Loose Ends

I was re-reading some of my past posts yesterday and realized that I had a few loose ends to tie up!  So I ran around quickly and took a few snap shots.  Remember this chair from my July 11th post about a great estate sale I stumbled upon?  Here is the before and after. 

Before

After



The ticking I used on the seat was from my favorite thrift store.  The ticking is a versitile neutral blend of cream, white, black and gray - plus it looks french to me, which I love. And for those of you who wonder -yes, I truly do find uses for all the splendid finds I bring home.  

Here is a before and after of some wicker chairs I got at a garage sale for $5 each.  I wanted some casual seating outside our front door so friends and I have a place to sit while the kids ride bikes/trikes/scooters in the driveway.  The chairs look less stable than they are, due to a support frame built under the base.  I have purchased some fun Sunbrella brand fabrics on clearance with which to sew cushions, but that will probably wait until next summer since I hear freezing rain is on the way soon (boo!)

Finally, I promised a picture of my seasonal decor change in our main bath way back at the beginning of June (gulp.)  I love the Alexander Henry fabric as the focal point.  I originally wanted to stretch it over an IKEA fabric frame, but the remnant I bought was not quite the yard it promised so it didn't fit.  I improvised by stapling the fabric over a cork bulletin board.  I love it because I can reuse the fabric when it's no longer wall decor (which will be soon, as I'm busy coming up with a fall theme.)  A side note for those of you new to my blog - I do a super simple change of the decor in our main bath each season to keep things fresh (I get bored too easily.)  It's a small space with a neutral palette, so it's easy to move things around from other rooms of the house, such as the b&w daisy pics I stole from the entryway this time.  Different colored towels, rugs, maybe shower curtain and I'm done!  Since I rotate through the different colored towels and rugs I already own, it's very inexpensive to do and truly doesn't take much time at all.  Big reward for little effort - love it!!  It's something you could easily do yourself if you were so inclined.

Enjoy your Saturday, my friends!  Thanks for stopping by.  xoxo ~J

June already?! Here's a quick update...

Where, oh where, did May go?!  And further more, I seem to have misplaced the beginning of June.  Oh well, here I am!! 

Of course I've/we've been busy as ever (hence the seemingly lost time.)  I celebrated a birthday, celebrated the end of a lovely loved-one's life, bid farewell to my 9-5 job of the past 7 years and all of the friends there whom I will deeply miss, went to Boston to train for one of my new "quasi-jobs", visited family out of state and squeezed in some felted wool crafting while there.  Side note: my mother-in-law makes the most lovely recycled wool mittens and my sister-in-law makes gorgeous matching scarves, so I took some scraps and made embellishments!  FUN STUFF!

Next, we welcomed summer by spending Memorial Day weekend on 2 different MN lakes in 2 days, visiting even more family, hit numerous garage sales and brought home even more new treasures (see desk pic with CUTE ceramic dogs!)  Both fit perfectly and were garage sale scores!   

Sprinkle in a few wonderful summer play dates, a bit of gardening, some breezy bike rides and walks, and you've almost got it.  In short, some days I feel like I've just thrown a rope around this big, giant, horse-of-a-life and yelled, "let her buck" at the top of my lungs!!  You know I love it and wouldn't have it any other way, don't you?  How's THAT for a descriptive of the past month?  Woo-hoo!!

Coming up I'll share some pics of the seasonal decor change in my main bath that's underway, and some pics of the wonderful thrifted fabric I've found at both stores and garage sales of late.  Right now though, I have a list of 20 fun (and not-so-fun) things to tackle and I'm excited to see how far I get. 
1. Blog entry written, CHECK!!

What's up next on your list for the weekend - or SUMMER in general?!  Please, share with us.  I'd love to hear.  xoxo ~J

Spring has sprung (in our house, at least!)

I'm off to the "real job" today, but wanted to quickly share the spring decorating I accomplished yesterday.  Here are the before and after shots.  I hope this gives you inspiration to brighten up a tiny corner of your home today!

Before

After

Wonderful Wednesday

I have the good fortune of a true day off every other Wednesday.  I don't work and our son O goes to preschool (daycare actually, but he's in the preschool room so that's what it's called.)  Today is that wonderful Wednesday of which I speak.  Usually I quarrel with myself about what to pack into the day.  I should exercise, get groceries, run errands, craft, start a big sewing project, reconnect with a friend, organize something, and the list goes on. 

Today I awoke knowing how I'd fill my day.  About a year ago I started changing the main bathroom decor with the seasons (an idea that came from my good friend Mandy.)  You see, I absolutely love to reinvent a space and see fresh, new change in my home.  The bathroom is a small enough space that with neutral walls and tile, I can change the other elements, like artwork, towels and accent pieces, to give the room a whole new feel.  As most of you are, I am ready for SPRING so it's time to oust the baby blue accents and black & white photos of our family playing in the snow in favor of something more cheerful.  After that, I may sew a couple more pillows for our couch as part of my larger living room redecorating project.  (BTW, I got my third and final slip cover on the couch last night.  I picked it up at Target for a steal since it was repackaged.  I shrunk the first slip cover I'd gotten, so it's now on the loveseat and the loveseat slip cover is on the chair.  It all worked out beautifully!)  So share with us - what are you doing to welcome spring?

To close, I'm posting a picture of the belt I worked on embellishing last night.  I used an idea for frayed circles from the book Fabricate by Susan Wasinger and some of my beloved button collection.  It's a work in process but I suspect it will end up on my newly created Etsy shop, SprinkleofJoy.etsy.com.  Perhaps as the first item!