Skip to my loo.

I made a list of things I want to complete before summer

and I've already crossed off number one.

It may not sound like much of an accomplishment,

but just imagine giving 6 of these chairs (1,000,000 spindles)
 2 coats of chalk paint.  Yeah.

This was the first thing on my list after I saw how bad they looked

when I set up my dining room for Christmas dinner.  They were all

different shades of white, and 2 of them had just a coat of primer.

There are only 2 chairs alike, but now at least they're all the same color.



August 2011

Our dining room in my early days of blogging.

What a difference a few coats of paint can make!

Since I had paint left over,

I gave the two dressers and drop leaf table their first

coat of paint and this is how they've sat for 2 weeks,

because I'm already onto a new project.

(I've completely given up on being focused.)

Number 2.  he he

  We are on day three of wallpaper removal.

I hated the wallpaper (already removed in this photo) in this bathroom from first sight,

but it's taken me over 12 years to tackle this project,

because I knew exactly what to expect.....

.......hours of scrubbing to remove wallpaper glue, followed by sanding,

priming, and a skim coat of mud on the plaster walls.

  Messy, messy, messy.

This photo is from a thousand years ago, and it's hard to tell,

but the wallpaper was a faux sponge paint purplish pinkish beige.  Yuck.

It clashed with the tile that I'm not fond of either and I'm currently

researching the pros and cons of painting the ceramic wall tile white.

 The truck is going bye-bye, along with all my turquoise thingies.

The beige floor tile is staying.

We installed the reproduction medicine cabinet, pedestal sink, and new toilet,

so it's just the walls and window trim that need work....

and the window that was installed a number of years ago will finally be painted.

All work and no play make this Ranger cranky,

so in the evenings I've been working on this......

 Making the squares is fiddly work, but crocheting them together

is sort of like putting together a great big puzzle.
It's very relaxing to do after a long day at work.

I'm pretty sure somebody in this house would rather see a different

sort of spread on the dining room table, but since it's
temporarily out of commission, I believe we'll be dining out tonight.

Works every time.  :o)

Thanks for visiting!
Vickie

x's and o's.

Somebody in our house was famous for crossing the days off his calendar 

with big fat x's at the end of a work day........before retirement, that is.

  I do believe the x's have now been replaced with smiley faces.  :o)

By the time I get home from work, throw some food on the table,

and clean the kitchen, I'm about ready to drop.  Since I've been working more

than I usually do, I'm pushing myself to do something productive at home and

crank out one or two of these each evening......

I did it.

I finally learned how to crochet!

The owner of the yarn shop where I joined a knitting group

volunteered to teach us how to crochet a granny square.

I was the only one who did not go home with a finished square that night.
"If everybody's done with the first color, pass your yarn to the right."
Wait for me!! Did I mention I'm a slow learner?  

I was feeling a bit like a failure until the graduates confessed that they've all crocheted before.

Cheaters.

I was not about to be thwarted by a simple granny square, so I watched

Youtube videos and eventually produced my first square to bring along with me

 to what I now refer to as Tuesday night group therapy.

Ta da!

That little square above got my crochet juices flowing

and prompted me to try my hand at a full-blown granny square afghan.

Since it's highly likely my blogging days will be over long before I finish

said afghan, Norwegian blogger Solveig of the blog Solstrikke

was kind enough to let me post a photo of her beautiful

Flowers in the Snow Afghan.

Gorgeous!

I chose this pattern after viewing her easy to follow tutorial here.

She made it look so easy, and it is!  I haven't reached the part where the flowers
are joined together, but her instructions and accompanying photos
clearly explain the process.  Thank you Solveig!

If you've never tried your hand at crochet, there are so many videos

available at Youtube University, that anybody can learn.

I'm currently working on my doctorate.

Tools of the trade.

 So many pretty colors to choose from!

While many of you are already cleaning out your flower beds and planting flowers,

we've still got a foot of snow covering our gardens.  The only flowers I'm planting

are those on my March calendar, and the yarn flowers covering my coffee table.

  By my calculations........

365 divided by three or four circles a week minus days I do nothing at all =

My afghan should be finished around April of 2025.

So do tell, what's on your calendar?

Thanks for visiting and I hope you find time to do something you love today.

Vickie

*I'm joining the parties at:
Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesday
The Wicker House Create - Share - Inspire