The finished result 

Before 

Paint your countertops to look like granite? Yep, I did it with the help of my sister Leslie and I love the results. 

The primer coat 

Before

After

I used a Giani granite countertop paint kit that I found at my local paint store. Lowe’s and Home Depot have another kit by Rust-oleum. The Giani kit was $80 vs. the Rust-oleum kit for $250. The Giani kit involves a sponge painting technique and the Rust-oleum kit features flakes you shake on to achieve the “granite-like” appearance. 

Just follow the instructions on the kits. It is less complicated than you would think, but time consuming as you wait for the five layers of primer and paint to dry and cure thoroughly. Give yourself a good week to finish this project. My Giani kit had a video that I watched several times before starting the project.

Next — a glass block backsplash that I also plan to install myself. 

Ruffle scarf

 

            Knit up a ruffle scarf

 

An amazing new yarn is available that creates ruffles with a minimum of effort. If you know the basics of how to knit, this scarf can be stitched up in less than 2 hours. The self-ruffling yarn, found at specialty knitting supply stores, is a type of netting that is pulled apart during the knitting process. Watch the video to see exactly how it is done. An added benefit is that the ruffled knitting cast-on is super easy.

SUPPLIES

1 skein self-ruffling yarn

Two size 10 knitting needles

Pull apart a strand of yarn with your fingers and insert the knitting needles into the top edge of the yarn strand to create 8 stitches.

Knit every row, pulling the yarn strand apart and inserting the needles in the top edge of the netting. The process is not precise, but each stitch will be about one inch from the previous stitch.

Cast off. 

Mosaic broken dishes birdbath with stone column and shell covered flowerpot

Mosaics are less difficult than you might think. The flower pot is a memento of a family vacation at Cannon Beach in Oregon. The birdbath is a great addition to my patio. 

Make a mosaic birdbath or flowerpot

16-inch diameter clay pot saucer

Shells or broken dishes 

Cardboard pizza box

Hammer

White glue

Tile grout

Craft stick

Sea sponge

Place shells or dishes in the pizza box and close the lid. Hammer the shells or dishes to break them into medium sized pieces.

Attach the hand painted tile pieces to inside of the clay saucer or the outside of the flowerpot with white glue in a random pattern. Let the glue dry for 24 hours.

Mix the ceramic grout according to the manufacturer’s directions and cover the dish or shell pieces and the space between them on the inside of the saucer or the outside of the flowerpot.

Remove all excess grout with the damp sea sponge. Let the grout dry for 24 hours.

Make a stone column for the birdbath

Concrete blocks

Quick set cement

Rubber bucket

Rubber gloves

Pea pebbles

Arrange the concrete blocks into a formation in the site desired for the stone column.

Mix the cement with water in the rubber bucket until the cement is the consistency of oatmeal.

Put on the rubber gloves and add mud-pie sized globs of cement to the sides of the column. Push the flat sides of the pea pebbles into the wet cement in a decorative pattern. Repeat on all sides of the decorative column.