Thrift Magic 101

I've become a bit of a thrift store junkie. Like the kind that would need rehab.

Remember how excited I was about this at our local Salvation Army Thrift Store? See the frames 50% off?

What, you gasp? Thrift stores have SALES!!!

 I came home with this load of loot. Check out that 1970's red covered bridge. Not a real painting....just the cardboard printed junk. 

 But the frame had potential. $4 bucks means LOADS of potential.. 

  

Sooo, I decided that after an almost year and a half sabbatical from painting, it was time to break out the brushes.

I'll fly away is one of my favorites. Reminds me of the washboard band I was in during college. But most importantly, it reminds me of my Pop. While he was in the shutting down process in hospice at the hospital, I filmed a moment that I want to be my last memory of him. He was out of it, and not very coherent. And not really himself. I had a moment alone with him, and we were singing I'll Fly Away. If you've ever been around a dying Christian, it was very much what he was wanting to do. Hard to explain, but the words are perfect. 

. 

So I did a little painting. The frame first, then a little art. A little white wash over the cardboard. Then to the fun stuff. Free hand painting. It was so nice to have paint all over my nails instead of garden dirt.

And now it has a new home on our portrait wall. 

$4 Art. Thanks to the hubs for letting Mama have a play date. ;-)

New Mini Backyard Garden - DIY Style

 First step, a daddy who loves you.

Second, treated lumber and a way cool pneumatic nail gun and a willing Daddy as a teacher.

Third, a loving mother who has mad skills with a shovel and rake. (We took a 4' x 8' corner of the yard and turned the ground to loosen the soil.

Fourth, newspaper. Hopefully this will kill the grass underneath.

Fifth, lots of garden dirt and black cow manure. (And a strong Daddy to dump the bags.)

Sixth, a cute baby to crawl and walk all over new garden bed to pack it down.

Seventh, scrub down above mentioned baby and sit back and admire the work. ;-)

Hopefully now AO can learn more about her southern "roots" and take up gardening! Her NanO is a certified master gardener, and her Poppy plows and plants acres and acres each year.  AO has to have a green thumb in there somewhere!  The way she likes the dirt....I think we are off to a good start!

We grew up gardening each summer and composting. I want AO to see how food is grown so she understands it isn't just unloaded off a truck at Publix. Important life skills that are dying with the generations.

Hobby Lobby Lunch Break

It's no secret I have two favorite stores in my life. My number one favorite spot? Hobby Lobby.   After the April 27 Tuscaloosa tornado took the original out, they moved EVEN CLOSER to my office. Meaning my lunch breaks are frequent HL trips.  The hubs wasn't nearly as excited about it opening up so close. I was seriously elated.

This trip I was on a mission. Scouting for curtain fabric for the guest bedroom redo. The walls are getting a grey paint makeover. (Thanks to my second favorite store, Lowe's. Straight off the clearance paint rack.)  I'm thinking of using the navy chevron against those (hopefully painted soon) grey walls. What do you think? Goal would be that this would be a more neutral guest room. But in the event (ONE DAY DOWN THE ROAD) we are blessed with another baby, we could just add hot pink for a girl or keep as is for a boy.  What I don't want next time is to be in the hospital with a crew at my house working their bums off to be ready for a baby. 

Every good Hobby Lobby enthusiast knows one thing. You NEVER buy Hobby Lobby unless it is on sale. So, this was just a scouting adventure. Maybe the sale will hit just about payday. :-) I scored a bedspread and lamp at Freds. Getting excited about the direction this one is headed. 

  Happy Wednesday. :-)

Arleigh's new Corner - Work in Progress

Do you remember those massive rose bushes? Well....we said bye-bye to those. Priss-pot has her very own corner. Not bad for a 14 month old. ;-)

Sticky old rose bushes gone. New kids corner in progress.

We used the dog-child Clarence's old summer wading pool for a sandbox. (Just don't forget to drill holes for the water to drain!) We did dig a bit of a hole to put the sand box (old pool) down into so it's easier for her short little baby legs to climb in and out.

Old pots got a few dollar tree flowers. An old wire planter is now a toy holder. And a mismatched board found for FREE in front of the Habitat Restore...Becomes an adorable little chalkboard.

Reuse, reuse, reuse. Upcycle, and then Upcycle some more. I want new floors, remember? :-)

Back Porch After

And here's after elbow grease and spray paint. Still a work in progress. But it's much improved! We reused almost everything. Including our old rug from indoors. The only things we purchased was spray paint, mulch and play sand for AO's corner, and a flat of sweet potato vine for FOUR DOLLARS at the Habitat Thrift Store.

Back Porch Before

Ah yes, the mess of a back yard. This is what happens when you have a baby and spend a summer indoors. It becomes a mess.

Notice the back corner. Rose bushes and all.

It's really sad. We live on a tiny lot in a garden home community. Our yard is so small it should look like a putting green. Yet...It's FAR from it!

Laminate Flooring - Living, Kitchen, Dining, Hall

The great floor debate for 2013.

It's no secret I want new floors. We moved into our house new, but I didn't get to choose the flooring. The living room and kitchen open up to each other in a great-room type of way, but they are separated by a cheap linoleum in the kitchen and carpet in the living room. Three months ago, as AO was learning to crawl and walk, I thought carpet was the way to go. But now that she's up and running, and hauling mess and stomping bananas into the carpet, it's gotta go. My biggest reason is probably allergies. I've always been anti-carpet because it holds every little dust-mite imaginable.

But we're still debating what we want exactly. We're sure a laminate hardwood. But that's as close as we get to the same page.

Have you seen laminate lately? It's come SUCH a long way from the fake oak inexpensive stuff of years ago. This stuff really looks like hardwood. And it's 10 times as durable. 

If I had a message to flooring stores and to Lowes - it would be to PLEASE put different full room flooring pictures on your websites. It makes it so difficult to visualize without those pictures. I'm a very visual person, and do a pretty good job picturing the space. But picturing it off a tiny chip doesn't do much justice.

I'm thinking I want something in the middle of the specturm, but more on the dark side that looks like hand-scraped flooring. But not so dark it shows every spec. And we a fairly certain we (Well I'm sure) don't want a gloss finish just because it will show everything as well. But we are not on the same page with tone. John likes light and I like mid-dark. Decisions, decisions.

We're also leaning towards having these installed instead of DIY. It's such a large space, and I would be heartbroken if it didn't do right.   (These images are courtesy of google search. Hickory Laminate flooring.)

It's not cheap either.... We're still discussing budget...Because of course we're on different pages as well. :-)
Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Custom Cupcake Stick Toppers

I love vistaprint. I uploaded the party design and had envelope seals printed. I used a scrapbook punch and sucker sticks. Now I'm in the assembly portion of the project. I hope these look as cute as they look in my head for the party! I think they are going on chocolate cupcakes. I almost bought some toppers off etsy...but heck, creating is half the fun!

I rarely get to use my creative thoughts for "fun" projects because I stay busy. But, thanks to my sweet husband who's been painting backgrounds and assembling and mailing out orders, I can have time to be creative! ;-)

  

I did the invitation myself (one of those fun graphic design projects) then uploaded (all to match) and printed banners, signs, stickers, bags,  invitations....you name it.......on vista print. I've gone way overboard, but it's part of the Aunt Pen "being" Aunt Pen that John will have to get use to with me. My baby bubba is having a baby, and I can't help but be pumped! Especially with everything going on with us lately. It's been good baby therapy!