Crafty Chris' Cream Chair

Thanks for being so patient.  I hope you won't be disappointed in my having kept you waiting for the re-finished child/doll's chair debut.  Here it is.................

This was the before picture, I showed you that last week...............

Before I show you any more, do you like this gorgeous birdcage I recently acquired?  And, how about the bird inside?  The case I bought at a local gift store but the bird was purchased from, you'll never guess, yes.... The Dollar Store.  I couldn't believe it myself because elsewhere you would pay more than a couple of bucks...............

I think it's so cute.  Okay, I know I'm a tease.  Here is a pic of the chair being painted.................

Can you see it coming together?  I think I gave it about four coats of paint, including a a primer.

I picked this up at the Queen's Cupboard a couple of weeks ago and had no clue what I would do with it - I painted it and put it on the inside of my apartment door and decorated it with one of those little wooden stars - I'm teasing you again, keeping you waiting, but it will be worth the wait.

Okay, here goes, first the chair with the decal I mod podged onto it and then finally with the dolls that my friend Laurie made.............

MOVIE NIGHT

Helena, Janis (from the Library) and I went to see this movie recently.  We had a few laughs.  Of course, it was a girlie movie but it was fun being out with the ladies again.  If you want something to go to see with your girlfriends then this is a good one for that.

Two top CIA operatives wage an epic battle against one another after they discover they are dating the same woman.

To end my blog for today here are a couple more paintings by my very talented son.  These would be perfect for his son's bedroom..........................

I stayed home today, the weather wasn't very nice outside anyway and I didn't want to walk to the Mall in minus six degrees celsius, so I continued working on a few more projects I have on the go, some more gems I found recently which I am refinishing in, yes, you guessed, cream paint!!!!  Have a great week.

Feast or famine.

It's either feast or famine.  I either have nothing to write about and no pictures to show or I have loads of things I want to mention.  You'll have to wait to see what I have done with that little chair.........................

because I have to show you what I did with an old garden ornament which I rescued from my garden when I lived in a house until my second hubby died.  This angel was actually bought for him by one of his daughters for Father's Day and I would have given it back to her after his passing except that the family moved on with their lives, which is okay, I understand.

As usual, I am like a bull in a china shop when I decide to work on something new and typical of me, I didn't take a before picture.  Fortunately, I found one from Christmas which depicts most of the statue so you will get an idea of what it looked like before.  Perhaps you will prefer the old state, but I love the new.

It is a very attractive piece and because I worked at the Library for many years, I had a soft spot for it because it is happily reading a book.

So, here it is in all its glory and I think it looks great at the end of the hallway underneath the old mirror that I also recently "shabby chic'd".....................

This is a picture of one I found on the internet which was already made to look like a stone statue and I love it but I will have to be satisfied with mine, LOL

Something very special I have to mention because I cannot keep it until I write the post about the chair.  My dear friend and neighbour, Laurie from  http://laurie-whentheboughbreaks.blogspot.com/  has been watching me alter the chair and was just about as excited as I was with the end result.  This lady can do just about anything and she decided that this chair desperately needed an old-fashioned doll, so yes, she just whipped one up.  These are a few words she put on her blog............... 

"I used very old cloth napkins and dresser scarves to create her.

So don't look too close, the stitches are not true as my grandma would say and one leg is a little longer than the other, poor little dear, but this doll was made with love.

I have made many, many dolls, all from found objects and cloth, I made my first doll when I was 10 and the love of making them just grew from there".

I'm sure you will agree with me that it was a most beautiful thing to do and it's something that I will treasure for as long as I am around.  Thanks so much Laurie.  This is the one she made for me..........................

And this is one she made years ago and keeps in her cedar chest until her only grand-daughter is old enough to appreciate it.

Here are a couple of pieces of my jewelry.  I always have lots of this kind of stuff for sale.

Two more pieces of artwork by my son.  I just framed them.

The top one is hamburgers on the bbq and the bottom one is of my grandson when he was just starting to walk - looks like a little angel.

Well, that's about it for now, going to the movies tonight with the ladies from the library where I used to work.  Hope it will be a good movie and I'll mention it in my next post.  Have a wonderful day.

It's a bird's life!!

I had mentioned that I was working on some birdhouses.  I have to give myself a slap because I keep forgetting to take "before" photos so I don't really have anything to show as to how they looked in their original state.  The "houses" are just cheap Dollar Store items which I picked up for a lark for something to paint and then realized that they needed to be lifted up, so along came the idea to paint a set of candlesticks to look "shabby chic" and stick them on top!!  Anyway, you'll get the idea just by seeing them........................

I finished them off with a couple of inexpensive birds, lace and leaves and now they sit (for a while) in my living room until I decide what to do with them.

Okay, stop the press!!  I walked to the mall this afternoon just to take a photo of the birdhouses in their raw state.  They were kind enough in the Dollar Store to let me do that, so here they are.........................

Now they look like this..............................

I also picked up a few more little birds from The Queen's Cupboard because she was closing her doors at the present location and moving to where The Potter's Guild is housed and there she will periodically have sales.  Thanks Pat for all the fun I have had shopping at your emporium.

Here is one of my handcrafted jewelry pieces.  I thought I would feature one here and there in my blogs.  I sell them at the craft shows when I have the opportunity.............

I recently found (on Facebook) a newspaper article from Wales which focused on the area where I lived when I was growing up. This photograph brought back so many memories of when I was a child.  The area is Roath Park Lake, in Cardiff.  I used to force my younger brother to go on picnics and my dear mother would pack us a little "lunch" and thank the good Lord that she would have some quiet time to herself, only to find us returning about half an hour later, lunch eaten looking for something else to entertain us, LOL.  It really was, and I'm sure still is, a most beautiful place and that area used to be considered the swanky part of Cardiff and I would walk through there to the Catholic girls' school, no school buses back then.  Take a look, it's beautiful...................

Another photo of my birdies - seems like I have a new obsession doesn't it?  Mind you, I have always enjoyed birds and when I lived in my house I actually had bluejays trained to take peanuts in the shell from my hand and my shoes.  Yea, I know, I'm kinda loony - but remember, I worked at the Library and you had to be a little odd to work there, LOL

This is going to be my next project, so stay tuned......................

Here's a picture of my darling grandson receiving his very first Valentine's Day card.  Oh, I could just eat him all up, I love him  so much and miss him every day.  Can't wait 'til my next visit, probably in April when the new baby arrives.................

To finish off, here are a couple more of my son's artwork.  Every time he paints a new one, I print it out and frame it.  Help, I need more wall space, LOL

Perhaps now you will understand why I enjoy painting and embellishing Dollar Store frames - I'm so proud of my boy!!

Horsey finished the race!!

Just a quickie to show you the finished result of my silliness - they say the older we get the sillier we get and I think that I am living proof of this, LOL


This is Horsey as I bought him..............................

And this is Horsey mid-race - notice the gender is beginning to change.............................

And here SHE is in all her glory (as I was working on IT, it became obvious that HE was no longer a HE).  I present to you, Princess Gee Gee............................

Who can resist those big, beautiful eyes.  This is how it all came together:

Horse from Queen's Cupboard

Cream Paint

Hair pieces from Dollar Store

Hair Clip from Dollar Store

Googly Eyes from Dollar Store

False Eyelashes from Dollar Store

Jute String from Dollar Store

Where would I be without the good old Dollar Store?  If I like the Dollar Store, imagine how I will feel when Michaels opens up here.  Can't wait.  So, there she is, Princess Gee Gee.  Looks like she needs a little playmate but for now she sits quietly in my living room.  'Til next time.