Projects for Another Day: Throw Pillows
I’ve never been one to buy throw pillows.
Why buy when half a yard of fabric and you can make them!
These are some of my favorites that I think would be pretty easy to DIY.
1) Beaded Patch
This pillow from Joss and Main a while ago is elegant and sparkly. Any Number of Patches would do the trick to take a plain pillow and jazz it up.
2. Beaded Fabric
This is another pillow from Joss and Main.
Again, just a pillow cover with a square of beautiful fabric. This would be a great thing to make with an old dress with beautiful beading. Even a Wedding Dress momento.
Here are some fabrics that could work as well.
3. Embroidered Throw Pillows
This is right up my alley. I really like embroidery. I find it very relaxing. I’m totally going to make these. Just sketch out a design and copy it onto 2 squares of fabric to make a pair of pillows.
These are from an old One Kings Lane sale. I really like the greens on linen.
4. YoYo pillows
These are a little more country than I sometimes go but I think in pinks and purples in the Girls room upstairs, it could be really cute. Also, I just really like yoyos.
5. Cat Pillows.
These were a victorian thing. They would have these cat-shaped pillows. There have been reproductions for a while. My grandma had one, my mom had one, and I’m determined to have one myself.
I was thinking that it might be neat to take a picture of Vector and print him on a pillow. What do you think? Creepy or Cute? I guess if you have to ask…
There are all sorts of variations on the classic tabby cat pillow. This is one of my favorites.
Arm Chairs in the Kitchen
I’ve got a vision. Actually, Vector had the vision but I translated. And he’s a cat..what does he care if I take credit for his ideas! So, I had this idea to put a comfy chair in my kitchen. I do own beautiful Bar Stools and have placed them at the dining table, but a nice and comfy chair in the kitchen isn’t a bad idea. A place to rest while the cookies are baking or a place to curl up with a book while watching the comings and goings of the kitchen.
I put this chair at the foot of the stairs.
Vector loves sitting there. LOVES IT!
I put the freshly washed pink blanket on the chair to go upstairs and he liked it even more. It’s right on top of the heater vent and is a nice cozy corner. I’ve decided I need a nice comfy arm chair at that very spot. I’d like something small like this little chair I reupholstered.
Here’s a before and after:
I would use this chair but it is white and I’m a little attached to it. I may just suck it up and use it but in an ideal world, I think the spot needs a vintage or retro pink pattern.
Here are some other chairs I was looking at. It’s really hard to find comfy chairs in the smaller proportions that the space needs.
What do you think? Should I use the white chair or keep looking? I’ve already given it one coat of scotch guard. Maybe I’ll give it a second coat and stop worrying.
Sarah
Cutting Holes in Plaster and Lath
We also went to work getting the electrical box holes made. Our technique was to start with a tile bit on the roto-zip.
We used that to cut through the plaster in a controlled fashion. I’ve seen that you can use a utility knife and plan on dulling the blade with each cut but since we have the roto-zip, we used that. The roto-zip makes a HUGE mess so the shop-vac attachment is a must even in our dirty dusty house.
After the plaster is removed from the opening, we changed out the bit for a multi-purpose wood bit.
For the low-voltage work (ethernet, cable, and phone) the backless low-voltage boxes will work. However, we are having insulation blown in and the backless boxes are just going to fill with insulation and make a big mess so we opted to use plastic boxes.
I’ve still got a bunch more boxes to do but this is a well-compartmentalized project that I can do between helping Stefan with the “heavy lifting” on some of the bigger projects. I am determined not to just be a tool girl but at the same time I have a hard time controlling some of the tools so projects like these outlet boxes are great for me. They allow me to get stuff done independently of any heavy machinery.
That’s the short version of how to cut a nice hole in plaster and lath. Do you have any preferred plaster cutting tools or does the term plaster and lath just make you ever more thankful for your nice drywall walls?
Sarah
Art Classes
I’m a big fan of community education art classes. In college I took a drawing and a pastels class. I took a water color class in High School. After graduating from college, I took an oil painting class and an upholstery class. It was awesome!
When I was in college, I started using sites that would help me on my English skills. I was surprised that this kind of sites was free. There are some that would need a dollar or two to enter but it really helped me on English classes. It helped me on the spaces such as widening my vocabulary and educate myself more about helping verbs or advanced English. Try it!
I’m itching to get back into the class scene. The real benefit of a class is the time set aside every week to just sit down, relax, and create. If i was more disciplined, I suppose I wouldn’t need to pay for classes but with my hectic life, the class is a way to relax and focus.
Here’s a sampling of some of my masterpieces.
I even did a blog post on my oil painting class way back when I first started the blog.
First Half of Oil Painting Course
And I’ve got some news, I’m starting another class! This one is through the Arlington Center for the Arts and is just down the street from the house. It’s an oil paint class and I’m really looking forward to it. It starts April 1 and goes through June. I’ll be keeping you posted as I hone my painting skills. I’m super excited!
Sarah
