New in my print shop!

New in my graydays print shop on etsy- "Place" hand painted silkscreen, unframed and one of a kind!

Wacky Cake- easy & tasty WWII rationed recipe!

Need a cake in a pinch?! Love chocolate! Then try "Wacky Cake". (how's that for an ad campaign!?)

Wacky Cake- as it is affectionately known in my family was born from the days of WWII when eggs and butter were scarce. Thus this cake is a fun modern day vegan option!

How to:

Take a large 9x13 or 10x15 pan UNGREASED and mix the following ingredients in the pan. (So easy!)
3 cups of flour, 2 cups of sugar, 6 Tablespoons of cocoa, 1 Tablespoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of baking soda.

Then ADD 1 Tablespoon of vanilla, 2 Tablespoons of white vinegar, and 10 Tablespoons of vegetable/canola oil. Add 2 Cups of water. Stir together in the pan using a fork until just mixed.

COOK in your oven at 350 for 30 minutes- check it at 20 mins just to be sure!

When it's done it tastes awesome with cream cheese icing and ice cream or super light and fluffy with out icing!  Enjoy!

A headboard fit for a king for only $70!!!

A quick and easy DIY weekend warrior project to upgrade your bedroom! A king headboard under $100!

As I mentioned in a previous post- my folks bought us a king bed for our new apartment- allowing our queen bed to be used for guests and to serve as a Moroccan day bed in my studio. And during all this- we discussed making a king headboard for our new bed. Many instructional emails were shared- and as always adjustments needed to be made during the building process. But in total the entire headboard with fabric cost us $70!

And now here is the how to: 

NOTE- this headboard is made to attach to a metal standard bed frame, and not to be attached to the wall behind the bed.

1) measure the width of your mattress- ours was 77" inches wide thus we had the folks at Lowes cut our plywood to 78 inches.

2) Supplies: purchase one 4x8 ft piece of plywood 3/4" wide. Have plywood cut to the width of your mattress. Also buy 1 2x4 12ft long for the legs- have them cut the piece in half- 1 for each leg. Buy another 2x4 cut to the width of your headboard(78")- this will go along the top of the back of the board- to allow for increase support and for the fabric slip cover to lay/hang evenly.

Hardware: purchase 4 bolts, 8 washers and 4 nuts- they will be used to attach the 2x4 legs to the metal bed frame so purchase bolts that are long enough. You will also need long drywall screws to attach all the pieces together.

              ABOVE is the husband attaching the 2x4s legs to the plywood headboard.

Once the legs and back piece are attached to the plywood using your drywall screws. Pre drill large holes at the bottom of the legs that will be the channels for the bolts to attach the headboard to the frame.

COVERING the headboard: My mother brought us batting and an old pink quilt (as seen on the bed beneath the headboard) to create a little cushion and softness to our headboard. However- after the quilt was attached to the headboard- using a heavy duty staple gun, she concluded that the batting would not be necessary for this particular headboard. So she continued with the next step of covering the quilt with muslin. The muslin acts as another layer while also creating a neutral color for underneath your final fabric. For best results- while stapling the layers of fabric to the headboard- have the headboard standing upright. Start along the top center and work your way to the edges then do each edge and finish up along  the bottom. NOTE: We also glued felt to the bottom of the legs to protect the wood floors- especially when moving the bed.

For Fabric we went to Jo-Ann's and purchased the paisley print seen below for $30. We saved money on fabric by only buying about 3.5 yards to cover the face and sides of the headboard but not the entire back. Down the road in so many years if and when it comes time for a new cover I will make a slip cover with an open slit up the back and tie the slit together with fabric ties- to allow for an easier time to put the cover on the headboard. You can also get fancier with your headboard by cutting your plywood into a fun shape.

And voila the final result! My mother sewed the pieces of fabric together and then attached it to the panel with the staple gun while taking care in folding and tucking each corner. One adjustment that was made along the way- was to shorten the overall length of the legs- in order to make the entire height of the headboard 58 inches tall. With the original height of the legs- the headboard looked enormous in our bedroom and my mom was afraid of it being too heavy and falling on us in the middle of the night! The final step was to attach the headboard to the frame by slipping the bolts through the pre-drilled channels and the corresponding holes in the metal frame- a washer was put on either end of the bolt and each bolt was sealed with a nut.

Here is a detail shot of our headboard with our new LLBean sheets! The next bedroom project is to hang a curtain rod at the top of the wall near the ceiling and hang a piece of fabric from the rod to cover the door behind our bed. Will post pics of final project, so once again- stay tuned!

UPDATE: here is the curtain for behind our bed read more about it HERE.

It's all coming together- New pics of our apt

My parents came to visit this week. It was a "working vacation" according to my mother.  "We" got a lot done in the 3.5 days they were here. When I say "we" I mean I laid on the couch tired and pregnant while my Mom and husband did most of the work- including making a headboard for our new bed. (will post a headboard blog entry soon!)

The above picture is the mantel in our living room. There's my Dad playing sudoku. My mom had the great idea to hang all the plates above the mantel- 7 majolica plates that were my grandmother's and in the center a John Derian plate. She also was a great help with storage solutions. IE: see the vintage suitcases- that I have been using to store stationary, dvds, photos- she tucked some in the fireplace (since it is none functioning) and then used the remaining suitcases as an end table for drinks between the two chairs- freeing up a wall for another dresser, since we will have three dressers very soon for our baby come Nov.

Here is the dresser that now sits where the suitcases used to be. The dresser was moved from our bedroom out into the living room to allow for more room for the baby- ie baby's dresser and sleeping nook. It's also nice to have a lighter color wood in the room to balance out the doors, mantel and woodwork. The door to the left is our front door and the white chest is still in flux as I wait for a larger piece of artwork to make the journey from Delaware to Maine in June.

The other view of the living room.

Like most of our furniture and other odds and ends- we have acquired our artwork through family and other fun means- giving each object it's own story. And as an artist I am addicted to collecting art- thus a collage wall was something I wanted to try and since we had the space and a selection of art to choose from I figured let's do this! I waited to hang most of the artwork until my mother's visit and this collage project was the main reason. I wanted another opinion on which work should and should not be included.  PLUS she brought me those very cool antlers which were the perfect addition to the collection! After consulting my sister and flipping through Lonny mag for inspiration- I concluded that my collage wall should be an eclectic mix of old and modern pieces and sprinkled throughout a few objects- like a plate, antlers, a metal tin, and an old drawer face.  And yet it all works well together- each piece relates to another in color or repetitive shapes. (click on the image to see it larger. The white french pumpkin piece is a painting of mine, as is the silkscreen of the woman standing in a doorway wearing a floral-wallpaper dress)

And our yellow kitchen is visible in the background through the doorway.

Our overall arrangement and set up of this apartment feels more adult in some ways, yet cozy and relaxed. I love to sit in the living room and look at all the art and fun objects and reflect on where they came from and appreciate how cool it is to see your little world come together over years of collecting and acquiring!

I will post pictures of our bedroom- with the new head board and pics of my studio which is also the guest room/ future baby room.  Stay tuned!

the yippity yo cooking show- a 3yr old bakes cookies!

Saw this clip today of a 3yr old's cooking show, too funny! Reminds me of my niece. Well my niece doesn't have all the "vocabulary" as this little one does...! And since I'm pregnant- and feel like it's a girl, I'm pretty sure this is what any daughter of mine would be like.

My Couch redo- an update

As I mentioned in a previous Blog Post- I was inspired to redo our couch. Below is a picture of the couch without the usual fancy pillows etc- ie the "before" shot. The back story behind the couch- my mother had it reupholstered after she rescued it from the side of the road- naturally. Then when I first moved out the couch became mine and we/ my mom really- made pillows for it and a slip cover for the cushion. Now about 3 years later and one broken and missing leg fatality, I want a change. But with the baby on it's way buying a new couch really isn't an option- especially when I would want a really nice one ie: $2gs.  So I am going to sew and collage fabric over the old couch (after I painted it a poop brown with fabric paint, good going). The final result will be awesome, have no fear.

Above is a fabric purchase I made on Etsy and these 5 yards of vintage fabric will set the tone for the new look of the sofa! I will collage in other linens and little patchwork fabric sample swatches- maybe along the arms of the couch. Also coming up on the DIY radar- a custom made king size headboard, and more pillows including shams for my Moroccan queen day bed!

Band Majorette-Custom hat by Urban Knitfits

I had a repeat customer (love those!) order my Band Majorette hat in custom colors! A navy brim, white body and red pom pom.  It came out really cute if I do say so myself!

And the back view.

an etsy baby registry

In my personal opinion- after supporting your local artists and boutiques, why would you want to shop anywhere other than Etsy!? As a result I've been suggesting the idea of a gift registry to the etsy community for some time now. It would be perfect for weddings, bridal and baby showers, a sweet 16th birthday, etc etc.

And since I myself am pregnant I thought it would be fun to make a blog post with the inspiration of a baby registry.  Included are some fun shops and nifty ideas to inspire your own baby shopping endeavors!

Pistachio Pillowmint woodland bear, by Sleepy King.

Cute hand embroderied onsie by missymagoo.

Cuckoo Clock onsie by pepperHems.

Peanut onsie by babycakesanddecors.

Cute Diaper bag option- The Reese bag by JimmyKDesigns.

Birdsong bag, another cute diaper bag option, by retrofied.

Love Letterpress and this is a fantastic shop- kirtlandhouse- with great stationary for any occasion!

Custom Crib bedding by pongobaby.

Beautiful hand made baby slings by Polkadotpapoose.

Diaper changing mats by Puddletonsbaby.

Be prepared for more baby related posts in the future, but have no fear I will keep variety on my blog!

For Mother's day: A custom portrait

In my grayday shop on etsy I offer home accessories including artwork. A custom portrait makes the perfect gift for any occasion and with Mother's day around the corner I have this listing for a 8x12 color pencil portrait for only $55!!! Check out the listing and spread the word!

more pictures of our place... a work in progress

Our bathroom.

Another shot of our living room- off the kitchen. Has a great none working fireplace, very pretty though. (Cameron has Henry- Hannah's Italian greyhound on his lap)

My studio/ guest room, sits at the front of the house and gets great light. The queen bed by day will be a moraccan inspired day bed with loads of pillows.

Hot Mess- studio space the opposite wall- with another fireplace and looking down through the apt to the kitchen. Will post pictures after it is fully organized, its going to be sweet, have faith.

Another view of our kitchen. Note the gas stove! The door next to the stove is the bathroom and the door with all the trash hanging on it- goes to the backyard. (with Henry visiting we had to keep our trash and recycling up high it wont normally be like this.)

Oh the boxes the boxes! The door to the left is our main entrance- and you enter into the living room. This is the longest I've gone without hanging art! My stack of vintage suitcases will replace the boxes...

April: New apartment, easter and house guests!

We spent Easter weekend moving into our new apartment!

Despite my expression in the above picture- We are very excited to have a new place to live! This apartment has more room and a ridiculous kitchen! Now I have my very own studio room which also has our queen-guest bed- perfect for house guests, so come visit. We still have a lot to do- mostly hang all of our artwork, etc and organize my new studio. I'll post better pictures once all of that is completed.

My sister in law surprised us this weekend with a visit from Pennsylvania! She was a huge help with moving. And on Sunday we took a break and got in the spirit by dyeing easter eggs! Later that night we had more friends and family over for a festive feast and we are so grateful for our dishwasher, it makes entertaining so easy! Lots of new and exciting things developing around here.