Monday, August 22, 2011

Make-it-yourself Monday!

Guess what!?

I finished TWO projects this week, both of them last Monday! That may just be a personal record, not really, but I am pretty dang proud of myself! I don't usually make time to get crafty, but it sure felt good to do so!

The first finished project is my denim wetbag! I'll use it for her dirty cloth diapers, wet swimsuit, dirty clothes, whatever. I made it a decently big bag, but not huge. I think I'm happy with the size, but I haven't tried it out yet. I originally gathered a bunch of notions to embellish it with, but then quickly decided they were all too cute to use on a wetbag. However, when I finished the wetbag it was too plain-jane blah for me. So, I added a bow. I'm okay with how it turned out, especially since it's the first wetbag and first zipper I have sewn. (I am still cursing myself for choosing DENIM instead of an easier fabric to work with, like cotton!!!) I took about 15 pictures, and yet not a single one seemed to turn out. That's what I get for using my cellphone as my main camera! (I have dreams of buying a digital SLR camera. Seriously. Ahhhh...and moving on...)

The other project I started and finished was the homemade Mod Podge and the finished product! First off, the recipe that I found was a good base, but I definitely tweaked it A LOT. I started with the base, but wasn't happy with the consistency, so really, if you try this at home (which you should if you like Mod Podge) just make sure you keep stirring and be mindful of what ingredient is needed. Mine turned out much lumpier than the real Mod Podge, but it still worked well and the lumps weren't a problem at all when it came to the project, they smoothed right away!
Meet Lumpy Lumperson.
Welcome home, Lumpy!


Icky old pot from garage.
And this is where the napkins come in!
This is about one and a half layers in. I wish I would have removed the purple border.
Finished! This is about 4 layers of napkins.
This was a lot of fun to work on and see it come together. I didn't intend on doing more than one layer, but I really didn't like the look of seeing the purple borders on the edge of the napkin, it just broke up the design too much for my liking. I actually like it better with the multiple layers, too, what a surprise! I love that about crafting, if things don't go as planned, there's still a good chance you can make it work and play with it until it looks decent.

The napkins I used were double ply, so I peeled the layers apart and only used the printed layer (but kept the solid color backing for a future project) so that it was easier to apply and didn't crumple up with the Mod Podge. I'm really happy that I picked a good day for the project, it was a hot hot day with dry heat, so I just set my pot outside to dry between layers and it literally only took a few hours for each layer. It may have to do with my homemade Mod Podge, but I remember (when using the real Mod Podge) waiting and waiting and WAITING for my crafts to dry.  It was such a blast to finish it all in one day! However, I have been applying more Mod Podge throughout the week just to give it more protection.

I am thrilled that this turned out so well! I originally wanted to Mod Podge a small piece of furniture, but thought "Just in case this all goes wrong, I'm going to sacrifice my ugly old pot that's been collecting dust in the garage before I ruin something I actually care about!" I also used an old pan and utensil to mix up the Mod Podge, too. I was pretty skeptical, you see. However, to my surprise and delight, nothing was ruined and my project turned out just fine!

I already have plans stirring in my head of what to Mod Podge next. The roof of  Belle's new wooden dollhouse? The chair for my sewing table? Picture frames? Ohhhh, the possibilities!

3 comments:

  1. Great job cuz! I love that pot. So pretty and your baby girl would love to have daddy make her a doll bed and have you make it prety with those napkins. Oh the endless possibilities!

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  2. Thanks!! The dollhouse actually came with a bunch of wooden furniture for the house, so I may actually do that!

    I was also kind of thinking of finding some dollar store napkins to make wall paper for some of the different rooms in her dollhouse, but then thought it might be fun to paint together when Belle gets older. Hmm...

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