Organized Chaos

Do you ever feel like your life is just organized chaos? I certainly do…but more on the chaos side than the organized side. I’ve slowly started to move towards the organized side. Very, very slowly. Actually it might be invisible to the human eye. Unless I had a picture. Well guess what I have. That’s right, it’s proof!

I’ve been working on getting more of my fabric off the floor and onto a shelf where it can be seen (and used). When I go to the store, I pick up another piece or two of foam core and make more organizers. I did cut some of the pieces of foam core down a little bit further so it would be easier to store anything that is smaller than a yard of fabric. I still have more to do, but I have to be patient, God’s not finished with me yet. (That’s a song from a church musical I was in many many years ago.)

Anyone else trying desperately to get organized and feel like it’s moving pretty slow? Rome wasn’t organized built in a day right?

Blown Away

We live in a small town about 30-45 minutes from the big city. With gas prices going up, I try to make just 2 or 3  trips into town a week. Usually on Tuesday and Sunday and sometimes on a Friday or Saturday. Sunday is church in the morning and sometimes book club at night. My niece has gymnastics on Tuesdays so I go watch her tumble around and have fun and then I run errands. This past Tuesday was a particularly busy day. I had to drive one car to my parents house to pick up another one so I could go pick up a fabulous craigslist find. Then I had to meet my friend Shawnta to pick up a mini muffing pan that I had her order over a month ago (sidenote: I love this pan and if you have one, you should make mini ham or turkey puffs…then eat them all by yourself…cause I do). After that I was headed to gymnastics and then I was meeting a former co-worker for some coffee. Then after all that was time for me to run errands, like grocery shopping and my weekly Goodwill trip just to see what they have. That all got derailed with this

I’ve heard that a giant hole in your tire is a bad thing. I’m here to tell you that it is. I rearranged my schedule and thanks to my wonderful mama who let me borrow her van, I was able to get my mini muffin pan from Shawnta (go here if you need one of your own)

I met Lynette at Panera (Yummmmmy) for a croissant and traded vehicles with moms and went to pick up my craigslist find. I walked up to the house, saw it and looked at the guy I was meeting and said “This is the bright spot in my day!” For now it is sitting on our three seasons porch.

I can’t wait to put it outside in the garden we are creating for  Beau & Brady so we can sit in it and enjoy the nature God created and remember the good times that He gave us with our boys. We still have some planning to do but the only things that are definitely going in that garden are this chair and a blue bottle tree.

Yesterday, I took a drive to a different town and got tires put on the car. Of course that included a stop at JoAnn Fabrics where I picked up a couple things – more on those projects next week. I also stopped at Target and sent my friend Kristen this

Someone tell me this happens to them! I’m pretty sure it happens to my friend Ashley. She posted this on facebook a few weeks ago

I walked out with less than that, but I didn’t walk out with nothing. A couple months ago, I found some great ikat fabric on a suuuuuper awesome deal. As in, I got 6 1/2 yards for 7 cents. No, that’s not a typo, 7 cents! It wasn’t even a big enough purchase to pay sales tax on. It’s an outdoor fabric, so I’m going to use it…outside! Well, on the three seasons porch as cushions for the banquette so I was pretty jazzed to find some plastic plates that coordinate perfect

Green! You’re surprised aren’t you? Yeah, I didn’t think so.

There you have it, that’s been my week. Maybe I’ll get some projects completed this weekend to share with you next week. What have you been up to? Blown tires? Random unintentional trips to Target? Six yards of fabric for 7 cents? Perfect outdoor plates to go with your fabulous fabric?

We’re cooking with gas

Sometimes it still surprises me how many sayings are different just by crossing that mason-dixon line.The one that gets brought up in our families the most is the word toboggan. When the hubs moved from Kentucky to Iowa he had to buy some serious winter clothing. They have winter in Kentucky but it’s nothing compared to a traditional Iowa winter. He went to the store and asked someone where to find the toboggans. They took him to the sleds. Here in Iowa that’s what a toboggan is…a sled. Well in Kentucky a toboggan is a winter hat. What is it in your family?

Last winter I heard a new saying from my husband too. “We’re cooking with has now.” What was he talking about? You see, we generally speaking we don’t use gas to heat our house. We heat with wood. I grew up with a wood burning fireplace so it’s nothing new. I was so happy to see that our house already had a wood burning furnace! I’m not a pyromaniac but I love going to the basement and opening the door and seeing a fire burning bright.

This cheapskate frugal gal loves I know we’re saving a whole lot of money…about $300 a month lot. Sure it’s a but of a pain going outside to get firewood when the snow is drifted and blowing like this

I’d much rather be sitting with Bristol watching the snow from the inside

The thought of saving all that cash-ola for more important things like paint and plants and curtains makes me keep going. It’s also nice having a big strong husband to take turns with when it comes to going out to get firewood…and by taking turns I mean he goes twice then I go once.

We also couldn’t heat our house so cheap if we didn’t have a place to get firewood for free. My dad helped us get the wood furnace up and going and my mom and McDad have kept us supplied with firewood the last two winters. How lucky I am to have two sets of parents who both live on farms where trees get knocked down by wind our the just plain die and have to be cut down.

So I guess we’re cooking with gas? Maybe we should change it to “We’re cooking with wood now.”

PS I just did this whole post in my phone. We’ll see how it looks when I get it uploaded. Thanks to my electronic guru husband I should have a fully functioning laptop by the weekend I think I’ll keep him…even if I don’t understand some of his sayings.

One more Christmas post

I’m feeling a little ahead of the game so far. I’m determined to work on one Christmas project each month this year so I’m ready to decorate as soon as Thanksgiving is over. This year, I will not be struggling in mid December to come up with decorations. My New Year’s resolution is to simplify my life. I have about 15 bullet points under that one resolution and that includes being more prepared and organized. I hit up some after Christmas sales and feel like I’ve gotten a good head start and done it on the cheap!  I hope you’re ready for pictures because, as promised, here they are. One thing you can be sure of is that this coming Christmas will have a good amount of glitter and shimmer because after a Christmas without any, I’m going a little crazy

Here’s the beginning of the shimmer.

Love a good breakdown…just in case you can still find some clearance?

• Green shimmertastic wreath that I almost bought before Christmas – $4 at Target (50% off)
• Ribbon colored and glittered in blue, green and black – Menards maybe? I can’t remember, I got if from my stash
• Purple glittered snowflakes – $.30 for 3 at Target (70% off)
• Olive green glittered snowflakes – $1.48 for 20 at WalMart (50% off)
• New silver stocking holders (that might get ORBed) – $3 for two at WalMart (50% off)
• Blue & Purple shimmery and glittery shatterproof ornaments – $2.48 for 12 of each color at WalMart (50% off)

I’ve created a Pinterest board for my shimmery glittery Christmas. Who’s excited? For now…bring on spring!

The colors of…Christmas?

That’s right, I said Christmas. Even though I refuse to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving, it’s still on my mind. I need to start working on our Christmas card for the year but I can’t do that until I’ve picked our Christmas colors and theme. Last year we did olive green, black, white and silver. Yes that’s a lot of colors, but our Christmas cards (that never got printed or sent – oops) looked like this

Designed using My Digital Studio by Stampin' UP! All Images copyright Stampin' UP!

And the gift tags for presents (which also never got printed) looked like this

Designed using My Digital Studio by Stampin' UP! All Images copyright Stampin' UP!

One year we did a red, white and blue Christmas. Two years ago was a John Deere Christmas. My favorite colors were back in 2004 when we did deep purple and gold. Anybody else pick new colors every year so the presents under the tree will look like one beautiful coordinated decorative masterpiece? Just me? Oh well. That’s how I roll. Usually I don’t have any problems, but this year I’ve really struggled with it. You see a couple weeks ago Hallmark sent me my rewards certificate to spend. It was only $3, but that’s better than nothing right? Not to mention that it came with an extra $2 one to use the first weekend in November. You know I’m not about to pass up a deal so I was all over that one. Off I was to Hallmark to visit Deb (yes I’m on a first name basis with the manager of the local Hallmark store) and see what I could find on sale and spend my free $5. The answer was definitely gift wrap after I saw that deal! Buy one roll and get the second roll for 99 cents. Woo hoo! Now which ones? Do I go fun but traditional red and green like these?

Image from Hallmark.com

Maybe something a classic filigree or damask style but with not so classic colors like this set

Image from Hallmark.com

Well, I ended up with neither of those and can’t find a picture anywhere of the one that I went home with. Doesn’t matter much because it’s heading back to the store and being exchanged for something totally un-Amy. But I was at Target and saw some paper that will coordinate with the Hallmark stuff I got and I came up with a great idea to make bows and stockings and a wreath and….oh, I’m so excited. I may have had to fight the urge to start singing and dancing in the Christmas aisles at Target. I’ll start sharing with you soon in case you want to craft along with me this Christmas. Oooo, the suspense.

Anybody else pick perfectly coordinated Christmas colors? Come on, someone has to. It’s okay, you can share. We’re nice in this house, this is a safe place (that’s what I tell Bella when she gets mad at her brother). I’m ready to start working on my Christmas cards so I can actually get them printed and mailed this year. Self imposed December 1st deadline. Keep me in check people!

 

2,478 Miles Revisited

In yesterday’s post I told you about our trip down south to see Michael’s sister and brother-in-law. I also (perhaps cruelly) made you wait until today to find out some of the great treasures we got. Well, here’s the first thing I got for Michael

You guessed it. It was sitting outside our hotel so I snapped a picture for the hubs. Wait, you didn’t think I got him the actual car did you? Y’all know me better than that…I’d rather buy paint…and this cute car we saw one day (minus the Tink decals on the window)

Don’t worry, I’d buy Michael his 1970 Chevelle that he really wants too. Seriously? How did this turn into a post about cars. Let’s get back to the important things.

Like I said yesterday, we were living out of a hotel for a week that was 10 minutes from the hospital where Michele was at. The hospital had visiting hours (didn’t know that still happened) that were an hour long three times a day and 90 minutes for the last one of the day. In between were 2-3 hour breaks for us to sit and watch tv, eat or just plain worry and be bored. A few times when I couldn’t stand it anymore I went shopping and sometimes I drug Meagan with me. Michele knows I love a good deal, so it gave me something to talk to her about too…that and Bella getting stuck in walls…and drawers. Meagan and I took a little trip to Marshall’s one afternoon and spent about an hour there. She got some clothes and walking sticks for when her and Dennis go Geo-caching. I found a great deal for Ashley in the form of chevron

A full set of queen sheets for $5! I think she might try a little bit of Rit dye on them so they aren’t so peachy, but they are chevron! I got a bottle of water which doesn’t sound great, but it came in a blue bottle! One more for the tree! I also got some great little boxes that are going to go in our entry room. There are three of them, so smaller and one larger. Sorry, this is the best picture I have of them right now. Once they are in their permanent home, I promise a better picture

One day, I took a trip to Pier 1 – oh I love that place! I have some great inspiration for at least one project.

Looks a lot like some wreaths I’ve see on Pinterest. It’s circles of felt that have been folded and rolled and hot glued. I can do that!

Another night, between the 5pm-6pm visiting hour and the 8-9:30 visiting 90 minutes we found an Applebees to eat at. Turns out they were remodeling and selling pretty much everything in the place! The money went to St. Jude’s so it was really a win-win. Jeremi and Meagan bought pictures off the wall which was way cool. Michael and I didn’t want a picture, but we did have our eye on something else. Everything was being sold as “make an offer” so we bought a light. Do you know which ones I’m talking about? The Tiffany ones that hang over the tables! We bought one to haul all the way back to Iowa with us.

Who buys a big light in Alabama just to haul it back to Iowa? People who pay $10 for said light, that’s who. You read that right – I didn’t forget a 0. This light set us back only $10! I know it’s not some people’s jive, but we kinda love it. Our house is a traditional folk Victorian and we mix a little bit of classic style in with it and I can’t wait to get this hung in our dining room and get a little bit of Amy touch in that room. It was on a track so now the big dilemma is how we’re going to hang it in our house. Enter, stage left, my electronic guru husband.

After a week in Alabama, we had to make the decision to leave there and come home. With Michele still in the hospital, the decision was not an easy one. We went back to Mississippi for a night to pick up some stuff we had left there. Early the next morning while Bella and Bristol spent some quality time on the three seasons porch, I packed the car. Any champion packers out there? I was totally worried about not having enough room for the light and all of our stuff, but I tackled it like a puzzle. I love puzzles (Michael – not so much) so I’m the packer in our family. Here is the back seat. What you can find here:

1. the glass part of our Tiffany light
2. the snack bag
3. my jacket
4. my coupon binder -never leave home without it and never let it be too far away
5. my purse
6. bed for one of the kids to lay in
7. lunch bag with an icepack
8. my laptop

You’ll notice the back seat is down and that’s because it has to be. When we travel with the kids, we don’t put them in carriers and don’t want to stop for them to go to the bathroom. Instead we put their bathroom in the trunk and put the seat down so they can easily get to it if need be. It’s usually not a problem, but with Bristol, well I have no idea how so much stink comes out of such a sweet little boy so we did find ourselves pulling over a couple times to…well, you know. If you kids are not of the feline variety, I recommend that you not try this at home.

Then there is the trunk…are you ready for this list?

1. cat’s bathroom
2. my suitcase (it’s the pink one)
3. Michael’s suitcase
4. snack bag
5. 9 picture frames from the garage sale Michele and I went to
6. gift wrap bows and curly ribbons that I found for 18 cents
7. pillow
8. bathroom bag
9. the other cat bed
10. scratching post
11. cat carrier – just in case we needed it
12. kitty crinkle tunnel
13. the structure of the Tiffany light – this part was wrought iron and barely fit
14. our Halloween s’more treats – worked on those in downtime
15. three bottles of Listerine because I got them for 65 cents each
16. Ashley’s chevron sheets
17. my blue bottle of water
18. Michael’s bag o’ tools…just in case
19. a little bitty air pump….just in case
20. the three green boxes for the entry room
21. two pairs of cute shoes
22. Michael’s laptop
23. an Amy’s coffee mug that I got at Caribou on the way down (how cute is this?)
24. other stuff I know I’m forgetting!

That’s how you get the car packed. Gotta say, I felt like a superstar. One last picture and we said goodbye to Mississippi. There’s just something about pictures of the flag and I love this one because it’s on the house of our favorite military family

We decided to break up the trip home into two days so we stopped at Michael’s parents house. We stayed the night and took off the next morning but not before getting some BBQ to bring home with us. Bristol slept most of the way home…occasionally something like this

He makes us laugh, that’s for sure. Whenever we are traveling home, I love timing the trip so we are in Iowa when the sun sets. I have been a lot of places, but I completely adore an Iowa sunset. When I see the sky painted orange, yellow, blue and purple, I know I’m home. I’m an Iowa girl (forgive the blurred trees – it’s a Blackberry picture taken at 70 miles an hour)

Someday I will do a post for you all about Iowa sunsets. Trust me, it will be worth it!

You’ve Got Mail…nope, that’s us

Earlier this week Michael asked me to go to town to get some things for him. Sure, no problem. I wanted to stop by Hancock Fabrics anyway and check out some fabric for a little project my mom are about to embark on. Anyway, he sent me to the automotive section of Menards with a gift card we got for Christmas. Do you know what is next to the automotive section at Menards? Mailboxes! I’ve been wanting a new mailbox from the day we closed on our house. I had dreams of doing something like this one that we saw on the Master Gardener’s Garden Walk in 2010

but I’ve never done a mosaic before so I’ve been pretty nervous about the whole thing. Then when Mr. Bickley fell on our mailbox in June, it was pretty certain that we needed a new one

When I was at Menards in mailboxes automotive I noticed that the mailboxes were on sale! That is one of my favorite words and it was like a 40% off sale! Jackpot. Do I even have to tell you that we now have a new mailbox? After I got the mailbox home Michael said “Can we just put it up or do you have to paint it or something?” How well does he know me? The mailbox I got was in a bronze finish! Granted it’s not oil rubbed, but for a mailbox that is going to be across the street, I’m okay with that. It does however need paint. The mailbox sits on a post (that I would like to take some stain or paint to) with three other mailboxes so we definitely need to identify our house number on the box. But you know, those white and black stickers are just not for me. What better time to break out my beloved Cricut machine? This was definitely trial and error to figure out the best way to get the numbers on the box so we could see what we liked best. I ended up painting a piece of scrapbook paper with my trusty hammered copper paint, let it dry and then cut out the letters using my Opposites Attract cartridge for my Cricut

After the numbers were cut out, I  put it on the mailbox just to get an idea of what it would look like. Then I cut out the numbers from contact paper too. The first time I tried to cut out the numbers I put it on the mat paper side down. Goodnight that was hard to get off the mat. Take two – put the contact paper on the mat with the paper side up and the plastic side against the mat and hit the magic “flip” button on the Cricut so it turned all the numbers backwards

We decided on the size of the numbers so they would fit in this little indented square in the front of the mailbox

That’s the rectangle I wanted to be copper so me and my trusty Frog tape went to work marking off the space where the paint would go

I put the copper piece of paper on the mailbox so I would be sure to get the right spacing of the numbers.

Then I took the template off and covered up the rest of the mailbox with some newspaper.

Now let’s hammer some copper

I let it sit outside and get somewhat dry then I took off the tape and used a pin to peel the numbers out of the middle of the paint and when all the tape was peeled away I discovered that I didn’t put the tape down very well in some place ie the corners. Boo. Michael to the rescue with some naphtha and q-tips

Next step was get rid of the green dilapidated mailbox

Once we got past the rusted screws the old mailbox lifted right off and the new one went in it’s place

Isn’t it soooo pretty?!?!? The only thing that could possibly make this mailbox and better would be if there was an Ikea catalog in it. Oh look, there is

After we finished with the mailbox I stood back and looked at them and decided I want to make new mailboxes for all our neighbors for Christmas. The mailbox might go well with our deck chairs should they end up painted Koffee

Koffee

Have you voted yet? What do you think about our mailbox? Do you have great ideas for our old mailbox?

 

 

 

 

Like a Pilgrimage…for DIYers

Last week I got a text from Ashley asking if I wanted to go to Ikea (hallelujah). Somtimes Ashley asks some very silly question. Of course I wanted to go! This isn’t the first time I’ve told you how much I love Ikea (hallelujah) and it certainly won’t be the last! Early Saturday morning armed with Starbucks, Ashley and I started a one day whirlwind road trip. It was just like college again…well kinda. You sure find some interesting things in truckstops where you stop for breakfast like this rhinestone purse

I feel like I should warn you that I forgot my camera so these are all Blackberry pictures. Sorry. What about these cat and frog fans?

This cup that fits me perfectly…maybe not

Then there was Ashley’s favorite thing

If she was having a girl, she might have bought one…okay, maybe not on that one too. One torrential downpour that almost forced us to pull over later we made it to HomeGoods.

This was our first trip ever to HomeGoods and we were like kids in a candy store when we first got there. I saw this but have no place to put it

I also loved this but decided I wanted to DIY something like it with my beloved Cricut. Plus I have no idea where I would put it either

Oh wait! As I sit here writing, I think I may have found a place in the living room…or the dining room! I also picked up this fabulous little strainer that will look awesome in our open kitchen cabinets after they are fully repainted and coordinate with the kitchen curtains I made.

After I got that and some cheap Starbucks coffee for Michael and Ashley picked up a ceramic stool, a wooden ball and a metal basket we made the short trip to Ikea (hallelujah)

Through the wind and through the rain we made it. We walked all over the second floor finding stuff for our wish lists. They are playing musical bedrooms over at Ashley’s house so she had to find new beds and stuff for her two oldest boys’ bedroom. I was just finding stuff for anywhere and everywhere in our house. For the record, I’m still completely in love with this light

We need new nightstands for our bedroom and I’m pretty specific about what I’m looking for. Perhaps something like this?

We really need to put a bed in our guest bedroom instead of just a mattress on the floor. I’m leaning towards daybed since the room isn’t very big and we could use it for more than just a bed when we don’t have guests. I found this one on clearance for $149!

But then I saw this Hemnes bed that I’m pretty sure will be perfect for our space. Ya see, here it is as a daybed/single bed

Here’s Hemi as a double bed

That’s right! It converts from a single bed to a double bed and has storage for extra sheets and blankets for our guests. I checked it over to make sure that it wouldn’t be off balance for when the in-laws come to visit and it all looks good! I can’t wait to go back and pick up this bed!

I also love this little bench. Similar to the spa bench a-la-Ana that I want to make. It just reminded me that I really want to make a bench for the bathroom.

When Ashley had her list and we were filled up on chocolate overload cake we headed to the first floor to pick up two beds, two tables, two shelves and a few other little things. Ahhh the smell of flat packed particle board!

With all of our purchases packed up, we started on our way back home but first stop at a gas station for some liquid energy

I know that it might seem strange to take a picture of the gas station we stopped at, but we had to share the picture with Noreen since Noreen’s mama calls her Bucky. Oh, I remember the day that came out at work. Good times! The whole trip seemed kinda surreal…like a dream really. Eight plus hours of driving in one day all for a DIYers pilgrimage. On the way home I saw this truck

I know that it’s not full of coffee, but I’d like to think it is 🙂

To all of you who live close to an Ikea (halleljuah): I’m jealous, but I also am sorry that you don’t get to have a fabulous road trip like Ashley and I did last Saturday. What is your favorite most recent Ikea (hallelujah) purchase? Anything from the new catalog?

 

Yes, We Have No Bananas

Yesterday was a day to celebrate! It wasn’t a national holiday. It wasn’t anyone’s birthday. It was the three year anniversary of the day that one simple fruit that you see everywhere taught our family how every day is a gift.

My SIL Jenna has a severe allergy to bananas and three years ago she was at a work picnic with her six month old daughter where someone brought a banana cake. Jenna’s dealt with her banana allergy for a long time, so she steered clear of that, but somehow banana cake ended up on something she ate too and thus began a week that none of us will ever forget…ever. Jenna carried and epinephrine pen with her everywhere and when she felt herself start to react, she headed for her purse to get it. She didn’t make it to her pen. Fortunately Jenna worked at a day care where they knew what to do in situations like the one they were confronted with. They called 911 and got an ambulance on the way. Michael and I got the call and we headed for the hospital. We didn’t know quite how severe it was until we got to the hospital and heard about everything that had happened. We spent a few hours at the hospital sitting in the ICU waiting room hoping that a doctor would come in and give us all good news, but the best news they had was that she wasn’t getting worse. Micheal and I went home that night and didn’t sleep much so the next day we just went back to the hospital. We kinda took over half of the ICU waiting room, someone was always there. I will never forget that Sunday night. We were sitting around waiting for news and then the news came and it wasn’t good news. Michael describes it as “I went to take a nap and everything was fine. I woke up and everyone was crying.” There were a lot of people praying that day and my sister-in-law is living, breathing, bargain-hunting proof that God answers the prayers of the faithful. My SIL is a fighter and I know that God gave her the strength to fight back while people at her bedside made promises of Black Friday shopping and Frostys from Wendys – I’m sure she fought back for Jeff and Evalee too.

While we were all sitting and worrying and praying and Jeff was washing clothes every day because he only knew of a couple outfits for Evalee that for sure matched and he didn’t want Jenna to wake up and see Evalee in non-matching clothes, do you know where Jenna was? She was here

Recognize it? Mid-August 2008, the Olympics were going on in Beijing China. There was a TV in Jenna’s room that was tuned to the Olympics. While she was “asleep” she was “dreaming” she was in China and there were women outside her window laying eggs. Hmmm, I think she had some pretty powerful medication.

Three banana-free years later, I decided to do a Jenna-inspired project. A couple years ago, Jenna gave me some frames that she wasn’t going to use. I didn’t know what to do with them until now. The silver frames and I took a trip out to our deck.

You know what happens to things that go to the deck right? They get ORBed. So I set up my makeshift paintbooth like I did for this project

I took the frames apart. The glass was hot glued into the frames, so it wasn’t as easy as it sounds, but still easier than taping off the glass.

I got out my trusty ORB (oil rubbed bronze) paint and went to work. I’m not joking when I tell you that I always have this on hand now. If the can I have is only half full, I go get another one.

Look at that shimmer in the sunlight! Someday when I have my own television show and media empire, you will all get a can of this paint as part of “Amy’s Favorite Thiiiiiiings”

I let the frames sit out to dry all day and then got out some wrapping paper that I already had

Check out that 50% off sticker making it $2 for the whole roll. No, I didn’t wrap them back up to give to her…although, I am a little nervous that she might want the frames back now. I cut off a piece of paper that was bigger than my glass and put the glass down on top of it

I put the glass in the center of my pattern. The first time I cut the paper, I didn’t do this so the pattern was off. I thought I would be okay with it, but 2.3 minutes later my CDO kicked in and I redid the second one.

To cut the paper, I just used the edge of the glass and tore it.

On any frame that you get, the lip should cover up at least 1/4″ so it really doesn’t matter what the edge of your framed piece looks like…it’s hidden. Easy Schmeasy Lemon Squeezy! I put the frames all back together, got out my dry erase markers and started list making. First a list for projects to finish up (most of these are at least half done, remember my ADOS)

That’s right, my “To Do” list is actually the “Git R Done” list. My list of things that I need to blog is my Chit Chat list

Woo hoo! I get to cross something off a list! I’ll be crossing off Evalee’s curtains today too…since they are moving tomorrow and I kinda need to have them done for that.

So, here’s the cost breakdown of this little Jenna inspired project

• Frames – free (from Jenna
• ORB paint – free (leftover from another project)
• Wrapping paper in fuchsia because pink is Jenna’s favorite color- free (I always grab wrapping paper when I see it on sale)
• Dry erase markers – free (gotta love the free Expo marker deal from a couple weeks ago)

Total cost for me? Absolutely nothing! That part is Jenna inspired too. But if you were going to do it and you had none of this stuff on hand

• Frames – $5 (gotta check out Goodwill or garage sales, you’re painting the frames anyway)
• ORB paint – $7 at Lowe’s or Home Depot
• Wrapping paper – $4 but I’m sure you could find some cheaper or use scrapbook paper
• Dry erase markers – $5

Total cost to buy it all? $21! Still pretty good for really functional artwork-y things to hang on the wall.  These are going in my craft room…when I can actually get in my craft room.

We’re so thrilled that Jenna came back from her trip to China. If you’ve been reading my blog for long, you know I’m a firm believer that we can’t expect people to understand if we aren’t willing to educate. If your kids are in a school where no peanut butter is allowed, this is probably why. If you see your children develop sensitivities to certain foods, please have them seen by an allergist immediately. Jeff and Jenna noticed that Evalee was getting a rash every time she ate blueberries so off to the allergist she went. We were all careful to not give her any blueberries. Every label was read, every ingredient checked and a year later she went back and she had outgrown the blueberry allergy! I am by no means an expert on the subject, so I hope that you’ll take some time to learn more about severe food allergies and anaphylaxis by visiting the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network website.

Paint, paint and more paint

I was at Goodwill last week and found a chair that I had been looking for

And for this price, I couldn’t let it go!

Oh, I have plans for this chair and you may be able to guess by the title of this post that it involves paint. First, to be on the safe side, I took some sandpaper to the chair to get the paint to stick

I decided to use spray paint because I wanted the chair to be perfectly smooth. I love this Rust-oleum paint & primer

The 2x coverage really does make a difference and it just happens to be on sale at Menards right now for $2.74. Score!

I used less than half of the can to cover this chair. Woo hoo! Enough to do another one! Now it’s time for paint

It took me sooo long to pick out a paint color for this chair. I think I stood there looking at the paint colors for 20 minutes. But the final color choice was lagoon. Here’s what it looks like on something

I really need to remember to wear gloves when I spray paint things. Anyone want to take on the role to remind me? I had some other problems with the paint. First I sprayed it on too thick in one place and it ran. Oops. Then I tried to fix it by wiping off the excess paint with a paper towel and repainting over it. Double oops. Michael to the rescue with some lacquer thinner

Not only that, but I was painting in the sun on a hot day so I ended up with this too

One word – ugh! So with Michael’s recommendation I took some sandpaper and water and sanded out all the bubbles

With the paint removed from the top rail of the chair and the bubbles all sanded out

For take two, I decided to move the chair into the shade. I figured that the sun may have been hitting it and drying it differently. I don’t know what the reason was, but the second time it worked

Did you notice the legs aren’t painted? That was intentional – they don’t need paint where this chair is going. Watch for a post on the finished part on Monday…maybe sooner? Hint: check my Inspired DIY board on Pinterest.

Side note: My kitchen curtains were featured on Lovely Crafty Home today! Head over there and check out Rachael’s linky party projects and add your own!