A Simple Little Heart Recycle

Preparations coming up to Christmas and having family here over Christmas doesn't leave a lot of time to declutter or tackle any jobs I might have on my list but even getting a little thing done is helpful.

As I was sorting out some of the many things that had accumulated around my desk (which I have been gradually working on for ages) I came across two hearts.

They were from our niece Joanne's Wedding over 2 years ago and had been our place names at the wedding reception.

I like black and white and was sure that I could find some way of using them on a project so had kept them, but up to now I had not thought of how to use them.


Then now after two years I see them and suddenly have an idea.



If you have read previous blog posts of mine about my study and about things I love then you will know that I really do love hearts and have quite a few hearts around the study and the house.


In fact on the bathroom door and the back toilet door I have hearts to show what the room is

I had got these on ebay and loved them so I also later contacted the lady selling them to see if she had ones with study and office on them but she didn't.


Well I know that these hearts are not the same but I just thought I would use them anyway and all I needed was some blu tac and a pair of scissors.


I snipped off the long parts of the black ribbon just leaving the little bows on each heart, then stuck them to the doors with some blu tac.

I didn't add the words study or office because I would not be able to match the special calligraphy already on them but the names would do just fine as the study is mine and the office is Fred's.

Heart to Heart - table to door - a simple recycle.

How simple a recycle was that?


Can you find something that could be as simple a project as this?

Well now to look at the final results of work for this.

Very easy and took little time and of course I like the end result so more like FUNWORK than HOUSEWORK

How to PREPARE for a Car Boot Sale! - 13 Helpful Tips

Very busy recently with clearing out some of our daughters things from our house while she was here for a short holiday from South Korea.

She was sooooo good about making decisions on the things that she had left behind in our Guest Room.

I should have taken pictures of the before but I didn't think at the time.

Anyway she had things in:

• two sets of drawers, 
• one hanging rail 
• several bags and boxes piled up in another hanging area

Now she has things in:

• one sets of drawers, 
• half of one hanging rail 

Didn't she do well!!

She spurred me on so that I packed up quite a few things for the Church Car Boot Sale (as well as the things she was donating) and actually was able to go and help out at one of them.

Here again I should have got some pictures of the Car Boot Sale but hindsight is a great thing.


I do have some pictures of the things I decluttered and put out for the Car Boot Sale however.

Car Boot Sale

Before going to a Car Boot Sale it really is a good idea to be as organised as possible as well as making sure that the items you are going to sell are clean and not broken or chipped.

I was going with a friend but we were both taking our own cars and setting up our own tables.

# 1.   Make sure you go early, yes earlier than the organisers of the Car Boot Sale tell you to be there because the people who want to buy will come early and you really need to be set up first.

We parked the cars side by side and had our Church Charity Banner to tie between the two cars.

# 2.   If you are selling for a charity or special cause do make sure you have some kind of banner or sign up because some people will be a little more generous when they know the money is not just going into your pocket.  

Our church has been doing this for a few years now so we have a good banner and we also have some postcard sized cards with more info. printed for giving out.

I have two tables to take with me:  a large square one and a small, low rectangular one.

# 3.   Not everything you have for sale should be on the one table and two different heights is also a good idea drawing the eyes to look around more.

# 4.   A table always looks better if you have a cloth draped over it.   Yes you are selling things cheaply but presentation still draws people to look more closely.

Then I can also put some baskets on the ground too.


I put all the Dvds into one basket

I put all the books into one basket

I put small items that I could charge 20p for into a tin

I put items I could charge 50p for into a basket

# 5.   Not everything you have for sale should be placed on the table for everything to get moved around by the buyers as things will get hidden from sight and the tables will start to look very untidy very quickly.

# 6.   Putting similar items eg. the dvds into the same basket will draw the buyer to take a minute to look through each one.

# 7.   Smaller items are better in baskets, boxes or tins to have less items falling on the ground or getting missed under larger items and simply to keep the area neater.

I put all the clothes into one bag for carrying there and then they can be placed neatly on a table or hung up on a rail.

# 8.   Clothes should always be kept separate where possible so that people can spread them out and have a good look at them without hiding the other items for sale and a rail shows garments off better than having them all bundled on top of each other on a table.

I put all the kitchen, dining or ornamental things in one bag for carrying to the Car Boot Sale and then these would be placed on the table there.

I put all the candles into one lidded container

# 9.   Use sturdy plastic containers which can be placed on the ground giving another place for buyers to look instead of everyone at the same time trying to stretch over the main table.

I placed all the Christmas items in one bag together.

Yes I know it's only September but people are buying Christmas decorations already.

# 10.   Christmas items will sell at any time of the year but it is better to keep them to one side of the main table or on the smaller table so that they have a specific place and do not seem strange mixed in with other household items.

I had a brand new King size Sheet and a brand new pair of pyjamas to take as well

I had 3 large craft type bags and two handbags but only took this picture of 2 of the bags (all 3 large craft bags sold easily - should have asked for more money)

# 11.   Bags are always an attraction for the ladies to have a look at but remember to try to display them nicely and not just throw them into a bag or box as they are never seen to their best advantage in that way.

I also had a pile of hangers to use or to sell

I also made some notices on card to show the price of the items in certain containers

# 12.   Never go to a Car Boot Sale without some price signs.  People will buy quicker when they know the price (and maybe try to do a deal), whereas they may think twice about asking for the price of every object they are interested in.

All of this makes it easier for you to:

•  pack the car to go to the sale, 
•  unload unto the tables and ground for the sale, 
•  pack the things away again into the same bags 
•  lift the baskets back into the car.

Then of course when I got home again it was easy to unload the bags and baskets etc. into the garage to wait for the next one.

Of course there is the last very important thing that you must never forget and should have it prepared in advance.

#13.   Don't forget to have a float of money with you (and a safe place to keep it) to give 

your customers change from the nice large notes you hope they will be parting with 

and also of course to pay for your spot at the event.

A Car Boot Sale can be hard work but if you are friendly with the people who come to look around then they will be friendly too and make the event more pleasant.   Plus going with a friend means you can have a chat now and again and a break for coffee as you can take it in turn to look after both sets.
So it can actually turn out to be some Funwork instead of Housework for a morning.


The first time takes a lot of preparation but once everything is well thought out and good containers acquired each time afterwards is easier to prepare for and more importantly the prep time is so much shorter.

Then just think of the help this will be in decluttering and organising your home.

An Organised Sun Room

The Sun tried to come out on different occasions this month but was terribly hindered by the wintery conditions that kept butting in like winds and rain and sleet and hailstones.

I was tackling the Sun Room but this fact about the weather did not encourage me at all.
Though as I write this the back garden is brightly lit from the sun after another lot of hailstones yesterday.

The Sun Room

The Sun Room in itself did not need much work as there are not too many places for items to be kept.

But a few tips are always useful to keeping it organised.

1.  Think about what you want in your Sun Room
2.  Think about what you want to be able to take outside quickly
3.  Think about how to make things HANDY!

The only cupboard we have in the Sun Room is in the TV unit and it is useful for storing light bulbs which I sorted and made a note of the types we did not have a spare one of.


Also in that cupboard we keep the 3D glasses that the kids got at various times just in case we need them to go see a 3D film sometime - which really is a very faint probability as Fred & I have not ever gone to a 3D film.  Perhaps the kids should have each kept theirs for wherever they are?


Then the other main things in that cupboard are

• a few puzzle magazines,
• Sun Tan lotion,
• Sun Tan wipes
• After Sun Wipes
• and some pairs of sunglasses.

This is a useful spot to keep these as the Sun Room opens out to the Patio and when the sun appears (for the short periods that happens here in Northern Ireland and let's face it we need to make the best opportunity as we can of those short periods of time) we can grab those things on the way out to sit on the Patio or Deck area.


The bulbs were already in a basket but these Sunny Day items were just lying in the cupboard so I got one of my favourite small Lakeland Storage Caddies for these items that we need for hopping out to sit in the sun.
You can see in the pictures above & below that it is ideal in size and that handle makes it so easy to grab.

What else might I want in that cupboard if I am going to use it daily during the next 5/6 months?

Well I decided to add

• a post it pad 
• a notepad 
• and a pen 

 because those are always useful things to have at hand instead of having to run to the study.

PLUS 

there was still room for the three remotes that are needed in that room.

Lastly 

There are two other things that I like to keep in the Sun Room but they will not be in that cupboard.

A navy fleecy throw 

which is very handy if it gets a bit cooler in the evenings 

or even if I just feel like curling up on the sofa to read .

The 4 cushions for the Patio Chairs 

which I keep in a jute type bag pretty much out of sight behind the chair which sits beside the door out to the patio so that any time we are going out for breakfast we just grab a cushion on the way past.  

With our climate the cushions never stay out!

I have already written about how much I love Arks and pictures of Arks last year but now I had decided that some of these may go soon!!! but some will stay here in the Sun Room.  Some of my favourite Ark pictures just match in nicely with the style and decor of the Sun Room.

Here are two on the bookcase that holds most of our CDs



And here is another one above a window

That does not mean that some other Ark decor items will not be found in other rooms in the house of course.

Easy Kids Heart Banner - With FREE Printable

I decided to make a Banner for the PreSchool Age Sunday School Class for Valentine's Day

Of course this could also be simply used as banner at any time of the year and is something a child could make or be helped to make for a friend as a craft at home or at Sunday School.


Basically I wanted something simple & quick to make and for which I would not need to buy extra supplies.


So I came up with this "Jesus Loves Me" banner.

MATERIALS REQUIRED

Computer
Printer
White A4 card
Remnants of Ribbon (or long piece of string)
Staples/Glue
Scissors


The link for the Free Printable for this banner can be found at the bottom of this blog post.




STAGE 1

First thing was to get on the computer
(so difficult for me as I am never ever on the computer - sarcasm here)

I used Ipiccy to make pictures of the hearts with the letters inside them.
Some of the letters are repeated in the phrase so I did not have to do every single letter.

I left the original blank one in case I decided I would like to use the same heart outline for another project.



STAGE 2

This depends on how large you actually want your letters to be.

I felt for the smaller room that it would be big enough to have each heart less than the size of an A6 card so that meant that I could have 5 to each A4 card

Then I used Powerpoint to set out the letters I needed on an A4 sized slide and printed out all the letters involved including 3 blank hearts - never waste space and they can always be used later if not needed now.

STAGE 3

The cutting out was the most tedious part but I normally do that while I'm watching something on TV so not so bad and of course never waste time.

STAGE 4

I hunted through all my remnants of ribbon to see if I would have enough pieces to put together to form a long ribbon to which I could attach all the hearts.
Spacing out the hearts to see how long this ribbon needed to be.

Thank goodness I have a long kitchen table.

STAGE 5

Then I chose the thicker longer ribbon but I could have used the thinner off white ribbon pieces and glued them together behind hearts to make it long enough.


There were 3 reasons for choosing the thicker ribbon
          1.  long enough without having to piece lengths together
          2.  thick enough to not have to be so precise with the glue
          3.  it was actually decorated with little hearts too

Simple Heart Banner Kids Craft - Quick & Easy to make With FREE Printable

So I placed all the letters carefully alongside to get the right spacing before pressing each letter against the glue dots on the roll of dots.

Each heart got some glue in two places (the tops of the curves)

Before I pressed them all unto the ribbon.

As you can see I used glue dots because they make this type of thing so easy, neater & much quicker than using my glue gun.

Don't forget to download your free printable for the "Jesus Loves Me Heart Banner" HERE  if you have not already subscribed to Sandra's Ark


If you have previously subscribed to Sandra's Ark then you will find the link for all my Resources in any of the emails you have received from me.


Or pin this for later:

Don't forget to let me know if you try it out.