Artist Studio Makeover-One Man's "Oops" Paint is Another Man's Perfect Color

My husband bought the house, in the summer, before our wedding in November. "My studio" was a woodshop. The guy had tons of equiptment, and once it was all gone, it seemed like it could totally work... I began the "please, please, please" process that ended with my husband saying that I could have the space. It was electrified, sort of. The previous owner had an extension cord running out to the space.

During our intitial renovation phase, the hub had it REALLY electrified. Line buried, light switches and everything. We have done absolutely nothing with the space since then. All of my art supplies went in, and it was basically storage.

Starting my new bridal accessories business, it had become obvious with my stuff all over the house, that I need to get the space usable. So, over the weekend, we went to Lowes, got new light bulbs for the overhead flourescents (boo) and yes, we found OOOps paint in just the right shade!

In case you don't know what oops paint is, there is a section in the paint department that has paint, mixed that the customer decided they didn't want. I have found this is an AMAZING way to save money for DIY projects. Most of the time I have a 'general' color in mind, but nothing super specific, and I knew I wanted orange. We've done one room in the house an orange that is very different, more pumpkin/saffron color. This is Campbell's Tomato soup orange. Love it! I couldn't WAIT to get started today....

But there was so much cleaning! Years of being a wood shop made my shop vac work over time. I had to sweep walls! But at last, after the terrible job of painting the ceiling twice, I got to play with the color. And let me say, that even though the space is roughly finished (no baseboards, window unframed, rough patched drywall) the paint did remarkably well. It was Valspar's Ultimate Hide formula. I have painted many years, and never had a red or orange that looked this good in one coat!

Tomorrow, the fun parts of organizing, painting some bookshelves, painting some lamps, organizing...the floor is rough plywood, and my plan is to stain it and seal it so the grain comes through. If that doesn't work, maybe I'll get some peel-n- stick tile. I love resourcefulness. :)

Flushing Out the Old!!

Saying goodbye to carbs for a while!
Came across this 'fat flush' plan for 3 days and my dear hubby is willing to try it, too. Getting back to 'pre honeymoon, pre-holiday' weight in short order. The plan looks easy, and it is only three days. I figure we can do anything for 3 days.
The plan is to have one of a few breakfasts- 2 hard boiled eggs and half a grapefruit, or a two egg plus 1/2 c. veggie omelet, or 1 1/2 c. greek yogurt with 1 1/2 c. berries. Then the soup comes into play.
The Soup is
1 3/4 c. lean ground beef turkey or chopped chicken
1 tsp. olive oil
1 large onion peeled and chopped
1 large red, yellow or green pepper seeded and chopped
1 large yellow squash chopped
4 cloves chopped garlic
1 bottle reduced sodium tomato or veggie cocktail juice (46 oz)
1 can pinto, garbanzo or black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 Tbs. lime juice
1 Tbs ground cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 c. each fresh cilantro and parsley
1/2c. grated daikon (japanese radish)
1 small peeled and chopped eggplant
1 tsp turmeric
*the basic soup is everything except the last three ingredients. The last three ingredients you are to add for carb cravings/GI distress and bloat, headaches and colds. This is all from for Women First magazine, but the original is the fatflush diet.
We will see. Starting tomorrow. I will post pics and results.

New Year- New Life

wow! I can't believe it has been so long. I remember my last post... how excited I was to share it with a certain friend of mine who was in Afghanistan at the time. That thought ripped through me until it was dissected in an intelligible way. And I couldn't wait to share it. Once he heard it, he encouraged me to write it. That friend is now my husband!
I live in a different city, with a fantastic husband that I've known trusted and loved as a friend for 10 years. I have a studio, and finally the freedom to do my 'side business' full time. So that is what I am going to do.
The shop is back up- designs by Gina- selling the stuff I've sold previously.. but a new shop is in the wings that will be all things bridal. It is called "The Peacock Princess" which is a nod to my maiden name which means peacock in Italian. It seems that doing creative things for my wedding unlocked a whole new avenue of things I want to do to make the bridal experience a little easier- but still handmade! When I saw what was out there- and how expensive it was, I knew that it didn't have to be that way. It will be interesting to so how things evolve.
I am adjusting to the new normal- and I'm looking forward to all the wonderful things 2012 will bring! I hope you are too!