Four Recycled Bathroom Organizers

Trying to find anything stored in the guest bathroom vanity takes longer than it should because it lacks drawers.

A typical plain Jane builder's vanity

I’m on the hunt for a vintage dresser to repurpose into a bathroom vanity.    

In an attempt to make it livable until I find a suitable replacement, I turned my attention to cleaning out and organizing the guest room vanity.

HGTV Design Star Finale: We Have a Winner!

This week the designers shot a design show pilot. At this point in the game, it’s almost a formality based on past camera challenges and judges comments.

In typical Design Star finale fashion, the Final 2 received help from the eliminated designers. Fortunately, unlike in seasons past, this year only four of the best team players Leslie, Mark, Kevin (Welcome back Sassy!), and Kellie came back to help Meg and Karl instead of the whole crew.

Karl chooses Mark and Sassy for his team. Meg chooses Leslie and Kellie for her team. It is Boys against Girls!

What Type of Sewing Machine Do You Have? Do You Like It?

At 39 years old, my Kenmore sewing machine has seen and sewn it all. My mom bought it in 1972. Mom put many miles on her. Bessie sewed curtains for my childhood bedrooms, countless Halloween costumes, and Barbie clothes. Mom sewed color guard uniforms, flags, and more high school musical costumes than I can count before, during, and after I graduated high school.

Everyone say hi to Bessie!

Why do I call her Bessie? Because when the machine acted up mom yelled, “Come on Bessie!” as she sewed and the machine snapped back in line. Bessie is a safer thing to say around little kid ears (mine) than saying what you really want to say when you are frustrated with things not going your way during a project.

Mom gave me Bessie after she got a new sewing machine. I put many miles on Bessie too. Under my roof, we sewed blankets and toys for Blitzkrieg, Christmas gifts, curtains, slipcovers, reupholstered furniture, and repurposed more things than I can count. Bessie and I designed costumes and historical clothing too. Bessie is Mommy’s Little Moneymaker when it comes to building costumes.

HGTV Design Star: Tiny House Challenge

This week the designers designed a whole house in two days. Fortunately, a house is the same size as a playhouse. Those teeny tiny houses are so adorable I want one in my teeny tiny backyard.

If there was any challenge the designers had to bring it, it is this one. Meg knocked her camera challenges out of the park per usual. Karl is coming into his own on the camera challenges. I loved the comment about not wanting to roll out of the loft bed and into the sink. Mark sealed his fate with his trip up on the first camera challenge although his second was as personable as we know him to be. 

Side note: was there an unofficial requirement for the designers to hang animal antlers in their houses? I think all three of them had them. For some reason, Karl and Mark’s antler art reminds me of a Jackelope.

 Jackelops are real because they are on the Internet. Look it up.

Photo courtesy of Animal Picture Archive

Does Your Dog Eat Natural Dog Food?

I am careful about the type of food I eat. I try to avoid high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, palm kernel oil, high sugar and high fat content in my food based upon the health issues I see developing in the older members of our family. I figure if we follow this kind of diet now, Husband and I won’t have those health problems until we’re 90.

I like it here.

 I am even more meticulous about Blitzkrieg’s food than my own. Dog food is not regulated like human food. Oh sure, there are pet food guidelines but those are merely suggestions.  There is nothing to stop a dog food company from using rancid people food to make dog food. In fact many, but not all, dog food companies do.

To avoid this, I buy the natural brands of dog food. The brands that are corn and wheat free and use human grade food ingredients even though they are more expensive. Blitzkrieg’s health improved dramatically once we educated ourselves about dog food production and made buying a whole food ingredient dog food a priority.

Make an Outdoor Rug

Our accidental front yard organic farm gets compliments from family and neighbors

It’s funny because other than making a raised garden bed and transplanting plants we already had, Husband and I didn’t expect the front garden and porch to be my summer project. Funny how projects snowball, eh?

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