...pink elephants and marshmallows??!

...hello bloggy friends!

this is a random W.W. post

do you ever feel

well ~

heavy??

i'm not talkin' about how you feel,

after you eat that decadent raspberry brownie,

iced with glorious chocolate ganache

sitting on your counter,

tauntingly wooing you either!!

i didn't say guilty

just heavy...

 

in thought...

hhmmmm...

now i'm stuck on those raspberry brownies ~ LOL!!

moving on ~

isn't this little pink elephant toooo adorable??

   

her name is ellie

i saw her one day while visiting Vivianne's blog

the old pincushion

and wanted her for my very own.

so,

i ordered a kit to make her from her etsy shop

all her little mohair friend are toooo sweet!

i could just eat them up...

eeerrrr....

well ~

maybe just hug and squeeze them all,

fuzzies don't really taste good!

would you believe

that she is only 4 little inches??

 her legs and arms move too

   

my daughter stitched her up,

as she grew weary with waiting for me to get to her!

i * love * how she turned out...

i'm thinkin' she needs a friend.

perhaps in a soft blue gray or oatmeal color.

i may even call him edmund! 

(edmund likes turkish delight)

 

well,

i'm not so sure about that turkish delight

but let's say like, marshmallows,

and i'm there!

random huh?!

(is it me, or do you think i have a sweet tooth today??!)

and sorry to disappoint,

but this is not about

REAL

ooey, gooey marshmallows

although

let me just say

there is NO

i repeat

NO comparison to homemade marshmallows vs. store bought ones!

i'll share the recipe someday...

but rather,

this is about the color of marshmallows

i imagine right about now,

 you are saying to yourself ~

what in the world is she onto now?!

and to that i would respond

this:

  

and just WHAT is this?!

why my darlings,

THIS is my faux grain sack

i love the look of it,

and needed alot of it for a project

soooo,

i set off to duplicate the look,

for less.

i took a canvas drop cloth

and washed it

washed it again

and on the third time

i added "non-chlorine" to the wash

(which is really just peroxide)

a good half of the gallon.

this softens and lightens :)

then,

i used painters tape to help me make the stripes

like so:

taping it to the floor

 also helped it from shifting.

 now i'm painting the "marshmallow" stripe

no seriously,

that is the paint color

:)

rollin' rollin' rollin'

keep your paintbrush rollin'!!

let dry overnight

remove tape

...recalculating...

place more blue tape down the center

and

paint again!

whew!

let dry again, overnight

and look!!

faux grain sack cloth...

bet you're wondering what i'm going to do with it now, huh?

well, on thursday

 i will be revealing

 my jeanne d'arc like

"rose-Mary" french rocking chair!!

aahhhhh...

my bad??!

okay,

i'll give you my inspiration shot

i told you it was a random kinda day:)

sharing this with Faded Charm's: White Wednesday

here's to raspberry brownies!!

...my lush garden window box ~ a diy weekend project

hello girlie girls!!

i trust that you all had a perfectly nice extended weekend:)

hubby o'mine and i decided

that we needed a little more

green in our courtyard

so we took full advantage of the "extra" day

and set out to install

a lush garden window box

 

 

these are all the pretty plants that i had placed around the courtyard

earlier this spring,

but was finding the days growing hotter

and felt it was time to "plant them" in some soil

as i do enjoy their greenery and pretty flowers:)

  

this is the bland corner in our courtyard

and

here's where the "window box" comes in!

when my peeps were younger

dear hubby built them a sand box to play in

now as you know,

Nathan just graduated HS

soooo

yah no

i don't think he's got any interest in the sand box anymore!!

and yes,

we should have let it go years back!

but we didn't!

that being said,

we took inventory of supplies we already had on hand

and thought

why not plant a window box???

  and so we did...

  

now most of you know,

that for the present moment

we are renting this lovely home

so anything we do needs to be

well

temporary...

as you just never know when those north winds are going to come blowin'!!

so we placed the "window box" in the courtyard corner,

laid some landscape fabric on the inside

and stapled it aallll the way around to secure it like so...

next,

we placed our fountain base up on cement blocks

to raise it up a bit...

then hubby o'mine installed a water line

that comes on automatically every other day

and it will also refill the fountain bowl

(such a smart hubby!)

   

next came the rock base for drainage...

roses hate wet roots!!

 dust~y!!

 

and then we placed all the plants around

to see just how we wanted to see them...

there is a white, double flower, clematis that you can't see just yet

but it will climb on that back trellis,

 between the arborvitae bushes,

and on each side there are the rose trees that will bloom white roses

then there is the fabulous smelling lavenders

and up front pretty, white mini carnations...

 

after a few minor adjustments,

we planted them in some good soil,

and then added a layer of mulch for moisture retention

(it gets realllly HOT here)

((a DRY hot!!))

(((so hot, as soon as you step outside, you feel like a dried apricot!!)))

 

i had forgotten about these strands of star lights

which were tucked away

until hubby rounded the corner with them ~

dangling in his hands ~

and a BIG smile on his face!!

(such a romantic thought!)

so now,

 when we sit out in the courtyard,

it will always be "under the stars"

sweet, summer romance!

  

i'm still deciding  on this hand blown fairy ball...

perhaps a bit much?

and i need to do a little touch up paint job

                                                                               but,

what is your opinion??

  

 i must say,

we are really enjoying our new

lush garden window box

although i don't think we could hang this baby off of the house!

and the fact that my children once played within that box

makes it even more sentimental :)

sharing this post with

Faded Charm's: White Wednesday

here's to thinking "outside of the box"

lol!!

...an elegant Easter table reveal and handmade artisan treats!

...oh happy day!!

hello dear peeps ~

won't you come in for my Easter table reveal?!

I still have a few tweaks here and there,

but

for the most part,

my table is set.

there are a lot of pictures

so here we go...

It will just be the four of us this year.

Most of our family lives in Ohio

and with the rising costs of

EVERYTHING

it gets harder and harder to return for a visit :(

So,

I do the best I can to make a beautiful day

here is my ruffled tablecloth all ironed...

and see lovely lambie?

  

oh yes,

do come closer

...don't be shy!

as I am a visual kinda girl,

it helps me to see the end result,

if I place my table pretties before hand.

it also makes it easier to plan a delicious menu!

Like this little glass platter

I will thread lush, juicy fruit upon these acrylic gem pics

  

and fabulously good deviled eggs will be on this dish...

hhhhmmmm....

did you ever wonder why deviled eggs are called "deviled eggs"

I mean,

why not call them whipped yolk eggs instead??!

well, I guess in this instance

it could be another symbolism...

Christ defeated death,

so the Devil has been whipped!!

(well, it's true!))

moving on...

ruffly edged dishes that will soon hold yummy morsels on them...

  

I can't stop looking at lovely lambie...

this vintage champagne bucket

conatins the plant

"summer snow"

and have you ever seen a chocolate egg with the serenity prayer on it??

  

well, I sure never had

until now,

and of all places

I found it at Wal-mart!

  

doesn't lambie look happy there?!

  

 for me,

an elegant table is not complete without some candlelight

I think it makes everything look beautiful

see that pretty lacy egg??

would you guess that it is a real, hand blown one?

every Easter,

for as long as I can remember,

I have seen lamb cookies at my Grandmother's Easter table,

and then my dear Mia's table,

and now, at my Easter table...

this year, I added a cross cookie too...

I really enjoyed making these dear cookies

as it was a way for me to be with my Grandmother

who is no longer here,

and to be with my Mom,

who is in Ohio...

far away in miles ~

but sooo very close in my heart!

 a family Easter tradition that I hope continues on with my young adults.

you may be asking yourself,

what the??!!

these are the ribbons that go around each and every lambie cookie...

little bells,

and

little crosses

see my flock?

I have two trays of these lemon shortbread lambies,

just in case any one stops by for a treat

  

won't YOU be coming??!!

frolicking lambs

and

edible lace palm crosses

  

these are new this year!

I really like how they turned out:)

I brushed them with sparkle powder and added a tiny white candy rose...

as my peeps are older now,

big baskets are out!

So

this year I have chosen these french flower baskets

instead

  

I am working on these today

perhaps I shall seek some more velvet violets for the flowers instead

but

I will be whitewashing them

and adding a different french

treehouse toile image to the fronts of them

and then tie them to the backs of my dining room chairs.

Are you wondering

perhaps ~

and just what shall I be putting in them??

well,

I have been making handmade,

artisan treats this entire week to fill them up with!

let's see,

there's...

chocolate dipped potato chips...

one of my fav's

yes,

 it's true,

I'm one of those salty sweet girls :)

  

and then we have

dark chocolate covered,

organic lavender, pretzel rods...

  

yummmm!

and

white chocolate crosses

brushed with lilac and pearl, edible sparkle powder...

along with these chocolate lambies...

I just couldn't resist em!

  

aren't they too cute?!!

as well as some other little happy

non edible treats

like iTunes gift cards and other stuffs teenagers like:)

whew!!

we made it to the end...

I have so enjoyed sharing my favoritest holiday with all of you!

Each and every one of your comments,

through out all my Easter projects,

 have enriched this Easter even more for me

and I thank you sooo very much for your blog love:)

I would like to wish

~ every one of you ~

a most lovely Easter,

however you celebrate it,

and hope that this season,

I have offered some inspirations,

to enrich your days in return :)

I will be sharing this post with:

Common Ground's: Vintage Inspiration Friday

French Country Cottage's: Feathered Nest Friday

A Rosy Note's: Photo Texture Friday

(on most of my pictures, I have used a macro lens

with Kim Klassens, silence, texture overlay

set at soft light:aprox. 50%

and a few of Jerry Jones's textures... 

set at many different settings and blending modes.)

here's to a most joyous Easter weekend!