new blog header

it was certainly time for a new header. i had fun making this one. i hope you like it.

please judge this book by its cover

i've seen these lovelies a few places around the interwebs. i feel compelled to share a new skin for my favorite novel...the great gatsby. yes, favorite. ever!


the classic cover is well, classic, but the new cover redesigned by coralie-bickford smith is so elegant. beautifully updated, very true to the art deco period. i think my second favorite is the cover for this side of paradise, which is i think my second-favorite fitzgerald novel. i like chevrons.

she's done some fun covers for other classics, too. check out her work.

junk bonanza

this one is for you, erin!

on thursday, maggie and i ventured into the junk bonanza at canterbury park. it was a good time. i'm not sure either of use quite knew what to expect, but we each walked away with a few treasures.

we saw gaggles of springs, keys, knobs, and antlers, and assorted letters and numbers rescued from various sources.

 

maggie attempted to spell her last name but we couldn't find an s! of course there was jewelry and other knicknacks for the home. i almost bought the teal strand of beads, but maggie promptly reminded me i already own one almost exactly like it. so helpful!

i was tempted by these canisters. but they were plastic and almost $40. too rich for my blood.

maggie liked this ottoman. so lovely.

and this "flower" was made from an old softball!

maggie and i both loved these art pieces with the names of places around the twin cities.

but i think our favorites were these vintage british route signs. they were used as wall art, on pillows, and as fabric for upholstery. so cool. you can check them out here.

maggie bought some gifts (a clock and an old video camera) and i bought some schoolhouse flashcards to frame (abcs, vocab words, etc.). i'll post pics of them someday, when i get around to framing them, but don't hold you breath. :)

all in all, a good day!

fabric source and thomas paul

thanks everyone for the encouragement about the headboard! again, let me just reiterate that i pretty much just copied instructions, with some problem solving involved (differences in fabric widths, adapting to use wood we already had, finding cheap foam, etc. all these things were like tests for my brain.). but again, it wasn't my idea (although someday maybe i'll start posting my own instructions. goals!). 

a few people asked me where i bought the fabric. well, let me tell ya! i've had great luck with calico corners. (added bonus: their fabric is 15% off until the 25th.) i love that you can shop by color. it's where i got the fabric for this roman shade i made for our bathroom:

i'm totally predictable when it comes to patterns. i like patterns that have two colors only. one of those colors is usually white.

here's the fabric we ordered for the headboard project. it's called stockholm in cherry, and was 20% off when i bought it. it comes in other colors, too. the pattern repeat is so large—i feel like it was made for this project. calico didn't have this color in the store, but i ordered it anyway because it is returnable. when it came, i was a little disappointed with the background color—it is a little yellowy for my taste—but ben liked it. he likes red. plus, i'm way too picky about white. it's time to branch out (well, at least to off-white, wink wink). now, in hindsight, i think it is just great.

these others were in the running, but were vetoed (by both me and ben) in favor of the red. the colors for the bedroom are red, aqua, gray, and white—we already have a few aqua textiles and accessories, so they can stay.

i noticed a theme. all these fabrics are by thomas paul through duralee. when i was browsing duralee's site, i really liked this fabric, but hadn't seen it at calico:

when i was buying batting at mill end, what do you know—i found 2.5 yards of it in the remnant pile for like $3.75 a yard. i saw it online for about $50 a yard, too, so i was pretty excited. can't wait to use it! beki said it tells a story . . .

headboard project: the final product!

here it is. i'm really pleased with the way it turned out. when ben saw it in place, he said, "it feels like we have a real room." true true.

okay, so after i wrapped and stapled the batting (thursday) all that was left to do was wrap the fabric. i tackled that on saturday, and believe me, it was the step i labored over the most. the pattern is such a large scale that i wanted to make sure that it was at least somewhat centered.

i ordered extra fabric so i'd have room to slide it to the side to find the best spot. once i did, i just cut it out with a few inches to spare and wrapped and stapled. by the end, i had a pretty nasty blister on my thumb from the staple gun, but what's a project without a few battle scars?

the corners right below the center curve were really difficult, but the rest was pretty simple. the pattern is so fun and cheerful. we're happy.

next up: night tables.