Flea Market Style inspired lighting

The Radio Cabinet Redo, part 2 is going to have to wait until Monday.  Someone (not naming names) forgot to bring his tools home last night! 

 I considered using a serrated knife to cut the wood with but apparently that doesn't work so well?  Hmm. 

Hey, beavers use their teeth right?  Maybe I should have gone that route. 

Or maybe I can just learn to be patient. 

:)

So all of you have seen this, I'm assuming.  It's in the drop dead gorgeous funnel section of Flea Market Style Magazine. 

I have been drooling over this since I first saw it.  It's industrial.  It's farmhouse-y, its galvanized.  It's not 600.00. 

I decided to make my own version this past week, and I only spent 20.00!

First of all, I found an old funnel.  This was the only part that was challenging!  I ended up scoring one on ebay for 3.00... it's actually an old fuel filter.  It still had a screen in it, so I just took a pair of snips and some pliers and pulled it right out!

Then I bought a mini pendant light kit.  I looked all over for a wiring kit but no such luck.  The mini pendant kits are 17.00 at Lowes.  Home Depot has some, but they're very modern looking, and not as easy. 

The pendant kit I got was black, but for some reason has a picture of a silver one on the front.  Interesting. 

At the top of the pendant, unscrew the bolts, and take off the top.  Thread your wires through the opening on the funnel, and then put the top back on.  You can put a little silicon on the bottom part so that it adheres to the funnel, but I just left mine loose so that if I ever wanted to change it, I could.

Here's what the inside of the funnel should look like...

Now you're ready to just screw in your lightbulb, wire it in, and go!

My 20.00 funnel light...love it!

Well, I am off to put some music on the old ipod for the market tomorrow!  I can't believe it's here already!!!  Expect a fun post coming soon!!

Have a great weekend everyone...

Radio Cabinet Redo, Part 1

Hi everyone!  So excited to see so many new faces!  I thought I'd share a project I've been working on with Tanner for the last couple days. We're not done yet, hence the part 1 dealy-do. 

I bought this old radio cabinet for next to nothing, and decided it needed a new purpose.  Not that the whole radio thing wasn't cool but....my radio is now is literally like

3'' x 1 1/2''. 

Check out that awesome speaker carpeting! Reminds me of this...

Anyway...I totally know exactly what we're going to do with it!  I think I'll save that for part 2...

We figured the carpeting had to go...so I got to go in from the backside (which is totally open right now...a huge reason why it was so cheap) and rip those suckers out.

I didn't expect this...although I totally should have...

Lets count the spiders together!  1....2....66....

So I had to get past that whole....situation...

That's just ONE corner of ONE drawer, mind you.  I don't want to talk about the ones I found with my hand while painting. 

So after my blood pressure went back down, I realized that next came sanding.  Sandpaper is one of those things in life that I can't even think about without getting goosebumps.  I've got them right now just thinking about it!!!

Needless to say, it takes me a VERY long time to sand anything.  Tanner helped me, and by the time I got done with one side, he had finished the other sides haha.

Like my method of sanding?  Circles...then some straight lines...and a nike swoosh....

But ta-da!  It still gets done!

Minus the creepy speaker carpet!!

So now that the horrible little 8-legged skeletons are out of it, it's all sanded down, and ready for a fresh coat of paint....I'll leave you with a sneak peek & see you tomorrow with the finished product. ;)  Can you guess what it's going to be?

Vintage Whites Market Projects...

Happy Friday everyone!  I thought I'd share a couple of things I've been working on over the past week.  This would probably have taken normal people a few hours to do all of it, but hey...I'm slow.

And easily distracted...

Anyway...Here's the first thing I finished...what do you think?

I used some remnant fabric, and this awesome khaki colored denim.  I think it turned out pretty cute!  I have about a zillion more to make before next Saturday...yikes....

Oh, and if you're interested in purchasing one of these, they are 20.00!  Just shoot me an email :)

Next up is another pillow (I know....you should see the puncture wounds on my hands.  I don't sew.  I literally have only sewn like 4 times.  Thimbles don't fit on my fingers...and unless they make entire thimble GLOVES, its not going to help anyway.....)

That makes me picture a knight sewing...with an apron on and a glass of chardonnay...only he can't drink it because his mouth guard thing is in the way...

Note to self:  Get more sleep and stop sewing until midnight...and stop eating cereal for dinner.

I used part of a really pretty vintage handkerchief, and made some ruffles and rosettes.  I wouldn't  be sad if this didn't sell....haha

Some more pretty little rosettes I'll make into a necklace....

Another pillow with a little ruffle detail at the bottom...

and a sign that I like to refer to as my illegitimate love child.  I recklessly entered into a relationship with a paintbrush and not a thought as to where the letters would go...

Thus producing something that I love, but always look at as something I wish I would have thought about a little more before making haha.  That's just wrong.  I hope I didn't offend anyone hahaha.

Tanner suggested that I put an apostrophe between the 'cre' and the 'ek' just to close the gap that makes Lauren Hutton's look like a sliver...sorry Lauren.  Here's a little closer look at my special child.

Vanessa and I took an evening this week to decorate her garage and to work on a couple joint projects. I just can't believe our market is 8 days away.  I am so excited! 

We hung burlap, windows, hydrangeas, chandeliers, and a few other special touches involving book pages and repurposed doilies...

 

And these beauties....well, they're just adorable.

You never know what you might find...

Well, Tanner and I are headed to Spokane for his birthday!  We finally get cheaper car insurance, thanks honey!  It's like a present for our budget! haha.  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend....any fun plans?

Dinner of Champions Recipe

Since I told you a few days ago I'd be posting about an amazing recipe I tried, I figured I better make good on my promise....

Seeing as how I didn't get around to cooking that special recipe just yet, I thought I'd share another tried and true recipe.  Passed down from my grandparents to my parents, and Tanner's family too, believe it or not!

This is minimal prep, cook time, and clean up. 

First, you need to start out with a kitchen that looks like this:

This is the really importart part, because if you don't have a kitchen that looks like this, you probably wouldn't think about making this recipe for dinner.

It will help if you have a really crazy week before you make this.  It's probably best if you feel and look like this:

(This is so creepy haha)

Ok so, onto the recipe!

Step 1:  Grab a bowl

Step 2:  Grab a spoon

Step 3:  Get your favorite kind of sugary, unhealthy cereal

All aboard the U.S.S. Diabeetus....

Step 4:  Get some milk...viva la cereal!! haha

Step 5:  Eat it while pondering why you didn't just clean up the kitchen and make a real dinner....

Somebody made me cry...

Awhile back, I opened up and posted about some hard life stuff that was/is going on, and received so many amazingly sweet and heartfelt comments.  I think it was then that I realized what an amazing source of comfort all of you are!

Since the beginning of my blog, there has been one gal that I have grown to love so much, and I'm always waiting to see when she comments....and without fail, everytime, I get them.  They're always long (which I don't expect but it reminds me of my best friend Heather who always leaves me 3 minute messages.  We've done that since college and I love it!) and they're always so REAL.  I get a little piece of her everytime I read her comments. 

Yesterday, I opened my mailbox to find two shiny silver packages postmarked all the way from Wales....!!

It was seriously like Christmas!  She put SO much time and thought into this!  Samantha from The Nest sent me some of the most beautiful treasures...to help out and to just be a sweetheart in general.  I can't express enough how grateful I am for such an awesome friend whom I've yet to meet.  I couldn't hold back the tears as I read her heartfelt note, and I'm currently listening to Ray Lamontagne which is not helping to fight back tears even now haha.  (Oh Ray, you always know how to strike a nerve in me...)

(J for Jana and T for Tanner...aren't they adorable?)

I write this to say thank you Samantha, for being such an amazing and gracious person with a loving heart.  More importantly, I write this to tell you all to go visit her, get to know her...and take a look at her amazing home! 

Winner winner chicken dinner!

Hey everyone! I still haven't gotten the hang of the random.org number thing.  I can post it on my page but the number changes everytime the page is refreshed!  I took a picture on my phone as proof, so I'll just post that.  The winner is...

Christina from Signs of Obsession!

She is one talented gal...take a look at these projects she did!

I really need this dresser!

Girl it's a good thing you aren't closer...my bank account would be looking for something to defend itself with...

Everyone go check her out here

Congrats on winning the giveaway!  Email me and we'll get this party started ;)

Thank you to everyone who entered!  I am so excited to meet all these new and wonderful people!  If you're new, email me a little about yourself!  I'd love to pick someone to post on for next week!  I made some things for the market this weekend...I'll post on that tomorrow AND this awesome recipe I just found.  Hold on to your horses, its gonna be a fun week!

three more hours to enter the giveaway!!

Three more hours to enter for a 50.00 gift certificate and other goodies......hurry!!