I stopped at the local thrift store the other day and found this wrought iron candle centerpiece. Cost=$2.00

It came with plenty of dust, a few rusty spots and some very old looking silk flowers. Seems pretty easy to get this thing looking like new. I'm thinking some paint and new silk flowers will do it.

Step 1-take a "before" picture. Well I forgot to.......ugh, I hate when I do that.

Step 2-clean it and then spray with Rustoleum. I picked a black metallic shade and it came out great.

Step 3-throw out the old flowers but then decided to keep the Styrofoam holder for my new flowers.

Step 4-cut and arrange the flowers so they look good. Ok.....now a visual.

Here is the base of the centerpiece. It has the original Styrofoam in the center, so I've come along and added some green and brown leafy stuff. Using wire cutters I trimmed all the greenery down so it sits low in the centerpiece.

Below, I'm just adding some simple flowers as a point of interest. I used floral picks. This allows you to cut the flower short and stick it into the center. Technically you really should wrap the stick with floral tape, but in this case you're not going to see it.

Below is the arrangement completed. I thought it came out very pretty considering is cost 2 bucks and only a few more for the flowers. The candles were the most expensive part. Try to ignore the fact that the candles are still wrapped in cellophane.

It actually came out pretty impressive in size so I think it may be destined to reside in the dining room, although my original intent was for the screened in porch.

Someone asked me the other day where I get some of my ideas from. It just takes imagination and vision. I look at something that may be considered old, damaged or used and I envision what it will look like after it's repaired, repainted or revitalized. With this project it was just a matter of a good cleaning, a new paint job and fresh silk. Now maybe I'll go and straighten out the candles!!!!

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The Dog Is King

Our dog, Elway (named after the Denver Bronco's old quarterback) has been with us for 13 years. He is the King! Shouldn't the king have a great dog bed? Don't ya think? The other day I walked past his bed, looked down and realized he needed a new one. How could I let the king sleep in such a pathetic crib and plus, it doesn't even match "my" bedroom. Ugh.........

Off to the fabric store I go, realizing I have an large, old pillow at home I can take apart and reuse the stuffing. That will save me some money on this project.

I picked this fabric because it's cute and feels unbelievably soft. If it's good enough for me, I'm sure the dog will love it.

This is pretty easy. Cut out a large (he's a big dog) square, sew it up with the right sides together, leave an opening for stuffing, pull the fabric back to the right side and stuff it up.

I decided at the end to tie ribbon around the corners. Do ya think Elway will notice?

Lets see if he like it?

Yeah, he likes it. I have some extra fabric so I'm going to make him a matching pillow. Believe it or not, he likes pillows.

I priced out some large dog pillows recently and they can be pretty expensive. I found some last week that cost over $40.00. I paid $8.00 for the fabric and nothing for the stuffing. A good deal, a good bed, a happy dog and it now matches my room (a little).

Christy

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