Another Jar of Joy

Repurposed mayo jar. See below for an easy to make tutorial. Nestled in an old dough bowl among antlers and pinecones.

A jar of Joy

To make this fun holiday project simply start with an old clear jar. Make sure the mouth is large enough that a battery powered candle will fit.

UPDATE:  I put a coat of glass etch of the jar and let it set overnight.  Rinse well and remove etching creme from all grooves.  This will give the paint something to "grab" onto.

Clean it well and coat with a semi-transparent gold shimmer paint.  I used a spouncer to blot it on.  It will not look perfect, but should be fairly opaque.

I glued on chipboard letters and sprayed it with silver Krylon glitter paint. Option: I also painted directly on the glass with a paint pen when using a font with more detail or you could use a stamp.

Use any wire you like (I used old baling wire from the barn), wrap around mouth of jar, add a jingle bell and a star.  NOTE: Be careful when wrapping the baling wire as it will mar the new paint. Put a piece of thin cardstock or Press N seal wrap between the jar and wire when you twist the wire. It is easy to touch up the paint though. 

I cut the star from a cereal box, painted it a rusty color and then coated it with brush on glitter paint.  I glued the star directly to the wire.  Add a metal jingle bell or two if you wish.  Add a battery powered votive candle. Do not use a candle with an actual flame - the paint and glue may catch on fire.

 For another take on painted bottles see www.villabarnes.blogspot.com     She has many great tutorials and ideas for painted furniture.

Fall Favorites

Check out Tammi's great mantel decorated for the Fall holidays! I love the old goat cart and pumpkins that she decorates with until the Christmas items go up. Her old Hooiser cabinet sits in the living room and always has fun decor and it is a functional little place for car keys, phones and all the other stuff that "collects"! The old spool mixed with the lanterns and candle mold from Mexico are just some of my favorites.

The Beginning of Yellow Dogs & Sunflowers

Today is the big reveal, our friends at K9 Manners in Broken Arrow, OK are having a Halloween party for people and dogs and it is the first day the Boutique will be open. After months of hard work picking and painting we are ready to show off our goods to our dog-friends.

The past few months we have been using our Silhouette to cut vinyl for unique dogbone-shaped placards with fun quotes and designs. Gotta love all the estate and garage sales, digging in the garage and hitting a few curbs the night before trash pick-up to find great frames to make into chalk and cork boards. 

This journey has been a family affair, we're thankful for our parents talent and dedication for making whatever we set out to do to be successful. Mom sewed pillows, cut fabric and was our cheerleader while Dad worked in the shop to cut out dog shapes for life-sized chalkboards. It is in our genes to collect and re-purpose, who knew that when Grandpa Ray used to go out and pull old barnboards off the farm we were repurposing and reusing.

This is only the beginning, stay tuned!