Lost is found and table finished.

Finally in my cleaning out and sorting my jewelry supplies the lost pendant I bought from a street vendor in Germany this spring surfaced....much to my delight.

I definitely have a "style"  and it is jewelry with some substance.  I'm just not a delicate type of person... I love one-of-a-kind and so prefer to make it myself.  And I adore colorful jewelry...  So this pendant spoke to my heart.


I have all the beads strung and will do the final assembly today.  And as a bonus it has a story.  The pendant is from our anniversary trip to Germany last April, the yellow beads are raw topaz I bought in a tiny shop in Seaside Oregon last fall, the red glass beads are from a trip to CA to see Susie W., I bought the blue beads on Etsy and they are recycled glass beads from Africa and last but not least ALL the metal beads are from one necklace I bought at a thrift store for a little over $3...years ago.

I did finish the "pansy" necklace  before I found the pendant.  This brooch was worn by my late mother-in-law  Mary Krueger whom I adored so it has special memories as well.

Now that everything is dug out and sorted I might as well keep going and do several before I put everything away.  My friend Kathy LeFrancis came over one morning  and showed me some of the finer details in finishing with crimps, wire guards, etc and I didn't even remember I had an  actual crimping tool..












And I did finish the table last weekend.  It is fanciful and fun but I have to admit that it qualifies as "primitive" artwork.  There was no way I could position the table, lights, brush, and magnifying glasses in a way I could actually see what I was doing... But even a little rough around the edges, it too suits my taste... one-of-a-kind and colorful... a definite statement in my living room..

Table top 90% done..

The table top is about 90% done and I'm happy with it.  I have a few boo-boos to clean up and want to add some bees, lady bugs and a couple hummingbirds.  This week has a lot of commitments so it will be next week before I get to the legs and the finish coat.
The stencils were perfect but I needed to do them slower as I smudged a few as I was moving along.


As I was cleaning and sorting in the barn last week I came across an extra large zip lock bag and I could see a hand in it.. I couldn't imagine what it was.  It was a dance  hall floozie doll I started years and years ago.  All the parts are done and stuffed and all the embellishments are in the bag. The original design sketch is even there  and I had molded and painted her head.  There must have been some crisis in my life to have packed her away so close to finishing.  Maybe this winter..









I had always thought I had one more doll in me but I thought it was going to be a garden goddess...  I have her head done but no body....and I have lots and lots of material for her.  So maybe I have 2 more dolls in me..

Getting checks on the curve.

First I put a coat of white primer on the little table and let it dry overnight.













I wanted to put a row of checks around that curve and was not sure how to do it.  So I cut a piece of freezer paper to fit that shape and used a hem gauge to mark the height of the checked row... so far so good.  I do actually use freezer paper occasionally to put things in the freezer but not as often as I use it to make patterns...



I fiddled a bit with the hem gauge until I got the width of the checks so that they came out fairly even.

Then I cut out the row  of checks and I could use it on both sides of the table to mark the checks.









First I was using blue painter's   tape to mask but it was lifting the primer and then I started using quilter's "Tiger Tape" and it is working quite well.

The row done.  I am using a lot of antique glazing on this as I go..  I have a look I'm going for... with luck I will get there... if not then I'll go for the look I end up with... One of my favorite sayings is "Blessed are the flexible for they shall not get bent out of shape!"

 

 
 

Painting furniture funky!!!

Painting the kitchen counter really put me in the mood to paint something else much larger than a button.  I've been painting ugly furniture for years.. and there is a lot of it in the house.  But my favorite piece of furniture I painted is my nightstand in 2008 because I see it every night and every morning.

And the rainbow front door was fun... I love painting doors but this is my favorite because I see it many times a day and it is the first thing visitors see when they come.  Now that it has become a bit weathered and worn I like it even more...  I have painted other doors including the one to the bathroom which makes it easy for visitors to find..."just look for the green door."  I actually painted that door because it was so old and ugly and being an odd size, hard to replace.

As I was working around the house and barn I kept an eye out for what to paint.  I have a fabulous antique breakfront in the barn which was too big for the house.  I always thought that someday I would live where I could use it as a kitchen island as it is almost 8' long.  It would be fantastic as a funky paint job but I would never see it.




I already have a fun piece I never see and

probably will never live where I can use it.  It is this sunflower bench I built and painted and is now covered with a tarp for years.  I love the black and white check and will probably use that on my newest project...








So the criteria is developing...something I will see and use everyday..  I do have several stools that I could paint including my antique piano stool I use at my sewing table... It is high on the list.. The little roll-about stool from Harbour Freight really needs a facelift and I use it all the time.

Stools are a perfect subject for funky painting.

Some things I am too emotionally attached to so that painting them is not an option...such a case is my 100 year old typing table on the left which holds my featherweight... But the tall jewelry cabinet on the right with all the drawers would be a blast.. It came from the thrift store and has no real value.  I can see every drawer painted differently... It too is high on the list at this point.

And there are a few tables.  The little folding green one on the left is used all the time and since I have used it to iron on, the finish is pretty bad.  DH is always snagging it to put by the couch to hold his coffee or wine.  But it is not very stable and is an accident waiting to happen...  The one on the right is darling and a perfect subject but it too is in the barn because it was  too large for the house.

So I settled on another smaller one from the barn that could be used by the couch and other uses when the leaves are up... It needs a good sanding before I paint it but is in great shape otherwise....very stable... hard for husband or dog to upset.


















And as a bonus it
has great legs... and boy do I have visions for those legs..... check out these legs that Pinterest sent me under funky furniture...

Whatta ya think???

 

Found a few extra crocheted things in the barn....Had  this work stool!

Saw this this ....hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

 

Now I also have this handy little folding stool perfect for my featherweight because it tucks under nicely....BUT TURQUOISE  PLASTIC!!!  Back to the barn!

Peacock stash and Victorian sitting bench...

I have just 5 days to get my blocks together to mail for the fan RR.  I wanted peacock colors because I want to combine it with a peacock UFO... So while Susie was here I went through my stash plus added a few from a thrift store on the only day we were able to get out.  Our cold spell is about over and we managed to get through it with no frozen pipes which is always a relief in this old house.  The pickup hasn't started for days. I bundled my California Susie in heavy sweat pants, warm jackets and plenty of quilts.

The Victorian sitting bench is on a holding pattern...  I have it all screwed together but don't want to add a cushion until I get it outside to paint...which will be a couple weeks at least... Now it just has just a couple blankets on it but it is safe to say that it is a success even in it's unfinished state...