Earth Day - Recycle and Be Happy

We love to recycle. We love to reuse materials for new projects and the creativity they inspire. To celebrate Earth Day everyday is our motto here at 973 Third. Every little effort we make helps clean our environment. So go ahead and reduce, reuse and recycle. It's good for all of us!

Top image: Shared by a friend
Bottom image: Sand sculpture by artist Todd Brittingham titled "Sun and the Moon" at Jetty Park in Cape Canaveral, Fla., during an Earth Day celebration, The Washington Post.

Crochet Covered Smart Car

What do you get in Rome, when you cross a smart car with a crochet hook? Fabulous.

Happy New Year from 973 Third!

Fun and Easy Outdoor Lighting

Here's a great idea from Martha's magazine years ago. Start with a wide drinking glass, at least 2 colors of colored sand, a votive candle and its holder. Add some sand first in the larger glass to set the votive holder with the candle centered inside the outer glass. Then continue with a funnel adding sand in layers of color to fill the space between the containers. The outer glass also serves as a hurricane shade.

This works well with a concealed vase for flowers, too. Easy and fun!

Click on the photos for Martha's directions.

Egg-Citing for Easter

Here are 3 easy ideas to add to your repertoire of spring holiday decorations and centerpieces. They are all from Martha, of course.

I am definitely going to do this one. I'm quite certain all the materials needed are on hand.

The delicately dyed lavender egg shells with tiny blossoms are so sweet. They would look lovely in a cluster or at each place setting.

For more info, click on the images.

Make Your Own Pipe Cleaner Wreath

Feeling the pinch this holiday season? Here's a beautiful art project to easily craft. With a lot of pipe cleaners, a pair of scissors and a little patience, you can create your own masterpiece of lightness and design.

Make a wreath of green and red to hang on your door, or in front of a mirror. Try a silver design near a dark painted wall. Or maybe a graphic statement in black pipe cleaners on a white wall.

Many thanks to Kate Pruitt and her DIY projects at Design Sponge.

Happy Thanksgiving

If you need a few extra turkeys to put around the table this Thursday, here's a quick and charming idea for DIY place cards.

Thank you for being our guest at 973 Third Avenue. Have a wonderful holiday!

October Wrap Up

October has flown by at this address. That may be partly due to a wave of illness some call the H1N1. Here the symptoms were pesky, but mild, compared to what we've heard from others. Fortunately, it has passed and maybe the exposure will keep us out of harm's way for the rest of flu season.

This week there has been some scrambling to track down hand-sized pumpkins and organize a holiday craft for 30 kids. After visiting the area grocery stores and coming up short, I was saved by a sympathetic young farmer. She completely understood my dilemma and gathered together a box of Jack-Be-Little pumpkins, stems intact, for me to pick up even though her farm stand (in a wonderful old barn) was closed that day due to inclement weather.

My hands are still speckled with splotches of stubborn black paint and there are spots of black paint on the basement floor that didn't use to be there. But, my young crafters will never know the excitement leading up to their party. They will be transforming the now black pumpkins into spiders, complete with googly eyes and pipe cleaner legs. Maybe a little glitter for extra fun.

Before the month wraps with a weekend of Halloween haunting, I wanted to include a reminder that it also marks the end of Breast Cancer Awareness month. While it's been refreshing to see the NFL players wearing pink this October, I hope they'll continue to show their support through the end of their season. It's not like anyone is going to stop thinking about this scary disease and the women we know whose lives have been affected. We'll continue to post pink.

Make Your Own Silhouettes

The art of cutting paper into outlines of shapes and figures is a traditional practice in portraiture. In the 18th century, it was a proper amusement for both men and women to recreate a person's likeness by tracing or freehand, then cutting it out from a thin black paper. Sometimes an entire scene of figures would be trimmed out and mounted on paper with a background drawn to create an interior or landscape around them.

Today you can use your likeness as more than a traditional decoration and as something practical, too. Here are some suggestions from a few of my favorite blogs to fit a silhouette into your home collection.

A personalized bulletin board in the shape of a silhouette would be a striking addition to a front entrance hall or a spot above your desk. Click here for the instructions from Country Living.



Homemade cards are a greatly appreciated gesture and such fun to receive. Embellish them with a silhouette cut from a charming patterned paper for a handsome looking card. Click here for instructions from a new book via Design Sponge.



Portraits of family or friends look terrific in profile and resting on the sofa. This is a clever idea for a decorative pillow that's easy to make. Click here for the instructions from Mrs. Blandings, a blog I recommend visiting, anyway.

Make Your Own Embroidered Tote

There is no reason not to have a beautiful tote bag to carry your groceries or library books. Here are the instructions to embellish an ordinary looking store bag with a little color and style. Thanks to favorite crafter, Perri Lewis for another fabulous idea to brighten the day.

Click over for more help deciphering the necessary needlework and links for a refresher with your chain stitch(1), French knots (2), fern stitch (3), or lazy daisy (6). I especially like the addition of the various buttons.

Make Your Own Jewelry from Miniatures

Doll house miniatures don't have to sit on the tiny mahogany table in the tiny formal parlor waiting for someone to play. It's time to bring the dainty diminutives out in the big world. Sally Cameron Griffiths shares her tips on converting her doll house finds into rings, earrings and necklaces with a little glue, jewelry parts and a pair of pliers. Here are the instructions from the Guardian to create your own recycled and wearable tea set.

Make Your Own Vintage Postcard Wallet

Country Living teaches us how to sew a simple wallet or card case from an old postcard. Vintage postcards with noteworthy photographic images or graphics work nicely, but it might be fun to use the back of a postcard. An old stamp, a curious cancellation, a beautifully penned address and handwritten message may be a more visually interesting choice. Click here for the supply list and instructions. Go green with sewing crafts!

ReStyle Vinyl Tablecloths

Warmer weather brings us inspiring opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors. Here are a few ideas to help spruce up garden furniture for entertaining, organize a picnic outing or take-off for a day at the beach. Go green and crafty - recycle an old vinyl tablecloth to create a new summer accessory for your earth-friendly style.

Martha suggests creating outdoor pillows, above, from easy to clean vinyl tablecloths. You can also apply a waterproof sealer to the seams for better weather resistance.

Design Sponge recommends making a double sided picnic blanket with the vinyl for the ground side and flannel on the reverse. Add a ribbon to tie it all up.

Crafty Daisies teaches us how to sew up a great sized beach bag with her choice of vinyl tablecloth fabric.

Enjoy!