computer blues

Eeeeegads!
Our computer was fried in a recent lightning storm. I am so sad, frustrated, upset, and broke!

Our surge protector obviously wasn't strong enough, or something else went wrong, and my beloved computer and all her programs (and my business contacts, logos, etc.) are gone. So now we have to start again. I know this isn't the end of the world, but I sure hate this whole process of trying to figure out a new machine, loss of data, precious pictures, etc.

I just want things to run the way they should. When I turn the key in my car, I want it to go.
When I push the buttons on my appliances, they work. When I sit down at my computer, I want it to be the same way it always is. Is that too much to ask?   I HATE CHANGE!  Wahhhhh

Plus to add to my computer blues, my Kodak program which is my "right hand"  has switched to Shutterfly AAAK! Not sure how I can use/switch/change/print/store my pix.
And then my printer has decided to quit working!! AAAK! So now gotta go for a new printer. ($$)
So as life goes, I have to dig down deep, take a big breath and carry on.  Our new computer (expensive $$) has new programs, no programs, updated, and I am feeling OUT dated. ugh.

So enough of my woes. I like to vent, but not wallow.  And you did not come to this site to hear moaning and groaning (but please let me know if you want more, cuz I can deliver!) hee hee    :)

PROJECT OF THE DAY:
Beer Bread

I know this project isn't recycled or renewed but since I can't show you any pictures, I can't give you a project that is too elaborate.

You need:
3 cups self rising flour
3 TBL. sugar
1 can of beer

mix together all ingredients in a big bowl, put on greased cookie sheet or greased bread pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

This bread will be a 'break off a piece' loaf, instead of a 'slicing off a nice piece' loaf. But it's quick, easy and yummy!!!! You make some stew, soup or crock pot meal, this will be a great addition. Hot out of the oven with butter melting on it.

Store any leftover (ha, like that's happenin') in a zip loc bag in the fridge.

tip of the day:
keep your fresh berries...FRESH~
When you get your berries home, prepare a mixture of one part vinegar (white or apple cider works best)
and ten parts water. Dump the berries into the mixture and swirl around. Drain, rinse if you want.
(tho the mix is so diluted, you won't taste the vinegar).
Pop the berries in the fridge. the vinegar kills any mold spores and other bacteria that might be on the surface of the fruit.
Raspberries will last a week longer. Strawberries go almost 2 weeks.

That's all for now...
:D

Wind Chimes

I bought a bottle cutter on Ebay last year. And I've been having fun using it. I make glasses out of beer bottles, windchimes, candle holders.
It brings back memories of my teenage years back in the 70's. I had the exact same cutter and made lots of things back in the day of hippie/recycling/macrame/candles. But this time when I bought it on Ebay, it cost $50.00! yikes. I wish I would have kept my old one (along with my original Barbie doll in her zebra bathing suit).

My first entrepreneurial venture was making candles and macarame hangers & wooden candle sticks. My dad let me use his lathe, and from a 4x4" block of wood I turned it (literally) into a candle holder. He was always instructing me on the 'safe' use of his tools, and he never thought I was not capable of using them. I used a band saw at 16 years old. And still have one today.

I would schlepp my goods to the 'head' shops around town and sell my stuff. Now that was 40 years ago and I'm still making stuff and hauling it around selling it. Now it's in my local shops or craft fairs.  We creative folk are like sharks, we gotta make stuff or we die!
I am so happy that I grew up in a home that hand made things were treasured.

So if you have a bottle cutter, this project is for you. If not, try a technique I heard of using a wire wrapped tightly around the bottle and heat it and cool it. You would turn the bottle over a candle flame, then rub it over an ice cube. Repeat process until it cracks. Then use a rough sand paper grade under running water until the edges are smooth.

Today's project is:

Bottle Windchimes

left one is a wine bottle, right one are two beer bottles.  You need a chain, keyrings, and beads.  There is key ring inside the bottle to stop the chain from sliding all the way up. And then a keyring on the bottom of the chain (which you can get a hardware store) to hang the 'clinking' stuff.  I used a shower curtain/metal ring on the beer bottle one. And for the wine bottle one, I used glass beads and a piece of fused glass the clanging parts.

I was kind of experimenting and the windchimes I see have all kinds of stuff hanging from them. Use cord and shells, or beads and metal pieces like washers. The hardware store has loads of fun stuff to use.
I made chimes using a wooden dowel with stuff hanging off of it. Be creative, even if you don't use a bottle, you can just hang a bunch of stuff that will clink together.
The main thing is, that you are creating! Remember, you can't mess up, have fun!

tip of the day:
summer time has bugs, but this tip came from a landscape artist friend. (I'm not sure if I've used this before, so excuse me if I did)  She suggested that using 'bounce' fabric softener sheets tucked into the cushions of your outdoor furniture helps keep the skeeters away.  It's worth a try. If nothing else, it will make your stuff smell fresh! Hey, stick one down your cleevage, and hopefully the bugs won't follow! :)

That's all for now...
Dee

Bluegrass wedding

Well, we had an AWESOME wedding last Saturday.
My daughter got married to her soul mate in the presence of family and friends
It was a HOT day, but besides that it, it couldn't have been nicer.
Smiles abounded, as well as many happy tears (mostly from me)  :)

I made 'redneck wine glasses' for wedding favors.

They were great because this was a casual wedding and fit right into the barefoot, bluegrass theme.
And no one picked up the wrong glass because I sprayed chalkboard paint on their bases (before assembling them). So as the guests arrived we chalked in everyone's names. And after the wedding they could take them home.
So fun and functional!

We made chicken and salmon on the grill, and all the guests brought a dish to share. So we had lots of yummy food.
The bride and groom even made their own beer and cucumber soda!

Today's project is:

glass and wire serving spoons

You will need-
-stainless steel utensils- spoons, forks or cake servers
   (the handles should be as flat as possible)
-glass pieces (you can find these at the Dollar Store)
  ...I use my own fused glass pieces, but the kind of glass bubbles that people
     use in aquariums work well also
-E6000 glue
-20 gauge wire (optional)

Using the E6000, adhere the glass pieces onto the utensil handle.
Let dry for 24 hours. Then if you wish take about a yard of wire, and starting from the back, wind this around and over and in between the glass pieces, ending in the back. Take some needle nose pliers and tuck the end under and around another part of the wire and put a blob of glue over this.

I have also made serving utensils using beads strung onto the wire and wrapped around the handles. This would be pretty also. Just make sure you secure the ends of the wire in the back firmly and tightly. And a glob of E600 is good insurance. If you want to buy some, see my website: arttowearbydee.etsy.com

Hand wash please, no dishwashers.

tip of the day:
If you are invited to a pot-luck wedding, buy a nice bowl or platter to bring your food in, then leave it for the newlyweds as a wedding gift. Include a nice serving spoon like the one in today's project.

That's all for now...
Dee

ribbon roses

My oldest daughter (by 1/2 hour of her twin sister) is getting married in 2 weeks.
We are all so excited, it's hard to contain the happy atmosphere that surrounds her right now.
You can't help but smile when you see her face.

I did a lot for her sister's wedding back in 2004 (happy anniversary Bets!, eight years, whoa!)
from bouquets to table decorations, etc., but this time I am living 4 hours away. And it's not MY show.
It's tough to let other people take over, and I feel like I'm in the "outer" circle for the first time and being the mother of the bride, I have learned to just let it go.  Hard? yes.   Impossible? no.
Danzy, this effort is for you!

I did snag the flower job: bouquets, boutonnieres & corsages. So I have to revisit my previous job of choosing flowers, buying flowers, wiring flowers, preparing flowers, making flowers, then cooling off flowers three days ahead of time so they don't wilt and all my effort is for naught! Ah, the pressure!

Well, Dana showed me a quick and easy way to make little ribbon flowers. So this week's project is:

Ribbon Flowers

You will need:
satin ribbon, 3/4" - 1" wide
needle and thread

I used a different width of ribbon for demo to make it easier to view:

take about 24" of ribbon and toward the middle make a right angle fold. You will then fold the 'bottom' ribbon over this fold. You will continue with the other side until you have folded about 10 times.

You will be folding (at right angles) over the previous fold.

When you have your ten folds, pinch the corner of the bundle and let go of the top side (right hand side)

The ribbon bundle will pop out, but just keep pinching tightly so the whole thing doesn't fall apart, and with your free (right) hand pull gently the ribbon that is hanging down.

The rose should start to bunch up and start forming a flower shape. If this doesn't work to your satisfaction, just unravel and start again.

Some ribbons work better than others, and some widths work better than others. We tried with the 2" demo ribbon in the beginning, and it was too big to form a nice rose.

Once you have a nice rose shape, take your needle and thread and sew the bottom ribbon part together so it doesn't unravel.

tip of the day:
If you want to keep your towels as dry as possible, (perhaps you live a moist climate and have trouble drying things out)  try this tip:
Use a small washcloth in the shower (or bath) after you are finished and wipe off with this small towel first. After you have blotted down you will be surpised how much water you can squeeze out of this little washcloth. So think of all this moisture going into your bath towels that have to struggle to dry out.
My hubby gave me this tip, cuz in the army they gave the guys a little washcloth and one SMALL towel.

That's all for this week!
:D

Mirror Mirror on the wall

Lately it seems like the fairy tale of Snow White is making a comeback. I love the original movie by Walt Disney. He invented an innovative technique using 7 cameras and shooting down vertically from above to get a wonderful 3 dimensional look that was missing in the early animations.
There are two movies out: Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman. The first one I saw, and was pretty disappointed. The second looks very dark and spooky, and I'm not sure I want to see it.

At any rate, today's project is a mirror, so I figured I'd tie it in with the "mirror mirror" trend. Of course this mirror will not talk to you, or have magic powers, but it sure will look nice hanging on your wall.

Today's project is:
Mosaic Mirror

You will need:
a mirror (if it has a frame around it, that much the better)
tile adhesive
grout (it comes in many colors)
old dishes (find a garage sales, or thrift shops)

You will have to break the plates into usable pieces. I did this outside, using a hammer.
I wrapped the plate in newspaper, then wrapped this into an old towel. On a hard surface (driveway, or sidewalk) gently but firmly hit the plate in several places to crack it up. 

After you have enough pieces, lay them out in a way that they are close to each other, but not touching. You want a gap between the glass. I used brown glass pieces in the photo to 'frame' the mirror. But the beauty of this project is that you don't need any artistic talent, the designs are already done for you on the plates.

Lift each piece in turn, using a popsicle stick, slap on some tile adhesive and press onto mirror.
Continue until the mirror perimeter is filled with glass pieces. I like to use the edges of the plates facing into the center of the mirror. In other words, so the glass not grouted on the inner edge, has a nice smooth finish, and not the sharp broken part. Keep those inside where they will be embedded with grout and not exposed to cut you).

Wait 24 hours and  mask off the inside of the mirror to keep it clean while grouting.
Then apply the grout. You will probably have to mix this up yourself. Get an old bucket or old bowl, pour the grout in and A LITTLE BIT AT A TIME add water while you are mixing it in.

When the grout is the consistency of bread dough, spread it around the pieces. After you have all the spaces filled in, take an old damp rag and gently wipe the grout off the glass pieces. This does not have to be perfect, but the more you take off now, the less you will have to scrape off later when it dries.
Then use a wet sponge and go over the mosaic pieces and grout to smooth it out. Let dry overnight and go back with a damp rag to clean off any grout from the pieces. But be careful not to gouge out any of the grout between the pieces.

This mirror will be heavy, so before you hang it up, make sure you have a strong fastener in the wall (a molly bolt is good to use).  Once you get this technique 'down', you'll be covering all kinds of things.
(I showed you how to cover a clay flower pot in an earlier post.)

tip of the day:
Pick up a couple of plastic silverware organizers at the thrift shop when you are looking for those plates. These work great in your bathroom drawer to organize makeup, hair accessories or any of those goodies we have in our drawers.

That's all for now!
:D

Lavender Bottles

Spring has sprung, and it makes me happy. Some days are warmer than others, sometimes it rains. But I'm very glad winter is over, and I will take all unexpected weather I get. As long as it's warm.

A wonderful part of warmer weather is flowers. And when things start to bloom, so do ideas.
I love to press flowers for future use (use a phone book) or make sachets. Which is what this post is about.

Today's project is:

Lavender Bottles

What you need:
fresh lavender stalks
ribbon
string

First gather some lavender, cutting the stalks at least a foot long.
If you have to do this when it is fresh, because you bend it. And if the lavender is dried out or old, it will crack and break instead of bend.

Take about twenty stalks and tie a string around the whole bouquet, under the blossoms.
Then, one by one, bend the stems backwards downward. You will be encasing the blossoms in a 'bottle'.
This is an old fashioned craft.

Tie a ribbon around the stems about half way down. And use as a room air freshener (wave it around and it is a natural way to scent the air).
Or put it in a glass tray or place a few in a vase to keep the air smelling like wonderful lavender.

Now I have discovered as it dries out, the blossoms tend to fall out. So if I do this again, I will wrap the blossoms in netting BEFORE encasing them in their own stems.

Tip of the day:
This has nothing to do with lavender, except this tip smells good too, in a different way...BACON.
I find that a pack of bacon is too much for my hubby and I at one sitting. So when I buy bacon at the store, (especially when they are on sale then I buy several packages), I cut the whole package in half. Put each one in a ziploc bag and throw in the freezer. So when I need some yummy bacon, I take the half pack out, defrost in the micro, and fry up in the pan. It turns out to be just the right amount, with maybe a few left over for future use (bacon bits on salad, or BLT's).

That's all for this week...
:D

Talent

I am surrounded by talented people, and I LOVE IT!
My family is talented, my friends are talented, my neighbors are talented.
Many can create art, some write, or dance, some craft, some sing.
And believe it or not, EVERYONE is talented at something. Whether you cook, or are good with people, perhaps you have a way with animals, or you can sew or knit, or you might be a great organizer, a photographer, etc., there is a special talent in you.

I just visited my future son-in-law, Yori's website. He's getting ready for an upcoming museum gallery show Feb. 2012. He has been working hard in his newly built home studio besides working full time at the junior college. Check out his site for a behind the scenes look at a sculptor at work.
http://www.yoriseeger.wordpress.com/

My daughter Dana has been driving up to Berkely these past few months on the weekends for a residency in print making. So besides planning their wedding, and working full time, these two have been super busy. She's making some great new prints, and actually is going to be teaching a class there in the future. Check out her website and blog.
http://www.dana.danabetsy.com/  and  http://www.apairofneedles.blogspot.com/

My younger daughter (by 1/2 hour) Betsy is in Nebraska right now. She took a leave of absence from her full time job at the University for a two week residency painting and creating at the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center in Nebraska City. She is making some incredible new paintings. Check out her sites.
http://www.betsy.danabetsy.com/ plus you can go to Google+  and search for Betsy Barnum.
http://www.melittaberze.blogspot.com/  is her blog.

My husband also has a blog. He focuses on his travels, mostly with the BMW motorcycle club.
You can see some of his adventures at: http://www.tomtuco.blogspot.com/

So I hope you can find some inspiration today and bring out the talent in you. Today is a good day to look inside and do what you do best, whatever that may be! Perhaps you can start a blog of your own. It's easy, go to http://www.blogger.com/ and share your special talent.
If you have a blog already, I'd love to see it
Leave a comment below with your blog site.

tip of the day:
Take a second and let people know you appreciate them and their special talents.
A kind word from you sure can make someone's day!
I appreciate YOU!!! Thanks for reading.

That's it for this week...
:D