Posts from the ‘Nest’ Category

Sep 12

Nest: Updated entry

My front door was tired and sad. And sadness is contagious. I need to revive my front door and entryway STAT! I found an unused red basket in the garage, leftover from Christmas. I found some hot pink daisy flowers, a partial can of PINK spray paint and full can of Krylon Fusion Plastic Spray paint in green. All I needed was a few more flower, a new entryway mat and a small picture frame.

To keep costs down, I used the spray paints I already had on hand. The green matched just fine. At our local big box store, I purchased an inexpensive rubber mat, a bunch of mixed silk flowers and a small (2.5′X3″) metal picture frame.

I spray painted the picture frame pink. Then, I spray painted the basket and black rubber mat with the green plastic spray paint. After everything was dry, I assembled the flowers in the basket, swept the front porch, put down the new mat.

And here is a closeup of the basket.

Now, I need to replace that sad, sad fern.

Aug 22

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Nest: A Living Room Makeover

Does a girl need a reason to redo a room? Nope. I will redo a room anytime it strikes my fancy. What prompted this room redo? Family Art day. Yep, you read that right. Family Art Day. We painted like crazy that day and I painted this sweet little picture.

I liked it, but I wanted a larger picture. So, the next weekend, I started with a larger canvas (18 X 22″).

The below pictures show my painting process. It look me two weeks to complete the painting. I could point out all the mistakes, but really. Why? Isn’t it the happiest painting ever?

When I was done, I taped my painting to the mirror over my fireplace to get an idea of how it would look. I liked it, but I knew I didn’t want a white frame.

Once the painting was finished, varnished and cured, I took it to the framers and…. waited. I was so happy when the framers called a week early to say it was ready. I picked it up on Friday and spend the rest of the weekend rearranging furniture, changing my mantle and rearranging wires.

Are you ready for the unveiling?

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I am so happy with the results. It really brightens up my Living Room.

I want to paint the brown stool in front of the fireplace. I’m thinking pale turquoise. I just added the rug. See the tag! Oops.

Ug, I hate cords and electronics. Do you see my inspiration painting over the love seat?

I want a sheep skin for my Eames Lounger like this. A reason to go to Ikea….

037 I made the hot pink pillow back during the summer. Who knew it would look so good in my new living room?

Isn’t the rug perfect? I love the colors. I REALLY need to remove the tag!

There are still a few things to do. I need to:

Stain the mantle. I’ve bought the stain, I just need to find the time.
Finish the lamp shade for the hot pink lamp.
Paint the small brown bench in front of the fireplace. Maybe light turquoise?
I want a pouf, but I don’t know where I would put it.

Total Cost for my makeover:

Glass Libby Vases from Wal-Mart – $5 (the bottom of my mantle candlesticks)
Hurricane Vase from Target – $2 (I stacked these on top of the Libby vases from Wal-Mart, to make hurricane lamps. I only had to buy one vase, because I already had one in my stash)
Hot pink tealight candle holders from Target - $6 (on clearance sale) (I put these inside the hurricane vases)
New Rug from TJ Maxx – $49
Pink and Orange Silk Flowers to supplement what I already had for mantle arrangement from Wal-Mart – $5
White Gloss Spray paint for vase on mantle from Wal-Mart – $4 (So I could reuse an ugly brown vase in my stash)
Hot pink glass pebbles from Wal-Mart – $5 (to fill up the bottom of the Libby Vases from Wal-Mart)

A total room redo for less than $100.

Aug 18

Quilt Collection Series: A southern woman’s heritage in fabric

I love quilts. It is my weakness. Whenever I see quilt in the thrift store or an antique mall, it calls my name. Buy me! Love me! Keep me forever! I wonder about the stories it could tell. Stories of slavery, birth, death, love, and sorrow. I wonder about the quilter? Where the fabric came from? What year was it made? In what state? Was it a gift to mark a special occasion?

The past few weeks, I’ve thought of the quilt my mom and my grandmother have and the associated stories. Then, I realized, I don’t know the stories. And my children don’t know my quilt stories.

Weekly for the next nine weeks, I will share with you my quilt collection and related stories. If this goes well, I will showcase my mother’s quilts and then my grandmother’s quilts.

I urge you to share your quilt stories. Please leave a comment with your quilt story.

Want more?

You can also read other quilt stories complied by PBS here.

You can also read Quilt Stories: A Collection of Short Stories, Poems and Plays via Google Books.

A really informative and entertaining Squido Lens.

Georgia Quilters: Stitches and Stories

All the quilts I’ve pinned on Pinterest. I need more time…

Sep 30

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Make: Chalkboard Paint

Since I’ve discovered the joys and wonder of chalkboard paint, I’ve painted everything (nope, not an exaggeration….).

If you come for a visit, take my advice and don’t sit still too long. I am not responsible for my actions.

Jan 26

2 Comments

Brilliant Ideas

I’m a legend in my own mind. I had two really good ideas this week, so I’m feeling pretty good about myself.

I made a “kinda” cute valentine wreath for the front door. My door needs painting really bad, so I’m embarrassed to let you see, but here goes.

Can you see the nail hole from the former owners? Who nails into a metal door? Moving on. My wreath has a foam base and is VERY light.

So, I glued magnets to scraps of felt and attached the magnetized felt to my wreath with straight pins. As a matter of a fact, everything on my wreath is attached with straight or corsage pins. I used three magnets and they are holding up the wreath very well. Yeah, me!!!!

I wish I could take credit for the cute frame, but I was HEAVILY influenced by this flickr picture by Popppy from experimentl.

Remember when I made these?

I need to make a quick heart pick with the items on hand.

Clever, yes?

Dec 18

Merry Christmas to Mom

Could you resist this?

My dog, Dash, is begging for… food. He loves people food. He is a very fat Italian Greyhound.

My Cricut experience

Yesterday, while shopping in Walmart with my hubby, I noticed the Cricut machines were on clearance sale. I kinda want one and kinda don’t. I looked at the box (priced at $198 from $225) and decided I didn’t want one (for that price).

This morning, I checked my emails (the whole family is still asleep and I am cherishing the quiet!). I received a weekly newsletter from one of my two favorite font addiction site (Lettering Delights) (The other is ScrapNFont). I really liked the graphics they were selling, but what the heck is an SVG file? I’ve purchased some digital scrapbook elements (just to play with), so I clicked the find out. I was intrigued by the “cuttable” option and clicked a tutorial to find out more. I landed here. Of course, I was intrigued (and starting to want…). Then, I clicked over to the Make the Cut software site. Software was on sale… Bazinga!! (I love Sheldon and Big Bang Theory) I can see the power of converting jpg and other file types to SVG and then cutting them out (which I currently do by hand….). I have tons of font, too. If I could cut fabric with a Cricut, I must have it. A quick google search lead me to this thread. Within mere minutes, I ordered the Cricut (Walmart site to store for $175) and the software. Merry Christmas to me. I can’t wait to appliqué… everything. Just like my embroidery machine.

My Cricut will be delivered to the store next week. I can’t wait!!!!!! I ordered green. hehehe

Don’t tell anyone, but I also ordered 4 new hoops for my embroidery machine. Shhh

Aunt Dee

Do you remember the lovely quilt my mom and I made for my Aunt Dee. Sadly, Aunt Dee passed away. I hope she could feel the love mother and I pouring into the quilt. Dee’s funeral was the most beautiful funeral I’ve ever attended. I want communion at my service, too. Dee, I will miss you.

Machine Embroidery

I want to purchase this embroidery collection for a shirt for my Dad. The designer recommends using a 50-70 wt thread. Not knowing anything about thread weights, I looked up Coats & Clark . I prefer to embroidery with XP thread, as it is not as lint-y (compared to Guttermann). I didn’t find what I needed, so I called customer service. A very help lady pointed me to this page. It lists the weight of all their threads. I hope you find it helpful, too.

Curls & Swirls Blog

I wanted to recommend a friend of mine, Rachel. She is an artist and she has the cutest blog, Curls & Swirls. Rachel paints the cutest pictures for teachers. Rachel painted a super cute picture for Mr. Simmons’ Pirates. If you adore your teacher, you might want to order one too. Sadly, I forgot to take a picture before I wrapped it. Boo

Twinkle Toes

Have you seen this gals pedi? I must have twinkle toes , too.

Homemade Oreos

My dear friend Tammy’s son is allergic to eggs. As a result, he has limited food choices. His favorite cookies are Oreos. When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to make them. http://www.kitchenist.com/cooking/sweet/blast-from-the-past-homemade-oreos/609 I am hoping me and Tammy can have a baking day. We haven’t spent time together in ages. Busy, Tammy?

Future Writer

?Yesterday, I found a blog post by my daughter from over 2 years ago. It was full of angst over a boy. I could feel her pain, but I could also see a great writer. I encouraged her to start writing again (She had a very popular NeoPets blog, back in the day). This morning, I awakened to find this gift.

She wrote a story about her brother’s excitement for Christmas. Very nice job, Olivia. Thank you. Keep writing. I make a good living by writing and you can too.

Crafting

You know I can’t go a day or two without crafting something, right? My kitchen table needed… something. Flowers would look nice, but I have bad luck with Poinsettias and my life is too busy to upkeep fresh flowers (who wants to cut stems and change water, when you can be sewing?). I remembered the tissue paper flowers I’ve seen on the internet and whipped up a few. I’m not in love with the pinecone. Today I will remove it and add one more flower. I think I will add fake snow to the vase, too.

Don’t they look real? I used this tute. I love this blogger’s idea, too.

Christmas Ornaments

Have I showed you my Shiny Brites? I found these at the Thrift Store (my fav) in the original box. I have six. They really add something special to my tree.

And here is the ornament PJ made in school. Beautiful, yes.

He also made this one. Not sure what to think.

Dec 13

2 Comments

Made: I’m having a cheesecake Christmas!

I’m so glad today was Monday. I needed to go back to work, so I could take a break from my sewing machine. Wait till you see what I made yesterday.

I couldn’t wait for my hubby to come home from his hunting trip to see them. Let’s just say he didn’t care for them as much as I did. I even made him one….

The fabric is by Alexander Henry and is the “all I want for Christmas” print.

Don’t my new pillows look just as good on our bed as on the sofa?

Each year, I make my kids a Christmas bed. This year, I decided to make myself one. Doesn’t that bed put you in a festive mood?

Karen over at www.sewmanyways.blogspot.com had a great idea for a magnetic sewing pin holder. At my last thrift store visit, I shopped around for a cute Christmas dish. This weekend, I finally found one. Check this out.

And here is the backside.

I think I paid a buck for the dish. The magnets were the most expensive part. After Christmas, I will soak in water to reuse on another seasonal dish. Very easy and festive.

Have you purchased your ticket for Blissdom? - I’ve got mine and I am ready to go. I attended Blissdom 09 and learned tons about blogging. At that point, I had been blogging for a good year. My readership was up, life was good. At the seminar (in ’09) I learned about monetizing my blog. Very quickly, my blog went from fun zone to a full time job and I quickly burned out. I’ve taken a good year off from blogging and I feel refreshed. I also learned that I DO NOT want to monetize my blog. I just want a place to share about my kids and my crafts. Fair enough. If you are a blogger and are interesting in taking your blog to the next level, you should definitely attend. I’ve booked my room at the Opryland Hotel, so email me if you are interested in sharing a room. Check out my Blissdom badge. I feel so proud.

Yesterday afternoon, my daughter convinced me to take her to Target. It was freezing and I didn’t want to go, but somehow I went. Anyway. Our TJ Maxx is next door to the Target, so I HAD to check out the new stuff before heading home. I’m glad I did, cause look at my new rug.

Isn’t it gorgeous? (Merry Christmas to me…) In the photo, it looks like a shag rug, but is really is VERY NUBBY felted wool…. rope? The shag part is really 1/2″ thick and very mop like. I have no idea what it is called, but is is gorgeous. Now, I need to get a rug pad, cause it slips all over the floor, despite the weight….

Have you ever found a meteorite? My hubby has.

Isn’t that cool? This “rock” is slightly magnetic and very melted looking. He had a knowledgable friend (rock and mineral dealer) confirm. It is the genuine stuff. Rick also collects arrowheads. These are my favorites:

Dec 12

1 Comment

The house is DONE

My home is finally decorated for Christmas. This year, I put up my Christmas decorations much earlier than usual and I am glad I did. I always run out of time and never really enjoy my hard work. I am sold on decorating right after Thanksgiving. Want to see my pix?

I purchased some new shelves for my Kitchen.

I added the Command Adhesive hooks. The shelf is from Target. I found the finger tip towel and the Thrift store and embroidered it with “Merry Christmas from the Kornis Family.” I made the Longaberger basket when mom and I traveled to Dresden, OH. I also made the folded tea towels.

And here is my coffee station.

I purchased the Babushka paper towel doll at our church’s Christmas Bazaar. I want to make my own version next year. I purchased the shelves at Jo-Anns and the orange plastic dish (I wish it were red!!) is from the thrift store. I keep my coffee, sugar and spoons in upcycled pickle jars. I added command adhesive hooks for the coffee mugs. The boxer dog salt & pepper shakers are from the thrift store. Notice the magnetic strip below the window? I enjoy displaying greeting cards and recipes.

And this is my favorite Thrift Store find.

I’ve used this display stand for everything! I especially like using it for cupcakes on birthdays. But, for the holidays, I’m using it to display my Christmas snack set. I added the Ikea hooks for the mugs. The Christmas napkins are from the… Thrift Store. Where else?

Do you surf the ‘net looking for ideas?

I saw something similar to this and loved it. The toy toolbox was already in my garage, so I upcycled it with some Christmas stuff. I wish the toolbox was darker. I may spray point it brown…. or red.

Now, on to the breakfast area.

In the fall, I hung the picture ledge shelves (from Target). I’ve really enjoyed having a place to display my cookbooks. See the empty picture frame? That is my project for today (along with pillows for the bedroom and LR). I really need to step away from the computer…

Want to see the Living Room?

Overboard on the mantle, no? Do you like the white sconces? I purchased the pair at the Thrift store. They WERE harvest gold, but I sprayed them matte white. Much better.

Do you watch the DIY Dish? After watching this episode, I was inspired to decorate these gift boxes.

Didn’t they turn out cute?

After sewing like a mad woman for the past 6 weeks, I finally had time to work on a small project for myself. I was heavily inspired by this picture. After see this, I wanted to crayon a mini quilt. At 9pm, I had no ideas of my own, so I “copied” this mug rug. What do you think of my version?

Not bad for my first attempt at free motion quilting over crayon. I am going to try this technique again today (for the empty picture frame I showed you above), but this time with my own design.

Before I close, I wanted to show you a cool find. Did you know Crayola makes dry erase crayons?

Don’t you love my dry erase board? It’s from Southern Living At Home (now Willow House). (Shhh, it’s a Thrift Store find.).

Sep 18

Would you like this mess in your home?

How do you keep a teenagers room clean? I threaten. I beg. I plead. I ground. I withhold treats. But, still no improvement.

This is what my teen’s room looks like:

Hey buddy, got a match?

Feb 20

3 Comments

Handmade Tea Towels

My kitchen needed sprucing up. If I wasn’t practicing (practically a slave to it) Forced Frugality, I would have ran to Walmart or Target and purchased new towels and pot holders to spruce things up. Well, that’s just not in the cards right now, so I have to make do with what I have on hand.

I rummaged around and found 2 coordinating prints and got to sewing. This is what I came up with:

Reversible Cotton Tea Towels for my kitchen. I had enough fabric for 5 tea towels.

I even have enough fabric to make a table mat for my kitchen table.

Here are my new towels on my stove. Nice, eh?

Interested in a tutorial?

Posts from the ‘Nest’ Category

Nest: Updated entry

Nest: A Living Room Makeover

Quilt Collection Series: A southern woman’s heritage in fabric

Want more?

Make: Chalkboard Paint

Brilliant Ideas