project lately: distressed glazed chairs

project lately: distressed glazed chairs

man, do i have the painting bug.  this past couple weeks, i've painted anything i could get my hands on. kids chairs, outside fridge (pink!!!) , kitchen chairs, benches, kids table, bookshelves, pantry doors, bathroom door, front door. 

waking up with the girls at 6:30, getting them a bowl of cheerios and getting to work in the driveway before it gets too hot.  those chicks are awesome at having some outside fun:  drive the gator, play in the sand box, paint with water in the driveway and sidewalk chalk until they're as dirty as you can get- then it's the hose and the kiddie pool and inside for some bananas and grapes.  

meanwhile, i get my paint on.  

i bought some chairs for 100 bucks on craiglist a bit ago and they sat in the garage until i got around to buying my materials.  they are great- sturdy, awesome carved detail and best of all they all MATCH.  for whatever reason, when we moved in, i thought a mismatched set of chairs would look.... quaint? cute? hello- totally random and not good. 

i was ready for something new. 

took those babies outside and covered them with a coat of antique white paint. (and no, i didn't sand. partly because i was going for a distressed look in the end.  but mostly because i am LAZY, LAZY, LAZY) and good gracious, that painting took FOREVER! there are 8 spindles on the back of each chair as well as 4 legs, with 8 horizontal supports on every chair! so many little spots i would miss.  so i just went inside and then came out and touched up. many times. 

 

they actually were really pretty all white.  but i knew kiddo's grubby hands, my messiness in the kitchen and craft projects would have them dingy in no time. 

i had read about brooke's (her blog all things thrifty is one of my faves) glazing projects many times and loved how they turned out. so i read once more her glazing 101 post, took a deep breath and destroyed my lovely white results! 

bought martha stewart's metallic glaze from home depot. i used the color muscovado.  followed brooke's instructions: wipe on glaze, wipe off with a wet cloth.  by this time, my sweet hubs came to help.  we wiped on and wiped off to our hearts content.  left it thick in some spots and more off in others. 

 

by no means perfect but i LOVE how they turned out.  the details up top are just gorgeous and they look aged and well loved.  they look fantastic around my old dining table.  they are comfy for sitting around and i can't wait to enjoy a meal with others, sitting there long after dinner's over.  

so give glazing a try!  so fun. 

meanwhile, while writing this post, someone got into the nutella.  can't say i blame her.

Blessed and lucky

Whew. Today was one of those days.

Wake up at 4 and go sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor in the girls room because Mia is crying.

Officially get out of bed (off the floor) at 7 to start the day.

Leave the house and begin the errands.
Trash to the dump.
Plastic and cans and cardboard to recycling center.
Bank to deposit money.
Walmart.
Home Depot.
H-E-B.
Pharmacy.
Magazines to the paper dumpster.

I was feeling tuckered out and overwhelmed. Kids are sick of the car. Buckle the car seats up again and again and find the other Croc that went under the car. And hand a kid a sippy cup. And "Mommy, my fingers are stuck together from my lollipop."

As we finally started home to eat and take naps (hallelujah!!!), Natalie Merchant came on the radio.

"These are the days, you'll remember.
Never before and never since,
I promise, will the whole world be warm as this.
And as you feel it, you'll know it's true that you are blessed and lucky.
It's true that you are touched by something that will grow and bloom in you."

Blessed and lucky. Might just make a sticker for my car. :)

10 years ago

10 years ago today, I went on my first date with my husband.  i wouldn't ordinarily remember the exact date (since my memory is just AWFUL) but that sweet man tore the little calendar page out and kept it in the visor of his truck.  and when he bought a new truck, he moved it to the new one. and when he bought another new truck, guess what? it got put in the box of all the million things that come out of your truck when you are at the dealership dropping it off for the last time and hasn't ever been unpacked. but that date is stuck forever. 

i remember i was nervous.  i was about to begin my first year of teaching and had come straight from my new teacher orientation in a professional-ish black dress and jean jacket.  i wanted to change into something "cool". don't know what that was...but i didn't get time. we were meeting at a friend's house and he beat me there. he told me once that i looked beautiful getting out of my car in my "teacher clothes". he said he knew we would love me.

we went on a double date with our sweet friends who had set us up.  david and chris worked together. isn't it funny how someone mentions to you they have a friend they think you ought to meet and it turns out to be the love of your life?  right there in your own town.  

we went to the same high school and i wouldn't have given him the time of day back then.  he was a jock and i was a nerd.  (haha.  those labels. i still classify people that way. lame.) but wait a couple years and people work. 

dinner was nothing super special. but it just felt right. 

august 14, 2002.  10 years ago.  i've had 5 cars since then (how is that even possible??). this is our fourth house together. i've moved classrooms 4 times. (enough with the moving already!!) 3 dogs and 2 cats later.  2 kids. sadness.  happiness.  we often say the same thing at the same time.  and then look at each other, like "hey!??! that's what I was going to say?!" we are soul  mates. he is my love. 

i'm sure glad for these 10 years.