Archive for the ‘diy’ Category

inexpensive DIY fall wreath

October 14, 2010

While shopping at Michael’s Craft store the other day, I picked up a few fall berry and floral stems that were on sale for $1 each!  Since I had already bought a natural twig wreath at a yard sale about a month ago for $0.50, I thought, how could I pass up an opportunity to make a $5 fall wreath?!?

OK, so maybe you may not have the same luck that I did, but you can still create the same look for about $15.

Here’s what you need:

- natural, twig wreath (available at your local craft store for about $3-4, depending on the size)

- fall accent berries or floral stems (maybe 4 stems total, about $2 each)

- orange or brown ribbon (about $2 for a roll)

- scissors

And the best part is, I didn’t use any glue, so I can reuse the wreath again and again!

Here’s how:

1. Play with the placement of the berry and floral stems by draping them along the wreath.  I chose to do the berry stems diagonally, on either side of the wreath.  I then used the flowers to fill in the negative areas.

2. Once you have the placement you want, weave the berry stems through twig wreath (don’t glue unless you want them to be permanent).  Place a few berry branches under wreath twigs so that the berry stem doesn’t stand off the wreath so much.

3. Next, cut the flowers off of the large stems about 2″ down so they you have room to place them down in the wreath.  See picture below.

4. Fill in the negative or blank areas of your wreath with the flowers.  You can even overlap and add a few flowers to the berry areas if you want a fuller wreath.

5. Finally, weave the ribbon inside the back of the wreath, and tie at the top in a bow.  (Again, don’t use glue here unless you want it to be permanent.)  See picture below.

That’s it!  It’s that simple.

DIY Fall Wreath

Here are a few other DIY Fall Wreath ideas for the season.

Love this one!  Very similar to the one I shared with you above, including instructions from Carter & Cook.

This one is also super cute and easy.  Martha Stewart’s cornhusk wreath How To from The Nester.

Martha Stewart Fall Wreath

How about this one from Katie Bright, inspired by Monica’s tutorial?

DIY Fall Wreath

Or this How To yarn wreath from Sunshine & Carousels?

DIY Fall Wreath

Want something a little darker, for Halloween maybe?  Try this DIY ribbon wreath from Casa Sugar.  (If you want a fall look, use orange or brown ribbon instead.)

DIY Ribbon Wreath

And finally, try this spooky twig wreath tutorial from Woman’s Day.

Halloween Decorations: Twig Wreaths

DIY Halloween Wreath

Enjoy until next time,

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a few tricks to make your nest a treat this halloween

October 7, 2010

Whoa, have I fallen behind on posts?!  The last time I wrote was just before our big family vacation at the beach, and by big, I mean there were 13 of us sharing a house for a whole week.  ;)  We had a great time and the weather was perfect.  It was just what we needed to kick start the fall.  When we left, the weather here in Atlanta was roughly 100 degrees.  The weather in Florida was 90-ish, with lots of sunshine and when we returned, we came back to rain and highs in the mid 70’s.

Welcome Fall!  And with the start of the season, it most definitely means Halloween is just around the corner.  One of my favorite holidays for sure!  Let’s face it, who doesn’t like a good excuse to dress in costume?

Speaking of costume, your house wants to play dress up too you know.  In honor of Halloween, check out these spooky transformations …

Greet your guests, beginning with your front door.  You may not have an orange door like this photo from Pottery Barn, but you could layer your stairs, porch or walkway with lots of pumpkins, candles and halloween decor.

photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

What about bats at your front door, like this idea from Country Living?

You could even leave a message for your guests.

photo courtesy of Country Living

You can’t stop at the front door.  The foyer is another great place to get creative.

photo courtesy of Life in the Fun Lane

You know I’m a sucker for birds.  Collect twigs from your yard, arrange them neatly in a vase, add a little spanish moss as filler, then, for the finishing touch, add a few black crows (from your local craft store) like this idea from Pinkandpolkadot.

How about your Living Room?  Try draping cheescloth over your sofa or window treatments for an extra scary look.

photo courtesy of Country Living

Of course we can’t forget the fireplace!

photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping

I found these two photos from Shelleybdecorandmore and loved the witch legs and the idea of using candles, spanish moss and old books to decorate the mantle.  You may want to stick to battery operated candles though.  Don’t want to burn the house down!

Now, let’s set the table.  Want something that really makes a statement?  How about this poster backdrop, with feather wreaths from Apartment Therapy?

If you want to try your hand at something a little more subtle, how about creating a collection of black and white plates for your dining room walls, or do a nice Halloween tablescape?

photo courtesy of Country Living

photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping

And finally, let’s accessorize.  Add Halloween touches throughout the house by repurposing things you already have, like this idea from Better Homes & Gardens.  By using glass containers that you may already own, replace the candles or contents with flash cards that spell “Boo” or maybe even black and white candies, like the next idea from Pottery Barn.

photo courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens

photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

Again, with the black crow – encase one inside a glass container for display.  Or, add decorative masks to your decor.

photo courtesy of Better Homes & Gardens

How about hanging one of these from your porch or back yard?  Take an inexpensive chandelier, drape a few Mardi Gras beads and spanish moss.  Next, spray paint everything black.  Finally, add the black candles and voila, a beautiful Halloween chandelier like this one from Shabby Addict.

Want something a little softer?  Try these black crepe paper flowers from Country Living.  Check out the How To directions here.

photo courtesy of Country Living

Lastly, who says you have to stick the traditional black, white and orange?  Add a pop of color, such as lime green, like this idea from Rhonna Designs, or gold, like the gilded pumpkin idea below from Country Living, or even mix in a little hot pink!  Have fun.  It is Halloween after all.

photo courtesy of Country Living

Have any ideas of your own or pictures you would like to share?  We would love to hear from you!

Enjoy until next time,

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Posted in all things pretty, diy | 188 Comments »

trash to treasure: secrets of the hunt #3

September 14, 2010

TIP #3: MAP YOUR ROUTE

Depending on what type of items you’re looking for, you may be able to narrow down your search to certain areas of town.  The suburbs and family oriented neighborhoods will obviously yield kid stuff, whereas the city may be littered with college and young adult finds.  Likewise, an older more established neighborhood or section of town may have more vintage finds.  Also, a good thing to note, large, multi-family or church yard sales mean more variety because there are several families contributing to the sale, not just one household’s contents.

Now the fun part!  Once you have a general idea about where you want to begin, take some time to check Craigslist.org (your city > for sale > garage sale section), EstateSales.net and your local newspaper for weekend sales.  Just an FYI – the closer you get to the weekend, especially within a couple of days, the more pictures and listed items you’ll find for each sale on the sites mentioned above.  This especially comes in handy when you’re looking for something more specific.

Select one or two sales that make your absolute MUST VISIT list.  Once you have your MUST VISIT list, you can create a sublist of sales around those areas. Let’s be honest, you don’t want to spend majority of your day or weekend driving.  Instead, you would rather be productive shopping.  Sometimes you get lucky and find several estate sales within the same area.  However, majority of the time, I find an estate sale that makes my MUST VISIT list.  Then I find yard sales around it to check out as well.  Many times I find a rare or much needed item at the yard sales, that I may not have visited had I not gone to the estate sale first.  Hence, the reason why I think it’s important to note here.

TRASH TO TREASURE:

Lately, I have seen a lot of old glass milk bottles, especially at estate sales but sometimes even at yard sales.  With all the shabby chic and cottage look and feel craze, what a great find these are.  Let’s take a look at some of the possibilities.

TRASH:

estate sale find - vintage glass milk jar

TREASURE:

Because these treasures have a nostalgic quality all their own, they don’t need a lot of repurposing to become that vintage show piece in your home.

Of course they can be used for storing milk as intended, or they could be used as kitchen decor, like these vintage style jars from Farmehousewares.

[home-1008-milk-bottles-zoom.jpg]

How about if you’re hosting a party?  You could use them as pitchers to serve your beverages.  This is a great way to add a nice punch of color to your table or serving area.  I actually did this for my vintage beach wedding.

They are also perfect flower vases like this idea from Country Living.  Again, this is another great idea for a vintage themed or casual outdoor wedding.

Because they’re so beautiful and simple, they also make great storage containers for display.  How about these new bath salt storage milk bottles by Julia Rothman.

030608_julia.jpg

The best part is, you can repurpose them throughout the year, depending on the seasons.  By adding salt, an ornament topper and a few snowflakes, Aunt Ruthie was able to use her milk bottles as Christmas decor.

cm

Sometimes, you might just get lucky and not only find the milk bottles themselves, but maybe the wire crates and carriers they come in.  These are also great for storage and display as well.

This one is from Rockett St. George and is used to store magazines.  You could also hang a series of them in your kitchen to display spices or jars of rice and pasta, or in your bathroom to display soaps and towels.

Or, how about using a milk carrier to house your wine or spices like this idea from Vintage Weave?

And finally, you may even happen upon the bottle caps in your search.  These are especially fun because they are so bright and colorful, lending themselves to be a true work of art, like this idea from Rambling Renovators.

Enjoy until next time,

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Posted in trash to treasure | 67 Comments »

going old school

September 2, 2010

Ok, so maybe initially, seeing a chalkboard reminded me of math class where I sat behind a small, uncomfortable desk, trying desperately not to fall asleep as Mr. Harris wrote “X=?” formulas, then called on me to my surprise and more importantly, horror, to be the one to solve the equation in front of the whole class.

Thankfully, I survived, while also realizing math might not be the career path for me.  And lucky for all of us, chalkboards are no longer limited to just the classroom.  With the invent of chalkboard paint, we can now use them as fun and functional ways to decorate our spaces.

I recently decided to take this “old school” idea and transform a wall in this kitchen.

BEFORE:

Drab and boring galley kitchen.

AFTER:

Even though the kitchen space is small, I chose an area where the darkness of the paint wouldn’t be too overwhelming.  Not only is there a doorway, which provides room for light and air to pass, but I also decided to paint the walls white below the chair rail, keeping the area open and inviting.  And because the chalkboard is dark, almost black, I chose to write in all white chalk for higher contrast.  If I chose to use colored chalk in this instance, I would probably only use one color, maybe an accent color in the adjoining dining room so it works with its surroundings, rather than competing.  If you have a larger space or a more open space, go for color!  That would be a great way to brighten up or add life to a space.

The wonderful thing about using chalkboard paint on a wall is that you can erase your work when the mood strikes, and use it for a different purpose.  Here are a few ideas for this same kitchen wall:

1. Use it as a space to draw custom artwork.

chalkboard wall artwork

2. Use it as a functional space to add Menu’s, To Do lists, Daily Reminders, etc. (I know, I wouldn’t want to eat this week’s menu either.  Ha!)

chalkboard wall menu

3. You can also use it to write fun or inspirational quotes and greetings.

chalkboard wall fun quote

4. And, finally, because artwork naturally pops on a black background, use it to display your art and enhance it by drawing custom frames around the piece itself.

chalkboard wall drawn frames

Love these ideas I found while searching chalkboard paint online.

Check out this kitchen idea from decor8 on Flickr, where they used a metal letter “E” and wrote the remaining letters in chalk around it.

Want to add a chalkboard wall in an area other than your kitchen?  Think of spaces in your home that might lend themselves to serve a purpose, like an entry, mud room or laundry room where you might add your grocery list or daily activities.

chalkboard wall from LivingEtc.

Or maybe, only paint a section of a wall or a highlight a nook in your home like this one from Home-Dzine.

How about in an office or craft room?  Here’s a chalkboard calendar idea from Martha Stewart.

Finally, a reason to ENCOURAGE your kids to write on the walls!  Chalkboard paint is perfect for a kid’s room.  Check out these closet doors in the play room below.

Sometimes even adults need a space to express themselves too.  Why not use a chalkboard wall as your canvas, where you feature your latest artwork, like this bedroom wall below?

Maybe you’re renting and can’t paint the walls, or maybe you want to start small and fear you may not like chalkboard paint on your wall.  If so, try something like these removeable chalkboard wall tiles from Pottery Barn.

Or use it to paint furniture and accessories, like this chair on Garage Sale Warrior or these vases.

With the endless amount of ideas, what are you waiting for?  Go get some chalkboard paint and get to work!  ;)

If you have any great ideas or have pictures you would like to share, give me a shout.  As always, I would love to hear from you.

Enjoy until next time,

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in a pickle?

July 13, 2010

Trying to decide what to do with that dull piece of wood furniture, or those outdated wooden cabinets, or maybe even that boring patio set?  Want to add a little character but not sure how?  Well, I think we may have just answered our own question.  Let’s “pickle” it!  And by pickled, I mean that sort of dusty, beautiful greyish, although it doesn’t have to be, worn look.  Don’t worry, it’s super easy!

There are a couple of ways to go about this finish but the easiest method is to give that outdated piece a “white wash” or “pickled” look with a little white or off-white paint and water.

Remember, the object of a “pickled” finish is not to cover the wood with the paint, but merely highlight the grain by allowing the “wash” to seep into those areas.

I gave this finish a go on a set of patio chairs recently.

BEFORE:

WHAT YOU NEED:

1. piece of wood furniture

2. chip brush (smaller brush for smaller furniture, larger brush for larger furniture)

3. bucket

4. water

5. one quart of white or off-white paint, depending on desired look

6. mixing stick

7. dry cloth (old t-shirts make great cloths)

8. one quart of sealer in choice of sheen, if necessary

THE PROCESS:

First, find a clean, dry space to work with.  I chose to paint these chairs outside, over a drop cloth.

Second, make sure you’re beginning with an unsealed, wooden piece of furniture/cabinets/etc.  If there is a sealer on the item, you’ll need to remove it before beginning.

Next, take some white or off-white paint and mix with water.  Any regular acrylic or latex flat paint you get at your local paint or hardware store is perfect.  I usually begin with a 60% paint to 40% water ratio.  The more transparent you want the finish to look, add more water.  Obviously the more opaque, add more paint. Also, an old brush or chip brush, like the one you see pictured below, is good for this project.  I’ve found that the courser bristles of these types of brushes give more of an antique or less perfect look.

Lightly dip your brush into the wash.  If you get too much on the brush, press the brush against the bucket to drain some of the excess.  And remember, when brushing onto the piece, make sure to go in the direction of the grain, using long strokes, as pictured in the chair arm below.  The shorter your strokes, the more buildup you’ll notice in the areas where you’ve stopped and started again.  You don’t want that.

Wipe away any excess with a dry cloth.

Again, make sure not to load up too much on the brush or you’ll drip the wash all over your piece, causing unsightly errors like the one pictured below.  Be prepared to work quickly in order to keep this from happening.  I was able to fix this one because I saw it before the paint had dried.

The great thing about a wash or pickled finish as described above, is that it dries fairly quickly.  Therefore, if you decide you want to darken the wash or make it a little more opaque, you can go back over it again without wasting a lot of time in between.

Once you have the look you want, let it dry for a few hours, depending on the temperature and environment.  You may need to seal the piece as well when finished.  If that’s the case, let the piece dry overnight, just to be sure.  I opted not to for the patio chairs because I want a less perfect, more distressed look.

And finally, I added some comfy cushions to give them a little extra pizazz.  Nothin’ wrong with dressing a piece up a bit more!

AFTER:

You can also buy pickling stains at your local paint store or use an oil based paint if you prefer. Again, if you use oil, you would need to dilute it with an oil based thinner. Choosing between latex and oil is a personal choice. Latex is easier to work with, less clean up and produces less odor than oil. The difference is, latex tends to raise the grain of the wood, which may require a little sanding before sealing. The benefit to using oil is not only will it not cause the grain to raise, but you also have more time to work with it since it’s slower drying. When using a sealer, make sure it’s the same base as your wash or stain.  If you used latex, use a latex based sealer and vise versa.

If you have any questions or ideas, please feel free to leave your comments below.  As always, I would love to hear from you.

Enjoy until next time,


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trash to treasure: secrets of the hunt #2

June 29, 2010

I apologize for not posting last week as I said I would.  The hubby’s very distant cousin and her baseball loving boyfriend came up to see a Brave’s game and stayed the weekend with us, which meant I had to get the house “company ready.”  We had a great weekend and even tried a new Thai restaurant in Virginia Highlands, called Panita Thai Kitchen.  Food was alright but atmosphere got an A+ in my book.  With such a plethora of restaurants in Atlanta, it’s difficult to get to them all, although I do try.  ;)

Anyway, as promised, here is my secret #2 and a few repurposing ideas to ponder.

TIP #2: WHEN TO GO? – Once you have your list in place, deciding when to go is key.  As they say, “the early bird gets the worm.”  However, you have to decide what you’re willing to pay for that worm.

Day #1 - If you have specific items in mind, especially if they are larger items such as furniture or high demand pieces, you should plan to be there on the first day of the sale, the earlier the better.  The first day of the sale, most estate sales will hand out numbers to those waiting before the doors open.  This way, when they do open for business, they will call you in by number.  Once those numbers have been called, and for the remainder of the sale, you are free to come and go as you wish, meaning, there is no longer a need for the number system.  As you may have guessed, the more demand for the item, the more you have to be willing to spend.  The first day of the sale, prices are usually as marked.  There’s not a lot of room for negotiating Day #1 so you should expect to pay full price or close to.

Let’s say you don’t have anything specific in mind when shopping, or you have a few smaller items on your list but are looking for the perfect deal before being able to justify your purchase.  If that’s the case, you may want to consider waiting until the second or last day of the sale.

Day #2 – usually means markdowns of 20% and sometimes up to 50%, with some room for negotiating.

Day #3 – or the last day is the best day to go if you are more of a browser or just getting into estate sale shopping.  This is the best day for markdowns, usually at least 50% or more, unless otherwise noted, and your best bet for price negotiation.  Obviously, you take your chances here.  Because you’ve waited until the last minute, you may end up with little to no selection.

One Day Sale – If you’re going to a one day sale, divide the hours of the sale into 3 and think of the three sections as those listed above.  The first part of the day is the best for scoring that much sought after piece but at full price, mid day is good for finding those great pieces with some room to negotiate and the last final hours of the sale are best for swooping in and negotiating the remaining pieces, and the best time for a “deal.”

Again, figure out what you need and what you’re willing to spend for those items.  Knowing that should help you determine when is best to go.

TRASH TO TREASURE:

Another item I commonly find at estate sales is old pictures, letters and postcards.  Here are a few fun ways to repurpose these items.

TRASH:

estate sale find: old/vintage photos, letters & postcards

TREASURE:

The most basic way to reuse these vintage images is to use them as vintage artwork, like this wall of old photos found at Country Living, the enlarged and framed postcard from Southern Living, or the one just below, of the baby, found at The Orchard.

vintage photo wall art

vintage postcard wall art

vintage baby photo wall art

Although these are vintage flash cards, WhisperWood Cottage came up with a fantastic way of displaying these finds.

vintage flash cards as art

vintage flash cards as art

vintage flash cards on display

Or, how about this cute photo garland idea from Vintage Scraps?

photo garland - Etsy's Vintage Scraps

Another easy repurposing idea for these historical relics?  Create your own custom greeting cards.  You’ve seen those basic white cards with the black and white vintage images on front and the cute/funny sayings once opened right?  Why not make your own?  Think about all of the possibilities?  Baby announcements, congratulatory cards, lady’s luncheon invites, funny greeting cards, etc., etc.

How about using the photo below from Secret Closet Gifts as a 50th anniversary party invite or the one below as a “thinking of you” card as Soleil Papier did?

vintage photo greeting card idea

vintage photo greeting card

These types of images are also great to have on hand for the scrapbooker or the mixed media artist.  Use just the sections of the images you need to create your own work of art or scrapbook page, like Gerushia’s New World did here for her “Rabbit’s Curios Day” piece.

vintage photos for scrapbooking or mixed media art idea

And speaking of mixed media art, how about this repurposing idea using vintage auto parts, like Robert Pace Kidd has done?

mixed media art idea from Robert Pace Kidd

Food for thought: Ok, so maybe you don’t want a whole bunch of car parts hanging on your walls.  How about using an old tin can lid as the “frame” and adding an old photo using magnets to the front?  Or, sometimes you might run across old metal advertising signs or concession stand signs, how about recycling those as wall art, and displaying your precious photos on front?  I found these images online as examples.  You could hang pictures of you and your friends having a good time on the left one, or maybe a picture of your kids baking in the kitchen on the right one.

vintage advertising

Now, if you’re the more adventurous type and want to take this one step further, you could even use any of these images to transfer onto another piece of fabric, then hand stitch it to the front of a pillow case like Flax and Spindle did below with the vintage postcard, or like Vintage Weave did with the children’s storybook images.

postcard pillow - Etsy's, Flax & Spindle

vintage weave photo pillow

Or, you could transfer the image directly onto any type of textiled materials, such as Martha Stewart’s photo totes, or a t-shirt like this Goodstead tee.

Martha Stewart's photo tote

Goodstead vintage photo t-shirt

Although I couldn’t seem to find a good example, how cute would it be to transfer an old black and white image of a woman in the kitchen onto a piece of white cloth, then hand stitch it to a vintage apron like these from Sissy Maid Closet?

vintage aprons

For image transfer tips, I found this online tutorial, with lots of great info.

And finally, if jewelry making is your thing, how about repurposing these vintage images into your collection, as Classy and Sassy Charms has done here or like these wedding photo earrings from Salamander House?

vintage photo jewelry

vintage photo earrings

Have any other ideas for vintage/old photos, letters and postcards?  I would love to hear from you!

Enjoy until next time,

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Posted in trash to treasure | 3 Comments »

trash to treasure: secrets of the hunt #1

June 2, 2010

Weekends mean waking up a little early, enjoying my quick cup o’ joe, throwing on comfortable clothes and then dashing out the door.  Why?  Because I have a list of estate and/or yard sales to hit in search of my next treasure.

Call it an addiction if you will but it absolutely gives me a high.  Pulling up to the house, seeing all of those cars and people walking out, purchases in hand, the excitement begins to build.  What will I find in there?  What will I have to pounce on before someone else does?  All of these answers are about to unfold.

For those of you who may not know, or those of you who are new to the game, yard sales and estate sales offer an enormous amount of opportunity for the thrifty shopper, the repurposer, like myself, or the person looking for that one-of-a-kind conversation piece with a history to be told.  Yard sales are held by all types of people (young/old, city dwellers/suburbanites, families/singles) either moving or looking to rid of unwanted clutter in their home.  Yard sales range in size as well.  They can be very small or they can be multi-family sales, meaning a lot more variety.  The homeowner is usually the person conducting the sale.  An estate sale is different in that it usually means the homeowner has passed or possibly, the family for one reason or another is leaving the home and it’s contents behind and moving on.  Therefore, in any case, the entire contents of the home are for sale by a third party.  Because often times the contents are antiques or things collected over the years, prices are slightly higher than yard sales.  However, there are still deals to be had and ways in which you can maximize your dollar, which I will cover in future posts, so stay tuned.

If the idea of shopping yard/estate sales interests you but you are feeling a bit overwhelmed at the thought, I will be sharing my tips of the hunt, one by one.  Because I’m also driven to these sales by my love of repurposing and reclaiming beautiful pieces, I will also be sharing DIY ideas for items I come across in my search.

TIP #1: MAKE A LIST – If you have specific items you are looking for, be it, décor, furniture, household items, vintage clothing & accessories, etc., make a list.  Keep a running list too if that helps so that you always have a tally of the items you’ve found and the ones you have yet to find.  Also, do your research.  Know what the going rate is for each item on your list so you’re ready when you spot a good deal.  And remember, buying secondhand is usually cheaper than buying new, unless of course you’re buying a valuable antique.  A good thing to note, the more sales you visit, the greater your understanding of the value of each piece, as many sales have similar items.

On that note, here is one item that I find most often at estate sales.  There are a multitude of ways in which to repurpose these little sewn gems.

TRASH:

Doilies are so grandma chic, giving them so much repurposing potential.

TREASURE:

Check out these ideas from Country Living, with instructions on how to achieve the look.

Doily Lamp Shade

How To: Using only the frame of the lamp, drape doilies from top of frame and pin them together as you work your way down.  Once you have the look you want, remove the doily skirt from the frame, machine stitch together, while removing the pins as you go.  Place back over frame and hand sew the top over and to the frame itself.

Doily Cushion & Draperies

How To: Since some doilies are so beautiful on their own, find a unique way to display them like you see here.  Hand stitch your favorites to pillows and cushions or, use doilies of various sizes and similar color tones and stitch them to the hemline of drapes for a custom vintage look.  Another idea would be to do something similar to shower curtains or table cloths.  That brings me to the next idea…

Doily Table Runner

How To: Place doilies in a pleasing pattern, a little longer than the length of your table and hand stitch together.

Doily Flower Vase

How To: Tightly wrap doily completely around vase.  Cut away any excess.  Hand stitch in place. Hint: Larger doilies with more open areas or negative space are better suited for this as they allow more light in and keep that airy feel.

Doilies are also great for clothing and accessories, as Etsy seller, BowerBirdInc. has done.

Doily Purse by Etsy Seller "BowerBirdInc."

Or this one by ZiBagz.

Doily Purse by Etsy seller, "ZiBagz."

How To: Place doily on purse, clutch or article of clothing.  Cut away any excess, then hand stitch in place.  Make sure that it’s secure enough for normal wear and tear.

And finally, doilies are a great way to add interest to your walls or space at a fraction of the cost of artwork, as seen here.

Framed Doily Art by Etsy seller, "The Urban Thimble."

Or, this free form doily art idea from an image on Flickr, using doilies and colored push pins.

Free Form Doily Wall Art

One more doily art idea I found at Tatertots & Jello blog, with a tutorial, using canvas or plywood, scrapbook paper, a little mod podge and colored doilies.

Doily Art on Plywood & Scrapbook Paper

Again, the possibilities of doily uses are endless.  I’m sure I’ll have more to add at a later date as I come across other great ideas so make sure to check back.  If you have any thoughts or ideas of your own, please feel free to share.

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