Crafting With Friends: Wedding Banners, Table Runners, and More!

My friend, Bonnie, the one who encouraged me to start this blog adventure, has been visiting for a week from Massachusetts, and we have been busy sewing, painting and thrift-shopping the entire week!

Her sister is getting married in a couple of weeks and Bonnie volunteered to decorate the hall, so we have made burlap and muslin table runners

mason jars with burlap and ribbon bows

and burlap garlands.

Just to name a few!

Painted Kitchen Countertops, Take 2

Remember the kitchen counter tops I painted a few weeks ago?
I promised photos of the finished painted counter tops, so here they are:

I think they came out pretty good.

However, I am thinking about adding beadboard to the backsplash.

Not sure about the yellow.

But a definite improvement!

They seem to be holding up, except for the side that I only waited 2 days instead of 3 to start using (it was the side where Husband makes his coffee).

 So I think I am going to put another coat on the whole thing while we are out of town for a few days.

I'll keep you posted!

Furniture Projects: Art Deco End Tables

A few weeks ago I showed you some pictures of yard sale finds that I was anxious to get started on, but I was in the middle of Vacation Bible School. As soon as that was over, I pulled out some of the furniture and set to work in the backyard, under the shade of my new patio roof.

The end tables were the first project I decided to tackle. They look a little Deco to me, with their gentle curves and lines and the little wood details.

I decided to go with a color scheme of grey and white.

I started with a dark grey, but I wanted to accent the details.

So I drybrushed some cream paint onto the tables,

 paying close attention to the details.

They turned out to be very sweet little tables.


 linked to:

 http://missmustardseed.com/2013/04/8926/

Painting Kitchen Countertops

I have been working on my kitchen with both short term and long term plans in mind. The last project on the short term list was the counter tops.

As you can see, they are an old, ugly, stained laminate. I bought Rustoleum Countertop Paint in a Putty color a few months ago, but life got really busy... So I am finally getting around to it!

I started out thinking I would do a little test spot and live with it a few days before committing to the whole enchilada, but that usually doesn't work with me. I get too impatient to get it all done.

So I no sooner had my little test spot painted, than I decided to go for it. 

After all, how could it look any worse?

The paint is oil-based, so it's pretty smelly. Make sure to keep your windows open and wear a mask if you have one.

The directions are pretty simple: clean and dry the surface, use a small roller and paint away! 

The only real hitch is you can't use the countertop for 3 days.

So I decided to work in one area of the kitchen at a time so it would still be somewhat functional and only a little inconvenient.

In 3 days I will put everything back on the counters and paint the other side of the kitchen.

I will post pictures next week of the finished project.

So excited!


Check out the 1-year update on the counter tops!

http://www.commonground-do.com/2013/04/be-inspired-13-at-home-with-white.html 

Summer: Vacation Bible School and Yardsales

This is the time of year for 2 things I love: yard sales and Vacation Bible School.

I am the director of VBS at my church, so May and June are full of busyness as we pull out all the stops getting everything ready: planning, promoting, training, painting sets, writing skits and puppet shows... Fortunately, I have a great team to help as I could never pull this off by myself!

Last year we were set in Egypt:

This year the theme is God's Amazing Wonders:

The other thing I love this time of year are yard sales.

Here are some things I will be working on when VBS is over:

Sometimes I wish I could clone myself so I could get several things done at once!

Oh well, something to look forward to!

A "New" Back Porch for Mother's Day

As you may, or may not, recall, I made my kids a deal: I would make lunch for Mother's Day if they would put the roof panels on my back porch.We have very hot summers here and I wanted the shade, as well as a covered space to keep the rain off in winters.

It's not finished yet, but it is certainly more comfortable and on its way!

This little farm table has been in the garage for several years and finally has a home.
There wasn't a place for these chairs in this new house, so they have been keeping the table company.

I made little "sundresses" for the chairs. Now they are well- dressed for the summer.

This is the far end of the patio. I plan to make curtains to surround the fountain, while still letting in a little of the foliage. It's also a good place to store pots.

Husband brought this birdcage home one day from a yardsale, proud of his $10 bargain. He was really proud of himself when we ran across one a couple years later in Napa, selling for $200.

Lots of pots with lots of flowers!

I especially love lavender.

I also like to add lots of accessories, just like indoors.

This little painted chair says "Bloom where you are planted". I painted it many years ago for my old craft room, works well out here.

Croquet balls fill an old metal planter.

A detail from an old building in Southern California.

Garden Angel made from old chair parts and finial.

View from the other side. French doors lead into the family room.

Looking out to the yard (so much work to be done!)

Someone gave me this little dresser a few weeks ago and I didn't really know what to do with it, so it sits here for now until I figure it out. Also, the storage comes in handy out here.

My favorite little helpers, they especially love to water everything!

I still want to paint the cement in a checkerboard pattern, paint the walls gray, make curtains for the posts, add lights and ceiling fans...but it's a nice spot to sit in the morning, or have lunch, or read a book...