Oh dear, it seems I'm developing a habit of posting once or twice a year. Oops. I really have been working on the house, but not much is completely finished and blog-worthy.
I figured I'd better hurry and take pictures of what I've had up all summer before I take it down in preparation for Halloween!
I was really in the mood for blue this past year, so that's what everything is downstairs.
I made drapes with fabric from Premier Prints, and the rug was an awesome indoor/outdoor rug on clearance from Joss and Main that I bought this past spring.
The black dresser is a craigslist bargain that I painted black, carefully sanded along the edges, and waxed to a shine. The hardware is original to the piece, but it was really dark so I soaked them in vinegar and soapy water for hours before scrubbing them with a very stiff brush. Yes, my fingers and hands were raw afterward because I don't have sense enough to even own a pair of dishwashing rubber gloves, let alone wear them for tasks such as this.
I'm pretty happy with how it turned out...good thing, because I have hours and hours invested in this piece! I bought the companion upright chest that goes with it (which is an absolutely gorgeous piece and the main reason I bought the set in the first place), but I'm not done with it yet. I'm going to paint it navy blue and it's headed for my studio upstairs.
I finally have window treatments for my main window in the living room! I ended up cutting the grommets off of a pair of velvet drapes from IKEA and reworked them to be attached to wooden loops. The 3 green paintings are from some warm-up exercises I did this past spring, when I took a break from working on the house and played in my studio for a few weeks. It was so much fun! I'm really eager to get back to painting again, but I can't really focus until the house is finished. A multi-tasker I am not.
I made some new pillows in honor of spring. Funny that I'm showing them to you for the first time in October.
I have to show you this adorable octopus couple. I found them on clearance at One King's Lane, and simply couldn't resist. They look particularly appropriate beneath the watery turbulence of the painting I created during my aforementioned painting playtime earlier this year.
Here's another painting I did during that time. This one was accepted into an International Exhibition organized every 3 years by my church, which is exciting. This year's theme is "Tell Me the Stories of Jesus". The title of the painting is "Martha's Chair", and it deals with the story in the Bible of Mary and Martha, and how Martha is always off doing good things but is neglecting the most important, which is to apply the Atonement of Christ in her life. Martha's chair is empty because she's busily doing good works while Jesus is waiting to bless her with the peace of His Word (symbolized by the red ribbon hovering above the chair).
Here's a detail of the painting. I'm going to Utah this month to attend the opening reception, and I'm looking forward to reconnecting with old BYU friends while there!
Here's a quilt I made for a departing friend this past year. It's made using mostly Amy Butler fabrics with a few others mixed in. I love the play of the blues and greens with an occasional punch of bright pink.
Hazel, the dramatic expert in the family, was acting out a scene from Frozen this past winter. Her costume is one I made for her a couple of years ago - I think she wore it for Halloween last year, actually.
The snow was covered with a thick crust from some slushy, frozen rain the previous night...a bummer for snowballs, but it sure made walking around in her fancy silver shoes easier. Because Elsa didn't wear boots, Mom...duh!
Hmmm...what else do I have in my photo file? Here's the velvet headboard I made for Eliza's room. Took me 3 days to make that beast...but I do love how it turned out. I won't mention the fact that, now that I've made Hazel a cool loft bed, Eliza doesn't want her fancy headboard and wants a loft bed instead. I told her tough luck. :-) When I finish Eliza's room (and Hazel's) I'll do a separate post on everything in it.
You may recognize this dress as one that Hazel wore years ago...but it's not the same one. She outgrew the old one, and when I passed it on to her younger cousin she was extremely distressed. She begged me to make her a new one, and since I still had the fabric I made it for her Easter dress.
Awwww....I can't believe she's so much older now!
Look what we got for Easter this past year!
Aren't they the cutest little things ever?
This one's named Squirrel because she had stripes on her back just like a squirrel...actually a chipmunk but Squirrel was cuter and easier to say.
Hyrum's holding Pi. Yes, he named that chick.
Of course, I had to make a chicken coop for our little brood.
The cage part is a separate unit that attaches to the coop. There are handles on the coop because I can slide wheels into the wood on the opposite side to turn it into a tractor when it needs to be moved (after detaching the cage, of course).
I cut a long, thin strip of tar paper (left over from the roof construction) and attached it above the egg collection box so the driving rain can't drip inside. I bought inexpensive single-pane glass and built window casings for the windows, and installed vents on either side so it doesn't get too stuffy.
The plywood floor is removable for ease of cleaning - it slides out where you can see the light shining through the crack at the far end of the coop.
Of course the coop door had to be red. I made the walkway by trimming off tree branches and using our nail gun to secure them to the wood plank. Our cute little chicks are all grown up now (not even a single surprise rooster!) and one of the hens is laying an egg nearly every day. Not sure why they all aren't laying eggs yet, hopefully soon! I thought I had a picture of them all grown up, but I guess not.
Here's Hazel modeling the dress I made for her baptism. I can't believe that girl is 8 years old! I curled her hair using hot rollers for the first time - Hazel was so nervous that she'd get burned and/or she wouldn't like her hair curly, but she was SO in love with it when we were done! The curls fell out in this endearing Virginia humidity after about 5 minutes because I didn't use sufficient/proper product on her hair (I have no idea what I'm doing, hair is not my thing) but we were able to capture a few photos before the curl disappeared.
My baby isn't a baby anymore!
Well, okay, maybe she's not totally grown up yet. :-)
I know I'm anything but impartial in this matter, but I do think she's pretty cute!
Here we all are on the day of Hazel's baptism. Can't believe how much the kids are growing. Eliza is an inch shy of me (I'm wearing heels in this photo) and look at Hyrum and Hazel! I suspect that, eventually, I'll be the shortest one in the family...which, at 5'10" is not an easy feat!
You can see a glimpse of some of the stonework I've been working on in our backyard. The heat of summer made working outside unbearable, so I haven't finished anything outside yet. Time to get back at it, now that the weather has FINALLY turned cool enough. So much to do, so little time. I'll do my best to finish all the kid's bedrooms and the bathrooms so I can get photos of everything...and so I can move on to other projects! I thought I'd be done with everything by now, but I should have known better. :-)
Hey, hey! Good to see you again. I blog about as often as you do, so I have no right to complain, but we missed you! I sure hate to see how fast your kids are growing up, it makes me realize mine are too, and I haven't been noticing.
I love your art and your deco, too. And your coop, and your rock work, etc. and so forth.
Looking forward to your visit!
Posted by: Edith Songer | October 07, 2015 at 07:29 AM
Can't believe I missed a post! So wonderful to see/hear/read you again. You children have all grown up so fast. The girls are beautiful and Hyrum is one handsome boy. Loved the pictures of Hazel. Her hair is beautiful. Love the pics of your house and your painting talents. Missed you and look forward to more pictures. Love that headboard!
Posted by: Beverly Atkins | October 14, 2015 at 07:53 AM