Field Tile Pumpkin

  In this little project I use an old piece of clay field tile I found in the barn and create a fun and festive fall decoration for the home.

Tile drainage is the agriculture practice of removing excess water from soil subsurface. Back in the day farmers used clay tile such as these. Clay field tile is no longer used by most farmers, instead today's plastic tile serves to reduce the cost, as well as labor involved in tiling a field.  

But lucky me we still have piles of the clay tile in the barn "just in case" 

one of the old clay tiles in the field breaks.  

These clay field tile are the perfect shade of orange for a pumpkin.  

So I cleaned a few up and painted pumpkin faces on them.

Next, I hot glued a piece of felt to the bottom to keep the clay 

from scratching the surface where the tile is placed.

To get the look I wanted, I stained over the entire tile with a 

walnut colored stain.

  

Finally I sprayed the tile with a clear satin sealer.  

There you have it - a fun pumpkin tile perfect for decorating your country home.  I added some Sweet Annie sticking out the top, but I also think bare branches would look adorable popping out the top or you can just keep it plain and simple.

Bag of Blocks

Last week I had the best time going to garage sales with a friend.   One of the many treasures I found was a bag of old blocks.  

Remember playing with these when you were a kid? 

*  making roads and houses

*stacking them as high as you could before they all came tumbling down 

*clapping them together to make noise and marching around the room

I knew with a bottle of Mod Podge and a few scrapbooking supplies I could transform these old blocks into something wonderful.

One of my favorite craft supplies is Mod Podge.  

Everyone needs to have a bottle on hand at all times - it is a must!

Anyone that knows me, knows that I love to antique almost everything I make. So  I have a bottle of "antiqued"  Mod Podge in the cupboard as well.  

To make "antiqued" Mod Podge just add a couple of tablespoons of instant coffee to your bottle.  Let the coffee dissolve, adding more until the desired consistency has been achieved.  

The "antiqued" Mod Podge  will give your crafts a slightly aged look.

See what I did with a few of the blocks......

I simply printed quotes with my printer and Mod Podged them onto the blocks.  Tip: before using Mod Podge  I sprayed the words with a thin coat of clear acrylic sealer.  The printer ink will smear if you don't seal it first.

Embellishments can be added by wrapping wire, ribbon or jute around the block.
This gives a nice dimensional look to your block.

Here I mod podged the paper onto the block.  After it dried completely I sanded the edges and then stained it with a walnut stain.

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Quick, easy and simple  

Makes a perfect little gift

Here are some ideas:
* a quote about sportsmanship for your child's coach
* a quote about teaching for a teacher's desk
* a quote about hope for a friend or family member with cancer
* a block with just a simple word or two can have an impact on someone 
* you can rip pictures and words out of the newspaper or a magazine
* use photos to make it even more personal
* set them on a bookshelf, windowsill or dresser

The possibilities are endless.....