What I Will Do for A Blog Giveaway Prize or please turn down the volume, cover your eyes and have an amazing weekend

I so know I will regret this after hitting publish, but I have been promised a totally awesome blog giveaway for you guys from a very popular shopkeeper if I post a video of myself saying "wash" (how the hell do you say wash anyway?) plus I am trying to get my nerve up to do some video tutorials (great for SEO), so even though I blanked on "mischief night", "sunshower" and " inch worm" (I think?) - (I totally blame mommy-brain which I have somehow had since 8th grade and blame for all missteps) here is my NJ dialect saying the words below - see if you can hear the 'fogetaboutit' Carmella Soprano in me:

(not sure why my face is so white - I blame weeks of rain and the spotlight I have Olive carry around trained on my face):



Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

Now answer these questions:

What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you change the TV channel with?

If anyone wants to try this on their own blog- leave a link and I will add it in here - there is also a link on Leigh-Ann's wonderful Freckled Nest site here. I was once asked by a speech therapist if english was my second language because I pronounce every syllable which left me very smug until he added - "whether they should be pronounced or not" - aargh!

Anyhoo, Happy Friday everyone - I am posting this Thursday night, but plan to get up at 4am to watch the wedding and drink margaritas (winks at Cinders).

The winner of Bullfrog Laserworks Custom Rubber Stamp is (drumroll please)

Chosen by random.org True Random Number Generator

Min: 1
Max: 611
Result:
105

Elena Rosenberg of Tickled Pink Knits! Congrats Elena!

Don't miss this week's giveaway it is only up through Sunday!

Wishing Everyone a Happy Ever After especially Will and Kate!

Upcycled Corkboard Tutorial - from Blah to Cork-tastic in 10 Minutes!


This is another easy-peasy tutorial

(not sure why I am doing all these cork tutorials lately - it just seems to be working out that way)

all you need for this one is a piece of cork or your existing corkboard, some scrap fabric and furniture tacks.

I made mine with a vintage hanger, but this is equally awesome on your existing corkboard.

(you can also make this on solid wood and furniture by drilling starter holes - it is alot of work though - I did something like this once using paint for the petals instead of fabric on an old cabinet - you need to measure the starter holes so the furniture tacks are placed exactly where you want them and you need to use a very small drill bit)


1. Cut a cardboard petal template 2. Cut out your fabric petals 3. Lay out your flower 4. Add your furniture tacks securing the fabric as you go


STRANGE BUT TRUE

After writing this post I was suddenly so tired that I had to lay down on my front porch - well not on the actual porch floor if that is kind of what you are picturing, but in a wicker chair on the porch with my feet on the railing -

one moment I am staring at my dandelion garden and listening to Harry Chapin sing that sad song about the taxicab and the next moment I am shooting Lance Armstrong in the foot ... uhuh - at least no vital organs were involved - even in my dreams I only maim, never kill - I'm kind of nice that way.

I have no idea where or how I got the gun or why I decided to go all Clint Eastwood on his Nikes but I clearly remember seeing Lance sprawl backwards onto my shipping table, landing squarely in a pile of customs forms and manilla mailers.

What this says about my subconscious I don't really want to think about - I was on the livestrong site looking for recipes the other day or it could just be my brain's way of reminding me not to eat tylenol pm for dinner ... again

BTW is anyone getting up tomorrow to see the wedding?? Maybe if I really do slip myself some tylenol pm this afternoon and fall asleep around dinner time I can get up early enough ...

Creating Special Spaces for Our Stuff

I was so happy to find this amazing yellow toolbox at a little antique shop in Red Bank, NJ (simply one of the best towns on the planet) a while back and it seemed the perfect place for some of my favorite old books.



I am not usually "a lamp on the left and a lamp on the right" kind of a girl but lately have been craving a bit more symmetry and structure.


I have also been wanting to move real furniture into my kitchen and move out the prefab cabinets and this is the first step - an old dresser with some black paint, covered with turquoise and sanded (sand where real wear and tear would occur - around knobs, corners, etc) as a sideboard under my pot rack (excuse the messy pots!)



If you have about 15 minutes you might enjoy Dan Phillips TED talk about the homes he builds from reclaimed and cast off materials.