Been workin’ on a few more bottles. Trying different looks and different techniques so creativity doesn’t get in a rut. Speaking of ruts, I saw a couple of bottles in ruts by the side of the road while I was out for my morning run. I’ve gotta remember to go back and get ’em ……
My find of the week was a small, unfinished crate. Raw wood, “plain pipe racks” as mi madre would say. It looked at me in the Goodwill store and said, “You know you want me!” So for fifty cents I made it mine. I failed to take a “before” shot but you’ve seen these plain…
This week I’ve been working on some more decoupage boxes and altered bottles in hopes of opening up a little shop on Etsy. And I have to confess, I’ve been procrastinating because I’m a little insecure about it. What if no one buys my stuff? What if I don’t price it right? “If at first…
White houses can be clean and modern, shabby and charming, stately and elegant, or classic and traditional. So here’s a salute to the All-American dream, the pride and joy of a well-loved home. All homes were photographed in Geneva, Illinois, where I spent the first 25 years of my life. Unfortunately, I didn’t grow up…
In addition to bottles, I’ve got a fetish for boxes. Small boxes, big boxes. Square boxes, butterfly-shaped boxes. It doesn’t matter. The plainer the better so I can transform them into something pretty. Here’s my latest decoupage project … Choosing decorative paper and figuring how you’ll use it is always the fun part. There are…
For the most part, our dining room has been complete for the last few months, with the exception of some minor details … like stuff to hang on the walls. But after a few shopping trips I feel like the dirty deed is finally done. Here’s the dining room the way she looks today ……
Lately I’ve been lovin’ bottles. I seek them out in boutiques. I search for them in flea markets. I hunt for them in the little dump in a hidden location at the forest preserve down the street from my house. I can’t get enough! My hope is to alter enough of them in a pretty…
My house is old. Circa 1875. Which means it has a little bit of charm coupled with quirks and oddities. It makes weird noises. Door frames and floors aren’t always straight. The layout doesn’t flow like today’s homes. But I have wide baseboards, divided windows, claw foot tubs, and solid wood doors. You gotta take…
My last trip to Goodwill resulted in a couple of finds that I knew could be transformed. The first project I shared was a little cherub for the wall, which you can see here. The second project is a little crock I transformed into a kitchen utensil holder, with a bit of French flair. I’m…
Shopping the Goodwill store is hit or miss, and in our area, it seems like there are more misses than hits. I think I still have a complex from my mother though, who would never be caught dead in Goodwill. “What do I want with someone else’s junk?” is what she would always say. She…
Several years ago I purchased an Ikea cabinet to house my computer. The pieces came in a box with illustrative assembly instructions (no text – just pics). I’m proud to say I put this cabinet together all by myself. Although the wood grain was pretty, I decided to paint and embellish it. This is the…
Have you heard of Trash the Dress? Apparently this is a new phenom where brides have a photo shoot of mucking up their wedding dress … after the wedding of course. My daughter Bridget trashed her dress in the city of Chicago last year after her October country wedding. (She didn’t really trash her dress…
A recent trip to Hobby Lobby didn’t result in getting what I went there for (drawer pulls – do they even carry these?). Instead, I saw some plain yet adorable paper mache butterfly boxes and knew just what I wanted to do with them. I was tired of walking around the store looking for the…
Normally I don’t put together a post for a specific linking party (mainly because I don’t have time to customize posts and I’m simply too forgetful), but today I found out Donna at Funky Junk Interiors has a giveaway for Folk Magazine and one of the ways to win is to submit a post about…
A little over a week ago my hubby and I took a little jaunt over to Sycamore to take a walk in the historic district. I took too many pictures to share in one post, so this is part two of some beautiful homes in the Land of Lincoln. (You can view the first post…
“Butterflies are self-propelled flowers.” ~ R.H. Heinlein Two things I’m lovin’ these days … French Script … and Butterflies! So when I saw a beautiful French script butterfly wreath in one of my fave stores, I really wanted to buy it. But at $36 and some change, I just couldn’t bring myself to open…
