Master Bedroom Mirror

I adore the Cassidy Mirror that was on the cover of Ballard Design's cataloge a while back.

I have been looking for something to hang over our bed in the master bedroom and I thought this mirror would be perfect. The price tag was a little too steep for my budget at $189 and it was a little too big. The ceiling above the bed is at an angle and there is little room above the headboard, but I felt the space needed something. So when I saw that mirror I thought it would be perfect and I had to have it.

I tried to find a mirror at the thrift shops but everything was square or rectangle. Then one day I popped into the new Ross and low and behold, there was a small round mirror with a nice frame only it was an off-white color and not a pretty blue like the Cassidy mirror at Ballard. It was only $15 so I decided that I would try to paint it. I do that a lot although not always successful.

I gathered several paint colors that  thought would work well to give me as close to the same effect as the Cassidy mirror.

I think it turned out beautiful and I can't wait to hang it in above the bed.

Hubby has been recovering from another surgery and I waited until he felt better before hanging it.
I think it goes great with the lamps, bedding curtains and the Kirkland prints I had bought a few years ago.

I think it looks great. I love it when a project turns out just as I expected to.

Christmas Morning Breakfast

I love to make a nice breakfast for my family on Christmas. Whether it is just the three of us or any of the other eight kids and their families I love to make a special breakfast.

At our grocery store right now, I am able to find fresh raspberries. I love using fresh berries in our breakfast they make dishes like pancakes, French toast, crepes, or even my German pancake look like it came from a magazine.

One of my favorite breakfast recipes is German Pancake. This is such a fun and magical recipe that will amaze children and adults alike.

This looks so yummy!

 German Pancake

1 cup milk (I use 1%)

1 cup flour

6 eggs

1/3 cup of sugar

1/2  tsp of salt

1tsp vanilla

2 TBLS butter melted

Powdered sugar for dusting

Fresh or frozen berries (optional)

Bake 20 min or until golden brown

Serves about 8

Heat oven to 400 degrees

To make the batter: Mix flour and milk. Wisk eggs in a seperate bowl and add them to the flour and milk  mix. Add sugar, salt and vanilla. Don't forget the salt of this will not turn out! Wisk a little more.

Melt @ Table spoons of butter in a 10 insch skillet. I like to use my cast iron one.

Once melted pour batter into skillet. the butter will rise over the batter.

Place skillet in oven and set timer to 20 min. I check on the pancake several times to make sure it is not over cooking.

The pancake will begin to rise.

Once it is golden brown and the edges are darker it should be done.

 See isn’t that cool. It looks like a big turban.

Don't look at my gross racks. I accdently left them soaking overnight and they started to rust.

Take it out of the oven .

 As it cools it will deflate.

The butter is hanging out in all of te nooks and crannies.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar top with berries and enjoy.

Bon Appétit!

Love,

Joanie

More Christmas Decorating

I hope everyone is enjoying this Christmas Season, I know I am. It has been nice to be able to finish up some personal projects that have been sitting around waiting for my attention. I did not get every project finished but there is always next year.

The last area in our house to be decorated for Christmas was the wall over the piano. Several months ago, I had taken down all of the artwork in the room because I had plans on redecorating the space. The room is used as a music room by our son and a game room for him and his friends. During Christmas, we use the room for our Christmas tree because of the bay window that faces the front of the house. I was going to add a chair rail and either bead board or bead board wallpaper. I hope that I will get to it this coming year.

I started with an old window I had found at a garage sale. I painted it a grey color that I happen to find at Home Depot’s booboo table. It cost .50 for a little sample size. I tried to center it over the piano

   I hung the music sheet wreath I had made over the window attaching it to the original window lock. In the center of the wreath I used a music heet image and a crown image fron The Graphics Fairy.

I found the frames at Kirkland’s on sale for $3  and some change after using my birthday coupon. I  made prints from several images found on The  Graphics Fairy blog. I layered music sheet graphics with vintage postcard graphics by either removing the background from the postcard image or setting the transparency. This allowed the music sheet to be visible.

I decorated the piano with garland I found at Joann’s fabric store and music notes ribbon from Dillard’s Reba Collection. I placed a basket on top that holds the many Christmas Cards and letters we receive from friends and family around the world.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Love,

Joanie

 

The Graphics Fairy to the Rescue!

This year has been a crazy one, with many ups and downs. After getting my degree (late bloomer), I decided to start my own business, mainly because I found it extremely hard if not impossible to find a job. I love making pillows and painting and so I decided to try to consign my products at a couple of nearby businesses. I have to say that the response was very flattering. Having jumped right in so late in the game for the busy shopping season, I was overwhelmed by how much work it took to meet the demands for my pillows, stockings and other products. All of this was going on in my world as my husband was suffering from a hernia and could not help out around the house and yard and then he suffered a heart attack and underwent emergency quadruple bypass and a heart valve replacement. My husband has always been a great help around the house and I never realized how much he did here and there. This week he will finally have his long awaited hernia surgery and we will spend a quiet Christmas at home while he is healing. We both are so ready for 2012!

So what does The Graphics Fairy fit into this story you may be asking? This year I also found the Graphics Fairy blog I have loved using the unique images found on TGF blog throughout my home and on many of my pillows. I am so grateful for her site and I love seeing all the new images she faithfully ads every single day. The website is so well organized and easy to use even a techno-klutz such as me finds it amazingly simple.  

Once I had finished making all of my special orders last week I started to decorate our house. I started with our mantle. 

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I love the image of the reindeer from The Graphics Fairy. I used it on a small simple burlap pillow. You can find the image here.

I used a burlap wreath I had made last year hung over a thrift store mirror.I love the mix of the gold, silver, greenery and burlap.

I used several images found on The Graphics Fairy as framed prints on my kitchen shelves that I had made earlier this year. I simply changed the images with Christmas ones found on TGF blog.

This is the picture before.

 here, here and here.

This is the after shot.

Decorating the shelves in the kitchen was so easy using several images from TGF, found .

I found this live wreath at The Home Depot for only $10. I mad this simple wreath hanger from my favorite upholstery webbing and stenciled the letters JOY using a stencil I made on my Silhouette Cameo. Love that tool.

My son Corey was so busy this month with music performances and school projects it was hard to find time to put the tree up together but we did it, or should I say he did it. I think it looks fab! I did make the tree skirt I had spied at Miss Mustard Seed blog and tutorial here http://www.hgtv.com/handmade/how-to-make-a-no-sew-ruffled-christmas-tree-skirt/index.html. I used a white 450-count duvet I found at Target for $22 and some change. I used only half of the duvet so I enough left to make another one to sell next year, or maybe for some pillows.

I kept the dining room simple using Christmas tree branches in the  PB urn and tying it with a burlap ribbon and some Wal-Mart ornaments.

I have a few more spaces to decorate and share and i will post those in a day or two. Of course there will be one  more project that includes an image from The Graphics Fairy blog.

Thanks for stopping by.

Love ya!

Joanie