I think it's time to bring back this craft I did 6 years ago!

These are egg dioramas that I made with a balloon and paper maché, kind of how you would make a pinata, only much smaller. After the balloon dried, I just cut a hole in the egg and outfitted their house with moss, and some little doll house items and embellished with crepe paper. The chandelier in the last picture is one of my earrings that I was keeping in hopes of finding the match but I never did, so it was re-purposed this way.

The kids loved them and they hung them off the light over the dining room table at Easter. While layering the paper strips, I added a wire so that they could easily be hung. I may even make some for the shop this time!

Linking to Nifty Thrifty Things
Chic on a Shoestring
The Dedicated House

Weathered beauty before and after

It's a quick one!

I picked up this little demilune table for a few dollars. It's nice as is but I wanted to give it a paint wash, similar to the Restoration Hardware dresser pictured below.

The quick rundown:

It took about 15 minutes, tops.

After sanding the top with my orbital sander, I stained it with Minwax Classic Gray stain and sealed it with a wipe-on poly. I love using a wipe-on because I never have streaks that an aerosol or a brush-on can give. While that was drying, I dipped a brush in some diluted Dixie Belle Paint in the color 'Burlap' and just painted it on the legs. 

Since it was watered down, I easily rubbed it off and reapplied until I had the look I wanted. 

Rather than using a gray paint I thought the linen color would blend better with the mahogany stain of the table. I sell this paint line in my shop. 

And now it's perfectly weathered.

Have a great day everyone.

Love,
L




Linking to

The Dedicated House/Before and After Wednesday

Rustic & Refined

Between naps on the porch

DIY Dreamer

Cozy Little House

Ginger Snap Crafts

The Happy Housie

Posed Perfection

Average but Inspired

Craft Dictator

My Sweet Things

Leather belt book wrap DIY

In the digital age, I continue to be a collector of vintage books. I think the tactile sensation of having an old, beautifully decorated cover in my hands is one reason alone. Some I read and some I use for projects but those very special ones I like to have out on display, whether lining a bookcase or just around the room. I look for good spines, interesting color or script and topics of interest to name a few. When I find that all in one book, I feel I hit the book lottery. Yesterday I picked up A Natural History of Trees  from 1950 and it had beautiful drawings that would look great enlarged for big scale art.

So while I was collecting the books at the thrift store I also picked up a couple of leather belts to create another type of book display, a throwback to when school kids used book straps; DIY leather belt book wraps.  It's so simple and just looks great. I took a minute to switch the books around to figure out thickness and which colors complemented each other and just simply wrapped the belt around them. You could even wrap books in a collection by subject. A larger belt, of course, would work better if you wanted more than a double wrap. I also positioned the buckle on the spines when the books are upright and on top when they are displayed horizontally. I liked the look so much I'm going back for more today. The belts were .50 cents and the books $1.00. My advice is to find a pliable belt and with a nice buckle.

Three things I loved about this:

Every item is re-purposed

It took about 2 minutes

So inexpensive

Just stack and wrap.

Enjoy it!

~L

Linking to
The Shabby Nest

The New Mrs. Adventures

Dear Creatives

Nan Cherrow

The Girl Creative

Little Miss Celebration

Chic on a Shoestring Decorating

The Charm of Home

Home Stories A to Z

Elizabeth and Co.

Natasha in Oz

Fine Craft Guild

DIY Showoff

Three kids and a Fish

Karen's Up on the Hill

Kammy's Korner

The Dedicated House

Flamingo Toes

The Robin's Nest

View from the Fridge

Posed Perfection

Sugarbee Crafts

My Girlish Whims

Those Hollywood types -a vintage dresser

I recently found this vintage Hollywood Regency Dresser at a thrift shop. It was a great size but still sporting its yellow and white faux strié finish. It wasn't bad but came off outdated, you know?

This picture was taken from my phone after I cleaned her up, removed the hardware and had already primed its formica top.

I gave it a coat of chalk paint in Americana Decor's Yesteryear and waxed to a satin finish. I let the wax dry for a day before I buffed it. I usually don't have to wait a day but the relative humidity made it so. 

You can find Americana Décor at Home Depot but I bought it at Hobby Lobby where I could use a coupon. Every little bit saved helps.

The original hardware was covered in paint so I stripped them and uncovered a nice patina on the brass. The long handles have great bamboo details, matching the surround on the dresser front.

It was a quick and easy project. Love that.

The hardest part was moving this beautiful, heavy beast-ess

Enjoy your day!

~L

Linking to

The Casual Craftlete 

Kammy's Korner

The Crafty Blog Stalker

Coastal Charm

The Dedicated House 

View from the Fridge

Operation Brighten Up

I decided it was high time to lighten and brighten my surroundings. I have a few steps to this process but step one was the easiest:  just to add a few new pillows for the couch. I couldn't find anything local that satisfied my need for bold, high contrast patterns so I headed straight for the thrift shop, a brand new one in the area, and came back with a couple of stretchy tops. They're perfect for sewing a couple of pillow covers myself; made even better by the fact that they're stripes.

I had to hide them from Charley because she usually jacks my stash of clothes that I want to use for fabrics. I almost feel bad about not letting her see these. 

Painter's tape zig zag vase - a quick DIY

For our anniversary in 2011, we spent a weekend in DC and went to a Mexican restaurant at the Washingtonian center in Rockville. There I saw over sized zigzag (or chevron) striped pottery and wanted some of my own. Some were shaped like ginger jars and some were 4 feet tall floor vases. Ever since then I was on the lookout for large vases to spray paint. Nate Berkus came out with some last year for Target but I missed out on them.

So a while ago I found this blue green vase at the thrift shop for around 4 dollars and knew it would be great for my diy project. The color is perfect for Spring so I didn't want to alter that and commit to painting over it but I still had to have my stripes.

The solution was to spray paint Blue painter's tape and use that for the stripes as opposed to painting the vase. I unrolled a few feet of tape and stuck the end to a post on the deck while holding the rest of the roll and spraying what I had unraveled. It took about 15 seconds. By the time I walked back up the stairs to the house, the tape was dry.

I had already used the plain painter's tape to make the design on the vase so I just put the spray painted tape right over it and trimmed where it needed. It looked too thick that way so I took off the tape I used as the guide underneath and put the gold tape back in place. Because it's low tack, it was forgiving and easy to use. It's not perfect but it's temporary and I can add more rows, change the thickness of the tape and its color.

Now I'm on the hunt for more so I can do a grouping and am thinking up ways to use spray painted tape.

And until I find a more suitable place for it, I'll just let it glam up the tv.

Have a great day!

xo

Laura

The Shabby Nest
Liz Marie
Chic on a shoestring decorating
Skip to my Lou
Keeping it simple
Coffee Beans and bobby pins

Friday Finds and a week of Randoms

Good intentions to get a bunch of stuff done went down the drain when...

I received a call just as I was about to bite into my chicken Roburrito and was asked to speak in church this Sunday. So all week I have only been thinking, researching and writing about the subject I have been asked to tackle. I have to start this process right away because it seems that all of the thoughts in my head don't formulate and flow the way I'd like until it's crunch time. So today is crunch time. I've been practicing my talk while I am standing at the sink doing the dishes or folding clothes and then something new will come to me so I have to add, omit and re-work the whole topic. It'll come together somehow.

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Speaking of Roburritos, we have found a new favorite. They have about 20 sauces to choose from to put on your burrito. Oh yum.

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Reese took 3rd place in his division at the Pinewood Derby. He was so happy about that. We were very happy for him.

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The flu bug barely touched us, knock on wood. Charley and Reese were out for one day only. Trae had a fever for 4 days but that was it. Blair and Belén have escaped it so far. Time will tell.

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I went to a fun baby shower for a girl at church. I am lucky to have so many great women to be friends with and look up to. I've been lucky in every place that I have lived because there have always been these amazing women to know in each place.

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After the shower, a friend took me to a yarn shop and I saw the most beautiful yarn. I had no idea there were so many different weights and styles. So now I think I have to learn to knit. Afterwards we went to my favorite antique mall and I found myself an old, round wooden frame. I put it up but it looks a little drab so I see some Rub N Buff is in its future. The carving needs some highlights.

As we were cooking dinner the other night, one of the stove top burners caught on fire. I looked to see if there was something burning underneath that had fallen below but soon realized, nope, those were just flames shooting out. I was going to try to turn off the burner when sparks started flying. It seriously shot up sparks like one of those cones you light off on the 4th of July, so I had to run back. Everytime I thought it was done, I went to the stove and the sparks would fly again. Jon laughed at me flailing about. I think I lost a few lashes. The burner let out a big "pop!" and then it died. What a way to go though - in all sparks and glory! We were planning on getting a new stove anyway so the timing is good.

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My toes and hands are constantly cold.

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Oh yeah, I did manage to get to one thing - details later but me likey so far.

Have a good weekend!

 

xo

Laura

Friday Finds {Christmas style}

It's been a while since I posted any Friday Finds. It's actually been a while since I've been out on my scavenger hunts at all. I sure do miss them. Last week while I was out looking for ugly sweaters for a friend's party, I ran across this footed bowl. It was just $1.50. I loved the Jade green and thought it was perfect for holding some of my old Christmas ornaments since the glass jar I usually use crashed to the ground last year.

I also picked up this pine cone wreath for a dollar but thought it was too drab and tired but really well constructed. It actually looks better in the picture than it really was.

I needed it to be a bit more festive so nothing a little spray paint and highlighting some details can't fix! You know I love acorns...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My most favorite find was a faux bois tiered serving platter but I haven't taken a picture of it yet. Believe me when I say it's super cute and at $3.00 a steal.

 

It's good to do a little thrifting every now and then, don't you think?

 

Have a great day.

Chalkboard history

Over 40 years ago, my mom brought home this chalkboard after pulling it out of an old, dilapidated one-room schoolhouse just a couple fields over from where I grew up in Washington state. 

The farthest back I remember playing with it was when I was in 1st grade and my mom telling me that one day my own kids could write on it. I also remember going into the schoolhouse some years later, before it was torn down and having to watch my step because cows had taken up residence. By then it was just a shell of a building. We just stood in the middle of the room and my mom told me how she would love to buy it to restore.

I don't know the age of the chalkboard but it has stayed in such good shape all these years even surviving 3 cross-country moves. It's now up in the kitchen and it makes me so happy to bring a tiny bit of history of my little valley right here in my home.

 

 

*

*The school house was across the driveway from where my horses are standing. Mine was the one on the right, Midnight. His official show name was The Midnight Champion but I just called him Middy. My sister's horse was named Star and her show name was Star Countess. She was a big diva, being a 3/4 registered Arab.  That is my childhood home in the background on the side of the hill. It was the best place to grow and play. I was so lucky.

Bored with the gourds

After a month of gourds sitting around the house in vases and wooden boxes, not to mention used as bowling balls for Trae, I grew a little tired of them.

 

Although there are only a couple more days for Fall decorations, I thought I would liven them up for Thanksgiving. I took to them with gold spray paint which gave them some instant bling. I should've done this a long time ago. Note to self for next year.

(I also should've edited the photos but you get the idea.)

 

Have a happy day!

Are you tired of my love for acorns?

Don't answer that. Look at how cute these are first.

On my walks around the neighborhood I gathered up some acorn caps and sewed up some fabric acorns. I didn't pay attention to the shape; just gathered and pinched the fabric as I sewed along. Then I stuffed them and hot glued the caps on top. They are not the traditional acorn shape but they work for what I need. Soon I'll have a whole bowl full.

Have a happy weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Linked to Sugar Bee Crafts

Nature's little gifts

I've already professed my love of acorns with their sweet little caps that crunch under my feet as we stroll around the neighborhood.

Now I want to try to make a wreath with them. I think I would like it a little more flat with the acorns lying end to cap. Maybe even spray painted? The construction seems to be easy, it's the collecting that is more of a challenge I think. So you'll know what we'll be doing on our weekend walk.

I also stumbled upon a picture of this twig leaf that I am dying over. There are sticks everywhere right now since the heavy rainstorm brought them down last week.

How great is it that nature gives us such good materials to work with?

 

 

 

Have a happy first weekend of Fall!

In a nutshell - crafty acorns

The weather has a crispness to it in the mornings. You know what that means - Autumn is near.

Trae and I took a walk to a church in our neighborhood so he could play on their playground. I heard the crunch underneath our feet as we walked along. The acorns are beginning to fall - one of my favorite times of the year. We picked up a few little specimens. They were still green and some were too small but soon there will be more to look for. There is one house that we like to walk by because they have a huge tree that drops the larger acorns.

Every year we gather them, put them in the freezer to kill any worms (which still elicits the question from whomever opens the freezer, "Why is there a bag of acorns in the freezer??") Do they not know me at all??

I always end up putting them in a glass vase for a little decoration. I also get a branch and hot glue the leaves and acorns back on it and put it in the vase full of acorns that act as a filler.
It's exactly what my mom would do except she'd send us out to gather filberts and walnuts that fell from the trees lining our driveway.

Maybe this year I should switch it up and make some felted wool acorns?

These are little sachets of lavender. So cute.

Or how about these cool fabric ones?

Some are just so cute you could eat them.

How about painting them?

Or maybe I should send acorns to heads of state like John and Yoko to plant as a symbol of peace?

Whatever their use, they sure are cute little suckers.

Which acorn project would you try?

(The heads of state thing might not work but the others are promising!)

Leaves of green

A month ago I cut a big Elephant ear leaf (Colocasia) from the planter boxes at Jon's work. (I sought permission from the boss.) The large single leaf with a long stem looked great in the vase.

It lasted a whole month and up until last week, still had a nice shiny color. When it decided to finally give up I went back for another. They had grown a lot over the summer so the smallest one I could find was still too overscale for the vase.

The stem was so thick I had to cut it short just to fit in the narrow neck of the vase. That meant filling the pot-bellied vase full of water so the stem could reach. After I did that I remembered I had a large cylindrical vase that would have been perfect. But at least the littler kids won't try to pick it up. If they could they would be the world's strongest kids.

All this for bringing in some green...

DIY Adventures

Everything was going along swimmingly. The first small wall of tile went up in no time. Well, after we cut a lot of tile. When I stood back to look I decided it was worth the extra effort to go with a herringbone pattern. And once the white grout is in and the cabinets are painted, it will all flow nicely and the pattern will peek through.

Then I went on to the next wall where the tile was going all the way to the ceiling. This is when I wanted to punch myself in the face for deciding to do this. You could blame my fatigue (it was 1:30 am) or my lack of good math skills (I'd go with that) but I miscalculated and a large gap, no, huge gap, stood out between two tiles. My eye kept going right to it and I couldn't get around it so down came the tile. It was like that guy I may have told you about with the hair plugs that looked like a row of bristles on a brush. The one who didn't hire me for a job but called and asked me for a date. Then I ran into him later and my eyes kept going to his hair plugs. Did I ever tell you about that? Funny story.

Anyway, it's back to recalculating now. And it's 1:30 am again as I take a blog break which is why I'm digressing. This could be bad. The first wall looks good at least!

Let's just scroll back on up to that...

I love lamp

As I was out treasure hunting a while back I came upon this little art deco lamp. I loved it and carried it around with me for a while but decided to put it back on the shelf. I do that a lot. I talk myself out of things before I get to the counter. I figured one more thing to re-wire was the last thing I needed. But I really wanted it though.

Then the next day I came across this page in a magazine and there was "my" exact same lamp but with a great antique bronze finish. Who said anything about re-wiring?? So I went back and got it. Now I just need to figure out the best way to get it to look like its former beauty-queen self.

And now a little Anchorman-

Have a happy Wednesday.

linking to Funky Junk Interiors

linking to House of Grace
Somewhat Simple