Thursday, May 7, 2015

Springtime Motivation

Flowers have popped out all over the place in my yard finally!


That means I am  looking  to get out in my gardens and ready my home for cookouts and s'mores by the fire pit. My favorite vintage market was taking place and our work was done for the week so off I went for some fun.


I must say the ladies at Vintage Thymes are always so very gracious to me when I walk in with my camera. The theme this month was The Garden Gate and the pickings were wonderful. I just do not have enough money to buy everything I like nor do I have home large enough to house it all. I really need a job where I get to decorate other peoples homes so I can buy this neat old stuff for their homes. I would get the joy of the hunt, get to see it all come together, still have room in my house and get paid to do it all! Or maybe I should be doing what these ladies are doing. I would get to have the treasures for a little while and then let them go. Alas, this is not the season in my life for that now so I will be content with sharing with you pictures of some things that caught my eye.


The red and white caught my eye.

Fabulously chippy

Wouldn't this look awesome  on  a feature wall? 


A reminder that summer is on the way!

Art doesn't have to be a Van Gogh or Rembrandt. If you love it that's enough.


A hand printed poster by 23rd and Bird.
I perused the other shops and talked with the sweet lady at 23rd and Bird. I did walk away with her brown paper poster that I had been admiring just minutes before. She made a new one using a quote that I had scrawled on my chalkboard at home.

My chalkboard
23rd and Bird


I did buy this little guy at Vintage Thymes and stuffed him with moss and ivy:




The weekend before I visited the ladies of  Mary Ellen and Sandy's Vintiage Home & Garden Place. It was tucked away and I thought my gps had steered me wrong then in the clearing we came upon this cute little cottage.



And here are some photos from there:









Now with all these ideas running around in my brain I should be able to find something to work on (or at least finish the things I have started). Brimfield Antique Fair's first show of the year is next week! I know some of the ladies mentioned here will be going if you are interested in treasure hunting!
Linking up:
Lambert's Lately, The Charm of Home, Common Ground, From My Porch To Yours, Nifty Thrifty Things, DIY Showoff, Dwellings-The Heart of Your Home, Pieced Pastimes, The Shabby Nest, Chic on a Shoestring, Craft Dictator, Whipperberry, Snazzy Little , The Dedicated House, Cedar Hill Farm House, Coastal Charm, Flamingo Toes, I Should Be Mopping the Floor, Skip to My Lou, Cupcakes and Crinoline, Huckleberry Love, Sand& Sisal, A Bright and Beautiful Life, Creatively Living, Karen's Up On The Hill, DIY Dreamer, A Stroll Thru Life, Elizabeth & Co, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Our Home Away From Home, Cozy Little House, Savvy Southern Style, The Turquoise Home, Simply Designing, DIY by Design

Friday, May 1, 2015

Painted Table

I picked up a little red table almost a year ago. I knew I wanted something for what would be my new 1/2 bath. Nothing too big; something that could take a little color. For $10 I found a small table and thought I could do something with it that would work for what I was looking for. For that price how could I go wrong? It was red and the drawer didn't sit well but that could be fixed. I am terrible at remembering to take "before photos". After I fixed the runner and I primed the piece and painted green on the top and drawer THEN it occur to me to grab my camera.


You can see the red paint. This was only one coat.

This is primer on the bottom to cover the red.
And there it was. I eventually painted the base a spa blue-green color and then everything got a second coat. I replaced the wood drawer pull with a glass one and it sat just like that waiting for me to decide what I was going to do. I wanted some of the colors I saw in Bermuda last year to come through in it but how......

A few weeks ago I thought some flowers might look nice and went to work with a piece of chalk sketching out the design on top of the table and pulling the design down onto the drawer..... and it sat. Homeschooling and life in general doesn't always allow for creative time. For me I cannot just turn it on and off at will. I have to wait for time, creative juices, and inspiration to merge.

Today I spent some time at one of my favorite vintage-upcycle-markets and the inspiration hit. I came home and finished my little table ....almost. I still need to seal it but for now I am content with the piece. I am not sure it is exactly what I had in mind but I do like the colors....for now.






Linking up:
Nifty Thrifty Things, DIY Showoff, Dwellings-The Heart of Your Home, I Should Be Mopping The Floor, Huckleberry Love, Grace Langdon Art, Creatively Living, Karen's Up On The Hill, Cedar Hill Farm House, Coastal Charm, Sand and Sisal, DIY Dreamer, A Stroll Through Life, Our Home Away From Home. Savvy Southern Style, Lambert's Lately, The Turquoise Home, Simply Designing, The Style Sisters, DIY by Design, Too Much Time on My Hands, Common Ground, From My Front Porch To Yours, French Country Cottage, Imparting Grace, The Shabby Nest, Just Us Four, My Romantic Home, Chic On a Shoestring, Miss Mustard Seed, Pieced Pastimes, Snazzy Little Things, Remodelaholic, Craft Dictator, Whipperberry, The Dedicated House, Cupcakes and Crinoline, Home Stories AtoZ, Cozy Little House, The DIY Village, The Cottage Market, Must Love Home, Gingersnap Crafts, Craftberry Bush, Crafty Allie


CraftyAllie

Friday, March 27, 2015

A Designer Spring

Day1 of this blog entry:

We have officially hit the magical number on the calendar this past week that says spring is here but looking out my windows and door you would not know it. Just Monday  the temperatures  were 30 degrees with a wind chill factor. The news reports are calling for rain tonight. There is still a measurable amount of snow on the ground from the "most snowfall ever recorded" winter. I can see the grass in some areas, like over the septic tank. While it is not an ideal location I will take what I can get at this point.

Easter is a week away and not one crocus has popped. Not one tulip has forced its head above the dirt. The forsythia bushes that line the back wall have no buds readying to burst open at the first warm day. My lilac bush looks cold and dead.

It has been a hard winter and I am ready for the springtime so I prepared my home for it and will wait for it to show up.

I started in the dining room. It is the first room you see when walking into our home and it is the first room I walk into in the morning. I want it to greet me with the excitement life and of spring!






Next into the kitchen I go. Still love my ever-changing chalkboard.

Before last week....

...and today!


Then into the living room; there is not much to do here. I replaced certain pictures and changed the hutch shelves a bit. Arranging them always proves a challenge for me. I have learned to take pictures and then adjust based on what I see in the photos. I changed the pillows and put away the winter throw though it is still in reach to grab on rainy days.

Christmas in the living room

Ha-ha out the windows there was no snow yet! This was in December-the only month of the year that I like snow.
Spring shelves, cleaned up and edited. Still not liking the arrangement.
Better, for now....

My favorite painting from my grandmother....

I had the pitcher and flowers long before I received the painting. 

I made a wreath for my front door following this blog post from Polka Dot Chair.





Day2:

It rained last night and the temperature stayed above freezing! Today’s temps are to be in the low 50’s and more rain is on the way in. That means more snow is on the way out! Yay! My gardens and shrubs have taken a beating this winter and I can’t wait to get out there and tend to them. Maybe a crocus or two will finally emerge.

The tulips are another story because the rabbits usually get to them just as they are ready to open. Cute as bunnies can be I have no love for them in the spring. My vegetable gardens are now all raised and fenced in because of said bunnies. Bunnies represent springtime for me because that is when I see them (or evidences of them) in my gardens most. I prefer my bunnies in the ceramic form with a bow around their neck.



What am I saying! Silly me! I prefer my bunnies in the chocolate form! Some of you are not surprised at that, I know.

That being said, we don’t do The Easter Bunny and egg hunts anymore. In our home, we celebrate Resurrection Day. As Christians, this day we celebrate is the very reason and assurance of our faith. I used to make resurrection cookies with the girls when they were little-not so much now that they are older . They always got new outfits-usually matching- (and accessories) to wear to church. 

2009

As they get older many things changed. They still get new outfits but shopping for them requires their input and is thus a bit more challenging at times. I will add a picture to this post later from Easter Morning 2015.



 As our younger girls enter the “springtime” of their lives I watch with a similar anticipation to that of my gardens. What will they bloom into?  I don't know what that will be for either of them but for now they bring a beautiful array of color to our lives that cannot be achieved with even the best crafters and designers on this earth. Their Designer is unmatched.

Horray for the promise of Spring! Horray for the shadows in this life that excite my anticipation of a day in the future when Christ will make all things perfect and new.

Link Parties:
frenchcountrycottage.net
shabbynest.blogspot.co
chiconashoestringdecorating.blogspot.com
justusfour.com
http://romantichome.blogspot.com/
http://thecottagemarket.com/
http://www.thediyvillage.com/
piecedpastimes.blogspot.com
niftythriftythings.com
diyshowoff.com
http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2015/03/the-sunday-showcase-party-no-279.html
http://www.dwellings-theheartofyourhome.com/2015/03/amaze-me-monday-104.html
http://www.cedarhillfarmhouse.com/2015/03/the-scoop-164.html
http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/2015/03/show-and-share-no255.html
http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/
http://www.huckleberrylove.com/
http://myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/inspire-me-monday-53/
http://cupcakesandcrinoline.com/2015/03/30/project-inspired-112/
http://www.skiptomylou.org/2015/03/30/made-by-you-monday-232/
http://www.abrightandbeautifullife.com/making-monday-82-2/
http://boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com/2015/03/a-very-special-palm-sunday-and-linky.html
http://www.creativelylivingblog.com/2015/03/monday-funday-97.html
http://www.karensuponthehill.com/something-to-talk-about-link-party-10/
http://thediydreamer.com/from-dream-to-reality/spring-drinks-treats-and-food-fdtr-161/
http://www.astrollthrulife.net/2015/03/262nd-inspire-me-tuesday.html
elizabethandcovintage.com
abowlfulloflemons.net
lifewiththecrustcutoff.com
mariaelenasdecor.blogspot.com/
cozylittlehouse.com
bec4-beyondthepicketfence.blogspot.com
savvysouthernstyle.net
lambertslately.com
theturquoisehome.com
thededicatedhouse.com
livelaughrowe.com
diybydesign.blogspot.com
impartinggrace.com
thecharmofhome.com
commonground
frommyfrontporchtoyours.co
snazzylittlethings.com
craftberrybush.com



This post was featured on The Dedicated House!

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Something for almost nothing

When we renovated the kitchen we installed new cabinets. One of the cabinet doors had a funky finish flaw in it. When the pot lights were on in the evening you could see a ripple in the finish that made it look like a zebra skin. During the day you did not notice it but at night I could not overlook it and had to fix it. It was a simple phone call....in theory. I talked to a representative that really didn't listen and I kinda felt like I wasn't going to get what I needed. Sure enough, a week or so later my new door arrived but it was the wrong size. Another call and another door arrived.....and fit.



I was left with two doors. The company wanted neither of them back. Mr. wanted to toss them but not me, no sir! I had plans.  I thought they would make lovely chalk boards. I taped off the inside the panel and applied the chalk paint. It took two coats of paint. I painted the first coat in one direction and the second coat I painted perpendicular to the first coat. Now, this is where I know better but, well, oh! I know! I left the tape on and didn't take it off when I was done painting and a few days later when I got back to it the tape took what should have been nice pretty edges and ripped jagged edges. Ugh. Walk away.


Remove the tape before the paint completely dries! 
That took the wind out of may sails. Fast forward six months later. I came up with a fix. (That did not take six months but the desire to come back to the project did.) I had some copper tape that I had used in a project we did for art in school. The kids had made stained glass panels and we taped the edges of the glass to make them safe.


I cut the top and bottom straight then mitered the side strips, overlapping the the corners.


I used the tape to frame out the chalk paint. It covered the jagged edges and added a nice finishing tough. I used a brayer to help adhere it well. Be careful because the edges can be sharp. Afterwards I used a spoon to burnish fit onto the board.


Some clean up is still needed-see the chalk paint outside the tape?


If you are going to make a chalkboard be sure to rub your chalkboard down with a stick of chalk and then erase off. This primes your board so that the first thing you write on the board doesn't end up being there forever. After that- go wild!



I added a knob to hang my chalk from.




The doors were free. I had the chalk paint and the copper tape. The only thing this cost me was some time! The plan is to sell them because I have my eye on a paint sprayer.......


Link parties I am joining: