Beach Sarong and Flip Flop Set

Get ready to hit the beach, pool or just lounge around with this

 awesome beach sarong and flip flop set that is so easy to make.  

This set is so cute . . . I love the flip flops!!

How awesome would it be to make a beach tote to match?

Click here for the tutorial.

Outdoor living inside

This room in fashion designer Carlos Miele's home in Brazil is liking being in the tropical outdoors without the heat.  The floor-to-ceiling windows awesomely display the lush tropical landscaping, making the outdoors an integral part of the room.  My guess is that is it beautifully lit at night . . . just gorgeous!

The photo comes from Elle Magazine's website . . . click here for a slideshow and article entitled "One With Nature" featuring other homes with that outdoor feel.

Pleated Tote

Can a woman have too many purses or totes?

I don't think so!

Create your own tote wardrobe to match your

outfits . . . I also love the possibilities for using

the tote for home organizing, like storing socks.

How about an awesome beach bag?

Click here for the tutorial.

Stylish pony tails

The pony tail is timeless!  

Fast, easy and so very stylish when adorned with hair accessories,
it is one of those hair styles that never goes away.

Hair accessories are one of those items that I will be featuring
when I reopen my online store, LaBelladiva.  Can't wait to dust

 off my sewing machine and craft area to get started creating.

Vibrantly bold home decor

Designer Jonathan Fong's home

 is definitely quirky . . . and I love it!

Jonathan says in an excerpt from a post

on the LA Times blog . . .

While I know it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, my home always puts a smile on my face. A big reason for that is it totally reflects who I am, quirks and all. In designing spaces for my clients, I know that a home has to be as individual as each person, almost like a fingerprint. After all, you can’t spell “home” without a “me.”

The kitchen cabinets were embellished with Andy Warhol posters using Mod Podge.  Ingenious is all I have to say . . . and with my kitchen cabinets halfway painted with primer and no definite decisions for the final look, Jonathan's project has got my mind racing with all kinds of quirky ideas.

Both the Captain and I have bold and vibrant taste and as we plan a revamping of the entire house to reflect our personalities, Jonathan's design style will be a major inspiration in the design process.

Check out the blog post from the LA Times featuring Jonathan's unique design style . . . click here to go there.

I love Mod Podge and all the possibilities!

More Flip Flop Fun

Last month I posted a creative flip flop tutorial and since then I have seen many more.  Refashioned flip flops are a big thing these days!  Everyone loves flip flops :)

Heather at A Couple of Craft Addicts has been hosting an awesome two-week series of flip flop tutorials with all kinds of creative ideas for refashioning your flip flops.  Click on the graphic to go there!

Patriotic table setting

Anneliese's blog, Aesthetic Nest, is full of very cool

ideas for themed parties with awesome table settings

and tutorials to help you entertain in her style.

These napkins look so fresh and festive . . . and so

simple!  Click here for a tutorial for these napkins

and other elements for a beautiful and patriotic

table setting.

Check out the rest of her awesome entertaining

ideas and festive table settings.

Happy Memorial Day . . . remember the reason for

the holiday.  I am so grateful for our military and

their families who have sacrificed so much.

Bath towel slippers

All it takes is a pair of flip flops and a bath towel to make these

comfy looking bath slippers!  Click here for the tutorial.

Love these type of slippers :)

Get organized with cigar boxes

Now I know what to do with the stacks of festive

 cigar boxes I have been saving for a special project!

I also have boxes and boxes of jewelry findings that

desperately need organizing.  Here is my solution!

Cathe Holden at Just Something I Made came up

with this cute idea to use cigar boxes for storage. 

Click here for the complete article and tutorial.

Paint Chip Art

Wouldn't I love to have this on my wall!!!?!!!

This gorgeous example of mosaic art comes from 

Ballard Designs catalog . . . 

it also comes with a pricey price tag.

Never fear . . . I have found a couple of tutorials

 that were inspired by this piece of art.

The first tutorial comes from Hope Studios . . .

The second tutorial comes from

Jennifer at Live, Crafts and Whatever 

Of course I have some ideas of my own! 

One idea would be to experiment with some metallic or pearlized 

paint together with foil specks to give it more of a shimmery finish 

after using the stain.

Like I always say with crafts . . . the possibilities are endless!

Laundry tips

Feather pillows are my favorite, 

but are a little tricky to wash, 

but not impossible.

First of all, make sure that there are no slits or tears in the covers.  What I have done with some of my older feather pillows that I didn't want to toss out . . . placed them in a pillow case that has no holes or tears and securely sewed the sides, giving the pillows a new cover.

Load two pillows at the same time for balance.  Set the washing machine on the delicate cycle, using a small amount of detergent.  Make sure to put them through a second rinse cycle.

For drying, I use the low setting, throwing in some tennis balls to help them fluff up and dryer sheets to promote a fresh and clean smell.  The pillows will take much longer to dry than a normal load.  Take them out and fluff them up by hand periodically . . . this will break up any clumps.

Yes, it is a tedious process, but well worth it!  You will love the results :)

Note of warning:  Make sure the washing machine is set to the delicate cycle . . . I ended up with a machine full of feathers when I used the regular cycle . . . what a mess!

Recycling Shower Curtain Liners

This is an item I usually throw away in the trash, however, I have become more aware of what I throw away and try to recycle as much as I can.  


By the way, they can be washed in the washer with detergent and bleach.




Here are some recycling uses for those old shower curtain liners . . .


In the garden . . . use in place of landscape fabric or in conjunction with newspapers in preparing new raised beds or an area being prepared for paving to prevent weeds from coming up (my favorite use!).


Use in place of drop cloths when painting for easy clean up.


Use as a table cover when working on your crafts.


Make an outdoor table cloth.


Put in the back of the truck, van or trunk of car when hauling stuff around for easy clean up.

Flip Flop Fun

Flip flops are one of my favorite things!

Since I live in Florida, if I'm not running around barefooted, 

I'm wearing flip flops or some type of sandals.  It is part of

my lifestyle that is simple and easy.

I've bought the fancy embellished flip flops and have thought it would

be fun to experiment and refashion some of my old flip flops.  

I was so happy to find the following tutorial that gave me

 some basic construction ideas . . . can't wait to pull out 

some of the  old flip flops and give them a new life!

Click here for the tutorial

Another idea for those cool fabric flowers

 I'm seeing all over the place!

What an awesome idea!  I'm imagining some denim flip flops

embellished with those zipper flowers that are made from

 recycled jeans . . . using a combination of both tutorials.

Click here to go to the tutorial for these flowered flip flops.

I really need to get my crafts room

organized and  ready to use again!

My hands are itching to be creative :)

Faux Patio Tile (painting technique)

Learn how to transform your concrete floor into something fabulous!

We have been working on our carport, turning it into an outdoor living space and was already planning to paint the concrete floor, but now I am super excited about starting this project after seeing this patio.

Click here for the painting technique.

Click here for the blog post featuring this patio.  I've gotten so much inspiration, including an idea for outdoor curtains . . . I want this patio!!

Make awesome slippers out of jeans!

In all my years of crafting with jeans, I have never seen a project

like these awesome slippers!  They would make a very nice gift.

Actually, you could use any type of material to make these slippers

 . . . like these . . . I'm thinking of the endless possibilities!

Click here to go to Nancy Minsky's tutorial for denim slippers.

Click here to go to Nancy's website, 21st Century Dressmakers.  

This website is one of the best I've run across in a very long time!

It is visually artistic, creative and oh so inventive.

She's the jeans queen!

  What a treat for  sewing crafters :) I love it!

Here is one of the most awesome denim slippers I have seen yet!  I found the photo on Pinterest, which leads to a dead link, but it is great inspiration!

Jewel tone glass painting technique

Gorgeous painting technique for glass!

Regular readers of my blog know that I have a thing about

recycling glass jars.  My favorite project is making candles in

glass jars.  This painting technique would be the perfect

glass finish for those jars!

Click here for the tutorial from Deco Art.

If you love crafting with glass like I do, click here 

for other crafty glass projects I've posted on my blog.

Cool stuff to make!

Jeans Bags are timeless, inexpensive and so easy

to make . . . they also make awesome gifts.

Click here to go to the tutorial from Fave Crafts.

What a cool way to repurpose an old window frame.

This jewelry organizer holds lots of jewelry!

I love it :)

Click here for the tutorial from Jane at The Borrowed Abode.

Clever crafty ideas

Would you believe these are faux milk glass?

They look like the real thing.  All you need is some paint!

Faux milk glass tutorial

At first glance . . . do you know what these are?

These cuties are cleverly disguised cleaning wipes containers.

Now you can color coordinate them to match your decor!

This project comes from Heather at Decor-ganize.

Click here for the tutorial.

Have you ever used photos transferred
to fabric in your projects?

Back in the day, I used a medium specifically for this purpose, but the results
 were awful, even though it did transfer the photo image to fabric.

  Fast forward a decade or so . . . you can now use your printer to transfer
 photos to fabric.  Sound good?  It is easier than you probably think it is!

Click here to go to an awesome tutorial from
Linda Matthews at A Creative Journey.