DIY Fix-Its: Home

A continuation from last week's subject: not-so-creative but much-needed-in-my-life DIY projects completed this month. This time, three handmade things for the home. I haven't included any instructions on how to make any of these items, as there are many online tutorials for these projects already out there. If you do need help, leave me a comment and I'll be happy to oblige.

Pillowcase. Every so often, I come across an item in a store that is terribly impractical and laughably expensive, but my fancy is tickled so hard that I buy it despite the omens. Example: extra large burlap pillow with schooner print, purchased from big box vintage-style store. I fantasized about jumping onto the ship's old-timey deck and sailing away into the sunset on its scratchy burlap sea, despite it being too large for my couch and that the fabric pokes and prickled at my skin. The bad omens continued as the pillowcase shredded with the tears and holes that a burlap fabric acquires with normal wear. So I made a new case from soft red-checked flannel and three etsy-sourced oak slice buttons to hold it all together. Goodbye salty old sailboat pillow; hello fluffy new lumberjack pillow.

Ironing board cover. I was gifted a beautiful old wooden ironing board a couple of years back, but hid it away deep in the folds of my closet, along with my strong repulsion for ironing. Fast forward to two weeks ago, at the Gladstone's flea market, where I was eyeing a large piece of worn vintage cloth between my fingers. The seller was a knowledgable textile collector, and the fabric was a 1950's floral bark cloth curtain. It was clearly the perfect material to cover an ironing board. Add in an extra bottom quilt layer and a length of twine to keep the fabric tight, and we now have a lovely cover that any ironing board owner would be proud to call their own.

Pin board. My interest in pinning on pinterest rose to a new level last week when I bought/made a real-life pin board. I'm trying to repurpose a corner of my apartment into a functioning work/craft area.  The space was lacking inspiration... what better than a good old fashioned board to pin up sketches, notes and magazine cut-outs? I craigslisted a large second-hand cork board, stretched and stapled a white canvas over the front, mounted it to the wall above my drafting table, and randomly stuck brass pins into its face. Now all I need to find is some inspiration.