Picante Corn Casserole

First recipe, still looking for the other!  This recipe came from my husband's grandmother.  I wasnt a big Mexican food fan when we first got married so I skipped trying it for a few years.  What a mistake it is super yummy!! 

1 stick of margarine
8 ounces of cream cheese (how can you go wrong, right?)
15-ounce can Mexicorn (green and peppers mixed in with the corn)
3 T chopped onion (I omit, dont care for onions that much)
2 T Picante or salsa
salt to taste

1.  Melt margarine over low heat, add cream cheese, stir until melted.
2.  Combine remaining ingredients and add to cream cheese mixture.
3.  Bake uncovered at 350° for 35 minutes in 2 quart casserole.

TIPS:  Can be made ahead of time and refrigerated.  Triple recipe for 9 x 13 dish, which I do because it always goes fast.  Also can top with buttered crushed cornflakes.

Christmas Garland

Here is a great link from one of the blogging gurus, The Nesting Place.  She demonstrates building a full, luxurious Christmas garland.  I gave it a go and am happy to say I am pretty thrilled with how it turned out (I know before Thanksgiving, but I was so excited to try it!!)   Of course post for another day.  I just wanted to share this just in case some of you had missed it.   Hopefully later today I will post 2 great side dishes for Turkey Day.  I was asked to bring a corn dish, well I have 2 favs and will be bringing those.  As soon as I find both recipes I will post later today.

Fleur de Chair

I am a fleur de lis fan.  Out on one of my thrifty hunts, I came across this chair with the fleur de lis on it.  It didnt have a price on it, I just knew 25 bucks probably and would have to pass it up.  I got brave and asked what he wanted for it and to my surprise, 5 buckaroonies!!  Needless to say MINE. 

My pics are horrible, I have tried flash/no flash, but it has been dreary weather which doesnt help.

It wasnt in bad shape, just scuffed up.  I was ambitious when I took this project on and decided to strip it.  What was I thinking, forgot how much work that is. 

I didnt actually strip the whole chair, I took my hand sander and took off as much of the finish as I could.  Then I used liquid stripper for the details, what a pain in my hiney.  Was glad I didnt buy a whole set after 1 chair!!

After I stained it with gel stain and a cotton cloth, I took a new clean cotton cloth and bunched it up and started pouncing on a little more gel stain.  Wanted a fairly distressed look.  See below detail pic.

I told you mom is the floral designer in the family, notice my vase next to the chair.  I had it for about a year and tried different dried things in it and finally gave up and had her fix me up.  Didnt it turn out fab.  Makes me think about the happy dance again.  Wish I would have taken before pics of how lame it really was. 

I have a thing for furniture.  It is a good thing I dont have a humungous house, it would be fulllll.  Later gators!

Sweet Pickles and Chocolate Giveaway

Hey just wanted to share with all of you bloggie-friends, Ms Dena Pickle at Sweet Pickles and Chocolate is having a giveaway.  Bloggers are such generous people.  With the holidays coming up get your name entered and fill your possible prize with some festive decor.  Have a great day.

Met Monday

I am also linking up to Its So Very Cheri, check out her cloche, awesome.

Welcome Met Monday-ers!!  My weekend flew by, never enough creating time!!  I am linking up to Susan for start the week off with creative juices at Metamorphisis Monday.  It a great resource for all of your creative needs.

I am actually working on a chair refinishing project (to be revealed soon!) and finally got around to making a bulletin board for my daughter's room.  I had the gold frame in Carsyn's old room, but it needed an update.  I had been saving these big push pins I found at Christmas last year for such a project.  I wanted to give them a little more oomph and red and green didnt work with purple and pink!!  I spray painted the frame and pushpins Heirloom White.  It was my first time using this color, I am in love.  It is more of a creamy white, than stark white.  I should have known you fellow bloggers know your paint!!  Havent tried it?  You should!!  My lightbulb moment is when I remembered the whole bucket, maybe not bucket, but jar of buttons I had in the dungeon basement. 

Pic below of the detail on the frame

I think my favorite part is the buttons!  Have a great Monday.  Also check out my previous post about the monogram wreath, see what you think. 

Lost Has Been Found

I have been looking for the cord to download pics from my camera all week, finally found it (inside the empty cookie jar of all places).  Now I am absentminded a lot of the time, I think I had help with this one, but ya never know.

I have been busy this week visiting my local thrift stores and having so much fun looking at things in a different light. 

I have people tell me from time to time, you are so creative, but I actually feel like a fraud when they say that.  I am basically a good replicator!!!  Now I can think outside the box every now and then, but I usually just take a different spin on something I had seen somewhere else.  Blogland has re-opened my eyes to creating.  There are so many things out there, I'm like duh why didnt I think of that!!!  I grew up on a farm in Iowa.  It was a time when the economy was crappy for farmers in the 80s, necessitating my mother to improvise as many of us on a budget do.  I grew up with mom sewing and replicating like we all are doing now.  For many years I felt like the homemade clothes and repurposing things meant we had NO MONEY, but now with a family of my own, I totally get it.  Plus I had no idea it would be so much fun.  So I just need to get over it and have fun, right?  RIGHT.  Phew, got that off my chest.

I got my Ballard Designs catalog in the mail the other day.  It is always a good day when I get inspiration in the mail.  I noticed the monogram Christmas wreath and thought I will give it a try. 

My mom is the floral designer  in the family.   She can whip something up in no time.  I struggle with arranging flowers, dried, living, fake, all of them.  She has tried and tried to show me how to make a bow, I am bow challenged.  They are okay, but far from anything to brag about that is for sure.

So I took one of the many wire hangers we have floating around this house (my husband's work uniforms come on these hangers, so we have a plethora of wire hangers, you know the kind that get all tangled up like Christmas lights, arghh).  I bent it into an S shape with a pair of pliers.  I spent 4 dollars on greenery at Walmart that was bendable with wires already in it.  I just started twisting around the S shape and then used floral wire to attach it more securely.  At my last trip to Dollar Tree I snagged a bunch of Christmas picks and ornaments, gearing up for the holidays. 

I still think it needs something, just not quite sure.

In my little vignette here, all are thrift store finds. 
The cabinet was 30 smackaroos a couple of years ago, my first Ballard inspiration piece after their Piccola cabinet.  Liked my price way better than theirs.  My Shanty 2 Chic inspiration piece with the teal glass bowl and old lamp, and silver bowl for a buck and the jar for a buck, I am thinking it needs a tassel as there are so many fun tassels floating around blogland.  Back to my bow, I think it needs a bow, thought about using burlap, tried that didnt like it, bought some ribbon and afraid to post my bow, so for now am awaiting some further inspiration or hints from you all out there!!! 

Okay, I need to stay away from the thrift stores, I bought 3 lamps, 2 chairs, 4 shelves (varying sizes), 3 little mirrors.  Better get busy and do something huh? 

Glad you stopped by, come back again, maybe I will have some of these projects actually completed!!!!

I am linking up to Finding Fabulous for Frugalicious Friday, make sure and stop on over and check her out!!

Gorillas are my friend

Do you want to know why Gorillas are my friend?  Well not real Gorillas, just Gorilla Glue.  It enabled me to make something I really am thrilled with.

The fab girls over at Shanty2Chic are hosting  I Made It with Gorilla Glue Party and I wanted to party too!  They are one of the first blogs I came across and they have me running to the hardware store, Hobbylobby and all sorts of places to create some amazing projects. 

The first super cool project I stumbled along were these apothecary jars, and then they showed us these to hang plates, platters, you name it and look at that kitchen, drool worthy.  These gals can whip up something outstanding for little or nothing, the best part. 

Earlier this week I posted my version of the apothecary jars.  Out visiting some of my favorite thrifty stores this week, I came across an old lamp, as that is what I was actually looking for.  Unfortunately this lamp needed a new cord and didnt have most of its parts and I needed 2, but after looking it over good, I decided I loved the style, color, patina everything and for 2 bucks decided to get it.  You never know right?

At my next stop, still looking for lamps, I found this glass jar/bowl thingie that matched my dining/living room color.  I was doing the happy dance at this point, it was the perfect color.  Had I been looking for a jar of this color I wouldnt have found it.  Ever have that happen?

And the Ah-ha moment happened after I brought them in the house.  They were destined to be together.  Hear the soft romantic music playing?  I did.  I just added a little dab of my friend Gorilla to both pieces and here they are.

I am still walking by it tonight and just smiling.  I dont think my pictures do it justice.  It turned out so good.  I want to say thank you to the gals at Shanty2Chic for inspiring me, I am having a blast playing along. 

By the way, please dont notice that I needed to clean my mirror before taking the picture okay?  This is real-world blogging at its best.

Mom's Master Bath

I wanted to share my mom's latest redo.  She added a master bath and I am so happy for her.   She has been a busy little bee.  She made the curtains, shower curtain, recovered the chair seat, and re-painted some accessories.  Before she had sheer white curtains, while they were nice it just needed something.  By adding the brown it makes everything pop.

Below is her vanity area that I am so envious of!! 

The two white dressers were that faux wood, pressed board yuk to begin with.  She painted and added her touch.

She also needed something to house her satellite receiver and things.  She found an old radio cabinet, isnt the wood gorgeous. 

She found the fabric at a little place called In-Weave.  A fabric store in Iowa.  They have an online store.  The ladies are super helpful, so if you need some inexpensive fabric check it out.  They have rugs that are to die for that they make there.

Happy Tuesday everybody.