For love of candles

I have a candle obsession...  I keep buying candles and holders (and making my own as well) even though I have no place to put them, I can't help myself!!!!

For love of candles :)

Candles decorated for Xmas with jute, ribbons and wrapping paper

Old light repurposed as candle holder with a candle wrapped with a bit of burlap and jute tie.

Not really a candle, but love it all the same

Garage Sale find

Love these stars!

Avon Moroccan Lantern

Love the chicken wire on these tea light holders

Antique bronze candle holders

Another star :)

a rustic touch with more jute

Jam jar candle holder
(a few decorative stones & more jute)

Old fashioned boat lantern

Candle chandelier

So am I alone in this fetish or should I start a Candle Holders Anonymous group???

Have a fabulous week!!

Linking to these fabulous parties:

Funky Junk Interiors

ArtsyGirl Connection     Rustic Crafts & Chic Decor

Nutmeg Place
I heart Nap Time     DIY Showoff
You're Talking Too Much
The House in the Roses   Homemaker on a Dime
the Delectable Home
Coastal Charm
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Creatively Living
Northern Cottage

Between Naps on the Porch     Not Just a House Wife
a bowl full of Lemons
DIY by Design     Clean & Scentsible
It's Overflowing
the Shady Porch     From My Front Porch to Yours
Thrifty Decorating
aka Design     A little Knick Knack
the Artsy Girl Connection
My Repurposed Life     Finding Fabulous
My Simple Home Life
French Country Cottage     2805     My Romantic Home
Shabby Nest

Tree Stump Table

Thirteen years ago, my ex and I built a log home.  When it was finished, we had little bits of stumps left over from the construction phase and when I moved into my new home, I brought one of them with me.  I had used it on my front porch as a table for a decade and it was very weatherbeaten.  Naturally I didn't take any before photos of it, but here is a photo of the log house I used to live in and you can see where it used to sit on the front porch right beside the front door.

In my new home, I decided it would be nice to have it indoors so I painted it creamy white to clean it up a bit.  It looked better but was too plain for my liking.  I'm just not an "all white" kind of girl.  Ever since I redecorated my master bedroom, I'm right into a French cottage mode of decorating so guess what I used to embellish my new table?  Yup, that old fleur-de-lis pattern that I am now totally in love with.

This time I created a stencil of the printout that I have simply by cutting out the picture with a box cutter.  This made the job soooo much easier than trying to trace or free-hand draw the pattern on the bumpy surface.  With all the interest in script these days, I opted to write out fleur-de-lis all around the edge as well.

In addition to all of this, I had a nice surprise this week when a package arrived unexpectedly from Hadley Pottery.  But I need to backtrack a little here...  In January, Hadley offered a free bowl to Nesting Place blog subscribers and all you had to do was pay the shipping costs.  I've always wanted a piece of their pottery and when I saw the fleur-de-lis pattern, I had to have it.  Unfortunately for me, shipping to Canada wasn't among the options on the website so I emailed Hadley's customer service department to ask if the offer had been limited to US residents.  Hadley emailed back with a Kentucky telephone number to call to arrange for my bowl to be shipped but after a game of telephone tag, I gave up the ghost before my long-distance phone charges exceeded the cost of the bowl!!   Lo & behold, Hadley generously sent me the bowl of my choice without me having to pay anything at all.  What amazing customer service!

Here is my little bowl:

And so my love affair with the fleur-de-lis continues :)

Have a fabulous and creative week!

Linking to these fabulous parties:

Knick of Time

Funky Junk Interiors     I heart Nap Time     Classy Clutter
Rustic Crafts & Chic Decor
Mum of all trades
DIY Showoff     You're Talking Too Much     The House in the Roses
Homemaker on a Dime
Twigg Studios     Coastal Charm
Between Naps on the Porch
Northern Cottage     Creatively Living
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Sassy Sites     Mod Vintage Life     Cedar Hill Ranch
Not Just a Housewife
a bowl full of Lemons     Faded Charm Cottage
Clean & Scentsible
DIY by Design     Saavy Southern Style
the Shady Porch
It's Overflowing     Thrifty Decorating
Beyond the Picket Fence
aka Design
From my front porch to yours
the Vintage Farmhouse     A Little Knick Knack     2805
French Country Cottage
At the Picket Fence     Days of Chalk & Chocolate
My Romantic Home
Sassy Sites
Simple Home Life    Miss Mustard Seed
Finding Fabulous
Stuff & Nonsense

Painting and a Quote

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."

- Henry David Thoreau

I found this quote today and it reminded me of a painting that I have been struggling with for some time.  I've actually painted over the canvas three times trying to get it right!  Today, I am much happier with the painting and I have chosen to appreciate it for its simplicity and brightness rather than continuing in my attempts to make it into something that it is not.

20x24 Acrylic on wrapped canvas

And since that painting was my tribute to Autumn and now it's almost Spring, I decided to paint a flower painting as well.

9x12 Acrylic on watercolour paper

Have a happy week!

"Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls."

- Mother Teresa


Linking to:
Artists in Blogland
Paint Party Friday
Sassy Sites
Sunday Sketches

I heart old windows and doors

I get so excited every time I find an old window or door and I seem to be finding lots of them lately.  In fact, I just scored about 10 of them from a friend who is cleaning out his barn!!!

Here are some of the windows/doors I picked up in 2011:

My potting bench makeover.

The door I saved just as it was being tossed into the landfill... (I've since scored 2 more!!)

3 storm windows I picked up for free that I made into this tiny greenhouse

This one I pulled out of a dumpster

here is my favourite of all the doors I've found.  Got it for $1 at a garage sale
10 years ago and haven't figured out what to do with it yet!
(Shed beautification is a 2012 coming attraction - lol)

Happy treasure hunting everyone!   I can't wait for the spring yard sales :)

Cheers!

Linking to:

Funky Junk Interiors

I heart Nap Time     You're Talking Too Much

Delectable Home

Mod Vintage Life     Between Naps on the Porch

House in the Roses

Homemaker on a Dime     Coastal Charm

Cherished Bliss

Northern Cottage     Cedar Hill Ranch

Creatively Living

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Not Just a Housewife     a bowlful of Lemons

DIY by Design

Clean & Scentsible     Saavy Southern Style

the Shady Porch

It's Overflowing    Thrifty Decorating

Crafty Scrappy Happy

the Brambleberry Cottage      Beyond the Picket Fence

From My Front Porch to Yours

the Vintage Farmhouse     the Charm of Home

Common Ground

2805     My Simple Home Life     French Country Cottage

At the Picket Fence

My Repurposed Life     a Little Knick Knack

the Shabby Nest

Finding Fabulous     My Romantic Home

Rustic Crafts & Chic Decor

Mum of all trades

The Mini Shed Project aka I built a shed for $30

Last October, flush with my success at building the mini greenhouse, I decided to build my own garbage can enclosure instead of buying a $299.00 plus tax plastic one from a building supply store.  I wanted to spend as little as possible to put this project together, and so the scrounging began!

I had three 2x4s on hand and I bought three more.  A friend had some leftover fence boards he didn't want and he even cut them down to 3' lengths for me so I could easily transport them and use them.  I had 6 - 10' tongue & groove pine boards in my used wood pile and I found a pallet to use as a base.

I Google'd sheds and found a plan for a garbage container and wood shed that looked fairly easy to build.  I modified the plan to suit my needs and began cutting the wood.   All I have is a circular saw, so that's what I used.  Then I built the very basic frame and began attaching the fence boards as siding.

Catch the fancy angled cuts on the roof rafters!  I used a cardboard template for those so I could cut the two pieces with the same angle.

I used a pallet as the base.

Here is the list of scrounged items - 25 x 3' fence boards (didn't use them all),  used OSB pieces I found while cleaning out my crawlspace as sheathing for the roof.  (I had to add one more rafter in the centre because the OSB kinda sagged, the short piece of 2x4 was left over from the wood I had bought.)  My neighbour gave me a piece of #30 tarpaper and I found 6 roofing shingles in my shed.  The  tongue&groove pine boards for the doors were leftovers, too (a little warped but serviceable!).  Aside from the three 2x4s, the only things bought new were the hinges, clasp and handles.  There are still a few finishing touches that are needed - some lattice, paint and trim and the hinges need adjusting, but this is what it looks like now:

Total out of pocket cost:  $30.00 - a far cry from $299 plus tax!!  Now I can have my garbage in my front yard, neatly hidden away and it's quick & easy to chuck it out to the curb on garbage day.  I need to paint the underside of the roof and attach a couple of pieces of lattice over the triangular openings on both sides, but looks not half bad even if I do say so myself!

Yay, another project done!!

Linking to these Fabulous Parties:

aka by design   the Shady Porch
  Thrifty Decorating
Beyond the Picket Fence
The Vintage Farmhouse     Crafty, Scrappy, Happy
The Brambleberry Cottage
a Little Knick Knack    French Country Cottage    At the Picket Fence
2805
my repurposed life    My Romantic Home
Bacon time with the hungry hypo
Simple Home Life
Funky Junk Interiors
Sassy Sites     the Shabby Nest
I heart Nap Time     You're Talking Too Much
Delectable Home     Mod Vintage Life     Between Naps on the Porch

Homemaker on a Dime

Coastal Charm     Cherished Bliss     Northern Cottage

the Farmhouse Porch

Creatively Living    My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Not Just a Housewife    a bowlful of Lemons

DIY by Design

Clean & Scentsible      Saavy Southern Style

the Shady Porch

It' Overflowing     From My Front Porch to Yours

the Nester

Art and a Quote

I think I may make this a recurring post on my blog.  Don't you just feel so much better after reading something that makes you feel good?  I love how it makes me stop and think about how great my life is.   I found this one on Pinterest (big surprise there!  I am such a Pinterest junky now...) and really, who doesn't just love Audrey Hepburn???

http://www.genpink.com/i-believe-in-pink/

               

I LOVE this.  Laughing is not only the best calorie burner, but it is also the best way I know to relieve stress, to relax and to make you feel good.  On that subject (and I'm not being paid to promote this, either) if anyone is looking for a movie that will just make you feel happy, go see "We Bought a Zoo".  It's my new favourite movie.

For the art side of this post, this week I've been experimenting with my new style of painting.  I call it free-flowing (and messy!) and I really like the look.  Here are three of my paintings in this style:

The "let's use up all the paint on my palette" painting

Watercolour on 8x12 watercolour paper

8x12 Acrylic on canvas board

Thanks for visiting today.

Have a great week!

Linking to:

Paint Party Friday

I heart naptime
You're talking too much

Shutter Love

I have a tiny, skinny window in my bathroom.  Not being much of an exhibitionist, I prefer to have some kind of window treatment.  It doesn't matter to me if I think anyone can see in or not, the night time black hole of Calcutta makes me uncomfortable...

I have a bunch of matching shutters that I bought at a garage sale 15 years ago.  I use them in my bedroom as a window treatment for another oddly shaped window.  There was an extra shutter more than I actually needed to cover the bedroom window, I had just never detached it from its hinged mate.

The shutters in my bedroom look like this:

Except I didn't want an orange wood shutter in my bathroom.  Since I still have tons of creamy white paint on hand from my Master Bedroom Makeover Madness, I decided to paint the spare shutter.  I didn't paint it well cause I wanted it to look like it was aged and beat.  Then I took some acrylic paint in Raw Umber and wiped it all over the white paint with a paper towel.  Very rough looking job I might add!!

And now I have a cute, functioning shutter for my tiny little window.   Soooo in love with shutters :)

Mission accomplished!

Cheers!

Party Links:

the French Cupboard

Stuff & Nonsense     From My Front Porch to Yours     Shabby Creek Cottage

Crafty Scrappy Happy

Beyond the Picket Fence     the Vintage Farmhouse     the Charm of Home

at the Picket Fence

2805     French Country Cottage     a Little Knick Knack     My Romantic Home

My Repurposed Life     Simple Home Life

the Shabby Nest

Funky Junk Interiors

I heart Naptime     You're Talking too Much

House in the Roses

Homemaker on a Dime   Delectable Home

Between Naps on the Porch

Mod Vintage Life    Coastal Charm

Northern Cottage     Creatively Living     Cherished Bliss     Sassy Sites

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

a bowl full of lemons     Not just a Housewife

DIY by Design     Clean & Scentsible     Savvy Southern Style

a beach cottage

It's Overflowing     Thrifty Decorating

Beneath My Heart