After discussing our options about our house in Dallas, though we want to move to a bigger city, Wichita is a better place to be right now.  When I realized we would be here a while longer I decided to paint the kitchen.  I love how paint is a quick inexpensive way to change any room.  So last week while my husband was out of town I painted his kitchen.  Yes, the kitchen is his space; he does all cooking, clean up, and maintaining.  He didn't mind me painting; he worried about me reorganizing and my use of power tools for a nice little backsplash project.  My husband arrived home on Valentine's Day and was very happy with what I had done and for just under $100.

Here is before.  I'm not a fan of white and not in the kitchen.  The white walls behind the sink and oven were getting gross from normal wear and no backsplash protection. 

I also hated all the stuff we shoved up top of the cabinets because we had no where to put them.  Our china has been getting just nasty from kitchen grease dust.  We also shove stuff on top of the fridge and anywhere else, just adding to the mess.  The middle area being opened needed to be organized nicer too. 

I opted to paint this side wall too.  Here is before.  There are quite a few cords hanging down, that is because of the ghetto electrician that wired our apartment.  Everything except the wall the fridge is on and the bathroom is on one circuit.  If I'm ironing fabric in my office while Richard decides to microwave something we blow the circuit.  When Richard got his little convection oven for Christmas we decided to run a cord over to the other wall.  I'd rather no cords showing but we really can't be productive without them, so oh well.

Taking all the stuff off the top of the cabinets ended up being one heck of a workout.

We love bold colors.  We also wanted to coordinate with the cabinets and the spice orange wall in the living room since it's an open loft apartment. Before Richard left for his work retreat I had him help me pick some colors out of my paint chip box.  It's sad, humorous, and helpful that I own all the paint chips Home Depot sells and most of Lowes as well as odds and ends from other places.

Well, I settled on a color, bought it, and brought it home.  I began painting it and hated it.  I hated it being so much darker than expected, but I still loved the tone of the color.

Since I had painted quite a bit around our apartment, yellow, orange, and white, I had leftover paint color.  I used it to lighten the turquoise.  I rolled the new color on a few places then went to bed.  The next morning I discovered I really liked the new custom color, so I painted on. 

I also discovered in the process of painting the new color I could remove the center shelves, which obviously hadn't been moved from the last paint job.  Also something lame I saw while painting above the cabinets, was the previous painters stopped just above them, like they didn't want to be bothered painting up the 12 foot wall.  I didn't cop out.  I even painted behind the oven and refrigerator which was neglected too. 

For the left wall of the kitchen, I decided to lighten the paint even more.  Not a huge change but just enough to be non obvious.  I didn't want to close the kitchen in on the right and left.  The right wall, I left it white except for the little gap of wall that is separated by a big cement pillar.  I painted up the edge of it. 

After a light second coat on the walls and drying I reorganized against my husband's wishes.  I managed to put all dishes in cabinets including our china.  The spices used to be in the cabinet above the oven, which was hard to see and the heat is bad for the spices themselves.  I used some leftover heavy matt board cut to fit into the center of the slated shelves so the spices and other small things could go there. 

I have an awesome postcard collection that I used to cover on a wall in previous places I lived.  I wanted to somehow use them.  I dug though them and found ones with colors I thought would go with the kitchen.  I got scrapbook adhesive picture corners and mounted them on the wall behind the sink and oven.  Well, won't those get ruined??  Nope.

Now those power tools Richard was freaking out over me using... I made a removable backsplash.  I'll tell you... plexi glass is a pain to cut, but I managed to do it.  I mounted plexi in the whole back area over the postcards with just a few screws in the wall.  We have a pretty backsplash while being functional. 

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So... the grand reveal... the Kitchen completed!  Oh, I also bought that cute wooden fruit bowl for the island too.  The whole kitchen, less than $100. 

I like that the color of the walls also coordinates with my table runner and napkins.

Doesn't it look so nice up top now too!?

I'm really happy with it and so is Richard!

Cheers,

Kyle

A few months ago I bought some chairs from USHwy36 Treasure Hunt for $10.  I got all four for only $10!  They were looking pretty ugly, but I saw potential. I'm so excited to finally share my dining chair project.  It's taken me awhile because I was debating what to recover them in.  I screen printed some fabrics for them but didn't love it.  I finally made up my mind, so here is my reveal!

This is the chair before.  The fabric was some gross burlap/heavy twill awful.  The foam was thin and nasty.  The wood, as you can tell, needed a face lift.

Ta da and after!  I sanded the wood and painted it a nice chocolate brown.  I added new foam.  I recovered the chairs in some beautiful linen and added a cotton ruby inset to match my handmade table linens.  I machine appliquéd the cute graphic flowers to the linen on the seat.  Two are in the black flower print and two are in the brown flower.  The print came from Zarin fabrics in NYC that I bought while visiting last summer.  My husband was kind enough to screw the chairs back together after I had problems with the drill.

Awhile ago we sanded down our dining table and refinished it because it was all scuffed up from moving a few times.

Here is it taken apart but before we sanded and stained it.  The top was natural wood while the legs painted white.

Here are the chairs at the finished table!  We stained the table in a nice dark finish.  Ignore the two end chairs, they are temporary.  I have yet to find some end chairs to replace them... or maybe a bench for one end.  But alas, here it is so far. 

We have been sitting on metal folding chairs for months while I hunted for some chairs to refinish, but it was well worth the wait.  They are comfy and pretty.  I heart!  The kitties like them too :)

Cheers,

I realized this evening I never posted finished pictures of the quilt I was working on for my Mom a few months ago.  You can find the first post about it here.  I was hand tacking the binding down on the drive to Kentucky where my mom lives, so I wasn't able to get pictures taken here.  These are not the best pictures because I took them at her shop, but at least you can see it finished.  The finished quilt measures approximately 50x60."

The front and a corner of the back.

Here are some close-ups of the free motion I embroidered on each square.

Cheers,

Kyle

I made the cutest wallet for my Magician brother for Christmas.  I made it entirely of cotton scrap fabrics too.  Here are some photos of it, which I might say look awesome.

This is the front of the wallet.  I took the design from the ornate back of a card.  I had to add two of the suits.  It's been free motion embroidered. 

For the inside I used a coordinating red fabric and stitched the remaining two suits in black.

My brother really enjoys using it. 

Cheers,

Kyle

Last week I received an item I traded for with one of my Etsy team members.  She asked me if I could screen print a hoodie for her in return for one of her beautiful cuffs.  I've been wearing my cuff since I got it out of the box.

Sarah does all the copper etching by hand.  I loved this pattern because it reminded me of my Leandra George logo.  The leather band the copper plate is attached to is made from old belts.  To check out more of Sarah's fabulous work go to her Etsy store, Sarahendepity.

Cheers,

Kyle

Richard and I, in our efforts to be greener, bought 5 fruit trees to keep in our apartment like a little orchard.  So instead of getting the usual cut tree for Christmas this year we got a potted living tree.  Being potted it is small.  The tree itself is about four feet but potted it sits just over five.  We ran into a dilemma, our ornaments wouldn't fit so we raided the tiny ones at Target on sale.  For years I've wanted to have a coordinated tree, so this has been my chance.

Here's our little tree.  I made that tree skirt for our first Christmas. 

We also don't have a tree topper that is small enough, nor could we find one that we liked.  I did however find this beautiful bird ornament so I put him up top.  I also added part of our wedding cake topper up with him.

Though we had to buy new little ornaments we did add a few of our own that were small enough, but this guy, though large, had to be on the tree.  My friend Holli made him for us this year.  I thought it was so cute when I opened the box.  He's a goat!  My family had a goat and llama farm when I was in high school when I met Holli.

One downside is I think I'm allergic to our Christmas tree.  While repotting it my hands got a bit red and puffy and burned horribly.  I washed my hands and took some allergy medicine which seemed to work.  I only notice it when I touch it, otherwise it doesn't bother me.  Now I do live with two fuzzy meow meows I'm allergic to.  I'll learn to live.

Cheers,

Kyle

What's new with me is decorating our apartment.  I can't go overboard but painting and recovering furniture will change up any room cheap.

I did this a few months ago on our living room wall.  I love the graphic.  I drew the image and projected it on the wall to trace.  Then I painted around it.

So last month Richard couldn't take sharing an office anymore and moved my stuff out of our mega huge closet to make into his space.  We hung up curtains, added space invaders wall decals, pictures, and now it looks like a real office space. 

I was left with a disaster in my office space.  I reorganized, got a new bookshelf, and moved stuff around to make it work.  Last week I finished painting my main wall.  I painted the base a pretty antique yellow then stenciled my own graphic on it in black.  Then I hung a row of cork along the whole mid of the wall for hanging stuff.  The cork was flooring from my former job.  They were going to throw it out so I took it home to use.  Richard installed a light from Ikea because I didn't have enough lighting in the room.

Here's my new office space.  On the far right Richard was installing some shelves.  They are up now.  I love my office.  Really love!

When I finished I noticed the bench to my loom was looking drab.  So I screen printed the same stencil I used for the wall in yellow on some black linen.  Then I recovered my bench. 

What I found under the bench was some horrible green vinyl and nasty foam.

I put new foam, batting, and the fabric I printed on it.  It's so pretty now. 

My cat Tabitha has claimed it as her bench.

I also took an old microwave cart my mom gave me and repainted it.

Cheers,

Kyle

So I've run into a small dilemma.  To save money for moving I opted to make Christmas gifts for everyone this year.  I also decided to make it a project by making things entirely out of scrap fabric and fabrics that otherwise would have been tossed away.  So I'm down to just a few left... namely the in laws and I can't bring myself to make them gifts.  I was okay with it when we first thought of the idea but now I'm stuck.

Short and vague story (if you want to know more you'll have to ask me personally): 

After planning and making everything in our wedding myself while graduating college and moving I kicked my sister in law out of our wedding because of numerous problems with her and lastly, lying to me and the rest of the family.  Those that know me know how much I hate liars.  So after hearing wonderful remarks of my worthlessness, my in laws haven't talked to me in over two years because of it.  Then they made it worse for us after our marriage even after I personally apologized by phone and letters to try and make amends.  The last time we tried to arrange a meeting, which was not the first, to resolve the problems I was hung up on so we canceled our flights to his sister's graduation because of it.  We knew then that it was time to just be done with his family.  Richard talks with them but that's it.  I'm not brought up.  On my birthday they call him to tell me happy birthday.  As for Christmas I can tell how much they think of me.  Last Christmas I got a wooden tea light holder, yes I'm serious.  The year before, this newlywed received, as I discovered later was a joke gift of flannel kid sock monkey pajamas that Richard banned me to wear because they were that horrible.  It was then I realized I shouldn't care about taking the time to send them something personal or nice.

I'm okay with not hearing from them but what I'm not okay with is... if I put my heart into making something for them and I don't get that personal thank you I will be very upset.  I mean when you make something yourself even when you don't mean to there's always some kind of personal attachment.  Also I'm not a fan of the bought gift or card.  On the rare occasion I do buy something for someone I have a reason for it or I will put a personal touch on it and I'll tell you why it made me think of that person.  The only thing I ever ask in return is a thank you for thinking of me.  I don't need a gift back.  I just want to know personally that it made you happy.

So do I make something for them  knowing if I don't get that personal thanks I'll be more upset with my in laws than before or just suck up saving and buy a gift I don't care about and send it on as I've done in the previous years?  Also knowing it will upset Richard that I don't want to make something for his family and annoy him to spend money on gifts when we previously agreed we wouldn't.

Not so cheers today,

Kyle

When I last posted, which I know has been quite awhile, I mentioned moving.  We decided to lead with our heads and not our hearts on moving.  We are going to try and sell our house in Dallas, TX first.  It's so we can move to a location we really want instead of somewhere near the area and move again later to the better location.  We would like to move less.  So we signed a 6 month lease to stay here in Wichita.  The condition for staying would be I get to make the place like I want it... meaning I get to decorate and such.  Yay!

After much debate about our working situations, we share an office and hate it, Richard decided to move into our gargantuan closet.  He likes clean dark cave like areas and I'm bright messy working huge open spaces.  But the closet is not bad, I mean it's mega huge.  It could be a room seriously.  Because it also extends as our bedroom closet we had to hang a curtain.  He worked on moving all of my many many supplies out while I was trying to sell things over the weekend.

That sale, US Hwy 36 Treasure Hunt, was a blow.  Made like $15.  I went with two other Etsy team members who also didn't do so well.  Apparently the neighboring towns were reporting it was dead too.  The locals said this was the worst year.  I blame economy.  It ran from Friday to Sunday but it was so dead on Saturday we packed up, had canceled our hotel reservations, and left by 3pm.  I didn't tell Richard I was coming home early so I snuck into the apartment and quietly sneaked up behind him in his closet office to scare him to hell.  It was fun, lol.  He didn't think it was, but I still do :)

Oh one great thing that came out of the sale was I found four great antique chairs for a total of $10, ten bucks!  I have started to refinish them for our refinished dining room table I have to refinish again.  I messed with the table and destroyed part of the top so I have to re sand and re do everything, uh lol.  I'll post more on the chairs later. 

Our mini road trip was fun.  We got to see good friends and family.  I'll post pictures when I get situated.

As for right now, my projects of late have been again getting my office space in order, painting the apartment walls, refinishing furniture, finishing a custom order for I can't say yet, our Halloween costumes, and now a custom job to make someone's Halloween costume.

Cheers,

Kyle

Today is Richard and my 2^nd Wedding Anniversary!  We made it to two with out killing each other!  I say that jokingly; it's been a happy two years married.  He's a wonderful man.  We did a fancy dinner about a week and a half ago.  Today we had lunch and spent part of the day at the science museum.  Instead of giving gifts we decided for anniversaries we would go do something special.  Last year we had dinner and went to a funny play.  We were supposed to have a wine pairing class but it was canceled last minute.  I like doing something together and making memories way better than getting a gift I will probably forget about.          

Cheers,

Kyle