Fill in the Blanks

So the past four months I have been very busy taking care of my Mom with the help of Hospice. I am delighted to say she has improved remarkably, thought her diagnosis remains the same. We are relishing in the good days while we have them.

I have been confined to home as well and have been trying to stay creative.  This past month all of our children and grandchildren were here for most of that time.  Our youngest and her family have relocated to Taipei Taiwan and everyone was home  'celebrating family and saying bon voyage', until next summer.

Whenever our grandchildren are here or we visit them it is always "Oma what is our art project?"

Did I have a surprise for them.

Our trex deck is old and a mess with stains and just "blahness"  I have been looking at it all spring/summer and decided it had to change.

I washed it down, let it dry and then primed it with a Kilz exterior primer.  I then drew some designs on it.

I bought Valspar exterior paint in order to find the bright cheerful colors that replicate the colors in our backyard and around the pool. Each of the grand daughters donned a paint shirt grabbed a brush and picked their designs.

I was so excited to see the colors show up.

I only had to clean up a few spots and added some highlights to a few  designs.

I took  Behr exterior house paint in Black and applied two coats and was so happy with the results.  The black background makes the colors pop and everyone who sees it loves it. It does show dusty foot prints but it is sooooo much nicer than the old deck top I don't mind.

The most special part is that the grandchildren helped to create it and will always feel proud to make Oma and Opa's deck beautiful.

Wind Chimes

This is the sunset tonight after a 95 degree day.  Our usual temps at this time of year are 70's but I am
not complaining.  We have our pool to cool off in and I LOVE that.

It is supposed to cool off  by 15 degrees so that will be nice .  Today our air conditioner just stopped.
We have had it for eleven years and have never had any problems so maybe it is time.

We can't get anyone to come until the middle of next week so am happy it will be cooler for a few days anyway.

I have been decorating our back yard  for the past month..  These are the wind chimes I made  out of recycled silver.   I know some of you may be offended by my choice of materials but each to their own.

I went to a church rummage sale and  you could fill a brown grocery bag for $5.  In my bag I have a small silver serving tray and wine chalices.

I drilled holes in the lip of the edge of the platter  with a metal drill bit and then drilled holes in the base of the chalices.  I had all the beads on hand and used 20# clear fishing line to string them on.
I made sure the chalices are almost touching so that when they move in the breeze they hit each other and are so melodic.  I used a small link chain on each side to hang it on the branch.  I had originally had it hanging on the deck but it didn't move due to the weight.  Now the breeze moves the branch.

I also crammed neatly placed silverware  and this chafing dish holder in my bag.   I have a ton of beads on hand and have had my art kids making their own wind chimes.  I again drilled holes in each

 of the handles of the silverware.  You cannot use newer silverware because you cannot drill through it.  You can wrap wire around  the handles  and then use fishing line to attach them to your holder.

I wrapped thin wire with beads around the handles and added bells to some of the utensils.  This one is light weight and  dances nicely in the breeze.  It has a soft  tinkly sound.

What projects are you working on?

My Latest Project

 So I have ONE MORE WEEK before I get my walking boot off......counting down the days!!

I am moving around a lot better than the previous 7 weeks so finally was able to mark a project off my list.

 This was John's Great Uncle Charles' favorite reading chair. After he passed away it passed to us and reeked of cigar/cigarette smoke.

                                                                           

 It sat out on our deck with a brightly colored beach towel thrown over it and was our two cats' favorite perch whatever the weather.

I had John bring it in to my studio and tore all of the old fabric off and the batting out. I replaced it with new padding and quilt batting. I love my staple gun.

I had some Annie Sloan graphite colored paint and wax so pulled that out.

I painted all the wood surfaces with the paint and buffed them with wax after the paint was dry.

I pulled fabric out of my stash and this is cotton.  These are my favorite colors in my studio. Callie kept laying about on the chair while I was trying to recover it and meowed and growled at me. She was not happy I was taking the smells of her chair away.

Mato was equally upset with the changes and kept jumping up on the seat.  Every time I put her down she would get right back up and growl as well.

I pulled this bead trim out of my trim box and applied it around the edge of the chair and between the seat of the chair and the base.

Like so.

I added a bolster pillow that I made with more fabric I had on hand.

When I am not sitting here you will find either cat claiming it as theirs. That tells me they are as happy with the changes as I am.

The only thing I am not liking is that I usually recover furniture with stiffer fabric or upholstery/drapery fabric.

I didn't feel like I should spend money on any fabric when I have so much in my stash. So this being cotton, it does stretch and wrinkle after being sat on.  It does smooth right out and I know the wrinkle police won't be visiting any time soon. But, just info for anyone out there who might  want to take on a similar project and use cotton. That is one thing I didn't think out ahead of time.

I do love it and I added quilt batting to the bottoms of the legs so I can move it around in my studio and save scuffing up the hardwood floors.

What projects are you working on?

Heartfelt

 

I don't know about you all, but I love to haunt thrift stores and garage/tag sales etc. I always find something I think I need.....isn't that how it goes?  I collect whatever speaks to me and store it away for another day. Every holiday, I try to make something new, either to give as a gift, or simply to decorate the house.

I found these mixed tiny hearts in a baggie at the thrift store so brought these home a year ago.

 

                                                I have had all these jewelry pieces for years.

 

                                          I  added chain hangers to make these little ornaments.

                                Then I put them on my sweet pink mini feather tree. Did I tell you I love hearts?

 This is a metal wall pocket bought for a mere quarter at a garage sale. It has been hanging around a good long while.

I added a vintage print to the front, bordered it in lace and embellished it with Valentine ribbon.

Are you making anything new for Valentine's Day?

Making Progress!

So this sitting on my bottom with my foot up in the air is getting pretty old!  It has been two weeks and I am going nuts!  I went to the Dr on Thursday and was expecting to go back into my air cast after the post surgery cast was removed.....

Wrong.  I had to go into another cast---this time fiberglass....but only for two more weeks!!  EEK
At least I got to pick my own color and of course went with my all time favorite in any shade:

Yep looks pretty bright.

Dr told me I could start bearing weight after 24 hours.  So I kept it up and behaved until the next afternoon.
He told me he was worried I would get carried away and try to do more than I am supposed to.  Okay which one of you told on me?  Not this type A personality who can't be paid to set still.

I tried just putting my foot on the floor here and there and putting a little weight on it....OUCH!  It isn't gonna happen  this weight bearing.......it is just too painful at this point in time.  But I will keep working at it.

The one thing that isn't safe on tile and hardwood floors is that this sucker is very slippery.....they had sent us down to an orthopedic appliance department.  They had one 'cast shoe". The smallest size.... I couldn't get my foot in.....the next size was way too long and way too narrow.  I felt like Cinderella's ugly stepsisters!

The gentleman helping me: "You must have an extra fat or wide foot huh?"   ( Wow!  I have never been accused of having fat feet.)

ME (ever so sweetly):   "I am thinking you didn't mean that the way it came out of your mouth.  You never imply a woman is extra fat or wide anywhere."  (I did smile sweetly.  Okay I was probably rolling my eyes).

Mr P.  said:  "You might not want to pay much attention to her.  She took some pain meds a little bit ago and she talks kind of goofy then.
Men

After all that, we left there without a 'cast shoe' but maybe a professional that might chose his words a little more carefully when the next lady with a fat cast on her foot comes in!!!  Smiling..  I really am very sweet.
But I had just had one cast removed, 12 stitches taken out and then another cast applied.  I had also had NO pain meds and was running out of steam quickly.

So every time I stood my foot wanted to go anywhere but where it should.  I laid down to take a nap when we got home and BINGO.....I got it!!  (Sometimes those are the best times for great ideas....maybe I should lay down more often).

I had my honey cut out a section of this rubbery mesh stuff we have under our carpet runners:

  I hot glued it to the bottom of my cast and Voila!  Perfect.  Now the cast doesn't go anywhere.

I wish it would have helped the pain but not so lucky there.

Yesterday I went into my studio determined to MAKE something......anything.  Since Valentine's Day and Hearts are my favorite things I went with that theme.

I started with this mess of......putting everything out in plain sight.

I ended up with these lovely little hearts decorated with found objects in my stash of goodies.

Then I put them on my "every holiday" pink tree.  I put this tree up for Christmas and then it stays up through Easter.

I pulled out this old vintage cupid from years back I found at a garage sale for a dime.

I added feathers to the wing.  I cute up wire with little red hearts on it and curled them to complete his hair. I had these darling pink butterflies and added them to his quiver.

TADA  here he is hanging above the mantle.


Today three of my favorite sisters who live down the street came down to help me decorate and set up for Monday's class with my kidlets.

We haven't met since the week of Christmas.  We went to visit our kids and kidlets for two weeks then I had my surgery.  It will be fun to get back into my routine.


I had my foot down for a very long time and now it IS FAT and so I have resumed the sitting on my bottom with my foot in the air once again.......gonna be another long two weeks!!

Christmas in a Jar

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and  lots of time spent with friends and family.  Half of our kids were home and two of our granddaughters so we were delighted.

Today I wanted to pick out an easy Christmas project that almost any age from about 2 on up (with help) can do in under an hour.  They turn out so cute and are so easy peasy.

You need some small Christmas trees. Two in a package are only $1 at the Dollar stores or can be bought at any craft store for a little more.  They have a variety to pick from.

You need to gather up as many jars.. as needed. They can be all the same or different.  You need one for each gift or decoration.  I had these jars available but you can also buy them at any store including the dollar stores.

Any kind of regular glue will work.  These are two of my favorite as well as Elmer's glue---even cheaper.

Optional are spray glitter and spray snow available again at any craft store or big box store that sells Christmas decorations. You can 'glam up' your trees or use as they are.

If you want to get fancy, you can spray your trees with alcohol inks or spray glitter.  You can also bleach the bottle brush trees in a mixture of one part bleach and two parts water until the color is gone.  I then added some of mine to food coloring batches with vinegar and food coloring after rinsing them with soap and water to get the bleach out. 

You also need a large jar of glitter.  Again you can choose any color you want or mix and match.

You can add family photos to make the gift more personal.  This is one of our granddaughters and she was goofing off in a pair of pink glasses standing on a chair.  It is perfect for what I want. This size picture was printed on my printer using the 3x5 setting to get the size I wanted.  Some pictures might need to be a little larger or smaller, depending on the size jar you are using.  I printed this size and a wallet to pick the best option.

I cut the picture out so she is a silhouette and put glue on the back side.

I glued it to card stock.  Any type paper that is thicker than printer paper will work. Photo paper is thick enough that it doesn't have to be backed. Construction paper is great.  I then cut that out around the figure.

I glued the bottom of the Christmas Tree and placed it where I wanted inside the jar.  I glued the picture next to the tree then poured in the clear white glitter.  It looks like she is standing in the snow reaching to the top of the tree.  I could have added a small ornament or paper star to her hand but didn't think of that until this was all done and am now explaining the steps.  Isn't that how it goes?
I embellished this jar with ribbon and added two large jingle bells and a tag that says MERRY CHRISTMAS.

I took three other pictures and printed them on stamp size prints.  These are two other grand daughters who are swimming and have goggles on.  I cut them out so they look like they are buried in the snow and their doggie is sitting next them, partly buried.  They are also backed with card stock and glued in front of the little tree.  I did not label this one.  I used a wide velvet ribbon around the lid and added a ribbon package topper.

This jar I did not use photos but looked through my stash of odd ball ornaments and found this little nativity scene.  I again glued all the elements to the bottom of the jar and added the glitter "Snow'.
I printed a tag that said  'O Holy Night'.  I found a funky elastic ribbon and put it around the  lid.
Lids can be painted or covered in paper as other options.

So there you have three different ideas for these little jars.  They are great gifts for teachers or to personalize for grandparents, aunts and uncles or special neighbors from your and/or your children.

I hope you enjoyed this and it starts you thinking of all kinds of other ideas to make simple but affordable decorations.