Jars to Canisters

 Hello Readers. I like to re-use and re-cycle whenever I can. It's good for the environment and saves me money. I like both of those things a lot. I also prefer to use glass containers for food storage instead of plastic containers. This is a great way to get free glass containers. Let me show you what I mean. 

 Before and after.  

I started by buying a big jar of pickles. (It took a while to eat all of these.) It doesn't really matter what is in the jar, I wanted the biggest jar I could get. This was in the biggest jar I could find while I was grocery shopping. It also had a label that I could peel off, I did not want a jar with a label painted right on the glass because that paint would be harder to remove than a plastic or paper label.  

I also bought a large jar of olives. (It took me quite a while to eat all of these too.)  

I washed the jars really well in hot water. I gave the jars and lids a full soaking and scrubbing with dish soap. 

  

The heat of the water made it easy to remove the label. I wanted the jar to be clean with no label or adhesive left on the glass. This label came off easily so I was able to move onto the next step.

 

I grabbed some acrylic craft paint. I wanted to paint the lids to make them a little nicer looking. I like blue but you can choose any color you would like. I thought if the lids were the same color they would look a little more cohesive. (I love a matching set.)

 

I painted the lids and let them dry overnight. This would cover the lettering and brand names on the lid. I am going to use these jars for more than  pickles and olives, so I don't want the lids to have those labels anymore. And I love blue.

 

I liked how the painted lids looked. The jars were perfect for any snacks or pantry staples. OR the cookies I made and for the candy I had. They look pretty cute and since the glass is clear, I know if I am running out of cookies. 

 

You don't have to use large jars and you don't have to paint any metal lids if you don't want to. This yogurt comes in a glass jar and doesn't have a lid at all. It has foil on top. 

 

You can buy these kind of reusable wooden lids to use on your jars. They come in all different sizes for all different sized jars. The rubber around the edge keeps the contents fresh. 

  

I washed the yogurt jars and removed the label like I did with the large jars. 

 

 These small jars are perfect for spices and seasonings that need to be stored. The jars and lids are washable and can be re-used again and again. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun (Like cookies!) for yourself and store them in a fun jar. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dress Up Your Bag

 Hello Readers. I love purses and bags and I have noticed there are a lot of designers selling charms and decorations to add on bags now. I don't spend designer prices on anything so I wanted to find a way to decorate my bags with things I had on hand. Let me show you what I put together. 

I found this Coach bag at a Goodwill bin outlet. I like it by it self but it is great with some decorations too. 

 

I can't afford a Louis Vuitton bag but look at the decorations they have on the side. They add color and interest,

Here is another example. They colors and materials add a little color and interest to the bag too. We can do that on our own, let me show you what I mean.. 

 

Here is my plain bag. (It's naked!!) I looked all around my house and found some items to easily add to my bag. 

Here is what I collected for my bag. I found a small scarf, a brightly colored leather cord (Similar here.)  and a chain. (Similar here.)

It was easy to tie a small scarf around the handle of the bag. Any little scarf would work. 

 

This orange cord had a fun tassel and a small key attached. I used a simple knot to attach the cord to the metal ring on the bag. I tucked the long end of the cord down into the bag. The orange was a fun pop of color. 

I had this chain necklace and I thought it would be a great addition to the bag. It was easy to add it to the clip on handle. I didn't need to cut or alter anything I added to my bag so it can all be removed and used or worn again if I want later. 

This black bucket bag is great just the way it is but let's have some fun with decorating it. 

 

I thought red bag charms would look good with this black bag. I found this key chain of a cute little double-decker bus and a small Union Jack flag from London. The key chain slips on the metal ring of the bag with no problem.

 

I found this large old fashioned key in a drawer and it was a nice match of silver metals. it fit right on the clip of the bag handle. 

 

I added a small red scarf to the handle. That red really pops. I just tied a simple knot so it wouldn't fall off. The red scarf was fabulous with the red bus key chain.

 

The red charm and scarf went together so well and they added some bright fun color to this black bag. You can decorate your bag with anything that appeals to you, it can be unique and personalized to you. You can use whatever you want.
 

It doesn't really matter what you add on your bag. It is just a fun way to make your bag more special and you should enjoy the end product. This little guy is my favorite. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jack-o'-Lantern Jacket

October means Jack-o'-Lanterns and candy. At least to me and my family. I found this orange cardigan style jacket at a clothes swap months ago and thought it would make a great Jack-o'-Lantern. Let me show you how I put it together. It was an easy project that you could do too. 

I made a cheerful Jack-o'-Lantern Jacket. 

This jacket had a plain, smooth back. That is perfect for my project. You could also use an orange sweatshirt. You just need an open space on the sweatshirt that you can use for your Jack-o'-Lantern face.

 

I started by tracing out my face. I wanted triangles for the eyes and nose. I used a staple remover as my triangle. (It was the only triangle I could find.) I traced it lightly so I could paint over it later. 

 

I wanted a smile so I needed a curve to trace. I used this small lunch plate and traced one side of it to make a round half circle shape. I think tracing is easier but you could also draw out a face free hand if you feel comfortable with drawing. 
 

When I was done tracing the face on my jacket I wanted to paint the face in a dark color to make it really stand out. I used dark acrylic black puffy paint because it has a narrow tip that made it easy to draw over what I had already traced out. The tip made a clean sharp edge and I liked how that looked.

 

I used the squeeze bottle to trace the out lines of the face. I squeezed gently and tried to slowly draw the line of paint on top of the outlines I had traced earlier. It isn't brain surgery so don't get over-stressed about it.  

 

When I had made a nice clean outline of paint, I filled in the center by spreading the paint out with a paintbrush. This paint is easy to use. It is thick and does not soak through the fabric too much.

*Note- If you decide to paint a thinner material, like a t-shirt, put newspaper or something like that inside the shirt so the paint does not soak through and make marks on the other side of the shirt. 

 

I added some zigzag shapes to the mouth. Then I added eyebrows too. I was just having fun, you can personalize your face however you want. 
 

I left the jacket out over night to dry thoroughly. I did not move it for fear that I would smear the face. Once it is dry, it will never wash out. So be careful when you are painting the paint will stain anything it gets on. 

 

My new jacket is fun and great for the month of October and for Halloween, and simple enough to wear to work. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Men's Shirt Upcycle

 Hello Readers. This linen men's shirt has been around in so many ways for so long. I have refashioned it before, about 2 years ago. I didn't wear it much and decided to re-refashion it. 

Before and after.  

I refashioned this men's shirt the first time in 2023. I took it to England on a trip and it was great. 

 

It was light and easy to wear. It was perfect as a tunic in Bath, as a bathing suit cover up in Lyme, and as a night shirt in London. But it stayed as a night shirt since then. There is nothing wrong with that but I wanted it to be a shirt I could wear because I love the checked blue pattern. 

 

It was just too long, I didn't want to wear it over leggings now. 

 

I liked the loose fit but it had to be shorter. I gave it a big cut. 

 

I gave it a nice hem at the bottom. 

 

I liked the new shorter length and it was so easy and comfortable to wear. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

Too Many Tiers

 Hello Readers. Sometimes clothes are pretty and yet not quite right. This skirt was great but I needed to fix that length right away. 

Before and after and after. 

This skirt had 4 equal size tiers. If I was going to shorten it I needed to remove a tier. $ was clearly too many. 

 

I cut the white lining about 1/2 an inch shorter than the third tier. 

 

Was 3 tiers right? I wasn't sure. 

 

I tried it on. It was much better. I could wear it like this but I wasn't positive. I thought shorter would be better. 

 

When I was done with the cutting I used my serger on the cut edge of the lining. It won't fray because it it's a knit but this will keep the edge neat. 

 

This stitching will keep the edge from curling. This will look neater under the tiers. 

 

I liked the 2 tiers. This length was just at my knee so I thought it was really easy to wear. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.