New Year Revamp!

January is great for getting the creative juices flowing - at this time of year I always find myself figuring out new ways to use old things, since the credit card bills are usually sky-high and retail therapy is out of the question!

I made a quilt for my brother's wedding waaaay back when and was so in love with the materials that I was hording a stash of leftovers. Bits and pieces have made it into a variety of presents over the years, but I finally got to make something for myself out of them! Behold, new cushion covers! The invisible zippers were a bit of a pain, but after about 4 YouTube videos, I had 'em figured out...



Years ago (like 2002?) an ex-boyfriend bought me this beautiful, and horrifically expensive, DKNY leather jacket. In the past 9 years, I think I've worn it a few dozen times. But each time, I couldn't get past the feeling that I was in 'The Matrix', concealing an automatic weapon! So, a revamp was in order.




Originally I was planning to cut it just below the pockets and have it mid-thigh, but my friend Michelle pointed out that it would be much cuter if I just removed the skirt portion altogether. She was right! This is totally wearable and cute, and although the reseaming I had to do nearly broke my poor Bernina, I'm pretty happy with the result!




And now I have this to play with... any ideas? I was in the Net Loft at Granville Island this afternoon and got some cute purse and belt ideas - maybe a foldover smallish purse (to minimize needed stitching) and a basic double-sided sash-style belt? Recommendations welcome!



Lastly, it was inevitable that some drywall dust would have to fly to make it a REAL new year! This entryway has been an eyesore since Day 1, both Jason and I have been griping about it forever. It's usually much, much messier than this, and you can barely open the front door with the wicked mess of puffy jackets on hooks...





Influenced by a recent SouleMama post and a surge of crazy-lady hormones, I somehow convinced my hubby that it had to be fixed NOW! And so a (loosely-budgeted) trip to Ikea and Rona, some drywall patching, some painting, some assembling, LOTS of vacuuming, et voila!




A drawer for keys, lots of room for shoes, and a row of hooks at kid-level to help distribute the puffy-jacket mess. Just need to add some baskets along the top shelf - I'm sure I can scrounge some up from around the house. The best part? Not only is the double rack wide enough to hold Jason's Blundstones, but the girls are actually enjoying putting away their shoes!