Paper Beads with Eyelet Caps

Hello my Friend !

 Paper beads have been around forever.

I can remember making some in elementary school!

Often they are made with a long triangular 

shaped strip of paper.

Today I'm sharing a bead that's a little different variation.

I started with a page from a magazine.

The paper had a matte finish.

I cut my steps 1/2'' wide and about 5'' long

I used eyelets to create a finish edge to the beads.

I rolled the beads by hand to fit the eyelets I had on hand.

Eyelets are sometimes had to find.

I found mine at Harbor Freight Company !

Check it out if you have a store near you.

 I glued the eyelets on both ends of the beads.

I like the cylinder shape. They look like tiny spools.

I had a mix of eyelets.

 Some were silver, brass and copper

I added some beads to the MERMAID JOURNAL here.

The knot at the top is a place to hook a pen.

The beads can easily  be threaded onto ribbon.

Then I decided to string a few on a 

scrap of vintage seam binding

 and attached it to my daily calendar.

Just for fun!

Thank you!

xo Lisa S

Paper Bird- Tie a Knot

 Hello my friend !

This week was quiet.

 I was off work due to oral surgery.

It was painful 

and I still don't feel like doing much of anything.

I  AM enjoying my ICE CREAM diet though.

Yes, I have 2 dear friends who each brought me homemade ice cream!

I have been indulging, but back to work tomorrow.

Yes, my class will suffer for it...evil laugh here!

While sitting around I was making some knot birds

with scraps of paper.

 I thought you might enjoy seeing how they are made.

To make a little bird, you will need a double sided

scrap of paper approximately 3/4'' wide by 6'' long,

glue and scissors.

Make a loop and pull, over under.

That's it !

Pull tight carefully, so the paper does not tear.

Pinch to flatten a bit.

Cut a small triangle on one end.

Save the triangle.

Use scissors to round the other end.

The bird will look different on each side.

Pick the side you like best.

Glue the triangle piece on the back side for a beak.

Trim the triangle if you like.

Draw an eye with a sharpie.

A white gel pen works great on dark paper.

You can you origami paper.

Book pages work well-

old magazine ads and junk mail work too!

I liked this colorful advertisement for Hydrangeas.

I cut strips using my paper cutter.

Tied a knot

One side was pink-

The other side was pretty too-

These sweet little birds can be use for ''Get Well'' cards.

Can be turned into ''Thank you" cards, bookmarks,

attach to a paperclip, tuck inside a journal,

glue to a magnet, hang a mobile....

maybe you have another idea.

Share this with the kids-

I'd love to hear from you!

xo Lisa S

Front Yard Tour- More Flowers, Less Grass Project

Hi Friend,

Let's start here for a quick front yard tour.

We have a large grass area with flowers

that border the whole yard.

My husband does all the yardwork himself, I am his helper.

I love the grass, but it does need a lot of water.

In late SPRING we had a crazy idea.

We thought removing some grass would help to lower our water bill.

Most of our yard and side area has draught tolerant native plants.

My husband and I removed another huge amount of grass.

We divided some perennials that we already had-

Society Garlic is easy to divide. It is a good border filler.

We replaced the rock border.

Then filled in the area with shredded bark mulch.

By summer...wow !

We love the new look.

 

Everything continued to grow

We filled in areas with seeds.

Daisies around the mailbox.

Lavender does very well in my area.

We water by hand only when needed.

We like Mexican Marigolds and Mexican Sage

Lots of White and Yellow Yarrow

I love the orange and blue combination-

California Poppies and Nigella (Love-in-a-mist)

Salvia microphyll 'Hot Lips' and 'Baby Sage'

is easy to grow in my area, it can be

 cut back often to retain it's shape and size.

I grow lots of Calendula- Pot Marigolds to make salves and body butters

These Gaillardia- Blanket Flowers are so vivid!

On the hill, as we call it- I have Queen Annes Lace,

Rosemary, Calendula, Lavender ....it changes often.

It has helped to get the water bill lower!

Just in time for summer.

Here's the backyard project from a few years ago.

We are happy with the change.

Thanks for taking a tour with me-

xo Lisa S

Faux Marshmallows / Summer Picnic Campfire Vignette

Hi Friends!

Just about everyone loves s'more on a summer night

am I right ?

I know I'm silly with the faux food sometimes!

This was a fun one-

You only need a some air dry clay and a skewer or stick.

I had brown clay but I will be painting my marshmallows.

Take a pinch of clay. Roll between your hands

 and flatten the ends

 to make your shape.

If you want your marshmallows to look realistic, roll them smooth.

use white clay or paint them white. 

Pushed them onto the stick to create a hole.

Then removed them so they could completely dry

before painting.

You can leave them on the stick to dry if you are using white clay.

I painted them white let them dry and then glued

them on a rustic stick.

I wanted my marshmallows to be a nice golden brown....

even though I like to eat mine burnt all the way around!!!!

I mixed a few colors-

They look real so I'm a happy camper!

This plaid picnic tin was a thrift store find.

I use it to store all my patriotic decorations.

It gave me chance to share some of my red white and blue

thermos collection.

Just put the sticks inside a thermos and tin-

The faux 'Sparkler Boxes' are here

Let's party S' MORE !

Happy 4TH of July-

xo Lisa S