Project: Recovered Kitchen Chairs

This was at the top of my list of projects for while my mom was here for a recent visit. As is so often the case when Mom is doing all the work, it was really easy!  Well, I helped.  In a tangential capacity.  I think I could do it again myself now.

I didn't remember how we (probably she) did these the last time, so I was interested to see that the seat juts unscrews from underneath, revealing a later of wood seat, a layer of foam, a fabric cover over the foam and then the top fabric.  We added another layer of foam for a more comfortable seat, tracing the old foam and cutting the new out with scissors.  The new cover was stacked with both pieces of foam and the wooden seat.  The cover fabric just wraps around and staples underneath so there is no precision measuring required.  We used a staple gun from the underside of the seat to staple it snugly on, then screwed it back onto the chair.  Ta-da!  And easy.

Sammy faces on...

Sammy showing what it feels like to be home sick today:

Sammy showing what it's like to watch Sesame Street during normally non-TV time:

I should be worried that he can put on these faces at will, right??

The Funky Chicken Coop Tour is Saturday!

It's that time again! Check out the FREE and very interesting Funky Chicken Coop Tour of Austin, held all over Austin on the Saturday before Easter.  It's self-guided so see a couple in your area or travel around to all of it.  We went last year and the year before - it's always great!

Wow, that's quite a prize pack!

**Please tell me the photos worked this time?  I'm getting so tired of uploading them only to find that I can see them but others can't!

A little while back I won a weekly giveaway from Write.Click.Scrapbook. I really like the blog there, or "the inspiration collective", as they call it. There is a different author every week, who posts each day on a themed subject - it may be about mini books one week, or journaling or taking better photos, or incorporating art techniques. Always different perspectives and a lot of talented scrapbookers showing their work. The giveaways are on Thursdays if you are interested in entering.

I was thrilled to win, but I will say the packs they showed did not do my prize pack justice!!

From this photo, you see four packs of Basic Grey paper, but not how rich the packs are.  I had to spread them all out and take pictures of all the sheets!  Also, when I got my packs there were FIVE instead of four, plus a bunch of 3D embellishments!  The girl who was mailing them was out of town and they came later than I expected, so maybe she threw in some extra goodies because of that?  The last pack was missing the alphas and stickers, but the 3D stuff I wasn't expecting matches it.  Whatever the reason, I say Lucky Me!

Also, I guess I've never actually purchased Basic Grey before (how could that be? It's soooo beautiful!) so I didn't know how really lovely the paper quality is or how sturdy the cardstock stickers are.  There are 18 pages of patterned cardstock per pack.  They are double sided with great designs front and back.  And each set comes with TWO designs of matching alphas and a full sheet of coordinating cardstock stickers with a really nice matte finish (no old-school "sticker" look here).  If Basic Grey thought they were going two make a new convert with their giveaway, they were right!

It's Finished!

Just in time for Sammy's third birthday, I finished his first year baby book!  This is the title page.  I've always really loved his eyes in this picture.

I did learn something doing this layout.  I stamped that lower area of damask looking background in Versamark, then tried to emboss over it with Chocolate Chip pigment ink and clear embossing powder.  But the powder stuck to the Versamark.  So, I dried the Versamark ink with a heat tool and repeated my effort.  Still the embossing powder stuck to the Versamark.  So, I left it OVERNIGHT after drying it with the eat tool and repeated.  STILL it stuck to the Versamark!  I had to just brush off as much powder as possible with the heat tool and call the rest an "effect".  I don't mind it, but I was surprised!