Recycled Art at San Francisco Park

Earlier this month, I visited the Conservatory of Flowers at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, CA. I thought my readers would enjoy these pictures of displays created from all recycled materials.

A model of the Ghirardelli chocolate factory in light switches.

Click "Read More" to see all of the pictures

Muted Monday - Photo of the Week

California kitty napping in the Napa Valley at Sterling Vineyards. Maybe that's why it's called "Napa Valley". Nike has been greeting guests at the winery for 12 years. In between naps, that is.

Architectural Salvage Treasures

On my recent visit to California, I spent some time in Sonoma at an architectural salvage place. Artefact Design & Salvage Inc. (yes, they spell it artefact instead of artifact) is a fun place with a classy indoor showroom as well as an open yard out back for browsing. If anyone can make salvage look upscale, this is the place. Check out the pictures I took of their inventory. And yes, I asked permission before snapping pics all over the store.

 Giant globes made of driftwood

 Salvage doors.

Iron work on the top of a door.

 Unique chandeliers.

Be sure to click "read more" to see the rest of the photos.

I'll Be Back

To quote the governor of the great state I've been visiting for the past week, "I'll be back." In fact, I'm on my way home today, and I can't wait to show you all the pictures I took to show you on T2T. Yesterday, I visited an architectural salvage yard and took pics of a ton of cool stuff. I'll upload it soon to show you. In the meantime, you've had a little vacation from T2T updates while I've enjoyed my vacation with my sister.

Today, I leave California and head back to Wisconsin winter. Eeew.

Michelle

Not Enough Hours in a Day

Well, friends, I had hoped to post something inspiring before I leave for a week of rest and relaxation visiting my sister in California. But, I guess it turns out it was more important to pay the bills and leave food in the refrigerator for my guys while I'm away. So, if I get an airport delay, I'll post something. Otherwise, enjoy your week!

Michelle

Transformation Tuesday

Since we're still buried under a heap of snow up in Northern Wisconsin, I've not been out thrifting yet, but I'm counting down to spring. In the meantime, those of us who love thrifty decorating can get our fix from Craigslist.

As I was searching around the web, I ran across a nice, simple Craigslist transformation. Erika showed her handiwork on her blog "Erika With a K" and I'll show a few pics of her project, but you'll want to click the links to her blog in this post to see the whole story. She started with a plain pine colored coffee table.

Photo belongs to Erika

She painted it white and then distressed the edges a little. 

Photo belongs to Erika

And then in another blog post, she showed how she spruced it up even more by adding new knobs. Isn't that cool?

Photo belongs to Erika

I love the change! Erika with a K, your blog is inspiring.

Friends, if you try to copy Erika's technique, I'd suggest priming with something that will make the paint stick (Like Zinsser 123, or Kilz). You'll still be able to add the distressing because the sandpaper will cut through the paint and primer.

Or, if you want a darker color showing through, you can paint it all black, and then do the white over the top. After it dries, you can sand lightly to remove just the top layer of white to reveal the dark color.

You gotta love a good Craigslist transformation!