A Fun Monday Lamp Project

Want one of these?

I'll tell you how you can make one.

I love these burlap drum-like shades but they cost so much at those cute little antique boutique shops. I saw a lamp recently that I was in love with but you know what they wanted for it? $250.00

Yes, $250.00 - that's not a typo! Granted, it was larger than the one that I made here, but still...

Anyway, I immediately thought - I can do that!

So....
I gathered my supplies

a lamp of course - $6.99 at the Christmas Tree Shops

a shade

again, purchased at The Christmas Tree Shops for...yes...$1.oo

and a stencil, paint, brush and burlap that I had from another project shown here.

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First, I laid out the burlap and traced the pattern of the lampshade onto it.

Next cut out your burlap and hot glue it to the shade.

(Careful not to burn your fingers - trust me!)

Now that your burlap is covering the shade, it's time to get out the paint and stencil.

I put a little bit of paint on a paper plate and then positioned my stencil where I wanted it. Now, lightly dip your brush in the paint and then dab most of it off onto a paper towel. You're going to use a sort of dry brush tequnique when stenciling. As soon as you're finished painting, remove the stencil and there you have it. Your very own fancy-schmancy lamp with a French-twist burlap shade for under $10.00!
Enjoy!!

Happy Monday!

xo,

Kathleen

Happy Valentines Day~Sunday Reflections

Love is patient and kind, love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on it's own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Happy Valentine's Day my friends, may God Bless you all!

xo,

Kathleen

Let's Play a Game!!

Okay, here we go. First question: Look at the above photo. Can you tell where the 30 inch drop off is from our back patio to the grass below?

Okay, question two: Can you find the big wrought iron bench in the above photo?

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Here's a hint...here it is in the photo below, after the first 30 inches of snow but before the second blizzard 3 days later!

Ooohhh, here we go. Let's find the garden in front of our house. Oh, there it is, barely poking out above all the SNOW!!

Here's a double bonus...can you see the mailbox? Oh and ummm what about the car? Can't find the car? Me neither.

Hmmmm...now where did it go?

Oh look! I see the windshield wipers! Now for the fun part. Digging them all out.

At first this was fun. Kind of quaint actually! Umm now? Not so much.

At least one of my guys is enjoying it!

By the way, these photos of my little guy were taken after the first blizzard but before the second one.

Now, you can't even go out there. The wind is blowing so hard you can barely see and the snow has started up again as I type this!

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Please, Dear Lord, I keep praying, please do not let this baby come until AFTER the storm.

At this point, I don't even think we could make it to the hospital!

Enjoy the rest of your week everyone and stay warm wherever you are!!

xo,

Kathleen

One Blissful Hour at the Flea Market...A Whole Lotta Goodness!

I had some time this afternoon all to myself so I decided to go to the local flea market. I haven't been in quite awhile and boy am I glad I went!! Look at this wonderful bounty of goodness! I couldn't believe what I found and the incredible prices that I got. It was simply amazing.
I love old buttons and found an entire zipper baggie full of them!

and then.....sigh.....I came across an old feed sack. You have to understand, around here, finding one of these babies is like getting a blizzard in Miami in the middle of July! They are that rare in my neck of the woods! I was so excited, I almost went into labor - haha! Kidding of course.

Then, I found a gorgeous old box of embroidery floss. I think I might love the box even more that the floss inside!

"Made in Paris" the label says

I love this old enamel tub. I think I will use it in my laundry room to store all of the bottles and jars of laundry soaps and softeners. Then, I'll put the whole thing right on top of the washer. I do believe it will add cuteness as well as function to the room.

It was a fabulous day at the flea market!

Have a wonderful day and I want to thank you all for your kind comments about the finished nursery. It was such fun to do and I appreciate your compliments! I have to share something cute my little one said to me. The other night after we added the final touches to the room, he was sitting in the chair in the nursery. He said, "Mom, now you can make a cup of tea and sit right here in this chair and enjoy all of your work." He is very wise for his 7 years and knows how to appreciate girlie stuff - haha!

xo,

Kathleen

All Ready For Baby...A Peek Into the Nursery

Yes!! It's finished and I couldn't be happier. I love when a plan comes together. It all started with a fabulous French Provincial hutch (yes, the one that I mentioned previously) that I wanted to use as a dresser/bookcase/toy shelf. I wanted this room to have a timeless, French feel to it.

I found the hutch on Craigslist back in October and knew immediately that it would be PERFECT for the room!!! I was torn as to whether or not to paint it but I think I will leave it as is for now.

We were going to reuse the same crib that all of the boys used but someone whose name I won't mention decided to climb inside and wheeee...use it as a trampoline. I'll give you a hint...he's the oldest of the three. Anyway, he broke the bottom out of it and therefore a new crib was in order. It arrived the other day and was assembled yesterday. The fabulously girlie tulle crib skirt arrived last week and goes perfectly in the room.

So, here's the infamous hutch that started it all. I simply love it! I found some vintage picnic baskets last year that will hold extra blankets and/or toys so I stacked them at the foot of the crib. Pardon the candle tart sitting on top of them - courtesy of little"D"

Another shot of that hutch - see the Eiffel Tower on top? Love it!!

Here is a pillow that I made. It looks cute in the crib for now but of course I'll remove it once baby arrives. I made it with some linen and vintage lace that I had in my fabric stash and then finished it off with a monogram.

Here are some Maude Humphrey (I love her) prints that I bought years ago thinking maybe some day...

I found some frames from Hobby Lobby that I painted to match the room and then framed, matted and hung all of the prints.

Pretty as a princess sign...

lamps...

and finally, we have a French jardin box of roses and the most important thing in the room...a bible.

Are you detecting a vintage, French theme to this room? Good, that's just what I was hoping for.

I know this was a long post with lots of pictures so thanks for sticking with me to the end! Hope you enjoyed the nursery. Have a great evening!

xo,

Kathleen

French Bread!!

Mmmm....the whole house smells like fresh bread! I made some French bread today and I ate some as well - ha! I try to make it at least once or twice a week. I love it when it first comes out of the oven and is so hot and fresh. Slathered with butter and this to-die-for blueberry preserves from France, it is the ultimate indulgence(next to chocolate of course)!!

Not a whole lot going on around here. The kids returned to school today after a full 2 weeks off and things are a bit quiet. I'm catching up on the house cleaning and laundry. Trying to organize the kids toys and grocery shopping of course.

I wanted to thank all of you who left such kind comments and condolences for the loss of Dante. It was so comforting to read your comments. Losing our furry family friend has been tough but we are focusing on happy times spent with him! So thank you!!

On a happier note, I can't wait to show you the perfect French Provincial hutch that we found for the new nursery. It's from the 1940's and it is gorgeous! The only dilemma I face is whether to paint it a warm creamy color and then antique it or leave it as is. It's currently in it's original color which is white but it has aged to a sort of yellow tone with gold accents. I'll have to post a photo of it some time this week and maybe all of you talented decoraters out there could give me your opinions.

Well, I will close for now, but again, I do thank you all for your caring comments and I'll return with some hutch photos very soon! Have a great day everyone!!

God Bless,

Kathleen

Bonne Année

Happy New Year everyone!!
May 2010 be filled with many blessings for you all and I wish everyone good health and happiness always!

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Our year went out on a sad note. We lost our beloved family pet, Dante on Wednesday. He was the best kind of dog you could ever want to have and we were so fortunate to have him for 14 wonderful years. He was here for the births of all of our children, happily wagging his tail as we arrived home with each new baby. Eagerly trying to lick their tiny faces. We so badly wanted him to be here for the baby due to arrive next month but it wasn't meant to be. His health has been on the decline for the past year but he hung in there, always content with a wag of the tail and a happy greeting each day. He was tired these last few days though, and his time came. It's so sad but we cherish the many years we had with him. Here is a photo of him 2 weeks ago when we had that huge snowstorm. He always loved the snow! So....for 2010, I'm going to look forward...

to this,
and count my blessings.

The Lord is good and has blessed us abundantly. I will concentrate on that and look forward to a new year. Baby will be here next month and we're so excited to finally meet our baby girl! I know that I will miss being pregnant though - ha ha - I always do, no matter how uncomfortable I get in the last month or two.

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I'm not usually one to make tons of resolutions for the new year, however I do like to look at it as starting over with a clean slate. This year I have sort of thought about resolutions though and two of the biggest things that I'd like to accomplish are:

1) I want to learn to use my time more wisely

2) I desperately want to become more organized

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so that I can have more time for things like this...

I'm thinking spring picnics in the park. I know it's only been officially winter for 10 days, but I can't help it. When New Years Day arrives, I automatically begin thinking of spring. As beautiful as it can be at times, I will admit I'm NOT a winter person - ha!

Happy New Year Everyone!!

xo,

Kathleen