Category Archives: Crafts

Bow down to Washington!

Posted in Crafts, DIY by
"UW Purple" !!!

“UW Purple” !!!

Man… what a weekend! Brandon has been immersed in his studies — finals are next week — so I had the weekend more-or-less to myself and a long to-do list of house projects.

Brandon and I are both University of Washington alums and there is Husky paraphernalia all over our house. I decided to take it a step further and did two UW-related projects this weekend.

The first, Husky “W” benches! These classic, boring benches came with my house and have been un-cared for more than five years. They’re still a work in progress, but this weekend I designed, primed, painted and lacquered the tops of the two benches. I’ll let them dry through tomorrow and then turn them over and paint the underside and legs “UW Purple.” (It’s an actual color! Thank you, Home Depot!)

Here is the work in progress… I’ll post more photos and a step-by-step tutorial when the project is finished.

UW-inspired benches

UW-inspired benches

While I was at Home Depot picking up “UW Purple” and other various paint colors, I also picked up two tiki torches for the backyard.  (More on that on Friday for my “Gone Pinning” post on mosquitoes!) I’ve had two French florist buckets (of sorts) from IKEA that would make the perfect base for the torches for years. These buckets needed some TLC, so this morning, they got it!

UW Husky-inspired tiki torch buckets

UW Husky-inspired tiki torch buckets

Tiki torch buckets!

Tiki torch buckets!

I had all of the tools I needed to make this project a success: soapy water and a sponge, blue painters tape and various spray paints (primer, gold and purple). First, I cleaned the buckets. They had a lot of concrete residue from our patio project, but it came off surprisingly easily. After the buckets dried, I primed them, taped the lip and painted the base purple. After that dried, I re-taped and painted the lip and inside GOLD. I love my gold spray paint!

I filled the buckets with some cheap rocks/sand that I found at Home Depot, added the torches and voila! We’re ready for mosquito-free outdoor dining!

Oh, and I went a bit overboard and also painted the rocks inside gold. GO DAWGS!!

Gold spray paint = my favorite

Gold spray paint = my favorite

{Wine Wednesday} Custom wine glasses

Posted in Crafts, DIY, Drinky drinky, Uncategorized, Wine Wednesdays by

More wine crafts! (Two of my favorite things: crafting and wine!)

Wine Wednesday custom wine glasses

Wine Wednesday custom wine glasses

My sister got married last fall and as I was planning her wine tasting bachelorette party, I came across some great ideas for the party, including these custom wineglasses.

Besides being the easiest things ever to make, these have unlimited options for customization. I’m thinking it would be so fun to make some bright pink ones for another bachelorette party or some gilded ones for the holidays and New Year’s Eve. I also have some small juice glasses that I was going to use for tea lights at my wedding that I’d like to customize for parties — now just to choose which parties and colors!

 

These custom glasses can be created in just a few simple steps:

  1. Gather your supplies: the glasses you plan on painting, painters tape, primer spray paint, a can of your favorite color of spray paint (I used chalkboard this time).
  2. Wash the glasses thoroughly and tape off the area you’d like to spray paint. I used 1″ wide painters tape and taped 1/2″ or so above the base of the glass.
  3. Once all of the glasses are taped, use the primer spray paint to thoroughly coat the area you want to paint. Wait several hours, as dictated by the brand you’re using.
  4. Next, repeat step three with the spray paint color of your choice. Keep your spray even and about 6″ away from the glass. Let it dry for 24 hours or so on top of some wax paper in a box. I didn’t have to paint the bottom of the glasses, but it you do, that should be a fourth step with similar spraying and drying guidelines.

I’d recommend buying your glassware at Ross,  Marshall’s, TJ Maxx or HomeGoods. You can probably find them for $1 or less.

Try to customize your own glassware and report back on the colors you’ve chosen and the success of your work! I’ll do the same and check back soon! Happy Wine Wednesday!!

Wine Wednesday: Cork Art!

Posted in 2013 Pinterest Lifestyle, Around the house, Crafts, DIY, Homemade, Wine Wednesdays by

If you’re like me, you might have more than a few corks hanging around your house. I’ve always been good at hoarding, I mean saving, my corks, which has led to bags and bags of them over the years. Thanks to Pinterest, I found a good use for them: wine wreaths!

I started off with this tutorial from LollyChops and had incredible success. Do take note, though: use a straw wreath (rather than a styrofoam one), straw will get everywhere and you will burn yourself with the hot glue gun(also note that you’ll use A LOT of hot glue, be prepared!). I used a garbage bag as my place mat and have never been so pleased with my forethought. Straw wreaths = a huge mess.

Wine wreaths... the before

Wine wreaths… the before

I followed the LollyChops tutorial as written and ended up with this beauty. Voila! It’s on the front door now, welcoming guests into our home.

Voila! Beautiful wine art made by me!

Voila! Beautiful wine art made by me!

I’ve still got some corks leftover and I’m thinking these might be fun to make… However the timing listed in the tutorial is a bit daunting. I do have a history (successful but lengthy) with styrofoam ball art that I’ll share with you sometime soon. What do you think? Have I inspired you to make a wine wreath or cork ball?

Next cork art project?

Next cork art project?

Welcome to the Island!

Posted in Around the house, Crafts, DIY, Drinky drinky, Food, General, Homemade by

Hello and welcome to Megan’s Island!  I’m Megan and I’ll be your host today.

Megan, of Megan's Island

Megan, of Megan's Island

This blog will detail the adventures that are my life, living on an island (I’ve dubbed it Megan’s Island) very close to Seattle, Washington.

I plan on sharing lots of details here– everything from recipes and household tips to cats and crafts.  Come back soon and join the conversation!