Windows, Doors & Drawers ~ Repurposing Household Items

I have an addiction.  I can't seem to get enough and it's already affecting my everyday life.  I don't know what will happen if I don't get my fix.  Yes, it's true.  If you aren't careful you may become addicted too!

The truth is I'm addicted to repurposing, recreating and reusing discarded furniture and household items.  It's a good thing there's no shortage of cast-off items to keep me at it indefinitely.  And for that quick shot of inspiration I like to visit Hometalk to see what other's have been up to.

Some of the items that are so often discarded can be easily repurposed into amazing home furnishings and decor.  The possibilities are endless!  So I thought I would share just a few ideas I found on Hometalk just to get your creative juices flowing.  I have an entire board devoted to the repurposing of Windows, Doors and Drawers and I'll continue adding new ideas each time I find them.

Find all of the above projects and many more in detail on my Hometalk Board 'Windows Doors and Drawers'

Next time you see that stray window, door or drawer on it's way to a landfill you may just want to grab it and see what you can make of it.

Wonderful windows re-purposed:

Design Dreams by Anne created this adorable little greenhouse with some old windows.

This amazing old window headboard was shared by Liz Marie Blog.

Wildflower Creative has a thing for vintage windows and I have a thing for how cute this photo display window turned out!

We've had fun with old windows here at Pondered Primed Perfected too, like these Porch Signs we created.

Delightful door DIY's:

The Pink Hammer Blog fashioned this fabulous desk from a door.

Tammy of Deja Vue Designs didn't let this roadside find pass her by.  

Instead she created a one of a kind hall tree just by adding a few key details.

How about this Privacy Screen put together by Not Just a Housewife?  

I totally need one of these on my back deck!

Now for some drawer redesign:

Proud Pooch Mama, Roeshel of DIY Showoff, is the creative force behind this drawer doggy bed!

Brightnest showed us a fun way to reuse those little cabinet drawers as planters.  Oh so cute!

And let's not forget the cabinet doors themselves:

Beth used this cabinet door as a canvas.  It looks so sweet!

Jaime of Crafty Scrappy Happy created some stylish storage with these little cabinet doors, some hooks and some knobs .

For even more Window Door & Drawer ideas visit my board at Hometalk

Thanks for stopping by today!

Sherry

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Guest Post ~ Meet My Mom!!!

I thought it would be fun to introduce you to the lady that helped shape me into who I am today.  She is a shining star, a cheerful presence, a faithful servant, a force to be reckoned with.   Really, she is the sweetest, most creative, talented person I know.   She paints, she makes signs, sews show shirts, creates quilts (people are standing in line to receive their own)!  She has an amazing vegetable garden, and flower beds that leave me envious. Not to mention, she raises her own chickens and turkeys. She trail rides her horse, Penny, and sometimes even rides in competitions!  She loves to ride ATV's with my dad, and helps with an equestrian 4-H club. She enjoys life!  I only hope that I can continue to live my life to the fullest, as well as she does, when I am her age. Today she is sharing one of her upcycle projects. This is a favorite of mine too, because she takes something that would be thrown away, and creates something unique and useful. Not to mention pretty darn cute. I have several of these beauties myself and we use them for shopping, travelling and all kinds of things.  I like to keep a couple in my car for whatever need arises. 

Meet My Mom:

Gladys

"My wonderful daughter asked me to write a guest post for her blogspot and it makes me so proud to take part in her creative endeavors. This "girl" can do anything she sets her hand to do and in my mind, she is perfect. Well, what mother doesn't think that of her own daughter?! Her husband isn't so bad, either!

Anyway, I was flattered to be asked to do this. The subject of my blog is the animal feed bags that I make into grocery totes.





Empty Feed Bags

One day I was looking for something to transport some personal items on a trip we were taking, and I couldn't find anything that just fit the vitamin containers that my husband and I take with us wherever we go. They say necessity is the mother of invention, so when my eyes fell onto the polyvinyl dog food bag that my husband had just emptied into the dog food bin, a light came on in my head! I could refashion the bag the right size so the containers would just fit and be easier to carry to the car. It worked so well that I decided I could make grocery totes and stop bringing home the umpteen plastic bags every time I went grocery shopping. I had a ready supply of horse feed bags from my other beautiful daughter who raises horses, and dog and cat feed bags because they also have three dogs and I don't know how many cats! I get sunflower seed bags from friends and pig feed bags from a neighbor.

I have cut, sewn, made mistakes and finally figured out a way to make the bags so that the pictures of dogs, cats, birds, horses, or whatever creature the feed was for would show. At first, in order to be sure the totes were sturdy enough to carry the groceries, I was sewing the carry handles all the way to the bottom. This would usually obscure the picture and I wasn't satisfied. Then one day I was in one of my favorite stores looking for sewing notions and my eyes fell upon plastic curtain grommets. They come in two sizes and several colors. They snap together easily and the handles are sewn into the holes they create. They looked lovely, but they add to the cost of making the totes.

My beautiful daughter recently turned me onto Pinterest and boy, was that a fun thing! I am so proud of all the people, young and old, who are busy little beavers creating, recycling, learning almost lost skills that our mothers and fathers knew. And guess what!? I am learning new things, myself! One day I was reading a young ladies blog about making fabric totes and saw the way she was putting on the handles and low and behold, her method would work for the grocery totes I am making with just a little change! So, now I can make them with the grommets, which some people love, and without, to save money.


I am always on the lookout for feed bags with colorful animals. Making totes keeps all that polyvinyl out of the landfill and lets us come home without all those plastic bags. I am trying to get my hands on some cute bunny feed bags that I know are out there somewhere and the pink show feed bags from my neighbor who raises prize pigs are really nice. I have some chicken feed bags that are not that attractive in orange, but maybe when they are turned into grocery totes, they will be just the ticket for someone who likes orange."

So, without further Adieu, here are just some of my mother's upcycled feed bags:

 If you are interested in ordering a bag, or have any questions regarding their use, please contact Gladys at  her Etsy shop:  http://www.etsy.com/shop/GladiolaSmiles

And you can follow GladiolaSmiles in Blogland at:
http://www.gladiolasmiles.blogspot.com/

Thanks So Much for stopping by!

Sherry

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Family Name Established Sign ~ Old Windows



When my husband told me he was bringing home a bunch of these old windows, I seriously thought he had gone loco en la cabeza. 

But he said he had a vision for them.

This time it was him reassuring me of  the possibilities..the vision. 
I was the one waiting to see if he could take the image inside of his head, and create something new and valuable out of something discarded and unwanted.
He took this window outside and sanded off the numerous layers and colors of paint...so much history! 
Then he cleaned it up with a fresh coat of white and did a bit of distressing.  Simple.  Clean.
He added loop bolts to the top and then some chain for hanging. 

Why do I love the old, crusty hardware so much? 
I forgot to mention that he sprayed the chains and loop bolts with some metallic, oil-rubbed bronze spray paint, before attaching them.

Now it was my turn.

I cut out a surname and "established year", (this being the year of the recipients' wedding), on my die-cutting machine and applied the vinyl to the glass ~ being careful to get it centered and level. 
I did uitilize a couple of tape measures in this process...not rocket science.

The vinyl I used is a deep brown...it goes with the oil-rubbed bronze quite well.

This was an anniversary gift and the recipients have a wonderful covered, wrap-around porch that we were envisioning it hanging from. 

I can't wait to see it hanging at their home...next time we visit.

We already have three more requests for these...it won't take us long to use up these old windows! 

It looked really nice hanging from OUR front porch.  It is apparent that we need to make one with our name and wedding date also.  

We already have our fair share of white around here so maybe a hint of color...  Although, a nice black frame would like good too.  Hmmm, a pop of color...or something more subtle?  We'll have to paint a couple of these in various shades and see how they look.

What a great personal touch to an outdoor porch or entry.  The vision turned out very classy.  ;)

UPDATE:  Here's our very own Family Established Sign in pale grey-green!!!

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Playroom Sensory Table

Who needs a coffee table, anyway?

We bought our tray top coffee table many years ago, when we lived in our previous home.  Actually, it was the first time we bought furniture together as a married couple.  Sweet, I know.  :)  So this table felt special to us.  It just never seemed to fit right in this house.  The rooms are narrower.  We need space to move around in.  Put our feet up.  Children have to do somersaults and dance and such!
 
So last Christmas I gave myself a gift.  An ottoman who's lid flips over to become a tray.  

But what would I do with the "old" coffee table???

Yeah, don't pick on the Boys...this was taken last Thanksgiving...it's football and nap time!

Pictured here is my dad, my son and my brother in law.  Everybody else (I swear) was in my tiny kitchen...I think about 15 of them, to be exact.

Then inspiration struck!

I'd been dreaming of a nice sensory table for my playroom. The kids were playing with sand and water inside big bins that I would just place on the floor. But my playroom is not huge. There really isn't a lot of room for larger furniture and accessories or the kids don't have space to spread out and really PLAY. So, without boring you with too many details...here is what we did with our beloved old tray table.

This one you have to see!!!

Scott sprayed the table with a creamy white enamel...

I added one of my favorite Dr. Seuss quotes.  I cut these out of sticky-backed vinyl using my Cricut.

I couldn't leave the little chippy chairs out, now could I?

This one's for Thing One!

And this one's for Thing Two!

The table top is so shiny because it's a piece of scrap acrylic cut to fit inside the tray top...smart, huh? 
(This was my idea but we'll let Scott think it was his, k?)

Perfect for dry erase artwork!! 

These are dry erase CRAYONS!  They are AWESOME!  You can wipe them off with a little mitten that comes with them. They wash off of EVERYTHING with a little bit of soapy water.  Genius, I tell you.

But that is not all, no that is not all...

The acrylic table top lifts off to reveal an endless supply of playtime possibilities...

My darling, amazing, handy, creative, generous, willing, smart, hard-working husband (yes, all of those and more!) cut a hole just the right size for my sensory bins to fit into! 

So the children play with sand (Moon Sand is pictured here)...and they play with water...and ice...and colored rice...and cotton balls...and bubbles...
Oh yes, the possibilites are ENDLESS...Just like their imaginations!

Sometimes they like to bring the dishes from the kitchen and make birthday cakes with Popsicle sticks for the candles.  It's always my birthday for some reason.  Do you think that means I seem really old to them???  Haha!

I hope you like what you see!  If you haven't already done so, please become a follower.  There is so much more that we want to share with you, if you are willing!  You can follow us on Facebook too.

And remember:

"A person's a person, no matter how small."

I hope each and every one of you is able to enjoy your holiday with loved ones.  May you be filled with the Spirit of Christmas!

Sherry

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