Happy Easter early, ladies! I love this graphic because of the roses.Miss Rhea, our Ray Ray, has tagged me. Here are the rules:1. When tagged, place the "tagger" URL and name on your blog.2. Post rules on your blog.3. Post 7 different things about yourself.4. Name 7 of your favorite blogs.5. E-mail or leave a comment for those 7 people so they know they've been tagged.Oh my gosh, where do I start???1. I love beans, coleslaw and cornbread together. One of my favorite meals.2. I knew Jack only about 2 months before we became engaged. Married after only knowing him for 4 months. It's been over...
More Romantic Cottage Vignettes!
I've talked many times about vignettes, but they can be just about anything you want them to be. I'll explain about them below each picture.Above are some of the aprons I've made. I use them as eye candy around my kitchen. Most of the aprons above have been sold on ebay but I plan on making more from the gorgeous fabrics I have on hand. Besides I use them! Try this in your own kitchen, dining area or even a boring hallway.This is one corner of our family room, which is small by many standards but there is only me and hubby so it suffices. I probably break all the rules when it comes to pictures....
Easter Eggs in Pink Carton!
Look what I did yesterday! These are so cute. I painted some wooden eggs with pink and blue and then added pink and yellow roses with leaves. It's my first time of painting roses on wood eggs or any eggs for that matter. Oooooh, how scary that was! I was so nervous. The egg carton I had to steal from Jack's eggs! He asked me where the eggs were. I said they were in the fridge. He asked me what I was going to do with the carton. I said, "paint it, of course." He's used to these conversations by now. Hah.I then added some little chenille chicks, grass I cut from green raffia and little posies. I'm...
Bird Nest and Roses Painting
I am so excited!! This is my first painting on canvas. I'm just learning and hubby gave me a few "critiques" on how it could have been better but it's my very first one I'm offering for sale. But look at it this way: there's only one way to go from here - UP!! Hah!! I'm on a roll now.........yep, I do have a tremendous sense of wit and hum...
Papier Machè Bowl Making
To make a papier machè bowl, I started with this old stainless steel mixing bowl. Start by coating it with vaseline for easy release after medium has dried. I started with homosote (found in any craft store and dries very hard) or you can use medium specific for papier machè or plaster of paris. Tear up strips of newspaper or old brown craft paper. Make the paste of the medium, drag the strips of paper through it and start covering bowl. As you can see I made it less deep than the bowl and started forming a "lip" out from it and just started molding it the way I wanted it to go. Very easy.Let...
French Flowers Gift Wrap Papers
These are absolutely gorgeous papers. I bought one many, many years ago and then found the other one a few years after that. Very hard to find and expensive when you can find them all in one piece. Strangely though the 2 books have differences in the papers. Each book I have has one of the papers missing. I've only used one out of each. I keep them for the beauty but they absolutely can be used. I collected beautiful roses papers at one time but the company I bought them from in Sausalito sold the business and never did quite measure up with the new ownership. I still have some of that wrapping...
My Favorite Lifestyle Book and More
My favorite lifestyle and decorating author is Alexandra Stoddard. I bought her book, Living a Beautiful Life, many years ago when we lived in California. It is the epitome on how to live graciously in a frantic world. Of course, there are lots of decorating tips in the book, but for the most part it is just about living life. Or as the cover describes it: "500 Ways to Add Elegance, Order, Beauty and Joy to Every Day of Your Life." And it keeps that promise! I absolutely adore it and have even found some old copies since it was published in 1986 and given them as gifts. I believe the women who...
My "Room" Dilemma
I've got to make space somewhere! Here is the dilemma. As you can see a couple of posts back I have my office filled with craft stuff and hardly any room left. I use it for a home office and shooting photos and ebaying.Then I also have a sewing room and haven't done much sewing lately, but do sew occasionally. And I also use the kitchen table to paint on because of the limited room in the sewing room and office/craft room.This is standing at the doorway looking in.This is standing in opposite corner and looking at door. I was rearranging the fabric at the time these photos were taken. It's now...
My First Birdie!
Oh my, can we say that at least my first attempt at painting a bird is at least "respectable"?!?! I'm happy with it. Since I can't do much else lately with this coughing I've been practicing on some bird's nest and then I saw this darling little bird from my friend Lorena and thought "hmmmm, can I do that?" I tried and this is my very first try!! Wooooohoooooo!!!...
Thinkin' Spring!!
If you've ever visited a Crabtree and Evelyn's store you'll recognize these scents. The Nantucket Briar is a heavy musky scent; the Elizabethan Rose smells more like a rose than a rose does but they don't make it anymore (sadly); the Rosewater Rose is also a wonderful rose scent but not quite as "heady" as the Elizabethan Rose. I adore these scents of theirs and am putting them in a light bulb ring today to bring in some spring air. I so want spring to appear now from all this snow these past months. And if you're not familiar with these wonderful oils you're depriving yourself! Head to the nearest...
Daydreaming Day
One of those days. Just can't seem to get motivated after spending the last several days in bed with hubby. Both sick. Today I think we both feel almost human again. I know I do.My fabric sits there awaiting to be made into a pillow. I found some beautiful pale lavender chenille also. Isn't it neat?!I've tried getting motivated; I truly have. Sunday I even painted a little picture. I'm here in this office/computer/craft room looking at my little space across from my desk and reeeeeeallly trying to get motivated into doing something. I even had hubby take me to Michael's today and spent some money!...
Some Lessons I've Learned in My 6th Decade
I handpainted this little bird's nest yesterday. It's my first attempt at painting something other than practicing shabby roses!*I've been in my 6th decade of life for several years now and life is funny because we keep on learning. I'm going to list a few that come to mind recently. I'm sure I'll be adding more to the list as I "age"!* I'm learning to paint and am getting adequate at it. The above one is my first birdnest with eggs and roses.* Sometimes I just wanna be a slob. I've earned it. I wore those binding tight pantihose for 35 years so it's time to let it all hang out.* Bras are also...
Labels:
bird's nest,
handpainted,
hp,
roses,
shabby
French Decorating
After shabby chic and romantic I love french decorating the best. I also like italian antiques, but french wins out as the next favorite. I've done vignettes like this for years. Maybe from seeing this decorator and others doing it, but my true inspiration comes from a friend in a small Idaho town who did this. I go to the thrift stores and get the books with the most interesting covers. I'll usually stack them together and tie them with a beautiful ribbon and put flowers on top. Over the years I've given most of them away but it does set a romantic mood. I've also used books stacked to put our...
Secret Gardens
By now I think we're all tired of winter and snow! So I thought I'd raise everyone's spirits by posting some secret green gardens! Think "spring", chickadees!!!A secret garden with clematis and an old stone bench and tuffs of moss growing up between the old stonework pathway, ferns and lush greenery secreting you away from all the troubles of your world to quietly caress you. Shhhhhhhhhh, quietly meditate, my bunnies and chicks.A vintage rustic chair and table among the geraniums and lush greenery.Look at the lace work of this old patio table and chairs. Have you ever seen anything so exquisite?!...
