Tool Time Tuesday..."Wire" You Not at the Harware Store?

We finally had the fundraiser I was in charge of for the senior class this past Sunday. Love the students all to pieces, but I'm glad the pressure is over. I made all the center pieces for 15 tables and I thought I would share with you a couple ideas for TTT. Not much to do with sewing, but it can be adapted to just about anything.
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I wanted to use silk flowers that I already had at home. I keep them in big Rubbermaid containers and rotate the flowers out at different times...so I had enough. The committee wanted to thank the people who donated the food and the people who cooked or us, so I made thank you signs to put in each table arrangement. I just need something to hold it up above the flowers.
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So where else would I go, but to my husbands workbench! Ahhh...a big role of heavy gage wire. Perfect!. I didn't take any pictures of the actual making of them, because to be honest...it was 2 am and I think I was going blind at that point!!
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All you do is take needle nose pliers, pinch then end of the wire and then wrap the wire around the nose of the pliers 3-4 times creating the loops. Slide the wire off the end and then kind of pinch or squeeze the loops together so they are touching....and this is what you have...


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All you do now is just slide the paper (which was my thank you) in the loop and I was all set.
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Here are all the arrangements waiting to go out to the car. I typed the note, cut it out and hot glued the corners to pretty scrapbook paper that matched each flower.

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The second part to today's Tool Time is the containers I used (in the pictures below). I wanted them all to match, but I don't have 15 matching cans. Where to go...to your local pizza place. I asked 2 pizza restaurants to save me their large metal cans that the tomato sauce or whole tomatoes come in. They were so nice about it..they even took the labels off for me and washed them. I told them what I was using them for and they were great about it.

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Aren't the cans so cute and the wire sticking out matched.

• You can use this idea for parties that you have...just make a sign that says Happy Birthday or Happy Anniversary and clip it to the wire and you're all set for a centerpiece.
• You can also stick the wire in a plant that you are giving as a gift and put a little note on it.
• the wire can hold recipes, pictures, little love notes
• I have a plant on the desk that I am working at right now and it would be perfect to have the wire in there for "to do" lists, or appointments coming up etc...

Well, even though I used the project for 2 things...a fundraiser and a TTT, I'm glad I can share it with all of you.

Have a great Tuesday,

~Karen~