Relax, don't do it

Pick your pleasure:

You are lying on a beach doing nothing but sitting and listening to the ocean.

Or you are just swinging on your porch swing, staring into space.

Sounds wonderful right?

NO!!!  That person is so not me. Yes, I like to go to the beach, but I will not simply sit there and do nothing.  Yes, I like a good porch swing, but for about 5 minutes then I am done.  I am simply not that person that can sit and do nothing.  To me if just gets me uptight and anxious and makes me rest even less.

Even if it is forced upon me!!!!!!


January 29, I was at work. My back was killing me.  Which was not out of the norm.  My back has been hurting a lot there for months because my chair is simply too uncomfortable.  So no big deal. I stood up like I normally do while I worked.  Only today it did little to alleviate the pain.  Lunch came and I started getting sick to my stomach.  I thought it was my chicken and dumplins because it was a tad undercooked.  So I ate some peanut butter.  That seemed to do the trick.  After lunch I went back to work and all the sudden my face got numb. Quite like it does before a seizure comes on.  I stood up and drank a Dr Pepper.  Thanks to the girls at work nurturing me through, I made it the rest of the work day.

I got home and all the pain increased, by now I thought I was having a heartattack.  I call my mom because I want her.  She's got the flu!!!!  She encourages me to go to the ER.  We do.  I am a germ a phob, but at this point my pain was so bad I was rolling on the ER floor.  I am grossed out by it now, but I was in horrible pain.  Many many many hours later it was determined I needed my gall bladder out, but I was told they don't do emergency surgery in the ER.  I was NOT in the frame of mind to argue or I would have. Had my mom been there, I am bet $100 I would have been wheeled into surgery.  Had I not been drugged up, I bet I would have gotten better results, but at 3am.....everybody wanted to go to bed.  I got up the next day and went to my doctor, she said if she could do the surgery it would come out now.  She made appointment for the scans.  Apparently, they won't take it out until you have had the scans, even though I had a PET scan in the ER.  It was instantly determined I needed it out.  I had one stone that was almost 1.5 inches big and another right behind it that was massive.

I was told it would be a two week wait to see my surgeon of choice.  There was no way in this pain, that I would make that.  I had some friends that called the doctor and I got an appointment for the next day.  I went into the appointment on that Friday (having not eaten because I really could not eat, the pain was miserable) and he said "we are going to surgery now".  Turns out I was very bad and should have had it out the very first night in the ER.  The doctor did not even understand why they didn't call him that night.  I now had a bad infection and required a drain.  Almost a hospital stay, but luckily that did not come to be.

Fast forward one week....last night was my one week post surgery.  One thing I have learned....when my body can't do something I sleep.  I don't enjoy being in bed, on the couch....so I sleep. I guess that is good.  Yesterday, Friday, was the first day I could do something. I learned how (since sitting up for a long time is still a problem) to make cards lying on the couch.

My cards may not be the most perfect, but I am very pleased. I started at 8am and finished around 8pm and I made 8 cards during that time.  Not nearly as well as I could do if I was normal but pretty good for someone in my condition.

I am excited to be going back to work Monday.  Even for a half day.  I am excited for a schedule, for my friends and getting back to normal!!!

Have a great weekend.

Operation beautify your home: Laundry Room

I have been working on making my house a little more put together, a little more cohesive, a little more not so much a showcase for our yucky mismatched furniture, but a shabby chic paradise.   My first project was the kitchen that you all ready know of, my second the utility room.  This room is going to be my owl room. In reality I am the ONLY person that spends any time in this room so I am making it into something I LIKE!  I started with redoing some of the picture frames that were in the room, then I made a canvas, then a quote, and next was the first owl.  Today I made the second owl, and started working on the third and forth (those two won't make their appearance for a blog post or two).

Today addition was inspired by a quilt hoop that my mother-in-law gave me about 10 years ago. I held onto it thinking I would do a large cross stitch and would need it for that.  NOPE that won't happen so I got it down and thought about what I could do.  Since I usually work in paper I decided I needed a change of pace. I chose felt. I have a massive pile of felt that I stamp on and make into flowers.  Since I have it by the yard it works perfect in the hoop.

I chose a blue for the background, and free handed cut out things from the felt. Since it was a laundry room I chose a clothesline and owl design.

I glued the shapes onto the felt and had all ready planned I would stitch around the pieces.  This was the fun part. I used some of my stitches I learned from cross stitching.

When I was all finished with the sewing I painted the hoop black and I have the perfect addition to another wall in the laundry room.

Cigar Box Tutorial

At the Trace Creek Crop yard sale, I found a $1 cigar box.  I HAD to have it!  I opened it and it did indeed smell of cigar (have to figure out how to fix that).  Now it was time to decorate the box.

I measured everything first.  I didn't like the way it was measuring so I went back to the technique I use all the time.....eyeballing. My eyeballing skills are WAY better than my measuring skills.  I must say they were much more accurate as well.

After I eyeballed the paper size and cut the papers to that size. I inked the pieces of paper with Walnut Stain, Worn Lipstick and Black Soot.  All by Tim Holtz (Distress Inks).  Then I misted with water.

 I didn't think the paper had enough depth so I wadded up the papers, opened them and inked again. Once again I misted with water.

The box was an ugly yellow and the paper I was using by Lost and Found by MME which was colored in pinks and browns with a smidgen of green.  For sure yellow would not work. I had brought my gouache paints with me to Trace Creek so I mixed some crimson red, dark brown, and a bit of white together. I got the perfect dirty pink color.  I painted all the edges of the box in this dirty pink.

Gouache dries quickly, so I was ready for the next step in just a minute or so.  I used Aleene's tacky glue, because frankly I think it is the best.  I put the glue onto the box and paper. I wanted a good hold.  then I started putting it on.  I am one of those folks that could are less if I get glue/paint/ink on my hands so I really rubbed the paper into the cracks and the edges and even molded the paper to fit the corners. My hands were a wreck, but the effect is well worth it.  Give it a try. You can always clean up with soap and water.

Once the paper was adhered I added ribbon onto the edges for one more dimension.   The box is starting to take shape. I knew that I could not finish it here at Trace Creek, because I would need some bling....but I did try to get as much decoration on the box as possible.  Here is what the box looked like when I left Trace Creek.

Now, once I got home I had to add to the box......I misted the box with Michelle's Musings Sterling Silver shimmer paint and allowed that to dry.  I did not want to use a heat gun because I did not want to risk damaging the box.  The next step was to paint the box with modge podge.  I used a matte finish, this will provide a more durable surface...if there is one thing I hate it is when someone makes something and doesn't protect it so it lasts.  All that hard work gets bent up/dirtied up and falls apart.  It's a shame in the fact that the work goes down the drain and that you lost the great object you made or made for someone.  Protect your work!!!!


Here is the finished product....enjoy GET CREATIVE!!!  What do you have lying around the house that you can repurpose?

Woodrow's Place

Today I am talking about this "ugly" little statue that greeted us the first time we looked at our new house.  He was sitting on the sidewalk as you approached the front door.  He was NOT in good shape, but I liked him.  He had character, and his presence was welcoming.  When we looked at the house the second time, I felt of him and notice he was solid concrete.  A good sturdy dog.  In my mind, I started referring to the houses we saw as names to help remember things about them, this one I called "The Dog House".  I honestly never dreamed he would still be there once we closed on the house, but he WAS!  My husband didn't like him (and still does not), but I loved him and I am not even a dog person.  I was excited to let him stay and I wanted to name the house after him because he was his place.  Since I have this obsession with all things Presidential, I started calling him "Woodrow" instead of "dog" and this because "Woodrow's Place" to me.  I really want to keep him so I had to make him look good so he did not disappear while I was at work (I am still worried that will happen).  Here is a little before and after of what Woodrow looked like when we purchased to what he looks like today.

Heavy Weight

A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon this website for a book weight.
 http://lifehacker.com/5833754/make-your-own-super-cheap-book-weight-out-of-duct-tape-and-pennieshttp://lifehacker.com/5833754/make-your-own-super-cheap-book-weight-out-of-duct-tape-and-pennies
What a brilliant idea!  Wish I had thought of it myself.  I liked the idea, but not the construction.  It is perfectly fine, just not my style. So I decided to lift the idea and change it to form my own style. 

I am a paper person, as you know so I wanted to construct this using paper.  You know me, I also wanted to add my own "Michelle" to it.  I started with 2 strips of  8x2.5 sheet of cardstock (what a perfect use for scraps!!).  I set them aside.  I took a strip of duct tape and laid out my pennies.  I used 20 pennies.  On each end I added 4 pennies on top to add a little weight. I used the duct tape to hold all this in place.
























I then took one of the 2 strips (right side down) and glued the duct tape piece to the strip. I used Scrappy Glue by Heidi Swapp.  So far I have found this to be a very good glue for holding heavy things to my projects. After adhering that strip I placed the second strip on top and glued it to the top of the duct tape stuff.  I used binder clips all around to hold in place(you can never have too many binder clips on hand when you construct things from paper). Let this set up a bit and after about 10 minutes remove the clips. It may tear some of the paper, but you can distress over this...no big deal.

If there are any gaps I use Aleene's tacky glue and put some into the gaps.  Clip again and let set a few minutes.

Now take all the clips off (if you have not already) and let dry for about an hour.  Distress the base if you desire after that hour is over.  Then decorate the top as you desire. 

Once, everything is dry, get yourself a good book and test it out.  Now you can cook and not worry about the book closing or you can read your favorite book and not worry about losing your place. 

Tim Holtz Configuration box for my dear friend

I had this configurations box and I wanted to make it for my friend DiAnna. I wasn't really sure what to do.  I first found some paper that I loved and covered it in that paper. I used the Blue Awning by K&Co.  I completely covered each little box, then the big box as well.

 I thought about her personality and she loves BOOKS. I mean she loves them like I love them.  I thought it would be nice to make her some books. I covered the books in Pocket Full of Posies paper by DCWV.  It was sturdy and also colorful.  The inside of each book has a paper with words, actually, each one has its pages made from an old Bible that fell apart (again that is perfect for DiAnna).  I put the books together, did the binding, then inked the outside with Walnut Stain by Tim Holtz.  I glued the books in a couple of the cubes.

When I asked DiAnna what she would like, she wanted a chair and a sofa to go in her library.  I had nothing in miniature, so I had to make it.  I started with a sheet of cardboard.  I cut out the sides, the chair seat, the rungs and the back of a wooden chair.
I put it all together using Aleene's glue, hot glue, and mod podge.  It took a long time to make it all work but it did.  The couch was going to be a challenge, but I was up to the challenge.  I once again used cardboard for the back, the legs and the body of the couch.  The seat of the couch was made by rolling up paper for the cushion and using thin paper for the fabric.  I fixed it into place with mod podge.  Once it was dry, I gave it a little walnut stain inking.

I added some spools because DiAnna likes to sew, a canvas covered in paper because she likes to do mixed media canvas art and some "art" for the back of some boxes.

I "framed" a portrait of a lady to hang on the "walls" and Dianna asked for a dress form and a globe.  The globe is made from a button and a stand I created from cardboard.  Like everything else, it was inked with walnut stain.  I created the land on the globe from green scrap paper.  The dress form was cut from a sizzix die that I own.  I cut 6 layers of the dress form and glue them together to make this stand up.  I created a stand for it as well.  I added some basic grey pennants and more ink and it was finished.

Hope DiAnna likes it half as much as I enjoyed making it.

start of summer....

Summer vacation has started.  During the summer, I always make goals to accomplish a lot of stuff on my list.  This summer I plan to replace a board on my deck, to fix my kitchen sink (it's leaky), to make something for my soffit in my kitchen, to finish my decorating in my kitchen (I am working on a coffee theme), clean out the garage, touch up paint in the living room, make curtains for my bedroom, and organize my store room.  Most of these tasks are very inexpensive (like free---only my time is involved).

I have started the summer by creating some art.  My first work was this stained glass picture that I found on the internet. I used prisma color pencils.  There is green on her hair. It is not on the picture so it must have been on the camera lens.  This was placed in my art journal, which is an old hardback book.

The next little painting is a canvas paper that I painted in many colors and then sprayed with my Michelle's Musings sprays.  I drew a girl on a sheet of mixed media paper and then painted her with water colors.  Once she was dry I cut her out and glued her onto the canvas.  I think she is pretty cool.











Next was a 6x6 canvas that I picked up at Dick Blick. I painted the background blue, and added a stencil wood icing letter thingy.  Then I added a doily that was done with Michelle's Musings sprays, some Graphic 45 papers, a die cut I made from my cricut (using Art Nouveau), a Fabulous metal piece that I have had for years, some pearls, a bingo chip, a tassel and a pebble.  Finally I finished it off with some glitter, just what my friend DiAnna loves.























The last thing I finished was a color book I made for a friend of mine.  She had a baby like 12 weeks ago, and I am just now finding time to finish this.  I made one of these for my daughter many years ago, she wore it out.  I redid it when Trevor came along and I got it out the other day and saw, he pretty much destroyed it too.  I hope this little guy likes it as much as they did. The first photo is the one I made for Braxton, the second photo is the one that my kids chewed to bits.  It won first place in the Arkansas State Fair with Hannah and the redid version won Best of Show at the McCracken County Fair.

Keurig k cup gift box

I saw this on the internet, but there were no directions.  Never fear, I can figure it out.  I am going to do the best I can with directions.  The problem will be that I do NOT like to measure things, I rarely do, so often measurements are an afterthought.  I apologize for that, I just would rather eyeball it (I'm pretty accurate there, then measure).









First I made my triangle base. I did this by placing six k-cups in a triangle shape and then drew around it.  The top line is about 8 inches, the side 8.5, I warned you.










Next, I flipped the kcups over (top side down) and placed them where I wanted them in the final product...I drew around the lid of each one.  I took scissors and cut a tad inside this line.   I made sure the kcup would fit each hole.  Once I had those like I wanted them, I used a compass and made the circles perfect (I did not have any die or punch the right size or I would have used that).  Then I made a bottom for the box using the same triangle on no holes.







I took a pizza box and cut some sides.  They started out at the 8.5 and 8 inch long that I "measured" before and were 2 inches tall. I wanted the sides 1.5 that is why I chose 2 inches. I took my scoring board and scored .25 inch on each side of the strip making a lip.  I glued the sides to the bottom part of the box.  I did not have to alter my 8.5x2 or 8x2 strips at all!

I mod podged a triangle to the bottom of the inside of the box.  Then I cut strips of paper slightly less than 1.5 inches and covered the inside sides of the box.

I covered the top of the box with a sheet of paper, leaving about .25 inch hanging off so I could tuck it under and make a nice finish.  I used mod podge to adhere paper.  Once that dried I cut slits in the circles so I could tuck the paper on the underside of each circle for a better finish. I did not take a photo of this as it was too messy.  Once the top side was dry I adhered it to the bottom with sides piece.

I then took strips of paper and mod podged them unto anywhere where raw cardboard  or a rough edge was showing.

This took me about 2 hours start to finish.