Nothing says summer like Fireflies - Bedspring Firefly Wreath

“So you treat your love like a firefly, like it only gets to shine for a little while. Catch it in a mason jar, with holes in the top, and run like hell to show it off.” ~ Miranda Lambert

I love fireflies!  The firefly wreath was created by running a battery operated 10 light strand of lights through the springs and attaching little firefly soda can cut outs to each light  I also added some grass to each spring to give it a natural feel.  It is really hard to photograph with the lights on so this one will not be in my shop unless requested, but will definately be at the craft show at the Canton Day Care Center from 9 am - 3 pm.  Stop by and check it out!  I am also working on a firefly jar!

What a week! Countdown to Holiday Shopping Kick Off Fair - 2 days to go!

It has been a crazy week for me and unfortunately I have been neglecting my blog, but I have still been really busy creating!  My exciting news is I have created a new design for my wreaths.  Instead of wiring on all the decorations, I am now attaching small magnets to the back of each decoration to they can be easily changed!  I do not have this in my etsy shop yet, but it will be at the Holiday Shopping Kick Off Fair, this Saturday, March 12th at the American Legion in Massena from 3pm - 8pm.  So stop by and check it out!  I love this idea, and wanted to kick myself for not thinking of it sooner!  The best part is it follows my recyclable/sustainable belief.

Wreath with Magnetic Recycled Daisies!

A simple change, since it uses magnets and a sampling of other new creations!

New Items added to my Shop!

I've added these great creations to my Etsy Shop!  Check them out!

Bedspring Bud Vase

Bedspring Star Tealight Holder

Music Note Wreath

Music Note Wreath

Happy Friday! FFA Craft Show in Canton and A Cute Spring Bud Vase

It's finally Friday and boy has it been a long week.  Yesterday I took a trip to the Best Friends Thrift Store that benefits the Potsdam Humane Society.  Along with some $.50 scrap fabric, I found these super great glass jars, with a flip lid that look kind of vintage and I thought they would make a great bud vase in a bedspring.  I didn't have any way to test them until I got them home but here are the results:  

I was only able to find 4 of the jars so I will be keeping one for myself and selling the other 3 this weekend at the Canton FFA Craft Sale Saturday from 9 to 3 at the Canton School.  I also created a new type of rose, using soda cans but I glued old sheet music to them and then shaped them into flowers.  A totally recycled idea, with a vintage twist. 

I also just wanted to share the gorgeous flowers my wonderful BF got me for valentines day.  I love sunflowers more than roses! 

A Little Shining Star - Bedspring Star Candle Holder

I have re-worked my chubby little star from yesterday's post into a cute star candle holder!  Using springs, I attached a small glass tealight holder to bottom section of the star.  I then tied a tattered strip of muslin to the top with a bow to hang it from.  It really is so much better than the pictures, but take a look:   

Check out this and some of my other creations at the Canton Winter Festival FFA Garage and Craft Sale, this Saturday, February 19th from 9 AM - 3 PM at the Canton School!

You see things and say "Why?" But I dream things and say "Why Not?" ~ George Bernard Shaw

For those of you who didn't get to see my items at the craft show, I uploaded photos of them to Flickr and created a cute slideshow so you can check them out as well. All items have been listed in my Etsy Shop, so if you are interested in any of them please let me know and we can make arrangements for delivery, so there will be no shipping charges!

I broke down...bedspring "Love" for sale in my etsy shop.

So I broke down and decided to sell the cursive "Love" and heart I made.

Check it out!

Happy Friday! Time in a Bottle Charm Necklace and an Upcycled Angel

I have found lately that I have a real love for mechanical looking things, gears, springs, pulleys etc.  I decided to take apart a broken watch to check out the insides, you can buy neat watch movements on Etsy, but why buy when most people have a broken watch kicking around.  It took some doing, but I got the back off and loved what I found inside.  I decided to put it together into a charm necklace since I love them too.  I added a watchmaker's bottle I had and a few smaller lockets I also had to a chunky antique brass chain.  I think it is really cute.

I have to share this quote again b/c I think it describes my first soldering project wonderfully:

“The creative person is both more primitive and more cultivated, more destructive, a lot madder and a lot saner, than the average person." - Frank Barron

I am not sure I like this, but there is something interesting about it.  I figured I should share it anyway.  I think with more work it could be cute, right now it's too simple.  Basically it is made of  a bedspring I cut the top off, I soldered together smaller springs to make the wings and used the top of a spoon I flattened for a head (I had left over from my first spoon ring project to be shared next week).  I think if I made the wings bigger, by layering more small springs it would look cuter, and lose the spoon?!?!  All I can say is it is definitely interesting ....... :)

 Happy Weekend :)

Is it spring yet? A cute bud vase!

I have been searching for something that would work as a bud vase in one of my springs.  I took a chance and ordered 2 vintage pyrex glass 50 ml centrifuge tube from Etsy seller trampoline (ethanollie) who specialize in vintage industrial pieces.  Well my risk was worth it because the tubes worked out better than I could ever dreamed!

bedspring, with centrifuge tube and rosettes.  Bow
is made from scrap lace tablecloth!

Watch for these, they will probably be joining my etsy shop!

Bedspring Wreath in 2 Etsy Treasury lists in 2 days :)

My bedspring wreath is definately gaining popularity, it is in another treasury list titled Favorite eco friendly / upcycled / recycled / repurposed stuff by Etsy seller remakery, who makes hats and mittens out of upcycled sweaters!  Check it out!

My Bedspring Wreath featured in an Etsy Treasury List :)

I am so excited!!! My round bedspring wreath was featured in an Etsy treasury list, titled Better the Second Time Around created by Etsy user mondaymornings. This list features some great upcycled items.  Check it out and leave a comment and maybe just maybe it will make the Etsy home page!

All you need is a little LOVE ♥

Kind of in a Valentine's Day mood, so I created the below "Love" sign using some old fence wire and a few small springs.  I used pliers to bend and shape the wire into the word and attached a handle to hang it with using springs.  I then coated the word in glue and sprinkled it with red glitter. I think its super cute!

Sunflower Bedspring Wreath

Seeing as I was off from work for this whole week,  I found a lot of time to work on new bedspring creations. Today I sat down with my pile of springs, trying to make a clover (which is still in progress) but I ended up coming up with something I thought looked like a flower.

The "finished" Sunflower

While looking at the flower I decided to paint it like one of my favorite flowers, the Sunflower.  I used a stencil brush and dabbed both yellow and orange paint on it and then brown on the center.  It is not totally complete yet, but I figured I would still share it.  It will probably end up in my Etsy Shop!

Original Unpainted Version - made of 16 bedsprings

Let me know your thoughts!  Check back for other new bedspring creations!

To Sell or Not to Sell: Bedspring Love & Heart ♥

My latest creation out of springs that were around the edge of a mattress, as well as some old fence wire, I created the word "Love" to go with the New Bedspring Heart.  Now the big question is do I post this for sale or keep it for myself.  I don't have many of that type of spring and not sure if there will be more b/c the first mattress I cut up didn't have them, but the second did.  So I may just be keeping this one for myself ;).

A Different Kind of Bedspring Wreath: The Snowflake Rag Wreath

Now that Christmas is over and all the decorations are put away.  I needed a "winter" wreath to hang on our front door.  I didn't want to just make another round wreath so instead I tied the springs together using scraps of snowflake material I had left from a project and also made a bow.  I think it's cute and different looking, and I still love springs!

♥ A New Bedspring Heart ♥

The mattress I cut up this weekend for springs, was a Sealy and the springs were slightly different than previous ones I had cut up, but it also included these long flexible springs around the outside of the mattress so of course I kept those too.  They will not hold their shape without other wire holding them, so I used a fuschia coated hanger, cut off the top and reshaped it into a heart, then coiled the spring around it.  It is not what I would call "complete" yet but I really like it and thought in a grouping they would be really cute wall decor, if they were all different sizes and maybe different colors??

I am going to try to make letters like this too!  Check back soon!

OnePrettyThing.com and the Leaning Tower of Springs

Since I am still mainly working on projects I cannot share b/c they are christmas presents.  I will share a really great website oneprettything.com that has daily posts of DIY projects for all holidays and even some kid-friendly projects.  The projects are really great!  When I get more time I would really like to go through the site and see all it has to offer.  If you are looking for a great project over Christmas break, check it out!

I was also running out of  bedsprings, so I cut up another mattress this weekend.  With no other place to store the springs they now occupy a trunk and are stacked in a tower in my spare bedroom, they are leaning a little and hopefully don't fall! Check back for more great spring projects, after the holidays!

Playing with Springs :)

I have cold, so I am not really creating anything to great until it eases up a bit, but I did work with some bedsprings last night and created several new round wreath sizes.

20 spring wreath - 25 inch diameter

6 spring wreath - 10 inch diameter

15 spring wreath - 20 inch diameter

Side View - 15 spring wreath - 20 inch diameter

The only hard part is once you get over 10 springs the wreaths start to lose their shape due to the weight and have to be individually coiled together, which is really rough on the hands (I have more than one cut on my fingers today) but the results are worth it!  It's sad when you have to get a tetanus shot just to do your crafts!

Happy Weekend: Bedspring Art - Works in Progress

Last night while I was creating more bedspring wreaths, I made another heart, a small star and a regular round wreath.  I was trying to figure out a way to make them look more unique and more like art.  I like the plain or one color, but I also like simple things until I created these: 

Hand Painted Monarch Butterfly

Hand Painted Monarch Butterfly

Hand Painted Candy Cane Tea-light Holders

Both of these were trial runs to see if I would like the end result, I was pleasantly surprised and will continue to work to perfect hand painting these, as well as other pieces The only major problem right now is the paint I used was a little chunky and did not go on smooth, so I am going to look for new paint today and hopefully I will be more satisfied with the end result.   Watch for these items coming soon to my etsy shop!

On a side note, nothing makes you smile more than waking up to this on a Friday morning:

The view from my kitchen window

Even though it was a chilly 0 degrees this morning, I still smiled!  This is why I love Northern New York!