Tuesday, February 21, 2012

FESTIVUS (Feats of Strength)

Thank you friends for all the birthday wishes on my last post!
I went and picked up my corner cabinet on the weekend.

I sighed when I first laid eyes on it.  It was big ... really BIG and probably wouldn't fit in its intended place.  I loved it though and couldn't leave without it.  Eventually I would find a space for it.

The cabinet barely fit in the back of my van.  We tied the backdoor shut as best as we could and made the long journey from Toronto back home.  We couldn't risk driving on the highway so we took, what I like to call, the scenic route.

Once we arrived home it was a struggle to move the cabinet into the garage.  I was told I was not strong enough to get it back into the house and we would have to wait until my son returned home from a snowboarding trip in Banff.
What ... wait FOUR MORE DAYS before I could have my cabinet in the house!  Was he kidding?  I instantly thought of Festivus from an episode of Seinfeld.
Festivus was a holiday that George and his family celebrated and part of the festivities was performing 'Feats of Strength' and that was exactly what I was going to do to get that cabinet up a flight of stairs and through a narrow door into my dining room.  And I did!
It didn't fit properly under the bulkhead so the top scroll had to be removed.

I'll come up with something to add some detail back to the top.
And my white little curio cabinet that previously occupied this corner ...
~ SOLD ~

Cheers - Lisa

Friday, February 17, 2012

SELLNG ON KIJIJI

This week was my Birthday!
Yes folks, I turned 29 yet again.  I've celebrated almost twenty 29th Birthdays!
Guess next Birthday I should be turning 30.
This was for sale on Kijiji and hopefully will be coming home
with me as my Birthday present.


Sorry about the wonky pics but that's the way
it is on the ad and I don't know how to rotate them.

You get the idea

In order to fit the 'New" corner cabinet into my home
my 'Old' corner cabinet must go!
So I've listed it for sale on Kijiji because I've used the site so
often to purchase items. 
But NEVER to sell something
And now I understand why some sellers are so
particular when you make contact with them about an item.
You come across the most 'bizarre' people when selling something.
There seems to be interest and then they just disappear.  Or they make
an appointment to come and view the piece but then
they just don't show up!
Hmph ... like I don't have anything better to do with my time!
Wish me luck with my sale and I hope you all have
a great weekend!

Cheers ~ Lisa

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

GIVEAWAY WINNER

Congratulations to Tracie of Fishtail Cottage!  She was selected as the Winner
of my Blog Makeover.

Thank you to all who entered and many thanks to
Sharon of Plumrose Lane
for working with me to put this Giveaway together!

Cheers - Lisa

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Here is my mantle for 2012!
My new banner purchased from the ubber-talented
crafter, Diane from Saturday Finds.

Lovingly hand-crafted

My vintage chalkware cherub is wearing a new
Santos Crown this year
This pair of cherubs only appear once during the year
to take their place of honour for
Valentine's Day
A little sparkle for some evening ambiance
when the candles are lit

Some faux flowers perched upon a
shabby wooden box

I'm hoping Cupid will stop by
today and replace them with some real blooms!
**hint ** hint**

Hope you all enjoy a Romantic Filled Day
with many Surprises!
It's still not to late to enter my
C'mon folks, who couldn't use a makeover
in 2012?
I'll be selecting my winner at the end of the day today.
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Cheers - Lisa

Friday, February 10, 2012

BURLAP HEADBOARD - TO TUFT OR NOT ... THAT IS THE QUESTION

Okay, I know so many of you have done it before; spotted something appealing sitting in a pile of garbage and you've stopped, snatched up the item and taken it home with you.  I read your stories all the time but personally, I have never dove into a dumpster until the day I spotted this headboard.


I was a very nervous Newbie!  I didn't want to be caught stealing someone else's garbage!

In defence of my actions let me just tell you that it was VERY dark out.  It wasn't until the light of day that I noticed this headboard was NOT wood but in fact some kind of gross plastic material.

Can you say U-G-L-Y?  Undaunted I decided to go ahead with my 'vision' and gathered my materials.

This was my inspiration ...


Source Unknown
I used homemade chalk paint.  There are many versions with various reviews but I used the plaster of paris method.  I haven't used the real ASCP so I can't do a fair comparison but I can tell you this paint did what the reviews promise - dried quickly with great adhesion to that plastic material, with no priming.
I used it for the outer frame.  The thickness of the paint prevents dripping, which I really like.


Then I had to figure out where to place all those buttons.  I played and played until I thought it looked okay.
After careful measuring, the button holes were drilled.


1.5 inch foam was adhered with spray adhesive.

Then I covered the foam with batting.

Once the burlap was attached I was very pleased with how it looked. 
Now I'm not sure if I should take it to the final step and add those buttons.


What do you think?

If you haven't already done so, don't forget to enter my
I'll be selecting a winner on February 14th.
Cheers - Lisa

Monday, January 30, 2012

FIRST GIVEAWAY OF 2012

Well, I finally got around to getting my ceiling medallion installed. My installation assistant has been sick for the past 2 weeks and this was not a one-person job!

As a matter of fact, the job was much more painstakingly difficult than I had imagined. But really, that's always the case. I want things done, Zip Zip, at the snap of my finger. My plans are always GRANDE but the reality of it is, I usually run out of time and/or energy before I actually accomplish all that I want to. Working long hours at my job leaves me only Saturdays and Sundays to get to that "To Do" list.
At least I've been able to cross off another project as Done and I'm happy with how it turned out.



Now onto the GIVEAWAY part of this post.
Some of you may remember, at some point last year (don't quite recall at which point) I had my Blog overhauled! The look of it drastically changed (for the better) thanks to Professional Intervention in the form of Sharon from Plumrose Lane.
And now, I will share some of the love with one of my followers who will win
a
Custom Blog Theme Basic Package from Plumrose Lane.This package will include 1 Background
1 Banner
and a set of 6 Sidebar Buttons.

Sharon is a freelance graphic artist currently studying for her Bachelors of Fine Arts degree.
She is a generous Blogger who provides a bunch of tutorials & freebies on her blog so please go visit and have a poke around ... there is so much to see!
I thoroughly enjoyed the process of starting with a vision for my Blog and then having the expertise of Sharon to put it all together and make it come to life.
If you want to be entered in this Giveaway and you're a Follower, simply leave a comment on this post and you'll be entered to win. I'll select the winner on Valentine's Day - February 14th!
Good Luck!
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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

CEILING MEDALLION

I have patiently been waiting for the call. 
I knew it was going to be sometime after the holidays as I placed my order
way too close to Christmas Day.
Today was that day!



One side of the family pick names for our gift exchange and as I've been told, no one wants to choose me (they think I'm difficult to buy for).  Are they for real???


In order to make it easier for the poor sucker who had the misfortune of drawing "Lisa", I decided to ease their burden and picked my own gift.  I knew it wouldn't be ready in time for under the tree, but that was okay because I was getting something
I really wanted.


I was disappointed today when I saw the size of the package.  I expected to see some strong men struggling with a GINORMOUS box instead of the one man who approached me with my parcel tucked under his arm.  I am terrible with numbers when they relate in any way to some kind of measurement so that set of numbers (width, depth, length) beside the item description, meant nothing until today. 

I like my details BIG and FLASHY and BOLD and although this ceiling medallion is smaller than I envisioned, it still is very pretty and I'm sure will look beautiful,
paired with my chandelier.


I'll share more once it has been installed.

After being away for so long, I'm having to relearn Blogger all over again and I haven't 
quite mastered it yet.  I've missed linking to some blog parties and I'm still working on my post that will announce my Giveaway!  I'm excited and I will have it figured out hopefully by the end of  the week.

Cheers - Lisa