Chalkboard doors and Artful Blogging....

We have a sub-level in our house where the kids and all of their mountains of toys hang out. While it's not the prettiest of rooms; it is certainly the most used, and it has  a bit of a cozy feel. Sorry about the dark pictures; it's a light-challenged area.

We re-did the basement.. oh... about 10 years ago and just never got around to staining the pocket doors. I thought for my birthday get together (And thank you all for all of the sweet birthday messages!) I would finally do something about them. There is nothing like doing what I like to call UPP's (unnecessary party projects.) to put the pressure on having people over!

 So I decided since it had been so long and they were pretty beat up any way, chalk board paint was the way to go.

I  really like how it looks, and the kids LOVE it.

 Almost too much.

 I learned to let the kids only draw on the one over the tile where the chalk dust can easily be cleaned up and not over the carpeted area. It was like a crime-scene dusting after the first day.

 

can you guess what room this is:) ?

I was also excited to get this in the mail the other day...

 and even more exciting to open it up to this!!!!

 My own article in this months Artful Blogging magazine! Thank you Artful Blogging for including me!

 There it is.. there's my name!!! Thank you to those of you who have already e-mailed me about it for your kind words.

I am gearing up for Kane County this weekend and then the Nada Farm sale a few weeks after that.  I think June is going to be the month to put my feet up!

Jen

Show us Friday linky party....Pop of color!

The thing I love about neutral walls is that  a pop of color really makes  a big contrast and makes a statement, like in my newly done bathroom. And for me, it's nice because I am lazy and my changing the accessories, I can change the entire look.
I love how the print and the flowers really stand out with the white and grey walls.

How do you use your color? Do you go with neutral walls and color for contrast or are you more traditional and like to use pattern and texture?
Show us how you use color in your home!

Linky rules:

Just make sure your post links directly back to this post and that you link directly to your post so every one can find it!

Jen
*Next weeks theme: Dress form decor*

Bacon candy...

Yep, you heard me.

Bacon candy.

Sounds gross right? 

Nope. It's the most awesome appetizer EVER. It's one of those times when you eat one and then you have to have just one more, and then just one more.

When I serve them, they fly off the plate with in minutes.

Imagine smoky,sweet,salty,chewy,warm...and bacony!!!!

Let's be honest and just call it what it is... bacon crack.

I found this recipe through a friend about 5 or 6 years ago. The Farm Chicks have  a similar recipe and  I think in the disco era, these were called Rumaki.

And they are gluten free!

It's easy, but a little step intensive, but oh so good... so you have to make a lot.

You'll need:

3 slabs of smoked/maple bacon each cut in half down the middle

1.5 cups of brown sugar

1 small jicima

about12-15 medjool dates

tooth picks

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Get one of these ugly guys; a Jicima and cut into matchstick size pieces.Don't use the peel. You can also use Water Chestnuts if you can't find Jicima.

These little,brown wrinkly guys are Medjool dates.

There's a pit inside that you throw out. The rest is edible and it's sticky and sweet.

chop it into a pulp.

 Take your bacon that you've cut in half and toss in brown sugar.

Lay on aluminum foil  and put in your hot oven.

 This next part is really important. You have to keep a close eye on them. If you let them cook too long; you can't roll them, only cook them half way. 

Also, you are cooking hot grease and sugar be super careful: One, not to forget and start your house on fire, and two, they can cause bad,bad burns. One of the first times I made it I got some on my hand. Let me tell you, there is nothing like melted sugar to make hot grease stick to your hand.

 Carefully remove them with tongs from the foil when they have cooled a bit  and put on a ceramic plate to let them cool the rest of the way.

 Once they are totally cool, roll the bacon pieces with a piece of Jicima and a small dab of dates (about the size of  a small marble.) and roll the bacon and put a tooth pick in it to hold it together.

Sprinkle a little more brown sugar on top and put them back in the oven until they are  a nice deep brown, watching so they don't burn. At this stage they go from brown to burnt really fast.

Remove carefully from the pan and let cool all of the way before serving.

Makes about 72 ending on how many pieces are in your slab of bacon.

Enjoy your bacon crack, er, I mean candy! ;)

Jen

a small celebration.....

I had  a little celebration at my house this weekend with a few friends to celebrate my 40th birthday. Thank goodness for my friend Tracey, if she hadn't snapped a few pictures for me with my camera, I wouldn't have any! Such a bad blogger!

 It was very nice and small and casual, just what I wanted.

 It also dropped into the 40's that night so I was calling it the "Polar Party."

 Just some goodies set out on the deck. My little lemon tree in the pot was shivering  a little.

 A few cocktails.

 a cozy, warm fire, 'cause we certainly needed it.

 Anne Marie brought some salted caramel chocolate cupcakes which were amazing, I ate the last one for breakfast this morning. :)I hope she is going to be selling these at the Nada Farm sale .

They are incredible!

 I used my Aunt's vintage pickle jars for  a night time glow. I left them dirty, I thought they looked so pretty that way.

It was a nice way to bring in a new decade. :)

Jen

Show us Friday....

How about an impromptu linky party?

I found some fantastic things while scrolling through my reader.  My very giving children gave me  a cold and an earache, so I am lying low a bit this evening; but I am enjoying looking through everyone's projects and I thought you might like them too...

I would  love to see what you've done this week! Link up with  your DIY, projects, inspired ideas, decorating,and craftiness!

 

Love these stool at Saavy southern style.. I must get some!

This super cute idea for doilies under glass at Amy Scott Interior Designs.

I spy with my little eye... a very familiar hook... but Cottage Nest is so clever with how she used it with some other cute hooks!

This really awesomely brilliant industrial canvas idea from the Real Housewives of Bucks County

These super cute book page flowers by Thistlewood Farm (You should see the rest of her house!).

What have you done this week to show us?

Just make sure you amend your post to link back here to this party and link directly to your post.

Have you heard a whisper?

In our bible study group, we've been reading Bill Hybels  The Power of a Whisper.

I am one of those people who a few years ago would never have thought about going to church every week. I would have much rather visited the church of the holy bed pillow. My faith was there, but it was  a bit well, waffle-y.  We might have gone to church on Easter and Christmas and while I  could say the Apostle's Creed by rote(don't ask me what it meant.).  And I never would have gone to a weekly bible study. And I have to be honest, I thought Christians were a bit... Christian-y.

My husband and I have both had a huge shift in the last two years and have really found huge blessings in a deeper faith. I love that my kids LOVE their bible classes and are excited to go (Considering my parents had to drag us into ours as kids.). We love our church and are excited to go every week ourselves. There is something about knowing that God is on your side that makes those hard times a bit less.. hard.

In the past, if something happened that seemed a bit out of place or oddly helpful, instead of divinity, I would have chalked it up to "Wow, what a weird coincidence! What are the chances???"

 I would never have thought it was a divine whisper...

Like the time I was going to have my gallbladder out. I just wasn't feeling good about the surgeon.I prayed on it, asking for some kind of answer.... two days before my surgery I ran into the wife of an old friend I hadn't seen in over 10 years. She asked what was going on and our conversation came around to my surgery. When she asked me who was doing it and I told her, she immediately told me I shouldn't use him and all of the problems she had had with him and afterwards.. for the same surgery.

I immediately cancelled and found another doctor, and everything went fine.

Odd? What are the chances?

Or the time I was doing a yard sale at my mom's house. The neighbor came over and told me about her daughter being abused by her husband and how they didn't have any money for the legal issues and her daughter was so depressed she had  a hard time functioning, so they were going to try to sell some of her grandson's baby clothes in the sale for extra money.

I felt bad I couldn't help.

A few hours later, a young woman came through with a little boy. We were haggling prices and she wanted  a dish set I had. We settled on a price and she went out to her car to get her last few dimes.

I knew she was out of money, but a sudden thought came to my head. I said to her "The  lady next door has some clothing about your son's size, I don't know if you would be interested?"

She ended up staying next door for over two hours.

It turned out she was a battered wife who had left her husband. She had lived in a shelter for a while and put herself through school to be a legal aide and she now worked with abused women. 

She offered to take the daughter on Monday for the proper paperwork and give her free legal services.

Coincidence?

I think not.

I find with each little whisper, my faith grows stronger. It seems to happen more and more as I start to pay attention, turning off the TV, shutting out the noise of every day and just listening. Paying attention to those gut feelings and following through with the "I should's. And then looking back at those times when I wish I had listened because those "I should's" became "I should have's".

The power of a whisper amazes me.

Jen

Coming up.....and fast...

I can't believe that it's only a few weeks until the Kane County Flea Market (May 5 -6 Poultry barn). I have to be honest, it's my first time selling somewhere so big, so I am freaking out a just a little bit. A year ago, I never would have tried something like this, but now I am just jumping right in.

 The Nada Farm Sale is just a few weeks later!

 For those of you that have been, it's on Anne Marie's farm and was covered by Midwest Living last year and was just mentioned in Flea Market Style!

 I'll be bringing items from my spring line, handmade and vintage items.

 This was my space at the last sale, this time I am directly across from when you come in so you'll see me right away. :)

It's all coming up so fast and I have those butterflies fluttering around in the pit of my stomach. 

If you want to read about past Nada sales you can see these posts here:

May 2010

October 2010

May 

October

Jen

Painted table and dip dye legs...

I was able to get the table painted this weekend! I did go with Linen White; on almost the entire thing... I thought I would have a little fun and do a "dip-dye" treatment on the legs with a dusky grey blue that I mixed from some paint left-overs.

I thought it would be interesting in a subtle way and modernize the vintage table a bit.

 I just painted the very bottom of the legs. I would have taped the lines off, but I was forced to free-hand when I found my kids had been robbing the blue painter's tape and there was none left. 

I love the contrast.

 I also recovered the bench seat in this super-fun fabric I found at Jo-Ann's.

I thought a bit bold color was perfect for spring and I love the pattern.

 And I love how all of those colors go with something in my house... except the red macaroni necklace from Valentine's day I just noticed in all of the pictures. Did you spot it?  :)

Jen

linking to Thrifty Decor Chick show us your dining areas

New to me table...

I've been looking for a vintage table with pedestal legs for our eat in nook area.  The table we have there has been fine except every time I scoot out from the bench I whack my knees on one of the legs.

Look at this beauty I picked up on craigslist!

She's a vintage Duncan Phyfe; and except for the top being really trashed, super -sturdy and in great shape.

but it's nothing that a few coats of paint can't fix. Not a bad find for $30!

 the leaves even drop down for space saving.

 I just adore the legs.

 I am hoping to have some great weekend weather to pull out the paint and brushes. I think a bit of Linen White will work magic, or maybe I should mix it up with a color?

Jen