Texas Wrap Up!

I am back in Florida and this week I will be in overdrive preparing for the Gift market this weekend. Texas was great and I got TONS of inspiration and ideas there for current and future projects. Here are a hodge podge of items I wanted to throw in. Above is delicious pralines and divinity Christopher's grandmother and aunt made for us to bring home! Yum Yum!

I discovered the brand Consuela this week at both Treasure Hunters Gallery and Beau Kisses (pictured).

The following were taken at a great little Mexican restaurant in Pasedena called Don Key. They had the greatest Christmas decorations chock full of all kinds of handcrafted folk art ornaments!

The tree had chili pepper garland, clay flower bunches, and colorful tin ornaments.

I need to get better at taking pics with my iphone, but this is a closeup of the tree.

They had garland all over and it had sombreros, dolls and scarves tied on them with fun tissue paper flowers too!

Thats all from Texas for now!!! I have tons of projects and DIY's coming your way over the next couple of weeks! Plus we are getting our Christmas tree in the next couple of days!!! Love to hear feedback from y'all so keep it coming! And I have noticed some new followers in the past couple weeks so welcome and shoot me an email if you would like me to feature your blog sometime!!!

Houston Boutique Shopping: Katy

We went to lots of shops in Katy, both Old Town and some at La Centerra.

My favorite shop in Old town is NY Texas Style. Unfortunately, they do not have a website but they are located on 2nd St. Nancy is the owner and she has really adorable western boutique items, many from local artisans. There is also Casa Mendiola, where Gus hand crafts Mexican inspired furniture and has many beautiful Mexican imports. His custom furniture is truely a work of art. The last stop we made in Old Town Katy was The Junkie Kloset. This boutique just opened a week ago and their clothes and accessories are adorable and very well priced. Not to mention the boutique itself is so swanky!

I snagged these flats @ The Junkie Kloset for under $30!

On our way home we walked through La Centerra and there were 2 shops that I thought I would mention. Apricot Lane is a clothing boutique with really great clothes and accessories. I also went to Beau Kisses which was a really fun gift boutique and right now they have every kind of Christmas ornament you can imagine.

I hope all my Houston Ladies can stop by these shops and check out all of their goodies. I would also like to give a shout out to Cherie, my shopping partner in crime and chauffeur to all of these great shops.

Houston Boutique Shopping: Jubilee

Jubilee in the Heights is probably my all time favorite boutique. I have never walked out of there with out buying something. The shop is set up fabulously and they always have the cutest Christmas stuff! You can get everything from clothes, jewelry, gifts, candles, housewares and so much more! So many one of a kind items and everything is really well priced too!!! It was super packed when we went so I didn't get a chance to take many pictures and they said they will have their internet store up and running soon:) Yay!!!

There are a handful of adorable shops all throughout the heights...I will review some more in December when I am back for Christmas:)

Houston Boutique Shopping: Treasure Hunter's Gallery

I first came across the Treasure Hunter's Gallery Last year. Its actually in Fort Bend but it is well worth the visit! The have fabulous stuff and especially lots of awesome hand crafted items. Here are some picture's I snapped with my iphone!

CowSkull encrusted in vintage jewelry

Guitar covered in vintage jewelry

Mirror Encrusted in Jewelry

Gypsy Cowgirl Guitar

Angels made out of found objects

Mexican Folk Art

Milagro Crosses

Gorgeous Sacred Heart

Charm necklace

Rose Bracelets

Funky Clay necklaces I think all 3 of these are made by Sookie Sookie

This isn't even a fraction of all the cool stuff they have... there are loads of gift items, household items and picture frames, clothing, shoes, even a section just for guys!! Can't wait to come back at Christmas!!

Silhouette Craft Cutter Giveaway at Thrifty Decor Chick!

Check out this awesome giveaway at Thrifty Decor Chick for a Silhouette craft cutter! I have been hearing a buzz about this cutter because you don't need pricey cartridges ans can print cutouts in any font from your own computer.

I am crossing my fingers:)

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Off to Houston for the rest of the week so check back next week for some new posts!!!

Mount Dora Explora!

Here are all of my fabulous finds from Mount Dora this weekend!!!

a bunch of great vintage buttons... stay tuned to see what I will be doing with these!!

Great red suitcase to be Christmasified!

Ballerina jewelry box... still not sure what I am going to do to this... but all that brown yucky stuff wiped right off with some Clorox spray!

Really great vintage jewelry finds!!

High heeled shoe forms in my size:)

Thsi dresser I snagged for $10 on the side of the road close to the Antiques Market!

It's not wood but I don't care!

The view of the Market from our car.

We were told about another festival that is starting to Rival Mount Dora. It's called the Florida Fly Wheelers and we are gonna check it out in January and maybe set up a booth for February!

Whooo Hooo!!!

Mt. Dora Here We Come!

Last February was my first trip to the Mt. Dora Antiques Extravaganza and it was awesome! not knowing what to expect and being completely overwhelmed by all the booths I didn't take any pictures... This year have a different approach and plan on featuring some of the booths that are there!

Last time a scored a huge longhorn skull for my boyfriend, a great red stool, a vintage bathing beauty art print, a recycled metal garden flamingo, some old watch findings, a fabulous junk necklace and vintage soda bottle caps. all for about $100!

This year I am looking for a well priced dress form, old metal platters, old silverware, old metal fencing to use for displays, metal findings for a project I am working on, christmas fabulocity, and a matching red stool for the one I bought last year.

I am hoping there are some great Christmas finds this time around and some new inspiration for projects to make myself!

Can't wait to report back!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Me + Chalkboard Paint = Danger

So last night I decided to do some chalkboard paint projects and somehow my door ended up succumbing to the paint!! Its an old door very worn and a previous dweller went to town with some permanent parkers... so I decided to make an improvement! After painting the panel's I think it will look best to paint the whole door! This room needs some major renovations so anything is an improvement!

Myers Cleaning Products

I have never really been a fan of the smell of traditional cleaning products. While I was walking the isles of the new Walmart by my house I came across the section of Mrs. Meyers cleaning products and decided to give the dish soap and spray cleaner a try in the Basil scent. OMG this stuff smells amazing. I will not be going back to those stinky chemical products ever again!! The price is a bit more expensive than traditional cleaners but well worth it!

Stop by your local Walmart and pick some up for yourself.

www.mrsmeyers.com

Coffee Filter Wreath DIY

So I came across coffee filter wreaths that are all over blog land and thought they would be perfect to sell at the Hyde Park UMC Alternative Gift Market in December

I also thought it would be a great DIY for the Holidays.

CAUTION: You will burn your fingers... If you want to buy one from Salty Sisters they are for sale starting at $20.

Supplies:

Coffee Filters

Wreath Form

Hot Glue

Tea/Coffee Water

Basin

Coffee Filters

Place coffee filters into either coffee water or tea water and let soak for an hour or so until they have been dyed to the desired color.

Take coffee filters and wring out the water and set out to dry, you can also put them on a cookie sheet in a thin layer and bake at 220 degrees for 10 minutes.

take a filter and pinch at the middle and glue to wreath form. For fuller rosettes, layer 4 or 5 together to make larger rosettes.

This wreath was made with rosettes that were layered with 5 filters and glued around the wreath form in 2 rows.

This is an easy project it just was some time consuming steps, I stained the filters and did other things around the house in the down time so it wasn't too bad... and now I have a bajillion coffee filters to make wreaths with.

Violets!

So on mother's day this year I received a potted violet as a gift from my godson Tripp. I do not have the attention span for a green thumb. I have made some outstanding flowerbeds and potted arrangements, but they in turn end up dying due to my personal neglect.

I decided to take my violet to my office and place it in the window sill and much to my amazement it was in great health and kept blooming 3 weeks later. So I bought a couple more and they two were blooming. I took care of those pretty little pink and purple violets and followed all the care they required, I even bought special violet food.

Then about a month and a half later all of the flowers just shriveled up and never came back. So I tried moving them to another location in the office, watering a little less, and using less violet food, and multiple combinations of the like.

Yesterday, I went to water them and 2 of the 3 have buds!!! So I decided to track my pretty little posies progress...

This is the largest plant with dark purple blooms

The top plant has bright pink blooms and the bottom one is not blooming yet

Hyde Park UMC Alternative Christmas Market

The Hyde Park UMC Alternative Christmas Market is fast approaching so mark your calendars for a wonderful way to give a gift to someone while contributing to mission work across the Globe.

Each vendor donates a portion of their proceeds to Hyde Park UMC's Mission Fund and there are some really amazing artisans and crafters there to buy some really awesome gifts from!!

Saturday, December 4th

Open House from 1-3 PM

Sundays December 5th and 12th

9:30 AM -12:30 PM

In the Activities Center at Hyde Park UMC

500 W Platt St. Tampa, FL 33606

Metropolitan Ministries Holiday Tent

A couple months ago I was asked to paint repaint the murals for the Metropolitan Ministries Holiday Tent here in Tampa. I jumped at the opportunity, I love love this organization. It is such a blessing for me to be a part of this mission and they are inspiring hope and making changes in our community every day. I encourage you to learn more about them HERE. I also encourage you to make a donation, and or sign up for a volunteer shift this Holiday season. Do your part to support your community and help those who feel lost and hopeless in a time of need.

I completed 3 murals this week and almost done "roofing" the turkey barn. Take a look at these pics!

This is the "turkey barn" where turkeys are distributed... I assembled the roofing which is made of large pieces of cardboard painted gray and scored and folded to look like an old tin roof. The corner still needs finishing and the whole of it needs distressing to make it look old and rusty!

This is the flower shop. the flowers are made out of cut water bottles and were painted by the kids and volunteers at Metropolitan Ministries.

This is the gingerbread house! it still needs some lolipops attached:)

Thats me doing a dorky sorority pose with the play area Christmas tree. Each kid was fun to paint and they are all so fun and quirky!

November Update

So aside from Halloween I am not that into fall decor so I won't be posting much about that, BUT I do have some fabulous stuff for Christmas!! So be on the lookout for those posts. I have been very busy lately with work and a huge project I took on for Metropolitan Ministries (a post on that to follow!) but now I have to shift my focus to the Hyde Park UMC Alternative Gift Market, where I will have a booth selling crosses and crafts alongside my mother who will be making picture frames, and holiday ornaments.

I made a last minute trip this week to the Hobby Lobby closest to Tampa... 1 hour away from me! And their Christmas stuff was more than any crafty girl could dream of. I am still trying to decide what ornaments I will be making for my family this year so I didn't go too crazy... but after Thanksgiving I plan on making another trip! Yippee!!!

Next weekend I am going to the Antiques Extravaganza in Mt. Dora and I can't wait to share pics of that with you! Last year in February I scored a Longhorn Skull for my boyfriend, vintage jewelry, a vintage art print, and a fabulous red rustic stool and I spent only about $100 bucks! This year I hope some of the same vendors are there cause I need a mate to my stool and Christmas gifts!!

Shellac @ Crave Spa

Crave Spa located on Bay to Bay Boulevard in the Shopping center next to Pinky's opened a little over a month ago and I am so glad!!

They use all natural products and its the first time I have ever walked into a nail salon that didn't have a nauseating chemical smell. They offer a variety of services and I chose their Grand opening manicure and pedicure special for $29.

I get a overwhelmed at many nail salons, the smell, soap operas blaring on the tv, the robotic chairs vibrating and pounding away, and the jet whirlpool whirring water all around your feet. I have to give myself a pep talk and convince myself this is relaxing. I usually turn off the gyrating chair pounding away at my back and work at tuning everything else out!

Crave is a completely different experience. The atmosphere is soft and inviting and they take everything back to the basics. You sit in super comfy over-sized chairs and let your feet soak in a basin. It really is relaxing.

They also introduced me to CND's Shellac nail polish that boasts a 14 day chip free manicure. I am an artist and in the midst of a huge mural project among other art ventures. I thought I would give it a try and put Shellac to a real test.

It works! I had my hands and arms elbow deep in paint and chemicals for days and after scrubbing away in the shower a little rubbing alcohol got the paint right off my nails! Now I will confess it did not last the full 14 days but I know it would had I not been abusing the process! Any Manicure that lasts more than 12 hours is a miracle manicure for me and I did not have one single chip until day 8 and I credit that to some of the paint cleaning solvents I came into contact with.

I can't wait to go back again next week! Call in or walk in, stop by and check them out!

www.cravespa.com

Image courtesy of Dangermouse1810 on Ebay

Where did October go?!

October just got swept away it seems! In the meantime I was too busy for blogging! But here is a wrap up post!

Halloween Parties and treats were a big hit and Trick or treaters got a kick out of earning their candy by putting their hands in different bowls full of "guts" at "Madame Esmeralda's Spell Shop!"

On Halloween during the day I started stripping the inside of my house of my decor and moved most of it to the front yard and thats what I used to set up the Spell Shop table. And then at the end of the night I pulled out all of my storage containers and put it all away... Kinda. I still ahve spider webs and moss hanging all over that I need to pull down... the worst part is the clean up must say!

Trick or treat table

All the kids had to put their hands in guts before getting candy!

Night view

Setting up for Trick or Treaters

Cabbage brain and fenel heart

Halloween party Snacks

Dining room set up

Front yard

Front Walk

Somebody had too much to drink!

Spooky Shelf