Gift wrapping station

For my gift wrapping station I use one of my old dressers.  It works perfectly for easy storage of  all my gift wrapping needs :)

This dresser sits in our guest bedroom and was handed down from my in laws.  It's a piece I will most likely never paint.   

          On the left I have various ribbons                            the right side holds my collection of tissue paper

The middle drawer is a variety of gift bags I've saved and re-used over the years.

  I'm a firm believer in taking bags home from parties and using them again. 

And in the bottom drawer, the wrapping paper.

Be inspired to work with what you've got.

Please send your inspiration projects along to me to be featured.

betweenblueandyellow@yahoo.com

B&A Friday

If you would like to be featured for B&A Friday please send your pictures to betweenblueandyellow@yahoo.com

It can be anything you want, just as long as you have a before and after pic.

Today I have a couple of cute little side tables to share with you.

These are from Lisa over at Before meets After

She has some really great furniture re-do's over there.

          And this great little gray side table is such an improvement.

Head on over and check out Lisa's work~

Have a great weekend!

Be my guest: Lily Field

Today I would like to introduce you to a new blogger named Heidi from Lily Field.

  She and her husband Chris work together to create some stunning furniture and color combos

Here are some of her pieces that I really love.

Welcome Heidi!

I am so excited to be guest posting today for Kathleen! I am Heidi and I am half of the face behind Lily Field Furniture. My man Chris does all of the hard work so you get to see a picture of him too! This is us on probably the one day of the year that I didn’t have paint clothes on!

I thought today I would tell you a few of my favorite things so here we go-
1. Brushes. I love my brushes like a normal woman loves her shoes. I am weird like that. I am a Purdy fan all the way. They are a bit pricier but you will be amazed at how great of a job they will do. Now that I have jumped on the Annie Sloan train, I also do love the big Italian waxing brushes that she suggests using with her wax. I like to have 2- one for clear wax and 1 for dark wax.
2. Paint. I have tried all different brands and for me personally I have found that Sherwin Williams works the best with my sprayer. Something about the consistency and coverage- highly recommend! Plus, there is this nifty little app called ‘color snap’ on my phone that lets me take a picture of anything and then translates it to a Sherwin Williams color for me. So much fun for a geek like me! As I mentioned above, I also now use a lot of Annie Sloan paint. I really am in love with her product. It’s great for someone like me that lives in the frigid Midwest to be able to paint inside and not worry about the fumes and chemicals my family is breathing in.
3. Sealers. When I am using normal latex paint, I swear by a sealer called Varathane. It comes in a few different finishes (satin, semi-gloss, gloss, etc) and does a great job of not yellowing those light pieces. If I am using Annie Sloan paint, I really, really like her own Annie Sloan wax. It took me awhile of playing with it to figure out how to best use it I admit. Now that I have the hang of it I am in love with it!
How about just a few of my favorite every day things, not painting related?
1. THIS coffee machine! I have had the Tassimo and all of those fancy machines but there is something about this machine that I love! It is awesome because it has the hot water dispenser right next to it so you can always have hot water for tea or cocoa or oatmeal. And the coffee it brews just tastes so much better than my cheap old Mr. Coffee machine did.
2. THIS perfume. If you like the smell of vanilla, this stuff is amazing! I found it a year ago when I was strolling through Anthropologie and have been hooked on it ever since. I can’t find it on their website but they do carry it in stores. SO worth the $18!!
3. THESE tea cookies- highly addicting!! Try them and you will thank me!
Well, I hope you have enjoyed my ramblings and thanks again Kathleen for letting me guest post today! Come on over to Lily Field and check us out!

The old man is snoring

We've been getting an awful lot of rain here in Atlanta for the past few days.  Not to mention it has been kind of cold too.  So our outings have been very limited, so has my work.  But today I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to get up the nerve to take these kiddos to the grocery store.  It's hard enough on a regular day, but throw some rain into the mix and well...ya know...

Here is some fun we've been having around the house.

I brought in some pretty cuttings from the yard to cheer up our dreary day.

Found an awesome play dough recipe on Pinterest via An Art Nest and my girl played with it for an hour straight.  No lie.

 A whole lotta this,

and this

What can I say this girl loves to bounce.  I can't believe she is five months.

The weather is supposed to be nice tomorrow, but then more rain later this week...

I hope to get started on a new awesome piece I found on the side of the road.

Winner of the Giani Granite Paint

Thank you to all of you who entered to win the Giani Granite Paint. 

The winner is.....

Commenter #5

ScrappinMT!!

Congratulations!  Please contact me with your address and which kit you would like to receive.

betweenblueandyellow@yahoo.com

B&A Friday

Happy Friday y'all. 

Today I'm bringing you a before/after from Cindy at Cameras and Chaos.  She made over this cute little chair for only $11!

  Welcome Cindy.

This chair started out in really good shape. it's a nice heavy cast iron.  not a bad paint job and the cushion was in great condition.  the paint job was a little beat up, but that's to be expected with it's age.  the original fabric for the seat cover under this tapestry was an olive green velvet.

the tapestry seat cover was pretty but a little old-fashioned looking.
the legs were gracefully curved and
the back had a pretty flower and vase detail.

The gold detail is always the first clue that something is dated.
i felt that it needed a dose of fun and modern
so
i sprayed it a glossy white paint and recovered the seat in a fun, modern and graphic fabric.

chair: craigslist $5.00
fabric: hobby lobby about $2.50
spray paint: home depot $3.50
total: $11.00

What a deal!  Great job Cindy :)

Be inspired:Free Art

From now on I will be trying to post inspiring projects from myself and others.  If I come across something on Pinterest, around the blogasphere or if you would like to send in an idea. It must be something you would like to share to help inspire others to make their home lovely.

I've been known to frame my share of pretty note cards I receive from friends and family members. I also like to frame pretty calendar pages.  Today I will share a couple with you.  It's an easy, usually free, piece of art work if I have an extra frame lying around.

Several years ago my cousin sent me this pretty card.  What to do with a pretty card you don't want to throw out? Put a frame on it!

Or how about tearing out one of your favorite monthly pictures from a calendar

(pink flowers on the left).

And this nice card my mother in law gave me.

Be inspired.

Cinnamon Apple Bread

 First, let me start by saying that I only post the recipes that received rave reviews in my house.  Not just any old recipe makes the cut for the blog.  They all must audition first. Then after careful thought and consideration, I post them to share with you all.

I found this one at Two Peas and their Pod.   Gotta give credit where credit is due.

Cinnamon Apple Bread

Ingredients~

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon all spice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 large eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups chopped apples, skin removed (we used Granny Smith)

Topping:
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 by 4 loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside. 

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, all spice, and cloves. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the eggs and beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds. Add in oil, applesauce, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Next, add the sugar and mix until well combined.

4. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until flour is barely combined. Gently fold in the apple chunks. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

5. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, sugar, and cinnamon. Sprinkle over the batter in the loaf pan. Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until loaf is golden and a toothpick comes out clean.

6. Cool bread in pan for 10 minutes. Loosen sides and remove from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack
 before slicing.

Giani Granite Paint Review and Give Away

For the past two years, I have been greatly considering painting our cheapo-fake butcher block counter tops.  We obviously could not afford to get what I really wanted, which was marble.  So I decided to try the next best thing, paint!  I had seen the Giani Granite Paint before and thought it was really cool..  But not sure it was for me.  I put it on the back burner.  Well, low and behold they contacted me and asked if I would try it out and review it on my blog… I felt like it was meant to be. (They are extremely nice folks over there.)
I started the project last Thursday and wrapped it up on Saturday.  There is a lot of waiting time involved. I knew I had to get rid of sticky fingers that would be touching the wet paint,  so off went my 2 year old to her grandparents.
The steps are clearly noted on the web and the DVD they send you, so I’m not going to repeat what you can already find.  I will how ever share with you some of the videos I watched on You Tube that helped me.  This one and this one about veining.
They say you don’t have to be a creative person to make this look good, but I disagree.  It does help the paint look more real if you spend extra time and a bit of creativity on your project. 

1. My first tip would be to find an example of the type of granite you wish to recreate for your kitchen.  Giani offers 3 different kits.  The out come is really up to you.  There are so many different ways of doing it.  I wanted a lighter color so I chose the Sicilian Sand kit.  I used a lot more white paint near the end to achieve my desired look.

 2. Make sure you watch the DVD included several times to really understand how to paint it on .  Use the internet to search out all the other bloggers who tried this.  Also watch You Tube videos, there are many.

 3.  Follow all the steps.  It really does make a difference if you miss one...not that I did, oh no not me....

 When I first started, I thought I had made a mistake in doing this.  But everything started to come together once I was half way around the kitchen.  I began to feel more comfortable and started being more creative.  And then the paint started to take on a life of it's own :)  Over all my husband and I are very happy with the end result.  I think once I finish my cabinets and paint the wall it will look like a brand new kitchen at a fraction of the cost.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions.

GIVE AWAY IS CLOSED

Link Parties~

Domestically Speaking

Primitive and Proper
The Sasse Life 
Finding Fabulous

Today

Today I'm guest blogging over at Primitive and Proper.  Cassie is a wonderful girl who also does furniture re-dos.  She is very creative and sweet, so hop on over there and check out my cool tips for staining a dresser top.

 Also.... here is a little sneak peak of the project I've been working on.

 10 points to whoever can guess what it is....

Be my guest:Lesley Graham

I've accidentally posted this twice. So sorry for the confusion...
Today I'm having my first ever guest blog post. Lesley Graham is a dear friend of mine and a very talented seamstress and blogger. Please head on over and check out her amazing creations in her new Etsy shop.

Hello Between Blue and Yellow readers! I'm Lesley. Kathleen and I go way back to high school (actually middle school, but we weren't friends then). When she asked me to guest post, I was a little stumped on what to talk about because she is miss DIY (her furniture pieces amaze me) and I'm DIsometimesmaybe. One thing we definitely have in common is that we are both working from home while raising kids. This year I'll be putting all of my extra energy into my new shop, Tiny Fete, while keeping up with my three year older daughter, Matilda.


Carryall available here.


A few things I've learned in my first week of working from home:

Don't count on naps.

Clean as you go so you aren't spending all of your time at night cleaning. This makes watching things like Vampire Diaries a lot easier.

GET OUT. In the winter cabin fever tends to sneak up on us and kids feel it too. Even running morning errands is good for everyone.

Try and keep working hours. I find that having a set start to my day is really motivating. The alarm still needs to go off at a certain time each day.

These two things make me feel pulled together, even if I'm totally not: 1. Getting dressed right away and 2: Making my bed.



Did I leave anything out that some of you pros want to school me on? I'm ALL ears. - Lesley



Thanks, Kathleen!

Garlic Potatoes

These potatoes....seriously so good

you must try, if you don't mind consuming a bit o' butter.

Countryliving.com

• 1 pound medium russet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch-thick half-moons
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, for potatoes
• Salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1 ounce pecorino cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup)

---

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large baking pan, toss potatoes and 4 tablespoons melted butter together. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spread potatoes in a single layer and roast until golden, about 35 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a small skillet over medium heat, melt remaining butter. Add garlic and cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Stir in parsley. Remove pan from heat and set aside.
3. Transfer potatoes to a serving dish. Pour garlic-butter mixture over potatoes and gently toss to mix. Sprinkle with cheese and serve hot.

Crafty Trade

My sister Jamie and I decided to do a trade of our services.  I offered her one of my dressers for her sweet daughters room, and she is going to help me paint my kitchen!  Jamie has her own blog where she shows off her many talents.  She creates some wonderful baby blankets, aprons and shoulder bags.  Go on over and pay her a visit.  She can make you just about anything you want!

 Here is the dresser for a very special little soon to be 7 year old.  I worked hard to make it something that would stand the test of time.  Because I can see her having this piece into her adult years.

 

I can’t wait to see the look on her beautiful, little face when we bring it to her house.

Link Parties
Sugar bee Crafts
Coastal Charm
I'm Topsy Turvy
The Silly Little Sparrow
Primitive and Proper 
Elizabeth and Co. 
The Sasse Life 
Miss Mustard Seed 
Fingerprints on the Fridge

Cold Air

**First, I have to say that I was not compensated in any way shape or form for this review.  It's just a great product and I had to share.

I don't know about you, but as soon as the weather starts to get cold so does my home.  I can feel the coldness pouring in from my old window frames.  I knew there had to be a better way to keep the cold out without having to wrap my windows with plastic, yuck!

So as I'm reading my This Old House mag, they recommended putting this stuff from DAP called Seal' n Peel Removable Weather Strip Caulk in the cracks of your windows.  I thought it made sense, so I tracked down the stuff at a hardware store near me.  The majority of the big retailers didn't carry it, shocking.  This website can help you find it in your area. 

 Here is the best shot of what it looks like on my window. 

The sealant works great!  I can really tell a difference in our bedroom where it's usually 5 degrees colder than the hallway.  And when the weather warms up again, you can just peel it off!  Genius.

B&A Friday

I’ve decided to start showcasing readers before and after pictures again on Fridays.  So if you would like one of your projects to be featured please email me your pics at betweenblueandyellow@yahoo.com.  It can be anything you want, as long as there is a before and a better looking after.

This one today comes from Jeannette at Strikes my Fancy, she did a lovely little re-do of an old trunk.

What color is more vibrant, calming, and fun all mixed into one? For me, it is a bright robin's egg blue. It can be a statement color, and accent color, or whatever you want it to be.

 

I painted the top, sides and then feet. I didn't saturate the wood with a layer of paint, cause I still wanted it to look a little old and rustic. The pictures, again, don't show it that well. I'm still learning this whole camera thing too...Then I had to decide on the detailing. As you can see, I opted for black. It is classic, timeless, and hot right now. Lets face it, I was pretty sure I was going to sell it on. I wanted something marketable.  Let me know what you think of this lovely little thing! I love hearing back from you. (Oh and yes, it has already sold by the way.) Props to my love for seeing the potential in this!

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

This is one of the best soup's I've ever had. 

No, It's not fat free and no it's not ready in 20 minutes.

But the time you put in it is totally worth the effort.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup sliced carrots
• 1/2 pound fresh sliced mushrooms
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups cooked wild rice (I used a medley)
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 3 tablespoons dry sherry (optional)
• 2 cups half-and-half

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion, celery and carrots and saute for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for 2 more minutes. Then add the flour and stir well. Gradually pour in the chicken broth, stirring constantly, until all has been added. Bring just to a boil, reduce heat to low and let simmer.
2. Next, add the rice, chicken, salt, curry powder, mustard powder, parsley, ground black pepper, almonds and sherry. Allow to heat through, then pour in the half-and-half. Let simmer for 1 to 2 hours. (Note: Do not boil or your roux will break.)  

Source: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-wild-rice-soup-i/detail.aspx

Link Parties
House of Grace