I'm not so crafty................

Lindsay did these ( from Better After ) and I fell in love

She made them using embroidery rings ( like this ) 

and I was dying to try this - although as much as I am a DIY'er - and a painter of all things, lol - I am really not so crafty,  which is a whole different world unto itself - but here is my attempt - it's not nearly as cool as hers - but I was trying for a more modern look.....................

Not even sure if I like my version so much - but that's what I did last night!

xxx

Risky Business

I've had a few comments on my fear of going to get furniture at strangers houses and allowing strangers in my home to purchase finished pieces.................First of all I have an extremely overactive imagination - always have - it made for hell when raising my kids let me tell you - worst case scenarios haunt me - I do not travel without first writing each of my kids a letter with a specific item of jewelry, just in case. ( time consuming when you're only getting groceries, ha ha )  But everytime I think I am just a nutjob - there's another story in the news that convinces me otherwise.  So, there you have it.

Ok - so here is a true story for you
Last year I got a call from a contractor letting me know he had a prospective client for me - he told me he was a little strange but completely harmless and a super nice guy - single Dad blah blah blah -
So I called ( he shall remain nameless for obvious reasons ) and set up an appointment - John was out of town so off I went alone. I got to his house and rang his bell - to which he yelled out from where I didn't know, that the door was unlocked and to just come in. Very very gingerly I opened the front door - uncomfortable already ( always go with your intuition ladies, always) and again he yells out to make myself comfortable - the house was open concept so I made my way to the kitchen very carefully eyeing both exits and now realizing that he is in the washroom. All my friends say I am paranoid - and a drama mama ( of which I am most definitely both of that ) so I try hard, I really do, to be normal.

AND OUT HE COMES IN HIS UNDERWEAR. Not boxers - just what was supposed to be fitted underwear ( like seeing a man in a speedo - gross )   Just strutting over to where I am standing ( barely ) with a big smile and an introduction.  Like this is a normal thing to do - no awkwardness on his part at all I have to say. In fact he asked me if I'd like a drink ( yes please - a big glass of cyanide so I can kill myself before you do )
Oh, he says, they didn't tell me how pretty you were,
(OK - would you have dressed for the occasion otherwise I am thinking to myself.)
(I bet he says this to every female he stands almost naked in front of )
(No wonder he is a single Dad )
(Where is he hiding the damn knife )
So I did what I always do when I am paralyzed with fear - I took on a tough girl persona which is hard when
your legs are literally giving out from under you.
" Could you please go put some clothes on - you're making me quite uncomfortable "
" Just pretend I have a bathing suit on" he says " what's the big deal "
" It's a big deal for me - if you want I can come back another day or you can just put your damn clothes on"
" No, no, he says, I'll put my jeans on - and commences to put them on in front of me
and we had the consultation with me barely able to speak - and that was that. I wanted to kiss the ground when I stepped outside his front door - Now was he a serial axe killer?  Definitely not, he let me go,lol  but that was as close to one as I ever want to get.  When he asked me for some ideas for the basement I told him that would have to be another time.

And I have not been back.
So now you understand why I always try to send John for furniture - yes I am paranoid - yes I am extremely dramatic, and most definitely yes there are dangerous people out there.

Oh and by the way - he was a skinny little thing - with spindly legs ( even more spindly than my own )
and his underwear actually looked like bloomers for God's Sakes because he couldn't fill them out - I should have taken a picture of him, ha ha, on a completely different note - where do men get their freaking confidence from???????

Suzan
xxx

I'm Stoopid

 

stu·pid

   [stoo-pid, styoo‐]  Show IPA adjective, -er, -est, noun

adjective

1.

lacking ordinary quickness and keenness of mind; dull.

2.

characterized by or proceeding from mental dullness; foolish;senseless: a stupid question.

3.

tediously dull, especially due to lack of meaning or sense;inane; pointless: a stupid party.

4.

annoying or irritating; troublesome: Turn off that stupid radio.

5.

in a state of stupor; stupefied: stupid from fatigue.

I always thought of myself as a bright person, lol - really I did - and pretty good with a computer - until I started blogging. This thing confuses the shit out of me sometimes -

I am fine now with writing my little piece and uploading my photos - but Picasa leaves me feeling like an idiot and now this:  Pinterest?  I am trying but there again I have problems.  Everyone rants and raves about it and I cannot seem to navigate properly around it.
Then I had no idea what a NO REPLY BLOGGER was - I kept reading posts on it and wondering what it was,  I even had first hand experience with this because I would sometimes get emails from people ( Rebecca if you are reading this - you are a no reply blogger btw ) and not be able to respond to them and still never made the connection.  I would leave comments on peoples blogs and not get responses and I would think
" Okay, this is tough, breaking into these these circles " until Vicky from DECOR and AMP let me know that she could not reply to my comments and told me how to fix it.
It took me far too long to learn how to link up to parties, I won't even get into that one.
The grab a button feature?  fuggedaboudit.
When I am writing a post and mention a previous post I have no idea how to place a link ( you know, when it says "here" )
Now here is the extremely embarrassing part.  I was looking at my profile the other day- and it says I follow 2 blogs - Mr. Goodwill Hunting and myself - why myself I have no idea - but where is everyone else that I added to my blog list?  They show up on my home page so I assumed because I added them to that list, that I was a follower of their blogs!!!!!!!!
Someone mentioned once that I should switch to WORD PRESS - the thought of it terrifies me - it took me so long to learn the little bit I know here.
STOOPID BLONDE -
So tonight I will actually go to my favorite blog sites and hook up to follow them properly.  Wish me luck everyone, if  you see me pop up please let me know it worked.

BTW - I am going with number 5 on the dictionary description above, lol

and both window panes now officially have the french panels in them ( this is where it would help to 
place the link to the previous post %$&^*  here 
agghhh - I think I did it - I linked to a previous post - oh you're a genius Suzan.

I still have to paint them black - but at least they are done!!!

xxx
Suzan

Before and after dresser

I know this doesn't look so terrible in it's wood state - but it really was in rough condition -

Here she is now

Painted it with ASCP old white - and paris gray - and I am still on the fence about distressing this one, so have left it as is for now -

I did distress this old mirror that came with another dresser - it's just sitting on the dresser.

The dresser had to be primed - because stains kept coming through the paint ( after 2 coats ) and
I spray painted the knobs and back plates...................
What do you think - should I distress the hell out of it?  Or leave it as is?  This one is staying - the
drawer space is great and I even have one empty one ( but 2 storage boxes under the bed of
clothes so I suppose I shouldn't be bragging about one empty drawer, lol )

I am also torn about whether I should just paint it all white to be honest with you - this one definitely
did not speak to me as loudly as they usually do - for the most part as soon as I look at a dresser it
screams out at me ( I have to tell it to keep it's voice down ) what it wants me to do - but this one
kind of whispered - " do whatever you want, I don't care " so I did - and am second guessing myself
daily on it.

John just came home with another dresser - you'll have to excuse the angle  -  this is how it was posted for sale so just turn your head around lol because I am too lazy to take a picture of it right now

 Anyways he tells me I sent him to the gates of hell - slumville so bad that he was nervous driving around
 the area - at one point there was a group of kids sitting outside a corner store and he thought they were
 planning to jump him - lol.  I'm laughing but I would have drove straight out of there because I am afraid of
 my own shadow - I am so nervous that I prefer not to go with him because I don't like going into strangers
 houses - I always wonder if these are phony adds meant to lure the innocents in and rape and kill them.
 I've even had that thought when people are coming here to buy a piece - do you think maybe I watch those
 crime shows a little too much?
 It is not easy being me - but I'm stuck with myself ( so is John unfortunately lol )

 Happy Sunday all

 xxx

Partying with the following gracious ladies


Debbiedoo's
http://debbie-debbiedoos.com/2012/03/vintage-rooster-newbie-party-started.html#comment-54582
DIY home sweet home
http://diyhshp.blogspot.ca/2012/03/more-merrier-55.html
Making the world cuter
http://makingtheworldcuter.com/2012/03/making-the-world-cuter-monday-giveaway-for-75-amazon-gift-card-march-26-2012/
I should be mopping the floor
http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/2012/03/mop-it-up-mondays-9.html
Boogie Board Cottage
http://www.boogieboardcottage.blogspot.ca/2012/03/welcome-to-65th-masterpiece-monday.html
A Simply Klassic Home
http://asimplyklassichome.blogspot.ca/2012/03/simply-klassic-sunday-link-party-and_24.html
Coastal Charm
http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.ca/
My uncommon slice of suburbia
http://www.myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/
Elizabeth & Co.
http://www.elizabethandco.blogspot.ca/
Creatively Living
http://blah2beautiful.blogspot.ca/
The Farmhouse Porch
http://farmhouseporch.blogspot.ca/
Kammy's Corner
http://kammyskorner.blogspot.ca/
No Minimalist Here
http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.ca/
Primitive & Proper
http://primitiveandproper.blogspot.ca/
Shades of Amber
http://shadesofamberinc.blogspot.ca/2012/03/annie-sloan-chalk-paint-link-party_27.html
Savvy Southern Style
http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.ca/2012/03/wow-us-wednesdays-59-and-winner.html
Lil Pink Pocket
http://mylilpinkpocket.blogspot.ca/
Miss Mustard Seed
http://missmustardseed.com/2012/03/furniture-feature-friday-link-party-5/#comment-80012
French Country Cottage
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.ca/
Decorating Insanity
http://www.decoratinginsanity.com/2012/03/furniture-friday-11-link-party.html
At the Picket Fence
http://www.atthepicketfence.com/
Days of Chalk and Chocolate
http://daysofchalkandchocolate.blogspot.ca/
Common Ground
http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.ca/

What do you think?

All the things on my to do list are getting done, what an incredible feeling............

I have decided ( notice how I never say " we " I am terrible really, how does he put up with me? )
to PAINT our bedroom floor!  It's in terrible condition - well parts of it -
Someone in the past had a new furnace installed and I guess the only way to do so was to cut a huge hole
in the bedroom floor and lower it in - that isn't the problem - the problem is and I cannot believe this really,
is that they put a new floor in where they had cut out the hole - and left the perimeter alone - unbelievable because the perimeter is so small in contrast - I can't understand the reasoning?
And after having the floors changed in the dining room and living room I am just not up to that right now.
It was major - doing anything in Victorian era housing is major actually.  This is what they did

doesn't it look ridiculous?
When we moved in I bought a pale gray carpet which covered all of the newer floor - and that
worked for awhile - until I stepped on a lid of paint and left a dark gray footprint on one side -
and then dear little Soda can leave quite the mess behind her with her paws, etc, so I threw them
out yesterday and now I positively have to do something.

And here is how you get what you want:

"John have you noticed how dirty the carpet gets from Soda?"

"No but I've noticed painted footprints all along my side of the bed."

"Oh that was an accident - but the carpet was really dirty anyway
and I can't keep getting down on my hands and knees and scrubbing
it all the time - I'm 52 years old John"

"Umph, but you can move furniture around the house and paint it every few
months - and sand and strip and paint furniture almost daily"

"But that's not hard work John - anyways we need to have the floor changed,
I guess it'll be a couple of thousand dollars -"

No words from John on this one - just a set look on his face

"OMG - I just had an incredible idea John - we could paint it ( see, here you must use the word "we"  )
Let me go google it for some ideas and we could see how it looks , maybe that could work."

You're not painting the bloody floors Suzan - is nothing safe from your paint brush at all?

I run to the computer and open the file where I have saved all the photos to show him - and then
call him into the office -

"Here's a few, what do you think?"

"I suppose that could be an option - more affordable anyways"

"I don't know John - maybe we should just bite the bullet and have the floors changed "

"No - I think the painted floors may look really nice "

"Ok - I'll try it then, no harm done if down the road we have to change them anyway "

"Now you're talking rational Suzan"


Mission accomplished - since I had no intentions of changing the floors at all.



I am torn with color - although leaning towards white - I have seen some amazing colors and/or
painted patterns on floors that I would love to try.  There's a pc of furniture in my room that I am going
to have to paint around - hillbilly I know but no choice here believe me so pattern will be challenging.
I might do a french key pattern all along the new and old floor to try to camouflage that.

Will keep you posted - in the meantime here are a few inspiration photos that I just love

ELLE DECOR

ELLE DECOR

ELLE DECOR

ELLE DECOR

ELLE DECOR

coastal living

coastal living

abodelove.blogspot.com 

www.decorpad.com 

JAMIE HERZINGER

Aren't they all gorgeous - can't wait

xxx

Nella's

Time to post some pic's of Nella's -

the fireplace was painted- I did not take a proper before photo but it was red brick
the hearth was painted black
the garden stool was painted silver
the t.v. stand was painted black
and the walls were painted a beachy blue/gray color
moldings were painted an ultra white
ceiling painted using ceiling paint
and the windows and radiators were painted white

we found this restoration hardware look alike shelving at Home Sense
the wood is beaten and bleached and the metal parts are a grayish color
it's really a beautiful piece in person
the mirror I " stole " from her changing room ( she actually has one of those!!! )
I love the height - 

the hallway - you can get peaks of the black doors - all 10 of them have
been painted
Walls are ultra white- as well as all the moldings and baseboards

This was a huge project - and I dragged it on for a lot longer than it should have been - but between
trying to run our business - painting furniture - and working on her place I am just about finished. ( for now, it doesn't take long for me to be itching to go again )
The doors each took 2 coats - and I painted both sides - so like painting 40 doors, lol - plus I scraped and cleaned each 80 year old handle and back plate and even painted the screws ( each screw was removed and
placed in a wood plank and spray painted ) to match the back plates.  The hall walls took 3 coats of paint because they are textured.  The fireplace took 4 coats of paint. This was labor intensive.
And I still have 1 french door left to scrape - and maybe some touch ups - but mission is almost accomplished!!!!  

Nella - I keep forgetting about the radiator in the hallway - REMIND ME!!!!! lol

xxx

Not for the faint of heart - ( of which I am )

Walked into the living room this evening and crawling up my chair was this

Ok - time to put the for sale sign up - cannot live with these - absolutely cannot -

Spiders I could care less about - but these????????????? It's bigger than me - I went
weak in the legs - started hyperventilating - they have to be the ugliest thing I have ever
seen - and it gets better.....................

From Wikipedia

Early description

In 1902, C.L. Marlatt, an entomologist with the United States Department of Agriculturewrote a brief description of the house centipede:

It may often be seen darting across floors with very great speed, occasionally stopping suddenly and remaining absolutely motionless, presently to resume its rapid movements, often darting directly at inmates of the house, particularly women, evidently with a desire to conceal itself beneath their dresses, and thus creating much consternation.

LMAO - particularly at women?   if one comes darting at me - and tries to hide in my clothes, they'll be
burying me tomorrow.  And it gets better..............

Behavior and ecology

Closeup of the head showing modified legs

House centipedes feed on spiders, bedbugs, termites, cockroaches, silverfish, ants, and other household arthropods. They administer venom through modified legs. These are not part of their mandibles, so strictly speaking they sting rather than bite. They are mostly nocturnal hunters. Despite their developed eyes they seem to rely mostly on their antennae when hunting. Their antennae are sensitive to both smells and tactile information. They use both their mandibles and their legs for holding prey. This way they can deal with several small insects at the same time. To capture prey they either jump onto it or use their legs in a technique described as "lassoing". Using their legs to beat prey has also been described.^[5] In a feeding study, S. coleoptrata showed the ability to distinguish between possible prey. They avoid dangerous insects. They also adapted their feeding pattern to the hazard the prey might pose to them. For wasps, they retreat after applying the venom to give it time to take effect.^[5] When the centipede is in danger of becoming prey itself, it can detach any legs that have become trapped.

If I have centipedes - and they eat spiders, bedbugs, termites, cockroaches, silverfish and ants - does that mean

I have those other creatures living here as well? OH.   MY.  GOD.  

And apparently they lay eggs in the spring - so I may be swarming with them within the next few weeks.

3/4's of our basement is a crawl space - with earth - I do not go down there, ever, even the section that has been

built up to make a laundry room - John does the laundry since moving here ( which was a condition on buying this place - that I would never have to step foot down there )  but now the unspeakables are coming up here - and joining me on the level meant only for humans and one small dog.

AGHHHHHHHH - 

In the words of Rosana Ana Dana - 

IT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING

Let's just call her done.......................

And another one bites the dust.............................

Before

After

The hardest part of this makeover was removing the inserts and that wasn't really so difficult -
just time consuming...................this is how they looked - brass or copper color -

sprainted ( I swear to God that word just typed it itself - lol - meant to type spray painted obviously - but love the sound of that - so all future references will be sprainted - )
So..................sprainted the grids with Painters Touch black satin..................

and I added a couple of appliques

this is as true to the color of the pc that I can seem to get - it looks " dirty " and worn which is exactly
how I wanted it to look -
I first painted it Paris Gray ( ASCP ) but it looked to crisp and clean for this pc - so went over it with
French Linen very lightly and than sanded - again lightly - did not want to go down to the original finish because it is not a wood color - looks more like a tobacco color - definitely not a look I wanted peaking through.

I changed out the hardware

there were 2 sets of double holes on each door and drawer here - so I hid 4 holes each with these back
plates - and drilled another hole in the center for the actual handle - so behind this there are now 5 holes,
hmmm - one looks a little crooked - have to fix that, lol

I put glass handles on the top part - for a little glitz - I like a little bit of sparkle on everything I do - can't help myself...................

And here are a few close up of details -

Now here's where the honesty comes in -
I still have to paint a little on the interior ( upper I don't care about painting the bottom interior yet because I am keeping this for awhile ) I haven't finished the shelves - and I had a crisis with one of the bottom doors,
The screw heads broke off when I was trying to reattach them - so they are now stuck inside and I have to
dig them out - fill them - and make new holes - don't even want to think about it - if anyone has an easy solution to this - please please please share.  I would be eternally grateful and would give you permission to
use my new word SPRAINTED whenever you wanted to, lol.

But for now,
LET'S CALL HER DONE

XXX
Linking up to the following parties - so worth the trip - check them out!
At the Picket Fence
http://www.atthepicketfence.com/
French Country Cottage
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.ca/2012/03/feathered-nest-friday-giveaway.html
No Minimalist Here
http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.ca/
2805:PotpourriFriday#29
http://twenty-eight-0-five.blogspot.ca/
Common Ground
http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.ca/
Days of Chalk and Chocolate
http://daysofchalkandchocolate.blogspot.ca/
Miss Mustard Seed
http://missmustardseed.com/2012/03/furniture-feature-friday-feature-link-party/
Decorating Insanity
http://www.decoratinginsanity.com/2012/03/furniture-friday-10-and-link-party.html
Nutmeg Place
http://www.nutmegplace.com/2012/03/show-off-saturday-7.html

Exhausted

In Stacy's words ( http://www.conspicuousstyle.com/ to the right on my blog list ) I am TRULY,MADLY,DEEPLY exhausted - I screwed in 2 handles tonight on the buffet - primed one
shelf from the armoire and called it a day, I could not even manage to paint the 2nd shelf or even
clean the brush out,  it is sitting in paint thinner until tomorrow.
And this is what happens to me - I go and go - and push myself like it's some sort of internal test of my stamina and then I collapse.
I am overwhelmed and have far too many projects almost finished - nothing is quite finished so I run from one thing to another like a manic ( which  I am by the way - a complete maniac - which menopause does not
seem to be helping at all - my kids keep saying " but Mom - you've been menopausing our entire lives, lol )
I am seriously sleep deprived - seeming to be existing on cat naps at this point - I go to bed and my mind starts racing and I have to get up - just cannot lay there when my internal dialogue just will not SHUT UP, and so when the rest of the world rises - I am out like a light, but even then it's a few hours.
I remember asking my mother once what she did with the voice in her head meaning of course our internal dialogue - to which she replied Oh Suzan, Voices?  That doesn't sound good to me - Hilarious.

So this post will be about something I wish I could get into a little more, lol

all of the above are from House Beautiful - except the last 2 - which are Stacy's again from
Conspicuous Style. To die? ( to sleep? except she has my insomnia dilemma as well )

and on a funny note I came out of the hairdressers today and a young boy ( young - looked 10 years old )
screamed out from across the street Hey Miss - your hair is beautiful - lol - nothing like a compliment and
I'll take them where I can get them. Never mind the hair - because that's my incredible hairdresser's work - but to be called Miss?  At 52?  Come here little boy, let me give you a big fat hug!!!!

g'night
xxx