Milk Bottle Makeover With Decals

Take an ordinary bottle and add a fun decal to totally transform and re-purpose it.

This is an easy up-cycle project if you have an ink-jet printer.

These images were sourced for free from The Graphics Fairy and there is an abundance to choose from and I give you fair warning, you could get lost down a rabbit hole and lose an hour of your day as you discover one vintage image after another.

The other thing you will need is some clear decal paper suitable for an ink-jet printer. I got mine from here.

Do a test of your chosen design on a sheet of ordinary paper first to make sure it's the size and style you want. Then simply lay the decal sheet in the printer and away you go.

To make the ink water resistant you will need to coat it and I used Krylon Acrylic Crystal Clear spray. Spray lightly, giving the decal at least four coats allowing it to dry between coats.

Once dry cut the design out close to the edge of the printing. Make sure your bottle surface is clean. Using a shallow dish, place your decal in water for about 30 seconds. You'll know it's ready because the backing will start to slip from the decal. Ease your design onto the bottle making sure it's straight and smooth.

Now you've turned an old bottle into a new vase, water bottle or milk jug!

Your items will not be dishwasher safe and require gentle hand washing and to get the longest life from your design, do not soak. 

Give it a try. They make great gifts too.

If you can't be bothered with the faffing about, these bottles will be 

available

 in the shop.

( Link at the top of the page too)

I've used genuine vintage 1 pint milk bottles and they make a lovely nostalgic addition.

If you have had a go at decal work, post your pics or links in the comments section.

Up The Garden Path

I've got another before and after story for you.

It's the story of some random stone and a path.

We bought some crazy sandstone paving and it's been accumulating beneath the peach tree.

This photo was taken back in September 2015 when the yard was just a paddock and we were marking out the first beds.

By the end of that summer it was thriving and productive and we had a rough path mapped out.

The following spring of 2016 it flooded....

TWICE!!!

This winter we finally made a start on formalising the main path.

The two large sandstone pieces were a happy find amongst our stone we had delivered for the dry stone wall. The shearer did an amazing job. I was just the TA on this one.

And voila!

From this to ....

This!

And THIS!

I am enchanted with it.

Besotted I tell you!

It might even be better than diamonds and pearls.

In The Zone

I used to feel so comfortable and at home in this world, now everything looks exotic and strange. I used to know so many of the plants but that was more than 30 years ago. Now the scenery for the most part jars my senses and jangles my nerves.

We recently went back to Queensland to see a new grandson and family.

I used to embrace the heat and humidity but now I find like a plant out of climate, I don't fare well; my skin doesn't feel comfortable and my hair becomes listless.

This is more the palette of my spring world now and the climate I feel comfortable in. It takes a long time to acclimatise and I am sure I've arrived.

It has made me think about the plants and gardening. We can and often do, blur the climate zones within which we grow things, some survive and a rare few fully acclimatise but for the most part I sympathise with those plants out of zone that fail to thrive but we persevere anyway.

My folly of a Tahitian Lime in Campbell Town is very much on my mind. It's definitely not thriving but....it just might be acclimatising.....?

Are you like an exotic flower and struggle outside of your climate zone now?