Tuesday, December 24, 2013

JOYEUX NOEL - 2013 Yr in review...Sit down, this could take a while...

 
So, I turned 50 for the first time this year. I know many friends and family have traversed this milestone, as there are many not far behind me.
Kudos to those who survived it! To you others, gleefully anticipating half a century hood .... wait your turn. It will come soon enough believe me! So far it feels like my warranty ran out! Things just started to break ! My neck seized up, my arms got rusty, the back axel jammed so the forward thrusters prohibited movement!! Scotty! She's breaking up! ...I'm doing everything I can captain!!
  It's been quite the year to say the least. To say much more would take too long so I'll share just some so we can all get through this as painlessly as possible. This time last year, Chris was on work leave due to a debilitating allergic reaction to the very products being developed at his workplace. He'd been working there 2 yrs. Most of this yr was spent seeing specialists & having tests done that determined the exact cause was in fact the workplace. Here's an example of said tests...

The latter part of the yr was working with workmans compensation to figure out new career paths for the future in order to avoid similar problems. Being a chemist by trade has made for some interesting alternatives and thinking out of the box. We chose from the beginning to treat all of this with the most optimistic attitude. A new opportunity that will eventually open doors to a great job he may not have considered before. In the mean time, it's been terrific to have him home...HONESTLY!

 We tackled some big projects around the house like repainting our bedroom & ensuite ( seen here ) if you care to check it out.
Then we repainted one of the other bedrooms (here).

Then came My 50th ...YAY?..I've honestly never been bothered by birthdays. Au contraire, I look forward to each one like a little girl....Except this one! For some reason or maybe 50 reasons, this one bothered me and it really bothered me that it bothered me! Oy, what a bother!

So I was determined to celebrate it because? Well because, I didn't feel like celebrating it. I promise not to repeat celebrate 4 times in a sentence. Anyway, I decided to surround myself with friends and family I adore and use this opportune time to just have a great party! Besides any *project* gets me fired up. It was time to have fun...
 In April we welcomed a new client. He is another high needs client who is also autistic. I'd never had the challenge of working with an autistic client but it didn't take to long for him to fit right in and I'm learning how best to deal with his needs . He's become part of the gang now which makes 4 live in clients. So we are at full capacity now, which is what we hoped for.

We then tackled the deck (here) and had some fun assembling recycled finds to make this (here), (here), (here), (here), (here) and yes even (here) and wow (here) & (here) too! Me thinks I figured out that I had to keep both Chris & I busy this yr...

Then in June it was our 7th wedding anniversary and Chris' birthday. We decided to take a mini 4 day vacation to Quebec city.


 A lovely spa hotel was exactly what we needed to relax and regenerate! Good food and better company! It was even a big Garage Sale weekend! Nirvana! I swear I could hear Angels singing! We piled so much crap (I call them treasures) in our vehicle we had to calculate how our suitcases would fit for the trip home! INCLUDING a whole 5 pc log set for the yard that we planned to pick up Monday morning before heading back home. I had special plans for this set, that would eventually have to wait but I did get it done! (here) Our whole weekend was perfect, UNTILL !...Yes there's a BUT coming.
On the Sunday, Chris' bday, for a great treat, we had massages scheduled. My lower back was tender so I asked her to focus on that area. It was truly lovely! I was a bit sore at the end, to be expected but by the time we made it back to our room, I could barely walk. By the time I laid down, I could barely move! I was TOAST!
 It was horrible, I have never felt that kind of pain before. Next morning, Chris had to go pick up the log set by himself and tie it up on the roof of our vehicle (with the help of the 80 yr old lady who sold it to us!) ironically she was way more help then I could have been! Needless to say the 3 hr drive home was an adventure! We drove straight to my doctors office and the following 2 weeks I was flat on my back unable to do anything except be so very thankful that circumstances lent to Chris being home and able to take care of all our guys and me. What a trooper he is! I hate to think of how things would have been had he not been off work!!

Over the summer I slowly got better with physiotherapy and by fall I was taking long walks on the wooded path behind our house. What a joy that has been, especially with the CANON Chris surprised me with for my birthday. Constantly around my neck on every walk. You never know what you'll come across either to inspire a new project, or make you go HMMM?
Speaking of projects, those who know me, know I usually have my hands in something. I've made a few things like  soap , salts and jewelry in the past and even sold quite a few. This yr was no different except with Chris' whole allergy thing, my focus started to change. I started delving into making more natural products. I became fascinated with the whole DIY culture of home products containing less chemicals etc. The more I researched the more I wanted to make. My friends got all sorts of balms, deodorants, lotions and potions, creams and salves, raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens and warm woolen mittens, brown paper packages tied up with strings, these are a few of my favorite things...OH! OOPS! I digress...got carried away being surround by Christmas Twinkles sitting next to the tree drinking my Bailey's Coffee.
 Anyway, As my need for ingredients & supplies began to grow I needed a place to store it all. Chris and I built the perfect place in our office downstairs. It became known as my Apothecary Closet. A true thing of beauty! Click on the photo to see more...
https://www.facebook.com/monette.bouvier/media_set?set=a.10153147733285512.1073741832.731730511&type=3
https://www.facebook.com/monette.bouvier/media_set?set=a.10153250003810512.1073741834.731730511&type=3
 
 I needed to learn more. I was already being called the resident Witch so why not get better at it. So when a year long course on making natural & therapeutic products at the Montreal Botanical Gardens became available I was thrilled! I'm absolutely loving it.
 That said...let me preface this by saying....boy oh boy going back to school at 50 is like telling a retired horse to run a race after 30 yrs...especially when he wasn't much of a runner in the first place!!
 
These first 4 months of classes have been all theory...From the ancient history of plants and essential oils to their biochemical structures and synoptique tableau. Now fatty acids and carbon atoms are one thing but knowing which ones are monoterpenols, sesquiterpenols or aldehydes terpeniques which all relate to their specific and beautifully therapeutic properties to just name a PHEW!.....Yeah, I can't believe I just typed that sentence either! .........It's all a whole other ball of wax! Oh and of those? There are MANY being studied too!

It's all absolutely fascinating but certainly more detailed then I thought, especially taking this course in French !! OUFFF!! As bilingual as I am with French, I never went to school in French (apart from our perfunctory little French classes in school, You know the " Bonjour, Comment ca va? Je m'appelle ......., ) I think I've just forgotten my own name with this studying! So to capitulate these ten dollar words in chemistry I'm learning are worth at least $20 in French!! Basically my brain is MUSHHHH! This break from classes for Christmas will hopefully help regenerate me for the next 6 months when the real fun begins and we start to put all this theory into practice making beautiful creams, soaps and even makeup!
My hope is that this time next yr, my logo ALBA-MOON ALCHEMIE will have a line of therapeutic products that are beautifully rich in emollients using essential oils and ingredients that are free from harmful chemicals unlike most of the products we find on the shelves today.
This next year will undoubtedly hold new adventures. I look forward to seeing what it brings.
Our girls Cleo and Mahault are still in University and living in Montreal. Mahault has a few more yrs to go in Sexology & Cleo is only a few credits shy of her BA in Scenography so next yr she only has to take one elective to finish it off. In the meantime she's now able to do more hours working in an Atelier that makes all sorts of great builds using many different mediums. Like park stools for NY city, a glass sculpture light fixture for a newly opened Birks Jeweler on the north shore to name a few. It's great building experience for her although she's the lone female in the workshop!


It's been quite the year for sure. I'm kind of hoping the next one will be a little less eventful but even if it is, I'm sure we'll take it in stride and always find the silver lining.

From Our home to yours, we wish you all a Joyeux Noel and a very Happy New Year. May your wishes for 2014 come true! OXOX
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/107734616059659616/

Friday, December 20, 2013

WINTER SCEEN JAR PROJECT

I couldn't wait to do this fun project on a quiet evening whilst watching a corny Christmas movie. Over the last cpl weeks I've been gathering little things from here and there. Mostly dollar store finds and things I already had. What's great about this is there are no rules.
I was inspired by a few similar projects using mason jars in pinterest. I had mason jars but found that the lids left very little room room to play with. So when I saw these larger cylindrical jars with wide lids at the $$ store I was thrilled!
I got 2 large ones, 1 medium one and I had the small one already. This is most of the things I used...
If you have xmas village figurines from an old village set or find them at a garage sale. Even small Barbie pieces could be used, your imagination is the guide! Most of mine are from the dollar store, but the top jar has some glass pieces I got last week for next to nothing. Two of my jars have a battery operated  street lamp. The wires are very little so I was able to carefully screw the tops while letting the wires to come out. The battery pack is hidden on the plate under the xmas balls I surrounded the bottom with. I shopped the rest around the house, like some candlesticks, tea light holder etc.......
TRIAL & ERROR!
  Even the simplest of my project, ALWAYS teach me something !
So as I started to assemble my things together, I happily glued my little scenes on the underside of the lids. All excited to put the glass jars onto them...to find that after all that, my scenes were too deep in relation to the height of the lids. It still worked but I wanted to improve on it.
  My glue hadn't totally set so I removed everything to start again. Thankfully I keep everything, and after rummaging in the garage, I found some little pieces of scrap wood in a jar. I glued those to the lids THEN glued the figurines onto the little bocks, so they would sit much higher then previously...added more snow to hide the blocks and Voila...the scenes sit higher in the jars.
 
 
 

The little lights don't shine bright, but they are cute nonetheless ...
 
 

This is a great project to do with children...I know the little girl in me loved every minute of playing with this!!
HAVE FUN!

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Fire Fly Lanterns , To Glow or Not to Glow?

Last yr I decided to spruce up our garden shed...One of the things I wanted to do was an idea I had seen with hanging mason jars. I was fortunate a few days later, to happen upon a big liquidation sale!! (Yeah, like that happens! ZELLERS was closing so I rushed over there!) I scored these metal lanterns on clearance for 1/4 of their price...so I got 4 Med sized ones for $5 each! to hang at each corner of our Gazebo and one Large one for $10 to hang outside the shed.
 The idea was so simple. Get some moss...and hidden in amongst it a string of mini lights that are battery powered. I actually found some at the dollar store. I loved how they looked...but only every turned them on when we had company. Batteries are pricey and they don't last long. I did love how they looked when lit. ...But.......
and there's always a But.....Daytime, when not lit, Some...ok....many ppl had to inquire why the hell I had green stuff packed in my lanterns! To which I would answer....."SSHHHHHHH u will wake my fireflys! They like to sleep in there!"
Needless to say, I wanted to retire those "FireFlies" for good!
I also wanted a better source of light or glow this time that cost less then batteries...
I love Pinterest! and I saw the perfect idea by CakeryPapery.com ! So this spring I cleaned all the moss out of my lanterns and put the lights away for some future project ..maybe....
First, I found a cute stencil with 4 different Fireflys on it...Stenciled the outside panels with black paint so they would show up against the bright sparkle I planed for the inside....
I got some inexpensive glitter (any colour u want) I used bright silver and white mixed together. I mixed
 2 tbsp of Elmer's glue with 1 tbsp water...(u can make it thinner if u want) I brushed glue on inside panels then generously sprinkled glitter on them...Hung in their places to dry...Place Tea Lites in and Voila!  Low cost and they last a few hrs! My larger one holds a larger candle...and we can see it from across the yard! 

Yes, I love lanterns and Candles! I also love how these turned out...the 4 I put in the Gazebo all glow as much as the shed one AND they look pretty during the day also!! Win Win....

What do you think? Which do u prefer?

Sunday, July 07, 2013

PreLoved to ReLoved!

We found this adorable log table set at a Garage Sale a few weeks ago. Actually, I spotted one of the little benches first and loved it!My 1st thought was that it looked like a Hobbit's bench to me...When I asked the price, the lady said it belonged to a whole set, as she pointed towards a round table and the other 3 benches with a sticker price of a whopping $30...SOLD!

Now normally I love to haggle but sometimes even I know a darned good deal with I see it! We were lucky because the lady was willing to keep the set until Monday as we were 3 hrs from home. It was our weekend away in Quebec City..and having to cart that set in our vehicle over the weekend would have been cumbersome to say the least!..
I was hoping to find a project that would allow me to use some of the left over paint we had from painting our Deck last Spring. This was just Perfect for that!! I Sanded the tops with a power sander...Nothing fancy as this set will remain outdoors..
And so it begins....Dark Grey for the legs...
Now, I realize this may look weird...just bare with me...I have a plan......and btw, the shutters are for another project to come lol...
This is isn't the panel I used for this project....the ones I did use still had wet paint on them...Basically, it's the same as this one,with different shapes...I used them as a stencil...To make it look kind of like there was a Lace tablecloth on the table ...I painted the edges and parts of the pieces with left over black paint....
So with the panels/stencils in place on the table, on the areas I painted the lighter grey...I then used a can of Black Spray paint to spray over all...and thought the benches would look cute with some random lace on them also...I plan to take a sanding block to the edges here and there to distress it a bit tomorrow...I just couldn't wait until then to post some photos of this set....I have a little parasol I can stick in there for some shade also! What do u think of my quaint Hobbit Set? 

Saturday, July 06, 2013

Garden Shed Garnished by Garage Sale Finds!

I started this project last yr. I had a bland boring blank slate of a shed starting at me from the deck view......
                                                                      BEFORE...


I just LOVE garage Sales! Unfortunately for me our area does not allow garage sales during the summer monthS! I know! Stupid right? There's gotta be a good reason, but I just haven't found it yet. So spring and fall , usually the long weekends...is the time for Power Saling!...It's also time to think out of the box every once in a while...If u remember one of my recent finds...of an electric chandelier...we removed all the wiring & electrical elements, glued some shot glasses to it, plopped candles in it to hang outside...Total cost with glasses & candles $17...
This week I gathered a bunch of different things I intended to use as planters...
Everything here, except the Bird Bath...(a clearance Avon item ) and the Milk jugs I've had for close to 20yrs...(the white one I painted and stenciled 15 yrs ago....The large Cornucopia, I found in Quebec City for $3, the Cast Iron pot with lid was $2, the little white pot is actually a glass lamp shade I turned upside down..got the 2 of them for $3..
Vase was $3 and there's the other glass Lampshade turned upside down..(I cut a piece of  planting fabric (geo textile) & Styrofoam to put in the bottom to keep from losing the dirt ) It's sitting on an old Ashtray that makes the a perfect pedestal ...$1...
 The old chair was free and the large terracotta bowl on it was $2 ....
Put all together, my garden/pool shed looks more like a quaint little place and makes for a nice view from our deck...I started last yr with a blank slate..Painted the door and edging.., added $2 scarfs as curtains, repainted my old dollar store frogs, the metal sun and above door swirls were things I had for yrs...
Once the flowers fill out much more, things will look even better!! 
What do u think of my quaint little cottage? 


Monday, March 11, 2013

Evolution of our Bedroom -Updated ( I know, sounds Kinky right! )

When we first bought this house we loved that our room was a whole story away from everything else. It's the former attic converted to a bedroom with small en suite  Having said that, it's also a room with no windows, lot's of angles and only 2 sky lights. Hence we can't see outside, unless it's up towards the sky. However, it's a good sized room with potential. But like most, the bedroom, especially for the grown ups,  usually falls last on the priority list. So for the 1st yr, this is our simple bedroom....

We had no real bed, only mattress and box...all miss matched odds and ends here and there along with the dog bed u see to the left lol...If there was one thing I hated seeing it was that eye sore of an AC mural unit on the wall. As much as I loved the luxury of an AC in the attic of a bedroom...I hated seeing it there ! A germ of an idea started to stir but it wouldn't be a reality for yrs to come lol...

Meanwhile, no windows made for other ideas. One day at a garage sale I saw a french door and for $15 it was mine. I figured it could make a cool headboard of sorts, while pretending to be a window all at once!! So I painted it black, then painted black branches on the glass to mimic the shadow of a tree at night. It also dressed up most of the wall for interest....

I purchased a new bed kit with curtains and although we still had the same furnishings, it was a really nice change for next to no money! 


We had an eye on a nice bedroom set for a good cpl yrs.The ransom being asked for it was more then we could fork out. We often visited "our" set at the store that was holding it captive to reaffirm that it was the set we hoped to eventually buy. Then came the importunity to finally buy it!. It was a 1st for both Chris and I . A real bedroom ensemble Wow!! Many people don't like matchy matchy but when you have Never had matchy matchy in your life, you tend to like the idea for a change LOL! 

So now we had new bedroom furniture with a real headboard and everything! So the window/door above our bed had to go. There was no room for it. So it's been relocated downstairs. 

But I still had that AC eye sore...and I was having visions about new colour....Uh oh.....But again, other things had to be done, so we put a hold on any ideas ...for a time. 
As time went by I came up with an idea for that AC wall..it was bare and ugly and I had a germ of an idea brewing. Around this time we also got a free tv. We'd never put one in our bedroom before...but since we had it we decided to try. It's not something we view there often but it's nice to have when we do. 

I wanted to make this room into more then just a bedroom...WhY? u may ask...Well, being a foster family, we share our home with mentally and physically handicapped adult clients. They live with us full time, all the time. So our whole home is shared with exception to our own room. It's the one space in the whole house that is just for us. Ours alone. So I wanted it to be somewhere we could hang out , decompress and just enjoy if we chose. 

So this march....finally we started with paint...and I have to admit, I was taking a risk with my choices....Grey and Black...yes I said black...in a room with no windows lol!! I was nervous but still couldn't wait.....
We "vacationed" in our guest room downstairs for over a week, while we painted everything in both the room and the little en suite...

Notice the eyesore on the far wall....Do I ever have plans for that thing!!!...
...........................DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!!.................CLICK PHOTOS TO MAKE LARGER..........................

Small note; The large photo frame on the back wall has nothing in it yet LOL..I am waiting for the print I wanted in it to be developed! 
Now here is a closer look at the book cases...Do u see the AC unit?? Noooo you don't!! 
For at least half the yr we can hide it from view!! Here's how.......
We made a removable panel....Chris cut out the back and part of the top off the book case in order to push the book case close to the wall surrounding the AC unit...


For the hot months, we just remove that fake back we made to hide it...the air will circulate just fine ! But from fall to spring we can just put it back in place and unless u knew or got really close, you wouldn't even know!!
 Close up , now u can tell that the back is more towards the front then the other shelves...We added wall paper to the back of the book shelves for visual appeal and just make them a notch nicer then plain Ikea book cases. I also think it makes them look more *bedroom-ish* ...I glued the wall paper to the removable piece that hides the AC, But other pieces are just tacked down, for easy removal if I ever feel like changing it...So there you have it!....Our rooms Evolution over the 3.5 yrs we have been here..I think it will stay this way for a good while! lol  I have one more area waiting for a chair that will have a little table and lamp...As soon as my chair is here, I will add a cpl photos.......So as promised...Here is my new chair area..
I loved this funky chair! Ordered it from BeyondtheWrack ...Took a bit longer then expected. We found the table and pedestal at a clearance place in Montreal for next to nothing...

 We may purchase another chair just like it next time we see it for sale ...
I made one of these accents using paint chips of the colours we used in our room...
Last but not least, we painted out little en-suit off the room...We added some new hardwear and some glass shelving and a plant....


Again, u will see the sky light, oddly positioned but it's a good source of light none the less....I have to say that I'm more then thrilled to be DONE! After this big project with all the angles and cutting, anything thing else will be a piece of cake !! What do u think? Comments are welcome!