Fabulous Friday thrift finds

Today was a great day!

We (as in me and my boys) woke up early, 

had some breakfast, and then went off

 to pick up my friend Jocelyn to go for a bit-o-thrifting!!

I am in love with this sweet porcelain 

flower frog & bowl set I found for just 99 cents!

I also found a wooden mantel clock,

 the coolest old curtains 

(made out of what feels like bark cloth)

and an old wooden doll crib

(which will definitely get a new paint job)

that I see holding a collection of old quilts to display, 

or maybe flowers, 

or.....

an adorable cat??

I also picked up a few lace doilies

and this towel holder which has 3 removable

dowels so you can hang lots of pretties to display.

I have so many ideas 

whizzing around in my head as 

I am thinking of holding an antique/barn sale 

here at the farm next spring.

Now I just need to get working on this stuff! 

Mind you...that's what our long

 Alberta winter will be good for as 

I tackle all the projects waiting out in my barn!!

Blessings!

Karen

Foggy summer mornings

It is so weird when it gets foggy here....

especially in the middle of summer!!

This morning when I woke up it looked so

strange to see...well....nothing!! lol

I had to go grab my camera and take a few photos

to share with you today.

Here is the view down the driveway

and here is looking into the fields??

and here is a cool old 

church pew we found in the pioneer barn

after we moved in

I have no idea how sturdy it is,

 but it looks like it may have been here a while!

This poor barn lost its roof a few years back 

and all the chinking between the logs has fallen out.

Plants grow out of the old straw in the "loft".

We are trying to decide if it will be 

worth it to rebuild it....I think it would be cool

but it might be a lot more work than 

the hubby wants to do!! lol

I also spent all day working on this area of the living room, 

which is proving to be a challenging room 

due to its shape but I do love the vaulted ceilings, 

the beams, and the open-ness of it

(you can't tell it is a massive room from this photo!)

I would like to:

1. repaint the wall....I HATE the peach colored walls!!

2. possibly paint the dresser? 

(it doesn't look very cottagey in the dark wood)

3. re-cover the big chair or make a slip cover

(this is a "chair and a half" which is

so comfy for reading or cuddles with the kids)

4. Possibly paint out the wood if hubby will let me

(there is tons of it and one whole 16 foot high wall 

of it near the kitchen and it just sucks the light out the room!)

5. Put down new wood floors...we had to rip out all the 

dog-peed shag carpet (harvest gold...mmmmm!!)

Anyways....this is just one corner of the room 

and I will share more as I unpack more stuff.

I was going to wait until everything was fixed up, 

but yesterday I was so grumpy and I want to see

 my treasures to make me feel more at home. 

Good news...it worked!!

Blessings,

Karen

What's your hang up??

My big project this week 

was to strip the old wall paper 

(4 layers worth!!)

 off this wall in the hallway. 

After all that scraping and peeling 

I decided to go for a new print instead of paint 

due to the condition of the wall 

after all was said and done.

I found this sweet red and cream 

print by Waverly 

and went right to work hanging it on 

the upper portion of this wall.

Because I have 3 boys who frequent

 this hall on a regular basis 

(it leads to the bedrooms and the bathroom!) 

I decided to add tongue and grove pine 

like the stuff that is on the wall in the kitchen

 (but this time I had to buy it so I had enough boards!!)

I also purchased my first big power tool:

a compound miter saw

(the female cashier at Home Depot was 

thrilled to see a lady buying power tools!! LOL)

This stuff is so easy to use and I had 

a blast using my new saw!! lol

I bought a trim piece to fit over the top 

edge and it finished it off very nicely.

I then used painter's caulk to fill in the gaps 

between the wood and the trim.

Don't worry...switching out that black switch plate

 is on my list but am a bit nervous

about doing electrical stuff!!

I might get over it...but I might just 

ask my hubby to do that part!

And here is the finished wall.

I painted the peg shelf with apple green spray paint

a few days ago but now I am thinking 

I should have made it red.

What do you think??

I added a sweet ruffled apron and some 

new tea towels to the pegs,

and then added a few of my stoneware pitchers,

a sweet vintage print (in an unexpected yellow frame),

and one of my own paintings.

Do you have a peg shelf in your house?? 

I would love to see what you have displayed on yours!!



I am sharing this here:

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/

http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/

Just to make me smile....

I woke up way too early this morning 

with a project in my head the moment 

I put my feet on the floor!!

Sometimes I like waking up inspired to create....

and sometimes I would just rather sleep in!!

Today I would have liked to sleep in.

LOL

Anyways, I have had this little project

 in the back of my mind for some time now 

and it seemed like a great time to do it.

 It is just a little something completely for my

 own viewing pleasure...it is not practical, 

or functional, or even all that stunning....

it is just something that makes me smile inside.

I have a bunch of plain wooden skirt/pant 

hangers that needed a "little something" on them, 

so I took some pretty scrapbook paper 

 from my (embarrassing) large stash and 

cut it into 3/4" strips.

and then I used some acrylic gel medium 

(kinda like Modge Podge)

and glued it onto the outer edge of the hanger. 

I did another coat over top of the paper to seal it.

Once it was dry I trimmed the ends and 

them gave them a little sanding to distress the edges.

So there you have it....

a cute little "something" to dress up my hangers.

Nothing earth shattering...

Just something to make me smile:0)

I am sharing this here:

http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com

Blessings, 

Karen

Not everything is as it seems!!

Well...I have been very busy here at our

crooked little farmhouse as 

I begin to do some minor reno's in the kitchen.

The upper kitchen cabinets 

have been driving me crazy 

(they were all hung at slightly different heights)

and none of them could be made clean

even with serious scrubbing with TSP. 

So...I ripped them off the wall only

 to reveal a NEW surprise to deal with!!

Who would put lino on the freakin' walls?? 

Not to mention...there was a huge 

hole in the middle of said lino!!

Well...luckily I happened to have a box full 

of scrap tongue and groove pine that

 filled in the gaps quite nicely.

I then painted the kitchen in Martha Stewart 's 

new paint line in a color called Lemongrass. 

I opted for a semi-gloss finish as it is the kitchen 

and it should wear well on these walls.

We also decided to go for open shelving 

and I found the brackets at Ikea...

they are super easy to hang!! 

 I wish I could have found some big old 

corbels instead, but these will do for now 

(plus they are much more budget-friendly!!)

And yes...I know I need to finish painting 

the raw end of the shelf boards!!

My hand painted GROCERY sign

and a small collection of mixing bowls look great

with my red enamelware colander!

A cool vintage looking sign with 

an old ceramic canister that lost it's lid 

before I claimed it to corral my utensils.

My collection of vintage graphic

coffee mugs I found for just

$2 each at Surplus Herby's

(a rather odd surplus store in my old town)

ANd even some of my own artwork 

found a spot to rest next so the sugar...

isn't it sweet?? 

(sorry... stupid puns this early in the morning 

should not be permitted!! lol)

And look who found a nifty

place to hide from the kittens!!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Hopefully I will finish another 

project to share soon!

I am sharing this here:

http://www.theshabbychiccottage.net/

http://www.remodelaholic.com/

http://www.inthefunlane.com/

http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/

http://www.romantichome.blogspot.com/

Rhubarb and canola sunrises

Here in the new acreage I am greeted by 

the most beautiful canola sunrises.

You know...canola.

The oil you use for cooking?

Well...it is farmed around here in these parts of 

Alberta and it is in full bloom right now 

and everywhere you look there is almost a 

florescent yellow glow to the fields.

This morning while I was out for a walk I finally 

looked into this little shed....

and to my surprise it is actually an outhouse...

a TWO SEATER outhouse!! lol

Believe it or not there is even wall paper in there...

but it was too dark to get a good photo.

I also love the big old twisty trees that grow 

right in front of the house. 

The previous owners said they are over 100 years old.

....and did I mention we have more rhubarb 

than I know what to do with??

Seriously there about 20 of them planted all over

 the place and while I like rhubarb I am not sure what 

I can do with all of it!! Any ideas?? lol

The heat is setting in all hot and muggy this afternoon 

and it is making me really sleepy.

There are also severe thunderstorm 

warnings posted for tonight 

so it should be a good night to watch the 

lightning from the front porch.

Have a good weekend!

Tell me there's hope!!

Ok...as promised after much adieu, a few photos from the 

inside of our "lovely" 1940's farmhouse.

Caution: you may want to look with an empty stomach 

(so you don't throw up)

and an empty bladder so you don't pee your pants laughing!!

First off: the kitchen

The kitchen is painted a lovely "Pepto Bismol"pink with accents of 

a muddy red, and a sickly skin tone 

color (perhaps created from mixing orange paint with the pink??) 

Also, the previous owers were 

very...how shall I say this....thrifty (not in the good way!!) of using 

spare rolls of wall paper and borders 

and decals throughout the entire house!!

The kitchen does have a few cute features such as a built in 

breakfast nook (sorry, no photo) and these 

awesome cupboards around the stove. 

However, the funky decals have GOT to go!!

There is also a cute built in china hutch and we even 

got to keep the old rotary phone!!

My kids are in awe of a RINGING phone that is not

 just a cell phone ring tone!! LOL

Next up: the main bath

OK...brace yourself for this one!! 

Here we have an enormous 1970's wall-to-wall forest mural 

(can you imagine?? lol) that just cracks me up. 

I remember seeing these in the Sears catalog when I 

was a kid and I thought they were so cool (NOT!!) 

and now I have one in my BATHROOM!!

Of course it is only better when combined with the bright turquoise vanity, 

aqua walls, and 1980's black-n-brass era mirror!! 

Dig those faux marble counter tops too!!

And yes...that is my hubby who actually LIKES 

the forest in the bathroom!!

Ooops...almost forgot the pink sink, tub, and toilet combo!! 

I am thinking an old cast iron clawfoot tub might be more like it!!

We did love the old built in armoire and all the bead board which, 

when painted a more subdued color, will be awesome 

and very cottage-y!!

Want more??

I will post some more tomorrow as well as show you the 

beautiful fields of gold that surround us here

on the acreage.

Until then...pick yourself up from your laughing fit 

and tell me you see potential!! Please!!

Blessings,

Karen

All moved in....now I need a holiday!!

We have spent the last week moving into our little farmhouse 

and I am so pooped.

At this point I don't even care how horrible it looks....I just

need to take a few days and catch my breath!!

Although I do find it hard to not start ripping off the dozens of different wallpapers 

(some rooms have more than a few kinds on each WALL!!)

 and the explosion of paint colors are just nauseating!! lol 

We knew it was going to be a huge work in progress

when we bought it but now I just don't know where to begin.

Hopefully tomorrow, once the rain lets up, I can get some good photos

of the house to show you....some of you will just be gasping for breath after laughing so hard!! 

Until then...a good book and my bed are calling me to relax.

Blessings,

Karen