Stuff In The Works, and a Thank You!

Creativity Overload! 

I'm a little bit overwhelmed with all the projects going on, and all the ones that are calling me to be started...so instead of getting crazed about finishing something to post about, I'm going to give you a peek at some of them (oh there's more than this, but these are actually started...)

There's one that's been languishing on my shelf for a while and I'm just now getting back to it...

How about this one? There might have been a sneak peek a few days ago...

Trying something new cuz I got nuthin better to do (not!)

Ugh, I know I'm going to regret bringing these inside instead of leaving them in the garage to work on them...

Another project hanging out, waiting for some luv...

and another...

one more...

ha! I lied - another black painted project...

ok, ok, this is the last one...

That's a little peek into my crazy project-driven life...and there's tons more in that office and the garage. ACK!

Now for the Thank You!

Lanell of Hoot-N-Nanny fame has passed on the Liebster Blog Award to me. With a little research, I found that this award is for smaller blogs with less than 300 followers, but have good content to share. Thank you so much Lanell for thinking of my little blog!

Lanell's blog has some amazing before and afters - check out her awesome kitchen makeover!

She also has some yummy-looking recipes...I'm not much of a cook, but this looks like something easy enough to make. If it involves the microwave, it can't be that hard, right?

Now, after thanking Lanell for passing this on to me, I'm supposed to pass this award on to a few bloggers. However, I'm not playing by the rules on these tagging awards and am only going to pass it along to one deserving blog. You know why? Cuz that's how I roll ;) And there's no obligation to participate in this if chain-blogging isn't your thang.

Drumroll please....Passing the Liebster Blog award to: Kristen of Decorating DIY - Turning a House Into a Home...creating Beauty on a Budget

Kristen's blog is about a young couple doing creative DIY projects and she's honest about her projects and I LUV that! There are times that my projects don't work out, and it's nice to see that not everyone gets it right the first time (in that, she's just like me).

Kristen's adorable wine cork heart!

Enamel glass project...Kristen says if at first you don't succeed...

And there you have it! Thanks to Lanell for the award, and make sure you check out her and Kristen's blogs for all their bloggy deliciousness.

Trash to Treasure, Part Two

As promised in Trash to Treasure, Part 1, here's the reveal of what the top of my junked lamp table looks like now.

Yep, more sheet music. I've got a bunch of it and you should expect to see it in all kinds of ways ;)

I added whole sheets, then added little bits to break up the look

The sheet music is the actual vintage sheet music, not copies, so the paper is aged naturally. It's also a little bit fragile around the edges, which makes for an interesting edge. Some of the edges didn't want to stay down, and with the varnish on top of the decoupage, it created an even more uneven look...which I totally love!

The top doesn't look mass-produced, it looks aged, it fits in with my music-loving husband and gives us a much needed tabletop and magazine holder - it's perfect for us in other words! Best of all, it was rescued from the landfill and put to use again. Makes me love junking even more.

Pay no attention to the stacks of paint cans in the background...

Ugly cord - haven't hidden it yet and see that little lampshade in the top right? It's just sitting on the bulb; I need to buy a new lampshade and harp for that lamp. Just add it to the list...

As an addition to this post, we had a new addition to the home recently - our new sectional seen in the pics above. We bought the red sectional in the picture below when we moved in almost 4 years ago. I was fixated on having a comfy recliner and always wanted a red couch. Well, I got both and loved the sectional...for a while.

I'm being real here - what a mess!

It didn't function properly in the space and I'm on a mission to make things in my home function better (see this post on my cottage kitchen). There was a lot of wasted space behind the red sectional, it attracted and held cat hair (notice the throws covering the sofa), and it didn't really seat more than two comfortably. It had to go. Enter Craigslist and it was gone in a flash!

Now that I knew what would work better in the space, this leather sectional looks and works so much better in the space. It's easy to make mistakes when buying furniture! Live and learn.

Boy, does this need pillows!

(I even got around to hanging some things on the wall!)

Now the question is what do I do with the mess in back of the couch? That whole area screams 'Dumping Ground'! When I get around to brainstorming a solution, you know I'll be posting!

In the interest of being real...What was I thinking when I posted in my very first post that my home was done? I think it was DEEP DENIAL! Now, looking around, there is so much that can be done to help out my little house and make it perfect for me and my husband. I'm looking forward to making some changes in the near future. This might be next:

Linking up to:

A Makeover? Yes, Please!

An awesome (or crazy, depending on how you look at it) woman named Mandi who writes a fantastic blog about craptastic stuff called Vintage Revivals is offering herself up as a sacrifice makeover guru to one deserving person.

I. Need. This. 

Look at my office, inherited from my Gator husband

c'mon - orange and white with a blue stripe??

no storage to speak of

an attempt at decorating...epic fail

my work (?) area

a normal day in the life of my office

work lights, light boxes, mailing boxes, and a cat perch - everyone sing "one of these things is not like the other, one of these things, doesn't belong..."

the stuff is now 2 rows deep

yep, this is really how it looked this morning - inspiring, right?

I'm trying, really.

The pictures say it all. I have no room to work, to blog, to create. I have orange, blue and white walls. I'm not sure there's a primer invented that will cancel those colors out. I've inherited his 'executive' desk, which is also where the CFO of the family (me) has to pay bills, file bills, shred bills. I would be open to ANY idea to make it more functional. It's depressing just looking at the pictures.

Thank you if you do vote for me. My eyes especially thank you.