the crafty copycat gets framed

Cleanliness may be next to godliness, but I swear in the blogosphere craftiness is next to godliness. So please don't hold it against me that DIY crafts don't really come naturally to me. I didn't grow up in a crafty household (though I did accompany my mom to a cake decorating class when I was three, and still remember all of the praise I received for basically piling a bunch of frosting on top of a cake. Come on, people. Even I knew it was ugly, and I just squirted all that frosting out because it was satisfying to make a big, pink mess. Apparently I could tell when people were patronizing me from a pretty early age. But I digress as usual.)

Enter good old Pinterest. Now people like me, to whom crafty ideas don't naturally occur, can see things we like and say, "Oooh, I can make that."

And so I did.

I came across this photo on Pinterest, and pinned it to my DIY ideas board, and then kinda forgot about it.

(Source: Kevin and Amanda. I resolve to be better about providing actual sources, not just saying Pinterest is the source, since it's only fair to give people credit.)

But then after a few months, I noticed that I had actually printed several variations of the same thing, from different sources. And so I had to accept the inevitable conclusion: It was time to find a funky old frame and make an earring hanger.

I'm slowly figuring out that most DIY stuff is actually super easy, and the only trick is actually doing it, which is about 99 percent more effort than most people are willing to put into things. It's like getting an award for good attendance. But that's really encouraging to non-craftily-inclined persons such as myself. And this project was really easy too.

The hardest part was picking the color for the frame, and I used a bunch of little Benjamin Moore testers to decide. I also opted to use hemp cord instead of picture frame wire, since I wanted a softer, more natural look.

I finally settled on a nice, soft, sagey green from the craft store ($.50, which is a whole lot cheaper than testers of latex paint from the big box).

I used a foam brush, and put on several coats, being sure to get into all of those little crannies in my $5 flea market frame.

And that slightly glossy finish? That would be thanks to some low odor Krylon.

As for attaching the cords to the back of the frame, I'm both embarrassed and proud to tell you that I used a stapler. Not a staple gun. A desk stapler. And though it took more staples than a staple gun would have taken, it did the job. (This is what happens when you're trying to commute between homes. You're crafting in one city, but your tools are in the other place. And you find ways to make do.)

I used triple strands of the hemp cord to give the earrings something more substantial to hang from, and I'm really glad I tripled up. I love how it turned out, and now just have to decide whether to take it to Truckee or keep it in LA. I know. Bourgeois problems.

But I didn't stop there.

I saw this really cute idea in Better Homes and Gardens to make a Thanksgiving message board where everyone who is at Thanksgiving dinner can post what they're thankful for. (I haven't been able to find a picture of this on their website, so will scan in the magazine page soon!) Since Thanksgiving is my most favoritest holiday in the whole world, I was all about that idea.

Using another $5 flea market frame, a few coats of craft paint, and a coat of low odor Krylon clear finish, I had the neutral frame I wanted. And I made the backing out of some linen from the remnant bin at the fabric store, some foam board, and a little spray adhesive.

Popped that into the frame, and voila. An autumn-appropriate message board for posting notes of thanks. This one we will definitely take up to Truckee for our Thanksgiving dinner, even if it ends up being a feast for two. We'll still have tons to be thankful for.

So, all you crafty people, you. I'm dying to know. Where do you get your amazing craft ideas?

Like Ashley at Domestic Fashionista who does So. Many. Ridiculously. Cute. Projects. None of them hokey or tacky. All this inspiring blend of sophistication and homeyness. Or Rita. Or some of the talented bloggers Lindsey features at Better After. Please tell me that I'm not the only one out there "borrowing" other people's cool ideas!

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xoxo,