Rhinestone Assemblage Bracelet

I only got one thing accomplished today and this was it!  A vintage rhinestone earring is repurposed into a bracelet.

I just didn't feel well today after spending the day yesterday moving furniture to my nephew's house.  Hopefully I will feel better tomorrow and I can get a little more accomplished!

Rhinestone Assemblage Earrings

And my vintage rhinestone obsession continues with these gorgeous aqua dangles!

Something Old, Something New

I have been wanting to do something with this vintage rhinestone necklace piece that I've had for over a year now!  Can you say PROCRASTINATOR?!?  Lol, well, I finally sat down and did something with it.

I added vintage glass ab beads from a necklace that I picked up somewhere in my travels and a little bit of chain from a bracelet I found in an antique store.

This is now listed in my Etsy shop.  I think it would be great for a bride to be!!  What do you think of it?

My Sister, My Friend

Today I'm going to get a little more personal on my blog.  I am going to tell you about my sister, Dawn.  She is fantastic!  When I grow up I want to be just like her.  She is the most giving and loving person that I have ever known.  She works 50+ hours a week, raises two kids (Katrina and Kyle)...make that three kids, I have to include my son, who is 26 and is all grown up, but she's always there for him and she manages to host every birthday and holiday in our family.  I don't know where she gets the energy!

She calls me every day on her lunch just to chat, see how I am and how my son is, who has been living in Denver for the past year.  She's just an amazing person.

As Christmas get closer and closer, I think about my sister.  She does whatever she can to make sure that everyone gets a gift that they will love.  She tries to make everyone feel special...and she does, she really does!  I love you, sister and I can't imagine my life without you!

French Linen and Old White Stenciled Dresser

She's finally done!  Whew!!  She's a little shabby, with areas worn down though the paint.  She's a little chic, with her Paris in the Springtime stenciling.  She's done in Annie Sloan French Linen and Old White and sealed with CeCe Caldwell Wax.  I ordered new drawer pulls for the bottom and they will complete her so she can be sold.

My camera sucks, by the way.  Maybe I'll get a new one for Christmas!!  Hint, hint!!

xoxo~Di

Paris in the Springtime Stencil

I have been killing myself to get all my painting projects done before my son comes home for Christmas.  My house is my studio in the winter and it is a total wreck!

A few months ago I fell in love with the Paris in the Springtime stencil from Royal Design Studio.  I saved up and ordered one, not knowing what I was going to do with it or even how to stencil!  My friend gave me a hideous yellow mid-century modern dresser from her dads estate and then I saw an AMAZING french chippy buffet from Create Inspire and I knew I had to copy it!

This is the dresser before...

Yucky yellow and I just do NOT like mid-century modern!  Anywhoooo...I am in the process of transforming it into this...

I have to wax, distress, dress it up with some hardware, yada yada yada, but hopefully I will have it done before the kid gets home from Denver!  Wish me luck!

What Is Wrong With Saginaw, Michigan

I have lived in Saginaw County all of my life.  I have been in Saginaw Township for the past 20 years, after moving out of the city when I got broken into a couple of times.  Now, the same types of things are happening in the Township.  In fact, tonight, there was a murder 3 or 4 houses down from my aunt's house.  Saginaw is one of the most violent cities in America.  What happened to it?  Where did we fail?  I remember being at my aunt's as a child and we wandered all over the place.  It was safe!  Now, it's full of hood rats and gang members.  It makes me so sad to see the area that I live in going down hill.  How far away do I have to move to get away from the violence?  Why do I have to flee my home where I raised my child?

I am lost.  I don't know what to do.  I feel and have felt for the past few years that I should sell and move on, but there are just not enough hours in a day to get my house ready to put up for sale by myself.  I could try to recruit my family, but I feel guilty.  They have their own lives.

Somehow, some way I have to figure this out and soon.  Property values are dropping as I write this.  It's a terrible, hard decision that I have to make.  Today, I am sad!

The Dreaded Jury Duty

Here I am stuck in the jury assembly room after 3 1/2 hours of sleep. Exhausted and annoyed, not knowing when I'll get out of here and I have to work tonight! Ugh! I know it's our civic duty and all, but this couldn't come at a worse time of year! I have a million things to do before my son comes home from Denver on the 20th, including finishing 2 dressers I have been painting! Wish me luck! I pray I am out of here soon and can take a nap!

Vintage Rhinestone Shoe Clips ???

Does anyone know anything about vintage shoe clips?  I am a huge thrift shop junkie.  I spend my one day off hitting every thrift store in my area.  This summer I found a bunch of these clips at one of these local shops.  One pair had a tag from a nearby antique store.  The tag says "old shoe clips".   The backs of these matching clips are different.  In fact, they are different on most of the pairs that I found.  One has a bar and the other has 2 clips.

Does anyone have any idea if these really are shoe clips?  Or if the are something else?  I would appreciate any info anyone could give me on these.  Have a blessed day! ~Diane

Bird on a Branch Table

It's going to be 65 degrees in Michigan today!  Wow!  That's amazing!  It would be a great day to finish painting my cute little birdie table outside, but I have a family gathering today, so NO DICE!  That's okay.  I love my family and enjoy spending time with them.

Here's a sneak peek of my vintage Thomasville table...

I am using Annie Sloan French Linen and Old White and will be doing lots of distressing.  Aren't these two colors yummy?

Chalk Paint Sofa Table with Etched Glass Top

I found this sofa table and 2 matching end tables and had to have them.  I am not crazy about glass top tables, but I loved the shape and the details.  The bottom of the sofa table had some bubbling veneer.  I tried the iron method, but it just wouldn't lay down.  So, flying by the seat of my pants, I scraped up the bubbled veneer and filled the area with wood filler.  Hmmm, I know I took a picture of that, but can't seem to find it, along with my before pics.  Oh well, I decided to etch a fleur de lis in the glass.  Not knowing whether it would work or not, I grabbed my Armour Etch that I've had for a couple of years and made a stencil out of contact paper.  Well, by golly, it worked!!

Then I decided to add some fleurs to the top of the column legs.  I had a button I got from Goodwill that was the perfect size, so I grabbed my trusty Amazing Molding Putty and got to work!

I painted the table with CeCe Caldwell Cinco Bayou Moss first and then Annie Sloan Old White.  I distressed it heavily, because I like that shabby french farmhouse kind of look, and I'm hoping that someone else will too!  It was my first time using CeCe Caldwell's Clear Wax and WOW!  I am impressed.  I am used to using other waxes that I have to battle with and it went on so smooth and easy that I contacted my stockist, Shelly at Shizzle Design, to make sure that I was doing it right!  Shelly took time out of her busy day to give me all of her tips and tricks and it turned out fabulous!

I may add some dark wax, hmmmmm...I am not sure yet. I don't know how people get done with a piece in a day.  This took me about a week!  Of course, it's a little bit here and a little bit there, but my goodness!  I don't know that I could ever get done in one day! Let me know what you think!  I will post more when I get the end tables done.

Enjoy your day!! :)

Chalk Painted Stool

I got this stool at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore.  It was old, dirty and unloved, but it was sturdy.

Excuse my mess, I had to move all of my painting inside because of the cold, rainy weather!  The bottom of the inside compartment was REALLY NASTY!  So I ripped it out right after I took pics of it!

The fabric on top was in tact, but it was plastic like material.  Almost like a shower curtain.

So I painted her up with a base coat of Annie Sloan Duck Egg Blue, then layered Old Ochre on top.  I used red mattress ticking fabric for the top and added dark wax for some depth.

I think it turned out pretty cute!  What do you think?  Linking up to Deja Vue Designs!

Bartender Burnout

I have been a bartender and manager for 24 years.  I have always loved my job and give it 110%, which most people would think is easy to do because it's an easy job, right?  Let me tell you, it is NOT easy at all!  It's hard labor!  Anyway, I am getting off track here.  I used to work 6 days a week.  I would open at 9 a.m., do the books, go to the bank, etc., leave after lunch and be back to bartend at 7p.m. until 3 a.m.  When I switched bars, I cut down to 5 days and was a night manager, so there were no early mornings for me anymore!  Then 4 or 5 years ago, my boss brought his daughter into the business and I was demoted without even being told.  I understand him bringing his kid into the business, but I feel like I was blind sided by it and there should have been some sort of conversation between him and I to let me know that this was happening.   I cut my availability to bartend down to 3 or 4 nights a week with no weekends.  I lost my motivation to help this man be successful any longer. Long story short, she quit after 2 years and he wanted me to manage again, I declined.  I still work my 3 or 4 nights a week, but I am finding that my heart is just not in it anymore and I don't know what to do.  I am just going through the motions.

This is my sole income.  I keep doing it because I still have time to craft and try other things out, like working in a banquet hall on the weekends and it pays the bills.  I am really unhappy and find my fuse getting shorter and shorter and the worst part is, that my regulars, that I've had for 12 years are starting to notice that I'm not thrilled to be there.  I even tried moving to a different bar, but it's the job that I'm burned out and bored with.  I have a great reputation in the city I live in for being a great bartender with a great attitude and a fair and productive manager and now I feel like I'm disappointing everyone, including myself.

I feel like I should quit and move on to something else, but what would I do?  I have no idea!  There isn't anything that I'm really passionate about.  I love making jewelry and would like to learn more and make better pieces, but jewelry is saturated with talent.  I enjoy painting vintage furniture, but I haven't really immersed myself in it.  And anyway, would I ever be able to make it on my own crafting?  I am not sure if I could push myself hard enough and stay motivated.  Unfortunately it's easier and safer to work for someone else.

I am thinking of opening a booth at an antique shop and see if that takes off.  I need to get on that, because I am so deeply bothered by my current mental state.

Just the rambling of a burned out bartender....

Religious French Holy Card Necklace

Now available in my Etsy shop!

What Color To Paint Freebee Dressers

A friend of mine had a couple of extra dressers from her father's estate and asked me if I wanted them for free!  We negotiated a bit, because I didn't think that free was fair to her, and came an agreement that I would buy them a couple of cocktails in return.  Her husband and son even delivered them!  So I bought them dinner as well.  They are such a sweet couple.  They are each others best friends and do everything together.  Something you don't see a lot of today.  Anyway, what was I talking about?  Oh yeah, the dressers.  One is mid-century modern.

And the other?  I don't know.  At first I thought it was handmade because of the shiny varnish finish, but there is a manufacturer stamp on the back.

It is HEAVY too!  Solid wood with dovetail drawers.  I am trying to figure out what colors to paint them and what hardware to use.  Trying to get a vision.  What color do you think?

Vintage Rosary Ring Necklace

I love making these necklaces from vintage rosary rings or finger rosaries!  I also make them with newer rosary rings to cut down on the price.  This one is my favorite though!  I bought the ring from a dealer in France and it is just beautiful!

Now available in my Etsy shop!  It's my last day of vacation, so I must go and enjoy even though the weather took a turn for the worst.  BRRRRRRRR!!

My Mess-terpiece

I have been looking at this little table for a while now and just didn't know what to do with it.  I forgot to take before pics, but this little pair of Mersman bunching tables were dark wood, ya know, lilke the Brady Bunch era.

I started messing with it last night.  I painted it in AS Old White, nah!  I put Paris Grey on top.  Kinda plain.  Then I washed it with Cece's Vermont Slate.  I like it better.  Then I added the crown and the typography, which I got from the Graphics Fairy.  Unfortunately, I eyeballed it and the lettering is crooked!!!  Lol!  Oh well.  I put some Martha Metallic Glaze on top of it all.  Wow!!  What a mess!!!  Ha ha!!  Oh well, they weren't my favorite tables anyway!

The first is an indoor shot and the last two are outdoor shots.  I should start a blog on how NOT to do things!  I'm a pro at that!

Soldered Pendants

Since my time to create has been limited lately, I have decided to sell some of my soldered pendants.  It is, after all, my favorite part of creating jewelry and the hardest part as well!  I love it though!  Pouring the resin is the trickiest part.  Making sure there are no bubbles and then there's always that stray piece of dust that seems to act like a magnet to the resin.  It is frustrating at times, but, as I said, I love it!

Here is the first of many to follow in my Etsy shop...

Isn't she lovely??  I am hoping to see her go to a good home!  Perhaps someone will use her in their jewelry or just add a chain and where her as is.

I am at the end of my vacation and I still have so much to do.  I am sooo tired of painting black doors, lol!!  I'm almost done though and I still love the look.  Have a great day!

What I've Been Up To...Vacation Day 4

Well, I lied and didn't post every day.  I just needed a break from social networks, telephones, people, etc.  Tonight is the end of my 4th day of vacation.  I only have 6 days left!  My how time flies when you aren't working.  What have I been up to, you ask?  Well, let me tell ya!

I have been painting my interior doors black!  It's something that I have been wanting to do for about a year now and I have had the paint for a couple of months.  I went to Sherwin Williams and told the sweet little clerk girl what I wanted to do and she suggested I use their All Surface Enamel Acrylic Latex in Low Lustre Black, since I was painting over white doors.  I trusted her, after all, she works there!

I started painting last night and ugh!  The first coat, I thought I'd made a big mistake, or that she had!  It was shiny and weird looking!  I was scared!!  Already committed, I thought to myself, I will just do another coat and check it out in the morning.  By the second coat, it was growing on me.  It's still a little shinier than what I'd imagined in my head, but it looks really nice!  The paint is thick and goes on really nice.  This paint is STINKY though and I highly recommend that you work in a well ventilated area.  I opened all the windows and had fans going, so it wasn't too bad.

I tried to take the door off the hinges, but it's just me and well, yeah, that didn't work out so well, so I just painted it as it hung!  I am really pleased with how it turned out!  Did I already say that?

I also took my brass door handles or levers off and primed and painted them with Rustoleum Oil Rubbed Bronze.  What a transformation!!

I don't know how they'll hold up, but it's just me and my pups here, and I really don't use the handles that much, except the closets and the bathroom, so we shall see!

I ordered some Rub n' Buff for the hinges, so they'll match up a bit better, since I can't get them off by myself.  I ordered Ebony and Spanish Copper.  The two used together look like oil rubbed bronze, at least that's the word in blog land!

I soldered a bunch of pendants and made a few necklaces to get ready for the holiday season and to finish up a couple of custom orders..

I was going to pour resin tonight, but I am just toooo tired, so I will fit it in tomorrow somewhere between grocery shopping and getting the carpets cleaned.  Woooo hoooooooo  What a vacation, huh?!?  What a wild woman you must think I am!!  Lol!!  I've had my wild fun, now I love putting my energy into productive things that make me wayyyy happier! :)

I also changed the hardware on my entry table to oil rubbed bronze and decoupaged vintage hymnal pages to the bottom of the drawer.

So, that's what I've been doing!   What have you been up to?