The Shelf! The Shelf!

Guess what!  I found some pictures!  I forgot I did manage to get these edited before the others all disappeared!  So at least I can give you a little something until I can get my hands on a new camera. (or until I get desperate and retake them all with my crummy phone camera)  But anyways...


So here she is.

Long time coming this one.  I finally finished her a few months ago. Still a few kinks to work out as I'm missing some pegs for the shelf behind the doors. But over all I'm very pleased with how it turned out and now I have a proper places to store all my medicinal herbs and oils and supplies for making natural products. 

For those that don't remember, here was the original shot of the shelf.

I primed her with spray primer. Then has to patch that hole in the back. Last person who owned this used it as an entertainment unit.

I figured the patch just needed to be functional and not pretty since no one would be seeing the back and the inside was getting covered in pretty paper.   Thank goodness we saved those bags from the last time we ordered Chinese food. ;)

So some torn brown paper, some wood glue and a thin piece of ply wood = no more hole.

Then came the painting.  I used a Benjamin Moore Advanced white.  I had heard it had a harder finish that typical latex paints.  I missed pictures of that step but here we are putting on the final touch. The fancy modpogded in background.

Slowly puzzle piecing it all in. I loved the finished look so much I decided to do the upper shelf as well! Originally I had only intended on doing the main body for a little fun.

A close up of the finished look....

And to help with organizing I took some scrap wood and built a little extra mini shelf to fit right into the big shelf. Perfect for all my little jars and provided me the perfect place for my small collection of herb-y books.

And there you have it. My first piece of furniture makeover. I was really excited when I finished it and it has since been stocked with even more jars and things which aren't in the picture above.  Took a lot longer to get it done than I had expected. Mostly because weather and time kept getting in the way.  I had thought of distressing the fancy workings on the top and doors of the shelf but I just couldn't bring myself to mar the beautiful clean white.  Maybe after it's had some use I'll go back and try it out.

Will I do this again any time soon?  Probably not unless it's a piece I get for free.  The awesome $20 deal I got on the shelf + supplies turned it into $100 project :/  Though I did learn some things in the process that I could possibly do different next time.  We'll see.  In the mean time, all the info I got came from some of the great furniture make over posts by Kate over on her blog Centsational Girl .
She has some great ideas and is definitely worth a look!


Keep Crafty!


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8:23

This year saw my first Mother's Day and just last weekend, my hubby's first Father's Day. So I wanted to do something really special for him to thank him for being the amazing father he has been.

When my friends are complaining about how their guy can't or won't do this chore, does this wrong, makes messes, can't or won't even change a diaper. I just look at my husband and think. . . 

wow, I'm spoiled.

Super dad here is the only reason our kitchen isn't buried in dishes. He does all of Little Badger's bath times. Washes and folds all the laundry (I put it all away). He changes diapers, does most of the cooking (really really really good cooking) takes care of all the yard work, takes out the garbage and recyclables, cleans the litter boxes more often than I do, and still works a job he commutes almost 2 hours to (each way).

Listing all of that makes me sounds like a lazy lay-about. Though in my defense, at almost 10 months old I'm still up with Little Badge almost every 2 hours most nights (sometimes every hour on a bad night)

I still do all the house tidying and vacuuming and most of the sweeping and counter cleaning. But he is just amazing.

SO when I saw this neat idea on another blog (need to find the link again will update as soon as I find it) I thought, "PERFECT!"

Starting at 8:23am (since Little Badger was born August 23rd), and on every 23rd minute of every follow hour till 8:23pm. 

13 packages in all.  

Gifts ranging from a package of Fisherman's Friends, or a candy bar, to meaning full handmade items, and one really serious gift of a much needed new wallet. (he's has his for I think he said 20 years now!) There is also an ice cream scoop a car magnet that came in his card, and a Dr Who magazine.

The handmade items were a rock with LB's hand print on it and the year and his name painted on it. 
A dollar store frame I repainted and painted on the words Daddy and Me. A bookmark with his first baby photo mod podged on. The bookmark reads "The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart."

And a dollar store framed family quote that I painted LB's name and birth date on. If we have another I'll add it on the bottom of the frame.

Over all it was fun putting it all together and he said it was a really great surprise. I think I'll try this again in 5 yr and next time LB will be old enough to pick out all the gifts!

Remember those music balls? *Now with new and improved pictures!*

 REALLY gotta pick a different name for those....




Anyhoo, remember them?  Well a few weeks ago I got inspired. In an effort to make the bathroom in the basement (where my art room and now a large playroom for my baby boy are located)  a little less creepy to me, I decided to take redirect an old project.

And old mirror,

bought at Value Villiage, that was originally going to be repainted and turned into a jewelery holder, instead got mod podged with old torn up hymns in the same style as the ornaments.

Here is the finished product...

 

I also saved all the titles as I was doing my tearing and added some inspiring words for a special touch....


Now to do something about the terrible vinyl flooring backsplash below it. (The previous owners had an... interesting... shall we say, taste in DYI. )



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Orna-mental

For Christmas 2011 I decided for gifts I was going to go crazy and make ornaments or Christmas decorations for everyone.  Not easy to do with a 3 month old baby in the house. During the day not much got done but soon as hubby got home it was pass off the baby and buckle down.

Often staying up 11pm-12am (I know, that prolly sounds lamely early but when you're already sleep deprived from midnight feedings and whatnot you tend to need every bit of sleep you can get) I still ended up shipping out a couple of the gifts late.  Most of them were inspired by pictures and tutorials I found on Pinterest.

All except my wine gum mosaic ball that is.

That was my own insane brain child. The thing ended up weighing for to much to hang on a tree.  In fact, you could prolly knock someone out if you threw it at their head.  Oops. Still, it was a fun thing to try! (The making it, not knocking someone out with it.)

Anyways, here is most of what I made...


There were a few others but I seem to be missing the pictures right now.

	Simple Wood Button Wreath Ornament
And old book of hymns + one container of modpodge = Musical Balls (Ok so they could use a better name) But they turned out so lovely I've thought of making more for selling.
	I have a friend who loves color and lots of it so when I saw these little balls I thought PERFECT!
This one went to a friend who loves roses. She's been my best friend since I was 12 and even though we live in different countries now we still keep in touch and stay close in heart.
	Made of sculpty. Fit in your palm. My favorite ended up being the fat little green one. He turned out really cute.
And the beast. The wine gum mosaic ball. Made for my brother who a few years ago got hooked on wine gums when I brought some back to the states with me from Canada. Not know what to make for a soon to be 19 year old my brain took off when I discovered a bag of wine gums in the closet I'd forgotten to send him last year.