When a bar of soap gets worn down and is near the end of its usefulness, it’s considerably less appealing than when it was new. The scent has faded, it’s brittle or soggy – time to throw it out, right? Do you have some soap bars you don’t like? Do you have a collection of little motel soaps that you don’t know what to do with? You could throw these soaps out, but I prefer to save up my soap scraps and make them into laundry soap.
Read about how to do it on the Schnarr’s Hardware Blog.
It’s a good thing I make detailed notes as I work, because this kitchen backsplash project underwent a two and a half year hiatus! I didn’t really plan to neglect the project for that long, but in 2013 and 2014 I did a lot of art and craft shows and my studio space and time was necessarily diverted to that pursuit rather than home improvement projects. In 2015 I’m doing fewer shows and determined to finish some of what I started earlier!
Read more:
Kitchen Backsplash Project Part III – Filling in the Tile “Murals”
When I wrote in my previous article Decor Idea Book that my home decor would take years to complete, I was not exaggerating. I’ve been interested in tiles and mosaics since I was a teenager.
When I got a new dishwasher this spring, I decided to get rid of my broken garbage disposal rather than purchase a new one. When it was working, I rarely used it anyway since I composted almost anything that would normally go down it. In a way it’s kind of a bad habit because I already have more than enough stuff but I do enjoy saving odds and ends of things I might be able to re-use and seeing if I can make them into something useful. My Dad installed my new dishwasher for me and removed the old garbage disposal and he gave me several ringlike parts that he thought I might be able to use for something. One of them fits perfectly a glass part of a broken fountain/mister that someone else gave me.
Learn how to make a planter like this in my latest blog post for Schnarr’s!
http://schnarrsblog.com/terra-cotta-mosaic-planter/
Do you collect glass insulators? I often see them for sale in antique shops and there are several web sites with information for insulator collectors. I’ve always found them attractive looking and I thought they’d be even more interesting if made into something functional. Flameless votive candles are a lot of fun (and safe) to incorporate into your decor. In this project I’ll show you how to make a glass insulator into a flameless candle lantern.
Read More: http://schnarrsblog.com/make-an-insulator-votive-candle-lantern/
I’ve been saving assorted plastic beads for many years. I decided to select some of these in colors that go well with the tile work I’m doing in my bathroom and make a beaded curtain for the doorway from them. I’ve wanted one of these since my childhood in the 1970s, but never had one until now!
Fishing line and different kinds of cord and string will stretch when loaded down with beads, so I decided to experiment with stringing on recycled florist wire. I like the results – I won’t ever have to restring these because of stretching, and they are easy to attach to the screw in hooks that I used to suspend them.
