The Apple Street Cottage

    W elcome back to the 'Do It Over' Designers blog hop.  We are a group of bloggers who love to recycle/upcycle/DIY.  I'm happy to host this hop and I 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. In addition, Christmas in July continues at The Apple Street Cottage with a fun upcycle project.   This project got its start about five years ago.  The clock frame was found at an estate sale at the bottom of a box of junk.  It was dirty, the finish was ruined, and it came home with me.  I can't find the original picture of it but I can tell you it went through a few trials.   First it was painted white.  No good.   Then black.  Still no good.   Distressed edges?  Nope!   So it sat looking like this: So sad! I found it again about two years ago and finally had an idea for it.  Unfortunately, I needed something else to complete my idea and a few weeks ago I finally found these: It was time to put

Welcome back to Party In Your PJ's.    I hope you find something that inspires you and you link up something to inspire others. Don't forget to share our party with your friends.  It's always nice to see new faces. Say hello to the Co-Hosts: Nina @ Grandma Ideas Facebook  // Pinterest  // Twitter Ann @ The Apple Street Cottage Facebook  // Pinterest  // Instagram This month is Christmas in July at the Cottage and I shared a Grinch Ornament : This is an easy project that upcycles Scrabble tiles. On to the features: Trash to Treasure - Life Away From the Office Chair You'd never know this was a rusty 'side of the road' find. Strawberry Can - Paper Seedlings This plain jar got a whole new look! Here's a button for you, Ladies: Make sure you visit Nina at her blog.  We each choose our own features. I can't wait to see what you have to share, so let's get the party started! Rules Link to your post, not your home page. Li

  Christmas in July continues with another ornament for your tree. I've been spying these Grinch Ornaments on Pinterest for quite a while and decided it was finally time to make one.   I never saw any instructions, but, let's face it, how hard can this be?  Let's get started. I had everything I needed:  scrabble tiles, a rack, and the little Santa hat - yes, I used them for cards one year and had some left over.  I also had craft paint and spray sealer. Notice, I drilled 2 holes in the rack for hanging. The first step was to give everything a coat of white craft paint to act as a primer. Keeping the paint out of the letters was difficult, so while they were still wet, I used a toothpick to remove as much paint as possible. After two coats of 'Grinch Green' and cleaning out the letters, a Sharpie was used to trace the letters in black. The rack, after receiving the same paint process was ready for hanging.  Fishing line was threaded through and knotted. The tiles wer

Welcome back to Party In Your PJ's.    I hope you find something that inspires you and you link up something to inspire others. Don't forget to share our party with your friends.  It's always nice to see new faces. Say hello to the Co-Hosts: Nina @ Grandma Ideas Facebook  // Pinterest  // Twitter Ann @ The Apple Street Cottage Facebook  // Pinterest  // Instagram This month is Christmas in July at the Cottage and I shared a Polymer Clay Ornament: A quick and easy project that you can do with the kids this summer! On to the features: Upcycling Wooden CD Crates - Makeable Crafts DIY Pink Ombre Pink Wall Art - Oh Clary Here's a button for you, Ladies: Make sure you visit Nina at her blog.  We each choose our own features. I can't wait to see what you have to share, so let's get the party started! Rules Link to your post, not your home page. Link to something YOU made, wrote, or thought. Link Parties, Roundups, and Giveaways are we

  Welcome back to Christmas in July at The Apple Street Cottage.  This time I have a quick and easy project for you that doesn't cost much at all.  Why, you ask? Because it's also Ten on the 10th - when a  group of bloggers share ideas and inspiration for under $10. 'Christmas in July' is the theme for the hop and I've got a sweet little ornament you can make.  It all starts with a small block of polymer clay. The first step is to roll it out.  The instructions mention a thickness of 1/4" so I used two pencils and rolled out the clay between layers of waxed paper. I needed a little more surface area for my cookie cutter, so I rolled it a bit thinner until I had the size I needed.  I used my bell cookie cutter and peeled the excess clay from around the edge. Since it looked a bit plain, I grabbed an embossing folder that I had to give it some texture.  If you don't have any embossing folders laying around, rubber stamps, a piece of lace, or anything with a