Oh Crap! Moments

A couple of months ago my husband brought a dresser home for me.    A very nice gesture on his part.  (Thank you husband.)  Thing is, it was painted with a glossy black enamel.   Which can also be spelled N-I-G-H-T-M-A-R-E! 

I decided to attack this while the weather was still mild enough to use the nasty old stripping gel – outside.   No way around it.


To make the job a wee bit easier, I popped off the wood applique.


I sanded it and took a break from it (as in weeks) – just one of those kind of projects.  Then I got a call the day before our big sale last week that a vanity had sold and I needed something new to bring in.  One of those “Oh crap!”  calls!  Less than 24 hours before the sale!


Somehow we manage!  Installed in the shop in time!

Applique replaced with a vintage brooch.

Ta-da!

Recycled Christmas

I must admit I am very….ummm….feeble….in the holiday decorating department in my booth. I keep it to a minimum and tend to integrate things that can be used after the season is over.

I use recycled items when I can so it mostly comes down to what I have on hand. A few years ago I came across a daycare center that was replacing their windows and there were stacks of them - free for the taking. (I’m still working on that stash.)

This one is in it’s second life.   Four years ago, I (with help) built a cold-frame so I could start seeds earlier in the Spring. It served me for 4 summers but this year the glass and cross bars were falling out so I took it apart. Removed the innards and bleached the beautifully weathered frame.

I intended to attach chicken wire to make a note board / message center but the roll was 2” too narrow.   Now what?   I was going to staple the inside of the frame.

I started to do this but I found that the wire could be stretched far enough to be stapled to the back of the frame. Perfect!

 

The berry wreath would be my way a Christmas-izing it!

 

See. Feeble!

Nature’s Bounty

I am an outdoor lover.  I love walking in the woods and swimming in the ocean.  I probably should have been born with fur… or gills.  I especially love the crisp fall air.  So, last weekend, I headed out to a local pond.  Snips in hand and look what I found….

 

Makes me think of that old song … “.......and I said to myself, what a wonderful world”. 

Really.  Take a look around.  Mother Nature knows what she is doing!   How blessed are we?

P.S.  The ‘snow’ in the vase is epsom salts.  Such a thrifty project!   More on the frame in my next post.  This is it's 3rd life!