Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Fun and Affordable Artwork for Our Home

Artwork for your home can be from a variety of sources and it doesn't have to be expensive. (such as this) We had tons of posters, pictures, prints, etc from the college and apartment renting days. However, we didn't really have much for a "formal" living room.

When we purchased this house, we were not rich and we still are not rich. Therefore, we kind of decided to go with the flow. We had more patience to find the right thing to fit our budget rather than just going out and spending a lot of money. Also, in the end, I think we had more fun finding these pieces. Certainly, the stories are better!

This first is a print of Roy Lichtenstein's Ball of Twine. We paid $12 for the print on ebay. The ornate frame came from this yard sale. It was damaged and falling apart and needed some work. We paid $5 for the frame and Jeff spent maybe 20 minutes getting put back together. It cracks us up to look at this Lichtenstein print (who is known as this American Pop Art Artist) in this really frilly frame.



This framed print came from Kohl's. Yes, they have art too. This print is an x-ray of a flower (by Steven Meyer) and I fell in love with it. It was normally $80 and I spent $40 on it due to a Kohl's 50% off sale of framed prints. By the way, I am still trying to figure out what flower this is. I cannot find an example in any of Meyer's work as of yet.



This painting from an unknown artist named Clark came from an antique store here in town. We paid $125 for the huge painting. It might be too large for this actual space (see it barely fits in between the crown molding and the mantle) but trying it out in other spaces did not do it justice. It is a focal point of the room. It colors look as if it is from the 70's but it fits well with our color scheme. I love the huge pop of flowers. It is what I think of this living room- you turn the corner and pop! you are hit with our version of a mid-century modern room. Like the Lichtenstein, this painting makes me smile. Also, see the black and green glass hedgehog beside the painting? $4 at a yard sale. Still smiling...



More to come....

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

The Scrap Toolbelt



My nephew loves tools because it is being like daddy or Papa or even Handy Manny. HAHA He is three years old. So, for Christmas, I thought why not get some of those plastic tools and make him a tool belt?

I almost went to the fabric store with coupons in hand to buy some denim and some green corduroy but I stopped myself. I waited and stewed over it because I really wanted to get this project out of the way. Finally, we were able to get to some yard sales and the first one I found a LONG green corduroy skirt and a pair of jeans for 50 cents each.

I cut a long rectangle from the denim jeans and put a green corduroy border around the belt and also attached the top for the waist strap. Then, I cut out the jean pockets and glued them in place with fabric glue. I cut out a denim belt loop and glued that in place for a hammer and also included another pocket from the skirt and glued that in place.

One of these days, I will take step by step pics! This is a simple cheap project and it turned out so cute! er, I mean, manly! In addition, the skirt was so long that I had a lot of fabric left over for a skirt for myself!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

What to do with leftovers continued....

I am getting hungry just thinking of this post. BEWARE- you might too!

Rotisserie Chicken.

Do I have your attention? I thought so.

It is a working girl's dream come true. What can you do with an already cooked chicken? Better yet, what can you not do with an already cooked chicken?

Soup, fajitas, Fettuccine Alfredo, salad, pasta salad!!

Plus, if you use some of the chicken and then have some leftover, bag it up and put it in the freezer for another day. There are just some days that I need a mindless meal for dinner or I will just stare in the cupboards and wonder what can I do with wheat thins and rice?