Saturday, January 30, 2010

Before and After

I finally finished the first of my two dining chairs that needed painting.

They were the chairs that were formerly slip covered.

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I never did take the time to make the slips fit properly and they did NOT look good.

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So here’s what my thrift store chairs looked like underneath the slips.

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And here it is now!

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Quite a difference don’t you think?

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I am just sooooo into burlap right now!  And….it’s so inexpensive to work with.

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Poor number 2.  It will be so happy when it’s painted too!

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Although this back insert is what makes these chairs so cute, it was a bear to paint!  (insert whine here)

So…this is how I spent my icy and snowy weekend.  What projects have you been working on lately?

Denise

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Button button….

….who’s got the button?  I do!  I made a great trade with another vendor at the Rink.  She wanted some Ralph Lauren sheets that I had and I needed some vintage buttons.

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Whites and creams.  Lots of great really old ones with pretty shapes.

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Reds and blues.

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Browns and black.  Not my favorites, but I’m sure to find a use for them somewhere.

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Of course, the creams and whites are my favorites.

I’m trying to gear up for the wedding.  I’m experimenting with different projects to see which Heather and I might like better.

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Like this cute nest banner hanging in our booth at the Rink.  I should have taken a better pic. before I put it up.  It has a lot of cute vintage lace and other goodies on it.  I’ve decided to make one for the wedding that says “Happily Ever After”  to hang somewhere in the barn.

I’ve picked up some wonderful things in the last week at the Rink.  Some I’ll show you later.  But these letters……..

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What can I say, they were just FUN!  :)  I paid $5.00 for all three.  They had been nailed on a building somewhere so I used some of my new vintage buttons to cover the holes and give them a little more texture.  Then………..

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I made these paper posies out of old patterns to hang on either side.

I’ve had all of my vintage lace out lately using it on different project and at the last minute I thought '”huummm what if….?” 

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I had these cute crocheted circles.  They were actually one long string.  I don’t know what they were supposed to be.  It looked like maybe someone had started a project and then not completed it?

So I cut them apart.  Notice the hole in the middle?

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I found the wire  on the back of my flower which was holding it together.

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And simply pulled it through to the back of the crochet piece.  I temporarily secured the wire to the fabric.

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Then I turned it back over and gathered the fabric around the paper to give it more of a floral shape.  Using doubled sided tape, I taped the flower to the gathered crocheted piece.

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Then I wired the whole thing to my jute string.  I made sure to place a nail in the top of my buffet right where my flowers would be so that I could push the flower down through the nail and adjust how I wanted them to hang.

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So how long has it been since you made these classic tissue paper flowers that we used to make as a kid?

You’ll find the best tutorial HERE at Martha Stewart.com.  Paper pompoms and flowers are made the same way.  To put the center piece in my hot pink flower, I just gently flattened out the center and glued in my beaded ornament.

Watch out!  Making these simple little flowers is strangely addictive!

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And today I’m painting two of my dining chairs.  In the dining room no less!  It’s sleeting outside like crazy and way way too cold in the garage. 

Oh how I wish I had a heated work building where I could just be messy messy and not have to worry about cleaning anything up.  ……sigh

Gotta go put another coat of paint on!

Denise

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Turquoise!

The other day I ready that turquoise is “the” color for 2010!

Woohoo!  I’ve got this one covered!

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So, what’s your favorite color this year?

Denise

Sunday, January 24, 2010

The Dress

First things first , of course.  What can be more important to the bride than the perfect dress.  Heather knew one thing for sure…..the color.  Pale pink.  And from there it was the old “I’ll know it when I see it” thing.  So we knew that we probably wouldn’t find anything ready made.  It’s never been that easy with my daughter!  But….she assured me, her mother in-law to be would be making the dress.  This was a great relief to me because there would be so many other details to take care of, and although I do sew, I don’t feel confident about making “the” dress.   And our budget did not allow for a seamstress.

So…..we look, we search, through magazines, and on-line assuming that we will probably have to kind of design or combine patterns to make “the perfect” dress.

I finally wised up, and went straight to the pattern companies (duh) and found a couple of  possibilities.

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This one from McCall's, with the over-lay.

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And this one, from Vogue patterns.

Heather and I are  fortunate to be able to work as a “team” so well together!  I called her and said “I found two that I love!”  And that was that!

She choose…….the second one!  She loved everything about it! 

So Heather said she would e-mail her mother in-law to be the picture.

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Now…..just stick with me here.  This is where the story gets reallllly interesting!

The next day was the anniversary of a really traumatic event in our family.  However, I woke up that morning with a GREAT attitude.  I started thinking about how this event had changed me as a person.  How I was so much nicer than I used to be.  How I was so much less judgmental of people than I used to be.  Why, by the time I was through patting myself on the back and thinking all about what a great person I had become, I had subconsciously assumed the position of someone between a Disney character and Mother Theresa!

So I got up that day and proceeded to spread joy and good cheer everywhere I went.  I’m sure I had an invisible shiny gold halo on my head, little blue birds sitting on my shoulder singing happy songs, and flowers and glitter trailing behind me everywhere I went!

This went on all day.  Although I DID go shopping, I was such a good good person, that I only made WISE  purchases.  Like a $2.00 shower curtain from Goodwill.  And although I did go to T.J. Maxx, all I purchased there were new sheets for my bed.  Which we desperately needed. 

So later that evening, I’m still patting myself on the back, and thinking happy thoughts and I get a phone call.

From Heather.

Who proceeds to tell me……………

Mother in-law to be……..refuses to make “the dress.”

“SHE WHAT?”  I say.   “WHY?”

Because…….Heather says  IT’S TOO LOW CUT!

My halo begins to slip.  My little blue birds back off and say “ah oh.”  And the flowers begin to wilt and wither.  But I’m trying really really hard to hold on.  I say “that’s just so silly it’s funny.”  So we have our conversation and hang up.

Then I REALLY start to think.

I could have SWORN that my daughter was 35 years old and capable of making her own decisions.

I didn’t know whether to be more P.O.’d at the position this put me in with who would make this dress.  OR more P.O.’d that I’m pretty sure my daughter had just been told she’s a SLUT!

My halo fell off.  It went rolling out the front door and down the street.  My blue birds deserted me for greener pastures.  The flowers disappeared in a poof of ash.  The glitter turned to dust.

I was livid!!!

Apparently this woman thought we had found this pattern at the “Sluts R Us”  pattern company.  Maybe on the same page as the naughty French maid costume pattern! 

UUUHHHHHH!

So now, I’m not sure what we’ll do.  Even if I did feel confident enough to tackle this,  I don’t own a serger.  And I really think these seams need to be serged.  Especially with a sheer overlay.  We’ll figure it out though.

Oh…..and if you happen to see a tarnished gold halo rolling down the road, consider it yours!

In the meantime…..I’m on the lookout for a really really low cut dress to wear to this wedding.  Bruhahahaha!  I’m BAACCK! 

Love,

Denise

 

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Spoiled Rotten & Other Stuff

My Hubby always says that if there were such a thing as reincarnation, he would want to come back as one of my pets.

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For the life of me, I can’t figure out why he would say such a thing.  Huummm………

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I’ve been busy this week sewing and painting.  Yes, it’s a small miracle!

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I have several pillows going to the Rink to be sold.

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This super cute painted side chest.

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And this awesome little round table with a painted top and stained bottom.  All at very reasonable prices.   Also Heather should be bringing in some new painted pieces sometime tomorrow.

I work every Friday at the Rink from 10:00 to 2:00.  

If you’re ever out toward the Rink, stop in and say hello!

Denise

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

So Exciting!

I am just loving all of your comments.  Thank you so so much!  Once again, all of my friends in blogland “get it.”   If it’s out of the norm, this is the place to come for excitement and support.  Right down to carving heart shapes in the lawn with weed eaters!  How much fun would that be?  I may be calling on all of you for input on our ideas as this proceeds.  I am very fortunate that Heather and I have exactly the same tastes so we are totally in sync when it comes to all of the plans!

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I know that Heather is doing the vintage brooches, but how cute is this bouquet tied with the jute twine!  So many great and different ideas.

As for the age thing……that is so funny!  It never occurred to me one way or another how old anyone out there may have thought that I was.  It’s a great joke with Heather and I that when we’re out in public together I am always trying to get her to tell everyone that I am her sister!  Unfortunately she never goes for it, not even ONCE!  Naughty daughter!

While I was exploring the internet, I found this picture.

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This is the chapel In Moose, Wyoming ( near Jackson Hole, Wy.) where I got married when I was 18.  Yep 18!  Can we say young and stupid! 

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Picture of the inside of the chapel.  No this is not my wedding.  The view out of that picture window is of the Teton Mountains and is just breathtaking.

Photos from Martha Stewart web site.

Too bad my marriage didn’t endure like the beauty of this setting!  On the other hand, I can’t say I would change a thing because from this first union came my beautiful daughter, Heather.  I later remarried, and have been married to my present hubby for over 30 years.  He adopted Heather when she was five years old and has been the only Daddy she has ever known.

Love to all of you out there!

Denise

Monday, January 18, 2010

It’s Official!

I’ve finally been given permission to “spill the beans” as it were. 

I’ve been keeping a secret you see!

I first mentioned it HERE.  I could see the writing on the wall.  There had been lots of giggling, and flushed cheeks, and happy smiles.

And now it’s official.

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Can you guess what it is?

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It won’t be what you would typically expect.  After all, we AREN’T your typical girls!

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Our tastes tend to gravitate toward the less than typical.  But the plans are beginning to take form.

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We’re inspired by nature and all things natural. 

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Using every day objects in unusual ways.

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Have I given you enough hints?

No?………

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Who said there must be cake?  Maybe there will be pie!

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Or cupcakes!

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The bouquet will be made of vintage brooches.

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Yep!  That’s right!  Heather is getting married!  The end of May. 

They met on…..get this……Match.com!  Who knew that stuff really worked! 

He’s 36 and NEVER BEEN MARRIED!  That’s so weird these days.  I didn’t know men like that still existed. 

We found the perfect place for the ceremony just today.  A barn.  She wants a rustic, shabby chic wedding.  A friend of ours lives out in the country and when we approached her about our plans she didn’t even hesitate a second before saying “yes!” 

T-Man is thrilled to death and as happy as Heather is.  All is good and we’re planning and planning. 

All of the images above are from the most super fantastic wedding site I have ever found.  I would urge you to visit even if you don’t have future plans.  The photos and ideas are just wonderful.

So be sure and visit Green Wedding Shoes blog.

Have a happy week!

Denise

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