How to Tuesday: Lined zippered pouch out of an onion bag

We tend to go through a lot of onions in the kitchen so I always grab large bags of them at the grocery store and they come in these mesh bags (see in the far left) which have always struck me as DIY project waiting to happen. The font and graphics on the front are really cool so I knew I really wanted to use them in some way for some time now. I  finally decided on an idea this week and  set out make a pouch with it and some leftover fabric. Came out pretty polished for a first try, Riki saw it at home and thought I'd bought it! 

Want to make your own? Click below for a picture heavy step-by-step on how I made it:

Hand Stamped DIY round up

I've seen some cool stamped designs on band records and shirts over the years but to be honest I haven't really given the technique much attention before in my own projects. I know, I'm pretty surprised myself, after all stamping, along with stenciling and screen printing (the latter two of which I've done my fair share of experimenting with) are pretty much at the heart of DIY in many ways. So here's a round up of awesome stamp and stamping related projects to inspire you (and me) to get into stamping everywhere and everything. 

Enjoy the hell out of it.

x

Cocktail time: Tiki drank

EASY TIKI DRANK 

Word on the street is that today, August 16th is National Rum Day so debuting a new cocktail series on the blog is only appropriate! "Cocktail Time", the new series of posts will showcase tried and tested cocktail recipes from my very own home mixologist, and boyfriend extraordinaire. For more on him and his experience on the category read his profile below.

It was purely a coincidence that the first recipe he sent through is a rum cocktail but I personally can't think of a better way to celebrate the "holiday" and kick off the weekend than with a delicious tropical tiki drank in hand! 

Cocktail recipe after the jump!

Finds: Pyrex Glamorama

Vintage Pyrex ad found via Vidalia's Vintage

I've always really liked the look of vintage pyrex, its durable, inexpensive and comes in quite a few cool colors and patterns. I never set out to look for pyrex in particular but was stoked when I stumbled across these cool mugs.


I noticed one of these guys sitting there unconsciously and held on to it for a second before deciding it wasn't worth getting because it was a single mug. Then, as fate would have it, I unearthed two more from a pile of glass and ceramic ware. They just had to come with me at that point.

Pyrex comes in a ton of cutesy and quirky patterns but I don't think I've ever spotted any striped sets like these before. If I'm ever so lucky as to find more you better believe i'll snag em' to add to the collection. Would be awesome to have a full set!

As cool as the mugs are my true pride and joy in the pyrex department is this amazing mid century coffee carafe. Its full on atomic awesomeness. I mean, seriously... how kick-ass is this?

I saw a similar carafe (sans the warmer) in a vintage store in Martha's Vineyard awhile back and was kicking myself for not having taken it home with me so I scored the internet for one and found this beauty, which pretty much had every original piece except for the box (SCORE!). The warmer rack on the bottom still even has candle wax for keeping coffee warm. It will likely be more of a special occasion or display item for me but it's still great to have the full piece.

I scream DIY

It's been incredibly hot outside lately here in New York and if you too have been enduring temperatures fit for a heat stroke, I feel for you. I do love summer, don't get me wrong - I'm from a tropical island, where it is humid and hot all the time but when it comes to NYC heatwaves it feels like all the concrete absorbes the heat making it even hotter. I'm always totally blown aback by how incredibly unbearable it can get sometimes but can you guess what makes it all better? This magical thing called iced cream.

Holiday in PA

A couple of weeks ago, for the fourth of July holiday I spent the week in Pennsylvania, visiting my friend Kate (who is the most amazing hostess ever) in the country. The trip was so much fun, filled with adventures and beer tastings but also incredibly relaxing. I drank a lot of beer, cocktails and shandys, the last of which I just recently found out is a thing down there (who knew?). I also hung out with some of my favorite puppies, explored a couple of historical sites and spent a day in Philly checking out some truly awesome new spots. That particular day even earned a hashtag of its own, #phillyfoodtour.

Here's a glimpse of what my weekend looked like...

Drink: Summer Sangria

For me, sangria is a summer staple, one that I look forward to enjoying every year as soon as it gets warm outside. It's been 90-100 degrees here in NYC for the past couple of weeks and I honestly can't think of a better way to beat the heat than relaxing up on the roof, fire escape or  - if your're really lucky - in a pool or backyard with this easy boozy treat in hand.

House tour: Living room

My living room is looking snazzy these days thanks to my "somewhat healthy" thrifty/craiglist/freecycle obsession. The newest addition in our place is that sexy looking surfboard table up there, which I just brought back from Philadelphia. I found it listed on Craigslist and had been eyeing it for the past couple of weeks. I finally made my way to Philly this past weekend and picked up the beauty from Jen at Picked Vintage. It was just what I needed to pull everything together. As it turns out, the finish of the table and the tapered legs with bronze detailing match the mini bar exactly... to a T. It seriously looks like they were part of the same set!

Click the link below for the rest of the details..

Back (in Black)

After a nice vacation from the blog and very nice, very long fourth of July holiday vacation from the daily grind I am back. It really was a much needed break from routine, the burdens of city living and I feel so refreshed. In all honesty though, it wasn't all an escape, this whole time I've been plotting away ideas, projects & picking up vintage steals - and I'm sure as hell ready to share all of the awesome stuff that has happened while I was away.

During my little extended vacation I drove up to Massachusetts (first time!), spent a weekend up in Martha's Vineyard, got tattooed, did some major spring cleaning, celebrated my 25th birthday, got my very own (another first!) powerdrill, hung out in the countryside out in Bucks County,PA and brought back tons of goodies from a day trip to Philly - and thats just the past two weeks!

Stay tuned!
x

Stitch & Bitch: Embroidery Edition

In all honesty, I'm not really sure why I chose to do this round up about embroidery in the first place but what I do know is that while putting this together I somehow unearthed a bag of embroidery thread from my craft room and stared at it for a little bit trying to figure out why I never even gave it a chance before. I rather like the idea of taking a craft like needlepoint that is so traditionally feminine and giving it a contemporary context but I have never really tried to embroider myself. Maybe it's time to change that.. 

Follow the links for some really great embroidery related projects (no experience necessary!):

1. DIY Haircomb by Lemon Jitters
2. Hand dyed twine DIY 
3. Embroidered Gloves
4. DIY Embroidery Hoop Corkboard
5. Embroidered Paper Book Cover
6. Embroidery Hoop pin board/jewelry holder tutorial

and while we are at it.. I just HAD to share these:

Tutorial: How to make your own hair ties (Photo heavy!)

I have tons of bandannas, all of which have seen better days so when I noticed how badly battered my favorite one was I finally realized what would be the best use of my bag of fabric scraps. The best part? I got to pick and choose what color combinations I made my new hair accessories in. These hair ties are  thicker on the strip that falls on the back and a little thinner than most bandannas overall so they easily tie neatly at the top of your head.

Step-by-step below:

Easy Yarn DIY

Here's an incredibly simple little sunday project. For this project, I slowly unraveled an old unfinished knitted piece and wrapped around a vase to dress up an otherwise boring clear vessel. I simply wrapped the piece for a semi-temporary uplift but if you can also glue the yarn to the base to secure it for a more permanent and even look. I personally like the idea of taking the yarn off when I feel like giving this vessel a new look but if you are doing this for an event or on a bottle instead of a vase It may be better to just glue it on.

 Note: This is also a great way to utilize yarn scraps - as long as they are at least long enough to wrap around the vase once or twice.

Below is a step-by-step look at how I did mine..

Project Round Up

Here's my attempt at a (semi) regular feature... (The first project round up went up in November)

I diligently went through my inspiration folder and did a little key word searching to round up my top five picks of d.i.y projects this month. I know it's not officially spring yet, especially here in the NE where it snowed this morning, but I'm hopeful it will soon arrive. I've found I am already in spring cleaning mode and possibly a little too excited to take on a million new projects this season.

 Behold, the links:

1. Bachelor's Jam: Preserving Fresh Summer Fruits with Booze
2. DIY Moss Graffiti
3. Make it: Book Lamp
4. Vintage suitcase table
5. Painting Wooden Spoons

Storage ideas: Wine crates

One of my favorite reusable items are wooden wine crates. They're completely versatile, usually free and make for some great storage solutions. If you've ever been partial to milk crates for storing vinyl, you'd probably love wine crates too. Needless to say these crates aren't in short supply at our apartment and they pop up all over the place, serving as decor as well as furniture. Here are a couple of ways these guys have made their way into my home...

Wine Crate Bookcase

What to do with leftover cake?

Pinterest vs. Tumblr... or not

I have to admit that when I was first introduced to Pinterest, the visual pin board website, I wasn't impressed. Truth be told, I refused to get an account because I was too obsessed with Tumblr at the time and saw my account as my very own custom visual imagery feed. What I didn't realize then was that I could have both - and use them completely differently.

Craft tattoo round up

Last week I made an appointment to get tattooed by the talented Ashley Love. Her lovely traditional tattoo work has been on my radar for awhile - the first time I looked her up was (in 2011?) when a feisty pink-haired makeup artist working the OCC Cosmetics booth at IMATS NY showed me his tattoos and highly recommended her. I've seen her become more and more popular these days so I'm glad I finally set something up before I just can't get into her busy schedule.

One of the reasons it took me so long to make the appointment in the first place is that I just couldn't decide what I wanted to get done by her so when I contacted her I just gave her a few ideas and she picked out what sounded the most fun to her. I find that's often the best way to get a great looking tattoo; when it's something they're personally stoked on rather than just you.

While I'm not getting a craft tattoo this time around, it is something I plan on getting soon enough so i've been collecting designs and photos as reference material since the idea first came to mind. In my searching for inspiration I have really come across some gems that go beyond the typical ball of yarn, spool or scissor tattoo and It's only fitting that I share some of these craft themed beauties on here...

Flash by Thomas Kenney, Hub City Tattoos

more after the jump...

Red velvet cake

So for Valentine's day I decided to make Riki a Red Velvet cake. He loves chocolate and I dislike it so red velvet is always a great in between since it has cocoa but isn't particularly chocolatey tasting. I wanted to make a big statement and i'm pretty sure it worked out that way... the cake is a little too much for us to handle!

Please come over and grab a slice!

Valentine's day card making extravaganza

This past weekend I made a couple of cards to donate to the Etsy and city meals Special Delivery project. My original idea was to get a bunch of girlfriends together to make a ton but that idea fell apart quickly since it was too last minute (and you know..superbowl/puppybowl plans). I only got a chance to make four cards but it's ok - they were good ones. Riki saw me knee-deep in a sea of paper cutting and craft supplies and he even felt compelled to make one too. The one with the boat was all him.

Book recommendation

Stitch n' Bitch by Debbie Stoller

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to get into (or already into) knitting. It's extremely easy to follow and very entertaining overall. I gifted a copy of this to a friend recently, and she went from only knowing how to knit to purling, making mittens, handwarmers, and working with more complicated stitches that I have yet to even try myself... ( need to get on that.)

Latest craigslist score: Bad ass mid-century couch!

I had a series of unfortunate events happen this weekend but this amazing craigslist find certainly helped cheer me up. It was an incredibly lucky find and FREE (well mostly free, since it did not fit in my car and I had to pay for someone to deliver it to my apartment...very well worth it).

The couch has great bones and a fantastic shape. Besides the cat scratches on the side, it's in pretty great condition considering its age. However, it could surely use some TLC. For now, the plan is to start off by removing some musty odor and cleaning it up a little. I'm sure that will give it the temporary face-lift it needs to be a functional part of my living room. I do plan on taking it up as a massive reupholstering project in the near future but I think I need to start a little smaller first so I'm taking up a few chairs before I muster the bravery of doing this guy. How cool would it look in olive green though, right?

In case your wondering... I did (OF COURSE) already start gathering some resources and inspiration for the project: http://pinterest.com/xrnrmassacrex/couch-re-upholstery-project-inspiration/

Please pass do along any helpful ideas or links if you have them. Would love to learn as much as I can before tackling the re-upholstery!

Easy jewelry display

I (Finally!) managed to clear out my jewerlry, keeping only the essentials. It was hard, seriously. Once I consolidated, it was time to set up my favorites on top of my dresser for easy access. I didn't want to buy a display so the rest is history.

I was researching DIY cake stands as a christmas gift idea for my mom and then it dawned on me that I could easily use one of these for jewelry (She's incredibly picky so I made her something a little more intensive but let's leave that for another blog post)

(Image From Apartment Therapy)