Welcome to the 165th Metamorphosis Monday!
For this Metamorphosis Monday, I’m sharing some neat little transformations you can make right at home. I was inspired by this wood tray I saw in a local Ballard Designs Outlet recently on a shopping trip.
Come a bit closer and take a look. Not the greatest pics since they were taken with my camera phone and it’s dark inside Ballard Designs…but I think you’ll get the idea.)
Collect some vintage yard sticks and rulers and make a fabulous one-of-a-kind tray or table top. Don’t forget to apply a few coats of polyurethane or wax to protect the surface from drink spills and rings. I’ve been keeping my eye out while antiquing but haven’t been able to find any neat old yardsticks. They seem to be pretty scarce these days. You could also take new yardsticks, beat them up a bit and age them with stain or paint to get a vintage look without the cost of vintage yardsticks.
Pinterest Inspired Yardstick Ideas:
Here are come more things you can do with yardsticks. All these are from Pinterest. Click HERE to visit my “Yardstick” inspiration Pin Board, then click on any photo on the board to follow the pins back to the original source.
You can make a backdrop for wall hooks. Really, all you would need to do is nail or use a liquid nails wood glue to attach old yardsticks to a board. Then just attach your coat hooks through the yardsticks into the board.
Love sunburst mirrors? Make one from rulers and yardsticks.
I love this! Fun!
You could even make a basket! When you think about it, rulers/yardsticks are just thin strips of wood. So anything you can make with strips of wood, you can probably make it with yardsticks.
A Use for Those Old Ceiling Fans That No Long Work:
Check out what Lucy did with discarded table legs and fan blades. The table legs became the body and the old fan blades became the wings for these whimsical dragonflies! You can read her tutorial HERE.
I am kicking myself right now for donating this rickety old fan when I changed it out for…
…a chandelier in my bedroom. (You can view this mini-renovation HERE.) Really wishing I had kept the fan blades now. I could have made a couple of dragonflies for the walls of my screened-in porch.
Trash to Treasure:
I’ve shared this neat “trash to treasure” metamorphosis once before on BNOTP, but I had to include it again in this post since it fits right in. Remember this scene from our tour of the home in the movie Practical Magic, HERE. See the wind chimes hanging in the tree? They are made from discarded flatware: spoons, knives, forks, etc…
A few weeks later I was shopping in downtown Marietta, Georgia and found these wind chimes hanging outside a local antique shop. They instantly took me back to the movie.
This would be so easy to make from discarded tins, beads and those odd pieces of flatware we all have. Just string some beads on nylon thread/fishing line, attach flatware to the end, and punch a few holes in the bottom of your tin. You’ll need to tie the ends of the nylon thread around something inside the tin to keep them from slipping back through. Popsicle sticks would do the trick. This tin even had a handle for hanging the wind chime. Very cool!
Wind Chimes and Votive Holders from Discarded Bottles:
Recently, I was shopping in Big Lots and came across this wind chime. Let’s take a closer look.
It’s basically an old bottle with the bottom cut out. Then jute was tied to a ring at the top (see above pic) and shells were attached. A larger ring was tied to the other end, along with more shells. The large ring is what makes the “music” when the wind blows. By the way, it’s easy to drill tiny holes through shells. You can see how I did it in THIS tutorial when I created some beach themed bottles. There are several tutorials online showing how to cut the bottom out of a bottle. Just Google it and you’ll find them all.
When I saw those wind chimes in Big Lots, it reminded me of another fun craft idea I had seen when I was in Macon for “Christmas Made in the South.”
They aren’t wind chimes…can you tell what they are? Let’s get a little closer and see how these are made.
Again, we have bottles with the bottoms cut out, but this time votive holders have been hung inside the bottles from chain. You would have to drill holes through the edges of the votive holders to attach the them to the chain, unless you could find some already designed with holes. I think the right drill bit would do the job. I drilled a hole through a flower pot once using a ceramic bit I bought at Home Depot and it worked great. So they probably make drill bits for drilling through glass. Maybe a ceramic bit would work for this, too. Ummm…anyone out there ever drilled through glass? If so, please share!
Note the ring at the top inside the bottle. That’s what keeps everything in place inside. They have added jute to the tops and bottoms of some of the bottles, similarly to how I did in my beach bottle tutorial, HERE.
I love the addition of the beads and etching on the outside…very pretty. It would be easy to attach beads to the outside with a good epoxy adhesive. There are lots of tutorials online showing how to etch designs into glass if you wish to decorate a bottle with etching. Wouldn’t these be pretty lit up in the evening, hanging on a porch or from a pergola for a summertime party?
So there ya have it…a few fun crafts you can DIY this spring! If I end up making any of these, I’ll be sure to share. If you make them, send me some pics at betweennapsontheporchatgmaildotcom! I’d love to see!
Looking forward to all the Before and Afters!
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Metamorphosis Monday:
If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday you will need to link up the “permalink” to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the “url” box for InLinkz.
In order to link up, you’ll need to include a link in your MM post back to the party.
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PLEASE DO NOT type in all caps…it spreads the links waaaay out. Thanks!
Let’s try something fun today! Please visit the person who linked before you and after you…that way everyone will get some visits. Hope you’ll visit more, of course.
Welcome! Thanks for coming to the party!
I am so happy to join you again and will be back later to see all the great ideas, because I sure need some fresh decorating ideas right about now.
Thank You!
I love all of those yard stick projects and the bottle projects too! Thanks for hosting this party Susan!
Hugs,
Penny
What wonderful ideas for repurposing and recycling!! Thanks for hosting Susan!
Love these ideas! The dragonflies are adorable! It makes me sad that I junked our old ceiling fan, too. Thanks for sharing.
Love those wooden ruler projects, so many fun ideas!! Thanks for hosting this lovely party, I finally had some time to make a project this week!
Amazing ideas! Thanks for hosting!
HI Susan, what great inspiration. Love all of the yardstick and ruler projects. Thanks so much for hosting!
Marianne 🙂
What fun projects. I just love the bottles. One of my favorite restaurants in Cabo has a huge chandelier made out of hanging bottles, not with votives though. How much prettier that would be!
thank you Susan for letting me be part of your MM today. It's such fun. Who knew all the great things you can do with yardsticks. I have a very old one bolted to my work table in my studio and when I find them at sales and put them in my booth they go very quickly.
Thanks for sharing so many neat ideas! I love the tray!
Great ideas this week! Thanks for hosting and hope you have a wonderful day, Gail
You always have the most amazing ideas! Thanks for sharing the wind chimes and yardstick ideas! Thank you for hosting another great link party too. I always enjoy seeing such inspiring projects!
Cool & inexpensive ideas, right?
This is my first joining your Metamorphosis Monday! I been planning to join awhile ago, however, I used to forget to link our projects & even some copycats or so.
Am enjoying your memes… TY for hosting.
Greetings from a stormy Stockholm,
/chie
Great ideas!! Thanks so much for hosting again. Have a wonderful week!
Love those dragonflies and old rulers!
Jeanine
Thanks so much for hosting every week!
Hugs,
Debbie
What fun ideas! I LOVE the dragon fly idea…and that tin with silverware is in my future! 🙂 I linked up my milk jug/nail polish wreath decorations, so I'm loving the ideas of using old items in new ways! Thanks for the fun!!
thank you once again my friend for a FABULOUS and WONDERFUL party!!! sending tons of hugs…
I am SO happy that you featured the links to the tutorial for turning old fan blades into those adorable dragonflies! I had one fan about to hit the dumpster. Saved! Thank you! And thanks again for hosting another Metamorphosis Monday! 🙂
Kari – http://www.bigplanslittlevictories.com
I love your upcycled finds and projects–my favorites are the ruler tray and the giant dragonflies! Thank you for hosting this blog party!
Amy
Such fun and creative ideas. I always wonder where people would put this creations in their homes? I would if I had a loft apartment kind, like the ones some people have in Tribeca, NYCity, or other big city lofts,where you can appreciate it in a wide range view. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for hosting Susan and having me.
FABBY
Thank you for hosting the party! Many great ideas here.
I've made racks with yardsticks and hooks before. Thanks for the other ideas. Thanks for hosting, as well.
Thank you for hosting.
Hi Susan,
Drilling holes in glass: when we made nightlights out of glass blocks we used a spade drill bit (small pointed tip with a flat blade). My hubby did the drilling while I kept the bit end and glass wet with a spray bottle of water. Nice clean cut. We put a string of 20 minilights in each and had the cord run along one side of the bottom in the channel. Little bit of white electrical tape to hold it in place.
Love the yardstick tray!! Just so fun and great look!
Miss Bloomers
Wonderful ideas, Susan! Thanks for the inspiration, as always.
The images of the bottles are fabulous.
I am going back for another look at those, as well as some of the links.
Thanks for hosting as always.
Thanks for hosting!!
Maggie
I love reading all the information and inspiration on your blog! It makes my day!
Take care,
Luanne
PS: Happy Last Day Before Spring!
I've often wondered what can be done with old ceiling fans and those bottle's are beautiful. Pinning that one for my daughters who are really into bottle craft lately.
~Bliss~
Des idées exceptionnelles et sensationnelles… gros bisous
Wow!! This post is packed with great diy ideas. Thanks for having a great party every Monday.
xo
Betty
Great ideas! I love those dragonflies. Very cool. Thanks for hosting and have a great week!
Oh, Susan… what does it mean when your everyday flatware from your 1970 bridal registry is now being used to make wind chimes and sold from an "antique" shop! :-\ I am sure the knives and forks make a lovely sound in the warm southern breezes!
Susan, I am loving all the creativity with vintage yardsticks!
Thank you for hosting and sharing all the fun!
I love yard sticks, too!
I did my kiddo's nursery as an old school house theme and I used old yardsticks to create door headers above all the doors and windows in his room. I was AWESOME!
Thanks for hosting!
-Joanne
I love the use of old yardsticks and rulers to create both art and functional things! Same thing goes for glass bottles. I'm on the look-out for some clear pendants that look like big glass bottles. Luscious…..
Thanks for hosting the party once again. Now go find some fan blades!!
Love the trash to treasure, Susan! Thanks for hosting!…hugs…Debbie
Always enjoy it when I can join your fun party! I think yours was probably one of the first that I joined years ago!
Thanks for taking the time to host this wonderful party again this week!! Inspiring features here, especially the yardstick projects! Have a wonderful week 🙂
Heather @ settingforfour.blogspot.com
Thank you for hosting! The yardstick inspiration is wonderful!
Lynn, they appear to be hot items these days.
Chie…glad you joined in today!
Oh, can't wait to see the wind chime you create!
Fabby, the dragonflies look great on porches/fences.
Chris, you guys sound like a great team! A smart team, too! Thanks for the tip!
Luanne, you're right! It's felt like spring for so many weeks here in Georgia, I forgot it wasn't already here.
Susan, did you recognize your pattern in one of the pics? I didn't look at them very closely for pattern. I hope it's not your pattern! Sorry about that! 🙂
Sue, if I see any online somewhere, I'll let you know.
Thanks, Mary Ellen! I'm honored to have you here…and glad you are!
What a wonderful collection of great ideas, Susan!! I ♥♥♥ those windchimes with the colorful beads.
I have drilled through glass before & it helps if someone else can stand beside you to pour a steam of cold water over the area as you drill. It gets really hot & can crack otherwise.
We made holes in glass blocks so we could fill them with white lights. You can see my project here:
2009/11/gratitude.html
I don't have anything to join this week's MM with but I'm hoping my paint dries in time for me to play NEXT Monday!
Hugs,
Rett
Love the yard stick stair treads! What a great idea!! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for hosting, and thanks for sharing some fantastic inspiration! Have a great week!
Great job and really creative – I could never come up with that! Love the dragonfly choice, too