Can Someone Slow the World Down?

My goodness. It's been a long time since I've had a moment to blog. I've been busy working and sleeping.

My "day job" has been very busy with conferences and extra hours. And it seems that all I manage to do when I come home from a full day's work is sleep.

However, I did take time last night (during my few waking hours!) to watch a video that I purchased about a month ago.  It's called The Hustle for Worthiness by Brene Brown. Brene talks about love, belonging and being good enough. It was fantastic and I need/want to watch to it again and again.

Brene was a speaker at a series of conferences that I work with and I'm so grateful that I was able to meet her and get to know her. She is a truly gifted person who has an incredible impact on most everyone she meets. She had a huge impact on me - she's the person who encouraged....well, insisted....that I start selling my wool items on Etsy and the first to feature my work on her blog (which, a couple months later, resulted in me starting this blog).

Thanks Brene!

Spring Keeps Popping Up

It is so refreshing and renewing to see all the signs of spring popping up all over. Of course, I gage how far spring has come by what keeps coming up in the garden. When you think about it, life is alot like a garden - but we can talk more about that later.

I just thought I'd pass on a few fun signs of spring coming from my little corner of the world.

Glass Mosaic Gazing Ball.

Pink Phlox.

Grape Hyacinth.

Garage Sale Chicken. What? Where did SHE come from?

Oh, that's ok. Most everyone/thing is welcome at my house.

Summer Radios

I'm kind of mad today.

I have new neighbors on both sides of my nice quiet home.

Both seem to think that whatever radio station they are listening to, I should also listen to.  Even when I'm inside my house with my porch doors open to the fresh air.

What ever happened to common courtesy?

Ding Dang Cutest Thing

Is this not the most precious picture you've ever seen?

I just ran across it today from a subscription email/newsletter that I get and I thought I'd melt. It comes from a blog called Getting Stitched on the Farm. Check it out - it's full of fun things that involve yarn, wool, sheep and lots of other fun stuff that will keep me browsing-busy for quite some time.

Wow - the playfulness and creativity that some people have just blows me away. It's a happy thing!

The Painted Desk

As promised, here's a couple photos of the desk that I just finished painting.  Sorry - no "before" photos - only "after".

Two coats of primer and two coats of popcorn white (which seems to be my favorite white these days) and it's a new piece. I also used some fabric scraps (previously used to recover a footstool for a friend) on the back panels of the shelving. It's actually press-board behind it so I can use both areas to tack up great photos or inspiring magazine clippings.  I also plan on adding some fun drawer-pulls whenever I happen upon some that fit the desk right.

Hope you like...

White Day

I'm in a white mood today.

I'm not quite sure what that means - it's just a feeling.

Maybe it's coming from my virgin-white thoughts (Ok. Not.) or maybe it has more to do with me painting more furniture white.

In the middle of my not-overly-huge living room is another furniture paint job in progress. I'm painting more coats of popcorn white on a desk that I purchased a couple weeks ago for $15. It will go in my son's room (that I'm now using as my computer and wool room). I'll show you a photo of the desk when I've finished with it and have it in place.

For now, maybe you'd like to see a picture of a white metal flower that sits happily outside my house on this spring-warm-60-something-degree day.

Featured Pillow

I am honored to have a fellow blogger feature one of my flower pillows on her blog yesterday. Check it out here!

Wonder if I should change the name to SPRING Flower Pillow......

Trash to Treasure

I love picking up old, worn, used items and transforming them into fresh, new, useful items.  For anyone who knows me - they know I have many projects awaiting their turn in the renewal process!

I finally put my mind to a multi-drawer cabinet that I picked up about two years ago. I thought it would be a great piece to store many of my little-sewing/crafting items. I had great visions for it - but it had a long way to go. It was adorned with many stickers, newspaper clippings and hand-writing from many years back.

After first removing all the handles, I primed and spray-painted them along with all the screws. Unfortunately, there were only two screws used for each four-screw handle. Oh well, I decided not to let that bother me. After all, it's an imperfect world.

The drawers were numbered before I removed them so they could fit properly back into their designated spots (lesson learned from kitchen cupboard project - I still have two that don't hang correctly!).

Approximately a quarter of a container of light-weight "filler" was used to fill in the multitude of random holes all of the cabinet and drawers. I wonder the purpose for all of the holes...there were an awful lot of them...guess I'll never know. Truth be known, I love using filler to fill holes, scratches and notches in wood. I could sit and "fill" for hours. Really. It's probably weird, but it's true.

A couple hours were spent with a razor blade in my hand scraping off yellowed pictures and newspaper clippings that were very securely glued on multiple drawers and sides of the cabinet. (There was a part of me that felt bad ruining these old, precious, glued-on pieces - so I took photos of them to make me feel better about it. The "Happiness Doesn't Come in Pills" clipping was so cool. Of course, I don't know, but I really think that these were put on in perhaps the 50's or 60's!)

A nice sanding of all of the surfaces prepared them for the next step - the primer. Have I mentioned that I love power tools? :-)

I applied two coats of primer to the drawer fronts and the cabinet. Two coats of "popcorn" white were then applied to finish the pieces.

Handles back on - drawers back in - POOF - job done! I have to say I'm happy with the finished piece. I have yet to fill the drawers, but believe me - it won't be a problem!