fifty cent masterpiece

So do you like how I make a big announcement ("I'm back!!") and then promptly disappear for a couple of weeks? I just like to keep ya guessin'! On your toes! Well, I have been sooo busy, both with Nesting Instincts clients (yay!!) and with the rest of my real life. I've had so much fun with my clients, handing out opinions left and right (one thing I'm never short on)...but most of them are in the midst of larger, long-term redesigns as opposed to one-day jobs where I can take pictures. Because I know how much you all like a good before-and-after story. I do too! But unfortunately, those haven't been the kind of jobs I've worked on recently, so we will just all have to be patient while my clients do the hard work implementing some of my suggestions.  

But I have made it to a few garage sales recently. For those of us that live in Oregon, there is a definite (though unspoken) garage-sale season which will officially kick off after Memorial Day weekend. But, there have been several brave souls scattered about the city which have taken their fate (or at least the weather) into their own hands and offered their junk...I mean treasures...up for sale. I've nabbed a few of them recently.

At the top of this post is a cute little original oil painting, very nicely done I think, which I scored for...I'm almost embarrassed to tell you this...$.50. In case you get the decimal point mixed up, that's fifty CENTS.

Then, the chandelier in the box...Shiny Boring Builder's Special from 1989. Let there be no doubt, this is a BEFORE picture. I haven't had time yet to make it into an AFTER but I'm hoping I can soon. I can't decide whether to make this a "safe" re-do with white paint and crystals, or a "funky" re-do with...well, I won't tell you with what, but trust me...it would be funky. IF I could pull it off. Haven't decided yet...but it's for my dining room. Confession: there's still a gaping hole in the ceiling where the fan used to be before my big dining room makeover a couple of years ago.

Mostly, recently, I've been spending time with this little hearthrob:

and these two cuties:

but I did get to see her recently:

...and she was just as gorgeous and funny in person as she is in her cookbook and on her blog. The line was too long for me to wait for her to sign my book, so I just lurked for a while and shot this photo on the way to the restroom...just to prove that I was in the same room as the Pioneer Woman! (I know, my photojournalistic skills are...stunning.)

So there you have it, friends! I'm having fun, designing for friends and living life...but man, it's a busy time. Three kids, five and under...need I say more? But I'm not complaining. I feel blessed. Now if I could just get my own house in order! Ah well. That's what tomorrow's for. :-)