a tale of many wreaths

It is wreath city over here!

I've made some fun fall wreaths that were total FAILS.  And I've made a bunch of Christmas ribbon wreaths that we'll be using at our church's Women's Christmas dinner as centerpieces (with a hurricane & candle in the center of the wreath).  I had so many of these to make that I got a little overwhelmed... so I took all the materials to church with me last week and sat down in the lobby to get to work in my spare time.  Before I knew it, I had several friends making wreaths with me!  It was unintended, but turned out so fun!  Thank you Beth, Janine, Margaret Anne, Kevin, Carlene, Glenda, Catherine Anne... and I'm sure I'm missing someone, so thank you, too!!

Let's start with the fails, though.

I had seen lots of fun burlap-ish fall wreaths and thought I'd try my own version.

 I started with a straw wreath and some houndstooth fabric that I had left over from who-knows-what.

 I cut the fabric into strips and just started hot-gluing it on, folding & layering each little bit.

 See what I mean?

 I did the outside first, then the inside and finally the front.

 And we have...

Ugh.  Bummer.  I'm just not thrilled with it.

Anyone want it?

Next up:

A fall ribbon wreath.  Can't go wrong here.  Right?

I had all sorts of gorgeous fall ribbon to work with.

But the result looks like brownish/blackish mishmash from the street when it hangs on my front door.  So sad.

Again, anybody want it?  (you think I'm kidding, don't you??  I'm not!  If you want it, it is yours)

So I think for now, the original burlap wreath is going back up!

Now, some Christmas ribbon wreath eye-candy for you.

 My dining room is covered in these things!

 No two are the same.

 There are themes, though.  Some are fun Seuss-ish feeling, with lime green & bright colors.

 There are some empty wreath forms behind this one (above) which is why it looks askew!

 Some are more traditional feeling with darker green and golds.

 Some are happy, polka-dotted, candy caned, snowflaked joy.

And here, you can see what they are going to look like on the tables at the church dinner.

Seriously, does anyone want those two wreaths?  The houndstooth one & the fall ribbon one?  They are yours if you want them!  Just leave me a comment or send me an email (with which one you want) & I'll send them right over!

Thanks, y'all!
kathie

back to reality with a turquoise dresser

Back to life... back to reality!

The past week has been glorious.  I really enjoyed the break from real life, especially after the hectic (but wonderful) few days leading up to the break.

But now it is Monday morning, and it's time to face the music :)

Somehow I managed to miss getting a 'before' shot of this piece.  Amazing, since it sat in my garage for at least a month before I got started on it.

You'll just have to imagine it, from these next two pictures...

 the drawers, one primed & the rest not

the body of the piece

closer look at the drawers

the details on this piece are so fun!

 Primed & ready to go

And, the final product...

I am loving these crazy turquoise shades right now.  And on a piece like this, you really can't go wrong with such a fun color.

I started with Martha Stewart's Aegean blue, but it was just too light for me.  So I went over the whole piece in a darker turquoise oops color from HD.  I wanted the lighter color to show through just a bit, which I think I accomplished.

Yes, the pictures are crooked.

If anyone can guess WHY the pictures are crooked, you are a genius!

Have you ever tried to hold a squirming almost 5 week old kitten in your arms while taking pictures?

It results in crooked pictures :)  Sorry!

The light in my dining room is bouncing off of the piece like crazy in these pictures.  See the shadows from the center details?  And on the sides, that is a lamp reflecting off the color.  Crazy.

I used Valspar's antiquing glaze on it after I painted, and Minwax Polyacrylic after that to seal it.


On another note, I hope you are feeling as Thankful during this season as I am :)  I love that we have this time of year to reflect on all of our blessings.

 I got this adorable sign at the Dunwoody Methodist Holiday Show for $10.   I am not a tiny-detail person and looking at all of the perfect details on this, I realize I probably would have paid more than that for this sweet reminder.

It folds up into this little book, isn't it sweet?

I got a few for Christmas, too, and I guess it is time to bring them out.  How can that be?!

Thanks for coming by!
Kathie

linking to these great parties:
Restore Interiors Restore It Wednesday
Sew Chatty's Made with Love Monday
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday

My repurposed Life's Catch as Catch Can

Hooking Up with House of Hepworths

Blue Cricket Design's Show & Tell Wednesday

Domestically Speaking's Power of Paint Party

Primitive & Proper's Piece of Work Wednesday

Sassy Sites Trash to Treasure Tuesday

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Cottage Instincts Make it 4 Monday

Stories of a House Project Diaries

Motivate me Monday at Keeping It Simple

The Shabby Chic Cottage's Transformation Thursday

Between Naps on the Porch Metamorphosis Monday
Mural Makers & More Passion for Paint Party

blessings

During this season of Thanksgiving, it is hard not to feel overwhelmed with all of our blessings.  I am profoundly grateful for my family, my healthy & happy boys, our home & our church and the boys' school.

I am grateful for the newest addition to our family.  Sam (the moment the boys named him, I knew that  was it ~ he was ours) is thriving and is spending Thanksgiving week with us in the mountains.  

 My niece & my brother-in-law are equally smitten.

 I'm thankful for families that not only get along, but enjoy spending time together.   My inlaws were so gracious to invite not only us, but also my parents & my sister and her family to spend Thanksgiving with them at their mountain home.  We've had a great week!

 These two guys... they make my life brighter each moment.  They are such a blessing to me.

 Cousins that love one another like siblings.  It is such a blessing that we are able to raise them together (my sister & her family live down the street from us).  When Thomas was 2 & 3, he would introduce my niece by saying "This is my sister.  She name is Lydie".  The grammatical error was almost as funny as the fact that he truly believed she was his sister :)

 My nephew Hud.  Such an enormous blessing, especially after the loss of their son Mac.  We are all profoundly grateful for him!  Even when he is crying at 5am!

 This place is just gorgeous.  The weather hasn't been that great, but it hasn't mattered a bit.

 Watching for fish & ducks over the bridge.

 One of their favorite things to do ~ fish with my husband.

 Exhausted from all the fun.

 I had fun playing with the settings on my camera to get these shots... clearly, I have a lot to learn!

Blessings to you all!
kathie