Behind the Scenes: Upcyled Zipper Pulls

I love giving old things a new purpose. I think it is something I get from my grandma. She was upcycling way before it was called upcycling. This is the woman who made a purse for me out of an old margarine tub and yarn when I was a little girl. (Next time I go home, I will dig out that photo and post it here.) I also hate spending more on an item just because it has Dora's or Clifford's face on them. So when Bug needed a backpack for preschool I decided to make my own "Clifford" backpack.

I purchased a small backpack from a second hand store (a $4 score) and made a Clifford zipper pull out of a garage sale Clifford book and zipper pull parts I had from my shop.  At that time I was experimenting with personalized zipper pulls, which is why I had all the parts. If you follow me on facebook you may have seen this picture I posted of one experiment:

A few weeks later I was missing my nephew and when I miss him, I get crafty. I found a hoodie on clearance at Target ($3.50) and a beat-up Disney Cars picture book at a local thrift store ($.50) and created a one-of-a-kind sweatshirt. It was the perfect back-to-school gift for my favorite little guy. 

I had so much fun making those two projects,  I decided to put the personalized zipper pulls (above) on hold and turn my attention towards these upcycled zipper pulls. Here are a few I have made recently:

Abby from Sesame Street:

Curious George:

Winnie the Pooh:

Tiana from The Princess and the Frog:

Ariel from The Little Mermaid:

Here is how I make them:

First I start with a discarded or damaged book. Here is the perfect example-a used Spider-Man workbook.

Next I cut out small images of the character. In this case I used three Spider-Man images from the page on the right.

Last I used a button making machine to turn them into one-of-a-kind zipper pulls for some lucky little Spider-Man fan.

I only have a few upcycled zipper pulls in my Etsy shop right now because I have some interest from a brick and mortar store. More on that soon!  In the meantime, I'd love it if you would leave me a note on my facebook page. Let me know what characters your kids are into these days. Thanks!


Notes: 
Choking Hazard-contains small parts. Not intended for children under three or older kids (like mine) who still put everything in their mouth.
These pulls are water resistant but you should remove them before you toss your item in the washing machine. 

Easy DIY Rainbow Hopscotch {Made with Pavers}

As I was browsing Pinterest, I came across this pin, a brilliant idea from Happiness is Homemade. It caught my eye because Bug has been talking A LOT about hopscotch.  (No clue where she got the idea from-Clifford or Caillou probably.) I had one of those, "I can sooo do that" moments. So I did. Here is how:

First, I made a sketch. Nothing fancy-just a quick sketch on the back of an piece of junk mail. Hope you can read my chicken scratch. It is crazy how bad my handwriting got once I stopped teaching.

Quick sketch and spray paint price comparison.

Next, I raided my spray paint collection to see what I already had in the garage. Luckily I already had a few cans from some previous projects, like my mod podge table. Then Bug and I went off to Home Depot to pick up the pavers and the few cans of spray paint that I needed.

Here are the colors that I used:

Paint Colors

Here are the 12 x 12 pavers that I got for $1.62 in the outdoor/garden section.

Now the fun part! (I have a not so secret love affair with spray paint. Ask my neighbors. I always have some painting project on my driveway.)  I applied one coat of spray paint to the appropriate paver and let them dry overnight. This is where my sketch came in handy.  The next morning I applied a second coat to the lighter colors (pink and yellow.)

Painted Pavers

As those were drying, I created a stencil using my Silhouette Cameo and plain white 12x12 card stock. If you don't have a Silhouette, no worries. You can create your own with an exacto knife or purchase a set of stencils at any craft store.

Screen shot of my "number one" stencil.

The Silhouette Cameo in action.

If you are lucky enough to have a Silhouette Cameo, you can download my files below. Click on the links to get started. This will take you to my Google Drive account. You do not need a Google Drive account to download but you will need Silhouette Studio software to open them.

{One}   {Two}   {Three}   {Four}   {Five}   {Six}   {Seven}   {Eight}   {Nine}

If you are having trouble,  I'm happy to email a copy to anyone who asks: bluewaterroaddesigns@gmail.com subject line "Hopscotch Silhouette Files."

Next, I worked on painting the numbers. Again this is where my sketch came in handy. I initially used painters tape to keep the stencil down but it didn't work so well once the wind picked up. A few river rocks from our yard did the trick.

12x12 cardstock  taped on a 12x12 paver.

I applied regular old white acrylic paint with a 1 1/4 inch spouncer (both from Michaels.) I started with the edges and then worked my way towards the center. I used my finger to hold down the edges in order to get the cleanest line possible. A couple of tips: 1) Take your time. I rushed through the last few as I tried to finish during naptime. Some of the numbers bled. Not a huge deal. I was able to touch up later. 2) Use less paint than with bristle brushes. You can always go back and add more later.

Halfway through the number two.

Not bad for the first try if I do say so myself! 

I debated sealing the pavers with some kind of slip-resistant concrete sealer but after researching options I decided it was not worth the cost. Afterall, the pavers survived a couple of thunderstorms without fading for bleeding on my driveway.

All dry! 

Last, we dug out the mulch (Thanks Uncle RaRa!) and placed them on the ground. We filled back in around the edges.

I need to teach Bug how to hold a rake. 

It's not perfect but I think it will settle and even out on its own.

Nice pop of color!

I had a ton of fun making these simple painted pavers. I think for our next house, I might make some with the alphabet or shapes. Hand prints or shoe prints might be fun too.