Magnetic Boards

I fell in love with these fabric-covered magnetic boards at Ballard.  I can't afford most of what's in that catalog, but love to use it as inspiration.  They are a tasteful take on the old bulletin board.

I thought something like this could be a cute Christmas idea, especially if I included some handmade magnets.  So I did a search for some tips on how to do one.  This gal made a very cute one at A Little of This, A Little of That .  She used a great frame, but I thought if I was making a smaller board, I wouldn't want a frame to get in the way of notes/photos I could put up.  This wouldn't maximize the space, I guess.  So then I found a tutorial on http://www.ehow.com/.  I liked this article a lot and after using many of those ideas, including foam core, spray adhesive, and duct tape, I ended up with this final result.

I did not find the type of metal flashing talked about in the article, though.  I bought a roll of it and realized after I got it home that it wasn't magnetic!  I kept it and used it all (8 ft of it, I think) for jewelry displays.  I'll have to put that up some time.  Anyway, I ended up using the pre-cut 26 gauge sheet metal I found at Lowe's.  It comes in every size imaginable and the sizes I like are the 12 x 18 and the 12 x 24.  It is not as cheap as the roll-type, but it's still very economical at about $4.50 for the 12 x 18.

To make the magnets, I used the flat glass marbles (the kind you can buy literally anywhere-even dollar stores-to fill vases or bowls) with the middle design.  I used super glue (hot glue will NOT work) to attach the marbles to heavy duty magnets.  The other marbles I used were custom made originally for some jewelry designs.  I changed my mind on them and they were perfect for this. 

Check out the etsy site where I got them:

daisymaedesigns

Warning: these magnets are so strong that they will separate the magnets from the marbles to attach to each other.  Keep them away from each other!  I used duct tape to secure the fabric around the back of the board, trying to keep it as neat as possible.  I felt that I never really came up with an ideal way to hang these.  The saw-tooth type picture hanger hammered into the foam core and glued in place seemed to work the best.  For the one I'm about to do for a boy's room, I think I'll try a command strip.  The ribbon I used to make it a little more decorative is just tied into a bow and hot glued to the center top. 

Using Red (color focus)

The whole idea with red is that you either go big and make a bold red statement, or you use just a little to accentuate your design. Above see Maryann (like Gilligan's Island). It's all about the red, suggesting a sensuality and an innocence at the same time. Below see Magdalene, I used garnet to highlight olive jade and copper links. It's just enough to make the design pop.

I actually really like organizing by color. I often wonder if that would be an appealing way to sell and display my jewelry-only by color. I dream about having my closet organized by color, but then it would have to be organized!

The winter blues (more color focus)

This necklace makes me smile. Let me tell you the story...
I had blocked out a chunk of my Saturday afternoon to design. The 3 basketball games were over, the baby was in bed, husband was watching sports, boys were building legos. I was all set, and even had my crafting playlist on my ipod. So I sat down at my table and started what I thought would be my next favorite design. I had imagined using some great picture jasper beads with little silver beads to create a striking version of my multi-tasking bracelet/necklace. (Like All Girl No Play.) I spent and hour and a half crafting about 36 inches of the creation before I decided that I hated it! Depressing! If I had time to design all day, this would barely be a blip on the radar. But this was all I had--what a waste. So here's the good news. The next day I had the same chunk of time in the afternoon. I even added a glass of wine to the mix. I sat down with some inspiring components (cornflower blue sponge coral coins, and these brushed sterling "spools" I came across at one of my bead stores). I knew I wanted to figure out a way to showcase the silver spools without just threading them, so I experimented with them using my copper wire, with plans to do the real design with sterling wire. Whoa! I loved the copper against the silver in this design! I redeemed myself! Not only did I come up with a design I'm immediately happy with, but I got to skip a step. The wrapping is funky and not quite uniform, which works with the slightly left-of-center components. It's called Hideaway.

More blue...
A chunky take on a classic design, Falling Water features dyed yellow turquoise (ending up turquoise!) and Greek ceramic beads.

Earth Angel bracelet is really bold, using magnesite slabs and copper spacers.

Colors and creations

I'm working on an article on color. Some creations in browns and blues that are inspired as I do are below.

Dakota, with roble and bayong




Starling earring, with blue lace agate and smoky topaz







Starling necklace







Snow in Shadowland, with howlite and smoky topaz







Tierra bracelet, with aqua terra jasper and sterling

Photos of quilt ladder and shelves

The laundry room shelves are adequate. I ended up taking the shelves off and cutting them again with the table saw. Much better, but the one warped board still made it challenging to get a perfect fit. I went ahead and sanded again and painted with the Rust-Oleum Ultra Cover 2x. I painted it in the garage, but had to bring it inside to dry. It's 5 degrees here. I had planned to put a wood panel on the back just to make it a little more secure, but we didn't have anything on-hand. So next time I'm at Home Depot or Lowe's, I'll pick up a piece of plywood for that. I'll use my leftover paint and paint it before I attach it. It's so plain, but keeps the clean look I like in the laundry!




Here's how it looked before paint, while I was still deciding whether to take it apart.










Here is my simple quilt ladder. I used a piece of oak hand railing for the frame (cut at Home Depot into 5 ft lengths so I could get it home). We mitred the oak at home to 22.5 degrees on both ends, determined by how far out from the wall I wanted it to rest. Then I cut (2) 1 1/8 inch diameter round dowels (48 inches long) in half using a chop saw for the four rungs. (Yes, there are a total of four--I could have taken a shot with no blankets!)






I tried to measure, mark, and glue everything before I started drilling, but I didn't have a good way to stabilize the project while the glue dried. So my helpful husband stepped in and pre-drilled all of the dowels for me, then set up (my) drill press and new Dremel to get a straight pre-drill in the railing. He's so smart!















Anyway, I had sanded all of the wood, and once it was completed I stained it with a natural satin polyurethane. I'm quite happy with my $35 project!

This week I'm staining my quilt ladder (loving it-it's totally Simple and sturdy and functional). Now if it would be this simple: I have the perfect, most convenient place to hang our much needed blankets after using them in our chilly little basement movie-watching area, so my sweet boys will stand up promptly after snuggling in for a movie or wii session, fold their blankets in half and hang them neatly on one of the rungs. Ha! I don't have confidence that this will happen even once! Still, there it is. (There is a chance that I might be able to get my husband to use it!) If nothing else, when I clean up after my little piggies I'll have a sweet ladder on which to hang their blankies.

I finished the laundry room shelves that I mentioned earlier, but due to the fact that I stubbornly only used a chop saw to cut my 12 inch boards, the shelves are not totally flush. This, coupled with the fact that one of the boards I picked up for the frame of the unit is a little warped, resulted in a sloppy side. To help me decide if I needed to take the thing apart and re-cut the affected shelves, I put my linens on it. I discovered it is completely acceptable for its purpose, and of course I'm really tempted to leave it as is. But I have such a cool color (satin granite-seems perfect with the whole washer and dryer / there's still some exposed concrete in my laundry room deal) that would be ridiculous to put on if my boards weren't perfect. Now I can't bring myself to clear that thing off and re-do it...Still, I'll take some photos tomorrow to help me think about it some more!

Yay! Elements

My new website is up and running! I have been so busy I haven't been doing enough to get the word out, but it's coming along nicely. It's a cool combination for me...photographing my pieces has always been and continues to be fun; obviously I can't enough of designing my own jewelry; and I am sort of getting into the website design aspect too. Now, granted, I have started with a pretty basic web design, but I just really wanted to do it myself.I hope you can check it out sometime. The idea behind my new store is the four traditional earth elements, earth, water, air, and fire. I've been thinking about the change for some time, as baby number four came along and slowed everything down. It feels good to be at a place where I can be a little more creative again.

Air is the line for timeless, classic designs. Anyone at any age can find something to love here. These pieces are also versatile and often neutral (see Tiny Baubles, above left).

Earth is the line that I wear most. It's comfortable, casual, and uses lots of natural components (see Gotta Be Me, left).






Fire is the place to go when you want to give a unique gift. These pieces are often bold, and always created with high quality components (see Carly, left)





Water is more trendy. It is the place to look for pieces that fit current and/or seasonal colors. Right now the line has some nice asymmetrical pieces and bib-style necklaces. The bracelets and earrings have lots of movement (see Slick, left).



And I'm still squeezing in a little time for projects, like making laundry room shelves (why did I have no place for table cloths and cloth napkins?) and a quilt/blanket ladder for the theater room. I finally got a piece of real furniture for the master bedroom...the first piece actually bought for that room (except for a bed with no headboard) since we moved in 10 years ago. It's the Java Basque buffet from Crate and Barrel. I found it in the floor model clearance section of the store a couple of weeks ago and just couldn't stop thinking about it. Perfect size and shape to go under our wall-mounted tv and I fell in love with the gorgeous mango wood and dark stain.
I just have to repair a scratch on the top (right now being covered with a framed photo of beautiful kids). So now I'm hot for some custom bedside tables. I just have to decide if I can do a project like that with only a chop saw...now remembering a table saw out in the garage! I think a whole new world just opened up!