Friday's Fabulous Finds...

I spy with my Etsy eye ...

spring lilacs.

Clockwise, starting top left:

Napkin

Mineral Eye Shadow

Party Dress

Vintage Cups

French Macaroon Soap

Wishing you a beautiful spring weekend!

Friday's Fabulous Finds...

I spy with my Etsy eye a... 

cream dream.

Clockwise, starting top left:
Bird Sculpture
Fantasy Art
Wooden Feather
Oatmeal Soap
Pet Perfume
Ceramic Still Life

Wishing you a peaceful weekend.

Our Own Worst Critics...

Are you hard on yourself? I know I am. Dove posted on Monday a three-minute ad geared to change the way we look at ourselves. It had that affect on me. You might want to watch it.

Below the video they said this in way of explanation:

"Women are their own worst beauty critics," Dove says. "Only 4% of women around the world consider themselves beautiful ... we decided to conduct a compelling social experiment that explores how women view their own beauty in contrast to what others see."

Do you see yourself a little differently

after watching this video?

 

Bloomin' Tuesday...

This morning, for Bloomin' Tuesday, I will feature "springtime in the Rockies" (Colorado)...

That's right. We've got a foot of snow on the ground this morning and we're grateful!

We've seen precious little precipitation this winter, but yesterday's snowstorm caught us
up to a more normal year for moisture.

On a different note...In the last two years we've lost two peach trees in our yard. I'm going to miss being able to walk out our back door and pick a luscious, ripe peach in August. The good side of having to remove those trees is that we now have the space for two vegetable gardens. Last Saturday we got busy and built one of the raised garden beds. Let me show it to you. Do you see the ceder planks peeking out from underneath the foot of snow?

It might be awhile before it looks like this (see below).
We need to thaw out for a month or so before we can plant anything.

I am excited, though, to try square foot gardening. I've heard glowing reports from those who have tried it, so we're looking forward to having our own! Have a nice {warm} day!

Friday's Fabulous Finds...

I spy with my Etsy eye...
green leaves and cerulean skies.

Clockwise, starting top left: 

Set of Five Hoops

Felt Bracelet

Summer Breeze Oil Painting

Ceramic Bowl

Beach Bag

Wishing you a gorgeous weekend!

HGTV Decorator Fabric...

A month ago I was contacted by a representative from Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores and presented with an offer I couldn't refuse. Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores has teamed up with HGTV to launch an exlusive collection of indoor and outdoor home decor fabrics -- just in time for spring. They offered to send me some fabric to review. It's a given that I'd accept any offer having to do with free fabric.

I was encouraged to use the fabric any way I chose, so I decided to create a piece of wall art for my son and daughter-in law. Their bedroom has the same eggplant purple, moss green, and sterling silver tones that are in the HGTV Urban Blosson {in "Berry} fabric that they sent me...

Here's what I came up with...

Go here for the tutorial for this Deer Silhouette Wall Art.

Because we don't have a Jo-Ann Fabric Store near our home, I went to their website to peruse the aisles of HGTV fabric. Although you can find 30 different HGTV print fabrics in-store, Jo-Ann provides an expanded assortment of 74 exclusive designs at their online store. I love shopping from the comfort of my home for fabric, so this advantage was perfect for me.

Here's a piece of good news... From April 14th through May 4th, the HGTV Home line is 50% off at Jo-Ann!

More good news... From April 7th through May 4th, my readers can use the coupon below to get an additional 10% off any HGTV Home fabric or trim. In other words, during that time you can get 60% off any HGTV fabric or trim in-store or online by shopping the sale and using the coupon below!

A couple of weeks ago, I published a tutorial on how to make this Deer Silhouette Wall Art. 

Go here if you'd like to learn how to make your own.

Here is an example of some of the beautiful HGTV Home decorating fabrics that can be purchased online at Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores. The HGTV Fabric @ Jo-Ann Pinterest Board has lots of inspiration on how to use these beautiful fabrics!

Fabulous Friday Finds...

I spy with my Etsy eye some...

coral.

Clockwise, starting top left:

Spring Flower Headband

Felted Handbag

Organic Cotton Scarf

Romantic Photograph

Industrial Chic Lamp

Wishing you a beautiful spring weekend!

Refinished Bookcase...

My mother was raised by a single, working mother. My grandfather passed away when my mother was very young, and as a result my grandmother raised my mother alone during the Great Depression. My grandmother bought this set of encyclopedias and bookcase for my mother when she was just a child. It was a luxury that I'm sure my grandmother couldn't afford easily, but I love that she sacrificed her hard earned money for these beautiful books. I adore this family heirloom and am grateful the bookcase was passed down to me years ago.

Because the bookcase is 80 years old, the finish had seen better days, so I decided to repaint it to give it a new life. For all you furniture refinishing purists it will be easy for me in the future to strip the paint and go back to a stain if I should choose, but I wanted to give it some color. As you can see in the picture it's going to reside under the "Deer Silhouette Wall Art" that I showed you last week.

I started by exfoliating it a bit with my orbital sander. Just a light roughing up to take off the finish and get down to the wood...

I chose a dark turquoise color for the bookcase to compliment the the damask pattern in the wall art...

Here's what I came up with...

I used Behr paint in "Grand Rapids"...

After applying the paint, I glazed it to call attention to the details and "age" it a bit. Glazing is such an imperfect science, but I do love the end result.

Here is it with the books restored to it and perched underneath the wall art...

I love how these bright pieces play off the stripe on the wall.

Linked to:
 
Furniture Feature Friday @ Miss Mustard Seed
Friday Favs @ Naptime Crafters

The Inspiration Board @ Homework
Knock Your Socks Off Party @ JoJo & Eloise
Made by you Monday @ Skip to my Lou