Sparkly Fall Glitter Center Piece

Wouldn't Martha just love me for indorsing her products?

I was thumbing through some Martha projects last week and noticed a center peice with dried corn. She used Florentine Gold as one of the colors.

Well I must say I have never really had the urge to glitter, the urge came today! And now I must say I think I'm absolutely addicted! :)

So my 7 year old calls me the 'sparkle queen' and now I feel like one.

This project costed me a total of $13.99. Two bottles of glitter and a bottle of glue by Martha Stewart.

The pumkins, goards, and dried corn were already purchased for Halloween. (Actually the dried corn was from last year).

Now I am thinking, should I glitter my plain white pillar candles?

I'm still around

No I did not jump off the planet. :) I've had a really interesting busy last two months. There were certainly a lot of Birthdays to celebrate last month, and then of course Halloween!

So now I'm trying to relax a little. I did pick up going to the gym again wich is something I need to keep on track with.

I'm thinking about bringing the sewing machine back out, I can't wait to go read all of your blogs....... I"ve missed them all.

Dining Room Table Finished!

I'm so excited that I'm finally finished with my dining room table. Unfortunately I forgot to take a before picture, but if you can use your imagination it was the same color as my chairs. Plain natural pine.

I used a brand called Minwax that I found at Lowes to stain this table.

I had to sand, and sand, and sand some more between coats.

The only tip I can give is to start with the coarser grit of sandpaper and to finish with a super fine sandpaper. Then before staining I used a product called Tact Clothe, it helps wipe all the dust before staining.

I did this until desired color up until the final finest grade of sand paper between coats of Minwax stain.. The color I used was Red Mahogany.

Now I do not know what to do with my chairs? I kind of actually like the contrast. I was planning on staining them to match, and re-upholstering the fabric on the chairs. I just noticed a scratch from sanding....ugggg, some old english never hurts!

What do you think I should do with the chairs?

Junk Collection

I've been looking for a new mirror, sense I sold my last one at a yard sale I had a year ago. Today was my lucky day! I went to one of my favorite clients house this morning, and she was going to put this in a yard sale for $10.00 dollars so I had to snatch it up! I'm not really into a lot of gold, so I was thinking of painting it black, and then using some antiquing rub that I found at Michael's to bronze the edges of the engraving. Then as an added bonus she did not want this cute little vintage lamp. I think it is just darling. I can't decide though..... should I paint it off white on the wooden part and put some pink edging around the shade and give to my girls?

Or should I paint the wood black and add fix up the shade to go in my office? Would you paint it white or black?

Also last week I found this dish, I'm not sure what It really was meant for originally but I thought it might be a great place to put my key's when I get in the door,( the bottom of it says made in England) I bought it for $2.00 dollars at a local thrift store called Secret Seconds. Its a store in town that is owned by the YWCA, and all the things you buy at the thrift store are donated to help women and families in crisis. The vintage table runner was also purchased there for $1.00 dollar.

I have to say this whole thing of collecting started when I decided to paint my kitchen and living room this summer. It was a really ugly denim blue and clashed with all my decor. Now that it is painted I am much happier! Anyhow I'm trying to decorate above my fireplace in the living room and I'm thinking of taking down the pictures and adding the mirror when finished.

What do you think blogger friends? What would you do with the Mirror, and Lamp?

A Kitchen Tip and Update to Previous Post

Eeek! I forgot to dry off the counter! I just thought I would share a tip about dish soap and add another picture of hanging flowers to go with previous post.

Do you love those really nice expensive dish soaps/hand soaps at your store?

Well I do! I have a much cheaper more thrifty way of doing though....... I use an old olive oil bottle and I buy Kirkland Environmentally Friendly dish soap that comes in this HUGE bottle 135 oz. for $7.89. It last me about six months, and it has a fresh lemon smell that I love.

I also really love essential oils, especially Lavender. Tonight I needed to re-fill my jar. The tip of the olive oil bottle is small, so what I do is add 3/4 soap to the bottle a bit of water to thin it, and then for the good part..... Lavender Oil! I added 5 to 6 drops because I love it! I guess you could custom this to your liking though.

I periodically buy essential oils from my local health food store. This is a nice way to use them, as you get the aromatherapy benefits while you are doing your dishes.

Decorating with Herbs and Flowers

Well, I still have not finished my dining room table. I put the first coat of clear sealer today though, so progress is coming along.

I have yet to get those goards either! But while I was in the garden today I noticed that I do have a lot of over-grown plants that were getting kind of crazy because they were so heavy they were falling on the ground.

This project might look more beautiful with some rope, but all I had was something called Eco-Twine. I purchased it at the nursery earlier this spring. I have to say it was super easy to use on the herbs/flowers and I also used it as something to hang them from above my kitchen window.

Anyhow, what I have hanging thus so far are Dill in the left, some of my Bahelor Buttons in the middle (I like the coney shape they take when their petles fall off) . And on the right I have Sage.

When some more herbs are ready to pick this fall, it will be a good idea to try this again. I like it!

Are You Feeling Fall Yet?

The high today in Missoula,MT is 71! That just stinks I say, and so does my tomato's cukes and Italian pole beans. It has been raining almost every evening for the past week, and I guess I was hoping we would have a hot August.

So instead of fighting nature I have decided to succumb to Fall. I was in a local store yesterday and of course they already have fall/Halloween decor on display. I never have been much of a Halloween decorator but I do always enjoy a harvest/fall theme from September until December. I like to keep it simple so it go's well with Thanksgiving and all.

So yesterday I purchased a candle at that store, Brandy &Vanilla. Yumm is all I have to say.

I also recently picked up a book at Barnes and Nobles, and being the cheap skate that I am I bought it at 75% off.

I thought I would share some photo's in this book, Country Living , Easy Makeovers 101 Quick Design Fixes You Can Do in a Weekend.

What I love about these photo's, gourds on the ceiling, lots of mirrors, accessorized mirror. All are so dreamy and make me want to go find some gourds, and vintage mirrors.

Gourds make me think of Fall, peachy rosy hues like the flowers in front of the mirror makes me think of Fall, candle's and mirrors are romantic and for some reason make me think of Fall.

What makes you think of Fall? Do you have any cool decorating idea's for Fall?

Pillows, and Stuff

I was having more problems with my sewing machine, and found out that my clutch wheel was stuck..... Now I am in the clear... Yay! I got on a mad houswife tangent and decided to dedicate an evening to making more slipcovers.... this is basicly what I have finished so far. I want to add more of the teal pasily pattern, and some stripes.

I also am currently working on my dining room table. It was unfinished natural pine, and I did not like it. So I have done a lot of sanding inbetween staining and I think I am almost ready to seal it with a polyurethane satin finish.

I can not wait to set the table once its finished.... but then I will also have to re-finish my chairs. And now I have been dreaming about slip covers thanks to Kelly at Much to Do with Nothing's blog. Go check out her blog! She has great tutorials and has given me much inspiration! :)

Hollyhocks, Bachelor's Buttons, and Black Eyed Susans

I just thought I would share some pictures of a few of my favorite flowers that I have been waiting patiently to bloom.

Of the hollyhocks that I planted so far this year, I have pink, yellow,red, and wine colored flowers. I took a picture of the pink because I love it's blooms.

The bachelors buttons have taken a long time to bloom but I think they are worth the wait. I picked a deep purple, and a lilac shaded one the other day. I see some pink and light colored ones with buds getting ready to bloom, I'm sure they will be pretty.

The black eyed susan flower is another unexpected flower to join the bed. I must have planted it last year, I do recall using a mixture of perennials and annuals. I probly picked a bunch of the black eyed susan's thinking they were weeds. Nice to have one though!

Hope you like the pictures!:)

La Dolce Vita Spaghetti Sauce

My kids tell me that the spaghetti at school is horrible! Not near as good as moms!


So here is my favorite from scratch spaghetti sauce recipe:

Heat 2 Tbs or enough to lightly coat pan with Olive oil

Add 1 diced yellow onion or sweet onion

Lightly coat with sea salt ( So the onions will sweat)

Meanwhile finely mince 4 or more garlic cloves to taste ( I use mini Cuisinart food processor)

Add 1 to 2 tsp of fennel seed, and 1 to 2 tsp on red pepper flakes to onions cooking.

To the processor or if you are finely mincing the garlic add a palm full or more of fresh Oregano and Italian Basil leaves, finely mince with the garlic cloves.

Add the Oregano, Basil, and Garlic to the onion fennel mixture and cook a few minutes more in pan to flavor the olive oil.


Meat:

1 pound of ground Italian sausage ( or more if you want a meaty sauce)

Add the meat to the onion herb mixture cook until browned.

(Do not drain your meat..... Italian grandma's did not drain there meat), next add...
1 TBS Italian Seasoning
1 14.5 oz c. Diced tomato's
1 15 oz c. Sauce
1 28 oz c. Crushed tomato's
1. tiny c. of Paste
A splash (1/4 c approx)... of Red wine
1 TBS of sugar

Let sauce come to a boil again and then turn to a simmer. Let cook for an hour or longer. If sauce becomes to thick add a little water and simmer more.

Do not over stir, stir only every 20 mins or so.

Serve over your favorite pasta with fresh parmesan cheese and fresh chopped Italian Flat Leaf parsley.

CIO!

My Very First Sewing Project

Thanks to all the inspiration from my sisters blog The Collective Bug, and to Kelly's Much To Do With Nothing blog I have succumbed to a re-design itch! I thought something was wrong with my sewing machine first off. I put it away in the garage and thought I had to go get it fixed.

I have never sewed anything at all and have never learned how to sew. I was given this sewing machine a couple years ago and did not realise until talking with my sister Missy that it could make a differnce to simply use some better thread.

Duh... that would be way to simple! So today I ran to Joannes craft store to buy thread, and it must have been my lucky day as they were also having a 60% off sale.

The white embroidered fabric was the last on the pole so I was given a whole yard @ 80% off!

So anyhow I came home figured out my bobbin thingy put a new needle on my sewing machine and began....

The simplest idea for making a slip cover came to me when thinking about just making an opening along the backside, like a pocket. So thats what I did. Fortunately also the exsisting pillow that I wanted to cover unzipped out of it's cover.

So for this project I simply took the exsisting cover off the pillow and traced on the wrong side of the fabric. Next I figured out were I wanted to fold along the back a center opening like a pocket. Then I sewed the pocket seems first inside out. Then I sewed along all four corners. Turned it back right side out and walla! I had a cute little pocket center to stuff my pillow into.

I think it might be more cute with a nice button, but that is for another day for me to figure out.

I also posted a couple pictures of the other two peices of fabric I purchased. The floral and off white fabric is from Waverly and I can't remember what the other one is from.

I am definately excited! Thank you blogger gals!

Very Cool Giveaway

I just discovered a new blog thanks to another blog I was reading, and liked this site so much that I decided to join and post a link back.

She has a beautiful site, and neat idea's. Go check out her blog and become a fan! The link back is on the right hand side of this site, and is called Miss Mustard Seed's Creative Blog.
The give away is huge! I have never seen a giveaway this big, and the stuff is nice too!

Garnet Montana Photo's

Here are some of the pictures I took of the scenery. I was thinking they would look good black and white with matted frames on my gallery wall I am working on at home. I really like the one of the windy road and the mist on the tops of the mountains.

Ghost Town Garnet Montana

I just thought I would share a few photo's of our recent family outing to Garnet Montana. I wanted to add more pictures but could not fit any more in this post. :( I really enjoyed this trip, it is a self guided tour and they actually let you go in these cabins, general store, hotel, saloon etc. I was in heaven with looking at all the antiques, too bad you can not purchase. To make it even more cool the trip is ll miles up a steep hill and on this particular day the mountains were misty topped with clouds from a light rain.
Me and the kids sang "Lions, and tigers and bears....oh my!" on the way up! It was way too much fun and the air smelled so good there. There were a lot of wild flowers and things and the smell of cedar was very lovely.

I'm going to add another post to this one to share some more photo's. I took a few of scenery around and I really liked the way they turned out. I am currently working on a gallery wall at home, and printing photo's in black and white format and I think these would look good in the mix.

Unfinished Heirloom

I started this circular shawl a few months ago and have yet to finish. I must profess that even though I really do enjoy crocheting, I have such a short summer season were I live that I can not see spending much time crocheting.... I love playing in the garden or playing a game outside with my kids.

This is a shawl I am making for my Aunt Deborah. Her favorite color is purple so when I bought the yarn I had her in mind. I know the fibers are called Kidlin, a combination of kid mohair and linen but I can not remember the brand right now.

What I love most about this shawl so far is the spiral pattern in the middle. Also what I love about it is that I was inspired by two designer's (my favorite of course) Doris Chan and Kristen Omdahl.

I had recently just finished the circular floral lace shawl and I understood what Kristin was trying to teach about exploding a motif.

I can not wait to finish this pattern when I have some more selfish time to spend watching a chick flick and crocheting, what do you think?

This is my design my pattern. There is alway's a time for a first!

All artist's have some form of inspiration, this is what I'm told.

MORE Sweet Pea's!

I had to take some more pictures of my sweet pea's today for memory. I know I already posted pictures of them a while back. The truth is I am completely taken by these flowers. When the wind blows they smell so perfumed it is almost intoxicating. The more I have cut the more flowers I seem to get. I have probably got around 12 or more bouquet's of 70 or more stems in the last month. I know they will sadly die soon as the temperature gets really hot. Fortunately for this flower it has been mostly a cool summer so far.
I love photography, and I have a fairly decent camera. I know it is not a professional grade camera but I wanted to capture the beauty of all the colors. After I picked them and put them in a vase I also took a picture from the top view. It is interesting how it seems there is some yellow in there. The salmon pinks, lavender and the green itself are all a beautiful mix of color.

So here is the last of my Sweet Pea rah rah for this season! I hope some one else might enjoy looking at these photo's too, and maybe they will plant their own sweet pea's next year! :)

Fennel

Anyone who really knows me knows I go gaga over Fennel. The first time I tried this herb/root vegetable was the day I decided to make a home made Cioppino. I noticed the wow that the fennel gave the dish and have been in love with it ever sense.

Fennel is great in salad. My favorite is a mixture of thinly sliced fennel, mandarin oranges and fresh oranges, thinly sliced red onion, the green parts of the fennel bulb, and a fresh balsamic vinaigrette.

All I can say is D-Lish!

So this early spring, I would say March I started seedling's under my grow lights. I have harvested about 6 bulbs of fennel so far and I have these left in my last bed. I can not wait to try them.

Fennel is also good in a Ratatouille dish, or grilled with olive oil salt and pepper.

Love-Lies-Bleeding

This plant is an Heirloom with a very tiny seed. I started it indoor 8 weeks before the last spring frost and then transplanted it twice before it's final destination.

I am proud of this plant not only because it is really unusual and pretty but because it is so satisfying that I did not have to purchase it from the nursery. I actually saw these plant's last week at the local nursery for around $9.00 dollars a plant!

The tassels are beautiful and fun. I also read that they attract song birds, and really I have noticed some distinct songs. I wish I had my camera earlier as I had a Red Robbin perched right near this beautiful plant.

Borage

Borage is an heirloom herb with pretty blue flowers. I have heard that you can candy the flowers and that they have been used in cake decor, but I have never really been that ambitious about using them.

I admire their beauty especially towards the evening when their fuzziness seems to make them glow.

An old wives tale is that they help whatever plant they are next to. I think they may also have some beauty benefits, but will have to go read up more about.

Lambs Ears

I noticed this perrenial plant last year at the nursery and decided to grow it from seed. So this year is the first year I am finally getting to enjoy it's unusual beauty.

I was attracted to it's silvery blue foilage, and velvety smooth leaves. I noticed today that it seems to be budding some cute little pink flowers to boot!