard to find.  Instead I found a couple of mason jars (another love) filled with wooden spools (for sewing).  They had the perfect colors...more on that later.

 

For birds & decorative painting I have a little hand painted bird house.  Yes, I painted that myself!

I love flowers and hand painting, and I love the One Stroke painting.  I would love to take a class some day, but for now I'll just learn from You Tube and play!

For my love of vinyl and husband I added some vinyl to the letter "E" as a template for painting.  I also added another bird that I painted pink with chalk paint (another love) and dry brushed with white.

I love my ampersand.  For some reason ampersands are so cool...just go with it!  I also added a milk jar (love) of ribbon!  Then, of course, one of my first loves is scrapbooking so I had to add a stamp. 

Owls!  Who doesn't love owls!  And more mason jars with buttons!  And last but not least are two cups that mean a lot to my husband.  They're replicas of the cups used on "Hunt for Red October" one of his favorite books and authors.  Our oldest's name is actually inspired by the main character.  So those HAD to stay!  That completes the shelf and I LOVE IT!!!  It's not too cluttered but comfortably filled!

Here's my work center.  I thought I'd hate this desk...it was the one my husband had...but I was WRONG!  I love it!  The plan is to paint it later, but for now it's just going to get used.  There's also this cabinet that the printers are on.  We purchased that well over a year ago for the printers, but it wasn't till I started working on the elements for this room that it all came together.  We removed a drawer and added wood to make it a solid shelf for electronic components that were necessary to keep in this room.  It's a perfect fit!

I plan to have my silhouette on the desk quite a bit so I found a piece of trim left over from the printer cabinet and tacked it to the desk.  It keeps the silhouette from accidentally getting knocked off the side.  Again, a perfect fit!

Here's one reason I fell in love with this desk.  My silhouette and sewing machine fit in the side cabinet just an arms reach away!  That is when I actually put my silhouette away.

Another item that stayed in the room is this handy strip outlet bar.  It is amazingly handy for all the different things I need to plug in.  The desk area needed a little extra lighting so I found something we had yet again to fill the need.  My husband had converted this liquor bottle into a lamp and filled it with rocks.  He'd never found the right shade for it so it just sat there in his study unused.  I removed the rocks and added clear, iridescent marbles then I added a decorative shade that I customized with a special fabric.  This is the fabric that inspired all the colors in the room.  I have one more accent fabric that I used for my pressing board and as time goes on I plan to make some throw pillows covered in the two different fabrics.  Oh, and then there's the cork board...we'll get to that later!

Here's one of the first projects my husband and I worked on.  I purchased the rotating tool storage system at Harbor Freight & Tools and he spray painted them for me.  He's better at spray painting than I cause I'm WAY too impatient.  The clock is today's latest creation.  I needed some kind of time piece in there and I wanted to keep it inexpensive.  I just purchased a wooden embroidery hoop and a clock mechanism and used the inspiration fabric, some felt, cardboard and tacks to make the clock.

Let me just say this up front...my husband and I are NOT carpenters.  We could never carry that label, but we do like to tinker...and we have determination!  That's what this shelving unit took...determination!  I had a very small space left and needed a deeper shelf to hold scrapbooks and tubes with vinyl so Eric and I designed it.  We measured twice and cut all the shelves, but somewhere in the process something was off cause those middle shelves were a BEAR to get in.  Get them in we did, however, and this shelf works GREAT for my needs!

OH...I almost forgot a LOVELY and wonderfully functional little addition to my desk...a glued on measuring tape.  This has come in very handy several times in the last week.  A little E6000 and a lot of patience!!!

And of course I can't forget my find at a garage sale.  I found a popcorn tin for $.12 and had my hubby spray paint it in one of the accent colors.  It's the perfect size to put a shopping bag in as a liner and it holds a LOT...which is a great thing in my craft room!

Moving around to the back of the room you can see one of 3 frames I painted and added different backings to in the room.  The first was the green framed cork board hanging over the desk.  The second is this orange frame with a white board added to it.  The third I'll explain in a little bit.  It's my favorite by far!  Then we have the two bird cages.  Right now they're just hanging there looking pretty, but at some point I really want to turn them into pendant lights to hang in the corners of the room.  We've yet to figure out the best method to do that, so for now they'll just be decorations.

Here's the storage side of the room.  My husband had 3 different cube organizers in his room.  They were the black or ebony colored cubes and way too dark for the room.  I didn't want to get rid of them cause they can be quite expensive, so I opened a can of paint on their butts (a tribute to Roy D Mercer)!!!  One more lovely find were these paper holders.  I found 4 of them at Hobby Lobby on sale 50% off but they were all black again.  NOT ACCEPTABLE!  So I painted them the 4 accent colors and added some washi tape around the label plate to give it more interest.  Once I put all my paper in them I realized I had room and the need for two more.  So I went back and low and behold they were on sale again for 50% off!!!  SCORE!  Then there's the glass containers on the shelf.  The two stackable containers I found at Hobby Lobby on an 80% off clearance.  I had NO idea what I was going to do with them, but quickly realized that I could use them to divide up the container of decorative gems I had.  Surprisingly, I had just enough colors to fit in the 8 jars.  I found the center container at the next door neighbor's garage sale and one of the other containers at another garage sale.  I had the container holding the washi tape as well as the box and mason jars on the wall.  The middle jar in the box I found at the same garage sale as my trash can and paid less than $.10 for it.

Here's a close up of the paper boxes.  I used my silhouette to write out the labels on all the boxes.  My font of choice is Great Vibes.  I used that on all the vinyls in the room.

Since I had all these cube openings I needed something inexpensive to hold "Stuff".  If you've shopped for the canvas or basket style drawers you know they're at least $7.00 each and up to $20.00.  I have a LOT of openings and I had NO desire to pay that much.  So Eric and I checked out Dollar Tree to find baskets.  We bought 20 of them and when I brought them home they were too wide.  DANG!  So we headed to a different Dollar Tree and THANK THE LORD they had these and they had 20 of them!!!  They fit great...not perfect, but great...in there with a bit of room so they don't scrape the sides of the cube.  I used my label maker to label everything and organize it.  I actually have a little extra room!  What a wonderful "problem" to have!

Just a few more things left to show you.  This white basket I found at the same cheap garage sale.  I literally spent less than $.50 at that sale and walked away with 4 things that are in this room.  Right now it holds small card stock, but since it's so open it may have many uses over time.  The blue box is the scrapbooking box I've had for a very long time, and the iron just hasn't been put away since I used it this afternoon.  That leaves us with one of my favorite items in the room...

My Peg Board!!!

Eric and I picked up this large frame while out antique shopping.  I loved the frame but had no clue what I was going to use it for...that is till he told me I could have this room.  Immediately I knew I wanted it for a peg board.  I envisioned the spools of thread on dowels I'd glue in till Eric said just use the hooks made for a peg board.  I purchased a couple of packages of them just for this purpose, but we had a bunch of them in the garage as well.  We also had the holder for scissors and hooks for the rest of my sewing items.  It displays and holds all my sewing items so well and looks so organized and neat...I just LOVE IT!!!

I can't forget one last thing...the name.  I needed something to call my area and my mom was the one to come up with just the right combination...Jenny's Jems.  Here's the fun part JEM is my mom's initials!  Yes, I know it's spelled wrong, but it's PERFECT!!!

We're back to the beginning of the room.  So, what do you think?  It's my little haven!  I can put everything away and get it right back out again...ahhhhhhhh!!!!!

Thanks for being patient with all my pictures.  Till next time...

 

Jennifer

 



It's a Burlap Christmas...Stockings Galore!

I love Christmas!!!  It's my favorite holiday by far.  I love decorating for Christmas...but not in a tacky way. 

I also love burlap...but I think we've established that fact.  I've pinned so many burlap ideas...more than I could possibly accomplish, or store for that matter.  I want a burlap Christmas...well, Christmas decor at least.  So when I saw this beauty on Pinterest by Cry Baby Ink I knew I had my inspiration...as well as some fantastic ideas.

 

 

The Burlap Christmas obsession started with my tree skirt...seen here.  But that was just the beginning.  The next step had to be stockings.  I searched the Internet for stocking ideas.  I needed help constructing them, plus topper ideas...5 to be exact...or elements from several to make the ideal stockings for my taste.  Finally after months of planning (since last Christmas) I had everything I needed. 

 

Since I have 5 stockings to show I'll begin with construction of the stocking first, then I'll explain each stocking topper.

 

To start I took an old stocking that I liked the shape of.  I traced it on blank newspaper paper I had and added a 3/4 inch seam allowance (See #1).  I then cut out 10 stockings in natural burlap and 10 stockings in muslin.  (Two of each for one stocking.  See #2)

(Ignore the top for now...we'll get to that later)

 

To line the inside of the stocking I sewed one piece of muslin to one piece of burlap (right sides together) at the top (See #1).  Do this for both the front and back pieces.  Iron the seam allowance toward the stocking.  Then pin the front to the back, right sides together, matching the seams carefully and leaving about a 4" opening for turning the stocking (See #3).

 

(Keep ignoring the top for now...)

 

Turn the stocking right side out, then iron the burlap seams.  It takes some time and maneuvering to pull the seams out to iron.  The burlap was stiff and didn't want to cooperate all the time, but take the time.  It makes it look so much better.  Also, iron the lining where the opening is so that you can stitch it down.  Then of course stitch it closed (See #2).  Once it's closed shove the lining back inside the burlap stocking and work it along the edges all the way to the toe. 

 

(One more time...ignore the top...for now)

 

I learned something at this point...but it was on stocking #3...and it's a nifty tip.  I wanted to tack the lining to the stocking so that when we pulled out our gifts it didn't pull the lining out to.  The first two stockings I did this blind by putting my hand down in the stocking and hand stitching it.  It was very hard to do and I do NOT recommend it.  For some reason on the 3rd stocking I figured out that if I'd turn it inside out I could stitch the lining to the seam of the stocking and it was easy.

 

The word "DUH" we used in high school does come to mind...I can hear you saying it now!!!

 

So that's how I did it from then on.  And it was SOOO much easier!  Just hand stitch it...nothing fancy...in several different places (See #1).  To hang the stocking I took 3 - 15" lengths of hemp cord, tied it on the end then used my sewing maching needle to hold it while I braided it.  Then I tied it at the end and attached it by sewing it in on the heel corner.  I did this with 4 of the 5 stockings.  One of them I attached in the lining (See #1 & #2 below), but my sewing machine had a hard time with the thickness, so I stuck with hand sewing them after that.  It worked...we'll see how it holds up over the years...

 

That was the last of the Basic Stocking assembly.  I did the same with each stocking...now on to the toppers...the fun pretty part!!!

 



To start with I had to determine my measurements.  I used my self healing board with the ruler to determine the width and length of the toppers.  Then I cut burlap, muslin, ribbon and other materials for each of my toppers.  Then I had to press them all out nice and neat.  If you can't tell my main colors were cream, natural burlap and touches of red.  Each stocking had to have something of each of those colors.  The fun part was the red.  I just wanted touches of them in fun ways.

For the guys, I found an idea I liked for my husband at Style By Design that fit perfectly in the "theme" I was going for.  I loved the natural buttons with the pop of red on top and bottom.  Then I saw another one with buttons and pleats at Make It & Love It.  It just spoke Bubba (my oldest) to me.  Theirs had white buttons on white fabric.  I decided to do red buttons...that little POP again...instead of the white.  For my Hoss (middle guy) I saw one at Cozy.Cottage.Cute.  She has a great tutorial for a stocking, but I didn't follow it exactly.  For this stocking it has buttons and a pleated ruffle.

Are you seeing the pattern here???

 

Now that I've set the scene...here's what they look like.

 

I measured and pressed all the pleats in the muslin fabric.  I had measurements for this, but since this was the first one I did I've lost the measurements...so I have to wing this.  I think that I took the length I wanted the finished product to be x 3 then added 3/4 an inch for each end for seam allowance.  I believe the pleats are 1/2 inch deep with 1/4 inch between one to the other. 

Ok, my eyes aren't even focusing tonight so I don't know if this is accurate since I can't even see this picture clearly.  But look at #1...it shows the measurements on the pleats.  Sorry, I normally have more details...not tonight however.  Once I had all the pleats ironed and pinned on the side (See #2 & #3) I flipped it over to sew it.  Let me see if I can explain this right cause I don't have pictures.  I matched the stitching line on the bottom of the muslin pleated piece with the bottom stitching line on the stocking.  So the pleats would be face down on the stocking hanging towards the bottom of the stocking.  Stitch it then flip it up toward the top of the stocking.  This keeps the stitching from showing and gives a nice, crisp line you can press on the bottom.  See #4 how you can see the stitching underneath the piece?  Yeah, that's what I mean.  Then pin and stitch the top and sides of the piece in the seam allowance.

Was that as clear as mud???

 

 

I then sewed the piece together as I explained above.  After it was sewn together I added the buttons.  I do NOT recommend doing it this way.  I didn't think I'd know where to sew them without it.  It was a pain in the butt!!!  I'll explain how I fixed this on the other stockings later.  Anyway, I finished this off as I explained above and it was done!  This was by far the hardest one!  I was SOO glad to get it completed!!!

 

Next in line was Hoss' stocking. 

 

Remember I told you she had a good tutorial.  I followed hers, within reason, making a few adjustments.  She had hers go all the way around the stocking.  I just wanted it on the front.  So I halved her measurements, grabbed my masking tape, ruler and iron.  The tape is really handy keeping things in place.  I just recommend putting it below the stitching line.  It's easier to peel off (See #2 & #3).  I'll let her tutorial explain because she's much more detailed.

I added my POP of red with the buttons across the top.  Oh, remember I said this was the one I sewed the hanger into the lining.  Yeah, first and last time.  And just like that this one's done!

 

2 of 5...we're getting there!

 

Last of the guys was my hubby's!

 

Remember, his was the inspiration for the two boys stockings.  It had to have that POP of red at the top and bottom.  The red and natural are both burlap.  I zigzagged all the way around both pieces to keep them from fraying.  Then I sewed them down using matching thread.  Then I ironed under the long edges of the muslin and sewed it down right along the edges.

This time with the buttons I got smart!  I measured in from the edge of the stocking 3/4" for the seam allowance, added a little more and placed the buttons.  It was probably 1 1/4" from the edge.  It worked so much easier!  (I'm hearing another "DUH"!  You're saying it...don't deny it!!!)  You're probably asking why I worried about sewing these in now.  Well, let me explain...I didn't want the stitches coming through the lining fabric.  I wanted all the "yucky stuff" covered up under the lining.  Once I did the buttons I finished it off like I describe above and voila!!!

The boys' are DONE!!!

 

Now on to us Ladies!!!  This time I started with mine.

I started with a lacy white fabric I found at JoAnn's.  I loved the details, but it was white...VERY white!  So I tea dyed the whole piece (1/4 of a yard).  It turned out EXACTLY the color of my muslin.  PERFECT!  I ironed under on the bottom edge and sewed it close to the edge on the bottom and within the seam allowance on the top.  Then I used a piece of burlap that I zigzagged around just like my hubby's above.  For the POP of red I used a piece of red ribbon and sewed it right down the middle...I'm covering this up so it didn't matter if the stitching showed. 

I wanted mine to be very feminine so I strung some pearls on a thread.  I didn't want them in the seam allowance because it would be too thick, so I measured and was careful to not add too many beads.  Using a bead needle I stitched them down coming up and hooking back through about every 6th bead or so.  This ensures that it won't droop when it's hanging and that it stays on that line (Gotta camouflage it you know!)  Instead of buttons us girls have flowers.  So I attached lace, ribbon rose with some red beads as the center.  I finished it off and that's #4!

Finally...we're just about done!!!  Believe me, this is how I felt about this point!

I followed the same steps on my daughter's stocking as I did on mine to begin with.  Attached the fabric and burlap...BUT...they can't be exactly the same.  So with hers I used the red ribbon to make a rose for her POP of red.  It was so simple yet feminine, and after 4 stockings it seemed almost anticlimactic.  Hey, it works!

I sewed on the rose, finished it off and DONE!!!  Well...they're all almost done...there's just one more thing I wanted to add, but that's for next week's post!!!

So to recap...here's Mom & Dad's stockings.  They're the more elaborate ones...and the inspiration for the kids' stockings.

And here they all are together.  I cannot wait to see all these Treasures up on the mantle this year...for our Burlap Christmas!!!

Jennifer

Blogs I'm Linking Up With:

Sunday

DIY Showoff: Project Parade – Flamingo Toes: Think Pink

– I {heart} Nap Time: Sundae Scoop – Nifty Thrifty Sunday – Twigg Studios Sunday Showoff

– Under the Table and Dreaming: Sunday Showcase Party – Cherished Treasure: Sunday Blog Love – My 1929 Charmer: Sunday's Best – Petite Hermine: Linky Party Sundays – One Creative Mommy: One Creative Weekend

Monday

Sew Chatty – Etcetorize: Make it Great Monday – Alderberry Hill: Make the Scene Monday

Boogie Board Cottage: Masterpiece Monday – Debbiedoo's: Newbie Party – Flour Me With Love – Holly's Stamping Addiction – Serendipity & Spice: Manic Monday Party – Home Stories A to Z: Tutorials and Tips Link Party – The Dedicated House: Make It Pretty Monday – Kathe with an E: You're Gonna Love It

Tuesday

Crafty Texas Girls: Cowgirl Up! Tuesdays – Elizabeth & Co.: Be Inspired – Homework: Today's Assignment - Be Inspired – My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia: Tuesday's Treasures – Not Just a Housewife: Linky Party – Sugar Bee Crafts – Today's Creative Blog – The D.I.Y. Dreamer – Sweet Little Gals: Trendy Tuesday – Blueberry Craft & Hobby Time

Wednesday

The Trendy Treehouse: Create and Share – GingerSnap Crafts: {wow me} Wednesday – Southern Lovely: Show & Share – Clean & Scentsible: the Creative Spark – JAQS Studio: Made By ME – Family Home & Life: Wow Us Wednesday – White Lights: Wednesdays Whatsits – Cheap Crafty Mama: Pin it Win it Wednesday

Thursday

The Shabby Creek Cottage: Transformation Thursday – House of Hempworths: Hooking Up with HOH – Momnivore's dilemma: Creative Juice Thursday – Katie's Nesting Spot: A Crafty Soiree – Somewhat Simple: Blog Party – Fireflies and Jellybeans: Show Off Your Stuff Party – Delightful Order: Delightfully Inspiring Thursday Party – The 36th Avenue: Show Me Extraordinary – 52 Mantles: Thursdays Are Your Days

Friday

Create <3 Craft <3 Love <3: Pomp Party – French Country Cottage: Feathered Nest Friday – The Grant Life – Jennifer Rizzo – My Romantic Home: Show and Tell Friday – Serenity Now: Weekend Bloggy Reading – The Shabby Nest: Frugal Friday – Stuff and Nonsense: Fridays Unfolded

Saturday

Classy Clutter: Spotlight Saturday – Funky Junk Interiors – Natasha In Oz: Say G'Day Saturday – Too Much Time On My Hands: Get Schooled Saturday – Tatertots and Jello: Weekend Wrap Up Party