Every Day Gets a Little Closer....

The map chest is really shaping up!  I just have to decide on how I want to line the drawers, buff it, and then it will be available.

No Easter Eggs Here!

It is turning out just as I hoped:)  Still a ways to go, but looking better all the time...

In Serious Hopes That I Haven't Just Painted a Giant Easter Egg!

Like the majority of my cooking, it's an experiment.... just in a sort of scary stage!
Next step blending... cross your fingers!

So Excited about some of the Pieces in the Queue...

Anybody Want to Tango?

Oooh la la!  It's a sassy little orange coffee or side table!  She's all dressed up and ready to dance...

Tango Table

The Remains of the Day...

Every day we put our energy into what we do, into our relationships, into avoiding relationships, into our work, into our addictions, into our recreation, into our fears, into our hopes. 

Whatever we invest the day in, one thing is sure:  The hours will be spent.  The energy will be spent.  And that day will not exist anymore. 

What will be left of that day is what we created. 

I think about things like this when I paint.  The hours spent transforming a piece are gone once they are spent.  They do not exist anymore.  What remains is what I have created.  This is exactly like life. 

Let's seize the day and create well!

Orange!!!

I am working on an end (or small coffee) table in ORANGE!!  It is fun just to paint it!  You take take a peek at the 'before' in the Queue.

On Replacing Furniture Hardware

Replacing furniture hardware is not always as straightforward as replacing cabinet hardware.  You need to 'Assess the Hardware Situation' when you buy an old piece.  It is lovely when the existing hardware is all there, in good condition, and coordinates with the look you intend for the piece.  Of course, that doesn't always happen.

Things that you have to keep in mind:  If there are 'drop bail pulls'... you know the kind that fastens on both sides and there is a movable handle that stretches between the anchored spots... The 'centers' or the distance between where you put the screws in is often not a standard size... and therefore, potentially not easy or inexpensive to replace.

Another thing to keep in mind is 'backplates'.  I often find backplates charming and love the antique and old world look of them.  But, if you take off a piece of hardware that had a backplate and want to replace it with a piece that doesn't, you will have a gap that will cause your hardware to wiggle and loosen if you don't correct it.

This is the handle that I took off of a piece.  Interesting, but huge and didn't fit the finished look I wanted for the piece.

The backplate has a tip that is inserted into the drilled our hole in the piece.. and hence the challenge.

This is the hardware that I used to replace it... no backplate, standard bolt size.

One way to solve the problem is to get 'spacers' at your local hardware store... not a big box store... you have to go to a smaller store that carries those specialized little pieces.

Make sure to take both your new bolt and the old backplate with you when you go to check in the inner and outer diameter of the spacers.

In this case, the drill hole was still just a smidgen large, so I wrapped one length of duck tape around them, inserted the spacers into the hole, put my hardware on and problem solved!

If Necessity is the Mother of Invention, then maybe Possibility is the Mother of Creativity

A friend put me in touch with a friend of hers, Kirstin, who keeps a delightful and inspiring blog at http://kojo-designs.com/.  Check it out... it's worth your time!  That exchange started me thinking about where my desire to create originated.  I guess it was really in so many ways over the years of my childhood. 

But, what stands out to me right now is how thankful I am that we didn't have the money to buy all of the clothes that I wanted... or the home decor for my dolls (any male readers are now rolling their eyes.. do I have male readers?).  

Due to this perceived lack of cash, and my desire for the finer things for myself and my Barbies (well really a more politically correct set of dolls.. it was the 70s and if there is a way to combine ultra conservatism and a rural hippie lifestyle, my mom accomplished it, eating tofu long before anybody realized that wasn't a cuss word, and providing me with dolls that were more 'realistic' role models.).  Ok, I am digressing.  Back on topic. 

I decided, at the ripe old age of 12, to take matters into my own hands and whip up some of those gorgeous (did I ever really think so?) Gunne Sax dresses by Jessica McClintock myself.  So I learned to sew.  And that put the very helpful, and sometimes maddening, belief into my young self that where there is a will there is a way, along with a passion to use whatever was available to me to create or transform something.

That has become a life-long passion, and I am grateful.

So Much to Paint, So Little Time...

I have some great pieces in the queue, but it is going to be awhile before I can get to some of them.  I will try to post pictures of unfinished pieces when I can. (There are a few pics on the In the Queue page.)

Just for a teaser..

Very Rustic Wooden Trunk on Metal Stand

Two Level Dresser

Solid Wood Dining Set with a Two Pedestal Leg Table

Buffet/Sideboard that will be Gray

Set of French Provincial End Tables

French Provincial Wall Mirror

End Table and Accent Chair in Gorgeous Blue

Unique Coffee or End Table

Stay Tuned:)

The Medallion Coffee Table Really is Making it's Way to Texas... Finally!

Wow, this has been a process trying to figure out packing and shipping. 
But, persistence has paid off, and it is on it's way.  Bon Voyage!

The Writing Desk & Bead for Life

The writing desk found it's new home with a lovely woman who works with Bead or Life based out of Boulder.  Bead for Life is a non-profit that helps empower woman in Uganda to lift themselves and their families out of extreme poverty by making and selling paper beads (they also work with Shea Butter).  The beads are made of recycled paper!  Way to upcycle ladies! 

You can check out and order their beads, jewelry and shea butter products at www.BeadforLife.org.

I was thinking how fun it would be to get the loose beads and and use them for a birthday party activity and then the girls could take their new jewelry home as party favors!

Paint, Paint, Paint..

I have often said that I will paint almost anything!  I love paint:)  I have been contemplating movies with pain with paint.  This is one of my favorites.  Watch minutes 3-4.  If you have the time, watch the whole clip!  It's from the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. 

I can think of a few others and I am going to see if I can find clips.  Any tips of other movies with paint?  In two of the three I am thinking of, the painting represents transformation... right up my alley:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBwNWvCPgyY