finding beauty @ home

Sew Excited

2010-04-23T17:20:00.009-04:00

Today I went shopping for upholstery fabric. I had picked it out a few weeks ago with my mother-in-law and as the sale ended this weekend, I thought I'd better get it purchased. We have a very comfortable well-worn armchair that has seen better days and she offered to help me recover it. But that's a project for another day. I guess that means a blog post for another day too.

As is often the case, I go into a crafting store for one project and get sidetracked into purchasing supplies for another. My daughter and I have been eying all those cute trendy aprons out there and I thought I'd pick up some fabric so that we could create one together. After finding some very cute fabric, I thought it just might make a cute table runner as well.

Isn't it darling? I love the fresh colors for spring and summer.

So in my usual creative mode, I had to get right to work. Never mind the dishes, I was on a mission. I tore strips of fabric in varying widths and then cut them all 17" wide. I actually have no idea how long it is. Just pieced it together in strips until I reached the right length. I knew I had some leftover white cotton for the backing. I was totally shocked that I had a piece leftover from a white smocked dress I had created ten years ago. The unbelievable part was that it was EXACTLY (no kidding!) the right length and one inch too wide.

Seriously. What are the odds?

So here's my super easy sewing project. It felt so good to sew again. I think I'm going to have to get back to more stitching.

While I was at it, I rearranged some of the stuff on the dresser. This was the old dresser I picked up and painted and am using as a sideboard in my eating area.

This is what it looked like late fall. I had just been thrifty and folded an old tablecloth into a tablerunner type thing. I loved the warm color addition then...

But I'm totally lovin' the fresh look of these prints now for spring and summer. Best of all, the project took me less than an hour. That's something to be excited about.

This post links up with Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special...

Have a great weekend!

Julia

Refinishing the Hardwood Floor

2010-04-14T09:07:00.000-04:00

The weeks have been flying by and I've actually been getting some queries as to whether I've fallen off the planet. I'm still here! I'm sorry this poor blog has been rather neglected but unfortunately I just can't do it all. I'm still hoping to keep this going but my reality is that I need to keep it down to a few posts a month.

In case you don't know, this is my second blog. My ramblings of home, family and a hobby. My first blog is one that I update almost daily with paper crafting inspiration. It's called Belle Papier and if you're into that kind of thing...check it out.

But back to the renovation. I'm excited to say that it's almost done! Yay! We actually have started using it again while we finish off the last touches and I have to say I love it. It may seem a little silly but I'll go out of my way just to go through that room and smile at it.

But since I've been so neglectful of keeping you up to date.... let's back track a little. Today I'll show you refinishing the floor.

All in all, refinishing a hardwood floor is really not that difficult, just time-consuming. Depending on the condition of your floor it can take quite a while to sand. Basically, the more time you put into it, the better it will look. Our flooring was in mediocre condition when we moved in 11 years ago. Add five kids and lots of use and a major renovation on top of that...you have quite a bit of work to do.

Hubby rented a floor sander from Home Depot and then proceeded to put in 16 long hours sanding the floor. You start with a heavy grit sandpaper on the bottom and then slowly change to a medium grit and a finer grit. You need to remove all the finish, then the original stain and finally any gouges or dints in the floor. While yes, there was some dust from this project, I was surprised at how well the bag on the sander kept it down to a minimum.

To get close to the baseboards for a good edge finish, hubby removed the small trim at the bottom of them and then re-trimmed after the floor was finished.

You may want to open a few windows when staining the floor. Wow! Made my eyes water. We used a mixture of two colors of stain on this floor. We couldn't decide between the two so just stirred them together. I love it.

To finish off the floor, we applied three coats of Varathane to the floor. Just follow the directions on the can and sand with a fine sandpaper before your last coat. I'm thrilled with how soft and smooth it feels.

Now in case you think we forgot about the portion of floor between the two windows, we didn't. I forgot to take photos of that step. Hubby purchased a bit from Lee Valley and made his own oak flooring to fit in that spot. Same finishing process and it all looks like new. Once we'd gotten this far, it was so hard to wait a few days before moving in some of the furniture. It takes a little while to cure and if you take the time, you won't be disappointed after your hard work.

Thanks for stopping by!

Julia

I Knew It

2010-03-13T20:57:00.004-05:00

I just knew there was a reason I was hoarding all those candles! I seem to have a candle addiction these days.

Votives, tea lights, pillar candles, jar candles...I just can't seem to resist them. Now what I really want still is an oil lamp. And I have very good reason for one more addition.

You can light two dozen candles and still not have much light.

Now I've never done this before but today the weather was cold, wet and the wind howled all day. And then the power went off just before dinner as it was getting dark. Out came all those wonderful candles. They looked beautiful and shed some light and the little kids were so excited to see them all lit. Who am I kidding? I was lovin it too.

Dinner by candlelight...how fun! Of course, it was only hot dogs on the menu as they'd eaten VERY well all week. We were thankful that the gas stove will still work without electricity.

Here's some of our pretty candles...

And then the power came on just as we were sitting down to eat. Oh well. A bit of a relief but a bit of a disappointment too. I blew out most of the candles to save for another day.

I did learn a little lesson today. I was doing housework all day and getting just a little bit grumpy about how much had to be done. Having the power go out, ever for a short time makes me appreciate my modern conveniences. It was a different world without power. I wouldn't want to go back to it. I did however think about the quiet evenings that people used to have. Time to stop and think. That's something I often miss out on and I'm wondering if all our conveniences are such a good thing sometimes. A mixed blessing to be sure. I realized I need to slow down a little, enjoy my candles and enjoy some quiet time.

I learned something today...all those candles were a good and useful addiction and when I light one again, I hope I remember to slow down a little and take time to remember the important things in life.

Baffled

2010-03-08T06:53:00.009-05:00

I must say, I'm just baffled as to where the past month has gone to! I know it's trite but time flies. My apologies for being a very bad blogger here but between the renovation and some paper crafting commitments and my family life, I just had to take a break. It's important to prioritize and figure out just want is most important in your life and stay true to that.

Jumping back in, I find I left you here with some recipes and the drywall just going back up on the ceiling. Then came the taping and the drywalling "mudding". A big job to be sure. Hubby did an amazing job.

Doesn't it look great? It's looking like a completely different room. Much larger and that ugly popcorn ceiling with its bowed drywall and holes is gone.

And the wall where he replaced the old wiring is fixed now too.

Hubby wasn't happy with the near perfection of the ceiling and we had a California Knock-Down finish applied on it. I wasn't thrilled at first but it's growing on me. I do adore the new ceiling fan though. My daughter and I hunted high and low for one we were happy with. It was difficult to find one as large as we needed and we wanted something that looked classic but 2010 too. It looks awesome in the vaulted ceiling. Notice the rest of the room is not complete but we already have the speakers installed in the ceiling. That's my man for ya.

My other huge excitement was the removal of the fireplace. See? No more nasty faux brick and we can actually arrange the furniture better in the room now. That did leave an extra job though. That floor has to be patched and as the hardwood really needs refinished...that's our next big job.

I'm sure excited as I finally feel as though we're in the home stretch. We're aiming to be done by the end of March and I really think we just may do it!

Take care!

Julia

Casseroles and Welsh Cakes

2010-02-09T19:14:00.000-05:00

I've been busy doing some baking and cooking. There's nothing like something warm on a cold snowy day. I find I cook a little differently in the winter.

It's been a while since I've shared any recipes so I thought I'd share a couple with you today. My husband thinks it's a little bizarre that I blog about my recipes but as I always love a good recipe and I know of one reader who tries out every recipe I post. Her family loves them. I don't share anything fancy...just recipes that my large family will eat.

Welsh Cakes

Welsh Cakes are sweet little cakes that are about 2.5" across. They are cooked on top of the stove, very much like a pancake but they are sweeter and pretty much the equivalent of a scone. Even my non-raisin-lovers like these. I actually ended up hiding the last three so that I could take a picture of them. Speaking of which...I picked up this gorgeous little oblong plate on sale at Pier 1 the other day. Isn't it purdy?

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup raisins or currants
1 egg
1/2 cup milk

Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter until crumbly. Beat egg with fork. Add milk and egg to mixture. Stir in raisins. Roll out 1/4 inch thick onto floured surface. Cut into 2.5" rounds with cookie cutter or glass. Fry in frying pan over medium heat. Brown on both sides. Pan should allow drops of water to sizzle but not bounce around on pan. Remove to cooling rack.

Taco Rice Casserole

Everyone in the house will eat this and it's a great casserole to make ahead and then cook when you need it. This one is just ready to go in the oven. I serve it with tortilla chips and a salad and it's great for a potluck.

Taco Rice Casserole

1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup onion chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 package of taco seasoning mix or Taco Seasoning Blend below
1 1/2 cups water
8 ounces of tomato or spaghetti sauce
3 cups rice, cooked
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

taco chips

Brown ground beef, onion and green pepper. Drain excess fat. Add taco seasoning and water and simmer for at least 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and cooked rice and spoon into baking dish. Top with grated cheese. Bake at 350°F until hot and bubbly. Immediately before serving, top with broken taco chips.

And because packaged Taco Mix doesn't agree with me, I found this recipe for some that tastes just the same but will cost much less. It takes only a minute or two to put together.

Taco Seasoning Mix

1 tbsp onion flakes
2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix together. Makes the equivalent of one package of taco seasoning mix.

Happy cooking!

It's a Beautiful Thing

2010-02-08T10:18:00.000-05:00

One sheet of drywall.

How could one sheet of drywall be such a beautiful thing?

Because it means progress!

The insulating is done. The vapour barrier is up as you can see.

The wiring is done and the old aluminum wiring replaced with new copper. Don't mind those two remaining dangling wires. They are for speakers in the ceiling. So excited on this one as it means no more speakers flanking the sofa.

Here's a full shot. Did you notice that strange looking contraption in the bottom left corner? I'm telling you THAT is a beautiful thing. I've helped install more gypsum board than I ever wanted to. It is super heavy! And ackward! If you're planning on drywalling a ceiling this would be money well spent. It's a fifty dollar rental for the day at Home Depot but depending where you live, I'm sure you could get it cheaper. We gladly paid it though. It saved me a massage appointment for my back. It saved us the cost of paying someone to help board this difficult ceiling. Yep. Money well spent. It's not pretty but in my eyes, a beautiful thing.

Look how great it works on the angle...

And finally.... one sheet of drywall leads to another...

and another...

and another...

et voila...

the ceiling is done.

Or at least ready to be taped.

I finally feel like we're getting somewhere. And that's a beautiful thing.

Julia

Keeping it Together and a "new" magnetic board

2010-02-06T17:50:00.009-05:00

Some weeks just fly by...just like my last one. I was feeling a little guilty that I didn't have a project to share but then I reminded myself, this should be about having fun and fitting into my life as I know it. Priorities are something that I believe everyone struggles with. How do I get everything done?

Here's the reality: you just cannot do everything you want to. I don't know if you've noticed a little quote I have on my sidebar. It's there because it is something I need to continually have to remind myself.

I forgive myself for all the things I don't have time to do.

I'm not quite sure where this came from. Someone had clipped it out of a magazine and put it on the bulletin board at my massage therapist's office. I just had to write it down.

This is something I try and teach my kids as well. Having one perfectionist daughter can make for lots of stress when all the school assignments arrive at the same time. Once again it's all about priorities, getting the most important things done and forgiving yourself for the rest.

I did finally get around to one project that will help keep me organized and it's been one I've had on my to do list for months. I had this metal sign I picked up at Michael's in my kitchen before my reno. I loved it but hanging it above my sink was not a great plan as it ruined the decorative paper on the sign. I knew I could make it over though so I kept it. Here's what I did this afternoon...

To start I peeled off the loose edges off the sign and then sanded off any bumps in the paper. I wanted to be able to get a good bond.

I actually got pretty excited about putting this project together quickly so this is a photo from another project I have yet to share but it uses the same idea. I used the Claudine Hellmuth Multi-Medium as an adhesive. You can also use things like ModgePodge or collage glue but I used what I had on hand and it worked well. Just brush on your surface generously and apply the paper quickly and smooth out any air pockets or wrinkles. It should dry quite quickly.

I used a patterned paper by Graphic 45 for this project. I cut it down to size and after adhering and drying, I sanding the edges for a distressed look. A sanding block is a great tool I use a mini one by Tim Holtz but you can use a larger one from the hardware store as well.

For this project I also stamped and inked up a quick tag to embellish the simple project. By layering the inks I came up with an almost exact match for my paper. Most of the stamps are from a stamp set I designed for Cornish Heritage Farms called On the Desk.

And here's my final project all hung up on a little piece of wall in my kitchen. Because the board is metal, I'm going to make some coordinating magnets and hang up photos or important notes I can't forget about.

That's it! Just breathing a little bit of new life into an old piece using things I already had on hand. I'm lovin' it! I'm so glad I found a little beauty here today.

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

This post links up with Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special.

Vinyl Scraps

2010-01-31T12:12:00.000-05:00

I have a hard time throwing things away. It's always amazing that there can be so many uses for one product. The other day when I was creating some vinyl wall art, I was left with some scraps of vinyl that were too small to work well in my Silhouette Craft Cutter. This got me to thinking about whether I should throw them away or whether I could use them for something else.

I could cut these pieces by hand, with a paper trimmer or I thought it would be fun to try running them through my die-cut machine, the Cuttlebug. I found the above sweet little die and tried it out.

The Cuttlebug is super easy to use and you can just layer your die over the vinyl between two B plates. If you don't have a die cut machine, usually a local scrapbooking store will allow you to use theirs for a small fee or if you take part in a crop night. Just turn the handle and the die will pass through the machine.

This die left me with both a positive and negative shape. I'm actually loving the negative shape best but I'm going to use them both up. The flower ended up on a little tin...

and my negative shape was super quick to apply to this tin canister I use for storage in my craft room. Here it is on the shelf...

Wouldn't this be a fun idea to personalize things with? How about letters on storage containers in a kid's room or to organize things in the back hallway? To personalize a vinyl binder? Hmmmm.... I wonder what else I can come up with!

Do you have some fun ideas for vinyl?

Happy creating!

Julia

moving furniture...

2010-01-30T16:21:00.007-05:00

Unfortunately, I'm not goign to be showing you us moving our furniture back into the family room or tips on how to do it. We're still chipping away at the huge to do list for renovating the family room. As with all renovations, one thing always seems to lead to another. Hubby decided to do a little more electrical than originally planned. He wants to get rid of all the aluminum wiring and replace it with copper. I guess if you're going to do it, now is the time!

I'm lovin the new look on our walls...

I have been moving furniture however...on paper. It's a great way to plan a room for new furniture or a renovation. I put a lot of effort into finding free programs on-line to do this for me but one or the other all had some kind of difficulty with them. This room was too large, or too complex or there were limited furniture options so I decided to try moving things around on paper. I found a great little tool on the Pottery Barn web-site called Room Designer. You don't need to be technically savvy. You just need to be able to measure and sketch out your room and then do a little cut and paste.

Here's what I came up with...

One of the things I'm most excited with about this renovation is the removal of the existing gas fireplace. It was in such a difficult place to arrange furniture around. I suppose if it had been a living room it would have been easier but this is our family room and we needed to arrange around the main uses for this room...watching videos, the stereo and playing games. This allowed me to turn our furniture 90° to the left and it should flow much better. It also centers on the room nicely with the peak of the cathedral ceiling running right through the middle of the room...horizontally in the above sketch.

Another great thing about planning ahead for furniture placement is the ability to place power outlets in the floor just where you need them. I'll have one in the floor just under where the sofa will be to allow for a lamp for reading. I can't wait to turn this...

...into my nice cozy family room.

So. How do you move furniture? The old fashioned way, on some paper or with a computer program? I'd love to hear about it.

Julia

c is for....

2010-01-26T06:37:00.000-05:00

create

I'm just finishing up some of those pesky little details so that I can call my creative space finished. Or mostly so for now. I'm sure along the way I'll may a few changes but there were a few things let undone that were driving me crazy.

You may have noticed my C the other day and wondered what it was for. None of my initials start with C.

I found this C vinyl wall decor in Home Sense a couple months ago. I think Home Sense is the Canadian equivalent to Home Goods but am not quite sure. It had been marked down to $5 and I loved the big square shape. I do have a Silhouette Craft Cutter that I'm having fun cutting vinyl with but it just doesn't cut that wide. I decided to bring it home and mix the two.

This is the original vinyl tranfer...

And here it is with a little diy love added to it.

NOW it makes sense in my craft room and added some very inexpensive decoration. I didn't even worry that the two black vinyls were a little different. One is glossy, the other matte. Unless you stand at a very strange angle...you just can't tell.

So now if I can just get the last door handle installed...I'll be a happy girl!

Do you like vinyl wall decor? Have you ever altered it?

my creative space

2010-01-25T06:01:00.008-05:00

welcome...

...to my new creative space.

I'm super excited to finally be able to share it with you. Two and a half years in the making since hubby and I were standing in a hole beside the house under where our porch used to be. We were pacing it off and planning the bedroom that we'd need to get baby #5 out of our bedroom and over top would be our new back hall and eating area. It went a little something like this...

She said: Hmmmm.... looks like a pretty big bedroom to me. Does child #3 really need a bedroom this large? It's larger than our master bedroom.

He said: No...we could make it two rooms. One nice sized bedroom and a smaller room...for studying, maybe?

She said: We have a study that we already have the computer in and the older kids all have desks in there rooms. (she hesitates a little and gingerly suggests) What about a craft room? It's not as large a space as I'd like but I think I could make it work.

He thinks.

She holds her breath.

She said: It would get all my stuff out of the family room....

He said: OK We can do that.

She said: (scream) I'm so excited! I love you! You are the best hubby ever...blah, blah, blah, blah.....

(she jumps up and down, runs over, big hug and kisses etc.)

You get the idea.

In the meantime we've been busy with more crucial parts of the addition/renovation.... whole story here.... and while we worked away, I planned out my little creative space eking out the most use from an 8x8 foot room. Here's my plan...

And finally welcome to my space...

It turned out just as I designed on paper and I couldn't be more thrilled. I think what makes my room so workable for me is that I really considered how I design, exactly what my needs were for workspace and storage and how best to squeeze it into my creative space. Hubby agrees with me that the photos actually make my room look larger than it actually is. Two people would have difficulty working in this space together. It could be done but as I usually create alone, this works for me. I can turn around in my chair and reach into the drawers behind me, pull things out of the storage carts to the side or quickly stand up and grab my cardstock from its shelves.

My desk is the place were I spend most of my time. It usually doesn't look like this. I usually have some stamps, ink, a paper cutter, scraps and a project in progress. I have everything I use most within reach. My desk isn't terribly pretty but it was a gift from a friend who no longer needed it. The drawers are great and it has a great large worksurface. I'm thinking it may get a makeover down the road but for now...it works for me.

One of my favorite storage solutions for crafting is this Making Memories Storage Carousel. It's amazing how much it fits into one space, I can see and find my most used items and I think it still looks pretty. Love how it smoothly spins around. I picked mine up at Michael's with a 50% off coupon and liked it so much, I bought another next time it was on sale.

Above my desk within easy reach is my ink pads. Ink pad storage has been a bit of a trial for me since I started stamping about 7 years ago. They can be difficult to store and if you stamp a lot, you'll want easy access. I tried a few different solutions but this one is the winner for me. I have three ink pad organizers that each hold 48 ink pads. I know, I know...that's a lot of ink but I do use them all. I still have a few empty spaces but they are great for holding various acrylic blocks, twine and I have a row saved for some new Distress Ink colors being released soon. Organize More is a fabulous solution for me. They also sell ribbon organizers and other craft storage solutions.

When hubby installed my ink storage for me, I got him to make a nice little shelf to go over the top. I have some pretty frames, my clock and some crafting items up there. Things that make me smile. One of them is this stamp I've saved from an old Stampin Up set. For me it's the perfect decoration... inspirational, unique and using what I have.

Here's my magnet boards where I keep receipts, work in progress and sometimes a layout I like.

In the corner of my craft room, just behind the entry door, I have a little cupboard to store extra things. I have magazines, alterable items and other misc. craft things in there.

If you come back to my desk and turn left this time, you'll find two of my favorite craft storage pieces. I am totally amazed at how much these hold in one area. So much better than drawers and iris carts. The drawer units are from Best Craft Organizer and the shallow drawers are fabulous. I keep embossing powder, paint, rub-ons and just about anything small in these drawers. If you pull them out, they will also stack if you want to bring them to another area to work on. The area is a little tight and the area really only works because the carts are on castors. I knew this on my original plan but with my smooth hard floor, they easily move closer to my desk if I need better access into the cupboard on the left.

My two Clip-It-Ups fit perfectly on top of the craft organizers and are invaluable. One of them I ordered from the US and the other, I purchased at my local scrapbook store with a store credit I had. They are a little expensive but worth it for me. I can see what I have and use it rather than it getting creased or dated in a drawer. One of my Clip-it-Ups holds my unmounted stamps and the other, embellishments.

I like to keep my counter space as clear as possible so that I can have additional space to work. This end I use for die cutting.

This side holds various craft supplies and a circle cutting system.

My counter is 8 feet long and just barely squeezed into my space. I had originally planned on a different counter top but one Saturday after installing the counters, hubby told me I could order one and wait for it to come in or go to Home Depot and pick one from stock. He would install it that night. Hmmm.... I rushed off and this counter was quite similar to my original plan. I love the subtle color variation and texture. I did splurge a little on the hardware and I'm glad I did.

You can see where I did cut some corners in this photo...I've reused my old kitchen fluorescent light fixture. My flooring is also pretty much non-existent. It's just the concrete floor painted with epoxy paint designed for garage floors. We decided this was the best solution for me as I've been known to drop permanent ink pads onto flooring and drop adhesive glue dots on it too. This is so easy for me to clean up by sweeping up scraps, my chair slides easily and if I stain it...I can just repaint. My floor is also super warm as it has infloor heating. With the bright south-facing window, I hardly feel like I'm in the basement at all.

One of my biggest problems in my old corner was paper storage. I love patterned paper and like to store it in these Iris cases from Michael's. They work great and I can pull down the case I need and then put it right back. I designed this shelf system to hold them and hubby did a great job of giving me exactly what I needed. It's not the prettiest storage (hubby wanted to put doors on it) but making things easy access is key to me putting things away and finding exactly what I want. It's only functional if it works for you.

And now we're full circle at the door and you can see my last storage area. This space backs onto the basement stairs and we were able to carve out a little space to hold my cardstock. I'm thrilled with how easy it is to find what I need. Each shelf will hold a 12x12 stack of paper and an 8.5x11 stack as well.

That's my space and I hope you've enjoyed the tour. I'm thrilled to finally share it with you and I hope you've found a few ides for your own space.

Do you like my space? Was it worth the wait?

Thanks for visiting!

This post links up with the Twice Remembered Cottage's Make Your Monday.

Metamorphasis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Make it for Monday at Cottage Instincts

First Big Project of the New Year at Sanctuary Arts

DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land

progress

2010-01-24T11:34:00.000-05:00

Remember this?

And this?

It's done! It's been a long process with many side trips but I can now sit in my room and just love it. My very own creative space. I couldn't have asked for a better gift. Seriously...I even get a little sappy and get tears in my eyes.

So I now have it all tidied up and photographed and I'm just working on getting a very long post ready for tomorrow.

In the meantime...here's a sweet little frame I created for my room. It's made from Craft-a-Board...a chipboard like product and some scrapbooking supplies. I think I'm going to have to make some more as I love this one so much. Grandma would love one for a gift I know.

Tutorial and step outs for this project can be found in the CLASSroom.

See you tomorrow!

Nine Nifty Magnets

2010-01-23T07:48:00.001-05:00

I've been collecting for my creative space for a very long time. A few years ago I had a store credit at my local scrapbooking store and invested in this great Making Memories Magnetic Boards for my room. They've been patiently waiting in a closet and are so glad to be out in the sunlight. I've hung them on my craft room wall right beside my desk to help me stay organized.

My little boys had taken them over but I cleaned all the lovely crayon drawings off the other day and reclaimed them for myself. I didn't have any magnets so I picked up a package of blank magnets and set out to make my own. Now if you're worrying about the prolific artwork pile and some hurt feelings...it's all good. Mommy has a plan for them that they are excited about. I just need to find a little more time to work on that next.

So here's how to make nine nifty magnets....

Flowers: simply hot glue them on the magnet. Isn't this Prima flower stunning? What more could you need?

Buttons: For this sweet and easy magnet I wanted a vintage look. This darling little chipboard button was tied and then adhered over a white blossom. Simple and sweet.

Stickers: Add some letter stickers to personalize a purchased magnet. I picked two of these up at Michaels. (Note to self: ceramic magnets don't do well when dropped on concrete floors.) I did rescue it and turn the magnet into the stamped magnet variation.

Printed Chipboard: I have a lot of beautiful chipboard pieces. Glue together, add a little heart and you're done.

This and That: Mix it all up. I found all these sweet little pieces in a box of loose embellishments. Layer, layer, layer and use it up.

Stamped Magnet: Stamp and ink up a piece of chipboard, cardboard or whatever and add some goodies.

Fabric: Now I think this one is my favorite. A piece of Prima canvas fabric is adhered to the back of the acrylic piece. (I used Ranger Glossy Accents but any clear liquid adhesive should work). Allow to dry and then adhere a few found items from your drawer.

Felt: I love these colors! Stack the felt, add a button and you're done.

Ribbon: I love ribbon! Here it's mixed up with a flower and some sweet Maya Road scrapbooking product

So here they are all together...

And here they are beside my desk.

The best things about this project, they used up scraps of stuff I had on hand, they personalize my space, keep me organized and it was a super quick project. I'm pretty tickled with how cute they look.

Which one do you like the best?
Have a great weekend!

This post links up with Funky Junky Interior's Saturday Night Special

color my world

2010-01-22T07:09:00.003-05:00

I've always meant to keep a record of my paint colors...just in case I needed them again. When I first moved into this house almost 11 years ago, I was organized. I only had three kids and all of them were in school. I had a file as to just move into this place, a lot of work had to happen first.

But life happened and I didn't keep it up. When I saw that Stephanie from Frugal Home Ideas was having a paint color party...I thought it would be fun to join in and also get my paint colors all in one place.

It was interesting too. Seeing all my colors together in one place tells me a little more about what I like. Here's a peek into the colors of my world...

my kitchen:

Benjamin Moore Herbes de Provence CC-634

painted dresser:

Behr Black Suede

my livingroom/dining room:

Benjamin Moore HC 30 Philadelphia Cream

master bedroom:

Benjamin Moore Heavenly Blue 709

Basement and Back Hall:

Bar Harbour Beige CC-320

Upper Bathroom:

Benjamin Moore Bradstreet Beige HC- 48

Upper Hallway:

Benjamin Moore Sand Dunes 1072

laundry room/bathroom:

Benjamin Moore Heather Field CC-970

my creative space:

Benjamin Moore™ 2051-60 Birds Egg

I'm almost done! Full pics coming in a couple days.

Daughter's Bedroom:

Benjamin Moore Flagstone CC 516

my family room to be:

Benjamin Moore Wedgewood Gray HC 146

A few color notes:

Flagstone is the yummiest color ever. My daughter and I adore it in her room and I'd recommend it to anyone
I'm totally lovin' my Bird's Egg creative space. It's a wonderful blue...fresh and inspiring.
My living room color is nice but it's too light. It's getting painted this spring.
I like my funky purple bathroom.
My kitchen color is beautiful...even with dark cupboards. Herbes de Provence is so soothing. If you buy it...beware...first coat will look nasty going on but hang in there...it will be gorgeous.

So I've decided I like cozy mid-toned colors with a touch of grey in them. Soothing colors in my mind.

What are your favorite colors to paint with?

This post links up with Frugal Home Ideas Paint Color Party...

Simple Custom Photo Frames

2010-01-21T11:24:00.001-05:00

I'm busy trying to get over the flu, get caught up around the house and squeezing in a few minutes here and there to finish up my creative space. I'm so excited...it's almost done! The other day I came up with this super simple project to customize one of the photo frames that I purchased for my room.

I bought it on sale, of course, and loved the clean lines and great look. I have this thing for square photos. Now this frame is not square but the photo opening are and I just love it. I brought it home and sat it on the shelf. It looked great but then I got the idea to give it a finishing touch.

Rub-on transfers look beautiful on glass. Did you know that? I've used them on frames before and thought that I'd show you just how easy it is. Rub-on transfers have been a bit part of the scrapbooking/crafting market over the past few years and I've amassed quite a collection. I love how clean and easy they are to work with and they can be rubbed onto a lot of different sufaces. Glass, ceramic, paper, cardboard, plastic, wood. Fun huh?

This particular rub-on was found in my drawer. I love the sentiment...Life is Good and the very pretty ornate border. While the style does contrast with the clean lines of the frame, the shape coordinates well and I love mixing up past with present. You won't be able to find this particular rub-on transfer any longer as Daisy D's has gone out of business but a visit to your local scrapbooking store should give lots of options.

May sure your glass surface is very clean and dry. No fingerprints, dust or oils as they will interfere with the adhesion.

Trim out desired rub-on from sheet. Remove backing and carefully apply where desired.

Use a popsicle stick (most packages come with one) or a rub-on transfer tool to rub firmly onto glass. Be careful not to shift the rub-on.

Keep rubbing until all of the design is transferred. You will see the image become lighter. Remove film carefully.

Turn film over and lay over your rub-on. Lightly burnish to make sure you have a good bond.

And that's it!

Enjoy your pretty frame.

Happy creating!

This post links up with Kimba's DIY Day at a Soft Place to Land

just playin

2010-01-19T11:44:00.000-05:00

I'm just taking a little break from painting my craft room trim. Yes...I finally broke down and am going to finish the job. That's what happens when you stop for the holidays. We moved onto bigger things and left that little chore dangling. It's already the 19th though and I'm itching to get it crossed off my January To Do List. Seriously...hubby has way more of the list than I and he's making some great headway.

I found a few on-line color sites to play around with. First one...Benjamin Moore. Love their paint. I've tried others but end up being frustrated and wonder why I strayed. Their Personal Color Viewer is so much fun to try out paint colors with no mess. Apparently you can upload your own photo but as my room is totally torn apart...I'm not going there right now. Maybe once the drywall goes on.

Here's a few different rooms I tried out with Benjamin Moore Wedgewood Gray HC- 146 ...

It's interesting how it looks a little different in each photo depending on the light.

Next I discovered Color-a-room at bhg.com They don't use Benjamin Moore colors so I went with a close approximate. In this program you can pick a room to color and even change up the decor colors. I tried to make this room have a burgundy/wine sofa but it fell a little short. I just couldn't get the depth of color but really...not bad. I was getting some idea how it might look. My hands are tied right now designing around it but oh well.

And here's the ~~hideous~~ still functional reclining sofa. It was a gift, never my choice, but it fit the budget at the time. Unfortunately...the budget still says it needs to stay a little while longer. I must say, it is comfy the rare times I actually sit in it to watch a movie. You may be wondering at the weird angle. It's currently situated in my dining room for the duration of the renovation along with other various things from the family room. A little judicious cropping was in order.

OK one last try...for this image I did a little retouching in Photoshop Elements. I found this living room set image on-line somewhere with soft white walls and then changed them to my color or something close. I also "stained" the hardwood darker to get closer to my existing flooring. It's not perfect but I wanted to have some idea how it would work. It's not a perfect representation but I think it will work ok until I can replace the sofa.

I'm sure there's lots of other fabulous on-line tools out there. If you have any links...I'd love to try them out!

Off to finish up another coat,

Julia

12 ideas for making chores enjoyable

2010-01-18T09:14:00.004-05:00

While some may like to clean, there's the rest of us who just do it because we have to. It's a necessary part of life. I'd much rather be creating.I have a few tricks that work for me for motivation or to just plain make it more enjoyable. Nothing terribly earth shattering...in fact, I'm surprised I'm writing this as I'm more often sidetracked than not.

1. Make it pretty - Doing dishes is not my favorite thing. They seem to multiply whenever I turn my head. I do love spice-scented candles though and their warm glow. I have one on my kitchen window to light and enjoy while working at the sink. Last week I also purchased a lovely new ironing board cover. Mine needed a new one and I saw a lovely black and white damask pattern one. Love damask. Now I enjoy my pretty new cover while tackling the ironing pile.

2. Enjoy the Scent - I may be a little strange but I love the smell of certain cleaning products. They just smell so "clean". Lemon scented furniture polish, Pine-sol and here's a strange one...I love the smell of Dettol. I think it's one of those childhood memory smells as my mom used to use it. One thing about it is I know everything is not only clean but disinfected when I use it. I purchase a huge bottle from the local pharmacy. They keep it behind the counter for some reason but it's much less expensive that way. Dettol may not be your "thing" but find something that is.

3. Use a Timer - Flylady has some fabulous tips. Great motivation too. I'm a lapsed flybaby at the moment but one thing that has really stuck with me is to use a timer. Setting it for 5, 10 or 15 minutes in a room really motivates me for some reason. Hubby just shakes his head but hey...it works for me so why knock it?

4. Make a List - I love lists. It's so much fun crossing them off. And they keep me on track. Are you sensing a theme here?

5. Automatic Program - There are certain things that I just automatically do so that the work doesn't pile up. Laundry is one of those for me. Every morning I throw in a load as soon as I'm up. It never piles up to insurmountable heights that way making laundry and other tasks much more enjoyable.

6. Don't Procrastinate - Everything is much harder the longer you procrastinate. I shake my head and think...why on earth didn't I just do that right away?!

7. Reward Yourself - Celebrate getting a big job done with a cup of coffee, some chocolate or some creative time. Doesn't that sound enjoyable?

8. Have company - Nothing motivates you quite like inviting some company over. It's win-win. Enjoy a clean house, some fun with friends and maybe even some leftovers.

9. Play Some Music - Put on something upbeat that you like to get you moving.

10. Declutter - Clutter is SO hard to clean around. You spend more time moving it than actually cleaning. That is not fun. Get rid of the excess and things will run much smoother. Flylady has some awesome tips on this. In an old house, I struggle with this as their are few storage options. Slowly I'm decluttering and investing in better storage options and donating the rest to someone who can use it.

11. Get help - Everything is so much better with two. My daughter was a huge help this holiday season and it was so much fun to work alongside her. I used to help my mom with big jobs too. If you have a huge home project, a friend may come help you and you can return the favor. I'm thinking those pioneer ladies were onto something with their canning and quilting bees.

12. Be Realistic - I would love my house to be perfect. Everything clean, ready for company at a moment's notice. I've had to let go of that though as right now, at this point in my life, that is just not going to happen. It's a busy house with five kids and a non-stop schedule. More often than not I find the piles of the above photo. I do my best and give myself permission to not be perfect.If I didn't I'd probably go crazy trying. As the Nester says...."It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful." Seriously...I need to think up my own line but hers just works for me.

And now I'm feeling inspired to do a little cleaning and organizing myself. The laundry is on, timer and list in hand...

Happy cleaning!

Julia

This post links up with Thrifty Decor Chick's So Fresh So Clean Party.

baby steps

2010-01-16T18:27:00.008-05:00

I managed to make a little progress on the huge January To Do list today. My daughter and I went shopping and picked out a beautiful ceiling fan. I just have to take hubby back to see it but I know he'll love it. Ceiling fans are one of those difficult things to purchase. At least in Canada. It seems as though most of the options would suit better a couple decades ago. The one we found is 60" wide with a hefty price tag but when we've put this much time and material into redoing the ceiling, I'm not wimping out on the light fixture. It will be there for years and I just want to be able to love it. This room is going to be a bit of a long term project. I know that I have to live with the furniture I currently own for a while and add piece by piece. That's OK though. It will make me appreciate it more!

One of the things I've been totally stressing over is the paint color. My current furniture was a gift and not quite what I would have chosen. It's been well loved for the past 10 years though. Probably the best choice would be to go neutral with it but I'm so tired of BEIGE!

I decided to do a little surfing this afternoon and hit the Pottery Barn site. Can you believe I'd never heard of it before a couple months ago. ~~There are no Pottery Barns in Canada and that's OK.~~ I probably wouldn't be able to shop their anyway. OOPS! I stand corrected...there are! Hmmmmmm....

well, I still can't afford it probably.

I CAN window shop though for inspiration. Flipping through I found this wall color....

What do you think?

Benjamin Moore HC-146

Doing a little more surfing I found this is quite a popular color on some DIY blogs. I like what I've seen so I think I'll give it a whirl. I love the contrast of it with the white trim. I have lots of wide white trim in this old house. Pro number two...it's a historical color so it should work well in my century old home. Pro number three...a LOVELY change from this pink!

before picture at the start of the reno
I know. Scary huh?

Yay for two things crossed off my list. I also spied a couple lamps for my bedroom that I'm putting on my birthday wish list. I had hoped to get my craft room window painted but I ended up getting derailed by cleaning it up. Oh well. Step by step it will slowly come together.

Enjoy your weekend!

Julia

the renovation process

2010-01-13T10:40:00.001-05:00

I have a love/hate thing going with renovations. Love the end result. Love the planning. The dreaming.

The process? Not so much.

It's messy. Hard work. And while we always get off to a great start. Life happens. Construction stalls. Or maybe it just seems to. We're still hard at work. The wiring is slow. Installing the ductwork. The insulation. All that is not glamorous but so essential. It's worth the wait and hard work because the end product just would not be the same without it. Just an empty shell. A film set.

It occurred to me the other day that my life is just like a renovation. Some of the parts I'd rather just not go through. The hard days. The things that seem senseless. The pain and the trials. Just like a renovation, I need to learn more patience.

We've all heard the saying...Please be patient with me... God isn't finished with me yet. How true is that? I know that inside there's still a lot to be done. How about a little more patience. More love. More worship. A million other things too.

What inspired this whole thought process? On Sunday I was listening to some ministry on Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

God has my best interests at heart. Even when I can't see where this is going. He has a plan. A blueprint. And it's far greater than anything I can ever imagine. I can trust Him. How amazing is it that there is a particular plan for me? That God is interested in every aspect of my life?

And so along the way, I still have laundry to do, lessons to learn, a light to shine, love to bestow, a life to live and lumps to be carefully smoothed away by the Master's hand. My Father's hand.

So I'll hold on and trust. I know He'll never let me go. And I know that while the process may not be what I want much of the time, it needs to be done and I'm looking forward to seeing the end result. It's all going to be worth it.

Just a few simple thoughts from a life under construction,

Julia

This is Cool

2010-01-12T21:44:00.004-05:00

Ever wanted to design some wall art? Dayspring has the coolest new customizable plaques. Beautiful, classy and I can personalize it. How cool is that?

Wouldn't this be a lovely inspirational verse? Seeing this each morning would make me smile...

I love this one for my back entrance. It still needs a little love. I'm thinking over the photo frames above the console table.

Want to make your own? Click here.

I think they'd make a seriously great shower gift.

The Nester has a great giveaway so if you'd like to join me and try to win one, check out the details here.

Happy designing!

Julia

Banner Fun

2010-01-11T08:45:00.003-05:00

Banners are super hot right now and sooo fun to create. I like the idea of making one that you can leave up all year though. How about a magnetic banner? Sound fun? This banner is made from Magnetic Masking Material and I've placed magnets on the back of my letters so that I can spell whatever I wish, whatever the season. I started off making three pennants but I'll be adding more. I'm thinking WISH, DREAM, CREATE, LOVE, GROW etc. depending on the season.

This is a project I created for the CLASSroom. You can check out the tutorial and step outs here if you wish.

This post links up with The Twice Remembered Cottage's Make Your Monday linky party.

Happy Monday!

Julia

January 2010 Home To Do List

2010-01-10T12:08:00.006-05:00

I actually started off this post as a 2010 to do list.

Then I scared myself.

It was huge.

So in interests of my mental health...I've decided to make a monthly home to do list. Much more manageable in bite sized chunks of work, don't you think? This month poor hubby has the lion's share of the work

~~wire family room~~
~~finish insulating~~
~~install vapour barrier~~
~~hook up central vac to 2nd floor~~
board family room ceiling
tape and mud drywall
remove gas fireplace
patch floor
hang and trim closet doors in family room
~~buy ceiling fan~~
~~install pot lights~~
~~pick paint for family room~~
prime and paint family room
~~finish painting trim in craft room - yes I really do want to finish this so I can show you!~~
~~finish packing up the Christmas decorations, just a couple strays still kicking around~~
~~hang blinds in back entrance~~
~~plan window coverings for family room~~

Hmmmm...it will be interesting to see how far we get. I see a lot of busy nights and Saturdays in our future and I'm thinking some of this list will probably run into February.

Wish me luck!

Julia

love my honey and french silk pie

2010-01-09T11:42:00.008-05:00

It's been a busy week. Back to school. Back to a schedule. Back to getting on track with design work. Back to being healthy for my hubby. The Strep Throat is now under control and he's back at work. Today he's getting back to the renovation too. I'm excited but poor man, it's his birthday and he's working as hard as ever. I'm treating him with some of his favorites today. Waffles for breakfast and meatballs for dinner. Instead of a cake, I've been busy baking up a couple pies.

Just so you know, it pays to live with your camera ready at all times. Look what I noticed in his orange juice glass this morning. Totally random and so sweet! How's that for a nice way to start your birthday? Can you see the heart? Just goes to show that he's such a sweetie even the orange juice knows it.

Since I haven't been able to work on anything around the house this week, I thought I'd share the recipe for what I've been baking for the birthday dinner instead of a cake. He loves French Silk pie and so I've whipped up a couple for tonight. It takes quite a while to beat it all up but it's a great time to practice your photography. ;) I guess I should have been doing the dishes but....whatever!

French Silk Pie

2/3 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 oz. semi-sweet chocolate melted
1 tablespoons cocoa
3 eggs

1 baked pie shell

Cream butter, sugar and vanilla. Mix in melted chocolate and cocoa. Beat in eggs one at a time mixing 5 minutes after each addition. Pour into pie shell. Chill 4 hours or overnight.

Note: This pie contains raw eggs so be careful to keep well refrigerated.

OK so this isn't the best photo. I should have carried the pies over to some natural light but oh well. Trust me. They taste better than they look. I know, I licked the batter.

Have a beautiful Saturday!
Julia

We Interrupt this Renovation...

2010-01-04T16:27:00.003-05:00

We interrupt this renovation for a sad case of strep throat. Poor hubby was working madly until Saturday evening when he called it a night. As is often the case with strep throat, it came on seemly out of nowhere with a high fever and sore throat. Totally knocked him for a loop. Thankfully he got into the dr. today and got some meds and will hopefully be on the road to recovery soon. Don't be looking for those drywalled pictures this week though. Taking Monday off is not going to translate into being able to take Friday off as well.

I guess I'll just have to be happy looking at this in the meantime...

huge batts of insulation waiting to be fitted between the joists

Saturday brought a big change in the temperatures as one layer of insulation was placed over the framing and all those dangling wires are roughed in electrical.

At least things are much warmer!

And I can always learn a little more patience.

Take care,

Julia

Framing the Catheral Ceiling

2010-01-02T08:38:00.000-05:00

It's amazing how far you can come in three days. Of course, when renovating, it never does seem fast enough! I'm thankful we did take New Years Eve off and spent time with some dear friends welcoming in the new year. An awesome potluck and fun games really made for a nice break. I hope we won't spend the ENTIRE year renovating though as this is how we've spent the first day of the new year.

I hope you're not entirely sick of seeing construction photos here. I promise, the wiring and heating etc. will start soon and there won't be any great progress shots then. Hubby will also be back to work on Monday so that will put a damper on things as well. I'm praying that the insulation will be back in before then. You should see the weather we're finally getting. It is cold and snowy. Beautiful to look at out the window but I don't want to even think about how much heat we're losing through that roof right now.

Here's a few details from Thursday and Friday...

starting to frame in the new ceiling

almost finished removing the old trusses

the weather outside is frightful...and baby it'd cold INSIDE
there's snow coming in the roof vent

my 19 yo finally decided to wake up and help bring insulation from the shop

construction inspection team

framed ceiling pretty much complete

Today I'm excited that the insulation is going back into the ceiling. Should be a little easier working conditions and also on my heating bill. After that, hubby starts wiring.

Meanwhile, I'm off to get a turkey in the oven. There's a huge one in my fridge and I think they deserve a treat.

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

What I Learned in 2009

2009-12-31T17:21:00.012-05:00

Things I learned in 2009....

(OK, some of them were relearned or I have a new appreciation of them)

Time seems to speed up rather than slow down
I love digital design
how to take better photos with Candace Stringham
the joys of second hand shopping
to make the most of what I have
I love designing rubber stamps and it was a fabulous experience
sometimes God closes a door
All work and no play leads to creative burn-out
Creativity comes back if you change gears for a while
I hate being a procrastinator
how to create a digital blinkie
I rediscovered the joy of sewing on fabric
how to paint old furniture
to create my own wall art
Good things come to those who wait...I now have a craft room!
After 20 years of baby mania, I'm more than happy to wait patiently for my grandma years now
that the teenage years can be the best of times but also the worst of times...six years down and just sixteen more to go! lol the joys of five kids
kijiji.ca is a cool place to shop
a new puppy can be more work than a new baby
that I love to sing but should never hum
how to make my hubby's 40th memorable
I need a list to stay on track
I'm becoming more like my mom
to be a little less shy
to spend less time on the computer
the book of Daniel is fascinating...I loved the Beth Moore Daniel study, learned and grew so much
balance is everything
all good things come to an end
time does heal all wounds...I can now remember my mom with a smile instead of a tear
my daughter and I may just end up as close friends as my mom and I were
"it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful" ~ the Nester
it's good to be creative in a variety of things
I love DIY home blogs
I can change my home little by little, step by step
the most important job God has given me is being a mom
that my kids will pick up my least desirable traits
having my husband working out of town for seven months is an experience I don't want to repeat
I can be more independent than I thought
after 20 years of marriage, he's still the one
not to take my blessings for granted
I have a couple grey hairs
my children never cease to amaze me
to be kinder
to love with abandon
that I can trust God with every tiny detail of my life
a couple good friends are a precious gift
to treasure each moment
to find the best in difficult days
to find beauty in the mundane
to take more time to enjoy the wonder God's of creations
I am blessed

I'm looking forward to a wonderful year ahead. I know that God's plan for me is far more thrilling than anything I could ever plan. It's also good to look back and see the path through the past year, learn from my mistakes, be encouraged in the blessings and see the Guiding Hand that helped me through.

Wishing you a year of blessing to come!

Julia
This post links up with Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special

so cool

2009-12-31T07:17:00.004-05:00

This is so cool. Seriously...very cool project but also VERY cool inside. We now have no insulation in the family room and baby, it's cold outside. It's exciting though to see the worst of the mess gone. The yucky nasty insulation and who knows what else (don't want to think about it) has been hauled off and the joists are exposed.

You may or may not notice from the photo that we have TWO sets of joists in this picture. The top one is much newer wood. Hmmm... That's because when hubby, son #1 and hubby's brothers redid the roof, hubby planned ahead. The back half of the house had a "newer" addition. I say this hesitantly as the house is over 100 years old and who knows when the back half was added. Sadly, like many additions it just did not match the house. A very low pitch roof when the front part of the house had a steep pitch. My amazing man ordered new trusses and built up that roof so that it looks MUCH better from the outside.

This leaves us with two sets of trusses and the originals, are just not needed any longer. The lower ones were basically just there, hanging out and holding up the drywall ceiling. Enter the vaulted ceiling idea. How cool is that? It's going to add about 3 feet to the center of the roof and I think it will make the boring room look lovely. Architectural details are always SO cool. I can't take the slightest bit of credit for this idea. It's all hubby's. He's the brains as well as the brawn. I provide the food and back rubs. Oh yes. I brag a little bit too. Isn't he a keeper?!

Here's one of our fabulous helpers in her very fashionable outfit borrowed from daddy.
And oh look! That lovely faux brick behind the gas fireplace is gone!

As the original roof was just built over, it all had to come down with the original rafters.

It's also a wonderful learning experience for the kids. I passed this one selflessly by so that they could learn. Wonderful mother, am I not?
I'm glad my job was photography but shh....
don't tell.

The original rafters are starting to be cut down.

OK. At this point me and my camera were banished from the area. I'll have to try and sneak in again today for some more updates. Last night they worked well into the wee hours. I can't believe how different the room looks. It's getting exciting!

And just a quick disclaimer here. This project was professionally engineered and hubby has worked in construction for 20 plus years. This is not a basic DIY project. Do not try this at home.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Julia

and so it begins....

2009-12-30T11:37:00.002-05:00

and so it begins....

again.

Another renovation project commenced this morning. Seriously, I thought we'd at least finish up a few of the ones in progress before moving on. I had hoped to get the living room and dining room painted. The bathroom counter repaired. We did actually get most of the craft room done. Hubby finished trimming the window on Monday and as soon as I find the time, I'll finish painting the trim and that will be good. Yay! Almost there.

I was thinking we'd be spending this week puttering about with little things, enjoying some family time, relaxing.....

until he broke the news to me.

We're redoing the family room.

Yes it needs done. It is ugly. UGLY in capital letters ugly. You just can't imagine how ugly. Dusty rose walls, UGLY gas fireplace with even uglier brick surround. The crowning touch is the ceiling. A lovely stucco ceiling. The previous owners had installed too-thin drywall on the ceiliings too far apart on center and it was bowing. And my favorite feature...the lovely hole where my 19yo fell through last year when redoing the roof. Don't worry. It's all good and he just ended up with a few bruises.

I'm not sure if you'll believe me but this room was actually improved when we moved in. The windows were almost non-existent slits in the walls and the seals on them were cracked giving a nice view of condensation in between and not much else. The walls were dark, dark, dark paneling which hubby covered over with drywall. We ran out of time before moving in and with an old house, there is only so much you can do at one time as there is always a project.

I have to admit, I'm thrilled to finally be getting this done. It's just the process I'm not so thrilled with. And I'd wanted to spend some family time. I guess we'll be doing more bonding through dust and dirt and hard work.

I seem to be a little long winded this morning. Perhaps it's because I'm trying to avoid the major demolition going on upstairs. I know my 19yo is actually thrilled all of a sudden to be on night shift this week as he can sleep through most of it! My job is actually just to keep the little boys out of mischief (full time job there!), provide food and try my best to keep up with the demolition and construction dirt and keep it from the rest of the house...easier said that done to be sure. The reason I gave in and we're actually doing this now...hubby needs at least 4-5 days in a row to work on this and doing it now is much better than giving up our week at the beach next summer.

So.

I can't quite believe I'm actually showing you this but it will make for some good before and after photos.

Mostly emptied of stuff
my crafting area used to be that tiny corner where the desk is

the north wall...a little more to move out but hubby has covered the hardwood with plywood to protect it

Isn't this a lovely hole? I only had to put up with it for about 15 months lol

anyone want an ugly gas fireplace?

yesterday the drywall arrived
via a crane truck lifting it through an upstairs window
we have interesting features in this old house...the family room is upstairs above the kitchen!

ceiling is coming down

our interesting garbage chute...out the window

Where's the beauty in this? I can't wait to find it. If it turns out how we envision...it's going to be beautiful when done and I can't wait.

Stay tuned! and wish me luck...

Julia

home sweet home

2009-12-22T05:52:00.002-05:00

Well you know...in this house, almost everything is grounds for blog fodder, especially when it's creative. lol Monday the kids had some fun making home sweet home...our first gingerbread house in years. While I wasn't part of the procedure, it was super fun, even if it didn't quite turn out like intended. I'm still lovin it! They had fun together and if the icing just did not set up that well...so what!

Here's what our lovely sweet gingerbread house looks like.

Now every house needs a little structural reinforcement. Ours is LUCKY enough to have a lovely blue bow.

Oh that every roof should be so sweet and yummy...

Every roof needs a little ventilation, right?

I guess that icing just didn't want to set up like it should. Note to self...the Costco Gingerbread House kit is fun and quick but next year....make the icing from scratch! This one just did not want to harden into mortar.

Have a sweet day!

Julia

Taking Some Time

2009-12-21T10:41:00.004-05:00

Christmas..It's such a beautiful time of year. A very busy time of year too. Today I'm taking a little time out from the hustle and bustle and last minute preparations to think about the beauty of Christmas.

May I never lose sight of the greatest gift of all.

Julia

It's a Wrap

2009-12-14T08:50:00.001-05:00

Anyone started their Christmas wrapping yet? I'm lucky that my daughter loves wrapping and is helping me out this year. I'll just be wrapping her gifts and a few other special ones. I thought I'd share some wrapping ideas that I've created in the past to hopefully inspire you for wrapping your special gifts this year.

This first project is a paper mache box that I've stamped and trimmed. It appeared in Paper Crafts magazine, Holiday Cards and More released August 2009.

This is a fun and easy project that is also stamped. To stamp on glass, you need to use a solvent ink. I used Blue and Opaque White Stazon by Tsukineko.

Canning Jars make fun packaging for little gifts as well. Fill with Candy or a tissue wrapped treasure. This project was created for Home and Heart Summer 2008 issue.

White Stazon ink works fabulous on tin as well. Stamp the snowflakes and fill the tin with your gift.

If you're giving gift cards this year, why not make a special card to give them in? This card uses a trifold design and tucks a card into a little pocket inside.

If you have a super tiny present, this sweet little box makes a fun package. The Printable template for this box can be found here and printed as many times as you wish.

Here's another sweet way to gift a gift card. The tin is from Michael's and then embellished and personalized.

Handmade tags look beautiful with wrapping paper or a parcel wrapped in canvas, burlap or brown paper wrapping.

Are you creating any special wraps this season? Happy wrapping!

Julia

This post links up with Red Writing's Twelve Week's of Christmas Gift Wrapping Link Party

The Beauty of Christmas Carols

2009-12-11T17:28:00.000-05:00

As I sat in church the other night singing Christmas Carols with a group of children, I was impressed with the beauty and truth to be found in the old traditional carols. It's not often that you hear them these days, on the radio or in the stores. Why is Santa Baby the most popular song I seem to hear? This year I'm turning off the radio and turning on some beautiful old carols and remembering the Gift of Christmas.

Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Christ by highest heav'n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin's womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings
Ris'n with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

In searching for the lyrics to enjoy again, I came across this lovely (and free!) little Christmas Carol Printable Booklet from BHG.com Some sweet graphics and 30 traditional songs, most of which include the true meaning of Christmas. I'm planning to print off some copies, gather my family together with some hot chocolate and enjoy a little family time, singing and enjoy each other's company. A beautiful little time out in this very busy season.

Wishing you a beautiful Christmas,

Julia

A Hostess Gift for the Holiday Party & a Digital File

2009-12-09T16:45:00.002-05:00

I'm excited about this little hostess gift I put together for a holiday party I'm going to tomorrow night. The hostess is a sweet friend of mine and I wanted to put together something special but still inexpensive.

For the base of my gift I picked up this pretty frame at Home Sense. It has some wonderful scrolls and dimension and can be used to put a family picture in. On top, a couple mercury glass votive candle holders and then tucked in some sweet jingle bells and some silver glittery accents from a Christmas pick. I love it all lit up. Of course, I'll put in some new votives before I give it. I'm going to wrap it up in clear cellophane with a bow and a little card.

To give this gift, a piece of scrapbooking paper would be sweet inside the frame instead of the faux picture is comes with. I actually created a fun little digital file that I printed out onto photo paper to put inside the frame. It's fun and Christmassy. I know...the graphic style and the ornate frame look a little eclectic together but a little funky is fun some times.

And as a little gift to you for stopping by my blog, feel free to use this digital file for your own holiday projects. Put it in a frame or make tags or cards from it. Enjoy! To use, just click on the image to enlarge and then save as a file on your computer. If you're looking for something a little more vintage, you can also check out ideas from Every Thing Creative.

please use this file for your personal use only.
please do not redistribute this file. thanks!

This is a little more gift orientated than party orientated but it's what I'm doing for a party this year. This post links up with

Happy Creating!

Julia

Deck the Halls... last minute and budget solutions

2009-12-09T09:02:00.005-05:00

It's never seems as there is quite enough money or time to do everything we want at this time of the year. That's OK. Just make the best of it. Here's a few easy solutions for decorating for the holidays that come to mind.

Mittens - Mittens have to be the cutest things. I love little mittens, especially the handknit variety. Frame them for some festive decorating or hang them up like a banner for a cozy look. If you're really ambitious, fill them with treats.

photo by bhg.com

Pictures - Wall art and picture frames can be easily and quickly decorated for a fun holiday touch. Place family holiday photos from past years in your picture frames,

photos by bhg.com

Ribbon - Ribbon is always festive looking. Use it as a garland, around the tree, tie it around any of the usual decorative accents in your home to give them a festive look.

Epsom Salts - Is this not the coolest thing? I found this Epsom Salts candle idea at the Inspired Room.

Candles - Candles are cozy and while wonderful all year long, they are especially festive at the holidays. Buy some holiday scented candles to make the house smell great and you get double duty for your money. If you buy white or ivory candles, you can use them for other occasions throughout the year making them much more economical. Tie a group of them together with twine and place a spring of greenery behind the knot for a pretty look.

Greenery - If you have access to spruce, pine and cedar trees, snip off some branches here and there and use them for holiday greenery. Yes, the needles will eventually fall but you have a vacuum right? And it's free!

Jingle Bells - This year I invested in a few packages of jingle bells in classic silver. Jingle bells never go out of style and by just adding them to the tablescapes you already have, add a festive touch.

Snowflakes - Love snowflakes as they are more of a winter decoration than specifically for Christmas. You have to like something that you can keep up for a little longer. Snowflake decorations are a classic touch and worth the investment.

bhg.com

Lights - I love white lights. You can never have too many lights and the new led lights are so energy efficient to run.

Sticks - The humble stick or branch is a great economical embellishment. Put them in a planter with greenery. Sprinkle them with glitter and arrange in a vase. Cut branches to straight even lengths and wrap around a candle. Anchor a branch in a pot and hang some sweet decorations from it.

Paper...banners, chains, tags are all great and inexpensive ways to decorate for Christmas. There is no limit as to what you can create from a little paper. And to tie in with the snowflakes theme, why not cut some out of paper? I've always loved how each one is different.

Baking Supplies - I love baking for the holiday and a sweet little arrangement of cookie cutters and other baking tools is a fun accent using things you already have. Baking tins are also great for trays to arrange things on.

So that's a few of my thoughts on decorating for the holidays. Just remember, you don't need to decorate every room. You don't need to keep up with the Jones'. Take time to enjoy the season and most of all, your loved ones.

This post links up with the Holiday Linky Party at the Inspired Room.

Happy Decorating!

Julia

White Christmas Crafting...a canvas tree & a mitten frame

2009-12-07T09:49:00.001-05:00

Friday was a super fun day for me. I somehow managed to squeeze in a bunch of simple holiday crafts. While I was out Friday morning picking up the styrofoam wreath for my Tassel Fringe Wreath, they had darling little styrofoam tree shapes as well. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with it but thought glitter perhaps. Well, as you can see in this photo, I kind of went the other way and just covered it with long strips of canvas. A simple shabby look. I had some canvas left over from my canvas pillow project and thought a monochromatic look would be pretty. To cover the tree, I just wrapped the styrofoam with 1" torn strips of canvas and pinned on as I went. The fun thing is that if I want a different look next year, I can just un-pin it.

And here it is at night. I love that little lamp I picked up at Wal-mart in the fall for my back hall table. It's so much cozier and more welcoming than the bright overhead light. To complete my winter whites arrangement, I added in a candle, a sequin star, an old clock face I purchased on ebay, a little verse quote display that I have on the table all year and tied them together by grouping onto a white plate from my kitchen. I'm pleased with the simple look and of course the price was just right.

I had thought I was finished crafting for the day and went to work sorting mittens, hats and scarves and just getting organized for the colder weather. I guess it doesn't take too much to sidetrack me though as I came across this sweet little hand-knit mitten in almost new condition. Unfortunately, one of my little kittens had lost their other mitten. As I couldn't match it up, I started thinking. Last year I would have sighed and thrown it out. But not THIS year. Now I'm thinking creatively with more than just paper.

A Goodwill frame I picked up made a great holiday accent when spray painted white. I don't recommend you spray paint in the basement like I did because of the cold. Yuck...the fumes were not nice. After taking out the glass, I filled the inside of the frame with yet another piece of leftover sweater from the sweater pillow, tied the mitten with some of my scrapbooking supplies and adhered it to the frame. Super quick and super fun and I love all the recycling I did on this project.

This post links up with DIY Day at a Soft Place to Land

Have a creative day!

Julia

The Tassel Trim Wreath

2009-12-05T17:24:00.007-05:00

I've been having a fun time tasseling lately. I think I'm a tassel addict as they are so fun and easy to create. When I went to stock up on tassel fringe and trim, there was a lot of beautiful trims on sale. I just had to buy a lot. Of course now I have a huge bag of it to sort through every time I want to create a tassel. This ended up a good thing though as I had a light-bulb moment with the green trim. I did not own a wreath and it got me to thinking about creating one.

You Need:

12" Styrofoam wreath shape
2 yards of green trim (you'll probably have some leftover to tassel with)
straight pins
ribbon to hang it with... I used 24" of black and gold ribbon

To Create:

Starting at the outside edge, start pinning the trim to the wreath base.
Pin every 2-3" to secure well
Once the first circle is completed, spiral trim until you have completed 3 passes and wreath is covered.
Fluff up trim and enjoy.

So what do you think? I'm having fun with it and it looks so pretty and festive. It's fun to find beauty in the supplies you already have.

This post links up with Funky Junk's Saturday Nite Special.

And The Inspired Room's Holiday Linky Party

Have a great weekend!

Julia

Getting Cozy in the Kitchen... candle wraps & gingersnaps

2009-12-04T20:21:00.007-05:00

Mmmmmm... it's starting to feel and smell like Christmas! I had a productive day getting some holiday crafting done, spending time with the little boys as they had a school day off and this evening we had a little baking fun. Gingersnaps. Yum!

Here's one of the super quick projects I made today. It's a sweater candle wrap. You may remember the sweater pillow I created here. Well, I kept the sleeves as I KNEW I could find a use for them. I love this fun little wrap. I simply cut the sleeve to size and slid it over the candle jar. Originally I was going to hem the edges but I'm loving the rustic look of the raw edges. I think it makes my candle look oh so warm and cozy.

And here's a few pictures of our fun tonight in the kitchen. Three of my five kids and a couple extras just having fun.

Gingersnaps - these melt in your mouth…one of my faves and a recipe I treasure as it came from my mom

2 cups sugar

3/4 cups margerine

3/4 cup lard

1/2 cup molasses

2 large eggs

4 cups flour

2 teaspoons ginger

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking soda

Cream and beat first four ingredients. Stir in remaining ingredients. Roll into balls. Coat with sugar and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet and cool on rack.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Julia

Comfort Food & Some Storage Details

2009-12-03T11:51:00.011-05:00

I've been busy getting moved into my craft room and getting some paper crafting projects caught up. There's also been a myriad of Christmas details to take care of and the days just seem to be sliding by faster than I can imagine. I wish I could find the time to do everything!

You may have seen the quote in my sidebar. I came across weeks ago on the bulletin board at the massage therapists. I believe it was a clipping from a Canadian Living magazine... I forgive myself for all the things I don't have time to do. While this is important all the time, I can't imagine a time of year that is busier than the holiday season. There are SO many things I want to do and just not enough time. I'm learning to let go and just do what I can and forgive myself for the rest.

One thing I have been doing is cooking some comfort food for my family. As the days get colder and the nights longer, it seems to satisfy the hungry appetites of my large family. Chicken Bruschetta is one of our favorites so I thought I'd share with you. I double the recipe to get some lunches out of it as well. This recipe originally came from the Kraft.com website. I like to use the seasoned Petite cut tomatoes to add to the flavor.

Chicken Bruschetta

1 can (14-1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1/2 cup water

2 cloves garlic, minced

1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces

1 tsp. dried basil leaves

1 cup KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Mix tomatoes, stuffing mix, water and garlic together in bowl. Set aside.

Dice chicken and spread into 9x13" pan. Sprinkle with basil and cheese.

Top with stuffing mixture. Bake for 30 minutes or until done.

Fast and easy and just enough time to cook some rice to go with it.

I've also had a few inquiries over my storage solutions in my new craft room. The inquiries were about the carousel storage I have. Actually two of the organizers spin so I thought I'd tell you about them both. The first is a tiered storage organizer called the Clip It Up. The tiers are sold separately, I have the Clip it Up and the Upper Tier together here. It is fabulous for keeping all my embellishments in easy access so I can find them. While it might not be the most decorative organizer on the planet, function is key in my mind and you can store a LOT of product on it. I actually have two of these that sit side by side. My other one holds unmounted stamp sets.

My other little carousel organizer is the Making Memories Desktop Carousel as seen below. I actually have two of these as well as I love it so much. A few months ago I wrote an article for Craft Critique on this product and if interested, you can check out the review here.

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

Something Wonderful

2009-11-28T15:54:00.008-05:00

Something wonderful this way comes.

Oh I'm sooo excited! I've worked like crazy the past few days getting into my new craft room. Mr. fb@h has been finishing cupboards, installing drawer pulls, the light fixture and generally just working hard to get me in there.

So today I pretty much finished moving in and actually found a few minutes to create. We still have to trim the window and finish some of the cupboards but it feels so good to finally have my own space I just couldn't wait to share.

Here's a few quick peeks and I'll be back with exactly what I've done once it's finished. Hopefully before Christmas but you know how life gets this time of year. I probably won't do much in the form of decorating it. This room has to be practical and functional and keep me super organized with all my paper crafting supplies in a very small space. There really isn't much unused wall space in the room at all.

Do you have a project you've waited a long time for?

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Julia

Hand Crafted Christmas Decorations

2009-11-27T08:44:00.001-05:00

Today I thought I'd share a few of the handcrafted holiday decorations that I have created and decorate with each year. If you're looking for some holiday craft projects, they just may provide some inspiration. I hope you enjoy them.

This first one is a 6x6 plaque that has been altered with scrapbooking and stamping supplies. I love this Santa. Right now I have this on my new painted dresser/sideboard.

While I don't quite have my tree up yet, we'll be doing that tomorrow and hanging this paper mache star ornament from it.

This little paper mache wall hanging hangs on a hook at my back door.

I loved wrapped candles and this is one I created last year.

Here's another little wooden plaque. They make great design surfaces. This plaque is in the current issue of Crafts 'n Things magazine.

And lastly, I couldn't resist using that Santa image again for another decoration for the tree. It could also be tied onto a present for a special gift tag.

This post links up with The Inspired Room's Holiday Linky Party.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Julia

Tasseled

2009-11-26T07:25:00.001-05:00

When I first discovered DIY blogs all of two months ago, the first one I really came across was the Nesting Place. Immediately I was hooked. I loved the Nesting Place philosophy.."It doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful" and was fascinated with all things Nesting. One of the things I loved was the Nester's tassels. How gorgeous! What a neat craft project!

This week the Nester released The Ultimate Tassel Guide. Because I've wanted to give this project a whirl and because I am a strong believer in supporting the creative minds in the crafting industry and giving them their due, I wanted to order this e-book. It more than lived up to my expectations and I'm pleased with the quality of my first tassel. Many thanks to The Nester!

Fat & Shabby Tassel

Off to hunt for a special place in the house for my tassel!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American Friends,

Julia

Some Holiday Eggnog recipes

2009-11-24T15:01:00.007-05:00

While most of my family loves eggnog, I am not a fan. Except of course for baking. I love baking with eggnog and my main difficulty is keeping it in the house long to bake with.

Holiday Eggnog Bread

{this recipes makes a 2 pound loaf}

3/4 cup eggnog

1/3 cup water

1 egg

2 tablespoons butter or margarine cut up

4 cups bread flour (I just used all-purpose)

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 1/2 teaspoons bread machine yeast

1/2 cup mixed candied fruits and peels

Add all ingredient to the machine according to manufacturer’s directions. Select basic white bread cycle. Drizzle Cooled loaf with Eggnog Glaze…as follows…

Eggnog Glaze: In a small mixing bowl mix together 1 cup sifted powdered sugar and tnough eggnog to make a glaze….drizzling consistency.

Eggnog Cookies - Mrs. Fields recipe

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 1/4 cups sugar

3/4 cup margerine

1/2 cup egg nog

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large egg yolks

1 tablespoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 300°F. In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mis well. In large bowl, cream sugar and butter with an electric mixer to form a grainy paste. Add eggnog, vanilla and egg yolks and beat at medium speed until smooth. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet one inch apart. Sprinkle with nutmeg if desired. Bake for 23-25 minutes. Immediately transfer to cool.

Quick Tip: Use the leftover egg whites from the above recipe to make the meringues below…

Christmas Eggnog Fudge

And here's a yummy recipe for eggnog fudge. My teenagers made it last night and yumm! They made a few alterations using what we had on hand but it worked well. I'm amazed! lol

2.5 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup egg nog
1 jar marshmallow creme (they used 16 large marshmallows instead)
8 oz white chocolate (they used a bag of milk chocolate chips)
3/4 tsp rum extract (they omitted this)
3/4 cup chopped pecans (omitted this too)
3/4 cup chopped candied cherries (omitted this as well)

Combine sugar, butter and egg no in large saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in marshmallows and chocolate and other additions if desired. Spread into prepared pan. Chill until set. Remove from pan. Cut into squares.

This post links up with the surprise recipe party. Check out all the other awesome recipe links as well at...

Hope this gets you into the holiday baking mood!

Julia

Holiday Greenery

2009-11-24T14:42:00.010-05:00

As Christmas is coming up quickly this year and we're in the middle of a lot of other home projects right now, I've decided to keep Christmas decorating as simple as possible. Of course, the cupboard costs on the new craft room alone have kind of blown my budget so I'm going the least expensive route as well. I love big beautiful wreaths but decided the simplest idea for this year would be to just reuse a metal wall planter that I purchased the the fall. Actually, one of the reasons I love it so much is that it is so neutral. I just adore the green and brown stripes that make it look pretty but are also easy to coordinate with different seasons. I had also intended this for use on the outside of my door but puppy is in a wild and crazy chewing mode and right now...nothing is safe outside.

Last week I took a little trip to Michaels to see what I could find to put in it for winter. At the time, my most economical options was actually to purchase a couple small silver picks to accent and the large portion of the greenery is actually a swag that I turned upside down, bent a little more and then just popped into my planter. Seriously...it took me a couple minutes tops. I love quick and easy.

Now yesterday I just HAD to have my weekly shop at Home Sense (I believe it's the Canadian equivalent to Home Goods?) and I found some darling tassels. I wasn't quite sure where I was going to put them but they were pretty and I knew I'd find a place. One of them made it into my holiday greenery planter and I love how it finished it off.

I apologize for the less than stellar photos. There is just so little light the past few days. I can't wait until the sun comes out again!

This post links up with Red Writing's TWOC: Christmas Wreaths party

and Kimba's DIY Day

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

Felted Pin Cushion

2009-11-21T11:41:00.003-05:00

This is a fast little project I've been meaning to make for quite a while. Although the saucer of this teacup is missing, I thought it could be reused for a fun project. I need a little pincushion for my paper crafting and making it out of felted sweater scraps was a fun idea.

To make the pin cushion...

form felt around a wad of polyester fill, sew into a firm ball that will fit into a teacup
To make roses, cut 1.25" strips of felt. Roll and twist them into roses while tacking with a needle and thread.
Tack your roses to the felt ball.
Cut out leaf shapes from green felted wool. Stitch around roses.

I'm excited with my quirky little pin cushion. I use needles and all kinds of fancy pins in my paper crafting and this will be a fun way to store them with ease.

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

Some New Wall Art

2009-11-19T16:46:00.006-05:00

I had so much fun creating this wall art using 4" square canvases. Inspired by Pottery Barn and Pier 1 style wall art, I thought I could make my own little block of canvases using some paint and some masks. If you've never used a mask before, it's like the reverse of a stencil. The plastic mask has a light adhesive on the reverse side. You adhere it over the color you want the letter to be and then paint over top. Once the mask is peeled off, you are left with your shape. They are so super easy to use.

I had the hardest time getting a good picture of it on my finished wall. The weather here has been so dark and wet it makes for very poor photos. If you're interested in a full tutorial with step outs, check it out here.

This post links back to The Shabby Nest Linky Party & Funky Junk Interior's Saturday Night Special.

Have a beautiful day! Julia

What's Cooking

2009-11-19T13:44:00.004-05:00

Actually...I have a lot cooking. I just can't wait to show you what I'm working on! I'm almost done!

And in my oven...

Turkey Biscuit Casserole

I got this recipe from my MIL. It's a family favorite for using up turkey leftovers. Works great for cooked chicken too.

2 cups chopped turkey
1 can mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 tablespoon Worchestershire Sauce
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 pinch salt and pepper
2 cups chopped broccoli, boiled lightly
2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup milk
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons parsley

Mix turkey, onion, seasonings, broccoli, mushroom soup and sour cream in a large casserole dish.

In a separate bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, vegetable oil and parsley together. Drop biscuits by spoonful onto top of casserole. Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes at 400°F. Serve.

Anything special cooking at your house?

Julia

A Few of My Favorite Things

2009-11-19T06:34:00.001-05:00

Raindrops on roses & whiskers on kittens... OK I'll stop before you start singing it. This post isn't about the Sound of Music but rather, a few Christmas ideas. I thought it would be fun to link up with 320 Sycamore and her My Favorite Things post. The idea is to share some of your favorite things, things that you love that you'd love to give or receive as gifts. It makes for some great ideas if you're having trouble with ideas for that holiday shopping list.

To start off with, a Christmas gift for me. Just couldn't resist. I ordered this lovely Christmas Memories fragrance diffuser from Claire Burke and it's now making my kitchen smell wonderful. I just wish my sinuses were a little less congested so I could enjoy it more! BTW, shipping to Canada was fabulous!

Just finished this book and like all Lynn Austin books, it was fabulous. I love historical novels and this is about a young girl finding her way. Actually, the story spans three generations from the Civil War through the womens right to vote to Prohibition and is woven brilliantly together. You can find it here or here.

I love Pampered Chef. I purchased this large Stoneware pan almost 10 years ago and it is now a lovely seasoned brown. I love it so much it hits the oven almost daily and not just for pizza. It's perfect for baking on and cooking frozen kid's favorites like chicken nuggets.

I have seriously purchased large quantities of these great Mini-Serving Spatulas. I can't get enough of them. I currently have three in my kitchen as they are perfect for serving bars, squares, desserts and lifting cookies off of baking pans. A couple months ago I ordered another seven of them. I had the consultant phone and ask me if I'd made a mistake. Nope! I wanted another and gave the rest away as everyone who tries one in my kitchen loves it. And no...I don't sell or own shares in Pampered Chef. ;)
Apothecary jars. I adore them. They are just so elegant and make anything you fill them with look wonderful. These beauties are from Pier 1.

I just got some more Obsession for Christmas. I know it's only November but hubby prefers it if I just buy what I want and save him the trouble. Not terribly exciting I know but it sure beats getting something you don't want. I've been wearing this for 22 years and haven't tired of it yet.

Seriously...this is my favourite chocolate evah! Cadbury's Flake. Have you ever had one? The chocolate is to die for. They are from Britain and I think I became addicted on my one trip to Ireland at age five. Since then it's always been a great treat brought home by my traveling relatives. You can find it at British shops, on-line and I just recently discovered that they carry it at a local bulk food store. Oh look...just found a case of 24 bars on-line at Amazon!

Please Santa bring me some more of my French Vanilla! I've been missing it tremendously. Our nearby grocery store just stopped carrying this. Why???? And just so you know, the empty tins make the cutest little gift tins.

When the weather outside is frightful...would this warm and fuzzy throw be perfect to snuggle up in? This one is from Pier 1 but warm fuzzy throws are everywhere this year. A book, some French Vanilla and a Cadbury's Flake and this throw. I think I've found my perfect winter moment.

I absolutely adore this beautiful ruffled throw pillow. Hmmm....doesn't it remind you a little of that Cadbury's Flake?! I may be onto something. Actually though, I picked it up on sale at Pier 1 for my daughter. I think I'm going to have a hard time giving it away but maybe she'll let me visit it in her room now and then.

Lastly a super cheap stocking stuffer. Don't you love the black and white damask? This little Shopper Tote/Key Ring is great to have on hand, it's pretty and it's great for the environment. What's not to like?

So how's that for ideas? Nothing too outrageously expensive as I'm a girl on a budget. Now this post links up with 320 Sycamore. Click the button for more fun gift ideas.

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

Step by Step...the long road to a new craft room

2009-11-18T07:26:00.003-05:00

We are hard at work here getting my new craft room done finally. It's been a 28 month long journey but in the mean-time we've accomplished a lot! A few detours too. When renovating, we try and take summers off. In Canada they are so short and the kids grow up so quickly, it's really important to us to spend them together. We've also had a few detours, a leaky roof and this entire addition/renovation was not JUST a craft room project. We added a new bedroom (done), a new back entrance (check), a beautiful new kitchen and eating area (check) and a few other things.

I have to stop right here and just say that my hubby is amazing! He did this all himself. The man is a machine and I've never seen anyone work like him. It's really the only way we could have afforded to take on this project. And while I NEVER want to go through it again, I'm so glad and appreciative now that we did. While we're finishing off the craft room, I thought I'd share a few glimpses into the process so you understand what has taken so long...

It all started Labour Day weekend 2007. Out came the tractor and the shovels and the saws and hubby went to work. Three weeks of heavy digging every Saturday and every night until well after dark, here's the start of my basement addition, ready to be blocked. As you can see, my large porch was cut down in size. I had to barricade off my kitchen door lest one of the little boys walked out into thin air. Under the kitchen of this 100+ yo farm house was a crawl space. Hubby had to dig out the entire corridor as well as a cold cellar and storage room under the house by hand.

October 19th and the blocks are starting to be laid on the footings. My craft room lies to the left. This is the view from my old kitchen door.

Finally we are closed in except for one window that has been left out to pour the floor. It's now November 21/07 and we're getting ready to pour the concrete floor. As we have old radiators throughout the house for heating, hubby installed hot water tubes in the concrete. My feet will be nice and toasty all winter long. Now my room is not this large. It's the space to the left. The larger room went to my 3rd child. I was thrilled to let him have it as it meant that child number 5 could move in with child number four and OUT of our room. Bliss!

My "huge" contribution to the project was keeping the construction dust & dirt under control, keeping the kids safe, and providing lots of food. I also spent time designing the kitchen, and figuring out how to best squeeze all my paper crafting supplies into one 8x8 room. Here's what I came up with.

I'm so excited to finally have a room to create in again. Hubby built me one in our last home but I haven't had one in 10 years and 5.5 months. Not that I'm counting. (wink) I've been creating in a small corner of the family room which has been less than ideal. Now it seems to close so being done, I can hardly stand it. A few weeks ago we found the time to paint the room and last Saturday spent the day installing cupboards. A little more electrical and some trim and I can start moving in. Well. Who am I kidding, as we finished getting the cupboards installed Saturday night, I've started moving stuff in already!

I'm off to do more sorting!

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

A Frugalicious Christmas Accent

2009-11-17T13:42:00.007-05:00

Don't you love it when you can create something new and not have to spend a cent? How cool is that? Last week I created this fun little tiered china project and had it sitting in my kitchen. I thought it would be lovely with some holiday treats on it but as it sat there, my brain started whirling. Do you ever do that? Keep something out to look at it for a few days. You just never know what creative idea will pop up while you're washing dishes. I'll tell you more about me little tiered china project when I can take a decent picture of it unadorned after Christmas. By then perhaps, I'll come up with a project idea for it for Valentine's!

Sorry if I'm rambling...back on topic. As it sat there, I noticed it's very loose Christmas tree like shape. Hmmmm..... and then I saw my bowl of decor pears on the sideboard. And that darling little silver bird that I keep in my kitchen window. How about some greenery to fill in the spaces. I'm too lazy to crawl into the crawl space and try and find some so I run outside to the closest coniferous tree and hack off some greenery. Not much as I have the worst nasty cold on the planet this week and baby it's cold outside! I found some beaded fruit sprays to add a pop of Christmas color but it still needed something. I know. Some silver jingle bells I had purchased last year quickly placed around the "tree" tie in that silver bird. So...it's not quite a partridge in a pear tree but for absolutely no money and very little time...I'm pretty tickled with how it turned out. I know that the spruce isn't going to last until Christmas but no worries...there's lots more where that came from!

Quick Tip: Mix things you already own some holiday color and greenery for a inexpensive project.

This project links up with Red Writing's 12 Weeks of Christmas.

And Kimba's DIY Day...

Happy Decorating! Julia

Beautiful Inspiration

2009-11-15T19:39:00.002-05:00

Just a little quote to share with you today.

The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller

What is beautiful in your home today?

Julia

The Beautiful Pumpkin

2009-11-14T15:52:00.001-05:00

Don't you love celebrating each season with the food of the season. One of my favorite things to do in the fall is visit a local Farmer's Market and buy all manner of wonderful produce. I went a few weeks ago and took along two of my teenagers for their strong backs and muscle. As they love to eat, I didn't hear too much complaining.

The very humble pumpkin makes some of the best fall baking. Pumpkins are everywhere as wonderful ways to decorate for fall and all the gorgeous ideas I've seen using them on-line are just stunning. As it's been a busy fall for us, I've kept things pretty simple with just a couple pumpkins for decoration but there hasn't been a lack of pumpkin in my kitchen. Yum!

I've been making this pumpkin spice bread recipe for years since I found it is the Family Fun Cookbook. It's wonderful, makes two loaves, smells awesome and even freezes well.

Pumpkin Spice Bread

2 cups pumpkin, canned
3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
3 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Heat oven to 350°F In a large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin sugar, water, oil and eggs. Beat well until mixed. Measure flour, blaking soda, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, nutmeg and cloves into separate bowl, stir until combined. Blowly add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture, beating until smooth. Grease two 9x5" loaf pans and dust them with flour. Evenly divide the batter between them. Bake for 60-75 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10-15 minutes then remove from pans. Slice and serve.

Pumpkin Dump Cake

I found this recipe on the internet last winter. I'm pretty sure it's been around but it's yummy and fast and so it's worth writing again.

1 (29 oz.) can pumpkin
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp ginger
1 box yellow cake mix
2 sticks butter
1 c. pecans
Cool Whip

Beat together pumpkin, milk, sugar, and eggs. Add salt, cloves, cinnamon and ginger. Mix well. Pour into 9x13 inch pan. Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over top of pumpkin mixture. Melt 2 sticks butter and drizzle evely over all. Sprinkle on nuts. Bake at 350°F for 1 hour. Cool. Top with whipping cream or Cool Whip.

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

If pumpkin pie is wonderful, then this pumpkin cheesecake is to die for. It's a Kraft.com recipe and on our holiday must bake list.

18 PEEK FREANS Ginger Crisps (1 sleeve), crushed (about 2 cups)

1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

1/4 cup butter, melted

3 pkg. (250 g each) PHILADELPHIA Brick Cream Cheese, softened

3/4 cup sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

Dash ground cloves

HEAT oven to 350°F.

COMBINE cookie crumbs, nuts and butter; press onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan.

BEAT cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla with mixer until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each just until blended. Remove 1 cup plain batter. Stir remaining sugar, pumpkin and spices into remaining batter.

SPOON half the pumpkin batter into crust; top with spoonfuls of half the plain batter. Repeat layers; swirl with knife.

BAKE 45 min. or until centre is almost set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 4 hours.

Have a beautiful Saturday!

Julia

beauty in the little things

2009-11-13T06:42:00.001-05:00

As a mom of three teenagers, I know how quickly the years pass. Where did they go? I'm also a mom of two little boys as well though and I'm constantly reminded of taking the time to cherish each sweet moment. Each sweet hug. Each sweet kiss. Each sweet little gift I receive.

I received the sweetest little bucket of dirt yesterday with the last, beat-up daisy clinging to life in my garden. It came in some loving little pudgy, dirty hands and a heart full of love. What could be more beautiful?

Some days I've been too busy to enjoy the sweet little things. I'm trying to slow down. Savor the moment. Remember what's important. Find beauty in the little things. My life is a masterpiece of them if I only stop to look.

Have a beautiful day,
Julia

The Scent of Home

2009-11-11T08:12:00.000-05:00

photo from Claire Burke

What does your house smell like? There's something wonderful about surrounding yourself with scent that you love. I have to be quite careful about what scents I wear (I'm still sticking to Obsession even after 23 years) and what I bring into the house as a lot of scents can trigger a migraine for me. I'm pretty safe with food or spice scents. Go figure. Cinnamon, apple, pumpkin, vanilla...yummm! It amazes me how easy they are to use and how many options there are these days. I do believe my favorite will always be candles. I just love the warm glow, especially as the evenings are darker these days. They make everything so warm and cozy. I light one of my favorite candles each night on the kitchen sink window. I admit to not liking doing dishes that much and this always makes the chore a little bit more bearable.

Here's a few of my favorites....

I've been addicted to Grandma's Kitchen for years now. This is the big candle that sits in my kitchen window. It smells like yellow cake with vanilla frosting.

Claire Burke makes the most amazing Christmas fragrance, Christmas Memories. I have one of these lovely diffusers on it's way to me so I can enjoy it this season.

And here's the Christmas Memories candles. My mom discovered this scent and bought me a Vapourri Room Spray about five years ago. There's nothing like a scent to bring back memories and I cherish each one of have of her.

My favorite fragrance oil is the Body Shop's Spiced Apple. Unfortunately they no longer make it and I'm rationing out my few remaining drops. Their new Mulled Berries is a pretty good substitute.

This year I'm loving the Pier 1 Holiday Fragrance Beads. What a cool idea. I originally wasn't sure about the $8 CDN price tag but they smell beautiful and unlike a candle...you can have fragrance all the time. I did a little math... $8 ($5 in the US) divided by 60 days = 13 cents a day. Works for me. I even bought a few extras for stocking stuffers and hostess gifts.

Adding scent is a quick and easy way to make your home feel beautiful. So...what does your home smell like? I'd love some good new suggestions!

Take care!

Julia

Nesting with a Sweater Pillow

2009-11-10T06:36:00.005-05:00

While shopping a few weeks ago...sorry, don't remember where...I came across a gorgeous pillow that looked like it was made from a knitted panel. It was gorgeous and oh so cozy, but the price? $35 was way too rich for my blood. And then I thought...I can MAKE that.

Since I didn't own a sweater that I just wanted to chop up, off I went to a nearby thrift store. Now you know what I decided to do with one of those sweaters I bought the other day, the beautiful cotton knit one. I'm sure the employees were wondering why I was browsing through every single size they had! It really doesn't matter what size you buy. I ended up with an adult small that I picked up for $6. It was in great condition with no pilling. I love cotton and that is a good fibre to buy as it holds up well and works well for all seasons. Wool or wool blends would also be lovely. I'd probably stay away from acrylic though unless it's really not going to be used much as acrylic tends to pill. Here it is...

Sweater Pillow Tutorial

To create the "fabric" for my pillow cover, I trimmed off the bottom of the sweater just below the armpit of the top. This gave me a nice rectangular piece the perfect size for a lumbar style pillow. If you have a longer sweater you may be able to make a larger square pillow. Work around your particular material.

After turning the panel inside out, I stitched one seam with a straight stitch and then again along the seam edges with a zig zag to make it secure and prevent raveling. Turn back right side out and insert your pillow form. I was lucky to get a nice edge on this sweater and so I just hand stitched it closed.

Here it is...the quick project that took half an hour to do and the hand stitching was done in front of the tv. I love fun quick projects and I love how cozy this pillow is. The solid neutral color just highlights it's beautiful texture. Doesn't it look great on this chair? Leather can be a little cool sometimes and I love how it cozied it up.

If this post inspires you to try out a sweater pillow, leave me a link and a comment. I'd love to see what you've created!

This post links up with Kimba's DIY day...

Have a beautifully creative day!

Julia

Making a List...and finding a balance

2009-11-09T18:53:00.010-05:00

image from bhg

While I love giving gifts, I have to admit Christmas shopping is not my favorite venture. Love Christmas...just not a bit fan of malls this time of year. They are crowded and I can never find what I want. I end up grumpy like Scrooge. No one wants a Mama Scrooge. Why is it there is so much pressure on the mother/wife/shopper to buy the correct presents to make everyone's special day? The hardest thing is doing it with a budget and finding the right balance between needs and wants. A couple years ago I bought all the gifts from us as well as two other people for my children. It ended up being a full-time job and I was a super stressed out mom before I even had to drag out the wrapping paper. Not a good thing and I've been committed to having a joyful Christmas each year since.

In case you're just meeting me, I'm a mom with five children and a large extended family. I'm seriously not a grumpy person and I'm so sorry if this post has started off on a negative note. I love Christmas. I love celebrating the birth of Christ. I love my family and I love the season of giving. I love sharing what I have and love buying gifts. I want to make sure that I keep the beauty in my home this year and the stress out.

I use a few strategies to help combat the shopping pressure this time of year. Here's a few quick ideas for less stress...

Start early. Some years I start in January. This year I started in July but I'm slowly working my way through the list.
Finish before December. This is when the malls get scary. In my mind anyway. Crowds make for more wasted time standing in lines.
Smile and be polite! This is Christmas. Good manners are beautiful and smiles are catching!
Be there when the mall opens. It will be less crowded and you'll have more energy.
Make a list. Check it twice. This helps you stay on budget and on track. Some people are easier to buy for than others. My daughter is super easy to buy for and I tend to buy a little too much. Good thing her birthday is in February and I can keep any excess for then!
Ask people what they want. This may or may not work. It does save you the guessing game but if you get a LONG list, you may have some disappointed children. Be sure to remind them that Santa cannot bring everything! It's actually good for them to learn that life is not perfect.
Pair up with someone else to purchase one large gift. My hubby's siblings love doing this for my MIL and she gets something she can really use.
Ask for help. Last year I was getting a little stressed as Christmas was almost here and I had a few things left to buy. My dear friend came shopping with me to help me out and was a life saver. Thanks Rebecca!
Cut down on excess gifts. We've slowly cut down on our extended family giving at the suggestion of other family members. I'm thrilled. The focus of our Christmas celebrations is now more on family and the reason for the season.
It doesn't hurt to buy things that people need as part of their gift. More things to open, even if it is socks and underwear. I always like to give the kids new pencils and paper for school at this time of year too.
If you're on a budget and have the time, homemade gifts are lovely thoughts. Be sure to start early though!
Find time for yourself. A happy home is a gift in itself.
Shop on-line and look for free or discount shipping options. Sitting in my jammies with hot chocolate while Christmas music plays is my idea of a dream shopping trip. No parking difficulties and I don't have to scrape the windshield.
Wrap as you go to save your back in a wrapping marathon.
Try food gifts for people that have everything. We all have to eat and it doesn't lead to un-needed clutter. Except maybe around the waistline.
Give yourself permission to buy gift cards for teenagers and hard to buy for people. Seriously...it's OK.

tin details here.

Finally...it's the thought that counts. A cherished gift may just be the gift of your time. People are so much more important things any time.

Enjoy your holiday shopping this Christmas season and may you all receive the gift of joy and peace.

Julia

This post links up with Red Writing's Twelve Weeks of Christmas

Canvas Pillow

2009-11-08T09:10:00.001-05:00

It's been a while since I've done much sewing except for on paper. I hit the fabric store the other day and had so much fun picking out some new material for some home dec projects. I thought I'd ease back into the swing of things with super easy projects. That fits the pace of my life these days and they are so cozy for fall. I'm nesting.

Why stick with one idea when you can combine two into one? I've also been wanting to try out the Avery Iron On transfer sheets so I picked some of those up as well and went to work. Here's my fall-themed pillow...

Of course, being thankful is mindset that is perfect for all year long so I may just use it all the time. I've written a tutorial for every thing creative about this project here.

Have a beautiful day, Julia

The Painted Dresser

2009-11-07T07:17:00.003-05:00

I have to tell you, I am so excited with how this project turned out! I think I'm going to be totally addicted to painting old furniture and giving it new life in my home. Yes, it was a lot of work and yes I learned a lot but it was a labour of love and so worth it. Do you ever finish a project you are just thrilled with and keep going into that room just to look at it?

So here's the dresser in the state I brought it home in. Chips and worn off finish on the top, both drawers had major chips where they meet but all in all....beautiful lines and sound frame and the drawers worked well.

First a little repair and then a whole lot of sanding. As I got to work, I was so excited to see my vision taking shape and it looking better and better with each coat of primer and then paint. I sanded in the shop out back but freezing temperatures made me haul the dresser inside. Paint needs to dry not freeze. I pushed the kitchen table off to the side and worked right in the kitchen. A plastic drop cloth protected the floor and it actually worked well as the little boys were able to chat with me and do their own crafting as I worked.

After two coats of primer that was slightly tinted with black to a grey tone, I was excited to get up the next day and start on the black paint. I used the Behr Black Suede paint. Being inspired by Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick, I followed her advice on painting furniture and it worked out well.

Five coats of paint later, I put the original hardware back on and called it finished. I'm still trying to decide about distressing the edges. I may just leave it for now and then, when it starts to get distressed with wear, make it look like it's supposed to be that way. Hubby's not too into the distressed look so we'll see.

I love how the light from the window highlights the details on the dresser.

Finally decorating the dresser. I must admit I kind of just threw some of my favorite things together on it that I'd been collecting around my kitchen. It's a little country looking here but I think if I took of the red gingham and that metal star, the "sideboard" would look lovely and elegant in style as well. The red gingham is just using what I have on hand. It's a table cloth that I've just folded up. I think it will add a fun touch of red for the upcoming Christmas season and it cost me nothing. Use what you have!

Totally copied this sweet scrabble tiles idea from Tiffany at {happy day}. I just thought it was the coolest idea for a shop your house decoration and you can change the word each season. Fun! And whimsical too.

I'm thrilled with this project. It fills an empty hole, warms up the room, gives me a table to decorate and look at those huge drawers! You can never have enough storage can you?!

This project links up to...

Have a beautiful day!

Julia

Thrift Store Thursday

2009-11-06T08:00:00.001-05:00

OK, OK...it's really not Thursday but the title worked and I DID do my thrift store shopping yesterday which was THURSDAY. When my older kids were small, I used to shop at thrift stores & garage sales all the time. I totally got out of the habit but now I'm finding some fun things can be found there at some great deals and they also provide some great inexpensive supplies for crafting projects. There's beauty in finding new uses for things! Want to see my latest goodies?

I'm loving the black metal star I picked up for $4. It's either going in the back entranceway or my kitchen or hmmm....perhaps even outside. I wish there had been more and then I wouldn't have to decide! When I do, I'll show you a photo.

Yes, those are second hand sweaters and no, I'm not going to wear them. It's been a long time since I was size small. They are crafting material! I can't wait to get started but you'll have to wait to see what I do with them. Hopefully I'll have a project or two to share with them next week. Until then, I'm still working on that dresser/sideboard. It now has four coats of paint, the last of which is drying nicely. I'm going to take a really fine sandpaper to it and then do one last coat. I'm thrilled with how it's shaping up and can't wait to share! Maybe tomorrow?

Have a beautiful day! Julia

Drool

2009-11-04T08:51:00.013-05:00

Drool. I can feel my waistline expanding just from looking at some of the latest recipes that have landed in my inbox over the past few days. It's that time of the year for holiday entertaining. I always have big plans. I've always loved baking since I started as a young teenager. And really, who doesn't love a new recipe?!

The Kraft Canada mailing arrived in my inbox yesterday and then when I went to get the mail...there was a nice glossy magazine in my snail mail box from them as well! If you don't get this free newsletter and mailing, it's very easy to do right on the site. It is always a great source for yummy and very doable recipes.

Is this new Snowball Cake to die for or what?

Company's Coming is a Canadian recipe book series by Jean Pare. I've been a huge fan of this series since I was a teenager. As I mentioned, I loved baking and the cookbook 150 Delicious Squares was my first of the series and still one of my top faves today. It's about ready to fall apart but no matter. I still love it. You can sign up for the free newsletter here...

Anyone else love peanut butter and chocolate? I think we need to make these Peanut Butter Balls!

Five Minute Fudge...this sounds like something I could handle.

Do you think I just "might" have a thing for chocolate?

Taste of Home is just an incredible source for home-style recipes. I think I have every issue from their first ten years in my stash. When I get an urge to try something new, they are a great resource. Even better is something I discovered a couple weeks ago. You can get every recipe they've ever printed except for the past year (you can get those if you are a subscriber) free on their web-site. And that includes recipes from Quick Cooking, Light & Tasty and Country Woman. Just in case you think we eat nothing besides chocolate, I went looking for an apple recipe I had made about 11 years ago and actually found it. Applescotch Sundaes...

Do you love to bake in the fall too? Hope this inspires you to get started. There's nothing quite like home-made.

Have a beautiful day!
Julia

Sidetracked

2009-11-04T06:05:00.002-05:00

I just got sidetracked from my big dresser project. It really doesn't take much to sidetrack me does it? My poor husband just shakes his head at me most of the time. I didn't get too far sidetracked this time though as I was actually waiting for some carpenter's glue and wood filler to dry so that I could start priming. An update on the dresser-turned-sideboard...it's all fixed and sanded and now has two coats of primer on it! Yay! Today's task...a couple coats of paint.

I was sitting talking on the phone the other day when something I noticed before started bugging me and as I thought it could be a super quick fix, why not just do it. Many times it's not the actual work that causes the procrastination but for me...the what ifs. What if it doesn't turn out? What if I don't like it? What if I make a mistake? Why keep agonizing and just not give it a try. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?

So here's my decorating dilemma. The lamp I just love. I love the vintage look of it. The flower arrangement is one I put together a couple years back with flowers and a pot from Michael's. It's OK but that pot it's in just does not go very well with the lamp. It's just too "clean" and light. It made it down to my living room a couple months ago when I changed the room around. Changing the furniture made a world of difference and actually started me thinking about how many more easy fixes I could do in my home. More on that another day.

I needed to find a way to make that arrangement look better in my living room. While not stellar as I'm not a floral designer for sure!!!, it's not that bad and for now, it's working for me. The pot was the problem. I decided to give distressing it a whirl.

My crafty pursuits are supposed to be a little more budget-friendly these days so instead of running off to the paint store for some glaze, I decided to try making my own. I mixed up some Claudine Hellmuth Matte Multi-Medium that I use for my crafting with a little Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink refill dye. In hind-sight, I think it would have been a little easier to use if I had an actual pigment such as acrylic paint instead of the dye but that was what I found in brown and so I went with it.

To apply the glaze I simply mixed a drop of dye with the Multimedium and brushed onto my pot. I tried wiping a little off but the dye in the mixture wasn't moving. That ended up fine but I think next time I'll use the paint and hope to be able to paint it on thick and then wipe off highlighted areas. The dye worked in reverse and so the embossed areas are dark and the grooves light. My homemade glaze dried quickly and I had the arrangement back in place and on the table 5 minutes after I had finished painting. How quick and easy is that?

At some point I may want to go back and add more depth of color and a warmer hue but for now, I'm happy with the very subtle change and the glaze highlights the beauty of the embossed pattern on the pot. Even better, it didn't cost me a cent. :)

This post is linked up with DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land

Have a beautiful day,

Julia

Jumping in with Both Feet

2009-11-03T08:44:00.007-05:00

Whenever I get excited about a creative project, I jump in with both feet. When I first discovered DIY home blogs a couple months ago, it was so inspiring. I needed a new creative project and my home needed a lot of help. I started off with a can of spray paint and went to town. I subscribed to many blogs and spent a lot of time drooling on my keyboard. Wouldn't it be cool if my home looked like that? And then reality hit. My home is NEVER going to look like that. Really truly when I think about it, I wouldn't want it to. My home needs to reflect me and my family's needs. I need to be real, love my home warts and all, and make a commitment to small changes as time and budget allows.

I've started making a few of those changes as the weeks go by. They may be small but I'm happy to see a little improvement each week that I can squeeze out some time. I'm hoping to find a large amount of time this week though as I'm jumping in with both feet to repurpose a piece of vintage furniture I found the other day. I've been madly searching Kijiji.ca for some great finds in my area and yesterday, finally brought one home. This project fits my budget, my need to be creative, my excitement over trying something new and it's going to be a great piece to make my kitchen eating area a bit homier. Here's what I found...

This vintage dresser has seen some better days. I love the concept of finding the beauty and giving it new life. The dresser came with a mirror that I'm saving in case I can think of another project to use it for. I'll be using this as a sideboard though. I'm thinking with some black paint, distressed edges and a nice tablescape on top it will look great. The drawers are sturdy and slide well and I'll be able to use them for storing candles, table linens and perhaps even homework.

I love the beautiful front raised detailing. Isn't that oval unique and cool?

I'm even liking the hardware and I just love that angled corner.

It even has nice legs!

And yes...that white stuff is hail. Can you tell I'm so anxious to get started I'm outside taking pics in this crazy weather?! I just knew I'd never be able to get a good photo once I got it as far as the shop.

I've given myself until the weekend to make some great progress. Do you think I can do it? Once this hail stops I'm off to buy some more sandpaper, some primer and some black paint.

Have a beautiful day!
Julia

A Sweet Start

2009-11-02T16:28:00.006-05:00

I had a busy weekend with not much time at home but I did manage to get the weekend off to a sweet start. I love finding time to bake, especially in the fall and pie is on the top of my family's favorites list. Simple desserts that remind me of weekends on the farm at Grandma's. While I can never hope to be as good as it as she was, I find joy in making them from scratch and creating those old rhubarb, pumpkin and strawberry favorites. I ended up baking five pies and we ate one while giving the others away to be enjoyed. There's beauty in making things for others.

I like using the Tenderflake Lard recipe that's on the box for my pastry. If you're going to mess up the kitchen, might as well roll out a lot. A lot of the time, I'll make a couple pies and freeze the other pie shells for a quick dessert. Last spring my daughter and I froze a lot of rhubarb from the garden to get us through the winter. It's so sweet that she's now an age that she can help and actually wants to. Here's my rhubarb pie recipe to share with you today...it originally came from a friend. A simple recipe but so good. I like that.

Rhubarb Pie

1 cup brown sugar
1 beaten egg
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup cream
4 cups rhubarb

Place fresh or frozen rhubarb in a pie shell. Mix first four ingredients together and pour over rhubarb. Bake at 375°F for approximately 45 minutes or until done. Enjoy!

Have a beautiful day,
Julia

My Journey

2009-10-29T19:54:00.002-04:00

If you'd told me a year ago, even a couple months ago that I'd be writing a creative home blog I would have thought you'd have lost your mind. Perhaps I've lost mine taking on this endevour but I'm having so much fun rediscovering beauty in my home, I just have to share. Have I completed some major decorating? No. Do I have some particularly fabulous ideas? No. Money to spend? Not really. I'm just a stay at home mom with five kids and a wonderful hubby being happy puttering at home.

I've been home for 19 years now. Funny how the time flies. While I've always loved being home, spending time with my family, recently I've been reminded what a treasure it is. This blog is a bit of a record of the creative projects I make for my home, some thoughts and ramblings of being home, a place to share some recipes, a journal of thrifty home ideas and a place to share my journey of finding beauty @ home.

Thanks for joining me,
Julia