Universal Ballerina Mist....

When I check on my flea booths I like to mill around and see if there are any goodies I want for ME! I try not to do this often because I do have a hard-fast rule...if I bring something in, I have to take something out.

Every once in awhile I stumble on something I just have to have!

I featured my Grandmother's Universal Ballerina dishes here and here. They are not "valuable" dishes, but ones I treasure because it was my paternal grandmother's. She was not a big "china" person and only had a few pieces of this style. I have added a few pieces here and there over the years.

I love the mist color and the platinum banding and the simple styling. Unlike my maternal great-grandmother and grandmother's very ornate and expensive china (also featured) it is very simple...kind of "mid century-ish" which makes sense since it dates around 1950...and I absolutely love it!

I have never found any pieces in flea markets. I did find another salt and pepper shaker at an antique store one time. I bought it so I would have a set I would actually use! I didn't want to use the original for fear of breaking them! Good thing I didn't because sure enough, I broke one! All the other pieces I have added have been from Ebay or Replacements.com (both great sources for replacing stoneware and china.)

But today I scored a few pieces at the Tontitown flea market!

Two refrigerator jars with lids...both in mint condition!

And a milk pitcher. It is actually the "ivory" color rather than the "mist" but I think it is a lovely little piece and thought it would look pretty next to the other I have in mist!

(Oops...still has the price tag string on it!!)

So today, I broke my hard-fast rule...there is absolutely nothing in this display case I can "take out" because they are all heirloom pieces that have great personal value. So I rearranged a few things and made room for them!

Good thing I don't have a huge china cabinet...

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Growing Knock Out roses

Knock Out roses are hardy little plants and super easy to grow!!

Two years ago I built a flower bed in an area where I have trouble getting grass to grow because of the drainage in my side yard and planted 5 little rose bushes.

They get plenty of sun throughout the day and evening, and when they bloom...OMGosh...A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.

I planted these two light pink bushes years ago next to two "real" rose bushes. They too were just tiny little "bushes" when I first planted them!

(This gate door is actually the neighbors...it bores me! I am searching Pinterest for some inspiration to doll it up...maybe a pergola kinda thing....someday!)

The "real" rose bushes died long ago...probably because I have NO idea (or interest) how to maintain a "real" rose bush. Just too tedious and fininicky for my gardening tastes. They did produce beautiful roses perfect for cutting. I always thought they were something I could manage until I read my grandmother's old letters to my great-grandmother and she wrote about all the pruning and fungus and pest control and special fertilizers and blah, blah, blah.... I wasn't real torn up when they finally bit the dust. Nor did I feel terribly guilty.

I want plants that need a little sun (or shade), water and occasional fertilizer....not prima donnas that have to be properly pruned and groomed and constantly attended to. (I have enough problems battling slugs, heat and crown rot just to get my hostas through the year!)

Knock Out roses fit the bill and have amazing blooms all spring, summer and fall! The flowers are not something you will cut and use in the house...I tried...they wilt pretty quickly, but they are beautiful plants in the yard.

One word of warning...they will NOT naturally climb...and as they get bigger they can get "leggy" so it is best to put them somewhere where you can tie them up. I use plain ole' string or burlap ribbon to stand them up along my fences. I do have to prune them back in the fall and remove the dead "wood." No biggy as long as you wear gloves. Unlike "real" roses, there really is no "murderous" way to prune them...one year I took a weedeater to a few (probably not advisable!)

This is one I rescued from my apartments last year...it was still in it's original pot and was pretty much dead....

I brought it home, planted it in my flower bed...some decent soil, lots of water and a little fertilizer and presto....beautiful!

(I thought Cleo was being sweet and smelling the roses....she wasn't...she was eating them!)

If you have a fence that needs "screening" or a full sun bed that needs a pop of color, this is a perfect plant! They can easily be pruned back if you want to keep the plant smaller and more compact!

I did lose a beautiful pink tea rose bush this year I had in my side bed. Not sure what got it...maybe old age, maybe disease or bugs, harsh winter...it was over 12 years old...who knows. No biggy...Katie got me a beautiful hydrangea for Mother's Day and it filled the spot perfectly!

As I have shared before, the BEST time to buy any perennial is in the early summer...usually after they have lost their "forced blooms" and aren't nearly as attractive. Most garden and home improvement centers will mark them down considerably...just plant them in a well composted spot, water well and watch them grow and bloom year after year!

When planting any flower or bush, whether it is an annual or perennial, make sure you pay close attention to what type of "sun" or "shade" they prefer. I have found that, more than anything, it makes the biggest difference on whether the plant with thrive or struggle long-term!

Get out and enjoy your yard...even if you have a small yard or just a little patio or porch area, get out and get your hands dirty. Even if you just start with one little container plant! Gardening is honestly something you LEARN to love. Truth be told, I don't have a live plant in my house, and I have even managed to toss most of the fake stuff!

For me, flower gardening is a natural "anti-depressant" and spending time tending to my plants is always time well spent!

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Table top dresser before and after...

"Table top dresser?" Seriously? So there are dressers that go ON TOP of a table?

Well...kind of. At first glance it LOOKS like a normal dresser!

Sitting next to a paint can, you get an idea of the actual size! Tiny! A TINY table top dresser!

I am sure it is not REALLY a table-top dresser. In all honesty, it was probably built to do exactly what I am doing with it...using it for sewing accessories.

But first, it needed a few modifications and a quick makeover.

I love everything about the little "dresser,"...it is just sooo tiny and precious. The shape, size, and those darling knobs! I love porcelain knobs! They have a little screw that threads through them, through the drawer and then is secured with a little washer and nut. All four knobs were in mint condition, but unfortunately one of the screws was broken and missing the nut, so I had to replace it. I couldn't find one identical to the others, so I bought one the size I needed and spritzed it with black spray paint.

TIP: If you have to paint screws, stick them in styrofoam...makes it easy to paint! If you are painting hardware, like handles or knobs, just put the screws in them, and then stick the screws down into the styrofoam....simple!

The entire "dresser" got a KSTP treatment. I cleaned it up, applied a coat of Kilz, sanded, wiped it down with a tack cloth and then painted the "box" with my favorite off-white and the drawers a pretty blue.

One of the main purposes for this little cabinet, at least for me, was to store all my thread. So I definitely wanted drawer dividers. It has tiny little drawers, so I had to use tiny wood...which doesn't fair well when you take a nail gun to it! I used 1/4" x 1 1/2" oak "craft board," cut it to fit and then glued in place! I used a small paint brush to apply the glue so I would get a good, even coverage since I wouldn't be using nails!

I put dividers in three drawers.

I made sure they were properly spaced for different size thread spools and other sewing nick-nacks!

TIP: This little "dresser" was constructed the way a lot of older style cabinets and dressers were...wood on wood drawers. Which is fine when they are new...but over time wood shrinks and "warps" and sometimes the drawers can stick a bit. One trick I have learned is to rub an old candle all over the outside of the wood drawer, and even on the inside of the "box." The drawers will "glide" a little easier! Quick and simple fix for sticking drawers!

Now that I have it all finished, I have no idea where I will put it. I stored my ugly little plastic storage drawers in my high boy dresser, along with all my scrap material and boxes of ribbons. This little guy won't fit...and it is honestly just too cute to hide. So I may or may not keep it.

It definitely follows my decor "rules"...useful and beautiful!

Who knows...I think I will look at it and play with it. To bad I don't have one of those awesome "craft" rooms!

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Industrial fan swag lamps!

Sometimes I see things at auctions and think "Hum...I wonder what I could do with that!?"

Keep in mind, they were not all clean and shiny when I bought them. They were sitting on top of this ugly little shop cart I cleaned up and reconstructed into a decent little shop cart...and they were NASTY. Truthfully, they were sold with the cart since they were sitting on the cart...so I figured I needed to do something with them!

Before you grumble at the prices of the crafty little items at flea markets, drive an hour or two and spend the entire day, on your feet, at an auction, load everything up and haul it home, spend two or three hours scrubbing your little treasures with steel wool and straight ammonia, spend hours repurposing or refinishing, and THEN complain! Trust me...you will appreciate what the vendors do!

The shop was full of AC and refrigeration stuff and I suspect these are fans from AC systems...but I'm not sure! Someone probably knows. But they no longer served the purpose for which they were intended and desperately needed to be repurposed...at least that is the way I look at "junk."

I decided to turn them into swag lights. You could also easily convert them into fixtures that can be hard wired to an existing light box! Super cool for a bar pendant light or an exterior patio light!

First, clean the dickens out of them...seriously, a good soaking in straight ammonia didn't cut it...it took some serious scrubbing with steel wool, Bar Keepers Friend and ammonia to brighten them up.

Lowe's (and most hardware stores) carry all kinds of stuff for rebuilding and repairing lamps and light fixtures. For this project I bought a swag light kit ($13) and a keyless socket adapter kit ($4).

The little "O ring nut" the chain attaches to was "brass" colored so I hit it with some brush nickel spray paint so it would match the chain!

The first thing you need to do is string the electrical wire through the chain...both come in the swag kit. I just wove the wire through the chain. The wire is split on one end and ready to be wired to the socket...the other end has a plug.

The chain and wire came 12' long. I would suggest measuring your needed length and cutting both the wire and the chain about one foot longer than what you need...that way you don't end up with a bunch of chain and wire laying around.

The first thing I did was "dry fit" all my nuts and bolts through the fixture (fan) before attaching the chain and wiring...that way I could see if the bolt was too long or too short. You can buy threaded bolts in different lengths, so if the bolt that comes with the socket kit is too long or too short, you can usually purchase the right size!

Attach the "O ring nut" to the threaded bolt and then attach the chain to the o-ring. Thread the wire through the o-ring nut and through the bolt and then thread all of it through the fan....

You may notice I added some washers...this was so the "o ring nut" on the top side of the fixture and the socket on the inside of the fixture would fit snug after I screwed it all down tight...otherwise I would have had about a 1/4" gap and they would be loose. (It was easier than going and buying a new bolt!)

Remove the back plate of the socket by removing the two little screws that are INSIDE the socket.

String the wire through the back plate and screw it tightly onto the bolt! Make sure it is all tight!

Attach the two wires (it is actually one wire that is split on the end) to the two screws (one brass, one silver) on the back of the socket and reattach the socket to the back plate with the two little screws (This is much easier if you have TINY fingers...needle nose pliers help IF you don't squeeze it so tight it shoots across the garage and you have to spend an hour trying to find it!)

The swag kit comes with an on/off switch that can easily be attached to the wire. I did not install it since I am selling these fixtures and I have no idea where someone would want the switch...so I put it in a plastic baggy, along with the swag hooks, and included directions on how to attach it to the wire. That way someone can figure out where they want it after they hang the fixture!

If I was a good blogger, I would have hung these in a bedroom over a night stand and staged it all pretty! I am not...I'm just a DIYer who is sharing my experiences...so this is as good as it gets. Looped over the hanging rod in my laundry room...but you get the picture!!!

Personally I think the bottom one would look better with a "flood" light kinda thing...or maybe you could use Edison lights...those are soooo cool! But kind of pricey for something I am going to sell!

Truthfully, this is exactly why I love hanging out at auctions all day, hauling, scrubbing and repurposing.

A unique light fixture that someone will love!!!

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Work or garden cart!!

For months I have wanted to build a "work cart"...or for some it would make a perfect garden or deck cart. I have the plans drawn up and a material list made...I even bookmarked this site, "Between Naps on the Porch." Fantastic step-by-step tutorial on how to build a garden cart. Susan did a beautiful job and this cedar cart would be perfect for a deck or even inside the house! I love the large metal casters and the color of the cedar!!! (Check out her site...awesomeness!)

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As beautiful as this is, I just wanted something I could put my chop saw and work tools on and easily roll in and out of the garage! I bought a little grill cart that had been converted into a work cart...it was just the right size for my large chop saw, but it only had two wheels on one side so it was a little difficult to move around and it didn't have a very big bottom shelf. I really wanted something with casters and a shelf for the nail guns and skill saw!

You can kind of see it in this picture, behind the fold down work table I featured here....

Fortunately I found the exact thing I needed at an auction Saturday.

Okay, so it isn't exactly what I wanted. Aside from the fact that it was pretty filthy, I wasn't real keen on the MDF top shelf or the old sign that was used for the bottom shelf. It was constructed out of 1x3 and 2x2 and the casters aren't the really nifty metal ones, but it was sturdy enough for what I wanted to use it for and it moved easily on the four casters. It just needed a few simple modifications.

The first thing I did was remove the top shelf and the bottom shelf material. No biggy, except for the fact that it was put on with NAILS!!! I build everything with screws. First, it is easier to "deconstruct" if needed and second if you make a mistake it is easier to back out a screw than it is to dig out a nail!

After removing the top and bottom "shelf," I chalk painted the frame and distressed it. Not that I really care what it looks like but nobody wants "ick," even in their garage! I had a little bit of off white chalk paint leftover from a project so I slapped it on there!

I added a few additional "supports" between the top and bottom frames just to make it a little sturdier, then I covered the top and bottom with 1x6 treated wood. I cut the top pieces to run the width of the cart and the bottom shelf pieces were cut to run the depth of the cart.

I even applied one of my metal yard sticks across the front like I had on my other cart! It's really handy when you need to quickly measure something!

There is plenty of room on the bottom to store my nail guns and skill and jig saw! And eventually I will add some hooks on the side for a few tools I need handy all the time, like pliers and hammers! And I may even add an electric outlet and extension cord...kind of like the old Cosco carts!

Treated wood needs to "cure" a bit before you seal or stain it. While some manufacturers say you can seal treated lumber right away, I personally don't buy it. And my personal experience tells me otherwise! So I will wait 6 months or so before I apply a sealer...maybe even a pretty stain. Who knows, by then I may be ready for something different!

For now this works perfectly and cost me a fraction of building a new one from scratch!

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HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Today we celebrate MOMS! I am fortunate...I have my Mom and of course my oldest daughter is the Mom to my grandsons! And my youngest daughter just became a Mom....

Meet Chleo...the newest member of our family. As always, I poo-pooed the idea of a new puppy. I'm just soooo past that stage in my life...so she PROMISED to feed her and walk her and get up with her in the middle of the night. Day two and she's still keeping her promise. We'll see how long this lasts.

This precious puppy (and she IS precious...aren't they all) is going to be a moose. Her mom is an Anatolian Shepard and her dad is a Bull Mastiff. I'm not holding my breath for anything under 100 pounds.

I'm beginning to think the guinea pig I got for Mother's Day a few years ago wasn't such a bad thing...lol!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all the moms. I hope your day is filled with as much love as I get every day. Whether it is a "thank you" from your awesome kids or a puppy kiss...anything that makes you smile and really appreciate the blessings you have in your life!

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Secretary makeover and SOOOO much more!

This week has been a week filled with new little projects! I have been working on several pieces I picked up at auctions and garage sales...some I have before pictures...some I don't. You would think after a year I would learn!

The main project I wanted to share is this little secretary.

This is one of the pieces I bought when I picked up the mid-century chair I featured here. Which, by the way, I finally reupholstered last week! I'll share that soon!

I had this little secretary in my booth for about a month and it did not sell so I brought it home and gave it a little paint and distress treatment!

I love the inside and the darling "tear drop" hardware! Very original. I painted the exterior with chalk paint and distressed it and painted the inside with my new favorite green! I didn't paint the hardware...just cleaned it up a bit!

A nice little transformation. Not really my "taste" but someone will love it!

Another one of my favorite pieces is this little child's desk I picked up at an auction last month....

...and a ratty, but very sturdy, little chair!

Simple paint treatments and they are both ready for another lifetime of precious! I painted and distressed an ornate frame I had laying around in the same coral color as the chair. I think I might add a chalk board or cork!

I love the detail of the little desk! The paint treatment really brought out that detail. I wanted to stain the top a different color, but when I applied the "rosewood" stain it was kind of gunky. So I took some lacquer thinner to it to remove the stain and ended up with kind of an aged, worn look I really liked! So I left it...sometimes our "oops" end up looking good!

I painted these little bedside tables...no "before" pictures, but they were that "mahogany" color that was all the rage in the 90s!

While I was tackling projects and making paint messes, I also chalk painted and distressed a beautiful oval mirror and spray painted a ratty little shelf I found at the apartments!

After all this, I still have a garage full of little projects. And since I didn't get my auction fix in last week, I plan on spending my Saturday eating Cheetos and buying even more!

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Cedar window planters....and how to keep cut flowers fresh!

What a weekend. Lots of projects and yard work. I finally got my pots planted and even worked on a few furniture projects I will share a little later. On top of all the projecting and yard work, it was prom weekend. So there was a dress to pick up at the alterations place, boutonniere at the florist...and of course pictures.

So much to do, so little time!

One of the projects I completed last week were the little cedar inserts I built for the iron window planters outside my bedroom window.

Last year I lined them with the dried mossy stuff...

It was really pretty with flowers planted...but they didn't last long. I think the biggest problem was lack of "space." I had to put a lot of mossy stuff in them to hold dirt...and there just wasn't room for enough soil to sustain the plants.

So I removed all the mossy stuff and decided to make cedar inserts for them.

The best thing to use for cedar planters is plain ole' cedar fencing...about $2.50 for a 1"x6" x 6' (actually 1/2" x 5 1/2" x 6') board at Lowe's. I used 3 boards for two 32" planters.

Fortunately, the width of the boards are the same as the depth of my iron planters...about 5 1/2"...so I didn't even have to rip them down. I just measured the length and width of the planters and made little boxes for each!

My boxes were not "square"...they were "angled" so I had to cut the top width longer than the bottom width. About a 12 degree angle! Crazy, I know. My suggestion is to buy square planters...makes it a little simpler! (The window boxes on my storage shed are square but they came with little copper inserts!)

I constructed the boxes using liquid nail and my nail gun. I used liquid nail rather than glue since it would be exposed to soil and moisture!

My little trick for this box was NOT adding a bottom. I used chicken wire on the bottom.

I doubled plain old chicken wire and then I used my stapler to attach it to the bottom of the box. After stapling it on, I cut the excess off with wire cutters, leaving about 1" all the way around.

Then I folded the excess back onto the box.

The boxes slipped right into the iron planter. And if you ask me, it looks sooo much better. You can really see the detailing on the metal boxes now!

After placing the cedar boxes in the planters, I lined the bottom with the dried mossy stuff, a layer of small rocks and then potting soil. Then it was time to add my little plants!

If you want to make the planters last longer, you can line them with heavy black plastic! Just make sure you punch holes in the bottom of the plastic so it will drain!

Or you can seal it with an exterior deck sealer!

I didn't do either. I know me well enough to know I will get a bug to change it before it has time to rot...lol!

I even made one for the little metal planter on my front porch...

I have had several ask me "What's up with the brick?"

Brian and I go to Colorado in the fall and every year I haul home driftwood and rocks from the river beds were we fish. Last year we stopped at an old homestead that was abandoned and nothing but a shell.

When I found the brick laying in the "yard" I couldn't figure out where it came from...because obviously there is no brick on this house...nor where there any on the outbuildings. As we were backing up, I looked up and figured out where it came from...the chimney!

So yes, I have a brick sitting on my front porch! I have no idea how old it is, but from the look of this house...it is OLD!

Keeping Flowers Fresh!

Katie was the star of the spring musical last week. Yes, I know I am bias. But she did have one of the leads...Princess Fiona in Shrek the Musical! And that chick rocked!

I went to both performances and I took her flowers each night. This is one of the bouquets after an entire week!

It is easy to keep cut flowers fresh for WEEKS if you give them a little care and attention every 1-2 days. First, always make sure you cut away all leaves from the stems that will be submerged in the water. Every day, change the water and cut about 1/4-1/2" from the bottom of the stems with a sharp pair of scissors while holding them under running cold water. Then immediately place them back into the vase with clean water. I do use the little packets of "preservative" that come with the bouquet but that usually runs out after the first few days, and they don't seem any worse for the wear without it...so no biggy! Just plain ole' cold, clean water.

Beautiful!

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Typewriter cart repurposed....

I shared the "prep-work" I did on this typewriter cart and how I dealt with the rust here.

I'm so boring...I really had visions of a bright and funky color for this cart. Nope. Black. Plain ole' black. I debated and decided that this was the best I could come up with right now.

Maybe someday I'll paint it a funky teal or blinding yellow. Maybe add some neat vinyl decals . All the hard work is done...just a matter of taking the plunge. This little table has SO much potential and could be so much more!

For now it is black. I did get a colorful little placemat for the top.

The super neat thing about this table is it makes it really convenient to move my sewing machine around...just roll it out of the laundry cubby (you can check out the laundry room "makeover" here!) and park it anywhere. Before I was pretty much limited to setting it up on the dining room table.

After all the prep work, I gave the cart two coats of satin black spray paint. Then I let it cure for a few days...just to make sure it wasn't going to scratch. Besides, the longer it sits, the more reasons I have NOT to work on all the sewing projects I have piled up!

Dang, now I don't have any excuse for not doing my sewing projects. Except I'm busy...really busy!

This is the second typewriter cart I have picked up at auctions. The first one had a little drawer. I wish this cart had one! The great thing about having flea booths is if I ever stumble across another one with a drawer, I can sell this one and makeover another!

Never ending!