DIY Coin bracelet
DIY coin bracelet
While we were in California for the rose bowl, I picked up some old state tax tokens at an antique mall in Beaumont.
I made them into a bracelet, see whole tutorial here at the Antique Plaza blog.
The Lovely packaging exchange
I participated in Oh, hello Friend’s lovely package exchange this year. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. I got paired up with Rachel Daily of Rad Works(her initials are RAD!) She said she liked Triangles, jewelry, gold, clean type, color blocking & she defined her style as Zooey Deschanel, Anthropologie, Austin, Colorful, & Simple.
Challenge Accepted!
Present 1: Mini fabric bunting
I had been wanting to make some/ have some mini fabric bunting for awhile (espessially after seeing them used on cakes!) So when I saw Colorful, Triangles, Anthropologie and Zooey Deschanel, I thought It would be perfect! I gathered some materials that complimented each other: leather, lace trim, navy/white striped trim, wool fabric, green ribbon and a roll of thin cork. The materials were mainly thrifted, except the leather that came from Michaels and striped trim from Tempe Sales. The striped trim was the only fabric that was unraveling, so I got some fray stop from Jo-Anns, it worked like a charm. Then I just sewed them using some thick thread and wound them on a vintage thread spool.
To wrap this present, since it was such an most unusual shape, I took a small sheet of cardboard, creased it twice and folded it around the spool, forming a triangle shaped box (triangles again!). I then used string to secured the cardboard in place and wrapped it up. I decided to go with a “brown paper packages tied up with string“ theme, this one being the most literal translation. I took some of the leftover triangles from the bunting and glued them to the front before tying my string bow. I was really pleased with how clean the lines turned out. Nick said it reminded him of a Toblerone candy bar!
Present 2: Gold and leather triangle necklace
I made this necklace out of a chain, leather and an earring (one of a set) that I bought at Antique Plaza. I love the mix of gold and leather, I might make one for myself out of the other earring now! (√gold, √ triangles, √ jewelry, √simple)
I wrapped it up by folding a pice of paper and sewing it together. I used the same lace and striped trim for consistency, Just sewing it in with a zig zag stitch (I figured thread was like really thin string). This one had a distinct nautical feel, I just love how summery it is!
Present 3: Cactus ring holder
Since she said she liked jewelry I figured she might be like me and never have too many jewelry holders! Also, although I have never been to Austin, I know Texas has it’s fair share of Cacti, so I hoped she’d like that. Plus it had the gold/brassy color and a distinct simplicity. I found it at a boutique in downtown Mesa.
I wrapped it up inside of a clear box that formally held some nails, wrapped that in the same brown paper and layered the striped trim, the green ribbon and a line of string to hold it on. I did a twist on the “string” by bending metal wire to be the bow on top.
Back in Action: New zealand recap
Wow, so it’s been almost a month since my last post! Nick and I went to New Zealand & Australia for 2 weeks which was awesome. Then I took a week off to recuperate and get back in the swing of things. But I’m back in action! So in NZ we visited Nick’s sister, saw the sights, celebrated our 5th anniversary and relaxed, truly enjoying the fact that Nick is done with school!
I posted a huge album online but I thought I’d share a few photos on here. My highlights, not in any particular order
1. Spending much missed time with Stephanie: I was amazingly blessed to get the sister-in-law I got. We have become such close friends and it’s been hard having half a planet separating us. But it was great to see her in her new home and meet the people she has met there.
2. Seeing so much wildlife: our first day and a half was spent at a nature reserve so we saw a ton of local birds that were unique to New Zealand.
And then when we travelled farther North we went on a boat trip and saw a huge pod of dolphins which was cool to see them so close
And later in Australia, the cutest little critter appeared as we were walking the streets of Sydney.
We later googled it and found out it was a brush-tailed Possum. Way cuter than our possum’s in the states! but it was super comfortable with humans and just walked up to my shoe.
3. Hobbiton: We are nerds and thus had to go to the set where they filmed the shire from Lord of the Rings. But it was awesome and so worth it
4. River rafting: Not only was it a rush, but you are really seeing the landscape in a unique way. Everything is so untouched by humans and just so…GREEN. I truly believe arizonans have an appreciation for green like no other. p.s. super cool to sit in the front of the raft, if you are given the choice!
5. The Scenery! Just breath-taking, we rented a car and drove a good portion of the north island, just the normal scenes off the highways were to-die-for. I had to stop numerous times and take photos
6. Seeing the opera house: I always kinda wondered what the roof was made out of. Cool to see such an iconic piece of architecture up close (It’s made of ceramic tiles)
