Deanne, loved your halloween vignette. You find the neatest containers and I love finials in any form and material. Michelle. I am amazed that your copper boiler has lasted that long. Who knew, copper would be so long lasting in the garden? Norma...enjoyed both your whiskey barrel pics and the pic of you waterinjg it. I have two whiskey barrels, but I have been growing peas up a trellis in them. String beans in the summer. I keep trying to plant something pretty around the edge, but nothing has looked good yet. Ei...great watercan collection! My fav is the purple. Also found the birdbath with succulents so eye catching with the alliums which are huge! I am a big fan of wire racks and mossed containers. I have one hay rack to fill this spring and I am going to need help figuring out how to moss it. Denise...I love your trio of wire baskets with succulents. Are they heavy? What did you use to hang them? I also love your bird cage idea with the candles in it. Marian...Your Achimines is so unusual. It reminds me of a streptocarpus, one of my favorites. Eden, the dish drainer is amazing! lol I would have never thought to put the dishes in it..and it fits just perfect! I have often wanted to catch a few yard sales to find some unusual containers to try to repurpose like this, but I seem to garden away most weekends in prime yard sale season. I did buy a couple of wire wastebaskets with the intention of mossing and filling, but I never did get around to it. There's always this year...hope springs eternal. Okay, who pray tell, is Angela? [g] pm2

I like it too. To make it really successful, first believe in yourself. Tell yourself this is going to work, add color and graphics to your web site so that people will want to see more of your ideas. Do not give away too much of yourself, but use beautiful imagery to illustrate just how much fun your ideas can be. Invite visitors to contact you with their own ideas and then give them an appointment for a free 'analysis' of how you can make their ideas really sparkle. Believe in yourself. Tell yourself that this is going to work. Say it in the mirror to yourself, say it out loud. The first step on the road to success is believeing that you can make the trip. If circumstances change and ideas flow in other directions, go with the flow, thats how genius is born. Roadblocks are not there to stop you, they're there to challenge you to greater achievements. Losing faith in yourself is not an option. Keep on trying, if one thing doesn't work, try another and another until you reach your goal. Create a portfolio for yourself that is composed of some beautiful settings showing some of your work. Use your own yard if you have to, or friend's or neighbors or family members, but you have to show what you can do. And believe that you can do it. Your goal isn't just the web site but the reality of what you really want to achieve, so prove it first and show that proof on your site. Other people will believe in you too when you Believe in yourself. Cheryl

Mine are mostly small things -- like using a glass compote to hold cotton balls in the bathroom -- or a cut glass tumbler to hold q-tips. A hinged CD holder (similar to the tissue box above but a double version) used as a spot to store extra TP. I have a dresser that is a TV stand for our exercise room and the drawers have my gift wrap rolls and ribbons. A home office armoire that was going to be my craft and gift wrap station became a china cabinet when my dad moved and I suddenly acquired another set of china and crystal and I wasn't ready to make decisions on getting rid of anything. I have an old radio cabinet that I cleaned up and planned to put a new shelf and door in the top, but the stained glass panel hasn't been made. I'm thinking about painting it and redirecting it's new life for another room now. Another one I haven't done buy we've talked about a couple of times is to put a pull out bed in a window seat to add a guest bed in our gameroom. I think the inflating mattresses are going to keep that one from happening -- take less room and are probably cheaper and more comfortable now that we no longer have a sofa with the pullout mechanism to repurpose. If a new thread is started, we should try to link this one at the top so these ideas and photos aren't lost -- st least as long as we can.

Some of the tips below are for repurposing/recycling in general. Hope no one minds. Use binder clips to keep bags and other types of packaging for coffee, bread, frozen vegetables, etc. closed and to keep the air out. They provide a tight and secure closure. If your Pilates ring or exercise circle breaks, use extra thick pillows or shams to tone your thighs. Use 2 together for added resistance. Use sponges as cushions to miminize scratching the sink when washing heavy items such as stove grates. Check to see if you can get money off when you bring in your old broken items. For example, some retailers offer money off a new paper shredder when you bring in your broken one. The retailers will probably have it recycled. Not repurposed but at least there's hope that it doesn't end up in the landfill. I got a great micro cut shredder on sale with another $30 taken off. It's not green to buy bottled water but there are times when I just need to have it in the refrigerator. I recycle the corrugated bottoms that comes with cases of bottled water by using them as trays to cushion and protect pantry shelves and cabinet from stains and scuff marks. I use them to store spices, cooking oils, cleaners etc. They can also be used as drawer organizers too. Cover them with decorative contact paper. Another use: I use a corrugated bottom to create another layer inside a corrugated box. The materal/color blends in. My laptop is placed underneath the corrugated bottom and cleaning supplies are placed on top. I do this to hide my laptop from thieves in case my house gets burgled. A Shake and Bake box is used to hide my e-reader in the pantry. Place old broken laptops, Ipods, and other electronics in strategic areas to act as decoys when you're away. Burglars might take them and be satisfied with the loot and leave. I have an alarm system and I like to take extra precautions. Otherwise, drop them off at at responsible recycler. I use old terry face cloths as mats under my electric toothbrush and oral irrigator to absorb any drops of water. My bathroomm countertop is made of ultra-hard porcelain decorative squares. I feel uncomfortable not using something to at least cushion the surface. Use an old towel to clean floors by wrapping it around a Cuban mop. A Cuban mop is a simple T-shaped mop with no material mop head. Sham Wow type chamois cloths can be used with this mop too. Toss the towel in the wash. Sham Wows can simply be rinsed. At Lowes, a clerk once mistakenly threw in three 2-1/2 quart "Mix and Measure" containers in my bag without my knowledge. When I got home, the minimalist in me wanted to throw them out but I decided not to. I finally found a use for them. Instead of filling a big bucket, I fill one of the mix and measure containers with the right proportion of water and cleaner or water/vinegar to tackle small cleaning jobs such as the floor in one room. I also use them to store cleaning brushes. Keep an old toothbrush near the sink to clean ridged coffee filter holders, fork tines, ultra sharp knives etc. It sounds strange to mention soup and detergent in the same sentence. I use plastic takeout food containers with lids to store homemade soup in the freezer and store handy amounts of powder laundry detergent to keep near the washer. I designate specific containers for single purposes. Use old mouse pads as coasters or cushions to place jewelry, eyeglasses. The porcelain in my bathroom counter wore off a little of the finish on my eyeglass frame so I use an mouse pad in there. Empty garbage bag boxes are used to store plastic grocery bags. If you're using kitty litter that comes in a big plastic bucket, save the bucket when the kitty litter is used up. Wash it thoroughly and use it to brine a turkey. It actually fits in my refrigerator. I eventually switched over to a brand that doesn't use plastic. Plastic grocery bags or newspaper bags are used for dumping coffee grounds into them to prevent contents from spilling all over the garbage bin if the kitchen garbage bag breaks. Always Freecycle, and donate to Goodwill and the Salvation Army.