Wall art x2

I "finished" 2 new paintings for our sitting room. Yay the walls aren't naked anymore!


I wrote"finished" because I don't feel like they are quite there yet, but that's pretty typical with me and my paintings.

They are a panoramic view of one our favorite stretches of land here. They usually have cows visible on the hillside, and about a thousand ground squirrels. The grass on the hillside gets so long in the spring that it moves like waves in the wind.








I don't frame my paintings, as the canvases wrap all the way around with hidden staples so I paint the edges. Also because frames are EXPENSIVE. So for now they are frame-less.

Photo Pin Board

I revamped our Laundry Hall pin board into something I actually want to look at, and it only cost me $6.00!
Okay so the pin board was free, it was left in our garage when we bought the place, and I had all of the photos already. So all I had to buy was the large wooden "B" and the white/colored and textured card stock via Michaels Crafts.
Side note: I love that you can pretty much print out a 40% or 50% off one item coupon every time you go into a Micheals on their website! I bought a roll of jute twine with my discount.

Here it was before as I started to take it apart on the floor. Basically a bunch of old memorabilia of our youth and some photos of friends.




I white washed the frame for a little contrast with the cork using acrylic craft paint and water.
I cut out all the photos and backed them with gray, white, and blue card-stock backings. Like faux mats.

Now its a collage of mostly our wedding photos, some silly high school images with friends, including our Senior class photos. Also a few of our favorite things, like Baxter, Mr. B's new '66 Triumph bike and of course a Jamaica Blue Coffee sticker (the best coffee in the world).


I was going to paint the "B" with a shade of gray or blue, but I left it white for now. All the pictures are pinned up with T-pins.


Doing laundry is just a little bit better now that I get to look at this :)

Outdoor love

Despite my seasonal allergies, I love being outside in this weather. This weekend it was in the high 80's and just perfect! I spent the majority of my time laying out on our outdoor lounge chairs with a girlfriend and Baxter.

I have been lightly fixing up our outdoor space now that we can actually enjoy it again.
This old wooden bowl from India was picked up on sale from a local import shop that is perpetually having a sale, and actually has really great pricing. I filled it with glass fisherman floats wrapped in jute rope from Pottery Barn, and a conch shell I picked up years ago from the Caribbean.






Right outside our backdoor I hung this chalkboard up last year. It was given to me from a good friend that works at our local bar.
Not so into the Malibu brand advert on the frame, I busted out my bright acrylics and went full theme on it.




Now it very simply says "La Cantina" and in bright Macaw colors that you know I love so much!


Okay, I'm ready for summer.

Tablecloth or Runner?

It's really not quite either is it? But I still love it!
Mostly because its burlap and I have an obsession...


While returning a rug at Pottery Barn last week I saw these wide burlap table runners on display and also for sale in store, but unfortunately not on their website, so I can't share my inspiration. They were $39.00. They layered faux fishing nets on top and all sorts of nautical decor, think starfish. Of course it was an outdoor table dream come true. So I thought...I have an extra bit of burlap and I could throw that on top of my outside table!
So I did, and its not exactly wide enough for a tablecloth and a little too wide for a runner, but who makes the rules anyway? I think it looks good, and for something I picked up at the hardware store for another project, (seen here) I think it is just right. I might add a few new decor items on top if I find some while hunting at garage sales this spring.