my good friend Lucy helped me pick up 4 cases of small Kerr mason jars, and 4 cases of large jars at Smart and Final. she then peeled apart one of the wide-weave burlap coffee sacks i had in the garage and took apart the threads. we used the longer twines. the leftover shorter twine […]
honey, can you whip up a party for 40?
March 5 by
i love my husband. i do. i really do. and he must really love and believe in me…so much so that he’s confident that i can throw together a party for 40 people in under two weeks….well actually, one week, as we’re out of town for nearly a week. oh, and did i mention i’m […]
spring has sprung. hyacinths are popping already!
February 24 by
the first signs on spring are here…trouble is, we haven’t really had winter. and as i write this, the temperature is dropping to the high 30s here in So Cal. its finally snowing in the mountains. these poor bulbs will be 86d by morning! but look at how gorgeous the back yard is […]
quick and easy-to-sew headbands
February 23 by
i have two boys. but a friend once brought me a headband from a mall kiosk. she was excited that she only paid $25 for this headband. after all, we do live in the OC. i was mortified. i could make it for $.25 so here you have it. the details of how to make […]
how we deal with ants :: terro
February 15 by
We get solicitors. A lot of solicitors. I estimate ~15% are bug people. This is how the conversations usually go: “Hi, I’m an exterminator from company XYZ. Do you currently have a bug or pest problem?” “Well, we’ve got some ants, but nothing too serious.” “Really? I could spray today if you’d like for $69.99 […]
big blue coral, hurricane vase, and brown rice
January 11 by
i found this huge hurricane vase at the salvation army. it spoke to me. “buy me! i’m only $2!” so i did. but what would i do with it? then i remembered i hadn’t yet unpacked the huge blue sea coral from our move! i wasn’t really sure what to do at the bottom. […]
how to make a felt and velcro board for kids’ learning
December 5 by
i made this a few years ago for lil G…we use it all the time and he learned his letters quickly. now Big A is using it…mainly to eat. it’s a simple DIY. get a canvas. using a staple gun, staple a large piece of felt around the canvas. staple the velcro. i got all […]
natural pine cone Christmas wreath
December 3 by
lil G and i went for a walk a few days ago and collected a bunch of pinecones. we had a blast. we found small ones. big ones. half eaten ones. the goal was to collect enough to make our very own Christmas wreath. and this is how we fared. we thought using a […]
Eco Wood Treatment now carried in Home Depot!!
November 19 by
The Eco Wood folks saw my last post and were excited that the furniture DIYers are learning about their product! It’s definitely a huge market segment they perhaps had overlooked! GREAT NEWS! Eco Wood Treatment is now carried in Home Depot.
Getting a Restoration Hardware grey finish with ease….Eco Wood treatment
November 18 by
The blogging world has been inundated with the color grey. Dark grey. Light grey. Weathered grey. Annie Sloan chalk paint is wonderful. I’ve used it on pretty much everything inside and outside the house. It holds up extremely well. In fact, the outdoor pieces have endured several heavy rain storms and the patina continues to […]
annie sloan tutorial :: Restoration Hardware wood finish on an old coffee table
July 8 by
A few folks have asked how I got the look on the zero to hero coffee table. I didn’t take pix b/c we’re moving this week and I didn’t have much time to crank out a few more pieces before the movers arrive! But here was my process: Old White as a base, brushed on […]
