...a white lace swan throw and lilac roses

...hello my dears

i must apologize for my infrequent posts

my desire for this blog

has always been to try and uplift you

and not to bring you

d

o

w

n

(ocean song roses)

i appreciate when you come by for a visit

and leave me your happy little sentiments

but i also feel it's important to be an authentically real girl too...

and let's face it

even in fairytales ~

crap happens!!

 

so here it is

in a nutshell:

things have not been going as we had hoped for our housing search

i will not bore you with the legistics of it all

but sum it up to only say ~

we have hit a snag

and we are on standby.

and quite honestly

i.  am.  depleated.

 

 

i don't know when

i don't know where

i don't know how

but i have taken a few steps back to ponder it all...

hence my absence

 

to keep my sanity,

as i pack it all up

~ AGAIN ~

i have been filling my spare moments with creative things 

...baking

(can we say sand dollar cookies?)

creating...

(lots o' sea earrings!!)

and

~ praying ~

 

everyday elegance is what i have to offer you

they are but pieces of who i am.

struggling to remain graceful and full of hope

i created this throw blanket

with what has become my muse

and constant symbol of

"be still and know that I am"

or

"just keep swimming!"

quiet and graceful is she...

 

 

are you surprised that i made her out of lace?!?

LOL!!

i adored Rachel Ashwell's british flag throw blanket

i had seen in a photo at her b&b

and decided to make one that would make my heart stop

 if i ever spied it a shop somewhere,

and throw up and die if i didn't leave without it!

hahahahhah!!

so i gathered up my pile of pretty laundry

and got to work

the background is a lovely, heavy linen throw made in holland

and the cross bands are from a vintage linen tablecloth

it is hard to see it,

but on all my cross bands

there are ethereal ruffles sewn on top, made out of tulle!!

it is exactly as i envisioned it

~ white on white ~

pure ~ clean ~ lovely!!

after it was all done

i didn't have the heart to use it as a throw

so it will become a wall hanging for now

yep,

no hot chocolate spills for this baby!!!

 

in conclusion,

i just want you all to know that i am grateful to have all of you

a collective group of supportive women,

who stop by every now and again

and leave me some sugar:)

and rest assured,
i'll be back with more pretties to share soon :)

~

sharing my white swan throw and lilac roses with

  faded charm's: white wednesday

freckled laundry's: air your laundry friday

 

here's to fractured fairytales!

...peony princess

hello dearest readers!

and

thank you ~

 for visiting the land of odds...

a place,

where you can come to escape into fairyland

even if only for a moment!!

aren't peonies one of the loveliest of flowers?

their season is but fleeting

they no sooner

 delight us with their elegant blooms,

and almost ~

in the blink of an eye,

they are gone...

this year,

i was fortunate to have 32

pink and white peony bushes!!

(do you think the landlord would notice

if i packed them

and took them with me?!?)

LOL!!

 i desired to capture their beauty to behold

as best as i could

so that long after they were spent,

i could still reflect upon their pure beauty!

here are what peonies look like through my eyes...

~ enjoy ~

~ a peony princess ~

climbing a ladder...

to catch a glimpse...

of the rarely seen...

peony bird!

have you ever seen one?

you would know it if you did,

for their nests are spun out of lace!

and oh!

 

what ethereal delight,

to step upon petals so soft and fragrant 

i should think that we were indeed

in fairyland!

could you imagine the feeling of petals upon your toes?!?

sheer bliss...

i loved how this next image looks fluttery

and  the peony petals are suspended in mid air

f-o-r-e-v-e-r!!

and if we were,

 to perchance

d

  r

    e

      a

    m

         .

       .

   .

upon a bed of peony petals...

do you think,

we'd ever wake?!

dreamy delightfulness!!

and that,

my dears,

is what peonies look like through my eyes:)

sharing this with:

brambleberry cottage's: time travel thursday

common ground's: vintage inspiration

french country cottage's: feathered nest friday

romantic home's: show and tell friday

the charm of home's: home sweet home

rooted in thyme's: simple sweet fridays

 

here's to beautiful peonies!!

...diy orchard ladder

...hello sweetums!

do you ever find yourself desiring a prop?

but it's not a prop

that is as simple

as a visit to your local orchard??

(hint, hint)

 you seek high and low

and

STILL

it eludes you

which makes you think of it even more

lol!!

WELL!!

if YOU have been seeking an orchard ladder, my dears

SEEK.

NO.

MORE!

some of you know by now,

that i am a diy kinda girl

so today,

i am going to show you how i made my very own orchard ladder!

here is your 

* materials list *

2 ~ 8 feet sections of 1 x 4 treated lumber

12 feet of 1 1/4" round dowel rod

1 1/4" drill bit and a drill

outdoor wood glue

belt sander/sand paper

1 small can of wood stain in a charcoal gray color

white wash paint

a small box of baking soda 

4 cups of vinegar ~

 to which you have added TWO pieces of steel wool to and have let sit overnight

a pair of rubber gloves

let's begin

first,

clamp your 2

8 foot sections of treated 1" x 4"'s together

and set on a ladder to make your hole drilling easier.

start at the end that will be the bottom of your ladder

take a pencil and write "bottom" on each of your pieces

(this will come in handy later)

then mark your wood

at intervals of 10"

drill 1 1/4" holes at each 10" mark

starting from the bottom,

as i have done here

do this all the way up your ladder

next,

* cutting the rungs *

i gave my ladder a total of 9 rungs

if you want a shorter ladder

simply adjust:)

my longest rung measures 18" long

then 17", 16", etc.

 my 9th and smallest rung being 10"

keeping in mind that 2" will "disappear" into each 1"x 4"  ladder side,

(1" on each side)

now simply start at the bottom

of one of the 1" x 4" 8 foot sections you have drilled

 and put a drizzle of your wood glue in the first hole

 push your largest rung through

until it is flush to the outside edge of your ladder

but not protruding out

repeat this for all the rungs

working your way up

glue drizzle, then the rung

tip:

if you find that some of your rungs are not fitting,

have a piece of sand paper handy

 to take the ends down a little until they do

now move to your other 1" x 4" 8 foot piece that you have drilled

and repeat this process

because your rungs get smaller,

your ladder will just naturally pull in

getting narrower as you go

see,

now that wasn't so bad

was it??

 

i wanted my ladder edges to be softened

as in, no sharp edges

so as hubby o'mine demonstrates here ~

simply take down your edges to your liking,

 with a belt sander...

now,

you may choose to skip this step entirely

UNLESS

 you want your ladder to be weathered looking like i did

if so,

then we are going to faux weather it!

and YES!

it DOES make a difference

put a pair of rubber gloves on

and take 1 of your vinegar/soaking steel wool pieces

and rub your entire ladder with it,

rungs and all

let your ladder sit in the sun for a day to dry

don't throw out your steel wool vinegar yet!

the next day

steel wool it again

but as you go

sprinkle the baking soda as you rub it in

yes,

it will fizz

and smell like rotten eggs

and you may feel as if this a science project gone bad

but just

DO IT!!

let your ladder sit in the sun to dry again.

your ladder should look evenly weathered

and it's color will kinda look like a redwood

now, for the charcoal wood stain

i used a water based stain

and poured some into a disposable bowl

let's say about a cup

i just eyeballed it!

then add warm water to thin the density of the color a bit

about another cup

i wanted a really light gray color ~

like my ladder had been sitting in the orchard for years!

you can always make it darker if it is too light for you

but keep in mind, when you paint this on it looks dark until it dries

you can use a sponge brush or a rag

i started with a sponge brush

but switched over to the rag

it was easier to use

make sure you have your rubber gloves on,

gray fingers are NOT attractive!!)

lol!! 

i liked my first wash of the gray color

so i then gave it a white wash

like i showed you on my french market basket

basically

you will use an white outdoor craft paint

and water it down 2 parts water

then paint it on your ladder

let dry

and ta da!!

you have a lovely orchard ladder of your very own!

ready for your whimsy:)

i hope you enjoy this diy

and let me know if you make one:)

sharing this with:

brambleberry cottage's: time travel thursday

common ground's: vintage inspiration

french country cottage's: feathered nest friday

romantic home's: show and tell friday

the charm of home's: home sweet home

rooted in thyme's: simple sweet fridays

here's to doing it yourself!!

~ white peonies ~

...hello dear hearts!

i've been creating in my studio

mostly,

unfinished projects that i have been wanting

to use to decorate my home...

this is my most recent

~ french market basket ~

isn't it lovely?!?

 

and my orchard ladder

i'll be sharing a diy on friday:)

 

and OH!

the glorious peonies this year!!

i have never had a basket full of them

...until now

 

close up of my basket rose applique

smell here

lol!!

did you smell

just how heavenly the scent of these are

are they not

 i

  n

   t

o

   x

       i

            c

      a

t

        i

   n    

  g

 

~ sigh ~

 

 

dreaminess...

 

 

thank you for your visit today!

now i'm off to the studio

to see what else i can wave my magic wand over:)

 

sharing this post with

faded charm's: white wednesday

here's to a basket full of beautiful peonies!

...a diamond in the rough

~ diamond in the rough ~

i am but a diamond

~ in the rough ~

in this sea of life

constantly being

R-A-V-A-G-E-D

and

s.m.o.o.t.h.e.d.

 by the sands of time

 ~ patience                               

     ~ endurance 

                                        ~ grace      

yes please!

wash over me

as these are traits that i wish to behold

i can only be who i am today

and challenge my own limits

for after all,

i AM my own worst enemy

 just knowing

that my roughened soul

can still be made useful

is enough to spur me on

for that quiet voice within me

whispers gently

...the best is yet to come...

 i sigh with relief

and delight in the thought ~

to be a part of something beautiful...

but today,

i.

         am.

                        still.

just a...

~ the end ~

sharing this musing with

faded charm's: white wednesday

here's to the sands of time!