the ReFab Diaries

It's officially summer (in my hemisphere)! I celebrated with an early-morning run to the lake. Watching the sun come up over Lake Michigan is one of the pleasures of living on "the coast of Chicago". I'm also marking the solstice with a little roundup of quirky container-gardening ideas. If, like me, you live in a flat/apartment in a city (and have seriously restricted outdoor space) you have to get creative if you want to grow things. I say go all out and have some fun with it! (warning: this post contains pics of unmentionables)

Dottie Angel has, literally, written the book on Granny Chic.  The blog is a visual feast ... it will convince you to alter your aesthetic accordingly and cover your world in vintage linens.

If nothing else, her blog sent me looking for ways to upcycle and repurpose vintage linens, sheets, pillow cases, hankies etc.  I think I found some awesome last-minute, upcycled Mother's Day gifts! 

Balloons are a cheap way to bring a lot of color to a party space ... so we use too many of them and don't think much about it.  Then we dump them in the garbage or, even worse, happily release hundreds of helium-filled orbs into the air.  Eventually, they come down and cause havoc.  

So, since we don't generally think of balloons as reusable, we need to see them as the single-use plastic items that they are and stop using them.  If you love decorating with them, buy a bag and make yourself a reusable set, like the ones picture below.  

If you want some ideas for how to reuse balloons once they've performed their party duty, read on ....

Let's talk about bread boxes. Or not, since there's not a whole lot to say about them, right? So what to do old bread boxes, because they're still around and need a new purpose in life. 

Saw the  top left breadbox upcycle on Apt Therapy (via BHG) and went in search of others .... I know one corner of my kitchen is a mess of cords so this project will happen as soon as I can find an old breadbox 

This post was, of course, inspired by the light fixture above (seen on Etsy) - one ugly cord, a bulb and a few old books.  Not so hard to do if you're interested in trying a little bookfolding.  Anyway, it got me looking for other cool ways to hide ugly cords ... and otherwise upcycle ugly old lamps. Five more for you: 

Featured on the front page of Apartment Therapy!