Love 2 DIY on the Weekend: Summer Projects!

Summer is great for sun and fun, but it's also the best time of the year to get your DIY on! Here are tons of different projects you can tackle every weekend this Summer!

Repair the World~ DIY Summer - Eco-Friendly Projects for Everyone

30 Days of Easy Summer DIY with Bob Vila

Great Ideas~ 22 Summer Decoration, DIY and Inspiration Projects!

33 DIY Ways to Have the Best Summer Ever from BuzzFeed

15 Outdoor DIY Projects for Summer from Arpartment Therapy

DIY Fun Summer Projects On Pinterest from Christina Tran

Thrifty Thursday~ Get Ready for Summer!

Where can you find "One of a Kind", artfully crafted and designed Summer fashions and accessories that are not only eco-friendly but affordable too? I found all of these on Etsy from our team of Upcyclers! Beachy, cool and comfortable items that will brighten up your Summer days...

Deep Blue Ray Rag Tote by Amy C. Lund

Saranac Summer Ale Star Ornaments by Lizard Skin

Nautical Bunting by Altered Eco Designs

Upcycled Zippered Tote by Groovy Garbage

Striped Sunflower Yellow Summer Sash by Brizel 4 the Animals

Upcycled Sexy SaraBelle Summer Sundress by Picked Green

Upcycled Denim and Crochet Halter Top by Jenit Boutique

Upcycled Handpainted Canvas Sandals by Idea A Day

Vintage Striped Pillowcase Dress by Koop Designs

American Walnut Wayfarers by Tumbleweeds Handcraft

Upcycled Feature: The Bag Lady

I have an ever growing collection of bags & totes. What I like to call a small bag fetish, which takes up a wall in my walk-in closet. Over the last several years, I have been revamping my collection by making sure my current choices in totes are eco-friendly. Bags and purses I no longer want go to consignment shops and are replaced with more sustainable choices.  Team Upcyclers on Etsy is a fabulous example of the eco-friendly tote options available.  A quick search of our team's talented shops reveals unique handmade bags perfect for any occasion!

Whether you are looking for everyday, evening, grocery, beach, or laundry bags... Upcyclers' shops offers all of them! Let's have a look...

Everyday Patchwork Tote by RetroRehabShop

Eco-friendly Black and Tan Cowboy Boot Purse for that night on the town, by koopdesigns

Upcycled Book Purse, the perfect touch to a summer dress, by Bibliobags

Recycled Chicken Feed Tote Bag for the farmers markets on the weekends, by wheresmybag

T-shirt Tote Bag Purse for the beach or your next vacation, by Ohzie Designs

Upcycled Clutch Purse for a romantic dinner date, by LynnMinneyDesigns

Upcycled Drawstring Bag for traveling or the gym, by Vicky Myers Creations

Yes I even found a cool upcycled yoga mat bag!

Upcycled Yoga Bag  by the silver lining

See more upcycled purses & bags HERE.

Have a great week and be sure to remember to bring your cloth bags to the grocery when you shop!  Thanks, Bee
The Wooden Bee

Upcycled Linky Party {9}

We had so many great DIY projects linked up to last weeks linky party!  I really had a difficult time picking only two.  But, I'm not writing a novel here so have a look at what I chose to highlight this week and then be sure to take a gander at last week's linky party again.

Let's get started with this really cool Hobbit House made from several upcycled materials by Scrollwork:

If you have an Etsy shop or ship product to your customers, you're going to love this idea for shipping.  Our Children's Earth shared and idea to reuse an album cover for flat shipping.  Can you just imagine your customer's reaction when they receive this in the mail:

And, finally, Eco-Musings brings us this week's very unique shop feature.  It's an upcycled man candle that smells like bacon and beer.  It is perfect for Father's Day, don't you think?

Now on to the Upcycled Linky Party #9.  Here's the run down on the rules:

1.  Feel free to link up no more than one upcycled tutorial that you created and one upcycled item from your shop each week.
2.  Please don't link up the same items or blog posts as in previous weeks, let's keep it fresh.
3.  Follow Love 2 Upcycle by email or Google connect.
4.  This is a party so socialize!  Visit at least one shared link and leave a meaningful comment or "favorite" it if it is an Etsy shop item.  It would be nice if you followed them as well, but it is not required.
5.  Please keep it family friendly and upcycled!  We reserve the right to remove any links that aren't appropriate.

Now, show us what ya got:

Upcycled Linky Party {8}

Welcome to Monday!  Did you have a chance to swing by last week's Upcycled Linky Party?  I hope the answer is, "Yes!"  But, just in case, here are a couple of fun things that you missed out on.

This fabulous handbag was fashioned in the Vicky Meyers Studio from a mid century style jacket.  I think it is a pretty neat way to reinvent an old jacket!

Our second feature this week is nothing more than a shameless plug!  I linked up a quick and easy DIY bird bath made from a couple of thrifted items.  And since I spent the weekend redesigning my mom's back patio for her Mother's Day surprise, you know I had to make one or two of these!  Check out how I made this one on my blog, Upcycled Stuff.

And now, this week's shop feature is brought to us by Churchill Cottage Chic. I love the distressed look of the reclaimed lumber they used for this candle holder.  And it's the perfect little addition for all those summer get-togethers sure to be underway soon.

 Now on to the Upcycled Linky Party #8.  Here's the run down on the rules:

1.  Feel free to link up no more than one upcycled tutorial that you created and one upcycled item from your shop each week.
2.  Please don't link up the same items or blog posts as in previous weeks, let's keep it fresh.
3.  Follow Love 2 Upcycle by email or Google connect.
4.  This is a party so socialize!  Visit at least one shared link and leave a meaningful comment or "favorite" it if it is an Etsy shop item.  It would be nice if you followed them as well, but it is not required.
5.  Please keep it family friendly and upcycled!  We reserve the right to remove any links that aren't appropriate.

Now, show us what ya got:

Upcycled Linky Party {7}

Just in case you forgot, Mother's Day is less than a week away!  I had that in mind when I picked which projects to feature from last week's linky party.  First up, burp clothes made from old T-shirts.  Then perfect handmade gift for the new mom, don't you think?  Check out Sneezerville's blog to see how you can whip up a few of these for yourself or a gift.
 

This year for Mother's Day, I'm giving mom a garden. That coupled with my recent obsession with wine and liquor bottles (I use 'em to make bird feeders), you can imagine how much I loved this wine bottle border from All Things Alysha:

And finally, how's this for a sweet Mother's Day Gift from Sweet Someday?  This vintage metal frame was given a fabulous facelift and would be the perfect fit for your favorite picture of mom and you!

 Now on to Linky Party #7.  Here's the run down on the rules:

1.  Feel free to link up no more than one upcycled tutorial that you created and one upcycled item from your shop each week.
2.  Please don't link up the same items or blog posts as in previous weeks, let's keep it fresh.
3.  Follow Love 2 Upcycle by email or Google connect.
4.  This is a party so socialize!  Visit at least one shared link and leave a meaningful comment or "favorite" it if it is an Etsy shop item.  It would be nice if you followed them as well, but it is not required.
5.  Please keep it family friendly and upcycled!  We reserve the right to remove any links that aren't appropriate.

Now, show us what ya got:

Upcyclers Creativity Challenge: April Results

Each month, Team Upcyclers offers a Creativity Challenge to our team members.  Sarah from SweetSomeday was April's judge!  Judges are responsible for selecting an upcycled medium and picking the winning entries!  First and second place receive a month long ad on the front page of our blog.

Here's what Sarah had to say...

The medium I picked for this month is one that was easy to find: a cardboard toilet paper tube! I told the team members that I would also accept paper towel tubes, wrapping paper tubes, and really any type of cardboard tube! The fun started with ideas of cardboard tubes to use that I didn’t even think of – the inside roll of lint rollers, packing tape, and ribbon! The possibilities were endless!

Picking two winners was almost impossible because there was such a wide range of submissions, using the tubes for organization, projects with kids, jewelry, and more! It’s amazing what can be done with just a little bit of cardboard, that I would normally toss into the recycle bin. So anyway, I had to pick a winner! I truly wish I could pick every project, but I decided to go with the ones that I actually pictured myself owning and using regularly:

1st place is this precious little notebook made by Joanna from PippinRunWild. 

I could just picture myself keeping it in my purse for jotting down notes and lists!

2nd place is this lovely tree ornament made by Alison from prupru. I could see this ornament hanging on a plant or in a window year-round!

And as a bonus – both of the winners included tutorials for their projects! So you can make one (or more) of your own if you’d like!

Cardboard Tube Notebook Tutorial

Toilet Paper Roll Ornament

Please check out all of the entries! It was so much fun to see everyone’s responses to this challenge!

Thanks, Sarah
Sweet Someday