A Rustic Star

The other day I found this rustic 30" star at the Craft Warehouse after trying to find one for several months. I've been wanting one to paint pink and put some roses on it. I would have liked to use a decal but I think it would fade in the light so I am going to handpaint some on this and hang it out front somewhere. This is how far I've gotten today though.

It's actually pink but the sun was so bright the photo didn't come out as I wanted it to.

This is the true color. Funny how that worked out in the photos.

Musing on Passions Today

Doubt??? What's that?! Has anyone ever had doubts? Me??? Nuuuuuuu, never a one. I'm simply the poster girl for doubt on some things. For instance, painting a rose. I've tried for a couple of years to paint a rose and have finally arrived at the point where I realized I could embarrass myself only so much by posting my paintings. I don't sell any, just do them for friends and myself. But recently I started having self-doubt again. Oh, not just about rose painting, but something else. It has almost paralyzed me. That's how bad it was. Here's the story.

I've seen some gorgeous aprons on the blogs and thought "I can do that" because it's one of my favorite things to do—make aprons. So I made one and think I've displayed it on one of my blogs (memory isn't what it used to be, chicks!) and thought I'd submit it in a sort of contest to see if it can get into a magazine. I made it months ago but still have not submitted it. Fear of rejection is alive and well and breeding in my mind. :-) Well, I finally contacted a blogger who had one of hers published and asked what the process was. She told me and I said to myself to "go for it" because you can't realize a dream if you don't reach beyond your comfort zone. (Hmmmm, can you tell I'm still talking myself into this?) So I've decided that I'll get it into the next day's mail. What have I got to lose? Nothing but the fear of rejection but I'll never know if I don't try. I think most of us have that fear—rejection. But I won't know if I don't try. I'll let you know if they laugh at me. Nuuuuuuu, you'll hear the earth shake with my cries if it isn't published.
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Now, here's what I've been working on lately. It takes a lot of fortitude to display to the world my private world of painting. But I'll never know joy if I don't show them.

These are little plaques that had paper on them. When I hung them outside on the back of the house the paper faded and peeled off. So I painted them white and they've sat in my craft room for almost a year waiting for me to do something with them. This is the day I've decided to do one with a little bird nest and one with just little roses on them. I'll hang them on my front porch when I finish them. PROUDLY!!!! As I'm "conquering" this particular fear!

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Random Thought:

Don't let the voice of critics paralyze you.

Sheer Rosettes For the Gazebo

I started off making little rosettes out of the sheers I bought at WM for $4.75 each, tied them with gossamer sheer pink organza ribbon over a rubber band that secured them while I tied on the ribbon. I'm going to find pretty roses that aren't too expensive to put on there also.

They look lovely hanging and blowing in the freeze. Hubs suggested little string lights and I'm going to do that along with some pretty ivy or some kind of foliage that doesn't look too cheap either if I can find some this afternoon.

A close up of the top of the sheer rosette. If you look closely you can see the hook on which I plan on hanging some candle lanterns I made out of old jars. I just have to figure out how to hang all 5 of them! Trust me, I can do it.

Here you can see the huge finial at the top. Squeeeeeeal..... I'm loving this in my back yard.

Okay, so patience isn't a virtue I've conquered yet! I went out this afternoon, found some ivy at WM and went ahead and added the faux ivy garland since hubs is not home yet for dinner. This chick is on a roll today! Found some pretty flowers but didn't have time to add them at the same time. I'm loving it even more!

Closer view of the top.

I even bought this little wind chime at Michaels at 50% off and it produces the most melodious tinkling sound.

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Random Thought:

Fettucini Alfredo is macaroni and cheese for adults.

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My Gazebo and Bedroom Wall

Love Bunny is putting up the gazebo here. He's 6'2" tall so you can see how tall the gazebo is. Squeeeeeeeeal!! I'm so excited about this. It was at a local craft store on here in the west called Craft Warehouse on sale for $200.00 and I grabbed it. I plan on moving it out further from the house but since we have a typical "western" small lot it won't be moved too much farther. Just in front of the quaking aspens I think. I may plant some roses around it. I just don't know. Any suggestions??? I'm open, chicks, to any advice.

The dome has a huge hook that can hold lanterns and a huge finial up there. This is a metal gazebo and very sturdy. I plan on hanging sheers down 4 sides of it. I'll post back when I get that done.

Our apple tree is finally producing some fruit that doesn't have bugs in it......I think. But this is the farthest it's gotten so far after 3 summers. We planted it in 2005 and it was small. I'm so thrilled that something I planted is not dying!

Okay, so one apple has something on the skin. Could be a bruise. I hope it's not a worm. Hubs has sprayed that tree 3 times this year to protect it.

I thought instead of adding spanish moss to these coconut husks I'd paint them instead. So I picked up a can of green "foliage" spray paint and took them out back and sprayed them green. It helped with the smell of the coconut husks and also looks better than the brown husk color.

I contacted a man the other day about painting our bedroom, master bath and walk-in closet. But I received a painting from Gail in Australia (it's gorgeous, btw!) and decided that it would look best over the bed since it's a painting of a bedroom. When I saw the painting I knew it was mine. How sweet of her to sell it to me! I just love the softness of it over my bed. I needed something bigger to frame it though so I set off for Michaels and purchased a huge frame at 50% off and then got another 40% off with a coupon. Squeeeeeeeeal and score!! My kinda deal, chicks. It was black so I had to spray paint it white but no big deal except that there's a rectangle in my back yard that has dark green, pink AND white paint. It'll grow and be cut in the next week so no big deal for Love Bunny. Now I need for the painter to come and paint it and then I'll start hanging stuff back up there. Needs more than that frame and picture.

Gail was kind enough to include a tag and some little prints of her paintings. I think I'll frame them also and include them in the larger frame also. We'll see how inspired I can get.

The Front Porch Railing Redo for Pink Saturday

Once again, it's Pink Saturday so be sure and visit with Beverly at howsweetthesound for all this week's participants.
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I thought I'd put these little hanging pots on the porch railing for visual interest. Now, mind you, these were at Joanns at 60% off so how could I pass them up? Even if they had the dreadful coconut husks in them, but I spritzed them with a room deodorizer before I started working on them. I also put some potting soil in them just to have something to stick the faux roses and dahlias in. That was hubs suggestion! Worked well and we certainly have an abundance of soil around this place.

Love Bunny wired them to the railing and I then added the soil and stuck in the flowers. Here they are before I added some greenery.

I then added little sprigs of old greenery I have around for various projects and crafts. Worked out quite well I think.

Close up of the left one. Next time I get to WM I'm going to get some spanish moss and put it in front of coconut husks. I don't like that look but am too lazy to go out anymore today.

Close up view of both.

Coming out my front door this is the view I get.

I think it adds just about the right amount of pizzazz to the front, don't you?