New House

Guest Posting at To A Pretty Life

2013-05-24T08:14:00.001-04:00

This week, I've had the opportunity to create a garden plan for my friend Joanna at To A Pretty Life. You see about a month ago, Jo asked me to help her with a small garden in the front of her house. I had lots of ideas, but hadn't put pen to paper to actually create something. Until yesterday when the weather was foul and my back was saying that I needed a "non-physical" day. For those of you

The Lone Star

2013-05-22T08:58:00.001-04:00

Alan and I want to thank everyone for their sweet comments on yesterday's posting about our anniversary. Our story is not unique but you made us feel special. Thank you so much for your kind words and warm wishes. It made our anniversary even more wonderful. And now back to our regularly scheduled program......... Last year a sweet friend gave me some iris stalks in the early spring. I

How My Life Changed With Just One Click of the Mouse

2013-05-21T09:28:00.001-04:00

In 2004, I suddenly became single. The marriage I was in was not working. The man I was married to was floundering and our lives had become a mess of emotional and financial ruin. It was the lowest point of my life. Here I was a single woman in her late 40's, two (yes I said two) failed marriages behind here, no career to speak of and no place to call home. For the next couple of years, I lived

Mid-May in the Garden

2013-05-16T09:08:00.000-04:00

After a busy day of errands and business planning (more on that later) with my friend, Nancy from Second Perfection, I came home and the garden was calling me. AFTER spending an hour cleaning up the debris from our shedding maple trees (thank goodness they only seed every two years), I took shovel in hand and spent some much needed time weeding and edging and expanding my ever-growing perennial

Pillow Talk

2013-05-15T09:09:00.000-04:00

I wouldn't call myself a sewer. Oh yes, I have a sewing machine and even have a serger. But I usually just stick to simple things like curtain panels and table runners. I gave up on getting too creative years ago after many failed attempts at dressmaking. I can take in a pair of pants and hem a skirt, but that's about as far as my dressmaking skills are concerned. However, I'm pretty confident

Dark Wax Fail

2013-05-13T08:50:00.000-04:00

It seems that in blogland, we always share the "wonderful", the "perfect", the successes. But there's a dirty little secret that those that don't write a blog don't know. And that's that we all have a file full of photos we don't dare share with anyone. At least I do and I'm hoping I'm not alone in this. But sometimes we need to share those projects that don't quite turn out the way we want.

Easy "Grain Sack" Table Runner Tutorial

2013-05-10T09:00:00.001-04:00

The lowly grain sack has taken on a whole new life thanks to Pinterest, Hometalk and the blogosphere. I love it's vintage farmhouse country look and wanted to incorporate this into our kitchen decor. Using some leftover canvas from previous projects, a new table runner was made in under an hour. Here's how I did it: Step 1: Measure the length of your table and then add about 6-8"

Pinks Everywhere

2013-05-07T08:15:00.000-04:00

Whew! It's been busy around here......gardening, baking, day trips to visit friends new stores (more on that later) and family events. I'm way behind on so much but wanted to share a couple of updates.... BIG NEWS!!!! After six months in my little booth at Courtland Treasures Antiques Emporium, I've decided to take the plunge and start to show my work at an additional market starting June

Old Window with a Touch of Paris

2013-05-02T08:48:00.000-04:00

As some of you may know, I recently bought a Cricut Expression machine so that I could make some stencils and lettering for projects. I got it from amazon.ca and it arrived within two days from ordering it. I also ordered a roll of vinyl for stencilling, but it hasn't arrived yet as it's coming via a slow boat from China I think. I've been waiting and waiting to use the Cricut to make some

Finally, It's May!!

2013-05-01T08:25:00.000-04:00

On this Wordless Wednesday, I'm sharing with you some of the reasons that May just might be my favourite month. These are all photos taken last May from my garden. The dogwood in the front garden will soon look like this. After last year's early bloom and subsequent freeze, the magnificent magnolia is about to burst. Lilacs! An excuse to wear florals (see

Jumping on the Pallet Craze with a Composting System

2013-04-29T09:15:00.000-04:00

Two part compositor made from pallets One of the most visited posts on my blog has always been THIS ONE which talks about all the projects out there using pallets and how popular they seem to be. Well being one who likes to stay on top of all things trendy (NOT), I thought it was about time that I officially jumped onto the pallet craze myself. So Sunday was spent in the garden creating a

New Business Cards from Vistaprint

2013-04-26T09:17:00.000-04:00

It was time for some new business cards. It's not that I didn't like my old ones but my business had evolved a bit since getting them last year - more painted furniture and decor - and my old ones just didn't say it strongly. So I went looking for something new and found Vistaprint, an online print shop. It was so easy to use their website and get exactly what I was looking for. And with the

Anticipation

2013-04-25T11:09:00.000-04:00

At this time of year, those of us who live in the north are filled with anticipation of what's to come in our gardens. With spring dragging it's heels this April, I find myself looking to the future in my garden. Things are starting to awaken in the flower beds, just not as quickly as this impatient gardener would like. As the gardens unfold, my morning routine has changed. Now instead of

Barns Along The Way

2013-04-22T08:37:00.000-04:00

It seems lately that there have been a lot of trips back and forth to the big city. Most of that trip is along nondescript major highways where the only thing to look at is trucks, trucks and more trucks. Keep your eyes on the road, look straight ahead......But the first part of my journey travels along a local highway through fields and streams and farms and more farms. Yesterday while

How To Shorten Faux Wood Blinds

2013-04-18T11:12:00.000-04:00

Warning: This is one of those how to posts that makes you wonder what I do with my time. I can hear you now - doesn't she have anything better to write about? But it's one of those posts that you may find yourself thinking about 6 months from now when you need to know how to do this simple fix-it. So if you move on right now, I won't be insulted. But for those of you who stick around......thanks!

What's Blooming This Week in My Garden

2013-04-16T15:45:00.000-04:00

Some of you may know that I started out blogging as a gardener. My old blog "What's Blooming This Week" has gone the way of so many blogs. But my love for gardening continues along with furniture painting, home decor, food, crafts, etc. etc. etc. So in an effort to continue a little bit of "What's Blooming This Week", there will be periodic posts about what's happening in my garden. This is the

Funky Junk Inspired Tool Caddy

2013-04-15T16:44:00.000-04:00

source - Funky Junk Interiors Many of you have probably seen Donna's amazing blog, Funky Junk Interiors and the wonderful things she makes from (what most people would consider) junk. And many of you have probably seen the cute tool box caddies Donna's been showing everyone at the Milner Hometalk Meet-Up. Darn, I wish that I lived on the west coast so that I could go to one of these events.

"Driftwood" Dining Chairs

2013-04-12T09:41:00.000-04:00

You know you're in deep trouble when friends start bringing you furniture pieces they found in a dumpster or unused shed. You must be a furniture addict if this happens to you. And it's happening to me more and more now. Our friend's brought us four old chairs that were lying around in their brother's back shed ready for the next trip to the dump. They were sad, dirty and neglected. Dark brown

Snowdrops and Burlap Come Together

2013-04-09T08:37:00.000-04:00

That sure sounds like an odd combination - snowdrops and burlap. But put them together in a little planter and they work well together. And of course, there's a story behind this..... We own another property in another town - it's an old home turned into a fourplex. It's currently on the market for resale - it's just becoming too much driving back and forth 45 minutes to see tenants, etc.

Easy Weekend Breakfast Treat - Cinnamon Buns

2013-04-08T09:28:00.000-04:00

We had house guests for the weekend. My BFF and her husband drove down from the Toronto area to spend a few days beating us at dominoes, antiquing and attending an auction Saturday night. And I don't know about you, but I love to treat our guests (and ourselves) to something delicious for breakfast. Something sweet and gooey and warm. Like these easy cinnamon buns. So easy that Helen and I

Custom Piece - ASCP Versailles Parlour Table

2013-04-05T08:58:00.002-04:00

We curl* with a bunch of terrific people at the local curling club and have a great time. So when our team asked me to create something for the upcoming fundraising auction, I was happy to do it. We wanted to do something that was unique and springy in colour. But not so outrageous that it wouldn't appeal to the audience at the auction. We found this table at an antique shop in Waterford at

How To Make A Faux Roman Blind

2013-04-03T08:36:00.001-04:00

Back in the mid-80's, I remember making a working roman blind for a large picture window in my dining room. After carefully sewing the fabric and piecing together the lining, I sat and sewed on the individual plastic loops where the strings ran through (back in those days you couldn't get the pre-made strips of loops). Naively I thought it would take me a couple of hours. But between measuring

What a Difference a Year Makes

2013-04-01T09:51:00.000-04:00

Last year we had the strangest March with temperatures in the 80s by mid-month. The garden jumped to attention and put on quite the show only to be punished for the early blooms with a frost later in the month. Here are some images from late March last year and a comparison to this year: From top left clockwise: pansies - which I wouldn't dare to plant this year as we're facing freezing

Happy Easter

2013-03-31T08:32:00.002-04:00

Wishing you all a blessed Easter Sunday filled with family and love.

ASCP Old White China Cabinet

2013-03-28T19:48:00.001-04:00

I'm asking myself how this has happened....how did my blog become a show and tell for furniture projects? It seems that I am obsessed with all things Annie Sloan these days and can't wait to share my latest project with you all. One day when spring finally arrives, I might (I say might) put down the paintbrush long enough to get out in the garden and enjoy my truest of passions. But for now,