Author: Oh Happy Daze

- Oh Happy Daze

glorious re-purposed goodies!

here’s my latest side-of-the road scavenge rescue
ain’t she a beauty?
I can’t say I’m usually drawn to wrought iron pieces…
but she spoke to me…
because she was FREE!!!
So, I stuffed her into my tiny car and dragged her away kicking and screaming.
I hosed her down and brushed away any loose paint or rust.
(I probably could have done a rust removal treatment… but she was free.. and who has time for that anyway)
then I recruited my little brother to muscle a crooked leg back into place.
(sorry no pictures of me trying to do it before I gave in and asked him)
Thanks baby bro!!
(and thanks for posing for a picture without hemming and hawing too much…
It’s for the blog PEOPLE!!!)
Then came the thinking part.
No, I don’t have the gift that some of you have; 
I rarely have a “vision” right away for how I want my treasure to turn out.
so… (cue jeopardy music) what to do with this table?

thinking….

thinking…

  thinking…

ok ok, sorry there was no AHA! moment…
nope, this was a “let’s just dive in and see what happens” kind of thought process.
I gave her a good coating of RustOleum.
I don’t have pictures of the first coat, but I actually painted it brown…
then hated it.
that’s what I get for not having a complete plan in my head!
so I slapped some white on her.
bada bing bada boom
we’re in business.
now, I know what you’re thinking:
“Um, HELLO? Does she know there’s not a top to that table?”
Good news…Yes! I DID see that the glass top was missing!
I’m guessing that’s why she was kicked to the curb… poor little lady.
Solution?
I thought you’d never ask!
A few weeks ago I found a great piece of artwork at Goodwill.
 It was one solid piece of finished wood with a nice print…
but I didn’t buy it to hang on my wall. I actually bought it for another project
(coming soon, once I find a different piece of wood!).
anywho, lady saw this piece in my arms at the Goodwill and commented on the “beautiful print”
gag me.
I thought it was hideous and couldn’t wait to paint over it.
I thought for sure all Goodwillers shared my passion for re-purposing….
negative.
words cannot describe the ice dagger stare she gave me when I told her my plans for it.
sheesh!
anyway, here it is:
ok, I guess it is kinda nice… 
but has some scratches and I’m no art restoration expert so I’m stickin’ with the plan!
I gave her a good coating of plain ‘ol white paint.
Once that dried, I taped off the edges with painter’s tape.
I didn’t have an exact image in my head of the look I was going for, 
but I knew I wanted the white to poke through in certain areas… like the border.
I started taping off sections here and there… no pattern in mind, just random stripes.
Rummaging through my stash of acrylic paints, I chose two of my favs:
GREEN and YELLOW
then just went to town, painting as I pleased.
Happy Spring to ME!!
the neighbors were curious.
this part makes me nervous. will it be a clean line?
I think my painters tape was kinda old… and may have lost some of its sticky talent…
oh well, not too bad!
TADA!!!
I love how crisp and clean it looks!
woops, don’t look too closely at the edges!
I was so excited to show you I forgot to touch ’em up!
anyway…
I can’t wait to give her a nice protective coat so she can stay outside and hold some of my potted plants!

 thank you neighbor down the road for this trash…
which is now treasure.
nanna nanna boo boo!!

i’m just sayin’
and
i’m just linkin’ up…
with

- Oh Happy Daze

decisions decisions

so… I’m kind of over this whole wedding planning thing.
part of me just wants someone else to do it for me.
the other part of me knows that i do have an image in my head of what i want our day to look like
…and nobody can make it happen like i want but me
(me, and maybe my mom, she pretty much knows what’s in my head)
type A you think?
don’t answer that.
——————————–
anyway, since I’m back to wedding planning (haha, just a quick 2 minute hiatus to vent)
I am on the hunt for bridesmaids dresses.
I would love for my girls to have this dress from JCrew
but i don’t love the price tag…. EEK!

I refuse to make my girls pay a bundle…
and the more casual plan for our wedding lends itself to more casual attire…
which means hopefully a lower price tag.
Today I was getting my blogger fix and I stopped over at 2713mornings
They are hosting a giveaway from a company called Mikarose
 
I had never heard of them, but the good little sheep that I am, I followed the link on over 
They have some super cute dresses that aren’t too revealing; 
I didn’t see the word “mini” or “low rise” anywhere!
What do you think about this dress for my bridesmaids?
Is it too casual?
I love the brown, and it looks SO comfy!
maybe I’m just in love with her shoes…
hmm… I just don’t know!!!!!
- Oh Happy Daze

can Jade come out to play?

If you are at all like me… keeping anything plantlike alive is a supernatural feat from God.
There are only two green thumbs in my family… and my grandma and my mum have hogged them both!

 Fortunately for me, when God was creating each flower and plant
He decided to throw in a few that are “user friendly”.
Meet Jade.

 She’s the tall trunky one in the back. (is trunky a word?)

Pay not attention to her other friends (Aloe, Jade Jr., and Christmas cactus).
We’ll talk about them another day.

 Let’s get to know Jade a little bit:

Jade is a succulent.
Jade likes neglect.
Don’t pamper her too much, she won’t respond well to it.

 That being said, you do need to time your neglect according to HER schedule.
that’s the only tricky part… fortunately she’s forgiving.

In the spring and summer: 
                   – Jade can venture outside once the threat of frost has passed… 
                               you’ll be the best judge of this depending on the region you live in. 
                   (Here in Virginia, I was able to move them out in mid-march).
                   –  Give her a good soaking once a week.
                   –  Let the soil dry out completely before you water again.
* This works well for me, because I frequently neglect all household chores for a few days, then get everything done in one fell swoop…. including slooshing water on all my plants in frivolous amounts (i spare no expense on the water slooshing).
In the fall and winter:
                   – Water once every 2 weeks
                   – This is when Jade goes dormant, so she won’t be growing.
                             (but she also won’t be needing water)
                   – Your Jade might flower in the winter months, like a Christmas cactus.
                            (if the conditions are right and the plant is mature enough…
                             I haven’t been blessed with this occurrence yet – I count myself lucky that she’s still green!)
Rooting a Jade:
                 – To root your Jade, simple trim off a stem(s)
                 – Set the stems aside for a few weeks so the ends can “scab” over
                 – Plop those fellas in a small pot, kind of crammed in.
                 – Water ’em and sun em’ like they’re adult Jades
*please don’t judge the condition of my soil… I have re-potting on the to-do list.. I swear!
*** Disclaimer:  um… I’m not a plant expert, nor do I want to be. I just have a jade plant that I am proud of because she hasn’t croaked yet… so that’s where my experience comes from. I’m just sayin’.

- Oh Happy Daze

Looking for THE dress?

calling all future brides…  LISTEN UP!
I don’t get on a soapbox very often (er…pay no attention to my last post)
anyway
I wanted to share my “dress finding” experience with you all… 
because it was SO easy, and SO much fun
AND
SO within budget!!!
as you may know, Mr. and I are having a small-ish backyard wedding
(actually not so small if you look at our guest list; but that post will have to come on another day)
the point is, we are on a budget!
With all of the wedding shows on tv these days..
the experience of looking for “the dress” has been hyped up.
I bet it is a fantastically wonderful experience to visit Kleinfeld Bridal
and when you find “the dress”
I bet bells chime, choirs sing, and maybe they even release doves into the air…
magical

    
            

However, for most DIY brides, a trip to Kleinfelds isn’t in the budget.
so where do you turn?

bum bum bum BUM….
CONSIGNMENT!!!

(yippee, I love that word!)

Here’s my reasoning:

   (–> enter side-note soapbox)

1. Personally, I am not interested in having the “typical” wedding gown.
         my wedding is going to be outside.
         in the yard.
how silly would it look if everything about my wedding was sweet and simple… but my dress was puffy enough to fit 5 small children under and the train was 2 miles long?
that just doesn’t go with the flow!
             *Yes, you can find simple at David’s Bridal… but they just didn’t have what I was looking for
                            (or not for very cheaply at least) 
2. You wear your wedding dress for one day. There, I said it. ONE DAY PEOPLE! Only one stinkin’ day!
         Side-story:  my sister’s wedding dress (sorry Mel), is chillin’, preserved in a 3ft box – taking up space in MY closet!!!   (harumpf!)   Never to be worn again.
Times have changed. Daughters don’t wear the gowns their mothers were married in.

Commence actual blog post about my dress finding experience –>

Want to get a sneak peek at my dress?

too bad, you can’t see it! Actually, I’d love to share its beauty with all of you, but Mr. is way too internet savvy and he’d probably take a sneak peek as well…

NO WAY JOSE!

however, I will share the story of how I found “The Dress”:

I wanted to check out several consignment shops in the area so my mom and I made a day of it.
This was the first stop.

Blush is located in Newport News… so any of you South-Eastern Virginia Gals… go check it out!

It’s the cutest little place.
Kind of small, but they also carry bridesmaids, flower girl, and mother of the bride dresses.

*Just make sure you have the right mindset when you head to your first bridal consignment place.
This isn’t shopping at Carolina Herrera.
What you see is what you get.
They can’t get things in different sizes and different colors.
“Only one” means… only one.

but, if you keep an open mind and plan well in advance so you can stop in several shops, several different times until you find “the one“…

then your hard work will be rewarded!

The first one I tried on was perfect.
A few sizes too big, but simple and different!

In perfect condition, except for a few teeny tiny, itsy bitsy dirt marks on the very bottom hem.
I wasn’t worried because I knew about 3 inches would have to be hemmed off the bottom anyway.

My mum, the smart thinker that she is, mentioned it to the owner though, and the owner knocked the price down even more!
No bargaining, no arguing… just friendly talk about the stains πŸ™‚

Just to be safe, I tried on the seven other dresses I had pulled, then came back to this one.
Since I still wasn’t 100% sure…
My mom and I went to a different consignment shop after lunch… just to make sure I wasn’t missing out.

I wasn’t worried about having a “moment” were you realize THIS IS IT!!!
I know my own fickle mind well enough that I knew I had to exhaust my options to be completely satisfied I had truly gotten “the dress”.

Turns out the first one I tried on really was the one… so we snatched it up!

This is me (duh) carrying “the dress” out to the car.

So… in my opinion, if you want to make smart decisions with your wedding budget one of the biggest things you can save on is the dress…
think consignment!

I’m just sayin’