Little Random Bits

Just some little snippets going on in my life that I am sticking together in one blog post. 

I started a part-time job this week!  It’s a bit exciting because I haven’t worked for the 2 1/2 years we’ve lived in Ohio.   It was nice to have that break, but, overall, I miss interacting with other people and I think my brain could use the stimulation.  It is as an administrative assistant for a financial planning company.

The flowers my son sent for Mother’s Day are still alive and kicking over two weeks later.  I thought that was pretty good.  Of course, the flower buds weren’t open when I got them, but still ~ over  two weeks and still looking fresh!

Memorial Day, 2014

Also, last week, I planted the urn by our garage door. This year I used cordyline, coleus, and two purple sweet potato vine plants.

The coleus has both the red of the cordyline and the purple of the sweet potato vine in it.  I think this urn will look really good once it fills in a bit.

I also am trying to get myself up to speed with photo books of my granddaughter.  I’ve had two “almost crashes” on my laptop, so I know the big one can’t be far off.  I keep all my pictures on my laptop and, even though I back-up every Sunday, I am so afraid of losing these pictures.  I have put together and ordered year two of my granddaughter and am working on putting together the photo book for year three now.

And, other than a horrible cold that I caught from said granddaughter, that’s what’s going on my way! 

Refreshed In White

A couple of items got a refresh with a coat of Rustoleum’s Heirloom White spray paint last week.  Neither of them warrant a post on their own so I’ve combined them together here.  First up is this little holder that I keep on my home office desk to hold paperclips. 

I’ve been wanting to spray paint this white for years and finally got it done.  I tend to hold off on spray painting items until I’ve got a couple to knock out.

Looks like a brand new piece and I like it much better in white. 

I also painted this small gold urn.

I’d had this in my booth and it came home with me when I closed the end of April. 

I think this will make it easier to move around into different rooms and vignettes in my home.

Sometimes a simple refresh with some white paint is enough to make me feel like I’ve got a “new” look without spending any money!

Don’t forget to enter my Bowdabra giveaway here! Ends May 31st!

Linking up with

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm

Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Swing Into Spring at DIY by Design

Treasure Hunt Thurs. at From My Front Porch To Yours

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Friday Favorites at I’m Not A Trophy Wife 

The Artist Behind The Etsy Returns June 1st

Due to the Memorial Day weekend, The Artist Behind The Etsy series will return next Sunday, June 1st!

Enjoy your weekend!

Meanwhile, you can enter my giveaway for a Bowdabra bow maker here!

 

Make Bows The Easy Way & A Giveaway

This Giveaway Has Ended.

On my last post I showed you the hydrangea wreath I made and the bow I added to it.

I am horrible at making bows.  Luckily, the nice folks at Bowdabra sent me a bow maker to try out!  I followed the directions on the CD that came with the Bowdabra and proceeded to make a bow using some burlap ribbon.

I am so pleased with the way it all turned out!  I especially love that I have a bow I can be proud of!  This made it so much easier for me.  Here are some other bows that I saw on their blog.

Bowdabra has very generously and graciously agreed to give away another Bowdabra to one of my readers!  To enter to win your own Bowdabra:

Leave a comment telling me what you might make a bow for {i.e. wreath, gifts, etc.}.

You do not have to have a blog to enter, but you must leave me an email address in your comment so I have some way to contact you.  Giveaway will end on Saturday, May 31, 2014, at midnight EST, and the winner will be chosen via random.org.  Winner will have 48 hours to confirm or a new winner will be selected.

To learn more about the Bowdabra and easy projects you can create check out their Blog and social media channels: Google+, Pinterest, Facebook, Youtube and Twitter

I received a Bowdabra to use and review; all opinions are my own.

This Giveaway Has Ended.

Hydrangea Wreath

I love hydrangeas and they are in my top 3 of favorite flowers.  I showed you my hydrangea urn recently and today I wanted to show you a hydrangea wreath I made.  The urn holds a real hydrangea but the wreath is made with faux florals.

I looked on Pinterest for different ways of doing hydrangea wreaths and found these that I really liked.

No source; just a picture

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I liked the ones that incorporated the leaves into the wreath as well.  I used a wire wreath form that I already had.  I bought the individual stems of hydrangeas from Hobby Lobby when they were on sale 50% off; I bought three of the cream and three of the purple.

I wired the flowers on and tucked the leaves in among the wire of the wreath base.  This will make it easy to change up or take apart if I decide to do that.

I made a bow out of some burlap ribbon and wired that on, too.

I love the way it turned out and I think it ties in nicely with the urn that is off to the side of the door.  I think this will bring me through to Fall quite nicely.

 

Linking up with:

Inspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life

Swing Into Spring at DIY by Design

Treasure Hunt Thurs. at From My Front Porch To Yours

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Make It Pretty Monday at The Dedicated House

The Artist Behind The Etsy ~ The Feathered Nest

Being a part of the Etsy community, not only as a seller but as a customer, I have come across many talented individuals.  With this series, I hope to introduce you to some of these creative people, finding out where they find their creativity, and a little bit more about them.

This week I’d like to introduce you to Dawn of Sew Many Roses a/k/a The Feathered Nest.  Dawn also has a blog called The Feathered Nest.

What a wonderful honor! Thank you so much Kathy for the opportunity to share a little about myself here on your blog. I've been blogging now for over seven years at The Feathered Nest. I couldn't believe how many friends I made and how much I had in common with these new friends! Soon after starting my blog, I knew I wanted to open my very own Etsy store to sell my artwork and creations.

For as long as I can remember, I have loved creating beautiful things. The blog was the perfect place to share this creativity with others and Etsy was the perfect venue to sell my wares. What a wonderful journey it has been too!

I soon realized that I should put together tutorials to share how I have created several projects. Taking photos of each step of the process, with written instructions included, was another great way to share creativity. These tutorials have been a staple to my Etsy store. Each one is presented in a downloadable PDF format and priced very reasonably. The beautiful thing? These tutorials are perfect for beginners as well as advanced artists.

Some people like to protect their trade secrets when it comes to creating. Not me. I want to share how I do it so others can experience the wonderful feeling of creating something beautiful!

My Etsy store is a perfect venue to sell my tutorials as well as any other little thing I may whip up! Plus I occasionally add little treasures that I've collected over the years. My stash is ever evolving and sometimes you just have to let things go!

Thank you again dear Kathy. You are a sweet, creative friend and I so appreciate being featured on your blog.

Thank you so much, Dawn, for sharing your story and your creativity.  It is always a pleasure to see the beautiful things that you create!  You can visit Dawn’s Etsy shop here and her blog here.  

Mother’s Day Gift For My Daughter

While I’m sure my son-in-law made sure to get a Mother’s Day gift for my daughter from my granddaughter, I thought it would be fun to do something with her that we could give to her mother together.   Plus, I like to do at least one craft type thing with her when I babysit and this was it for last week.

I kept four tin cans out of the recycling, washed them out, and spray painted them Heirloom White ahead of time.

I picked out a selection of scrapbook papers from my supply for my granddaughter to pick from and then cut the ones she picked with decorative scissors to cover the cans.  I had her help me apply them with Mod Podge.  We are leaving a portion of the top and bottom of the can showing, hence the painting.

Once they dried, I turned them over and nailed a few holes in each one for drainage.  When I went to Lowe’s to get some plants for myself, I picked up four herb plants to put in them.

I got {front} parsley and sweet basil, {back} rosemary and oregano.  I think I will be going back to get one of the mint plants they had to put in the pot I usually keep on our little table.  They even had a Chocolate Mint! 

Back at my house, we transplanted them into the decorated cans and added plant markers, decorated with herb labels I found on Pinterest and applied with Outdoor Mod Podge.  I found the plant markers at Lowe’s, too.

A nice little Mother’s Day gift for my daughter that I know she will enjoy!

I’m sure this would make a nice gift for other occasions besides Mother’s Day, too.  Father’s Day is coming up!