Notice: This is not so much a tutorial as it will be a "look what I made" and some insight into my hackneyed skills. You have been warned.




I've been trying to get craftier in my day-to-day life. I really have.
I have purchased some tools and gizmos, in fits of inspiration off Amazon.
I have sanded a coffee table and applied an initial coat of crazy-bright lime green paint (love it).
And I have Pinned a bunch of things. Obviously.

But as goes the sunlight in the late afternoon these days, time and ambition are hard to come by when you're working full time and pursuing other interests (eating all the things and taking photos of all the edible and non-edible things).
But. I'm trying.
And by adding a nav bar item and tag for DIY and crafts, I hope to expand my posts to include art with more traditional mediums and simple solutions for daily decor and life. While graphic design and Photoshop are a pillar of my creativity, I am trying to step away from the glow of the Mac screen from time to time.
Being unplugged feels nice sometimes.
And creating something tangible feels even better.






We have a lot of friends in the service industry.
It's quite the blessing, actually. I highly recommend it.
From stronger-than-average cocktails and knowing the mind behind a menu; knowing the staff where you're dining certainly has its perks.
And sometimes, it just means that when you go to one of your most beloved Back Bay spots for Italian fare and fancy cocktails, you'll also walk out with a giant box of wine corks.
I simply had to do them justice. And I knew just what I wanted to do.

I had seen similar crafts, of course. They're all over Pinterest.
But I didn't want to simply affix wine corks to an already-formed wooden letter (or ampersand, as the case may be).
Mostly, because I didn't have a wooden ampersand laying around.
And partially because I love hand-drawn typography and I somewhat fancy my own. I was confident I could free hand a giant character and execute it fairly well.

And somehow, I did.

This now hangs on the wine rack in our kitchen, and looks quite lovely.

All I did?
Lay out a design on a large sheet of paper.
Lay out the corks.
Wood glue the corks to each other by their sides. I tried my damndest to keep the glue from seeping down to the paper and thus, attaching to it, but it was somewhat unavoidable. In the long run, the back of it is hideous but the glue is barely noticeable from the front.
And definitely does not take away from the "wow" factor of a two and half foot ampersand made entirely of corks, free standing on your kitchen table.









The box of corks is still three-quarters full, by the way.
Please send me any and all suggestions for fun stuff!