My Sampler and a Another Painted Room

Sheesh I get so behind on my blog when I'm busy. Let's see I've gone to Goodwill twice, finished my sampler I started a long time ago, and painted the living room since Friday. So now my entire downstairs is completely repainted and ready for decorating. I have an idea of what I want in my kitchen, but I'm not going to share that with you just yet. LOL. I'm not sure how I'm going to accomplish it.

Anyway, my sampler... other than being crooked and the fact I can't count it is done. I think I can live with it as long as it is in my dining room where I don't see it everyday. I am just so critical of myself. LOL. I'm just deciding whether or not to coffee stain it. And I need a frame and I want to frame it correctly. If I've read correctly you are to use acid free paper behind it and put it under glass too. Not too sure though maybe I need to research a little more.



Then of course we (I) wanted to paint the kitchen. It is Winter Wheat from Lowe's. It is a dark tan color. Not sure this is the best pick for the kitchen, but it doesn't make my ugly 70s dark brown plastic cupboards stand out. Can't paint them since this is a rental. Oh well... Steve and I are trying to figure out how to change the backsplash without having to take down the old and still have the original one there when I leave. We have a few ideas, but not sure they will work. Steve left me to paint Sunday so he could go help his parents. Let's just say I wore more of the paint I think then what's on the walls.





Like I said I made two trips to Goodwill this weekend because I saw the cutest crocheting pattern for baby shoes and told my Mom. Well, she asked me if I bought it. No I didn't so I had to go back. LOL. But on my return trip I found a few other things.


Hmmm... seems to me I heard something about a toothbrush rug awhile back. Seems interesting though there will be NO heart rugs in this home. I'll just make an oval one. LOL



A jar with the wick part in it all ready to grunge for a light.



My new $.50 HEAVY corner shelf.



How about a $.99 tea stained quilted square?



Loved the middle two cross stitch books with quilt square looking things. And a quilt pattern for a new tree skirt. Yeah yeah don't get your hopes up that I'll have it done for this Christmas. LOL



I got a few more things like a big quilting hoop and two candle holders that look like wood bobbins. I forgot to take pics.

Well, I go back to my old position tomorrow. Working 3 14 hour days a week. I was offered another job today at a hospital, but had to turn it down due to it only being 24 hours a week. In order for me to make ends meet I'd have to work 3 jobs totalling 58 hours a week. That would cut into my crafting time! I can't give up that time. It's my relaxation. For those who follow my blog you know that I posted if I was married and wasn't the sole provider I would've taken the job. Then you also remember that Steve offered to go to Vegas this weekend to get hitched. I thought I'd re post that so those of you who read my blog could get a laugh out of that. LOL... There will be NO Vegas weddings anytime soon. Hawaii MAYBE... LOL.

Make Do Chair DONE!

After shopping all day Tuesday, working a 24 hour shift Wednesday to Thursday and being up all night Wednesday, a job interview Thursday morning, and then working another 8 hours after the interview I was pooped. I came home last night sat on the couch and vegged before falling asleep at 9:30. I am still trying to catch up on sleep this morning. I got up with my kids for school and then fell asleep on the couch again until 9:30. So why am I still tired. LOL.

Finally, I got my shower this morning and then decided to stuff my cushion for my make do chair to finish it up. I decided to stuff it with wood shavings and saw dust. Holy Moley is it heavy!





I wanted it to look like a quilted cushion so I ACTUALLY cut some of my fabric in my stash and made a mini quilt. I had an old cutter quilt that I was going to cut to make it but I couldn't cut a square big enough to make it look right since it was a log cabin style. I have other plans for that now.



I also finished up some gameboards Steve made for me. He did the dartboard and tic tac toe boards with no stencils. He then of course had to hang them without asking me where I wanted them. I have a Chinese Checker board in progress still. My wall is getting there!!!!



I forgot my camera when I went shopping Tuesday with all my friends. We all had a great time!!! Pam, Rose, Stacie, and myself all went to Berlin (Amish Country). We browsed through some shops had a fabulous lunch. I ordered some sweet potato fries that had the MOST amazing dip. At first I couldn't figure out what it is. Everyone at our table of course had to try them to figure it out. We for the most part decided it was cream cheese and cinnamon but there was something else. So we finally asked and here they had maple flavoring, cinnamon, cream cheese, and I think that was it. It was to die for. Then the people at the table behind us saw it and heard us talking about it. So they too ordered it and Pam saw the guy taking his finger and licking out the bottom of the cup to get the last of it. LOL. We ended our day at the thrift shops. Pam is the best thrift shopper. She puts me to shame. LOL. This lady can figure out how to make just about any craft she sees. She is the queen of redos. So I have labeled her my craft advisor. She will be teaching the rest of us on Tuesday Sept 21st how to make grungy jars. Any of you who want to come you are welcome too.

Anyway, at the last thrift stop Rose yells for me saying she found something for me. She walks over with these huge candles. She said "I thought you could use these." "Ummmm Rose what in the world would I do with those." LOL. She shrugs her shoulders and says "Put them on a peg?" Ahhhh NO I think I'll pass.

Sorry phone pic...She is holding the candles look how huge they were!!!! If you did buy them I guess they wouldn't burn down very fast. Not sure I have a candle holder to put them in either. LOL Thanks Rose for being a good sport so I could take the picture. And that's Pam on the left. Stacie needed to get home so she had already left. But next time I will take more pics of everyone.



Pam and I have known each other for a long time since she used to work at one of the prim shops I go to. We lost touch when she quit. However, I still heard what she was up to through my friends Rose. So on Tuesday it was so awesome to see her again. We all hugged and we picked up like we have talked everyday. There was never a moment of silence. One of these days I'm going to her home to take pics to post on here. We already discussed it. Then maybe she will do a tutorial on one of her items and I'll post it here. Hint hint Pam! Anyway, she gave me this great candle jar. Thank you again Pam. I have been eye balling these forever!!! It's hard to see but there is a wrought iron candle holder that hooks on the edge of the jar inside.



Well, off to rearrange again. I sold my black candle stand on Tuesday to Stacie and her boyfriend. I had all my cookbooks in the bottom so I need to find something else to put them in. My dining room now has a partially empty wall. LOL. Hmmmm... hey Steve I think I want a .... LOL.

Is the Weekend Over Already???

Shew!!!! I feel like this weekend went way too fast. Steve actually came over Saturday and stayed all day. He vowed he was going to hang my new/old light, finish my TV stand he started last Christmas, and make my footstool for my chair. Well, two out of three ain't bad. He didn't even touch my TV stand because it started raining and he couldn't work on it with the tools outside. I guess I'll forgive him because he did make some other things for me. While he was busy I was busy inside. I made a promise that while I was working my 24 hour shifts I would try to strip the wallpaper border off of my kitchen walls. OK strip just the paper backing because the top part pulled off some time ago. So bright and early... OK 9am I got my hot water and white vinegar together and went to town stripping the backing. YES... this is going way to easy... It's like 11 AM and I was done!!!! Or so I thought. :( I knew it wouldn't be this easy. While I was scraping some of the left over off I thought why is there still a freaking line around the top of my wall. Wait a minute I think I gouged the wall in a place so I better check it. UMMMMM.... NOOOOOO someone painted over top another border paper backing. WHAT????? SERIOUSLY!!!! So now I have another border to scrap off. And of course this one has paint over top so my water and vinegar doesn't penetrate and I can't find my little tool that has the teeth that you lightly poke holes in the border to let the water through. GRRRRR...... I hate rentals!!!!! LOL. So back to work I went scrapping and cursing. LOL. Steve felt sorry for me and helped me after he told me to just scrape where it was noticeable and we'd paint over it again. That worked fine until I'd get to a corner and the border would tear around the corner and look terrible so I had to scrape that wall. Needless to say the whole room got done. Dang it Mike Holmes from "Holmes on Homes" (HGTV) he says if you're gonna do it, do it right the first time. So here is the kitchen now...

I thought my walls were white... nope they are a very light grey. You can see where someone painted over the border.





Since I was working on that... the first project Steve did was the new/old light. Can you tell it's an old funnel? Rose from the prim shop asked me what I was gonna use the funnel for the other day when I bought it. I told her a light, not quite sure she believed me. LOL.



Then Steve worked on my foot stool for my make do chair. I finished that up Saturday night. The base is another free item. It was a bar stool. Steve just cut some plywood attached it and painted it black. It works perfect. Now I just need to make the cushion today.



Here's a little decorating I did before the footstool was done.





Then Steve made these gameboards. I still need to distress them and stain them. He did these with no stencils. LOVE them!!!!



I need to fix the smudge on this one... nothing a little sanding won't cure.



Now today and yesterday I am paying for working so hard. My upper back and shoulder are killing me. I am thinking I am just going to have to face that this is fibromyalgia now that I'm dealing with. Anyway, I am off again to Berlin tomorrow with Rose, hopefully Stacie, and some other ladies that Rose knows. It will be so much fun. I can't wait!!!!

A Look Back...

I thought today would be a good day to take a look back. Pictures of previous displays I have had both in my current and the one that ex is living in. A look at how my decorating style has changed. It is amazing to me to see the difference.

Before...









The original Gettysburg Homestead...













After...

My Make-Do Chair and an Answer

I finally got Steve to help me move my make-do chair upstairs a couple nights ago. It is not finished as I need to make the cushion. My new BFF Stacie (remember the one at work who decorates like me) has some Amish friends, who she thinks I might be able to get some sawdust from. YYIIPPEEE!!!! Oh yeah I can talk about Stacie because I know she reads my blog now. So technically I am not talking behind her back. LOL. Let's see her exact words this morning were... "You're gonna think I'm a stalker." LOL. We are both trying to talk her partner in to going part time so I can be her permanent partner. Oh and is this soon enough Rose for a post??? LOL. Nothing like going into one of my favorite prim shops and one of the ladies, who reads my blog tells me I'm not posting often enough. LOL. I guess that means I need to get busy and start crafting. Thanks for the kick in the behind. :-)

This make do chair bottom was made out of some of the junk table legs Steve and I found for free a couple weeks ago. Steve then used plywood for the back and sides. I covered it in quilt batting and made the slip cover for it. Not too shabby for my first one. I'm having Steve make a footstool to go with it cuz this chair is HUGE. If I sit all the way back my feet don't touch the ground. LOL.



Since we are in my bedroom I thought I'd share a pic of my shelf with my really cheap Goodwill blanket crane.



I'm playing with my camera to try different settings so I'll share just a few more pics with ya.





Some of you asked awhile back about how to use oven cleaner to strip paint. I am so sorry I didn't post this sooner I kept forgetting. This has to be done on a sunny day or it won't work. Go buy regular spray oven cleaner. I buy the cheapest I can find at Wal-mart. Take the item you want to strip outside. Warning: The fumes can get a little strong at times so spray with the wind at your back. Anyway, spray your item thoroughly with the cleaner. Let it sit in the sun for 10-15 minutes... don't let the oven cleaner dry on there! Then get a bucket of water, steel wool, and paper towels. Start scrubbing the item with the wood grain with the steel wool rinsing the steel wool in water often. Then wipe off with a damp clean paper towel. Keep applying the cleaner and scrubbing as much as needed to get the paint off. This is tedious and takes time, but well worth it.

The one on the Left was white... I haven't repainted the other one yet.



and now...

Adding More Goodies...

I will be adding some new goodies to my selling blog today at around 3pm. I have it scheduled just in case I find more items to add as the day goes on. Remember I will sell the item to the first person who emails me. Many of the items are made by me and with my own patterns unless marked otherwise.

Gettysburg Mercantile

Here is just a sneak peek...

Not Quite Done...

I am back with a bit longer of a post with PICS!!!! You all know I have been working on my living room. The following pictures are already outdated. LOL. OK not all of them just some of them. I will show you what I have already then of course ask your opinion in the end.

OK... Are you ready?????? LOL.





I just need to make some smaller gameboards for in between.













Now that you've seen the rest here is my problem spot. LOL NOT Steve I know what you were thinking. LOL. The wall....



I have decided not to put my HUGE black shelf back up... for now. LOL. What I'm trying to decide is what I want. My first thought is two pictures of a little boy and girl with two candle sconces on the outsides. OR I even thought of making some bigger silhouettes on canvas of two President's with candle sconces on the outside. OR Have Steve make me a double door hanging cupboard in red to put up there. I just hate to put unnecessary holes in the walls until I decide. If you'll notice most of what I'm doing is "stacking". I'm not really putting a bunch of holes in my walls yet. I'm still moving things around so I figure just stacking is better. Like I said some of this has already changed. I am still going to paint my white cabinet...when I get time. Maybe after the kids go back to school a week from today. Not that I'm counting!!!!! LOL OK yes I am.

I haven't gotten a bunch done recently craft wise, but I am almost done with my make-do chair. Once I bring it in I will get a picture of it. I just need to make a cushion which I need to find saw dust for. By the way if any of you use saw dust please give me some pointers. I have heard not to use certain kinds because of bugs or something. Anyway, give me a holler if you can point me in the right direction.

I want to thank all of you who have invited me to be your friend on Facebook. As you can tell I do post a little more often on there. LOL.