ZolaClaire's blog
Switch out Grass to Water Tolerant Ground Cover
By ZolaClaire
We had a weedy patch of grass growing within a section of land that is approximately 18 inches wide by 70 feet long (it's situated between the street and our sidewalk). The sprinklers did not seem to be getting this area very well, plus the labor required to edge and clean-up after, made getting rid of the grass a very desirable idea.
After doing a little research I found some ground cover that is water tolerant, quick to spread, and cute. Once the weather warmed we hit our local box store and bought a bunch of creeping thyme, stone crop and some low to the ground sedum. Then I purchased some cheap 12 x 12 inch stepping stones and arranged them between the plants. I am not keeping the boring grey stones, rather I am » READ MORE
New Use for an Old Crate
By ZolaClaire
What is it with bathrooms and reading? I'm never in this room long enough to do a whole lot of reading myself, but I do know that others enjoy their bathroom time and there's always a stack of magazines sitting on top of the tank just for that occasion. While the stack is small, it always seems untidy and bothersome because the magazines are too large and they end up poking you in the back. But let's face it, as long as there's a bathroom in the house, there will always be magazines, so I needed to either break down and buy a magazine rack, or repurpose something that I already had.
As I was looking at an article about clutter busting in Domino magaizne, I saw two ideas that lead me to a cute, free solution. The first » READ MORE
Repurposed Bike Chains
By ZolaClaire
Hey gang - I Found an interesting site and want to share. http://www.ecoist.com is a site that sells items made from repurposed and sustainable materials. They offer lots of hand bags, coasters, clocks & placemats made from things like, plastic bottles, vinyl records and candy wrappers. One of my favorite things offered is this cool bottle opener made from used bike chains. It's made by a company out of Oregon 'Resource Revival' and if you gear heads want to see more of their stuff, go to https://www.resourcerevival.com/store/retail?category=21).
Help Identify an Unknown Object
By ZolaClaire
Does anyone have any clues as to what these objects may be? My husband bought these two objects at an auction several years ago and we do not know what they are or were used for. We have speculated that the iron thingy may have been used like an ancient earthquake detector... there are tiny pebbles inside of the claw-like things that tinkle when the thing is shaken. And perhaps they put incense in the top... to assist when praying that their house wouldn't fall on top of their heads.
The other thing appears to have been carved out of soap stone and it has a channel that runs from the round area down into the pointy area... as if it is intended use is to pour something. It has decorative carving on the sides, but not too ornate.
Revamp an Old Corkboard
By ZolaClaire
When my son was still a toddler, he scribbled on my corkboard and its surrounding wooden frame with a blue marker that could not be washed-away. Over the holidays, I took some time to revamp the old board and it now hangs in the little graffiti artist's room.
I asked my son what sort of image he would like to see on the board and thought that he would say somthing like a tractor, dinosaur or a bug, but he surprised me and requested a giant thumb tack.
I don't have a steady hand and I'm not much of a painter, so I decided to make a silhouette of the thumb tack using a pattern to mask various areas of the board, then spray paint the exposed areas. I then hand-painted the white boarder and used a black paint pen to outline the » READ MORE
What to do with an Old Yoke - Part II
By ZolaClaire
Awhile back I posted a question on what to do with an old yoke and here's my follow-up to that question.
My good friend Lee made me a chalkboard frame out of old packing crates, then my husband cut a piece of pressed-board to fit inside the frame and I had sprayed it with a few coats of chalkboard paint. We added a couple of eye-hooks to the top of the frame then drilled some holes on the back side of the yoke. We then suspended the frame from the old yoke and we think it looks really great.
Sled Shelf
By ZolaClaire
Awhile back I did a post on making a Canoe Paddle Hat/Coat Rack and when reading the comments on the post I thought, hey - wouldn't it be cool to make something out of an old sled.... Well someone at Pottery Barn Kids thinks so too. Check out this cool shelf that I'm pretty sure you can make yourself.
If you have a mere $89.99 you can get it at Pottery Barn Kids, but if you have an old sled, you can get 2 with a little grunt work. Now where can I get an old sled...
How to Make Yummy / Healthy Breakfast Bars
By ZolaClaire
My husband challenged me to come up with a recipe for a healthier breakfast bar (low in sugar and low fat). I searched the Internet and found a base recipe, then altered it over the months. The below is my favorite version as it's lightly sweet and a little salty (a nice balance), but we have tried it with peanut butter and it was pretty good too. If you do try it with peanut butter, try 1/3 cup to begin with then reduce the amount of oil and the amount of salt by half.
Ingredients
2/3 Cup Canola Oil
4 Cups Old Fashioned Oatmeal
1-Teaspoon Salt
½ Cup Honey (obviously the bar will be sweeter if you use more honey, but more honey will also help the bar to stick together better / be less crumbly)
3 Teaspoons Vanilla
Canola Cooking » READ MORE
Having Fun With Ikea Frames
By ZolaClaire
If you are looking for a great way to display your photos for a very low price, then you gotta love Ikea and their little 4 x 6 inch frames that come in a pack of 3 for a buck 99. They’re not much to look at right out of the package, but what a great starting point. Combine them with chain and S-hooks or leave them as individual frames. It's an afforable way to experiment and have some fun.
In this example, three painted frames were combined with I-hooks and tiny washers.See Image below
Top and bottom: Little tiles were cut into even smaller segments then glued to the frame with a tile adhesive then grouted with either a black or a charcoal color.
Middle: An Ikea Frame (with glass removed).
Far Right: Pinto beans were » READ MORE
Kandinsky Inspired Wall Art on a Budget
By ZolaClaire
Embroidery thread is a beautiful thing. It’s relatively inexpensive, it comes in many vibrant colors and it’s easy to work with. For a single buck, you can usually get 4 scans of thread, 5 if they are on sale. I started using embroidery thread nearly 6 years ago to add artistic embellishment to curtains & pillows. Then I saw a print by Wassily Kandinsky (Colour Study: Squares with Concentric Circles), and became inspired to do my own piece out of braided embroidery floss. After a year of slow and sometimes daunting work, I completed my Kandinsky inspired project (actually, it's still on-going as I originally wanted 9 circles, but lost wind after completing the 7th). If you want to attempt this craziness, here’s my supply » READ MORE
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