Jar Picture Frames

I LOVE JARS!!!!!! All kinds of jars. 

But I definitely have a weak spot for old blue mason jars! 

They make me SO HAPPY every time I see one! 

The color is amazing! I can’t help to think what it would have been like to actually use these jars on a regular basis and not as a novelty like we do today. 

Anyway, since I am in love with them I definitely have some of my own and I like to use them in my mantel decor as often as possible. 

So for this project I used my blue mason jars along with some plain old clear jars (pickle, spaghetti sauce, olive jars, etc). 

I can’t throw anything away. 

It drives my husband crazy at times, so I take it as a personal challenge to use my trash and turn it into treasure as often as possible just to keep him happy and not too annoyed with my large amount of “treasures”. 

I cleaned the jars out well and removed all the labels. 

Then I  simply inserted some black and white photos.  

Just slip the photos in the jars and hold them tight to the curve of the jar. 

There were a few I had to trim just to the fit on the “flat part” (not the top or bottom that curves inward) of the jar. 

The reused jars work best because they are plain 

and don’t have the words on the side to obstruct the view.

 I used some fall leaves to fill in to give a warm fall feeling. 

But honestly the leaves are not necessary. The “Jar Frames” are adorable on their own! 

I was asked to be a feature blogger for The Flame a couple months back They wanted projects that were accessible for people living out in rural Nebraska.  

Sadly we don't always have access to all the craft shops. 

So, I posted about my glass jar picture frames.  

The Flame was created to make another GREAT place for women to connect with each other and with God. Great Blog. Great Women.

I'm re posting it here because I'm super busy redoing my laundry closet!  
Our dryer quit working this week, since everything was pulled out I figured it was a good time to paint it and give it a face lift!  Pictures coming soon!

painted cowboy boots

I LOVE BOOTS!

Especially cowboy boots.

I always notice a nice pair of boots.  

I use to work for The Fort Western Stores in purchasing and graphics.

I got to see all the new boots each season. 

Talk about a dream job!!!

It really fed into my obsession.  I have quite a stock pile of boots.

I have practical boots to wear to do chores in.

I have comfy pairs to wear on a daily basis.

I have fun and flashy pairs to wear over jeans or with dresses (my all time favorite outfit!!!).

AND I also have the boots that I don’t ever wear.

Oh hush, you have those too!!!

They may not be boots, 

but you have the shoes, shirts, pants or coats that you never wear.

They were either a good idea at the time or a good price.

Either way they don’t get to see daylight often, if at all.

I have a pair of boots like that.

I had a brown pair of boots that I loved they were very versatile 
and I figured I should get a pair in black also.

Well the back pair never quite fit into my wardrobe.

I never found an outfit that NEEDED these boots.

I always had another pair that worked better with the outfit.

So they were retired before they ever got a chance.

Now was the time to take a chance with them.

I never wore them anyway!  Who cares if they didn’t turn out?

I decided to paint them…..YES PAINT THEM!

Who does that?  This girl!

 I dug through my craft paint supply. 

I decided on turquoise, and brown.

I had a bowl of water and few different sizes of paint brushes.

I didn’t really have a game plan.

Other then do it during nap time!

My little cowgirls love to help and honestly are not always the best help.

Away I went.

I made sure to use quite a bit of water so it was thin layers and not a heavy thick coat.

I didn’t want to chance any chipping with a thick coat of paint.

The boot leather had a texture to them and I wanted to see that thru the paint, so the thin coats worked well.

If you use too much water you could run into bleeding!

I did not run into that but I do want to warn you that all leather is different and so test it out and make adjustments as need for your specific pair.

And this is how they turned out!!!!

LOVE!!!!!

I wanted them to have a little sass from all directions!  I think I succeeded!

They are now my favorite pair.

OK it’s a tie, with theses!   

Guess where I purchased them?

Yep you guessed it, The Fort Western Stores

You can check the boots out out here.

Here is the link to the black boots I painted!

Also from The Fort.