Fall Decorating with Bittersweet

I ordered some bittersweet vine last week and it arrived yesterday.
I have to say the order did not have long vines but I adapted and made lots of arrangements in jars instead!
I don't know if it will root in the water but I hope so. 
I don't know if it will even grow here but I'd sure like to give it a try!
I'm still puttering around here doing some Fall decorating but here's a few pics of what I did yesterday.

I have three blue Mason jars that I just love! So I put those on the windowsill.
It's pretty bright to take a good picture but I wanted you to see the whole view.

Here's a close-up.....much better!

I also used some of the little scraps that were left for small 
arrangements....like this one on the stove..

That's it for now....
We're having perfect Fall weather here and it's just wonderful to have the windows open wide!
I hope you are all getting a break from the heat as we are!

I'll show you some more pics another day.....


Pin It

Paint, Paint and More Paint....

First off...let's start with the fact that my dining room table is covered with boxes......
Brown cardboard boxes.....
From Canada.......
With words and numbers on the outside....
Like "10 Flow Blue", 7 Lucketts, 6 Typewriter.........

Did you guess? You're right...MISS MUSTARD SEED MILK PAINT is here!!!

Now the sorting and packing up begins! The button on my sidebar will be going away because it was for pre-orders only. Now you can go to my FB page and use the Storenvy shop. I've added in a 12 color sampler pack too for $62.00.   If you're undecided about which color you may want...that's still an affordable way to check it out.

Now, on to a small project. I LOVE spray paint. before I discovered chalk paint and then milk paint, I was a spray paint kind of gal. I think I was happier back then....maybe it was all the inhalants? Who knows? But now, seriously, I will waste DAYS, WEEKS trying to decide what to do with a piece of furniture! Should I use the chalk paint? Hmmm...maybe. Should I use the Milk Paint? Hmmm...maybe. I could spray paint it, like I used to.....But, I can't really blog about that.....not in the midst of chalk paint blogdom....I might get hate mail.

So, days pass while I waste time looking at the pieces blocking my exit out of the garage, and waking up in the middle of the night and thinking about the furniture I'm NOT painting......

sigh.....

So, I'm focusing on smaller projects that don't give me such angst
I found this wall sconce in the thrift store a couple months ago and as soon as I looked at it, I knew what I wanted to do.

Just a plain, black, metal sconce.....and a can of my favorite "metal" finish spray paint....hammered bronze

Tah-Dah!!

Much better.
As you see, it's outside...on the back porch actually. Because I knew I wanted it to hold some baby pumpkins....
like this....

Isn't that cute?
Of course, they can't just sit there....they'll fall off when the kids close the door ever so gently as they do......(snort)

Here's where the wine habit I've developed comes in handy........
(burp...excuse ME!)...
you've heard the phrase "stick a cork in it"..?
First insert a toothpick, then make a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin and...voila....

Three corks, three toothpicks and three pumpkins later......

Now add some pretty stuff.....

And then decorate the rest of the porch.....

And there you have it.......

I still have some spray paint left....on to a couple vintage folding chairs.....

after I sort all that paint of course......

One small step at a time right now.......

Sharing with

Thistlewood Farms

Pin It

Milk Paint Has Arrived!

Goodness....this has been like giving birth complete with episodes of false labor!
But, I am pleased to say that a several (many several) pound baby is arriving on my doorstep on Tuesday the 25th.
I guess that makes it more like a C-section....since I know when it's coming.....

I recently used the Ironstone color I have to redo a small medicine cabinet.
Here it is before....

I decided to try Marian's technique of using no bonding agent. Just the straight milk paint. I wanted the chippy, primitive look.

This is the look with just one coat. You can sort of see why it's called milk paint. It's a bit streaky and doesn't give heavy coverage. I went on to do two coats and then left it overnight, as Marian recommends. I estimate I used perhaps 1/4 bag or less for this piece.

In the morning, I took a metal scraper and began scraping the cabinet.
Sure enough, chips came off very sporadically. It gave a more natural look than the technique of sanding that I usually use.

Keep in mind that you are seeing the final pictures after I used antiquing wax over the paint to give an aged appearance.

Here's another...don't you love that vintage, chippy look?

And here it is sitting out for sale at the Primitive Show where I was a vendor that weekend. Check out that cute child's chair in the chippy white finish sitting right next to the cabinet. The chair has an authentic old finish.......look how good the cabinet I did looks in comparison! I can see I'm going to use this technique often. 

I love the real, honest-to-goodness old chippy stuff, but sometimes it is just in such bad shape by the time it gets that way, that the piece is just too rickety for practical use. Now, I can create the look on  a much more sturdy piece of furniture. I LOVE that!

I was very pleased with the final result. And it was VERY easy to get the look!

Next project....my kitchen table...this time WITH bonding agent so it will look a bit more finished!

If you want to try the Milk Paint out....just use the button in the sidebar to order!


Pin It