Make an Upcycled Ruler Frame - Holiday Gift Countdown - Week # 6

By now you can see that I am using alot of vintage pieces for holiday gifts this year

(this makes a great reason for flea marketing in the summer - you can only hoard so much stuff personally if you do not want to end up on one of those tv shows fighting to hold on to your collection of somebody else's bowling trophies and climbing over piles of old magazines to eat a slice of frozen pizza in bed with your cats)

you can make this gorgeous yardstick frame/mat from new rulers, too, but the old yardsticks make it a totally one of a kind piece for your lucky recipient!

you will need: 3 colorful yardsticks (enough to mat 2 11X11 Ikea frames), saw, adhesive, sandpaper

I decided after playing around with the rulers a bit that I wanted to keep the glass under the rulers and leave them with the framed black edge of the Ikea frame.

1. lay out your rulers
2. saw rulers to size (be patient and careful with this if you are using a little wobbly handsaw like I did)
3. lay out the pieces and then glue them into place.

I was originally thinking I would glue the ruler pieces to the glass, but decided in the end it would be better to glue them to each other and to the inner frame.

* onion print by f2images

To get your own yardsticks - check out the Etsy listings HERE

maybe it's better to seek out some criticism .... the kind that offers up just a little love bite though, not the kind that requires stitches

It is usually easy to find people to tell you how great your idea or thingamajiggie is and how you can absolutely sell that great idea or thingamajiggie - "they'd sure as hell buy one" they say - although they likely never will ...

(unless of course, you are in my family - the "do you really want the truth?" clan of solemn pronouncers of doom and gloom, yes - that's where I get it)

sometimes though - it is best to ask people

what they don't like.

So, instead of seeking approval, maybe asking, "what is wrong with this? how can I make it better?" could be more likely to get something real ... and maybe helpful ... and maybe valid.

It also requires the person who's opinion you value

(and if you don't value their opinion, then please do not ask them)

to really look and listen to what you are showing them.

You can, of course, totally disregard their answers, but if you are really looking for feedback - this approach may yield you some important talking, thinking and action points that you hadn't thought about.

(a final note about asking someone else about your work - remember an important life lesson here - you can only be to someone what they see you as - and yes, I realize I am dangling a participle here, but stay with me - what people see has more to do with what is behind their eyes than in front of them, so keep that in mind - this is not an exercise in giving your power away - but solo workers need the power of collaboration sometimes, too)

* if you're gonna shoot print by petek design

happy halloween!

hope you get lots of candy ....... xo

* love live halloween block by danita

stop waiting for THE opportunity, the one you have IS the opportunity

We may be waiting on the perfect job for the perfect customer

(the job that will make us a household name like Windex or Brillo or ... uh, wait, not them, like Martha, yeah that's better like Martha or the project that will keep us busy with something challenging for awhile)

the problem with waiting is that it leaves us ... well, waiting. It is a pretty reactive place to be.

And I am not talking about going out and making it happen in this post

(although yes, we do have to do that sometimes, although maybe not as often as you might think)

but about just taking the job that you have in your hand, the one that you have done before, the one that you could do in your sleep, the one that is on your work table right now and making that job THE job.

Get out of that ego place that tells us that we are not doing enough - be joyful about that bird in hand.

*bird in the hand print by Tammy Olson

NOTE - I wrote this post several weeks ago and for some reason never posted it. I pulled it out today because I still feel it is valid and timely and hope someone will resonate with it.

The truth for me these days, is that there are so many bigger things going on in the world that talking about business right now feels very small potatoes

(as my grandma would have said - sniffle)

and I feel a certain sense of disconnect with it. At least in terms of posting about growing our businesses - what I really want to be writing about is this incredible opportunity we have as creators to be helping the world evolve into something better ... and maybe I will ....

xo

Upcycled Wood & String Name Plaques - Handmade Holiday Gift Countdown Week 5

You have probably seen these wood letters in the craft store and this is one easy-peasy way to make them uber cool!

You will need: the letters to spell someone's name or initials, wire brads (I used 3/4" X 17), colored string, hammer, I got away without drilling starter holes- but you could split the wood, so if you have a drill it might be a good idea, sawtooth hangers

1. Add a sawtooth hanger to the back of each letter (I didn't do this step until the end and you do not want to do that)
2. Nail in your brads - placing one each time the line of the letter changes direction - you may need to glue the brads in
3. Tie on your string and follow the brads. Tie it off.

Voila! I think these are super cute and turn those cheesy letters into something adorable.

GIVEAWAY - Christine's Beadworks Amazing Custom Bottle Cap Recycled CUFF! WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED THIS WEEK!

AND THE LUCKY WINNER IS:
Chosen by random.org
True Random Number Generator

Min: 1
Max: 273
Result: 113

Trisha! Congratulations Trisha and thank you to everyone who entered - please think of Christine for your holiday shopping everyone!

Christine's Beadworks is the totally amazing Michigan shop of maker Christine Wilson.

To Christine, design is one part inspiration, one part craftsmanship and several parts perseverance. She says, "If you enjoy what you are doing, you'll find the time, energy and skills to make it work."

Christine has a deep admiration for design, but it's the construction that really captures her imagination.

(her love and passion for process is so evident in her incredibly beautiful and detailed work!)

"The building of the piece from the selection of color to the layering of elements brings true joy into my designs. It would be impossible for me to imagine it without touching and doing it at the same time."

(don't we love that)

She utilizes unusual stones and artwork in her designs as well as recycled materials. Christine love's bottlecaps! There is something about these little miniature works of advertising artistry that have captured her imagination. She says, "So much is said in such a small space; they are a true testament to the power of simplicity in design. I'm proud to reclaim them from an inglorious end in a landfill and to enhance their artistry with my own."

We are so lucky to have one of Christine's amazing pieces for this week's giveaway!

WHAT YOU GET:

One lucky winner will receive a CUSTOM cuff from Christine! Your choice of bottle cap (if she can find the cap) and your choice for the cuff from the belts she has on hand!

HOW TO WIN:

It's easy, peasy - just pop over to Christine's Beadworks and then pop back here and let Christine know in the comments below which of her amazing goodies is your fave!

For additional entries:

(5) Twitter this post (5) Blog about this contest; linking to this post
(5) Follow my blog (5) Like me on Facebook (5) Like Christine on Facebook
Let me know if you have done these things so I can give you additional entries. This contest is open to everyone.

DRAWING:
Enter by midnight, Sunday, November 5th! Good Luck! CLOSED