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Finding me

Category Archives: Beach Pahhhlease

Cool made all the cooler

25 Monday Jun 2018

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

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Rarely do I buy anything new. It just doesn’t suit my decorating style or even my lifestyle for that matter. I adore things that have been around the block a time or two and have a story to tell from their adventures. My only rule of thumb… the item I’m going to spend some time with, must be well made! Listen to a girl thats been there done that ohhhh so many times….don’t waste your time, talent, and funds on something that is dodgy.  (that includes relationships).

In every aspect of pulling a home together, I will seek out oldies but goodies in effort to add a uniqueness and a flair that just can not be found in new items.

Architectural salvage yards are my favorite place to spend an afternoon. My mind is flooded with inspiration as I walk around touching the rust of an old iron gate that has swung open and close through the years, corbels that once held roof lines in place, porch railings that folks leaned against most likely sippin on some sweet tea, crystal chandeliers that one day I hope to scatter and hang from the old oak tree out in the back yard. Heck I even enjoy looking through old bins of metal bric-a-brac items that have no real use other than to play beautifully with the creative juices that are ever flowing as I linger in such a space.

Doors however have proven to be some of my favorite finds. I’ve replaced new hollow doors with solid ones made years before, for a fraction of the price.  Turned an old door into a coolieo desk, or a one of a kind head board, and my favorite…

room dividers

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One side is where magic is created (truly this happens anywhere and everywhere). However with the door dividers, all my goodies are house on one side hiding the genius mess from where we like to sit, read, practice music, and watch TV. 

Recently I came across an old door that was the perfect height and width and will soon prove its ultra coolness by being an accessory holder in my bedroom.

And the price…

well that was just icing on the cake…

some folks just love to give away their old stuff (hands raised, dancing in the street as I celebrate such a find. My daughter, however, will no longer walk the neighborhood with me on trash night : D ).

The only draw back with my new-old find was it was it was old and chippy but not nearly old and chippy enough.

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So I got down and dirty…

really dirty.

And because I like y’all so much I took pictures along the way so I could share the process of how I took an plain ol’ somewhat chippy door and turned it into this radically cool ol’ chippy door.

 

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Items needed:

  1. First and foremost freedom of mind. Don’t allow even for a second of doubt to come in. You can do this! I promise you. It takes a bit of time, a bit of paint, a bit of curiosity (which is just plain needed in ALL areas of life)
  2. Paints. I like to use up all my leftovers for projects like this. You can use your old wall paint, left over cans of milk paints, chalk paint, mineral paints…the choices here are limited only by you and what you want your final piece to look like.
  3. Car wax (turtle wax and such) this is a must item to help make the job at hand eaiser.
  4. Gloves, so as not to get ultra messy
  5. Scraper and sand paper
  6. Whatever object you want to make oh so cool

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First step~ clean off any dirt, dust, debris from your piece. Typical I don’t sand at this point for I love the chips and scratches that are already there to remain.

Second step~ because I wanted some of the original paint to show through so I added the car wax. This step will be done between each coat allowing you to pick and choose what area you would like to scrap the paint away easily. The wax acts as a buffer, not allowing the paint on top to adhere fully to the paint and piece underneath.  This is a HUGE step and in doing this you will find it is so much easier to scrap away the unwanted paint.

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Third step~ paint over choosen piece, car wax and all.  The wax may mix into the paint, not to worry as I stated this just helps to keep the top paint a bit loose and allows for easy removal. I like to start with my darkest paint and the one I want to see the least of .

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Fourth step~ scrap away and sand as little or as much of the paint to reveal the colors underneath.

Coninue between the second and fourth step for as many layers and colors as you would like to have.

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Between each layer add the car wax here and there to the areas you would like to continue to bring forth.

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Once you have gotten your piece to the desired look, celebrate and rejoice as you sand it down, and perhaps varnish (I typically skip right over this, allowing it to continue to age gracefully) for you have given a bit of love and care to a discarded old piece and turned it into something new, useable, and oh so charming.

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Investing~

17 Thursday May 2018

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

 

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Some things are just worth the time, energy, care, and love. Ultimately they are worthy of investment.

However from time to time figuring out what those things are, can prove a bit tricky. So in an effort to better understand the real definition of investment, I googled it. ; D

in·vest·ment
inˈves(t)mənt/
noun
noun: investment; plural noun: investments
*an act of devoting time, effort, or energy to a particular undertaking with the expectation of a worthwhile result.

 

Two things struck me with this investment’s definition.

First~ ‘devoting’.

Whoa, that’s one powerful word.

de·vote
dəˈvōt/
verb
*give all or a large part of one’s time or resources to (a person, activity, or cause)…

When you give thought to it, outside of God, self, and family, what, really, are we devoted to? Hmmmm?

Second~ ‘with the expectation of’

Being someone who lives with a childlike spirit means life is new and exciting everyday. And made all the more complete by its constant awe and wonderment. So rarely are expectations put on anything other than maybe the fact that joy and fun WILL be part of daily life.

Leaving me to ponder…

do I really invest in anything???

Well hayels bells…

do I?

As I sat at my computer a-thinkin’, I began to look around my home. Gazing at the lovingly restored pieces. Frames that hold priceless memories of people and places. Plants~ green and thriving (HUGE feat). Collected alabaster lamps that have been stripped, cleaned, and rewired. Every wall filled with paintings created over the years with my daughter. Sofas that support while allowing friends to sit and laugh or comfort each other.

Love, devotion, and investment of care and time is seen and felt in everything that surrounds me.

As the thoughts flowed away, feelings of unfathomable gratitude and complete abundance surged through my entire being and my heart sang out with a resounding…yes, yes, YES I do invest.

Radically.

Beautifully.

Devotedly.

But ONLY where it counts. In relationships that fulfill, lift, and honor each other. In things that bring care, pleasure, and enjoyment to the body, mind, and spirit. Through the creative juices that beckons me at my very core. Within ventures that allow for cohesive collaboration, allowing everyone involved a place where their strengths shine, and any weakness are absorbed into and by the collective.

And lawdy be it took awhile and many, ohhhh so many good attempts through the years to learn to only invest my time, skills, and energy in real things. Things like solid wood, sleek marble, gorgeous metal, and items with beautiful craftsmanship.

My latest investment’s before and after

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Only one drawer in, but I could tell straight off it had stunning potential.

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Hunting in my own home~

08 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Y’all I love to hunt!

There is such a thrill of getting out there into the unknown, the anticipation, the search the hope, that the perfect ‘trophy’ will come into range.

My hunt however has never been with guns, rather with an open mind and creative spirit.

My hunting grounds…

thrift stores

salvage yards

used furniture stores

and from time to time if the bounty is just right…other folks trash.

In fact found some excellent shelves for my bathroom just this way, however now my family will no longer walk the neighborhood with me on trash nights.

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Rarely do I have a strategy or solid idea of what I am hunting for. I just head out and allow the imagination to run wild. Sometimes there will be a need that I am trying to meet, such as rods for curtains that require hanging and come across old scroll iron work that creatively fit the bill while meeting the need.

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Or a desire to have a bedside table and stumble upon industrial shelves, that beautifully provided additional storage.

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The current need around here became apparent as we were getting ready for an annual New Year’s tradition…Star Wars movie marathon. My gal, instead of sitting on the sofa in the TV room/studio, brought cushions from another room’s sofa stating “the sofa out there is so uncomfortable”.

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And as I settled in next to her and her giant panda that was our movie guest/pillow for the night. I agreed the “floor sofa” was indeed more pleasant to sit on and made a promise I’d begin searching for more comfortable seating during my upcoming hunting trips.

Now friends I fully intended to keep my promise in a timely manner, even though, right now, every dime I’m able to save is being saved for new kitchen counter tops. Yet I knew I could pursue this promise by perusing with patience the wonderful discarded sofas and chairs out there. Having just helped a friend replace a sofa with just such an excellent find and in the process spending less for this well made, vintage, curved, corduroy sofa than we would have for a venti Starbucks cappuccino.

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So off I went goodwill hunting and happened upon not a sofa but a fabulous idea…

In one of the used furniture store they had a twin bed set up with a king sized headboard running along the backside. It was an ingenious idea that turned a twin mattress into a day-bed/sofa. Forgoing the continued hunting excursion. I headed home tearing apart the currently unused metal farmed twin bed that had been my daughters, handed down to her from one of her grandmothers. Then searching through boxes found a quilt my dad gave me when I had left for college almost 30 years ago. Scooping up all the extra pillows I could find around the house, and securing old doors as our ‘sofa’ back…I fulfilled my promise before we began watching Return of the Jedi and without spending a cent.

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So before you shop retail, check out second-hand stores, and before you go there, hunt your own home. There is treasure everywhere!

Y’all tell us about some of your excellent finds, repurposed items, and creative resources.

 

A masterpiece in the making~

17 Friday Nov 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

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Round these here parts there is always a project going on.

ALWAYS

Sometimes, we have multiple ones taking place at the same time. Yet typically there is one project that takes center stage. And this one project typically falls into one or more of three categories…

  1. it is a gift for another with a specific timeframe to which it needs to be given
  2. it has somehow caused a disruption or upheaval in the home and has infiltrated our peaceful serenity with it’s chaos
  3. it is a current obsession and my hands and mind can’t seem to stop playing, creating, or enjoying it

Many of these projects begins with a simple idea. Rarely do the ins and outs, hows and hows nots, the do and don’ts come with the initial spark of genius. Nope it’s merely a flicker of creativity that takes place then requires a bit of gumption, a great deal of spirit, one giant leap into the unknown, and then with time, effort, and fun… ultimately the idea takes shape and comes into being.

Our entire home has been created just this way. Idea after idea. Leap after leap. Project after project. Always a work in progress however when I or anyone else walks into the space we are enveloped by elegance, uniqueness, and simple beauty. Nothing here is perfect. In fact most of the pieces are somehow perfectly imperfect. Not one single item holds much monetary value. Yet all has been lovingly created, restored and placed. And as I sit here on my 14-year-old slip covered sofa typing out these radon thoughts to y’all, every single thing within my line of sight makes me smile with appreciation, gratitude and even pride for there is a sense of unmeasurable joy in creating such an environment.

Even my current project that leans unassuming against the fireplace in front of the stairs, brings about a smile.

Well…

at least now it does.

 

IMG_1567 Continue reading →

Crossing the bridge, finally~

29 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

10 years ago, I ran, jogged, walked, just about lost my cookies, and hit the wall while doing a 15K.

Two things factored in the almost cookie loss and wall hitting.

Thing one…my longest run/jog/walk at that time had only been 5 miles

Thing two…I was completely ill prepared for May and Orlando’s humidity, temperatures, and lack of breeze.

Crazy as it sounds, having lived in FL for 13 years and walking a step or two round the amusement parks that’s here, I thought…ain’t a thang, I so got this.

Hmmm hmmm hmmm honey child

Walking round the Mouse’s house to wait endlessly in lines, is not running, jogging, walkin’ 9.3 miles in the same shoes.

Y’all, get what I’m steppin’ in here? Continue reading →

When taking on a mountain…

18 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

…sometimes, in the midst of the enormity of it, I’ll tackle a molehill in order to feel accomplished.

Last week we came through hurricane Irma, for the most part, unscathed. Our yard, on the other hand, went through quite a bit of updating in its landscape. And the clean up from that… has been a dentist visit short of fun!

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Also, I found myself finally getting the bug my daughter, my boss and, two of my friends were hayel bent on bestowing upon me. Typically, I do everything in my power to avoid getting sick, however when it hits I then do everything in my power to get over it oh so quickly. Which became challenging last week with rest difficult to find while storms raged outside my hot hot house that had lost power the moment the wind gust was up over 30 miles per hour.

All and all, gratefully, we manged through successfully and have emerged feeling better, with our house in tact, a cleaned out restocked fridge, and once again a cool bed to rest our weary heads.

Yet even with the lights restored and my energy (sluggishly) returning I’ve had no desire to face the kitchen renovation (the mountain). So I took on a molehill and boy howdy if it is not the cutest lil ‘ol molehill. Continue reading →

Life after a hurricane…

16 Saturday Sep 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

 y’all, it is messy.

 VERY VERY MESSY!!!

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There is water everywhere except coming from the kitchen faucet or found in bottles at the stores.

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Trees and huge tree size branches have fallen over or broken off, blocking our already flooded streets.

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Which in some ways is okay, since there is nowhere, city-wide, to purchase gas. Making staying put the best option.

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Power outages are far-reaching, making the difficult task of being a lineman even more so (thank YOU ALL for the outstanding service you provide. It is most appreciated).

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Kids are out of school for DAYS, no need to elaborate on the mess this can cause.

And no one, I mean no one, other than perhaps a new-born has slept good or had a good cup of coffee (not even the new-born) for days. 

But, and this but is huge…

 there is also beauty in it all.

Truly!

For when a community comes together in the midst of the messiness…beauty is seen.

Friends step in with chain saws to cut the fallen trees off driveways and roofs.

Generators, hot showers, and cool beds, are provided from those who were fortunate to have their power restored.

First responders, leave their families to help others at the most desperate.  And while thank you never seems enough for their dedication and service, the gratitude is still deeply felt every time those two simple words are uttered.

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Shelter, is offered from those whose homes withstood the storm, to those whose home were flooded in the deluge.

You talk or text (once cell service is restored) to absolutely EVERYone that you love most in the world.

Walks on the beach, when once again allowed, offers an immense bounty of beautiful sea treasures. Plus my gal and I became rescue workers, aiding in returning 16 creatures to their home in the sea.

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And the sun and all its stunning glory shines itself out over all our new water front properties. 

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*Photo credit to TC Palm for the first eleven photos

* Photo credit to me for the other two

 

“Oh my heck!!!”~

09 Saturday Sep 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 10 Comments

Anyone that knows me well or even not so much, knows “oh my heck” comes out of my mouth or from my feverish thumbs tapping out those three simple words, often

So often in fact I’ve thought they deserved their own acronym. Even considered campaigning on OMH’s behalf, with the expectation, that in time, OMH might hold the same ranking as OMG.

However currently there is far too much on my plate, namely a wild hair project …

“just a small”

“wont take but a minute”

“I soooo got this”…

kind of painting project, that would make taking on a campaign, even one as worthwhile as OMH’s, just down right silly.

Here’s the deal y’all, I had no real idea what I was getting myself into when I began this project. 

Absolutely NONE!

I mean, how could I?

I’ve never undertaken a project of such magnitude.

Yet, that small, seemingly necessary fact was not, nor has it ever been, a determining nor deterring factor of mine. When I get a vision, jumping right on into it, brings my life undeniable excitement and ever-increasing happiness.

This reckless abandonment serves me well. Turning each of my modest homes and salvage yard finds into comfortable, beautiful, livable works of art. And while, yes, trials and even from time to time, errors do occur, there is a great deal of learning that takes place and provides knowledge and wisdom that might have only been gained through this type of apprenticeship.

However today as I stare a bit glossy eyed, slightly overwhelmed, muttering OMH, OMH, OMH, by the magnitude of what I am facing today…

no, not hurricane Irma churning its way to my beloved state, for with her all I can do is prepare and pray…

but by that which is my kitchen for all intense and purpose.

 Ground zero of the wild hair project…

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Continue reading →

Went a got myself a wild hair~

23 Wednesday Aug 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, BeautyFULL, Imperfectly Perfect, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Now folks this phenomena happens often, so there’s nothing to be alarmed about.

In fact my family grew accustomed to often walking into a rearranged home.

Having unusual concoctions come from the kitchen, based on whatever I fancied that day.

Made the decision to take up yoga, purely because it felt so right walking into the studio for the first time.

On a whim, packed a bag and hit the road thirty minutes later for a 10 day road trip with my darlin’ gal. We had no reservations or real thought of where or what we’d be doing…just for the adventure of it.

Will dance a jig in the middle of the street if I feel so moved. Typical, this does happen when accompanied by a live band playing near by, so as not to look like a total spaz.

Was ready to make an offer on the little cottage-home I now live in and am renovating without ever stepping a foot inside.

Even made a decision to hang up a 20 year career, in the time it took to walk across a bank lobby.

To say I navigate my life based on feelings, discernment, and intuition would be a straight arrow hitting the bull smack dab in the eye. Dang if that didn’t just gave me a notion… archery might just be the next hairy ring I step into.

For now, let’s get back to my current, crazy, curly, over the top hair that has taken over my home. Well, mostly the kitchen but aggressively has spilt  itself out into the living room and studio. And while I am not fully ready or able to share the wildness of this hair just yet I will give a glimpse into what is acomin’ down the pike…

Chalk paint….

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and dark cabinets…

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A match made in wild hair haven

 

Uncharted territory

08 Thursday Jun 2017

Posted by Krista in Beach Pahhhlease, Bits & Pieces of a Blessed Life, Bonafide Teen, Uncategorized

≈ 5 Comments

 

Me and my gal making our way through some uncharted territory and on into the world of video blogging. Was SOOOO fun! However before our next voyage…gonna work out some of the kinks, like hair going down my throat and wobbly stools bout to over throw us over.

Till next time, be blessed y’all

 

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A look back

  • June 2018
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  • November 2017
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  • June 2017
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All wrapped up, pretty like

What’s in a name?

William Shakespeare had a real knack with names~ creating some of the most memorable… Hamlet, Viola, Beatrice, Lady Macbeth, Titania and of course Romeo and his dear Juliet. Wish I had his talent for such because when it came to deciding on a name for this blog I tortured myself for weeks with ideas. Y’all the names I was considering ran the gamut~ from Simply Be to In His Image, Tongue & Cheek, all the way to Simply Southern Sass.

Each were fittin’ but none fit perfectly. I mean seriously I can rarely simply be. In fact it takes a great deal of efforting on my part to just BE. Nor could three simple words like Simply Southern Sass, adequately describe all that I am… yes, I am southern, yes, I am sassy but dang if I and hopfully this blog are not so much more!

As y’all will find in the days, weeks, months, and by grace… years to come, the gal writing this blog believes anything and everything is possible and feels most confident that she can do ALL that she desires. However in just trying to pick the title I came to discover that while believing in infinite possiblities and the blessings that belief holds it can also play out as a curse, causing one (me) to question ALL possibilities never quite settling on one. The one.

Then low and behold one night while laying in bed I got a silly text from a dear friend, so silly in fact only the most eloquent of responds would suffice…

“Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit”

And so it begins.

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