Bunk Beds.

I have been meaning to post about the boys new beds since the middle of summer. Better now than never I guess.

Way back in June I was looking for some inexpensive (but not cheaply made) bunk beds for the boys. I checked craigslist multiple times a day, and finally I found a posting I was interested in. $50.00 for solid wood bunk beds, 2 bunky boards, and 2 twin mattresses. It sounded great! However the picture was pure crap, it just looked like a big pile of wood. Plus they were up in McCall.

Luckily, I was heading up to McCall that very weekend! So I made and appointment to look at them. I took my mother with me. She is always a voice of reason and a great sounding board for many things, including home decor/furniture decisions. She gave me two thumbs up, and we loaded them in the back of the 'burban.

Once we got them home to Boise, I got to work. The bunk beds were sturdy, but pretty old so the wood was pretty grimy and the color was very flat. You can see the original color on the boards in the upper left photo. 

 Over the course of a week or so I lightly hand sanded each piece down, applied 3 coats of Jacobean (nearly black) stain, and 2 coats polyurethane. Once dry, I enlisted Bryan's help to install those bad boys in the bedroom.

 We love the way they turned out. They save space, we think they look awesome, and the boys have enjoyed sleeping in them from the moment we set them up. Oscar is on the top bunk, Angus on the bottom. They have been sleeping in them for just over three months now and Angus has only fallen out once, which is a positive sign.

It was a fun and relatively quick project. I think the final cost for the bunk beds (bunky boards and mattresses too), the stain and polyurethane was right around $70.00.  Hooray!

Handmade Skirt, Thrifted Shirt.

I made this skirt!

I am really happy with how it turned out.



What Chicks Dig

I sat down at the computer tonight intent on writing something thoughtful. Heartfelt. Poignant.

But every time I started to type, some distraction foiled my plan. The sound of dishes clanging against the sink downstairs. A child crying for his binky. Chatter from the TV down the hall. Engine noise from a car down the street. Growls from my own quiche filled stomach.

So.

One of these nights I will write the heartfelt post I wanted to write tonight. Maybe one night when even the sound of my own typing, doesn't cause me to lose my train of thought. But for tonight I will share something I wrote years ago. I stumbled upon it yesterday when searching through an old memory box.

Prepare yourself for a poem about what girls want in a guy, through the eyes of the teenage Helen. Uncensored, un-cut, and a tad embarrassing.

What Chicks Dig
by Helen Robison

Chicks did guys with shaggy hair
as long as they don't wear no white underwear.
With washboard stomachs and a stylish flare.
Chicks dig guys with shaggy hair.

Chicks dig guys with clean toenails.
With white bright smiles and short fingernails.
Sparse cologne and no name brand shirts,
as long as they don't have a case of the squirts.

Chicks dig guys that know how to cook,
How to fix a tractor and read a book.
They comment on more than the way you look,
chicks dig guys that know how to cook.

Chicks dig guys that are sweet to their moms.
You won't see'em blushing even in a sarong.
They like to surprise you in funny ways,
and will think your the greatest for all of their days.

The end.

He knows how to read, has nice abs, and he doesn't have a case of the squirts? Evidently these are the makings of a true love.

Ha!

Floral and Burnt Orange

The thrift store gods were smiling on me a few weeks back when I made a quick stop into our local Savers. For I found two large pieces of fabric that I adore. They were both found in different sections of the store, and I was delighted at how perfectly they compliment each other.

 

I seriously thought I was the luckiest girl in the store the night I found these beauties.

The fabric on the left has a velvety feel to it, and is rich in burnt orange tones.
The fabric on the right is a nice upholstery fabric.
Flowers, leaves and stems in hues of burnt orange, mustard,
 brown, and turquoise make up this divine floral print.

I love these fabrics so much I have had a hard time deciding just what to cut them up for. A tablecloth, table runner, skirt, dress/jacket, bag, apron, pillow? I just can't pick. So I decided to begin with a simple throw pillow for my front room.

I had an old pillow I was not using anymore. So I unpicked that baby and used the old fabric to measure and cut a pattern out of the new fabric. I cut one side from each of the fabrics. Also, I was able to save the muted yellow cording from the original pillow and re-use it for my new one. It was a great match! Then I put the right sides together and sewed almost all of her up. I left nearly all of one of the small sides open so that I could shove the pillow form back in. Then I turned the new fabric right side out, shoved the form in and sewed up the hole.

I love our "new" little pillow!



"Woodcuts" Derby

Here are Bryan's latest T-shirt designs for the Woot competition. The theme for this weeks derby is "woodcuts." I love that Bryan is setting aside time to create artwork. He is a natural artist, and you can really tell by how much enjoyment he gets when he is drawing/painting/etc. Of course it would be cool to actually win one day but these weekly competitions offer motivation to create, amidst the busy demands of his everyday life. You can check out the current derby at Shirt.Woot.com (click on derby in the upper right corner). But here are his designs:

Shirt.Woot

Hey friends, Bryan just posted a design for a t-shirt contest on Shirt.Woot.com. It will only get printed if it gets voted in the top 3. If you're the select few who've ever purchased anything from Woot.com, Shirt.Woot.com, Bags O Crap, LeakFrog or any other Woot site, you can VOTE for HIS design. So go look at it, vote, then send mass emails to every computer in the world. Thanks.

http://shirt.woot.com/Derby/Entry.aspx?id=50781

Gifts We Made.

This post is a bit late, but oh well. For Christmas this past year Bryan and I made a lot of gifts.

He:

Planned, constructed and assembled 11 bug boxes (you know, like a motel for the bugs you find in your yard...or house).

Drew with a wood burning pen, personalized bugs and first initial of child on the door of each one.

Planned, constructed and assembled 3 bird houses for his mother (not pictured).

She:
Sewed 6 aprons, using 3 different patterns and fabric. One of which is pictured below, on my in-house model. (I gotta snag pics of the others.)
2 pairs of PJ pants. Matchy matchy ones for Marnie Moo and Helen Too, to be exact.


(Recognize your Apron Miss Shannon McDudley?)

Both Bryan and I were proud of our creations, and the increase in skill we developed while making the gifts.

I no longer have to consult my sewing machine manual when threading the machine or winding the bobbin, which is a gift in itself, and have many more sewing projects in progress and in mind.

Nevermind that my seamripper got tons of excersice through the process, OR that I had to pitch one pair of pj's I ruined, OR that I sewed the wrong seams together on one pair of pjs, thus creating one large pj skirt (or a pant leg for an elephant, whichever you like).

Morning Eats

What did you eat for breakfast?

Yep, pancakes again.

The pancake artist visited us again.

We like him, and his handy-work.

Pancake pets.

Bryan loves to play with his food.

So anytime he is in charge of breakfast,

you know you are in for something extra cool.

Here are few creations he whipped up in a hurry one Sunday morning.

The boys were in pancake heaven.

The capitol building.

Bryan has been working a ton over the last few months. One of the many projects Catapult3 (the company he works for) has been doing is the basement museum at the Boise Capitol building. Bryan was one of the main designers on the project, and also spent countless hours at the Idaho Historical Library researching the information and tracking down the photos that grace the exhibits walls. He, and Catapult3, did an AMAZING job!

We were able to go and see the museum, and the newly re-opened capitol building this past Thursday evening. It was really fun to have Bryan's mom, Gail, and our dear friends the Carringtons come with us. We had a great time peeking in all the different rooms, and looking out the windows at some great views of this lovely city that we live in. The food was tasty, and we just may have visited the food stations a few times...on each floor. But most importantly, it was really neat to see what Bryan has been working so hard on. Great job babe!

If you have a chance to check it out, do. It was really impressive.