Summer fun.....

It has rained in northeast Georgia for weeks now. Leaving us trapped inside A LOT.  Fortunately, Iv'e been quite busy playing in MaggieGrace World.

There has been play with glitter and glue.

Some serious paper and string play too.

A little bit of fabric and handwork fun.

Then there was one full day of pretty weather.

The table below was the bridal party table at my daughters wedding in December.  I have all this stuff still around the house. See that pretty "tin" piece under the lamps. Yes I even kept those. They were created from anaglypta wallpaper. I painted them with various spray paints to look like tin ceilings.

And my booth at Junk in the Trunk is in need of a new display.

I am also very determined to lose some "stash weight"

So I scrounged around and found a cutout from an oval whirlpool deck. I was going to paint it, but then I remembered that I had those wallpaper "tin" squares. And since my artistic focus is RECYCLED AND REPURPOSED, I decided to try and use those pieces.

I chopped of the bottom of the cutout.

I lay the "tin" squares out on it. (Making sure I had enough - let's just say I've been guilty of not doing this little step in the past)

Dappled sunlight on the front porch  - scissors - spray adhesive - brayer --a couple of hours in the muggy nasty heat and I had this. (to quote a comment from my facebook - a big knight's shield).

I stood back - and decided quickly that using those squares was genius.

Shelves for books were required and,  at my grown up girl job, we get pipe with these hardwood bands securing the shipments. So I snagged the chop saw and cut a few bands to length. A sample paint pot of a color called TWINE and painted the shelves.

I really wanted to mount them with L-brackets --- and again went to the wedding decor items. I took apart the barrel of bamboo that was outside the venue and reused the brackets and screws from that project.

Here is the resulting display.

Those huge shelves are on my porch ---- waiting for their move into my living room and dining room. One set is 7 feet tall by 11' long and the other is shorter but the same height.

They came from an old store building. See that story here.

I'm hoping this post  finds you having a beautiful life.

I still do make things and notes on stash busting....

We are getting nine beautiful new blessings in our life this year. That means 9 baby gifts for Miss Teresa to make. I'm well into it and have posted a few of them already. This is also a challenge in that I want to finish ALL of these from my stash. So far - so good. 

This one is the latest finish. Honestly - I had no idea if I would even like this one. I so rarely work in any kind of bright colors. The purple lustersheen yarn was in some that I was given a long time ago. The white was from an afghan that my mom started and didn't finish. While I had the pattern and the same size hook, I was not able to get the stitch size right. So I "frogged" it and kept the yarn. Plain granny square pattern, a fairly quick finish. The center is a strand of white and purple, the white band is two strands of the white, and the purple is two strands bright, all held together for the duration. (Is there some magic trick to doing that easily? My yarn kept tangling on itself.)

When I finished it, I do like it. Its for the next girl. 

I had quite a bit of yarn left from the "green" blanket. (yes, I know its not green - but there is green in there and that's what we wound up calling it.)

The next baby on the list is a boy. So I wrangled with myself and decided to go with the idea that these could be "boy colors" and maybe be used for longer than just the "baby" years. I love the basketweave pattern on the blanket above so I am using that same pattern and yarns on the smaller blanket. That's the travel project right now.

The pattern is basic double crochet in a variation. The blanket above was done in a 4 stitch block. Here is a link to a tutorial on the stitch.

There has also been a bit of studio work. A friend of mine wanted a spoon pendant with her husband and children represented. Here is that fun piece. --- a topaz, garnet, and turquoise drop (birthstones) completed the assemblage.

Then on a jaunt thru the foothills of the North Georgia mountains, I found these keys, The graphics on them were so pretty to me. Aged just right too. I haven't had much studio time, but I did sit down and pull some blingy stuff out and make two necklaces.

This one is a mix of a key and an earring single that I just couldn't toss. I mounted the bling on the less decorative side and left those gorgeous graphics uncovered, so this one can be worn either way.

 I also look for butterflies everywhere I go and find them often. This necklace is a mix of a butterfly and a skeleton key.  Loving this one too.

Both necklaces will be in my booth at Junk In The Trunk in Athens, GA .

And last, just because he's cute and lovable, here is my sweet helper after a really long day of babysitting the cat. Isn't he sweet. Have to say, he's a great dog, but that tail is NOT coffee table friendly.

I hope you guys are well --

My life is beautiful ---- have a wonderful day.

about the stash busting --- What is it about creative "stuff"? I keep bringing it in and I can see all the incredible things to be made, but then I have a hard time using it. This is an issue I continue to work on. I turned 48 on Sunday. At a friend's suggestion, I am going to try and make 48 projects before my next birthday using nothing but stuff I already have. Goes along with HAPPY DO YEAR quite well, don't you think?


Teresa

a new display

People think I am nuts sometimes.

I literally squealed with glee when I spotted this piece of stunning artwork at the thrift store. 

Drool ---- gasp ---- HAD TO HAVE IT. 

You all know the reaction when you find it ----- it being THE PERFECT THING for that spot.

Giddy with excitement - I took my discovery to the front and for the way too high price of $1.50 I now own this lovely.

A prime example of HOTEL/MOTEL art.

Yes - you can laugh - I did.

Actually I bought it because it is screened on a nice piece of ogee edged MDF.

It lived tucked in beside the refrigerator for quite some time. Until Friday night. Then I took off to the studio with this and an idea for the transformation.

I painted it dark brown, then this color named Country Tan was messily brushed on. Add torn pages from a dictionary too.

And at this point - I got sidetracked playing with my stuff. This almost became an artwork . Notice the adult beverage in the top of this picture. (Needless to say --- I was enjoying playing with fabric and lace and trims. And my art piece was "brilliant")

I took pictures. I loved what I was doing. It was going to be gorgeous.I was relaxed. I was happily playing with fabric and lace and pictures and ebellishments.   Again I call attention to the adult beverage.

It got late and I decided rather than to proceed, I would rest and attack on Saturday Morning ------- I just knew I would have a beautiful art piece that I would claim and hang in my house by Saturday evening. Smug and very happy, I went to bed.

THIS WAS A VERY SMART IDEA.

I got up early and traipsed off to MaggieGraceWorld. Opened the door and gasped. I'm thinking someone screwed with my stuff during the night. Maybe Mr. Black Snake was there.


The beauty from the night before was not nearly as brilliant as I thought. As a matter of fact - it was what some folks would call a "HOT MESS". It would cause Sweet Southern Women to shake their heads and say "bless her heart" or "must have been a gift or she would never hang that on the wall" . Or even ---- "wow, I would put that in a room nobody else sees."

Yes it really was that bad.

Anyway --- it being Saturday MORNING, I was unaffected by that glass of green liquid.

So I took it all apart and proceeded with the original plan.

Quilted muslin stapled to the MDF.
Add vintage Rickrack and buttons.
A row of brass hooks.

And voila........

A wonderful new display for my booth at Junk in the Trunk. Yup - I like it. And it was (is) perfect for the space.

I have had the necklaces displayed on individual cards for a while. This changes the look and it's easier to check the chain length and such. It was a great decision to take this approach.

I hope you have a wonderful day ----

Teresa

more accomplished

I took last Friday off to play with the Bride-to-Be. Let me just tell you out playtime was really really just hard work.

I shared the CAKE TABLE yesterday. That was finished on Friday. Then there was this also on Friday night. 

Molly ran a copy of a graphic she found online ---

Grabbed a sheet of transparency paper and my overhead projector and a black canvas I had painted.

Since so many of my surfaces are being used for various stages of projects for the wedding, she actually grabbed the dog's pillow and headed to the floor by the dining room island.

Using white paint and tiny brushes she lettered and lettered.

Not sure why, but the bandanna is required attire for her painting uniform.

Here is her result from three hours of being in the floor.

Props will be staged for our guests to use and a digital camera on a tripod. Knowing some of these guests, this should be fun.

A budget decision was to now rent chair covers along with the table linens. But she wants a pretty detail on the chairs, We got lots of paper (mama has a paper fetish) and using the same die set I punched 250 large hearts in solids and then 250 smaller ones in patterned papers.

Each of these will be punched in the center and added to the backs of the chairs with a tulle and ribbon bow.

Then there were some of these that I bought at the habitat thrift store ----

The ones I bought looked a lot like this .... corroded. Nasty. Rusted in spots.

I bought two with an idea to try --- (they were so bad, I only paid a dollar each)

The Man at My Address -- Father of the Bride took them apart and ripped out the electrical.

The only issue was that the backer mounting plate was riveted on and the rivets had to be drilled out to get those off.

Then, I scrubbed up the parts and outside we went to the "spray booth" (lest you think I am that well set up at my house, the spray booth in this case was an outdoor bench and a drop cloth). I used one of my favorites -- spray paint and coated them. I went back and forth doing other things while adding additional coats.

I cleaned the beveled glass panes.

Dug in the lace stash and found some I adore.

Then sprayed that lace with spray adhesive.

After giving that a few minutes to "set", I trimmed them at the edges. USE A NEW SHARP XACTO BLADE -just saying.

Aren't they pretty.

Then .....I reassembled all the parts.

And look ...... a table lantern.

Honestly, this turned out even better than I imagined it would

Just for smiles, I added a candle on Saturday night.

ANOTHER NOTE, FOR SAFETY REASONS (THIS GETS HOT IF THE CANDLE IS TOO BIG) USE ONLY A LITTLE TEALIGHT IN THESE. OR A LITTLE LED CANDLE IF IT WILL BE UNATTENDED.

I'm loving this one too.

This was not inspired by a pin, but I hope it inspires someone.

starting here ---

SHE PINNED THIS

Source: stylemepretty.com via Molly on Pinterest

I PINNED THIS

Source: etsy.com via Teresa on Pinterest

Well --- what are we going to do......

Her daddy was making signs. 

I had him make one just for this wording. 

Out of the pickets that were just laying around. 

Then there was digging around in the barns and sheds for a dark stain. And her daddy found some --- (I have no idea what color -- it was in the stuff stash) 

Left over night to dry ... 

On Sunday afternoon in the open air studio (the front porch) I used a silver fine point sharpie and an over head projector and laid the wording out. 

Then I took a paintbrush and some SILVER Painters Touch paint. I have sang praises about this paint before. 

I simply added width to the lines of the sharpie lettering.

After it was all lettered, I sent the picture above to the Bride-to-Be. 

She had no idea that it was not really complete.

She text back that the word "here" was out of alignment. 

What she did not know was that I had these metal script letters to add to the bottom and a really pretty heart made from some textured paper. 

Plus another little surprise.

A little something extra along the left side.

Do you guys like it? That border of the lace. I do and she does too. and by using those metal letters that can be removed if need be, the sign can be reused. 

Here's the cool part 

fencing (from the stash)
stain (from the stash)
silver paint (from the stash)
Letters and head pins (from the stash)
Lace (from the stash)
spray adhesive (from the stash) 
paper for the heart ( from the stash)

one more project done for FREE ------

Have a great afternoon.

IN THIS DIRECTION

Source: save-on-crafts.com via Teresa on Pinterest

The picture above is from pinterest. I pinned it, knowing that signs would be necessary --- and I do mean necessary.



Because we live in the outskirts of nowhere and this wedding is in the true middle of nowhere. Turn off the main road - side road -- then side road -- then this road turns to dirt --- that kind of middle of nowhere.

Well, I don't really have the woodworking skills to make these. But I am an expert in gathering things. A serious collector (HOARDER) of stuff and I just happened to have.

That short picket fencing leaned against the barn. The Father of the Bride brought that home when his good friend Megan moved away. So it got repurposed.

With me describing my ideas and him FINALLY understanding what I was saying, he took the pickets off  the stringer and aligned them close together.

Some with three boards - others with different counts.

Then over the weekend, I taped off the edges.

All the way around ----

Then broke out my chalkboard paint (left over from the desk project) Then I painted the signs with two coats of chalkboard paint.

Peel off the tape.....

And we have our version of chalkboard directional signs for the Wedding in the middle of nowhere.

Coolest part of this project.

FREE -------

more fun stuff

At the Dacusville Farm Days Festival there were flea market goodies - and there were farm equipment vendors. But there were also craft booths. 

It is rare to see something new and totally different in the crafting world but I spotted these. 

Fell head over heels ---

Adorable ---

In the "wow, would have never thought of that one." category.

There is more wedding goodness happening, I just had no time to edit pictures today.

Have a great afternoon.

the tv cabinet.

We must be the last people in the USA to not upgrade to a huge flatscreen tv. But we don't think there is a need for that expense at this time. So our older - tiny little tv fits our cabinet just fine.

The cabinet is made from a cedar armoire. Now do not freak out - this was a free cabinet and the door panels were busted when it showed up on my front porch a few years back. Yes - just like a stray dog - the dang thing was on my front porch when I came home one day. Cool in and of itself.

At the time, the Man at my address converted it using shelves made from recycled wood and trim we removed from our house during the remodel. I took the broken panels out and replaced them with luan (a really thin plywood like product.) I put bookshelf wallpaper on the front of the panels and painted the inside white. In THEORY, we would keep this closed and the pretty "bookshelves" would be seen.

YEAH RIGHT - NOT.

Then dang thing stays open all the time. Just like this........



Saturday - I dragged all the crap out and cleaned it. Straightened the stuff inside. And decided to go ahead and complete a project I had been PLANNING on doing for weeks. Actually years.

Now you guys know me - I am all about the right tools - (insert hysterically appropriate commentary here).

I grabbed a hammer and a prying device ........ yes that is a flat blade frosting knife from the kitchen drawer.

And I set up an appropriate painting table on my front porch. Yes that one is a bar stool.

And this one is a porch rocker.

Don't judge - it worked just fine.

The result - a much nicer look for the cabinet door when they are open. There is even more PLANNED for these now almost always open doors.

Even cooler - I used things I already had. No money spent. WhoHoo.

Stay tuned......

Update for some faraway friends - yes, I work in Athens, GA. Yes, there is a cop killer on the loose. The main focus of the search is focused in the area around my work. Most of it less than 5 miles from us. It is an uneasy feeling to be so close to the focus area. All of us will be very relieved when it is all over. But please friends remember the Officer Buddy Christian family in your thoughts and prayers. He leaves a wife and two small children. Funeral services will be Sunday.

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend.

Teresa

Do what???????

I opened my internet browser this morning. MSN is my homepage. There it was in big bold living color pictures and text. A brand new word for my vocabulary.

I copied the information because I just know all of you exercise junkies need this...

Sorry for those somewhat less interested - or maybe when you read this you may even decide exercise is quite worth the effort.


Here’s some extra motivation to exercise: A number of women report having an orgasm—or “coregasm”—while working out. But not just any fitness routine can trigger the big-O. As the name suggests, coregasms most commonly happen during an intense core workout, which may explain the wait for the Ab Roller at the gym.While any moderate physical activity can trigger the release of feel-good endorphins and increase your blood circulation, core workouts, in particular, target the same muscles that contract during orgasm. “When you’re doing Pilates or Kegel exercises, you’re working your PC and pelvic floor muscles,” says Sara Nasserzadeh, PhD, co-author of The Orgasm Answer Guide. “It’s probable that feel-good feeling you get from contracting your muscles during core exercises can mimic those generated during genital-stimulated orgasms.”

There you go.

Now having given you that public service announcement, let's move onto some fun stuff.

By now you have probably decided that my work environment is not exactly typical. I sell toilets. I work with contractors and plumbers. There is built in humour with even the names of plumbing items - male and female adaptors - nipples - you've got the picture.

Well - I decided that some Christmas cheer with a twist of fun was in order for our decor.

Check out the wreath.


Yes - I made it.

Yes - it was in jest.

Yes - it is made from a toilet seat.

A more direct picture.

The HO HO HO is made from faucet parts and tools.

Merry Christmas ------

I love my job.

A giving note - I am on day five. What I have already learned is that it's it about INTENTIONALLY looking for opportunities - they do not just present themselves. And being prepared - thinking ahead is important as well.

I am logging this project in a very private manner - I am keeping gratitiudes for each of those 365 days as well - 3 gratitudes for small (or large things) and then a thanksgiving that I was able to give.

to use my best friend's favorite phrase - WE WILL SEE - just how this impacts my life.