I know Mac will be a great dad....

For example, when I come home to my dog snuggled in a "fort" built just for her by my husband...

BUT, God love em' and protect em'...... sometimes I get a little nervous when I see situations like this as he teaches my nephew how to roll down a hill on a little scooter thingy.... I don't remember what you call these little toys...but just watch...

Before you watch, you must know this was not the 1st but the 4th time he did this...this was the best result.

Cowboy vs. Fire-Storm

Well, I have been at work...workin' away on my new project. I can't quite tell who is going to win in this picture... the cowboy or the screwdriver! As I charged this little screwdriver it blew out every fuse in the house! I was so

nervous as I was already sweating and couldn't imagine our house without the AC pumping!

I finally got the power back on and continued to work.. I will give you a sneak peek to what I have been working on....

These crafts are keeping me busy while my precious husband is the EXECUTIVE CHEF at Standard Bistro!! That means Mac is the head chef...like no one else is above him...like he can be as creative as he wants to be... like he is "da man!" It also means his only day off is Sunday and half day Monday... so I am enjoying my crafts!

I realized what a big deal it was (that Mac was chosen as the head chef) when I went out to the farmer's market on Saturday at Mt. Laurel. Mac did a cooking demonstration and everyone was very attentive and listening... he was so well spoken and even funny! You could tell the locals were thrilled to have an official chef at Standard Bistro. It is such a blessing that this opportunity fell in Mac's lap...literally...it fell in his lap! God is so good! I can't wait to see what he will do there.

So, when your taste buds are ready... make your way out to Standard Bistro.

If you go there, and you have a suggestion/pro or con... please let me know! I know he would love to hear reviews!

Rottenstone

So, I am in the process of making a kitchen table out of old pine wood that Mac put together with his grandmother awhile back (not pictured below, but will come soon...). It has a beautiful pine finish on the surface, but the legs are about to fall off...so, I am in the process of making some new ones. I want to give it a country kitchen look, like these...

So, I might buy these at Lowe's for $12.94 each...

And use a little bit of this secret stuff....shhh!!...

Rottenstone is the secret to that powdered antiquey look...

I applied it to these (on top of the paint once it dries) in our old house, which we are still trying to sell!

Rotten stone, sometimes spelled as one word, and also known as tripoli, is fine powdered rock used as a polishing abrasive in woodworking. It is usually weathered limestone mixed withdiatomaceous, amorphous, or crystalline silica. It has similar applications to pumice, but it is generally sold as a finer powder and used for a more glossy polish after an initial treatment with coarser pumice powder.

It is usually mixed with oil, sometimes water, and rubbed on the surface of varnished or lacquered wood with a felt pad or cloth. Rotten stone is sometimes used to buff stains out of wood. Some polishing waxes contain powdered rotten stone in a paste substrate. For larger polishing jobs, rotten stone mixed with a binder is applied to polishing wheels.

Pewter Velvet, Aubergine, Leather

Inspirations for my next project...

**Caponata

**Aura

**Nailhead Trim Site

**Other nails

Made a headboard!

So, I finally did it! I made a headboard for our guest bedroom! I really wanted to do a cloth covered headboard with nail head trim...but I have yet to have the guts to try the nail head trim or the tufting of covered buttons. But, I think that will be in my next project.

To make a headboard you need...

1.plywood 2. foam 3. batting 4. fabric to cover 5. staple gun 6. hammer 7. nails 8. 2x4's

those are the basic items...

I decided to go with a modern square 63" x 63", which fits a full size bed. When you buy the plywood you have to buy 2 pieces cut at 31.5" x 63" to be able to make a square. And you will need 3 pieces of 2x4's at 63" to connect to 2 pieces of plywood.

Connect the 2 pieces of plywood with the 3 2x4's...

Cut the foam to size...this girl had a great idea to superglue it slightly to avoid shifting- just on the edges.

Then you wrap the batting around the foam and plywood and staple gun it on the backside. Make sure you pull it tight for no wrinkles! And, enjoy using a staple gun-- love it!

Next, you will wrap the fabric around. If needed, iron before hand. Since the fabric isn't long enough to cover a square we had to add little more on the bottom the headboard. (In this pic it looks like it is the top of the bed.. just mentally flip it around and you will get the picture.)

Voila!

But, to me, wasn't quite done...

See how you can see the gaps on the edge of the bed. There is a 2x4 on the top edge and it is very visible if you are looking at the side of the bed...sooooo.....

I bought 4 more 2x4's...

(2 of them were a little longer than the other to make it a square around the headboard...keep that in mind! Do your math!)

My sweet granddad sanded and stained the wood...

Then, I bought these products to help give an antiquey look...

First I sprayed a little gold spray paint and then, with a small roller, I roughly painted with a really really really light blue color.

And, sprayed a little more gold here and there.

Then, I roughly painted a tan/ivory color with a crackle glaze on top once the paint dried. After that I sanded it a little and wiped off some of the paint.

Now to attach the board to the bed...

Pop Pop, my granddad, and master carpenter help me attach the 2x4's to the headboard.

I had to help Pop Pop by pushing the headboard higher to sit a little in front of the antiqued boards. This helped it not look like it was sinking into the 2x4's.... this made it look very cushiony!

Close up of fabric and boards...

I love how the gold peaks through here and there!

This project cost me about $170 total... I think that is pretty good for a head board I will have a long time!

Thanks Mimi and Pop Pop for helping!

........

For my next project...

Can you guess what I am going to do?! This will be a new creation when I am done with it! I bought this cedar chest off craigslist for $50... and I have extra plywood left over from the first project...and I am thinking hmmmm....vvvelvet....