Glass Tile Adornments

I love to go to my husbands tile showroom! I am always inspired by the stuff he has there. He and his partner do quite a bit of work in natural stone but his partner deals more frequently in pool tiles. I found some scraps last time I went and I put my crafting skills to work.

This morning I was motivated to make these little bracelets so I can give them as simple, inexpensive, chic gifts to ladies I care about.

Materials: Pinking shears, felt, glass, ceramic or shell tiles, a glue gun, some needle point thread, needle point or tapestry needles, sewing needles and thread and some hemp twine or fancy skinny ribbon and buttons.

With the pinking shears cut a straight line at the edge of a felt piece. Glue each glass tile to the felt with the glue gun. Cut off the strip of glued tiles on the other side using the pinking shears again.

Next, sew on the button. Be sure to measure your wrist. Sew the button on with a needle and thread as you would with a shirt button. Next cut a button hole on the other side. (Felt has poor integrity becasue it is not woven) You need to reinforce the button hole otherwise you'll lose the bracelet. Use the embroidery thread and blanket stitch around the small slit twice. After you tie it off glue a tiny piece of felt above and below the button hole after your reinforcement. You've just completed the bracelet and it's ready to wear. 

An alternate way to create a closure for your bracelet is by looping fancy string (as pictured) through a button with button holes big enough to accommodate the string. Then glue the string to the felt on the underside of the bracelet. Secure with a piece of felt that you glue on. On the other side of the bracelet you'll need a loop with which to fasten the bracelet to your wrist. Make a loop with the fancy string and glue it the same way you did on the button side. Again secure with glued felt. Before you do this step, measure your wrist so that you have a bracelet that fits comfortably. 

The finished product is pretty, unique and handmade.

Poppy Pods

At the bottom of Poppies and Paperbacks, there is sometimes an advertisement to buy poppy pods. In my naive curiosity, I researched why anyone would want to buy a poppy pod. They're pretty when in a vase and fresh next to blooming Icelandics...but besides prettiness, why all the fuss?

I found all kinds of things. Professed cures for cancer, bed time tea, DIY projects and crafting uses and then I came upon this...

"I woke up avalanched under a junkyard of pain, my body a trap of torn nerves and trashed organs. An oily rash of sweat had soaked through my pillow and into the mattress. I was coughing, confused and crazy with anger. A throbbing, deep-pink chemical sunburn covered my face; my bowels were spitting hot mercury. I slid out of bed and dropped to the floor, the weight of a snarling mountain gorilla bearing down on me. I saw myself in the mirror as I fell. I looked puffy."

I suggest reading the entire article because, mostly, it's written so well. But also because it's a very unusual story. Just click on any word in the above excerpt.

Source for this and the following...

Knife and Saw

I wasn't sure if I should start this post with Frabjous Find or label it under Art and Design. Well, it's both!

Knife and Saw is a design house begun by a guy named Mike Brigham. I found him while visiting Dwell recently because I was trying to get ideas for our "shop," "man cave," "basement," what have you. We are trying to shape the joint up so we can use it as a functional space instead of simply stowing camping gear.

I think most any space can have design elements included to make it uniquely yours, adding comfort and aesthetic.

Brigham hit the nail on the head or in this case hit the bike on a bookshelf!