It’s the Little Things

 I'm linking this up with Amanda's Decorating Dilemmas Party.  Now, I don't want anyone to think that I'm handing out solutions and not asking for help with any dilemmas because I have no dilemmas!  Far from it!  My dilemmas are so great that I wouldn't know where to start asking for help!

When we toured the builder’s model of our house, I knew that it was full of upgrades that we would not get, like hardwood floors, stainless appliances, fancy lighting packages, and so on.

However, there were some things that turned out to be upgrades that never would have occurred to me, and were therefore a surprise when we discovered the lack of it in our house.

This bathtub, for instance.  This is a photo of the main hall bath in the model home, with what appears to be a pretty standard fiberglass tub.



This, however, is what we ended up with in our bathroom.  It was already installed when we saw it, and even if it had not been, we did not have extra money to throw at any more changes.  (They did clean it out before we moved in.)



You know those corners that most bathtubs have, including the model tub?  The ones where you set the shampoo and stuff?  This tub has none.  The closest thing to it is the ledge the bottle is sitting on, but they were just not wide enough and the bottles fell off if you even looked at them funny.



I tried the thing that hangs over the shower head, but it’s too high for my kids to reach.  So the bottles ended up on the outside ledge of the tub, behind the shower curtain, inconvenient and messy (think water dripping out of the shower onto the floor).
 
Suction cup things wouldn’t work because a) they never really work anyway, and b) the tub and surround are textured, so there would be no suction.  I couldn’t even use one of these tension poles, because, oh yes, there are no corners for the bottom of the pole to rest on!



It drove me crazy!!  Like I said, it’s the little things.


On a recent trip to Walmart I discovered this caddy , for about $8, no suction or tension required.  Yay!



However, it still ended up being behind the shower curtain, so not ideal.



A brainstorm sent me down to the basement workbench for these cable ties.  They come in different sizes and colors and we use them all the time for all kinds of things.



This time, I used them to fasten the bath caddy to the grab bar inside the tub.  All my problems solved!  Again, little things.



So this was a really long whiny post just to introduce you to cable ties.  Because my point isn’t really so much about my bathtub woes as it is about these handy little strips of plastic.  You seriously need to get some.  They are cheap (I’ve even seen them in fashion colors at Dollar Tree), have endless uses, and are virtually indestructible until you take a pair of scissors to them.

I have used them to hang garland on the mantel and Fourth of July bunting on the front porch rail.  To hang a wreath.  To wrap up and corral electrical cord out of sight.  To loop up a chandelier chain to position the chandy higher.  To fasten a basket to the front of a little girl’s bike.  Even to repair a shoe buckle!
This is one little thing that you should keep on hand.  You’ll thank me later!

Up to My Old Tricks Again

Can you stand another post about a repurposed thrift store sweater?  I hope so, ’cause it’s comin’ at ya.

You may have noticed that the country is being hit by a cold snap.  I am currently wearing 4 layers of clothing and a hat…in the house… and I’m just comfortable. 

Our dog Lila is cold-blooded, I’m convinced.  When I saw her sitting on the kitchen floor this morning, shivering like a leaf in the wind, I decided she needed a sweater.  We’ve tried coats for her in the past, but she’s not too bright in some ways, and stands frozen like a statue when we put one on her, chained by her own mind.

I looked at Walmart this morning when I was there stocking up for tonight’s big storm.  You know there’s always a run on milk and bread when snow is forecast.  They were out of dog sweaters bigger than teacup.

That’s when it hit me, I’ve got a box full of thrift store sweaters at home.  I’ll just make one!  I picked one that had already been felted:



Cut the sleeves off, turned it inside out, and marked my sewing lines with chalk:



Sewed a seam down each side, cut a piece out of the underside for the “business end” and slits for her front legs:

he looks so sad!

I didn’t get fancy and finish the edges or anything like that, because for my dog, good enough is, well,  good enough.  She’s actually been wearing it all evening with no complaints and is moving freely!



In other related news, puppy Sophie went to the vet today to get “tutored”, if you catch my drift.  She’s looking kinda dopey herself.


Keep warm, my friends!

Favorite Projects of 2009

I was just over at Rhoda’s and saw that she is having a linky party for our favorite projects of the last year.  Sounds like fun!

Here we go, with some of my favs:

Back in March, I used garage sale shutters as art in my master bathroom.

In April, I created a homemade version of ceramic alphabet balls using ping pong balls.  Can U find the one I made?  Do U need a hint?

April still, and I painted these numbered locker baskets.

In June, I redid the chair that sits at the computer desk.  Full disclosure:  the linen fabric has not held up well to constant use, and is in shreds.  I’ll be replacing it again soon.

In July, my sister reupholstered a couple of chairs for me using drop cloths.

In September, I helped my friend Dixie create a display of white dishes.

In November, I made apothecary jars.

 

And some pillows from thrift store clothing.

Finally, in December I made monogrammed vases.

And hand-tinted vintage prints.  (Some have questioned why you would bother to do this when you could just print it out in color.  Well, for one, I rarely have colored ink.  Secondly, I think it looks very cool hand-done!)

It was fun to go back and realize how much I have done over the year.  Can’t wait to see yours!

A Post About Nothing

Well, after all that, I’m at a loss for material today!  I think still having the Christmas decorations up is dragging me down.  Normally we would have packed it all up this past weekend, but Craig volunteered to paint, so I sure wasn’t going to hinder that by asking him to haul all the Rubbermaid bins up from the basement.

Hopefully before too long I will have a powder room makeover to show you; there are still several things to finish up.

Okay, I’ve seriously been sitting here in a half-stupor for the last hour and a half trying to come up with something for you.  All I’ve come up with is a question that’s been haunting me for years:  if possums are nocturnal, and they sleep hanging in trees, how come you never see possums hanging in trees in the day time?

Clearly it’s time for me to hit the sack.

I will leave you with a picture that’s got my wheels a-spinning, which may be a bit of a hint of things to come.  Maybe.

source

Recap

Thanks for all your comments yesterday.  I really wasn’t just fishing for compliments, but I appreciate them!  The consensus seems to be keep on doing what I’m doing.

For those of you who said something along the lines of “your blog should reflect you and your interests”,  I do agree (though I still hope to be of interest to somebody else, I guess).  And I suppose my blog does reflect me:   we’re both kind of mixed bags. 

So there you have it…nothing radical content-wise is going to change around here.  I’m good with that.

Back to regular programming tomorrow.

BTW, I’ll still take suggestions, criticisms, etc. if you’ve got ’em.

I’d Love Your Input!

The beginning of a new year is the traditional time for taking steps to making improvements in one’s life.  In that light, I have been thinking about what I can do improve and grow my blog.

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors did a post recently with a similar premise, and asked for input from her readers.  There is some really good insight over there, particularly in the the comments.  It’s worth a look-see.  Once you’ve there, I guarantee you’ll go back for her mad skillz!

I’m going to do something along those lines as well, and ask for your thoughts on my blog in particular (is that too selfish?).  I’m going through a bit of a blog identity crisis right now.

Am I a decorating blog?  I do some of that, but I’m no Nester, and I’m not very original.  Even when I think I am, I find out that somebody has already done it!



Am I a crafting blog?  I’ll answer that:  no, I’m not.  Again, I do some of that, and  My Thrifty Gifty series was pretty popular, statistics-wise.  But as before, originality is not my forte.  I’m better at being able to recreate something I’ve already seen.



My main thrust seems to have evolved into thrift store blog.  It was unintentional; it was fun to show some of the stuff I found, but I really didn’t mean for it to be all about that.  I’m not going to stop going to thrift stores, but I’d like to try to focus more on what I can do with the things I find, and how thrift stores can be one way to stretch your dollar.



I do add some family stuff  into the mix, and according to the comments on Funky Junk, some people don’t care for that.  It’s too off-topic for them.  I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on the matter.  Myself, I like a bit of the personal touch when I’m reading a blog.



So, here are some questions for you, to help me make this blog a place you like to visit:

1. What do you come here to see?
2. What do you like most about my blog?
3. Dislike? (don’t worry about hurting my feelings!)
4. What would you like to see more of?
5. Less of?
6. Keeping in mind the general feeling of my blog, what kind of linky parties would you like me to host, in which you might participate?
7. Any other constructive criticism?

I would so appreciate any input you may want to give!  After all, if it didn’t matter what you thought, then I might as well make this a private blog.
 
To all my readers, thank you...thanks for coming here in the first place, thanks for your comments, and thanks for coming back!

2010!

Two-thousand ten?  Twenty ten?  I wonder which will turn out to be the common verbiage.

Have a wonderful New Year’s Celebration! 

See you back here Monday.