Weekend Photos

I was so excited when Ally over at Fever Thrift* asked if I'd be willing to do a guest post! Check out her blog...

Fever Thrift*

<The weekend in pictures>

Happy guy...for real. 

Weekend work project...

I love...Anthropologie

Sweet wishes on this Monday... 

xoxo

Still

Sometimes it's good to be still.

I'm reminded of that in this heat, lift a finger and you'll be drenched. Still, equals dry. Still, equals cool...ish. If you want to stay clean and avoid the constant sensation of sweat dripping down your back, off your nose, and puddling at your feet, it is necessary to live in a swimming pool.

Oh wait...those are warm too.

You could maybe try hanging out in a hospital waiting room since those always seem to be verging on sub-zero temperatures.

In more ways than avoiding needless perspiration, being still is good.

I move a lot, I get caught up in doing and lose track of the value of being still.

Sometimes it's good to be reminded.  

When I'm still, I think. When I'm still, I connect with people instead of just checking necessary interactions off my list. When I'm still, I can create, and I love to create.

This week has been slow. Hot. Still.

It has involved a lot of this...

Some apple picking with my Mom and sisters...

I broke my sunglasses, damaged by ego and banged up my already scarred legs trying to shake apples out of a craggy old tree,  it was an adventure.

 We got lucky and found two loaded pear trees as well... 

I chose not to venture into those branches after my apple tree experience. 

I hope you have a still, chill weekend,

 have a smoothie for me.  

Rae 

Wing-Back Chair Re-Do

Let's be real....the easiest way to do this, is to make your way to the nearest upholstery shop, fork over some cash and say thank you.

 Next thing, if you're by the book? This tutorial is probably going to make you cry...


Wing-back chairs are not a really great starting point for amateurs but if you're anything like me - part of the fun involved in DIY projects is the experience, so I was all for just muddling through. Particularly because the chair only cost $13.00  

Before I get too deep into this thing, I must give credit to some of the ideas in this post where it's due.  The reason I tackled this chair in the first place was because of Jenny Komenda over at Little Green Notebook. Her upholstery tutorial was exhaustive to say the least and made me think it wouldn't be insane to take a swing at it. 

Here's her tutorial

The plan is for me to supplement by letting you know what I did and did not do... 

This was my challenge... 

Isn't it lovely? Also worth noting I now have beautiful floors in my dining room. Celebratory moment for getting rid of concrete floors. 

The First Step:

Stripping the chair... I had a few tools I used for this portion of the job including

A smallish flat head screw driver

Needle-nose pliers

A container for discarded tacks and staples

A good supply of enthusiasm, also bandaids help. You might consider some hydrogen-peroxide and butterfly bandages as well. 

Just kidding. Ish. 

Ok, so one thing Jenny suggests in her blog post is to photograph the chair as you go along, document, document, document. She is a smart lady - having pictures to reference as you begin to put fabric back on your chair is very helpful. Particularly if you photograph the areas of a that might be more difficult to reupholster. For example... 

I took detail photographs every chance I got so I wouldn't be dependent on my memory 

to make the chair look like it wasn't completely rigged. 

Step Two: 

Remove the cording on your chair. Some chairs don't have cording, some have trim or fabric tacks, whatever your chair might have - get it off. 

Take pictures as you go so you can see where they had the cording/trim meet, whether they had it glued, or sewed in particular places or just wrapped. It'll come in handy. 

No picture for this step because I don't like to follow my own advice.

Step Three: 

This is where Jenny would probably shake her head and bemoan my decision to write this post... I differ from her greatly in that in retrospect, I would not have removed the fabric from my chair. You can see in the photo how I began to do this .

What happened is that the structure of my chair - the only really great thing it had going for it, began to crumble. I was still able to remove tacks from the chair, but when I noticed the issue I was creating by pulling the stuffing out I opted to leave the staples securing the fabric alone, insuring a structured chair to re-cover.

A perk I can vouch for is that if you choose to leave the fabric attached you won't encounter the issues involved in re-stuffing. These range anywhere from a chair back that resembles a retiree's cottage-cheese thighs to a tired looking beer-gut effect achieved by not packing tight enough. Both are worth avoiding. 

What you should basically be left with is a chair stripped of any cording and excess tacks not securing fabric to the wooden frame. Just go stick the seat cushion in a closet somewhere, you won't need it for a while. 

Step Four (Last Step in This Post) 

Paint your frame! My chair required some sanding to rough up the poly coat enough to prime - if you don't do this the primer won't stick and if you use a water-based paint it will just peel off.

 I used three coats of white, water-based primer and then used a water-based coat of white paint to finish it off.

 Semi-gloss was my pick and just in case you don't have a particular brand of paint you like - avoid Glidden. I got awful results painting natural wood with Glidden, horrible coverage.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Full disclosure here...leaving the fabric on the chair is not correct reupholstery protocol. When it's done correctly you should technically be able to remove the fabric and put a different material back on without losing the shape of the chair. The people at the upholstery shop can do it...obviously it isn't rocket science, but they charge you for it.  

This is just what worked for me, I've tried it on a few different things and when I found myself in a pinch needing a chair - I liked this approach best. 

SO, that being said - the next post will simply delve deeper into my wonky half-crazed methods, I'll show you how I attached the fabric and then the cording. I'll be painfully honest with what worked and didn't work and hopefully it'll work for you. 

That's all for this post - believe it or not these steps alone can be very time consuming if you're making a conscious effort not to give yourself multiple puncture wounds and/or lacerations.

 Be patient and don't get sloppy - if you aren't having fun, give it a break. I put this chair away for 2 or 3 months between painting the frame and putting on the new fabric and came at it with renewed enthusiasm when I pulled it back out. 

Shout out for renewed enthusiasm. 

If you give this a shot  please show me pictures! I'd love to see how your chair turns out...

- Rae  

Madame Blueberry & Listlessness

We've all done it. You're cruising along, everything's groovy and it hits you like a...I can't think of 

anything. It just hits you, ok? You get it into your head that it's a fantastic idea to go to the store. Because, 

why not? It's therapeutic, you get to look at cute junk, you might run into someone you know...Just kidding 

about that last one. I have nightmares about running into people I know at the store. I had a bad experience. True story.

Edit: Okay as I was kindly reminded, shopping is not therapeutic for everyone...shoot, shopping is rarely therapeutic for me, what's therapeutic is finding what I was looking for. I would have to be in a mood to feel like describing shopping as exclusively a "therapeutic" pastime...like, a really rich mood or something. Anyway - my point is that everyone has a place. Whether it's a book store, clothing store, fabric store, fireworks store or an extremely obscure sci-fi paraphernalia online store, there's a soft spot for everyone that makes purchasing something, whatever that may be, enticing. So...back to shopping... .>>>

Another perk of random shopping is that there's a slight possibility you might stumble across something you've been wanting, or maybe you'll find something you didn't know you wanted yet. Spoiler: That last one can be a problem child. 

Any other Veggie Tales viewers out there? I grew up with 4 younger siblings so I could maybe blame it on

them, but truthfully we were all passionate about the singing produce with good values. Madame Blueberry

was one of those stories that just gets to you. She goes to Stuff Mart and buys and buys and buys, this is

after an extreme emotional breakdown over her lack of stuff. In the end she destroys her own home by

bringing in too many things she never even needed.

Moral of the story: Life as a blueberry isn't fun. No, well I mean, yes - just think of Violet Beauregard...

Violet, you're turning VIOLET, Violet! But, no.

 Ok actually in the case of Madame Blueberry the moral is that materialism isn't the road to happiness and that we should be grateful for what we have, but that's sort of a given. My point is that it's helpful to have an idea of what you're looking for and what you need. 

When I just stroll through a store (which I sometimes do, it isn't intrinsically evil) without an idea of what I'm looking for or without a list of things I need, it's not out of the ordinary for me to come home with an odd conglomeration of stuff that does nothing more than contribute to my husband's opinion that I am a weirdo. That's his story and he's sticking to it. 

It's a good idea to have a list. 

It can be a list with weird stuff on it, then it's organized weirdness instead of stream of consciousness weirdness which is what can start happening when you just shop without direction. 

Application: I'm excited about fall. Really excited, it's my favorite time of year and those are my favorite clothes to wear. Leggings, boots, sweaters, scarves, what I'm describing here is what fall is supposed to require not the 80 degree fall weather we can expect. Bless our hearts. We try. 

I just finished writing a list of probably 20 things I could use this fall/winter season. I most likely won't get everything on the list, probably not even close. But now when I go shopping I have a reference point pertaining to what I need. 

This isn't a hard fast rule, but it's certainly helpful if you enjoy shopping. Just jot down stuff you want or are looking for so when the urge hits you, you can shop with confidence and not destroy your home with loads of weird stuff you don't need like Madame Blueberry did. It could happen, have you seen Hoarders? What Not to Wear? Okay then. 

5 things on my list right now: 

Gray cardigan

Lace up black or charcoal boots 

Red skinny jeans 

Ankle boots 

Long sweaters to pair with leggings (This counts as one item, don't think about it). 

Love,

The Weirdo.   

   

Weekend Re-cap, Oh My.

Here's the long and the short of it...I got hit with a variety of things this weekend, namely an overwhelming amount of peaches that needed to be peeled, sliced, and then either frozen, preserved or canned. A bright spot on this weekend (and this whole week for that matter) is that one of my best friends is visiting from Colorado, and secondly my sister is celebrating her 1 year marriage anniversary. Two wins.
There always has to be a balance...and I guess I was just having too much fun this weekend so in order to maintain the natural order of things it was necessary for me to come down with an unfortunate 24 hour bug of some sort (I am currently an incubus of viral plague). When all was said and done - the chair tutorial I promised had to be put on a back burner for a while. 

So I'll just share a little bit of what did happen this weekend in spite of the failed tutorial...

Canning is really labor intensive, I'm a newbie and it took me forever. My kitchen also looked like it got nailed by a howitzer by the time I was finished.

There's a place in Fort Payne, Alabama called Little River Canyon. It's sort of a summer tradition of ours to throw some towels in the car and go, and it's a blast every single time. 

<welcome, grainy cell phone pictures>

I hope your weekend was great!

Over and Out,

Raebellina 

Bling

This is not typically my style....I'm not a real 'blingy' kind of girl. But this was so cute and so not Hello Kitty bling. 

So I caved.

Express Metallic Clutch 

Retail $60.00

Thrifted $4.00

________________________

$56.00 Saved (WOOT WOOT!) 

So what would you pair this with? 

Risks & Lemonade

Guys,

 it's time to be real.

 I think it's imperative to take risks in life, see below. 

I'm also terrified of heights. No, really. I'm terrified. This photo proves nothing but insanity. 

I'm preparing to get all philosophical today due in large part to the fact that I had a great hands on object lesson this weekend. Some background... my husband isn't afraid of much, as in...I routinely grill him with questions like "Would you be afraid if you were blind, and someone put you in a room full of silent creeping spiders that could kill you...cause Brad, you can't see them coming....scary, right?" or "Brad...would you be scared of going through an obstacle course where they beat you with bee stingers if you didn't run fast enough?"  Apparently not. Obviously, Brad has a plethora of things he would prefer to avoid, but he's not characterized as being fearful. This is still totally foreign to me, after knowing him since I was 9. It continues to take a bit of mind bending for me to comprehend the idea of not being fearful.  

I'm scared of more things than I can count. To keep it concise, I'll just stick with risks. I'm afraid of risks. Jumping out of a plane at 14,000 is a little different than discussing the hypothetical risks involved in blind spider dodging but a risk is a risk, and I'm scared of all of them.

Story time: Sunday afternoon, Brad and I went kayaking... it had been a while and we couldn't wait to get back in the water. So, in we went - helmets, paddles, and life jackets (mine was too big so I felt a lot like Randy from A Christmas Story floating down the river). The first few rapids were great, in fact the whole river was great up until the very end. Right before the take out we went over the biggest rapid and then decided to play there a bit longer, taking the kayaks back through and repeating the falls a few times. The third or fourth time down, wait for it.... my kayak flipped (huge surprise, y'know since I was only going over rapids in a river, right). I'd love to tell you that I was super cool about it and just flipped that sucker back over, but, no. I freaked. I threw my paddle, I gulped water, I watched rocks and creepy fish swirl by my head and freaked a little more...(Note: not having a paddle makes flipping upright a bit harder... so as tempting as it might be, don't throw it like a javelin in a panic when you start to go over like I did. You're welcome, this moment brought to you by Kayaking Ineptitude Anonymous) Eventually my kayak skirt pulled of and I bobbed to the top, thanks to my Randy attire. I took deep breaths and pulled my flooded kayak off to the side of the river where I sat and tried to calm down. There's a point to this besides me being traumatized, promise. 

     It made me think about risks, I  mean real risks. Not hypothetical silly ones, or even risks involving a kayak accident...I mean taking chances on things and then being willing to learn from the results instead of reacting out of fear and refusing to try again, refusing to stretch yourself more. Oftentimes, taking a chance on something doesn't work out exactly how I imaged it. It doesn't turn out exactly how I wanted it to more often than not, but every single time - I have the opportunity to learn a lesson, and that's life. It's a lemons vs. lemonade situation, you either take the results of a few risks and choose to limit yourself and reduce your own potential by being afraid, or you make some kick-butt lemonade and take away a good lesson. The point here isn't to kayak a class 5 rapid 10 times and drown yourself for good measure. Just be open to trying something new and if it doesn't go as planned, learn from it. It'll be fun. :) 

On a less personal note, arm chair tutorial coming up later this week! 

 - Rae 

The Fourth of July and Peach Cobbler

The Fourth of July kicked off with the traditional pilgrimage to the Marietta Parade. This is the one day out of the year when, as a family, we gather and ritualistically consume doughnuts and drink orange juice while cheering on the drum line, high school bands, politicians (it is, after all, an election year as I was often reminded) and Southern Belles.

On the subject of Southern Belles, I met a guy from Toronto on Tuesday evening who had no idea what my husband and I were referring to when we described the flock of frilled women we yearly anticipate at our beloved parade. If you don't have a mental image, let me help you. Think fifty living, breathing Easter eggs trussed up in frills, white gloves, puffed sleeves (we're talking Anne of Green Gables, but bigger) and wide brimmed hats. They march with prim and tottering determination down the hot asphalt of Main Street, embodying the antebellum image of femininity and reminding us once again of how grateful we are that fashion has evolved. 

Personally I'm convinced that a heat stroke is inevitable, hoop skirts aren't really well ventilated contrary to popular belief. 

This is Husband and Grandmama. As you can see, Husband is part of the mafia.

Just kidding. 

The Fourth, overall was a success, there were fireworks, grilled burgers and crazed summer cannonballs into the pool. You know the type, that cannonball you pull out when you totally forget the fact that anything in life matters apart from making the biggest splash known to mankind. ever. It was a good day. 

The Fourth of July was also the day on which we were able to pick the first peaches off our lovely little tree. 

They went from this

To this... 

Peach cobbler time, y'all. 

In sharing this recipe it's also necessary to share that I don't eat wheat. I'm allergic to the stuff so I've been gluten/wheat free for about a year and a half now. Before you scroll away because of the overwhelming sadness you feel at the idea of living without bread, doughnuts and chocolate chip cookies, try this. A mission of mine is to create the yummiest most delicious food I can in spite of the restraints of avoiding wheat and this is a favorite around here, in all its gluten free glory. Brad is quite the critic too, so give it a shot or make the wheat-filled version and be happy! 

Side note: This recipe has a stick of butter in it. Gluten free doesn't equal healthy. Now, back to being a hoggit... 

Gluten Free Peach Cobbler 

2 cans sliced peaches - drain the syrup or 6 fresh peeled and sliced peaches 

1/4 cup milk (optional) 

1 cup sugar 

1 stick butter - straight from the fridge 

1 cup gluten free Bisquick Baking Mix (Ok, I've used everything from a cup of oatmeal I stick in the food processor and make a sort of flour out of, to a cup of rice flour - the baking mix is just easier than anything else since you can dump it in and go) 

^^ This is where you can sub in a cup of normal white wheat flour if you aren't into the whole gluten free thing, self-rising works best. 

Preheat your oven to 350 

Mix your dry ingredients together in a bowl, cut your butter into pieces and then either combine with the dry ingredients using a fork and your super human strength, or your (clean) hands. The result is a crumbly butter/sugar topping. 

Next, put the peaches in the bottom of a baking dish and pour the milk over the top, or if you feel like this thing doesn't have enough calories yet, use heavy whipping cream. Sprinkle the butter/sugar mixture on top and put the whole glorious thing in the oven for 35 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Serve with ice cream and a pillow so if you faint from happiness you don't hurt yourself. 

 Lots of love, 

Rae  

Papa, Don't Preach -Thrifting-

Lets talk thrift stores. There are a few things it's important to keep in mind when you plan your initial attack - most of these go unsaid, but, I'm saying them. Cause that's how I roll. Word up.

I'm hip. 

Moving on... 

These are some of the thrifting amigas.

This, obviously is not at a thrift store. Good observation. But these are the people I hit up when I need thrifting buddies. We have fun. 

Here they are again. 

and again, plus some more fun peeps > > >

     Sorry - getting distracted. Anyway, these are some of the things we've learned through trial and error thrifting endeavors with one another - they might be useful for first-time thrifters. If you're a savvy thrifter then read through and let me know if you have any more tips to add in the comments! 

- Pick your store 

This often goes hand in hand with picking quality items. You will make finding higher-quality items much easier on yourself if you look for thrift stores in nicer areas. Makes sense, right? This isn't to say that you can't find great buys in less glitzy areas - but your odds aren't as good. This whole process of finding the store you want to shop is trial and error because nicer areas sometimes just equal higher prices, not higher quality. Just keep it in mind... 

We have been known to map out 4 or 5 thrift stores in a day with circles and arrows diagramming where we are most likely to get the best booty. Booty...as in merchandise...not...never mind. 

- Expectations... Don't expect to be able to peruse aisles or racks divided up by sizes, this can be daunting but don't lose heart... 

- Ask for discounts! "But Rae...honey, maybe you somehow missed the price tag because it's so teensy. Obviously it's already discounted...like...a lot...." I'm totally tracking with you here, but if there's something wrong with what you find whether it's clothing or furniture - not enough to dissuade you from buying it, do yourself a favor and ask for a discount. The worse thing they can do is tell you no. 

- Don't settle...I know this may seem to totally contradict the previous suggestion, but work with me here. If you find something and notice right off that it's worn out, faded and ratty but you've been looking for something just like it for a while - I would tell you to wait. Nine times out of ten you will come across something in better condition that gets the job done within a week or two if you look for it. Your call, but remember that the goal is not to look like you're wearing someone else's worn out clothes.
- Avoid thrift store underwear.

Look, they wouldn't sell it if people didn't buy it, so I feel like it's my duty to get that out there. 

Don't. Do it. If you can't buy yourself a new pair of panties and have moral qualms about going commando, send me a message - I'll hook you up with some undies.
- Own it! Thrifting is not or everyone. Some people think it's gross, some people think it's awesome. That tends to be hit or miss but your attitude about it can go a long way. Start with something small like a belt, or a piece of jewelry and if it works for you, that's great. If, on the other hand you find that you have issues with saving tons of money, I'm afraid you're beyond any help I can offer.

  Leave Some Love,

Rae 

Confessions of a Tight Wad

I am a tight wad. 

      There, I've said it, it's out there - now we can bless that phrase for coming out in public and perhaps come up with a different one that doesn't make me feel quite so much like this beloved character?

I'll be giving it some thought... 

Here's the point, I like saving money, which unfortunately diabolically opposes this deeply ingrained desire I have to spend money. I also have this penchant for pretty things - clothes, shoes, jewelry, candlesticks, furniture...as a general rule I like to spend money on aesthetically pleasing items. I feel like I can safely say that this is a widespread dilemma.

      Now, take all of those things and add in the mix a pet peeve pertaining to inflated prices and clearance racks that, contrary to the name - are capable of wiping out any hope of a financially secure future in one "discounted" swoop. What are we left with...? Class? Anyone....?

Two options.

Dumpster diving, and thrift stores. As a person well equipped to take a stance on both issues (don't worry about it...I'll cover dumpsters in another post), thrifting is the way to go. Always. 

Ok, lets kick things off, shall we? We'll start by meeting some of my favorite thrifted items, in no particular order.

1. This chair...he used to have navy blue upholstery with dark natural wood. Since I think it's best to be honest, I don't mind telling you he used to be on the dark side of hideous.

(FYI: "Reupholstering wing-back chairs" coming soon to a blog near you)   

 I already had white paint, so the total cost for this guy was $13.00 + $5.00 (fabric) = $18.00 

I'm choosing not to assign a monetary sum to the experience of shooting myself in the foot with a nail gun, some costs are better left uncounted. 

2. This thing? It's like a race car on my counter. I registered for a red one when I got engaged and although we received tons of lovely gifts - this wasn't one of them. I wasn't surprised since retail value for one of these mixers plus all of the attachments is easily over $360.00 

  I picked this up along with 5 attachments for $25.00...saving myself $335.00. Moment of silence please.  




3. This shirt, it has embroidery and a drawstring. These two things alone make it lovely, the fact that it still had a tag on it when I bought it also didn't hurt. The clincher was that in my limited knowledge...it seems like it might work as a maternity shirt if, y'know, that became a need....whatever though.  

Purchased for $3.99 

Retail Price $245.00 

Savings = $241.01

So, what's the point. So far you've been shown savings of $596.01 and a lovely view of my laminate counter tops. How is this supposed to help you? I want to share a little slice of my life with you and along the way show you how to successfully search out deals, see the potential in things that might not look so great at first glance and steer clear of things that give thrift shopping a bad name (see XXXL Tweety Bird t-shirts). Thrifting and the whole scary world of doing-it-yourself is not for everyone, but if you're interested or just want to observe my sometimes comical efforts, hang around. I'm just getting warmed up.

Over and Out,

Rae