Friends

Just had to share the gift my daughter gave me for Christmas. Don't judge my love of "Friends". This will make a great conversation piece. Thanks Mallory!!

Step Stool for Lucy

Just wanted to post a picture of a footstool I bought at the local thift store. Again, no "Before" picture but here is the "After". 

I bought it for my beautiful granddaughter, (see below) so she can sit at the coffee table to eat, color, or work on a puzzle. It lives tucked under the coffee table just waiting for Lucy to visit. 

The original had a woven heavy weight fabric with a horse jockey theme. I replaced it with a softer fabric but honestly I might change it again because after Lucy used it last I realized its not the most kid-friendly fabric. But for now.....

 

My Beautiful Granddaughter

Garden Porch Table

After finishing the plant stand, (see here), I had some ASCP left over and decided to save one of my porch tables from donation to the local thift store. I bought this table years ago from Ikea as a side table in a rental apartment. It was never very appealing but did the job in the rental. Because I never really had a use for it in my new home it found a place on the front porch. 

So...with the leftover ASCP (Duck Egg) I went to work.

 To tone down the brightness I did a little sanding....

.... and then hand rubbed Minwax Wood Finish (Gunstock) stain (wiped on wiped off) and finished off with Minwax Finishing Wax

 

So...for an afterthought project, not bad. I must say I am not thrilled with the orangish streaks from the Gunstock colored stain but in the end I think the thrift store will not be getting this table after all....at least not this year. LOL

Pretty Plant Stand

Yesterday I came across The Red Dresser, a wonderful little shop owned by Kris Foran. Besides the beautiful hand painted pieces she also offers classes in and sells Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  I decided to buy a small tin of Duck Egg ASCP and give it a try on a thrift store plant stand I had bought a while back ($5). 

Honestly I had already worked the heck out of the piece with primer, paint, sanding, stain, more sanding, primer again, etc, etc, and was about to throw it out (ahhhhh) and have no "before" picture (note to self..always take pictures immediately after bringing home a thrift store find), but here is the after.

 

Not the End of this Table

Over the summer I found this end table at a thrift store. It was in unloved shape but something about it made me decide to buy it, take it home, and turn it into what I assume it used to be. Plus it only cost $6 and I figured if I didn't get it back in shape it wouldn't be the end of the world. 

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture before I started but I think you get the idea of the shape it was in.

 

 

I was hoping my sander would take off all the vanish and stain but no luck so I had to use a stripper. 

 

 A note about this piece of furniture; 
I found, stamped on the bottom of the table, "Cheatham Furniture Company of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma", so I did a google search and found that the company was in business in 1946 and currently listed as dissolved. The owner was listed as James Cheathman Jr. 

With a little more searching I found the obituary in The Daily Oklahoman (dated May 27, 1975) for Mr. Cheathman. It reported that the man who was involved in some way in creating this piece of furniture was a native of Oklahoma City who was married with three sons, two daughters, and six grandchildren. He attended the University of Oklahoma, sailed, and played golf. 

I hope he would be happy with the way his table's restoration turned out.  

It was a Merry Christmas

 Happy Holidays to You All and Welcome 2013. 

It was a great holiday for our family filled with family gatherings, gift giving, and lots and lots of food.  I am truly blessed with a loving mom, an amazing husband, four great children, a wonderful son-in-law, and the most beautiful granddaughter ever. I am and will remain filled with "JOY"!

 The letters came from Michael's Crafts. They were white so I painted them with leftover red wall paint and then sanded the edges so that the white showed through. I then covered with clear satin polyurethane.

 

Here's the mantel all decked out for Christmas. See a tutorial on how I made the mirror HERE

Used my granddaughter's DIY chalkboard to follow the Christmas countdown!!

Watching our favorite Christmas movie was a must...

 A chocolate cake with chocolate and white icing...yummy

And of course Santa came to Nana's house and left a full stocking for her to open on Christmas day.

(the stocking was made for her last year and the name was done on the sewing machine)

My beautiful Granddaughter

Merry Christmas from Us :)

A Serious Note to Dog Lovers

A Reminder this Holiday Season from Chloe and Buttons. . . .

BUTTONS - adopted January 2, 2011

CHLOE - adopted May 1999

 

The holidays are a busy season for puppy sales. I want to remind everyone that puppies purchased over the Internet, through newspaper ads, or at pet stores, often come from puppy mills. Purchases made from these sources unknowingly support puppy mills which are inhumane breeding facilities that produce puppies in large numbers. They are designed to maximize profits and commonly disregard the physical, social, and emotional health of the dogs. The breeding dogs at puppy mills live their entire lives in cages and poor conditions often lead to severe physical and behavioral problems for the puppies they produce.  The best way to stop cruel puppy mills is to stop supporting them. If you're adding a canine companion to your family, visit your local animal shelter or find a reputable breeder and insist on visiting their premises in person to see how and where your puppy's mother is living. By patronizing a responsible breeder, shelter or rescue group, you can help defeat the inhumane puppy mill system that places profit above animal welfare. Check out Petfinder and visit Humane Society for a checklist of good breeder characteristics. People who love dogs should help prevent animal cruelty by making sure they aren't supporting a puppy mill. 

My Grandson Ziggy

My Grandson Silas

 




Thank You & Merry Christmas!!!