Tutorial: Orb-lando

Here I am again, Just putting on the last but one post for Kayleigh. They are leaving Osaka and should be making their way back to Tokyo today. Another seven days and they will be home, I am so looking forward to seeing them.
I have just realised that the posts I have been putting on have the date they were created and not the day I am posting them. Sorry guys. Not sure what to do about it, anyway Kayleigh will be back soon, so it will all be ok again. :)
Anyway enough of me. Just check out this amazing chandelier. I love it, and I can see it being done in all different colours, great idea.     

Do you want something stunning and dramatic to be the centre piece of you dining room? Well look no further than the fantastic chandelier, titled by its creator, the 'Orb-lando'.

The creator is Orlando Soria over at HommeMaker. The site is full of stylish interior design inspiration and the chandelier above is just a tip of the ice-berg. For the instructions go - here. The great thing is that you can adjust the size depending on the size of your room, or even spray paint the wire a gorgeous colour to match or clash the colour theme of your room. Myself, I just want to recreate the image above. Strike that, I want that room.

xx

Tutorial: Cyanotype

Hi Everyone it's still Kayleigh's mum. They are having a wonderful time in Japan and as it was Kayleigh's Birthday on Tuesday they spent a few days in the mountains and it's snowing!!
Well! Having never heard of Cyanotype I was fascinated to read this, what a great idea. I will look forward to Kayleigh giving this a go and may even slip in a few of my own things. (I wonder if she will notice), I'll let you know.

I wish I had seen this tutorial before the autumn season started. Over at Craftzine they have a fantastic article all about the printing technique Cyanotype. Check out the 'how to' - here.

Cyanotype is the process where light sensitive chemicals are applied to a material, and then areas of the materials are covered and the whole surface exposed to sunlight. I have previously seen it used on other materials but not on knitting or crochet. I think the effect looks fantastic. If I had known about this earlier my shop would have been stocked full of cyanotype printed knit. Sigh. Never mind, I will store it in the ideas bank and save it for next season.
xx

Clipboard Picture Frames

Hi Kayleigh's mum here. They are still in Japan have moved to Universal Studio Hotel and loving it.
I saw this in Kayleigh's collection and thought Wow! who thinks of these things, this is brilliant, what a great idea for a kiddies room, you could put up their drawings and change them whenever they do a new one.

So I was surfing the net as usual, checking on my favourite blogs, when I came across a tutorial on the blog A Beautiful Mess for a really cute acorn garland. But it wasn't the garland that drew my attention, it was the clipboards behind.

I love the industrial look of arranging clipboards on the wall. Its great for the office to use as inspiration boards, but how gorgeous to have them on the wall with your favourite pictures of family and friends. It means you could print off what ever image takes your fancy, and change them as often as you like. Amazon have some very similar clipboards - here - and even do an A3 size clipboard which looks ace.

Coloured clip boards also from Amazon - check out here

Or, what a great idea for the kids bedroom. Buy brightly coloured clipboards and then change the images on them as they grow.
Brilliant!
xx

Tutorial: Glass Bottle Picture Frames

Hi everyone, you won't need to be told it's Kayleigh's mum.
They are now half way through their adventure and although feeling a bit homesick ( I think that may be for my benefit as I am missing them) they are really enjoying it, I am sure Kayleigh will have lots of stories to tell. Anyway thought you might like to see this post, I think it is brilliant, this is the first time I have seen it and I know Kayleigh has some of these bottles in her etsy shop. I wonder if she would notice a few missing :)

Are you looking for a new and quirky way to frame your old family photos? Do you also need something to brighten up your mantel piece? Well I have the perfect solution for you. Vintage bottles used to frame your family photos.

This is such a beautiful way of displaying your favourite old photos. And if you are like me, it is a great use for all those old bottles that you have lying around. The tutorial was created by Terry John Woods over at yankeemagazine. To get the instructions go - here.

I don't want to come across as a pushy sales person, but if you are looking for some vintage bottles, look no further than my very own etsy shop - Springy Beard.
xx

Tutorial: Floral Suitcase

Hi, Kayleigh's mum here. Have been away for a few days, so though this tutorial on revamping my suitcase seemed appropriate. Have fun.

This tutorial is brought to you from the lovely people at A Beautiful Mess. It is the perfect tutorial to glam up those vintage suitcase you have lying around and can cover a multitude of old marks and damage. So when you next see that old suitcase at a car boot, don't leave it behind, pick it up and bring it back to life.

For the 'how to' go - here. Remember you can choose whatever fabric you want. Start your search on etsy. I would want them for my bedroom, stacked up in the corner, but they would also be perfect for the kids bedroom to store away all their toys.
xx

Decoupage Phone

Hi Kayleigh's mum again, she is having an amazing time in Japan. They have moved from Tokyo on the bullet train to Kyoto......Can't wait to see the photos!!!

Looking through the drafts that Kayleigh has written for me to post. I found this one.....And guess what! I have a telephone like this and would love to cover it. So fingers crossed Kayleigh will bring back lots and lots of paper from Japan.  

On one of my web searches I came across this fantastic idea - decoupage retro phones!

This is a particularly fantastic example using beautiful bright coloured paper from the people at Small Hands Big Art. Check out the 'how to' - here.

And this is going to be a lesson to me. I have seen some of the retro looking phones at car boots, but they have been really marked, well used and off brown in colour. I am definitely buying one next time, and hopefully I'll pick up some beautiful patterned paper in Japan to dazzle you all. Watch this space.
xx

Blog site: Land of Nod

Hi, I am Kayleigh's mum and I am looking after Kayleigh's blog whilst she and her fiance are in Japan.They arrived safe and sound on Friday and have settled in Tokyo for a few days seeing the sights, they are moving around the country and will be away for a month. I will keep you posted about their travels. In the mean time check out the site Kayleigh has found.
Bye for now.

    I have a site for you all to check out - The Land of Nod. If there is anyone out there with a brood of little ones this is the site for you. Not only is there a great blog - check it out here - but they also have a shop with brilliant items to buy - check it out here. Just some images below to wet your appetite.

Toy Boxes

Closest Storage

Lunch Bag

Enjoy.
xx

We are off to Japan!

Only one more sleep and I will be on an aeroplane off on a month long adventure in Japan......Not that I could sleep with a swarm of butterflies in my stomach.

I have been working very hard behind the scenes to prepare things whilst I'm away, as I will be handing over the reigns to my Mum...Promise that you will all be nice! She will be uploading posts for me that I have created in advance and posting any items I sell on etsy. And as we are talking about etsy I will show you some of the new items I have added in the hope that you will keep Mum busy while I'm away buying things.

Wish me luck, safe journey, bon voyage, etc. I will be back on the 3rd February with so many stories to tell and photos to show you. I will try to update facebook and twitter while I'm away but hopefully my Mum will keep you occupied.

So, handing over to you Mummy Springy Beard.
xx

Tutorial: Hot Pin Test

After a busy Christmas the shop is back up and running, and I am busy trying to sort out more items to upload for the new year. One of the items I discovered on my treasure hunting sessions was a small crochet needle.

It is a lovely creamy colour, but is it plastic or bone? It is often difficult to tell, a lot of early plastics are made to imitate bone or tortoiseshell. So the question is, how do we tell? Luckily I know a nice little test to see which it is. Firstly, we have to do a health and safety talk.

WARNING: This test involves using a naked flame/hot temperatures. I would recommend using oven gloves and possibly a damp cloth when holding the hot pin. Also, please bear in mind that this test may damage the surface of the material you are testing.

You will need:

• metal pin
• metal tweezers
• oven gloves/damp cloth

Method:
1. Get the item ready that you want to spot test. Choose an area on the material that is discreet in case the surface is damaged by the testing.
2. You will need a naked flame - we have a gas hob which is perfect. Light the gas ring - not too high mind, just so long as you have a small flame.
3. Make sure you put on the oven gloves or wrap the damp cloth around you hands and pick up the tweezers.
4. Using the tweezers pick up the pin at the blunt end and place the pointy end of the pin in the flame until it burns red.

6. Hold the pin against the surface of the material.
7. If it is bone or ivory it should not melt the surface (if the pin is hot enough it might burn slightly leaving a small dark mark but this did not happen during my test)).

8. If the material is plastic then it will melt the surface and small indentations will be visible in the surface (we tested the method on a toothbrush to compare with the crochet needle).

Remember, please be careful when doing this test, but good luck. What were my results? A beautiful bone crochet needle, look out for it on the etsy shop soon.

xx