Word of the Month- Re-Purpose...

Well, seeing how I have a few extra minutes to myself lately, with Berk & Braden in school and Brenner on a pretty regular napping schedule, I have had a chance to get back to my roots.  Well back to the root of what I do when I am bored besides bake...

I make things.  I started making jewelry way back when I was stuck in the house with Braden- during the first year or so of his life when germs were a big scary thing to be avoided.  I needed an outlet. So I began beading. Eight-ish years later I have made thousands of pieces, and I still love the peace that I get when I am stringing beads. It may sound odd, but no matter my mood, I have to be calm and focused to get all those dang little beads on, and not drop them in the shag carpet. 

I also began sewing, and my skills are limited, but I enjoy making baby things and I made the drapes for my house. But adjusting to life with a third kid has taken quite so time for me to find time to do all these things I love. I can't bead holding a toddler (I've tried) so these past times had to be put on hiatus until recently. 

We all remember the big crystal craze that swept the Valley a few years ago. I have been looking at all my pieces lately wondering how to take the things I loved, and make them more relevant now. And then I was reading a blog about re-purposing old baby blankets into throw pillows (can't find the link now sorry) and it hit me. Why not just cut it all up and start again?

Anyway, I just had to post some of what has been keeping my hands busy lately. Like this project --I do a lot of repair work for people.  Mostly baby bracelets and little girls necklaces that have been broken and need restrung. Or, they need sized, because the bracelet that fit a cute chubby 6 month old, doesn't quite cut it on a 2 year old. Projects like this are so fun for me.  But this job was different. A woman Rusty works with wanted to see what I could to with a pile of broken necklaces, bracelets and earrings. She simply wanted back one necklace and one bracelet.  So, I started by breaking them into piles...

I sorted the Earth tones out from the berry ones. And then I played and played until I decided I would make the berry tones into a bracelet (she had the most beautiful clasp) and then use the Earth tones for a long chunky necklace.

The results...

The best part was the cost was so small because all I really had to do was restring. I even got to keep the leftover beads. Plus she caught me in the middle of a rosette making phase, so she got one on her necklace (it's removable and can be used in the hair or on a shirt!) as well. 

I'm telling you, this is just a small, small amount of what I made one weekend. They are so simple, and I even cheated and used FabriTac instead of sewing them! Messier but much faster. (Shhh, don't tell, cause she can't read yet)

I made this little hair clip out of tulle and ribbon I had laying around. My niece Talia is getting it for her Birthday tomorrow. 

The necklace below was one I had to make bigger for my cute neighbor. I made it for her almost 4 years ago for her baptism, and now she's in 6th grade, so I needed to update it, and along with a couple others I made them longer too.  Now she (and her Mom --bonus!) can wear them again. 

I know, I am obsessed with these flowers but they are soooo simple and so easy! I have been digging through my ribbon and fabric scraps making all sorts of them. I have entirely too many head bands now, but it makes bad hair days that much more tolerable.

And just because I can make my own accessories, doesn't mean I like too. Well, I do like to. Too much in fact, ask my accessory holders... But the point is I love when I get jewelry from other people. My Mom always gets me something made for Christmas, and Rusty is superb about getting ones that come in little blue boxes. And I am a little obsessed with the hand stamped jewelry right now. I mean you know I got one for Mother's Day, but that didn't stop me from entering a give away on one of the (in my opinion) founders of hand stamped stuff The Vintage Pearl. I literally squealed when I saw my comment had been chosen for the winner of one of their new designs. The 'I Love You' sign has a special place in my heart because of Braden. He has signed it to us forever --like on his first day of Kindergarten, I love it. It was way larger than I thought and I love that it is a totally different shape than my tag ones. So I mix it up.

Tonight at the store the clerk asked me where I had gotten it, and I told her. And she was nearly in tears, turns out her little boy was just diagnosed with profound hearing loss and has begun learning sign. She just kept saying how cool it was that someone would make something like this. So, needless to say, it made my night.

I have one more re purposing project in the works. Well, more re-vamp than re-purpose. But it is gonna take me a while to finish. My fingers are actually sore, as we speak, err type/read.

Have any other Crafty ideas for me???