$5 cake plate

what am i doing with slightly scummy looking glassware?  again?  following pinterest to my grave.  thats what.

dining room chairs

chalk paint is a big diy thing.  perhaps youve heard of it ages ago and used it and can afford it and are semi-pro and shit.  well i'm not.  and until a couple weeks ago, i hadnt seen it on on my internets.  but pinteresting hours later, i found a bunch of recipes for homemade chalk paint and cobbled together my own.  and it worked surprisingly well.

couch painting 101

well pinterest, youve done it again.  i found a website all about painting furniture instead of reupholstering.  AND IT WORKED.

loveseat/couch sans cushions

THE BATHROOM FROM HELL

since moving in 10 months ago i have perfected the art of using a 6'x6' bathroom.  that is to say... i try and spend as little time as possible in that damn room.  though it is the warmest in the house.  obvi it is still pink tile with a clawfoot tub.  the money i have put into the house thus far has gone to cosmetic wall repairs in the other rooms including the hallway outside, and organizational accoutrements. 

still painting things

after some internal debate, late night pinteresting, and irresponsible finances.. i bought paint for the kitchen.  i figure i'll spend $100 now and $10k in [if i'm lucky/frugal/get a raise] 5 years... and i can test if i like colored paint!  if i dont.. ill bash it all out with a crowbar and just paint everything black and white foreeveerrr.  no really. 

my kind of housework

friday i was sick all day, and could barely breathe by the time closing came about.  after signing my life away yet another 20 times, we chatted a bit with the seller [i had only had contact with her son in prior dealings] and she proved to be a sweet feisty little old thing.  she and her late husband had purchased the house in the 50's with the intention of moving after several years.  5 kids later, they were still there.  there was some reminiscing, and when she left, presumably to go get a glass of whiskey somewhere, this wizened little old lady gave me a hug and said "this house has seen 56 years of love.  take good care of it for me".  then eyes brimming with tears, she tottered out the door. 

that was followed by my first wheezy congested trip to home depot, and an early bedtime.  saturday i got up at 7, called home depot's rental department to find the one truck [thats right.  singular] had already been rented.  i went and bought a step ladder which proved to be more than sufficient, 3 ridiculously expensive gallons of paint, trim paint, and ceiling paint, and returned home to stare at the walls some more. 

not pictured: me snurffling around home depot like the most disgusting ball of sickness you have ever witnessed.  i think everyone who had to help me was a little worried i wouldnt ever make it out of the store.

reading about kitty freezer pops

not nearly as terrible as it sounds.  i just am drawing a blank on appropriate titles. 

i dropped 3 books off at the library and ..checked out 3 more.  my bedside table is getting a little overwhelmed.  over half of them are from the thrift store.  and ive taken to removing the dust jackets on used books.  i personally think the pressed binding looks quite a bit better and really, after being bashed about at someones house and then in a donation bin, the dust jacket is usually in quite bad condition.  ...also it makes the rather crappy reader's digest books i found for $1 each look all sophisticated and shit. 

more sewing

new look pattern #113 with the fabric bought for a different pattern..

sewing like mad

well not really, but ive completed [!] two projects in the last two nights.

yet another 90's eddie bauer dress that i cut apart and added a ruffle ala this pin:

Source: lynnnchicago.com via Liz on Pinterest

from gcb [good christian bitches] which is a hilarious show on abc.  the desperate religious petty housewives of dallas.  based on the book of the same name.

its a bit short cos i ...wasnt paying attention and i cut off too much

and i made another petticoat!  here is the crappiest tutorial ever:

from scratch and the old thrift-fix

i thrifted an "esp - extra sure pattern" from goodwill for $.50 [victory #1] and spent over an hour and half cutting out the pieces.  now i just want to point out as america has gained weight, our clothing sizes have changed.  and ummm the pattern was just 1" too small at each measurement.  oh well. 

i took this pic when i thought i was 90% done [ie facing and shoulders complete, waist and sides sewn together].  another 1.5 hours after finishing cutting pieces.  in between pics i bought new lightbulbs [daylight instead of warm] and figured out how to better dry my poufy hair

little did i know, i would decide weeeell maybe more like 75% done.  i bias-taped [is that a word?] the arm holes after making them ever so slightly larger, cut off a few more inches from the hem, and added [then removed and resewed] hooks in place of the buttons since as i mentioned, it was a wee bit too small.

oh yea.  and i added pockets.  AWESOME friggin pockets.  the other pic is just to show more of my mad gathering skills even though theyre mostly hidden by the damn collar.

based very loosely on this pin:

Source: modcloth.com via Liz on Pinterest

for magical sewing piece #2 [also a victory] i have here a dark teal eddie bauer size small ponte awkward midi dress with a stain and a slit.  compare that if you will to the unknown brand size 16 petite.  i digress.  [though it is microsuede and $2.50 worth of amazing]

honestly beyond my stand-by of chopping of the bottom i was a bit at a loss of what to do.  so i looked up over-priced under-sized [is a large really an 8-10 you fuckers?] dresses on modcloth.  and found this little sold-out gem

Source: modcloth.com via Liz on Pinterest

so i busted out my gathering skills yet again and made a triple peplum.  which to my chagrin i recently found is pronounced pep-lum.  not pea-plum.  eeeeh. 

this pic is to show how it goes from the side seam to the random off-set front seam

this pic is to show the dress from a more flattering angle.

linking up to meagan of brass in pocket's thursdays are for thrifters, harper's happening's high on thrifting thursday, and erica of recycled fashion's finds #36

bean, sausage, and kale soup

after pinning this:

Source: curryandcomfort.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest

i thought... waaait i think i have a recipe very similar to that.  and lo and behold, i do.  so i made it.  and i successfully reduced the recipe from 6 servings to 2.  no wonky amounts like 1.3 cans of beans or 5 sausages. 

$18.54 for a shoe rack?

after pinning this:

Source: ariannabelle.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest

i thought.. damnit thats what i need!  so i bought 5 1' lengths of crown moulding for $1.44 a foot, some overpriced metallic paint and a brush [$11.34] that i ..surely will use at some other point, and got to it. 

let me tell you.  paint + dinner curry + clean laundry = weird ass smells in the apartment.

i also marked out some lines on the wall and waited for the paint to dry.  exciting no?

unfortunately the army corps of engineers built my apartment complex back in the 60's.  the walls im pretty sure are made out of some mixture of metal sheeting and concrete cos they are hard as fuck to do anything to.  hanging things over the past week i have bent about 20 nails and dulled my drill bits.  smashed thumbnail, cracked crown moulding and i persevered, and i bashed in 5 rows of newly painted shoe holders. 

second bummer... apparently i dont have hooker heels.  about half of my shoes dont stay on the wall as the angle isnt quite right.  they have tapered heels which makes for comfy actually wearable shoes.  or they have <2" heel and immediately fall onto the floor.  but i fit 10 pairs on the wall and will have to buy another pocket hanger for the other 8. 

moral of the story:  ummm if you have normal walls and stilettos, probably a worthwhile project.  otherwise, dont bother.

xmas decor

after seeing several ornament trees on pinterest and blogs and realizing... i'm not going home for xmas for logistical reasons, i decided to do some quick decorating!

the glass balls were $2 at rite aid [too lazy to go anywhere farther with better selection] and tying them turned out to be a pain in the ass.  fishing line is...really hard to see.  cos its clear. 

the other decorations consist of lights left up from the burlesque party, beads from a mardi gras party a couple years ago, and cranes that have been hanging in my room for quite some time.  i am hoping to find some cheap greens but i have some lingering fears that frank will chew them up and then barf pine needles everywhere.  and/or destroy them.

petticoat junction

i made a petticoat! 

i kind of mushed these tutorials together...

Source: rocknrollbride.com via Liz on Pinterest

Source: sugardale.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest

Source: pettipond.com via Liz on Pinterest

and after some math errors... got everything sorted. 

i only put ribbon on 2 of the 4 layers cos not only is it royal pain in the ass... i didnt order enough.  but top layer so as not to get caught on the dress/skirt im wearing and bottom layer as to not get caught on tights/leggings underneath

and an adjustable bow-tie waist.  no poufy elastic business.  and well its not quite as fluffy as id like, but its definitely a more every-day accessory than costume.  expect outfit pics soonish.

curbside crap

since moving to long island, i have noticed... people put a lot of good stuff out at the curb for trash day.  usually, it gets damaged since it rains about every 2 days or it gets put out the night before and is picked up immediately and thrown in collection truck.  not only is this really really wasteful [like much of life on the island..] but 90% of the time its only slightly used and could be donated or resold with very little effort.

being a horder-in-training, i collected a few sweet pieces on saturday.  friday was veteran's day, so no trash pick up.  but most people [our house included] forgot and put trash out anyway.  it hasnt rained for a record 4 days, and i only picked up stuff that could easily be cleaned, ie no furniture.

hard-sided faux alligator suitcase

replete with inside pockets, built-in hangers, and a fold-over clothes protector.  and a bus luggage tag!  the suitcase will either stay as is, or will [eventually] be made into a table/chair

Source: countryliving.com via Kate on Pinterest

Source: blog.craftzine.com via Liz on Pinterest

Source: seekatesew.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest

a vinyl bowling bag [i removed the bowling ball and icky shoes]

 heavy plastic picture frame, with probably tacky picture already removed.  i will be making this into a jewelry holder or a chalkboard like this:

Source: remodelaholic.com via Liz on Pinterest

Source: thecreativityexchange.blogspot.com via Liz on Pinterest