recycled solar crayons

old crayon bits in a silicon mold, inside a clear shoe box in the full sun.

two-hour time lapse.

trying it with a full set!

carle museum of picture book art -- bugs in trees project

The Carle Museum of Picture Book Art hosted an open call for handmade bugs to hang from trees in the orchard. We sent these.

orange creamsicle pendleton wool scrap bunny

I keep using wool from this box of blanket header I bought from the Pendleton Woolen Mill Store, but the box doesn't look any emptier. And I keep making bunnies out of it. And subjecting you to the photos.

This one's cream and orange bunny fur is charming enough without adding clothes, but she did get a red wool heart.

I keep making these buns (here and here, also) but I don't really have a barometer for whether they're as loveable as I think they are or not. I'm going to get ahead on my work one of these days (instead of playing Catch Up) and make a few for Etsy, but that day is not today.

Thanks for reading! And if you've received one of my bunnies lately, thanks for cuddling!

backyard sink!

I've been thinking for awhile that it might be nice to have a spot to wash hands and clean sandy toys and shoes in the backyard, aside from the hose. After pinning a few backyard sinks on Pinterest, I brainstormed what I might build as a sink support structure. We have a scrap pile, of course, that I regularly dip into for building projects. I considered building a counter top on legs (with a bucket underneath to capture what drains out of the sink). I considered attaching a shelf to the house with a sink imbedded. And then I thought about how already full of stuff our yard is, and where I'd put whatever contraption I came up with.

It made sense, really, to use something we already had back there, and this hardwood outdoor bar was a logical choice. We've had it for about seven years now; we use it occasionally for backyard barbecues, but not much else. I talked it over with the Mr., deciding finally that adding a sink wouldn't ruin the bar's usefulness, but add to it.

After measuring the bar to determine sink size, the next step was to scavenge for a sink. Bring Recycling was my first stop; they have dozens of sinks over there, and the kiddo and I considered several hefty porcelain-coated cast iron antiques before finally choosing a simple stainless steel bowl sink for its light weight. We picked a faucet, too, then headed over to the hardware store for various connectors, a length of hose, and some plumber's putty.

It had been suggested to simply cap off one of the brass water supply hoses to avoid the added plumbing work required for two; it was a suggestion that made sense, since we wouldn't be running hot water to the backyard anyway.

Capping it off is pretty easy. We found the right size threaded cap at the hardware store, put a little plumber's putty on the threaded brass water supply line, then screwed the cap on. Easy peasy.

The hose coupler is equally simple. It has two female ends, one that fits over the other brass water supply, and the other, larger end to fit over the hose. We eventually used plumber's putty on this area as well.

I cleaned the wood with a scrub brush, water, and some spray cleaner, then I used the sink turned upside down to trace the hole we'd have to cut.

To support the lip of the sink bowl, I traced a second line about 3/4 inch inside the first. This was our cut line.

I wasn't too worried about perfection; as long as the lip of the sink bowl covers the hole and is well-supported, I'm happy.

I'm not too fond of the reciprocating saw as there's a bit too much motor movement to use a blade that big with a kid running around in the yard with me. I waited until the weekend and the Mr. ended up cutting it out for me. And it looked awesome, set in place, like it was meant for this bar.

After testing for fit, I popped the sink back out and stained the top, since the weather had really worn down the previous finish. Then I put the sink back in place so we could get the faucet lined up right.

The yellow paper is one of the paper templates that I made up for each of three faucets to test for fit, and to help drill the holes in the right places. The original faucet I'd picked out had been too wide at the base, and the faucet was a little on the short side (sad trombone).

We tried out a couple more, finally settling on a faucet that fits pretty well. It doesn't have the two-handles I'd prefer, but the base is a tiny bit narrower and the faucet is a bit longer, so it works out pretty well.

This is what it looks like underneath. The hose lead connects to a y-splitter at the house (so we can still use another hose to water the garden). The black drain pipe drains into a bucket for the time being, to be used for watering plants, etc. The Mr. has some big ideas about adding more plumbing under there and a run-off hose, but I'm happy with this set up for now.

I caulked around the sink and faucet, and also some of the crevices along the surface. It's clear caulk, but it hasn't fully cured yet. I'll try to get an update shot in here once it's fully cured, but in the meantime, here it is, all finished and useful.

 

Thanks for reading!

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Lou Lou Girls

another pendleton wool blanket scrap bunny

Another birthday, another bunny.

 

little spoon mirror

Awhile back, I made a sunburst mirror out of recycled bits and silver spoons from the thrift store. My mom liked it so much that she specially requested one of her own, but smaller.

Well, it took me awhile to dig up enough baby and souvenir spoons at junk stores and yard sales, but I finally did it, just in time for her birthday this year!

It's a quick project once you have the materials. The mirror is a plastic-backed utility mirror I found at Bring, and I admit that I just hot-glued the sixteen little spoons directly to the back. Those that had dangly bits or handles that were too long or too wide were cut with tin snips first. Oh! And I alternated fronts and backs for some added interest.

I had a partial sheet of adhesive felt furniture pad that makes a good backing. It's thick, so the spoons won't be sitting directly on the wall, and soft so nothing scrapes. The hanger is made from a plastic coated paper clip sunk into the felt with the ends bent back on the other side. And then, for security, more hot glue holds everything in place.

I don't usually use hot glue so liberally in projects, but there was no place on this mirror to rivet or wire the spoons in place. In situations like this (small, light projects without an extended base) it's a good choice that'll last a nice, long time.

Happy birthday, Mom! Love you a bunch.

Linking up to:

My Repurposed Life

mosaic stepping stones

"Forget your perfect offering; there is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in."
--Leonard Cohen

 Spotted at Bring Recycling in the garden.

a mother's day planter with new house numbers

The kiddo and I dipped into our scrap lumber pile to put together a new planter + house numbers for his grandma for Mother's Day. Actually, it was partially a birthday present for his grandpa, too, whose birthday had been a couple of weeks earlier. They've been needing something like this for awhile as someone (they both swear it wasn't them) had run into the previous house number post quite awhile ago.

Here's the before and after:

 

The Mr. picked up some potting mix and we picked out a plant at the hardy plant sale (it's an ornamental grass that's drought resistant and will eventually have golden plumes on top), but otherwise, we had all of the materials on hand.

If you make a planter out of your own scrap pile (old fence boards, leftover trim, etc.) your dimensions will vary based on what you have on hand, but here's a general guide:

Decide on your dimensions and sketch it out. A sketch will help solidify your plan and guide you as you work . I decided to make this planter three boards wide and two feet high, to make maximum advantage of our leftover and recycled wood.

Making a four-sided box planter, I constructed two sides with the trim overhanging a bit to cover the ends of the other two sides. I used 1x2 lumber scraps leftover from another project screwed onto the top and bottom.

On the backs of these two pieces, I added a couple of scrap lengths of 2x2 to the edges to act as interior braces.

The other two sides were built with the trim even with the ends.

Then I screwed the four sides together using the 2x2 braces to make everything secure, and screwed bottom boards in place. Spaces between the boards make for efficient drainage.

(Grainy early-evening photo alert!)

 

Four short stubs of pressure-treated 2x4 (leftover from a fence project) make great rot-resistant feet (the Mr. nailed them in place from the inside), and I let the kiddo help me stain the planter. He helped me pick the stain color, too. (It's Benjamin Moore Arborcoat in redwood color).

I managed to stop him from coating the front panel, though, which left room for the house numbers.

(If you make a measurement error {like I did} when planning the sides, some lengths of cedar garden stakes can be added at this point, too, to cover the corner gaps and add a nice design element.)

Not pictured here is the layer of black plastic I stapled to the inside (with holes cut through for drainage) to protect the wood from the wet dirt. Most of the planter is made with cedar fence board scraps, but my hope is that the plastic will keep the supports from rotting right away.

We waited until we had the planter in place before filling with soil, then planted it and added about six inches of mulch to the top to keep the plant happy and the soil moist.

As with any project, there are things I'd do differently next time around (like hiding the screws by screwing from the other side, measuring better, stenciling instead of free-handing), but the good thing about building anything for the first time is that you learn little things that will help you out the next time. And you know what? No one who loves you will complain about small imperfections anyway.

Thanks for reading!

Linking up to:
My Repurposed Life