deer hart: a recycled "vegan" deer trophy

Update: voting for "So You Think You're Crafty" completed on Friday, and my Deer Hart faux  deer head taxidermy made it through to the next round!

Voting is live once again for this week's theme, "For the Boys". Again, voting is anonymous, but I have faith in your good taste to lead you to my project, readers. ;) 

Here is my entry from last week, which would have gotten me through to this round even if someone hadn't dropped out early.

Week one! I'm so excited for the weeks ahead. I've had a ton of projects on the back burner, so I'm glad to be able to pull out the supplies I've been collecting and get to crafting!

This project (a faux deer head trophy made mostly from recycled scraps) competed for my attention with another project I've been longing to get around to, but I ended up picking it because it's a low cost project that's on-trend and can be made with materials that are really easy to find. Even non-hunters can play along!

Using materials from the Habitat for Humanity ReStore and Bring, recycled cardboard, a thrift store map and some tape, the cost of this project's materials comes in at under $10. The blog tutorial I'll post after voting ends will include a template for the basic structure and detailed instructions, so you can make one yourself!

The name for this project (and the inscription on the little metal plaque) comes from my love of puns and old Grimm brothers fairy tales, which often mention a "hart" running through the woods (and led to a bit of dictionary research when I was eight).  One of the lovey nicknames I call my kiddo is "dear heart", so the  pun fits well for something that might hang in his room later. It's etched on the backing of an old drawer pull using a simple awl. I also used a vintage German map for the decoupage, since the Grimms were from Germany.

To finish it off, I distressed the edges lightly and added a little yellow chalk line detail. A big project, but I'm so excited by the results. I hope you like it, too!

I'll be back to post a full tutorial later this week, including a template for the cardboard pieces you'll need for the basic structure. Until then, start gathering your supplies and tools!

*one old board or cupboard door, preferably with a beveled edge (mine cost $2 from the ReStore)

*some pieces of scrap wood (free)

*heavy cardboard (I like the double-walled kind you can find fruit or wine shipped in; free from Costco)

*a small metal plaque (mine cost 25 cents from Bring, and was originally the plate behind a drawer pull)

*two 1/2 inch screws (free, with the cupboard door)

*thrift store map (another 25 cents from St. VIncent dePaul)

*masking tape (I used Greener Masking tape {30% recycled} from 3M)

*duct tape

*glue gun + glue gun sticks

*four 1-inch screws

*four washers

*Mod Podge or suitable decoupage medium

*leftover paint or paint sample

Optional materials:

*wood filler

*sandpaper

*chalk

(p.s. you can make these photos larger just by clicking on them, but you're probably so clever that you already knew that.)

old clock + looking glass paint = convex "mercury glass" mirror

I told you I'd be back with more spray paint on glass! Woohoo! I'm following through!

I saw the idea for this project somewhere, but it's not on my Pinterest boards so I'm afraid I don't remember whose idea this project spawned from. Basically, the idea was to take an old clock (found this one at BRING; it wasn't repairable by me for use as a clock). . .

Remove the backing and clockwork. Turn the glass face down on some cardboard . . .

Spray the backside of the glass lightly with water . . .

Spray over the water with a light layer of the looking glass paint . . .

Wait for it to dry. Spray over the surface again with water and another light layer of the looking glass paint (it doesn't need to be solid). When dry, flip over and check your work . . .

Replace backing and hang!

I pulled some pretty cool brass gears and other worky-bits out of the back, too, for use in a future project . . . stay tuned.


Once I had the mirror up and had hung some other things around it, I realized the cord from my 5-cent pendant shade looked pretty crappy in photos.

See? Totally crappy. Dangerous, too. So I took some cord clips and a little light weight hammer . . .

And I fastened the cord to the ceiling and wall along the trim.

Much better. A little paint will help, too, eventually, and spacing things more carefully.

But those are just asides that will make the mirror wall look better. People who've been in our house are also getting a nice peek here at the new room color. More on that soon!

So, have you been spray painting any glass lately? Making any mirrors? Making ridiculously simple fixes like attaching cords to your walls so your house doesn't look like the underside of a computer desk? Link it up in the comments. I promise I'll come visit!

p.s. You can make these photos larger just by clicking on them, but you probably already knew that.

Linking up to:

My RePurposed Life's Catch as Catch Can

faux mercury glass vase

Tutorials for faux mercury glass using Krylon Looking Glass Paint are all over the place right now, so I know I'm not exactly breaking new ground here, but I wanted to share a few photos of my experiment with the method anyway.

Clear glass vase from Goodwill, 49 cents. Spray with water (or wash and leave droplets on the interior).

Spray Looking Glass Paint lightly on the inside. It'll be runny. Coverage will be light, but even a little makes the mirror effect evident from the outside. Which is good because it costs $10 for a tiny little can.

Let rest for ten minutes, then spray another light coat. Continue until you have the desired effect. Allow to dry for 24-48 hours.

While mine didn't appear as "aged" as I'd hoped, it did turn out looking much better than before (please ignore that my anniversary flowers are looking a little spent in this next photo).

I looked around to see if I could find out whether people were able to fill their new mercury glass vases with water. It seems like most people are using them as candle holders, but the Martha Stewart tutorial comes closest to addressing the issue by suggesting that you arrange flowers in a water-filled glass, and put that into your mercury vase. Which is what I've done in the last photo.

My experiments with this method aren't finished; I have a couple more ideas which I'll post when I get around to trying them out. Never fear; I will absolutely exhaust you with projects that involve me spray-painting glass. You're welcome.

Thanks for reading! Have you tried this technique yet? I love to check out your (non-spam) links when you post them in the comments below.


p.s. you can make these photos larger just by clicking on them, but you probably already knew that!


Linking up to:

Handy Man, Crafty Woman

Tip Me Tuesday at Tip Junkie

A Bowl Full of Lemons

Mommy by Day, Crafter by Night

Today's Creative Blog

DIY Show Off

The Stuff of Success

Mop it Up Mondays at I Should Be Mopping the Floor

Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Catch as Catch Can at My Repurposed Life

Simple Design's Thrift Haul


Nifty Thrifty Sundays

baby-safe "roman shades"

We had a homemade Roman shade in the kitchen (I made it when we first moved in six years ago), but considering the number of recalls of Roman-style shades in the past couple of years, I was never comfortable with it after my kiddo was born. Have I mentioned what a crazy climber he's become lately? I think he has mountain goat aspirations.

Anyway, it was time to nix the kitchen's strangulation hazard in favor of this simple faux Roman shade.

A lot of the tutorials you'll find for "faux roman shades" are actually valances that don't ever drop to cover the entire window. This one does.

It's in no way perfect, but it is inexpensive, easy, and functional. And by functional, I don't mean "easy to open due to an elaborate system of cords and pulleys", but "covers the window at several different heights, providing privacy without blocking too much light".

Again, no strangle-y bits here.

First, clear out your old window treatments.

Acquire three simple tension rods long enough to fit the width of your window, and a painter's canvas drop cloth. Your canvas drop cloth should be wide enough to accommodate a (pre-washed) single piece as wide as your window and twice as long (plus seam allowances and about three inches of length to make a pocket for the rod).

Loosen the screws, fit the tension rods to your windows, and tighten the screws.

Install two of the rods as shown, effectively splitting the window into equal thirds.

Hem your canvas panel along all sides and bottom, and create a pocket at the top that can accommodate the curtain rod. Hang it at the very top of your window.

Loop your shade behind the second (middle) rod, creating a deep fold.

Pull out the tail from the bottom, and repeat the loop-and-fold for the third (bottom) rod.

That's it! For us, because the window looks out into the less-than-scenic car port, it's not important that the shade open and close quickly and easily. When I want a breeze, I just pull and tuck and have this again:

Total time: about an hour (not counting the wash cycle). Total cost: $40 including three tension rods and one canvas drop cloth. You could cut the cost by using any fabric you have on hand, sheets, etc.

What's on your windows? I'd love to visit your (non-spam) links in the comments below!



(p.s. pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them, but you probably already knew that.)



Linking up to:


The Stuff of Success

the fanciest thing in my house

This is the fanciest thing in my house.

Similar projects have been all over Pinterest for awhile, based on a $300 West Elm version (which I've read is based on a $1500 version by designer Vernor Panton). And I really liked them.

Most of all, as usual, I like the idea of making something over with inexpensive materials. In my case, I spent $2 on an old lampshade, $2 on a spool of steel wire, and $1.50 on a roll of wax paper.

I wish I knew who to credit with the innovation of using an upside down lampshade, because I think it's pretty darn smart. I've seen similar versions made with hanging fruit baskets, Ikea picture frames, and wreath forms, but I don't know the evolution of this project (which came first, and who spun off their project from the original?).

Here are a couple of the inspiration pins for this project: this one from Design Sponge (made with a hanging planter basket, ribbon, and hot glue); this one, from Make House a Home (made with a lampshade and stitched strands); and this one, from A Happy Place Called Home (Ikea frame and jump rings).

I did what I usually do; I picked the elements I liked from different versions of the chandelier (the upside down lampshade, the wire instead of stitching) and filtered out the ideas I didn't like, or that I thought made the project too complicated or expensive. And then I added in some of my own spin.

But let's start at the beginning. With an ordinary boob light.

I blogged last summer about my guest room make-over, but though a bunch of things have been changed or modified since that last update, I hadn't touched the light fixture. In fact, I shot around it when I wrote that post. And then, in August, I saw a couple of faux capiz chandeliers on the Young House Love blog's Pinterest Challenge (see numbers 6 & 184). I did a little bit of research and turned up a bunch more versions (as mentioned and pinned above). Then I gathered my materials. In addition to a roll of wax paper and a spool of 20 gauge steel wire, I turned up a tapered lamp shade at the thrift store on a 50% off day (I paid $2 after discount).

Tear off all the fabric and add an extra row of wrapped wire, and you end up with this:

I ironed three layers of wax paper together to make the "shell" material. And to a couple of spots, I added a very, very few crayon shavings between the layers to make a very small amount of tie-in to the room colors. Rather than punch circles out of the waxed paper, I cut mine into varying sizes of rectangles. And rather than stitching the shells together, I punched holes in either end with a teensy hole punch and hooked trains of the pieces together with jump rings made from the steel wire.

(Making jump rings with wire and pliers is way cheaper than buying jump rings ready-made, but is also more time consuming. Plan your own project accordingly.)

As is my pattern, I got only partway through with one tier, and retired the chandelier to the closet for a little while, to get it off the table. And then I got sidetracked working on Halloween costumes, Christmas presents, hallway painting, and birthday party stuff.

Earlier this month, when I finally pulled it out of the closet and went to hang it up (because a partially-finished chandelier is harder to ignore when it's hanging right in your face), it looked like this:

I buckled down, and put in some good, solid blocks of time to getting it finished. It took approximately 72 chains of 5 shells for the top-most tier, 56 chains of 4 for the middle tier, and 48 chains of 3 for the bottom tier.

It took a bit of time. And when it was finished, it looked a little like this in the room (flash on, with Photoshop filters added).

Here's how it hangs from the ceiling, with two cup hooks (the chandelier is super-light, but I may add two additional cup hooks, just in case).

And here it is, done . . .

. . . glowing . . .

. . . and in daylight . . .

I'm pretty happy with how it came out. Have you made one of these yet? Isn't it amazing what you can do with paper?

Hey, you can link to your paper projects in the comments below. Thanks for dropping by!


Edited to add: The original UL-rated fixture is still in place, with low-wattage compact fluorescent bulbs. The wax paper structure sits a little below the ceiling, and a couple of inches away from the glass shade. Plus, it's in the guest room, which means the light's not on very often. We're pretty safe from any fire danger, but I'm definitely on the alert!


(p.s. you can make these photos bigger by clicking on them . . . but you probably knew that!)


Linking up to:

I Am Momma Hear Me Roar blog

leftovers

Whenever I finish a project, there are usually leftovers of one kind or another. In the past, I have just boxed things up and stashed them away, but the recent clean-out of the spare room may just have cured me from that habit. New habit I'm trying to form: using the leftovers to make another fun project right away.

Saving things for later seems like the right thing to do, but when you have as many different kinds of hobbies as I have, and when you tend to forget down the road where the leftovers are or whether you have them at all, you end up buying new stuff each time anyway. Wasteful. Makes storage areas messy, too, and then when you're pulling stuff out to donate, you start adding up in your head the money you spent . . .

The Halloween costume project this year meant leftovers of several kinds: felt and fake fur, most obviously. With Christmas coming up, I thought I'd take some of the stuff and make something cute with it for my kiddo.




Voila! Monster pillows!

To start, I cut the largest rectangle I could from the leftovers of a remnant of faux fur used for the tail of my son's Halloween costume. The pillow pictured is made with a piece that measured about 13 x 25 inches. (Folded in half and stitched, it made a nearly-square pillow approximately 12 x 12 inches.)

Next, I planned the face, and cut face parts out of leftover red, orange, ivory, and charcoal gray felt. I stitched the layers together, then planned where they should go on the pillow (not too close to the edges, and not to close to where the fold would go at the top of the pillow). You can pin your pieces in place; I just free-handed, because I wasn't too picky about having the face end up perfectly placed. I think it looks a little sillier slightly off-kilter.

Using my machine, I stitched around the face pieces close to the edges, attaching them to the fur.

Then, I clipped my threads, made my fold so that the furry sides were together, and stitched around all of the open edges, leaving a space open to turn the pillow right-side out and stuff it. I stuffed it full of fluff, then hand-stitched the opening closed.




I may have a hard time keeping this guy (and his soon-to-be siblings!) out of sight until Christmas. He already looks quite at home in the nursery chair.




(p.s. you can make these photos bigger by clicking on them . . . but you probably knew that!)


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