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Today’s Words of Wisdom from Sylvester the Cat

Today’s words of wisdom, brought to you by Sylvester the Cat and my favorite Yogi tea. (not sponsored) “Love is the highest of all virtues.”

Right on, Sylvester.

I’m prepping for my first market since my oldest was an only child. 😬 If you’re local, come check it out. All the details are in the second photo. I’ll have all my handmade goodies from my shop out there.

Have a wonderful day!

#looneytunes #yogitea #sylvesterthecat #wordsofwisdom #smallbusiness #FortWorthTexas

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Awkwardly Modeling My Upcycled Shirts

I’ve gotten a lot of questions about my upcycled kaftan or poncho shirts. I thought many of them could be best answered by seeing them on a real person. I didn’t have a model readily available, so you get me with my camera and tripod.

I want to do a product Q&A soon, so if you have any questions, please write them in the comments or send me a message.

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Upcycled Boho Kaftan Tops and a Spooky Ouija Board

Upcycled Ouija Board Tarot Box Spirit Divination

I finally got all of the upcycled boho tops listed in the shop. I’ve been calling them poncho tops, but they’re really more kaftan-like. So Kaftan tops? Anyway.

I also finished another upcycle that I’ve been working on for over a year now. If you follow me on the socials, you’ve seen a little teaser of it. Either way, here it is!

 

This spooky box began its life as a vintage silverware storage box that had seen better days. (Of course I forgot to take before pictures. Grrr.) I gutted it, painted it, re-lined it with some lovely purple velvet and made a cute wooden planchette to go with it. I absolutely love it. It’s great for spooky or goth decor, or for storing tarot decks, crystals and ritual tools if that’s your thing. 

 

Here’s the inside. the purple is such a nice contrast to the black and silver on the outside. 

Everything above can be found in my shop. It’s all one of a kind, though, so if you see something you like, don’t miss out. 

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Sneak Peek at New Handmade Poncho-style Boho Shirts

Here’s a quick peek at some boho upcycled shirts I’ve made. They’re flowy and oversized to be one size fits most.

I’ll have them in the shop soon with all the dimensions and details listed. In the meantime, if you see one you like, feel free to contact me about it now. They’re $60+ $45+ shipping. If you’re local to Fort Worth, we can arrange pickup as well. Oh, and I’ve already claimed the first one for myself.

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Creative Ways to Upcycle Promotional Mugs

It seems like everyone has at least a couple of promotional mugs hanging out in the back of their cupboards. If you don’t, there’s hundreds at any thrift store. On the one hand, they’re actually pretty useful, as far as promo swag goes. even if you’re not a coffee or tea drinker, they’ll hold any beverage. Or, you could use them to hold pens or random desk stuff, makeup brushes, or toothbrushes. You could even use them as little planters. (Tip: plant in a nursery pot and put that inside the mug. No need to drill holes, and the mug catches the drainage. )

The problem is that the designs usually aren’t very cute, and who really wants advertisements with their morning cuppa? 

Take this mug. I like the shape. It’s a nice size and a lovely bright orange.  I could use it as-is, but the orange reminds me of the orange VW my husband drove way back when, and I don’t even know what idstc is. So, I decided to cover it with vinyl.

My Mug Upcycle Method

First, I measured the height and width of the logo. Then, I used Cricut Design Space to create my design, a VW bug, of course. (If you don’t have a cutting machine, don’t worry. I have ideas for you, too.) I made sure that my Bug was a little bigger than the logo. After that, It was just cut out the design in permanent vinyl and apply. Voila!

(Or, rather, cut it out, realizing after the first cut that you had the wrong color loaded, so you end up making a set in your original color scheme and one in the inverse. Then mess up applying one side so you do one side of the mug in the original, and the other side in the inverse colors only to decide you actually like the inverse better. But you leave it as is because you don’t want to risk messing it up trying to change it. )

Other Methods 

Now, if you don’t have a cutting machine, you could use a big sticker. Clear contact paper does an excellent job making them water-resistant. I did that to cover a graduation logo on a water tumbler that worked well. You could also cut a heart or other simple shape out of adhesive vinyl or contact paper. I find lots of it at thrift stores. Dollar Tree also sells vinyl as well as sticker paper. 

Another option that I haven’t tried is adhesive chalkboard paper. I think it would be so cute to be able to write little notes on a coffee cup. I’m not sure how well it would hold up to moisture, though.

So far, I’ve only hand washed any of the mugs and tumblers I’ve decorated with vinyl. I don’t think putting them in the dishwasher is the best idea. I really hate handwashing dishes, though, so at some point it will probably happen. When it does, I’ll let you know how it holds up. 

Share Your Upcycles

Share your upcycled mugs in the comments or on our Facebook page. 

Don’t Forget!

On a different note, don’t forget my digital and printable planners are all only $0.99 through August 22, as well as all of my single machine embroidery files. I’ve also made some more of my older machine embroidery designs freebies, so be sure to check them out. 

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Limited Time: Digital Planners and Journals for Only $0.99

Hello lovelies! If you follow me on all the socials, you know I owe you a quick how-to on this:

But, I haven’t written it yet. I apologize.

I did want to let you know, though, that I added some new planners/journals to my shop. There’s a Meal Planner, a Reading Journal, and a Fitness Journal now, as well as a set of Literary Terms posters for my teacher friends. I may get some more added tomorrow, if the kiddos don’t keep me too busy to work on them tonight. They are all in PDF format, so you can either print the pages you want or use them with a digitally with something like Goodnotes

Now for the SALE part: ALL digital products that are normally $5 are on sale for $0.99. That’s all the planners, journals, and all of my machine embroidery designs. I have also made a few more of my older embroidery designs FREEBIES! 

Please, check them out. If they’re not for you, but you know someone who would like them, please share. 

This sale only lasts through August 22, so don’t miss out!

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Easy DIY Talc-Free Body Powder

DIY Body Powder SubEarthan Cottage

It’s hot outside. Like really sticky, sweaty hot. If you’re looking for a talc-free body powder to help you through it, I’ve got a recipe for you.

While you can purchase talc-free powder, making it yourself is simple, allows you to customize it, and is super inexpensive. Better yet, you probably already have everything you need.

Body Powder Recipe

Ingredients:

3/4 cup of Cornstarch

1/4 cup of Baking Soda

10-ish Drops of essential oil (optional)

Make it:

Combine the cornstarch and baking soda in a bowl or jar. Give it a stir or shake to mix. If you’re using an essential oil, add it now, then stir or shake some more to distribute.

Use it:

I keep mine in a jar and use a fluffy makeup brush to dust it where I need it. It works great as an all-over dusting powder, deodorant and shoe deodorizer. You can also dust a little in your hair in place of dry shampoo. For that, I like to put it in my hair at night and then brush it out in the morning.

Customize it:

The basic recipe is 3 parts cornstarch to 1 part baking soda, so you can use that 3:1 ratio to make as much or as little as you need. 

Add more or less essential oil based on your preference. You can also use your favorite perfume to make a coordinating dusting powder.

If you find this formula too drying, reduce the amount of baking soda, or omit it all together.

Not a fan of cornstarch? Try using arrowroot. I personally haven’t tried it, so if you do, let me know how it works.

For babies, I recommend just plain cornstarch as baking soda might be too harsh. If you want to scent it, add a couple of drops of lavender essential oil. Essential oils aren’t generally recommended for babies under six months, so take that into consideration. 

If you like using this as a dry shampoo and have dark hair, you can add a little bit of cocoa powder to the mix to make it less noticeable if you don’t get it brushed out completely.

Re-purpose a shaker jar, such as a spice or Parmesan cheese jar, rather than using a brush or puff to dispense.



Find more of my tutorials here: Tutorials.