Kelly's 2021 Reading Challenge

 If you follow or know me at all, you probably know Kelly is one of my very good friends.  She is a librarian and the host of a book club/Facebook group called Bookworms (she is also part of the reason my TBR list is about 100 books long).   

Kelly and I both like to get folks to read more books and almost at the same time we told each other "I am working on a reading challenge".  I shared mine with you a few weeks ago (but if you missed it go here) and today I am sharing Kelly's.  

It is a fabulous challenge!!  Her goal is to read a book a week, but you can do it as you like.  There are some good categories here, and I think you will have a good time with this.  Remember reading challenges are to inspire you not overwhelm you.  You do you, but have fun and hopefully, our challenges will inspire you to read more.  

Kelly's Reading Challenge

The entryway table

Since we moved into this house I have been on the lookout for "new to me" furniture that I could turn into a work of art.  My friend, Marcia, and her husband, Bobby had a truckload of furniture.  Some of this furniture needed help.  When Marcia saw this she knew this was something I was looking for and was she ever right!!  I knew instantly what I would do.  Another friend of mine has an Americana entryway table and I wanted to do my own little version because my living room is all about America and travels. The table was a drop leaf table, one side worked perfectly, but the other not at all, I think that is ok because I am using it as an entryway table and not a regular table.  I dreamed of painting the flag on one of the drop-downs and on the other side I planned to do another painting just in case I wanted to change the decor from Americana to something else.  The first thing I did was de-gloss the table and sand it a bit. 

Next was adding a layer of white paint.  My jar of white paint was rather old and while I was opening the jar it just shattered!  I spilled paint all over my carpet and spent about 2 hours cleaning up all that mess.  After that, I painted about 2 layers of white paint on the legs and then brown paint on the leaves and tabletop.  Once all that was dry I free handed a flag. I wanted it rough looking like it was 70 or 80 years old.  Once the flag was dry I dry brushed the whole thing in the same brown paint that I used for the top and I brushed the white legs in the brown too.  On the other side, I freehanded a tree branch and a bird.  Kind of like a cardinal in color, but a completely made-up bird.  Once the bird and the tree were dry I did the same dry brush with brown on top too.  

As I was setting up the table the cat brought me an orange fish which is featured in the photos :)  

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.

Michael's dollar bin find

I tell you what, I am doing EXCELLENT in the Michael's dollar bin.  Today it was the first place that I intended to visit as I entered the store.  All items were $.50 instead of $1.00.  I purchased a couple of frames for my office and then I hit the jackpot!!! Chipboard albums!  The albums were shaped like flowers. I got a two different ones.  My goad was to make a positive motivation album out of one.  I have a friend that needs some motivation and I thought what a better way to remind them of how special they are and that they can achieve their goal....than to give them a flower shaped album!!!

My first step with the albums was to cover each page with Ciao Bella paper by K&Co.  I used Aleene's tacky glue to adhere the paper.  Once it was dry I used the Little Sis took by Creekbank Creations to trim the paper off the chipboard.  Then using Tim Holtz's Distress Ink in Walnut Stain, I distressed the edges.  And of course I had to mist each side with water to give it an aged looked.

I had some quotes that I had found regarding friendship, God, and losing weight.  I complied them into a word document and edited it to be the text on each page.  After printing, I inked each quote using Walnut Statin.

The next step was very random, I used stamps, stickers, charms, and expoy stuff to decorate the pages.  Once all decorating was finished, I coated each page in Modge Podge (matte) for durability.

My album is ready to give to my friend. 

Prayer Flag

I thought this was the greatest idea!  A girl I know knows a girl that has a sister (man that is complicated) that is going through chemo.  In order to lift her sister's spirits she is having folks make Prayer Flags that will hang near her while she is getting chemo. I think it is wonderful that she will be able to read God's word, uplifting messages and inspirational quotes while she is sitting there. I was honored when I was asked to make one for this girl.  I feel so blessed that not only did I get to make one for her, but I also get to pray for her.

Here is my flag:

And I just want to add.....be a positive inspiration in someone's life today.  

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.

Snowed in.

Here we are on our one millionth snow day of this winter.  Ok, so I exaggerated the number a bit, but you get the picture.  We have had lots of snow days.  I usually do home improvement projects on these type of days, but I was saving my money for our big vacation this year so no projects.  What I have done is touch up walls/cabinets that had chips or just needed to be refreshed (or where my son poked a hole in the living room wall playing basketball), I have done our taxes, perused the internet for a deal on cars, and today made a painting.

This painting started with die cuts that I made with my Cricut cartridge (thanks DiAnna) Art Nouveau.  I have wanted this one since the day it was released, and my friend bought it for me for Christmas.  I broke it out a few weeks ago and started to see what it could do.  Here are some photos of the die cuts I have made with the cartridge.





Today's project started as a blank 8x11 canvas that I painted an old fashioned mustard color.  I then used wood icing and a stencil that I bought at Ephemera Paducah and went to town.  What  a great stencil!!!!  It fits in great with the vibe I was going for with this canvas.  I then decided to make one of the girls the lady in the moon.  I made some cattails for the ground and a beautiful lady in purple for the foreground.

I am not sure that I am done with the painting, time will tell. I am however finished with it today.



Thanks for stopping by.

The chair

A month or so ago, my friend had a chair for sale.  Another friend of mine bought it and gave it to me to paint for her office.  I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do. I made a couple of sketches and  did some internet research but in the end I thought about the personality of my friend.  She likes owls, her school colors are green, she is a child of God, and she's pretty awesome.  She needed a chair to fit her uniqueness. I scrapped all previous ideas and painted it in her school colors first.

I had made a bird and an owl for this friend but wasn't sure how or why to give it to her.  This chair was going to be perfect.  With the way the chair was made I thought I could fashion a tree from it.  A tree with branches to hold the bird and the owl.

Here is the finished product:

The bird and owl are made from plastic grocery bags. I took the bags and fashioned them into the shape I needed but using duct tape.  This was a very long process.  They were flimsy, but I wasn't done.  The next step was to make a paper mache with mod podge.  I used many many many layers of newspaper and glue.  I let dry for a week.  Then I made a texture paste and covered the outside of each animal in a thick layer.  I used my fingers to make bumps along each animal body to make it look more real.  This dried for two weeks because I went on vacation....when I came back to them they were hard as rocks.  Very lightweight but very hard.  PERFECT!!!

The chair was painted first with gesso to give the surface a bit of tooth.  I then painted the whole thing green to match my friend's office and school colors.  After that dried I painted on a background of a tree branch.   Next, I took a stencil and wood icing (both purchased from Ephemera Paducah www.ephemerapaducah.com) and added some tree bark and texture.  Once that dried I started painting on leaves.  I added the bird and viola we have a painted chair. 

Trace Creek Crop

This year DiAnna and I went to the crop together.  Our ambition is always larger than our time frame.  Meaning we always plan to make things and get a bit sidetracked.  However, we have developed a philosophy.  Get done what you can, but make sure you have a fun relaxing day.  This year was no exception to that rule.  It was nice to be off work, no one bothering you for meals or fights with siblings...just relaxation, friendship, shopping, eating, and a little Jesus.

DiAnna and I decided before the crop to made matching aprons.  My apron was pretty crappy so this was brilliant idea.  We both took a denim apron and trimmed it with pink trim.  She used an eyelet trim and I used tulle (because I wanted a tutu).  

Here is a photo of my work station.  I was going to work on a Marilyn Monroe drawing that I made.  It was inspired by a pose she did in a publicity still for Niagara.  She was pretty wicked in that movie and I recommend you see it if you have not.

These steampunk inspired items were featured in the Mia's Madness booth. I simply love everything they sell.  It's junk to most by an absolute treasure to me.  I chose some items from the junk bin.  A triangle pendant, a washer, and a few other metals.  Stay tuned to see what I made from .50 of stuff. www.miasmadness.com

This is a photo from the yard sale.  This is where you sell items you no longer need/want were gifted.  I sold a bunch of stuff this year and I did not spend one dime of money shopping it. Now I did get things but everything I bought was with money I made in the yard sale. 

Check out this wagon!  It is all mine!  I have been going to TCC for many many years and never won a thing.  I was sitting with my friends in the church and telling them all that I hoped they won something.  And I listened and wait a minute I realized Jill Rogers finally called MY name.  I won one of the grand prizes. I got the third grand prize awarded the first two prizes where $50 cash. I prefer the wagon because it is something I have always wanted but I never would have bought for myself.  It is extraordinary.  I am very grateful that my name was called. 

I made a couple of sketches but this is the only thing that I finished on the TCC relaxation day.  A wood panel of the Marilyn Monroe drawing I made.  The panel was painted a few colors, I didn't like any of them and finally I got to this green and I liked it.  Next I used Barquoe Motifs to stamp some swirls using StazOn! ink.  Then I used some Aleene's tacky glue and painted it onto the board.  I let it get a bit dry then I painted it with white.  What a nice crackle finish it leaves.  I did a die cut of the Tim Holtz viewmaster thingy and place the die cut on the board.  I used wood icing to make some texture for the background.  Once this dried I used some Walnut Stain ink by Tim Holtz for some effect. I cut MM out from the paper she was drawn and painted on and used Mod Podge to put her onto my board.  I think it's fabulous!!

This is the project I made using the stuff reclaimed from the junk bin.  I did not take a before picture...boo.  The top picture is when I first put it all together. I used wire to hold the circle onto the triangle and made the elder wand with wire down the center.  I painted it with gesso to cover the mixed metals. I added glitter because I thought I would keep it black, but no I found my Krylon chrome spray paint.  I layered many layers of paint on here. I think it turned out grand. 

Another TCC comes to a close.  DiAnna we will do it all again in the spring, Lord willing.