Sweatshirt Make-over

I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Check out this project I found on Pinterest.

via Pinterest

Turn an old, blah sweatshirt into a TADA! hobo bag. 

The photo didn't link to the source, but the step-by-step photos are easy to follow: make a bib-like pattern and trace this onto the wrong side of the sweatshirt. Cut accordingly {you'll have two pieces}, pin the two sides together, and sew the edges. Turn it inside-out and add some pretty felt flowers!

Have a crafty weekend ya' all! 

Flip-flop Time!

It's finally summer and it's time to show off the pedicures. Here are my past attempts to turn blah-looking slippers into TADA! :

Add a few beads 

String on some lace 

Embellish with sequins

Here's another cool idea where the straps are replaced with a braided ribbon made out of an old t-shirt:

via By Wilma blog

Don't these add more character to ordinary slippers? The new straps also come handy when the former rubber straps snap apart but the soles are still in good shape. Blah to TADA! indeed.

Happy Headbands

A few years back, I made this TADA! headband 

out of remnants from a blah t-shirt:

I sewed an elastic band on both edges to 

give it some stretch.  

If you're looking for a summer project to do with your girls {and throw in some lessons on recycling as well}, here's another headband tutorial I found via Pinterest. It's from the blog Make It and Love It.

via Make It and Love It Blog

I can't wait to try these out myself. I might use a printed or striped t-shirt, and even mix different plain colored shirts!

Wrap me in Fabric

I found some old t-shirts that have overstayed their welcome in my closet. They say, if you haven't worn them in the past year, time to say goodbye. But you know that goodbyes are never easy for me, right?

Here are a few TADA! necklaces I made using blah t-shirts: 

 The weaved variety

 Something floral

A touch of gold 

I'm thinking of making a few more. 
Below are inspirations for new designs:

via Cakies

A cluster of wooden beads

via Cakies 

Wrapped in fabric

via Pinterest

Braided and shaped into daisies

Now that I have some pegs, I've got to start working on them. I'll show them to you when I finish. Have a fabulous day!

Re-purposing T-shirts

Happy new week folks! My spring cleaning a few weeks back yielded some t-shirts that I no longer use. One pile was for "donation" and the other I'm saving for crafting.

It's a bit off season, but this treat-or-trick bag was made out of a tank top:

You can do the same and turn it into a summer bag. Use a sunny stripe fabric and fill it with essentials like sunblock and beach toys. Or even extra clothes and snacks for a play date. 

This idea appeared in my in box and I had to share it with you if you haven't seen it yet. It uses the same idea of transforming an old shirt into a hip bag:

via GAP

Neat right? More ideas to re-purpose old t-shirts tomorrow. Take care!

A Wire-y Situation

Hey, hey, Happy Friday! Maybe, like me, you have a handful of cables and charging devices wrapped around your desk. An eyesore and a mess -- what a blah.  Care for a TADA!?

via All You

Hide the power source {a power strip attached to a wall socket} and the charging cords inside a box! The box used in this adorable project is originally a box for ribbons  {the spools are stored inside, while the tails stick out from the holes.} 

You can clearly make your own using an empty blah box with a cover. Simply make holes using a box cutter or craft knife. Remember to make enough holes for all your chargers, plus another one for the power strip cord. Decorate the box and label each hole accordingly. No more tangled cords. TADA!

May you all have an awesome weekend!

A Clever Coat Rack

It's officially summer and I've got "organizing" on my mind this week. I think it's always good to have a tidy home and work space. I feel I'm more efficient and I can think better when things are in order.

It's also good to get rid of things we no longer need to free up some storage space. I usually donate my gently used items at the Salvation Army or use them to do some blah to TADA! recycling.

Here's a superb idea that you can use with broken hangers and scrap wood:

via A Little Glass Box

Crafty girl Courtney of A Little Glass Box made this coat rack which left me pretty impressed. Wouldn't you agree?

Books on a Box

Happy Wednesday! While I'm not doing any blah to TADA! make-overs this week, I'm sharing crafty ideas I've stumbled upon. Maybe they'll inspire you to make your own?

via Etsy

Isn't this storage box darling? The face is decorated with spines from old books! 

via Etsy

When the box sits on a shelf, it looks like a bunch of your favorite books all lined up, but in fact, it's secret storage. I think that's TADA!

Old Tin Boxes

Hi there! This week, I'll be quite occupied organizing our apartment {we had a bathroom leak that led to one blah after another}. We'll also have some house guests, and we're going on a short trip, so crafting will temporarily be put on hold. I'm leaving you with inspiring photos for the rest of the week.

Do you have plans to garden this summer? Why not use old, blah tins as planters like the girls at A Beautiful Mess did. Or try empty tin cans with pretty labels. These add color, as well as character, to your garden, no matter how small your garden is!

Organizing Ideas

Hello friends! I hope you had a nice weekend and a celebratory Father's Day. I wish I could say I had a relaxing one. Sigh. You see, there was a leak in our bathroom, and water found its way in our closet floor. Um, our closet floor is carpeted. I was more afraid of mold and smelly carpets over water damage to our possessions. What a blah. The TADA! part of this experience was that our apartment's maintenance team quickly responded by fixing the leak, and bringing in industrial fans to dry the carpet. They also put fresh padding before securing the carpet in place. 

We spent the weekend returning our stuff in the closet, and vacuuming like crazy people {the industrial fans spread dust everywhere!}. The damage was minimal -- just a soak under the sun to make it all better {very happy that the sun was out and it's summer; just imagine if this happened in winter!}.  

I'm also grateful that I organized our shoes last year. I put them in plastic shoe boxes similar to this one: 

via The Container Store

It's an organizing tip I've seen in many magazines. My initial reaction was, "Who does this?" I thought it was too much work, and depending on the number of shoes you own, you'll need A LOT of these boxes.

via The Container Store

 But I finally succumbed and realized what a good solution it was. Here's why:

• It keeps shoes protected from dust, and in my case, water
• Because the boxes are transparent, you can easily see what's inside {makes getting dressed/picking shoes easier}
• The box sizes are uniform making them easy to stack or pull out

Take a peek at my version:

I got the boxes from here and here, and I even printed photos of the contents. It's a TADA! investment, when considering both time and money. I know for sure that my shoes will last a long, long time.

More organizing ideas all this week!  

For Dad

Here's another idea on how to turn a box that was once filled with tea bags from blah to TADA!

 A pretty tea box...

 ...but it's empty! 

Allow box to air out for a few days to eliminate the trapped tea aroma. Paint it white for a clean slate.

 To embellish the box, I'm taking these neatly folded dress shirts from an old catalog.

 Cut them out with a pair of scissors.

 Then glue them onto the box. 

 Here's how it looks like from the back.

 And how it looks like from the top.

Use this to wrap a present for Father's Day. Top with a ribbon and heartfelt message on a card. That's sure to make any Dad/Husband/Grandpa smile from ear to ear.

Have a fun weekend and Happy Father's Day to all the Pops out there!

Tea Box to Gift Box

In the past few days, we've turned empty tea sachets into cute envelopes. Today, let's see what we can do with the box that those tea bags called home.

blah: empty tea box

I really like how the flap opens and how it "locks" itself to the rest of the box when it's time to close it. 

Air out the box for a few days to get rid of the tea scent. Then give the box a make-over with several coats of paint, inside and out. 

To add color and whimsy, I tore this page from an old magazine.  I'll use the playful illustrations to decoupage.

 Cut-outs of girly things...they remind me of paper doll dresses.

Randomly attach the cut-outs to the box and seal with a layer of Mod Podge. 

 Finish with a cardboard handle {use hot glue to attach it}.

TADA! Doesn't it look like a lady's handbag?

Tuck in a gift like a scarf or make-up for your bestie or some hair accessories for your little niece.

Don't be surprised if this box gets used over and over again. Well, because it's adorable... and because that's what recycling is all about. TADA!

Something for Father's Day

I hope your week is going along superbly.

I have yet another idea on how to 

recycle tea sachets.

Mind you, this isn't a plug for this tea brand.  I happen to like different kinds of tea. This one is readily available and the packaging is ideal for crafting -- it has a flap and is made of matte paper. 

It makes paint easy to adhere to it -- all you need is two to three coats. 

 Here are the white-washed tea envelopes.

For today's project, my inspiration is this iconic I Love NY t-shirt. 

Write "I Love Dad" on the tea envelopes. Or "I Love Pop", "I Love Daddy", "I Love Papa" -- whatever you call your old man.

Then on a separate sheet of paper, write the many reasons why. 

 Do this on your own or enlist the whole family.

After which, tuck the "reasons" inside the envelopes. 

Attach these to a place where dad will surely notice -- the bathroom door, the fridge, on the Sunday paper, or around his frequently-used computer or tablet. 

Make sure to shower Dad with lots of hugs and kisses on Father's Day. That would totally be TADA!