#colddeadfingers

I have totally sucked at being a blogger this week. 

My evenings have been jam-packed, in a good way, so I haven't had a lot of time to write. 

I had three separate girl's nights this week with three different groups of ladies.  Awesome times.  Next week I will have a recap of these evenings along with a full recap of the outdoor Baby-Que shower, complete with pictures!

We have busy Saturday planned but it will be followed by a very, lazy Sunday.

My cousin is coming up from Austin with his girlfriend to stay with us tonight.  This is a treat.  I usually only see him at Christmas.  I am very excited.  Tomorrow we are going to see him in action at his Tae Kwon Do tournament.  On top of that we have to buy and new car tomorrow, which is both exciting and stressful at the same time.

This all has to be accomplished by three o’clock tomorrow because we are then heading to a friend’s house to watch the Alabama/Texas A&M game.  This should be a great game, and also while I am there, I get to help said friend decorate her baby nursery!  Y’all all know how I love to decorate!!!!!

Speaking of decorating, I will leave you with some pictures from the #colddeadfingers challenge that Mandi at Vintage Revivals is hosting.  This is one of my favorite, if not my most favorite, home décor blogs.  This girl has some serious talent.  And her real life story is super intense and inspiring.  Check her out.

Basically the gist of the challenge is to Instagram pictures of the piece/s of décor around your home that someone would have to pry out of your cold dead fingers before you ever relinquished control of them.  I am so right there with her on this!  I am very emotionally attached to many of my pieces.  You would seriously have to step #overmydeadbody and pry them out of my #colddeadfingers to get near them.

I love searching #colddeadfingers on Instagram and seeing everyone’s loves.

Here are three of the examples around my home...

First, an $8 warehouse-sale find....

This original, canvas painting makes my heart race every time I see it, which is every day. The shade of blue speaks to my soul. Sounds silly, I know, but true nonetheless.  And I love the small pink accents throughout. Also, this thing is HUGE!!!  It takes up an entire wall in my dining room.  Why they only put $8 on it I WILL NEVER KNOW, but I am so grateful that they did.  I think they even knew the artist.  Crazy for them and lucky for me.

Next, and most dear to me, is my great-grandmother, Lulu's, mirror.

 
This mirror belonged to my father's, mother's mother. It has hung in my parent's home for as long as I can remember. When my husband and I moved into our new home, my mother gave it to us to hang in our dining room. I had not known previously that it was an heirloom. I instantly became seriously attached to this piece. My great-grandmother had this hanging in her beautiful New Orleans home and my grandmother even had her wedding pictures taken in front of it in the 1940's.

Here you can see the mirror on the wall behind my grandparents on their wedding day.

I am not sure of the full history of the mirror but I plan to find it out. It is possible this mirror has passed between many more generations within the family. It is very beautiful, very old, very large and very heavy.  The detailing on the rosettes is breathtaking. I love her.

Last, but certainly not least, is this sexy lady. 

 

A vintage, 1940’s lucite and chenille vanity stool. Original PINK chenille!!!!! Swoon.

The story behind this one is fun. 

A girlfriend of mine took me out into the boondocks of central Texas to a two story building full of vintage clothing, knick-knacks and furniture.  It is very much of the beaten path and has unreal finds.  While there, I met the adorable little, old lady that owns the shop along with her husband.  They were in their 80’s and had been collecting their whole lives.  They had some amazing stuff and even more amazing stories.

We spent about three hours talking to her and going through everything she had for sale.  As we were getting ready to leave, I spotted this beauty under a pile of clothes.  Of course, this was the one thing in the store that the woman just couldn’t bring herself to part with.  She had bought the stool from its original owner at a living estate sale in the 60’s and she was very emotionally attached to it…

I ended up leaving her with an offer and my phone number.  She called me that night.  She said her husband told her she was crazy not to sell it since they were, after all, in the business of selling antiques. She said that she knew I would love it and take care of it and so she was willing to part with the stool.  I got it the next day and have loved it ever since.  It is one of those pieces that even though I paid a little more than I am usually willing to dish out, I have never regretted it or second guessed my decision.

Isn’t she beautiful?  Aren’t those the sexiest legs you have ever seen on a piece of furniture??

Sir Kittypuss loves her too.....

By the way, the cat is #colddeadfinegrs as well!

What are some of your #colddeadfingers? 

UPDATE 10/28/13: After posting this blog entry, I found a fantastic light fixture on Craigslist that I talk about here.  I then added a picture of it to Instagram with the hashtag colddeadfingers and tagged the creator fo the #colddeadfingers challenge, Vintage Revivals.  Today she included my sweet little light fixture on her second round-up of her favorite cold dead finger finds!  I admire her so much and I am so touched and happy to be included!!!

 

Happy Friday,

tbg

COME AND TAKE IT! Beer Pong Table Tutorial

Ok, I was supposed to finish up the outdoor chairs this week and reveal the finished effect, however, I have been lazy and haven't finished them. 

But all is not lost! The Fella and I finally finished our much anticipated (at least by us) homemade beer pong table that was first mentioned here.  Time for the reveal!

Here she blows!

 

It is regulation size and everything.  We built it for an upcoming party we are having but the two of us broke it in last Saturday night all by our lonesome.  There is something that sounds very sad about a husband and wife being at their home, only the two of them, and having an impromptu beer pong and swim party. But really it was awesome.

 

And Mr. Man is looking super classy in his cut off Dukes of Hazzard tee shirt left over from college. 

Ok so here is the rundown.

We bought the wood at home depot.  We were originally going to have two pieces of plywood cut down to size and then screw them together to get a little more sturdiness and thickness.  We would then have to sand, prime, paint and seal the wood.

But once inside Home Depot we found this piece of whatever it is….not wood I don’t think…but maybe.  It is the stuff you use to build closet shelves out of and stuff.  And it came already cut down to perfect regulation beer pong table size!  Pre-sanded, painted and sealed!  Amaze balls!

We then bought a table leg kit, also at Home Depot. 

 

We got home and the Fella did all the measuring and planning.  I then held the table for him whilst he screwed in the legs and stuff.  Harder than it sounds.

We then lightly sanded the top so that I could paint some on designs.

 

First we measured the triangles out to regulation size.  These are where the cups go. 

 

I then painted the triangles, canon and star on and the Fella stenciled on the words.  This was brutal because he had to wait for each one to completely dry before he could do the next letter.

 

The slogan we painted on was first used in the American Revolution but for you non-Texans, this slogan was made most famous for being used on the flag that was flown at the Battle of the Gonzales.  My husband and I are HUGE fans of the story of  the Texas Revolution and it's battles.  We realy love the folklore behind the individuals that fought at the Alamo.

It is so random that this is something we both had in common that started at an early age for us both.  Davey Crockett was my hero big time when I was little.  All those guys had some serious guts.  Myth or not, the well-known story around these parts is truly inspiring.

Anywho that is the background on the design.  We then sealed the paint with a clear, weather-proof sealant.

 

That's all it took.  Hopefully the table will be a big hit at our up and coming parties.  We shall see.  I WILL finish those darn chairs this week.  I promise to myself! In the meantime, I leave you with this little dandy of a shot of us at the Alamo a few years ago.

Davey Crockett is my boyfriend,

tbg

JFK

This past weekend the Fella and I took his parents to the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza.  President Kennedy is a hero of all of ours so it was a must-do. 

The museum is on the floor of the warehouse where the “lone gunman” perched as he shot and assassinated President Kennedy.  The headset tour takes you through the President’s election, family life, presidential impact (civil rights, Bay of Pigs, etc), the trip to Texas, the assassination, the initial investigation, the global impact of his death, later investigations, conspiracy theories and lasting impact.  It is very moving and inspiring to say the least.

What really resonates with me every time I go to the museum is how President Kennedy was a symbol of hope all over the world, not just state side.  He was loved and admired by so many countries and people in places you wouldn’t even imagine were devastated by his death.  It truly is amazing.  I can think of very few people that would have this impact today.  Maybe Oprah.

Anyway, you cannot take pictures anywhere inside the building, but I snapped a few outside. 



The Fella and his Pops on the Grassy Knoll



The In Laws on THE spot that X marks

I know it is morbid to stand on the X that marks the spot where he was first shot, but it is kind of a must-do while visiting Dallas.

A lot of the rest of the weekend was spent eating......

And floating......



 

I did laps.....

They left on Monday morning and we were sad to see them go.....

Till next time,

tbg