DIYs + New MO

Hello! I've been falling off track with my blog posts of late. Honestly, it's not bringing me the joy it once did and I find I don't have much I wish to share on the internet, personally. Other, more public content is a totally different story! Things over at the new Jacob Jewelry and Gifts are ramping up for the holidays and foreseeable future! Head on over to check out the new goods, logo, look, and stay tuned for more exciting things to come!

New fabric headbands! Coming soon, in even more colors and patterns.

I will end this short, PSA style post with a few home DIYs we've been up to in the silence. This has been my favorite, by far, and a long time dream of mine: Upholstering!

My dad and I have always enjoyed British literature, tea, and design. I have wanted one of these beautifully upholstered "coffee table ottomans" for a long time, but the price tag is not one I could easily accept. So, like always, I did some research and dusted off my tools to figure out how to create my own!

Theirs:

(see what I mean about that price tag?)

Mine:

I had originally planned to upholster an existing square coffee table with beautiful turned legs, but we actually have an antique piano and bench in our living room that just made more sense to upholster with this beautiful Kilim fabric I found on Amazon! Now it is much more comfortable and saves space by serving double duty. Bonus: it was a mere fraction of the cost and incredibly simple and quick to create!

I simply bought a foam pad (1" so as not to create too much cushion for a piano bench. I would definitely consider 3-4" foam padding for a table or footstool), batting, adhesive, and brought out an old staple gun, staples, and hammer we've inherited from grandparents and parents over the years--which worked just fine! I cut the foam pad to the size of the bench seat, glued it down, then wrapped the batting and fabric over the whole thing and stapled it (shown above). That's it! It took less than an hour and I simply hammered in any staples that stuck out.

My friend Marsha of MementobyMarsha.etsy.com made a beautiful lumbar pillow for me, and I'm so pleased I asked for her help to make such a high quality item from a pair of my dad's favorite pajama pants:

I have also dusted off my sewing machine and made a handful of pillows and some teddy bears for my daughter and my niece from my dad's favorite shirt:

They are quite primitive, but so sweet to see, and making them was cathartic for me. I've made another bear since and my comfort level and skills are improving. It has been so fun to play around with fabric again and to create something so good and to give new life to an item that may otherwise be forgotten or thrown out.

When I'm not creating, growing my business, chasing a toddler, or doing laundry, I've also been spending as much time as possible gardening. It has been a very educational and calming past time for me these past few months. I will leave you with just a few snapshots:

How amazing is this Purslane??

And how about those Marigolds??

I am relatively new to succulents, but these seem to love our back patio!

I don't know if you enjoy a good DIY--I certainly do. It's nice to turn off your brain and do something good with your hands sometimes. Next up, some wooden pumpkins for the front yard, a tile backsplash in the kitchen, and removing a destructive tree stump to put in some beautiful landscaping on the side of our house. I may or may not post updates. My energy in this season is heavily focused on my family and my small business, Jacob Jewelry and Gifts. Don't forget to follow along on Instagram @JacobJewelryandGifts and Like the Facebook page to see updates, new listings, and sales!

Best,

Emily