Christmas Mantel - Phase 2

I'm still working on my mantel for Christmas - and I've moved on to the left side.  In case you're new here, I'm completely changing up my holiday decor - in favor of silver, white and green.  So here's what I came up with - and I'm sorry about the lousy pictures.  We have had no sun and my mantel is in a room which gets very little natural light on a good day.  I've heard rumors that the sun will be back tomorrow - and I'm going to try to take better pictures then.  But for now, just use your imagination.  ;-)

I know, I haven't shared any of these projects yet.  And this post would be long and boring if I shared everything at once.  So, I'll explain a couple of the items today and share more in the upcoming days.  Let's face it, you're out shopping right now anyway and don't have time for long posts... 

So, the tall pillar candle on the left - you probably guessed already - I bought it at Salvation Army - 

Yes, I have a thing for sponge paint (but at least I've moved on to pink sponge paint).  It was only $.59 and I knew some chrome spray paint would fix it - 

If you're wondering - yes that is the same can of spray paint I've used for all of these projects.  This can has lasted forever (I've even used it on a few projects that I haven't blogged about yet!).  It's like the energizer bunny of spray paint!  But anyway, after a few light coats of paint, I tossed a pillar candle on top.  Easy peasy. And cheap inexpensive.

Next to the chrome candlestick, I made a little dollar store tinsel tree.  I just bought a styrofoam tree form and tinsel garland - 

Using hot glue, I started at the bottom - 

And worked my way up (and around) - 

So, those two projects cost $2.59.  Not bad.  I'll give you the run down on the rest of the mantel in the next few days.  And tomorrow, I'm going to reveal the finished mantel - assuming I can get a decent picture.  So could everyone cross their fingers for some sun please?

Christmas Mantel - Phase 1

I'm having so much fun getting ready for Christmas.  Yesterday, I shared my thumb tack tree project.  Well, it's not the only dollar store tree on my mantel.  I covered another styrofoam tree form in moss from the dollar store -

With the help of some hot glue -

And now it sits on one end of my mantel - 

It's a start.  Oh and here's a rundown of the other projects on there.  The small pillar candle is sitting in a mini wreath.  I picked up 4 of them at Salvation Army for $.49 each - 

I just spray painted them with Rustoleum chrome spray paint (I already had it on hand).  

There's the thumb tack tree I shared yesterday.  I added 2 wine bottles covered in silver leaf.  And the glass vase that I spray painted white.  So my total on this side of the mantel is about $4.50.

I'll share the other side tomorrow.  I am still adding stuff - but it's getting there!

Thumb Tack Tree

I'm really getting into the Christmas spirit!  I love this time of year!  And I thought it would be fun to change up my decor for the season.  I've been looking around on Pinterest and pinning some of my favorite ideas.  I am really drawn to silver, white and green this year.  I love the simplicity of those colors together.  And I think it will look great once the snow starts flying (strangely we haven't had snow yet - but I'm sure we'll have plenty by Christmas).  Here's my inspiration -

via centsationalgirl.com

via loricurie.wordpress.com

Beautiful aren't they?  Well, that's what I want to go for - on a budget. But I didn't have enough "silver" in my box of decorations.  I knew I'd need to make a few things.  I went over to the dollar store and picked up some supplies.  I started with a styrofoam tree form - 

I gave it a quick coat of chrome spray paint (I didn't want any white peeking out)-

Then I grabbed a pack of thumb tacks-

I started at the bottom-

And worked my way up-

Now I have a cute little thumb tack tree.  I'm going to add it to my mantle - along with more silver, white and green decorations.  I will share more of these dollar store ideas all week so you can see how my mantle comes together.  Now all I need is some snow!

I've linked this project here -

Skip to My Lou
Savvy Southern Style
seven thirty three
Creations by Kara
Shabby Creek Cottage
The CSI Project
House of Hepworths
Beyond the Picket Fence
Tatertots and Jello
Funky Junk Interiors
Under the Table and Dreaming
Dittle Dattle
Craft O Maniac
You are Talking Too Much
Between Naps on the Porch
DIY Home Sweet Home Project

Shabby Apple Dress NEW Winner

My Shabby Apple Dress giveaway winner never contacted me.  Soooo I'm picking a NEW winner (via Random.org)-

Congrats

Rhissanna!

Comment #79 - 

"I'm a follower!" is the winner!

Please send me an email - kmwerynski@gmail.com before midnight Tuesday so we can work out all of the details!

ALSO - I had planned a fun little Christmas decorating post today but my computer is not cooperating.  Ugh...Hopefully I'll have it up in a while so stop back!!

Shabby Apple Dress Winner!

I am very excited to announce the winner of the Shabby Apple Dress Giveaway!!  The winner was chosen randomly (via Random.org) -

Congratulations

Shalise!!

Comment #43 -

 "I like Shabby Apple on FB!"  was the winner!!

Please send me an email at kmwerynski {at} gmail {dot} com by midnight Sunday so we can work out all of the details!!

Shabby Apple Dress Giveaway - Last Day!

Today is the LAST day to enter my Shabby Apple Dress Giveaway!  

Click Here for details and your chance to win!!

I will announce the winner Friday November 25th!

Good luck!!

Open to US residents only.

Entry deadline - 11/23/2011 at midnight (eastern).

My Favies and a Little Manilow...

A couple of weeks ago, Tammy from Type A nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award.  What a huge surprise!!  Thank you so much Tammy!!  I've been trying to get to this thank you post - sorry it's taken so long.  Ugh.  But - as luck would have it (no really - total luck) - it happened again.  Christina from Designing by Numbers nominated me for the same award a few days ago!  Wow!  Thanks Christina!

There are a few rules to accepting this award - 

1.  Thank the blogger who nominated you - Thanks Tammy and Christina!

2.  Share 7 things about yourself.

3.  Nominate 15 fellow bloggers.

Since I was fortunate enough to be nominated for this award a couple of months ago, I already shared 7 things about myself.  So this time I thought I'd shake it up by listing my favies.  Here we go - 

1. My favorite food 

Bacon.  Love it.  

     Runners up - Chocolate covered pretzels, steak, Lucky Charms.  Trying to cover all of the food groups here.

2. My favorite drink

 Coffee.  I drink it all morning.  Black.  

     Runner up - Water.  When the coffee pot is empty, I switch to water for the day.  Gallons of it.

3. Color to wear

 Black.  If there is a shirt available in 20 colors, I usually pick black.  It's just too easy.

     Runner up - Gray.  Yeah, I'm crazy.

4.  TV Show 

Design Star.  Only if the contestants are good.

     Runners up - Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, Chopped, All American Handyman

5. Movie 

Pretty in Pink.  Everyone should have a Duckie.

     Runners up - The Breakfast Club, Fargo, Vacation (and Christmas Vacation)

6. Singer/Group 

Barry Manilow.  Hands down.  Love him.  And I'm not shy about it.

     Runners up - The Cars, Pretenders, Bee Gee's, Stevie Nicks

7. Song

 Could it be Magic/Mandy medley (Barry Manilow).  Beautiful.

     Runners up - All by Myself (Eric Carmen), Your Own Special Way (Genesis), An Everlasting Love (Andy Gibb), I Go Crazy (Paul Davis) 

Ok so there are some fun facts about me.  Now I'm supposed to nominate 15 bloggers for this award.  I've tried to narrow it down but it's just too difficult.  So instead, I'm going to make a page with a list of bloggers who I stalk.  There are so many great blogs - you should visit them all!  I hope to have that page up in a few days.  Come back and check it out.

Meanwhile, let me leave you with this.

Enjoy.

Bow Necklace

Here's a fun little project courtesy of my daughter.  If you remember from my headband review post, I explained how much my daughter loves bows.  She wears them almost everyday - on a headband, on her clothes, or on her jewelry.  So when we were cutting up the old sweater to make boot socks, she wanted to get creative with some of the leftover sweater parts.  She made a bow necklace.  Here's the sweater we started with -

After I cut the sleeves off, she turned her focus to the wide band of gray at the bottom-

She cut a 2" strip off the bottom-

She didn't need all of it, so she cut out a rectangle-

Then, she rounded off the edges-

She folded it in half-

She pinched the center together and gave it a dab of hot glue to hold it in place-

She cut a small strip of fabric and attached it with hot glue-

Then she dug out an old chain and wrapped the strip of fabric around it-

She used hot glue to attach the other end of the fabric to the bow-

And there you have it - a bow necklace.  Which cost nothing (we had everything on hand!).  Now she's trying to come up with something else she can make out of the rest of the sweater.  I'm sure she'll come up with something!

I've shared this project here -

Polly Want a Crafter
Today's Creative Blog
Savvy Southern Style
seven thirty three
Fireflies and Jellybeans
Between Naps on the Porch
Under the Table and Dreaming

Oldie But Goodie - My Little Black Table

{A fun look back at some old projects - you know, stuff I did before I had any readers...}
{July 11, 2011}


I was staring at my calendar Saturday night.  Completely transfixed.  It seemed like there was some sort of error.  I checked and double checked.  But there it was - a completely free Sunday.  Not one kid event.  None.  No one needed a ride anywhere.  There were no hockey games or rehearsals.  No one had to go to work.  No birthday parties.  Nothing.  I was free to sleep in Sunday morning.  A very rare day in our house.  Which made my mind race - what would I knock off my to do list?  There were so many choices.

So I slept in...all the way to 6:30.  Ok, so I'm not very good at sleeping.  But I had a much bigger problem.  I was not very motivated.  And with each cup of coffee, I was still struggling to get started.  Maybe my day wouldn't be very productive after all.  And then it hit me - I needed a trip down to Buffalo Reuse.  A great shop for all things old.  I could meander around there for hours and look at the old doors, windows, tubs, staircases - they have everything.  They salvage tons of stuff from old buildings.  It makes for a fun Sunday afternoon.

So I grabbed my husband and off we went.  We decided to make a day of it.  We planned a downtown lunch.  More thrift store shopping.  Just a carefree day.  

We walked around Buffalo Reuse - enjoying everything old - when I spotted a little table.  It was 5 bucks.  Yup - it was coming home with me.  I was also interested in a coffee table ($5 also) but couldn't think of a space for it...so I left it behind.    This was turning into a slightly productive day and I was excited to spend the afternoon treasure hunting.  Then we got a text...our son picked up a shift at work and needed a ride.  Well, it was fun while it lasted.

Did I mention that my son works right behind Lowe's?  So after the drop off, we slipped in for some paint.  My lazy Sunday just got a lot more fun.  My little table was getting a makeover.  Here's the table before in all it's glory:

It's a little sad there.  The bottom shelf had some sort of extra layer on the bottom that was falling off - so I pulled it off.  I removed the hardware.  Sanded it with fine sandpaper (it didn't have much of a shine so it didn't need much sanding).  It got a coat of Kilz oil based primer.  That hides the dark wood very well.  And then I brushed on 2 coats of Valspar Lincoln Cottage Black in a semi gloss.

I was unsure if I would use the drawer pulls that came with the table.  I purchased new brushed nickel knobs just in case but then decided a little Rustoleum hammered nickel spray paint (which I had leftover from another project) would look great.

Here's the big reveal:

So the total for this little black table is about $15 - and I still have a lot of paint left over for future projects.  And although I thought it would be a perfect bedside table in my son's room, I think it needs to stay downstairs - so I can enjoy it for a while.  And I'm going back tomorrow for that coffee table.  I just can't stop thinking about it...

Thanks!

It's been so busy over here that I haven't had a chance to thank some wonderful women who have featured my projects - So I'm making time today to do just that!

Gail at My Repurposed Life, Kara at Creations by Kara, and Wendy at The Shabby Nest featured my DIY Pedestal Bowl

Stephanie Lyn at Under the Table and Dreaming featured my Dining Room Art

And Vanessa and Heather from At the Picket Fence featured my Candy Cane Hurricane on their Facebook page!

Thank you SO much for the shout outs!  I really appreciate it ladies!!

My Friday Five - Week 4

Now on to the fun stuff - My Friday Five.  This is where I share some of my favorite ideas floating around on Pinterest.  A time to relax and have a cup of coffee - and enjoy someone else's hard work for a moment.  :-)

Ready?

1.  Painted wooden crate stairs!

Amazing!  Donna from Funky Junk Interiors made this incredible staircase!  She is so creative (ugh - why can't my junk look this good?!).  I guess she couldn't decide between Coke and Pepsi - what cola wars? This is just so clever - I'm in love.

2.  Here's an inexpensive wreath idea -  

What do you think this one's made out of?  Were you thinking cheap plastic tablecloths?  No?  Well it is.  Kristen from High Heels and a Hammer cut up tablecloths into strips and fastened them onto a wreath form to achieve this look.  I might have to try this one!  Gorgeous!

3.  You know how much I like to give new life to old things, so this next find was right up my alley.  Tracie from Cleverly Inspired turned an old shutter into a bathroom counter top!

What a fantastic idea!!  And she she left the original paint (just cleaned it up and gave it a few coats of poly).  Go over and check out all of the details - this is a great way to save money.  Yeah - this one-of-a-kind counter only cost $15!  Now that's a bargain!

4.  With the holidays coming up, I wanted to share some decorating ideas.  Check out this beautiful handmade acorn decoration - 

So pretty!  Love it!  Jenny from Days of Chalk and Chocolate whipped this up.  And she did it for $1.07!  I know it looks like it cost so much more - it's so sparkly and shiny!  I do love sparkly and shiny - especially for the holidays!

5.  I'm not hosting Thanksgiving this year (yay!) so here's how the day will play out for me - sleep in, enjoy a pot cup of coffee, eat a pound of bacon (thoughtfully cooked by my husband - yay again!), watch the parade, eat a BLT, then head off for turkey.  Hopefully wrapped in bacon.  Although I'm pretty sure it won't be unless my mother-in-law has seen this recipe- 

Doesn't that look delicious?  P.C. at The Runaway Spoon shares the secrets to this incredible dish.  Yum. Bacon. 

Are you inspired yet?

Shabby Apple Dress Giveaway!!

A giveaway!!  Woot Woot!  I was SO excited when the nice people over at Shabby Apple contacted me to host a dress giveaway!  I love their dresses!  There are so many beautiful women's dresses on their site.  Here are a few that I love - 

Aren't these women's dresses gorgeous?  

AND they have the cutest little girls dresses - 

They also offer jewelry and accessories - 

And now you have a chance TO WIN this gorgeous black dress (just in time for your holiday parties) - 

How do you win the Boogie Woogie?

There are five ways to enter (leave a comment ON THIS POST for each entry):

1. (mandatory) Become a follower of My Covered Bridge on GFC(or if you already are, tell me!)

2. 'Like' Shabby Apple on Facebook (and get special promotions and exclusive discounts)

3. 'Like' My Covered Bridge on Facebook

4. Visit Shabby Apple and tell me which dress is your favorite

5. Spread the word about this giveaway on Facebook or Twitter 

This giveaway will be open until November 24, 2011.

AND that's not all - If you want to go shopping now, you can get 10% off by using the discount code "coveredbridge10off" (offer good for 30 days)  - Yay!!

Offer valid for US residents only.

No exchanges for winning dress.