Welcome to my crafting journey! As July and August roll by, summer seems to be flying past at double speed. It has certainly been an eventful few months, largely dominated by the scorching weather. When heatwaves and heat domes hit, it completely changes your mindset about how to spend your time. I simply couldn’t justify hiding away in my workshop when there was so much to enjoy and do outside, so I traded my sewing machine for a paintbrush! Putting on my painter’s hat, I decided to bridge the gap between indoor crafting and outdoor living by bringing my creative ideas straight into the garden.

Here is a full recap of all my latest summer crafting creations, outdoor garden art, nostalgic restoration projects, and handy craft resources to inspire your next project.

Coastal Dreams: Nautical Garden Art on a Shoestring Budget

To make garden maintenance easier and lighten the workload around the yard, I wanted to create cohesive garden art pieces that tie everything together without creating a hodgepodge of clashing colours. My deep love for Greece always draws me back to magnificent ocean blues and clear sky shades, so I established a unifying nautical colour scheme incorporating two or three complementary blues alongside rich, natural textures.

Dollar Store Bird and Shell Plaque

For this piece, I took a simple 2×4 offcut of wood from the garden, a couple of $2 ceramic birds from the dollar store, and some sea shells that had been tucked away around the house for years.

• Colour & Texture: I painted the wooden base and sprayed the birds, then added decorative glass beads, marbles, and real shells for tactile dimension.
• Finishing Touch: To soften the contrast, I lightly splattered blue paint over the edges of the shells and timber, giving it an artistic, weathered aesthetic.
• Display: This lovely completed piece now sits proudly on a small table inside my gazebo, costing barely more than the price of the dollar store birds!

Repurposed Fish Picture Frame

Next up was a secondhand wooden picture frame that originally came in stark white.

• I sprayed the frame black before lightly layering over my signature ocean-blue paint for a stylish distressed finish.
• Using my band saw (or a scroll saw pattern), I cut out wooden fish shapes, glued on classic buttons for eyes, painted them, and accented them with blue spray paint.
• This rustic nautical frame now hangs beautifully outdoors. I even sprayed an old front doormat in matching blue shades to sit beside the door, tying the entire entryway together!

Quirky Flower Pot and Repurposed Garden Inspirations

When the hot summer evenings made it too warm to work, I spent time researching clever ways to repurpose everyday household items into whimsical outdoor art.

• Flower Pot Animals: Basic terracotta flower pots can be stacked and painted to form adorable animals, like a charming little donkey display.
• Washboard Art: An old wooden laundry washboard makes a rustic decorative backdrop for garden displays or utility spaces.
• Tin Can Butterflies: You can transform standard food cans into delicate butterflies by flattening or shaping the metal, painting the surface, and adding beads or wire for antennae and wings.

If you do not have a band saw or scroll saw at home to cut wooden animal motifs, do not hesitate to ask a fellow woodworker or craft buddy to lend a hand!

Restoring a 44-Year-Old Rocking Chair Outdoors

Why limit yourself to garden art when you can take an indoor furniture project into the sunshine? The year before my son was born—44 years ago now!—my cherished father-in-law gave me a wooden rocking chair for Christmas. It has moved with me from room to room over four decades, and I finally decided it was time to give it new life.

The Restoration Steps

1. Painstaking Sanding: Because the chair is constructed with solid rivets, it could not be disassembled. I placed the chair on a outdoor worktable and spent months carefully hand sanding every curve under the warm sun.
2. Chalk Paint & Chocolate Wax: I coated the sanded frame in a soft cream chalk paint, followed by a dark chocolate wax finish to add depth, warmth, and vintage character.
3. Upholstery Details: To complete the transformation, I selected a gorgeous printed upholstery fabric for the seat and backrest, edged with elegant decorative braiding to perfectly match my living room decor.

Working outside allowed me to soak up the glorious weather whilst achieving a deeply sentimental restoration that brings back so many wonderful memories.

Nostalgic Aprons and Vancouver Island Exhibition Preparation

Looking ahead to September, preparations are underway for the Vancouver Island Exhibition (VIEX). I have been experimenting with printing graphics onto canvas fabric using my computer—a technique I recently used to print my business card photo onto canvas for aprons and bags.

While brainstorming ideas, I remembered my son’s eighth-grade home economics class. In the Canadian school system, students learn foundational cooking and sewing skills. For his main sewing project, my son stitched a lovely fabric apron with front pockets. Being a proud mother who kept everything he ever made, I retrieved that vintage apron!

Custom VIEX Exhibition Apron

Inspired by his handiwork, I am customising a ready-made apron for the upcoming exhibition:

• I am sewing my computer-printed canvas photo onto the front chest using a decorative border.
• I am adding custom fabric stencils and my craft logo across the front pockets.

It is such a fun way to combine heartfelt family memories with present-day branding!

Fran’s Favourite Summer Resource Roundup

During quiet, hot afternoons, I gathered some incredible online crafting channels, techniques, and creators that I know you will love exploring:

• Latkans (Middle Eastern Fabric Adornments): These gorgeous decorative baubles or tassels traditionally adorn clothing and bags. Craft creators are now using Latkin techniques to construct wall hangings, art pieces, and fabric floral arrangements like roses and tulips! I will be sharing a list of around 15 Latkin styles with my community.

• Pop Can Tab Crafts: Brilliant ways to recycle metal drink tabs! Check out Dooly Crafts, Twiggly Art, and Bellow Sisters for creative tutorials turning drink tabs into intricate metallic animals and fish.
• Felt Crafts & Embroidery:
  • Deco Floor (DECOFLOR): Exquisite, detailed felt work featuring intricate embroidery stitches.
  • Knitting Woman and Embroidery: Beautiful tiny felt animals and delicate needlework.
  • Alice’s Crafts: Adorable gnome patterns, including stuffed star gnomes.
  • Sewing by Burcu: Masterful felt craft ideas and delicate embroidery designs.

Looking Ahead to Autumn and Festive Crafts

As August draws to a close, we will be wrapping up the rocking chair restoration and diving straight into autumn crafting. Before we know it, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas preparations will be in full swing. I am a little behind on my “Christmas in July” ornament making, but I will happily blame that on the summer sun!

Thank you so much for joining me on this crafting journey. If you would like to follow along with all the visual steps, check out my video here: Fran’s Summer Crafting Update on YouTube.

Happy crafting, stay safe in the sun, and see you all again very soon!