Craigslist

Love Craigslist!!!! We used it this weekend to find a new home for our little bunny. Poor Princess was just not getting the attention she deserved so she is now off to a new home and now both girls are bugging for a kitten. Which may not seem like a big deal, BUT we still have a black lab, a cat and a snake (my sons and not by my choice) Between kids and pets we are an animal house.

Anyway I found this great little side table and dresser. I got both for 20 bucks. Not bad at all. Of course they will not stay like this. I am already trying to figure out what I will do. I can see why so many people use it there are some great deals out there.

Random

First I want to share a "sign" I recently finished. I came across a 19th century sign on the Internet while I was surfing. I Loved it, but could not afford it. So I made my own version. I actually used an old foot board that I have had for a few years and just couldn't throw away. I love the legs, curves and carved detail, which you cannot see in the picture. It is definably one of a kind! Now where to put it?

Next...Dawn at lifeateventuallycottage.blogspot.com had made an awesome plaque with numbers. I LOVED it and made one with our house number.
(Had to edit, I put Robin and it was Dawn) SORRY Dawn, I am obviously horrible with names!!

And Finally, do you remember this sign?

I finally finished it, what do you think?

What a difference a few days makes. There are snow flurries in the air today...Brrrr...where did Spring go?

Grand Entrance

Well not really that grand. But I did spruce up the entrance a bit. I redid our coat rack, above it is another initial I have done.

Painted the shelf and added some different things from around the house

And hung a different mirror. It is amazing how different everything looks with a little paint and rearranging

Home

Well I made it through the day. Sales were a little slow but I still managed to make a little. This was a smaller craft fair then most. I did some networking which is always good, when and where are the next fairs and which ones seem to be better then others. It is tough because you never know which one you'll do great at and what you might sell. Its fun no matter what.

I met a lady there who is turning her flower shed into "candy land" so she may contact me to help paint some of the candy. Oh I hope she does, how fun that would be. Another that has an Alpaca farm who may invest in a sign for the farm. So even if sales are not the best you never know what may come of a particular fair.

Space was limited so I thought I would try using the drawers for the sign display. I think they worked well.

It is gorgeous outside! Hope you all are enjoying your Saturday!

Getting Ready

Well I am just about ready.

Anyone who lives locally I hope you stop by. The craft fair is at the First United Methodist Church in Herkimer.

Frames

First I want to say Thank You to everyone who left a comment about the cabinet I painted. Much appreciated!

I am finishing up things for the big day Saturday, thought I would share a few additional frames I have painted, these are a new addition to my usual items. Hopefully they will do well.

The picture isn't clear, but I made these frames a few years ago. I prefer these large bulky frames. They seem to give any picture more of a presence.

Hope everyone enjoys the rest of the evening.

Have a Seat

I love my new bench! Chris built it for me, isn't he the best! I used some more of those drawer fronts and had him build a bench for outside by our front door. Can't wait until there are flowers blooming around it.

I would like to say it was easy to build but I have no idea! It only took him a few hours so it must not have been too bad. It is always nice when you have an idea and it turns out just as you had imagined.

My oldest daughter has a softball scrimmage today, GO BOMBERS!

Who doesn't LOVE Toile!

I am joining the party as I am a hug fan as well. Here is some I have in my home. My favorite is black and white, but red and white is just as nice!

Hope you enjoy.

My shopping bag, I am so glamorous when I grocery shop!

The bulletin board in the kitchen.
Curtains I made and didn't sew anything!
Last but not least, may favorite mirror.

Hope you check out all the others... http://prettyorganizedpalace.blogspot.com/

The Bathroom

Just a quick post, I am not feeling well. Better than earlier, but still blah.

A few pictures from the bathroom I talked about yesterday. This room is very small, only room for a sink and toilet. Sorry I didn't take a before picture, but it was yellow and no one liked it. I painted it green and used lots of black accents. So far no complaints, but sometimes it takes a few days in this house. I need to find new curtains that go with the room better and we will eventually put in a pedestal sink. The bathroom will not stay this clean and clutter free, soon the shelves will be covered with hair products and make-up.

The sign below hangs outside the bathroom.

I bought this mirror last year at Marshells for less than $10.00. I have moved it all over the house, but it looks nice here.

See the curtains do not seem to go now, but this was a no cost make over(for now anyway)

OK I am going back to the couch, have a good night!

Change of Plans

We woke up today to a dusting of snow on the ground and flurries in the air, can you believe it! I guess that is what we get for living in upstate NY. So I did not work in the back yard today. We cleaned the house, Chris hung my window frame on the porch and I am painting the upstairs bathroom. It is just a small half bath so it only took about an hour. I am waiting for the paint to dry so I can finish it up.

I want to show you my dresser/cabinet re do. I saw this at Salvation Army on Monday, was immediately drawn to it as I have been looking for something like this to paint. I didn't buy it that day though, I am not sure why the price was right, $6.99. I kept thinking of it all week and went back Friday and it was still there. I was both surprised and not surprised if that makes sense. It was a cheap piece of furniture but very ugly. So I bought it and brought it home. I removed all the old hardware and filled the holes(the were right down the center), sanded it down and began painting. I am very pleased with the way it came out. There are no handles on it yet, I would love some glass ones, but at about $4.00 a piece and I need 8 that is out of my price range. So I am probably just going to get the plain wood ones and paint them black. They will go on either side of the numbers. The feet also need replacing, I will be looking for round fence finials to use, it will bring the cabinet closer to the ground.

A Day in the Garden

Well actually a day in the yard and flower beds, but in the Garden sounds much more glamorous. I finished the front and side flower beds and hope to finish the back yard tomorrow. I also hung the sweet garden sign. I made it out of on old bed post, finial and scrap wood squares. It will look better when all the trees and flowers are in bloom.

Not only did I work in the yard and hang this I also repainted a set of drawers. (I'll share the before and after tomorrow, its almost finished)

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I will leave you with a few more Garden signs.

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I really like this "The Garden" sign, I am still trying to decide what to put in the top black part, maybe a number or flowers in French...what do you think?

I am Losing it!

About 5 minutes after my post last night, guess what was found? That darn memory card reader thing (sorry I have no idea what the real name is). My Husband found it in a place I looked 3 times, I HATE when that happens.

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OK I am going to tell you how to make those chalkboards.

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Materials to be used:

1) Wood - A smooth Pine board works just fine, but not to knotty.

2) Paint - Your color of choice.

3) Making Tape

4) Chalkboard Paint

5) Rub on Decals

6) A sawtooth hanger, twine, wire, or ribbon - Whatever your preference for hanging.

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I was lucky enough to get about 4 bundles of hard wood drawer faces (the fronts of dresser drawers that were never assembled). They work great for these chalkboards, but they are a little heavy. Obviously you are not going to have extra drawer faces lying around, but any piece of wood will work. Lowe's has pre cut wood in all sizes. Paint the whole thing the color of your choice. Then take masking tape and tape all the way around the edges, you can also tape off a square at the top to leave painted so you can embellish it later. Once everything is taped, paint on the chalkboard paint. I use the kind that you apply with a brush, but I am sure you could use the spray paint kind. To embellish the square in the middle you can paint something if you feel artistic, a pretty flower, a Fleur de lis, or you can use a rub on decal. I am sure you have seen them at Walmart, Micheals, AC Moore, etc. I used roosters, topiaries and sunflowers on the ones I've made, it really makes them professional looking. If you want to hang them you can nail a sawtooth hanger on the back; or drill holes through the top as I did for wire, twine, or ribbon.

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I wish I could take better pictures, but I think you get the point.

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Any questions, let me know. I would love to see all of yours when you finish them.

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I have a lot of things I want to accomplish this weekend, we will see if that happens. Either way I will have something for tomorrow. ( I have been working on a few things) Hopefully I will be able to add more to Etsy too!

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What a night!

Its been some night, but my Etsy is now open. Check it out using the link on the right. Not sure how it all works yet, but I will figure it out. In other news my memory card reader has disappeared, no one knows where it is. I guess it grew legs and walked away. So maybe tomorrow I can share with you how to make the chalk boards.

I have to have at least one picture so I will leave you with this initial I did a few years ago.

Cafe Sign

Are you surprised, another French inspired sign, this from an antique cafe sign. I decided to do shading on the letters. It sure makes them pop.Reality...My bench is getting full. I need to get organized the craft fair is next weekend. Not only do I have to price all of these I have 4 totes full of signs to go through that need to be re-priced. If I have had them too long they get reduced to get rid of them. That will be a project for this weekend. I will have lots of pictures as those were all done pre-blog so no pictures. See the chalkboards on the end? I will share more of those soon. Super easy to make, you'll defiantly wanna make one.

A Few Green Things

I picked up this cute pear at the thrift store..of course it needed a fresh coat of green paint. It looks so spring like sitting in the kitchen window. I also found this great silver tray.

The weather here was beautiful today...I think Spring is finally on its way!

Sweet Cottage Sign and a Thoughtful Gift

I just know there is someone out there who will love this little sign, its just waiting for the perfect cottage. I have been trying to come up with different signs for an upcoming craft fair on the 28th.

In other news, my cousin Anson, who lives in Ohio, has finally committed on a sign. He is an excellent cook and hopes to one day have a BBQ business. I have the opportunity to design and paint a sign for a newly built pavilion. I can't wait to show you what I come up with.

I had a similar opportunity last summer, where I painted a sign for a local Bar. The softball team that is sponsored by them gave this to the bar as a Thank you gift. A great personalized, meaningful gift.

Butterflies

I had an order for butterflies for a little girls room. The only request was to have the butterflies white (her room is pink and green). This is what I came up with. I had a hard time finding the right pink. While at Michael's my daughter found the perfect pink glitter, but it was for fabric? I never know they made glitter for fabric, probably because I don't sew or make clothes. It's hard to tell in the pictures, but each letter is glittered as well as the circles on the wings. The antenna are made from wire.