A Functional Project & Practical Tip

Practical Tip:

Line one cupboard or pantry door with cork. You can use a roll of cork, or cork tiles that are easily found at stores like Hobby Lobby or JoAnn Fabric. Use this newly corked door as a place to hang things that are important to keep at hand. It becomes a mini-office in the heart of the kitchen. We hang the school lunch menu, coupons and our take-out menu pocket. It is even a handy place to hang art work that comes home in the kids' backpacks.

Sometimes I am bound by a need to make things functional, not just pretty. I think this is an mental battle I wage: can art or craft just be for art's sake, or does it also have to be functional. It is nice to make some of our functional objects also artful.

My project for the day is a Take Out Pocket. This is where I keep all those Take-Out Menus and Coupons so that we can find them when I have the urge to order instead of cook.

The process is quite simple. I used a plain manila folder. I folded additional paper and glued it in place to close the sides of the folder and create a pocket. Then, I collaged the folder with varoius papers, letters, vintage stickers and stamps. Of course, I used a food motif. I "aged" the paper with a brown ink pad. I sealed the whole thing with a few layers of
Mod Podge. Sealing it with Mod Podge will both protect the collage, and strengthen the pocket since it may be used frequently.

Back to the idea of form versus function. Should the items in our home be only functional? Can we also improve their form with our artistic touches?


What everyday items have you put in your home that share interesting or artistic form and useful functionality?