Test and Success

You know what's super easy?  Making a bouquet! 

Last week, I accepted a new job, so Michael had some congratulatory flowers waiting for me when I got home from work.  By the time the flowers were on the decline this week, I figured that it was a perfect opportunity to try my hand at making a bouquet. 

After stripping the stems of their leaves, I bundled the flowers together at a similar height and wound the stems with some beading wire (I didn't have a floral wire on hand). 

Then, I cut all of the stems to a uniform length.

Finally, I wrapped the stems in a ribbon and tied a bow.  How easy?!  This certainly bolsters my confidence on moving forward with my DIY flowers plan for my wedding. 

Pitiful Me

I'm not sure if I've fully expounded upon it before on this blog, but I absolutely hate the cold weather.  So, you can imagine how much it perks me up when the weather starts to turn beautiful.  Well, today is absolutely gorgeous.  Sunny.  Highs in the 70s.  Things are budding/blooming!

my walk to the Metro this morning

Unfortunately, this is where I've spent my day (and where I'll be spending my tomorrow)...

my cubicle

Pity me. 

M.I.A.

I feel like I've been a little M.I.A. on the crafting lately, which I guess is sort of an unfair assessment given the fact that I reupholstered and repainted a chair and revamped a mirror last weekend.  Maybe I just feel impending M.I.A.-ness.  That is, I realized that I've been fairly prolific in identifying and planning crafts for the wedding but not so much in actually completeing them.  Michael points this fact out to me often.  This means that I have to get down to business and knock some of these things off of my to-do list, which likely means a little less miscellaneous crafting which I can feature here on the blog.  (Not to mention that improving weather will undoubtedly lure me away from the confines of my tiny condo.)

My first order of business has been to finish my centerpieces.  This is really where my Anna Maria Horner fabrics will shine.  I'm reticent to share the final product, but I can say that it's vaguely inspired by this tutorial from Martha Stewart and involves way more bias tape than I ever imagined.  After a couple of solid days of work (last Sunday and today), I'm just shy of being done with this project and able to move onto the next one.

We all know that I love bias tape, but in the process of executing my wedding projects, I think I've made and used around 500 feet of bias tape.  Yeah, you read that right.  It's almost enough to turn me sour on bias tape altogether, but alas, that has not yet happened. 

Here are a few shots of my process for your viewing pleasure. 

This is what 200 feet of bias tape looks like!

New Mirror + A Diet Buster

As you may recall, I picked up a nice mirror last weekend at Goodwill.  I wasn't completely into the shabby chic finish on the mirror.

So, I painted the mirror using glossy white paint.

It turned out pretty nice, but the texture is still a little more rustic than I'd like. For now, though, I think I'll keep it.

Last Sunday, I also took the opportunity to make this Cappuccino Fudge Cheesecake that was featured on Smitten Kitchen. Normally, I find the recipes on Smitten Kitchen a little intimidating, but this cake just looked so freakin' good that I had to try it.   It was definitely a little involved, and mine certainly wasn't decorated as pretty as hers, but it was TOTALLY worth it.  In the end, it was enough cheesecake for my office, Michael's office, and a stash here at home.  Mmm.  So good. 

Mission Accomplished

That's right!  I did it!  And it wasn't even all that hard.

To recount, I finally picked up a chair to redo last weekend at Goodwill.

After unscrewing the seat from the chair frame, I removed the old upholstery.

And found another layer of equally ugly upholstery.

After removing that layer, I had my blank canvas.

I cut a couple of layers of batting to size and attached them with spray adhesive.

I cut the upholstry to size using the old upholstry as a template.

Using my new staple gun (which may very well be my new favorite tool), I stapled the upholstry and another layer of batting to the seat.

At this point, the sight of the newly upholstered seat all pretty and tight and new nearly brought tears to my eyes. Per the usual, Michael was disturbed by my passion.

Next, I thoroughly cleaned the chair frame and gave it a little sanding.

Then, I primed.

Finally, after giving it a couple of coats of glossy white paint and reattaching the seat, it was complete.

At this point, I'm pretty much my own hero...and I threatened Michael that we may have reupholstered-repainted chairs all over the condo! He was not amused.

Commitment & Accountability

Yesterday, I took a swing by Goodwill committed to finally buying a chair to paint and reupholster, and I am happy to report that Goodwill did not fail me.  I ended up buying one that I'd seen there and loved several months ago but at the time hadn't yet built up the courage to actually commit myself to the task.  I also thought it was a bit pricey, but yesterday, I was determined to buy it--even at $30.  I was in luck, though. All of the furniture was 50% off.  So fortuitous that it must have been meant to be! 


Here she is...  

Aren't those lines nice?

And I already have a home for it!

Not only have I committed myself to this project by buying the chair, I've created accountability by posting it here!  So, stay tuned...

I also came across a couple of other treasures while at Goodwill.  I picked up a nice mirror that I plan to paint white as I'm not digging the shabby-chic treatment on it now.

And I grabbed a couple of $.59 mugs for a future project that's already stewing in my head.