A Little Slump, Another Little Project, and a Collection.

HI everyone! I hope you are having a fabulous week. Sorry I was nowhere to be found yesterday. Truth be told, I am in a little bit of a slump. I have been putting so much time and energy into projects and posts for the blog, and then last week when I lost the content on my external hard drive, it kind of took the wind right out f my sails. I feel like my blog and I lost momentum, and I am a little bit bummed out. I have also been waiting on results for a test I had last week, and though the preliminary results look good, I can't totally exhale until I receive the full doctor's report. (I think that is pretty normal for a cancer survivor.)  But, because I am not one to wallow in a funk for very long, I am back, and coming out swinging this morning!  Today I am going to show you another little project that I was able to do the other day, while I was working on my burlap frames.

I have had this antique piece for a while now, and it hangs at the top of my staircase. It is a servant's bell call - type thing. (Yes, I just named it myself!) Anyhow, it has a little circular spot at the top that, at one time probably contained some kind decorative finish piece. The empty circle has always bothered me. Details, details. That's where I live! ;-)

While I was playing with the burlap and cardboard for my frames, I decided I would make a little temporary fix for the empty spot, until I find some perfect old architectural piece that fits. You KNOW I have a picture in my head of exactly what I want... Since that may take a while, I went ahead with the little project for now.

Here's the servant's bell call thing-y. ;-)

 Pretty cool, huh? Too bad I don't have a library. :-(

 See the GI-NORMOUS empty spot?

 I made a little cardboard and burlap fix with our last initial.

 That little stand was a "temporary" piece of furniture until I found the right thing....that was 10 years ago. I really have had my eyes open...just have not found exactly what I want. Maybe I should focus on it a little more, but there always seems to be something else more important.

 The leaf plate hanging on the wall is part of a little collection of Syroco vintage plates. I just really like the texture of these. As I have said before, I am a texture girl. If the lighting were better, you would be able to see the veining on the leaf, creating that texture that I love.

 Here's another with either lotus or lilly pads...not sure which.

 I liked the swirl on this one.

And another floral. I suppose these would look so much better if they were on/in a fabulous old bureau  or etagere. Ah, well. I will keep looking. It's like the forgotten zone. Do you have a forgotten zone in your home? Please tell me I'm not the only one!

Hoping you are all having a fantastic week!!

xo

-Lisa

Getting My Craft On. Burlap and Vintage Frames. Part Two.

Hi there! Thanks for stopping by!
I just want to take a minute and give a quick thank you to Amy over at New Nostalgia for featuring me on her Anti-Procrastination Tuesday again today! I am so excited! This is the second time one of my posts was featured on her fabulous blog. Today she featured my Living Room Update, and a couple of weeks ago, she featured My Delicious Green Juice post. Click the button below to visit her awesome blog, and please tell her I said "Hi."
 

This morning I was able to finish up the crafts I started yesterday. They really did not take long at all, and I am so happy with how they turned out!

This is where I left off with you yesterday...(Click HERE to see Part One, if you like.)

And here is what I did this morning...

 I just used the original cruddy cardboard that came with the frame, since I was covering it with the burlap. Hey, why cut a new template when I already have one that fits perfectly? 

 My plan was to use spray adhesive to make sure the burlap would not shift in the frame.

 It worked great!

 Here it is before I attached the star.

 Then I marked the points of the stars on the frame, and attached it with hot glue. 

 Here's a close up view after I hung it on the wall.

 I like that it has some dimension.

 I hung it just above my antique drop-leaf table. I have had it leaning here against the wall, unfinished for a few months. *Cringe.* It often takes me a while to get around to all of my little projects. I'm not alone am I?

Ok. Moving on to project number two. These frames have been hanging in the hallway upstairs with this brown craft paper inside, also waiting for me to get around to them. Here is what I did...

 I just traced the paper on my burlap, and cut it out slightly larger than the outline all the way around.

 Before I cut them, I just did our initials free-hand onto the burlap. My original plan was to use a stencil and fabric paint, but I wound up taking the easy way out with a black Sharpie, free-hand.

 I decided to make use of some of my burlap scraps, and stuck them in with the pine cones and balls in my white urn. Why waste it?

 It's cute for now, but I'm sure I will continually tweak it until I love it.

 Getting back to craft number two.

 I traced the original craft paper circles onto some scrap cardboard I had lying around.

 Then I used the spray adhesive to affix the burlap to the cardboard in the same way I did with the oval frame.

 I think these came out nice also!

 I hung them back up in the upstairs hallway wall in their original spots. There is an old architectural piece between them.

 One for me...

 One for the hubs. (I'm sure he'll be thrilled.) ;-)

 They are hanging with a Japanese painting. Our son was born in Japan, and we bought this before we brought him home, so It has a special place in my heart.

 View down the hall toward Mr W's office. I hung the old printing blocks that say GO FLY above his door, since he's a pilot, and often says over the phone to me, "Ok,  I have to go fly now".

And one more look at my downstairs craft on the wall.

Hope you all have a great day! I'll be back tomorrow with another fun post. Hope to see you then!

xo

-L.
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Today's Creative Blog

Getting My Craft On. Burlap and Vintage Frames. Part One.

Hey Hey Everyone! It's a rainy Monday here today. Perfect day to hide inside and do a project or two. I am also planning to squeeze in a gym workout before picking the little guy up from school after his lunch bunch, so I will make this post a quick one.

If you read my post yesterday, you may know that I lost all my photos and pre-planned posts last week when my external hard drive decided to quit on me. I think I will be able to recover them, (phew!) but for now, I am starting from scratch with my posts and pics.

Today I will be working on a few little projects that I have been meaning to get around to. I did manage to make a prototype of what I was after with brown paper and sharpie for the more ornate frames. And I have already painted the two pieces I plan to marry for the other project.

Here is what I'll be working on...

The two more ornate frames hang in the upstairs hall.  I am planning to use burlap where the brown craft paper is, and paint on our initials, W for the hubs, L for me. The vintage oval frame was a great thrift store find, along with the star. I think I paid 75cents for each! Not. even. kidding! The frame was an antiqued cream with gold rim when I bought it, and the star was silver. I sprayed them both dark brown to marry the two. I plan to use burlap inside the frame where the cardboard is, and attach the star to the outside of the oval frame for a great finished piece with some dimension.

Here are some closer pics...

Unfortunately the "before" pics of these two painted items were on my hard drive that crashed, sorry. 

 These look a little ornate, but the burlap will knock that down a bit. Once I get the letters painted on the burlap, I think that I will really like them. These frames were an antique store purchase, and were $8 a piece, I believe. I found them exactly the way they are right now, in terms of finish, and I like them, so I am leaving them this way. They did not have any glass, which I also like, and I think it will help them feel more casual with the burlap anyway!

Since I was taking pics on this table, I thought I should show you my cute wood platter that has been chalk painted. It was a thrift store find for $1.99. I did nothing to it. Love it as is! The old books came from my fav local $5 Bookstore. I have bought quite a few things there, and these books were on the $2 ea sale shelf.

I will be posting the "afters" of my projects later today, or tomorrow, depending on how things go. 

Hope you all have a great week!!

xo

-Lisa
Click HERE to read Part Two.

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Vintage Desk Re-Do, and Friday's Flowers.

Another absolutely gorgeous day here, while the hubs makes his way back today from snowy Chicago. Being a mid-western girl, I have been known to complain about the lack of seasons (I know, the gaul!) in southern California, but not in Feb and March when the midwest is still cold and snowy!

Since the weather has been so nice here the last few days I drug the little old desk down from my son's room for it's long over due spruce up!

Here it is before...

 Hideous green. Especially against my son's bright green walls. Ugh!

It was cracked and peeling on top, so I thought I would give it a quick sand, then shoot it with some spray paint.

Unfortunately...all the layers of paint started to come off, not just the top color.

WHAT A MESS!!!

 GRRRR!

So I stripped the whole top before painting it.

I used Rustoleum Espresso in Satin. It goes on like a dream. (I am not being compensated in any way for this, but would welcome it, if the good people at Rustoleum were so inclined!) ;-)

I did two coats, and let it dry overnight before putting on the hardware.

It was almost sunset when I finished.

One drawer had a little bubbling when I looked at it this morning, so I sanded it lightly and re-shot it with the spray paint. I added the new brushed nickel bin pulls while the paint dried. Luckily, the new hardware lined up with the holes from the original hardware. No need to patch, putty, or re-drill! :-)

 I love how it turned out!

 I hauled it back up the stairs by myself. I'm crazy like that. Didn't want to wait until the hubs got home tonight.

 I think it looks pretty cute in his room. Although...I am thinking of painting his room a different color. These were the colors of his nursery, and we had the same Pottery Barn airplane bedding but in the crib size. My mom bought the twin size bedding as a gift at the same time so I would not have to make a big change when he transitioned to a big boy bed.

 I like the blue, and the chocolate brown stripe, but the green just kinda bugs me now, and it never ever reads right in photos. We will see what I wind up with in there.

But for now, he's got a cute new desk in his room, that I found at a garage sale for $40. Can't beat that!

I think he's going to love it!

Here are the Friday's Flowers...ok, so they are succulents. I picked them up at Home Depot when I bought the spray paint. I like to put them in my vintage ironstone, and old creamers around the house.

That's it for today!
Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!
xo
-Lisa
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Between Naps on the Porch-Metamorphosis Monday.