Kindle Cover

No project from Mom this week so I thought I would go it alone. Hopefully she will be able to catch up soon. I do enjoy her creativity.

Okay, I hear you moaning about yet another book project. I can’t help it, I just love working with books. I also love shopping for them at the many used book sales in the area. Although there are many books to choose from, finding a hard cover book with a

pretty cover that is exactly the right size as a Kindle has been a little tricky and I have been looking for a while. This particular book was so perfect for my project that my little hand just reached out and snapped it up before anyone else could get it. Like anyone else would want an old copy of Madame Bovary when they could pick up a Twilight novel or something equally as intriguing. What was I thinking? I really love the gold and muted red of this cover.

I have wanted to make a book cover for my Kindle for quite some time now. I feel it’s a nice mix of old and new technology. I did a bit of research before starting and found this great tutorial: www.unexpectedelegance.com if you are interested in making one for yourself.

It is a pretty simple process once you get all the materials assembled. I always find that the hardest part for me is pulling together the aesthetic parts of a project. It seems to take me so long to find just the right thing. Is it lack of the proper materials or my inability to make a decision? I’m not so sure. But with Tom waiting outside in the car while I combed through the Joann Fabric and Craft store, I was feeling a little pressure. I always have to make at least two quick passes through the store before I can settle down and really search. I was pretty pleased to find this lovely butterfly print that I felt both matched the colors of the book and added a little elegance to the project.

Do you remember those fabric covered frames of the early 80’s? Well I made quite a few of those to sell in my local craft boutique. This project was very similar. The first step in the process is to cut the pages from the cover of the book and then cover a piece of cardboard with fabric and adhere it to the cover. Of course there are a few little tricks that you will see in the tutorial but basically, that’s it.

I used hot glue which was a little warm on my fingers. Back in the day, I used tacky glue which doesn’t dry as quickly but is a little more forgiving. I might go back to tacky glue if I decide to make another cover.


This project turned out really well and I’m pleased with it. Do you think it’s a little ironic to be reading an e-book version of Madame Bovary encased in my Madame Bovary book cover? Yes, a nice mix of old and new.

Challenge #5

Given the later date of this post, you can see that we have been having a little trouble either coming up with ideas or being motivated enough to get them done. I have been collecting some great ideas on Pinterest while Mom has been visiting yard

sales. I find the Pinterest route much easier. It’s difficult to come up with an idea on the spot at a yard sale. Most often you find a lot of the same household stuff and it isn’t especially inspirational.

So I was cruising along on Pinterest the other day and came across an idea to make hats out of old sweaters. There is no shortage of used clothing stores in my area so off I went in search of materials. There was so much to choose from! The sweaters with some type of banding on the bottom work out the best because they hold their shape very nicely. No sweater cost more than $2. I did feel a little badly about cutting up perfectly nice sweaters and maybe taking them away from some poor little child, but there were plenty more from which they could choose. I tried on the peach sweater and decided it fit nicely and was too cute to cut up so I replaced it with a yellow cotton sweater (not pictured).

I already own a nice little knit cap so I used that as a pattern by tracing it onto some graph paper. I thought it might be a little big so I made the pattern a little smaller. The gray sweatshirt was the first casualty. It turned out way too small.

Challenge Week #4

I asked my daughter to stop at a consignment shop with me last week-end. I thought a set of fresh eyes might help with my choice of project for the week. We went in the shop with no idea of what the next project would be. We wandered around for a bit not seeing anything very inspirational. My daughter picked up a set of wooden coasters as a possibility but I couldn’t think of anything to do with them. I did like that they were wooden and the center portion where you would place a glass looked perfect for framing something. Even though they were only $3, I didn’t buy them. I was thinking about the coaters as I drove home. Of course once I got home I had an idea and I headed back to the store to pick them up.

I decided that the coasters would be a good base for a pressed flower project. I had a nice little pack of pressed flowers from my scrapbooking days and thought I could put them to good use. You know my obsession with old books and book pages so I’m sure you aren’t surprised to see me use them to cover the coasters as a base. I love the look of the aged pages. As a bonus, I was able to use the fabric stiffener I already had on hand from the handkerchief bowl to glue down strips of torn book pages. I painted the center of the coaster black to showcase the pressed flowers. To add a little gloss, I coated the entire paper covered coaster with mod podge.

After a quick lesson on the drill press, I drilled some tidy little holes in the coasters so that I could tie them together with jute which I thought would give the project a homespun look. Ribbon would have worked nicely as well. Once tied together, I attached the flowers with a little clear tacky glue and voila! The coaster set came with six coasters and I prefer to work with odd numbers so I used five. Seeing how long this piece is, I think that three would have been a more manageable size. I know, I can finish number six and make two!

Mom’s project this week was clever. She had a clock that for some reason did not want to work. The mechanism was replaced and strangely enough that didn’t’ work either. Because she liked the size and finish of the clock, she tucked it away with the thought that it might be useful for something at some point. At last, here was her opportunity! As you can see, she turned the clock into a little

shadow box. This is the type of project that takes a lot of thought and shopping around to find just the right things to fit in the frame and to coordinate with each other to make a theme. Although it takes some time to find just the right items, this part can also be the most stimulating. I like the Victorian flavor of her design. Wouldn’t it make a nice Mother’s Day gift?

I think my brother was motivated by our challenge. He has had a creation in mind for himself but just couldn’t find the time to put it together until now. Don’t you just love this creature?

Challenge: Week #3

I’m feeling like my regular haunts are not putting forth any creative material for my upcycling projects. I was in a bit of panic because I couldn’t find anything. I was headed down to the Hudson Valley to have some fun on a wine tour and wouldn’t have time to do any of that type of shopping. Maybe stop at some yard sales along the way? That didn’t sound like much fun to me. Although add a little wine and I might see things in a different light!

When I pulled into my daughter’s driveway, I could see that one of her neighbors had been cleaning out their back room. Several artist canvasses, some still wrapped in plastic, were piled up next to the dumpster ready to be taken away. I was sure I could find a project somewhere among them so I gathered up a few and tossed them in the trunk to take home with me. Dumpster diving wasn’t included in the contest rules, but I don’t think Mom will mind.

I love to save my brochures and tickets from places I have visited and the shows I have seen. A few years ago I started scrapbooking with this memorabilia which was fun for a while. Last year I bought a journal with pockets for “stuff” that I filled up throughout the year. That was fun, too. Both of these methods are nice but you have to pick up a book and look through it to get any enjoyment. I wanted to be able to walk past my things and smile at the memories.

The project that I have created this week is a shadow box for memorabilia. I turned the canvas around to use it as a little box to hold my stuff. It is only a few inches deep, but paper doesn’t take up much space. I used my neglected scrapbooking materials to decorate the background and added a clear piece of plastic to create a pocket. I chose clear because some of the tickets are small and fall to the bottom and I wanted to be able to see them. It looks so cute hanging on my wall. This would be a good idea for take-out menus or recipes, too. The possibilities are endless!

Mom’s project this week was just amazing! She has always had a fondness for old glassware and dishes. But honestly, how many pieces can one person use not to mention store? I was happy to see her idea because it lets her snap up the interesting pieces she finds and put them to good use. This project looks like a bit of a puzzle as the pieces must fit together just right to not only look well together but to balance the piece as a whole so that it doesn’t tip over. Mom is very good at puzzles so I don’t imagine this was a great challenge for her.

She used a dowel as the support and a plate at the bottom to give the piece some strength and stability. The glassware is adhered together using a clear silicone which not only seals them together but is weather-tight. Otherwise the glue could start to fail as the rain settles into the crevices. It sounds like she really liked this project too because she has made several pieces. I have one waiting for me and I can’t wait to put this piece of sculpture in the garden!

It looks like we both came up with some uniquely decorative projects this week. I can’t wait to see what next week brings! Are there more ideas waiting for us among the discarded and unwanted?

Challenge: Week #2

It’s week two and we’re still going strong! I love this project Mom chose. She found this beat up old high chair at a yard sale. You can see that the arms are missing and it’s just covered with spattered paint. Obviously someone else took an old piece of furniture that was no longer useful in its original form and made a modification. I wonder how long it was used as a painting stool. It’s fun to see all the different colors of paint and imagine the rooms that were given a fresh coat of paint.


Always one to look beyond the obvious, Mom decided to freshen up this interesting piece with a new coat of paint (all one color this time!) and give it a new use. She has a green thumb and has many plants around the house. This unique plant stand provides a variety of height in her collection as well as fun visual interest. It’s the kind of thing that makes you say, “Hmm, why didn’t I think of that?”



I wandered in and out of second hand stores this week with no idea of what to do. I couldn’t find anything that was even in the least little bit inspiring. That is until I wandered into the linen section and found these bottles of fabric stiffener. When I saw them I pictured the scene in “Christmas Vacation” when Clark finds his perfect Christmas tree. A light shines down from heaven and Clark looks like he has just seen the gates to heaven. I don’t mean to imply that finding fabric stiffener in a second hand shop is anywhere near as life altering as the perfect Christmas tree, but I was almost that excited to find my next project.


Now that I had the fabric stiffener, I needed some fabric to stiffen. I found this pretty little hankie in another shop for 50 cents. I thought it would be fun to create a square bowl just to keep things interesting. Once it was dried and unmolded, I didn’t like it. I felt it just didn’t fit the feminine spirit of the hankie. The nice thing about this product is that it is very forgiving. I put a little water in a bowl and moistened the hankie until it came back to its original form. I then found a round mold and started over. I think this shape is much nicer and I like the soft look. I can see it in a bedroom holding hair pieces.


This project was so easy that you could make many little bowls or containers. I can see this technique being used on some pretty holiday napkins. The resulting bowls could be used to hold holiday candy and snacks or make a nice party favor filled with little goodies.

I’ll have to check in with Mom to find out how she did with her week-end shopping. As for me, I hope to have another Clark W. Griswold moment.

Challenge: Week #1

Well we did it! Mom and I both finished our projects on time this week. When we talked midweek I wasn’t sure it was going to happen. A week isn’t a very long time to find a treasure and develop it into a project and we were both feeling some pressure. Time will tell whether or not we can keep up the pace.

My project began with a set of Smithsonian souvenir cookie cutters. The set includes a star, flag, airplane, elephant and dinosaur. When I saw them in the store I just stared at them trying to figure out how I could use them. My daughter stepped up next to me and tipped me off to an idea: use the cookie cutters as a stamp.



I spent a day or two trying to figure out which stamps to use and what to stamp them on. I stopped by a second hand shop and found a white cotton dresser scarf which was just perfect. I decided to go with a patriotic theme and chose the star with red, white and blue paint. The stamping was really easy and only took me about 30 minutes to finish. In the end, I decided to do a little spatter painting to add a little interest (those are the blobs you see!). I think it adds a little interest. Cookie cutters come in so many shapes and sizes and I think this idea would work well for personalized curtains, pillows and even t-shirts. There are so many possibilities to ponder.

Mom did a great job on her project. She picked up a house shutter at a yard sale. It was a natural color when she bought it and she painted it the color you see. She bought the bird house and the fence at the craft store and painted them up, too. I love the charming, country look of this project. I can imagine it hanging on a porch welcoming visitors. She has it hanging on a wall in her kitchen. Not that this is part of the competition, but Mom’s project cost her $2.75 and mine cost me $4.00. Not a lot of money for so much fun!

We each have our projects for this week picked out already. She spent the week-end at yard sales looking for supplies and I popped into a consignment shop. Again, her project sounds more substantial than mine. I’m going to have to step up my game. Maybe next week.

Mommy and Me

So a whole month has gone by without a project or a post from me. That’s not to say that I have had a lack of inspiration or challenges to overcome. My projects have just been piling up all around me! Spring always brings a flurry of activity trying to get the yard in order as well as an increase in my travels. My paid job has been a challenge lately too as I just try to keep up. It saps up a lot of my energy and that’s just not right!

Speaking about traveling, while visiting my mom this week-end I came up with a joint challenge. I thought this time around I would choose a partner to keep myself motivated. Have you ever heard of up cycling? It means to change an item either old or new to give it a new use or purpose. I have been intrigued by some of the ideas I’ve seen floating around and want to give it a try. My mother is the queen of upcycling. She can take just about anything and turn it into a work of art. I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep up with her but I’m going to give it a try.

The rules of the challenge are simple. First, each weekend we must independently buy an item at a yard sale, antique shop, etc. to up cycle. This means that we cannot simply use something hanging around the house or complete a previously proposed project (Yikes!). Second, the purchased item must either be changed into a different use entirely or used as part of another project. The resulting product does not have to be useful to either of us or even anything either of us necessarily wants. The idea is to be creative and not get caught up with the practicality of our end product. That being said, if you see something you like or want, let us know and we’ll ship it out! Who knows what will happen with all our “stuff” but I look forward to figuring it out.

Each week I will post our new creations and the story behind them. This isn’t a competition but I’m betting my projects will be fairly simple while my mom’s will be more elaborate and that’s okay. The idea is to relax and have a good time. I made my purchase this week-end and have spent a few days developing my idea (which has changed several times) and am ready to move on to the implementation stage. Stay tuned, this is going to be fun!