Don't Mess With the Cook

The kitchen is not my domain, so any time I want to do anything in the kitchen, I have to make Steve think it was his idea.

I wrote about moving things around here and here.

When I painted the shelves a couple of weeks ago, Steve immediately ordered a butcher block for the cabinet.

The butcher block arrived on Thursday and Friday night I got busy painting the cabinet white.

After waxing, I did some sanding and wanted to keep going,

but Steve said it looks fine and believe me, I

There were little yellow and white polka dot knobs on the cabinet when it was red, but I went with silver knobs to match the rest of the kitchen.

Steve likes it because it blends in and he thinks the room looks larger.

The shelves sport my favorite yellow and red bowls and canisters.

I bought the Mason jar shelf years ago at a home decor party I hosted.

It was during my Americana phase so the shelf was slate blue and it was relegated to the garage about 5 years ago.

With a fresh coat of ASCP Old White and some new jars it has a new life in the kitchen.

A salute to Valentine's Day is the conversation hearts and blue Dove hearts in the Mason jars.

I did hang up a little banner I made yesterday.

Steve saw it and put his foot down - not in HIS kitchen.

Since he made me a lovely paella while I wrote this post I saw the wisdom of removing the banner.

There is an old saying, "If mama ain't happy, ain't no one happy."

And if Steve "ain't happy", I don't eat.

..........................

I am linked up at

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

Timewashed

Under the Table and Dreaming

Stone Gable

Creative Cain Cabin

Boogieboard Cottage

Knick of Time Tuesdays

Cozy Little House

A Little of This and a Little of That

The timing of the Grow Your Blog Party

at 2 Bags Full is perfect.

My blog,

just turned one year old.

Participating in the party means I need to describe my blog.

I still am not sure what the blog is about.

Yikes!

What can I say?

It's a bit schizophrenic -

a little of this and a little of that.

My original thought was to use Schizophrenia for the title of this post, but I thought it might scare people away.

..........................................

Basically I write about life in our little seaside cottage.

Decorating

Some days I write about decorating and my love of primary colors,

collections,

vignettes - 

all the ways I tweak my home to make it fresh and inviting.

Other days I write about painting furniture.

Did I mention that I like primary colors?

I was not much of a furniture painter PB (pre-blogging) and I had never heard of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  

Seeing all the beautiful furniture pieces being refinished around the blogosphere has inspired me to paint up a storm.

I have to drive 45 minutes to the closest ASCP dealer, but it's worth the time and it is located in a great antiques mall.

Life Outdoors

I might write about my garden, but definitely not right now.

Even though I live in temperate southern California, it has been too cold to work outdoors and the poor garden is not showing off to her best.

I long for summer when I can spend my days digging, weeding and planting.

the dog in the foreground is our precious Dorje during "doggie playgroup"

You will definitely read about life at the beach 

and see pictures of our daily walks

or kayaking adventures.

Creativity

I might write about making pillows out of scrap canvas, 

or using the canvas to make a rug.

I will never write about making slipcovers.

I have nothing against slipcovers.

In fact I love the look of slipcovers.

But I will NEVER make slipcovers again.

Been there, done that and will let someone else experience the aching back and sore fingers.

I'm sticking to pillows.

Then again, you might read about the little books I make.

or the Valentine decorations I have been making.

One thing I will guarantee you.

You will NEVER read a post about recipes and cooking.

I do not cook.

I do not clean.

I do eat.

My husband Steve is a gourmet cook, surfer, tennis player, and artist (not in any specific order).

He takes care of me and the house while I slave away at school.

I teach school.

More specifically, I teach middle school.

 Which also means I'm crazy - you have to be crazy to teach middle school. 

It keeps me young - at least at heart.

Since Birthday Wishes are in order for Art and Sand, there needs to be a present- not for me - for you.

If you would like to win this little handmade quotation book please leave a comment.

I know not everyone is into primary colors

so the winner may request a custom book - size, color scheme and favorite quotes.

Thanks for dropping by Art and Sand.

The Giveaway will close on January 31.

Please come back on February 1 to see who is the winner.

.....................................................

See all the other blogs attending the party at 

2 Bags Full- Grow Your Blog Party.

........................

With a Little Help From Others

Yesterday I was home from work due to an allergic reaction to some medication.

The only thing that made it bearable was Pinterest.

I had no energy so I sat with my laptop looking from one Pinterest board to another.

I was on a mission to find ideas for table runners and came across so many great ideas.

These are just two of the plethora of grain sack table runners that can be found on Pinterest.

This simple runner is from Creative Cain Cabin.

Via

This one I traced back to a  Tumblr account.

Via

The reason I was looking for table runner ideas was that I found white canvas fabric in the attic over the weekend and I thought I might be able to use it for a table runner.

As part of my self imposed "January spending freeze" I need ideas that do not require me to  spend money.

I had to stay late at school today because a few of my students wanted to film a movie in my room.

They didn't need me, just my room for filming.

I used the time to paint my table runner.

I had not taken the best brush to school so it turned out a little splotchy in some areas, but I decided that was okay.

I was going to sew the edges, but I decided I wanted to fringe them.

That was the most time consuming part.

Painting took minutes, but the fringing took nearly an hour.

The long sides were easy to fringe, but the short ends (thank goodness it was the short ends) did not pull quickly and evenly.

I set it on the table.

And then hunted for something instead of flowers ( which are scarce in my garden this time of year ) to add to the runner.

I settled on a dish full of hearts and red candles.

The runner is a little wider than I wanted, but my fingers refused to fringe anymore.

 I set the table for Valentine's Day to see if I liked the width.

It works for me.

Each time I walked through the dining room tonight, I smiled at my simple no-sew project.

With a little inspiration from others

and NO money,

I created a new look for the table.

And the best part?

 I have another strip of fabric the same size.

Up next?

A heart runner.

There are still two weeks left in January so I have to continue to find "free" ideas.
.......................................

I am linked up at

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

Alderberry Hill

Creative Cain Cabin

Primp

Ginger Snap Crafts

Savvy Southern Style

Vintage on a Dime

Domestically Speaking

Power of Paint Party