SCORED AND STORED

I don't know whats up with me lately.  Instead of cleaning my basement and not doing anything else until its done, I'm rearranging the main floor, rejigging my kitchen decor, crafting, etc...you know things that can be done, but should be done LATER.  After all the important, mature, clean up stuff is done.  Instead I've been rejigging every chance I get (you notice I don't say 'reorganizing'...that implies organization...that doesn't happen in my home!). So it LOOKS like the house stuff is getting done, just don't look under the carpet (or in the basement...or in the garage...). Well, I'm kinda cleaning the basement...I'm bringing up stuff I've scored and stored.  I've been scoring and storing in my basement for years!  Some call it hoarding, but we don't use that dirty dirty word around here! Score and store sounds sexy, doesn't it?  I don't sell any of my scores, although I wish I did.  So, what do you do with so much stuff? Store it! I don't need help yet, I mean I can still walk in many parts of my basement!  I don't rent storage facilities yet!  Anyway, so I've kind of been tidying the basement because many of my scores have come up and been displayed (however, many of my old displays have gone down to the basement to be stored). 

I scored this vintage Canada Dry bottle rack two years ago, and stored it in my garage for just as long.  After cleaning the rust as best as I could, I sprayed the rust with clear varnish.  I rubbed some of the bare, really rusty bits with watered down chalk paint in old white. I cut cardboard to fit the shelves, then lined them with Cath Kidston green star oil cloth.

The collection of vintage rolling pins used to be displayed in my bread box, but now call the upper shelf home.  That upper shelf looks like it could hold at least 5 more, don't you think? I'll get back on the hunt!

Then some of my scored and stored primary colour pyrex came up, along with my vintage wood egg cups, and glass bake cups (I love those!).

So, as there was only a lavender stool here, I managed to clear out my garage and basement quite a bit!  Patting myself on the shoulder now!

I scored and stored this canister set a year ago.  It broke my heart that I didn't have any room to display it in my kitchen! So, I did a little rejigging, and up it came!  This little tin fridge used to be on the chair.  Now I just display it underneath.

I know its a toy, but its so cute! Look inside!

The freezer used to open, but its now jammed. My nine year old daughters best friend keeps hinting that she 'loves it' and would just 'die to get it'.  Well back off sister!!!!  Its mine all mine!!!

Anyway I promised my husband I would go back to the basement tomorrow and not come back up until I had cleaned it up completely and totally!  Well, at least until it was time to cook dinner! Hope you all have a great day!

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Crafting for Halloween 2012!

Well another Halloween is approaching, and I hate to think that Christmas is right around the corner! I love Christmas, but that means cold, snow, blizzards, coats, boots, more blizzards, shovels, etc...but this post is about Halloween not blizzards and more blizzards! 

Yesterday was my birthday, and on Saturday night (the eve of my birthday)I sat around and crafted! It really is one of my favourite things to do and lately with life getting busier and busier, its becoming a real luxury. Anyway, Saturday night, wine glass next to me, I gathered my supplies (including my Hubs)...

Styrofoam head (I drew in bloodshot eyes), foam brushes, watered down white glue, coffee stained paper towels and gauze. I cropped the wine glass out of the photo...

Pulled out the crafting bible.

• Martha said to wait TWO DAYS for the coffee soaked paper and gauze to dry, but I threw it in the dryer for ten minutes.
• Also Martha said to make glue with flour and corn syrup...not for me.  I don't like using sugary things in glues.  I don't want any ants, bugs, other critters smelling sugar! Also, don't like sticky surfaces.  I used watered down white glue.

Layer the paper towels with glue all over the head in as many layers as it takes to make it look good.  I had 2-3 layers, and then added a few layers of gauze.  Martha only uses gauze to lay around the head. I found the glued on gauze really helped the 'mummy' look realistic (well, as realistic as a mummy head on your kitchen table can look).

Voilá!

All right, Mr. DeMille,I'm ready for my close up...

This is my good side...

No, I think this side may be better...

I'm so 'damned' good looking! If looks could kill!

She reminds me of myself after I had surgery on my nose! Really quite loverly! Now she is ready to join the rest of the gang at the 'Loretta' households Halloween party...

We play all kinds of fun games here...

We shop for only the freshest of ingredients...

While organ meats are yummers, we can't forget our veggies! Black pumpkins are extra nutritious!

To serve a meal thats fit for a Queen...

We spare no expense.  We have lovely after dinner mints...sugar free so they won't rot your lovely teeth...

Won't you join us in the festivities?  But they haven't begun yet...Still have lots to do before the bewitching begins!

See you soon!

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TWO DOWN!!!!

Ok, so now I've completed my second table from my pile of junk, furniture in my garage!!  Yippee! Horray for me!!! My husband, says 'only two done?'.  Yeah, well they (the family) still want to eat (daily!) and want laundry too!  I am also President and CEO of M.O.M.s Taxi Company inc., and since its a small business, I'm its sole taxi driver!  We go all over Toronto and suburbs for auditions, Irish dancing lessons, piano lessons, no job too small or big for M.O.M.s!!  Thats what my kids say! I'm sure many of you run such a taxi service, and you know that the tips are hit and miss! The things we do for love.  

Here is a before photo of this little table.  

Not a bad little table. Rather delicate, and nice legs, very sturdy, but dated and worn.  It also had an unnaturally shiny finish.

I started with two coats of paint(it kept repelling the paint of provence ASCP).  The last table I painted was this colour,so I just wanted to use it for the undertone.  But it still required two coats, just to cover bare spots!

You can just see it peeking out there in the back ground.  I'm not crazy about this colour prior to waxing...but loved it waxed. 

On came two coats of Old White, some light distressing, wax, and Voilá!

You might be thinking...'um, something doesnt look right here...'.  Well my wonky photograph doesn't look right, but yes, the top didn't get painted, because I was saving it for this:

My favourite Cath Kidston wallpaper!  I only use her on special projects! Isn't she just lovely? It took all the strength I had not to bring wallpaper back from the Cath K store in Ireland! Strength and the fact that our luggage was already costing us crazy prices because we were overloaded! Next trip I'm bring home the mother load!

She really makes my heart sing!  And look at what she did for that table!

Perfectly girly, huh?  Even my 28 year old daughter who claims to hate all things floral loved it! High praise from my child!The glass topper is on it to protect the paper.  

The very light distressing lets the Provence and original dark wood peek out in little doses.  I really like light distressing, or that really flakey peely milk paint look (love it!), but am not a fan of sanded spots all over the place.  It looks nice and I would do it for a client, its just not for my personal taste.

Its Thanksgiving here in lovely Canada, and I do love being Canadian and am truly thankful for many things in my life.  Happy Thanksgiving to any Canadians out there!  Gobble Gobble!!!

A great scene from a great Thanksgiving movie!!!

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Revisiting Last Hallowe'en!!

I have to get myself in the halloween mood! Its now October 4th!  I love to decorate early, because why go through all that work only to pull it down three days later???  But, I just can't get into the fall/Halloween spirit yet!  I don't want to let summer go!  In Canada, Halloween means snowfall the following week!  NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

So, I'm going to pull it out today and start decorating tomorrow.  I thought I'd share some photos of my favourite Halloween transformation/project from last year:  I did a great doll pram transformation last year.  It was the coolest, creepiest candy bowl evah!

This was a dirty, rusty, banged up doll pram I paid $10 for (too expensive for the condition it was in!)at a junk shop last year.  I knew what I would do with it the second I saw it!  Two cans of matte black spray paint later, and voilá!

Add some spooky black lace and a couple of crows and fill with candy!  You can keep it on the porch and hand out your candies dressed as the black widow!  Creepy!!!!  I originally had a small skeleton in it, but the kids just thought it was way too sick! I think I scared them!

Happy Halloween!!!

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