What's Your Racquet? - Tennis Racquet to Cork Board DIY Tutorial

Recently I picked up a couple racquets at a local flea market.

I had seen some tennis racquet mirrors on Apartment Therapy some time ago and I loved them, but knew working with mirrored glass would definitely be seven years bad luck for me, so thought I would try a similar kind of thing with cork.

So here is an easy, peasy tutorial to turn your old racquet into a cork board message center.

You can make them with or without a fabric covering - I am making these two as a gift and this fabric is perfect for the tennis nut I am thinking about.

You will need:

1. racquet(s)
2. cork
3. fabric
4. cardboard
5. paper
6. staplegun
7. scissors
8. screwdriver
9. glazier points


1. Create a paper template by making dots along the inside edge of the racquet
2. Adjust your template until it fits perfectly inside the racquet
3. Use the template to cut the cork and a piece of cardboard
4. Iron your fabric and using a staple gun wrap the fabric around the cork and cardboard; secure tightly
5. Using glazier points (used in framing) and a screwdriver secure the corkboard into the racquet



Note- those framed prints in my livingroom (top photo) are by the amazing f2images!

1. Vintage tennis racquets at BrightWallVintage
2. Art for Dogs by StrayDogArts
3. Short white skirt by LaBronz
4. Tennis ball cufflinks by QA Create
5. Tennis ball bath bomb by Layla
6. Cats Playing Badminton Brooch by Bramble and Bear

No More Wire Hangers! but first you can use one to make a business card or place card holder

You can easily use a wire hanger and turn almost anything into a business card holder, place card holder or photo holder.

Here I use a little vintage child's block, but anything you can drill 2 holes in, will probably work!

What you need:

1. a wire hanger
2. wire cutters (I use these to cut sheet metal, so they are heavy duty, but smaller ones will work, too)
3. something round such as a foam brush handle, pencil, etc
4. a drill
5. your block or holder
6. your business card or photo


Using wire cutters cut 6-7" of straight wire
Wrap the wire tightly around your foam brush handle or pencil twice
Give a squeeze with a pair of pliers (I actually stepped on mine, but this seems more professional) to flatten your wires
Mark your drill holes by measuring each side of your handle (or whatever you used as your rolling template)
Drill 2 holes, push in your wire ends, add your business card

You can use the same wire technique to make place card holders or recipe card holders out of your salt and pepper shakers- if the wire hanger wire is too thick, you can use 18 gauge wire from the hardware store or you can even cut down large safety pins! Just use a round winding template that is the thickness of the space in between the holes.

Thoughtful Thursday - Bling It On or How to Make a Lucky Number Necklace

This is a fun piece that I made for a friend's housewarming party (she collects gnomes), but it would also make a great idea for a lucky number or initial necklace!

My friend likes big jewelry, but this can also be made in a smaller size or would make a great accent piece hanging on a mirror or frame.

(and everyone needs at least one piece of big chunky jewelry in their closet, right, plus I know you are really into the industrial bling ... or was that Fergie?)


You will need:

1. metal house number (these come in all sizes)
2. hardware - washers, eyehooks, screws
3. doodads for hanging (beads, charms, etc)
4. neck chain
5. jump rings and slip rings
6. power drill (drill press preferred)
7. pliers




1. Decide on the placement for your doodads (bottom, sides, front) and mark your locations with a marker. Drill a hole (smaller then your eyehook) on the top for your chain and on the marks you have placed for your doodads.

2. Screw in your eyehooks and washers. Add slip rings or jump rings.

3. Add your chain and doodads.

Your only limit is your imagination- you can decoupage parts of the number and even hang your number horizontally for added interest!

How To Make a Magnetic Test Tube Terrarium or moss on your fridge is way cooler than mold

I have been slowly adding some test tube terrariums to my Etsy shop- they are for charity and quite different from these, but I thought I would give you a little look into how the terrarium part is made.

To make one of these you will need:

1. a test tube with cork stopper
2. pen and paper (don't worry you won't have to actually draw anything)
3. a neodymium magnet - I never work with these things because they are way too strong for my usual work (and scare me)
4. rocks
5. charcoal (think fishtank)
6. moss (or some small terrarium plant) and dirt
7. some kind of long skinny plastic thingie
8. super glue


1. Put some super glue on your magnet and gently but firmly place your test tube on to the glue

(try not to glue your fingers together, break the test tube, cut yourself with the broken glass or screw this up in some other way - at this point you are probably thinking that it might be easier to just buy one of these from me and that is exactly what I want you to be thinking)

Hold it in place for a bit and then let it set- prop up the other end with another magnet- over night.

2. Roll your paper around your pen to form a tube (the paper should be longer than your test tube) and place the paper in the test tube

3. Add some rocks, followed by some charcoal followed by some nice rich dirt

4. Remove your paper and tap down with your plastic thingie

(if you try to use a metal thingie, it will mess with your magnet and you will be sorry, but again it may get you thinking you should just buy one from me, so maybe go ahead and stick a screwdriver in there)

5. Carefully drop in your moss (or plant), tap it down gently with your thingie, mist with a few drops of rain water (or tap water, but collect some rain for future waterings- I say give the moss what it would naturally get)



6. Cork that baby up and hang it up somewhere you will get to see it. By the way there are over 12,000 species of moss- I recommend Jersey moss because it is very hardy having grown up listening to all those awful Jersey jokes- which are untrue ... mostly.

Recycled Christmas Countdown ... more reasons to drink more wine

While you are getting merry this season with your favorite bottles of red and white -start saving your wine corks

(you may already have a nice little collection)

and turn them into amazingly awesome Christmas tree ornaments!

A little cork education:

Cork is the bark of the cork oak tree. Most cork is grown in managed forests, primarily in Portugal and Spain, where the cork is carefully harvested in a centuries-old tradition using hand tools and without pesticides or fertilizers ensuring the trees will remain undamaged.

To make these little beauties you will need:

Corks, Buttons, Glue, Pleather Cording, Eyehooks, Slip Rings and Some Cute Little Christmasy Things to Hang From Your Corks

1. Start with a button that is about the size of your cork or a bit larger and thread it with a strand of pleather from the bottom up
2. Stack on a few more buttons and tie it off. Give your pleather a few more inches for hanging and trim.
3. Using a pair of sharp little scissors dig a little hole in the top of your cork so your bottom button sits flat
4. Glue the button to the cork and let this set
5. Twist an eyehook into the bottom of your cork and add a slip ring
6. Now you are ready to add any cute little Christmasy things you can think of to dangle from your corks


OK, I have to admit this is a re-post from last Christmas.

I'm actually at the mall right now looking for a parking spot or maybe at our town's tree lighting ceremony- which is actually held right across the street from our house- yup, lucky us- but they give us jingle bells for our shoes and we really, really want those bells, so even though it is about minus 20 with the wind chill we will be there.

and this post is for your own good anyway, because wine is very good for you- at least red wine .... plus it is low calorie ... really

Note to my scale- please be kind today- I'm hoping for a .6 loss - that's all I need-and if it happens, we'll totally be BFF forever.

OK, off to get my jingle bells.

Recycled Christmas Countdown or baby got book

This is part 5 of my weekly series on some recycled and repurposed Christmas gift ideas- things that are easy enough to make fairly quickly, but still look like you put the proper time and thought into them.

I love little knobs and hangers and hooks and doodads and pick them up at garage sales and Anthropologie's sales racks whenever I have the chance- not knowing what I am ever going to do with them.

They make great little hanging racks but attached to a piece of wood they are just so 'been there, done that'. Attached to a book they make an amazing, recycled little hanging rack!


1. Gather your supplies: books that you don't mind drilling holes in- I know this is going to hurt all you bibliophiles, but sometimes art hurts folks (the books should be the same thickness as the length of the screw attached to your drawer pull unless you have some heavy duty wire cutters like I do), your doodads and sawtooth hangers

2. Mark the spot(s) where you want your hooks.

3. Drill your holes - note- when I drilled the very thick Harry Potter book, I smelled smoke and thought I had started a fire, so maybe thinner books are best or that could be just a little of the Potter magic leaking out

4. Clean the drill area flush with a razor blade

5. Add your drawer pulls with washer and bolt on back

6. Add your sawtooth hanger with a hammer
Some simple wrap (Target giant lunch bag - just how big have our lunches gotten I'd like to know- run through an inkjet) completes the gift!

Recycled Christmas Countdown or saving your digits the old fashioned way

This is the 4th part of my weekly series on some recycled and repurposed Christmas gift ideas- things that are easy enough to make fairly quickly, but still look like you put the proper time and thought into them.

I don't know anyone's phone number anymore because they are all stored in my cellphone and when I forget to charge it

(all the time)

I am left wishing I had my memory back

(from before I lost it being a mom)

or that I had a wonderful old rolodex!

You will need: a can (cut out both ends- you can't do this with all cans these days, but there are still some out there), a magazine, index cards or cardboard and dividers (you can make these pretty easily, but I just happen to have some purple ones)


Step 1- Gather your supplies, cut both ends from your can and peel the label

Step 2- Find an interesting picture page in your magazine (the magazine can be new and part of the gift or you can recycle one of your old ones)

Step 3- Tightly roll it up and slide it into the can

Step 4- Trim your index cards to about 4" square (square just seems better somehow and it also stands up perfectly for some reason that I can't figure out)

Step 5- Slide your dividers and cards into the pages - instant modern, recycled rolodex!




Some simple wrap (Target giant lunch bag run through an inkjet) completes the gift!

Recycled Christmas Countdown Part III or what to do with those empty bottles

This is the third part of my weekly series on some recycled and repurposed Christmas gift ideas- things that are easy enough to make fairly quickly, but still look like you put the proper time and thought into them.

This is a modern take on the romantic cut flowers in a recycled glass bottle that we have all been doing forever.

You will need a bottle of something as a gift or an empty bottle you have on hand (wine, classic soda, some special something), a 3/4" galvanized split ring hanger (plumbing department), a 3/8" galvanized ceiling flange (plumbing or electrical department), 3/8 threaded pipe cut to size (store will cut), #12X1" screws.

These parts are actually pipe hanging gizmos and come in copper and galvanized steel and a mix and match assortment will look great.



This one is actually too easy for step by steps. The pieces all fit together neatly into an adorable little industrial hanger. They also come in different sizes for different size bottles and jars. You can fill an entire wall with these and it would look amazing!







Once again for some easy packaging grab a few of these larger size lunch bags (found at Target) that you can run through your inkjet with some clever wording.

Recycled Christmas Countdown Part II or start saving those coffee cans

This is the second part of my weekly series on some recycled and repurposed Christmas gift ideas- things that are easy enough to make fairly quickly, but still look like you put the proper time and thought into them.

This makes a great gift for the coffee fanatic on your list and you can make the same style clock for a tea lover, too- the tea tins are sometimes (often) better than the tea.

You will need a coffee can, coffee scoop, clock hardware, hanging hardware and a drill.

I cheated a bit because I already had these great magnetic hooks that I got at Staples (which I used for the bottom to hold the coffee scoop), but you could definitely screw an eyehook into the bottom of the can very easily- just start with a tiny drill hole.

1. Clean out the can- although leaving a little of that coffee smell in there could be a good thing

2. Drill (or drill and punch) a hole in the can for your clock gizmo (empty side of can on top)

(a word about clock gizmos- they are super fragile- so be careful- I immediate bent my second hand into something that resembles the state of Rhode Island, but since this gift is recycled and the recipient just happens to really like Rhode Island, not sure how I know this about him, it is ok ... probably)

3. Insert the gizmo through the back- you will probably need the directions to figure out the order of the little parts- and if you are like me and tend to toss them before you start- this step may take awhile

4. Screw eyehook into can bottom

5. Add hanging hardware to back of can (I suggest 2 sets of hardware - one top and one bottom, so when the person grabs for the coffee scoop they don't pull their clock off the wall)

6. I love packaging things in these larger size lunch bags (found at Target) that you can run through your inkjet with some clever wording.

Recycled Christmas Countdown or if we are going to eat this sugary stuff let's recycle the boxes

My plan is for a weekly post on some recycled and repurposed Christmas gift ideas- things that are easy enough to make fairly quickly, but still look like you put the proper time and thought into them.

Now I know we shouldn't be eating this stuff, but some of us do have a collection of these cereal boxes from overnight guests

(uhuh)

and I especially love the little mini assortment packs.



1. Glue the top flaps open. For stability you want to leave them on rather than rip them off- a glue stick would probably work just fine for this.

2. Using a razor knife or scissors cut a larger package (carnation instant breakfast packaging show here) open and glue the flaps back

3/4. Add little scrapbook doodads to the sides of your boxes- there are tons of variations here, so just use things that you have when possible.

These cereal boxes could also be made into little books and albums in this same way. Large cereal boxes also fit nicely into those plastic crates in your kids' rooms.


Mini Cereal Box Storage Unit (especially great gift when paired with one of the amazing Etsy finds below)


1. Hawaiian Coconut Bowl by Glazed Over
2. Favorite Plaid Shirt Print by LittleBranches
3. Coffee in Color Notecards by ThingsThatAreMade
4. Rice Cereal Upcycled Journal by IvyLaneDesigns.
5. Vintage Recycled Quilt Coasters by RikRak
6. ID Bracelet by Spoonerz
7. Fork Shirt by Xenotees

The Post About Beer and Gutters

I got my amazing vintage coaster collection in the mail today from Etsy's wonderful vintage shop EveryEskimo and they are perfect!

We are thinking of making hubby's customers Christmas gifts of homemade beer and these coasters (after I figure out how best to encase them in glass and cork). In the meantime, I am going to display a few in my studio with some metal gutter covers (and magnetic hooks- could also work with clothes pins) from a garage sale.




And while I am in here with my camera here's a little hanger project I'm working on for a display (although a storm has suddenly kicked up and my sun is gone). I saw some hangers in a magazine recently

(sorry- I'm not sure which one, I didn't actually buy it, just kind of did a drive-by skimming at the register)

but I think they had filled them with wallpaper.

Just use the hanger as a template and get out your glue gun- so easy it's ridiculous (just the way I like these kind of projects). I just used scrapbook paper and cardboard and then threw in a little cork for luck. No idea what I am going to do with these, but they are just so cute I'm going to go ahead and make a dozen (the hangers are from Ikea).

REwrapping this year - Boxes and Bows

Go green instead of spending green this year!

You will need: Scrap paper (a colorful magazine page looks great), cardboard packaging (here I am using a dog food box), scissors, stapler, twine, paper cutter (or ruler), glue

1. To make the bow cut several strips of paper down to 8.5" X .75" and one piece to 4" X .75
2. Loop each strip ends back into the center and staple
3. Staple all your looped pieces together at 90 degree angles and top off with the 4" piece looped and stacked on top
4. Flatten out your cardboard packaging
5. Find the glued side and carefully separate the cardboard to open the packaging
6. Turn the box inside out and reglue it back together (or tape it if you are going to cover the box)
7. Telephone book pages run through a paper shredder make a great replacement for tissue paper
8. You can now decorate your box to your own style- or keep it simple with some twine and your recycled bow!

Make a RECYCLED JEWELRY CASE

These are the instructions to make one of my jewelry cases from old frames. This will be featured on a new how-to blog - if anyone making one of these would like a free test tube with cork and hardware (just pay $2.00 shipping) drop me an email cat@olivebites.com - enjoy!

Is your jewelry all knotted together in the bottom of a drawer? Are you always looking for a piece that you know “is in there somewhere” – well, this is the perfect solution to begin to untangle your messy life ….


Stuff You Will Need



2 picture frames of the same size (the deeper the better with square edges)
2 hinges with hardware
1 latch with hardware
foam board (cut to fit inside one of the frames)
fabric (dense weaves are best)
a piece of glass to fit one of the frames
silicone sealant (clear for kitchen and bath)
staple gun
glazier points
hanging hardware (saw tooth hanger)
drill or dremel
clamps
screwdriver

Step 1 - Line Up Your Frames

Marry your frames – stand them up on a table and make sure they fit together perfectly (place interiors together). Mine are square and sometimes I have to turn one in a different direction to get the perfect line up. Check your corners and sides. If your frames are out of line – give them a quickie divorce and get yourself two frames that want to live happily ever after together… skip this step at your own risk…..

Clamp your frames together –wrap cardboard to protect your wood and then clamp your two sides together (interiors facing each other)



Step 2 – The Hinges


Line up the top of the hinge with the top of the interior frame cutout and repeat for the bottom, set your hinges in place, mark screw holes with an awl or pencil (I actually use jewelry tweezers), remove hinges, pre-drill holes for hinges, secure hinge hardware with a screwdriver

Step 3 – The Latch

Determine which frame will be the front of your jewelry case. Measure to find the center (unless you are an off-center kind of girl), lay out your latch so that it opens toward the frame you would like to be the front of your case, mark screw holes with an awl, pre-drill holes for latch hardware, secure latch hardware with a screwdriver. Blow out any sawdust from the frames and wipe clean.

Step 4 – The Glass

Clean your glass; I know you are just going to get it dirty again, but you need it clean for a good seal and you want to check for any scratches or mars. Open your case. Lay your glass into the front frame. Gently hold a slight pressure down on your glass as you apply a continuous ¼” (approx) bead of clear silicone along the entire inside edge of the front frame; applying the silicone to the location where the glass meets the frame. This will hold the glass in place. Allow this to dry for 24 hours.

Step 5 – The Big Finish

Lay your foam, which you have cut to fit inside the back frame (I cut my foam with a mat-cutter but you can use a razor knife), on top of the fabric you will be using as a backdrop for your jewelry. Cut the fabric about 2” larger than the foam all the way around (you may want to iron your fabric at this point). Fold the fabric around the foam
(with the outside of your fabric facing away from the foam) and secure it with a staple gun. I use 6mm staples so they will not poke out the other side. Staple one side and then the opposite side pulling tightly until all four sides are secured. Fold your corners like you are wrapping a birthday present and staple. Cut away excess fabric.

Cut a piece of cardboard the same size as the foam (usually something you can use will come with the frame) – lay the cardboard into the back frame and lay your fabric covered foam panel on top of the cardboard.

Use a screwdriver to push 8 glazier points into the frame on top of the fabric panel (two points on each side).

Add your hanging hardware to the back by measuring to find the center and then nailing in the hardware. Use a long saw tooth hanger so the case can be adjusted for weight when hanging.

Using corsage pins (available at craft stores, florists, etc) you can hang your jewelry in style!

You can also make 2 fabric panel frames; attach them with the frame outsides facing together (opposite of above) and create an amazing display for your dresser!