Tuesday, August 31, 2010

New Projects

Wanted to share a few new projects I've been busy working on. I have another one, but you will have to wait until September 1st (or a few days later) to see it, as I'm using it for Gitter Done #4.

I have been collecting vintage books for a really long time and have started seeing so many things made from them. Had to try my hand at one of the wreaths.




I had so much fun making the first one, I made a second one for our bedroom.



Back during July when I was cross stitching a little piece for the holiday, Dane had picked out a piece that he really liked. I stored the information away and wanted to surprise him at Christmas with a handmade gift from me. So I purchased the fabric and some new thread colors for this piece. Since the original charted was written before any of the new colors came out, I decided to plan out my own color combo. I made an error with the greys. I purchased "Dolphin" and "Dove" but after holding them up with the others, I want to try again. They have too much blue in them for my taste. I'll need to place another order and try again. But I love the fabric ~ 28 count Relic Lugana!!


And finally, a little bounty from my one little tomato plant that is in a pot two sizes too small!



And I even have a few more blooms on it, hopefully I might get a few more fruit!

Hope your week is starting off good. Hard to believe tomorrow is a new month! Goodness, this year has certainly been flying along.

~♥~

Sunday, August 29, 2010

For the Love of Old - Saturday Nite Special

The theme for this week's SNS is "old". What a wonderful word! Not only for myself, since I am older than Hubby (and he loves to remind me of this quite often!) but in all sorts of things.


Old cars are fun...

Align CenterThis is about the only old things I can really get my husband excited about. But I'm still working on making him see the beauty in all old things!

For me, one of my favorite old things is the shelf I made. You can read all about how it came to be here.


I really had a hard time deciding where to hang this beauty!



I was so happy with the way it turned out, I wanted one in every room!



Finally deciding on my Studio, since I really needed the extra storage in there.



It did start collecting all sorts of bits and baubles, but I did a quick edit for a nice photo shoot.



Notice the little wooden dice? My grandfather, Papa made it! And notice the nails still in the wood? Gosh, you just can't buy this from the store! Love, love my shelf!

Many thanks to Donna for hosting these wonderful events to show off our stuff! And I can't wait to look at all the wonderful old things the rest of you have to share!






~♥~

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Repurposed Platter

Back in the day (like a million years ago) I was really into wearing earrings. Loved 'em. Was even know to wear two earrings in one ear hole! And of course, I had a pair for almost every outfit I owned. And every Holiday. But then, Life happened. Not exactly sure when, but most definitely after the birth of my first child, earrings and fashion were NOT in my Top List of Priorities.

But things have a way of coming Full Circle. Now, I'm wanting to become "Me" again. And I feel that by finding this person, I'll be a better "Me" for my kids and my great Husband. So, I've slowing be working on little things. And one of those is finding a style that suites me NOW. And I found out that I still love earrings. But I also have found out that if things are tucked into a box or in a drawer, they aren't going to get used.

Then the "Ah-ha" moment.

I have been slowing redecorating our Master Bedroom and trying to work in things that I love. I had this silver platter and had used it for various things, but nothing ever really fit.


Then I saw a post by one of my new blogging friends, Susanne, and it gave me the idea to figure out a way to make a hanger for the platter. Just taking some simple wire, I cut a piece and twisted it through the edges and made a hanger.


At first, I was just happy to hang it on the wall. But then the Best Idea Ever popped into my head!


The little grill-work was PERFECT for hanging earrings (or Earbobs, as my grandfather, Papa, calls them)!!







I love this now! It's right beside my closet and as soon as I get dressed, I can quickly look to my platter and pick out a matching pair of earring! Now, I just need to add more!


I have been thinking of a great way to hang up my necklaces.



I have some major plans for my chest of drawers. Hoping to have this project finished for Gitter Done #4.




Since this is my favorite project so far, I'm linking up with Donna at Funky Junk for her Saturday Nite Special! Yeah, my first one!!

Thanks for visiting!

~♥~

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Source of Inspiration

We are what we repeatedly do.
Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
~Aristotle



Inspiration. It can come from so many different places and in many different forms. I think some of my best ideas came for taking long, hot showers. Then there are the times that inspiration hits in the most unlikely place, where I can't find a piece of paper or pencil to jot it down. So I've taken to carrying my dayplanner with me everywhere. I know we live in an age where everything is going to electronic devices, but for me, nothing beats scribbling on a piece of paper with a pencil, some mighty idea that has just popped into my head.

I have recently been working on doing a makeover in our bedroom. Or maybe I should rephrase, finally Getting to our bedroom. With all the moving, sometimes it becomes quite depressing to spend so much energy in prettying things up, when you know that you will eventually move again one day. It could be 2 years from now, or it could be next month. But I've slowly come to realize, that with the right about of items, (not too many, not too few), you can carry most any ambiance with you anywhere you live. So I have embarked on creating the look and feel I wish my home to portray, and in the event that one day, I luck up and happen to live here:


we can move right in and feel at home!

So, where do you get your inspiration from? Other blogs, magazines, television, or some favorite artist or decorator? Maybe Mother Nature herself is your greatest form of inspiration. You must admit, she has a stunning array of colors to offer, her own private box of Crayons. And she has humor, however much we disagree with it sometimes.

Inspiration for me can come in many different places. From the crumbled up piece of paper to a leaf fluttering down from a tree. Trash is a good source of inspiration for me, just because it forces me to think outside the box and find a solution to the problem of "What in the world can I do with THIS?"

And Flickr. I just love looking at all the creativity and inspiration there. You can see some of my favorites here.

August so far has been full of inspiration. I am working on a few things right now, hoping to have some wonderful things to share with you soon. And I have been slowly adding new items to the shop, be sure to stop in a say "Hi".

And may you Be Inspired

~♥~

Monday, August 2, 2010

July Review

Wow, I can not believe that July is over. That school starts next week. That this year is just flying by so fast!

Since I didn't seem to blog quite as much as I wanted for the month, I thought I would do a quick little review of the month.


4th of July


I actually never play with the settings on my camera. However, since we were sitting in the grass, waiting on the fireworks, I started playing around with a few of the on photo settings








I love this one with Dane's one eye-ball!!



We had a birthday in the family. On July 28, 2003, we adopted Indy from the Animal Shelter in Longview, Texas. And after numerous excursions and adventures, he's still around and a loved member of this family!



Dane's Sunflowers



Definitely want to save some seeds from this one.



And what's July without ICE CREAM??!!


Hope you had a Great July! Summer is almost over ...time to start thinking about Fall. (And with the temperatures in the 100's, I'm ready for some cooler weather!)

~♥~