A very cool chevron headboard!

As you all know, this christmas was "Handmade Christmas" around the Jones house.  I'm trying to round up pictures of all our handmade gifts, but for now, I just wanted to run through the making of the headboard I got from Momma and Daddy. 

The headboard is made of a closet door they found at the Habitat ReStore in Valdosta.  They brought it home, added a few cross bars to make it sturdy and so that it wouldn't bend, and then they added alittle decorative molding.  Alittle primer later, and it was ready to gift.  They left it primed, so that I could pick out what I wanted to do with it.  Sooo, the first step was to find some inspiration.  For this - I took to the internet.  I've noticed lately one design that seems to be trending is the chevron pattern (aka zigzag), so I started searching for that and found this chair.  I have green-yellow (grellow) curtains, and navy blue pillow shams, so I was looking for something that would go with that.  I used this as my inspiration.

                                               

Next, Momma and I went to Lowe's to pick out colors.  I got Kathleen to send me a picture of my curtains and shams, so that we could use that to compare.



We decided to go with the green color for less of a "BAM! IN YOUR FACE ZIG ZAG!" vibe that the navy would have given off.  Once we got home, we painted on the base color which would tape over next.  The base color was called "Candlelit Beige" and basically white, but alittle warmer than if we had just gone with the whitest of white.  While this color was drying, we practiced our pattern on wrapping paper that we had cut out to the exact size of our board.  Once the candlelit beige was dry, it was time to tape.  And tape we did...all night it felt like...

Next, we painted on the green color.  This got two coats and then it was time to remove the tape - my favorite part!!



Here is what it looked like with all the tape removed.  Looking Good!



After we removed the tape, we added more tape!  We had to cover the molding and paint everything green except the decorative molding.  We wanted it to stay Candlelit Beige.



Once that dried, we removed the tape, and added the doorknob back on.  We thought that gave it alittle character and now you can't look at it without realizing it used to be a closet door.  



The one thing nobody wanted to say the whole time we were crafting it up was, "There is no way that is going to fit in your car, so it may have to wait weeks or months before it hangs over your bed!"  I had faith the whole time.  So, we put the seats down in my car and carried the headboard outside to see if it would fit.

and...IT DID!  What an amazing car!?  I could probably fit a hot water heater in there if I wanted to.  Sorry the picture is sideways (and blue for some reason), but that is the headboard...perfectly fitting inside my car!

And we all know that as soon as I got it home, I had to hang it up.  I can't have a headboard that cool just laying around my room.  So, I used our handy dandy Hangman hanger we got at Lowe's and hung it up.

Finally, I rehung the floral picture on the other wall, and the transformation from no headboard to headboard was complete.  I think it looks really great!

It looks really cool at night by lamp light, but my rinky dink phone won't capture it.  Don't worry - my Iphone arrives via FedEx tomorrow and my pictures will be 100 times better from here on out!  Notice the higher quality picture Kathleen sent me from her iphone?  It's the one of my curtains and sham.



You got to nip it in the bud!

I have some sad news...yesterday afternoon I started to feel a little tinge of soreness in my throat and throughout the day, it developed into full on sickness!  What terrible timing!  I went to the doctor today, and told her if I wasn't done with this sickness by Christmas, I was going to be mad!  I would prefer to be done by the time I wake up tomorrow, but that might be alittle too high hopes. She prescribed me a Z Pack and I'm picking it up today after work.  I plan to take some advice from Barney Fife and Nip it right in the bud!

Click on this link to watch a funny video of Barney Fife:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de_P2aUZJyA

Weekend Update

This weekend we celebrated Christmas with LauraAnn and David, and the twins (John David and Bella Ann)!   The babies are adorable and getting very close to walking!  I thought I was going to get Bella Ann walking this weekend, but she only managed to take a couple steps before falling into me.  I think the falling part at the end was her favorite part.  She will probably walk first because she seems to really love the attention she is getting for it.  John David, on the other hand is more happy to watch the monogramming machine, TV or laptop than try to walk.  Here are some random pictures from the weekend.  I only have a few, and only of John David for some reason..  First, here are a few pictures from a sewing project Kate started at 9pm on Thursday night!

She was attempting to sew three tote bags, and these are all of the straps for the bags.  You can see the project is beginning to get to her.  This is where she started to lose it.

Here she has given up, and Momma has taken over to try and help out.  I took more of an instructional approach during this project...from the couch, while watching Miracle on 34th Street...

Finally, she was able to recompose herself, and get one of the bags done!  Yay Kate!!

I found this rug for $25 at Goodwill.  I couldn't resist buying it, as I'm sure I'll need it someday.  It was in great condition!  I am picturing it on wood floors, with a vintage chest for a coffee table, in front of a fireplace!

Momma and John David in watching Daddy's laptop. 

All three of them.  He was propped up on Daddy's shoulder forever watching the laptop, and examining the pictures from the wildlife camera! 

Unfortunately, that is all the pictures I took this weekend.  LauraAnn took alot, and hopefully, I'll be able to put some more up once she gets them to us.

The Bench!! Finally

Finally I've got internet!  Here are the steps it took to go from this:

To This:

First, I picked out all my colors and fabric:

Then, I took the bench outside and primed it.  I sanded it alittle before I used a spray primer on it.  A can of primer would have worked just as well, but I already had a can of spray primer from the Chalkboard wine glasses, and the drying time is about 1/8th of the time. I can get alittle impatient with projects, so this was the best option for me!

Since it was so windy outside, I decided to take it inside for the next step.  So, I covered the dining room table and got started on the Pumpernickle Brown paint. This took 3 coats, with about an hour drying time between each coat.  The can said 4 hours between coats, but it turned out great without the waiting.   

Next, I added the decorative nail heads in Bronze.  I measured the middle of the bench and then kept breaking it half and then half again, so that the nail heads were evenly spaced. 

Here's what it looked like after the paint dried and the nailheads were in place.  That is the original fabric.

Finally, I borrowed a staple gun from Betsy's sister and was able to recover the cushion in the fabric I found for $5! 

And...tada!   

Feliz Navidad!

I have finished the bench!  But since I haven't had time to write about it, and probably won't tonight - I thought I'd tease you alittle bit with the fabric swatch, paint swatch, and decorative nail heads that I used.

And just for fun, here are a couple pictures of me and Laura in a Feliz Navidad video from elfyourself.com.  I would have had to pay to send that one, so that is why no one found it in their inbox.

Oh man! I get such a kick out of these videos!

On my To Do List for after work today is to: Go to Michaels, Hancock Fabrics, Take back pants to Gap, Go to Crate and Barrel, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Walmart.  Then when I get home from all that: Eat a hardy dinner!, wrap presents, finish christmas cards, and do laundry.

Ay ay ay!  Say alittle prayer for me! Me and Betsy witnessed a verbal/physical altercation over a parking spot at the mall yesterday...People are starting to lose it!

Weekend Update

Well, since I've been spending my evenings this week, wandering around the malls trying to get ideas for Christmas presents, and hoping to find a winter addition to my work wardrobe (with no luck so far), I haven't been getting on the computer much after work, or taking too many pictures.  But this weekend, I hope to knock out a couple more presents.  I plan to repaint Daniel's bench and pick out the fabric for the seat.  I'll also go ahead and get any other little things like decorative nailheads or whatever else the craft store inspires in me.  Since I don't have much to put in my blog right now, I thought I'd link you up to one of my favorite blogs that has a tutorial on redo-ing a bench similar to mine. (which has been riding around in the backseat of my car for over a week now) A drive thru person actually commented on it the other day.

The blog is called Young House Love, and it is a young family that posts about upgrading/remodeling their house on a budget through Do It Yourself projects.  Click Here to check it out!

Also, tonight is my work Holiday Party!  Should be lots of fun and an excuse to get semi dressed up.  The dress is "Holiday Casual"  and I'm alittle afraid that my casual might be alittle more casual than the bigwigs I work with, so I've been asking around, and it turns out it is a good thing I did.  Looks like Holiday Casual translates to the same thing we wear everyday at the office...I'm going to try and add alittle red and sparkly though!

UGA experienced quite a brutal loss this weekend to LSU in the SEC Championship.  We had hope the first half, and even went to halftime with the lead.  This didn't last long after the 2nd half kicked off.  LSU intercepted the ball right away, and I think everyone knew that was it.  They came out ready to go!  And that's what they did.  With a final score of 42-10, there was no need for a rematch. 

Jen's dad dropped us off at the Blue Lot which was designated UGA tailgate zone, and we met up with a lot of her sister's friends.  From right to left above, that's Jen, Me, and Joanne (one of her sister's friends).

This guy above in the middle is kind of a Bulldog legend!  He is at every game, and he always paints his head!  From right to left, Me, Jen, crazy fan, Katie, Taylor (Jen's sister).

The tailgate right next to us was nice enough to let me check out their food selection and take away a ham sandwich and some potatoes!  Instant friends at tailgates are the best!

After the game, we took the MARTA to meet Jen's dad in midtown where my car was parked.  Overall a good day!  I don't think many UGA fan's actually believed in their heart of hearts that we would win, so it was almost cruel to give us hope in the first half and then completely fall apart in the second!

A few random side notes:

*Last night, I finally met up with the craigslist lady, who sold me Daniel's bench.  It is in the back of my car right now.  So, now all I have to do is sand, prime, paint, and recover! 

*I just paid for the 6 month extension on my Marketing Research Certificate class.  It was only $50, and I just couldn't admit that I paid for it and didn't do it.  Plus, I want it on my resume! 

*I didn't get the Hire Heroes job, so that's a bummer.  However, I am constantly on the look-out.  In fact, tonight when I get home, I'll be taking a 2.5 hour Aptitude/Personality test for one of the jobs I've applied for.  Good lord - that's almost as long as the SAT!  At least they'll know how smart and likeable I am! ha

*update: you spell it peruse! i feel so much better knowing that!

Who's that coming down the track? All decked out in red and black.

...why it's Lizzie, with a free ticket to the SEC Championship game!

I know Georgia's chances of winning this football game rank among pigs flying or hell freezing over, but wouldn't it be exciting if we did!  There isn't much more exciting than an amped up crowd of football fans!

Here's where I'll be on Saturday:

 I've never been to the Georgia Dome before...this should be fun!  I'm especially excited about the roof!  I won't be freezing my tail off at this game! No need to stuff hand warmers in every pocket.
It's okay to be alittle jealous...



Jewelry Party!!

Today is the jewelry party!  I set everything up last night, so that this evening when I get home all I'll have to do is some last minute cleaning.  I think I'll stage the place alittle with a nice fire going, cookies in the oven, and a candle that smells like a christmas tree!

I might also lose the umbrella that's propped up behind the table...

Check it out!  My homemade displays are staying strong!  To make those, I bought frames from Goodwill and spray painted them the perfect Stella & Dot blue, and then just put a simple fabric where the picture would go! 

As you can see, I've acquired alittle bit more jewelry since the first show.  However, I could always use some more.  Laura and I need to have one combined, SUPER jewelry party.  Together we have most of the collection!  Not really, but we've got alot!

Wish me luck!  I've just decided I'm going to have my car and student loan paid off in three years.  Yikes! - that's alot of jewelry! Okay - I'm off to buy a lottery ticket!

It's the hap-happiest season of all!

I can't believe Thanksgiving is behind us, and that it has already been 10 days since my last blog post.  I feel like I'm stuck in some sort of time-warp, and that time has somehow sped up.  The days are flying by! 

Yesterday I was scrolling through craigslist. (Side Note* I was going to use the word parusing, but wasn't sure about the spelling.  After looking for it in the dictionary - with no luck - I am not even sure it's a real word)  I like to look through craigslist fairly often in hopes of finding good deals, and interesting side job opportunities.  And yesterday, was quite a successful craigslist day.  I found numerous opportunities for alittle extra cash - leaf cleanup, transcribing a book, helping someone sell their handmade furniture...  I emailed them all, but so far the only one to get back to me was the handmade furniture guy.  So - if anyone needs some rustic, log cabin style handmade furniture...I'm your girl!  Here is a picture of an end table that is selling in a set for $65...that's a steal!  You can get 2 end tables and a coffee table for only $100!



Who has two thumbs and wants to sell you some furniture?  You guessed it! ME!



I may not be super successful at gaining him business, but I figured it couldn't hurt...and I actually think the furniture is very cool!

Anyone interested in a walk down memory lane to look at my past craigslist finds?? I thought you might be...

My dining room table and chairs for $30, My super comfy living room chair and ottoman for $30, Kate's super comfy and oh so stylish living room chair for $20, and we can't forget that craigslist is how I found my monogramming job! 

I've been wanting so badly to update you on all of my do-it-yourself Christmas gifts, but I can't let any secrets out, so I'll have to post about all that after Christmas.  I will however, share another craigslist find that I am turning into a Christmas present for Daniel.  (I think it's safe to say he will not be reading my blog).  I found this bench yesterday, and plan to recover it and repaint it for Daniel.  I thought it would be nice in an entryway or at the foot of the bed, and would be the perfect place to sit to put his boots on!

It is solid wood and the legs and cushion are both in good condition.  I'll post pictures as the project progresses.  I probably won't get the cushion recovered until the next time down south, as I do not have a staple gun up here with me...bummer!

I've decorated for Christmas and had another fire last night! These pictures aren't the best since I took them on my phone, but you can get the idea.

I'm having my second Jewelry trunk show tomorrow night! Cross your fingers that I sell lots of jewelry and makes lots of commission!  Also, don't forget that jewelry is a lovely christmas gift - CLICK HERE to paruse my website!

SEC East Champions

Kate and I went to the UGA vs. Kentucky game yesterday.  Bob, the lawyer for Tishman Speyer had two extra tickets and gave them to me, so we decided to go.  We forgot to get any pictures, but you can CLICK HERE to find us in one of the "truefans" albums.  We are about 6 rows down after you follow the link.

Horseback Riding

 

A few weeks ago, Jen and I went horseback riding.  It was an hour long trailride in Canton, GA at Georgia Frontiers - Western Trailriding.  The leaves were just starting to turn and it was beautiful!  Here are a few pictures of the day.

Michelle came for a visit!

Michelle was in town last week!  She got into town Tuesday night and then rode down with me on Friday.  I dropped her off in Valdosta, where her brother met us to take her to Thomasville. 

Thursday night we decided to get crafty!  Michelle wanted to try something she had seen online, where you dip the bottom of a wine glass in chalkboard paint, so that you can write who's glass it is - and then erase it and have a clean slate for the next person that uses it.  Since we were getting crafty, I decided I was going to paint the chairs that sit on my balcony...FINALLY!  So, we went to Lowe's and Michelle got the Chalkboard paint and I got some spray paint for my chairs.  I went with a bright aqua color.  We also went to Marshall's where Michelle got a set of 4 wine glasses, and I got a pair of comfy new boots for winter. 

After meeting a few friends for Taco Thursday, we headed home and decided that it was cold enough for a fire.  So we built one and started on our crafts.  Everything turned out really great.  Unfortunately, I don't have a finished picture of Michelle's wine glasses, but I will get her to email me one when she actually uses them.

By the fire - Those are the boots I got from Marshall's.  Comfy Cozy!

Michelle about to dip the glasses in the chalk paint.  We had already taped them off and primed.  We're hoping the primer helps it to stick to the glass better.   They should probably be hand washed to help with that too.

Spray painting the chairs. 

And the finished look!  I wasn't sure how I felt about them at first, but I think they are growing on me.  I still have the small table that matches in the back of my car, and it needs to be painted, and the bench that is still in Thomasville.

I just realized that in my last post, I forgot to mention/photo document when Jen and I went on a horseback trailride.  Maybe I can put some pictures up from that tonight.

WARNING - wordy/rambly/and alittle overly share-happy. This entry is not short!

Hellooo! It has been two months since I've updated you on my going ons - and a whirlwind two months it has been. 

On September 1, I flew out to Sacramento where Michelle and Emma were nice enough to pick me up.  Flying into Sacramento is alot cheaper than flying into Reno - even if it is alittle inconvenient.  As you may remember I only had to use 4 vacation days to score an 11 day vacation by combining them with the paid holidays I already had thanks to Labor Day. 

We got into town late Thursday night, so we didn't do much that night.  Friday, we woke up and tubed down the Truckee River.  It was freezing cold, but so beautiful and lots of fun!

Saturday, most everyone had to work, so Will (Emma's brother) and I got sucked into a marathon of Finding Bigfoot - a show about four people's hunt for a Sasquatch.  After hours of watching the show, practicing our Squatch calls, and careful experimentation (testing whether it was humanly possible to leap 12-15 feet in a single bound) we are inclined to believe that they do not exist.  However, we are in agreement that a Sasquatch Hunt in Tahoe may still be necessary.

Saturday night we all went to Bar of America (a Truckee Treasure) and saw the Dead Winter Carpenters play.  They were an americana/bluegrass band and really great!  Everybody danced and had a great time.

Sunday, we all went to Lake Tahoe, and climbed on/jumped off of some big rocks all day!  That evening we watched a few of the first football games of the season, and a 9/11 special. 

East Shore, Lake Tahoe

Michelle and I about to jump off!

Monday, Will and I hung out at Donner Lake until the wind got unbearable and we had to head back to the house. On the way home we stopped at a yardsale.  I had to remember that Emma's small car was already going to be packed to the max, so I had to restrain from buying anything.

Donner Lake

Later that afternoon, I heard from a friend that a very close friend of mine, Tyler Harris had passed away. I was, and still am devestated by what happened.  I am however, grateful that I was with Emma and Michelle when I found out and that I already had a full week off from work.  We quickly had to change our plans for the roadtrip portion of the trip.  The trip went from 6 days to 3, and we regrettfully had to cut out our visits to Vinton, IA to see Susannah, and our stop in Chicago.  The trip was kind of a blur, but we departed Tuesday morning from Truckee, CA and made it to somewhere in Wyoming the first night (I honestly don't remember the name of the town).  We slept in Wednesday morning and left around checkout.  We were lucky we still had long days then, because we were able to make it to Kansas City, MO only having to drive a couple of hours in the dark.  Thursday we pushed to Atlanta and arrived around Midnight.  We only took one picture the whole trip.  It may have been the quickest, most uneventful roadtrip across the country in history.  Although, sometimes uneventful is a good thing. 

Tyler's service on Sunday was not easy, but it was nice to hear everyone's stories.  I didn't quite have it in me to share any stories at the service, but I did write a letter to his parents and brother that I mailed the next week.  Here are a few of the memories that I shared with them in the letter.

One thing I loved about Tyler was how much respect and love he had for his family.  Anytime something exciting happened, he would want to immediately call you and share it with you.  One day we all decided to go to North Carolina to go snowboarding, and it was both Tyler and my first time.  Of course he picked it up right away and I was still rolling down the bunny hill at the end of the night…I was so jealous. 

Somehow, I got the short straw and had to drive us home that night and Tyler wouldn’t shut up about how “before you drive us off the mountain I have to call my mom and tell her about “the best day EVER!”” (I don’t know why he liked to make fun of my driving.  I’m perfectly fine…).   It seemed like the drive took forever, and everyone else went to sleep, but Tyler stayed up and DJ’d the whole way home. 

After I graduated, I moved to Lake Tahoe and worked at a ski resort.  By the time Ian and Tyler came out to visit, I had been practicing and gotten a lot better.  I was so excited to show off how good I had gotten.  It had just snowed, the weather was perfect, and we all had a really awesome day.  At the end of the day I decided I was going to make it down to the bottom of the mountain before they did, so I took off and raced to the bottom.  I stood there for about ten minutes waiting for them (feeling pretty good about myself), and then Ian and Tyler came up behind me and looked at me like I was crazy and asked, “Did you really think you could get down here before we did?”  I don’t know what I was thinking.  He was so good at everything!  Later that night we decided to build a jump in my backyard – Ian has some pretty hilarious videos of our attempts.  None of us actually landed it, but Tyler probably came the closest.

The few days they were in Tahoe were some of my favorites from the year I was out there.  One night it was snowing and I didn’t feel like putting my tire chains on to go anywhere, so we made kool-aid slushees out of snow and the three of us sat around the computer and watched the Disney movie, Johnny Tsunami.  We quoted it for weeks – mainly about how “totally nectar” their visit had been!

There are so many ridiculous, goofy memories.  One time Tyler accidentally broke the door panel off Chris’s tiny BMW because he just plain didn’t fit in the car.  We pulled over and tried to fix it, but Tyler had to ride the rest of the way home with the door panel in his lap. 

Another time right before he and Josh went Turkey hunting I got my dad to set them up with some special turkey camo (“superflauge”) and some calls.  My mom brought it up one weekend and he picked it up from my house.  He modeled all the new clothes for us, and my mom thought he was just too funny.  After he got his first turkey, he sent us a picture with all the turkey hunting gear and the turkey. 

Tyler will always be one of my favorite people.  During my last year at UGA, I went through a pretty traumatic event involving my roommate, and that’s when I became close with Tyler.  He was there for me every day until I left for Tahoe, just trying to make sure I stayed busy and didn’t just sit around and mope.  We played A LOT of tennis, watched A LOT of NCIS, went to my favorite bar to play pool, or just sat around and did nothing in particular. One time we were playing tennis and I had just tied it up, so that we each had one set.  I was so tired and ready to go, but he could not leave with it tied.  So we played the 3^rd set, and I actually beat him!  He was so mad that he lost to a girl; he wouldn’t even ride back in the car with me.  (I’ve been thinking that maybe he let me win because I was so upset about my roommate, but it doesn’t sound like Tyler to intentionally lose).  After that, we joked that he had to really piss me off to get a real game of tennis out of me. 

It has been tough the last few months, just figuring out how to deal with this, but it has brought me closer to a lot of our mutual friends.  And now I'm just trying to remember all of our happy memories, make sure everyone that I care about knows how much I do, and not to take for granted all the wonderful people and opportunities I have.  To quote my favorite - Winnie the Pooh - "If there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever."

Adding some rows on the Nifty Knitter

Ian and Tyler at Northstar

We got new hats... and obviously were "too cool" to smile.

The next weekend, Momma, Daddy, and Kate were able to come up and visit me.  We drove up to Ellijay to pick apples.  It was a beautiful day and a new experience for all of us.  We had never even seen an apple tree before.  While we were there, we toured a moonshine museum, tasted some freshly made apple fritters, and even milked a cow.  We left with two big bags of apples with the grand scheme that we were going to make apple butter that night. 

Our plans fell through and nothing was made out of the apples.  We did watch the FSU football game, got some frozen yogurt (where we met a fellow FSU fan), and painted the indo boards Daddy had made for us a few weeks before.  For anyone who doesn't know about indo boards, here is a video of what I'll be doing on mine in no time. (watch the video and insert sarcastic laugh here)  Also, here are some pictures of the indo-board making process.





 

The weekends of the next month and a half are almost all full of exciting things.  I volunteered at a Triathalon at Lake Lanier, went home for our October Birthday Extravaganza, where I got my awesome green watch.  The next weekend was the Bassnectar concert at Verizon Wireless Ampitheatre in Alpharetta.  October 29th, was Lindsay's mom's wedding in St. Augustine, FL.  Then came Halloween, and Grandma Jones' party.