The 2012 Debate

No, I'm not talking about these debates. Nope, not at all. I am talking about something much more important. Much more entertaining. And so much more fun...

The 2012 Costume Debate

On Redds list:

• Russian Soldier
• Jack the Skeleton
• Indiana Jones
• Darth Vader
• Spy
• Viking
• Ninja

On Dallface's  list:

• Sally (from The Nightmare Before Christmas)
• girl Darth Vadar
• girl Ninja
• girl Viking
• Monster High - Ghoulia Yelps
• Vampire
• Egyptian Princess

(apparently adding 'girl' on Dollface's list was a must...) So far the ninja's are winning, which is completely fine with me. Ninja costumes can be easy and inexpensive to make.

Really, I think they just want to be ninjas so they can add the cool ninja swords to their random toy/warrior collection.  Can't blame them there.

I would love to have a really great, spook-tastic,  hauntingly amazing Halloween bash this year, but quite a few of our friends here will be on leave and probably out of state. (click here if you are confused) If we do end up having a huge bash, like I want, here a few great ideas I found on Pinterest.

This one we will be doing for sure. I have an extra wreath at home, + Dollar Tree snakes + black spray paint also already at home = BAM  Too Easy and you'll have a front door that even Madusa could be proud of.

 source

This one I have actually been doing for years. This usually has a good response at our Halloween get-together, but not always. I swear, some adults just act to grown up. Grow Down! Since I am not entirely sure where my photos are of it, here is an example that I found. 

source

Covering your chairs in black tulle. Hello, how easy is this and why haven't I thought of it on my own! Face Palm!

I don't think I will use orange as the ribbon color though, rather purple or black. 

source

 If I have learned anything about preparing for Halloween decorating, it is to stock up on cheesecloth and tulle and LOTS of it!

If you want to follow my PARTY: Like a Goblin board on Pinterest, you can do so here.

Home ownership - one DIY at a time

I feel like a snail on the treadmill of life. 

There is SO much to do to this house. I'm trying to document everything on here so I can look back later and be proud of our accomplishments. But blogging about painting a light fixture or replacing a door knob seems so tedious. 

   Oh well. 

   So Far We Have:

•  Lime green paint in the sun room
•  New light switch plate in the sun room
•  Planted Morning Glories out front
•  Added a lattice for said morning glories
•  Dug up all cactus in the front yard
•  Fresh paint for the entryway
•  New light switch plates in entryway and hallway
•  Fresh paint in the living room and dining room 
•  New refrigerator
•  Convert & painted wet bar to a built in bookshelf
•  New Carpet in living room
•  New tile in dining room
•  Replaced light fixture in hallway
•  Repaint light fixture in sun room
•  Replaced master bedroom door knob
•  Removed dead palm tree from the front yard
•  Replaced toilet handle & faucet in hall bathroom (here)
•  Fresh paint in the hall bathroom
•  Laundry room makeover

Ahhh its so ongoing. Our to do list is fooooorever long. blah. All this work just to list the house for sale as soon as we get orders to PCS somewhere else. 

DIY Upcycle Kitchen Curtains 

Random Thoughts Of The Day

1.       Harry Potter marathon on abc family + cat naps + ice cream = one of the most relaxing and enjoyable Sundays I have had in a long time.

2.       Cannot spend two Sundays in a row on my bum. Next week, we are going for another hike.

3.       Glasses: I need them, I own them, I hate to wear them.

4.       Pinterest, if you give me any more damn 404 errors when trying to edit all my many boards and pins, I am likely to cancel my account or scream at my computer. Who am I kidding, it would be the latter.

5.       Socialization, I miss it. In Savannah, I would often run into people I knew near every time I left the house. I miss that...

6.       Turns out I’m a bit on the competitive side. Who knew?  I had never thought of myself as competitive before, but I entered a Valspar contest and I am in 3^rd place and it is driving me insane not being 1^st! It goes by votes only. You can vote once an hour until 30 November. It’s not like it is a talent competition or anything but it's bugging the shit out of me still the same. Shameless plug  -----> http://bit.ly/tUIfrS

7.       Time to think about Christmas trees. Should we go real or fake? Personally, I’m down with a tacky white tree or even pink, but my hubs a much more boring uninteresting traditional style.

8.       Dyslexia. It has been determined that Redd has dyslexia. Can you believe that the public library did not have a single book on this? Off to Barns and Noble tomorrow to find The Gift of Dyslexia Why Some of the Smartest People Can't Read and How They Can Learn.By Ronald D. Davis with Eldon M.Braun.

9.       When filling out your Christmas cards this year take ONE CARD and SEND it to this address: A Recovering American Soldier, c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 6900 Georgia Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20307-5001.

10.   The trouble with spending so much time alone is that my mind tends to run wild and over think so many things.'Nuff said.

11.   I would give anything for someone to wash all the sand and dust off my car. I was not meant to be a southwestern kinda girl.

12.   Oh I wish I was a punk rocker with flowers in my hair ☮ (<---♪ ♫ ♬ )

⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘⌘
Ooo and one more thing before I go:

I like change. I get bored easily. Blame my ADD.

BG will have a new look complete with awesome new buttons coming soon!

Gypsy Teal

Weekend project:

• Repaint mailbox and make it cute

• Add a splash of color to this Southwest house

            Check & Check!


Remember when Valspar did their free sample giveaway? I was able to get a little gypsy teal from the deal. 

Isn't is Gorgeous?!

You may [or may not] remember me using it on my little tray :

I actually used the same swirly design concept when updating the boring black mailbox:

step 1: freshen up the sun faded mailbox with a fresh coat of black spray paint

step 2: come up with [or reuse] a design idea

step 3: after painting it black & waiting for it to dry, I drew my design on with a pencil then painted it on

step 4: use a clear coat spray paint to protect my little work of art

Also used the Gypsy Teal to refresh the boring blah house number sign:

before|after

ah, much better

Now on to other projects...






linked to:

A Glimpse Inside

SweetLittleGals 

The Shabby Creek Cottage 

delicateCONSTRUCTION 

Funky Junk Interiors 

Home Stories A to Z

Something + Glue = Rad

With Gorilla Glue in your corner, the creative possibilities are endless. 

(  I  love  this  stuff  !  )

Who doesn't love a trip to Goodwill? or any thrifty store for that matter?

I especially love finding cute saucers or dessert plates and a pretty or just interesting candlestick. Since my spray paint is always near by, I have even painted plates or the sticks before gluing. -- No really, I think I have a problem when it comes to spray paint... 

This little dish I keep in my bathroom. Its perfect when I need a place to sit all those odd things I pick up and put in my pocket throughout the day. 

(tutorial on scrabble charm to come)

With this one, I only painted the plate. I love the design on the edge :)

This one is in  my daughters room. I {heart} it so much!

No paint, just ran it through the dishwasher to get the Goodwill funk off it & Gorilla Glues the candlestick to the bottom of the plate. (fyi the frame that you hardly see was another Goodwill find. I painted and made it match her room. yay!)

Linked To:
Polly Want A Crafter

Before & After - La Fonda the beautiful

 Say Hello To My Little Friend

BEFORE- Blah,  Who wants boring old white and wood colored things? Not I!

 

          I still find the transformation from a little paint to be amazing. 

And don't you love this color? :)

There is not a lot of change here, but I love the way they  turned out, for the most part.

(Notice that nothing has been done to the cigar box yet, I am completely uninspired right now. Soon it will get a makeover, 

just not yet)

 Painting is no where near as fun when I must renounce my love for spray-paint and go back the using a boring old brush. ho-hum. . .

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{I'm totally digging this color!}

La Fonda Turquoise

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So what do you think? Its painted and slightly distressed around the edges. I feel like it needs something else, though. I haven't quite figured out what yet. Suggestions?

 My darling, want-to-be-involved husband wants me to add a monogram on the side. I would have no problem with that, ya know, if I had one of these bad boys, the beloved Silhouette Digital Cutting Tool.    (hint-hint to the hubs)

I've entered in blog give-a-ways countless times but to no avail. Maybe someday. *Fingers Crossed*

When prepping to refinish the stool, I had an Ah-Ha moment. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do to the top, I flipped it over and saw the screw holes and simply removed the base from the top to make painting easier. I may still do something else with the top, but in the meantime I'm happy with it the way it is. I ordered a sample of Regal Plum from the Valspar free paint sample they are doing for 100 days. 

I think I am going to paint the top of the stool the plum color when it comes in the mail!! 

*Hooray for FREE Paint*

Edit to add:   I have named my magazine rack, La Fonda.


Linking to:

SweetLittleGals

**Craigslist Score**

1st off, I'd like to remind everyone to ALWAYS use caution when using Craigslist. Personally, I never go alone and I try to avoid going to the sellers house, public places are always best. However, I have a confession to make. I broke both of my rules when I 1st started out being a Craigslist junky. I never wanted to seem pushy when communicating with the sellers and I never used to negotiate the price. Boy has that changed! Now, I refuse to go to someones house and I rarely ever pay the asking price. If someone has a dresser listed for $100 don't be scared to email them and offer say $50 or $60. Some of the time I get a counter offer. Either way, I just purchased an item for less than listed.

A few months ago I came across a small table with 4 chairs listed for $45. I bought it for $25. I busted out my handy dandy spray paint and turned the small table and one chair into a desk and chair for my bedroom.

Have I mentioned how much a adore Apray Paint?! No, well its a LOT!! :)

 These are the four chairs that went to the table. 

Cute right? Notice the   embellishments I added to the back of some of the chairs.

Super cheap and uber cute!

The other three chairs I painted and put 2 of them in my kids rooms for their desks and the third I painted with a small table I got from Goodwill for $3. I turned around and sold that small table and chair on CL for a whopping $30.