It's Seed Ordering Time

We had our first significant snowfall last week here in Southwest Iowa. It has been an unusually mild and dry winter here this year, but I will take it. Generally speaking we are blessed with quite an abundance of snowfall and sub-zero temperatures during our winters in Iowa.

This week the thermometer has bounced back up into the upper 40's and low 50's giving way to the rapid melting of the 5 inches of snow that fell last week. It's nice to see the grass showing through the snow again and breathe in the mild fresh air outside.

I took a little stroll around my yard today just so that I could bask in the warm sunshine. Suddenly, I realized that spring is just around the corner and it would be planting time again once more. Oh, how I look forward to planting my vegetable, herb and flower gardens in the spring. Digging in that fresh black dirt is so therapeutic to my soul.

I don't use any pesticides or chemicals on my lawn, garden or flowers so the neighborhood birds, bees and worms just love my yard. I feel that is my duty as a steward of the earth to contribute to a healthy environment when at all possible.

When it comes to buying seeds and plants each year, I try my best to only purchase organically grown plants and organically produced GMO free seeds. I have found this to be a very challenging task some years, however. I live in the first Nursery Capital of the World, the place where seeds were first commercially grown, packaged and made available through purchase through catalogs. Yet, little organic and non-GMO seed is even produced here, probably because it would be nearly an impossible task to accomplish since all of the nursery fields are surrounded by farmland where the crops are all GMO and heavily sprayed with chemicals.

So.....I've come to accept it and look elsewhere for what I need if nothing is available locally. One of the places that I love is actually by way of a nursery called “Seeds of Change” or seedsofchange.com. Their online and print catalogs offer a large variety of Certified Organic non-GMO seeds and plants including fruits, vegetables, herbs, flowers and fruit trees. They also offer a variety of gardening products, even raised planting beds.

I have ordered seeds online from Seeds of Change for the past 3 years and have had excellent germination, growth and production from the seeds that I purchased. And, I feel so good that the plants and foods that I am growing are chemically and GMO free. The difference in taste between the foods produced from seed and plants that aren't organically grown  and those that are is like night and day.

Seeds of Change has not paid me and I receive no compensation for endorsing them. I just love their products and would like to pass along the information to those who are organically conscience. I also appreciate  their Safe Seed Pledge . The first couple of sentences read, “Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations.........”

Anyway, in closing...it's time to get your seeds ordered from wherever it is that you order them so that you will be ready for spring planting. I can't wait until those tiny green shoots start to poke up out of the ground.....Happy Planting!

Potty Training Tips for Puppies!

We all have a soft spot for  cute adorable puppies. They are so soft and adorable with those big brown eyes begging us to take them home. However, many times when while we are happily  bringing  home our new bundle of joy, we have totally forgot about the amount of time and effort it will take to potty train him or her.

I love puppies and enjoyed many years of  breeding and selling my AKC German Shepherd puppies to happy owners. Along with their new puppy I always sent home with them a packet of information which included time tested tips for potty training their new puppies.  If you are a new puppy owner or will be in the future, I am sure you appreciate the potty training tips below...

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 Tips for House training Puppies and Dogs
As with most things in life, there are right and wrong ways to get things done. Rubbing a puppy's nose in a mess is not the right way to housetrain. Using ample amounts of supervision and positive reinforcement is. Use the following puppy house training tips to get started on the road to proper puppy potty training.

Getting On the Right Track
The first course of action in house training is to promote the desired behavior. You need to:


*Designate a potty area outdoors.
*Guide your dog there to do his business.
*Heartily praise him when he goes.
By occasionally giving him a treat right after your dog finishes, you can encourage him to potty in the desired area. The odor left from previous visits to that area will quickly mark it as the place for the pup to do his business.

Timing Is Important!
A six- to eight-week-old puppy should be taken outdoors every one to three hours. Older puppies can generally wait longer between outings. Most puppies should be taken out:


*After waking in the morning
*After naps
*After meals
*After playing or training
*After being left alone
*Immediately before going to Bed  Pottying on Command

To avoid spending a lot of time waiting for your puppy to go, you may want to teach him to potty on command. Each time he is in the act of eliminating, simply repeat a unique command, such as "hurry up" or "potty," in an upbeat tone of voice. After a few weeks of training, you’ll notice that when you say the command your puppy will begin pre-potty sniffing, circling and then potty shortly after you give the command. Be sure to praise him for his accomplishments.

Feeding Schedules
Most puppies will potty within an hour after eating. Once you set your puppy's feeding schedule, you will have some control over when he needs to go.


*Schedule your puppy's dinner times so that you will be available to let him out after eating.
*Avoid giving your puppy a large meal just prior to confining him or he may have to go when you’re not around to take him out. Schedule feeding two to three times daily on a consistent schedule.
*Have food available for only 30 to 40 minutes, then remove it.
*The last feeding of the day should be done several hours before he’s confined for the night. By controlling the feeding schedule, exercise sessions, confinement periods.
and trips outdoors to the potty area, your puppy will quickly develop a reliable schedule for pottying. Crate Training

This is one of the best puppy house training tips we have to offer. Training a puppy to be comfortable in a crate is a good way to keep him safe and confined during house training. Most puppies will quickly accept crate confinement when you make the introduction fun. Since it’s important to associate favorable things with the area where your puppy is confined, it is a good idea to play with him there, or simply spend some time reading or watching television nearby as he relaxes with a favorite chew toy. If he is only in the area when you leave, it becomes a social isolation area that he eventually may resist entering.

A good time to start crate training is at dinnertime. Feed your puppy his dinner, one piece at a time, by tossing pieces of kibble into the crate for him to chase and eat. This way, you can make a game out of training.

When you pick up his toys, store them in the crate so he will enter on his own to play. You may even want to occasionally hide a biscuit in the crate as a nice surprise.

You should not use the crate for periods that exceed the length of time the pet can actually control the urge to urinate or defecate. If you are gone for long periods each day, you will need to provide a larger confinement area. You may want to consider using an exercise pen, small room or a pet sitter.

Provide an area large enough so that if your puppy has to potty when you are gone, he can do it in a space that is separate from his sleeping area. A 15- to 30-square foot area is adequate for most puppies. If he chooses a specific place to eliminate, cover it with paper to make cleanup easier.

Expect Some Mistakes
Left on his own, the untrained puppy is very likely to make a mistake. Close supervision is a very important part of training. Do not consider your puppy house trained until he has gone at least four consecutive weeks without pottying in the house. For older dogs, this period should be even longer. Until then:

  *Your puppy should constantly be in your sight.
  *Baby gates can be helpful to control movement throughout the house and to aid      supervision.
  *Keep them in the crate when unsupervised.

When you‘re away from home, sleeping or if you’re just too busy to closely monitor your pet's activities, confine him to a small, safe area in the home.

Nervous Wetting

If your puppy squats and urinates when he greets you, he may have a problem called submissive urination. Dogs and puppies that urinate during greetings are very sensitive and should never be scolded when they do this, since punishment inevitably makes the problem worse.
Most young puppies will grow out of this behavior if you are calm, quiet and avoid reaching toward the head during greetings. Another helpful approach is to calmly ask your dog to sit for a very tasty treat each time someone greets him.

Direct Him Away from Problem Areas
Urine and fecal odor should be thoroughly removed to keep your dog from returning to areas of the home where he made a mess. Be sure to use a good commercial product made specifically to clean up doggy odors. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations for usage.


*If a carpeted area has been soaked with urine, be sure to saturate it with the cleaning product and not merely spray the surface.
*Rooms in the home where your dog has had frequent mistakes should be closed off for several months.
*He should only be allowed to enter when accompanied by a family member. Don't Make Things Worse
It is a rare dog or puppy that can be house trained without making an occasional mess, so you need to be ready to handle the inevitable problems.


*Do not rely on harsh punishment to correct mistakes. This approach usually does not work, and may actually delay training.
*An appropriate correction consists of simply providing a moderate, startling distraction. You should only do this when you see your dog in the act of pottying in the wrong place.
*A sharp noise, such as a loud "No" or a quick stomp on the floor, is all that is usually needed to stop the behavior. Don’t be too loud or your pet may learn to avoid going in front of you, even outdoors.

Practice Patience Don’t continue to scold or correct your dog after he has stopped soiling. When he stops, quickly take him outdoors so that he will finish in the appropriate area and be praised. Never rub your dog's nose in a mess. There is absolutely no way this will help training, and may actually make him afraid of you. Success! We hope you’ve found these puppy house training tips helpful. The basic principles of house training are pretty simple, but a fair amount of patience is required. The most challenging part is always keeping an eye on your active dog or puppy. If you maintain control, take your dog outdoors frequently and consistently praise the desired behavior, soon you should soon  have a well house-trained canine companion.

Grandma's Old-Fashioned Cocoa

We all have wonderful memories of our childhood that flood our senses from time to time. Some of my favorite childhood memories are of the times we spend with our grandparents.

We spend alot of time with our grandparents, but especially with our  maternal grandparents who greeted us with warm smiles on every occasion.  Grandma would  always make certain that she had something special for us during each and every visit to her house.  She always had freshly baked cookies waiting in her cookie jar and in the wintertime she always treated us with her delicious old-fashioned homemade cocoa piled high with marshmellows.

Wintertime always reminds us all of our grandmother's old-fashioned homemade cocoa. She could whip it up in nothing flat and fill it chock full of an abundance of love for us all. I remember how she smiled at each and every one of us as she carefully sat that warm mug of cocoa in front of us. Our eyes magnified with joy as we nutured every sip until we reached the bottom of the mug.

My mother carried on the tradition with her grandchildren, And I have tried to keep the tradition alive in our family yet to this day. I hope you and your family will enjoy our old-fashioned homemade cocoa as much as we have.......

Grandma's Old-Fashioned Cocoa

Single Serving(1 large mug)

1 rounded tsp. baking cocoa powder
1-3 tsp. granulated sugar
dash of  salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 tsp. butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
*Marshmellows(optional)

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Large Serving(6 cups)

5 rounded tsp. baking cocoa powder
1/2 to 1 cup granulated sugar
dash of salt
12 oz. can evaporated milk
12 oz. can water
3 cups whole milk
1 Tab. butter
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
*Marshmellows(optional)

In a heavy saucepan combine the cocoa, sugar and salt, mixing together. Add a small amount of the milk a little at a time to form a thin cocoa paste. Turn heat on medium, continue  slowly adding  the milk  until it is evenly incorporated into the cocoa mixture and there are no lumps. Stir this mixture consistantly so that it doesn't burn.

If you are making the large serving, now is the time to add the water, then continue to stir. Using a whisk is most helpful at this stage. Once the cocoa is warm, then add the butter and vanilla. Continue to slowly stir until the cocoa reaches the desired hottness. Do not let it come to boiling!

Pour into mugs or cups. If desired, add small or large marshmellows. Enjoy!

***You can refrigerate any leftover cocoa and either reheat it or use it  as chocolate milk. You can also fill popsicle holders to make homemade fudgesicles.

COZY GOURMET COFFEE

If you are a coffee buff you will certainly enjoy a cup of this specially  flavored coffee with your  breakfast or bunch. I drink it everyday, though, because it's simply so delicious!


Cozy Gourmet Coffee

2 cups of coffee
1 heaping Tab. baking cocoa
1 teas. ground cinnamon
1/2 teas. ground nutmeg
*Whipped cream, whole milk
     or eggnog(optional)

Mix all of the dry ingredients  together well. Place your usual amount of coffee into your perculator or drip coffee maker with the required amount of water. When brewed, pour into a cup or mug and add a scoop of whipped cream or a bit of  whole milk or eggnog if desired.

Be sure to keep plenty of this mix on hand when you have the urge for a great cup of coffee!

DECADENT MARBLE FUDGE!

FUDGE..............the perfect decadent treat  anytime, whether it be for a holiday party, gift for someone special or just a chocolatey specialty for yourself or your family.

I love fudge, any kind of fudge. I love to eat fudge and give fudge as gifts to my friends, family and as  a thank you to my professional caregivers, such as my doctors, dentist, veterinarians, postmen, etc.

Anytime is fudge time for me and this easy Marble Fudge is one of my favorites. Why? Because it tastes so darn good and is so darn easy to make in a jiffy. If you would like to try it out just follow my easy-as-fudge recipe.

DECADENT MARBLE FUDGE

12 oz. bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
18 oz. (1 1/2 bags) white chocolate chips
(2) 14 oz. cans sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teas. baking soda
*1-2 cups chopped walnuts, pecans or almonds(optional)
1/2 teas. vanilla extract

Line the bottom and sides of a 13x9x2 inch baking dish with parchment cooking paper. In a heavy, medium sized saucepan melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips, one can of the sweetened condensed milk and 1/4 teas. baking soda over low heat. At the same time, in another heavy, medium sized saucepan melt the white chocolate chips, the remaining can of sweetened condensed milk and 1/4 teas. baking soda on low heat. Stir frequently with a separate spoon for each, heating 5-7 minutes until both are melted, evenly incorporated and smooth to the appearance.

Remove pans from the heat, then add the vanilla to the semi-sweet chocolate mixture and the chopped nuts if you prefer. Spoon large mounds of the two different chocolate mixtures alternatively into the baking dish. Using a butter knife or kitchen spatula swirl the two mixtures together creating a marbling effect.

Cover the baking dish with a lid, foil or plastic wrap, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours or until the fudge is firm. Then, lift the fudge from the baking dish using the parchment paper to do so, or turn over onto a clean sheet of parchement.

Cut into small squares and place in covered container, gift boxes or tins.

***You can easily vary this recipe by using peanut butter chips, peppermint chips or any other flavor of baking chips instead of the white chocolate chips.

This stuff is so great that you will have a hard time keeping your hands off of it! Just warning you ahead of time. :)

PERFECT PECAN PIE

 Pecan is one of my favorite pie's in the whole world! Interestingly, I had never even tasted a Pecan Pie until about 5 years ago. However, after that first bite there was no turning back.... I was addicted!

This recipe comes down from my Aunt's finest old time recipes. It was the first Pecan Pie that I ever baked and the first Pecan Pie that I ever tasted. I have made a couple changes to the original recipe, however,  this an  absolutely devine pie.

PERFECT PECAN PIE

4 large eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/2 cups dark corn syrup
1 cup granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tab. + 1 tsp. melted butter
1 1/2 cups pecan halves
Single uncooked pie crust

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix, roll out pie crust and place in  a pie pan.

Place the pecan halves into the bottom of the crust. Mix all of the pie ingredients in a medium size bowl, then pour into the pie shell. Bake at 375 degrees for 60 minutes.

Let filling set up  by cooling for several hours or overnight before serving. Do Not cover while cooling and Do Not place in refrigerator, to avoid failure of the filling setting properly.

Here is a great video showing how you can  make "Pie Crust the Easy Way".
http://uniquecozytreasures.blogspot.com/2011/11/pies-made-easy.html

Color Wheel Made Easy

***My series on Color Mixing Parts 1-9 has been so successful that I decided to simply combine all of the lessons into one lesson for my readers convenience. You will find the following information very useful in your everyday life. 

If you would enjoy having this tool at your fingertips please feel free to download a copy of my eBook  - "The Color Wheel Made Easy" found in the Amazon Kindle bookstore  at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/COLOR-WHEEL-MADE-EASY-ebook/dp/B00BMB8QPW .


My eBook can be downloaded onto any electronic device for quick and easy viewing through the Amazon Kindle Bookstore. 

LESSONS IN COLOR MIXING

Part 1-9

For many years I had wanted to learn the art of oil painting on canvas. However, it just seemed to somewhat intimidate me Why? Because I felt it was important to learn the art of mixing color in order to feel comfortable painting. I took a few private lessons from a fantastic artist, but the colors just weren't quite correct in the painting that I first did.

Of course, I also chose a harder than life subject to paint which didn't help (lol). I was a bit discouraged so didn't pick up a brush for awhile. I didn't have my own oil paint and supplies at the time, so decided to wait until I could invest in those before attempting another painting.

I had been mentally absorbing Mr. Bob Ross' technique for years through viewing his programs on public TV and was anxious to see what I could do with it. Since learning to oil paint had been a lifetime goal, I decided to take the plunge and order the supplies needed to get started.

Through Dick Blick mail order art supplies I ordered everything I needed to get started including the Bob Ross master paint set. I was very excited to get started and actually completed my first masterpiece in about 4 hours! Then a few days later painted another and and then several more.

My family and friends were so impressed they began to commission paintings from me.

One thing is missing here though. Bob Ross doesn't teach the art of mixing oil color in the master paint set. So now, I still didn't know how to mix various colors of paint. Several other TV series that I viewed featured oil color artists who kept mentioning that they only use 3-5 colors of oil paint, then mix any color under the rainbow with those colors. However, they never did teach how to accomplish such a feat.

Finally, I got an email one day from an artist in Australia who was giving a live video showing over the internet about mixing oil color. I had my own color mixing chart, but really needed a bit more mentoring to figure it out so I watched the video. It was absolutely enlightening.

I'm going to share with you some of what I learned about mixing oil color and how you can too can easily learn to mix oil color for painting and how you can use the art of color mixing to enhance your everyday life through creating color pleasing crafts, fashions, home decorating, etc.



PRIMARY COLORS

Below is a chart showing the three primary colors: Red, Yellow, Blue. In Oil paint that would represent, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow and French Ultramarine Blue. These three colors are from which ALL others are made.

SECONDARY COLORS

Now if you mix these primary colors together in various combinations they will make up SECONDARY colors: orange, green, and violet.

Then, by mixing various combinations of these secondary colors, you will create INTERMEDIATE colors and so on.



INTERMEDIATE COLORS

Now, I will share with you an easy way to mix INTERMEDIATE COLORS.

INTERMEDIATE colors are reached by mixing one primary color +(plus) one secondary color as shown in the diagram below.

TINTS, TONES, SHADES

TINTS are achieved by adding WHITE to a color.

TONES are achieved by adding GRAY to a color.

SHADES are achieved by adding BLACK to a color.

The amount of WHITE, GRAY or BLACK that is added to a color will determine the intensity of the TINT, TONE, or SHADE.



WARM AND COOLS COLORS

Now that we have reviewed PRIMARY, SECONDARY & INTERMEDIATE colors, TINTS, TONES & SHADES, we will now learn which of these colors are WARM or COOL colors.

WARM and COOL colors are colors that reflect emotional values. They add warmth or coolness to a painting, hand knitted or crocheted item or to any number of other artistic pieces.

The WARM colors are: Yellow to Red-Violet on the Color Wheel.

The COOL colors are: Yellow-Green to Violet on the Color Wheel.

COLOR HARMONIES

Now we will focus on Color Harmonies, colors that go together. These color harmonies include, Complementary, Triadic Harmony, and Split Complementary.

Learning COLOR HARMONIES helps us develop harmonies in color and color patterns that are useful when developing designs for hand knit or crochet projects, painting, and in many other artistic pursuits.

The first of the color harmonies, Complementary Colors are colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel as shown below. The chart below the color wheel shows how the colors complement each other.

Learning how colors can complement one another is so important in every day life and will help us in designing handmade crafts, fine arts, decorating, in our wardrobe, etc.



TRIADIC COLOR HARMONY

To find a Triadic Color Harmony on the color wheel, select a color, then choose two additional colors that are equally spaced apart. This concept is shown in the color wheel diagram below.

The color chart that is located below the color wheel above shows how triadic colors compliment each other.

Using the concepts of selecting color harmonies is helpful in everyday living as we choose pleasing colors to design knitting, crochet & sewing projects, designing home decor, entertaining, cooking, creating artwork and in almost every aspect of life.



SPLIT COMPLEMENTARY COLORS

Split Complementary Colors are a color and the two colors next to it's complement on the color wheel.

This is shown in the color wheel shown below:

The Chart below shows how Split Complementary Colors complement each other:

Using Split Complementary Colors to design fashions, knitting, crocheting, art work, in decorating,etc. makes them more interesting and pleasing to the eye.

TRIAD & TETRAD COMPLEMENTARY COLORS

Learning how to use the color wheel in every day applications can be both challenging and rewarding.

The final two color harmonies that we will be discussing are Triad and Tetrad complementary colors.

Triad colors are three colors that are equally spaced on the color wheel as shown in the diagram below:

Tetrad colors are four colors that are equally spaced on the color wheel as shown in the diagram below:

COLOR DEFINITIONS

QUICK REFERENCE

Now that we have reviewed the main components of Color, it is important to have a quick reference guide to Color and it's definitions. The chart below gives Color definitions for your convenience.

COLOR: Described by the three dimensions of intensity, hue, and value.

Intensity: Also known as Saturation or Chroma. Means the relative degree of brightness or dullness of a color.

Hue: A specific color family with it's relative degree of warmness or coolness.

Value: The relative degree of lightness or darkness of a color.

Primary Color: Yellow, Red and Blue. These colors cannot be mixed from any other colors.

Secondary Color: Two primary colors mixed together resulting in Green, Orange and Violet.

Intermediate Color: Also known as Tertiary Colors. Achieved when one primary and one secondary color are mixed together.

Warm or Advancing Colors: Yellow, Red and Orange colors.

Cool or Receding Colors: Green, Blue, and Violet colors.

Tint: White plus Color.

Tone: Gray plus Color or it's compliment.

Shade: Black plus Color.

Key Color: A Dominant Color in a color scheme or mixture.

Neutral Gray: A Combination of White and Black.

Chromatic: A Color with hue, including Red, Green and Violet, etc.

Achromatic: A Color without hue, including White, Black and Gray.

Achromatic Color Scheme: A Color scheme using only White, Black and Gray.

Monochromatic Color Scheme: a Color Scheme using one color in different values.

Analogous Color Scheme: A Color Scheme using colors that lie next to one another on the color wheel.

Complementary Color Scheme: A Color Scheme using colors directly opposite on the the color wheel.

Split-Complementary Color Scheme: A Color Scheme using one color plus the two colors next to it's complement on the color wheel.

Triad: Three Colors equally spaced on the color wheel.

Tetrad: Four Colors equally spaced on the color wheel.

Now you can use this quick reference guide along with Lessons in Color Mixing when designing your craft items, crochet and knit pieces, your art work, fashions and in decorating!

LET'S TALK PILLOWS

                          Cocoa Brown Suede Flower Pillow

Yes, I'm going to talk about PILLOWS today!  Decorative Throw Pillows to be specific, can add a lot of decoration and fun to your home whether they are large, medium or a small size. They may feature embroidery, hand painting, stamping, stitching or applique and more.

Pillows have a long history dating back to ancient Asia where they were used by only the wealthiest of men. Highly decorated pillows were a prized commodity in ancient Persia and China and later in Medieval England before the Industrial Revolution made mass reproduction of pillows available to the general masses. Did you know that some ancient Egyptians even slept on pillows made of stone?

Thankfully, pillows of stone are out of vogue and have evolved into the soft and luxurious necessities that they are today. Pillows can be found in an infinite array of colors, designs and fabrics, mass produced and handmade.

I have searched the web for the most attractive accent  throw pillows available for purchase, these being mass produced, of course. Would you be surprised to know that I found only about 15 percent of them even attractive enough to considering for  purchase.

Personally, I prefer the handmade   throw pillows which are much more attractive and suitable for  accenting the home. Handmade accent throw pillows can be compared to art... a mass produced print to  an original oil painting. Of course, the original oil painting has more quality, endurability and attractiveness than a mass produced print picture. It's the same comparision with accent throw pillows, the handmade is generally of higher quality, has much more endurance and is much more attractive to the eye. They also come in One Of A Kind designs and  in designer fabrics that really showcase your home decor and reflect who you are.

After searching the web I discovered that the most attractive and well made accent throw pillows were handmade by etsy.com artisians.  These artisians handcraft their custom accent throw pillows with the finest materials, design and sew them with quality, endurance and attractiveness in mind. These artisians love what they do and are trying to continue to keep the handmade movement alive.

They come from all walks of life, housewives and stay-at-home moms,  grandmothers, granddaughters, grandfathers and sons, professional persons, young, old and in-between. They can be found in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Latin American, Asia and all over the world. Etsy artisians are made up a huge worldwide family working together to make a difference.

Etsy artisians design and handcraft an infinite array of products at an affordable price for you and your home and even your dog or cat. If it can be made, you will find it in an etsy shop.

Here are a few of my favorite  accent throw pillows that I found in Etsy shops. Keep in mind, however, that this is just an extremely small sample of the accent throw pillows available in Etsy shops. There are hundreds and hundreds to choose from.

Americana Red Star by Unique Cozy Treasures

Joel Dewberry Sparrows Designer Print By beckorama

Horse Pillow By Crocheted By Charlene

Bird in Teal By Pillow Mio

Pine Cone Print Pillows By Unique Cozy Treasures

May Your Holiday Season be Joyous!

                                          Deb

A Great Junk Day Find!

 One day several years ago while as I was driving down a street in a small Iowa town, I spotted this old antique farm table sitting beside the curb surrounded by mountains of other items in a huge pile. The owner of the table and other items was busy in his garage nearby gathering up even more items to add to the pile.

   

  At this time please keep in mind that this old farm table was painted with silver paint and was anything less than attractive. The older generation of farmers used to paint tables, benches, etc. with silver paint to protect them from the elements when they were used out-of-doors. I'm not sure how long or why the owner of table had it, beings he was an attorney, probably never a farmer and lived in the beautiful house near the curbside. However, possibly it had been used in his lavishly beautiful garage that sits next to his beautiful house.

At any rate, I stopped to visit with the attorney to ask him if he was throwing the table away and if so, may I have it. He said I could have it and anything else in the pile that I wanted. My friend who was traveling with me thought the table to also be a pile of junk, but agreed to help me lift it into the pickup truck bed and haul it home.

   Once I got the farm table home after hauling it for 5 hours to the town I live in, I set it set in my garage for sometime trying to decide what I could do with it to repurpose it. Finally, one summer day I decided to slap some leftover paint on it one coat at a time with different colors.  Then, the final coat I brushed on was an exterior white, so it would continue to be protected from the outside elements if I decided to just leave it outside on my patio.

One day I mentioned to my son that I was thinking of shortening the legs to make a coffee type table out of it, but it was just a passing thought at the time. To my surprise when I had returned from a short out-of-town trip........my son had sawn off the legs of the table so he could  use it  as a game table when entertaining his friends! Since this isn't in my son's character to take it upon himself to alter my furniture without permission first,  I was somewhat shocked to find my table reduced to size. I was happy, though, that he did get all four of the legs cut to the same height and it looked really kinda cute and unique.

I had so many compliments on the table that I eventually set it in my livingroom where it resides today.Everyone loves it just the way it is now. Since, I am redoing my livingroom this summer, I'm not sure whether the table will be staying in this spot or if I will move it to the patio with my adirondack chairs, which also need some tender loving paint or whatever.

Incidently,  the friend who helped me lift the junk table into the truck and haul it home, suddently realized after it was repurposed, that maybe it wasn't junk after all....it may look really  great in his livingroom.(lol)

Anyway, the moral of this story is...."One Mans Junk is Another WoMan's Treasure" :)

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If you enjoy puppies and dogs you may want to check out my other blog: http://www.debsdogblogg.blogspot.com/

You may also enjoy this fun newborn puppy video from our second litter of German Shepherd puppies born in November 2008. Loved raising puppies, but am out of it now.  Since spring is puppy time, I thought you all may enjoy this cute video....