A Little Bit of This and That

Hi everyone!

Hope you are having a good fall so far.

Today I thought I'd share a few more photos from our trip to Austria, as well as show you some of my latest creations.

Before I go any further, I would like to mention those who have been hit by such terrible hurricanes as of late.  Keeping them in our thoughts and prayers, and remembering that they will need help for the long hail.   I just feel sad for those who have lost so much.

Ok, back to my little photo tour..........

One of the highlights of our trip was taking a tram ride to the top of the Untersberg alps.

Below is hubby about to board.

The view going up.........

 And up!

Now, I am not crazy about heights, but as long as I'm in an enclosed space, I am ok!

 The views were just amazing!  And my pictures just don't do it justice!

Notice me, below, not too close to the edge!

 At the very top was a charming little cafe.  I felt like Shirley Temple, playing Heidi should be popping out any minute!

We stopped for a glass of wine and beer, and just soaked up the incredible views.

 Wow, this is my idea of heaven on earth!!

 This huge iron cross was at the top of one of the peaks. Thought is was so neat.

 Notice all of the pretty alpine flowers? I was amazed how they could not only thrive at such a high elevation, but grow out of the rocks as well!

 Here's me, hanging on for dear life!  hahaha!

It truly was a day that I'll never forget!

I'll share more trip photos in a future post.

Now on to a peek at what I've been up to!

I've been busy working on creations to add to my Etsy shop, and am currently having a 20% off everything 

(with purchases of $25 or more) sale.  The discount will be automatically deducted, there is no need for coupon codes.

I fell in love with these neat galvanized metal canisters when I found them, and quickly snatched them up!

I gave them a French twist by adding these neat French labels to them. Love the graphics!

 Love this fun stenciled wood tote!

 This vintage Syroco mirror was transformed with a little paint and tlc.

It is even more gorgeous in person!

I love finding trays to make over, and had so much fun with this one.  I just love the bon appetit graphic that I hand stenciled on it!

You can find these, and many more treasures in my shop if you care to take a look!

That's it for today.

Thanks so much for stopping by, your visits and comments mean alot to me!

Have a great rest of the week!

Projects

Bonjour Mes Amis!

How is your week going so far?

Wow, it sure is hard to believe we are already into the second week of January, isn't it?!

Today I thought I'd share with you a few projects that I recently completed.

All are in my Etsy shop, if you care to take a look!

My sister has been busy cleaning out her attic, and found this cabinet door that she thought I could do something with.  Of course, I forgot to take before shots of everything I'm showing you today, darn!

Anyway, it wasn't vintage or anything, otherwise I would probably have kept its original paint and patina.

It was boring golden oak, and so ready for a fresh look and new lease on life!

Immediately I thought of creating a coat hook out of it.

So, I painted it in my favorite shade of light blue chalk paint.

 I then stenciled this gorgeous large skeleton key to the front.  (I wish it would show up better in the photos!)

I used several different colors for my stencil, to give it a dimensional look.

 One of the best things about this project was I had everything for it, except the hooks!

I found those at the hardware store and had my handy hubby mount them for me.

It was a fun project, and I am happy with the end result!

(so, my sister can pass along more "junk" from her attic to me any day!!)

 Next up is this large vintage wooden cigar box that I found while out thrifting.

I see plenty of cigar boxes on my hunts, but I've never come across one this large before!

It was very well made, and had a neat brass latch and hinges, so I just knew that I could do something with it!

 So, I painted it inside and out with a pretty creamy taupe chalk paint.  I left the inside lid unpainted, to show off the original cigar ad (wow, only 5 cents each, this box must be old!!).

I also knew that I wanted to decoupage something to the lid. After some thought I decided on these beautiful roses, compliments of The Graphics Fairy.

If you ever decoupage, you know how tedious it can be to cut out details by hand, but the results are worth it, I think!

 Just for fun, I added the address of a Parisian flower market to the sides.

 I just love finding boxes that I can transform with paint and a little tlc.

The one below was also a thrifted find.  It was a dark reddish brown when I found it, and I could hardly wait to paint it the same pretty light blue as my coat hook project.

The neat thing about this box is that it also holds a photo.  I placed a scrap of pretty floral paper beneath the glass insert for the time being. The lid has a metal insert, and features a beautiful floral cut out design.  

 Of course, I distress nearly all of my projects, to give them what I like to call

"that aged over time look".

I almost forgot to show you my knife, fork and spoon trays.
A few weeks ago, hubby came home with a set of three vintage wood trays.
I just love it when he comes home with goodies for me from the thrift store!
(he knows just what to look for!)
Anyway, they were a dark wood finish, and on their backsides was imprinted
"Toastmaster Hospitality Tray".
They were made right here in Michigan (Grand Haven), back in the 1950's.

 While I don't always know right away just how I will make something over,
if I look at the object long enough, inspiration will eventually strike!
So, since there were three trays, I thought it would be fun to decoupage them with these gorgeous copies of a giant knife, fork and spoon.  All were found on The Graphics Fairy.
First I painted the trays in the same creamy taupe that I used for the cigar box.

I had so much fun with this project!

 It's amazing how realistic and dimensional the silverware looks!

And I couldn't resist sharing a pic of Katie, perched on the wicker bench at the foot off our bed.

I had to laugh, as it looks like she's yawning from boredom over all my craft projects:)

Have a great week, can'w wait to see what you all have been up to!

Artist Behind the Etsy Feature

Hi Everyone,

Hope you are enjoying the first weekend of summer!

Awhile back, Kathy from Creative Home Expressions asked me if I would be interested in having my Etsy shop featured in her weekly series, called "The Artist Behind the Etsy".  Not only was flattered, but I super excited as well!

Etsy is such an important part of my life, and I know that it truly means alot to so many of you who may have boutiques there as well, or who love to shop on Etsy!

So I am honored to be the feature artist today!  I would love for you to check it out here!

Thank you again, Kathy!  You are awesome for supporting us all!

I thought I'd share with you one of the latest additions to my shop, this gorgeous vintage Syroco chalkboard/mirror combo!

It began life a gaudy gold, and I think looks oh so much better now that I've painted her a pure white!

 So many pretty details, and a unique double frame.

 The best part is she pulls double duty!  I added heavy duty chalkboard vinyl to the back side of the mirror. for two looks in one!

 Have a great day, looking forward to seeing what you all have been up to!