Flight of the Bumble Bee...

No, I am not talking about the orchestral interlude written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.  I am actually referring to my next decorating adventure taking place in the kitchen.  I have some areas that consist of faux-tile that i decided not to tear out but instead painted over them.  After several months of looking at the tiles I decided that despite my fears I needed to add something more.  See the before....

I was afraid that with everything else that I have going on in the kitchen, adding another design would be too much.  I am glad that I took the risk and put my Cricut to use.  I looked through my cartridges and realized that I had a beautiful bee pattern on my Sentimentals cartridge.  I grabbed the black vinyl that came with my Cricut and started on my newest adventure. Here are the results so far...

I am still working on getting the effect I want for the upper portion of the wall but all in all I am pleased with the results the vinyl bees have added to the tiles.  All I need is to make a quick trip to my local Michaels to purchase some more vinyl.
Happy Decorating!

My Jewelry Beginnings...

Most of my blog postings have been related to my home renovation projects.  I thought this week I would switch gears a bit and talk about my jewelry.  I fell in love with metalsmithing a few years ago after taking a class at the Waterworks Art Studio in Tulsa, OK.  I knew that I wanted to get to a point where I could make jewelry on a full-time basis and that is a goal I plan on making happen in the next few years.  Since taking my first class I have made many pieces but did not bother to take pictures of my work before giving them away as gifts.  I did manage to get  a somewhat decent picture of my very first project.  I made my mother-in-law a pendant using sterling silver and my trusty jewelers saw.  Sitting down and sawing intricate details out of metal is a form of zen for me.  I literally lose myself in the action of it-at least until my hand starts screaming at me or a saw blade eventually wears down and breaks. So, here it is....my first creation.

It is a little blurry, but it is a version of the tree of life. If you look closely you can spot a few birds in the mix-some with wings stretched open and some just perching on a limb.  I got my inspiration from a wall hanging in a catalog.  I still beam with pride when I see my mother-in-law wearing it.  I can't wait until I can completely focus my attention on making beautiful jewelry pieces for others to enjoy.  I know that I must finish the house first but it has not stopped me from filling up sketchbooks with ideas or taking pictures of architectural elements that inspire me.  I have even found inspiration in some of the elements inside my home.  When I slow down enough I often realize that inspiration is all around.  Enjoy slowing down enough to look around and realize what inspires you!

Snow, Snow Go Away...

Like many others last week, we were hit with a major snow storm.  In fact, we received sooo much snow last week that we broke the record for the most snow received in recorded Oklahoma history!  Hey, I am all for breaking records, but this is one record I am sure I would not have lost sleep over if it never happened.  Instead, I lost sleep working to keep the pipes in the back part of our house from freezing as temperatures dipped below 0 a few times.  I did manage to get out of the house toward the end of the week last week and snapped a few pictures before another round of snow closed in.

This Tulip tree is by the curb. As you can see you are not able to see where the yard ends and the street begins.

My favorite Magnolia Tree.  It was happy that the snow melted some.

The deck in the backyard.

My hubby and I also managed to get out this past weekend to restock our food and pet supplies because we have another round of snow coming in tomorrow night.  Here is hoping that I am more motivated to work on my home improvement projects this week if we do get snowed in again.  The only thing I was motivated to do last week was to bake chocolate cake and help hubby eat it. I did not even think to snap a picture of the cake before it was gobbled up! While I am bracing myself for being trapped inside yet another week, I will be wishing everyone a safe and warm week!

Officially Insane or Filled with Ingenuity?...

Ok, I am not sure whether to pat myself on the back for my ceiling cover idea, or if I should start packing my bag in preparation for being sent to the crazy house.  Regardless I would definitely agree that I am a glutton for punishment.  Somewhere inside my brain is a deep seeded need to see how far I can take the frugal decorating thing and time consuming projects seem to be my "go to" solution. This time I am tackling the ugly kitchen ceiling dilemma. Actually, I am using my idea to tackle the ugly kitchen, dining room and living room ceiling dilemma.  The kitchen ceiling is actually the least ugly and problematic but figured I would fully commit to my ceiling coverage idea and use it for all three spaces downstairs.  Ok, so enough babbling about it.  Here is a look at the beginnings of my HUGE undertaking.

 Now I realize that it might be hard to really envision what the entire ceiling is going to look like decked out in my faux flowers, but trust me when I say that the pictures do not really do them justice.  Surprisingly my hubby even loved them once he could see them up on the ceiling.  What are the flowers made out of? Well, that is a very good question.  Would you believe me if I told you that they are made out of paper grocery sacks? Seriously!  The idea struck me as I was pulling my hair out flabbergasted over the amount of paper sacks I had stashed in my cabinet (before I started using reusable sacks of course).  I promise a tutorial on how to make them if anyone would like to try their hand at finding other applications for the faux flowers.  I have already made this posting too lengthy so I will say, "adieu."  

Best wishes for an insanely creative week!

Brrrrr....

It has been super cold around here lately with a small amount of snow to prove it.  I would have taken pictures of the snow we got but it was not really what I consider to be the "pretty snow."  The snow is quickly melting despite the cold temperatures  and did not even leave a lovely dusting on my magnolia tree.  The good thing about the snow is that I was able to dust off my galoshes and bring my own color to the winter world outside.  I absolutely adore my Chooka boots because they are adorned with a colorful peacock pattern. See...

Despite being trapped indoors this week, I have not been overly motivated to get a lot done on the house this week.  I did manage to get my favorite clock hung in our kitchen.

We purchased this clock at a local specialty pet store called the Dog Dish.  Hubby and I fell in love with the clock because it resembles our 1/2 St. Bernard 1/2 lab appropriately named, Bernie.  

The clock was made by a company called F.B. Fogg.  Unfortunately, I recently learned that the company is no longer in production.  I feel fortunate to have this piece as part of our kitchen decor.  It brings a smile every time I look up to see the time.  Next week I will make more progress on the home renovations.  I will also share my inexpensive and unique solution to covering a yucky textured ceiling.

Week of Wishin...

 As I have been putting more of the finishing touches on my kitchen, I have found myself wishing I had more space.  My mind has wandered down the street of "what ifs" and could not help but dream of what I would do in my kitchen if it were just a bit bigger.   My biggest wish would be to have amazing modern barstools and a wonderfully large island with a large pot rack filled with hammered copper pots.  Perhaps something like these:

Traditional Home

Traditional Home

Well, I might not have the space to get my island and barstool wish, but I do know that once my kitchen is done it will be wonderfully unique. A space that my family and I can cook in and make memories together.  After all, that is what it is really all about isn't it?  

My New Best Friend...

For Christmas one of the things my hubby got me for Christmas was a Dremel Trio.  I was soooo excited because I knew the first project I wanted to tackle with it.  I have been harboring a few secret yucky places in my kitchen.  The first space is the area directly below the kitchen sink.  It was cleverly hidden away by some cute curtains but had been bugging me from the first day I saw it.  I did not have any real power tools and did not want to have to ask our neighbor once again to cut a piece of wood for me.  In comes my dremel trio to save the day!  I loved using it because it is smaller and easier for me to handle.  It tackled cutting my plywood with ease and I felt like I had conquered the world after I used it successfully for the first time.  I know, to feel as though I conquered the world is a bit dramatic, but it was true.  I was sooo proud of myself that I had to struggle to keep from shouting it from the porch and then calling everyone I knew.  I settled with celebrating with my hubby and then later calling my mom.  Anyway, enough of my babbling.  Here are the before pictures of the area underneath my kitchen sink.

As you can see it was hideous! Now here are the "After" pictures thanks to the assistance of my new best friend.

I now love that I can better use the area under my kitchen sink!  I just need to get some containers to keep my cleaning supplies nice and organized. Next hidden hideous spot in my kitchen, BEWARE! I am coming for you next!!!