Pillow Talk

As I patientely wait for my upholster to be available to redo my couch and the slipcovers to arrive for my chairs I desperately needed some sign of progress in my living room so I made new pillows. 

Taking my cues from my favorite store {Anthropologie} and the recent cover of Country Living I decided to go with an eclectic mix of fabrics and colors for the pillows rather than sticking with an edited fabric selection.  I have a few more to make but so far this is what I've come up with...

Here is the breakdown:

The Multi-color pattern is actually a napkin I purchased at Anthro.  For me it had the perfect mix of colors and also that retro but still fresh feel.  I simply added a solid color fabric on the back to finish it off.

The Yellow Stripe lumber pillow is made from a mat rug from Ikea (see below) that you can get for $2.50.  It was a cinch to sew up and I love that it has a nubby and rich texture.

The Green print is a fabric I fell in love with - I had a few mishaps sewing this one but it all turned out in the end.  I added some vintage white buttons as the final touch.

I love how they all turned out and can't wait to see them on the finished couch.  They help tie in all the colors we have in the room and I feel like they match the personality of the house {and the owners} quite nicely.

A new chapter begins

Do you remember this post, where I shared that one of my goals for 2010 was to start my own business - doing something I love?  Well an opportunity came knocking a few weeks ago by way of my mother and I am pleased to announce that I'm embarking on a new adventure by starting an event service and catering business:

My first job is for a friend of my mom's whose son is getting married this May and I will be catering the reception.  I can't even tell you how excited I am - I love the idea of helping people with events that mean something to them whether it be a baby shower, wedding, or special party and plan to offer homemade service that is not only unique and memorable but also budget friendly. 

I'm in the process of getting my website started for this new venture and can't wait to share this new phase of my life with all of you. 

Sunshine treasure

As I often do on lazy Sundays I headed to the local antique store to search for treasures.  Perched on a shelf was this charming book full of Sunshine magazines from the 50's.  As I leafed through the pages in the store I caught glimpses of poems and little stories filled with appreciate and common sense that frankly you don't find many places anymore and with a name like Sunshine, a soulful magazet it was just too cute not to take.

Ingtrigued I googled the magazine and found the following backstory on this publication:
Sunshine was subtitled A Soulful Magazet. The issues were purposefully slim, often just 42 pages long, including the back cover, with short quick-to-read articles. Each page was filled with warm anecdotes and advice. Published on Route 66 in Litchfield, IL, it was distributed worldwide.  Inside the front cover of many issues was an appeal on behalf of the Sunshine Magazet Circle of Great Britain, an organization that distributed issues of Sunshine to "hospitals, old folks homes (sic), holiday guest centers, etc". It was a volunteer operation and readers were encourage to buy an extra subscription for the use of that organization. Gospel Singer Rosa Page Welch said that there were three things she saw everywhere in her world travels, Coca-Cola, Standard Oil and Sunshine magazine.[2]
[from wikipedia]

I'll be sharing bits and pieces from the book every once in awhile - the first one is below.

Ownership, by George Matthew Adams
We really do not own anything until we begin to share it with others, and even then we are only partners in its ownership.

We all own the daylight, the beauty of earth, all the sunsets, every flower that our eyes see and admire, and every song our feathered friends give forth.  Where appreciation is, there is ownership.

No one can long be happy with any possession that he cannot share with others - it would soon grow dusty and useless

It has often been said that the only things that we keep are the things that we give away.  We may give away the thing, but keep the love - and love is something that spreads out, with never an end to it.

From the February 1958 edition

What I have been up to...

Gosh, I feel like life is moving in slow motion but that everyday is jam-packed with busy things.  This weekend I finished up a lot of "in progress" projects that have been nagging at me and in the process also did a nice spring cleaning.

My camera battery died yesterday before I could snap all the after photos but here is a sneak peak at what I've been up to - results of all the projects will be shared throughout this week.

[yuck - those windows are filthy]

Friday Flights of Fancy

I am loving the position of these two beds - side by side they make a great design statement and would open up lots of floor space in a cramped kids room.  Plus that fun color blocking of the bookcases is a brilliant idea and would make a great diy project.  Don't even get me started on the amazing number pillows...

So much is going on right now that is exciting - I can't wait till Monday to share it all with you.  Till then, I hope you have a wonderful weekend and that the sun is shining in your neck of the woods!

Dining Hall Desires

It will come as no surprise to regular readers of this blog that my "dining room" is the source of much frustration for me as it is surrounded by entrys and exits to different parts of the house and is relativelely the size of a postage stamp.

However, I recently moved the table to a new position that I hope will increase the room efficiency and am brainstorming on some other ideas to take it up a notch and "make it work".  As I mull over this dilema the following pictures are a source of inspiration.

Coming home

I'm home and can't tell you how happy I am to be right back here in Boise - even if it meant leaving the sun and warmth of Costa Rica.  The trip went well and I had a few moments of down time but not as many as I had hoped.  I know I promised pictures and lots of them but I only have a few and they are all a bit random as is the rest of this post...

The rustic and charming Daniel Oduber Airport in Liberia Costa Rica - all open air and so small that even with the big jets they have you depart on roll-up stairs.  I loved it!

Have you ever seen a cuter cow?  I think their saggy skin and droopy ears are really very adorable!

The most delicious and beautiful handmade chocolates I have ever seen.  We gave all of our attendees a box as a little pillow gift and I got to enjoy a box myself.  Made by a small family using only native ingredients and decorated with traditional Mayan art they are exquisite.

Another day ending in Costa Rica.

So there you are - the few images I have.  It was a great trip and a success from the work point of view and it left me wanting to come back only this time I will bring Jus - it will be much funner that way!

Waiting for me at home was this adorable valentine from Evan and Megan - it's really a puppy but Evan drew the face on upside down so now it looks more like a frog. 

 Speaking of the little ones -here is the latest picture of Miss Megan.

Jus and I spent Valentine's Day hanging out watching Nascar and the Olympics and then had dinner and game night over at Mom and Dad's with the rest of the family.  As always I feel blessed to have a husband I always want to come home to and a family that supports everything I do.

I have a slew of house projects I need to catch you up on so look for some of them this week!

See you in two weeks....

I am headed to Costa Rica for a work event and will be m.i.a. for awhile.  I'll take lots of pictures and can't wait to share with you how it all goes.

Take care!

Newest member of our family

Remember when I said I wanted to introduce plant life into our home?  I took the plunge this weekend and brought home this little guy.  I've named him Squirggle the Succulent in the hopes that with a name I might not forget about him and kill him off instantly.

So far so good - plus I love the fresh pop of green he adds to the mantle.

ho hum to classically hip

{please ignore the table leaves stowed under the dresser}

What seems like many moons ago my parents bought me this fantastic dresser (almost 8 feet) so I could house my then HUGE clothing collection.  Originally it was a 70's classic - big raised grained wood that I eventually sanded down, added feet to, and painted white [sorry that I don't have true "before" pictures]. 

After living with the white for awhile I knew that it just wasn't going to work and that this baby needed a face-lift.

{pre drawer pulls}

I had a quart of a grey latex that I had picked up in the mistint pile at Home Depot for $3 that I mixed with tintable glaze.  All it took was 3 thin coats of the glaze to achieve this crosshatched grey patina.  Once the weather warms up I plan to add an ebony stain just in some of the nooks and crannies to age it but the toxic stain is just too much for indoor use.  I also still need to glaze the feet - that has also been added to the warm weather list.

{close-up of the finish and the drawer pulls}

Dad came over on Saturday to help me add the drawer pulls (thanks Dad!) that I scored on ebay for a song and they really pulled the whole look together and were the key component in transforming this piece.  I'm really thrilled with the way it turned out!