Quick and easy: Paper lined vase

I wasn't going to do a post about this "project" because it was too easy. But my mom saw what I did and immediately went home and replicated it herself. (She even bought the same fake flowers!) So I guess it's worth sharing. And it's very likely you might have all that you need already in the house!

Paper-wrapped pillars are nothing new; it seems like something like this is in Martha Stewart Living every few months. But try the paper on the inside of the glass, and it's almost like the paper becomes part of the vase itself. Except nothing's permanent here. You can quickly and easily swap out the paper for a different look.

Start with a plain glass cylinder vase and a piece of scrapbook or wrapping paper. Roll the paper around the outside of the cylinder and cut to size. Then roll it up and insert into the vase.

See what I mean? Too easy.

I used a heavier cardstock, so I didn't need to secure it in any way. But if you use thinner paper, you may have to add a piece of scotch tape on the inside of the paper cylinder to give it shape.

Obviously, you shouldn't fill this with water for real cut flowers. But depending on the size of the vase, you might be able to nestle a smaller vase full of water inside.

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Check out these similar projects
Paper-wrapped cylinders as wedding centerpieces
Photo cylinders for Elise's first birthday party

Back painted glass ornaments

I have this pass-through window in my kitchen that I like to hang things in. And I thought it was about time I took down the cupcakes from Elise's birthday party (oops!). I wanted to make something summery and fun, but not too holiday specific (i.e. Fourth of July).

I love the look of back painted glass, so I dragged out these clear glass ornaments leftover from this project and set myself up for a super quick, easy and cheap project.

First, I removed the tops of the ornaments and rinsed them out with some water. I gave them a couple hard shakes and dried them upside down. Once they were dry, I squirted about a tablespoon of acrylic craft paint inside.

I covered up the top with my finger and shook the paint around the inside. As the paint covered the inside of the ball, I added more when it was needed to make sure the coverage was even.

After the entire inside was covered, I let them dry upright in the ornament box.

Once they were mostly dry, I gently put the tops back on and hung them up with some ribbons.

I have a couple of tips from my experimentation.

• Don't thin the paint! It needs to be fairly thick to adhere to the glass.
• The colors I used were straight from the bottle. If you wanted to mix colors to make a new color, I would do it before putting it inside the ornament. Once the paint sticks to the glass, it doesn't shake around too well.
• If things aren't looking right, all is not lost! Rinse out the ornament while the paint is still wet.

Love these happy colors!

Father's day "photobooth" bookmark

I totally stole this idea from my friend Jodi, who made them for her husband and dad last year. While I'm content to use anything as a bookmark (magazine subscription card, piece of junk mail, scrap of paper, another book), Dan feels he needs to use a "proper" bookmark. And because he reads about 20 times as much as I do, I thought I would oblige.

Since Elise is rather uncooperative in front of the camera, I didn't think we would have much of a chance taking any good photos in an actual photobooth. So I took a bunch of shots at home while she was behaving. Yes, we both need haircuts.

I picked out the ones I liked best, cropped them, changed them to grayscale and resized them in Photoshop. Then I arranged them in a photobooth-like strip. I know photo strip photos are typically vertical, but all of my photos were horizontal and I didn't think this had to be 100 percent authentic or anything.

I actually came away with too many "good" photos, so I made two strips, one for the front and one for the back of the bookmark. I printed the strips together on one piece of white cardstock.

And then trimmed them to look like real photo strips.

I picked out a piece of patterned scrapbook paper I had and cut a piece twice the width of my final bookmark dimensions.

I folded it lengthwise so that the pattern side of the paper would appear on both sides.

Then I assembled the whole thing with a glue stick and let it dry.

I cut a piece of clear laminating film (a.k.a. Con-Tact paper) slightly larger than twice the width of the bookmark.

Then I covered the bookmark with the contact paper and rubbed my fingernail all over to make sure it was good and stuck. They make a burnishing tool for occasions like this, but I will continue to use my fingernail because it works.

Last, I trimmed the off the excess contact paper and I was all done! Happy Father's Day, Dan!

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$100 Bathroom Challenge: Hang a pretty book as artwork

I've had this little 1931 encyclopedia for more than ten years. It came from a free box outside a bookstore and I recently re-discovered it on our bookshelves. It's where I found the boxer graphic for another no-cost wall art project.

At only 4" x 6", it's such a cute little book. And because it's the perfect shade of red, I wanted to find a way to use it in this bathroom challenge. I didn't want to alter or ruin the book, so I thought it best to display it simply.

I took some 2" grosgrain ribbon I found in my stash, which probably came from some sort of packaging. I cut a length that would wrap around the book and extend upward to make a hanger of sorts.

I ironed out the wrinkles then laid the book on top of the ribbon (1). Next, I opened the cover of the book (2) and pulled the ribbon up around the front of the pages (3). Then I shut the cover (4).

I tied a knot in the top of the ribbon. The back of the knot made a nice little nook for hanging on a nail.

Then I trimmed the edges of the ribbon cleanly with a fabric scissors.

I hung it up and did a little tugging and adjusting to the ribbon so the book would lay flat against the wall. This bathroom never gets humid because the shower is so enclosed, so I'm not worried about moisture ruining the paper.

I think it looks really good against the beadboard and has a vintage schoolbook sweetness about it. Wouldn't this idea also be really cute in a kid's room with vintage children's books?

Note: You probably shouldn't do this with a book you hold very dear or one that might be valuable. I'm not certain, but it's possible this could be bad for the binding.

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How I spent my $100 budget (so far)

1 qt. Semi-gloss wall paint ... $11.42
Curtain rod ... $4.49
1 qt. Semi-gloss paint for vanity and mirror ... $11.42
Frame ... $0.01 (yep, for real)
Mirror ... $26.91
Bathmat ... $7.47
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Total spent ... $61.72
Amount left ... $38.28
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Follow along with me as I give our upstairs bathroom a face lift with a budget of only $100.

1. Another bathroom update: Before
2. My color plan
3. Painting the walls
4. Curtains made from a tablecloth
5. Painting the vanity
6. No cost vintage boxer wall art
7. New mirror & bathmat

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Making faux mercury glass with "looking glass" mirror paint

I have found my new favorite paint! Krylon Looking Glass spray paint. This stuff is like magic. You can actually create a mirror-like finish! I had no idea mirror paint even existed until I saw this idea in this Budget Living book (which, by the way, is a great little deco book, even if it is a few years old).

It's a little pricey, but I used a 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby which made it about $7 for a can.

I took some pieces of clear glassware that were languishing in a box in the basement. A couple were candle jars that had been used up long ago. Sometimes I wonder why I hold onto this stuff, but then I end up using things for a project like this and it bolsters my inner hoarder.

I masked off the outside of the glassware with some painters tape and paper.

Then I sprayed the inside of the vases with two coats. The paint is very very thin (and, incidentally, smells exactly like nail polish). After I sprayed, it quickly ran down the inside walls of the glassware and collected in the bottom.

I tried to swish it around to cover the glass and that worked somewhat, but you can sort of see how uneven the paint dried. It contributes to the "antique" effect, but additional coats might even that out.

I thought I was going to have to do some antiquing with black paint or the like on the inside before spraying with the mirror paint, but after my initial piece, I decided that wasn't necessary. Lovely speckling.

Because I only gave mine two coats, they look a little transparent when the light shines through. But from the outside, it's very reflective and fairly opaque.

I had less success with the small bud vase. Because the neck was so narrow, it was really hard to spray inside. But even the very thin coat still produces a reflection.

The shade is more of a deep platinum than a bright shiny silver, but I like that. I can't wait to experiment on a flat piece of glass to see how that works. I imagine it will be easier to get a more even finish.

$100 Bathroom Challenge: Curtains made from a tablecloth

I'm not a big curtain kind of person, but this bathroom needed some color and something to soften all the hard edges.

This fabric started life as a cotton tablecloth I picked up on clearance a year or two ago. I can't remember how much I paid, but it was probably under $10. I never really had intentions of using it as a tablecloth, but I loved the pattern. Once I had the thought to use this fabric for curtains, the whole color plan for the bathroom came together.

Using a pre-made tablecloth is not really much of a cost savings when you consider the cost per yard, but since it was something I already owned, it's almost like it was free. Another excellent reason for using a tablecloth instead of raw fabric: no hemming!

This tablecloth was 52" x 70", and when cut in half, it was the perfect size to make short curtains for the two windows. I folded over the cut edges and sewed rod pockets, which took all of about 20 minutes. I didn't bother lining the curtains because there are already blinds on the windows.

I had a couple of curtain rods already and was planning to use one, but two were too long and another was too short. I just couldn't make them work, so I bought the simplest, cheapest white rod I could find. I'm not counting the cost of the fabric toward my budget since I bought it so long ago and it wasn't specifically purchased for this bathroom. It would still be in its tablecloth state if I hadn't used it.

Now that they are up in the room, I'm wondering if they are too long. I wanted them to cover the entire top half of the windows, but they might be a little overwhelming to the space. I'm going to reserve judgement until the room is closer to being done, but anyone have any thoughts? Is there a rule about the length of a valance?

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How I spent my $100 budget (so far)

1 qt. Semi-gloss wall paint ... $11.42
Curtain rod ... 4.49
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Total spent ... $15.91
Amount left ... $84.09
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Follow along with me as I give our upstairs bathroom a face lift with a budget of only $100.

1. Another bathroom update: Before
2. My color plan
3. Painting the walls