Beaded Mirror

As I mentioned before, I loved all the fancy mirrors that have been tending across pinterest.  I decided to do a little DIY without much instruction.  I have thousands of tiny beads laying around and a not so fancy 8x10 wall mirror..   Needed to jazz it up a little!

So here's the important stuff.  Mirror - Glue Gun - Extra Glue Sticks.

 

 

Oh!  And the beads, make sure you have lot's and lot's of beads!

 

 

 

 

Personally, I didn't feel like scraping all those little strings of hot glue off the mirror,

so I covered the entire mirror with tin foil (this made for a very easy clean up).

 

 

 

I figured that attempting any design would just be much more time consuming

than I desired, so instead I mixed a few pinches of each color into a bowl.

 

The rest was simple.  All you do is place some glue on the frame and then sprinkle the beads on top of the glue.  I pressed down on the beads to make sure all areas were covered and that the beads were thoroughly placed into the glue.

 

I also recommend doing this project on top of a baking sheet so you can collect all beads that don't stick to your project.

 

This is the final outcome!  As you can see it took THOUSANDS of beads to cover.

 

 

Total time for this project was just over 1 hour and since I had all the materials already, it didn't cost me a penny!  Such an easy craft (one you could even do with the kids) and it's a nifty way to make an old mirror look a little bit fancier.  I put this mirror on my vanity and just love how it adds a little something to the overall appearance.  Definitely an easy project I would recommend!

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, but just a side note.....   if you're using a hot glue gun.. make sure you unplug it.. so that it doesn't stay turned on all night... just melting its way through the plastic plate you had it sitting on.... like I did.... Oh my!

 

Who Doesn't Love an Anthropologie Knock-Off?

Confetti tumblers anyone?  Alright, we've seen them redone 100 times over on Pinterest.  But, still they intrigued me so I decided to test it out.  These are the originals by Anthropologie. But $10 per glass just seems a bit much too pay when you're a poor college student!  There are a bunch of new Anthropologie DIY sites floating around these days and I have full intentions of testing a few of these ideas out! 

 I found instructions on Pinterest that are extremely simple and easy to follow.  You can see them here. 

I found some 59 cent tumblers at my local Goodwill (75% off I might add, meaning I got all 4 for less than a dollar!) and decided to try this project out.  I already had some acrylic paints and decided to use just the base colors rather than mixing to create different tints.

 

I started by placing my glasses upside down on a baking sheet

(tin foil to protect the pan from the paint)

 

 

 I used Qtips to dot the pattern on the tumblers.  I strongly suggest using a finer pointed paintbrush as a better alternative.  I didn't particularly like how large the circles were and using Qtips (which probably weren't the best of quality to begin with) allowed the paint to be clumpy. 

 Choose to work with any color combination you desire! 

 

After painting the glasses you will need to let them dry for approx an hour.  Once dry you can bake them at 350 degrees for about 20-30 min.  This will help set the paint so it stays sealed and does not chip as easily. 

 

 These are the final product.  I must admit if I stumble upon another cheap set of glasses (perhaps wine glasses next time...)  I plan to redo these with a smaller paintbrush and a more exciting set of colors.  I think these glasses are fun for decorative pieces or ones you plan to use only on special occasions; however, I'm not too convinced that the paint will be able to  withstand repeated wear and tear from washing. 

So I Saw This Thing On Pinterest.....

We've all said it...  but now it's time to do something about it!

I have recently contemplated joining a pinteresters anonymous group.  My addiction is a bit out of control.  So, I decided to become productive!  I have a monstrous list of crafts, recipes, and workouts that I've been wanting to test out.  I have had a very busy schedule the past four years.. I'm a student, I work multiple jobs, and from time to time I actually try to have a social life (although, that's much more rare than I'd like to admit).  

But the exciting news is this:  I GRADUATED THIS PAST WEEKEND!!   Like most college grads, I do not have a a full-time job that actually uses my degree.  I bartend and I work at a daycare but I am now going to have a TON of free time on my hands.  I go to grad school in August.  So, I decided I have the next 7 months to embark on a little Pinterest journey! 

I have a list of crafts I'd love to do!  In fact, I recently saw a post for this antique brooch mirror and decided it is a MUST. 

 I ran to my local GoodWill and have already purchased 15 phenomenal pieces to add to this little mosaic.  (I googled a few of them, not wanting to glue anything too valuable to this piece, and found that 4 of them were worth over $20) I got the whole stash for under 30!    I have a lot to go though!  I'm working on recruiting friends and family to help me gather supplies for these miniature endeavors. 

as you can see - lot's of Gold!

 

So, basically, this blog is going to be similar to others based on pinterest.  I'm going to be documenting all of my successful (and not so successful) attempts to recreate the awesome crafts and recipes posted on pinterest.  I'm also going to list instructions to anything I find successful and of course add my opinion on all those recipes/workouts I test out.