Sunday, January 29, 2012

Trivet Trouble - Take 2


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After last weekend's Trouble with Trivets , I still had many corks left in my "Big Box o' Corks."  I also had more space in my drawer where I keep my oven mitts, pot holders and trivets.  Did you know that Corks + Space = More Trivets?  I personally think this equation may be one of Pythagoras lost theorems.


This time construction went much quicker since there was no cork cutting since I wanted a trivet with more surface area.  Why?  While the trivet I made last week is fab looking and I love how it turned out, the reality is that it can't hold larger pots or pans. Square pans are a bit wobbly on it due to its rounded shape and what if I made a batch of brownies or a pan of enchiladas? I wasn't sure this small(ish) trivet would be able to handle them.

So my plan was to lay the corks on their sides in a basket weave pattern and hot glue them to the felt backer and to each other. I love it when a plan comes together.

The first trivet is 4 sets of corks wide by 4 sets of corks tall (approximately 7" x 7"). You will need 32 corks for this layout.  This size is perfect for those 8x8/9x9 pans.

The second is 4 sets by 8 sets (approximately 7" x 14"). You will need 64 corks for this layout. This size is great for the 9x11/10x13 pans.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

To Do This Weekend - 1/28-29: Updated

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This weekend's To Dos are about tying up loose ends and an eviction. 

About the eviction, we have a critter, most likely a squirrel in our attic.

FoxSquirrel Source

We have heard the sound of rolling acorns in the ceiling above our bed the last couple of nights.  Definitely not the sound you want to hear late at night.  So we need to scare/remove our unwanted tenant from of the attic, find out where its access point is and then cover it up so we won't continue laying in bed listening to the rolling acorns.  Hopefully the critter is a loner and is all alone up there. (Keeping fingers crossed)

We will then move onto some loose ends in the powder room and foyer. 

Weekend To Dos

  • Evict critter from attic (UPDATE: The eviction is on hold.  It snowed all weekend so we weren't able to get the hole patched up.  So we are hoping that the weather will be nicer next weekend.)
  • Finish trim install in powder room
  • Paint trim in powder room
  • Install trim and baseboards in foyer
  • Paint trim and baseboards in foyer
  • Make elevated food/water bowl stand for Willow
  • Take photos for Sunday post
  • Finish sewing projects for Valentine's Day
  • Nap with the dog
  • Menu plan for week
Wish us luck that the eviction goes quickly and quietly so we can get on with the other items on our list.

I will keep you posted on how things go.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

The Trouble with (cork) Trivets

OK, I am showing my nerdy side since the title of this post makes me think of the original Star Trek and their “Trouble with Tribbles.”  I love that episode and found this photo on Wikepedia.
 
Interestingly, the cork trivet I made this weekend, is a similar color to Kirk’s Tribbles, and the ribbon matches Kirk’s tunic.  Coincidence?  I think not! (OK, it is a total coincidence.)

Trivet1-Final2
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The first cork trivet I made was inspired by the various cork trivets on Pinterest.  Many of those were secured by metal hose clamps or embroidery hoops. I didn’t have either of those in my stash so figured I needed to figure something else out using what I had.  Armed with my box of corks, a hot glue gun, some felt and a ribbon, I figured I had the beginning of a great trivet.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

To Dos This Weekend–1/21-22

to-do1Source

Another busy weekend here at Casa Claiming.  Winter is here in full force with single degree temps and negative wind chills. Right now it looks beautiful out with clear blue skies but it is so so so cold out.  That seems to be the way it goes in winter, blue skies = freezing temps.  All that just means we need to concentrate on the inside of the house.  Time is a wasting so I better get cracking on my list.

On this list for the weekend

1.  Laundry
2.  Cleaning bathrooms
3.  Doggy Day Spa for Willow (bath, ear cleaning, nail trimming, tooth brushing)
4.  Deal with paperwork in office and kitchen
5.  Shopping (Grocery, Garden Store, Bank)
6.  Shoveling at our house and my parent house
7.  Take photos of latest tutorial project
8.  Finish writing tutorial project post
9.  Go to the theater on Sunday afternoon
10.  Get haircut
11.  Go through some more boxes from my childhood stuff
12.  Work on living room update 
13.  Get some wood for a fire this evening
14.  Floors

Additions

15.  Color hair (I am back to being a red head!)

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Winter is Finally Here!

This past weekend we finally got some snow that actually stuck around for more than a day.  This hasn’t been our usual Michigan winter.  We have had 50+ degree days in December, thunderstorms in January. All in all very very strange winter.

It snowed for three days and we had no wind.  A totally unusual occurrence here in the north.  Usually snow is accompanied by wind and lots of it. Think blowing drifts and the wind chill in the single digits. But that wasn’t the case so I headed out to the backyard with Willow to take a few photos (she doesn’t really like the cold, even with her red jacket).

SnowWillow
I think this one of a tree in the backyard looks like lace, woven by Mother Nature.

SnowLace
There were a few berries on one shrub and I can only imagine that the one of the many birds who live in our backyard will find them soon and have a winter snack. And that is about an inch of snow on those branches. The snow was so light and fluffy.

SnowBerries2
One of my plant hangers is waiting for spring.

SnowWaitingForSpring
The snow was so light, it didn’t settle but stacked up, like little snowflake building blocks, that you could see through.

SnowSeeThrough
These beautiful pictures almost make me like winter…almost.

I know that we have at least 2-3 months more of winter so I am spending some quality time flipping through my growing stack of seed catalogs. Makes spring seem a bit closer.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Pinterest, How I Love Thee for Helping Me Find a Use for Unused Stuff


I am a later-comer to the Pinterest Party, having only joined a couple of months ago.  But, in that time, I have quickly become hooked and have definitley joined the ranks of the converted.  (Long Live Pinterest!!)

I think I will need to live to 100+ to visit all the places, make all the crafts, prepare all the recipes, create all the jewelry, plant all the gardens, etc. that I have pinned, plan to pin and want to pin. 

Sometimes, I think to myself there is no way I can even begin to work on any one of the myriad of ideas pinned to my "For Free Time - DIY Crafts" board, mainly because I don't always have alot of that thing called "free time."  I don't even have as many things pinned as some of the folks I follow.  The other problem is that besides the time investment, many projects also involve a financial investment into tools or materials that I either don't have on hand or have enough of to make the project.

However, the flip side is that when I am sorting out a cabinet, or closet, and come across items that remind me of something I have seen on Pinterest, I become totally inspired. 

This project is no exception. I found this image on Pinterest from http://eighteen25.blogspot.com.
I just knew that with minimal outlay, I could create something similar. Since I already had candlesticks and vases/jars in my living room cupboard.

My only expense was the E600 glue, which I know will come in handy for other projects down the road. The vases are leftovers from my wedding. The jar is from IKEA. The candlesticks are from who knows where (I have had them for at least 10 years). All these items have been packed away, unused, for the last 2+ years. 

But that is about to change with just a bit of glue after I ran everything through the dishwasher to make sure they were sparkly clean.
Then I set up my workspace at the dining room table (with Willow supervising), gathered my materials and tools and got to work.

Step 1:  Gather all your tools and materials
  • E600 glue
  • Vases/Jars
  • Candlesticks
  • Small Level
  • Toothpicks (I like the flat ones since you can use them to "scoop" up the glue)
  • Paper plate
  • Tape (if needed)
Step 2: Decide which vases/jars go with which candlesticks
     Since all my candlesticks are the same, for me this was the quickest step.

Step 3:  Put dollop of glue on the paper plate
     Size depends on how many pieces you have to glue. 
I have read several reviews on the glue that have said that trying to use it straight from the tube can result in a big mess and a cap that won't come off the next time you want to use it.

Step 4:  Applying the glue
     Using a toothpick gather up some glue and apply to the top of the candlestick.

This is probably the most tedious part of the who process.

Step 5: Placing the candlestick to the vase
     Place the vase upside down on your workspace.
     Gently place the glue end of the candlestick on the bottom of the vase.

Step 6: Making sure things are straight
     With your level, check to make sure things are straight.
This may not be as much of an issue if your vase/jar has a flat bottom, but if it has a curve, this step will ensure that your vase/jar won't look wonky once things are all dried.

If your vase/jar has a particularly curved bottom, you may need to use a couple of pieces of tape to keep the candlestick in the level position to dry.
   
Step 7: Move the glued piece(s) to somewhere safe so it can dry without being bumped.
     I places a couple of books on top to make sure things things got good adhesion.
     E600 glue needs 48-72 hours to fully cure.
Step 8:  Filling
     Once the glue has cured, remove tape (if necessary) turn it over and fill with whatever fits your decor.
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Cost of the Project:
$  0.00    Candlestick holders
    0.00    Vases from my wedding
    5.00    Tube of E600 glue
$  5.00    TOTAL COST

Linking to
A Round Tuit (84), The Girl Creative, Mad in Crafts, Craft-O-Maniac, Skip to my Lou, Hope Studios, Tip Junkie, Sugar Bee Crafts , Homework, Northern Cottage, Confessions of a Stay At Home Mom, Not Just a Housewife, Type A, Passionately Artistic, Blue Cricket Design,

Saturday, January 14, 2012

To Do This Weekend–11/14-15

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It is Saturday Morning and that means it is time to plan our weekend.  It is cold and snowy outside, so we will have to fight the urge to hunker down under the blankets, curled up with Willow and watch movies.  That isn’t really an option since we have lots to do.

Saturday
  1. Shoveling
  2. Take photos of the snow.  There hasn’t been any wind so it is gorgeous outside.
  3. Put plastic on the drafty family room window
  4. Cleaning
  5. Laundry
  6. Organize the pantry
  7. Final photos for a tutorial post on making apothecary jars
  8. Finish apothecary jar post and schedule
  9. Take photos for baking posts

    Additions
  10.  Make it through all the posts in Google Reader
Sunday
  1. Shoveling
  2. Grocery shopping
  3. Finish laundry
  4. Finish cleaning
  5. Get hair cut - Moving this to next weekend
  6. Figure out next DIY post Working on something with wine corks
  7. Menu Plan for next week

    Additions
  8. Make baked potato soup
Let’s see how many we actually get crossed off.