It's All About Me

Well I am here, I haven't been on in a while. I have been trying to make some very important decisions. And in the process I have lost sleep and have kept myself confused and wore out so there has been no crafting getting done. I finally talked to my husband about it yesterday. He is great and supports me no matter what but he always wants me to make my own decisions, even when I want him to tell me what to do! So after our talk I have decided I will not be going back to work when school starts. My heart is doing OK but just the thought of having to keep up with those kids was stressing my out. And the doc said I need less stress because I have started having problems with anxiety. It is not so much of a problem for me but Joey said all the stores around here have probably got my picture posted like a bad check list and they are not going to let me in. Isn't he sweet? So I am trying real hard to be nice and keep my picture off the walls. So spending the nights sleepless wondering if I will get called in and the days dealing with kids will probably not help in my fight to stay calm. And in order for me to handle my pacemaker adjustments calm is what I need. I also decided I will not take the anxiety meds, they make me like a zombie, and no thyroid meds. As long as my heart is ok my thyroid seems to be staying stable and I have even lost six pounds! Woo Hoo! I will continue to take my potassium when I start noticing signs of it getting low and I will take my daily aspirin, just in case. So I feel like I am not hiding that from my family now since I have done it this way for three months already. I know, I am bad. So with a clear head and the help of some Tylenol pm I slept eleven hours last night. I feel much better now. And since the doc also wants me to keep active I am going to give my craft business a real shot and stop playing around. I will be doing orders and craft shows this fall. If all goes well by the end of the year I will set up an Etsy account to sell online and we will convert part of the garage into a craft room. I know this all sounds like stress but since I can do this at home, at my own pace I can keep the focus on my health and my family. I am super excited about making these changes and can't wait to get the ball rolling. I will also continue to blog and stay in my photo club because I enjoy doing both of them very much.

And like this picture I took, there are only two things for sure in life. There is life and death, all the things in the middle are just random decisions you make to decide if you live it to the fullest or waste your time waiting for the end to come. I love the Lord and know I will not have to worry about any of this when I am gone. So for now I will live life to the fullest, stay right with God and enjoy it while I am here. And I have wonderful family and friends to help me with that. I love them all.

Candle Stix

Happy Monday everyone. I found these old style candle sticks at a yard sale for 75cents, for all three! So I snatched them up. I knew I didn't want to leave them the way they were and I couldn't think of how I would use them all together, so they are getting split up. One will be used for Halloween and another Christmas. The third will be put away for another project.

I started them off the same way.I cleaned them up and painted them a cinnamon brown. I didn't worry to much about the coverage since this is the first step but make sure to get all the little cracks and crevices. After covering the whole candle and letting set a minute I then wiped off some of the brown paint on the drips marks and the base. On the Halloween candle I repeated the painting process with black paint. I then sprayed it with craft adhesive and covered it with coffee grounds to give it an older heavy look. The Christmas candle was sprayed covered in cinnamon for a lighter look.

I then topped them both off with a homemade grubby silicone bulbs a good friend and I made together. And that's all it took. I hope you like how they turned out, I will show you pictures later in the year when I use them in my holiday decorating.Just remember don't be afraid to try something new it can always be made over. And when you get deals like this you have nothing to lose?

The grubby lights were an experiment and I think they turned out GREAT!! Happy crafting everyone.

Pattern Makeover

I had a makeover all planned on some cute yard sale finds but I am holding off on them till later in the week. Today I am working on a computer makeover! I have been downloading new patterns on my desktop and my laptop and it was high time to consolidate them. I am putting them all on a disc in folders according to what they are. I am not finished yet but I have already found some that I forgot I had and have never made!! Since I am new at all of this it will constantly be a work in progress. But I am supper excited about getting things going for fall shows. If any of you know of any craft shows in or around southern Illinois I would be glad to hear from you. And I would also like to thank everyone who makes these patterns, without you I would have a headache for life. Here is one item I made last week from a purchased pattern and I think he turned out really well. I am going to go for now the kids are getting along today and I think the pool may be calling our names.

Three Dollar Find

I have been working today and I have a makeover for you that I found at a yard sale for three dollars. It was a wood cabinet so I knew I could make some changes. It had all the hardware and was pretty solid, I had to put some wood glue on one door. Once the door was finished I started the makeover! First I removed the not so great fabric from the doors and cleaned the entire piece with a damp cloth. I then removed all the hardware and doors. I measured and cut some chicken wire to replace the fabric on the doors. I dry brushed black paint on the chicken wire before adding it to the doors. I then painted the rest of the cabinet with two coats of black craft paint. After it was completely dry I put the doors back on and grunged it up with some sand paper. Keep in mind that the original paint will come through when you do the sanding. So if you want to hide the base coat go light on the sanding. I was fine with the paint showing because it matched the pulls I used on the finished cabinet. Once the sanding was done I wiped it off with a dry cloth. Then I used a cherry stain on it to bring out the base coat even more. I wiped off the stain immediately after applying. When the stain was dry I added the new hardware on the doors and let it dry in a well ventilated area. I now have a new cabinet! Cost with paint and free chicken wire is $5.86. Now that's what I call a deal. So go out and get your not so pretty deals and make them over!!!

Makeover Monday

In today's time we all want to save money. But we also want to keep our homes nice and relaxing for our families to enjoy. And let's face it the more we spend decorating the more work our husbands have to do to bring home the bacon. So I say look in places that you wouldn't normally find a primitive piece.Or at least think you will find one. I found this five arm chandelier in a ood Will store. It's arms were all loose and the color wasn't that great, but it was new in a box for $6.oo. Who can beat that! So I took it all apart, easy as pie, tightened all the arms and put it back together. I then used regular black, craft paint and painted the entire thing. It took two coats and I started from top to bottom to help prevent drips. Make sure to keep the brush wet to prevent streaks, but not wet enough to leave globs of paint or bubbles. I let it dry and topped it off with punched tin mini lamp shades that I bought at a favorite prim store here in town. I know you are thinking the shades were an expense, but I got them for a good deal and they make all the difference! I didn't distress this piece at all because I wanted the focus to be on the willow tree shades. Now if I can find the candle drip sleeves,that I have been holding onto for some time, and put them on with the shades the chandelier will be PERFECT! Happy Makeover Monday everyone, and don't be afraid to search for your bargains any where you can find them.