Channeling My Inner Craftiness with Faux Paper Mache Vases

I passed up a Rachel Ashwell paper mache bucket on eBay last month.

I'm still kicking myself.

But being the semi-crafty (?) person I am,
I wondered if I could make one myself.

I did.

Well, sorta.

I bought some pretty dinner napkins...

dug out a terra cotta pot,

and hauled out some Mod Podge from my stash.

I set the pot upside down on a stack of bed risers,

and then tore the napkins into 2" strips, peeling the three layers apart.

Letting my free spirit flap feebly soar while totally winging this project,
I slathered on the Mod Podge,

laid on a strip of napkin, and tapped it into place with my fingers and with the tip of the paintbrush.

Eventually, the entire pot was covered and looking pretty ugly.
My inner-craftiness was quickly disintegrating into a pile of "What-was-I-thinking"?

So I tried it again on a glass vase.
Same technique.  Different napkins.
The glass was a bit more difficult to work with,
but I kept going.
Slathering and laying and sticking and tapping.

I turned out the basement lights,
and trudged up the stairs ~
expecting no miracles.

The next morning, my wary eyes peeked apprehensively at the mess on the basement table.

Okaaaay....not tooo bad.
Not too bad at all!
I gave them both a light coat of poly and let that dry.

I turned them over in my hands and decided that they both needed more of an aged look.
So, I pounced on some dark wax and rubbed it around, creating a vintage patina.
After giving them a little buff job,
they were ready for their photo shoot.

I'll let you decide if they're photo-worthy.  :)

Glass vase

Glass vase

Terra cotta pot

Terra cotta pot

I am ready to try another one and will be looking for a large pot this spring at the garden centers.
Instead of napkins, I plan on trying it with some floral wallpaper.
Yep.  Totally winging it again.

Looks like my inner craftiness will be getting another workout...


~  Blessings  ~

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Autumn Leaves, Catching Dreams & A Winner

 Autumn was blazing beautifully here in Michigan the past couple weeks.

Because of the drought we had this summer, the colors were simply amazing this year.

 Rich reds, bright yellows, and "phajent"

(pronounced "fa-jent" in case you were wondering)~

a color that The Husband made up.

(Don't ask.  I haven't a clue where he came up with it.)

He insists that it's the brilliant, almost neon, orangey pink hue that you are lucky to see once in a while on sugar maples.

So, between plowing MONSTROUS piles

(I'm talking thigh deep at times, people)

of golden and phajent leaves...

[Yes, The Husband actually plowed them for me with our vintage tractor (a sweet 1947 International Harvester) because I was not making any headway by blowing them with my super duper Stihl backpack blower.  He hooked up the snowblade and pushed those ginormous piles into the woods surrounding the house. Saved me a ton of work. 
I married such a smart man.]

and putting my flower gardens to bed for the season,

dumping the pots of annuals,

putting away the wicker on the back porch,

and storing the multitude of pillows on the front porch,

I needed to do something creative.

I was feeling all brawn and no brain.

:)

I've been swooning over and coveting Tausha's gorgeous dream catchers ever since she first started making them.  "Romantic Homes" magazine even featured them when they did a spread on her beautiful Florida home.
When Sandy shared a wonderful tutorial on how she made one,

I knew what I wanted to try my hand at next.

There have been so many different crafts that I've had fun making ever since I started blogging.  You all inspire me so much!  Clay tags, Mod Podge transfers, stenciling, sewing vintage handkerchief buntings, painting furniture, making topiaries, stringing large wooden rosaries...
You've encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone and try new things, and I've loved every minute of it.

But making dream catchers has caught my heart and soul in a way that no other project has.

In the Native American Ojibwa culture, the hoop of the dream catcher signifies strength and unity. The circle of life.

Dream catchers were created to protect the sleeping individual from negative dreams while letting the positive dreams through.

The positive dreams would slip through the hole in the center.

The negative dreams would get caught up in the web and disappear when the first rays of morning sunshine struck them.

A feather tucked into the dream catcher symbolized a breath of air that is essential for life.

I found the supplies I needed at NocBay Trading Company and at Michael's.  After scrounging around in my linen closet and baskets of fabric for some vintage floral sheets,

I assembled everything in my studioffice and began creating.

It was calming. 

Zen-like.

Wrapping the strips of soft, faded floral cotton around the hoop.

Weaving the waxy sinew into a delicate web.

Tying on rustic leather cording strung with sparkling glass beads.

Tucking a white feather into a small, wooden sphere,

and adding a final decidedly signature piece ~

a small cross made from either a genuine turquoise stone

or balsam wood. 

It's a way of adding a bit of my own heart and soul to the dream catchers.

A simple way of passing on God's love.

 
 A hoop of beachy turquoise.

A circle of vintage plum.

A quiet ring of soft pinks and blues.

I will spend my winter quietly making these intricate webs of romantic beauty.

They will be sold in my booth next spring.

I will weave each one with a calm breath,

a satisfied soul...

and a whispered prayer.

I want to thank ALL of you, near and far, so much for entering my THROUGH THE FRENCH DOOR book giveaway and leaving your sweet comments. I wish with all my heart that I could have given each and every one of you a copy of this beautiful book.


~ ♥ ~

The winner was picked the old fashioned way.
The Husband pulled a name out of a vase for me
(before I refilled it with some fresh pink roses).

 

The winner is.....

Dore from Burlap Luxe.

Congratulations, Dore!

I'll be contacting you.



♥

~  Blessings ~

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Open for Business!

Two SUVs full of Heaven's Walk treasures

+

  

3 days of pricing and tagging,

hammering and hanging,

and floofing and fluffing...

=

OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

I am so excited!

Heaven's Walk is now officially a booth at Doster Emporium!

The Emporium is located in an old grain & lumber mill in the small, quaint, rural town of Doster.

The Emporium is quite an historical building in the area.  Georgina, who owns it with her husband, has books filled with original orders from grain and lumber customers handwritten in their beautiful, old script.

Old photos of past owners and family members are framed and hung on the walls.

There's even some of the original mechanisms located in the center of the shop where you can see where the grain was poured from.

 







You can take a walk around the beautiful property on a path Georgina created and lined with wildflowers and vintage railroad memorabilia.





There's even a cute little outhouse on the property that Georgina remodeled all by herself.
She's very smart like that, and is such a dear heart!

Georgina said I was "in my element" as I transformed my little white room

into a sweet, cozy, and welcoming French-Nordic atmosphere for this season's customers.

It actually gave me the same feeling of contentment that fluffing my house does.

Unpacking boxes and boxes of goodies,

moving things around (more than once),

tucking things here and there,

and then standing back and sighing contentedly.

Now I understand why all of you gals out there who have had booths for so long

love it so!

I'm praying that this new venture will be profitable,

and most importantly ~

fun!

{It definitely gives me an excuse to hit the yard sales, flea markets, and thrift stores more often,

doesn't it?}

Here are quite a few some

photos of my booth.

  
{Grab yourself cup of coffee,

or if it's after 12 noon -
a glass of wine...}

Update on the Heaven's Walk sign:  It's now up on the wall!

I love making these topiaries!

This rocker was my first attempt at upholstering (with a handmade faux grain sack). The end table is a ReStore transformation.

The French lamp was another ReStore transformation.

The "seaside" corner.

Yep, I had an extremely busy and productive winter
with my Annie Sloan chalk paint, paint brushes, Mod Podge, stencils, and a continuing love/hate relationship with my sewing machine.
Ninety percent of everything you see here was transformed in one way or another by the waving of my magic wand ~

and all of the inspiration came from YOU, my beloved blog friends.
YOU fed my creativity.


So, there you have it.
My new little piece of heaven!

 

If you're in the area,

be sure to stop by to see a bit of Heaven's Walk

at Doster Emporium, meet sweet Georgina,
and come do the happy dance with us!  :)

Ok...just ignore the dorky outfit.  I was wearing my work clothes...and freezing!

The Emporium is located at 12915 Doster Road in Plainwell, Michigan.

Hours are: Wednesday, Friday & Saturday from 12-4pm.

You can contact Georgina at 269-664-3231 if you can't make it during business hours.

She's more than willing to open up the shop just for you!

Be sure to check out Doster Emporium on Facebook, too!

[ Blessings ]

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Just click on the buttons!


I'd love to have you join Heaven's Walk as a Linky Follower and GFC, too!