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Look What My Hands Have Made

My New Bed Skirt from Damask Table cloths

Oh it has been too long since I have written, I am ashamed to say...however, I have been creating a bit around my home and thought I would share what I have been up to. This last summer I was given a big bag of beautiful linens. I couldn't believe the generosity of my dear sweet friends, Carolyn and Tom. Tom's mom had passed away and they were dealing with her estate and gave me these linens because they knew I would appreciate them and use them! So of course, I had to put them to good use. Not only to remember them by, but also because these linens were so beautiful.   Well in and among this bag were several antique, white, Damask, table cloths and of course dollies galore!

 My Sweet Little Lamp Shades

                                                                       

Believe it or not I decided to cut up(yes I did and yes I cringed when I did it!) and use the table cloths for skirting for my king duvet in our master bed room and I used one of the cut work, round doilies,  to make designer- like covered lampshades to fit the antique sconces I purchased from the Farm Chicks Show last June. I chose this doily because of the heavy scalloped edge and simple but raised thread work.Yardage at the fabric store, for this project, would have cost me an arm and a leg because of the design I wanted. Not to mention, I would never be able to find anything this fine and durable. For the lamp shades, I found  a self adhesive, designer shade at Joann Fabrics-perfect! This handy and simple product, allows you to remove the protective covering, use the covering to trace the paper as your pattern, then cut and stick on your fabric.Super simple! Both shades took me less than 15 min. to make!

Details of Skirting

The old saying the right tool, for the right job is so true. So instead of spending my money on yardage, I spent it on a ruffler foot for my Bernina sewing machine. Oh- my- word- this baby is worth it's weight in gold!! AND it  allowed me to create my dream bed covering in- oh about 30 min.- Waaa Hooo! Now I already had a handmade duvet cover that my mother had passed down to me and this is what I used to attache my skirting to.Then I put my decorative duvet on top. This way I can change out the duvet if I need to wash it or just need to change decore.  So here it is in all its lovely-ness!

Butter Dish to Posh and Pretty Bird Feeder

So how does this silver butter dish and wooden candlestick become a Posh and Pretty Bird Feeder? Read on and I will share.

This is another one of those projects on my list, like the last post, and with a little drilling help from my man, I was able to cross this project off the list today.  I sure am happy with the way this second-hand treasure turned out too!

At the beginning of the summer I went to the funnest place on earth! No not Disneyland - well this might be considered a kind of Disneyland for Farm-Girlie-Grown-Ups- but Farm Chicks! Wowee talk about super cute junk! Holy Cannoli, did I load up! It was so fun being with my gal pals and finding one-of-a-kind treasure. This silver butter dish was one of those wonders I couldn't pass up.

So here is the how to turn your second hand treasure into Posh and Pretty Up-Cycling At Its Finest: 

Flea Market Treasures to start

1)First I hunted down a wooden candle stick at a thrift store that was proportioned the way I liked. The candle stick I found was actually held together by a very long screw- a happy accident- because this allowed me to
2.) drill a hole in the bottom of the dish part and then
3.) re-assemble the footing of the candlestick to the underside of the dish and the main portion, to the inside of the dish.

bottom of candlestick to bottom of butter dish

4.) I then had my man drill 2 small holes through the top on either side of the finial and through the candle stick so that I could

top of butter dish bird feeder

5.) thread black wire through the top, through the candlestick, and back up through the top of the butter dish. This allowed me to  secure the top of the butter dish to the feeder but also allowed me to

6.)wire wrap a hanger to hang it from.

Ready for some wholesome bird seed!

Voila a most lovely bird feeder for all my little feathered friends! Don't you just love how a wee twig is the perfect little perch for the birds to eat from!

Faux Metal Frame-I Love Paint!

Faux Metal Mirror

Yesterday, I finally finished something on my long list of projects. It was one of those projects that wasn't essential to life as I know it and so often it would get re-slated to the end of the list because other important things would come along. 

However, yesterday was the day, yes, finally, I was able to get-er done and I am so excited about the finished product.

Filigree Details

This mirror that I got handed down to me was a light wood color that had been white washed- super cute but disappeared on my cashmere color walled. It has great lines and filigree that I wanted to accentuate and make it look like old metal!

I took Silver Chrome spray paint (yes for a car- it was all we had in the shed), black and brown craft acrylic, a ratty old brush, and went to work. 

First, I taped up the mirror portion and then sprayed most but not all places with the silver. Then I painted a  black color washed over it (little black paint and twice as much water) working quickly so that patterns didn't form on the surface and the black went into the design crevices, making it look solid but translucent. I kept adding layers until it looked metal-ish to me. Some areas I let the silver poke through. Once the black was dried I added the brown for "rusty"areas. I wanted it to look really old and weathered. I like how it turned out and it really just pops off the wall too. Man do I love paint! It is this frugal woman's best decorating tool!

Painting the Hives

The anticipation of getting our bees is mounting. They are due to arrive this coming weekend, so despite the crazy Northwest weather, I had to get outside in the fresh air and paint the hives. I am glad that it was a fairly clear day out. They look pretty boring without any color.

Here are the Deeps and Supers unpainted

David is still finishing up the lids and bases to the hives, that is why you don't see them in the pictures. But I was able to get the Supers and Deeps painted. So what do you think of the colors I finally chose? I think they will be beautiful in our someday orchard, bordered by luscious lavender bushes. I can almost taste the honey.

Here they are painted.

Bee Keeping and Honey Eating

Oh I can't wait! Bee keeping and honey eating. I have wanted to keep bees for about 5 years but my adventure was always met with apathy from those closest to me. It is hard to pursue a dream if everyone around you is poo-poo-ing it. But, I have finally won over my best friend, my husband. And together we are going to keep these amazing, busy, little creatures.

Just last week we picked up our hive kits and soon we will begin the adventure of building our hives. Our bees are due to arrive around the end of March so we had better get cracking!

I already have a hive design in mind. Now, if they are going to be in our yard they will be wonderful to look at. Our bee keeping teacher just smiles at me every time I tell him that they have to be pretty. I envision copper trim and a tin tile roof with periwinkle blue and cornflower blue paint. When they are done I will post a picture. For now I continue to dream...

For Lent Fasting and Feasting

I created this for my studio

FASTING and Feasting

During Lent and always fast from discontent; feast on gratitude.

Fast from complaining and feast on appreciation.

Fast from bitterness and feast on forgiveness.

Fast from idle gossip and feast on purposeful silence.

Fast from judging others and feast on the Christ within them.

Fast from emphasis on differences and feast on the unity of life.

Fast from apparent darkness and feast on the reality of light.

Fast from thoughts of illness and feast on the healing power of God.

Fast from words that pollute and feast on phrases that uplift.

Fast from anger; feast on patience;

Fast from pessimism: feast on optimism.

Fast from worry; feast on divine order.

Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives.

Fast from unrelenting pressure; feast on unceasing prayer.

Fast from hostility; feast on nonresistance.

Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion to others.

Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal truth.

Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire.

Fast from shadows of sorrow, feast on the sunlight of serenity.

Fast from discouragement and feast on hope.

Fast from facts that depress and feast on anything that inspires.

Fast from lethargy and feast on enthusiasm.

Fast from suspicion and feast on truth.

Fast from problems that overwhelm us; feast on prayer that gives us the strength to get through.

What will be your fast? What will be your feast?

~Anonymous