From Pampers Box to Chalkboard ...

I'm not very organized.  I try to be, but I fail most of the time.  In a lifelong effort to change that, I make lists ... and accumulate tons of stuff.

I sometimes perform mystery shops.  Some of these shops are at office supply stores ... so I end up with stuff like this:

This is cork-board that I found in a green color that I liked.  I also thought it would work tacked up on the side of my refrigerator to keep a grocery list, coupons, and bills.  I bought this almost a year ago.  It hasn't been hung up anywhere.

Because I have two in diapers, I have a ton of this:

Also because I have two little ones; and, because I also do mystery shops in hardware stores, I end up with little things such as this:

I have been in other homes in which the parents had used this to paint a section of their basement, or playroom for their child's use.  Since I fear using this on the wall in *my* home will result in artwork where it doesn't belong, I hadn't figured out what to do with this.  Until now.

I cut the pampers box as close to the size of the cork-board as possible.  Painted it in two coats of blackboard paint.  Glued some extra ribbon I have lying around (short-lived belt and keychain phase) in between the two pieces (that I glued back to back) ... and now I have a hanging chalkboard to keep my grocery list on.  With the added functionality of a corkboard once the little ones aren't in danger from pushpins.

Great Fabric ... Poor Fashion

About 10 years and approximately 40 extra pounds ago, I figured I would "disguise" my weight with pants like these:



I believe it was Kirstie Alley who said that elastic waist bands were how big girls got bigger. Yup yup.

After losing the weight, I promised myself I would never, ever, wear these outfits again. Problem was - I loved, loved, loved the fabric and could NOT bring myself to throw them out. Even one pair of pants whose fabric had started to fray. So those became the first experiment. I wish I had a before copy of the actual pants, but I'm pretty sure a friend of mine has a picture of me in them. So, once I get my hands on it, I'll post it so there is a record of the true before to go with these afters:

Purse Front (side 1):




Purse Back (side 2)



I only used 1/2 of each of 2 panels from the pants. I still have two other decorative panels and the remnants of the two I used to figure out what to do with.

I'm not completely finished. I will have to remove a couple stitches and fix some imperfections and haven't attached the strap. Lucky elastic waist-band - YOU shall have the glory of being repurposed as the strap. Congrats!

While I think I did okay my first time out trying to construct a purse, there were some valuable lessons learned. First and foremost - lining should probably be attached before stitching up the purse. Just sayin'.

Clip Strip Barrette Holder

Having girls means having a lot of hair accessories - barrettes mainly currently. Being ME means that the barrettes are frequently lost, left in purse or diaper bag, or thrown in the handiest "clutter catcher" I have handy. And, I have a lot.

I also seem to have clip strips. I must have accumulated a few of these when doing some odd jobs. But I apparently knew I would have a use for them a some point ... and righty-o I was.

This is a clip-strip:



This is a typical version of my previous "storage" solutions:




And voila - my new barrette organizer. Repurposed from clip strips. Go figure - I'm kinda proud of me right now.



And, I was able to use the second one to determine which barrettes were missing their mate(s) ... a trip to Mom's was in order.



**Disclaimer - simply having clip strip of single barrettes does not guarantee appearance of mate(s). Trip to Mom's ... complete bust other than a request for her own since go figure ... she's kinda proud of me too.

It was SUPPOSED to be Re-Purposed (and it kinda sorta was)

When I was pregnant with my first daughter, I was overwhelmed by registries, purchasing the nursery ... everything. The only reason I even had a registry was because my sister insisted on it ... and I got so freaked out that I just picked a color and found a set that went with it. We loved our nursery choice(s) and we were pretty specific about how friends and family should approach the registry (or if they chose to ignore it).

• No, we don't need a video monitor. Why watch her if I can hear her. (I LOVE my video monitor by the way).
• No, I don't want Diaper Geanies - I have a trash can. (Oh, I still laugh at that one. I actually have two now).
• No, I don't want more than one curtain panel. The window only needs one. No, I don't want to pull them back on either side. Sheesh Mom, it's a townhouse - all of the windows are this size ...

And, then we moved. And moved our daughter into a much larger room ... with a MUCH larger window. I would have to get another panel (or three). And, surprise, surprise ... my beautiful nursery decor was discontinued. There was no way I could just put up this one, now pitiful looking, panel. So I went shopping for another fabric in the same basic color scheme (found it) and was going to try my hand at making some curtains ... until I remembered that I'm kinda new at the whole sewing thing and they may not turn out and my daughter needed some relief from the sun STAT. So I got some blinds. Immediate problem solved. I would just make the curtains when I was a wee bit more handy with the sewing machine. But, what to do with that single panel??? Ah, I KNOW. I'll use it to cover a "seat" for the window.

I headed back out to the store with visions of Alanna perched on the window seat, gazing out her window, reading a book, sketching ... and purchased some foam. PS - that shit is exPENsive. Luckily I had a coupon.

Around this same time, we found out I was pregnant again. And, since I have no particular liking of surprises, we found out we were having another girl. So the push was on to re-use Alanna's nursery for Zoe. We hadn't invested in a convertible crib - and luckily for us it worked out. We got a new bedroom for Alanna that could stay around for a while and moved the nursery into the old guest room. That had a smaller window. A window *almost* small enough for a single panel curtain.

So, Alanna's old curtain that was going to be re-purposed as a cushion cover, got re-purposed as Zoe's curtain.


And, then I realized I didn't have a cushion cover anymore. WRONG! I had the fabric I got for the curtains. Now, it no longer matches the new decor of Alanna's room. And, I'll tackle that another day as you can always have more than one cushion cover (kinda like duvets, right?) But, for now, I had some fabric piles to whittle away and a huge foam sheet I needed to use.

I got down to cutting the foam to size and then measuring the fabric and pinning it for seams. Got out the sewing machine, blew the dust off (prayed I wouldn't have to re-thread anything because THAT would have set me back another hour), and sewed it up. Luckily I remembered to leave one end open. I'll have to figure out what I want to do about that since I want to be able to change it if I find the right replacement material. Which is a good thing since I'm pretty sure I suck at hand-sewing. I'm thinking snaps ... and I'm pretty sure I have a stash of those (and zippers) from when I thought I could make purses one weekend.

Anyway - here is Alanna enjoying her new, special (her word) seat. It may not be perfectly complete (the unfinished end is pinned underneath) ... but mission(s) accomplished. Foam seat covered - check. Small (almost infinitesimal) amount of clutter tackled - check. Happy daughter? Check, check and check.

And, We're Off ...

I have finally begun to actively re-purpose all the crap I've accumulated. I am not foolish enough to believe I am the only, let alone first, person to attempt this particular task. Nor do I think anyone other than my friends and family will ever even see any of this. But, if nothing else, it is a challenge for me to figure out what to do with the crap I have collected (and will continue to collect I'm sure) ... as well as a challenge to see if I can even keep up with it.

I have a history of getting bored with new activities ... and a nasty habit of not being able to let go of just about anything.

There is the Gocco screen printing kit (and associated items) I purchased because my co-workers were creating a bunch of cool stuff. There are the multiple bags of ill-fitting and cast-off clothing I've collected because I saw someone else turn hideous garments into smart, functional fashion. There are the scrapbooking supplies - papers, stickers, the list goes on and on - I amassed in a short-lived foray into Independent Consultantville. I can't get my act together to HOST a party and I thought I would be a consultant ... puhleeze. And then there is the fabric - hoards and hoards of fabric - when I fancied myself a quilter in the making. Oh, and we can't forget the clothing I refused to throw away because the fabric was JUST TOO BEAUTIFUL ... even though it was falling apart.

I could make a number of excuses, but it's safe to say that I gave up on Gocco well before Gocco gave up on the DIY market. And, I pretty much lacked free time for hobbies even before I had my two girls. But, my girls are the reason I am repurposing. I don't want them surrounded by clutter ... and I want them to feel how special I felt when my Momma made me something. Or at least how special I feel now, when I think about it or see the pictures.

So, I knocked out a couple of projects today ... which makes three to-do list items I can check off my list. The most important one - starting the blog. Even if it means I do three posts my first time out of the gate.