CHALK PAINTING "It's a kind, nice thing to use." -Annie

Today, I went Chalk Painting. I've slowly been hearing about Chalk paint. First, from the blogs, and then from some artist friends. 

I heard there was a class running in high point, and after painting a few pieces of furniture the old way, I decided to see what the chalk paint thing was all about (Zack might have also encouraged me to take the class after he saw some of my creations, but we won't mention that will we?).

I arrived for an all day class at the Faux Works Studio in High Point. I loved the studio area and as I met the other women that had showed up for the class, I realized this was not a hobby class, but for real professionals. AND this was one of the legit classes around.  One person drove from Jacksonville, FL. Five other women drove in from Raleigh!  

Chalk paint basically cuts out all the pre-work, stripping, sanding.  With Chalk paint, you can just start painting your work and add a little wax at the end for depth and effects.  Very easy and cuts down the time you have to work on projects!  All the women were very excited about this paint and the owner, Barbara, just raved about it.  

I learned 6 different painting techniques and about 6 waxing techniques. For me, it was just fun to be around creatives. I'm kind of see myself one-down to most true artists because I can't draw or create half of what I want to create...but I do think I have an eye for things and tend towards the creatives rather than the non-creatives.  On my own, I can come up with some creative things, but put me in a room with creative people and my heart starts to soar and my ideas getter bigger and bigger.  It's complete bliss for me to hang out and create.  

Above are pics of one of the techniques I learned...the crackeled look. I would love to make all my baseboards look like this! 

OUR YARD RE-DO

Last winter my mom and I talked about some new garden ideas for our front yard.  In March, Zack, my mom, and I worked on bringing the idea into reality!

Here's what the front yard looked like this last March




BEFORE:

         

The lawn, is just lawn, no gardens. Nice and crisp, 

but not a lot of flowers.

The front left side of the house has two trees.

The left side of the house is just bare. (We opened

the back yard gates to get a better pic of the 

of the full backyard. For another project!)

AFTER:

   After  three months of working every weekend on the yard, sore muscles from wheel barrowing mulching, and four months of watering the yard every other day....this is our finished project. Gorgeous! and I think it adds some curb appeal as well!  

Front Walkway

(Gardenias, Holly bushes, dwarf rose bushes

and annuals to fill in the space until the perennials 

grow.)

Front Side of the House

(Pink hydrangeas, irisis, daylillies from 

my mom's garden and buttercup

(wave) petunias)

Left Sid of the House

(New Magnolia tree that should go 20 ft., rose bushes,

snowball tree, potted zinnias, verbena, gerber daisy, irises.)

Wahlah!  There are lots of young plants and a few trees.  I'm not sure you can even see all the plants we put in from the pics, but it looks a lot different. Now that the weather has cooled some, I think the trees and perennials will take off! I can't wait to see how different they look by May of 2012! 

Thanks mom, for all the holes you dug and all the free plants. We couldn't have accomplished all of this without the free plants that you bought us, that are from your yard, and your active vision.  It looks beautiful!

So long Dog Days

It's August. The weather man announced that we have officially ended the dog days of summer. A tinge of loss awoke in my heart as I heard him acknowledge this Benjamin Franklin-y fact. I can't really say it's even rational, I just know that the the sight of school buses and students with back packs makes me feel like I want to savor each day with more emphasis.

Fourth of July comes and then you can't walk into a store without Halloween stuff being all over the place. Retailers trying to scurry me towards fall annoy me! What about August? What about September?

In NC, the weather really doesn't change until late September. These months though seems to be odd every year. It's too hot to be fall, but school has begun. People start wearing jeans even though it's a blazing degrees outside. The summer flowers are out in full bloom, but people start planting pansies! I feel like I'm yelling in slow motion, "Noooooooo! Put those away! It's not time yet!"

I'm a lover of summer. I'm not even sure that is a 100% true seeing that summer gets so hot in July that all you can do is get a pool pass or stay inside for a month. I'm in the latter group. The sun was shining so bright and it was so hot that I spent a lot of time inside this July. No pool pass to my rescue...just an brand new air conditioner that makes life bearable. So, I don't love the super hot, but I love the clothing in summer, the tan, WATERMELON!, peach cobbler, The Beach ( in NC, it's called THE BEACH...that's how they roll..no reason to say you are going to Hilton Head or Mrytle...all you need to know is that you are going toward the beach.), Salt Water, Watermelon, Humidity ( love it, I know it's crazy), time to catch up with friends, grilling, sandels, crickets, eating outside, flowers, gardens, home grown vegetables. Need I go on?

Part of it is that I really like August, September, and October in North Carolina. I see them as pre-fall. Fall doesn't really hit here until mid October and goes all the way into early December. But the rest of the holiday planning seems to come now. As soon as school begins people, like to deem it the end of summer and start thinking about Fall like stuff. Where as I am just starting to savor the summers lasts days....

The writing is on the wall though, watermelon prices go up by a dollar. You see less of them in the grocery store. Apple Festivals start advertising themselves at the local coffee shops. So is life....summer is coming to an end. I'm sad about it...wishing I could have my favorite things all year round.

I think my next posts will be some of my favorite recipes from the summer..I always find two or three new recipes during a season that I over indulge in until I'm sick of it. These posts will be in honor of summer and in hopes of prolonging it as long as I can.

If you see me eating watermelon in October, now you won't be surprised!

Love of the day

Room to Inspire

I have a frame that I've been trying to figure out what to do with. I have been thinking about painting the frame white and running wire across the inside. I may still do that, but I like this idea too. You get to use burlap but it's not getting all over your couch.

My Next Master Bath

I was perusing the newest blog updates when i came upon Modern Country Style's pics of Belgian Styled bathrooms! My heart started to drool. Man, I feel like someone read my mind. This is pretty much what I would want my bathroom to look like.

I'm not sure about you, but I walk around with images in my mind about what I want rooms to look like in my house. As time passes, I add on or changed things a bit, but none of it is on paper, it's just up in my head. I love when it finally comes together tangibly. Zack will often ask me how I came up with an idea and can't believe I pulled something together. For me, I'm just glad to get it out into the physical world and stop taking up so much space in my head. He seems shocked that I just come up with ideas, but I'm shocked that he thinks it just came together because I've usually been sitting on an idea for years.

This is what I would love my master bath to look like someday. It have to wait until heaven. If so, you are welcome to come over and check out my wonderful master bath when we get there.:)
Don't you think it's gorgeous?

Points

I've been trying to lose weight this summer. I officially gained about 15 lbs. this year, but really, I've been about 20 lbs. over my normal happy weight. Funny enough, I've been to my annual doctor's visits where they pretty much act like it's not a big deal and that I should just run more, but even if I don't, I'm still at an okay weight to them. I on the other hand have been like, "Um, do I have to get obese for someone to maybe even say that I might need to start watching my weight?"

Oh weight, it's a tricky little friend and it seems to come on so deliciously easy. But don't trust it. Fight it's advances! It is a good friend for awhile, but then trying to lose it is brutal! BRUTAL. I think part of the reason I let the weight go so much is because I know the sort of discipline it takes to lose weight.

So far, I've lost 10 lbs. this summer! I'm determined to lose 5 more lbs. by early August. And I'm just so dang mad about the fact that 10 lbs. less means that I am looking at a number on the scale that use to be my ultimate high. Usually that number use to be the ceiling for me. Seeing that number would have put me on the treadmill in a minute during my 20's. Now, I am celebrating this number! What the what? It's an odd experience. I can even tell that I'm a bit willing to see this new weight as the new norm and give up on losing more....BUT NOOOOoooo! There is still a bit of my mind that keeps reminding that losing weight now is a much better idea than just letting myself keep gaining 5 lbs. every couple of years.

Okay...so all that to say...most of my summer has been about watching my calories. I'm not doing weight watchers because I can't afford that and be able to spend money on decorating the house. I'm a fake weight watcher. I try to count the calories that I eat and am watching how many I am running off.

Right now, my most favorite dessert has been these Dark Chocolate Raspberry Bars from WeightW! Divine! Only 90 calories per bar! Thank you! I've tried one other weight watchers dessert this summer ....and unlike this delicious bar...it tasted like cardboard and diet-y. I promise, these DO NOT! I highly recommend them. Not only will you feel like you are eating a decadent dessert, you will have gotten your fix of chocolate and still wake up with less weight on you in the morning!

Major Antrho LOVE

I'm in love with this platter from Anthro. I went on to the site today to get the pic...and guess what...it is no longer available! WHAT?!!! Man, when you find something at Antrho you love and you are a trend setter like me, :) you've got to move fast!

So it's gone. Or at least online, but I might check out the closest store and see if I can get it there. I've been waiting for my July house money envelope to come in (we use Dave Ramsey in our house.) and to reimburse part of my cell phone bill with the good 'ol campus crusades... and now i've waited to long.

But I still have hope, the serving bowl is still available and there is always a chance the store will have it! I'm hopeful!

If I do find this platter or bowl, the beautiful design will be hung in my living room over my couch. I have this wonderful idea in my head about how the old paris map and some other designs will come together. I'll have to see how it works but I think it's going to make me the trendiest girl on the block. :)

Yes Please!

I just saw these on an advertisement on a blog. Aren't they beautiful? I'm not the biggest fan of pearls...but living in NC you get use to them and then you wonder how you can some what wear pearls with out actually just having a set of pearls and pearl earrings. I've found that I'm more fond of the pearl lately, but always like it with a little more flair. This would be my take on pearl earrings.

link to Charm and Chain Jewlery

crafting vs buying

I've been looking at lots of blogs this winter. I guess it's my way of zoning out from the realities of life. I've always enjoyed decorating and finally having a place of my own, makes me want to decorate all over the house. I have years of decor all stuffed up in my head.
I was musing about this today. I've been in NYC all week and away from my usual zoning mechanism. I think it has been good for me to get out of Dodge for awhile...have time to see life at full pace again. But getting home, I realize that decor doesn't matter that much and in the scheme of life...decorating is a "get to" and not a "have to".

Oh, the balancing of life's pleasures. Always making sure they are in their appropriate place. I am praying today that God will help me to see things more rightly. God gives us decorating and design and their is nothing wrong with it, but sometimes it becomes too important to me because I find it to be such a fun escape.

The other problem I find with decorating and crafting is...it takes money. Yes there are crafts that are cheap, but those small fees at the dollar store add up.

ANd here is my last problem...sometimes crafting turns out great and looks equal to something you can buy in a store...sometimes crafting should look "crafty"...but sometimes crafting looks cheap and sloppy. As for me, I can barely draw a straight line (Seriously, I almost failed 8th grade science because I couldn't draw a straight line. ) so crafts have a tendency to look cheap the first time around. I have to do a craft a few times before it starts to look quality enough for me to display in the house.

So what am I trying to say? I guess, just that I wish that money wasn't an object that stopped me from buying what I wanted and that I had extensive amounts of money to blow on failed attempts at crafting. LOL!

But since this isn't possible or healthy for me, I'm trying to be aware of what I need to just buy because someone else can do it better than I can and will save me time in my life & what I want to craft because it will be fun and I might actually be able to create with quality.

Valentines Day hopes and trials

These are the beautiful dark pink flowers my husband bought me for Valentines day. Perfect!



I had lots of fun ideas for Valentines Day and lots of fun crafting ideas, but only got to one craft this year. I have a lot of fun ideas ready for next year and some glass urns that will help decorating year round. I made the 'X' and 'O' craft out of marbles. I got the ideas from Tatertots and Jello blog. This was my take on it.

Good-bye Christmas!

I didn't take down Christmas until about Feb. 6th. Crazy. Right? Well it's true. But I did want to post pics of what I did this year.
I like have simple things for Christmas and more of a "winter" feel more than cutesy Christmas stuff. Or more of an elegant, simplistic feel.

















My pretty silver ball ornaments.

Valentine's Day Decorating

1) Valentine's Day bags 2) Heart word art 3) XO wreath 4) Valentine's Subway art 5) Love Birds 6) cupcake 7) the 14th 8) XO marbles 9) valentines subway frame


Valentine's Day is an interesting holiday for me, and I think for most people. As a single person, in my early 20's I hated this holiday and felt like it was a constant reminder of my singleness. And even when I was dating someone, it wasn't my favorite, because it could hold so much angst. "What is he going to give me for valentine's? What does it mean about where we are? What should I give him? What is the right gift to define where we are in our relationship?" I think even for girls who are in a relationship, it can be a stressful holiday and very isolating.

As years went by in my twenties, I started to realize that I could make Valentine's Day what I wanted it to be and not make it about my status as a single person. I saw it as a time to get together with my friends and make Valentine's Day a time of community and let other girls know that they are cared for too. It became a holiday for me to reach out to others and remind myself of the loving community I had around me.

As I was thinking about decorating for THIS Valentine's Day, I became aware that I felt so excited for this year and that was because this is the first year that romantic love is 100% certain in my life. Of course I came to enjoy this holiday in my late 20's but this year I am in a new season of my life. Being married means that I can openly express my love for my husband and there is no nervous-ness over where he is in the relationship. I love it!

Of course, you might say..."well you've known Zack for a few years", but two years ago I wasn't even sure that he loved me. Two years ago we were in New York and he handed me a painting of a heart....and he professed his love to me for the first time! So romantic....but yet very risky emotions going on. And last year, we were about two weeks away from our wedding and didn't even acknowledge the holiday.

This year...we can sit back and be excited for a holiday where we are secure in each other's love and happy for the certainty that marriage brings. I for one, am marveling at how different this holiday feels as a married person. So glad to be here and so grateful for where God has brought me in my life. Very glad to be able to profess to the world that I am madly in-love with my husband Zack!

Above, is an idea board of all the wonderful Valentine's day decorating items that I love and think are super cute and trendy!

Re-Decor

I'm terrible at photographing or keeping a history of the change that I do in our house. I need to get better at showing the before and after.

Anway, When I moved into Zack's house, the kitchen had a nice three shelved dresser with a marble top against the main wall. I like the the dresser, but didn't feel like it gave us enough room for all of the junk we had both accumulated in our 32 years of life apart. So, I took my pottery barn ladder shelves and set them up against the wall and put the dresser in the dining room. BUT ....I saw this wooden/metal shelf on Humble Pie, and now...I'm thinking about how beautiful this would look in my kitchen instead of my ladder shelves.

For now, it's a dream...I start dreaming about one or two years before I usually get a new piece of furniture. Always trying to find a deal or makes sure my heart is set upon something before I invest in it. I'm pretty sure I would never get tired of this though.

Humble Pie's style ...and her ideas from Paula Dean

I LOVE this kitchen! I got it from the Humble Pie blog. I do Love her style...very simple, trendy, a bit Scandinavian slash French....I do believe my trip to Prague influenced my style even more than I realized it would. The Check's literally build right on top of the last style ...thus their buildings and style are beautifully mismatched. I find myself loving mismatched and loving putting opposites together.
Of course this is already a the trends of today, but I found myself naturally moving towards this trend way before I saw it in magazines. I love the irony in design right now. This kitchen, to me ...is beautiful!

Below is an example of architecture in Praja (Prague).