Laundry At Tiffany's

When I moved into this house, all the walls were literally a blank "canvas". Every room was painted a "Canvas" color. While the color is pretty enough, it's way too bland for my taste. In case you hadn't guessed by looking at the den and dining room, I love color, and the only other room I had a definite color in mind was for the laundry room. I figured if I have to be in there, it might as well look pretty.

I think the combination of blue and white is so pretty and clean, and no one does it better the Tiffany & Co. I don't know how many color chips I went through, but I finally found the exact match for my Tiffany's box. I can't believe how a perfect match it came out to be.

Now all I need it the built-ins to create a mudroom (yet another project on my list), but I think it looks pretty awesome as is.

Glass Fruit Repair

Not all the "projects" on my list are difficult, they just need to be done. This was one of them. I received these fruits as a house warming gift when I moved into my first house. Not long after, the tops of them came off. I have been putting off fixing them, but this seemed like the perfect project to do when I really felt like doing nothing.

I found this amazing adhesive while working on another project. It's just as strong as super glue, but you have a much longer work time with it. Of course that means it takes longer to set, but for projects like this, it's not a big deal. Another bonus, it doesn't stick to your fingers, nor does it leave a white residue. You simply rub your hands together, and the adhesive comes off.

It's readily available at any craft store. So worth the $8.00.

This is what I ended up with after letting the fruit set overnight. Definite improvement I would say.

Refinish Dining Room Chairs

I found this amazing table at Ecletic in the Heights in Houston, but it didn't come with any chairs. I had four existing chairs that I was able to use, but I still needed to end chairs. I went to one of my other favorite places in the Heights, Alabama Furniture. A great little consignment shop on Yale St. I got a really good deal on these two chairs, the only thing was they didn't match the table.

With a little elbow grease and some leftover fabric from the other four chairs, I was able to transform these great chairs into these great chairs.

I think they turned out pretty well if I say so myself. Nonetheless, that's another one crossed off my list. Hopefully I can keep with my goal and finish the list before the end of the year. TRUST me, there's still plenty more to go.

Repair Bracelet - 1

Since I started making jewlery, I've been getting a lot of requests to repair my friend's jewelry. This particular project has been on my list for some time now, and I guess I was in a groove today because it finally got done.

This was simple, it was just a matter of getting the supplies. It's four strands on elastic. I'll never know HOW she found all the pearls, but I'm glad she did. This is a great piece. I might have to make one for myself now.

Anyways, mark another one off the list!!

Towel Rack

Now I didn't say all of my projects were glamorous or even neat, but they still had to be done.

When I moved into this house, there was not one single towel rack in the entire house! There were holes of where they had been, but I guess they loved them so much they just had to take them with them. SOME PEOPLE!

Anyways, I finally got my towel racks it up. They are more utilitarian then aesthetic, but they'll do for now. I don't like anything cookie cutter in my house, so until I find something unique I'll stick with these.

Fuzzy Furry Hooded Vest

I can think of no better project to knock off my list on this cold rainy Saturday then to make this vest. I've been eyeing this for a few months now, and decided today would be the day it got done.

I found the lining fabric about four years ago and was just waiting for the right project. The fur was a new purchase for this particular vest.

I'm still a novice when it comes to sewing, but to be able to start and finish this in one day was quite an accomplishment for me. The pattern I used was for a regular jacket, so I had to modify it to make it a vest.

Since the pattern wasn't exact, there was definitely a learning curve. The pattern also didn't call for a lining, so that was another obstacle I had to overcome. One thing to remember, when you're making a vest with a lining, you want to sew the arm holes before you do the side seam. I didn't and couldn't figure out why I couldn't get to the arm holes. For the hood, you want to sew that right sides of the outer fabric/right sides of lining fabric together. That's with the hood inside to where you're working with the wrong sides of the lining.

If it hadn't been for these learning curves, it probably would have only taken half a day to do this.

Oh and one more tip, the fur will shed EVERYWHERE! Make sure you cut with the grain, and when all the pieces are cut, stick them in the dryer. Make sure the setting is on cool, (DO NOT WASH, that will ruin the fabric) this will get rid of all the fuzzies.

I hope you can get some inspiration from this, and don't forget, I am always more than willing to make custom orders for you.

How to Make A Shelf with Mitered Corners

I love going Warrenton, TX during the Texas Antique Weekend, because I always find great things I can repurpose, or just use outright. Almost guaranteed to find something a hundred other people you know don't have. I love being original and hate going somewhere and seeing something that's in my home. I especially hate seeing them on TV or in a magazine.

I found this great old mailbox my last trip out. Since I did not have a bar, nor a place to put wine bottles, I thought this was the best. I mean can you imagine having this many bottles of wine? Now in my new house, I do have a bar, but still didn't want to clutter the counter with a generic wine rack; this was still the best option.


The only thing this really needed was a top, both for decorative purposes and function. I received a great bottle opener for my birthday and didn't want it hidden away in a cabinet.


I had a bench built in the garage, and luckily had a piece of scrap that was the perfect size. All it needed was some molding and a coat of paint. The molding can be found at any hardware store, and I simply used some spray paint. Man spray paint has come a long way with all the different finishes and textures. I didn't want the top to take away from the box itself, so I went with a simple matte finish.


The molding was the hardest part of the project as I had to cut the corners just right. No power tools here. I decided not to cover the back of the piece as it was against the wall and would not be seen. I simply used some brad nails to secure the molding to the plywood. I didn't want the nails to stick out so I sunk the nails to just below the surface.

Mitered corners are HARD! I tried finding how to videos and they weren’t really helpful, so I have decided to put it on here.

Step 1:
Measure the first piece of molding to be cut. To get the correct length to make the corner you need to measure from one end to the other plus the width of the molding. You can use this piece to cut the second piece, but not to make the corner.

Step 2: Cut the piece at the marked line. Molding is such a soft wood that it can be cut with an old serrated kitchen knife.

Step 3: Once all three pieces are measured and cut, mark where the front of the plywood meets the molding. This is your starting point for your angle.

Step 4: To mark the third piece, lay the piece against the wood and lay the mitered piece on top of this piece. This will get the angles to match up once cut.

Step 5: Match up the ends

Step 6: File any ends that don’t match up. Be careful not to do a lot of filing at once, you can always take away, but you can’t put back.

Step 7: Using Brad Nails, nail the pieces on to the plywood.

Since this piece was scrap, it was not perfect so I used wood filler to fill in the holes in the plywood.
After the brads are sunk, I spray painted the entire shelf. I did two coats, enough to cover the wood, but not too think to hide the wood grain.

Now I have a custom wine cabinet that I love showing off. All that's left to do is fill up all the boxes with wine.