DIY Coloring Book Style Easter Egg Basket

Coloring books are so popular now. I love them -- they're so relaxing -- and you're never too old to color!  Last year, I drew on some metal buckets for the kids to color before they headed out for the Easter Egg hunt. (Kids...as in my teenage daughter and husband.) Seriously -- who doesn't love an Easter Egg hunt! (Of course, I'm not sure the math research quiz scavenger hunt I had go along with it was as big of a hit--oh well...)

So here is how to CREATE an easy COLORING PAGES STYLE BUCKET!

I had a metal bucket that I picked up at the rebuild center (you can get a metal bucket in the paint section of your hardware store as well). I used white primer spray paint to give it that rough mat look--any white paint will do. Then I used a Sharpie to start creating patterns -- I just winged it (story of my life). 

I colored in some of the areas with the black Sharpie -- but you can leave them all open to be colored.

As you can see by the time I got to the bottom of the bucket, I needed a cup of coffee. It's not hard...just time consuming. 

Next time, I'll get pictures of them coloring them. But here is the end result! Fun...right!  Hope you make some of these for your Easter gathering this year.  You can skip the Math Quiz Scavenger Hunt if you want...

My best, Jo

STARTING SMALL...DIY with OLD BASEBALLS

I know...there could be a thousand blog posts I could start my new JO BLOG with...my recent design work, fabulous places to shop, trips I've recently taken...but I realized that when working with vintage, salvaged, recycled and repurposed things...it's best to start small. Understanding that every little thing matters. Every decision we make has a ripple effect. I don't want this blog to be me just blasting from the mouth so I can get search engines to move me up in the ranks. That doesn't matter to me (I'm sure it should but it doesn't). What matters to me is that you're inspired! Have fun! And look at all things old, used and recycled differently! I'll start with baseballs and feathers... Jo

 Sometimes winter makes me want to be a DIY hermit. So I find things that are laying around the house and put them together. These old baseballs have been around for about 10 years--I picked them up at Goodwill and as you can see, the price tag still on them, they never got used. (Turns out Gabrielle loves basketball, volleyball and lacrosse.) The feathers, left-over denim from shortening my jeans and the rope of cotton, all in the basement and up for grabs.

That's right...my handy-dandy hot glue gun. You can see that it is well used. I didn't even bother taking the Goodwill sticker off. Start with the larger feathers...

Then just layer them on top of each other, working slowly from one side of the baseball up. You may have to cut some of the feathers to give it a flat bottom. 

So here are my finished projects with the winter light shining in on them. What do you have at home that you could use to cover up old unused baseballs? Buttons, costume jewelry, Bohemian fabric? I wish I had more baseballs...I could do this all day!