Welcome to my
Perfectly Imperfect Life..........

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Paint'em Pretty ~ Happy Thanksgiving


I'm so excited an how good these came out!
I've been wanting to try using feathers as 
embellishments for a while now.
With Thanksgiving coming up I also wanted to change up my colors to reflect the Season, so I thought lets try!

I have chicken feathers from my 
Sister's chickens that were molted naturally.
 I went through to find two similar patterned 
ones approximately the same size.

I love the rich chocolate brown 
Nirvana (949) by Sinful Colors that I used. 
One coat did the trick followed by a coat of Seche Vite.

For my accent nail I used Sand Tropez (668) by Esssie.
While still wet I placed the feather and
 lightly tapped it down in place.
Luckily they both cooperated, 
I was worried they would stick in a weird shape.
I roughly snipped the extra feather off at the end of my nail, 
then trimmed closer and more evenly.

Once dry I topped with a clear coat which was kind of tricky.
The feather was going the opposite direction you would normally brush. I didn't want to go against it and "ruffle" feathers.
I ended up brushing the top coat on backwards
 just enough to cover the feathers.
Once that coat was dry I put on another top coat brushing the normal direction followed by Seche Vite.

 

Love it!

Wishing everyone a
Happy Thanksgiving!


Saturday, November 19, 2016

T-shirt Rag Rug for My Bathroom


I've jumped on the bandwagon!!
The upcycle/recycle T-Shirt bandwagon that is.
My adult kids had just cleaned out their closets and 
I had a humongous box of T-Shirts -
ripped, stained, outgrown, etc. ready to be disposed of.
I've seen T-shirt projects everywhere,
using up your old T-Shirts that were 
on their way to the trash heap.
Heaven forbid!
'Use it up
Wear it out
Make it do
Or do without'

Just keep them out of the landfill! 

It just so happened I needed a new throw rug for my hall bath.
The current one was falling apart and, well, you could almost see through it :(

So I started planning. The bathroom is beach themed,
 so I dug and dug through the box for beach themed hues for the rug. Being I had limited colors to choose from, I chose:
tans representing beach sand,
blues representing the water in the ocean,
greens representing seaweed and algae,
whites representing the frothing of the waves.


I started out with my cutting mat, rotary cutting tool, and my chosen pile of old t-shirts.

For the ''base'' of the rug I cut the arms off a black shirt, cut down each side seam so I could open it up and lay it out flat. 
I then cut it into as much of a rectangle as possible.
But you can cut it into any shape you'd like.

Now the tedious part.
You need to cut slits in rows through the entire ''base'' of the rug.
I snipped slits one row at a time with scissors.


I tried to keep them as consistent as possible,
but in the end any inconsistencies won't be noticed. 


Next I cut up the "beach colored" shirts into strips 
approximately 5'' - 6'' long and 1 1/2'' - 2'' wide. 
I kept my strips in piles by color and grabbed 
a little of each as I went along so I wouldn't run out 
of any color too early.

Now to add the strips.
Basically feed one strip down through the first hole, 
up through the next,
and tie a knot.  Repeat until the base is covered.

The finished back 


Here is the finished product....


It works well and I have already 
washed it in the washer on delicate.

Now, what to do with all the leftover strips of T-shirts????

Other post you maybe interested in:
Kitchen Cabinet Makeover
Saving an Old Linen
Rebatching Old Candles

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Paint'em Pretty ~ Playing


Busy, busy, busy
Not enough hours in the day to accomplish what needs to be done.
Gardening, Christmas shopping, baby shopping ~ yes my new little grandson has arrived! Trying to get everything under control, skipping the Thanksgiving decorations and going right into Christmas!

I know, I know, but if I start now they
 just maybe up by Christmas! LOL


But I did try to play with polishing my nails ~ just trying something different.
It unfortunately was a rush job.
But I felt accomplished at least afterwards.

Base coat was Lion Around by Essie.
 I gave my accent nail some abstract black striping 
with L.A. Colors Art Deco Thin Tip Brush.
I topped all off with Hallucinate by Wet n Wild 
from their Wild Shine line.
I love Hallucinate, it has the tiniest bits of glitter
and adds just a subtle eye catching sparkle.

So even when time is tight,
try to squeeze playing time in!


Monday, November 7, 2016

Summers End



Better late than never.
A tad late with this post :(
The end of Summer in the garden.


My lone wild Sunflower is going to seed and the birds are happy.
Hard to see but seeds are being devoured in the center of the photos.


My son and his girlfriend surprised me with 
an Aloe from Casa de Fruita


One of the Drs. we go to is about an hour away. 
For the last 15+ years I've always wanted to stop at a nursery that we pass each time.


Well, I finally did! 
Queen Anne's Garden Nursery in Atwater, CA.
It's a little Mom and Pop place that provide
commercial and public plants.


I picked up a purple Oxalis, Hens and Chicks, 
Tricolor Stonecrop, Creeping Wire Vine,
 Heuchera Marmalade Lime and Heuchera Obsidian


It was a fun place to wander, you never knew what was around the next corner. Hope to make time to stop in again. 
Most helpful owners.



Imagine my surprise when I found this in my garden!
I was ready to step on it!


Then I realized it was transparent.
Could it be a chrysalis? cocoon?
Something alien?  


After researching it is a chrysalis/cocoon.
First time I've ever seen one. Since finding that one, 3 more were found over the next few weeks. I think they were blown out of my neighbors Weeping Willow, maybe?

Most likely from a moth of some sort. 
Still very cool and exciting!

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Interview with Dragonfly Treasure

I was recently interviewed by 
Jordan Mason from
 Floor Coverings International.
Thank you Jordan, I'm honored.

~*~*~*~*~*~*
At Floor Coverings International Southlake, we love to bring you creative insight and perspectives from some of the most influential bloggers on the web. Our latest interview features arts, crafts, and home and garden blogger Deb of Dragonfly Treasure. You can follow Deb on TwitterFacebookPinterestGoogle+LinkedIn, and Instagram.


What’s one of your favorite design pieces you have in your own home?


I’d have to say an old single pane window I used to transform into “A Day at the Beach” memory piece that currently is hanging in our beachy hall bath. I mixed some glue with sand to add along the bottom to represent the sea bottom. A mermaid silhouette and seashells reside there. A few off white sheets of paper dance in the pane to act as mats for photos of my family at the beach or somewhere near water – circa 50’s-60’s. My favorite was dated 1929 and showcases Bathing Beauties relatives that were before my time. Netting entwined with sticks, starfish, teeny glass bottles, and a run aground wooden boat on the side complete the piece.

What is your favorite design trend of 2016?


Mixed metals I’m excited about. Not just silver and gold but even copper, pewter, bronze and others – RUST even? Seems like anything goes now, even though I’ve been doing this to a small degree, now it’s OK! Like I listen to the trends! Even mixing materials is now popular – metals, stone, wood. I always called it “Eclectic Poor!” ðŸ˜‰Also multiple mirrors. I love mirrors and have a few vintage ones hanging/standing in front of one another by size. All of a sudden I’m trendy; not sure how that happened.

Do you follow any other blogs for inspiration? If so, which ones?


Years ago I used to have time to follow a few blogs. These days I’m afraid to say I just don’t have the time, but I spend many hours in doctors lobbies. I peruse magazines like crazy, sometimes several times over the same zine. Once the “home” zines are done, any subject will do – hey, they have ads in them. My advice? Take the time and devour the photo, piece by piece, just as you do the good zines. You’ll be surprised at the ideas/inspiration you’ll come away with.

Can you explain a recent project you’ve been working on?


I recently finished something that had been waiting in the wings for approximately 10 years, I’m ashamed to say. And it took a challenge for me to do it! I picked up three wooden folding chairs with dark green leather seats. They were in pretty amazing shape and were a steal. There was also a different style that was all wood that I also grabbed from the same thrift store. I could see the leather seat style, in my minds eye, with a white frame against the dark olive leather seats – gorgeous. Then life happened. Fast forward to this spring.
Mother Nature had gotten to the chairs and did her thing. The wood backs were dry, warped, peeling, and past their prime for painting. But I buckled down and scraped, sanded and glued. They still weren’t in good enough shape to paint outright, but much better than before. The leather had held up its end well, so I wanted to keep it original. I decided to paint each chair frame a different color–mint, beige, pink and blue. I knew the backs wouldn’t come out looking as well as envisioned years prior, but I painted them anyway.
Then I got the idea of covering them in napkins. I figured the imperfections in the backs would be harder to see with springy garden napkins over it. I fell into the perfect napkins at an inexpensive store I frequent. I decided to cover only the backs and legs. I then separated the napkin layers, Modge Podged them on, easy as pie, and tore as I went to fit. Once I was all done, I gave it a good two days to dry/cure, then coated all the napkins again for a final sealant coat. They still fold up nicely too!
I love the way each of the different colors show through the napkins on the backs of the chairs. They all coordinate well, but each is unique.


Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Primitive Homespun Christmas Candy Canes


I ran into these plastic Candy Canes at Dollar Tree 
and my mind went to prim. 



Why is goes to primitive ornaments on certain things this time of year is beyond me.
But I digress...

6 in a package for $1 can't beat that!
I could see them in homespun hanging on an 'Olde Fashioned' Christmas Tree giving a vintage vibe, to die for!

Brought them home and began stripping fabric.
A good way to use up some of those odds and ends pieces!
These could as easily be done up in flowery cottage fabric for a whole different look.

I hot glued one end of fabric to the end of the candy cane 


and began wrapping is round and round until it was completely covered, being sure to keep the fabric taut. 

When reaching the end, hot glue into place toward bottom.

Trim off the excess fabric leaving enough to fold over to finish off the end with a dab of hot glue.
They are ready to hang on your tree, wreath or where ever you'd like. Of course, you can always embellish them.
Raffia, jute, rusty items, a bit of greenery, just about anything 

They make a cute little gift too.
I bundled a few together, tied with jute, 
then un-twisted the jute and made a bow.
  

Added a rusty jingle bell with a rusty safety pin
and there you have it.
Easy, quick and inexpensive!

Great little remembrance, teacher, hostess, postmaster, 
neighbor, favorite clerk, lab tech, the list goes on.

Here's a little shabby cottage one I made to show
 you one of the other many ways you can decorate these.

 A bit of pink trim leftover from another project, 

 white flower bead trim from a yard sale,
bead caps and tiny pink pearls from my stash. 
Let your inspiration flow and have fun making some!
Some of these made it into my Etsy Shop :)

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