Fail Friday...Part 3...

Well, unfortunately I don't have any pictures to show for this weeks fail Friday, and that my friends, is the failure!!!!!!!!!!! I am having a garage sale starting in 9 hours, and I haven't set up and/or priced a thing. So, if I had it set up, I would show you lovely pictures of neatly piled tables, and stacks of books and clothes, etc.

But rather, it looks like I'll be resorting to throwing everything in a gi-normous pile with a sign that says .25 for all... :)

Why did I procrastinate on this?!?!?!? UGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

So what are your fails for the week? Lets get to linking :)

ps-I'll try to take pictures of the chaos that is sure to occur in the morning and post them tomorrow...garage sales are so fun *rolls eyes*

My new project...

Well, I took on a BIG project today...HUGE really, but I couldn't be more excited! We bought a HOUSE!!!!!!!!!!! Its horribly tacky and outdated and wonderfully terrific all at the same time. Like most crafters, I don't see houses through the same eyes as a lot of people. I look past the lime green/neon orange floral wallpaper and see a wonderful coffee themed kitchen...

Do you see it? And in the living room, I look right past that ugly shag green carpet and think of the potentially GORGEOUS hardwood floor that has been hiding under there for 52 years...

And then I look at these 2 spaces and try to decide which shall be my new craft cave...

This is the only room that has yet to inspire me yet...I'm at a loss with this one...but I'll come up with something ;)
Thankfully, the master bedroom is already all done. I mean, the mint green walls/ceiling with the electric blue carpet is just right up my alley. I think its quite tranquil don't you? ;)

I can't WAIT to dive into this one!!!!!!

Gettin' Crafty on Hump Day....

Its time to get crafty with our bad selves!!!!!!!

This week, I'd like to honor Sharon from Keen Inspirations, because for the 2nd week in a row she has been the most visited link from this little soiree. She inspired us with her tipsy planter, and then last week she wowed us with her Ballard Bird knockoffs.

Here are some photos of her wonderful projects:

Ok, so lets get it started! :)
Leave me a comment if you link, and make sure you visit some of the other links, and leave them some comment love too :)

And awayyyyyyyyyyyyy we go :)

My "other" hobby....

Hey ya'll....not sure if you knew this or not, but on the side, I also sell purses. I own The Bag Lady Purse Parties, and its been a lot of fun. But, I need to make room for new stock, so for this week only, I am slashing prices!!!! EVERYTHING IS 50% OFF!!!!!!!!!! Take a looksy, and if you see one you like shoot me an email and we can arrange payment :)

http://thebagladypurseparties.blogspot.com/

My weak attempt at gardening....

So, I may have mentioned a time or two that I don't do bugs. Like at all. Spiders in particular. Once there was a spider on the floor of the tub when I was mid-shower and when I saw it I jumped THROUGH the curtain (bringing the whole assembly down with me) and ran through the house screaming towards my unsuspecting husband who was kind enough to 1. Shut off the water, 2. Kill the wicked spider, and 3. Replace the shower curtain & bar so I could finish.

So needless to say, when it comes to gardening, I'm more of a floral foam sorta gal. IF, and thats a big fat hugeeeeeeee IF, I plant anything, its in a container, never in the ground (that's where the most bugs are).

Well whats a girl who is afraid of bugs to do when she wants some lovely outdoor flowers? Find a container and plant them from the safety of her deck :)

Well wouldn't you know, that's just what I did :)

Only, I'm not a traditional gal, so of course I wanna plant my stuff in somethin' funkayyyyyyyyy

It all started with this:


My WONDERFUL friend Flip-Flopping Mamma gave me this FABULOUS enameled pot last year. It has rusted through on the bottom resulting in a few small holes so I thought it would be GREAT for flowers! Obviously, to fill that thing with dirt would make it incredibly heavy (believe me...I did it last year), so this year I filled it 1/2 with Styrofoam peanuts and 1/2 with potting soil. MUCH MUCH easier to move around!

But it doesn't stop there...now I'm on the lookout for more "unlikely" garden containers. Take a look at my next unsuspecting victims......

What sorts of funky stuff do you have in your yard?

PS-I am having exploratory surgery tomorrow to find out why these fertility treatments haven't worked thus far. I will try to maintain regular posts this week, but if I don't come around for a couple days, that's why ;)

Friday Fail...part 2......

The images contained in this post are rather graphic in nature. Viewer discretion is advised :) And, I will only allow you to see this weeks fail if you PROMISE to never share this with anyone. What happens in this post, stays in this post, got it? Good.

Ok, so wanna know why I haven't gotten many crafts done this week? Because Hobby Lobby threw up in my craft cave. My cave went from this:


To THIS:

Kindly pick your jaw up off the floor, and tell me that I'm NOT the only one this happens to? During a project I can't find something I need, and I start digging, and don't put things back, etc. Anyway, this is DEFINITELY my worst fail of the week. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go dive face first into a room full of junk :)

I'm gonna add a linky this week, and if any of you are brave enough to link up a failure you've had, DO IT...I triple dog dare ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My week of freebies.......

I love getting free stuff...I mean for realz...who doesn't?!?!? So, I was ST-OKED when I found out a local church was having a FREE rummage sale!!!!!!!!!! But seriously, isn't that kind of contradictory...I mean FREE and sale in the same title its like...oh sorry...must be my ADD kicking in. Where was I?

Oh yeah, ok, so without further adieu, let me show you my loot for the week!

Ok so at the "free sale?!?!?!?" I got an awesome painting, a "design your own hat kit," 2 bath sets, and 2 cool metal things that I'll find something to do with. So I know what you're thinking...why the heck did she take a picture of her blackberry? Um, try cuz MY FRIEND JUST GAVE ME THAT BLACKBERRY!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! Sorry...got a little excited there. I just got it hooked up yesterday, and quickly I'm learning why they call them Crackberrys...

But it gets better (ok, so it never really gets "better" than a free blackberry, but its just a figure of speech right?). So I stop at my grandmas house, who has decided she is bored with her current (ie: brand new) furniture, and asks if I want her La-Z-Boy....ummmmm YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS, so, the chair that all my loot is sitting on was also part of my week of freebies. Amazing right?!?!?!? Its gonna take a while to come down from this high.... What good stuff did you get your hands on this week? :)

Gettin' Crafty on Hump Day....

Well folks, its time for another installment of Gettin' Crafty on Hump Day.

To start this weeks party, I'd like to share a quote from a friend of mine that I think many of you crafters may relate to.

I posed the question... "If I had a warning label, what would it say?"

And my friend replied:

"Hide your valuables...(or they will be turned into other valuables of equal or lesser value)"

What can I say, I love a good re-use :)

Ok, so, lets party!!!!!! Make sure to leave a comment letting me know that you linked, and please grab my button for your blog. Oh, and visit some of the other sites and leave them some comment love as well :)

<a href="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i130/nikkipooh79/DamaskButton2.jpg"><img src="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i130/nikkipooh79/DamaskButton2.jpg" alt="Hump Day link" width="160" height="160" /></a>

Contact paper...the po' mans vinyl.....

I do a LOT with my Cricut...and by far my favorite projects are those that include vinyl. I've learned rather quickly that vinyl is EXPENSIVE, and I'm a "measure once, cut twice" kinda gal, so I tend to make a LOT of mistakes!

I read on a blog once about using contact paper as transfer tape, so I bought some in the hopes of trying it. Then one day, I got an idea...contact paper is sticky...why not use that INSTEAD of vinyl? I've tested it on many surfaces, and I've found that the smoother the surface, the better the hold. Glass being one of the best...

So you can imagine why I would get so excited when I found THIS at my local dollar store:

A double paned frame?!?!??! My light bulb went off rather quick. Surprisingly, the pre-printed word on the glass (family in this case) came off with very little elbow grease, and then I had a nice clean surface to work with :)

I decided the words I wanted on there, and cut them in varying sizes based on emphasis, and in the end I had this:

I couldn't be happier! Not bad for a $1 investment...and it makes a GREAT gift :)

PS-when working with letters this small (varying from 1/4" to 1") I found that scotch tape makes THE BEST transfer tape!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOVE IT! Oh and contact paper does come in different colors, but check your home improvement stores for the best selection...

My 2nd award....I'd like to thank the academy....

Sweet Denise over at Extreme Personal Measures, was so kind to pass this award on to me! Truthfully, today is the first time I've ever visited her blog...and I must say, I was NOT disappointed! You should definitely go poke around there when you have a second!!!!!!!

Ok, so, first things first...Thank you Denise for sharing your award with me!!!!!!!!

Secondly, I'm to share 7 things about myself:

1) I turned 30 last November, and thought I would have a mental breakdown before the big day approached.

2) I now believe that 30 is the new 20

3) I would kill for coffee. No, I'm kidding...or am I....?

4) I met my hubby when I was 17 and we've been together ever since.

5) It took me 4 years to get pregnant with my first child, and we are currently undergoing fertility treatments to give him a sibling.

6) I'm hoping this one doesn't take another 4 years

7) I was in a comedy show last year, and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life! I hope to do many many more...

And now, to pass this award on to 15 blogs I have recently discovered that I am diggin! And then tell those bloggers I have done so...

Here ya go girls, you ROCK, and I hope you have as much fun passing this on as I did :)

Scene of the Grime

Holy Craft

House of Hepworths

Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures

Easy Frugal Living

My Northwest Nest

The Phillips Fam

Keen Inspirations

Wallflower Grown Wild

One Cheap B*tch

Women Who Do It All

White House Black Shutters

Generally Creative

The DIY Showoff

Tidy Mom

Knocking off the Pottery Barn is just beachy...

I'm loving all the shell art I've seen popping up. Pottery barns latest and greatest is just bursting with beachy type stuff. For example...

Well, in true thriftress fashion, I decided I needed to conjure up some of my own shell art.

It started with these little plaques from Shopko (they were clearanced for $1 each). Using liquid nails I glued them together back to back.

I took a pedestal from one of these:

And glued the plaques to the top. I gave it a lovely couple coats of "light willow", and then, I needed some art.

I turned, once again to the Graphics Fairy (have I mentioned how much I LOVE her site?) and once again, she was sure to deliver. So, once I got my sweet sweet graphics, I decided to get my modge podge on....

And thar she blows....(that's beach talk for "look at my cool new shell art"). Obviously, they needed some finishing touches so...I used frayed burlap to disguise the seam between the 2 frames, added a finial to the top, and used some brown distressing ink to age it (not sure why it looks so red in the pictures...) But, I'm pretty darn happy with it...and I love that its double sided, so when I get sick of looking at the conque, I can flip it over and...

Look at a Haliotide...

Sweet!!!!!! And the $3 total I spent on it is not too shabby either....

Fail Friday...

We crafter's have plenty of fails, right? Or am I the only one? Yet, we never showcase these fails on our blogs lol. I want to change that. So, I'm going to start this weekend with a Friday showcase of my fail for the week. Eventually, maybe I'll even turn it into a linky party.

So...my fail is all wrapped up in this...

Ahhh the Ballard Bee...I have been oogling over it for the past 6 months. Yet, it continues to elude me...sneaky little thing...

Well, a couple of weeks ago I visited a rummage sale where I got 3 of these frames for $1.00.

Imagine my surprise when I dismantled the clips and found this inside. *Disclaimer: I apologize to whomever this grandpa belongs to...but I must paint over him. Don't hold me accountable...its a disease.*

So, I did what any crafter would do (you would wouldn't you? I'm not the only heartless one that would paint over someones grandfather am I?!?!?!??!) I painted...the Ballard Bee. Only when I was done...it didn't quite look like this:

Instead it looked like this.....

STOP LAUGHING!!!!! ;) Seriously, I know it is in line with something you would see in a preschool classroom...but I still had fun doing it! As for whether I will be hanging this anywhere in my house...uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh NO. I'll find something else to paint or decoupage over it...in the meantime, take a moment to relish in my epic failure :)

But Ballard Bee...you had better be on the lookout...I WILLLLLLLLL find a suitable way to knock you off...just you wait and see...I'll get you my pretty MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA (insert evil laugh).

Thanks for playing along today, and I hope you have a fantabulous weekend :)

Dollar Store transformation & link party.........

Welcome to Gettin' Crafty on Hump Day......

This week, I thought I'd post a project of my own to go with this lovely little partay...

My in laws recently bought a new home and I set out to make something really nice to hang above their fireplace. It started with these cute little crosses I found at the dollar store...


I loved the messages on them...but the stands on them were soooooooo cheap and not sturdy or practical AT ALL! So, i decided to cut the stands off the bottom, and mount them to a frame. In comes these sweet silver frames from...you guessed it...another dollar store...


I put some pretty brown scrap booking paper in the frames and then hot glued the crosses to the glass and take a looksy....

I'm super happy with how they turned out and my in-laws loved them, so that's all that counts :)

So, with that, lets kick this off!!!!! My only "rule" (I've never been a fan of rules, so this is more of a pretty please with a cherry on top! ;) if you link up, please add my button to your blog, and please leave a comment. Also, please visit some of the other projects and spread some comment love :)



<a href="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i130/nikkipooh79/DamaskButton2.jpg"><img src="http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i130/nikkipooh79/DamaskButton2.jpg" alt="Hump Day link" width="160" height="160" /></a>

The gift that keeps on giving...

So, remember when I turned this:

Into this:
Well as happy as I was to make this sign for my friend, I was a little sad to have to get rid of this:
I'm absolutely obsessed with the Eiffel Tower right now, and I hated to see this lovely piece of heavy duty fabric go to waste. I'm a firm believer in giving, and I know that if you give it will be given back to you...

So, imagine my absolute delight when I de-constructed it and the fabric was left COMPLETELY in tact!!!!!!!!!!!! Which meant, that this gift was gonna come back to me, in the form of a....

FABULOUS new pillow for my couch. Added some plain Black fabric to the back, stuffed it and voila, I am SO happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

PS-don't forget to come back Wednesday for the Gettin' Crafty on hump day link party... :)

So I have this friend....

Who runs an organic farm. She sells her vegetables at local farmers markets and out of her house. This is the first year shes really "going public" with everything, as far as really marketing herself. And it occurred to me, she needs a KILLER sign to have at her vegetable stand.

Thus began my mission. It started with this...
Nice right? Yeah, but what you can't see is this thing was fallin' apart...one of the buttons lost its cover, the back was coming off...just a hot mess. I decided, it was perfect! ;)

I started by taking the 2 panels out of the frame. I then "un-upholstered" the wood and gave it 4 coats of chalkboard paint. We figured chalkboard paint would be best so she can write what she has and how much, and of course that changes as the summer progresses...

For the top, I knew I wanted to do something with vintage seed graphics, so I began my search. I got some great ones from The Graphics Fairy (as always), and then I found the mother load here. After I printed them all off...


I got to modge podging. Isn't she lovely...

But, I still needed to incorporate the business name (as much as I hated covering up those GORGEOUS graphics!) So, I got out the cricut and I cut 2" circles, and then I cut 1" letters. I think the hardest part of this whole project was figuring out letter placement. But, once they were modge podged, I put the panels back into the frame and reinforced it with picture nails. And here you have it....

I just LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEE how it turned out! I sure hope my friend likes it, and that when she's chillin' at the farmers market people think "that's a cool sign, I think I'll buy from her instead of these other yahoo's" ;)

Oh, and...you should totally check out my friends blog here...she is the all-natural mama, and she is ALLLLLLLL about living naturally! :)

PS-Don't forget to link up to our Gettin' Crafty on Hump Day link party here