Shopping Online

I enjoy ordering online. I always have and since the arrival of COVID, I pretty much order everything online. Some items I pick up but the majority I have shipped to our home. It’s easier, definitely more convenient, and unfortunately, comes with risks. The biggest risk? The potential of items arriving damaged/broken. It happens, lack of protective packaging or just rough transit, things sometimes are broken before arriving. So what do you do when you receive broken items? Obviously call the company, let them know and most will refund or send a replacement. But what about when there is no replacement? Sure, you receive a refund but what about that item you were so looking forward to? This recently happened to me and after a few days, I figured out what to do with that broken item. I decided to turn broken into beautiful with a little DIY.

Broken Bunny

I love shopping at Hobby Lobby.

I get in trouble shopping at Hobby Lobby hahaha

Seriously, cutest decor items and pretty much anything I’m looking for when it comes to crafting.

This particular shopping “trip”, I was looking for a few simple Easter decorations for the house.

I shop online and have learned to shop early because things sell out quickly, especially online.

I found several little items I wanted, all at great budget-friendly prices and all so cute!

I couldn’t wait for everything to arrive…

Unfortunately, the bunnies didn’t quite have a safe trip.

Hobby Lobby is always fantastic at packing up things, I have ordered countless items and never had something arrive this damaged. Plus, customer service is fantastic so when I called concerning this issue, they quickly did all they could to fix it. Unfortunately, all they could offer was a refund… the item was sold out and they couldn’t send a replacement.

I was so disappointed! I was planning to put the bunnies up on the mantle.

Plans Change!

After several days of moving the broken pieces around (I refused to just toss it) and trying to figure out what to use instead, I came up with a plan.

Just because it was broken didn’t mean it was useless. It didn’t have to be thrown away just because of a little damage.

I decided I was going to take these broken little bunnies and fix them up, create something new.

My original idea was just to use the two bunnies still attached and create a larger piece with them.

But if you know me, you know I never stick to my original plans.

The more I looked at all the pieces, the more inspired I became.

Why not just fix the broken one? Why not reattached them and have my little bunny family?

A little bunny family that represented our family.

A Creative Solution!

I gathered up the paint and supplies and got to work!

I started by lightly sanding the bunnies, not only to smooth out the little damaged areas but also add a little texture for the paint.

Paint Time!
Since the bunnies were going to represent our family, I chose colors that represented us. Black/Dark Grey for my husband. A brownish cream for me and keeping the flower for the “boho” vibes.

Once dry, I went back over very lightly with the sander to give the bunnies a light distressed look. A little secret of mine? I use nail files! Smaller, not as rough which is perfect for distressing, much easier to hold and get into the odd spaces. Plus, unless my husband is home, it’s usually the only thing I have on hand. I pick up a big bundle super cheap and just add it to my craft bin.

Now for the broken bunny! I repeated the sanding process before to smooth the damage and add texture then again after for distressing. Since it was Abby’s, I had to paint it pink! A little more pinkish that I wanted but since it’s totally Abby so it works!

And of course the little girl bunny had to have a bow! I found scraps of burlap and made two different sizes. I had to experiment with size and shape but finally found what worked just right!

My little helper had to supervise to make sure I didn’t mess anything up…

Repair time!
Normally I would have my hot glue gun out but it hasn’t been working correctly lately plus where I was working was too far from any plus. So husband gave me this glue to use… and let me just add that I much prefer my hot glue gun and will be finding a cordless one soon!! (this glue and I did not get along… it works extremely well and I’m extremely messy so…. )

I removed what I could of the excess material left behind when the bunnies broke apart. This was an absolute must since it caused gaps when trying to reattach everything. I gently pulled off what I could then filed down the rest as smooth as possible. Due to feat of breaking another piece, I didn’t completely remove it all but enough that it no longer caused issues.

My “wood clamp” hahahaha yep, my crafty toolkit is severely lacking a few things.

The “welcome” was a complete last minute decision. I honestly wasn’t going to add it back on but the more I sat looking at the bunnies, the more I realized it needed… something…

So a little quick fix, a fun pop of color and the bunnies were finished!

And I absolutely LOVE how it turned out!!

Best of all, it’s 100% unique and totally us.

I guess this is one of those turning lemons into lemonade moments. Although upset at first, I took the broken and created something beautiful and more special to my family. Life is already way too stressful and upsetting to let something like a little broken bunny be a big deal. Too bad we can’t fix more problems with a little glue and paint!