Moving and yard sale finds.

OK so I mentioned I'm moving....yet, I keep buying more stuff...and I HATE packing!! LOL Oh well! I can't help it! I find something I love and I can't be stopped. Forgive the pictures, the top of the washer is the only available spot to take a photo at the moment!

Gorgeous mirror $4, cannot wait to paint this baby! Am struggling on the color though. I'll wait until I get to my new apartment and figure out where she will hang.

I absolutely love these coasters! I love the price too...50 cents! The base needs some work, otherwise they are perfect and I don't even like coasters!

I saw it and had to have it...50 cents! No idea what it's purpose will be but it may see some spray paint in it's near future. The boyfriend has dubbed it the 'bubble wrap vase'.

And amid the mass of boxes and chaos lies Duke, enjoying a leisurely nap and not caring in the slightest what the heck is going on. As long as he has food, water and a warm place to sleep all is good in the world. Ahhh to be a cat! Meanwhile Reed has an entirely different outlook on this whole disruption in his life. He sleeps on my bed (below), the only thing that hasn't been moved or covered with stuff.

Hope you're all having a great weekend! :)

Yard Sales Finds!

So I had my own yard sale this past weekend, it was a multi yard sale with 4 of us all in the mix...so I snuck out for an hour to see what was happening around town. I really feel deprived if I can't make it to a yard sale. lol And there were soooo many!! I got there late, as it was, and either the good stuff was already gone or else there were no goodies. I'll never know. But I did find a couple of things.

 A sewing machine for $5. It's just a small little thing, but I don't know how to sew very well and I really want to learn. So if I don't learn or don't like it...or if I break it...it was only $5! Yay!

OK so it's a bassinet. And I have no children (or even dolls). So you may be wondering what the heck is wrong with me! But I have never been able to pass by a nice piece of wicker...it's a ginormous basket for heaven's sake and it was $3!!! So, I ask you, what ideas or inspirations do you see for this upcoming project?

Much to do and little time!

So it's summer, nearly, and I have so many projects started and more that I want to start. The weather isn't allowing me much time to work outside. Plus, I really just don't have the time and it's driving me nuts to have things unfinished (whether in reality or in my head). As soon as I find time I'll feel so overwhelmed because I won't know where to begin. This happens to me every year! I'm never surprised yet always complain about it (I figure it's my right as a woman). LOL

So why don't I have the time? Well, I'm moving...hence packing. Just had my very own yard sale to rid myself of the things that accumulate (mysteriously) in my home that I have never found a use for. Ok, not that mysteriously but they accumulate all the same. Why oh why do I have so much STUFF?! Also, I'm looking for a new job...one of those jobs that you will absolutely love to go to and won't never wonder 'what in the hell was I thinking by accepting this position'. Yes, we all want one...but I am on a mission to find it! And I don't have an apartment yet, so all my stuff is going into storage and I'll be staying with my sister. Oh mon dieu! My quiet, simple life has become a crazy and unpredictable life. Oh how I am clinging onto every ounce of sanity I have left.

But on the plus side, I'm in a new relationship that is going very well. He is amazing (bf...if you are reading this, don't let it go to your head lol) and I never thought I would find someone that I had so much in common with and could make me so happy. So yay!

Ok. So what projects do I have going on in my little apartment and in my head? Here goes!

I bought this adorable little phone table for $3 at a fundraiser for a local animal shelter.

It needs a lot of TLC in regards to reupholstering and painting. This project has been started...I will post upon completion. :)

I obtained this sweet little number for free :) I plan on spray painting it a beautiful metallic shade (perhaps copper as it is naturally copper and I'm too lazy to try to clean it) and using it as a planter outside.

I got this gorgeous chair from my aunt...which I'm not entirely sure if it's on loan or mine permanently...but I got the go ahead to reupholster it (I'm assuming that means painting it is ok too). I have the fabric in my head and I can picture it spray painted white and distressed. Oh it's gonna be so nice.

 

 I got these from my mother a few years ago. Had planned to paint and then tole paint on them. However I have yet to find a pattern I love for this. And, now I'm not entirely sure tole painting is the route I want to take. Any ideas? Suggestions?

OK well, you get the idea. Lots of projects, little time. There are a ton more but I'll leave those for future posts! :)

First attempt at card making!

So I went shopping for a Father's Day card yesterday and was browsing through birthday cards, etc as I always do. I browse more than I buy just to see the new cute designs and then I make my way to the hugely overpriced gift items cause I love to torture myself with the things I can't afford. lol

So I was reading this cute little birthday card, very homemade looking which is actually nice to see in a card and gift shop. And out of curiosity and habit I flipped it over and looked at the price. I'm pretty sure my heart skipped a few beats...$7.50! For one card with a simple design that I could have made at home. I went from thinking what a cute little card to outrage in about 15 seconds! So what do I do when I'm struck with such disbelief? I vent and put it as my Facebook status! Haha! Then I went into card making overdrive. I've never made a greeting card in my life. To be honest, I really never thought I was creative enough. But after seeing those simple designs on a card priced so high, I thought why not? I'll give it a try. So I made 3 different kinds (with envelopes), I can't say I love them but for basically no cost I think they are 100% better than those that cost $7.50. I really like making them so I think I'll keep it up and see if I develop a knack for it.

As always, for your viewing...pleasure? lol

regular size greeting cards with yellow envelopes

regular size greeting cards with purple envelopes

note cards (measures appr. 4" x 4") with matching envelopes
these are probably my favorite :)

note cards (measures appr. 4" x 4") with matching envelopes

The sandals, that were no more...

So, I'm moving in a month and it's summer. So I thought I had better have a yard sale and clear out some stuff so I don't have to pack it up and drag it with me or have to put it in storage. Besides I have way too much 'stuff'.

Anyways, I was cleaning out my hall closet and there they were. The sandals that I have been hanging onto for the last 3 years in hopes of, well...I don't really know. They were my favorite pair, so comfortable and super cute. They went well with nearly everything. And then my dog ate them. :(

I like to reuse and re-purpose as much as the next person, but I know my limits. And they weren't overly pricey to start with so I wouldn't want to spend much in repairing them (if even possible). So, I finally got the scissors to them and chopped off the tops, which was the only part that wasn't chewed or eaten. ANd now they will go to the garbage and the tops will sit in my craft supplies cupboard until I figure out my next move.

And so, with no further adieu and for your viewing pleasure this is what remains of the lovely sandals that were.

Yard sale finds...1st of the summer!

Finally, finally, finally! The weather cooperated long enough for me to find my treasures...and my sanity. First yard sales of the season gets me super stoked! There were only 4 (have I mentioned I live in a small town? Ok, well I do.), but 2 of them had some real goodies.

$2 plant stand :)

10 cents...so cute!

$1...gotta love handmade jewelry

$2 hurricane lamp (bad photograph)

Aboriginal Art - yard sale finds!

I lived in the Northwest Territories of Canada for 6 years. And let me tell ya, summer time there is crazy busy with yard sales. Now this isn't odd or unfamiliar to most people who live in large cities, but these communities are very small. The place I lived in had a population of a whopping 5000, at best. Yard sale day was Saturday and sometimes Sunday...and if you want any success at all you had better get up at the break of dawn Saturday morning. I mean, seriously, there are people that will push you aside with no regard, just to get to a table before you. It is insanity! But on the bright side they will sell anything. Absolutely the best yard sales I've ever seen, there are so many goodies you don't even know where to start. So I became a collector, naturally, of all things handmade from the aboriginal people. Obviously these are items that I left untouched and appreciated as is. These are my favorite pieces, but there are many more in the collection.

Hand painted plate...Gorgeous! $2

Etched glass...Yup, it's chipped! $4

handmade ceramic jug :) $5