Gazing Ball Bunny

Old is new again ... with a simple crafty solution this old garden bunny is glitzed up and ready to shine again!

This bunny used to have a large gazing ball on it's back many years ago. But it has long since been broken. Kept the bunny in the garden but always had to tip water out of the depression left by the gazing ball. 

Today inspiration struck! Just mixed up some all-purpose preblended concrete and filled the hole. Then I took three old unbreakable gold Christmas balls and stuck them upside-down in the concrete.

And voilà, bunny is ready to sparkle in the garden again!

Follow hotandcoldrunningmom on Pinterest. You can scan the pincode seen here with your phone if you're on a desktop. If you're on a phone just screenshot it, go to the Pinterest app, click camera. Then instead of taking a pic use the option to use one of your photos. Click on the screenshot you just took and go right to my Pinterest profile where you can follow me 🙂

Garden Penny Post

A cute little garden accent that might just keep slugs away from those tender new shoots.

Similar to penny balls except I didn't have a ball, so I used a post and spike from an old solar lamp instead.

An old solar lamp post, clear marine silicone and some pennies (dated before 1983 for best copper content) are all you need.

Stick one penny on top of the post then, using the waterproof marine silicone, glue a column of pennies up one side of the post. Lay flat on that side and let them set a few minutes before starting the next row. My post fit exactly 4 columns of pennies.

Let it set completely for at least 12 hours before exposure to water, then stick it in anywhere that you might want to keep slugs away. I don't know if copper really does repel slugs but I like this quirky little garden art.

If you have marine silicone left over how about another garden craft?

Beaded Mason Jar Solar Light

https://hotandcoldrunningmom.blogspot.com/2020/07/beaded-mason-jar-solar-light.html

Follow hotandcoldrunningmom on Pinterest. You can scan the pincode seen here with your phone if you're on a desktop. If you're on a phone just screenshot it, go to the Pinterest app, click camera. Then instead of taking a pic use the option to use one of your photos. Click on the screenshot you just took and go right to my Pinterest profile where you can follow me 🙂

Easy Fall Porch Decor

Recycled an unhappy potted chrysanthemum and some hydrangea blossoms for this simple fall display.

The fall chrysanthemum gave up the ghost not long after I brought it home. But a little spray paint gave it a new purpose. I sprayed it with gold, getting all in-between the flowers and leaves.

Then I took some hydrangea blossoms, removed the leaves from the stems, stuck them in a pot for support and painted them silver. I didn't intentionally leave some of the natural colour showing through, but I like it!

Once dry the silver hydrangeas were inserted into the gold mum ball. I think it looks pretty good just like this. If the stems are tall or if the display will be in a breezy area you may need to place wire supports in the pot and twist tie the hydrangeas to them.

Just added a dollar store fall garland and it's done in a snap! Already thinking ahead...this might get a winter transformation after Thanksgiving🎃.

Recycle Dog Pull Toy

This DIY recycled t-shirt pull toy is a hit with Karma!

Take a couple of old t-shirts and cut them in strips about 4" wide and as long as you like. Knot them together, braid them and knot the end. This t-shirt material was thin so I doubled up using 6 strands instead of 3. Also tied a knot with some extra material in the middle so that Karma could pull from the middle while I can hold on both ends when she tugs!

Then just go out and PULL !!!

"Ok, stop Mom! You're embarrasing me!"

Denim and Fleece Dog Coat

Still belly deep in snow here! But Karma is toasty warm in her new handmade, recycled denim coat!

Following the directions given at compulsive craftiness I was able to make this cozy denim and fleece coat for Karma. Check out the pattern through this link for detailed instructions.

https://web.archive.org/web/20140924211940/http:/compulsivecraftiness.com/2012/cozy-fleece-dog-coat-tutorial/

But here's what I did.

I patchworked some recycled denim for the outer layer. 

Then lined it with plush baby blue fleece and cut off the excess

and sewed on some velcro closures.

It was the first time I'd ever sewn a collar to a garment...not bad! The instructions made it easy!

I made a strap across the front using the waistband from a pair of jeans including the brass button closure.

Perfect for walks around the block! 

Upcycled Jeans Clothespin Bag

There's nothing like the smell of fresh towels and sheets dried on a clothesline! And here's a cute place to store your clothespins. This little craft will literally take you only 10 minutes to make...I swear!!

What you'll need:

an old pair of jeans

a plastic hanger

Mark where you want to cut the legs off with pins. Leave enough room to hold all your clothespins, then cut both legs off. Turn the jeans inside out, then cut out the crotch seam and sew the sides together on both the front and the back where the crotch had been. Sew a hem along the bottom to close off the bottom of the bag. Turn it right side out.

Now place the hanger in the waist and sew along the top at each side 2 or 3 inches to hold the hanger in place. If you are using larger jeans/larger hanger you may need to sew a bit more to hold it in place. (These were my daughter's "teenie" jeans 😒)

Open the zipper and fill the bag with clothespins. You can even tuck more in the pockets!

DIY Garden Markers

Planning my summer garden while self quarantining against covid19 is helping me keep my sanity. Hopefully things will get back to normal by summertime.

So I used some unloved CDs and DVDs (does anyone even use these anymore?)
I plan on sticking them halfway in the ground so I sketched my images for the top half.

First primed with gesso, then using acrylic paint I brushed on a background on the shiny side of the discs.

I then traced my sketches onto the background colour using tracing paper and a stylus. You could also darken the back of the paper with a lead pencil then trace over the front with a pen nib.

Next, again using acrylic paint, each of the plants I expect to have in my garden are painted onto the discs.

Finally a coat of Rustoleum clear coat that adheres to plastic and these babies are ready for springtime planting season!

Are you ready?

Boho-Chic Recycled Dog Sweater

She must have been a hippie in a past life!

To make this outfit all you need is a scarf that no one wears anymore (and a matching hat if you want the optional hood!)

I trimmed the fringe a bit shorter then folded the scarf in half lengthwise.  Using a crochet hook and some wool I crocheted the two sides together on one long edge. Alternatively you could sew them together.

Here's what the back looks like.

Now drape it over you dog and decide wear you want to sew up underneath.  You need  an opening for the head and another larger opening for the two legs and chest (instead of two separate leg holes...very easy to put on!)

If you want to make the hood open the hat up in half and sew that edge to the top of the sweater and you're done!

See how the head is through the smaller opening and the chest is through the larger one.

And now that unused scarf has a new life!

Here is Karma's aloof, disinterested model expression ; )

Super Healthy Miso Vegetable Broth

If you want to get the most out of your vegetables, don't throw half of them away! A lot of the nutrition in a veggie is in it's peel. 

When you're making meals scrub your onions before peeling them then keep the skins in a plastic ziplock baggie. Same goes for half that head of broccoli. Keep the big old tough stalks! Kale ribs...same thing.  If you have some really limp celery toss that in the bag too. Everything can be kept in the freezer until you have a few cups of veggie rejects! Now I've always kept the cutoffs and tough bits from broccoli, kale, asparagus, etc, but I recently took a nutritional cooking class and I learned about the onion skin. It is high in antioxidants and also has anti-inflammatory qualities. Cool eh?

Ok, back to the broth! Throw in a couple of carrots too, peel on of course!

Add enough water just to cover the veggies and simmer everything for 2 hours.  For a hearty soup simply purée everything together, except the onion skins.  Or remove the cooked veggies to leave you with a very healthy vegetable broth. Put the carrots away in the fridge, they're cooked for your next meal. 

And any of the remaining cooked veggies...your dog would love some of those!  

Anything left can be composted.  There is literally NO waste here!

Whether as a broth or thick soup whisk in 2 heaping tablespoons of miso to the pot at the end then taste.  Just add salt and pepper if you think it needs it, but the miso might be seasoning enough.

Upcycled Denim Placemats with Matching Table Napkins

Spring cleaning and finding a pile of jeans you don't/can't wear anymore? Deconstruct them into re-useable parts. Once you start snipping away sort into like piles...pockets, seams, waistbands and lengths of material. Iron before sewing.

This isn't a pattern and I'm in no way a seamstress but I'll just show you what I did. I'm sure you can sew better than I.

I cut the useable pieces of material into squares and rectangles then sewed them together, sometimes leaving a hem or seam for interest. Trimmed them to just a bit larger than the size I wanted the placemats to be.

I sewed a pocket on the right-hand side for the cutlery and napkin because I think it's cute. But there was also a practical reason. When my husband sets the table he can never remember where the knife goes, where the fork goes. Now I just say "stick them in the pocket!"

Once that was done I cut some cotton for the backs and I also cut some old towels (I seem to have alot of those!)  the same size as the denim patchwork.

Sewed them together and trimmed the sides. My poor old sewing machine had some trouble here but we got the job done.

I sewed over each seam throughout the placemat to keep the layers together (sort of like quilting I would imagine)

Next, the bias tape edging.
This is where I had the most difficulty...figuring out how to make the corners with the bias tape. This is what I came up with, don't know if it's the correct way but it worked for me.

Then I made the coordinating table napkins.
Using the same material as the backs of the placemats, I cut 18" squares and folded and pressed a 1/4" hem all around.

Then folded 1/4" again and sewed all around.

So, here are the finished placemats and napkins,

A little puckered and pulled but still cute for very casual dining I think 😕

And everyone knows where the cutlery goes!

Here's a use for those denim seams...

http://hotandcoldrunningmom.blogspot.ca/2018/05/recycled-denim-wrap-bracelets.html