Thrifty Chic in Canada

Remember the post about my dough bowl with the blocks? Well, Janice from Canada emailed me and told me she was inspired to do the same under her coffee table. How sweet is that?

Don't you just love the whole room? I really like the mix of rustic with white. I really enjoy seeing what other people do on small budgets. Their "beadboard" is actually beadboard wallpaper, which surprises their guests. Could have fooled me too. Almost everything came from thrift stores or Kijiji, which is Canana's version of craigslist. Of course, the dog is one of my favorite features to the left of the room. :)

Look at her beautiful dining room!

She really wanted the Pottery Barn Queen Anne chairs but not at their going price, so they found these chairs at $25 each and her husband refinished them . So pretty, and really, just like the PB ones.

I love the wooden door in the background...it really pops against the white in the room.

She told me one of their thrifty tricks, is to collect Pottery Barn gift cards from people selling at a significant discount. That's how they got one of their rugs. Thanks for the tip! (I've been eyeing a lovely french wire hamper from there). She sewed the table runner, chair skirts and most of the pillows. I adore the slipcover on this chair.

I adore the chair.

Their chandelier was found on the side of the road. Can you believe it?! Best of all is the story behind her dishes. Her husband won them in a golf tournament! He jokes that it should make her appreciate all the time he spends at the driving range. That would surely help I think. :)

I loved learning about how it all came together in such an inexpensive way. Janice doesn't have a blog yet, but hopefully one day she'll start one and we'll get to see more.

Thanks Janice for sharing your beautiful rooms with all of us!

Read More

X-RAY JOURNEY

X-rays and their ilk were my thread of the week. Sometime the thread pans out into something useful. Sometimes not.

 

 

Stephan's Quintet in 60 Seconds from cxcpub on Vimeo.

Read More

Singing by the Stairs

Remember our bench seat? It used to sit beside the stairwell. That is, until Sparkle and Blue came along.

They were the much anticipated, saved-up-for pets by Paris, our oldest daughter.

She bought the birds, and we bought the birdcage.

Because I found one in a distressed gray finish.

I thought beside the stairs would be the perfect spot for it. For them.

As did Blackberry, one of our four cats. The table lends itself to a superb spying spot.

They are used to each other by now though and co-exist peaceably,

by the stairs.

Read More

Homeschooling never looked so good

Number 2 way to cheat the Dave Ramsey system? Find amazing pieces like this for my home and take it out of the "homeschooling category".

It's in the budget after all.

beautiful images above: Reading My Tea Leaves

image: Raven Maps

Aren't they just beautiful? Pieces of art, really.

I think we'll be learning a lot about Alaska this year:


Based solely on the shape.

These gorgeous maps are made by Raven Maps. Their philosophy: "Maps must be accurate, but they should also be beautiful."

Yes, please.

Read More

No Shop Time – BOO HISS and Grumble even

I am sure I am not the only woodworker that feels this way, but I feel like I don’t get enough shop time.  Actually I don’t get enough consistent shop time.  I will go through phases where I will be out there most every night for a week or so and then guess what happens life gets in the way again and I have a slump. 

My wife and I started a project together that I mentioned in a previous blog.  This was a momentous occasion for me finally something that I am interested in that we can share together. 

I mean I have a BUNCH of hobbies to many sometimes and some I just can’t afford right now.  I have been a pilot since I was 16 years old, I fly stunt kites, remote control airplane and play guitar among a few other hobbies. 

However woodworking has started becoming more of a passion than just a hobby.  I am finding myself wanting to learn more about the artistry of working wood and learning all the techniques both old and new. 

So for her to express an interest in learning this hobby I couldn’t have been happier, but unfortunately life tends to get in the way of hobbies and we have yet to be able to finish this project.  I am looking forward to completing it with her she is very close and as I mentioned in the previous blog she is doing a great job.  I hope this is a start to a shared addiction hobby for the two of us. 

It will totally be easier to convince her we need more tools if she wants to use them as well.

Keep your eyes peeled and hopefully sometime this week we can finish out the project and get it posted.

Have a Great Day!

Technorati Tags: Shop,time,projects,life,hobbies

Read More

5 Steps Before Purchasing (from now on)

My husband and I have been attending a Dave Ramsey Financial Peace Class every week, and last night's lesson was on Buyer Beware. In it, Dave lays out the five wise and worthy steps to walk through before making a purchase:

Step 1:
Waiting overnight before making a purchase.

Step 2:
Carefully considering your buying motives. No amount of stuff equals contentment or fulfillment.

Step 3:
Never buying anything you do not understand.

Step 4:
Considering the "opportunity cost" of your money.

Step 5:
Seeking the counsel of your spouse.


The foremost thought running through my head during last night's class?



...good thing I bought these little beauties (on the spot) three days prior.




:)

Read More

DIY X-RAYS

Pictures spoke to me louder than words today. This image came from a fascinating article in Wired Science about a 19th-century DIY X-ray craze:

In 1895, Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen discovered the X-ray, a form of electromagnetic radiation with a very short wavelength. To the common people at the time, this was astonishing. Within three months, DIY X-ray kits were available on the market. The rich and famous had their hands X-rayed, their skeletons draped in rings. Photographers, who had access to most of the tools needed to make the images, began to train this new form of light on just about anything that might be beautiful."

Read More