Yee Haw!

One of my favorite themes is Western.  The food and decorations are easy and easy is my favorite kind of party!  Today I want to share a simple idea to go with that theme. 

Got any old jeans????

Messed up jeans are the best.  Gives this project personality.

Lay 'em out on the table.  You're going to need a pair of good sewing scissors and some pinking shears. 

Cut the bottom of the leg off from about the knee.  I save this part to use as a gift bag.  Just turn it inside out, sew the raw edges closed and turn it back.  It is great for a number of things.  Do you have door prizes for your party?  Use these as a gift bag.  They are just the right size to hold a bottle of your favorite beverage.  Use raffia to tie the top shut.  OR slide a vase into them and again, tie it on with raffia.  Fill it with sunflowers and you have a great centerpiece for your western table.

Now take your sewing scissors and do a rough cut around the pockets. 

Use your pinking shears to cut around the pocket close to the edges.  You can start with the pinking shears if you like but I have found that that they are hard to use over the thicker seams.

Use these pockets to hold the silverware and napkin for your table settings.

A friend got me started collecting pockets when she loaned me hers for a Cowboy Christmas party I hosted at church.  I've been collecting ever since.  Picture a red check table cloth and red napkins in the pocket.

Before & After.....A Work in Progress

Before.....

During

After

Still a work in progress. I have a hard time drawing the line between clutter reduction and not enough decorations in the room. A decorator I am NOT!

Tic Toc Collecting Clocks

I LOVE clocks! I don't know how it got started or why but clocks catch my eye everywhere. Mostly I like them a little off beat and quirky.

This is one of my favorites. I found it at Target. They had it in the Back to School College stuff several years ago and I waited and waited for it to go on clearance. It never did. They just moved it to the regular aisle. It was $89 which was a little steep for something I really didn't "need" so I let it go.....sort of. Actually I walked down that aisle every time I went in the store, hoping for a deal good enough to make me buy it. About 2 years after I first saw (fell in love with) it, I got a $100 check for working at a conference. I knew just what I wanted to spend it on! :-)

This is a station clock. Reminds me of riding the train to grandma's house in my younger years. I first found one at a furniture store and didn't buy it. Of course I couldn't stop thinking about it. (I might be a little obsessive about clocks right now?) When we went back to the store it was gone! :-( For my 50th birthday, my husband tracked one down and bought it for me!

This was my grandpa's clock. After graduation from high school I came to Arizona to visit my grandparents and never left. (Met my hubby there!) Grandpa worked shift work. He used to come home after a midnight shift, sit and dunk a piece of bread into a glass of milk for a snack, and then he would wind this clock before headed to bed. He wanted me to have it when he was gone. This is a memory clock for me.

How's this for quirky? Unusual clocks always catch my eye. This one just came from Kohl's. I waited to buy it till it was on sale for 50% off and I had a coupon to boot!

Sometimes I wonder where the attraction to clocks came from. Do I need any more? Need? I think not! Will I buy any more? Probably. "Time" to go.....