My kids! :)

In June, my middle daughter graduated, we had father's day and my husband's birthday all rolled into one backyard BBQ!

I wanted to do something special for my husband this year, so I took my kids to get their pictures taken.

 Just getting all the kids together at one time and keeping it a secret from my husband was quite a feat! I left them at the photographer (while I ran off to get my hair done- scheduling don't you know!) with specific instructions for them to behave! lol They were allowed one silly shot, but the rest had to be good pictures!

I apologise for them being slightly distorted. I don't know how to scan, so I took pictures of the pictures. Actually, that's wrong. I do know how to scan... I just don't know where it goes after it's scanned. ;)

Imagine my surprise and joy to find these lovely shots of my kids. :)

I just wanted one good picture to hang in my living room. They were all so good I almost cried! I couldn't decide which to get, so I got some of them all. :)

The top pic I will have enlarged for the wall. So hard to pick just one!

Have you ever seen the website AwkwardFamilyPhotos? If you haven't you should definitely take a peek at it. It's very funny and puts all of us in stitches!  There is a photo like this one, but is like a family of six laying on top of one another. So, when the photographer put my kids in this pose, they could not stop laughing. I can tell from the pic that my oldest in the middle there was in hysterics! :)

So, despite my oldest coming home with green hair (it was brown the last time I saw her), I think the pictures came out pretty good. And all the long hair covered up the majority of piercings, nice! :)

a pic of hubby and I from mumble, mumble, years ago. ;)

The last time I had their picture taken (besides the yearly school shots) was when they were two, three and four. I think they were those ages! lol ;) This one was done by a professional photographer. And cost almost as much as my wedding photography, but well worth it I think. I love this shot of my babies.

This time, we went to JCPenney's Portrait Studio. I don't think I have been there since I used to get baby pics of them. What a great value and my middle ended up with a job when they found out she was going to art school. It pays to brag about your kids! :)

I think my boy would make a great model. :)

Featured Artisan Anita from MiniPotteryByAnita

On our trip down south in June, the first stop we made was at Anita's Pottery.

Anita and I have been chatting online for a long time now. She's a fellow member of TeamMIDS on etsy.

While we have chatted on the phone, we never saw one another and didn't know what each other looked like. It was so much fun to put a face to the voice. 

And, to get a nice big hug in person! :)

Anita is a lot of fun and very animated and chatty, so I knew I was going to just love her, which I did. She has what I can only explain as a girlish charm about her, fun, happy and excited about what ever she is talking about and mostly that's pottery.

Anita lives in a town called Seagrove, NC. Hubby and I noticed driving through the many, many pottery shops that were there. I'm like, oh, my goodness, Anita lives in Pottery Heaven!

Actually, when Anita began her work in pottery in the late 80's there were just around 20 pottery shops. The  area became a destination point for pottery buyers and eventually, other pottery makers as well. Now, there are around 100 pottery shops in the area.

Anita has a lovely country garden to walk through to the entrance of her shop. A kitty cat awaits on the stoop. There is her dog behind the counter, keeping her company.

The shop has a country appeal to it as well. She sells her own pottery, full sized and of course in mini. She also sells some vintage pottery and some works from others. It's a darling shop.

 Anita has been featured in the local publication, "In The Grove."

Anita is one busy lady!

Not only does Anita maintain her brick and mortar shop, she has a shop on etsy, and a shop on artfire.

Of course, while I was there, I had to pick up a few items.

 The stack of blue bowls is actually for 1/6 scale, fashion or barbie dolls, but, I could not resist them.

Look at the sweet blue basket! The little aqua pot directly behind has the sweetest detailing on it and the green one next to it reminds me of vintage pottery.

The purse on the right is one of her latest creations and was her gift to me. You don't even have to be a miniaturist to love it!

You can see more of her mini purses here.

Even hubby got into the pottery and bought this life sized vintage piece. 

I love the frog holes. :)

All of the links in pink are clickable, have fun! :)

I'm almost at 400 followers! Yay! Thank you all for your support!
I might have to do a giveaway when I reach 400! :)

Faux Painting, a Shabby Chic Tutorial

I needed some shabby chic furniture to use for display for some of the items I make for my etsy shop.

I had this country bench from my younger days, but, I was just never really thrilled with the color of the stain.

So, I thought I would update it with a new look and give it some great, shabby chic styling. :)

First, I sanded it down with a rough grit sandpaper to remove the sheen of the stain and to give it some tooth to allow the paint to adhere well.

Then, I gave it a good dusting with this paint brush. 

I use this a lot when my minis get dusty from being left out too long, it does a wonderful job of removing any dust. Did you know, that is how museums keep a lot of their artifacts clean? With a paint brush, yes!

I picked out a green paint to use as my base color.

I love these little jars of acrylic paint that you can pick up at the craft store inexpensively.

The one I chose was Folk Art "Yellow Citron" by Plaid.

Well, I decided it was just too yellowy for my liking, so I grabbed another green, America's Mint Julep Green from DecoArt.

I mixed with my favorite and most universal tool, the bamboo skewer. I use these skewers for everything, they are just so handy for so many different applications. 

These dispose-able food containers are great for mixing paints in. Just make sure you mix enough paint at one time so there is enough for your entire project. The lid can be placed on the container while you wait for a coat to dry, saving your paint from drying up.

I wasn't trying to be matchy matchy with the items for my etsy shop, as I would be keeping the bench, but, as so many of you know what I mean, I had a color in my mind's eye and that was what I wanted.

I call it Vintage Green. ;)

Finally, I was happy with the shade of green.

Two good coats were just what this piece needed.

Next to begin the shabby chic process.

I diluted Folk Art "Wicker White" paint from Plaid with water to make a white wash.

I didn't want a solid coverage for the top coat of paint.

Another coat of the white wash or two.

It looks more like a solid coat than it actually is, there is some of the green visible on the bench, it just didn't photograph as well, as I thought it did. ;)

Lastly, an all over sanding with a fine grit sandpaper to show some age, wear and tear.

I didn't add any type of clear coat to this, as I preferred the rustic, matte finish.

I think it has a lot more charm and character than it did before, wouldn't you agree?

Now, it's perfect for using in displays for my minis for sale and eventually, it will end up in my dollhouse in the shabby chic bedroom.

So, don't be afraid to experiment and have fun with your minis. It doesn't have to be all rule oriented, do what you want! 

You don't even have to be an expert painter to make use of the shabby chic styling.

Would you like to see some other tutorials I have made?

Click here, to find a tutorial on how to faux finish some resin planters to make them look aged.

Click here, to find a tutorial on how to make replacement cushions for a popular rocker glider.

Enjoy! :)

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