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I like to make things.

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Rebecca
Post subject: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 5:45 am
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I'm rather artsy fartsy. But mostly crafty. I love creating things. Go a little stir crazy when I don't have some goofy project going on. That's why I started selling my jewelry online- I was making way too much and no one really needs or wants that much wire jewelry, and I hardly wear jewelry to begin with. But I like doing different projects. My favorite thing to do is repurpose something broken or ugly into something new and interesting. Lately I've been working on a lot of projects since I have so much free time. Someone here (sorry, forget who!) directed me to Craftster.org awhile back and I've been posting some of my projects there. But they're boring and don't post very often and I don't like them as much as you guys anyway.

So, this where I plan to post pictures of the different things that I make.

It would be really fabulous if you'd post pictures of things that you make, too. ;) I want to see your projects so I can steal your ideas. I mean... so I can be inspired to make something of my own.

Who else builds things or draws or does anything crafty?

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 5:50 am
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Ok, here's my most recently finished project.

I have a set of bedroom furniture that I really don't like- I don't like the wood's color, the sides are cheap and cracked, and it wasn't made real well. But, it has put up with a lot, since it was my dad's furniture when he was a kid and it was my furniture since I was a kid. Now that I'm finally redoing my bedroom, I plan to replace it. But going to the store and buying furniture is just so boring. Plus, it's cheaper to reuse things! :D

I decided to keep the bookshelf, since I've always had a lot of books and I thought it would be nice to have a sentimental piece amongst the rest of my furniture.


On the original piece, the trim and molding was so horrible, books became lost back there. So the first thing I did was rip off all the trim around the top and sides. It was very cathartic, which is part of why there's no before pictures. ;) That stuff was nailed, stapled, screwed, and glued in. I probably should have just given up, but it was rather fun. The top was just a cheap fiber board that slid into a groove near the top. It looked weird, so I ripped the nails holding it in out and removed it. But then the top wasn't level with the board I bought to sit on the top (it was slightly lower in the back). So, I flipped the shelf upside-down, and you can't tell any more. Plus, it makes it sit more evenly on the carpet, previously it always tipped forward, now it leans back just a tad into the wall, which is enough to even it out.

This is the original shelf:
(Since I forgot to take a before picture, this is one from when I was moving, excuse the boxes and my cat)
[ img ]

After sanding it, I tried to stain it, but it was blotchy due to me not sanding the finish off evenly. The black stain also looked blue-black, so I gave up and primed it and painted it with a dark brown color. I then painted some vines on the back splash. I plan to make a headboard for my bed with the same vine design.

Ta da!
[ img ]

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 6:01 am
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Ok, here's one more. And that's all I have for tonight, although I have lots more projects I can share if no one stops me.

As you can imagine, I have a lot of books. Books I read and books I save for crafting purposes. It's actually rather ridiculous. So while I was working on the bookshelf above, I decided to work on another shelf to work off my impatient energy instead of just watching the paint dry.

This bookshelf involved using books I've collected for the sole purpose of crafting projects. I contemplated making a book purse with some of them, so I didn't want to damage the covers. Most of them have been subjected to various decoupage projects already, but the covers still look nice.

This is what I ended up with:
[ img ]

Only two books were harmed in the making of this shelf, too. And those two were only harmed because I was getting frustrated and impatient (hmm, theme here?).

To make it, I took some those crafting books and attached L-brackets to spare wood boards that I had. I painted the boards to match the shelf they'd be sitting on. I did each board a bit differently as I experimented, but attaching the L-brackets so they were still visible was the sturdiest, just not the prettiest. The first shelf hid the metal brackets inside the book covers, but it was a bit more wobbly so I had to attach a bunch more of them. The rest I did like this: [ img ] This way, the books can slide in and out when they aren't supporting the shelf above it.

I ran out of same-height books, so for the top shelf I attached the brackets right to the book on one side. I was having difficulty with the book on the right's stability, so I screwed right into it as well. Here's the top shelf close up: [ img ]







I still need more bookshelves though, and I thought about buying materials and making them, but I'm just not good at things that involve precision (cutting, measuring, cooking, parking...), so I talked myself out of it. Instead I bought some shelves for $3 on craigslist and am working on doing something with them. For now I've just painted them, but I'm sure I'll be posting on here later when I'm finished. :D

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Donernilwen
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 7:08 am
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I dunno if I was the one to link you to craftster, but I've been posting random projects on there for about 5 years. :) One of my book purses was actually featured once. :banana:

Those book shelves are soooo cool! I'd never thought of that, but I have a bunch of books for crafting purposes laying around here somewhere. My family is putting an addition onto their house and making a commons area/little in home library and I bet she'd love something like that for the new room. Mind if I snag your idea a bit down the road? :pray:

I really haven't done too much craftying lately and have been getting the itch again. The most recent thing I did was make a Belle halloween costume. I consider my sewing projects to be more crafty projects cause I don't use a pattern and just kinda start from scratch/figure it out for myself. That's how I always do my crafts and "sewing" seems more strick and rule defined, to me at least. :) Anywho, I need to get pictures up on my computer of that. I haven't really seen any of myself in the dress yet so who knows, it could have been aweful. :P


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Dawnnamira
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 8:48 am
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That book bookshelf (lol) is so awesome. :love:

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Estel
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 9:31 am
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I love the paint job, and although I flinch a bit at hurting books, that shelf does look really frickin c00l :cool:


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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 3:05 pm
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Don, I think it was you who pointed me to craftster. :) I love that place. Post pictures of your book purse! I love them.

Thanks, Dawn. I have no idea what to put on the bookshelf, though. The shelves are rather small.


And goodness gracious, why do people always say that about my book bookshelf. :P Better to reuse the books than to let them be thrown away or recycled, right? I actually got most of my "crafty" books from garage sales or a used bookstore that was going out of business (every book was $1!). Some of the ones in my shelf aren't in English, so I don't think they had a lot of hope being sold for reading to the general public. So I rescued them. :blackeye: :P I also have used a paperback copy of theduffster's FotR for crafting purposes.....it was so worn that pages were falling out and missing. So it needed me to reuse it.

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Dawnnamira
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 3:13 pm
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You could use it as a storage shelf for the necklaces you make...

Or...this is something I would do (and actually do quite often :oops: )...lay the books flat and stack them that way.

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 3:26 pm
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Dawnnamira wrote:
You could use it as a storage shelf for the necklaces you make...

Or...this is something I would do (and actually do quite often :oops: )...lay the books flat and stack them that way.
I don't keep most of my necklaces. :P I thought about doing that with my books- I'll have to find some that look good there. Right now all my books are stacked in the dining room since I'm working on a new bookshelf. :P

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LalaithUrwen
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 3:32 pm
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Those are really cool! Wow!

You have some serious talent there!

And, Don, we want to see the dress. :poke:


Lali

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Wed 19 Nov , 2008 3:58 pm
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Thanks! :D You do crafty things, right Lali? Can we see any of your projects? Even the ones you do with your kids (Ooo, I've done tons of crafty kid projects that turned out well, maybe I should post them, too! :blackeye: ).

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 4:53 am
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And just because I want to post something fun today, here's another project that I really liked.

This is a project that I made last Christmas for the family that I nanny for. I was unable to think of a great gift (what do you get people that have everything???), until I was in the play room and wished there was a clock down there. I remembered seeing this Scrabble Clock on Craftster, so I made my own.

So, here's my take on the idea:
[ img ]

I took it a little further by adding pictures of their family, that I tinted and added effects to with Photoshop:
[ img ]

The new Scrabble boards have a huge space on the left. It took me awhile to decide what to do with it, and then forever to replicate the Scrabble banner with the family's name because I couldn't find a similar enough font (yes, I'm that picky). But I like how it turned out:
[ img ]

Normally, I'd have taken an old Scrabble board, but this was a Christmas gift and I didn't have time to scour the secondhand stores. :neutral: It did pain me to ruin a perfectly good game, but I liked how it turned out.

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LalaithUrwen
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 5:09 am
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That is REALLY cool! Wow!

Eh, am I crafty? Well, I'm artsy and kind of handy. I do like sewing, painting, and things like. I TRY to do craft projects, but they never quite turn out like they're supposed to. :(

I have an aunt (a great-aunt, actually), Auntie Eve. Every year at Christmas, we'd get these gifts from Auntie Eve--things she had made herself, and every year, we'd plaster on the fake smile and go, "Wow! That's so pretty!" (or "cool" or "neat" or whatever).

I think I am Auntie Eve. :blackeye: Every project I try turns out not quite so good.

I'll have to look around for some examples, so we can laugh. :D

Lali

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Silwen
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 5:35 pm
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I love the idea of the Scrabble clock, but my favourite so far is the first shelf with the vine design. :love:

Two summers ago I needed more shelves too and made some as well as painted them in a design I saw elsewhere. I just wish it had been entirely my design and not nicked from someone else! :oops:

[ img ]

I painted all of it except for the colourful leaves. Those are made of Japanese origami paper that I glue to the shelf.

[ img ]

People know that I knit by now so I'll not post any of my past projects, but will start with the current items. Today, in fact, I finished my first pair of fingered gloves. They fit nicely and I had no problem making them, to my surprise. I invented it as I went along and had no pattern to guide me.

[ img ]

My next project will be another pair of gloves. I once made some fingerless ones, but now I would like to add the fingers after all. I will probably start tomorrow.

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 5:43 pm
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I remember seeing that shelf somewhere before- I really like it. The colorful leaves are my favorite part. :D
(and....I drew the vine pattern on my shelf from a pattern I found somewhere else, too, shh, don't tell ;) )

And wow, those gloves are awesome. Really neat that you did it without a pattern. Knitting is not something I have any desire to do, even though I like it. Like I said earlier, I just can't do things that involve precision. I'm more of a spur of the moment kind of girl. :D

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Silwen
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 6:11 pm
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:whistle: I won't give away your secret. Copying a design is so much cheaper than buying the original item, so I couldn't help myself.

DIY is great and it requires a lot more energy than just sitting down to knit. I feel like a slob after having a knitting day! Today's one of them.

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Thu 20 Nov , 2008 6:21 pm
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My room currently looks like a disaster zone due to my current project. The new shelves that I bought are long and I decided to put them where I already have a bunch of stuff. Which meant moving pretty much everything in my room. All of that has spilled out into the hallway, stairs, and my bathroom. My roommate jokingly asked if I was moving out and then decided that my room is a fire hazard. :help: :blackeye:

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gimli_axe_wielder
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Fri 21 Nov , 2008 2:42 am
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I make pens, bowls, and plates out of wood! I don't have any photos online, though I think Steve owns one of my pens if he hasn't lost it by now.. I fear it may have dried up though. I discovered that unfortunately the fountain pen kits I used to buy aren't so great at quality after a bit of use, so I just make regular roller ball kinds now. If you read this Steve let me know :P

I'll take some photos of my bowls this weekend to show!

Of course I also do my photography but I am not sure if that is crafty or not :P

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Rebecca
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Fri 21 Nov , 2008 2:55 am
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Ooo, I can't wait to see the bowls. And sure, photography counts! I've seen a bunch of your pictures, but post your favorites. :)

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Elian
Post subject: Re: I like to make things.
Posted: Fri 21 Nov , 2008 3:09 am
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You don't have any photos of your bowls, Chris? I'm sure you showed me one at some point...or maybe that was just an example of the type of bowls you make.


I just finished an embroidered Christmas tree skirt that I've been working on (well, 'working on' in the sense that I had all the materials for it) for quite some time...maybe I'll post a picture if I can find my camera and get it working.

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