Janet of All Trades

I need a bit of Summer color on my skin and in my home right now. It has been gloomy and cold the last few days and I think some bright colors might help warm the summer up. I found a few things that will give me the color I need even if they are just to look at in a Magazine. Herringbone Highball glasses from Artel Glass Ipad and smart cover at Apple . Sunny Yellow Dress from Marc Jacobs . Bright Navajo Inspired Pillows from Bobby Berk Home . Okay that helped and I feel warmer already! Enjoy!

Something has been eating one of my plants in my garden and I thought it might be our resident rabbit. But after further inspection I found that it was not and a little black and yellow fellow munching away. If you look closer you can see him and his friend enjoy a late lunch. I was excited thinking I had Butterfly Caterpillars in my garden but after further research I discovered that they are Striped Garden Caterpillar Moths or Trichordestra Legitima. Oh well, they are eating plants that seem to grow more once they are eaten and they aren't eating anything else, yet. Plus they make good subjects for photos since they are colorful and move slowly. So think I will let them stay for awhile. Enjoy!

I was never a fan of the color yellow,but the color has grown on me so much that two of the rooms in my home are painted the color. I often wonder if it is time to change the color until I see it appearing in magazines, catalogs and the Saturday home finder. Some paint selections from Better Homes & Gardens,Creamy Yellows. From the Saturday Home Finder,brightening up popular Grey with Yellow Golden Yellow accessories from West Elm. Bright Yellow Walls from Better Homes & Gardens. So I guess it is not time to change the yellow walls, but to add more to my home! Enjoy!

I recently bought this large lantern for our patio and was perplexed on what to place in it. It needed two large candles but after some research the two candles were four times as much as what I paid for the lantern!Then I remembered that I had two battery operated candles that I could use. After placing them in the lantern, I realized they are much too small,too busy and just the wrong color. So I decided to make a sleeve out of burlap to make the candles tall and change the color. I cut two pieces about 1" and 4" longer than the top of the candle and then hand sewed up the side. The burlap added a little height and color to the lantern, but it still needed something a little more. My husband suggested a little bit of twine to add some interest! I think that it helped lighten up the color a bit and added a little more texture.  Now I just need to stay outside late enough to turn them on! Enjoy!

Today is another Friday for me and time for my Weekend List. I have selected some projects I would like to duplicate from Pinteres t. Have you you joined yet? It is a great place to see the best of the web and pin you favorites. Here are a few of mine that I would like to make. (1) Button Jewelry from Marie Les Ba s. I have numerous buttons and this looks fun to create! (2) Hanger keeper from Lillian Vernon . A clever way to store extra hangers (if you have them) and stylish too! (3) Words from Magazines. I have so many magazines that I could use for this project  from the Vera Terra Catalog a few years ago. (4) Fabric Baskets. The look to fresh and fun from Sew4home . Just need to pick the perfect fabric. (5) Lastly this lovely chair re-do . I swear I have this exact same chair in the before photo in my craft room. So those are a few more things that are on my list thanks to Pinterest. It helps me organize the projects I like and one stop reference. Now if I could stop adding new...

After about two months of thinking and planning, our front garden is finally completed and I have the photos to show all the entire process. For about ten years the front of our house looked like this with Shrubs and Black Eyed-Susans. Shrubs Removed Gardens re-sculpted Plant design laid out Finally complete with Mulch and Decorative Grass After it was complete, I could not stop walking out front and looking at the gardens. The house looks so different and fresh now. I feel like now the outside of the house is complete,well for this summer anyway! Enjoy!

I saw this Magnetic Wallcovering from Weitzner Limited in a magazine recently and was intrigued by it's properties and how I could use it my home. Covered in Linen and Very Attractive. It could even be used in children's rooms. I wonder if I could make this some how? I start working on it! Enjoy!

Over the years, I have saved every plant identification tag from every plant I have used in my garden. I used them to learn and identify each plant and used them in a journal and a scrapbook. I still have many left and thought there some way I could use them. Then I had an Idea. Just use them as Art and then I could enjoy them all year long. I first selected a few that I liked the best. Then I painted a piece of cardboard with Rust-Oleum Hammered Finish paint, since I wanted it to look like galvanized metal. Next I cut each tag and a piece of the cardboard and attached the tag with a piece of foam tape to add some dimension. The last step was to arrange on a piece of card stock and attached with more foam tape.  And the last step was to place in a freshly spray painted frame. My art was done and ready to enjoy! Linking up to: Coast Charm Nifty Thrifty Tuesday

I am taking a tiny break from Blogging tomorrow, so really today is really my Friday and the reason for my weekend list. Hopefully I can get a ton of projects done since I will have three days instead of two. So here are a few things that are on my list. (1) Colored Stones. Now I picked these up for another project that I am working on but I thinking I might have some leftover and I have a few ideas for them. (2) Mulch. Yes, more gardening and hopefully our garden will be planted and mulched by the end of the weekend. (3) Pickle Jars. Now I love pickles and if left unattended with a jar of them, I will eat the entire contents. So I have a few jars hanging around, just waiting to be recycled (4) 200! I hope to break 200 Followers before my 2 year Blogging Anniversary in July. It has been an amazing 2 years and I really only had about 10 followers for the first year, so 200 to me is amazing. That is my Friday Thursday List for this week. With an extra day I plan on finishing up some proj...

We are in the midst of our front garden remodel project and we are getting one step closer to planting. Over the weekend my Husband and I wandered thru a local nursery to start selecting some shrubs. We found numerous plants that we liked but here are a few of our favorites. Now we just have to make a decision on the plants we like the best and how many. Who knew designing this garden would be so difficult,but we want to have superb curb appeal. Can't wait to see the results although and I will be sure to share in the coming weeks! Enjoy!

In the days of Pinwheels and Brown Paper Treat bags, it was my Birthday. Some 30 Plus years ago it was okay to wear knee socks with your best dress and have a Birthday Cake with a Flag on it. Yes, Today it my Birthday and plan enjoy it with a little crafting and a little celebrating.

I recently acquired a twenty five year old Encyclopedia and I really had to let it sit around for a few weeks before I figured out what I wanted to do with it. I paged thru it and marked some of the images that I really loved and then sat down one night and cut a few out. Then the inspiration finally hit me and I knew what I wanted to make,so I collected my materials. A Plastic sleeve and a glass candle holder. Then I covered them both with pages from the book with Mod Podge. I also had bought these metal edge tags for $1.00 a few weeks ago and decided to use them as well. I used them to frame an image from the Encyclopedia. The last step after they were dry was to add a little ribbon and a battery operated candle. Sitting on a old dictionary during the day.. And lit during the evening! Enjoy!