Make Your Own Typography Spheres

{Chocolate giveaway is still open!}

I originally posted this project in April 2009, but I’ve decided to re-run it for CSI Project’s Typography challenge, because not too many people saw it back then, and because I still think it’s pretty neat! 

 

A couple of months years ago my friend Dixie and I were in Pottery Barn and saw a display with some ceramic alphabet balls. I don’t even remember looking for a price, but they were not on the website, so apparently were not available through the catalog.

We both loved the look and started brainstorming about how to create such a thing. Dixie thought of ping pong balls. I ran with that, and remembering some rub-on letters that I had, gave that a try. It worked great!

Coincidentally, the very next day I had an online gift certificate I needed to use. There were only two stores that I recognized that accepted it; one was Coldwater Creek, so I started there. I couldn’t believe it when I stumbled upon their Word Play Letter and Number Spheres! They were on clearance, and I got them for just a few dollars for the whole set.  They came in  large and small, and Dixie and I got both and divvied them up.  They no longer carry them, but I have since seen these type of ceramic alphabet balls in a number of places, usually for anywhere from $1 to $2 each!

 

I decided to go ahead and try one of the ping pong balls, just to see if it would work, and to give you the option of making them if you wanted to.

 

 

I got the little package of ping pong balls at Walmart, but they have a logo on them. If you were going to do this for real, you would want to get blank ones (check Ebay…they’re really cheap).

 

 

I cut out the rub-on letters individually, held it down sort of curving around the ball, and just rubbed it on with the stick. If you look closely at the top photo, you can see that each ceramic ball has the letter several times. Six, to be exact; four around the diameter and then one top and bottom.

 

 

Next, I gave it a few coats of glossy ModPodge. You can push a pin into the ball and use that to hold it while you brush on the ModPodge.

 

 

I then stuck the pin into some floral foam to let it dry. Obviously, if you were doing a bunch of these, you would need a lot of pins and a lot more foam to stick them in. Really, it could be anything that would support it and allow you to push the flat end of a straight pin into it. Maybe clay or playdough.

 

 

Here, I’ve put the ping pong ball in with the ceramic ones. It’s the ‘U’ on the top left. If it wasn’t a slightly different typography, I don’t think you could tell!

This was really quite easy, and you could make a bunch of them without too much effort.  But if you didn’t want to make the whole alphabet, you could always just spell out a special word, or your family’s initials, or whatever.

I’d love to know if you try this!  Have fun!

Wishful Thinking in the Kitchen

We moved into our current house not quite three years ago (that’s almost a record for us; click on the “Parade of Homes” label on the right-side column for more on that).  It was a new-build, and we got to make several of the choices, but some of the choices had already been made by the sales agent.  We got quite a few upgrades at no cost because she had chosen them before we signed the contract.  That was mostly a good thing, but having now lived in the house, I would make some changes if I could.

In the following diagram, the one on top is the base model.  Notice how the kitchen does not go all the way across the back of the house.  On the bottom is the optional enlarged kitchen, which goes all the way across, and is what we have, thanks to the sales agent.



I like having the extra space, for sure.  We have more counter space, more cabinets, and the big laundry room.  Since I had them put the laundry on the second floor with the bedrooms (love!), this laundry room has become the mudroom (double love!).  We also got a bigger dining “room”, which was important since we don’t have a formal dining room.

However, it’s still not really big enough.  The dining room dimensions on the enlarged floor plan are 9’4”x9’4”, which is pretty tiny to begin with, but you also have to have enough room to access the pantry and walk past the desk to get to the family room.  In addition, the outside wall of the dining area has sliding doors which will be our access to the deck, whenever that becomes a reality.  It will be a really tight squeeze to the have the table and enough room for the pantry and walk-thru on one side, and to be able to use the sliding doors on the other side.

Here’s what I wish we would/could have done had we realized all this upfront.  First, I wish we had added the optional boxed bay window to the dining area, as shown in this photo of the model home.  That alone would have solved the future deck access problem.



Second, I wish that we had said let’s keep the enlarged kitchen, but shorten the long countertop a little and add the peninsula that the original kitchen has.  I would have lost a couple of upper cabinets, but I have more than I know what to do with anyway.  I would have gained at least a couple feet of floor space in the dining area.  Plus, I think it may have made the kitchen workflow a little more efficient.



If I had the peninsula, maybe I could even get a couple of modern bar stools, like this awesome Navy Barstool by Emeco.  Never hurts to dream, right?

Giveaway (Pssst…It’s Chocolate!)

February already, folks!  Time to start thinking about love, flowers, and chocolate!  I was recently contacted by Heart & Soul Candies offering me two boxes of their chocolates in exchange for having their widget on my blog until Valentine’s.  One box for me, and one for you!  That sounded like a pretty good deal to me.  I don’t willingly turn down chocolate!

I was not familiar with the company, so I visited the website to find out more.  I discovered that the company is founded on Christian principles.  From the website:

• The Vision: Heart & Soul Candies Vision is to give cheerfully and generously to good works around the world by providing scripture based high-quality chocolate and candy products that bless the hearts and souls of people everywhere.
• 2 Corinthians 9: 7, 8: Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
• The Mission: Heart & Soul Candies Mission is simply to love God with all of our heart, soul, and strength as a growing inspirational confections company focused on building long term loving relationships, offering exceptional products, and serving our customers with uncompromised compassion.
• Mark 12:30: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

 

Based on the customer reviews, the chocolates are delicious.  In addition, while you enjoy the candy, you can feel good knowing that H&S donates 10% of total sales to faith-based organizations such as Samaritan’s Purse.  It’s win-win!

H&S chocolates are available at Walmart (for only $5/box!),  Family Christian Stores and LifeWay Christian Stores, among others. 

For a chance to win a box, do the following:

1. Leave a comment on this post (mandatory)
2. Tweet or post on FB and leave a separate comment
3. Anyone who participates in next Monday’s Tips and Tricks Party will receive an additional entry

Winner will be announced next Tuesday, February 8, so hopefully you will receive it in time for Valentine’s Day.  Good luck!

Monday’s Tips and Tricks Party

Everybody like ranch dressing, right?  I’ve always been a Hidden Valley snob, and it had to be made from the mix packet.  I don’t care for their bottled dressing nearly as much (or any other brand’s bottled ranch at all).  All of that was before I realized that Hidden Valley products contain MSG.  I know this from reading the labels, but (oddly) when I went to their website, I could not find any ingredient list.  However, you can view the nutritional labels at Amazon;  the buttermilk ranch packet’s first ingredient is salt, the second is MSG.  It’s a little farther down on the original ranch and the bottled dressing, but it’s still there.

I’m not going to get into the possible evils of MSG, other than to say that it is a neurotoxin, and I avoid it if at all possible.  And so the hunt began for an acceptable Hidden Valley ranch substitute.  I tried several recipes before I finally found one that fit the bill.  Some were downright bad, some were just okay, but this one, IMO, is pretty darn close to Hidden Valley. 

Ranch Dressing II (from allrecipes)

• 1 cup mayonnaise (I use olive oil mayo)
• 1/2 cup sour cream (I use low fat)
• 1/2 tsp dried chives
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried dill weed
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Whisk all together in a large bowl.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

Made as written, it is the consistency of a dip, and the kids love it with carrots and celery sticks.  Sometimes when I have the dip in the fridge but want dressing, I whisk in some milk to thin it out.  If you want dressing to begin with, use buttermilk in place of the sour cream (use this tip to make “buttermilk”).

It tastes just as good as Hidden Valley, and I know what’s in it…no questionable ingredients.  If I really wanted to be a stickler I’d make my own mayo, as I’m sure that the commercially prepared stuff is hardly health food.  I’ve yet to try that though; perhaps for another Tips post.

Your turn.  Please share your tips with us!

• share a tip that makes your life easier
• you must link back to me in your post
• link to your specific party post, and not your general home page
• please be polite and visit several other participants and leave a nice comment
• I will delete entries that don’t link back to me or do not fit the party theme

 

Linky open until Monday Jan. 31 at 11:59 pm central.

Party Shout Outs

You can link up your knock-offs through Sunday, but today I’m going to highlight the four first-responders.  I host this party on the last Thursday of every month.  That means the next one will be Thursday, February 24.  That gives you four weeks to create your masterpiece!  For that matter, it’s perfectly fine for you to use an old post, as long as you add my link.

Amy from Design-Aholic showed us her Ballard inspired bulletin board.  She and I both had bees in our bonnets this time around!

{Northern Cottage} created a cubby shelf inspired by Pottery Barn’s cubby organizers.  She found this at Goodwill for $1!

 

Stephanie from Binkies and Briefcases built (as in “hammered-and-nailed”) this adorable table and chair set for her kids, and saved big bucks over PBKids Carolina set.  I’m in awe!

And Lili from Purple Paisley Pinwheels glued together different glass pieces to recreate PB’s Addison Candle Holders.  These would be great to change out seasonally.

Great job, ladies!  Thanks so much for joining.

I’d really like this party to grow…can ya’ll do me a favor and when you see a PB, Ballard or Restoration Hardware knock-off around blogland, let the creator know about the next upcoming party?  Thanks, peeps.

Knock-Off Party!

So, Wednesday morning I realized that my party is today, Thursday, and not Friday as I had been thinking.  I had switched it to Thursday so I could use Friday to highlight your projects.  I hadn’t even started on my project and thought I had at least two days to get it done.

Since that wasn’t the case, I had to start from scratch and get it all done in one day.  I had been perusing the catalogs for weeks, but hadn’t decided on anything for sure.  In light of my new laptop that I got Tuesday night, I decided I needed a tote bag to tote it around in.  Ballard was the logical place to look for inspiration, as they always have several cute bags.

Lo and behold, there was an actual laptop tote on the website!

Off I went to Hobby Lobby, got my supplies, and headed back home.  I tossed the fabric in the washer, then I had to drop Firstborn off at his homeschool PE class and go get my license renewed.  As I was sitting at the DMV, I got a phone call from the school nurse…Skippy was in her office with a fever.  By the time I picked up both boys and finally got home, it was 4:00 pm.  I had visions of being up until 3:00 am getting this done.  Fortunately, it turned out to be pretty quick.

I won’t make this a tutorial; I’m just going to reveal the final product.  Drum roll, please…

I used cotton osnaburg (kind of looks like linen) and lined it with a black gingham that I already  had.  The Ballard bag is made with a padded quilted fabric to help cushion the laptop.  I sandwiched a thin layer of batting between the two fabrics, so mine is also padded.  The Ballard bag has a zipper around three edges; I did not use a zipper, partly because I forgot to get one and partly because I didn’t want to mess with it anyway.

I enlarged the photo of the Ballard bag and printed it out, then used that to cut out my freezer paper stencil.  You can see from the above photo that I didn’t bother with some of the negative space or the number 15 that is on the original.  (I like typography, but for some reason the 15 seemed so random and totally unrelated.)

After you peel off the freezer paper, you get a sharp, almost screen-printed image.  Cool!

My little netbook fits neatly inside.

I even put a divider inside so my cord and mouse (I avoid touchpads when possible) have their own spot.

I can’t wait to see your knock-offs! 

Here are the rules:

• your knock-off entry must be made by you
• it must inspired by Pottery Barn, Ballard Designs, or Restoration Hardware
• you must include a picture of the original item from the catalog so we can compare
• it must be a specific comparable item, like my lamp shade, and not just a “this kind of has the PB look to it”
• you must link back to me in your post, preferably using my button code, which you can get in my right side column
• link to your specific party post, and not your general home page
• please be polite and visit several other participants and leave a nice comment

If you need more details, see this post.  Though I hate to do it, any entry that does not follow the rules will be deleted. I plan to do a highlight post on Friday, but I’ll leave the linky open all weekend for any stragglers. 

Whining Pays Off

{Oh. My. Word!  I've been thinking all along that the Knock-Off Party is this Friday, until I just looked at my sidebar and saw that it is tomorrow!  I am so not ready!  I guess I'll be coming up with something really quickly today.  I hope some of you are more on the ball than me.}

 PB, Restoration Hardware, Ballad Knock-Off Party is tomorrow....I hope you'll join!

I had a different post planned for today, and was sitting down to the desktop computer to type it out.  As I once again tried to figure out the vagaries of Linux and was once again failing, my frustration level was mounting.  Trying to keep my voice and tone calm, I asked Craig if he could please help me.  Again.

It’s usually about 2 minutes into this process that my voice start rising and steam starts coming out of my ears and Craig gets equally frustrated that I’m so impatient.  It was at this point tonight that I said  “why don’t you just get me a laptop for my birthday?”.  After all, the big 4-0 is coming up on Sunday.  Still, I wasn’t really serious, as we just don’t spend that kind of money on birthdays.

I guess my dear husband was at the breaking point, because he blurted out “I did!”.  Guess what I did then.  I started crying, partly because I was sorry that I had more or less compelled him to spoil his surprise, and partly because though he has given me some wonderful gifts in our 18 years of marriage, I don’t think he has ever once been able to surprise me.  I never peeked, but somehow or other I always knew.  This would have been the first time, because I definitely would have been surprised to open a laptop on my birthday.

Not only that, but he has secretly been working on setting it all up for me, so that it would be ready for me to turn it on and go.  So tonight I’m sitting here typing on my new MSI Wind Netbook.  It’s super tiny, about 11”x7”, and really cool.



I’ve got Picasa back, and I’m using Windows Live Writer.  Hallelujah!
 
I’m not sure what the moral of this story is.  Certainly not that whining will get you everything.  Maybe it’s just that I should be more patient.  Maybe it’s that I have the most awesome husband in the world…but I already knew that.

I love you, babe, and not just because you got me a computer, but because you constantly make sacrifices to try to make me happy and make my life easier.

I’m a happy computer camper, and a blessed wife!