All posts in Op Shop Style File

OSSF: Vintage cutlery wind chime

by Ms Optimism on November 14, 2012 in Being Mum, Family Life, Op Shop Style File with No comments

I don’t know why I sign up for these activities. On a recent op shopping trip I decided it would be a great idea to make a wind chime from vintage cutlery and other bits and pieces. The rationale being that Moopy could get his angries out bashing the cutlery, and I could get my crafty on threading the beads. I’m sure you can imagine how it went – the activity kept his attention for about 5 minutes, and I spent the rest of the hour finishing it off on my own, like so many “together” activities. I really thought he’d be up for the bashing! Lesson learnt.

In any case, here is my proven method for a together crafty moment with your little one, making a wind chime.

Materials and tools

  1. Assorted cutlery from the opshop – test the different materials for clangability
  2. A tray or serving platter with holes in it – for hanging cutlery from
  3. A hammer
  4. Rags
  5. Fishing twine
  6. Beads
  7. Disinterested toddler (optional)

Method

Step 1 With some trepidation, hand toddler hammer and cutlery wrapped in rags. The rags are to protect the cutlery from getting too banged up when they you are flattening it. You’ll need at least 8 pieces of cutlery, depending on the size of the tray you are using.

Step 2 Wind fishing wire around the thin end of the handle and tie into a knot. Thread fancy beads, buttons, anything onto the fishing wire – the more random the better! They get tangled up very easily, just sayin. I splashed out and bought a few crystal beads to pick up the sunlight – very gorgeous.

Step 3 Turn the serving platter upside down and tie the cutlery strands to it. Make sure they are tied closely enough that they can bang into each other, or it’s going to be a pretty quiet wind chime. You may need to also hang a large spoon or knife in the centre to make sure there’s a lot of clanging going on.

Step 4 Attach a few strands of heavy fishing wire to the top of the platter. Find somewhere to string up your gorgeous creation. Stand back and admire the glory of the creation you have made together on your own.

This really was a lot of fun to make, very simple, and I was very happy I actually followed through and did it! My usual MO is to buy the bits and pieces for the craft project, and then procrastinate the actual making until I’ve forgotten what I bought the bits and pieces for in the first place – shhhh don’t tell Mr Optimism!

OSSF: Adding some colour to my life

by Ms Optimism on February 14, 2012 in Depression, Eco Stuff, Op Shop Style File with 2 Comments

Yesterday Fox in Flats issued a challenge to wear head to toe black. Discussing it with My Mummy Daze, I had to point out that this wasn’t much of a challenge for people living in Melbourne, much less those working in the creative industry. Indeed both of the ladies I work with were in head to toe black yesterday, while I was adding some colour with a bit of grey.

So she issued me with a more challenging challenge, to wear at least two colours everyday for a week. Ruminating for a moment, as I tend to do, I thought hell yeah – I’ll take this as an opportunity to add some colour to my grey days at the moment. I wonder if there is any research out there about surrounding yourself with colour when you are depressed?

So Andrea, with only a little bit more ado I present Ms Optimism in Living Colour – Day 1. This counts as an Op Shop Style File since I’m wearing a few new/old acquisitions. So, have I peaked too early…..?

Homemade necklace made from an odd earring from the op shop, 50c. There's navy in there!! That's not black.

Green Armani Exchange butterfly top, $3 op shop (potentially 6 or more seasons old), Coral Ojay singlet from outlet $9

 

OSSF: Present for new parents

by Ms Optimism on February 13, 2012 in Op Shop Style File with 4 Comments

The finished product

So it’s no secret that I’m a hippy, and also a lover of all things vintage. Thus you can understand my internal struggle when it comes to Ikea. I hate Ikea, the air miles, the made in china, the (I guess) chemicals in the glues that hold the MDF together.

But, I LOVE Ikea. Love it. I love that there is a free creche. I love that there is a coffee break half way through. I love the colour co-ordinated books that make bookshelves look neat. I love the little pretend houses that are fake, but look so lived in and lovely.

So Saturday just gone I invented the sudden and urgent need for a magnetic board. We must go to Ikea! There’s always lots of things we need from Ikea.

Very dear friends of ours have just had their first child, and I had the great idea (which I totally stole from Mrs. Savage) to frame some vintage book pages for their nursery. And so I present my tutorial on how to justify a shopping spree and make your own gorgeous gift (because you couldn’t have worked it out on your own……..?).

Step 1: Op shopping spree!
It’s also no secret that I’m an op shopping addict. It’s like guilt free retail therapy, it’s cheap and it’s recycled. I found this gorgeous vintage book for 50c. The fact that it had a page missing made it easier for me to not feel to guilty about chopping it up…


Gorgeous vintage book

Gorgeous vintage book all chopped up

Step 2: Ikea shopping spree!
For gorgeous white curvy frames that you absolutely couldn’t obtain anywhere else (and lots of other things that you didn’t actually go there for…)

Ikea goodies

 

Step 3: Assembly
This is the complex part. Put the page you cut up earlier into the frame. I know, I wouldn’t have thought to do that either.

Put the page in the frame


 

Step 4: Bask in the glory of your creativity
And seriously consider for a moment or two buying some singlets for your friend that has just had the baby, and keep the gorgeous artwork for yourself.

The finished product