Beer Bottle Top Table

Up-cycling time! I needed a sewing table so I bought plywood and wooden legs (28 inches) at Home Depot and cut the wood to an appropriate size. For me, 24 by 27 inches. Each zig-zag row was 25 tops and there was about 30 rows. So you will need about 750 tops for this project, probably 1000 to be safe. No small feat! My beautiful roommate works at a restaurant and I asked them to save all of their pop tops to supplement my own collection. 

What you will need:

A lot of beer

Old table/Goodwill or yard sale table

Glue gun

Sandless grout and/or polyurethane and/or Plexiglas 

(You could just use grout, you could grout and then put polyurethane on top, you could just use polyurethane, or you could place plexiglass on top.)

You may also need a hammer to flatten out some of the tops. 

Make sure you mark the center of the table and work from the center out. Have a pattern laid out before you start gluing, because you need to make sure you have enough of each color. I chose a chevron stripes pattern! The purpose of gluing them first is so when you add the grout or urethane, they won't move or float around. 

Doily Rug

After finally mastering crocheting, which is slowing becoming more of a favorite hobby than knitting, I got a little excited about it. I've started a granny square blanket and endless amounts of slouchy hats, but best of all I started making these huge doily rugs.

I first saw a woman do this by using her hands and rope to crochet. She was selling them for over a thousand dollars. Naturally my next thought was, "Challenge accepted." 

You can buy chording at just about any fabric store. It costs about $50 a spool. And one spool will yield one rug. Which is a great deal. I also bought the largest crochet needle I could find (like size U). 

It only took about 5 or 6 hours total to complete. I can't wait to have it in my dorm room! Annnddd I might start selling these! So look out Etsy!

Knock-off Necklace

Browsing around Pinterest, I found this photo. I created my own by crocheting a number of small flowers and doilies. I then put them in fabric stiffener and let it dry for 2 days. Finally I superglued the flowers together and added a ribbon. So easy and so cute!

One Top + One Top = One Awesome Top

So. I have this habit of going to the Goodwill outlet shores and walking out with really random things. One of those things was this really awesome shirt. Well. It would be awesome if I was d'Artagnan. I decided to chop it and mash it with another top that I never wear.

Check out that bead work!

Warning: Neckline will choke you.

First I cut off the sleeves and yoke, while still leaving the buttons. Keep in mind that I kept all the beads from the yoke to use for making jewelry. 

On the second shirt I have to remove the zipper on the back and sew it back together. I'll use the zipper on another project. 

Now I pinned them together. I pinned one section at a time to keep from messing up. Once I pinned down the left breast, I drew a line in pencil with a seam allowance and cut along that line.

Continue this process of pinning, sewing, and cutting for the other breast and the back. 

Sewing the sleeve.  

 Finished!

 It seems like a waste to use two shirts to make one tank, but this is something I'll actually wear! 

Vamp Up a Boring Pair of Shoes!

Recently my friends have been buying dresses from Goodwill which I change up and sew to make wearable. I keep all the extra fabric and use the scraps for assorted projects. Today I've transformed a pair of black canvas high top Keds (purchased at Goodwill) into something adorable!

What you'll need: Shoes, Mod Podge, scissors, a paint brush, ribbon, and patterned fabric.

First, you have to cut the fabric into smaller, more manageable pieces. Put a couple coats of Mod Podge on a section of the shoe and apply the piece of fabric. 

I used a fabric pencil to trace the lines of the shoe to cut a precise line; however, this step is not necessary. Add Mod Podge to the edges of the fabric. 

Repeat this for all the sections of the shoe until the fabric covers the entire shoe. It might be beneficial to let each section dry before moving on to the next. 

Poke holes with scissors for ribbon or shoe laces. Wear proudly!