Decorate your front porch with a ladder for fall.
I had an old wooden ladder in my garage that had been used so many times for painting that you could no longer see the original wood surface. It was still quite sturdy, but we didn’t use it anymore because it was so ugly. I couldn’t bring myself to throw out a perfectly good ladder so I decided to give it a make-over for fall decorating.
You can find my tutorial here.
Whew! Yawn! Wow!
The last month has been exhausting with preparing for and having a yard sale, as well as preparing for and participating in two craft shows. The last craft show was this past weekend, but I am just now getting my act together. Well, sort of…I’ve been shaking off fatigue for days. (sigh) With that in mind, I’m a little late in posting some of the new projects I’ve finished. Many of these are already gone, thanks to the “Fall Into The Holidaze” craft show this past weekend.
Fall Display Ladder
Leaf Rake Door Wreath
And another Leaf Rake Door Wreath
Scrap Wood Crows and Cats
Block Candle Holders
Witch Boot Bowl Fillers
Pumpkins
Snowman Dolls
Window Cabinet (my hubby’s creation)
It started out with a simple old window.
Enjoy!
I posted photos of my fabric pumpkins a couple of weeks ago. They sold really well at a craft show that I also mentioned in that post. I knew I would need to make more for a show I have this weekend.
A friend (Thank you, Laurie!) suggested I use my stash of chenille bedspreads for some of my pumpkins. These are the white ones.
My favorite color is pink, so I also had to try pink chenille pumpkins. I love them. Wouldn’t hurt my feelings if they didn’t sell. I could definitely decorate with these.
Of course mixed together they also look pretty sweet.
I was featured!!! 🙂
And away we go! This week I’ve been working on things for my first craft show of the season. It’s at The Last Run Car Show in Arkansas City, Kansas this weekend.
In previous posts I mentioned last weekend I had a yard sale. It was a great sale, but don’t let nobody tell you that having a yard sale is easy money. It’s a lot of work! I have muscles that ache where I didn’t even know I had muscles. Needless to say, I would much rather shop a yard sale than have one. Since we didn’t get through everything, and we have stuff left over, hubby says we definitely need to have another one before the snow flies. We’ll see.
In preparation for this craft show coming up, I have been stitching, painting and gluing just about everything I can get my hands on.
Door Greeter Suitcases for Halloween (Thank you, Opher, for the great name suggestion!)
Snowman Snow Shovels
Pumpkins, pumpkins….
…and more pumpkins.
Even Gourd Pumpkins…
…and Shovel Pumpkins.
Crows
Cup of Cocoa Tree Ornaments
Fall Hubcap Wreaths (Hey, it’s a car show!)
I also made License Plate Ornaments.
Measuring Spoon Ornaments
There is lots and lots more. We packed the trailer at the store last night. If you are in my area this weekend, stop in and check it out.
UPDATE: The show was fantastic!
While on one of my yard sale adventures I found this cute denim mini skirt. It was obviously too small for me, and a bit short for anybody, but that didn’t stop me from seeing the possibilities. I decided a skirt tote bag was just the ticket. I have made jean totes before, but they always look like you’re carrying your butt on your shoulder. The length of a jean tote can also be hampered on the distance between the waist and the crotch. The curves on the bottom of jean butts also make it difficult to cut and sew a straight line along the bottom edge of the bag. With a skirt, these issues were non-existent. This tote can also be done with skirts made from different materials, making this a great project for recycling old clothing from your closet.
Step 1
Turn your denim mini skirt wrong side out and lay it flat on your work surface. Determine how long you would like your tote bag to be. Cut across the skirt’s width at this length. If your skirt has a slit, you will want the bottom of your bag to be above it. Mine didn’t have a slit, and I liked the length of the skirt, so I chose to cut across the skirt just above the hem.
Step 2
Pin the cut edges together and sew using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. You now have a bag.
Step 3
Open the bag. Lay one side seam over the bottom seam. This will make a point at one bottom corner. Measure 4 inches down from the point and pin. Sew across the point at the pinned measurement. This creates the boxed bottom. Repeat on the other bottom corner. Cut off the points, 1/4-inch from the stitched seams.
Step 4
Make the handles for the tote bag. If you have extra material from the bottom of the skirt that you cut off, you can use that. You can also use old blue jeans, or other material left over from other projects. I chose leather scraps from an old leather jacket I had repurposed for crafts. Cut four 2-inch-wide by 20 inch long strips.
Step 5
Decide whether you would like the long raw edges of your handles to be exposed or turned to the inside. Since I used leather, I chose to have my edges exposed. Turning the edges to the inside would have been too difficult. For edges turned inward, place two strips together with the right sides facing each other. Pin the long edges. Sew the long edges using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Do not sew the short ends. Turn the strips right side out and press. For raw edges exposed, place two strips together with the wrong sides facing each other and pin. Sew the pinned edges using a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Do not sew the short ends. Do not turn. Repeat with the remaining two strips so that you have two handles.
Step 6
If your long edges have exposed seams, cut 1/4-inch wide slits from the edge to the seam. This creates a little fringe on the edge of the handles.
Step 7
Lay the wrong-side-out tote bag body on your work surface with the front facing up. Along the top edge, measure 3 inches on each side of the center and mark with a marking pen. Pin one end of the handle to the wrong side of the bag, at one mark and 1/4-inch below the bottom edge of the waistband. Repeat with the other end of the handle at the remaining mark. Flip the bag over and using the pinned front handles as your guide, pin the remaining handle to the bag.
Step 8
If your skirt had a belt, move it out of the way of the pinned handles. Sew across each end of the handles at the pins, and also just below the top of the waistband. Replace the belt if desired.
Enjoy!
More Tote Bag Inspiration!
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