Your Aura is Blue
Spiritual and calm, you tend to live a quiet but enriching life. You are very giving of yourself. And it's hard for you to let go of relationships. The purpose of your life: showing love to other people Famous blues include: Angelina Jolie, the Dali Lama, Oprah Careers for you to try: Psychic, Peace Corps Volunteer, Counselor

About Me

My photo
This blog started out as a way for me to display and sell my handmade jewelry creations. I have set up shop on Etsy.com, where my shop name is "Dreamin of Beadin". The link to my Etsy store is located on the right hand side of this page. Please check me out!! If jewelry's not your thing, then check out the site anyway ~ there are plenty of talented artists selling lots of cool things there. For your reading pleasure, this blog will serve as a sneak peek into what's going on "behind the scenes" in my world. I love to cook, so there will be plenty of recipes, as well as product reviews and the occasional product giveaway (woo hoo!) I also love to take pictures of anything and everything, and I just bought a new camera, so there will be plenty of photos. And I like wine too, so things could get pretty interesting . . . Thank you for your support of me, Etsy and "all things handmade" :)

6.16.2011

Here's the Dish: Ain't Your Mama's Slaw

Nothing says "Summer" more than coleslaw.  I'll be honest ~ I hate the stuff.  Don't know why, but I am not a fan.  Since it makes a great sidekick to most bbq'd meats, this is not a good thing for me.  When I found this recipe, I decided to give it a try.  It doesn't have that creamy/sweet dressing like most coleslaws, which is typically my most unfavorite part.  I made this over Memorial Day weekend and it was well received by all.  Best of all, it's quick, easy and relatively good for you, too.  We love that!



Ingredients:

1 pkg. (12 oz.) broccoli slaw
1 cup red pepper strips
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup chopped red onions
1/3 cup Zesty Italian Dressing
1 tsp.brown sugar
1/3 cup Sliced Almonds, toasted

Directions:

Combine first 5 ingredients in large bowl.
Mix dressing and sugar. Add to salad; toss to coat.
Refrigerate 1 hour. Add nuts; mix lightly.

6.15.2011

A Purposeful Repurpose

I've been hearing the word "Repurpose" quite a bit lately.  It seems to be the trendy thing to take an item and give it new life, or "purpose".  Well, here's my own re-purposing story.  This was a fun little diy project that I completed in a weekend, and with a relatively small monetary investment.

I found this adoreable little chair at an estate sale.  Isn't it cute??  Looks like it might have been used as a naughty chair at one time :)  I knew I had to have it, but didn't quite know for what.  There's not much free space in my house, and we don't have any little people, either.  Then it hit me ~ I'll use it to display a pot of flowers on my front porch!


Step 1:  I sanded the laquered finish off the wood.  This would help the paint to adhere better.


Here is the chair after one coat of paint applied.  I used a quart of exterior paint with primer that I found on the "OOPS" rack at my local paint store.  Luckily I was open to the paint color.  I think the light shade of green is very nice, don't you?  It took 3 coats of paint to cover everything completely.  Since it was a warm day with low humidity, the coats took barely any time to dry.  Bonus!

 Here is the completed chair!   I think it holds my vintage bucket filled with wave petunias rather nicely :)    Total cost for the chair and half a quart of paint = $10.  Priceless!

6.13.2011

What a Lovely Idea!



I really love the idea of re-using materials, especially in unique and non-traditional ways.   Here is a lovely idea from none other but Martha Stewart herself.   These are tea tins (both new and vintage) used as vases to hold beautiful flowers ~ I really thought this was a novel and inexpensive way to decorate a table for a party or wedding.   Like it?  Click here for more clever centerpiece ideas :)

6.09.2011

One of My Favorite Things ~ Vintage Brooches!

I'm coming clean ~ I am a hoarder of vintage brooches!   They are so fun to accessorize with, in so many different ways.  You can add them to a hat, purse, scarf, or whatever outfit you happen to be wearing.   Brooches were once the "must have" accessory for women, but sadly they don't seem to be as popular these days.  I really love treasure hunting for them ~ in fact, it's rare that I ever see the same brooch twice in my travels.   

The above photo shows a few favorites from my private collection.  I get many compliments whenever I wear them.  Although it's not always easy, I don't keep all of the pieces that I find.  That is where my vintage shop comes into play ;)   I have many gorgeous brooches listed, and am adding more all the time.  Take a look at the Jewelry section of my shop to see these and many other interesting pieces.