Introductions

"Whatcha doing Pam? What have you been making lately Pam? What have you been baking lately Pam? Been doing any crafts lately....Pam?" 

So goes the conversation of a retired teacher with friends and relatives when they know you well enough to know that you like to fill your days keeping busy. Along with going to movies on Tuesdays ($5 movies all day and free popcorn at Marcus Theatres), catching the latest exhibit at the Joslyn Art Museum (our daughter and son-in-law have gifted us a membership the last couple of years for Christmas), and exploring the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha I like to craft and try new projects that I see on web sites, in stores, magazines and displays. Anyone who knows me has probably heard me say, "let me see.....I bet I could make that!"

 This blog is my attempt to share what I have been doing: craft projects from dumpster diving adventures to repurpose a discarded cabinet door or pet fence, cookie baking and decorating, stained glass window making and an assortment of projects that I haven't even thought of yet. I have been known to pick up sticks and pine cones on walks and then spend an afternoon looking at Etsy and Pinterest for ideas on how to use them for a project.

 My husband affectionately calls me "Power Tool Pam" because I'd rather shop at Menards, Hobby Lobby, or Home Depot than the malls that my sister and daughter frequent. My latest purchase is an air compressor and nailer for a project using scrap boards. Somehow the scrap wood that I pull from my neighbor's dumpsters always ends up with the purchase of craft paint and a power tool (doesn't everyone need and orbital sander?)

I am going to try and post once a week and share my latest adventures. I am not sure I'll have any followers, but when people ask "whatcha doing Pam?" I'll tell them to check my blog!

Comments

  1. LynneOctober 31, 2018 at 2:57 AM

    Love that you started the blog, Pam! I look forward to reading about your creative adventures!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Pam KrambeckNovember 15, 2018 at 9:12 PM

      Thanks Lynne! I am trying to post at least once a week and I am in craft mode right now. My sister-in-law and myself have reserved a table at the Heritage Elementary Craft Fair (Bennington) that is a benefit for their PTO group. We may be in over our heads but we are having fun working on projects.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Wooden Quilt Blocks AKA "Barn Quilts" I am a born and raised Nebraskan--a state where you are never more than a 15-20 minute drive from a barn or a field of corn.  I grew up in a small town half-way between Omaha and Lincoln and my sister married a farmer who works sun up until way past sun down during the spring planting season and the fall harvest.  I currently live in Omaha where I can see a field and a Target store from my window.  I first saw barn quilts about 12 years ago when a l ocal FBLA group   created 12' x 12' designs for area farms as a fundraiser.  I have always wanted to create a scaled down version that would fit in a garden or front porch.   As it turns out, I have made several in the last year and have one displayed in my garden (see at right), another for a neighbor's porch and a couple of small ones that I hang seasonally above the cabinets in my kitchen. You will find excellent web sites that share patterns, examples and tips and tr
Read more

Sound Wave Wood Art

Image
  Using What You Have I must confess that I had never seen “Sound Wave Art” until a Facebook friend saw some of my wood craft projects and suggested I try making wood art of sound waves.  The links she sent were printed paper art and sound waves cut from metal but in digging deeper and consulting Etsy I found some examples using wood.   Materials:   Bamboo Chop Sticks Square Dowels for framing Birch panel cut to size.  Examples pictured are either 11 x 16 OR 12 x 12 Minwax Puritan Pine, dark walnut, special walnut American oak and gray stains from Minwax White Folk Art paint to white wash the panels Gorilla Wood Glue Brad nailer Printed sound file—I use the voice memo app on my iPhone to record the phrase from a song on YouTube Brown Kraft paper and double sided scotch tape for frame backing Process: .   Using the voice memo app (free download), I record the sound file (usually a word or short phrase).  I then do a screen capture (on/off button and home button) of the displayed sound f
Read more

Who Let the Dogs Out?

Image
Using Up Those Scraps There are times when you need to use up the wood scraps that have accumulated in the “too good to trash”  tub in your work area.  The past few weeks have been one of those times.  After sorting the wood  (by size/width/length/color) and taking a quick assessment, I sketched out a few possibilities for projects.  With an abundance of scrap square dowels and odds and ends from framing projects it was time to get started.   Materials:   Square dowels Birch panel and bead board paneling pieces Minwax Puritan Pine, dark walnut, special walnut and American oak and gray stains from Minwax White Folk Art paint to white wash the panels Gorilla Wood Glue Brad nailer Printed clip art outlines of dogs, leaves and  states ( I used Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and Texas along with a few dog breeds) Process:  I began by attaching the wood strips together with Gorilla wood glue in a size that would cover the outline pattern.  On some of the projects I lined the wood grain up vertica
Read more