Tis what season????

So we having a saying in Texas "if you don't like the weather just wait around for about 10 minutes and it will change". How true it is this week! I'm having a little trouble figuring out what season we are in.

 My geranium basket is still in bloom, and there are buds on my hibiscus.

But my mums and cabbage are looking good too.

And my Japanese Maple has changed to a beautiful flaming red orange! LOVE this!!!

But the Christmas cactus says it's her time.

And then I saw a commercial for this and heard the song at Starbucks. Doesn't matter what the flowers and trees are doing or that the temp change 50 degrees overnight. Christmas is here!!! I guess I better get busy!


~toodles~ Laura

Simple touch to a lampshade.

Here is a little more eye candy from my nieces house. All over blogland you see really cute touches to lampshades.... so of course we couldn't have a plain white lamp shade.

Don't you love the pic in the frame??? That will change soon.

Isn't this cute??? All tied up like a package.

Here you can see her chairs. We are in LOVVVVEEEE with these chairs and  look in the corner. A quarterfoil screen. I'll show you better pics of that at another time.

Come a little closer and take a gander. This lamp was on clearance for 20.00 and our little addition cost nada, zilch, nothing people. The off white fabric was cheesecloth we already had and the black ribbon was on the packaging of something else she bought. Can't beat that can you??? Oh and look at the coordinating books, CUTE! All of this is temporary, she gets tired of it, untie it and take it off.
One more thing but of course someone forgot to take a before picture... I think that would be me. Just imagine a whiteish, brownish, kinda dull pot. Got the picture???

Spray painted black.... that is already an improvement. But did we stop there, uh no way!

Wala! Isn't she lovely??? We added some more Rub and Buff. This time it was the patina color. Simple as the name, rub it on, buff it out.  Of course the "in person" view is so much better. That vase in the back is gorgeous isn't it???
~toodles~ Laura

Mirror mirror on the wall

I mentioned to you all that my niece is building a house.... well the day is finally here and she has moved in! Yipee, lucky girl, beautiful home!   I spent the last couple of days at her home trying to get it decorated.  We have alot more to do and I will show you the what it looks like when we are all done but until then I am going to tease you with bits and pieces.

 I showed you this mirror awhile ago. I purchased it at Goodwill for 20.00.  It is huge, heavy and I LOVE the detail in it. Of course it needs a remake, this looks too messy to me.

A little closer look.  This is an ok finish, just not what we needed.  Maybe a little more class, richness.

Here it is sprayed with ORB.  For those that don't know ORB is greatness in a can, stands for Oil Rubbed Bronze.  It is really pretty, dark brown with the tiniest bit of sparkle but sometimes it needs a little umph!

 
So maybe a little silver rub will do the trick.

 

Ahh, look at the detail and the rub really pulls it out.  I  am not sure the picture does it justice, but this turned out BEAUTIFUL!!!

 This is the stuff we used, but not this color. We used the silver.  This stuff can be bought at Hob Lob.  It's only 3.00 and it amazing!!! You need to get some if you don't have it, it really transform most anything!

And look at this faucet!  Isn't it just gorgeous!!! And the frame coordinated really well with it.

Just one more look!  Perfect!  When can you pick up a 20.00 mirror for your bathroom??? I can't wait to show you some more. Keep checking back for new projects!

I am linking this project to:

Tater Tots and Jello

Under The Table and Dreaming

Funky Junk Interiors
A Vision to Remember
A Little Sparrow

~toodles~ Laura

Almost as good as home.

As I mentioned before my husband and I  spent a week in Panama City, Florida and it was an absolutely gorgeous place.  The ocean was bluer than I could ever imagine, I think I could get used to that beauty. We stayed at a Marriott property and it was so pretty and comfortable I thought I would show the suite to you and maybe you could use some of these ideas for your own home.

This is the first thing you see when you come it. This blue wall is so pretty. I have the same colors in my home so this place made me feel right at home.

This is the living area, again they repeated that blue wall. Look at the art work, this whole suite has similar art. Easily done yourself by taking photos to the copy center and have them blown up and mounted on a canvas.

Notice the window treatments. They installed the striped sheers over a solid drape.  This is so smart we kept the sheer over the window and didn't worry about anyone seeing in and the light could come thru. I was a great way to layer fabrics.

Here is what they look like closed.

This chair is such a smart idea. This is the kind of thing that gives furniture a custom touch and makes your furniture look like a million bucks.

Notice they used 3 different fabrics on this chair. I love the piping detail.

This place had 2 bedrooms. I loved this bed!  Check out the headboard, it would be so easy to duplicate. Notice the boxes are painted a contrasting color. This bed makes such a huge statement in the room.
Also notice the bedding. Hotels have finally got it right. I have never been one to want to sleep under a bedspread that someone used the night before me. They have gone to duvet covers, white that can be bleached and to add color to the bed they have these small throws at the bottom. I LOVED this one, it was so soft. I wanted to take it home with me.

Look at this fun curtain fabric. And the cornice board above, a white box with grass paper installed in the middle and trimmed out with trim work, simple and again gives it such a custom look.

The next few pictures notice the pattern and textures they used. You can mix and match, just look at the scale of the prints. This would not work if everything was the same scale. Mixing the scale of patterns is the secret here.

A closer look at the side chair.

Pillow on the couch.

The carpet, this color did not show up well. It is kinda a camel color, very similar to the sofa.

Look at the silhoutte. Doesn't it just say come here? The lines and color combination is just beautiful. This is the second bedroom.

This bed was so pretty. The headboard is another simple solution. The light color is grass cloth. They also repeated on the dresser as well.

Great way to update and old dresser by simply adding a textured paper with wallpaper paste.

Here is another look.

Another great bold fabric. I  fell in love with these window treatments.

Here is a sneak peak of the shower stall. This is a great way to save some money, find a tile you like and use is sparingly.

All that being said, this was the view from our balconey. Looking pretty good huh??? Next time you are staying at a hotel or resort pay attention the how they have decorated it. They have had a professional design the rooms and they usually pick decor that is timeless since they cannot redecorate often You may see a design that you want to copy at your home. I found mine!

I want to add shelves like this to the end of my cabinets to display my white teapots on. As I said it was a beautiful place!

Can a girl have too many bags?

So I showed you a bag that I bought a while ago and added a flower to here. I just love these bags. I get them at Hobby Lobby and when they are on sale they are less than 4 bucks!!! How can you beat that?  They are made of burlap but they have a plastic lining on the inside, seem pretty durable. Anyway I had to decorate another one. (My life was being threatened... what can I tell you?) I've seen all kinds of pretty little flowers on other blogs so I thought I would give some a try.

I purchased 2 shades of inexpensive satin. I don't know exactly what it is called but it's silky and has some polyester in it... I thought it would do the job. I cut circles out, different sizes. I didn't trace or measure just cut the large one and kept making them smaller and smaller until I had 7 circles.

See you can see the circles aren't perfect!

Next I simply put each circle near the flame of a candle and burned the edge. It made it curl up slightly... that's why it doesn't matter if the circles are perfect!

I took a few stitches in the center of each flower and then sewed on a few beads.

Then I  attached a sticky velcro dot onto each flower so that I could change them out if I wanted to change out the flower style or color.

Can you come a little closer??? I love the 2 different colors. It gives it so much interest. I have to tell you these little flowers are addicting!  I don't know what it is, just cutting and burning and cutting and burning. I actually did this project while I was on my vacation. Can you see where I got the inspiration from?

Ahhh, be still my heart!!! I want to go back to a Florida beach!

Anyway I have all kinds of ideas with these silly flowers, Christmas ideas coming up soon! So I ask you can a girl have to many bags???

~toodles~ Laura

Delicious fall!

All over blogland you hear most ADORE fall and it's no secret I do too. I've talked and showed pics of what it is that I love about fall but one of my favorite things about fall inspired a project.

 The secret is out, I love the rusty orange of  the trees and the blue of the sky. Sometimes when I am driving down the road and I see a fall tree (which isn't often where I live in Texas) I just want to stop the car and lay down under the tree! Can I get some love... anyone else want to do that???

Onto the present situation, I took down my Halloween stuff and have a couple of holes in my decor and I start thinking about that blue and those rusty oranges and then I come across this napkin.

And I remember this beautiful blue spray paint I have called Mediterranean by Valspar from Lowes.
And I pick up one of these chargers for 1.99 at my local Hobby Lobby.

They come in all different colors, I didn't care what color mine was because I was spray painting it. I cut up the napkin, be sure to remove the white backing of the napkin before you cut it or it's impossible to get off and keep your piece intact.

They look so real don't they??? So I take my handy dandy Mod Podge, matte finish and slather it on the spray painted plate. Now usually I put it on the thing I am gluing to and the thing I am gluing but these napkin leaves became very fragile once I cut them out, so I only put the Mod Podge on the plate, then I not too carefully put the leaves on and gently MP'd on top. Typically wrinkles not so good, but I liked it on this project made my leaves have another texture. I MP'd the whole plate!

 So you see how the fall trees inspired me?  Take a look perched on it's home.

Do you notice one tiny detail that is different?  I thought it needed a little sumpin.. sumpin, so I got out one of my favorite things... Rub N Buff and applied it to the edge.

This is the best stuff, it comes in lots of colors, I used the Spanish Copper for this piece. Simply apply a small dab to a kleenex (warning warning, oil based does NOT wash off of your fingers) and rub on. This stuff is the best fix it, and it adds a touch of class to most anything you use it on! It is a must have for any crafter gal!
Oh and as for napkins, you are gonna start looking at them in a whole new way now!  You'll be at your next dinner party sneaking yours in your purse and asking for another, I can see it now!

Just look at the choices??? Can you imagine that bottom one on a platter??? Loverrrrly I'm telling ya!
So what inspires you (besides the fabulous blogs)??? Anyone want to lay under a fall tree with me? Oooops, we don't have any yet. ( I know I realize the rest of the world has already lost their leaves and may have snow on the ground but we do it different here in Texas!) I guess I'll just stare at my plate and pretend!

~toodles, laura~