The colors of fall

My latest obsession is knitting this in various incarnations. This one is for me. I've got two more just waiting for buttons and then they are off to the Christmas box.

Project specs: Lion Brand's Amazing, Wildflowers colorway knit on #7 circs. 

During my most recent trip to Target, I picked up 2 packages of silk leaves from Dollar Spot section. A quick trip through Martha (my sewing machine), and I have a fall garland to wrap around my pinecone lights (also from Target, circa 2009). I don't think my hubby is overjoyed that his pull up bar has been relegated to a decorative fixture.

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Making inroads

Edited to link up to -

I made some inroads on the 'space dysfunction' list (with the help of the CatMan!)

First up, the kitchen. I already had my storage containers in these shoe boxes. What I added was the container in the front holding all my to-go containers. These come in handy when I'm taking stuff to a picnic  or if I'm dropping off a meal at someone's house and don't need the container to find its way home.

I added the two taller boxes to the freezer. One holds our meats, the other holds bread products (loaves of bread fit perfectly when placed on their ends). I picked up the boxes at Target in the home organization area (Itso brand). It's so much easier just to pull out a bin than fight my way through the stacks. I got the idea from here.

Here's where the CatMan earned his keep.We had the bathroom door stripped a few years ago, but discovered that - even sealed with polyurethane - it still swelled when humid. Not a great thing for a bathroom door. We borrowed a plane from friends and the CatMan went to town. About 20 minutes later, we had a door that closes smoothly and completely. Much to the cats' chagrin. Oh, the reason we hang the towels on the outside of the door? There was no place to hang them in the bathroom where they would get air and dry completely (since the room is a windowless postage stamp!) I painted the mounts with black, glossy Rustoleum so when the towels are opened up, any hardware that shows blends with the door's original hardware.

And the weekend's last little project was cutting the stool's legs off. Since the stool was a freebie, I didn't worry too much about ruining it. I really like the shorter height - the original length wasn't comfortable when we were using it while sitting on the futon. The Stanley is my new purchase - actually a trade-in for the coping saw that broke! Love that Lowe's guarantee!

Space Dysfunction

Image courtesy of Google images saved to my server

I was blog reading the other day and came across the concept of "identifying your space's dysfunction".* I'm a pretty organized person (those closest to me would probably use the term 'obsessively' organized.) But I realized there are nooks and crannies in my house where I have opted to use the same old work-arounds instead of creating a new and better options. So over on my sidebar, I have listed some of those issues that I'm hoping to rectify over the next few weeks. 

This weekend, I tackled the kitchen. And as soon as the camera makes the trip back from the 'Gunks, I'll show you the goodies. 

*If you can point me in the direction of the blog mistress who coined that phrase, I'll linky it here. Thanks!

Getting creative with paper and primer

Wrapping paper and spray adhesive are my friends. Here I used it to camouflage my bill and office supplies bin. All I did was cut the paper to the dimensions of the hanging folder, then used spray adhesive to adhere it. Total time: 5 minutes. I liked the look so much that I used the paper from the dresser drawers (see below) to cover the other side of the hanging folder so I can get spring/summery when it's time. Total cost: $0.00 (already had the wrapping paper!)

I used this wrapping paper to do our night tables and main dresser drawers as well as my desk drawers. In the past, I have just laid the paper in the drawers, but eventually it slips and slides, wrinkling up in the corners. This time, I used the spray adhesive! (I know, I know - it takes me a while). Now I'm so happy when I catch a glimpse of the bright florals. Total cost: $1.00 for the roll of wrap from Big Lots.

And here is a progress shot of the $6.00 table. I reglued the veneers, sanded all the wood surfaces, and then primed. I'm going to touch up some of the gaps that the primer revealed, then give it a coat of paint. Hopefully, that will be happening this weekend.(And btw, dollar store vinyl picnic table cloths make great drop cloths.)

A knitting FO!

Yes, I still knit! I completed this bulky shrug (scroll down to #286) in just under 1 week using 3 balls of Debbie Bliss Donegal Chunky Tweed. I liked this pattern because it is knit from the top down, so I could try it on to adjust the length. I definitely am going to use the pattern again and tweak it for different yarn weights, sleeve lengths and body lengths.

Curling up space

Picture courtesy Molly Frey Design

Doesn't this look like a perfect little nook, tucked into a dormer? The only thing I think I would change is to warm up the wall color - maybe a light artichoke green?

Getting crafty - the sewing addition

The bookends on my nightstand are plain black metal - blah! So I sorted through my scraps and made reversible covers. The red side is for fall and winter, the green side is spring and summer. I handstitched the vintage lace around the bottom to finish them off. Total cost for the project: $0.00 - all from the stash.

Here they are in action.

I found this log cabin quilt square in a 'free' box in a dusty corner of an antique shop this summer. Finding the square reminded me I had another one, given to me ages ago by my step-MIL. I hand-stitched each of the squares to some fabric from the stash to make a reversible pillow. Total cost for this project: $1.00 for the ringbearer's pillow form I picked up in Goodwill (The sparkly pillowcase went into the stash for some future project).

The lace edging on this pillow is lace I knitted myself.