The Blue PRIZE!

As we all know now...I was so delighted when Sandi noticed I did not have a refrigerator in my kitchen...probably because I always wondered IF anyone would ever notice!  I thought Sandi should get a prize for being sooo observant! I thought about doing a "give away" like the other blogs but it just didn't seem to suit this blog...but it is very exciting to me... to be able to send out prizes every once in a while to show how much I appreciate you all!

In honor of the "blue paper" saga going on in my kitchen...the room which started all of this in the first place...I thought and thought about what would be a fun "prize" to give Sandi...

Here is what I came up with:

A 1/2 gallon Blue Ball Jar complete with zinc lid...and then I couldn't make up my mind...would she rather have two quart jars?  I don't know...so I will leave it up to Sandi...

Sandi? you have your choice....One 1/2 gallon Blue Ball jar with zinc lid or....

two blue quart jars with zinc lids...

E-mail me with your choice and I will send them out to you! 

I want you all to know how much I appreciate your vigilance and your interest in our blog! You make my life a joy and your comments motivate me to do better and better!  Even when some of my projects are complete and utter failures? You are truly..always...supportive, funny and kind!

Congratulations Sandi, I hope you enjoy them as I do and may you never, ever....EVER...have to deal with BLUE PAPER! Big HUGS!

Cottage Kitchen Wall Update...

emolAn update....wow...my kitchen? is now in my living room! I really like having removable items, I can rearrange my kitchen just like my living room if I want to!

All of your comments left me laughing all day today! I promise I won't go nuts because of the wall paper...since it is gone now! Wasn't the "yellow wallpaper" story that Vintage Whimsy shared with us creepy? Loved it!   LOL!

 Oh! My poor, sweet, shiny, BRIGHT...little kitchen....it looks just like when I moved in here! EWWWW!

Now all that is left? is scraping...and cussing....lot's a scraping...a little cussing...

Just to let you see how dark it is in here now...

Oh...and this is the BLUE PAPER....

I did this in every room in the house...for hours and hours...I am so glad that every bit of it will be gone...forever....

I also found a tidbit that told me a little about my house...

It was carved with what I am assuming...was a nail...into the back of the door molding....

It says 1866 Curtis...

AND for the GRAND FINALE...

Sandi, who has been with me since the very beginning is the only one who has noticed (or mentioned) that I don't have a refrigerator in my kitchen! I always wondered if anyone ever noticed...I think Sandi deserves a prize!

Cottage Kitchen Wall VOTE...

Well, all of you pointed out what a charming addition plank walls would be to the kitchen...my dilemma? BLUE PAPER...but I have to concur with most of you...it is totally worth it.

After reading all your comments? I soooo appreciate you guys looking out for me!  I was a real DILETANTE when I first got this house, hopefully I have learned some things since then! We have decided to take down the dry wall in the kitchen...my first lesson was to clean everything and remove all furniture before I do this! that way? I can contain the ....da da DUH DA... the blue paper...and my wonderful Honey? He said he would do all the scraping this time if it bothered me...what a doll baby!

I started removing the drywall today and guess what? the blue paper stuck to the wall paper underneath...hardly any of it is on the wall...YAAAAY! and there is only ONE layer of wall paper!

I just had to show you the Mother of all wall paper underneath the drywall...

It was probably quite pretty in it's day but I can imagine if depression were an issue with the Lady of the house? She would go crazy...just this one wall darkened the kitchen so much it hurt my feelings!

I am so excited for the finished results of the cottage walls! Back to peeling, scraping....cussing...;)

Lurking....

I have been lurking...I admit it...My name is Lisa...and I AM a lurker...

Miss Mustard Seed has a lot of followers...and she also,  is a follower of many...well a few weeks ago...I started looking at who SHE follows....sometimes...I get to lurking for hours...there are just sooo many incredible blogs out there...

I came across some of the European blogs she follows...WOW! I just can't get enough of them....they have such fantastic content!  I couldn't understand a word they were saying because, well, I only speak English...some have a translate button on them...which I didn't see at first because I was so enthralled with their photo's...no words needed to be said just for that reason...Well, to make a long story short...I came across a couple of blogs that were so beautiful I just kept going back on a daily basis...

This morning...THIS MORNING! I was blessed with a new follower...IT"S HER! The lady I was lurking! She liked our blog too!  I just have to share her with you...here is a sneak peek of the eye candy that awaits...

She is Uruguay White Life http://uruguay-az.blogspot.com/

I am continually amazed at you ladies that want to view this blog...my humble hut could never compare to some of your homes! I have only seen Donna's...and it is incredible!  In fact, I was going to do a post on all our homes but...alas..she was the only one brave enough to send a pic! (hint, hint)

I am thinking Donna should be the one with a blog about decorating! Is that not just the dreamiest house? Classy..timeless...farmhouse...BIG SIGH!

If you do have spare time this week? I would encourage you to spend some time in Europe...it is a wonderful journey...

DON'T EVER let me do that again...

I really thought "RED is what makes me happy"...and it does! in small doses...THIS...however...was not making me very happy, in fact? it was down right HORRIBLE!

My Honey was right the first time...it was too much red...it looked like C-R-A-P! and every time I looked at it? That went thru my head...until I almost hauled it outside and put it in the shed...

Today...I got a clue and finally did something about it...

AAAAH...that's better...and I finished the 3D Wall art...

And now it makes sense in my kitchen...THIS? Really makes me happy!

I got a glue gun! Look out! I will not only spray paint you...wax you...slipcover you...I will gluuuue you too! Well, if you stand still long enough...hee hee!

My first order of business today besides the linen closet? was another little box I netted when I got the house...it's a shoe shine box...and this is one of the only boxes in this house not filled with seeeeds...or dried plants...it was totally "weed free".... It was, in fact? Filled with little shoe shine implements...yaaay!

I painted it...imagine that! LOL!  But I have also been extremely interested in decoupage lately too, soooo...this was my first victim...not a very good try but I will find something better soon!

I took the paternal name...found it's coat of arms on the internet and played with Microsoft Word...this is what came out of that dalliance:

 

I really want to find a cool border for it... to go around the raw edges...but like many things around here? It will have to wait til I find it...

I think it will be very charming someday...and maybe a different color too! HA HA!

Sooo I got this OTHER chair...

because...the folks that gave me the other one? wanted it back...

We all know that there are a lot of victims out there just waiting for Lisa to find them so she can try her new slip-covering skills on them! Hee Hee! So, I wasn't too worried about giving the chair back...Well, bout six months ago, I made a foray into town to the local thrift store and they had a new influx of furniture...in there was a chair...I wanted it soooo bad!  It was marked at $75.00! I don't know where these people get the idea that just because it is old means it's worth your first born child...but they obviously thought it was...

About two weeks ago...I made another foray...back to look at this antique chair...(no one else was crazy enough to pay $75.00 bucks for it either) and I looked at it again...nope...not doing it...well, I got to talking to the ladies...and then I asked them..."Do you ever make deals here?"  "What kind of deals?" they asked...

"Well...for starters...on your furniture..." Now...these ladies? are like nuns...they can tie you up in knots with a look...and NO ONE is pulling the wool over their eyes....they look sweet...but they are savvy...they sound sweet...but they will take...you...OUT....

They just stared at me with squinty eyes....until a gentleman walked up with a question... One of those "sweet"  older ladies says to him (whisper) "This "girl" wants to make an offer on our furniture"....."oh you do do you?"  he said...(same squinty look) "Well, yes sir, I do" I said....

"What you want to make a deal on?"  "Well", I said...that old chair you got back there...the one that has been sitting here for six months..." and I just stared at him unblinking...well, he told me he would go take a look with me...and that is what we did...

Then the haggling began and he walked away TWICE!  I wanted to scream at him! "THIS IS ST VINCENT DE PAUL THRIFT STORE! It's NOT a fine furniture store!"

"How much you willing to pay?" he asked finally...and...$25 bucks rolled off my tongue like silk...He actually stared at me like I had two heads! "o.k young lady but you are getting a really good deal here..." he said

"Mmmmhmmmm...." was my reply...

And here is what my $25.00 bucks got me...

And Man...is it ugly! It was worth it...to haggle with that den of senior citizens and their squinty eyes...

This chair is solid oak and it is HEAVY! but it was in pretty bad shape...I started a slip cover for it...but it just wasn't the slip cover kind of chair...

 I had even put a neat edge on it..but somehow...it just didn't look right...

and the finish was pretty ratty...Now...I hate re-finishing furniture...so it sat for awhile...my brain kept going back to what you all said about the "dark" stain....I just couldn't make myself do it...there are few things I will not do...but...refinishing wood furniture is one I just procrastinate on...and I couldn't get past the dirty, nasty fabric on it...so I ripped the whole thing apart...

I started with trying to find something for padding...my vacuum is now scarred beyond recognition from sucking up the hay or straw or whatever this chair was stuffed with! I tried some pillow batting but it was lumpy...

 I actually had an egg crate mattress pad I used on my truck...so it was selected as the padding winner!

 Then? I was going to throw some drop cloth on the top and see what I could find for upholstery...at a later date...

Well...the dark stain never did get on the chair...I ended up painting it black...and it really looked awesome! so on to upholstery...

If you ever decide to upholster something? get an electric staple gun...my hands still feel like they are going to fall off of my body from the manual stapler I have!  I used the old upholstery as a pattern and like a bozo...I tried the furniture tacks first...my hands might be sore from the staple gun? but my thumb hurts worse from all the times I hit it with the hammer trying to pound those little suckers in!

And here we are...my first upholstery job...she looks considerably better with new clothes on! She is not finished, there are a few more details I have to attend to...

My floors look so awful since I took all the finish and wax off of them...but soon...soon they will be beautiful....

What happened to Miss 1982 you ask? well...she and her sister are now part of my bedroom suite...

Roses and fabric and spring...

HELLO ALL~

I have been on a much needed vacation...I think I was suffering from burn out...I was so tired.  My job is ending here in two weeks and wow...I am so glad! This has been the longest three months of my life...there has been a few things going on here as spring approaches!  My ducks have started laying eggs again...YAAAY! Duck eggs are wonderful! AND LARGE!

For some reason, most that ask about them seem to think they will have a way different taste than a chicken egg...but they are pretty much exactly the same...maybe a wee bit thicker but that is it...and of course, much larger...one duck egg to every two or three chicken eggs....

I found a Co-op in my town! They are willing to purchase all the eggs I can get to them PLUS all my produce! No more outside jobs for this girl! Hopefully this place, as small as it is, will start paying for itself...I am sure on my way to find out!

Last week, I started 100 seedlings with the plan to have a spring plant sale...there is not much of a selection up here in the way of nursery plants...most of what you can glean is offered by Walmart and Kmart...I am going to try and change that and make a small name for myself...

I grew Artichokes last summer...that is completely unheard of up here or anywhere with a short growing season, that is...but it can be done and I really want people to know that...they are so conditioned to rules that they think they have such a small selection to choose from...

I was talking to some folks at work and have garnered much support and tons of questions! I am going to try to have a small class on gardening for the home school group in my area that want to grow their own food...I already have two families that want to know and with their help maybe our town will start growing and eating locally!  I was also invited to Chicago, expenses paid, to do a presentation to a garden club! Isn't that something?  Seems to be a little over my head though...I am just a cowboy gardener...trial and error...I do exactly what I want regardless of anyone else's rules...I was reading all sorts of garden blogs...I was disheartened...confused...and ready to throw in the towel...and then? I just put what I wanted in the dirt...and by July I had a basket of artichokes...(much to my complete delight and surprise!)

During my hiatus in the last couple of weeks, I did manage to get some decorating done...small things, but things that really make me smile!

I dug a lamp out of the garbage a few years ago...it is a candle stick lamp with a silk shade...I tore the fabric off, it was so dirty but I kept the frame...I am glad I did...

I was so consumed with spring fever...I want flowers and greenery so bad! so I played with some of the drop cloth left overs from Miss 1982...while I was lolling on the couch watching movies...and this is what I came up with...a big..fat...squishy...flower....and a ruffled slip cover for the lampshade frame...it has been dubbed "the fishing hat" lamp shade...it seems to remind me of an old floppy fishing hat...

OOOH! and Roses...I was so dying for some flowers...I even went to BUY flowers....something so not in character for me...DO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY WANT FOR A COUPLE ROSES? WOW...

I came home very bent out of shape....and without any flowers...

Soooo...what do you think of that pretty rose at the top of this post? Well...it is paper...a paper rose...that I made...and painted....and I can make and paint...75 flowers if I want to...and the cost?  6 BUCKS!

I was so enthralled with them I have been making them for a week now! The three in the little vase by my fishing hat lampshade are the first ones I made...I haven't put the leaves or anything on them yet..but I will...they are gorgeous and this is how I found out about them...

I surfed the net for fabric flowers...cuz I have tons of fabric...none looked authentic...but there were a lot of very pretty ones...I came across a video from Martha Stewart that teaches you how to make paper roses.....they are made out of COFFEE FILTERS! HEE HEE!

You all have to try this...they are incredible and very REAL looking...the web site is http://www.mommymakesroses.com/

Just peruse her site...drool...and then click on the "as seen on Martha Stewart" button and awaaay you will go.....WARNING....they are very addictive...and the more you make the better they get...I have ventured into carnations as well...

The lady that thought these up is an artist...she paints hers with watercolors...I didn't have any...sooo...I watered down my favorite primer and added food coloring...it worked beautifully...and the latex...although messy, gave them a beautiful, soft texture...I HEART them! I LUH HUV them! I hope you do too! With some dried fern and baby's breath a dozen long stem roses in the color of your choice for under  $4.00? Don't worry about them looking real...I took these to work with me and had several people try to smell them and get poked in the nose with paper! LOL!

I acquired two new items for the living room...large items....here is a sneak peek...