Ready to Move On!!

As much as I have been enjoying my afternoons in my pool lately, at all other times of the day, I am ready to move on! I find myself looking at my last year's autumn decor, perusing all of the new autumn magazines and checking out every autumn craft blog that comes down the pike. 

Yesterday I was in Micanopy with daughter #3, grand daughter #5 and my brother and sister-in-law. It was hot but there was the occasional breeze so it was actually not all that unpleasant. lol We checked out most of the shops and, when we went into my favorite, I was automatically drawn back to the Halloween and autumn areas...couldn't help myself! While I will admit that as much as I loved looking at the Halloween things, I'm not quite ready to go that far but I did find a Thanksgiving treasure ( I know, that's even further away but I was drawn to its autumn colors ) that totally matches my style! Look at this beauty.

And, can you believe that I had just ordered its Christmas counter part and it should be arriving any day now. I just love everything about the vintage-ness of this piece.

I will say, shopping these days is a bit different but, at least we are out and about again. This store in particular wasn't quite as I have always found it. Usually, the entire front of the store and the windows would be bursting with all of the current season/holiday goodness...and so, in this case, it would have been summer. And then, still throughout the store you would find fairly large areas of things from all of the other seasons/holidays. This time, the front of the store was pretty "generic"...and by that I don't mean anything not beautiful...just not screaming the season as it usually is!

We were talking to the owner and asking her if she was going to go back to the "old way" once summer was over and she said she really isn't sure. She said between the difficulty of getting new inventory and the higher prices of everything, she just isn't sure where things are going. And of course, not to mention what a HUGE task it is to continually be changing your entire store. I will say that she still has a large percentage of the store decked out for Christmas so, when I am ready for that, I definitely know where to head. She tends to lean towards the vintage, European, primitive styles that I love so much...not to mention my Bethany Lowe!

The town was bustling by noon. We tried a restaurant we had never tried before and it was good. The town is very old Florida...slow paced and lovely. These are the only pictures I shot and they're not all that great but maybe will give you just a bit of a feel for the town.

Here are a few pictures I "stole" from the Chamber of Commerce. Lol 

I'm off to do a few things outside before it gets too hot and then I'll probably be back in looking for new ideas. Right before I came on, I saw an idea come across FB and I think if I can find all of the supplies, I will be giving it a try. Here is what I have gathered already. Any ideas?

I have a bit of a busy week ahead. Grand daughter #2 is coming to spend a night, grand daughter #5 turns 13 (!!!) and then I have a few other appointments and errands lined up but I'll be back...hopefully with some wonderful new ideas! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Hopping on the Band Wagon

For quite awhile now I have been seeing craft blogs using a faux tin ceiling tile that people were finding at the Dollar Tree. I have always been drawn to tin ceiling tiles. In fact, one of my favorite finds is a mirror that hangs in my foyer that I purchased made from one.

I was drawn to many of these crafts but, I could not find the tiles in any of my $ Tree stores. Either, as often happens, these craft blogs with literally millions of followers create a run on certain projects and people rush out and buy them all up or, they just never made it to my area. In any case, I screenshot ideas and forgot about it. Until the other day when I was at one of our larger stores and happened upon boxes of them. I bought a few and knew I would have fun experimenting with them when I got a chance...and, today is that day. I have no idea where I am going with it, but I know where I want to start.

The tile is very flimsy so I bought a "wood" pumpkin to use as the backing. I used my heat gun to remove the bow and metal word. I'll save the word because I might be able to use it for something Thanksgiving. If I was going to be painting on the pumpkin, I could have sanded it at this point but that wasn't necessary this time as I am covering it. 

Next I traced the pumpkin onto the back of the tile and cut it out. I chose to use Gorilla Clear Grip - my new favorite even over E-6000 - instead of hot glue because I was afraid the hot glue would either melt the plastic tile or harden in lumps underneath it and show through the design. This glue grips really quickly. It takes a bit longer to totally cure but in this case, it didn't matter.

Then, the layering began...one color over the next and then the addition of cinnamon mixed with paint and then for a heavier finish in places, cinnamon mixed with antique wax. The more you add, the better it looks and it really does start to resemble an old, chippy, rusty tin tile. The cinnamon actually gives it that feel of rusted metal and kind of flakes off if you rub it. I'm thinking I should probably give it a quick hit with a clear sealer so it will not be quite as messy to work with. And, just as a side note...cinnamon is expensive but for these craft projects, there is no need to use the good stuff. A big bottle at the Dollar Tree is only $1.25.

So this is kind of as far as I have thought out. I think I will just gather up any autumn supplies I have around and see where we go from here.

So here we are a few hours later. I have tried a number of things as embellishment on this pumpkin and here is where I ended up. I'm still not sure it will be staying like this but I will have to buy a few new things if I want to change it. We shall see if it grows on me.

And, since I was on a roll, I actually took a piece of corrugated cardboard that was in one of the calendars and soaked it in the sink to pull off the top layer and leave the corrugated part for me to use. This is very thin paper so I am glad that I didn't put it in to soak and walk away for a few minutes. I tried separating the layers as soon as the piece had sunk and it was a very easy task. And, here is what I had for my next pumpkin.

I had bought a slightly different shaped pumpkin in $ Tree when I was there the other day but this one was just a bit too large for this paper. I thought I might have to try to piece the cardboard and wasn't too sure that would look good when I decided to pull out my trusty tin snips and see if I couldn't cut the pumpkin down a bit...no worries. The "wood" that this pumpkin is made out of was very easy to cut so I just trimmed it down a bit.

Then, I sanded off all of the black glitter. I probably didn't have to but I didn't want it to interfere with the glue.

Again, I wasn't sure where I was going but I was going to try a different rusting technique on this piece so, once again I began with layering colors. First black, then orange onto which I sprinkled the cinnamon and then I went over it all right away with ModPodge. The ModPodge mixed with the dry cinnamon made the rusty effect very quickly. Once it was all dry, I started touching it up with different colors of Tim Holtz Distress ink. 

And, again, I'm not sure the embellishments will stay but, for now, there is a messy bow (that is what it is called - lol ) and a hang tag I made by stamping onto a piece of burlap ribbon and cutting and distressing a tag. I wish the pictures were better because in real life, these pieces truly look like rusted metal.

So, except for a bit of weeding and watering, this was pretty much my day - not to mention that I still have half of my craft room to put away. This week has gone quickly for me as I have had two appointments and a few errands that were run. I actually just realized that tomorrow is already Friday. And then, daughter #3 has invited me to drive up to Gainesville with her on Saturday to pick up grand daughter #5 (who has spent the week with my brother and sister-in-law) and then stop for some antique shopping and lunch in Micanopy on our way home. Micanopy is the cutest little town full of antique shops and my favorite seasonal shop ever so, we shall see if I find a treasure or two. You'll be the first to know. Stay safe and stay tuned.

What's Next?!?

 Wow! The house is so quiet! Everyone has returned to their own homes and, for the first time in a very long time, there is no furry friend here either. I guess it's time to get back to routine and tackle some of the things I have been putting off.

Our weekend was wonderful and we actually had two celebrations for daughter #1 because not everyone could be here at the same times. It was a fun weekend full of lots of laughs, talking, catching up and, of course, food! And, because it was also very laid back, I refrained from taking pictures. Of course, I did have to get one of my newest grand dog Bennett.

Isn't he a cutie? He is another rescue from Korea. They think he is about 2 years old and, considering he was never out of a cage for all of that time, he is already very well mannered. He needs a bit of work on his leash etiquette and a lot of work on learning not to run when he sees a chance. Other than that, he is doing so well and we're all thrilled to have him as an addition to our family.

While I was out shopping for the weekend, I had to drive right by one of our largest Dollar Trees and, since I haven't been in one for awhile, I made a quick stop...and boy was I surprised! I have been seeing other bloggers at their $ Tree stores and saw things that mine has never carried. I'm not sure if there was so much here this trip because this is one of our larger stores or if all stores have kicked it up a notch but, I found some things I have never seen before in the crafts section and bought things I don't usually buy there in the floral section because usually their flowers look VERY fake...not so much this time. I grabbed a lot of autumn colored florals, chunks of unfinished wood, "tin" ceiling tiles that crafters are using like crazy, a few other every day craft supplies and then I actually found the farmhouse calendars that people literally fight over. These calendars hit the market about 2 years ago and sold out immediately. People were buying all they could find and re-selling them for $25 or more...all because of the farmhouse seasonal images inside. The same thing pretty much happened again last year. I have never been able to find them but there are so many other ways to get the images I want that I really didn't care. But, this year when I saw them. I went ahead and grabbed them just to see what all of the hype is about. And, I haven't even had time to open them to know just yet...we shall see.

Looks like I might have over loaded on the florals but, since I'm never sure what I will need next, it is better to be prepared and buy seasonal things when you see them. If all else fails, I can always use them to "beef up" arrangements I already have.

And so, that is where I am at this moment. Florida Pest comes today and I'm waiting for a few phone calls to get returned so I'll be staying close to home. Maybe it's time to grab one of those new supplies and get crafting! I'll let you know. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Weather Pattern Has Returned

 Living in Florida, I am pretty familiar with our summer weather pattern...really hot in the morning followed by rain, thunder and lightning in the afternoons. It gets a bit old but, honestly, it is probably the only reason that anything stays alive in Florida in the summer. That being said, we had had a bit less rain in the beginning of summer and it allowed time in the afternoons for some leisure...like a bit of gardening, sitting by the pool, swimming, etc. But, the rains have returned. Everything is bright green but it doesn't allow for much outdoor time. And so, I find myself looking for things to do to keep me busy while I still have my furry friend following me around like a shadow. No brilliant inspiration is hitting me so I thought I might finish up our late summer house decor tour for this year.

Welcome to the family room.

This room is pretty much just the sunflowers and the colors of the season. I needed something different than just more flowers so when I happened upon the free image download, I simply printed it and framed it with a frame I have had for many years.

And here is where the decoupaged apple cider jug ended up.

That is pretty much it for this year's tour. I haven't shown you this year's porch because I've been two places and still can't find my yellow flowers. Here is a picture from 2020 and pretty much what it looks like right now...minus the mums.

I am accepting the fact that even though the sunflowers will be up about four more weeks, there is not room for one more. And so, I am moving on to looking for new ideas for my fall decor. You'll be the first to know if I discover anything fabulous. 

Looks like I'm having an impromptu weekend at my house this week. Daughter #1 is coming and bringing her beautiful new rescue dog for the family to meet. And, since she was out of state for her birthday, I think we'll throw in a little celebration for that as well. Not sure how many will make it but I need to get thinking about food and maybe some cleaning after all this time with my furry friend. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Back to Our Tour

 Now that I've taken a few days off to get back to crafting, I guess it is time to move ahead with late summer decor in the sunroom. There really isn't a lot to show you in here because I just put every day photos back in the TV unit as even I have no sunflowers frames to display. I do have a few pictures of two of my grands with sunflowers that their mom's 5th grade class planted years ago but they're hanging on the fridge. In any case, let's head to the sunroom.

Since the sunroom just has a nod to the theme this year, let's go ahead and catch the guest bath while we're at it.

 

 

 No matter how hard I try to not have it happen, I think my dislike for summer comes through no matter what. Sunflowers are "happy" flowers and I'm trying but I know I will be a LOT happier when I can once again say good bye to summer. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Feeling Adventurous

 OK. Those of you who know me know that I am not a big fan of crafting with paper, recycled items, etc. If I am going to spend time and money on something, I want it to be something I can store away and use over and over. Of course, there are always exceptions and, this may be one of them. Even though I probably have way more sunflowers in my house than any one person needs, I always like to try to add new, handmade items to the decor every year. I added a few new things already but none of them really moved me, so when I saw these flowers on a recent blog post, I decided to give them a try. I found the on "The Silver Farmhouse". I am changing them up a bit and, because the petals - which are where the paper comes in - are relatively short, I think this one might come off as anything other than paper and store away well.

So here are the supplies needed. You can actually change up many parts of this craft. The blogger used Homespun fabric as her centers but, I didn't want to buy anything other than the paint - can you believe that I didn't have a sunflower yellow paint? -so I am going with brown crushed velvet that I have in my stash.

The longest part of this craft is waiting for the paint to dry. You cut off the bottom of a lunch bag and open it at the seam. Then, you completely cover both sides with the yellow paint...and wait...and wait!

Once the paint is dry, you crinkle the paper up and then smooth it out again. I also went over my paper with some antique wax put on with a wet paper towel. Then you fold the bags and cut out petals. No need to use a stencil. Just cut what you see as a flower petal. You will have enough for one sunflower from each bag.

Then, I cut a 5 1/2" circle out of cardstock for the back of the flower (the blogger used more paper bag but I wanted it to have a bit more stiffness on the back of my flower) and begin gluing the petals around the outside edge of the circle overlapping as you go from the first layer to the second and then the third. As I was laying out the petals, I realized that these were going to be really bigger than I wanted, so I cut the circle down to 4 1/2" and glued away.

When I got to this point, I realized that the flower was still too big for my liking, so I cut the next two circles down to 4" and called it a day. Then, I glued on stems cut from branches from my yard, partially glued on the circles cut from velvet and stuffed them with a little Poly-Fil before gluing them shut.

Before tying on a piece of muslin I had dyed green and had left over from another project, I "roughed up" the petals a bit so they had some dimension.

And here they are. I have tied them together and put them here so I can get a picture but I'm not sure this will be their permanent home. I think they would look nicer laying on something like a bouquet...now if I could only find some place with enough room for that to happen. Lol

Did I need these? Absolutely not. But, they were fun to do because they were something a little different and they helped to wile away a dreary, rainy Saturday so, I an happy that I made them. Stay safe and stay tuned.