New Broken China Jewelry!

Here's a quick look at what's new in my etsy shop this week...

Interested in a custom order? Email me at sales@dishfunctionaldesigns.com with a photo of your china and let me know approximately what you would like made and we can get the ball rolling! 

Have a great week!

 Laura

My broken china jewelry is always available for purchase at 

Check out my new jewelry instruction books and DVDs!

Learn how to solder and make unique jewelry!

article, images, and designs copyright ©Laura Beth Love 2018 all rights reserved

Cool Things You Can Make With School Supplies

It's almost that time of year again (!), when our newspapers are filled with store circulars displaying ads for back to school clothes and school supplies! 

While the deals are hot, why not stock up on some back to school art supplies to keep in your own craft cache? While you are shopping for all the things your kids need for school, be sure to pick up some extras for yourself and take advantage of the back to school sale prices!

Here is a list of things that are commonly found in the school supplies isle that are usually on sale this time of year, along with some ideas for what YOU can use them for!:


Glue sticks - you can never have enough glue sticks! They really come in handy around the house and are great for art and craft projects. They are especially useful for any kind of paper crafts, scrap-booking, and card making.

Composition books - these sturdy classics are great to use as journals! Why not create a little altered art on the covers and turn them into art journals? I also use them for to-do lists, for home organization, as a place to jot down craft instructions and home improvement ideas. 



Composition book caddy by Splendorfalls

Altered composition book tutorial by Aesthetic Nest

Altered composition book by jtjujubees via Etsy


Crayons - If you haven't noticed the wave of melted crayon art that has been all over the net, you are missing out! 

Crayon heart wall art 

Canvas + crayons + glue gun + hair dryer = crayon art by Whatever

Melted crayon art  

Crayon initial by Nesting Sticks


Colored pencils -  not only are these are great for drawing and coloring, but you can create with them too!

Colored pencil necklace by huiyitan via Etsy

Vase made with colored pencils Glue them to a jar with hot glue! from Country Living


Colored pencil necklace by Anrw via Etsy

Colored pencil bead DIY from Design Mom.  The pencils are simply cut by hand with a small hacksaw (image 1), then rubbed on a piece of sandpaper to smooth the ends and edges (image 3), and then drilled with a small drill bit. 



Rulers - Rulers are another thing that are currently very popular for crafts and  decorating! *Be sure to check out my previous post You Rule! Yardsticks and Rulers Upcycled for tons of other ruler craft ideas!

Back to school ruler planter from HGTVgardens


Ruler frames by The Lettered Cottage



Ruler stars by Mamie Jane's


Ruler backsplash for your kitchen sink from The Kitchn



Yardstick coat rack DIY from BHG



Pencils - there's nothing that says "back to school" like a No.2 yellow pencil! Check out what some creative folks made with them.


Pencil and eraser necklace by DaisyDeux via Etsy

Pencil wreath DIY (great for teachers!) by Organize & Decorate Everything

Back to school pencil and chalkboard wreath by The Nature of Grace


Other supplies -  flash cards, pens, markers, glue, and tape are also great to add to your crafting stash so while the prices are rock bottom, stock up. 



What do you think?
Which do you like the most? 


Pin this post!

I hope you have a great week!
Laura

My broken china jewelry is always available for purchase at

Check out my new jewelry instruction books and DVDs!

Learn how to solder and make unique jewelry!

Originally published July 30, 2012 refreshed and updated 2018

How To Upcycle Thrift Shop Finds Into Trendy Home Decor: Part Two!

Thrift Shop Hot! What to look for right now...

In my previous post, "How To Upcycle Thrift Shop Finds Into Trendy Home Decor"  I shared some great tips for upcycling common thrift shop finds into swanky home decor and crafts, including silver plated serving trays, vintage scarves, maps and globes, picture frames, and old cashmere sweaters. 

(If you haven't read that article, you can play catch-up by reading it here!)

Now I'm going to share with you some MORE items commonly found at thrift shops that are perfect for upcycling into fun home decor and crafts. Again, these items are great because not only are they inexpensive, but they are very much in style as current home decor. Check it out! 

What should you be looking for right now?

1)  Vintage Pie Tins & Cake Pans
I always see lots of old pie tins (aka pie plates) and pie pans when I go thrifting, and they're usually inexpensively priced from about $1 each. The neat thing about old pie tins is that you can sometimes find ones with bottoms that are embossed with vintage advertising.  

What to do with them?

Hang a collection of them on a wall as you would china plates, making a display that works well in a kitchen.
(Click here for more wall-display grouping ideas)
Or, collect a few and construct a tiered organizer or pedistal server using thrift shop found candle sticks in between. These are great for displaying items and for chic organization! Check out the photos below for inspiration.

Vintage pie tin

Make a vintage inspired kitchen wall display with vintage pie tins (via BHG)

Three tiered kitchen organizer (above and below) by Kaytie Yost via Etsy

Pie plate pedestals by Sweet Girl Expressions

Pie tin mirrors 

2)  T-Shirts

Usually there are so many t-shirts at the thrift shops I visit that the shops organize them by color instead of by size. Why are they a great deal? T-shirts are abundant at thrift shops and also cost next to nothing. They come in a wide range of colors and patterns, so they are great for repurposing and upcycling into all sorts of things.

What to do with them?
T-shirts can be quickly and easily repurposed into many different items; shopping bags, quilts, and they can even be used to cover throw pillows. My favorite thing to do with them is to restructure them into entirely new shirts. I love to do this with my old concert shirts and have made quite a few for myself!

Craft an easy to make recycled t-shirt tote bag

Make an awesome recycled t-shirt rug 

No-sew t-shirt hula hoop rug 

DIY instructions for old t-shirt bibs from A Little Tipsy

Pillow made from an old t-shirt (tutorial)

This quilt was made from old children's clothes - click for tutorial

3)  Vintage Framed Art

I always make a point to flip through the wall art at thrift shops. As I always say, you never know what you might find! As well as looking for unusual and unique frames, I'm always on the lookout for interesting artwork too. Some things to look for that make great collections are vintage framed needlepoints, old paint by numbers art (see the first two images below), as well as original amateur art paintings and "sofa art" (that's mass produced paintings that are created for the furniture industry.

What to do with them?
Display a unique collection as a gallery wall in your home, or, if you're the artsy type, try your hand at creating an altered thrift shop painting by adding an interesting or unexpected element to an already existing scene. See below. 

Paint by numbers collection 

Altered thrift store art by Coy Powers

(Click here for lots more gallery wall ideas!)

4)  Vintage Costume Jewelry

Vintage enamel flower pins, brooches, old clip on earrings - you get the picture. These vintage treasures are abundant at thrift shops, flea markets and estate sales, and the great part is that you can often find them for sale by the bagful for just a few dollars. 

What to do with them?
Not only are these great to wear as-is, they're also perfect for upcycling into new items for yourself, your family, and your home. Check out the photos below for a few examples of how some creative folks turned old costume jewelry into unique accessories.

Create a vintage brooch bridal bouquet

Brooch bouquet with locket by Amanda Jane Heer via Etsy

Create a necklace with vintage brooches and ribbon. DIY instructions from Martha Stewart

DIY Fridge magnets made from old jewelry from Country Living

Create a brooch bouquet topiary

Frame made with vintage costume jewelry by Kat Smith via Etsy

(Click here to see lots more ideas for what to do with vintage costume jewelry!)

5)  Old Books & Outdated Encyclopedias
Just like road maps, encyclopedias become outdated and are replaced with new, up to date versions. Thrift shops are the best place to find old obsolete encyclopedias, dictionaries, and the like.

What to do with them?
Use the pages for decoupage projects, or create some wonderful book page art by drawing or painting directly onto the page. Or, run the pages directly through your computer printer to create some unique personalized art (think black & white family photos printed on the old pages as shown below).

Computer printed art on old book page by Prrint via Etsy (above and below)

Coasters made from vintage encyclopedia pages by The Painted Lily via Etsy

(Check out my previous post Bookish for lots of ideas of things you can make with old books and pages!)

What do you think?
What's your favorite way to repurpose thrift shop finds?

Pin this post!  

I hope you enjoyed this post! 

Please leave a comment below! 

Which is your favorite? 

Have a great week!

 Laura

My broken china jewelry is always available for purchase at https://www.etsy.com/shop/dishfunctionldesigns

Check out my new jewelry instruction books and DVDs

Article copyright ©Laura Beth Love for Dishfunctional Designs™ 2018

all rights reserved

Originally published July 3, 2012, refreshed and updated for relevancy