I’m still alive, I promise…

Hello my crafty loves,

I believe that I do owe you an apology, or about 60 apologies as it’s been over two months since I’ve posted!  To be honest, there really are no excuses, however in that two months I have come in and out of a quarter life crisis, contemplated changing careers, became a bit more settled,  developed a severe addiction to craigslist and dark chocolate, found a new apartment, and moved into said apartment.  I’ve also been graced by a very full summer social calendar with friends.

But as I’ve just started a new chapter in my life, so begins the next phase of this blog.  As I remodel my new apartment, I will remodel the site…slowly, but all in due time.  I have a lot of projects planned: thrifting for furniture, creating a window valance, great ways to live without central air, color coordinating, cooking on a small stove…  I will be busy and I’m excited for you to get in on my adventure.

I will leave you with a few photos of my place when I found it so you can watch the transformation happen!

Crafting Fix #5- Mommy Day Madness

Everyone who has had the opportunity to meet the Mary knows that she is pretty much the best mom on the planet.  She has regaled us over the years with kitschy care packages and stories of her glory days because we all know how life was all so exciting “back in the seventies”.  So what way to honor the most amazing woman on the planet than with a crafted gift from the heart.

Me and Mary in Malibu

Mary is a simple lady, she doesn’t like much flare, but she does love random home goods.  How many times have we been in TJMaxx for 2 hours while she scales the home decor aisles like a treasure hunter on a beach with a metal detector.  So in honor of spring and my parent’s relatively new gazebo, I decided to make a wind chime.  I hit the craft store for supplies:

Foundation Supplies:
- wire hanger (white)…cue Mommy Dearest reference
- jewelry wire (blue)

Decorative Supplies:
- seashells
- mirrored mosaic tile
- strand of beads
- glitter doilies

Noise-making supplies:
- wind chime from Big Lots

After gathering all of my supplies I started to make the base – what everything is going to hang from.  It is important that the support is there – the wire must be strong enough to hold some weight because the chimes are not light.  I was going use only the jewelry wire but decided to go with the wire hanger for the main circle because it was a lot thicker.  I used the jewelry wire to form the hanging mechanism.

Base Camp – complete.  Make sure to glue supports down when you’re satisfied

Next comes the fun part – decorating!!

In order to start bedazling the kitsch out of this wind chime, I hung the base from my fire sprinkler (proceed with caution!).  My comforter fell victim to some hot glue, but other than that it was the best way to go about this.

I wanted it to look like I pulled this out of the Pacific Ocean…

What time is it? Glue Gun time!!!

Minnie looks on in horror as I go at my new project…

Dangerous work, crafting is

She sells, sea shells, by the sea shore

Ariel would be proud

I recycled the metal pieces from the store bought wind chime and added them to my own creation.
Frankensteining is always encouraged!

Mirrored pieces add flare while twine helps to keep everything together and properly supported

Sorry this is the best pic I have of the finished product
Remember, social networking while crafting is for advanced students only

Everything was a great success except for the fact that I shipped it out the day before Mothers Day….whoops.  Hopefully I can post more pictures once Mary hangs it outside

Happy Mother’s Day!  Keep it Crafty!