Thrifty Finds: Dining Chairs

Happy Monday! I hope you all had an amazing holiday, filled with lots of food, fun and laughter. It's probably colder where you are today, but it is 37 degrees in Boca Raton today. WHAT?! It's just nutty.

As such, it has been waay to cold to go downstairs to my (uninsulated) garage to finish my latest project:
Chairs!

There are 4 of these beauties, and the caning is actually in very good condition, except for on one, but at 4 for $50. Why not?! I've spent the last week sanding, spraying and poly-ing, and they are almost ready for the big reveal! In the mean time, I've got a post coming up on how to re-upholster a seat cushion.

Sugar & Spackle is on Etsy!

Hi friends!
Sugar & Spackle has made some new friends with etsy.com! Check out my store! http://www.etsy.com/people/SugarandSpackle

Currently the main items in my store are my soy candles, but keep checking back as I post new finds. Still looking for a gift for the Holidays? I've got a candle with your name on it! Our scents du jour are :

Blue Spruce
Clean Cotton
Winter Spice
Juniper Breeze
Apple Cinnamon
Wild Lavender

These come in tins and mason jars- you know you want one!

Yule Like This Post

( and yule get this in a minute) I know. I'm sorry. I've gone away for days on end. I'm just so darn excited about everything happening with the  Holidays  Christmas. That's right, I said CHRISTMAS. OooOOOHhh 

Just because you may not celebrate it doesn't mean you can't have a merry December 25th. So there. So here's some stuff that's making me happy these days, while I wait for my photos to upload: 

1. I love having the whole family together, especially when I can escape to my own apartment at the end of dinner (BONUS) and have my husband/ DD drive there (DOUBLE BONUS) 

2. Candles have been made for all Christmas gifts (sorry for the lack of surprise to those who know they're getting something from me!) 

3. My mother in-law saying "it's half past reindeer" ( oh alan and your festive watches.) 

4. That all the holiday stuff at Michael's is at least 40% off. Who said procrastinating doesn't pay?? 

5. That pear tree with a partridge in it 

In the spirit of the season, I would like to send some of you, my devoted readers, a "thank you". The first person to comment on this post will receive a special gift from me! So go ahead! Speak up! 

Merry Christmas! 

P.S. I have so many projects it'll make your head spin, but they're secret projects right now.... 

Marg 

Let's Table This Issue

As you may know, our new apartment has its very own room dedicated to dining- which means I get to have a full size dining room table! I've been scouring craigslist and local thrift stores to try to find something that would by sturdy, versatile, and of course, pretty. Enter: The Table!

We found her yesterday and by some miracle fit in our car to take home! The table is solid cherry and has THREE leaves so it can go from seating 4 to 10. That's right. TEN. I could literally have all you followers over for dinner. All 9 of you.  (Thank you for following, by the way!)
This is her in her full ten-seater glory.

I was originally looking for a sturdy farmhouse table that I could beat up to make weathered and old. But this little lady fit the bill too perfectly- and at $160, I kind of had to.  Another cool thing is that my thrift store find is actually a dead ringer for the Ballard Designs Avignon table- with a price tag of $1,000. Ha! 

Now here's my dilemma- What do I do with her!? As I said, our apartment is more or less beige and uninteresting, the last thing I want to do is add more honey-ish tones, but looking through ballard made me think maybe I should just keep it as-is.

However, there are lots of pretty details, such as the quatrefoil in the middle leg and the ridges round the edges and legs that I think are just screaming to be a distressed white. See? But this is my dining room now: That is a card table under there. And I may or may not be using a former curtain as a tablecloth. See? Beige. And you can't tell from the picture but there's some 90's - esque track lighting that would make my french country gal feel pretty out of place. What I wouldn't give for pendant lighting.
The way I see it, I have 4 options:
1. Paint the top a dark walnut, and the legs a distressed white
2. Paint the whole thing a distressed white
3. Stain the whole thing a distressed walnut
4. Leave it as-is.

What do you think? Any other suggestions? Should I let her true colors shine or take this country gal to the city, er, Delray Beach.

My garden of eden

I've been going through withdrawal from San Francisco and the wealth of salvage yards/ flea markets where you can find cool old junk for REALLY cheap. Today I resolved to explore my South Florida stomping grounds and sniff out some places where I could some good 'ole San-Fran style digging.

Enter: Allison's Adam & Eve - Architectural salvage - BINGO! I know what I'm doing this weekend!

These photos really got me excited. Is that normal?



and I can't wait to check out their sconce room. Yes. Room. of sconces. Pictured above. Fingers crossed that this place is CHEAP- you never can tell in south florida. If anyone out there has some more suggestions- send 'em over!

It's 10 pm - Do You Know Where Your Soy Candle Is?

Around the holidays its always really easy to go crazy with spending in the "spirit of the season", naturally, because you want to show your loved ones that they are important to you. This year I am getting in touch with my inner Martha and giving my time and best effort to making gifts that will have a huge impact on the recipient, and a microscopic one on your wallet. Seasonally scented candles in little tins coupled with homemade treats (such as peppermint bark) are going to be my gift of choice this year.

And after half a bottle of wine last night, giving candle-making a shot seemed to be a pretty good life decision. My poor husband.  This is what happens when we don't have TV/ internet yet.

This project surprised me with how easy it is! Allow about 30 minutes for the actual process, and overnight for the candles to cool and you are in business! I may or may not have brought a candle to the office with me, just to look at it. This recipe below makes 3 candles in 8 oz tins. Enjoy!

I'm Dreaming of a Beige Christmas

We are moved in! Sort of! Many thanks to moms and pops and the Clements family who helped us out!

Now we get down to business. decorating.

If I had to pick one word to sum up our new place it would be: BEIGE. Normally I would have broken out my paint swatches already, but since its a temporary place, I can't justify painting (even if it is just a teeeeny tiiiiiny accent wall), just to paint it back in 8 months. So I am coming up with ways to incorporate some color and pattern with fabrics and accessories.

My aesthetic is lots of clean lines, natural elements and textures. My color palate sings more to the tune of "dreamy", with crisp whites and dreamy grays. Here are some things that are really rocking my boat right now:

WE'RE MOVING!

HI! Sorry for the delinquency, but as you may have guessed, I have a pretty good reason.
Today Zach (and Cali) and I are MOVING into our VERY OWN APARTMENT. Oh, Joy!
So it's not a house like we really really wanted, but you know what- after 4 months of living with parents, it's pretty much the best thing ever.

There is a private garage where I can craft in peace, and TWO bedrooms and TWO bathrooms! Oh, and a separate dining room!! I smell a dining room table project! That's right, friends, come on down! I cannot wait to get it all pretty, or somewhat pretty, to show you! CAN YOU TELL I'M EXCITED?!

Not to mention it is in a super-cute downtown area of Delray Beach, lots of shops and restaurants to explore! Huzzah!


Anyway, friends, do stay tuned because I would really like you to, and I promise to have all the deets coming up soon!  Happy Friday!