New Beginnings

I love the holiday season, but admittedly, I am kind of happy when it's over.  Happy when the last holiday light and wreath is tucked away until next year.  Happy when the house is back to "normal".  I also find that that first week in January is a little melancholy.  The kids go back to school and the typical routines fall into place.  I have always relished a routine and those that know me, know that I like order.  But I'm working on this.  I'm working on letting go and finding peace with what I have and where I am in my life.  Peace in not having all of the answers today or even tomorrow.  Not only am I working this year to bring new life into old pieces and things that I already have, but I'm also going to work on being a kinder person. Not just to others, but to myself. I'm going to allow myself to be human and have faults and err. And hopefully, I can laugh about it along the way.  I think we all need to be kinder to ourselves and to others.  Something to think about.....How many times do you actually initiate kindness?  I mean, really offer it up and extend it to someone without any expectation in return.  I'm going to work on this and put focus on initiating kindness throughout 2014.  

Still pulling out cherished items that have been tucked away.  An old crystal bowl from my grandma, a treasured book from my mom and a silver pitcher from our wedding.  The flowers, I bought for myself today at the grocery store.  :)

In front of the pitcher are some old silver custard cups (they need polishing) from the Italian side of my family.  I don't make custard...and can't imagine my family ever being able to handle the delicate sweet fragile bowls that sit in the cups!  They now hold candles and I just love seeing them.

"Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile."


- Mother Teresa

In kindness,

Paula

Making A Burlap Table Runner

I made a couple of burlap table runners for friends over the holidays and they asked me to tell them how I did it.  Trust me, this is easy and so you know, I do not sew.....at all.  Burlap is super cheap, so if you think you are going to mess it up (you won't) it's not like it is a big investment.  But, be forewarned, it does shed and it does smell - at first.  :)  You can buy burlap at almost all fabric stores and Hobby Lobby.

Measure the length of the table the runner will be on.  Add 14 inches to this length so that each end has a 7 inch over hang.  If your table top measures 74", you want the runner to be 88".  Now, to be safe, add an additional 10 inches to the total length you buy from the store so you have an extra 5 inches on each end to play with once the burlap is washed.  It will fray and you will want to cut the ends to make them even.  If you want to have the runner hang longer on each end, then adjust accordingly.  

The burlap will be stiff and shedding from the store.  A lot.  Washing will help this. Wash the burlap on "GENTLE" or "DELICATE" with a little bit of detergent.   If you don't use a gentle cycle, you are going to have a mess when you take your burlap out of the washer. One friend said it helps to roll over a little bit of fabric on each end and use a few safety pins so the ends don't fray too much.  I didn't have to do that - but you can try it and see if that helps.  

You can see how wrinkled the burlap will be.  This is right out of the dryer and I didn't roll or pin my edges when I washed it.  Let it dry and shake it out - outside.  Keep shaking as much as you can and then shake some more.  Then use an iron on high steam to get the wrinkles out.  I ironed this on my porch so the burlap didn't get everywhere.  This is the burlap from a regular bolt of fabric.  I made two runners with this and had plenty of extra for a few other projects.

The width of a table runner really depends on how big your table is.  Most runners are 18 inches in total width.  I've seen them wider and they are just as pretty.  So go with 18 or go bigger - your call.  

After you wash your burlap take into account how frayed your edges are. Measure out 19 inches of good fabric that will be your center runner (you are going to fold over and iron a 1/2 inch on each end). Before you do this, take a thread of burlap near each end and pull it, just like I have done above. Pull this through for the entire length.  Do this on each end so all of your threads line up.  Don't just cut with scissors to get what you think is a straight line.  Pull the thread.  It might break as you do this but get a bobby pin or something to find the broken end in the fabric and pull it through again until the entire piece of thread is out.  Then cut down the line where the thread is missing.  

Do this on each end so you have a total of 19 inches in width. Or, more if your width is going to be greater than 18 inches.  

Buy some Heat n Bond.  You can get this at Hobby Lobby or any fabric store.  Iron over a half inch on each side of your runner.  

Roll out the bond the entire length of your runner and steam the bond to the fabric.  Make sure the iron is hot and the bond seals both sides.   

Now, I did get a little adventurous and added a ruffle (hehe).  You don't have to do this. You can leave the end alone and fray some of the edges, or seal a ribbon on the bottom of each end.  If you want a ruffle, measure out 36 inches in length (double your width) and make it 6 inches in length. You should have plenty left over from the bolt width.  Fold over the bottom and each end and seal with bond.  Then gather and pin so the ruffles are even across the width of each end.  I used the bond at the top right above the pins and then I did take a needle and thread and sewed the top of each pleat head to the runner (I didn't sew all the way across the top.  You can....but remember, I don't sew).  

You can even use the bond to add some ribbon and a letter if you want.  The picture below was my first ruffle.  You can see I didn't make the width long enough to have more ruffles and it wasn't as wide as I would have liked.  Live and learn.  Better to make it long and wide enough at first and then you can cut the ends if they are too long. I could have left the ruffle off and just sealed it with the ribbon too.

Burlap can be used all year long.  Go ahead and try this and let me know how your runner turns out.

Paula

Linking with:
The Style Sisters

Glazing Furniture

Glazing furniture is so easy! The piece on the right is what I started with.  The piece on the left is what this looks like after I put a glaze on it.

A couple of weeks ago, I did a blog tutorial on Painting Cane chairs. Here is the video Painting Cane Chairs.  Below is what the chairs looked like after the first tutorial.  I love how they turned out, but I just wasn't totally happy..... it was just kind of plain.  The wood needed a little bit of something.

I'm not a fan of dark wax on Annie Sloan Old White but knew that the chairs and the detail would pop out with a little bit of color.  So I decided to put a light antique glaze on them.  It's subtle, but makes a difference.

The glaze added a hint of color and got into the carvings of the wood and gave it a little character.  I could have used a darker glaze, but I already have dark furniture in the room and wanted to keep it light.  Can you see the difference? The right side has the glaze.

 You can use any clear glaze that allows you to add color.  I used Martha Stewart Antique Effect.

Take a plastic cup and put a few tablespoons of glaze in the cup and add a little bit of paint color - I did equal parts of glaze and paint.  I used Annie Sloan Country Grey for my paint color.  Paint over your furniture with an old chip brush or nylon brush.  Work in small sections.

Wipe on the glaze and then take a wet rag and wipe it off. You can take off as much as you want and add more if you like. Rinse your rag as you go along so the glaze doesn't build up on your rag. The glaze doesn't dry as quickly as paint so you can play with this a bit and see how you like it.  I could have added a brown or black latex paint to the glaze if I wanted to really make the antique effect stand out. For this piece I wanted a very light antique effect.

Don't be afraid of glazing.  It's easier than painting and quickly transforms your piece.  I like a brown glaze better than the dark wax used on its own for light colored paint....(sorry annie, but it's just a bit softer and easier to work with).

Have fun with it!

Paula