I absolutely adore this “bird cage” illustration by Emma SanCartier. And I wanted to make this small piece of art stand out. I could have mounted it in an up-sized frame with generous matting. I decided to make a frame-within-a-frame instead, mostly because I already had all the supplies on hand. The frames were thrift store finds, and the fabric was a scrap I picked up from Fabmo. To buy your own “bird cage” print or any of Emma’s other gorgeous prints, go to her Etsy shop. Read more »

This is the third and final post in my Victoria magazine series.

As I mentioned in my last post, hats were commonplace in Victoria magazine. In fact, every issue included at least one woman wearing a hat. Here’s a look at some of Victoria’s many hat ladies…

Photo credits (left to right, top to bottom): Toshi Otsuki, Geoffrey Gross, Toshi Otsuki (3), Tom Hooper, Toshi Otsuki, Luciana Pampalone, Toshi Otsuki

I love high-quality simple straw hats in summer. When I lived in New York City, cozy felt hats were a must for winter. I especially love the big black fur hat, though I doubt I’d have the courage to wear it. It’s too bad we don’t wear hats much on the West Coast. Which one is your favorite hat?

Photo credits (left to right, top to bottom): Pia Tryde, Thomas Hooper (2), Barry Dunne, Stefano Massimo, Steve Randazzo, Toshi Otsuki (3)

All those hats inspired me to make some paper art using their fabulous shapes. I titled my silhouettes “The Hats of Victoria.” All four are made from one of the hats pictured above. Can you find all of them?

I’ve included pdf downloads of all four patterns after the jump for you to make your own paper hats. I thought it would also be great to mix in other feminine accessories: sexy stiletto, small purse, bright umbrella, etc., so I’m planning to make another set soon. Read more »

Just a quick decorating idea inspired by Kathy’s lovely framed “K” at Creative Home Expressions. My framed “hope” was fun while it lasted, but I needed a change, so here’s to “faith.” Adding the red-and-white striped scrapbook paper in the background gave it a whole new look. If you want to make your own, download the letters here and click here for the tutorial. One guess what my next word will be. Bigger project coming next Monday.

I know: Monica, you need to get your seasons straight, right? I’m celebrating Spring in November because I couldn’t wait four months to share these beauties. Besides, red and green makes it almost Christmasy. I’m sure you recognize this window that used to be a mirror. I decided I had too many mirrors in my apartment and not enough art. And one can never have too much white paint, I say. The botanical illustrations are from Köhler’s Medizinal-Pflanzen, a four-volume German book published in 1887. Botanicus.org scanned the nearly 300 drawings and made them available to download for free! © 1995-2009 Missouri Botanical Garden. Read more »

My friend Julie inspired this idea. She framed some fall leaves in a large clear acrylic frame. I loved its simplicity. These Coach picture frames that I received as a gift years ago were perfect for spelling out a word. I had five frames, but I was set on spelling hope, so I added a dove to the fifth frame. (I know: Doves are the universal symbol for peace, but to me a dove with an olive branch—from the story of Noah’s Ark—symbolizes hope.) You could also frame other obvious words such as peace, faith, and love—or your name or the initials of the members of your family. Read more »

What can I make with an old picture frame that’s missing glass, a free fabric sample from FabMo, and an 8- x 10-inch LoRan magnet board that my friend Chris gave me? Another friend, Kristi, had an idea: a mini magnetic board. If you add a few more magnetic boards, frames, and coordinating fabrics, you could hang a whole collection of magnetic frames on the wall. They’re perfect for school photos, business cards, or other small ephemera. And you can easily swap out the fabric to fit the season. Read more »

Why anyone would paint over window panes is beyond me. But that’s exactly what someone did to this window that I bought at a salvage yard for $20. It took a couple hours to scrape away all the stray paint and caulking, but the effort was totally worth it, considering I now have a fun beach-themed shadowbox. I tore all the tropical photos out of travel magazines. I can think of many other uses for salvaged windows, so there might be more window projects to come. Read more »