Playroom make-over

I used posters and framed photos to cover the damage on the walls in the playroom. it worked so well I was a bit shocked when I took everything down to paint, LOL! 

It took a few days to plaster and sand the cracks and holes and 2 days to paint.

I painted the celing on a Sunday when I had the use of Kevin's step ladder. The next day when I went to cut in around the top of the ways with my two-step ladder, I realized the celings are 9 feet!! On my tip-toes, arm fulling extended and holding the brush near the tip of the handle, I managed to do the trim. Luckily I have a steady hand! 

      Before and after. 

My mother-in-law had a gallon of light blue left after she painted her kitchen last summer and she gave it to me. The walls were already blue, so I didn't prime. I used the left over beige paint from Darcy's room to do the ceiling, baseboards and window sills. The window frames are slated to be stripped and varathaned this summer. I used leftover grey Tremclad from the clawfoot bathtub to do the heat grate. All I had to buy was the polyfilla! 

Heat grate. It had been painted silver by a previous owner, but was peeling badly. 

Before and after. Before: there was a weird band of white around the top if the walls. 

I painted the red bookshelf with dark blue paint left over from my dad's cottage...circa 2001...now that's good paint to stay good for 15 years!!

Finished room. 

Gallery wall. 

Chandelier update

Kevin has always hated this 70's style chandelier in our kitchen. I have always quite liked it, but agreed it lacked a little something. I finally decided to just give it a go and painted all the gold colored bits with Gloss black Tremclad paint. 

I took down all the crystals and cleaned them (which I do every year), but I put less back up.

If only the glass was clear glass instead of amber it would be perfect.

Wind storm Feb 25, 2016

The wind knocked down one of our trees at the cottage, but it landed right in front of Mom's door, trapping her inside. Luckily the next day ended up being a snow day, so we were able to go up and cut up the parts that were in the way.

Getting the saw ready...on my kitchen table!?!?

That's Mom standing in the door. She also had no power overnight and all day at this point.

Baking powder biscuits

Over the years I have tried to make baking powder biscuits with ZERO succes. Many people have told me how easy it is, but they always turned out like hockey pucks. I remember my grandmother's biscuits and I remember just about every time (it was often!) I slept over at Auntie Carol's waking up to hot tea biscuits. The only succes I have ever had was with Bisquik. When Darcy recently asked for biscuits and I had no Bisquik I told her if she helped me, maybe I could make some from scratch. 

FINALLY! Success!!

I used a Canadian Living recipe. Here it is:

4 C all-purpose flour

2 tbsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 C butter, cubed (or margarine)

2 C milk (1-3/4 C and 1/4 C)

Preparation

In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Using pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until coarse crumbs. Pour 1-3/4 cups (425 mL) of the milk over top, stirring with fork to form ragged dough. 

Turn out onto lightly floured surface. With lightly floured hands, knead gently until dough comes together. Pat or roll into 3/4-inch (2 cm) thickness. Using 3-1/4-inch (8.5 cm) floured cutter, cut out rounds. Place on ungreased rimless baking sheet. Gather up scraps and repat dough; cut out more rounds, pressing remaining scraps into final biscuit. 

Brush tops with remaining milk. Bake in centre of 375°F (190°C) oven for about 30 minutes or until golden. Let cool on pan on racks. (Make-ahead: Wrap individually in plastic wrap and freeze in airtight container for up to 2 weeks; thaw and reheat in 350°F/180°C oven for 10 minutes.)

Darcy used a heart-shaped cookie cutter, but a round shape is the usual way.

Ready for the oven!

They turned out amazing!!

Guinea pig cuddle cup DIY

Colby got a guinea pig for his birthday and Kevin really wanted to give him something for his guinea pig, so I made Ruby a bed.

I used this tutorial:

http://www.seamshappy.com/2012/01/19/cuddle-cup-tutorial/

I had a little trouble with the size of the circle at the bottom vs the piece that wraps around to make the wall. I should have trusted my instincts when I thought that the wall should be about 3x the diameter of the bottom, but I figured there was a reason for the measurements given. I ended up just sewing the wall a little further inside the circle so it fit correctly and trimming after. Save yourself some trouble and use pi.

Finished product.

Colby and Ruby are happy!

Value of your craft

I found this online via one of the sewing/quilting pages I follow. Very informative, especially if you've never tried to sew something. I usually make rag quilts or at least have the outer edge rag-style (fringe) and thus there is no binding, so that saves me a lot of time.

I found this video by Make Something with a simple technique to price your work:

https://www.facebook.com/MakeSomethingTV/videos/822803947845383/

I still find it hard to price things! 

Late slip