Spring Bunting Bonanza & No-Sew Tutorial

My antique mall is having a Spring Open House this weekend. Last night (at the last minute) I thought I should make a spring-themed bunting (banner - garland - whatever) to hang in my outdoor booth.  But I didn't want to sew or spend any money on it (talk about limiting).

I got rid of so much of my "stash" when we moved, so I had a hard time finding any springy fabric.  But after much searching found a small piece of barkcloth type fabric which I feverishly cut into triangles at 11 pm last night.  I spent sleepless hours planning how to make a sturdy, weather-resistant and cute spring bunting with them.

Epiphany #1. They must be ironed (time consuming and torturous), and must be stiff.  So I found out from Martha Stewart how to make your own starch.  One cup cold water and two tablespoons corn starch mixed thoroughly in a spray bottle.  Spray it lightly on triangles before ironing.  Martha warns that the starch can attract bugs and mold. Nice.  Well, I'm not leaving it up forever.

Epiphany #2.  They must be double sided.  (Be able to be viewed from both sides.) This immediately cut my length in half.  And meant I needed to glue two triangles together. After considering hot glue and fabric paint, I ended up using elmers glue for this. Trim overhanging edges.

Epiphany #3.  I actually would have to purchase something.  The rope.  Jute I had on hand was just  not thick enough.  I bought 100 yards of laundry line from Dollar Store for $3.50.  I only used half.

Epiphany #4.  Attaching the triangles to the rope would have to be sturdy + cute.  That is a tough one.  We had steady 40 mph winds last week.  My outdoor booth is under a roof, but still gets blown around.  I did a double assault.  I poked a sharp knife through the triangles on either edge of the short end (not too close to the edge).  Then I was able to attach the triangles to the rope with torn strips of muslin.  In the center of this on one side I did a big old obnoxious safety pin which went though both triangles and the rope.  These are not budging.

Postscript:  I found enough supplies for indoor spring buntings.  So, for eight hours today I worked like a wild woman on the above bunting, AND THREE MORE.  The house was in chaos by the time I came up for air.  I am exhausted.  I'll show you how they turned out later.

Pine Siding Stained With White Wash Tutorial

We lived with an ugly bookshelf in the living room and office for several painful months.  It was originally a large window in the living room, but then an addition was added to the other side.  Whoever did it decided to split the window area evenly between the two rooms for bookshelves -- which left the living room shelf only about 3.5" deep.  Hard to find books that tiny. It looked disjointed and the stone sucked all of the light out of the room. Above is a realtor photo, before we bought the house.


We finally found someone brave enough to tear it all out and do something outstanding in the living room (see  that post HERE).  That left the office side, which we decided we just wanted a regular flat wall, not the stone wall. The contractor recommended yellow pine siding, which looks like the ever-popular ship lap. That was a great suggestion, except for the nauseating yellow hue of the wood.  I knew in my heart that I had to do a white wash on it, but was not looking forward to the mess.

I used the same watered down paint that I had used in THIS tutorial post. The paint / water ratio is the same. The technique is a little different because the yellow pine siding was already on the interior wall.  If you have an extra piece of siding, it would be great to do some "off the wall" practicing. I hit all of the dark places once first before trying the all-over technique.  (above is after I did the all-over to the top boards.)

The mess really wasn't as bad as I had anticipated.  I wiped the brush on the side of the paint can 3-4 times before applying and that really kept the splatter to a minimum.  The thinner paint also was easier to apply in the narrow horizontal cracks.  I would say that it is important to do a whole horizontal "board" from left to right, instead of top to bottom. All brush strokes should be as straight and horizontal as possible. You don't want it to show where you stopped and let paint dry, and then started again.  It means moving the ladder around more, but it gives it a more professional look.
It is also important to look back over areas that are completed to make sure there are no drips.  Just do a horizontal brush over any drips. If an area looks too light, go ahead and put another stroke of paint over it.

 When we were done the wall was so gorgeous that my husband was hesitant to hang the ceiling tile pieces that we had planned for decoration.  But after getting them up, we were both pleased.

 (You've got to love those colors and all of that chippy goodness!)

Stenciling Your Own Vintage Ornaments Tutorial

Last winter I got the notion to stencil on ornaments.  Not just any stencil.  I wanted the vintage ornaments to look like the old-time Shiny Brite stenciled ornaments.

Surely someone has made stencils for that purpose?  And, wouldn't you know?  We can always count on Martha Stewart.  She may have more than the ones I found on-line, but I was just happy to have come across these.  I knew the stencils needed to be small, flexible and have adhesive on the back.  Thank you, Martha.  You knew just what I needed.

I ran out of time last year, so I only recently had a chance to try out these little beauties.  I tried them this first time around on medium shiny brites.  Next time I am going to try larger ornaments.  I used a flat white house paint sample I had on hand, and it worked very well.  As usual with a stencil, load the paint sparingly on the brush and dab off excess on newspaper before lightly dabbing a thin layer of paint inside of the stencil.

While the paint was still wet, I sprinkled it (with stencil still applied) with fine white glitter (again,
to simulate a stenciled shiny brite).  Martha advises to take the stencil off while wet, but I did not read directions until later.  It was fine taking it off after it was dry.  (Martha also wants you to use her special Brush and Stencil Cleaner afterward.  That makes me laugh.  She is so intense.  She also says "Attach backing to stencil and store".  I am surprised she didn't tell us where to store it.)

Simple Steps To Whitewashing Wood Tutorial

These boards came from our 1895 cellar.

They are wide, "old growth", tongue-in-grove pine.

If they came from Texas we would call it ship lap.

We want to use it in back of our TV nook.

We wanted the wood white, but still be able to see some of the character.

And I have tried commercial white stain,

and it is pitiful.

First, plan on doing this outside, it is messy!

Mix a 1:3 white paint to water ratio.

Flat or satin paint works best.

Try a "test" board piece and let it dry completely before committing to painting a bunch.

Apply pretty liberally to all bare wood.

It will looks a bit messy like above.

Then go back over the entire piece from left to right in one continuous,
straight stroke -- until you finish the entire board again.

 So after going over the boards with the continuous strokes,

they will look like the above boards.

And heads up,

the boards will continue to absorb the paint for awhile.

That is why you need to do a test board.

If you want it more opaque you could add more white paint to the mix.

For more transparent, the options are:

adding more water / wiping wet off excess with a rag /

lightly sanding after your board is dry.

Refurbishing Shiny Brites Tutorial

Let's talk Shiny Brites.  You know, the ornaments.  Some of my VERY favorite are the clear ones.  Someone told me that these were manufactured during WWII.  I like that you can see the twinkle of the lights through them.  I like the fake frosty snow on them...
But WWII was awhile ago, and even if they haven't been used every Christmas for the last 70 years -- they still can show a little wear.  Or look very tired like the ones above.


I did a tutorial a couple of years ago that works great if you have plain colored Shiny Brites that have chipped color, or are a little dingy.  Click here to read that post.  But that transformation will not work on these clear ornaments.

So I have tried a couple of things, and maybe you can learn from my experiences.  Last year I tried using a small paint brush and applying glue to the area of "snow".  Then I liberally sprinkled on vintage "mica" snow and left it to dry.  The result wasn't bad, just a little "chunky" (chunky snow ornaments in foreground".)

This year I painted the "snow field" with clear glittery fingernail polish (a little more control than with Elmer's glue).  Then liberally sprinkled the area with fine white glitter from Michael's.

 I think I like the results more than last years.

(The one on the right is done, the left is not done.)

Vintage Suitcase Cleaning Tips Tutorial

I sell a ton of vintages suitcases each year.

Here are some of my best tips on cleaning suitcases.

Make sure they are not mildewy on the inside before you buy them.

There is no good remedy for that.  It is a health hazard.

Samsonite is my favorite, but

almost all vintage Samsonite suitcases have a sticky issue.

Gag, sticky is definitely on my "avoid" list. Almost all of the trim and handles on

Samsonite suitcases seem to become gummy over time.  Shudder.

Here are my weapons to combat that, in the order I use them:

#1 -- GooGone.  Take the suitcase outside (this will actually take the shine off of your granite countertops if it comes in contact with them) and spray liberally on trim.

Wipe off (scrubbing motion) with dry paper towels. I use rubber gloves.

#2 -- Magic eraser.  You can pick up the generic version at Dollar

Tree for $1.  Get wet, squeeze out extra.  Scrub on leftover gummy areas of suitcase,

also good on any black spots on suitcase body.
Magic eraser can be rinsed and reused until it wears out.

#3 -- Windex, generic is fine.  Good for all-over exterior suitcases cleaning.

Helps clean off any remaining Goo-Gone.
Viola!
Looks like a new (1950s) suitcase!

Vintage Junk Succulent Planter Tutorial

A.  Look for cheap ($1 or less each) vintage containers to use as planters. Metal is my favorite.  Not too big, or it is too heavy to haul around.   Not too small, or people won't purchase them.  Just right.

B.  Poke holes in the bottom if they don't have holes already (I use a hammer and nail).

C.  Put some "junk" in the bottom for drainage.  Black walnuts, clay pot pieces, small rocks, leaves and items found in your compost pile.

D.  Fill with dirt from your compost pile.  I maintain a compost pile year round.  Mine is a "cold" compost pile, which means I am too lazy to mix it up and add the right amounts of sand, "green", etc.  Mine has two sides.  I use one side each year to stack leaves, gardening leftovers, etc.  The other side has the thick, rich compost left from the year before.  Anything that hasn't completely composted I put on the leafy side.  The finished compost is enough for all my retail plantings.  I do not mix potting soil into this, because it raises my cost of each planter. 

E.  Plant a couple types of succulents into the pot (your succulents should take up about half of the pot).  Keeping in mind that they will grow and spread somewhat.  I maintain a primary succulent bed and several satellite beds.  I try out different types of succulents every year.  They need to spread (be fruitful and multiply) so  that I can "harvest" the edges. 

Different colors, textures and heights are good.  Ideally they also need to make it through the Midwest winter.

F.  Plant a flowering annual in the pot.  I always use dianthus or rose moss.  (I just bought a 6-pack of dianthus for $1.75 at Walmart.) Both do great in high heat, direct sun, and very little water.  Both bloom for months.  Sometimes I actually have dianthus overwinter.

G.  "Mulch" with small pebbles, available in a huge bag at your garden center for $5 or less.  Cover all the bare dirt and lift plant leaves to mulch under them.  This helps hold in the dirt and the moisture, plus it gives a nice finished look.


H.  Water each container thoroughly.  After this, they generally only need watering once a week.  Twice if it is super hot.


I.  There might be some bare spots, which need a little interest.  This is a great opportunity to raid your junk stash.  Last year I used a lot of rusty metal items for filler.  This year I'm leaning toward rocks and shells.  Other items I have used:  broken porcelain doll pieces, game pieces, tiny glass bottles,  marbles, ceramic animal or bird figures.

J.  Clean off the outside of your pots and price them.  I use old spoons to write prices on, they don't blow over and water doesn't damage them.  My vintage store that I sell the planters at keeps the spoon "price markers" for me, so I can recycle them.  I try to sell most of the planters at a mind-blowing $9, I can only do that because I keep the costs down. 

Bleaching Bottlebrush Trees Tutorial

I'm not much into doing tutorials.  That is, if there are other places where you can find the information on the internet.  This is my second year of doing a mass bottlebrush tree bleaching, and I think I have some good tips. 

What you will need:
     -- bottle brush trees (I bought mine at Michael's)
     -- bleach (only $1 at Dollar Tree)
     -- wide tooth comb
     -- sharp scissors
     -- tub or tray to put wet trees in

1.  If you have the old-school top-opening washing machine, do the bleaching in there.  I did two multi-packs of trees + a couple I got at a garage sale = 44 of various sized trees.  I filled the washer with just enough water to cover the bigger trees (laying down). Turn off the machine after it gets high enough so that the water just sits there. Then I added about three cups of bleach.  I had a busy day, so mine sat in there about 8 hours before I messed with them, you could do less.

2.  Put the washer on the "drain" cycle, but don't let it spin.  When the bleached water has drained, then fill the washer with fresh water to the level you did it the first time.

3.  Now the fun.  Grab a tree by the base and let it drain into the washer. (Most tutorials finish here). This is a good time to straighten it if the wire "trunk" has been bent.  Holding it down inside the washer (to keep the mess captive) comb out the "branches".  The big glops of "snow" will come off, but you will still have some left.  You will begin to notice long pieces sticking out from the tree farther than they should (these were previously stuck in the snow glop).

3.  Over a trash can, give the tree a haircut.  Follow the triangular lines of the tree.  It is pretty easy to eyeball.  Just make sure there aren't a lot of flyaway pieces.

4.  Comb the tree out a second time.  Try to get all the "branches" parallel to the "trunk".  Make sure when you set it down to dry it is looking good, because this is how the branches will be directed when dry. This is what makes a tree really look good. Set it to dry standing upright.  It will continue to drain a little, so in a plastic tub or bathtub is a good idea.
(After you drain the washer this time, wipe it out with a paper towel.)

5.  Optional:  I am not a perfectionist, but after my trees are dry I do the comb/cut thing one last time. 

I think you will be surprised how much better your trees look after this process.  If you have a tree that gets smushed, this is also a good way to revive it (plain water bath, comb, trim).  I like this method because I can do a lot of trees at once, and the mess is contained.

Vintage Shiny Brites Into Mercury Glass Christmas Bulbs Tutorial

This process is a little time consuming, but it is a great way to use those slightly flakey, dirty or sticky (eek) solid colored Christmas bulbs that you come across.  You can usually find these second rate bulbs pretty cheap, and the transformation is awesome.  People love the mercury glass because the neutral silver non-color goes with everything and they have an awesome patina.

First remove all the metal hangers, and set them aside.

When working with the ornaments, make sure the stem is at the bottom at all times.  If a little water gets in, it ruins the ornaments.  So, hold the ornament under a medium flow of warm water with the stem downward for a few seconds.  Give each of your little patients a turn under the water, I use a wire cookie rack to keep the stem downward until it is their "turn" again.

After the third or fourth round of rinsing the outside, a good portion of the outer paint should be washed off.  For the last round gently use a wet washcloth to scrub any stubborn areas (still be sure to hold the stem downward during this procedure). 

Gently dry (holding stem down for goodness sakes!) with a cotton dish towel.  Set aside for a final drying in the rack (yes, with the stem down!)  Give the bulbs several hours like this before replacing hangers.  I promise you, you'll be hooked.

Eighties Paper Towel Holder Turned Vintage Hat Stand

I can't remember the first time I saw this done, or the first time I did it.  About this time of year I am starting to dig out all the old black hats I've been collecting (a lot!)  Each one will painstakingly become a gorgeous Halloween hat with a vintage vibe.  And most are displayed best on a hat stand. 

Not many of us can afford real vintage hat stands.  But ALL of us can afford to makeover the slightly outdated wooden paper towel holders that used to grace so many countertops in the 1980s. 

I am working on an estate sale now that is using many of these "as is" as hatstands.

But, with just a little work (the fun kind!) they can look very authentic.

Fortunately, many start out as oak.  First remove the little stick on the side.  That will leave a small hole that will need to be filled with wood putty.  After that is dry, sand the putty smooth and give the whole thing a quick sanding.


For mine, I gave it two thin coats of my favorite chalk paint. Let dry. Then a quick sanding to distress.  If it doesn't look old enough for you, a little light brown wax will do the trick.  Even though I mainly use them for Halloween, I generally paint them a lighter color to help accentuate the black hats.

Making Messy-Mossy Terra-Cotta Pots Tutorial

A few weeks ago I picked up a bunch of way-too-new-looking terra-cotta flowerpots.
They were begging to be aged.

A messy project (and a good dose of hyphens) is a great cure for the

not-quite-end-of-winter-blues.

  I started by brushing on some

plaster-of-paris mix on top edges of everything.

Giving them some texture and simulating mineral build-up.

 

I did a faux-fungus look by using different shades

of green and some brown paint --

 overlapping the colors somewhat.

 

I liked the ones best where I didn't get too heavy-handed.

To put the proverbial icing-on-the-cake

I dry-brushed an old wooden box

(using vintage alphabet stamps for the lettering)

 to corral this small herd of terra cotta pots.

Tips On Organizing Estate & Garage Sales

I am helping two friends organize sales during the next two weeks - a moving sale and an estate sale.  More information on those two specific sales coming later.  I love helping friends organize and price estate / moving sales.  I wouldn't want to do it all the time, but once in awhile is great fun.  These tips are for helping friends, it gets more complicated when you are doing it as a business.

Here are a few important tips for estate / moving sales:

• Definitely separate the keep vs sell piles first thing.  If you are iffy then don't sell it.  You can't get it back after it sells.
• Everything needs to be on tables, or at least off the ground.  At a level customers can easily see and reach.
• Organize and display everything BEFORE pricing.  Make it look inviting. Group "like" things together.  The cleaner the better (depends on amount of time you have.)

• Price reasonably so that as much sells the first day as possible.  If you look up what an item is selling for on ebay -- mark price half of that or less.  This is not ebay.
• $1 or more increments.  If something is not worth a dollar, throw it in with other things.  Coins are a hassle. 

• Ideally the first day there are no discounts, second day 25% off, third day 50% off.  If it is only two day sale then some variation.  Know ahead of time what the plan is.  Let customers know what the plan is. 
• Have lots of great signage -- preferably bringing people in to the sale from several different directions.
• Advertise sale on Craigslist, flyers on public bulletin boards, Facebook as well as newspaper.

• Have a "holding area" at the sale.  I always make sure mine is equipped with newspaper and boxes, so that people can wrap and pack their own items.
• There has to be at least two people at the sale at all times.  One to stay at the checkout table.  One to run around and help customers.

• Only one door for entry and exit.  Checkout table by the door. Keep small or valuable items close to the checkout table. 
• Good lighting.  Every light on.  Every curtain/shade open.
• If I am pricing it, I am not buying it.  I just can't figure out any other way to maintain integrity and help with a sale. 

• If you advertise that you are opening at a certain time, do not open early.  If you advertise that you are going to be open until a certain time, make sure you are. 
• If "experts" are called in to give opinions before the sale begins, they should have the option of shopping early (but not purchase anything they are pricing.)

• Don't let anyone shop early, unless they are helping with the sale.
• Have a "Bid Box" for people to leave bids on anything at the sale (along with their name and phone number).  Open it before the 50% off sale and call any winning bidders. 
• Say there is no public restroom available at the house if people ask.  Tell them where the nearest one is.  Making the restroom available has never turned out well.  Enough said.
• Have fun.  Bring brownies.  Stay hydrated.