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December 6, 2011

Second Hand Girl....

 I wanted to share this craft idea I came up with.  I have been so inspired by Pinterest that I can hardly contain myself, so I thought I would try my hand at making one of my little ideas become a reality and then share the 'how to' with my friends!
While driving home after a visit with my mom in Kansas City, I decided to stop in at an estate sale.  Have you ever been to an estate sale?  Personally, I can hardly contain myself when I see any 'Estate Sale' sign.  I'm not sure if anyone here in the northwest part of Kansas can even appreciate what they offer.  I have been so disappointed at my second hand options since moving to the Manhattan area.  And frankly, I think some of my fellow thrifters are likewise frustrated.  They have lots of auctions around here, but who the heck has 12 hours to sit around waiting for that one thing to be sold in the corner of the basement and then to only be outbid...? Not this girl. And then there is the garage sale dilemma...
Here, a garage sale begins on a Friday night at 5pm, goes until 7pm and then opens from 8-noon on Saturday.  And when you get there, they have two tables of baby clothes...they bought an ad for that?  Now, I'm not sure about you but that isn't even enough time for me to get to more than 3 sales.  It's ridiculous.  I have met some seriously thrifty girls from Fort Riley whom have traveled much and seen what kind of good sales are out there and they too are equally disappointed and dismayed by the lack luster of our community thrift options.
Tell me please! Why would anyone put any effort into having a good sale if they are going to walk away with $30.  Hellooooo!!!! When I was living in Prairie Village, Kansas, a minimum sale was $800-$1000.  But we did it up right!
Kids out there with the fresh squeezed lemonade, hot dogs and a bake sale so they could rake in a little dough.  (mom provides supplies), me and my gal pals hustling up some spray paint to make things look awesome, and then it was a 3-day bonanza!  Thursday, Friday, and Saturday 7am-5pm.  Yeah, this was serious stuff.  And not to mention the crazy folks showing up at 6am for the 'best worm'!
Sorry to get so sassy, but let's be honest....
Anyway, did I get off on a tangent?
Estate Sales are so awesome for several reasons...
  • Whole house full for sale
  • Usually great furniture (i.e. Ethan Allen, Thomasville, etc)
  • Great prices on linens, kitchen gadgets, and outdoor stuff
  • When I say kitchen...grab up the old Pyrex because that stuff they make now shatters like crazy
  • Often some of the most unique things ever
  • And...Best of ALL!! Almost always 50% off on the last day
So, anyway, I hit one of these sales near the Legends in Kansas City, Kansas and found the little frames in the picture below with some weird metallic prints.  But the frames are wood, black, and perfect for my idea.
So check out the pictures.  I should have taken pictures as I made it, but I wasn't sure what I was doing until it was done.  But here is a step by step if interested...

Supplies
Frames
Scrap Book Paper
Pliers (needle nose)
Vinyl Repositionable Letters
Grosgrain Ribbon
Staple Gun
The finished product. 
  1. Find some wooden frames you like (check the thrift store, sales, walmart)
  2. Remove any old pictures carefully
  3. Clean the glass
  4. Keep the cardboard, etc
  5. I used scrapbooking paper for the back ground cut the same size as the glass (I think the page out of an old book would be cool too!)
  6. Position the letter onto the scrap book paper (I eyeballed it, but if you have OCD, measure distance from top and bottom to make sure each one is in order)
  7. Place glass in first, then letter, then put cardboard on back.
  8. Use a staple gun or tiny brads to hold it in.  If you don't put the staple gun right on the wood, then staple, it only goes into the wood a little leaving the staple out to hold the picture in place
  9. You can hang each one individually or staple them all to ribbon.  Which is what I did and the first time it came out like a zig zag...DO OVER! You can use a single ribbon down the middle and secure a ring at the top to hang it with or just use one long ribbon starting at the bottom of one side, go to the hanging point, then back down the other side leaving a place to tie a bow at the top.  I did that, but after my first mistake, I laid the frames face down on the table and went to town stapling again, only to find I had done it .... UPSIDE DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!!!  So, rather than do it over and waste more ribbon,  I cut the bottom ribbon and looped the top ribbons and stapled them to the frame.
Directions making a craft is new to me, so try looking at the pictures to see how I did it...
And visit some estate sales for some awesome finds...I also included some pictures of some of my estate sale finds.
Have a fantastic day!!!
P.S Keep scrolling down after looking at the craft pics to see some of my estate sale find photos!

The closest to the bottom is the top.
Run the ribbon from bottom to top then without cutting run back down to bottom again


Staple ribbon to the frame
Staple the corners & sides to secure the glass, Letter, and cardboard
Hold staple gun away from the frame so staple doesn't go completely into the frame

The finished product. 
 


 Second Hand Girl Finds!


A true blue vintage Hobart KitchenAid Coffee Grinder $12
Various kitchen gadgets, quality is hard to find $10 for all

Cutest drink carrier ever, my mom gave me this.  She found it at a garage sale!
Vintage botanical prints framed in bamboo frames $30 for pair


Funny Cocktail Recipe Book $2
Fireking food containers...the original recycling!! $3 each
Cute Wine Rack for $5







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