A Southern Belle with Northern Roots/Junkflirt

It all started when I picked up a couple mid century over sized drawers, my husband wondered what the heck I was going to do with them, so did I.
 I decided to add feet and make side tables out of them.   So, I told him about the idea, and although he didn't see my vision, he went along.

I then published the project on HOMETALK and they graciously shared the post and it kind of went viral. I mean they were everywhere!





 I was so thrilled when Mary Janes Farm magazine asked to publish them in a special issue!!


And even more surprised when another magazine contacted me to publish them again. I had simply put them on the deck and snapped a photo and had always wanted to have some better staging. Since the pieces had sold, I asked if I could submit those photos, remake the project and then send new photos of the next set. I remade them in colors I like better and frankly sell better.  I have submitted all photos and we will see if they end up in that magazine. ( I will be sure to amend post if they do)


Let's talk how to!  First these drawers are large and deep, so they are great for this project, smaller drawers won't have the size needed or stability for this project.
Gather your needed materials
4 legs for each drawer
4 blind nuts for each drawer
wood for shelves
headless nails
wood glue

Mark off and drill hole for nuts, this will give you a solid mount for the legs, to keep them in place and keep more stability. Screw legs into nuts.


Cut wood to fit for shelves, glue and nail in place. Paint. You can remove drawer
pulls, but I left them on to show the unique nature of the piece.




 Both sets were painted in Annie Sloan chalk paint and sealed with wax.  The first set was Duck Egg Blue and Cream, the second set was Old White and French Linen.









blessings and thanks for visiting

 For Sixteen years I have not seen my mother, This is surreal.
Having a narcissist for a parent is  difficult, confusing and taxing. Here is an excerpt of the newest posts on PigTales.

  In 2000 my grandmother turned 80.
  Our family gathered, we traveled 400 miles to see her and my mom was there along with her husband. I don't remember if she lived there or back in Wyoming at that time. I remember the photos of everyone around grandma, she wore a red sweater, she had lovely white hair and she smiled. That makes me laugh because grandma didn't have a natural smile for photos, a stiff, teeth bearing almost painful grimace. We would all laugh at it because she had a natural lovely smile, but, when the camera came out....it disappeared.
  My aunt orchestrated the in-law and outlaw photo sessions poking fun of those married in, as she was. It made no matter, my aunts and uncles through marriage our as much our blood as anyone could ever be. I really don't remember a lot about the visit other than it was a nice time and it was the last time I saw my mother. 
  No. She is still alive.
As a mother of two the thought of not seeing my child for sixteen years...sixteen! I would be heartbroken, deeply heartbroken.  As a grandma to an angel baby I would give anything that my daughter never would have had to go through that heartache, that I also could have never felt that deep piercing pain. I would move hell and high water to see my child, to hug them, to tell them I loved them. I would slay any dragon for my son and my daughter.
  But that is not so for my mother. She was content to not see me, and so I became safe in not seeing her. We talked from time to time, less frequently as the years faded away. Phone calls were stressful. When you speak with a narcissist, you walk a fine line, you must not offend which means you cannot disagree- with anything. You must praise, repeatedly, every thought they have, you must compliment every act they have achieved and you must NOT expect any accolades for yourself. In fact, when talking to a narcissist you need to just leave yourself behind.  Our calls were nothing more than her complaining about who did what to her, how awful so and so was and a myriad of hypochondriac complaints.
 Endless complaints.
Exhausting complaints.

Read More HERE



blessings and thanks for visiting

It has been forever since I posted much of what has kept me busy.
Blogging has taken a bit of a hiatus. I thought I would just pop in to show you some projects that will be at our show this weekend in Fargo ND.
Maybe I will finally get around to some more posts! You can always follow along on facebook page or on  since I post there almost daily!!



for now, here is a taste of some of mine and my husband's latest work.

a fun spin on some old table tennis paddles


Using The Graphics Fairy for accents on signs and furniture. I will be teaching a workshop on this at this weekend' s Junk Market.



This one is all the Junk Hunks work. A fun man cave shelf!


 

Painting with Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint, this dresser/buffet piece crackled to perfection!




Sometimes you stay as close to natural as possible. We salvage some pretty far gone pieces, that is why we often paint them, however occasionally there is enough of the piece left to keep it more original. Perhaps my next post will be some before and afters!



I happen to love the look of paint and wood, the base of the table was oak that had seen better days, it had been previously painted and had really weathered in storage, the top however was tiger wood and worth the refinish effort, the drawer is tiger laminate.

So, that is what keeps me busy, plus a bit of jewelry making and my new hobby of  SOAP MAKING!!  I will post about that too! ( or at least that is my plan- you see how that works out!)
thanks to anyone who has hung with me, glad to see you still here!

blessings and thanks for visiting

A year ago today we knew Larisa would check into the hospital in the morning, It was Sunday and Caleb was scheduled to enter this world Monday morning. It was also grandparents day, We got a card and a bag of chocolates from Larisa and Trace and Caleb.

That next morning, we waited- until we heard- we knew there would be issues, but we just didn't know how severe they would be. So many of you hit your knees in payer, and we thank you deeply. 
God answered our prayers differently than we had hoped, he chose to take Caleb home, to live a life without pain and struggle. Caleb left and we were left with that pain and struggle.
My heart hurt so deeply, my throat had a lump the size of a fist, my eyes were swollen with tears and I was in a fog as we drove home from the hospital that night.
I watched my child hold her child as he left this world. I saw the deepest pain in their eyes and I could barely breathe. 

Some days, I don't cry, most days I still have a few tears. Some days that lump in my throat comes back, the one that hurts from trying to stop the pain in your heart from rising, it gets stuck right there, the tears come, the deep sigh and soon that lump withers. 

I love chocolate, too much in fact, but that bag stayed in my cupboard until November. I just couldn't.....One day, I opened it and had a sweet piece. Part of me felt guilty as though I should have that bag forever, part of me felt free in accepting his passing. Still I wish tomorrow we would be watching him pull himself up and giggle and open his own presents, and eat chocolate.
But, we will celebrate him in a different way. We will celebrate that we knew him if only for a moment. We will celebrate his strength and love in the presence of his Savior. We will celebrate his healing.
I thank God for his strength and for watching him hold up  and , they have been an inspiration to me.

Forest Gump's momma had it right when she said, "life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get." Sometimes you don't get what you want, you can spit it out and be bitter, or you can take what sweetness is there, swallow hard, and carry on.















blessings and thanks for visiting