Trash to Treasure

This has got to be my favorite hobby right now. I find something really exciting about getting something free or very inexpensive, and being able to visualize it's potential - and then to actually execute it is awesome. Here are some that I have completed and am pretty proud of.

Cosco chair/step stool, purchased for $3.00 at an estate sale. Refinished with turquoise Rustoleum spray paint, a remnant of vinyl purchased online, a few other necessary supplies, and some serious elbow grease.  Definitely worth it! It's one of my favorite things in my home:

Little wooden cabinet.. Certainly not trash to begin with, but I got it for $30 at a garage sale. So far all I've done is paint the inside and add some little blue knobs from Hobby Lobby, but it might get a continued facelift sometime soon:

I'm in love with this silhouette of Lily. I've been wanting to do something like this for a long time, and when I spotted this wooden frame at (you guessed it) a garage sale, it was the perfect (purrrfect) inspiration (inspuurrrration). The frame was in two pieces when I found it, and I think I got it for 50 cents. It only needed minor repairs and some cleaning up. I created the black silhouette from the below photo of Lily that I took about seven years ago, and printed it on scrapbook paper before framing. I'm still deciding on the perfect place for it. 

This is not a recent project, but both of these pieces were garage sale finds as well. The little table was $30 and an unattractive shade of not-quite-lime green when I bought it, and the mirror was somewhere between free and $3.00 - can't remember. I painted them both a nice crisp white and I think they complement each other well. 

Also a Pinterest inspiration, I made a bunch of these cute little mason jar sewing kits recently, hoping to sell them at a craft fair. I found the sewing kit supplies at a flea market for 50 cents per set, I bought a pack of little mason jars at WalMart, and made the pin cushion tops with some scrap fabric I had and a little bit of stuffing. So far I haven't sold any yet, but they are adorable and I'm sure someone will love them as much as I do.

Lastly, I wouldn't call this a trash to treasure creation, but I made this large piece of wall art with some inexpensive 12"x12" stretch canvases from Michael's and twelve pieces of upholstery fabric from the remnants table at Fabricland. None of the remnants were more than $2.00, and I wound up with some extra that I can use for a future project. This was my solution to filling a large empty wall without spending hundreds of dollars. In total the project cost about $50 and was very quick. 

I had a couple extra canvases, so I wrapped them in two tea towels I found that matched my kitchen decor perfectly. I secured all the fabric in the back with thumbtacks, because that's what I had. I'm sure a staple gun would be more effective and cheaper if you already own one. 

I have a bunch of works in progress as well as future projects lying around the house. Those posts will be coming soon!