The Apple Street Cottage

  Vintage washboards seem to show up everywhere - yard sales, estate sales, thrift stores, you name it, you're bound to find one.  I was fortunate enough to have two given to me by my 'Fairy Godmother'.  I added a wooden dowel to the bottom of one and it went off to a new home before I got a photo of it.  Today I want to show you what I did with the one that was damaged and show you that you can still work with something that is 'less than perfect'.   Welcome back to the 'Do It Over' Designers blog hop.  We are a group of bloggers who love to recycle/upcycle/DIY.  I'm so happy to host this blog hop and hope you'll visit everyone to see what they have to share with you.  Their links will be listed at the end of this post.  Let's take a look at those washboards... The one in front was in pretty good shape besides being covered in wet/dried paper.  It looked like the paper had been placed over it (many years ago), got wet and then drie...

  I had no idea that there was a history lesson waiting inside of this mirror when it was gifted to me by my Fairy Godmother.  It was mentioned a few weeks ago , so let's get to it, shall we? The mirror showed up on my front porch with lots of chipping blue paint.   It actually flaked off with a touch of a fingernail and I could see it was made of oak.  Here's a close-up of the design at the top: I knew I had to get rid of that paint and show-off the wood, so I started to dismantle the back to remove the mirror.  There was some  wire for hanging and  very old paper that flaked right off. Once that was removed, I could see some tiny nails that held a piece of cardboard in place.   With a pair of pliers, I carefully removed those, lifted the cardboard off the back, tossed it on the floor, and continued to remove tiny nails.  There were SO many  and they were all dropped onto that piece of cardboard.  I scooped up the paper f...

  OK, so maybe it's not so spooky, but that's what it says! Welcome back to 10 on the 10th, a group of bloggers sharing ideas and inspiration for less than $10.  Our theme this month is Fall and after a quick trip to the dollar store, I decided to make a cute sign for Halloween.   It all started with three little metal words and I truly thought I had my plan in place.  In addition to a piece of wood, here's what I was working with: I carefully spray painted the word 'Spooky' in black and the cat with black craft paint.  The wood was painted white and then I decided it needed some purple.  Then I took a look at it and decided it was horrible .  That's right, I hated it!   On to Plan B: The wood was painted black and while that was drying I searched through my scrapbook paper where I found the perfect piece! I cut enough of the bottom off to fit my piece of wood and Mod Podged it to the wood.  Sorry, it's a little blurry, but, you kno...

  It's September and for me, it's officially Fall.  The kids will be going back to school (however that may look this year), the night air is getting crisp, and the apples are ripening in the orchards.  I decided to create an apple that will stay fresh forever. Yes, you guessed it, it started with a pattern and some reclaimed wood!   I started drawing on a piece of paper and when I liked what I had, it was transferred to cardboard.  This may have been a cracker box or a 12 pack of beer.  Nothing goes to waste around here if I can help it! Three pieces of wood were chosen and the pattern was traced on them with a pen. My jigsaw made quick work of this one, so I actually cut out two apples.  Here's one of them: You'll notice I stayed away from nails and any knots in the wood.  Each piece got a good sanding and then it was time for paint and some distressing with sandpaper. After a quick spray of clear coat, the apple was complete.   O...