Hand Made | House of Earnest

Category: Hand Made

May 15, 2013

Neon Rope Coasters

I love buying materials that I like even if I don’t (at the time) have a plan for them. This project was one of those cases. While scavenging the aisles at the Home Depot, I found some masonry rope that was the perfect neon pink! I bought it with little idea what I was going to do with it and got to brainstorming.

I created these little woven coasters because the contrast with the light wood is so pretty and modern. They’re perfect to have on hand for summer to brighten up even just a simple tray of water for guests.

ONE cut the sticks to 2 3/4″ lengths. TWO securing the ends of three sticks in a hardback book, and pressing down very firmly on the book, start weaving the rope through the sticks, leaving a long tail at the beginning which you’ll use to add a few more rows to the beginning end once you remove it from the book. After each row, be sure to scoot the ropes tightly toward the book and tighten. THREE continue in this method, one row then push & tighten throughout the whole length of the sticks. FOUR once you’ve reached the end, remove from the book and use your beginning bit of rope to add a few rows to the start. Secure both ends on the bottom with glue.

The light weight wooden craft sticks can be found at a craft store with the dowels and the rope is found with the other ropes and chains in the hardware store.

It took me about 30 minutes to make all four, so it’s something you can do on an afternoon in just no time! I think this would also be a fun project for teen girls if you have any of those running around your house. The colors can be switched up too, there are all types of crazy colored ropes at the hardware store and doing this with jute or bakers twine would give a really natural tonal look as well!

Give it a go and let me know how they turned out!

Have a FANTASTIC Wednesday!

p.s. A BIG thank you to everyone’s supportive comments yesterday! You guys light up my life!

15 Comments

April 18, 2013

Beginner Blooms: Lesson Three

in Hand Made with 4 Comments

It’s the third installment of beginner blooms and I’m excited to be branching (haha) into some more floral type varieties. Similar to the first and second lesson, I choose a (very easy to arrange in) teardrop shaped vessel. Tulips are so perfect for spring, and arranging them to look like a big, substantial arrangement is the key!

We have the same beginning steps that we did in the first two lessons. ONE measure your blooms and cut them one and a half to two times the height of your vase. TWO Clear off all of the lower leaves that would fall below the neck of the vase (this will enable you to fit in more stems and make the arrangement look clean and professional). THREE cut at an angle with a sharp knife.

From there, things are new with a more flexible and pliable flower. Keep reading for the full photos of step by step arranging!

4 Comments

April 16, 2013

Pop of Yellow Bar Tray

in before & after, Hand Made with 26 Comments

Spring has sprung. After all of the waiting, we’re finally in the depths of some warmer weather and I’m celebrating by getting out the bright, cheery drinks and snacks to enjoy outside on the patio.

I hinted last week to a project I was working on with Sherwin Williams in conjunction with National Painting Week and today, I’m finally revealing the finished product! The best part of the whole project is not only the color change, but also the bar tray itself.

I used the base of an old directors chair that I’d had and simply removed the arms and set a wooden tray on the top. There you go! Base, tray, a new coat of paint, and I’ve got myself a tray table worthy of any bar area and was able to use an old piece of furniture that had been sitting in the guest room.

If you’re not a huge DIYer, I swear you can still do this project. I didn’t use a primer, but I did sand off any clear finish that had previously been on the stool base and used two coats of Lemon Twist paint with a sponge brush to reduce brush strokes (and make for easy clean-up!). I finished off the table by painting the hardware gold and adding some painted gold ‘L’ brackets to the corners for a more polished look.

I LOVE the way it turned out and the extra pop it lends to my (mostly neutral) dining room. What do you think? Are you inspired to do your own home paint project yet? Head on over to Sherwin Williams’ National Painting Week site to see color inspirations, painting ideas, and expert tips all week! If you think you’d like to see more projects like this one, there are thirteen other bloggers using paint to transform their spaces.

Today, Cassidy and Justin over at Remodelaholic are sharing another yellow project, but tomorrow painting with blue is Amanda from Recycled Consign and Design as well as Emily from Decor Chick.

I cannot wait to check out the full week of projects and I hope you follow along as well!

*this post is sponsored by Sherwin Williams, but thoughts, photos, and ideas are all my own.

26 Comments

April 11, 2013

Watercolor Knot Art

in Hand Made with 9 Comments

I’m such a fan of affordable art. When it comes to making your own, I think it’s so so easy to get something beautiful as long as you keep it simple. These knots are about as easy as they come, but are reminiscent of sea and surf and just perfect to lighten up your walls this summer. All it takes is some watercolor paper and a cheap set of watercolors (nothing fancy here!).

ONE trace over the knot template lightly with a pencil in the middle of your paper. TWO go back over your pencil tracing with black watercolor paint. THREE let them dry completely before framing.

Stacking the frames in a grouping really stands out, but just one watercolor knot in a wall of other photos would be beautiful as well. I love the simplicity of it and think the outcome is just as wonderful as anything you could buy.

Would you try this? Maybe a gem outline would be really fun and funky too? Tell me what you think!

9 Comments

April 9, 2013

Behind the Scenes Painting

in color, Hand Made with 1 Comment

Things have been brewing behind the scenes here at House of Earnest. I’m working on a few projects that you guys know about (the patio) and a few projects that are new. One of which is a really fun and summery project in collaboration with Sherwin Williams for National Painting Week which starts next Monday, encouraging people around the country to get into the DIY spirit.

Now, you guys know I will paint anything that doesn’t move, so it was natural that I be so excited about this particular project. As I’ve mentioned, I’m in a totally nesting mood lately (spring fever?) and wanted to add a bright pop to my dining room which I felt needed a little something. I actually uploaded a picture of the room to the Chip It application on the Sherwin Williams website to find a color that went well in the space, and was bright enough to satiate my need for something that stands out!

What popped out was exactly what I was looking for. There were three good colors to consider, I was really split between an orangey-coral and a bright yellow. Although there is a little sneak peek above about which color I chose, you’ll have to come back next Tuesday to see the full reveal (I know, it’s mean, isn’t it?).

Don’t fear, there are other NPW projects from blogs around the country that will knock your socks off before mine goes live. Next Monday we’re starting with Little Green Notebook and Coco + Kelley (can you guess which color they both chose?) but there a total of 14 bloggers participating so follow along with the action next week!

Tell me about the paint projects in your future!

p.s. Our current giveaway the beautiful ‘Truly Mexican’ cookbook and other south of the border inspired prizes ends tonight at midnight! Go enter!

1 Comment

April 3, 2013

Avocado Seed Awesome

in Hand Made with 89 Comments

Using things either from nature or from other facets of your party make for great accessories. I might be just a little nostalgic about the fact that this same week for the last couple years we’ve been in Mexico, and we aren’t this year, so whipping up a big batch of guac for a little Mexican party was in order.

I was admiring the seeds of some avocados when I thought that there must be something I could do with them. You could probably spray paint anything gold and I’d love it, but in this case, I thought the little gold details on each one of these avocado seed place card holders helped to differentiate each name from the next, but also made them shiny and pretty like a little trinket that your friends could take home.

So I’m in a Mexico mood and after instagramming a photo of my new Truly Mexican cookbook the other day, the huge response about where folks could purchase the book made me want to giveaway a copy along with some other ‘south of the border’ inspired goodies like an avocado peeler and pitter tool and more!

Continue reading for the full place card tutorial and the GIVEAWAY details!

89 Comments

March 20, 2013

Beginner Blooms: Lesson Two

in Hand Made with 13 Comments

Here we are with the second in a spring series of flower arranging. We started just two weeks ago with flowering branches, and will progress today to a flower that is similar to arrange, but offers a couple of extra considerations that will help build a good foundation.

Lilies are similar to branches in that they’re a sturdy, straight stem with multiple branching flowers on each stem. You don’t need too many stems to make an impactful bouquet, which is great for beginners to play with shape and design. Start with four stems for this arrangement. Similar to last week, we’re using a vase that is wider at the bottom, with a smaller opening. This sphere is a little more difficult to use than the carafe we used in the branches.

ONE remember what we learned last week. Stems should be around 1.5 to 2 times the height of the vase (or width if that is greater). For these lilies, I started on the longer side and thought they were too spread out and didn’t consume the space well, so I went back and trimmed them down to 1.5. TWO remove all leaves that will fall below the neck of the case. This will keep bacteria from growing in your water. THREE using a sharp knife, cut away from your body in one swift motion. Using scissors on floral stems crushes the plant cells and inhibits the flower from getting enough water. A knife cut helps the flower live longer by helping it get more water. FOUR arrange like you did with the branches, first in an ‘X’ then go back and make an ‘X’ in the alternate direction.

Look at your arrangement from all angles. The flowers should be even distance from the center of the arrangement from side to side and to the top. Make sure that a primary bloom sticks straight up and creates a gradual dome shape to the side flowers. You don’t want all of the blooms to fall to the sides, creating a hole in the center.

Try it a few times, I might take some trial an error on the lengths of the stems and positioning the flowers, but since you’re only working with four stems, it’s a good place to start practicing!

Let me know how it goes!

13 Comments

March 19, 2013

Hand Made: Dipped Baskets

in Hand Made, Seasonal with 7 Comments

I hesitated to post another ‘dipped’ thing since it’s been so overdone, but when I shared these pretty dipped baskets on my Friday Faves a couple of weeks ago, I just couldn’t stop thinking about how the paint looked a little translucent. It wasn’t as obvious of a dip project as some I’d seen, so I wanted to try and see if I could get a smokier look to the dip, allowing more of the basket color and texture to show through.

I picked up these little water hyacinth baskets from Pier 1 for just three bucks each and tried a few various trials using paint thinner, acetone, etc, etc. As it turns out, the best version was the one that used the good old fashioned ‘universal solvent’ – water.

Aside from figuring out the proper ratios, I found a pretty good way to dip them which is clean, easy, and only uses a pint of paint! If you’re interested in all of the details – keep reading for more the step by step!
Continue Reading…

7 Comments

March 18, 2013

A New Use for Wine Corks

in Hand Made with 7 Comments

I don’t know if I’d say that I was a ‘wine-o’ per se, but I drink a lot of wine. I like what I like, mostly red, and I love trying new varieties. This results in a (maybe embarrassing) amount of wine corks that collect in my bar area. I have a large cylinder vase that I put them all in, and with that vase being close to full, I’ve been thinking about other things to do with the corks.

I had a length of ribbon that I wrapped around a cork out of pure convenience and, after sticking a straight pin into the end, realized that it wasn’t just a quick solution, but a really good all-of-the-time solution as well.

I have so many pieces of ribbon, lace, or twine that I pull off of gifts and packages that usually goes untamed into a drawer or bin and this is the perfect solution.

I’m not going to say that it will encourage me to drink more wine, but, I mean, it won’t hurt!

I hope your Monday is full of solutions!

7 Comments

March 13, 2013

Handmade: Gold Foil Tumblers

in Favorite Projects, Hand Made with 60 Comments

It’s no secret that I love gold, and you know I could use a good cocktail on a Wednesday. I made these little gold confetti tumblers after seeing so many similar versions in the market. These aren’t too intense, but are pretty easy and are oh-so-cute!

Fill them up with a little pomegranate juice, some Zonin prosecco, and basil and you’ve got yourself a perfect mid-week treat.

ONE tape off the bottom of a glass with blue painters tape and stick some dots onto the bottom, more concentrated at the top and less concentrated toward the bottom. TWO cover the top of the glass with a sandwich bag and tape it down on the same tapeline as before. THREE spray paint the bottom of the glass with a bright gold spray paint. FOUR using a gold leaf pen, carry the dot motif up onto the top of the glass. More concentrated at the bottom and sparse toward the top.

I think they’re so fun and sure do look festive for spring, right? Grab just a few ingredients, have a cocktail and happy hump day!

So, as a disclaimer, I am using spray paint on food and beverage item which isn’t recommended for food contact. I felt like being on the outside of the glass I was comfortable with that, but if you’re not, please use your discretion.

60 Comments