Love Birds

Hey there peeps! Since I have been back from the Bahamas I have been on super craft mode to try and catch up from a week off. Gotta keep the store stocked after all:) This was a simple little craft I did that I thought would be a cute valentine's day gift. They are my burlap love birds... and they sort of make me happy:)

What is everyone else making for V-Day??  I have seen some really cute projects out there in blog land.  Doubt I will have time to do any of them, but they are fun to follow!

Hope you all have a happy Monday.

Thrifting Ninja

Mandi over at Vintage Revivals recently did a post on the Top 5 Thrift Shop Must Haves and I had to laugh.  Although, I don't quite consider myself a thrifting ninja I would say I at least have my brown belt.  You should check out this post she did on thrifting.  Love it.  Just in case you are wondering my top 5 are as follows:


1: Chairs
2: Mirrors
3: Baskets
4: Side Tables
5: Random crap that makes me smile

If thrifting was an art Mandi would be Picasso.

Have a wonderful day!

Bahama Mama

Love me some Bahamas. I spent the last week in Hope Town with my hubs, Luci, my parents, my sister, her husband, and her little lady. Other then some bad weather at first and a seriously long flight with a 15 month old... have you ever flown with a 15 month old????... the trip was perfect.  I will spare you all the silly stories and just show you what you all missed out on... try not to be too jealous:)

Amazing!  Other then almost getting washed out to sea... seriously, no joke, washed out with the tide, and rescued by a nice man and his girlfriend... and a small fight with some coral that I definitively lost, the trip was a well needed break from reality.  We had no cell service and no internet service, so this week was all about time with family.  I didn't even touch a blow dryer, hair straightener or one bit of mascara.  I even found time to nap in a hammock.  Sigh, back to reality.  

Chairs Chairs Chairs!

You know that stash of chairs I have been keeping in my garage??  Well, there are now 3 less:)  I took some time this last weekend to turn these chairs into gorgeous ivory and whites!  Here is the before:

(there are two I promise.  I just did them at separate times so I only took pictures of one.  They are exactly the same though.)

And here it is after some Heirloom White paint and new fabric:

I absolutely love how they turned out.  I had this crappy old stool in my garage too so I decided to use the extra fabric to spruce it up as well.

Before:

After:

It's amazing how fresh fabric can make such a drastic change!

Keys Please!

During the fixing up of our house we accumulate a lot of scraps.  A LOT!  For some reason I can't seem to throw any of these scraps away.  I always think "I am going to use these in some way, I'm just not sure how yet."  Well, this time I was right:)  My crazy hoarding has paid off!  I saved these scraps from a doorway casing we installed in our kitchen.  I just added a layer of aqua paint I had laying around the house, and these key hooks I got at Hobby Lobby for $2 each.  A little bit of work and viola, my new key rack!

Am I the only person out there that can't seem to throw away any building materials???

Pinterest Inspired Doily Fun

I can't seem to find the inspiration picture I found on Pinterest.  It was one of the very first things I found on Pinterest and apparently I did not Pin it:(  I think it was before I really figured out how the whole Pinterest thing worked.  So, here is my version of a doily table runner:

Over the past few months I started collecting white doilies whenever I could.  Any time I was in a thrift or antique shop I would buy one.  Fun Fact: I actually bought one of these doilies at an estate sale.  At that estate sale I got to talking to a very nice man.  This man is now my boss:)  Yep, that is how I found my new AMAZING job.  Funny how a simple doily purchase could change my life so drastically!

There is no tutorial on this one because it is pretty much self explanatory. 

Step one:  Buy Doilies

Step two:  Arrange them in a pretty pattern

Step three:  hand stitch them together

No sewing machine was used.  I just used good old fashioned needle and thread.  This is a project that ANYONE could handle.

Hope you all have a very happy day!

Scrabble Art

I am sure you have all seen the scrabble art floating around craft shops and blog land.  Well, this is my version:

I modpodged some pretty card stock over a canvas I had laying around and glued on some old scrabble pieces.  It is so simple, and a fun little piece of art for any room in the house!

I also redid this cute little bird house.  It was already red, I just added the black and white paper and scrabble  letters.  I am loving how it turned out!

This is a short post because I have had a crazy week.  I am ready to sit on the couch with my hubster and relax... or even better, hang out on the beach in the Bahamas!!  You probably think I am kidding, but I'm not:)  I will be spending the next week with my toes in the sand and a margarita in my hand.  Don't worry, I have some posts planned for all of next week, and I will be posting some great beach pics when I get back!  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Cheers!

Guest Post

Hey Peeps!

Just wanted to let you all  know that I am guest posting over at Keeping It Simple today.  I am so excited to be sharing my table runner tutorial with all of her readers.  So hop on over there and show me some love if you have some time... or if you just want to know how to make these awesome table runners:)  What are you waiting for??  Hop Hop Hop:) 

 

Cheers!

Kick Your Feet Up

Kick your feet up on this little beauty!

Ok, it didn't start off so pretty, but after a little face lift, this vintage foot rest turned out so pretty!

Recognize the fabric?  You saw it on my rocking chair redo here.  I used rope for the trim and I love the rustic feel!

Once again, I chose to leave the wood just the way it is.  It was in great vintage quality and I hate to ruin something so pretty!

I love it!  I almost didn't want to put it in the shop, but there is nowhere for it to go in my house, so with one sad tear I said goodbye:)

Have a very happy weekend!

My Resolution

Every year I set goals for myself.  I set personal, financial, and career goals.  Well, this year is different.  I still have goals.  I mean, I want to see The Dented Lampshade be wildly successful, I want to help grow Prestige Estate Services and show everyone what an amazing company it really is, I want to win the lotto.

I tend to push towards those goals all the time regardless of whether or not I write them down.  So, I'm not really worried about those, they will work themselves out because I work hard.  Nope, my goal is a little different.  I spend so much of my free time working on my career goals that I forget to work on the most important things.

1: My God
2: My Family
3: Myself

These are my goals (or resolutions if you will).

1:  I want to spend more time with God.  I used to pray all the time... Now, I am lucky to give God a quick high five on my way out the door, with my hair on fire and my head spinning.  I want to sit down and actually give him the time He deserves.  After all, He did give me all of the amazing things I hold so close to my heart.  I have started with this... I give Luci a bottle 2 times a day.  This usually takes about 5 to 10 minutes and it is about the only time she will sit still and relax in my lap.  I am going to use these two times a day to pray.  Usually my mind is in a race.  I am planning my next project, or making lists in my head and before I know it, the bottle is empty and I didn't even enjoy the quiet time with my baby.  Now, I am going to quiet my mind for just those few minutes and actually enjoy feeding my baby and spending time with my savior.  I feel like the two should really go together:)  I know 20 minutes a day isn't enough but it will start me down a road that I know will grow.

2:  I tend to use my free time, ie: the weekends, evenings, and Mondays (I have them off) working.  I mean, I am checking emails, working on projects, etc.  This does not qualify as time off!  I am going to FORCE myself, and yes I will actually have to force myself, to really stop.  Stop planning, stop working, and enjoy.  I am going to roll around on the floor with my little girl more often.  When she stands at the door and points to the sky and says "moon" in excitement, I am going to bundle her up and go out there and talk about the moon with her.  When she goes to bed at night, I am no longer going to rush downstairs and get my sewing machine, or paint gun out.  I am going to sit and be with my husband for an hour.  I am going to chat with him and snuggle.  Too often, I spend our chat times with a hot glue gun in my hand.

We are each going to have weekly dates.  Luci and I are going to have a mommy daughter date on Mondays.  We are going to do something I know she likes every time with no other agenda.  This can be playing outside together, walking around the neighborhood, reading her favorite books, going to the zoo, just as long as it is all about Luci for at least a few hours.  I am going to have a date with my husband every week.  Even if it is a candle light dinner over pizza.  It doesn't have to be fancy, just time spent together.  I am also going to encourage Kyle to have a daddy daughter date once a week.  I'm sure he will love that:)

3:  And finally goal number three, and for me the hardest thing to make time for is my self.  If I don't schedule it out, I won't take it.  So here it is.  On Mondays, during Luci's nap time, instead of cleaning, crafting, making phone calls, answering emails, you get the idea, I am going to do something I want to do.  I am going to read, or paint my toenails, or just sit and stare at the wall.  I am just going to take those few hours each Monday, while I have the house to myself and just enjoy it.

I know it sounds crazy that I have to plan like this.  But for me, if I don't plan, it won't happen.

So there you have it.  Those are my goals for 2012.

My friend Amanda put this quote on her facebook the other day and I really took it to heart.  So this sums it up:

"The romance of life is lost through speed and efficiency."

Hope you all have a very blessed 2012!!

Stripidy stripe stripe

Well, my mom brought home this sad looking side table.  Isn't it so sad:(  I wasn't sure how to make it pretty but I knew it could have a new life.  The knobs on it were already so cute and I loved the texture of the wicker drawers.  After sitting it in the garage for a month while I procrastinated dreamed up a fun idea, this is what I came up with.

I started by taking out the drawers and painting my base coat (after primer of course).  I started with an Ivory for my base.

Next, I taped off some stripes.  It was really easy, and lets be honest, I didn't measure so they aren't perfect.

Now this step is the most important part when painting stripes, on furniture, walls, wherever.  Paint over the tape with your base coat.  This seals any openings the tape may have so your next color doesn't leak through and you get perfectly perfect stripes!

I sprayed the entire thing in aqua including the drawer faces.  Then you just pull off the tape, preferably before the paint drys. 

I also sanded the edges a bit to give it a shabby look and that was it!  Viola, a fun little stripy number that would look so cute in a kid's room.

And here it is in my shop:

Have a very happy day!