Burlap Wine Bags

  

I finished a wine bag today. I guess you could call it a prototype.  I like how it turned out and now I’d like to make several more.

I just have to go back and figure out what exactly I did.   I am not sure of the measurements I used. 

I am not sure if I should stencil something on it either.  I think I’ll make another one and stencil it and then see which one I like better.  What do you think?  Plain or stenciled?

I think I hear my number stencils calling my name…   :)

Ballard Inspired Burlap Foot Stool

My latest project was another Goodwill Re-hab. My inspiration can be found on page 47 of the latest copy of the new Ballard Catalog. That is where you will find a foot stool that looks a lot like the one I just made. The price was $129.00. I kid you not!!

Such a sad and lonely little foot stool. I’ll bet it was the hit of the party back in the 1970’s. I paid $4.49 for it at the Goodwill and took it home for an easy project. Well, I knew I could I could fix this little baby up to look just like new and I could include a few of my favorite touches like covering it in Burlap. Not only is Burlap CHEAP… I really do like the look of it. And then I thought I would use my new question mark stencil.

The first thing I had to do was remove the wood legs which was very easy because they simple screwed on and off and then I gave them a couple of coats of black spray paint.

I turned a box over and screwed the legs into the box so that they were standing straight up which made it very easy to paint them with out any paint runs or smudges. (This is a great way to spray paint door and cabinet knobs too.)

I wanted my foot stool to look nice and plump and have some loft on top so I cut out two pieces of high loft quilt batting (very cheap at Walmart for around $5.00 for a bag.) and wrapped the top piece with it and stapled into place with my upholstery stapler. This kind of stapler is a must for projects like this and they are not very expensive. I purchased mine from Lowe’s a few years ago.

Next step was to cut out a piece of Burlap to go over the batting and cover the top. I used a steam iron to press out the wrinkles before I stapled it into place.

As I stapled the burlap to the top piece, I folded the edge under for a more finished edge.

I screwed the legs back into place before I had a chance to paint them in this photo to see how they fit and trimmed the underside of the corners.

Rest assured that the newly painted black legs look fabulous on the finished product.

And here it is. The total cost was about $8.00. I guess you could say I saved $121.00. Cha- Ching! And this is so easy to change when I get tired of the Burlap or the Question Mark…I can just re-cover it again with some decorator fabric. But for right now I am happy with the Question Mark. It gives it air of mystery don’t you think? :)

I am adding this post to Cottage Instincts....Come see all the other How-To projects!!

And there are more projects to see over at The Twice Remembered Cottage.

Pottery Barn Inspired Burlap Placemats

What a fun project these turned out to be! My love affair with burlap continues and today I finished a set of placemats that were inspired by Pottery Barn. Numbering every thing is very big in the world of Pottery Barn and I can’t get enough of it! And I needed something to match my napkin rings that I ordered from their catalog a few weeks ago. These burlap placemats were just the thing.

I made a set of 6 placemats and stenciled on the numbers by hand.

These are an easy project but I have to warn you that I did have to pull out the sewing machine!

Step 1: I started out by cutting out the burlap. I used one of my old placemats as a pattern for the size. To make your life easier, leave your burlap folded so that you are cutting out your pieces 2 at a time. Do your best to get a neat and even rectangle.

Step 2: Sew two of your pieces together around the entire perimeter of your placemat. I sewed approximately 5/8 inch from the edge on all sides. Doubling up your burlap like this gives you placemat a nice weight and feel.

Step 3: Pull the threads on all four sides at the edges to get your fringed edge.

Step 4: I used my stencils to number each placemat and used a stencil brush and some black acrylic craft paint. I LOVE my new number stencils and ordered them from this website if you need a source: www.maisondestencils.com

Helpful hint: Use blue painters tape to secure your stencil to the burlap. I did not use it and one of the stencils moved and I smudged a wee bit of black ink on number 42. :( But, I will bet you didn’t even notice till I told you...right? :)

These are fun and easy and I love how they turned out. Can you say homemade Christmas presents? :)

I am linking up to Jen’s Tater Tots and Jello for her Holly Bloggy Christmas Bash Party where on Monday handmade gifts will be featured. Stop by for some more ideas on handmade gifts for the holidays!

And I am linking to Make It For Monday over at Cottage Instincts. Come and follow me over there!

I am also linking to Thrifty Thursday over at Tales from Bloggeritaville. Leigh has a beautiful hand crafted angel on top of her tree for you to see there along with all the other great Thrifty Finds and links. Pop over!!

Burlap and Black

I am not much of a “Black Friday” shopper. I hate crowds and there is nothing I want to buy bad enough that could tempt me to get out of bed at some crazy early morning hour to go shopping. Nothing! Even if it was were Free. And that is a powerful word “free” and I kindly say “no thanks, I’ll sit this one out”. Somehow I think there will be bargains enough all through the month of December to satisfy my holiday shopping. With that said, I did stop by the Goodwill this morning (at the civilized hour of 10:00am) after I went to the post office. :) It was a great time to shop. Almost no one was there. They were all out standing in line at Walmart, Target, and Best Buy!

I found a few things that I picked up for cheapness. One of which was this set of 5 black square picture frames for only $4.99. And they already had the picture wire attached on the backs for immediate hanging. I decided to do something with some of my leftover burlap. So I removed the glass inserts and stretched a piced of burlap that I cut out over the piece of foam board I found in the middle of the frame. Then I simply used my stamps and stencils along with some black craft paint and made some mini pictures with them.

I created 3 of them and will wait to do the last two until the new stencils I ordered off of Etsy arrive. I can’t wait to get them and show you the last two after I finish them. So stayed tuned!

A Bunch of Burlap

Being the Baroness of Burlap that I am, I have had my radar keyed into finding more burlap projects. So far I have come across three other bloggers who have compiled a post of nothing but Burlap Projects. If you are looking for more burlap ideas take a look at the following blogs. All four of these have lots of Burlap projects to get you inspired!

1. Tales from Bloggaritaville Bloggers Rock! But Can They Rock Burlap?

2. Someday Crafts Build It With Burlap

3. DIY Show Off Jute and Burlap Do It Yourself Collection

4. Southern Hospitality Burap Party Highlights

And look what I just found on page 24 in the November 2009 issue of Better Homes and Gardens! These cute BURLAP WINE BAGS are only $4.00 each when you buy a set of 4 for $16.00 from Wisteria.com. (I haven’t mastered the scanner yet so bear with my crude yet effective way of sharing these burlap wine bags with you!) :) These would make a great hostess gift for all those Holiday Parties you are going to be invited to this year!! Cheers!

A Whole “Lotta” Burlap

A week or so ago I posted on my blog a project called “A Little Bit Of Burlap”. Well today, my “Little Bit of Burlap” post was featured on Roeshell’s The DIY Show Off blog and she posted a great compilation of projects with burlap and Jute! I love that she has so many projects all in one place. This is the place you want to go for ideas on what to do with Burlap, Hemp, and Jute. And she is going to update her blog post with more projects ideas throughout the weekend!

Remember these? You can click on the “A Little Bit of Burlap” link highlighted above in blue to see exactly how I did it.

My ”Little Bit of Burlap” Post was also mentioned on one of my favorite blogs by Leigh at Tales From Blogaritaville. Leigh was sent a gift of all kinds of bulap and burlap bags that were pre printed with names of coffee, rice, etc…What to do with all these bags??? My quick and easy wall art project was mentioned along with a few others at this site as well.

Here is just two of the projects at the DIY Show Off. How cute are these coasters?

Hirondelle Rustique

is the creator of these quick sew coasters.

This pillow is cute too…… See La *T* Da. for details on this pillow.

So hurry and check out the The DIY Show Off because there are lots more really cute and clever projects for you to look at there! Hurry! Go!