Pinecone Decor

Last winter I picked up a bunch of pinecones with the intent to spray paint them and use them for holiday decor. I got them home and then they sat in a closet.

So today was the day! I finally took the spray paint to them and even sprinkled some with glitter. Some I painted gold and others are white. Now to decide where to put them.

They'll also be in my etsy shop if you want some of your own!

gnome decor

Looking for quick holiday decorations easy to gift or to display yourself? Check out these little guys easy to assemble and to store or decorate your own!

a holiday custom (order)

I bought glass balls last year and decorated them and posted them on etsy... a few of them sold, a few of them are listed again.

Growing up each ornament on our tree was a memory and every year it was so exciting to unpack all these treasures.

Sunday I received an inquiry about one of my ornaments - a glass ball with an origami crane hanging in it. I was excited at the thought of being part of someone's holiday tradition and holiday memories. The end result was that I did a custom order of 18 ornaments with red cranes and got them in the mail today - because they are going to be adorning a Christmas tree for a party December 1st. Ending delicate glass ornaments makes me a bit nervous but I'm thrilled to get to be part of a holiday celebration in some small way!

Gnome for your holiday home

A few weeks ago I was inspired with this design idea, little holiday gnomes, made from paper so they could be easily mailed and stored (especially useful for people in apartments without much storage space) and easy to use for a little festive holiday decor in your house or at your office...

I was going to do everything by hand but today decided to experiment a bit with some computer help although I still drew the face on myself. 

So be on the look out for these little guys to show up probably in a set of 3 with a greeting card. You can keep them for yourself or send along the holiday cheer to someone else. 

Thoughts or suggestions? Drop me a line or "like" SoleLines on facebook to get updates about when they hit the etsy shop! 

Fall foods

I love brussels sprouts cooked in a little bacon and maple syrup but how healthy could that be if that's the only way I cooked them and although I find it hard to believe I may get tired of just one preparation. 

Today I sauteed 

- bacon (just a little, I didn't use bacon when I cooked these last week)

- an onion

- acorn squash cut into small pieces

- brussels sprouts, cut into 1/8ths

- rasins

- walnuts

- variety of seasoning - salt, pepper, cinnamon, french thyme, tarragon, paprika

I had some locally made sweet potato gnocchi  so I cooked that also and then tossed everything together. 

Good find

The universe listens. After thinking and writing about refurbishing furniture finds I found this chair! It was out with the trash and just needs re-caning. I walked past it on my way out for the evening and thought, I could figure out how to fix that chair... when it was still there on my way home I stopped to pick it up and discovered that on top of it was a bag that already held all the things need to fix the chair! 

Looks like I have my next project all lined up!  

Cupboard in distress

In my past job I met a woman who did art therapy mostly with people. She said one of favorite things to be able to do was working with people to refurnish furniture. Living in the city there's almost always something out on the curb that could use a little fix and a new home. We came across this cupboard in a store it was waiting to be refinished but we were able to get a bargain to refinish it ourselves, so along with the painting last week I started this project too. 

first I removed some molding that was around the top

then I used 100 grit sandpaper to sand it down

and primed it with an oil based primer 

I wanted to blend the colors with the new kitchen colors so I did an accent with the red from the walls

I also wanted an old and distressed look so after doing some research incorporated some tips including alternating between big heavy paint strokes and going back over the paint with just water on the brush

after I painted all the doors 

I took a small cheese knife and distressed them by gently removing some of the paint

and on the top doors I used a chalkboard paint.

Door hardware is expensive everywhere but you can get great funky designs for about 75% off in the sale section at Anthropologie so our new knobs came from there. 

Paint it up

With the days getting shorter the dark wallpaper in the dining room makes the days seem even darker so we decided it was time to do some more painting. 

good bye wallpaper

I was torn between painting one accent wall or using the chair rail as the divide for painting so I started by priming above the chair rail to get a sense of a light dark contrast in the space and ultimately decided that's what I was going to do

to add a little interest I taped off rectangles under the windows in the room and painted right over the tape with the red paint

Since I had paint left over I decided I'd paint the kitchen too! In the kitchen I painted one red wall and the other walls the 'lighthouse' color from the dining room. 

three pots one plate

With the season change I notice that my body wants different foods. I've also been hearing that it's a good time of year to eat root vegetables to stay grounded and to eat cooked foods. 

I've been craving brussels sprouts too so I started with some garlic in oil then added sweet potato that I cut up small so it would cook quickly, then I quartered and threw in the brussels sprouts  and added a little salt, cinnamon and turmeric. I also threw in a few walnuts. 

In another pot I heated up some beans

And since I'd heard I should by eating more cooked and less raw during the seasonal transition I lightly sauteed some kale with garlic in a little oil and then squeezed a little lemon on top. 

gnome for the holidays

Hello, November! You crept in quietly.
That means the holidays will be sneaking up next. My little gnome friend reminded me that he already looks festive for the holidays so keep an eye out for some more gnomes showing up in my etsy shop soon!