Sneak Peak

I am not quite finished - but I couldn't resist showing a tiny piece of it.

First I painted the border black - and it looked too stark - so have repainted it in a silver - I have a lot of touch ups to do - the legs have not been secured - and have to put bolts in the top drawers because the handles do not fit properly on that one AND there is still a design I want to incorporate on it - just do not know what or where yet ( well I have several ideas - just have to wait and see which idea pushes all the rest out of my brain - it's sooooo crowded in there )

Here we go

and a reminder of how it was before

I have to retape and repaint the border - I had taken the drawers out to paint - big mistake - so tomorrow I will fix that - they won't look the way they do now - they are a little crooked up close. Once that is fixed I can move on to my last idea.
But you have an idea sort of kind of in a way what it will look like when it is done................I love the little legs!

Better Debbie , n'est pas?

xxx

Sitting on the fence...................

I was overly ambitious on the last two dressers I posted about - thought I could have both of them done by tonight - well...........................
I am only half finished one of them - so it will still be awhile yet - but here are the legs I picked up today
( yes Rebecca - they most definitely needed legs, lol )

I bought 4 finials for fence posts ( they were either 2.88 or 3.98 can't remember because I bought another
type for another project as well) but pretty good price isn't it - considering they ask a fortune for proper legs and the shape of these look so pretty to me - they will soften the square lines of the dresser somewhat I hope.

The dresser is painted - I did not use ASCP this time - because I am going for a more glitzy look than an old world look - so it's a high gloss white - the drawers are next - ( I bought glass pulls )

Will keep you posted - right now there is a roast in the oven that is calling my name - I am famished - I tend to get lost in my projects and forget to eat ( hmmm that could be a good thing, escpecially after the holidays)

xxx

Brain Freeze

Bad case of it - I have been looking at this dresser for a few days now - and I have no idea what to do with it 
blank blank blank - then I come up with 10 ideas - and then I torture myself on which of the ideas to go with - and then it happens again - brain freeze.  Far too much thought going into this one - it has no character - a straight square boring box and I should by now be seeing so much potential to create character - that is what
I claim I do - turn something shitty into something, well not so shitty - and sometimes even amazing.
To make matters somewhat worse I have 2 identical ones - and I need to get them out of here - hopefully
I can move my ass this weekend and turn these beasts into beauties.

I always boast that furniture speaks to me - and it always has until I found these 2 - their lips are sealed - in fact they are silently smirking - and they are thoroughly pissing me off, lol

I want both of them done and listed by Sunday evening - will post whatever I manage to do -
( I would not hold my breath if I were you )


xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe I need this?

The dressers I tried to buy yesterday were sold to someone else ( it came down to who could pick up quickest - I lost )
Anyways now tonight I saw this on Craigs list -

It comes with 3 additional leaves - and I just love the curves - my fingers are crossed so tightly this time that I have pains shooting up my arms lol.
It comes with this

which is also gorgeous except I do not have room for it - look at the size of that baby!

So now will have to wait and see if they are willing to sell separately - guess I will have to sell mine,
which I really do love - but it does not have extensions - and 10 is a tight fit - I'm guessing this one
would sit 12 comfortably.

I hope this does not turn into a blog of things I'd like to have - and then find out they are sold.

Need some before and after shots for the new year!!!

I am painting 2 small dressers that have been in the basement for too long now - which will
be for sell, will post the before sometime tomorrow - thinking stripes again perhaps.


xxx

Newest finds????

Kijiji - take a look at these beauties - 60.00 each!!!  Have asked if they are still available - they may not be.

My fingers are crossed - you don't find deals like this very often................I so want this!


xxx

and I want to paint it black..................

In my last house - my dining room was painted black - as well as 2 walls in the adjoining living room - I LOVED LOVED LOVED it - and am thinking about painting something black in this place - it's a very dark house so I have to be careful - but it is such a dramatic and elegant look.
Here is my last dining room

I waited until John was travelling to do it - because he was adamantly opposed to painting walls
black..................until he saw it - and then loved it -
It is not for everyone I know - but it is the only color I have ever painted a wall and not gotten tired
of in a year -
I think I will start with the wall above my mantel in this new place and see where that leads me.
This weekend!

Pics to follow

xxx

Affordable hostess gifts ( or party favors )

I have a christmas party every year for friends and always have a little gift on the place settings where the girls sit............something small - usually with a personal connection to each one...............one year it was a special ornament for each that I knew meant something special - an angel for a friend that was going through a rough time and holding up particularily well - another angel for a friend who had helped me throughout the year, an eiffel tower for someone who had been to Paris - a bird for a friend of mine that we call the " bird lady " ( she has 7 birds! ) and so on. However, the last couple of years I have been lazy and have given everyone the same, I still put thought and heart into it but they have been the same, none the less -

Here are some ideas I have put together - as well as the prices - beautiful gifts for well under 10.00 ( some well under 5.00 !!!!! )

Keep Calm and Carry on - miniature - frame from Home Sense (Winners in Canada -  T.J. Max in the States ) and printed the photo off the web..................this is soooooooo pretty and perfect for someone who is into home decor.
Total cost 3.99

Nut spoons - now I had never seen these before this year - a friend actually brought me one as a hostess gift and I then ran out and bought 7 of them as my party favors - bonus the store actually wrapped each one beautifully free of charge.  These are really elegant and pretty ( to stop grubby hands from going in your nut bowl ) and can be given alone - for a little extra cost you could wrap up the hostesses ( or guest ) favorite nuts, candies, even bath salts, etc.
Cost for spoon alone 6.99

Home made tea light holder - I love this!!!!!!!!!! My daughter is a student and did not have much cash this year so she made these out of  modelling clay ( from the dollar store ) and gave everyone a character she thought they would love - the ideas are endless on this one - paired with a bag of tea lights.
Total cost: 5.00

Tradition anyone?  Baked goods of course, but placed on this cookie plate and wrapped in pretty cellophane so that they have the plate forever!  This one is perfect for the holidays obviously -  but there are so many different ideas to gleam from this one - that they could even be given at a summer bar b que.
Cost for plate alone - 3.99 ( again Home Sense )

 Snowglobes!!!! I absolutely love them all - especially if you can find one that would mean something special to the person.  Here again the possibilities are endless - I have Paris and New York, 2 of my favorite cities. The one from N.Y. I picked up at Macy's a couple of years ago while there during the holidays - it cost 5.99 ( promotion ) and shows all the monuments associated with the city.  This one I picked up at Home Sense and shows the Eiffel Tower - this one was 9.99

Miniature xmas tree - this is the sweetest thing - it does not show well in the picture but it is really elegant.  Silver - with gold and silver balls...........all from the dollar store - 2 of them for each end of the table -
Trees were 1.25 each - decorations 1.25 a bag ( 2 each ) 
Total costs - 5.00

Ornaments - given as a pair - I fell in love with these little penguins - they are white with sparkles all over them - silver ribbon tied through the loop holes woud give them an elegant touch - pretty gift especially if you can find out what your guest or hostess loves, cats, puppies, etc
Total cost - 8.00

Miniature cook books - given on their own - or with:
mixing spoons ( dollar store )
Long pasta wrapped in ribbons and bows or a jar filled with penne
Herbs
Colander
Straining Spoon
etc................
Cost of book - 3.99 ( from Chapters - Canada - Barnes and Noble - States )


AND MY ALL TIME PERSONAL FAVORITE..........................ta da

A book you have read and thoroughly loved - with a personal inscription
From Suzan's library - no return necessary - happy reading - with love
Paired with a bookmark
Total cost - 3.00 for bookmark


Ok - I have to stop - because the ideas are cramming my brain now and giving me a headache lol -
When you reach your 50's it hits you - I mean it really really hits you - that the cost of things mean nothing
It's the thought and the time and the love you put into things that matter - and they are the only things that matter.

So with love and thought and time - I wish all a wonderous 2012 - and hopefully someone can make use of one of the above ( and save a lot of money - tee hee )

as always,
xxx

My horoscope for 2012

From Astrology.com  for Taurus........................better get my paint brushes out - quick
xxx

You're in stellar standing in 2012, especially during the first half of the year. You'll definitely feel like the 'It' sign, with Mars and Jupiter doing your bidding. Your creativity is off the charts with the action planet, Mars, running an extended six-month stint in your sector of self-expression. Mars will be retrograde during the first quarter, which could create the illusion that not much is moving forward - and yet you've never felt more creative and inspired. Trust that all your inner preparation will meet with great rewards and forward motion.

Neptune had been causing some confusion about your professional identity over the past few years, but now that it will be leaving your career sector for good in February, clarity - if not a major epiphany - is coming. Write everything down, because breakthrough ideas will come like flashes of lightning and will be as easily forgotten as fast as they come. It's time to translate all the gifts of inspired creativity and vision that Neptune brought you over the past several years into flourishing future plans. The tragedy would be to keep all of these gifts locked up as mere potential.

When the big eclipse points hit your money and talent sector this summer, you'll see another huge wave of changes unfolding over the latter half of 2012. And since you can be the most stubborn of all signs when it comes to embracing the new, you may actually welcome this colossal cosmic push. There is no going back, Taurus - you're destined for bigger and more glamorous things (with many of them likely involving extensive travel). La Dolce Vita, baby!

Time to pack it all away?

The thought is exhausting really - here is what has to be taken down and carefully wrapped and schlepped into storage................so long Joe, you gotta go,

( George Carlin would have had a blast with me and all my " stuff " )

xxx

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The chaos is over, the house is back in order, everyone is happy and I am very very tired.
We are going to have a quiet New Years eve - perhaps a movie and dinner - but that is all
I can manage, I am afraid I partied too much this christmas and am in desperate need of
some down time.
Painting begins again next week - will post first project -

Love to all out there in blog land -
xxx

I nearly gave up on this whole blogger thing................

For over 3 weeks I have not been able to connect to my blog - for reasons I still do not understand - I worked on it every night without fail for at least an hour - sometimes much longer and no luck - it kept telling
me Google could not make the connection - went onto all kinds of help sites - and dug into my computers inner secrets with great trepidation, typing what I read I should do here, deleting what I read I should do here, and almost crying with frustration.  Does this happen to anyone else - or do I just happen to be the
most computer illiterate blogger on the planet?
My ( soon to be ) son in law came over for xmas and came in to my office for 2 minutes - walked out and said " I don't know your password but you are ready to be connected to blogger "
WTF???????????????sorry but sometimes only that word will do - this is one of those times.

I am not going to overthink this - I am so relieved and so grateful to be back on - hope everyone had a wonderful christmas -we finally got snow - it fell on christmas eve and christmas day - so yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus and he brought me exactly what I wanted - my family - snow - and a christmas eve that
went off without a hitch for all 15 of us.

Hope everyone had a holly jolly christmas ( this year )
xxx

OMG - just went to download a christmas picture - and............................
my pics won't download - this is an older one I took a couple of weeks ago
SOMEONE SAVE ME FROM MYSELF

( Tony come back please - asap - thanks from your future Monster in law )

I'm dreaming of a white..........................

We don't have much snow here in Montreal to date, and although everyone seems to be thrilled with that, I miss it around this time of year.  When you are raised in a climate of cold blustery snowy winters you tend to associate christmas with a white background, and there is something lacking when it doesn't appear.
I don't have a tree up yet and that is so not me, I haven't been christmas shopping yet - and that is completely out of character for me - and I am 100% blaming it on the lack of those beautiful snowflakes that fill me with
energy and excitement and christmas cheer.

So this year I am thinking my tree will go completely white with decorations - and table settings.  I am off tomorrow to buy the tree - ( I actually wanted to buy a white tree but can't justify spending what they are
asking for them ) I asked my mother today what would happen if I spray painted a real tree - to which she replied " I think you are going a little too far now " I swear to God she thought I meant spray painting living
trees in the garden - lol - people must think I am totally off the wall.

Played with table settings today ( went to a party last night and was too groggy today to do much else ) so here we go - keeping in mind I think there will be 3 tables this xmas all clustered together.

 I am kind of liking the cool " ice " look - I know xmas is all about warmth but I have to get
 the white from somewhere  and will simply light a fire and lots and lots of candles for warmth, lol.

 Our tree goes in the dining room so the white decorations will tie in with the tables, and hopefully
 it won't all look too sterile,

 xxx

Branching out.......................

 Started off with this - a branch from outside - which I spray painted silver
 which led to my once again sneaking out in the middle of the night and
cutting down a few more ( this is going to be a barren looking street if I keep up with my nocturnal habit of snipping here and there lol )

 and ended up with this

 AND.............if you do not feel like branching out - you can always twig out!!!

Did I mention I am guilty of  " overkill " ?  Although I personally don't think you can ever everBranching out
over do xmas - it's the one time of year when I can get away with it, lol

xxx

Wow - It's good to be back

I have been going through withdrawal symptoms from my blog - for some reason Google would not give me access - until this morning - very very strange.  Perhaps I should look into another source for my blog............

Then for some reason my new camera wouls not install my photos - so have been working my little fingers off trying to fix that - God, it is not easy being so technically challenged.
 

Furniture painting has taken a back seat to xmas fast approaching - so here are some photos of my christmas madness!

Have not picked up a tree  yet - very very late this year - but will post photos of that as soon as I can

Off to my mom's new place later today to help her decorate - will take lots of photos

xxx

The first snowfall is so beautiful...........................

This is what I woke up to this morning -

Love it - want to string up lights and garland right NOW........................
Taken through my living room window

We face a park - and it's beautiful every season - but I am just loving the clean white crisp snow.

Talk to me in January and I will tell you I can't stand it - but for me this is christmas weather - in all
it's glory.

xxx

Another treasure

A couple of weeks ago John, my mother and I went out for a bite to eat - and beside the restaurant was a tiny little dilapidated second hand shop - selling mostly old Elvis paraphelia - I have come so far, there
was a time when I would have never even thought to walk into a place like this.  It was bad, really really bad,
no place to walk - mayhem - but in the back of the store they were using this to house some old broken ornaments

 and I bought it on the spot, well after a bit of negotiating. 

 They did not want to sell it at all - but I told them it was being wasted hidden in the back
 of a shop filled with dust and blah blah blah...............and said it deserved to be restored.
 It's in pretty rough shape, the veneer is coming loose everywhere in the front - and there is
 no glass in the door - and the door itself is a little warped - but oh the potential. The moldings
 are so pretty - and I am kind of glad they painted them in a blue color - so that you can actually
 see them in the pic - ( they will not remain blue - I find it hideous )
 This will be my last purchase for awhile - things are just not selling right now - perhaps after
 the holidays.

 Will post the after as soon as I finish ( got to submit something to Debbiedoo's blog!!!! )

 xxx

All things 60's

I don't know why - but I am on a kick of all things 60's right now ( resorting to my childhood I presume, hope this is not the first step in dementia or alzheimer's!!!! ) and was surfing the web looking for familiar
home decor - things I could relate to - but I can tell you right now we never had kitchens like these in
my circles.....................check out these photos from House Beautiful

Doris Day and Rock Hudson movies?

This Manhattan apartment kitchen, designed by Robert Caigan Associates, was the epitome of sophisticated living in 1968. "The strong solids of white, walnut, sun yellows are given buoyancy and a delicate linkage by the wallpaper, its flowers colored to order," according to the pages of House Beautiful. "A room in praise of the fact that city dwellers need not sacrifice space and sunniness in the happy pursuit of sophisticated life."

LOVE LOVE LOVE that wallpaper..............timeless?

Here is a room that quickly comes to life with a few well-chosen pieces of furniture and some bright accents. Because all interior surfaces are wood, there is a natural built-in warmth. Folding louvered doors provide a colorful frame for the compact kitchen recess. Featured in the May 1962 issue

I am really liking that Niche - and how you can simply close it off when entertaining.

This kitchen was deliberately planned as an entertaining center. It makes the most of the modern, and easy-to-clean technology (at least for that time). Necessary work areas disappear behind folding doors for easy clean-up and entertaining. Featured in the February 1962 issue

How cutting edge this must have seemed - 2 colors - love the contrasting black cupboards below

Pretty Enough to Entertain In

This large kitchen has a refreshing warmth and graciousness that is characteristic of the entire house. The island divides the room into work centers with a sitting room at the far end. Featured in the October 1961 issue.

Timeless ( except for that exhaust fan -  they really loved their scallop trim back then  ) other than that - 50's years later - I could live with it exactly like it is

My mother had a bathtub in her kitchen growing up, can you imagine the height of luxury these kitchens
must have seemed 20 years later?

xxx

A Kodak Moment

It's a good thing I have low blood pressure - because I think I would have had a stroke tonight -
I plugged my camera into the computer to transfer some photos ( to link up to Debbie Doo's
newbie party...............................and nothing.
It was like the camera was dead - so off I go to my instructions booklet....................
and nothing - there is no information on trouble shooting for this type of thing.
So off I go to Kodak.com to look for a contact..............and nothing
I cannot tell you how long it took me to find an online contact ( there is no such thing
as speaking to anyone anymore ) and then we sat on line " chatting " for 40 very
frustrating minutes with me feeling more stupid with each of those 40 minutes passing.
Finally the person asked me try my back port -
Ok - I did not even know there was a back port - now I had to go find a flashlight and dig
behind my desk amidst 465,347,222 wires - panicking because I am making him wait and
look for a spare port - which thankfully I found.
Then I had to reconfigure the camera to accept that port - and when I tell you I am technically
challenged I ain't whistling dixie here -
The good news is it worked.
The bad news is I have to crawl behind my desk everytime with a flashlight to plug the &*^##
usb into the "BACK" port.
I suppose it is a good thing that it was online - because there was a lot of nasty words being
said from my end.  It's officially time for a glass of something.  So my linking up will have to
take place later.

I have to learn to chill - is it normal to work myself into such a state over something so trivial?

When John gets angry in the car - I always tell him " Road Rage " here I sit with a terrible
dose of computer rage,
I scare myself sometime.

Anyone want to share a glass of wine?

xxx

I've been featured!

So - this is what happens when you are technically challenged -
I do not know how to set up the followers list - I don't know
how to set up an " I've been featured " thingamajig  - and countless
other things in blogland....................

BUT.............thanks so much Elizabeth - from the MELON PATCH,
my ASCP supplier ( you may  have a new customer through my blog from
HAPHAZARDLIFE!!!!! a fellow Montrealer ) and thanks Lindsay
from BETTER AFTER ............you guys have made my week.

Now if only I could sell the damn thing!

my "featured" lady

xxx

Words to live by.................

I was reading an interview with Brad Pitt - and these words struck at me somewhere deep inside

 "I think happiness is overrated, truthfully. I do," he says. "I think sometimes you're happy, sometimes you're not. There's too much pressure to be happy. I don't know. I don't really give a sh--. I know I will be at times and I know I won't be at times. Satisfied, at peace, those would be more goals for myself."

And just like that, the pressure is off..............he hit it right on the nail did good old Brad, there is far too
much pressure to be happy,
Where does that come from?  I don't think our parents had that kind of pressure ( remember you are
reading the blog of a 52 year old woman, lol ) they lived their lives day to day and it was what it was
and yet somehow my generation is on this constant whirlwind of non stop activity trying to prove I don't
know what to the world -  to our contempories - and worse to ourselves.

Look at me - I can do cartwheels - while working - while raising kids - while washingcleaningdecoratingentertaining - I don't require much sleep at all.
I am a superhumanbeing - AND I am always happy happy happy.  My life is wonderful,

Guess what?
He's right,
It isn't always so wonderful..................there's a lot of second guessing decisions - there's
a lot of secrets buried deep in the heart - there's a lot of regrets - there's a lot of pain we
experience trudging along the roads of life and harder still there's a lot of pain we witness
that we cannot do anything about except let it leave it's footprint on our soul.  Our souls
take beatings constantly until it sometimes feels that we cannot bear to absorb hearing another
story from around the globe - the continent - the country - the city - our own neighborhoods.

And then. the miraculous happens -
And we are happy - maybe the secret is embracing the happy moments a little tighter
and realizing that they are not a given at all, but a gift -
Maybe instead of dancing as fast as we can - we should save the dances for when they
matter the most.
Maybe it's ok to not be smiling 24 hours a day -
and maybe, just maybe, it's perfectly OK to say " I don't feel so happy right now "
without that twinge of guilt we feel for even uttering those words.

In a society where we have to label everything as a disorder -
maybe we should just accept that there are goods days and bad days, period and stop
worrying secretly that we are bipolar - 

Instead of worrying that I have a problem with having to have everything organized -
and that I have OCD - I am going to embrace the fact that I can now compartmentalize
my days -
There are good ones and bad one
Happy ones and not so happy ones - and sometimes even heartbreaking ones
Days when I want to dance and yes maybe even do a cartwheel - but days
when I just want to stay in my pajamas and feel sorry for myself if I want to
And the secret is now officially out - sometimes I want to do just that.

Thanks Brad,

Happy day to all,
( and if it isn't a happy day for you than that's ok too )

xxx