Addicted To Throw Pillows

Hi, my name is Debra and I am a throw pillow addict.

I admit that not only do I feel the need to change throw pillows frequently, and I hoard fabrics for that purpose, and I stash pillows in my attic -- I also try to get others to join in my addiction. I am hopeless!

Here is a new thing I recently (did to serve my addiction) ahem -- came up with. Quick and Dirty New Throw Pillows!!

My little "behind your head when reading" pillows were showing dirt and wear so... I took two little pieces of an "end of the bolt" wonderful bargin fabric I had in the attic.

 Cutting the pieces just a little bit larger than the top piece of fabric, I simply folded it over at the edges and began to sew with my large turkey needle. I carefully grabbed a piece of the trim with each stitch and tried to keep the fabric right along that edge.

And here is my completed "new" throw pillow! I did one more for the other side of the couch too. (I love symmetry in my world) Bonus! Look closely at the largest pillow at the back and YES, I admit it, it is a Quick and Dirty Throw Pillow also. I used left-over fabric from the breakfast room chairs on the fronts of these pillows.

Happy sewing and best of luck with your home addictions.

Lake House Kitchen Backsplash Project!!

Here is Steve and Lexie sorting out the kitchen the first summer we visited the Lake House. Notice the grey backing board on the backsplash. At the time not even the electric outlets were fastened to the all and had no plug covers. The previous owners had planned to tile this area but didn't get to it. And neither did I that summer or the next...

So, first I took down the boards and decided to paint to match the rest of the room. The backing was plain old paneling so I used some kiltz before trying to cover the wood. It took several coats but it finally came out very nice.

In between coats I touched up the white cabinets.

Then I painted two unfinished pedestals white to match the cabinets and placed one at each end of the upper cabinets for effect.

What a nice vacation kitchen! All ready for next time.

The Lake House Kitchen Floor Re-do!

One of the biggest projects that needed completion at the Lake House was the kitchen. The tile floor grout was chalky and breaking off making a mess everywhere. We had a big rug over it for the past two summers but I decided to tackle the job once and for all. (I hope!) Having never done more than the two table tops of broken tile before I was really worried that I would just make it worse.

The girls and I took two days to get it done. First, began gouging out the loose grout with flat head screwdrivers. Probably not the safest way but it worked for us. Then I vacuumed and began grouting according to the directions on the ready-made grout purchased at Lowe's.

The first side came out good! So we walked carefully walked around the newly grouted tiles and admired our success.
The next day we really worked hard to get all the grout up that was damaged. We had to replace two tiles that came up with the grout chopping, so thankfully, we had extras around. (I used those two damaged tiles for the tabletop project.)

Here I am (with sore knees) adding grout to the last section of tiles. I know I took a photo of the girls working on the grout but it must be on one of the phones and not the camera's so I'll add that later. Anyway, the floor came out so great! I'm really proud of our work. Next, the backsplash!

Continuing the Kitchen Re-Do at the Lake House

First, the desk in the kitchen has now been moved to the "sewing room" for my projects (formerly the girl's room) and the guest room too. So, it was decided to use another really great table for the center island. Then after it's first use, it was apparent that the wood veneer tabletop would never make it long term -- so we came up with the idea to use a few pieces of left over tile! Voila!


I broke up everything into pieces except a short section of white octagons and little red squares that I found in the workroom. Then I used a white tile to highlite around those octagons and squares. The beige tiles are from the floor.

Lexie came up with the "stream of tiles" design and I think it is perfect!

Tiling the top of a great little wooden table to use as a place to serve. New floor and "new" table.

Cute Idea for Summer House Decor From "Beach Vintage" blog:

Some time ago I feel in love with a gorgeous girl's vintage swimsuit for sale on EBay. I had no idea what I would do with it at the time. I was lucky enough to win the auction. When it arrived I decided it was to wonderful to just put away in the cupboard, so I decided to frame it. I bought this white frame at Ikea and placed the swimsuit inside. At present it hangs in my guest bathroom and always gets lots of comments from friends. It really is a simple idea and I am sure anyone could do it! Next Friday I will show you how I expanded on this idea. Have a great weekend (a long weekend in Queensland), so I shall be back on Tuesday. I am hoping for one last swim in the ocean before it gets too cold!

and more...

Some time ago I saw some images of a house in the USA where the owner had framed some vintage swimsuits. I put it in my scrapbook for future inspiration. I used the idea last year when we moved into our new home. I decided our dining room would be most appropriate for them as it would create a great talking point. It took some time to buy the vintage bathers, they are hard to find! All of them came from Ebay USA. So the shipping cost a little more than I would have liked but the end result was well worth the time and money spent. The simple wooden frames are from Ikea. I have to admit, I tried a few of them on before I framed them, and danced around the room to Frankie Avalon. How sad is that?

JLyn Design Jewelry

A wonderful new webpage for handmade jewelry. Exquisite, unique designs. Please visit her page and buy something wonderful!!

Wow, thanks to my friend Debra aka Bottle Blonde Inspirations I'm officially a blogger. These pages will be a place for me to post pictures of my latest Jewelry Designs. I've been creating Jewelry for about 5 years. Each piece is an original design that is crafted by hand, my hand to be specific. I work with metals such as Fine Silver, Sterling, Copper, Vermeil and 14kt Gold Fill. The variety of stones I use range from Semi Precious Gems such as Aquamarine, Peridot and Amethyst to custom made Cubic Zirconia, Swarovski Crystal and Pearls. Most pieces end up being one of a kind just because I make something and move on from there though I do have a few "in demand" designs that I've made several times but always with slight variations. Check out my work and let me know what you think.
Thanks,
Judy

New Trends and Good Ideas

Lighten up your colors in the bedroom. Think calm. Use a corner of your bedroom for morning snacks or checking the weather on your laptop.

Add fresh flowers to your rooms. And real live plants.


Freshen up your back entry. Take away the coats, sweaters, and boots and add a few summer straw hats.

Happy Summer!!