On and off my needles - the good, the bad and the ugly

The Good.  My knitting has been hit and miss.  The Rocky Coast cardigan is going well, slow but steady and I love the Miss Babs yarn!

I also just started plain socks with Lorna's laces yarn, love this yarn too and it is my plain sock pattern and knitting is going well.

The bad. I worked on the Ballet school drop out slippers on a recent business trip and it is just a mess.  I hate the yarn and the pattern just wasn't coming together for me.  I plan to try again with a different yarn, without airplanes. 

The ugly!  Cracker Jack scarf following Cubs baseball.  Cubs are having a tough start and the numerous color changes were killing me! I am done! 

What are you knitting? 

Recycle and redecorate

We've been in our home for 11 years now and it is time to do a little redecorating.  I've tried to be economical using paint,slip covers and a few new accessories. 

I found a company in California that makes custom slip covers.  I love the pottery barn look but already had great furniture.  I tried makes my own slip covers and it was a major fail so I ordered these and I like them.  It took forever but I wasn't in any hurry. The pillow came from Pier one, on sale!

While on the Kalona trip I bought this screen for less than $10, painted it, added a half price , after Christmas wreath from Target and I love it!

So far I really like the look of the slip covers. If I can get another 5 years out of this furniture I can justify buying new, maybe from Pottery Barn!

I bought a lantern set online added seaside potpourri and candles from Pier One.

I like the fresh feel this look gives to my dining room.

Here is a before/ after photo. 

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Girls Day Out

Sweet college girl and dear son's adorable girlfriend joined me a couple weeks ago on a fun day trip to Kalona. 

It has been awhile since I've been to Kalona and they've done some updating like cute quilt blocks in the sidewalks.  There is a new restuarant and we ate there for lunch.  Kalona Brewing Company.

http://kalonabrewing.com

They serve locally grown organic meals and great fire roasted pizza. They brew beer too.

On the way back we stopped at a couple of my favorite antique places. I found some great deals, including a screen window that I will post about later.

We had a wonderful time!