The Thrifty Ginger

Ever since the fall I have had two terra cotta pots around my apartment. They were originally intended for my basil plant, but that died because of neglect. Now that spring is leading into summer, I’ve decided it’s time to try out my green thumb again. Before planting in the pots I have, I wanted to jazz them up a little.

I decided to use basic paints to add designs to the two terra cotta planters. I also had my trusted painter’s tape on hand.

I originally tried to use some white enamel paint by the brand folkart, but that was unsuccessful. I’ve tried this same white paint on a couple different surfaces and can barely notice any color at all, so it’s going in the trash. I switched to regular black acrylic paint. My pots will either be inside or under cover, so I don’t have to worry about the full outside elements on the paint.

On one planter I used the painter’s tape to create triangles across the surface of the pot. I filled those in, adding a second coat after the first was dry.

On the other planter I did a double v organic pattern on the top. I also added a band of color around the pot.

I am pretty happy with how they came out. In hindsight, I think I should have kept the two patterns more similar, and either done two geometric designs or two organic designs. Oh well. Maybe I’ll just have to gift a plant to someone else, sparing it from certain death under my care.

This weekend I’m going to be stopping by my local farmer’s market to find something to pot in these containers. I’ll probably choose basil again, but stayed tuned!

This past weekend I made a trip to the dollar store to get some inspiration for craft projects. While there, I found three wooden candlesticks that I transformed with glitter.

In addition to spending $3 on candle sticks, I also purchased silver glitter and Modge Podge. It was my first time trying Modge Podge!

I wanted to get a bunch of glitter on my candlesticks right away, so I used spray mount on them. I sprayed an even coat, and then waited about 15 seconds until the spray became sticky. I then put my tacky wooden candlestick into a plastic bag that had about a tablespoon of glitter in it.

I shook the bag until the candlestick was pretty well coated. In some instances I had to add a little more glitter to achieve better coverage.

After this initial coating, the candlesticks had decent coverage, but the glitter was very flaky.

Here’s where the Modge Podge comes in. I poured out some of the glue into the bottom of a plastic cup, and added some of the silver glitter. I brushed this mixture on to my candlesticks.

At first I was worried about the color. After brushing on the Modge Podge/glitter mixture, the candlesticks turned very white. Not to worry- It dried clear.

Even with the matte Modge Podge, the glitter was still sparkly. The glitter was also a lot less flaky, and seems to be staying on the candlesticks much better.

It doesn’t seem right to me to burn candles in wooden holders, so I also purchased some fake flowers and florist foam while I was at the dollar store.

I cut the green foam with a serrated knife to fit inside the top of the candle sticks. I also cut the flowers off of the bunch, with about half of an inch of wire sticking out (I had to shorten the wire after taking this photo).

After stuffing the top of the candlesticks with foam, I added a couple flowers in each. It makes a very sweet decoration.

These candlesticks would look great in a lot of different décor situations. You could switch up the glitter or flower color depending on what you like. For now, I’m keeping them on my mantle to add a little more sparkle to my life!

Today I’m sharing a mini pinwheel craft that I made using felt. In the end, I attached them to a hair clip so they could be worn by my toddler niece.

For supplies, I used some leftover felt I have remaining from past projects. I keep finding uses for the couple yards I purchased a few months ago. For this project, I cut four small squares.

To make the pinwheel, you’ll need to cut into the center at the four points of the squares. I wanted my pinwheels to have two different shades, with one color on the front and one color on the back, so I stacked two squares before cutting. Make sure you don’t cut all the way to the middle, or else you wont have a square anymore! Leave enough space so the shape has some stability.

To add a little fun to my pinwheel, I did a running stitch with blue embroidery floss around the edges of my felt shape.

Once you have the right shape, it is easy to fold up your pinwheel. Just take one corner from each of the triangle-like shapes that make up your square. Fold that to the center. Take the same side of the next triangle shape and keep folding the points to the center until you have your pinwheel.

To secure the center, you can use hot glue, thread, or embroidery floss. Since I had just finished up stitching my edges, I used embroidery floss to keep the middle in place.

I also used embroidery floss to attach my pinwheel felt shape to my hair clip. I made sure to sew both over top of the clip and through the middle.

On my other pinwheel I didn’t stitch the edges, but just secured the center with an “x” of embroidery thread. I also attached that pinwheel to a hair barrette.

I think these pinwheels are just darling. Without the clip, you could use them in a lot of different décor, like in garland, or in a potted plant.

I made mine as hair clips. Even though they’re intended for a child, I gave them a try on my own head. Fun!

As much as I love going out on dates, the cost of entertainment, dinner, and drinks quickly adds up. Especially since George and I started the month with a mini vacation, we’re now trying to be more conscientious about our spending. Last weekend George suggested we go out for a walk because it had finally stopped raining. I needed a little bit of convincing to get off the couch, so we created our own neighborhood BINGO.

The two of us each drew out a 5 X 5 square on the back of some scrap paper. In each square we wrote down something that we expected to see on our walk. Since it was a competition, we kept our BINGO squares secret until after we were both done with our cards. When we were stalling on ideas, we set a phone timer to encourage us to move along and just fill something in the spots.

Obviously, what you include on your board will vary, depending on where you live. We wrote down things like: “a taxi,” “someone carrying a takeout container,” “someone wearing rain boots,” and “someone with a reusable shopping bag.” There were also silly things like “a car playing loud music with open windows” and “group of 3 or more college-aged guys without a lady.” We decided to keep walking around my small city until one of us got 5 in a row.

It is a really simple idea, but it was a great way to introduce a free activity to get us out of the house and seeing new scenery.

I guess for us it wasn’t *completely* free because we ended up at the local wine bar for one round.

Oh, and for the record, I won BINGO.

My apologies for all of the paper greeting cards recently, but I have so many card-worthy occasions coming up! Today I’m sharing a paper bunting card created with a sewing machine that I made for a friend’s birthday.

For this project you’ll just need a couple of different colors or types of paper and some colored thread. I used a sewing machine to make things faster, but you could also hand sew this craft if need be.

I cut down my card and created triangles for my bunting. For my card I decided to use five triangles that would make one swag. I have also seen versions of this idea that overlay two different swags of bunting.

After you have the layout that you like, you’ll need to tape down the pieces. I used painter’s tape to keep everything secure as I was sewing.

When sewing, I used purple thread and kept the presser foot fairly loose so the card could move around more easily. I decided to keep a little extra thread on the edges of the bunting for a more casual and “realistic” look. I also used a corner rounder on the edges of my card.

I’m pretty happy with how this card turned out. I wish the sewing lines were a little more even, but I think that’s just a matter of practice. Especially if you have a sewing machine, this card is easy to make for Birthdays, Thank You’s, or any other positive occasion.