Masking Tape Mirror

When I first started blogging, I was trying to do everything ( crafts, furniture, etc) and had entered a contest called Crafting with the Stars.   You are paired with another  bigger who is "famous" as your mentor and there are weekly challenges, until you get voted off. Since I didn't make it with my PVC light challenge (really? they picked three contestants that had ALL made recycled wood signs. But I am not bitter. I'm just sayin'). So for those of us who didn't make it they made another challenge called "Crafting from the Sidelines" and I entered this mirror.

It is still one of my most favorite things cuz it is freakin' original... and fantastic!

and not a wood sign.

Just sayin'.

Read on.....while I attend a therapy session for bitter crafters who need an intervention ('cuz this didn't win either, a knock off of a painted rug won.......just sayin')

Knock it off baby! We need to find something that we really like but wouldn't pay for it. Then show everyone how we made it by our little ol' selves.  Here is my entry for the Crafting from the Sidelines Knock Off challenge.   I was in Nashville when I found out this was due on Monday, Oct. 3rd. SO I was a bit under the glue gun so to speak, to get er' done. I had to scour the Internet because I had no reading material to speak of, unless you count the hotel menus, so to Z Gallerie website I went a visitin.

So many cool things to covet. I know the Word says thou shalt not covet, which is why in general I stay away from those sites. But today I was going to make something that would look like $145 but only cost me $12! So here is the Knock off  Phoenix Mirror by Z Gallerie. You can go to the website to see it in detail.

And here is mine knockin' it's block off!

Here's how it went down:

You will need:

-10" round mirror

-20 gauge floral wire (3 sets of 30)

-1 roll of 1.5 masking tape

-Silver and gold spray paint

( I started with just silver and added the gold when I realized it needed to look more Champagne finish than silver finish)

-small fake bead necklace, like one used for dress up

(I did not have this in the photo as I added this detail later after looking at the Z Gallerie mirror reeeaaalllllyyy close)

-Only 3 hours to make and assemble!! Does not include the drying time for the glue

Roll out tape to 15 inches and cut lay wire as shown

Cover with another 15" piece of tape. Press along the entire length very firmly to keep together and show wire well

Now cut into two pieces.

Now make 20 more of the singles then cut in two and you will have 40 individual "leaves"

Now do the same thing but make them 9" long. You will make 20 sets as well. This only took me 1 hour to do all 80 leaves so just get some good music on, some wine and then get an assembly line goin'. Although be careful, wine might make your leaves look a little screwy after glass #2. At least it does for me.

Cut all of the leaves like this and then spray paint both sides. Do the Silver first and then add the gold over top lightly until you get the Champagne look.

Make a paper circle 1/4" smaller than you circle diameter. Mine is 10" so I made the circle 9.75 inches.

Tape it in place underneath the circle very well and spray paint with silver and gold like the leaves.

Make a template like above. There is a circle at 10" and at 14" from the circle center

Now smoke a good cigar so you can use the case to roll your leaves. I am just kidding, a test tube will work in a pinch as well (cuz' we all got test tubes lyin' around the house, no?).

Roll the large leaves down to 10"

Roll the small leaves down to 6"

Glue one small on top of one large using the template as your guide for placement. You should have 40 sets of double leaves. I also cut off the excess wire so there would not be too much bulk behind the mirror.

Cut out two cardboard circles the size of the mirror. Set one aside and use the other to glue your leaves onto. I ended up using 18 on each half of the mirror. I hot glued them in place once I liked how they were spaced 

Use two of the discarded wire to make a hanger

Make two holes in the cardboard and thread the ends from the back of the circle. Twist and tape down. If you do not do this step the wires WILL scratch your mirror.

My favorite glue. Generously apply this to the circle with the leaves attached and then glue the other cardboard circle on top. Place more glue on your circle and place mirror on it and  place heavy object on it to weigh it down.   Wait 24 hours.  In the mean time spray paint beaded necklace with same Champagne treatment and let dry. You can now hot glue the necklace around the mirror. 

This is it drying...... and drying........... and drying........ and d..r..y..i..n..g.....ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Wake up refreshed and

hang this Knock out Knock off on your wall in some fabulous place that everyone will look at say

"Ooooooh, Aaaaaaah" (My bedroom DOES NOT make people say OOOh, and AAAh. It is so sad to look at so this mirror is making it feel a bit more snappy)

Hanging in my Bedroom b/c I needed something over the bed more than over the mantel in my LR. I like both  though. See this mirror is so versatile!

" Is that a Z Gallerie Mirror you have there?" "I've always wanted one of those but could never afford it."

Well, now you can.

Always being renewed,

Toile Tables Take Two!

So because I am on vacation in Canada I thought I'd re-cycle some older posts since I didn't plan well and ask people to guest post.

I thought it would be fun to show you how fabric can transform your furniture from okay to great! There are two versions of these tables because well, you'll see.

My Toile Tables seems to inspire alliteration.

Deborah from upcyclingmylife wanted to know how I did the fabric insert on these tables so today you get to find out and hopefully, you'll find some cool way to use fabric on your furniture as well. It is super easy.

Here they are finished

Cut your fabric to be smidge, and I mean a smidge, smaller than the area you want to cover. When you smooth it out it will go to the edge of where you need to be. I was lucky and just used the veneer insert as my template

Dry fit the fabric. This means check the fit and placement BEFORE you start gluing and sealing. You'll be glad you did.

Don't worry about any threads right now. It will be better to cut them when the glue has been applied. And never pull! It will fray your fabric edge and look messy.

Now get your Mod Podge and a foam brush. I like foam because it doesn't leave brush marks on the finished product.

 Tape off the edges you do not want to be sealed. It will protect it from getting the glue on it. I know this isn't pictured but trust me. It is worth it. Mod Podge the entire surface. Then lay half the fabric like above, once placed correctly....

slowly lower the other half in place. Smooth out all air bubbles. Move slowly because every time you reposition your fabric, you will pull it out of shape slightly so take it slow. The directions on the bottle say to Mod Podge the fabric before placing it on the wood but I think it works out better this way. Let the glue dry first before starting to add your layers of Mod Podge over the fabric. If you don't you will move the fabric a bit.

The Mod Podge is cloudy when wet and clear when dry. It takes about 10-20 minutes for each layer to dry. I sealed the fabric with 4 layers of Mod Podge. Make sure you brush the sealer on in BOTH directions. That way you hit all the fibers well.  At this point you can cut any threads that peek out from the edges. I also added a bit more sealer to the edges to make sure it adhered well and didn't lift over time. 

The fabric will now feel VERY rough. Take 180 grit sandpaper and sand it a bit once you are happy with how it looks or you are tired of gluing, which ever comes first. This will make it feel very smooth and finished.  You can also give it a light sanding in between layers of sealer but I did not.

Now you have Totally Terrific Toile Tables!

Tune in next week because I had a buyer in LA who purchased these tables but wanted a different  fabric insert. I can't wait to show you how these went from French Chic to Modern Chic with just a switch in fabric! Somewhere a faux crocodile is crying.......

and here they are when I changed the fabric to crocodile!

 Blogging has really opened up a whole new world (cue Aladdin music) and I feel very fortunate to have "met" so many cool chicks. Savannah is one of them. She is from Los Angeles and she designs SHOES!!! Love her already!Well she saw my Toile Tables in my Etsy shop while searching for something totally different. Isn't it fun when people are brought together.  She asked me if I could change out the fabric as the Toile would not work in the room she wanted them for. I am always up for a challenge so bring it on.  Don't worry, no little croc had to die for these tables to live a new life. Here they are in all their modern chicness. And a how-to too.

Mod Podge really is a good glue. It was a bear getting the fabric off (lots of animals in this post somehow).

Use it to measure the new fabric and cut. Try to match up the design so the tops of the tables match.

Dry fit it like you did with the Toile and then get your tools. I did not want to glue the fabric down like I did before because the croc was a bit thicker and it would not have looked finished.  

So upholstery tacks to the rescue.  You will want to get a rubber mallet so that you do not damage the finish on the tacks. After putting in one whole side of tacks on the table, I was not seeing the tacks as such a good idea! And I had to take them out several times to make them straight. Not an easy task.

This is how you should remove a tack if you ever need to! Yes that is a fork. And a napkin. Very high level tools every DIYer should have in their tool box.  The napkin is so when you leverage the fork, you do not dent the edge of the table.

Plan B. Upholstery tack strip. AHHHHH, no one makes it in Black!!!!!

Plan C. Spray paint antique trim.

Works like a charm! And the finish is much more durable I must say then the original tacks!

Original way I tried to spray, kept curling up soooo,

Cut to length and then spray. Much Better. When I say cut to length, you will need to use sharp pliers and cut right next to the open hole. The individual tack that you use in the hole will cover the edge.

I know this picture is horrible but I wanted to show you the tack strip up close so you can see how it should work.

Spray the tacks that come with it.

You nail these in every 5th space. Because the hole will not always line up with your edge you will need to have an open space as close to the end as possible and then fill in with individual tacks.

What do  you think? Do Crocs Rules?

Because the lines of these tables are so cool, almost any fabric would work.  Just some ideas that you can store in your DIY tool belt.

Always being renewed,

Popcorn Costume!

Some days my mind explodes with ideas and other days not so much. Well two Halloweens ago I had an explosion kind of idea. Jiffy pop! That would make a great costume for my 18 month old to wear!! She'll love it!!

I used a pool noodle to make a circle form.

Sew silver lame (update: that would read la-may not lame like "I made a very lame attempt at writing la-may". I couldn't figure how to make that little accent guy that goes over the "e"!) to lining and make it like a very short curtain. Measure your child to get a good length and then add 7 inches for the top.Make a 5" rod pocket opening. Make two of these about 2x as long as the noodle. Push noodle through opening and then duct tape noodle closed in circle. You will have arm openings on either side now. Sew up the sides and most of the top of the lame and lining.

Fill with packing peanuts until you like what it looks like. Sew top shut. Make sure you leave the extra lame at the top and now cut it roughly to make it look like the jiffy pop just popped open.

Now the fun part!! Pop popcorn!  You will want to pop two bags. Not because it takes two to cover the hat but once you take a bite......

Glue to an old hat, covering every opening.

Undo a wire hanger (yes, it is okay to use them in our house!) and form into a handle and spray paint silver.

Stab it into the noodle, pull out and put hotglue on the ends and stab back in. This is one vicious Halloween costume.

Now try it on the 18 month old!!

Just so you know, she hated it, and she didn't wear it this year either and when I asked her to put it on today for pictures, she said " This is the last time Mama".

Free to good home..Never been used.  How about a nice ballerina costume this year?

Update:

She wore it this year!!! And loved it and wants to wear it next year. I'll never figure her out

Always being renewed,