Sunday, December 14, 2014

A Plank Christmas Tree

The balance of our fence planks.
There aren't very many of them left at this point LOL - BUT it paid off big time buying just a little too many of them !

Let's see now -

1) A plank wall

2) A faux fireplace

3) Artwork

4) Built in bookcases

5) A CHRISTMAS TREE !!!!!!!!!!


This is a tall one - I made it for the mantel and it almost reaches the ceiling ( we have very high ceilings here )

I spray painted screws in red - to mimic berries - and to allow something for the ornaments to hang from at the same time


The long ones hold the planks onto the back post - the smaller ones are so that I could hang as many ornaments as possible


The hardest part of this project was screwing in 100 screws - the second hardest was threading the string through the minuscule holes because I couldn't find my glasses ( I thought that was spelled miniscule - thank God for spell check )

Wood Christmas Tree

The ornaments were purchased at Michael's a couple of years ago when I made my first pallet trees !


But I ended up stencilling on them instead

Wood Plank Christmas Tree

When I think of the chaos of last Christmas I don't know how we lived through it - seriously -
With a kitchen down to the studs and the filth and muck and mire............and pipes breaking on Christmas Eve so that we couldn't even bathe on our way out to my daughter's
O.M.G. - it was a living nightmare - and not one I think I'll ever be brave enough to face again
( but then again - who knows - I'm not all " there " )

DIY Wood Plank Christmas Tree

John won the war of the " Sled on the Mantel "

It's now in the den - I was going to put it outside ( but I was afraid someone would steal it - is that paranoid or what? )  You can see the post on my Black and White and Red all over Christmas HERE


Wood Plank Christmas Tree

Does anyone think I should stain it darker?   I'm so close to doing it

Soda says " Enough ! "


Oh my gosh I LOVE this little girl !
She came out of the den and asked to be picked up while I was taking photos - she loves to be in the room when the fire is going.................it feels good on her old bones ( and mine actually )

Christmas trees from wood planks


Have a wonderful day everyone -
Much love,
( & plankfully yours )
Me


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My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia                           Stone Gable
Kathe With an E                                                    The DIY Dreamer
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DIY by Design                                                      Have a Daily Cupo of Mrs/ Olson
French Country Cottage                                        The Shabby Art Boutique
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Classy Clutter                                                        I Should be Mopping the Floor
Home Stories A to Z

Thursday, December 11, 2014

A Friday Chat ( about this & that )

John HAD to have a kindle....................
I mean he just HAD to ( even though I haven't seen him read a book in months and months and he STILL hasn't started the Ken Follet's triology )  If you haven't read them - you have to ask for them for Christmas An amazing read !!!

John got his kindle.

John says - This is going to be great for emails !

WTH?
Who buys a kindle for emails?

Last night I walked into the office and he was playing on-line poker - no money involved - just the game - but he gets very involved with it - smashing his fist on the table - calling the other players vile names -
I kept expecting Kenny Rogers to show up and tell him to fold 'em.

Anyway - he was playing poker on the computer - AND he had the kindle on with another poker game on at the same time!
He was playing 2 different games on 2 different devices!  Simultaneously !
This is someone who cannot multi task - absolutely cannot
If there's 2 bags at the door - one garbage and one recycling - he takes them out one at a time.
If he has to carry Soda upstairs - plus a bowl of water - he makes 2 trips
He puts things away one at a time ( I stuff pockets and basically put things on my head and under my chin and armpits to multi task )
But poker?
Bring it on - I bet he could play 5 games at once.
Bringing a towel AND a roll of toilet paper into the bathroom?
Not happening.

John says - I won 60,000 dollars last night
Suzan says nothing
John says - Did you hear me?  I won 60,000 dollars last night
Suzan says - It's monopoly money for crying out loud
Suzan says - I really don't care if you win a million fake dollars either
_______________________________________________________________________________

It's winter officially - we have snow out there and it hasn't melted yet - soooooo
I decided to make pancakes - and tried really hard to make a snow flake as the " topper "

It came out looking like a flower as you can see ( if I'd actually tried to make a flower it probably would have looked like a snowflake )


John says - Why is there an amoeba on the top of my pancakes ?
Suzan says - It was supposed to be a snowflake - but it looks like a flower
John says - No it looks like an amoeba
John says - Do you know what an amoeba is?
Suzan says - OF COURSE I KNOW WHAT AN AMOEBA IS !!!!!!!!!!
Suzan says - Bet you can't spell it
John says - A M E B A

Then I ran to wikipedia to find out what an AMOEBA was]

An amoeba (also amebaamÅ“ba or amoeboid) is a type of cell or organism which has the ability to alter its shape, primarily by extending and retracting pseudopods.[

Oh yeah - I sort of, kind of, vaguely remember that from elementary school - never thought of that word again and honestly?  Never thought I'd need to.
( oh the folks are dumb - where I come from - they never got much learnin'  ♪♫ )

BUT - O.M.G. - he's right - it IS an amoeba - it altered it's state from a snowflake to a flower.....................

Does he get points for getting it right just by coincidence?
( I'm not giving them to him - just wondering about the rules of the game )
_________________________________________________________________________________

I've decided that instead of quitting the blog or going on an hiatus - I'm simply going to blog less in the New Year - why didn't I think of that before?
Why is everything always ALL or NOTHING in my world?
Probably Monday - Wednesday and Friday -
At least until this house is further along -

I HATE the term " followers " so I try to avoid it as much as I can ................I prefer to use Blog Friends or Readers or such................
But this week it slipped out.
I was sitting at the computer reading out all of the comments ( on my stressed out lack of blogging skills )
( they were unbelievably heart warming )
I sighed and
Suzan says - I have the most incredible followers
John says - WHAT?
John says - Did you just call them your followers?
Suzan says - Well that's the terminol-
John interrupts - It sounds like a cult for God's sakes..................
Suzan says - Don't be ridiculous John - it's just terminol-
John interrupts - and in a squeaky voice - says
" Oh my followers - come gather round -  look what I did this week - come lavish praise on your leader "

John says - You'd better not be writing down what I just said
Suzan says - I'm making a grocery list - you're getting very paranoid.
_________________________________________________________________________________

I did a long post on ISIS - one of my rants - and then I worried that they could trace me so I quickly deleted it -
I could just imagine one of their representatives showing up at my door with a scimitar.
If there's one thing I don't need in the midst of a house renovation.........................

( just leaving this little commentary makes me a nervous wreck - the ugly bastards )
Do you think they have wives?
How can anyone on this earth be attracted to such garbage?
_________________________________________________________________________________

I reinstated an accidently deleted blog post.
One of my readers ( not a blogger ) Beth - sent me an email showing me how to find a cached post
( so keep in mind that nothing is ever deleted really - once you hit publish it's out there forever whether you want it to be or not )
Which led me to doing a little more research until I found this site !
The post is reinstated completely ( minus the comments - I couldn't quite figure that out but apparently it's supposed to include them too ) I'm just thrilled I got the post back to be honest with you.
Beth thanks again - you're my hero!

The Original Blogger Tips & Tricks
_________________________________________________________________________________

I love old movies - so it was no surprise when I noticed Black Beauty was on that I plunked myself down in front of the t.v. ( a very rare thing in and of itself )
I wasn't expecting the overwhelming flow of emotions that over took me.
Life was hard and cruel back in the day - for humans AND for animals.............
Apparently the lady who wrote the book ( in 1877 and passed away 6 months after writing it ) wanted to tell the story from a horse's point of view to gain empathy for them ( I suspect it was also so that humans could see what horse's asses we can be )
Laws were changed shortly after.
A woman with a pen and paper can move mountains......................we must remember that when we think
" I'm only ONE "
_________________________________________________________________________________

Which brings me to a quote I've kept in a frame for many years now

I am only one, but still I am one
I cannot do everything but still I can do something
And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do

Edmond Everett Hale

I framed that for inspiration when I walked 60 kilometers for breast cancer......................our little team of 10 women raised over 30,000 dollars !
_________________________________________________________________________________

I promised myself that I was going to volunteer at an Assisted Elderly Home in the Fall - and it didn't happen.
One more item of guilt to add to my growing collection.
I'm going to hell.
Period.
Good intentions make a pretty sturdy highway and the pavement on mine is 10 feet deep.
________________________________________________________________________________

There's a chocolate bar sitting in the pantry with my name on it -
I open the door a few times a day and fight the urge to eat it - just to test my will power
Then I eat a loaf of bread.
_________________________________________________________________________________

Let's see now - have I covered everything?

Oh there's that small issue with the fireplace, isn't there?  I keep promising to show it to you BUT we took a little break because the perfect thick chunk of wood I had put aside for the mantel is warped and we need to pick something up!
I've stuck a fence plank on top and decorated it for you though LOL


It's upstairs in the bedroom and I'm sort of pretending it's finished ...............
I have all the pics ready for a tutorial - but it should be finished before I show you how we did it, don't you think?

You all have a wonderful weekend - make a batch of amoeba's !
big hugs
Me

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

French Provincial Table and Hutch !

Good morning everyone !

A couple of years ago I came across this on Craig's List - ( minus the buy me please - I added that lol ) 

Don't ask me how I saw the potential but I did ( can you imagine posting a photo like that when trying to sell something? ) 


I turned it into this


I was in the works to represent a line of paint at the time ( they shall remain nameless ) and that was a custom color that I created...........................Tiffany 

The set sold ( mutliple offers actually ) very quickly.

If you think the pic of the table was bad - what about this lol?


I removed 3 layers of fabric AND the foam and started from scratch


Until they looked like this


You can see the original post where I transformed this HERE
And if that decrepit set could end up looking so pretty 


Than this one we just picked up should be a piece of cake !!!
It's pristine !


I LOVE the detail on the back of the chairs 
And can you see that hutch in the background?
We have that too
Not sure when I'll be able to get to it - but I'm itching to start !

Suzan says - This is far superior to our set - maybe we'll keep it - and sell ours ?
John says - NO !!!
Suzan says - But wouldn't it make sense - if it's a better set 
John says - NO - I LIKE ours - there's nothing wrong with it

Poor John - really - for a man who can't stand change - to be with me must be excruciating lol
Because I think I'm keeping this one.
Shhhhh.
We'll break it to him in the New Year, shall we?

I think the faux fireplace should be ready tomorrow - tutorial and all - we just have to attach the " footings " 
( which have been a nightmare - the only part of the entire process that we keep messing up on ) 
We're " Mitre Morons " really - even with a circular saw that does all the work for you.

I stained it - and you won't believe this but my Hero didn't like it stained - HE had to talk me into painting it 
The whole world's gone topsy turvy I tell ya 


But at the end of the day the wood look just wouldn't have fit in our bedroom - he was right
( that doesn't happen that often so I thought I'd mention it ) 
I plan on making one more for the living room - and that one will definitely be wood.
Any guesses on what color it got painted ?
Surprise, Surprise, Surprise


Anyway - why on earth am I showing you this?
This is a post about tables !!!
But stay tuned for Fireplace Friday LOL - ( I hope )

Have a wonderful day everyone !
Much love,
Me

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Miss Mustard Seed

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

I WANNA live there Wednesday # 106

Good morning everyone !

This week's house is in Hudson ( we looked at a couple of homes there last year when we house hunting )
It's a beautiful area - filled with artisan boutiques and nature and quite a desired location

899,000
4 beds - 2 baths - 2 half baths
3025 sq. feet
Built in 1855
Realtor MARIANNA KACSAROVSZKY

This is simply gorgeous - I can just imagine it decorated for Christmas as I go through the rooms !



I'm in love with this kitchen - I couldn't even pick a favorite thing -



The windows !!!




The library - LOVE the interior window shutters


The dining room - ( this home just gets better and better )



The office ( with separate entrance - perfect ! )


Master Bedroom


Beautiful cast iron fireplace



Bedroom






Every now and then you come across a house that's perfect in every way


I think this just might be that one

The back is just as beautiful as the front


OMG !!!




159 years old - unbelievable !!!
If I could just find a way to get 899,000 people to send me a dollar each it could be mine .................

Have a wonderful day everybody !
Much love,
Me


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Monday, December 8, 2014

Red and Rustic

G'day y'all ( tous mes amis )

( I'm pretending I'm an Australian Southerner who speaks French  today - my keyboard won't allow me to type in Chinese or I'd really impress you )

I tend to stick with blues and whites and silvers ( for the last few years or so anyway ) so this year I decided to change things up drastically
( translation - I can't find the boxes with all of my blues and whites and silver - have no idea where we put them - all I could find were Reds - which are soooo 5 years ago in my world ) 

But red suits this little cottage perfectly ...................( I'm really trying to convince myself ) 

A few years ago John came home with his very first ( and only now that I think of it ) dumpster dive item - an antique sled - who would ever throw something as beautiful as this in the garbage? 

2 years ago I simply placed a tray on it and filled it with? ( if you guessed sparkly blue balls you're right ) Why do I always feel a little risque calling ornaments balls?  Is there another word for them?  Help!!!




But this year it rests on the mantel instead 

Now just to let you know I've changed the mantel 3 times - because " the man " made comments about the first 2.

John says - A sled on the mantel?
Suzan says - I'm not changing it again - live with it
John says - Wouldn't the sled be better on the floor with gifts on it?
Suzan says - Yes - it would - but WE DON'T HAVE THE FLOOR SPACE !!!!!!!!!!!
John says - But it looks ridiculous on a mantel - it's not natural
Suzan says - It's not natural how you pick apart every single idea I come up with !
John says - I don't do that at all
John says - You listen to your bloggers more than me anyway 
Suzan says - I DO NOT ( but I do ) 
John says - You probably saw one on someone's mantel
Suzan says - NO I DIDN'T - THIS ONE'S ALL MINE - I INVENTED IT 

If any of you have seen a sled on a mantel just don't tell me about it, 'k?
Anyway this post is about RED - not my mantel !

Ok - Pic Monkey - do your magic


I wish I could Bokaherize the living room actually

I added the " Welcome " sign I bought this summer ( for the garden gate - but it ended up on the back
door )

John says - Why would a sled say " welcome"
John says - Very strange
Suzan says - Well I may put it outside, beside the front door
John says - CAN ANYTHING - ANYTHING AT ALL - STAY IN ONE PLACE FOR MORE THAN A DAY IN THIS HOUSE?

These conversations go on while " Joy to the World " is blasting away in the background - very festive in these here parts !!!

I added some ( ahem ) balls to the branches as well


As much as I love my blue and whites and silver - I love how traditional the red looks
( Translation :  where are those damn boxes ???  )

A kuttke ( that's what happens when your fingers are not aligned on the key board properly - that should be
A LITTLE spray paint took care of these pine cones


My red sequined tree ( that I had completely forgotten about )


Some faux something or other in metal cans ( hey they're red ! )


It tells you something about my character that I'm able to shop in my house for anything I want - in any color.
I don't think I'd have to hit a store for years ( except for Ikea - 2 of these lanterns - 3.99 each !!! )


A Santa's boot peaking under some fresh cedar branches from the backyard -  that a dear friend once brought to one of my parties ( filled with a poinsetta plant ) but now gets filled with candy canes usually


and stocking hangers ( can't find the stockings either so some red berries are entwined in it instead )


And of course there's my wreath on the ladder - which has red and white lights


And all of it - every single last piece of it would STILL be changed if I could find the boxes I really want !!!

You DO know my living room is mostly black and white, right?
Which begs the question

What's Black & White & Red all over?

I'm living one big giant cliche ........................


Have a wonderful day everyone
I'm still working on my DIY faux fireplace


Hugs,
Me

Looking for inspiration?
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Too Much Time on my Hands                    My Turn for Us
My Romantic Home                                  Classy Clutter
Uncommon Design                                    Between Naps on the Porch
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A Stroll Thru Life                                      Stone Gable
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Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson               From My Front Porch To Yours
Funky Junk Interiors