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Thursday, December 1, 2011

In the Christmas Spirit

Beautiful gold and white decorations via Pinterest
I'm just now getting into the mood for Christmas and will be putting up a tree this weekend...not a real one but an artificial one.  (Did the real tree up until last year)
I found some gorgeous vignettes and decorations and wanted to share them with you.

I thought this was beautiful and a great way to have a tree without the fuss!  LOL



Lovely for an entryway table
A pop of red for your table


Pretty for the door
A natural and rustic look for your mantel
Another mantel setting using mercury glass, greenery, candles, holders and ornaments
A Beautiful arrangement with the Madonna, mercury glass, candles, candlesticks and branches

A simple swag with greenery and ornaments on a door
Silvery blue ornaments

I love these!  Felted acorns with silver tops



Lets tie it all up with ribbon!
These are just a few of the beautiful displays I found!  I love them all!  What is your favorite style of Christmas decorating?

I will be bringing a bit of Christmas to my shop with these lovely festive red and gold sachets to my shop soon (HERE)

Lavender filled sachets
AND....What do you think I will be doing with this?

Ooh la la...Wait and see!
This bit of whimsey will soon be in my shop too!

All images from Pinterest ~ except for sachet and fabric

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

My Love of Annie Sloan Paint

Hi everyone,

I thought I would share with you a tutorial on using some of Annie Sloan Chalk paint on a very rough, shabby wooden caddy over the weekend.  This is what it looked like before I started:

Very weathered and worn
As I start to paint

With This!
This was a fairly easy re-do.  I love using ASCP as it is virtually odorless, and can be used over any surface WITHOUT any prepping.  Glass, metal, wood...without any work before!!!  This is important because it can take many hours of sanding and smoothing before painting with a regular semi-gloss or matte paint.

The color I am using is called Old Violet and it is beautiful!  But nothing can prepare you for the way this color changes after it has been used.  I put on two coats, letting each coat dry throughly before adding the second coat.  This is what it looks like after you paint your two coats:

It has a deep color and looks a bit chalky

After the paint has dried, I sand lightly with 0000 sandpaper to smooth the wood and the paint.  I also sanded a bit harder on areas that I wanted to have the wood show through some.  With my brush I then used Annie Sloan clear wax and brushed it into the wood.  I let it dry some and then hand rubbed it until the most gorgeous sheen appeared...nothing looks the same after that!  Here is what it looked like after I brushed the wax on and removed the excess:



After sanding and wax was added and removed





Finished and filled with handmade items from my shop


Another view
I just love the way it came out and I am always amazed at how the color changes when it is sanded and the wax is put on.  Annie says not to sand before you paint and she is most definitely right! So that's my tutorial for my caddy.  I hope if you aren't familiar with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and want to totally transform any piece give this a try.  I can't say enough about it.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Quote of the Day:

A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history.

Mohandas Gandhi




Fight for what you believe in.
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