Hot Air Balloon "Mobile"

The project that I am going to share with you today is one that I have been so excited to showcase but I couldn't until today, because it is a gift for my friend Bonnie, (who reads this blog!)
Bonnie is a new mom! She had a beautiful baby girl about 7 weeks ago...

One thing that you would learn about Bonnie pretty quick if you knew her for very long is that she loves Hot-Air Balloons! Knowing this I knew that I wanted to make her one for the nursery...after many ideas (and a few failures) this is what I came up with!

 And...happy to report that she loved it. I am actually planning on making a few more so that she can hang them at various levels above the crib. So, want to make one yourself? Here is what you will need! 

Styrofoam ball 

Favorite Fabric cur into 1" strips. (A fabric with lots of pattern works better) 

Twine or yarn 

Ribbon 

30 gauge wire and a pen

Mini basket 

Hot Glue Gun 

Anything you want to use to accessorize your balloon

Such a fun project and I know what they are going to look so cute mounted above the crib. (FYI- there is a little mini-mirror on the bottom of the basket) I'll post some pictures of them all hung up once the other two are finished! 

I can't believe that is is Wednesday already! I hope that you all are having a beautiful week- any big plans...I'd love to hear what you have all been up to! 

AND - just a friendly reminder if you don't already...I'd love for you to follow me here on Walnut Street so that you can keep up on all that is in store this spring! Thanks for visiting.
Hope to see you back real soon!

Antique Side-Table Gets a Facelift!

Happy Monday, Lovelies!
I hope that you all had a wonderful weekend!

So, are you all sick of my furniture make-overs yet...? - I promise that I have some other things on the agenda for this week so you can have some relief from the restoration marathon here on Walnut Street...but today I do want to show you one more...
just for good measure!

I picked up this little table at a local Antique Mall for 15 bucks. Now...when I say it was in ROUGH shape...let me tell you, IT WAS BAD! The pictures actually don't do justice to how beat up and DIRTY it was! But after a good scrubbing and sanding the top we were ready to rock.

I am totally on this kick right now where I just can't get enough of dark wood tops with light painted bases for furniture! I really debated as to the color that I wanted to use. This little guy almost ended up blue, like my bench...but I have done quite a few blue pieces recently, so...it ended up off-white with a little distressing.
Maybe I'm crazy, but typically on these pieces I end up working longer on the distressing then on the painting (I have no idea if that is normal...) But I really like the distressing to look natural, without looking junky or trashy!

So, without further adieu...Here is how it turned out!

This is another of the pieces that I will have for sale at the Antiques in the Alley show in May - so if you love it (and you are local) mark your calendars and make sure to come out and visit me in Millersburg on Saturday, May 12th!

On a slightly related note: I'm SO tempted to try my hand at glazing on a piece...almost tried it on this one but was a little scared that I would ruin it! LOL...any thoughts on the subject...? Have you done it? Do you like the look?

Penny for your thoughts!

And - before i go I want to extend a warm WELCOME to all the new friends that we have gained in the last month! I know that there are several of you and I just wanted to take a minute to let you know that I am so glad that you are here and that I hope that you will love being here as much as I love having you! With all of the trash that can be found online these days, I just think that it is so beautiful what a community of encouragement, support, and creativity that we have the opportunity to build through blogging! From the bottom of my heart, I am thankful for each one of you and am so happy to share a little bit of my life on Walnut Street with you all!

Big Hugs,

Sarah

Summer Bench

Recently the Yoder house has been like a furniture factory! I'm only a little over a month away from my show and boy do I have A LOT that I need to get done! Hubbs asked me this week what it is that I love about working on re-purposed pieces...I almost didn't know how to answer him, but after a few days worth of thought this is what I came up with:

1. I love the process of creating.

2. I love surprising people with how beautiful something that they thought was "old and ugly" can become

3. I love working with my hands and the challenge that some of the pieces present me with.

4. I love I am recycling and hopefully teaching people that money + new stuff doesn't always = beauty. Sometimes, resourcefulness, creativity, and a little patience is all you need.

When I saw this little table at a local antique mall for 6 bucks I knew just what I wanted to do!

Almost instantly I thought of this lovely green striped fabric that I have had for ages...I ended up using a little padding (not too much) and upholstered the top. The legs got a fresh face-lift too! Here is how it turned out.

Wouldn't it be lovely as a hall bench in a cottage or summer house...or maybe a small coffee table for a sun room? Can't go wrong with a classic stripe! I love it...what have you all been working on this weekend? 

Old Bread Box

This is for my good friend, Lori over at Bleak 2 Unique who apparently, like myself, has no patience for surprises! - LOL!
I thought that I would go ahead and show the WHOLE project...start to finish!

This is an old bead box that I found...where else?
(The Goodwill) for 5 bucks! 

I'm considering doing even a little more sanding,
what do you all think?

Vintage Picture Frame

I  bought this old vintage picture frame at our local thrift store for 3 bucks! 

Here is the long process that I took on to transform it...are you ready? 

1. clean 

2. tape off the mat 

3. paint 

4. distress

5. stand back and pat myself on the back! 

Okay...so I didn't ACTUALLY do that last one, but I am super pleased with how it ended up. I'm not often a fan of things that are gold/brass but I LOVE the little peak of gold glittering out from under the blue paint! Can't wait to show you what I plan to do with it NEXT...

Now, here is where I am going to ask for your forgiveness ahead-of-time! The next month is sure to be filled with a lot of "sneak-peak" type posts...with a great big reveal of all the projects and pieces that I plan on taking to the Antiques in the Alley event in May! 

Stay tuned... and I promise you won't be sorry. 

Sarah

Spring Blessings

Such a beautiful day today here on Walnut Street. We don't have the heat running anymore in the house, but I can't bring myself to turn on the AC in MARCH...so I have all the doors and windows flung open! 

This was the first morning that I walked to and from work and I just love it! As you can see from the pictures above my pear tress are just about to "pop" and the hyacinth and forsythia are in full bloom!

We got these forsythia bushes at the end of the year last year on clearance so I didn't know how well they would do this year, but all five that we planed are blooming! (Happy dance!)

Isn't it's amazing when we stop and think about all of the beautiful things that our God created for us to enjoy! What a truly CREATIVE God we serve! 

The fact that we have had an unusually warm winter/spring here in the midwest is something that I'll never complain about...This time last year we were finishing up building our home and it was RAINING...I'm serious...It rained all but 3 days in March of last year. Admittedly, I was not a happy girl. All I could think about was the fact that we couldn't grade the yard with everything so sloppy...ungraded yard meant no grass seeds and no sidewalks poured! Each and every night I went to bed praying it would be sunny the next day and each morning that I woke up and it wasn't...I was grumpy! 

My boss finally said something to me at work one day that really convicted me. I think that he was meaning it as a little joke, but (he was right) and it spoke to me. He said, "You know in the Old Testament rain was a sign of God's favor on His people." - WOW...and there I was complaining about it! Looking back at that time now one year later I realize a couple of things. 

1.) It will be okay when life doesn't go according to my plans!  - I was so stuck in looking at the situation from the timeline that I had established in my own mind that the fact that it wasn't happening the way that I had planned seemed, at the time... devastating. In reality...it was no biggy! One year later and we are still in our new home. The yard has grass growing...and I even have things blooming! Things didn't go "my way" and (shockingly) it wasn't the end of the world...or my yard!

Isaiah 55:8 - “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

2.) Trust and be thankful to the Lord for the blessings when He sends them! - The fact that this year has been unusually warm has left many people trying to figure out why? We study the weather patterns, we compare charts to what it "should be" for this time of year and we assign some scientific reason as to why things are BUT then I am reminded of what I was reminded of last year about God's blessing. Couldn't it be that this mild winter and beautiful spring is God's blessing? Do we always have to find a reason "why?" or can we not just enjoy what he has given to us this day? 

Hebrews 6:7 For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God!

I would encourage us all today that during this beautiful spring that we are experiencing make it a point to carve out some time to just sit and be amazed at all the beauty that God has created on this earth for us to enjoy - glory in it...and thank Him for it!

Be Blessed

Sarah

Antiques in the Alley

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time then you probably realize by now, that I LOVE DIY projects, especially if they involve refinishing or repurposing  used or discarded items. I've always had a crafty side, but have only recently realized how much I like to breathe new life into salvaged items. 

One of the goals that I set for myself this year was to get enough re-purposed furniture and craft projects together by May to set up a booth at a local antique festival called "Antiques in the Alley" - I have like 6 weeks. The date for this year is Saturday, May 12th and I am going out on a limb and have rented a booth space! 

So far I have a little of everything...Furniture, Art, Home Decor...and (for an added bonus) my friend Cindy is going to be selling her hand-made jewelry! I'm really excited, (and nervous) about this. It seems like 6 weeks is a good long time away, but I'm wondering if I am going to be able to get everything done that I want to by then!

I guess, we'll see! Right now I have many, many projects that are all about half way completed! (Story of my life, right?) I am going to post pictures of all the items that I am taking to the festival before too long! I can't wait to show you all what I have been working on! 

I'd love to hear what you all have planned for the spring! 

Photoshop Friday

Happy Friday Gang! 

Thanks for joining me again for another week of Photoshop Friday! Today I want to show you a feature that you already have built into Photoshop that you just might not ever have noticed or used before. It is in your standard Tool Bar but it might be hidden under the Rectangle Tool...it is called the Custom Shape Tool. Remember that tool that has a that tiny little black triangle in the corner will have other similar tools hidden beneath it. Simply click and hold to reveal a fly out menu with other options. 

http://www.tothepc.com/archives/add-fancy-custom-shapes-to-images-in-photoshop/

One you have the tool selected you can change your custom  shape with a drop down menu that is located in the menu bar along the top of the screen. Initially you may not have too many choices to pick from but that is also easily fixed! 

Go to the shape drop down menu. 

Click the small black arrow at the top right of the menu.

Select All. 

You should now have A TON of custom shapes that you can use. 

The shapes that these tools create are actually made using a vector mask...don't worry if you don't know what that is! We will cover "masks" next week. What that means for you now is that:

Once you make your shape on your artboard...

Create another empty layer...

Select both the empty layer and the layer that you have your shape on

Merge them together using (Command/Control E)

Now you have your shape on a layer that is no longer a vector mask and you will easily be able to manipulate it. 

Once you have the shape at this point you can all kind of stuff with it...use a filter, drop shadow, fill with a gradient, bevel and emboss...the list goes on and on!

The creative possibilities are basically endless with this tool! Here is just a little sample of a printable that I quickly put together for St. Patty's Day!

Here are all the shapes that I used. 

And here is the finished product! 

Here are some of my other favorite shapes! 

I hope that you will all take a little time this week and play around with this tool. (Can you say...blog buttons?) Have a super weekend and thanks for visiting!

Sneak Peak!

Here is a little sneak peak of what I have been working on for the last day or two! I got this antique 3/4 bed off of craigslist for 25 bucks and it is about half way though it's metamorphosis into a chic new hall bench! - What do you think?

Tag. You're it! - 11 Things

Here's the Deal! 
 

Post a photo and 11 random things about yourself
 Answer the questions that the person who tagged you asks
Create 11 new Questions for the people you tag!
Contact them and let them know they have been tagged!

I was tagged by my sweet, friend Kylee over at Sincerely, Kylee! Make sure to pop over and say hi! You'll love her!


Okay...so this is me!

11 things about myself...yikes! Okay here we go! - These are a little silly, but unless you know me VERY well, you probably won't know these!

1. I am really digging the new cd by Noel Gallagher - High Flying Birds. If the name doesn't ring a bell you might know Noel (pronounced Nole , not No-el, like christmas time...) as the slightly less crazy half of the 90's band Oasis.

2. Right now I am working on transforming an old antique 3/4 size bed into a bench! Can't wait to be able to share with you all the pictures when it is finished.

3. I like to eat mustand on my grilled potatoes. (I know...it's a little weird) In the summer-time Mom always grilled thinly sliced potatoes on the grill in aluminum foil - a little mustard on top and I am a happy girl! Reminds meof cookouts as a kid!

4. I HATE driving through the mountains! (no, let me back-up...) I hate riding in the car while others drive through the mountains. I have anxiety like you would not believe when I have to do this. In my mind I know that I am being crazy...but my stomach gets sick, and I am always pretty sure that we are going to drive right off the side!

5. I could spend every Saturday morning at the hardware store and be happy BUT I sort of hate shopping for clothes/shoes! I just love the feeling of all the possibilities when I walk into the hardware store...so many projects at my fingertips!

6. I use to always think that my favorite time of year was by far, the fall...but as I get older I realize that I really love spring so much, that now I am indecisive about which I look forward to most! But after living in Ohio for 5 years I think it is the allure of sunshine, long evenings, and blooming flowers that has caused my heart to stray!

7. Somewhere along the line I was taught that the correct answer to "How are you?" was - "I am well, thank you." (Instead of  "I'm good!") so it drives me a little crazy that most people answer with "Good. How are you?" - and then I always feel a little snotty when I answer back with "I'm WELL, thank you."

8. I have an insatiable sweet-tooth! I'm telling you...it's really bad! (Not even chocolate, really)...more like starburst, gummy bears, or taffy...Hubbs on the other  hand, does not! (Which is probably better because we don't keep much of that stuff in the house.) - Looking back, I wish that I would have thought of the idea of a "candy bar" at our wedding!

9. Currently, I am watching back episodes of HGTV's design star online...and it makes me angry enough that I have found myself "yelling" at the screen that these people can't finish a room on time! You have 10 grand and like 4 people to do the labor...how is it possible not to finish? - Secretly, I like to believe that if I were on that show...I would totally win!

10. I don't like reading books! I know, I know...it is terrible! So know you know my deep, dark, intelectually dissapointing secret! I'm just not much of a book reader (ficton reader, that is) I do love to read blogs, magazines, online articles - but I would have NO idea who was/is on the top 10 best sellers list! 

11. I miss living by water. I lived in Florida for 12 years (in Orlando) so I never lived all that close to the ocean, but Florida is just littered with lakes, ponds, streams...and I miss having so much water around me. (Although when I lived in Florida, I missed seeing corn standing in the fields, so I guess I better just take what I can get and be happy!) 

Now...for Kylee's Questions!

1) What's your favorite book? - Ha! This is funny considering my answer to number 10 above! I should also say that I read more plays then books, but if I had to pick a book it would be A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

2) If you could go to a different fictional universe, which one would it be? - Hu? Um... I am not too sure that I know how to answer this...I don't if this qualifies, but I would choose the

family from Arrested Development! I'd be the neighbor or something...anything to get close to that much crazy!

3) How do you relax? - Crafting, re-purposing furniture, gardening, cooking... I know it sounds like the opposite of "relaxing" but I hate being bored. I'd rather be doing SOMETHING!

4) What is one tangible object you can't live without? - I am going to risk sounding nerdy and go with my mac. It pretty much has my whole life on it.

5) What's your perfect day like? - Waking up after 10am to sunshine streaming in the window...brunch at a great little vegitarian place downtown with hubbs, quick shopping trip to pick up any supplies for the afternoon's project...Pandora streaming great music on my phone and then home to work out in the yard. Hubbs grills out for dinner and we eat out on the porch. A long walk with the puppies after dinner and then head down to the coffee shop to hear some music!

6) What's your fav TV show? - Right now? Smash on NBC.

7) How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? - 45 minutes (if I have to shower and blow dry my hair)

8) All is fair in love and war. True or False? - False! Nothing is ever worth hurting other people.

9) What is your favorite website/blog? Give a link. - When I grown up I want to be like Cassie from Primitive & Proper

10) What's your vice? - Coffee. (and maybe, emo music)

11) Where do you see yourself in 5 years? - Oh my goodness...who knows! Rich & Famous I guess! Ha, no really, I would like to be working from home, with or without a child (We will have to wait and see) Traveling more and back down to my goal weight (before we got married)

I am tagging:

Heather Lay from A Cupcake Love Affair

Rachel from Adventures of a DIY Mom

Lori from Bleak 2 Unique

My Cousin, Brianna at The Hale Family

Krissy from Sterrett Street

JoEllen from Hummel Land, USA

Jana from Flourishing in God's Love

Janis at All Things Beautiful

Erika at Southern Blle as an Amy Wfe

Angela at The Rodda 3

Here are my Question!

1. What is your favorite time of day/day of the week/month of the year?
2. What sound do you love?
3. If you could choose to stay a certain age forever, what age would it be?
4. If you could meet anyone, living or dead, who would you meet?
5. What songs are included on the soundtrack to your life?
6. When was the last time you were nervous?
7. What story does your family always tell about you?
8. If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?
9. Tell us about a person (other then your spouse) that changed your life!
10. What is one website (besides Facebook) that you go to daily?
11. Over the years who do your regret loosing contact with?

Photoshop Friday - Two for One

Okay people! Friday again and another week of Photoshop Friday! Some of you may have noticed that last week we didn't have a Photoshop Friday post...it was such a crazy week...but I am hoping to make it up to you this week with a sort of "Double Feature" But for both tips we are going to start with this photo! Wouldn't you love to be there right now? 

*Please note that Sarah Yoder, nor anyone affiliated with Walnut Street Creative has permission to professionally duplicate, print, or distribute these images.  We make no claims in regards to ownership of these images and they are being used solely for education and demonstration purposes.*

As always please view images in lightbox for more detail.

Photo Credit: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Portland-Head-Light-House.jpg

Nice image but the sky is a little boring! So, we are going to "drop in" a new one! Step one is to use your Magic Wand tool to select the sky so that we can delete it nice and clean and insert the new one. You can adjust the tolerance so that you can select more or less of the blue sky color at a time. You might have to make a few selections in order to get it all, but once you do your image should look like this.

Next we need to find a sky picture with some more interesting clouds. It is really important to choose an image that was taken from a similar angle and perspective and that is at least close to the same color balance and saturation. This is the one that I chose. 

Photo Credit: 
http://www.buenosairesphotographer.com/2009/03/pampas-blue-sky-clouds-and-soy-beans.html

Once you move the new sky image behind the original lighthouse you will have something that looks like this. At this point I was not super pumped about how the new clouds looked so I decided to flip the image - and as you can see...much better!

I thought that the blue of the new sky was close but just a little off so I did a quick adjustment on the saturation and lightness settings.

And there you have it - new sky... just like that! This tip is also pretty handy for images that are taken on cloudy or stormy days that you'd like to clean up a little.

So now that we have a pretty fancy image to work with...here is what I really want to show you! It's not so much of a "tip" because the filter that we are going to use is actually built right into the program but chances are that you may have never known about it! 

We are going to use the "sphereize" filter to produce a "faux" fish eye lenses look!

The real trick to this look is to make sure that you have the center of your image focused on something interesting because most of the distortion is going to happen only around the edges. 

Step 1: With your elliptical marquee tool make a circle selection around the part of the image that you want to use.

After you have made your selection go to "select" and "inverse" - now you have the outside of the circle selected so that you can delete it.

Once you have the outer part deleted, you will want to crop the photo down as close to the image circle as you can. If you skip this step the filer won't really work right. Next go to "filter" then "distort" and finally "sphereize" The box that pops up should be set to 100% and mode should be normal. Hit OK and watch Photoshop do the work!

We are almost done...just drop in a black background and one more thing to adjust on your main image...I added a bevel and emboss layer style to the image to soften the edges a bit and make it look a little more rounded!

Tah-Dah! That's it...pretty easy right?

Here is the finished image...with our new sky and the fisheye lenses effect!Cool right? And SUPER easy!

I hope that these neat little tricks will help you all forgive me for bailing on you last week! I am so humbled and excited about the success and attention that Photoshop Friday has received so far! - I love reading all your comments and hearing about the projects that you are working on and the things that you are learning! Hope to see you back here next week! 

Have a beautiful weekend.