Mixed Media Clutch with Beads

So I meet with an amazing group of women a couple of times a month. We have formed a wonderful friendship and creative spirit. It is a proven fact that women who have friends and do creative fun things live longer healthier lives. In my case, I hope this is true. My grandmother lived to be 102...wow! anyhoot; this clutch was made of canvas that was pre- painted. (spraypainted by us) We made our pattern and lined the clutch and then followed up with embellishments. I found a brooch in my studio that was made of gauze and ribbon so I attached to the bag and put the finishing touch of coral beads on top and voilla!!! Love it.

recycling and repurposing in the studio

So here is a lovely little frame that I repurposed and I am so happy with the results. It was a dirty brown old vintage frame and it needed something to make it like new again. I was contemplating painting it, gilding it, and even antiquing it. Well I ended up adding a rub on and the results came out amazing. I added a chalkboard insert and now instead of being in a box, I have it hanging in the kitchen. What a sweet little treasure.

Here I used some old fabric & trim that was lying around and I made this adorable little evening bag. I inserted some lining and used stripped cotton fabric. By adding these cute crochet flowers, I gave it a finishing touch. This handbag has been repurposed in that the fabric was a sample used in a furniture store as a sample for fabric on sofas. I love these fabric samples because they are small pieces that can be managed quite simply. I have made table runners out of them along with many other gift items. The more I use what I have around the house it seems to give me a wonderful creative feeling of accomplishment. It really pushes me to think outside of the box.