Sequence of Events and The Baylie Bear Cowl

Oh HI!  I forgot I had a blog!



So here is a little (life changing) sequence of events:

1. Last March my sister and I flew to Ecuador to be with my parents for 12 days.  My dad had been diagnosed with cancer in January of that year, 2012.  A year I will never forget.

2. I like projects, so I decided to learn to crochet on that trip.  I was inspired by my sister-in-law, Kristi, who does beautiful crochet creations.  After learning a few things about crochet and making a few scarves, I didn't think much about crochet after returning from Ecuador.

3. My dad passed away in July of 2012.  I miss him so much.

4. When the weather began to cool here in Southern California (yes, we do we get a few chilly days a year here), I picked up crochet again.  And couldn't stop.

5. Tim, the wonderful man that I married, bought me my very first DSLR for Christmas.

6. And so here I am to share some pictures of a picture shoot of my latest crochet project, sweetly modeled by my little girl who was promised a lollipop for posing.  I am definitely a beginner at both crochet and photography, but you have to start somewhere.



The pattern for this hood is called the Baylie Bear Cowl by The Velvet Acorn.  I purchased the pattern on Etsy.

Cora had fun pretending she was a little bear cub.  I had fun playing with my camera and thinking about how much my dad would have enjoyed seeing these pictures.

Back to School Desk

My friend Keni's daughter Kailyn has a birthday that falls right around the beginning of the new school year.  So what better gift for a girl turning eight then a beautiful new desk?  Her parents purchased this piece on Craigslist and I got the privilege of painting it!

The desk is painted in a light French grey, but to really appreciate the finished look of this desk, you have to see the before picture:

The desk had a thick coat of gummy, clumpy, cream-colored paint.  It was all around a terrible paint job.  To get the top of the desk down to a smooth surface I had to strip off the old paint.  This was a first for me, and a learning experience.  There are some things I would do differently next time, but in the end the paint came off and underneath was a beautiful wood grain.  To allow some of that wood grain to show through, I only did a white wash on the top of the desk followed with a coat of polycrylic to protect the surface.  I personalized the desk by stenciling a K...I knew Kailyn would think that was special!

One of the fun parts of this project was re-covering the seat of the chair.  I really enjoyed choosing the fabric and using the new staple gun my hubby bought me!  I'm looking forward to doing more reupholstery projects in the future.  There are SO MANY gorgeous fabrics out there!  

A little surprise color in the inside of the drawers in the way of girly wrapping paper - just for fun!

The original hardware was pretty, so I put it right back on.  I think this desk has a timeless look.  Hopefully Kailyn will enjoy using it for many years to come.

A Baby Shower for Debbie

I have a beautiful sister.




She is having a baby boy.




Of course, we had to celebrate with a pretty shower.




Lots of darling friends came, with sweet names like Charlotte and Riley.

One especially good friend even flew out to be there.  With her baby.  That's the kind of friends Debbie has.

And have I ever mentioned that Debbie has a wonderful MIL that likes to SPOIL?  (Everyone should invite her to their showers!)




I painted a cute shelf for the nursery.  Love.




The shower crew (with the guest(s) of honor).  We made a good team.






It was a truly special day. 




 Love you, sister!

Cora's Nursery

I have been wanting to share pictures of Cora's nursery for awhile now, and WOW! it always feels good when I actually follow through on something!  Hope you don't mind this picture-heavy post of my little girls' room.  It is one of my favorite spaces in our home.

Her bedroom has a vintage feel, with many handmade items.  Many things in her room were made by family and friends, or painted by me (the shelf and the rocking chair).  Other items were found at thrift stores or ordered off of etsy.com.   The wall paint color is a soft yellow called Summer Pear.

 My artist friend Beth painted the wall art of the tree and owls.  It is perfect for Cora's room and so special to have a one-of-a-kind piece like this!  I added ribbon to the bird cage and it is a great place to keep Cora's hair clips.

The following mobile was made by my sister Debbie and her husband Andy.  I love it!  It makes the prettiest shadow on the wall.  It really makes the room.

There are still more things I would like to do in this room, but I'm glad I captured it at this stage before our two-year-old moves to a big girl bed.

Thanks for stopping by!  In the comments let me know your favorite part of her room.  I'm so curious to know!

I love you, little miss TWO.

This little chickadee turned TWO.  

The flowering plum trees are blooming pink, just like they were on the day, two years ago, when we brought Cora home from the hospital.  The trees were on parade, welcoming our baby girl, in all their glory!  Tim and I love that every year, at this time, the trees remind us of the precious gift that Cora is and how blessed we are to be her mom and dad.  {Insert the boys rolling their eyes because we've told them the sappy story of the blooming plum trees one too many times.  :) }

The rocking chair in the picture was my second find at the antique fair mall, mentioned in my last post {way back in January}.  It was unpainted and looked dingy and dull...but a coat of white paint did the trick!  It now hangs out in Cora's room waiting for her to sit and rock {like I found her quietly doing today} or for her to climb up in to look at a book.  Her room has a vintage vibe, so it is the perfect addition.  {Thank you D & K for the Christmas money that went toward purchasing this chair!}

One of Cora's favorite gifts was a tea set.  She loves it and will happily serve tea to one and all.  Stop by for a tea party any time.

Lego Display from Vintage Drawer

In my last post I mentioned that my friend and I had a fun day thrifting a few weeks back.  We went to a local antique mall.  What I didn't mention is that I made a few GREAT purchases there (two, to be exact)!  I'd like to share one of my great finds and show you what I did with it.

I bought an old typeset drawer!  Didn't take me long to figure out what I would do with my purchase.  I knew it would be the perfect fun way for my boys to display their ever growing collection of lego figures!

I had to google "drawer with small compartments" to figure out what these drawers were called, but apparently these drawers were once used for storing typeset.  (Also called letterpress drawer or printer press drawer.)  I did find a good post on apartment therapy that describes these vintage drawers and shows pictures of others' displays. 

I painted the outside frame of the drawer in a whitewash and distressed it (which I realize is hard to see in the pictures...).  The inside of the drawers were already a dark brown, which I left alone.  There were two funny knobs of on the drawer, which I removed...they had roses on them and just didn't "go".  I do plan on adding a brass pull or something similar soon, so the drawer can retain a bit of it's old life.  I'd like it to be obvious that the display was once a drawer, after all!

Toby and Asher were thrilled!  They were inspired to organize their lego figures, connecting missing heads, with legs and shirts, hats, and other accessories.   We hung it low enough that they can easily organize and reorganize to their hearts content.

Check back soon to see what my other purchase was!  Oooo!  The suspense!

One thing I do know...

One thing I do know:  I really enjoy painting furniture.  One thing I don't know:  exactly where I'm going (and how God will lead) with this new hobby of mine.  I don't want to keep taking from the family budget to fund my hobby, so I need to find a way to make a little spending cash along the way so that I can keep doing this thing I love.  (I did sell a dresser I painted, which was really cool.)    

When my parents were here over the holidays (Free babysitting!!!  Thanks Mom and Dad.) I got to spend an afternoon with my good friend, Cammie.  We stopped by a local antique fair mall (big warehouse divided in to booths where people sell their antiques/collectibles/junk) and got to talking with one of the ladies who was working in her booth.   I mentioned I love to paint - she said she hates to paint.  And apparently Lisa hates it so much she would pay someone to do her painting for her because ... I ended up agreeing to paint some of her pieces.

Getting paid to do something you love is a.w.e.s.o.m.e.   Lisa picked up the first pieces I completed today and she was thrilled with the results.  (Big sigh of relief and I might be blushing a bit.)  

The table needed some TLC, but nothing some wood glue and putty couldn't fix.  Plus, that's the great thing about this style of furniture.  It doesn't have to be perfect.  Any imperfections and we conveniently say it "adds character".  I did prime, paint and wax this piece so that the table would be durable and easy to clean if food was ever placed on it.

The rocking chairs were so great.  I miss them.  Old, worn, comfortable.  I wanted to keep them.  I painted them in Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint in Pure White with a wax finish.  By stenciling the pieces they immediately became a "set".  Who wouldn't want to sit and enjoy some lemonade and cookies on these beauties?


Sigh.  One thing I do know:  I really enjoy painting furniture.