Recycled Denim Jeans

I've been 'missing in action' lately because I've been trying out different things.  As I've said in my profile I LOVE all crafting, so have recently gone back to my roots a bit and have been doing some more sewing.  I really hate waste so I love to reuse or recycle whenever I can.  I get a daily update from Whoot where they have fantastic crafts, recipes etc with LOTS of recycling ideas.

I LOVE these recycled demin jeans, which I purchased ridiculously cheaply at our local Hospice shop.  Firstly I tried these out on a pair of my old jeans after seeing the idea here. 

Making the full apron uses the front, back pocket & the bottom of 1 leg, while the smaller 'gardening apron' uses the backside & belt of another pair.  Sadly both styles cannot be made from one pair unless you don't have the waistband on the full apron (which would spoil the whole effect).

 

This one is my favourite, which I'll probably have to keep for myself, very closely followed by this next one.

 

 

 I tried several different styles, as we all like different things, with the following being much plainer.

 

 These half 'gardening aprons' are proving very popular, providing handy pockets for all your bits and pieces when in the garden.  I love using the 'grungier' jeans for these and have also tried to use jeans with labels still attached.

 

 

 

Again some of these ones have purposely been left plainer to hopefully cater for all tastes. 

These are all available for sale for my New Zealand friends as I am making these to be sold at upcoming pre xmas markets.  If you are interested in making a purchase please just leave me a comment (which if you choose will not be published). Wish me luck.

Mia's Christening

I've found a new challenge site and what great timing, its their birthday this month at Scrap around the World and they have gone all out with prizes from their fantastic selection of sponsors.  This  is their fantastic Inspiration Board I've used.  Straight away I loved the delicate shades of pink, the roses and the sparklies which reminded me of this gorgeous christening photo I've used, and of course it was a great celebration.

I've created this layout trying out a new style to me, which is successfully used by lots of hugely talented ladies out there.

I've used lots of Kaisercraft papers from the 'Precious Moments' & 'Key to my Heart collections' (5 actually if you are counting), which I have layered up once all were distressed, punched or stitched, with the photo layered up on a total of 8 different layers.  The lace layer breaks up the background a bit.  Dusty Attic chipboard, BoBunny  & I am Roses blooms add more of the soft feminine feel to the page.
Enjoy these closeups

 

Also I'm using this lovely layout as inspiration for all the entrants at the latest Southern Girls Challenge where this time the theme is 'Tic Tac Toe'.  I've used the first line on the grid which is 'Lace - Patterned Paper - Roses'.  This type of challenge ends up with some amazing combinations and is such fun, I can't wait to see what you all come up with.  As usual there are great prizes to be won here from our fabulous sponsors.  Why not join in. 

Bottoms Up

Here's a fun layout I've done as part of the Creative Dreams August challenge.  The requirements were:  1. Green,  2. Use some Imagine if . .  chipboard,  3. Recycle something.

1. Green is easy, 2. as I have just been making some fun zipper flowers I decided they could be my recycled items, and 3. of course being on the Imagine if . .   design team I am lucky to have lots of gorgeous chipboard to play with.

 

I love the grungy look of this Kaisercraft 'Basecoat' paper which I've distressed & stitched the edges, randomly stamped & used some homemade texture paste through TCW stencils.  Behind the embellishments I've also inked thru Imagine if stencils.  These fun photos needed a bit more colour to be introduced so I've layered these coloured bits on top of some doilies. 

 

 

This little reed chipboard from Imagine if . .  is stunning, I've painted it with about 4 different browns & greens, then glued micro beads onto the seed heads.  I love the outcome, and have perched the small bird on top. More birds are used also, with one sitting on the lovely little branch, which was painted after I added some texture paste.

 

 

The zipper flowers have been fun to make, follow the link to my tutorial here.  Also used are I am Roses & Dusty Attic blooms.

This has been a great chance to use this fun photo taken on a recent holiday to Australia of these cheeky parrots having something to eat from a feeding station.

Thank you Jules for offering the challenge, I can't wait to see what everyone else comes up with.

 

Forbes Museum

Here is my entry for this months sketch challenge at Artfull Crafts.  Its great to take advantage of these sketches that require more than one photo.  Here are some more of my holiday snaps taken last year.

 

This was a quaint little disused railway station that had been converted into a café & museum, that we came across in NSW, Australia (hence all the gorgeous lush plants).

 

All the papers I've used here are only random unnamed papers from my stash, that I've distressed, stitched, inked & stamped.  The colours work well with the photos I think, and the handmade flower fits in with the sketch well.

 

One of the prizes in this challenge is a paper pad of the new Kaisercraft collection 'Blubelle', which is stunning, with all the colours I enjoy using.  Wish me luck with this.

Mar.IARDC

Today I've made a quick card using my favourite colours - blues & yellows, on top of some brown kraft card.  This is my entry for the monthly colour challenge over at I am Roses.

 

Firstly I embossed my piece of kraft cardstock, then rubbed over the impressions with chalk ink.  Next I stitched around the distressed edges, before attaching to my blue card.  The sentiment came from a Heartfelt Creations collections (gotta love these).  Lots of IAR flowers finish the card, here I've used Daisy's, Cherry blossoms & the little S-10 blooms.

 

I make very few cards, so have enjoyed this challenge.  Thank you for visiting, please leave me a comment.

Toasty Warm Feet

Many years ago, at a craft show, market or somewhere similar,  I came across this fantastic idea for warming up your feet.  I have always suffered from cold feet so just had to have a pair.  I use them nearly every night during winter, while sitting watching TV, or at the computer (basically everywhere while sitting still).  All who have seen them are also very impressed, so I have managed to make up my own pattern and have given them away as gifts. 

   

These are actually wheat bags made into slipper form.  Just heat them in the microwave as you would a wheat bag, and hey presto cosy, warm feet.  You could also chill them in the freezer and use them to cool your hot feet if you wanted. 

I wouldn't be without them.