The Hand Me Down House: dollar store

Showing posts with label dollar store. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Raffia Mod Podge Vase

Well as the temps and leaves keep dropping -- it's feeling more and more like fall here. So you know that that means.....more fall decor! :)

Remember that raffia wreath I put together a few weeks ago? I had plenty of raffia left over for it and I wanted to use it for another project. This time around I thought I might make a raffia vase.

So, here's what you'll need to make your raffia vase:

- Raffia (I used multicolored)

- Mason Jar (I used pint sized)

- Mod Podge (I used the glossy kind)

- Paint Brush

- Ribbon

- Dollar Store Flowers

First I painted Mod Podge on the outside of my jar.

Now comes the messy part. Wrap a few pieces of raffia around the the jar and Mod Podge over them. You have to hold them down for a few seconds so the ends of the raffia don't pop back up. You'll get your fingers really Mod Podged for this part. :)

I continued doing this around the mason jar. I tried to overlap the ends to help hold them in place.

Once I had the whole jar covered I let it dry overnight. If you're in a pinch or something you can always take a hair dryer to your vase -- it will accelerate the Mod Podge drying time. (I know it looks scary now -- but it'll turn out -- I promise!)

See, it looks MUCH better now that it's dried. Once I had my vase I put a ribbon on top and filled it with some dollar store flowers.

VIOLA! A cute little fall flower jar!

I just could not help snapping a picture of my new vase with some of our pretty fall trees in the background. :)

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Thursday, September 16, 2010

Fall Candlestick Topiaries

Time for more fall crafts! :) Speaking of fall -- don't forget -- today is the last date to enter Ramble Shamble's fall earrings giveaway!

Well you all know how much I LOVE a cheap and easy, crafty project -- and that's JUST what today is. I saw this idea at a store somewhere -- but of course, I can't remember where. Oh well -- just know it's not my idea. :)

I found this set of candlesticks at the thrift store for $2.99 each:

I cleaned them off, took my trusty can of spray paint and gave them a few shiny coats. :) I used the same paint here as I did on my night table lamps. I made it super easy on myself and painted the candlesticks and lamps at the same time. Not that I don't LOVE to spray paint -- but the easier the better, right!? :)

The second step was to take some fall floral leaves and put them in the candle holder. I used some that I happened to find at the thrift store for $.99 -- but you KNOW the Dollar Store has TONS of cute fall leaves, too -- they're all over the place!

I wrapped several ends together and bound them with a rubber-band. Then I put them into the candle holder and put little pieces of newspaper around them to hold the leaves in place in the candle holder.

What do you think??? I just can't say no to a quick and inexpensive project -- so I think they're pretty cute. :)

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This post is sponsored by Stella & Dot

Friday, August 20, 2010

Recycled Picture Frame

A few weeks ago while I was at HomeGoods I saw these adorable little magazine picture frames -- they were so cute! And as much as I loved them and HAD to have them, I just couldn't overlook that $14.99 price tag. It definitely wasn't a NEED -- so I sadly left without them. But don't worry-- I'm a problem solver, so I came up with a way to make my own -- so here's the how-to for you thrifty, do-it-yourself, blog-loving gals. :)

First I went to the Dollar Tree and got a two pack of 4x6 frames for $1.00.

Then I grabbed a stash of old magazines that I hadn't thrown away yet. (I think I've mentioned before that I have a slight problem throwing things away)

I cut out a good variety of text only pages, colorful ads, and a mix of both.

Then I grabbed a handful of skinny drinking straws (not the extra fat ones like McDonald's gives out).

And here's where the project begins .....

I glued each straw to the BACK of the magazine page I wanted to use. And here's a tip for you -- you don't have to use the whole page -- and actually I would recommend using a piece of the page. You aren't going to roll up a lot of paper -- just a little bit. Now, LET THE GLUE DRY! Be patient and just make sure it's completely hardened before you decide to roll up the magazine page -- it makes it easier, believe me. :) I tried the hard way first.

Now roll up those magazine pages! You can see above that I don't have a lot rolled up. I only twisted the page about two times around the straw. Now take your glue gun and glue the edge almost like you're sealing the roll together. Wait for it to dry and then cut the excess paper off.

Now keep making rolls of magazine pages until your hands are numb. No, just kidding. :) I did these while we were watching TV, and it took no time at all. It all depends on the size of your frame -- I did four straws per side -- so 16 straws. You want to make sure they are really squished together so there's no frame showing through.

Okay -- this is the toughest part. I cut my straws at a 45 degree angle to make a nice "seam" in the corners -- but I've seen frames that do it differently -- so be creative and make it however you want. :) And I'm sorry -- but I have no good tips for cutting your straws at a 45 degree angle. I just used the trial and error method. Probably not the best advice to give -- but it worked for me. :)

I glued first straw on the outside and let it hang over the edge slightly. Then I glued the remaining straws as close to each other as possible -- you want them to hang over the edge a little so you can't see the dollar store frame. Even the corners should be squished together.

And once everything is glued on, take some high-luster Mod Podge and paint a light coat on the magazine rolls. Let it dry, and you should have this:

Definitely not perfect -- but for $.50, it's not too bad. :) I'm going to try to make another one with the other frame, so hopefully by then I'll get down how to make a perfect magazine roll.

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