Turquoise & Copper Bead Cross Necklace

Turquoise & Copper Bead Cross Necklace

I love various metals, sure platinum is my favorite but there is something about turquoise and copper mixed together I am always drawn too!

Custom Dog Food Stand

I made a dog bed and a dog food stand for my little fur baby. What do you think?

A or B?

Murphy Desk

Last winter my husband and I decided to renovate the den. We knew we wanted updated cabinetry, new flooring, to update the fireplace and to tear off the old wallpaper.  Having a desk or table was also essential. We surfed the web for ideas and watched our usual home improvement shows for inspiration.  The space in the den is compact so we needed to be efficient with the area.

 After a few design renderings and discussions regarding the layout we decided on a Murphy Desk. The perfect compromise between getting the table top space we needed and having enough space in the den when the table is not in use.

The Murphy Desk uses a standard piano hinge and a leg or table (as in our case) to support the weight of the table top in the down position.  We used an antique table on casters, painted gold with a coffee glaze to use as support for our table top. In the up position art work can be hung to decorate the flat table top piece and a sliding lock for safety is used on each side to keep the table in the upright position.

So if you’re short on space use some creativity, and create an interesting alternative for your design dilemma. Give your own version of a Murphy Desk a chance it may just be the answer to your design needs.

Paula

Eggcellent Nest

Eggcellent Nest

I must admit that lately I have had a bit of an obsession with apothecary jars. I love to display them and have enjoyed changing the items in them seasonally. At Christmas I had candy canes, mini presents and mini Christmas tree bulbs in my three jars. At Halloween glittery skulls, skeleton bones and ghoulish eyeballs.  Now that spring is around the corner I have turned my focus back to these clear beauties for the perfect spring items to place in my jars.  After some brainstorming, I decided to make a robin's nest  for one of my jars.

 I used brown excelsior I had laying around the craft room for the nest inside the jar.  I painted three  wooden eggs in an acrylic Robin's egg blue paint color. Depending on the thickness of your paint you may need two coats. Be sure to paint the entire egg with even strokes and let dry. I then used a nickel size of  brown acrylic paint in my paint tray mixed with just a drop or two of water mixed together to make my brown paint a bit runny. Next I took my small craft paint brush and dipped it in the brown paint and used my thumb to flick the bristles of the brush to splatter paint onto the eggs over my kitchen sink to get the speckled effect.  I let them dry then placed them inside my nest inside the jar.

Outside of the fact that the Robin's that would have laid these eggs would be a freakishly large species due to the size of my wooden eggs... the nest and eggs look very convincing and springy. 

Now, what to do with my other two jars?

Craig's List Makeover!

 Gotta Love Craig's List!

Buffet Before and After!

Swag in the Bedroom

Ever since I can remember I have always liked bed coronets, pelmets & testers. They add charm, elegance and romanticism to any room. Through the years I have managed to make several, and more recently finished one in my own room. Sophi has a tester above her bed, where as Ava has a coronet. I think it largely depends on the fabric, size of room and bed style to decide which is more suitable.  Both of my littlest girls have had some form of  a canopy above above their bed since birth. One day they will leave the nest, create a home of their own and hopefully want me to make them a coronet for their little girls bed.

There are several easy ways to make a bed coronet; a tester takes more time, fabric and can be much more difficult to construct. One of the quickest ways to make a coronet is to find a shelf that has the right lines and look for the room you plan to use it in. I often will find something from Hobby Lobby and then spray paint or chalk paint it to the color I want it to be. I then use coordinating fabric to the bedding and sew some basic curtains.  Make sure you add at least an extra foot of fabric to your curtains so you have plenty of room to create a swag on each side of the bed. You will want your curtains to touch the ground on both sides of the bed if possible. I think fringe and tassels always look nice, but it takes the right room to pull that off. In my  bedroom I used a pot rack and painted it with chalk paint in a coordinating color with my room. Used the existing iron  pot rail to hang the curtains from. Secured it to the ceiling using drywall anchors and then added antique looking knobs as the curtain pull backs.

This project is so easy, but has such dramatic results! Love it!

A Lost Art

In a world of computers, android phones and Facebook I find the lost art of letter writing to be refreshing. Sure, e-mail and Facebook posting is immediately gratifying but can it truly compare to the look and beauty of printed stationary? I think not. Why even the use of plant leafs, wrapping paper and some forms of tissue make great cards. Penmanship has never been my biggest talent, but with the right calligraphy pen even the worst hand writing can look attractive. Why stop there? A pretty stamp purchased from https://store.usps.com makes all the difference. They have over a 100 different stamp styles to choose from that are never offered at your local market.

So you have broke down and actually written the letter or note. Now, to properly seal the envelope. Wax sealing has always been my favorite preference it’s colorful, fun and I love the texture and drama it gives the envelope. The color options are endless as well as the design of the seal. You can even purchase seals with a sticker back to save time or for mass distribution.

Sealing important documents dates back to Biblical days when the author wanted to maintain privacy or authenticity for the special document. Royalty would use specially designed seals to show their impressive image or status and would often have several they would use. In medieval times the owner of a specialized family crest seal would pass it down in an elaborate ceremony to their predecessor. 

Today letters mailed with wax seals through the Post Office are rare but acceptable, and it is important to note that the seal can’t be over 1/8” thick or it will get caught in their sorting machine. Next time you feel the urge to break out the old stationary and snail mail someone a note, think of trying out the age old art of wax sealing.

Paula Schnoor-Comes