Sometimes You Gotta Let Fate Design A Room

Those of you who read frequently know the girls room has been a quandary for me for a long time. I've been all over the place on ideas, have taken back those shiny comforters for money reasons, and been back to the drawing board so many times. I had a breakthrough one day when cleaning my room and picking up an old 2006 Home Companion magazine. I have had it forever in my stack because I use to have a subscription. I LOVED the wall color. Not for a dinning room as it is shown here, but for the girls room.

So, I went to Home Depot and tried to find something close. The picture above showed me some elements that would make it work. The mantle and table are white, the chairs brass so that gave me the idea of how good it would work with their old French Provincial furniture. I found a color and got my tester quart. I went home and painted a by 2 foot square on the wall in their room. I felt it was too dark, and too purple. Rick like it though. So, I decided to just dig in. I went back for two gallons and painted the room from after I dropped them off at school, till 10 pm at night. They camped out in the living room. After I did the first wall I paniced big time. It was bold, and dark. I knew the girls got a lot of light in their room though so I pressed on in faith.

Once the room was done, we loved it. It was dark, but it was very royal and beautiful. We brought in the furniture and just went "wow!". We had found a wonderful combination.

From there I figured to go with aqua and yellow floral I had found in a beautiful vintage sheet. The plan was to make a duvet and shams and such. The girls room had been lavender and white so although the curtains were still that, I was determined not to do any lavender in the room.

Until this past Thursday. I was at the Goodwill dig with Rick (oh, my goodness, we did so good. We got four boxes for 30 dollars which included: 4 2' square Lego panels which cost 30 bucks almost each new, Scatagories complete, Payday complete, Blues Clues complete, about 8 pairs of jeans for the kids, some funky shirts for funky Lilo, A globe basketball for Superkid, An Army jacket for him to play dress up but that is actually his size, books for Princess, Tupperware, a hanging lamp for my friend who was looking for one, a Nerf gun, a transformer, a vintage suitcase which I use for decorative storage, and more) and going through the fabric and bedding, I came across this beautiful quilt and sham. They were absolutely gorgeous but guess what color they were? Lavender and white. Actually, they are Lilacs. Which is cool, it's one of my favorite flowers but I stood there and went "no, I don't want more lavender!". See, when I change things, I really change them. It's not like me to keep any part of the color scheme the same. Still, this was so pretty, and such a good quality quilt that I decided to grab it and if I hated it I could sell it or give it away. I happened to find two lavender gingham pillowcases that matched perfectly too.

(the wall looks a tad darker in the picture) (don't ya love Lilo's black and white Converse at the foot of the bed! They were given to us fro her brother but she snagged them first. Such an oxymoron to the bedding:)

I came home and washed it with hot water and lots of soap. I mended the two frays in it. I made the bed and stepped back and went "wow, okay, I give in."

And you could not beat the price which was next to nothing. Oh, and those window treatments that I was thinking I would just use till I could make something else, well, they worked perfectly.

Hey, one huge project I don't need to do anymore!

(I'll show the rest of the room when we get it done.)

Fine Tuning My "Hollywood-ness"

As I said, that test was very right on. There was however one question that I really battled between which one to answer (they were both very applicable to me), and there were some aspects of that personality (Bette) that are not mine. Erica asked me why Betty Davis bugs me. Well, I think it's her grumpiness. You don't see her smile much or get all joyful about things. That's not like me. I also was always bugged by the sound of her voice. Petty I know.
SO, here's the kicker. I did the test again with that one question being different and it was very accurate too but hit more of my bouncy side. So, I concluded I'm a mix of the two ladies. Like I said though, the kicker was that it's the one other lady in Hollywood who is a little quirky in my mind! It's probably the outgoing side of me that enjoys calm and graceful ladies like Olivia de Havilland (do you know she is till alive!)and Donna Reed.

Anyway...my results when answering that one question differently were:

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are a Katharine!

You are a Katharine -- "I am happy and open to new things"

Katharines are energetic, lively, and optimistic. They want to contribute to the world.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Give me companionship, affection, and freedom.


• * Engage with me in stimulating conversation and laughter.


• * Appreciate my grand visions and listen to my stories.


• * Don't try to change my style. Accept me the way I am.


• * Be responsible for youself. I dislike clingy or needy people.


• * Don't tell me what to do.

What I Like About Being a Katharine

• * being optimistic and not letting life's troubles get me down


• * being spontaneous and free-spirited


• * being outspoken and outrageous. It's part of the fun.


• * being generous and trying to make the world a better place


• * having the guts to take risks and to try exciting adventures


• * having such varied interests and abilities

What's Hard About Being a Katharine

• * not having enough time to do all the things I want


• * not completing things I start


• * not being able to profit from the benefits that come from specializing; not making a commitment to a career


• * having a tendency to be ungrounded; getting lost in plans or fantasies


• * feeling confined when I'm in a one-to-one relationship

Katharines as Children Often

• * are action oriented and adventuresome


• * drum up excitement


• * prefer being with other children to being alone


• * finesse their way around adults


• * dream of the freedom they'll have when they grow up

Katharines as Parents

• * are often enthusiastic and generous


• * want their children to be exposed to many adventures in life


• * may be too busy with their own activities to be attentive

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy

This was also very accurate.

If You Knew Me, You Would Understand

(first I just have to say about the quiz below...it's very accurate, but.. I don't get physical when I'm mad, and I don't make a habit of cursing! Also, I hope I have some more tender qualities than just those mentioned. I still am wreathing that I'm Betty Davis, she is the one Hollywood woman I would never admire. Humph.)

So, if you knew me, you would know why I get tickled about these things.

I found a vintage Little People for Superkid at the Goodwill Outlet (I call it "the dig" because you dig for things literally). I was so excited just to find the frame. It's not as old as the one Rick and I had growing up which had the chalkboard, but it had a retractable playground that is way cool and it had parts too! That is not usually the case at the dig. So, today I cleaned it up with an old toothbrush and some soft scrub w/ bleach. It is so cute now!

We have a crate of a bunch of vintage little people all ready that he can add to this to have more kids and so on.
The really fun thing about this and a reason I think it was a fun thought of God's that I found it, is that school itself is so new to him this year. He is now going to understand the play and be able to get more out of it. So fun!
Just had to share my other little thrill. I use to have a tradition where I would wrap garland and beads on our dinning room light at Christmas to make a type of holiday chandelier. This year I did not want to do that because I don't want to mess with my new special one .

So, I had all this white garland and had some fun with it. I wrapped it around my entry way lamps instead. It gave the same effect as it did in the dinning room, a rather snowy feel to we deprived California types. A cheap thrill.

When lit they are warm and cozy. The one on the right is shown before I turned the shade around so the overlap is showing of the garland. You want to put that in the back normally. It's very easy to do. You just start a loop and tuck it, wrap around to the top and tuck that. No glue or anything.

Lastly, here are some pics form Thanksgiving day before we left for my mom's. We forgot to take the camera to moms:*.

Superkid cuddling with Shasta. If you are on my facebook, you all ready know this cat hates me. She loves Superkid but she is meaning to give me those evil eyes, trust me. Her brother loves me, so it's not me, right? As I said on facebook, I'm sure she is a dominatrix. She likes him because she knows he is the least in charge in the house. She hates me because I boss her when to get off or down all the time.

Rick watching the parade and playing big legos with Superkid.

Lilo happy in a chair with a bucket of crayons and a notebook.

Princess helping me peel apples. She was so cute in her apron.

Superkid building Diego's treehouse with daddy's help.

May Not Like It, But It's True

Daja did this at her blog...i had to try. I feel like I'm reading myself. Funny thing is, Betty Davis annoys the tar out of me. Who knew it was because we were so alike. The test was so right on, it's a little scarry.

I wish I was someone more graceful....

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are a Bette!

You are a Bette -- "I must be strong"

Bettes are direct, self-reliant, self-confident, and protective.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Stand up for yourself... and me.


• * Be confident, strong, and direct.


• * Don't gossip about me or betray my trust.


• * Be vulnerable and share your feelings. See and acknowledge my tender, vulnerable side.


• * Give me space to be alone.


• * Acknowledge the contributions I make, but don't flatter me.


• * I often speak in an assertive way. Don't automatically assume it's a personal attack.


• * When I scream, curse, and stomp around, try to remember that's just the way I am.

What I Like About Being a Bette

• * being independent and self-reliant


• * being able to take charge and meet challenges head on


• * being courageous, straightforward, and honest


• * getting all the enjoyment I can out of life


• * supporting, empowering, and protecting those close to me


• * upholding just causes

What's Hard About Being a Bette

• * overwhelming people with my bluntness; scaring them away when I don't intend to


• * being restless and impatient with others' incompetence


• * sticking my neck out for people and receiving no appreciation for it


• * never forgetting injuries or injustices


• * putting too much pressure on myself


• * getting high blood pressure when people don't obey the rules or when things don't go right

Bettes as Children Often

• * are independent; have an inner strength and a fighting spirit


• * are sometimes loners


• * seize control so they won't be controlled


• * figure out others' weaknesses


• * attack verbally or physically when provoked


• * take charge in the family because they perceive themselves as the strongest, or grow up in difficult or abusive surroundings

Bettes as Parents

• * are often loyal, caring, involved, and devoted


• * are sometimes overprotective


• * can be demanding, controlling, and rigid

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy

A Few Fresh Ideas

I three more ideas for ya:

1. Saw a fleece quilt kit for girls at Michael's. You could cut the little squares yourself for such a fraction of the cost (the kit made a throw size and was 20 dollars) and pick colors your kid likes.

2. The Dollar Tree has tiny wooden treasure boxes and acrylic primary and pastel paint. You can make a kit for your kid with some of these so they can decorate them for friends.

3. You can have them decorate some for family and print verses on cardstock to fit in the treasure box. Pick a few themes (security, love, peace, forgiveness etc.) and color code them with a hole punch and ribbon for that theme. Then if they need a verse for reassurance, they pick that color. Create a tiny brass hook in the top of the box so the box can be set on it's side (you could do vertical or horizontal and even have the kids decorate the top of the lid like a picture frame) and hook the one they needed that day to the front to display on their dresser, counter or desk. I came up with this one this morning and will use it for someone special I know.:)

4. Michael's has these neat magnets in the dollar bin. They are shapes of all kinds (animals, butterflies etc). They are black but you have a scratcher to design a beautiful image. The magnet ones (their are plain shapes and stickers too) are good because the kids can create them and give them as a gift.

Maybe more later...who knows. My brain's been reelin'.