Giveaway weekend!

I am pleased as punch to share this weekend’s giveaway with you all! Maybe you’ve heard of little shop called Lisa Leonard Designs? Hmmm?? Just maybe?  :)

Well, Lisa’s been an advertiser of mine for awhile, but even before she joined me at TDC, I drooled over admired her beautiful jewelry. 

Let’s go over some of my favorites, shall we?

Gah. I adore the little hearts on this one…

You can get it customized with two to four hanging hearts and whatever text you want around the edge. The tiny pearl is the perfect finishing touch!

Lisa is killing me with the owl!:

It’s called “Whoo do you love?” Are you dying? Love that hubby’s name is on a little disc with a moon. Adorable.

The family crest necklace is perfect for any mother or grandmother:

What a lovely way to thank any woman who is the “glue” of the family!

These teeny tiny hearts are so simple and perfect:

You could do the kid’s initials or yours and hubs/significant other. It would be a great gift for an anniversary – put the couples initials on and you’re set! At least the wife will be thrilled!  ;)

I can’t get over how original this one is:

Each name is stamped under a different piece of laundry – the little socks about put me over the edge they are so precious. Not one person would have the exact same necklace! (Well…unless there was another family with your exact names and you got the same exact designs…and that would just be weird.)

Look at the initials carved into a tree:

Perfect for a newly engaged friend or newlywed. How sweet!

I saw this one on Twitter a few weeks ago and thought it was such a great idea for a little girl:

Not too much – just sweet and simple and the perfect “real” piece of jewelry to start a young one’s collection.

The pops of aqua are what made this one a fast favorite as well:

And the cutie patoot little bird sure didn’t hurt either!!  ;)

Lisa’s talents don’t stop with necklaces – she has a variety of bracelets available:

As well as earrings:

And gifts for anyone –- including the men in your life!:

Isn’t it all lovely? I know you’re swooning. :)

To make you really swoon Lisa is giving one of you a $75 gift card to use as you wish on her site – whoohoo!

Here’s the deal – leave a comment here for your first entry. For a second entry, check out Lisa Leonard Designs, browse around, and then come back and let me know your favorite piece! It’s as easy as that! (Please remember an email address if you comment anonymously.)

The giveaway will be open through Monday at noon, Eastern time.

Have fun, good luck and enjoy your weekend!

SNS #28 brings you - an old dresser dressed up

Intro

Welcome to Saturday Nite Special #28!

If you're new here, join in! There are two categories to link to, Home Decor as well as Crafts, Sewing, Recipes, so feel free to post your DIY project in the applicable area below.

Party starts at Fri night and ends Sunday 11pm, so you have all weekend to join!

I LOVE to highlight inspiring posts during the event on the sidebar, so make sure you check in several times over the weekend. You may be next. :)

~ DIY Feature~
A dresser gets dressed up

Remember when I told you about my big junkin' day awhile back?

I found this old vintage dresser among my treasures and had to have it. Why?

Quite simply because the features and patina were amazing! Look at the layers of trim in this one corner! And TRY and crackle a finish like this! I fell instantly in love.

And just take a look at the hardware. Why the handles were all different is beyond me! But my goodness... could it have been any more made for the way I personally decorate?!? :) Aren't they amazing?

But a dresser is only a dresser if it's just a dresser. So I had an idea. If you've been following me long enough, you know I love to mix oddities together for an interesting look.

I took one of my rusty old gates (oops sorry, this is a) headboard from my junkin' day, cleaned it up, then sprayed on a clear coat...

... then added some ivory paint on the rust, to further mimic the fading original white patchy paint patina.  Using ivory acrylic craft paint, I dabbed it on quite dry with a stencil brush. I wanted abit of lightness to tie in with the dresser.

Juuuust right! And below is how I used it.

Tadaaa! The headboard offers extra interest to this dresser, creating a unique frame around the mismatched mirror. I love how the rusty tones of the headboard tie in with the dresser hardware and mirror frame.

The top of the dresser got a clear coat (from a spray can) which brought out the original oak tone through the crackled paint surface. I love the two toned effect it has, that was achieved with no effort! The white pillowcase on the left is from my mom's stash.

And that's not all. This lovely teapot was my mom's wedding gift! I'm not generally one for shiny gold but...

... in this case, the gold just works on everything! I found the lamp, oval mirror, and old clock at a thrift and they all share the same gold trim. And that white jewelry box? My mom's. :) And it's chock full of her costume jewelry just the way she had it, which I LOVE browsing through on occasion. Because it's her. :)

Curious about that lampshade, aren't you? I'll tell you how I did it in an upcoming post as this one's long enough. :)

~ Surprise themed link below! ~

 Many of you in the big Link Critique post said you preferred themed linkups. If you look below at the links, you'll see the two we normally have. PLUS a new one. This weekend it's called Dressers Dressers Dressers! because of the dresser feature of course. :) 

~ What will it be next week? Lampshades! ~

For the themed link,  feel free to link up an older post so you can join in! Or better yet, get to work on that lampshade this week you've wanted to tweak forever anyway. I can't wait to see what you come up with. :)

Let me know in comments what you think on that ever changing EXTRA themed linkup idea! Let's give it a whirl this weekend and see what happens.

~ SNS blah blah linkup rules ~

1. Please link up your intended post, NOT your blog homepage url. (post, then click the title of your post, cut and paste that url)

2. Please put a link in your post that leads back to the party so others can see what's up! (scroll button on sidebar if you wish)

 3. This party is geared for DIY type projects we can all attempt to make ourselves. Items for sale may be linked up IF your entry is posted on your blog and in tutorial style (unless making the item is self explanatory).

5. Please link projects up that are new to SNS and within 1 month old. (*the NEW 3rd themed link can be an older post) If you can't decide which category to enter yours in, please just pick ONE and go with it. It's all good!

Happy party and weekend inspiration to all!

I'm inspired by Flea Market Trixie

I love this idea. Maggie at The White Farmhouse is hosting a monthly Thank-you for Inspiring Me link party. My first thought was, how on EARTH can I choose just one?!? Thankfully, there will be more, so I can disperse the love around. Whew! The pressure! :)

Someone who's been on my mind lately is

 Why? Her style is simply impeccable. 

 She has a wonderful way with junk. She knows how to make it look GOOD. You're looking at galvanized rust here, however the staging with the florals and flowers just bring this little corner to life in the most beautiful way. Sometimes my own junk creations look abit 'cold'. She's inspired me to pretty it up!

She's not afraid to try new things never done before. This headboard was created out of a settee and closet doors. She simply built the puzzle until it was a pleasing end result and put it to work. I think this headboard is wildly creative and such a head turner!

Her staging efforts leave you desiring to be there. I mean, when I first saw this photo, the condensation on the glasses spun me around, making me feel thirsty. The coconut cookies had me wanting to bake these and I don't even like coconut.

Her sign skills. Signmaking is an art in itself. Being a signmaker for 15 years, you have to know your scale, white space around your graphics so things don't feel too tight, how to mount, what looks good, etc. T's signs in my eyes allows you to appreciate their beauty, breathe around the graphics and simply enjoy the unique way they're mounted. A hit in every aspect.

Her use of her fav colour. I'm not a colour person myself and use it sparingly. However T knows how to use her fav tone without overpowering a room. It's there, it's beautiful and soothing but the room isn't encased in it like a cave. The balance and distribution are perfect. It's a pleasure to view one of decorating world's hottest trends used in such a stylish way!

And then there's her photography skills. Look at any of her blog photos. She only uses the best shots. And those best shots make your work absolutely shine! I know the work that entails. I take up to 100 shots of any one given item and choose only the best. It's my bet she clicks like mad and does much of the same.

In my opinion, Flea Market Trixie has nailed all the components of a great decorator and wonderful blog friend. Her disposition is very sweet and supportive. She continues to show ME the beauty in normal everyday things and how to use colour. I knew she'd be a top runner when I first spotted her in blogland. And I have to admit, I'm generally right, as I was this time. :)

Thanks T, for inspiring ME! :)

Who inspires you? Jump on over to The White Farmhouse to link up!

You asked for it so I'm delivering!

Something new is up at SNS each weekend and I'd like your opinion. All can still link up, so see you there!  Bring along a previous 'dresser' post ready to link up if you wish to play on the new feature. :)

When One Door Closes...Another Opens

This fabulous Comet Pendant was selected to hang in my future design studio. If you've been reading this blog for any time the Mystery Design Project posts have shown clues for this project. I can now share that I have been working for the past few months on securing a space in the developing City Center of the community I live in, Villebois. However, with the current economic environment and so many factors that would only bore you to read, this dream is on hold. For now. I can be patient when required, and I look forward to making this dream come to life in the not too distant future.

Interestingly, the day I found out I would not be moving forward with the design studio I secured my first small writing contract from a very popular resource for design inspiration! So, how bad can life be? Once this writing project is published I'll let you know where to find it. Working on this assignment has been a complete blast, and hey, if anyone else would like to hire me for similar work...give me a call!!


Of course all of this leads to the question, where to hang the Comet Pendant until I open the studio. Do I put it back in the box? Let it continue to hang from the fixture above the piano, getting confused looks from guests? Or do I find another home for it.


Taking a tour around my home, the only place it made sense to hang the fixture was in this small hall off the family room. I like it here for a few reasons. This is a completely bland and forgotten little corner in the house. Also, I have been wanting to bring more color and a bit of whimsy into the adjacent family room and kitchen, and this is a good start.


To hang this fixture I used a Recessed Fixture Converter. I love this product! It allows you to quickly and inexpensively hang a light fixture where a recessed light is located.


As the recessed light hole is larger than the caps on most hanging fixtures a ceiling medallion is also needed. This would not be an issue if you were to hang a ceiling mount fixture.


To bring color into the hallway I decided to paint the medallion turquoise, a color similar to the fabric covering the slipper chair in the family room. (If you think this is a bad idea, read on.)


Next the recessed fixture was removed and replaced with a junction box using the conversion kit.


The medallion was then taped into place so that it wouldn't get in the way while the light fixture was installed.


After the pendant was hung I quickly inserted one bulb and ran out to flip the breaker switch in the garage, wondering...does the light work?!

Yes! And can you believe these outrageous shadows?


Then the rest of the bulbs were inserted. This took nearly as long as hanging the fixture!


Just one problem, the turquoise medallion. It was not working for me, at all. Just too much going on, creating a distraction.


So I pulled out the ladder, again, and repainted the medallion with a color to match the ceiling.


Much much better.


I love it hanging here...a wonderful inspiration for other little updates to come.