What to do Weekends #251

Hi friends and Welcome to What to do Weekends!  So excited to finally to be enjoying some RAIN and more Fall-like weather, here in Northern California!  No surprise to most of you that this truly is My favorite time of the year. I'm so grateful that you have come to join in the fun at this party! So much talent is a little intimidating. I'm so grateful that you have come to join in the fun at this party! That said here are some of the Features for this week! 

Bombshell Bling share this yummy recipe for her Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Recipe! I can't wait to try her recipe! 

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Angie from The Country Chic Cottage's Fall Candles: Make These for Fall Scents Can't you just smell all the yumminess?!! I can't wait to try this! Thank you Angie! 

Please follow myself and Linda while you are linking up! 

You can find Linda Blogging here Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Thanks!

What to do Weekends #250 ~ Happy November!

Hi friends and Welcome to What to do Weekends! Hello November! So excited to finally get some Fall like weather here in Northern California. There's even a chance of rain, that has a lot of us extremely excited, present company included. :) This is my favorite time of the year. I'm so grateful that you have come to join in the fun at this party!

I got back to blogging myself this week and shared my locally famous recipe for Almond Orange Biscotti Recipe that is seriously far better than any I have ever tasted in any cafe. If you have a chance click on over and have a look.

Here's a little teaser.

Now, time to get on with the party! Please follow myself and Linda while you are linking up! 

You can find Linda Blogging here Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Thanks!

Once again, you guys did not disappoint! So much to see, so little time! I'm always amazed at the amount of talent that is shared at this party. 

Just look at my first Feature tonight! Jenn from Clean and Scentsible showed us how to make your own Pumpkin Soap! Love this idea! 

What to do Weekends #236 ~ Last Party for July

Hi Friends! Happy Wednesday and Happy What to Weekends party! 

Welcome and Thank you!

I'm so grateful you have joined me, here. Your creativity just abounds. It's extremely difficult every week to just pick a few of your posts to Feature, with SO much talent. 

So, I'm doing one thing a little different this week with my Features;  First up, is your most clicked on pick for the week!  Your fingers and mine were clicking on Penny's, of Penny's Vintage Home's, beautiful post Creative Ways to Display Plants I just LOVE this too! So nice job Penny!

Angie over at Deco Art Blog shared this truly fun vignette with her Painted Pallet Art

Of course, I have been pinning away all week, too, so please be sure to Please do check out the Party Board!  

What to do Weekends #235

Welcome to Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!

If you are new to the Party. We are so very glad you are here!  I've have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board!  

I hope you will link up and check out the Features, both here, and with Linda @ Crafts a la Mode! Thanks for sharing with us! I hope you are having a WONDERFUL (almost) WEEKEND!

Here are a few of my favorites and Features for this week!

Sparkle's beautiful Strawberry Shortcake

Repurpose and Upcycle's fun Farmhouse Entryway made with Thrifted Finds

What to do Weekends #219

Welcome to Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!

If you are new to the Party. We are so very glad you are here!  I've have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 

Here are my Featured Picks for this week! (Again, just scratching the surface of all the talent you all shared, here!)

Happy April! Again, already!! Time is flying by! 

Clean and Scentsible shared her beautiful Springtime Decorating with Faux Flowers

If you aren't already following Linda and myself,   please do so now with one of the following links!

You can find Linda Blogging here @ Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Thanks!

What to do Weekends #214

Happy Weekend and Welcome to this week's What to do Weekends Party! 

I'm so glad you are here. I pray you are all staying warm, and dry. Can you believe it's almost March?!  That's right, this is the last party of February, already!! 

You all just keep the Inspiration rolling! I am in awe of all your talent! Linda and I are so grateful that you join us each week and we are still pinning your wonderful offerings away on our Party Board.

As hard as it was to choose....here are my Features for this week! Truly, I could Feature much more, but I have to stop somewhere.

First up, By Dreams Factory shared this absolutely beautiful and easy DIY 5 Minute Decal Transfer on A Pitcher Just gorgeous! 

If you aren't already following Linda and myself,   please do so now with one of the following links!

You can find Linda Blogging here @ Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Thanks!

What to do Weekends # 192 ~ First Featured Blogger!

Happy First Day of FALL!
You all have no idea how long I've been wanting to say that! But, it's here now!! Yay!
Welcome to Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!

Thank you so much, to all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations.   

I LOVE all the creativity you bring to this Party!  If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 

Here are my Featured Picks for this week!

Sadie Seasongoods adorable Halloween Bandana Pumpkins

I LOVE and am envious of Embellishments Fall and Halloween Front Porch Decor Ideas! She has quite a nice round up, lots of Inspiration and Ideas!! 

What to do Weekends #191

Welcome back to Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!

As usual, Shoestring Elegance is joining up with my dear friend, Linda, from Crafts a la Mode, to host our "What to do Weekend Party", and we couldn't be more excited to be here with you!

 We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations,  If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 
Let get on with it! So much to share!! My Features this week begin with:

The Real Thing with the Coake Family shared these absolutely adorable little DIY Glitter Pumpkins

By Dreams Factory shared this adorable Enjoy the Little Things Printable that I just adore.

I'd really appreciate if you could connect with us in some way. :) 

You can find Linda Blogging here @ Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Upcycling an Old Cassette Crate!

Hi Friends! I know you are probably shocked to see me back with a project of my own, and not just the weekly party!  It has, unfortunately been a very long time.... There is a very good, life altering, reason for that, which I hope to share with you very soon.  But, for today, I just wanted to get back at it! 

What to do Weekends #189 ~ Happy September!

Starting THIS month, Linda and I, will each be Featuring one talented  Blogger each month! There's so much talent here, we don't even scratch the surface with our Features. So, we are hoping this will be just one more way for us to turn the spotlight on you!

Happy September!! I'm SO READY for Fall!!
 Welcome back to Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!
As usual, Shoestring Elegance is joining up with my dear friend, Linda, from Crafts a la Mode, to host our "What to do Weekend Party", and we couldn't be more excited to be here with you!
 We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations,  If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 
Let get on with it! So much to share!! My Features this week begin with:
The Red Paint Cottage shared It's Pumpkin Time and Summer Isn't Over Yet!
Love this vignette!

By Dreams Factory shared these perfect Easy Seasonal Decorating with French Jars (Okay, esy for her, anyway) :)

What to do Weekends #187

NEW! Starting next month, Linda and I, will each be Featuring one talented  Blogger each month! There's so much talent here, we don't even scratch the surface with our Features. So, we are hoping this will be just one more way for us to turn the spotlight on you!

Welcome ALL! I'm so glad you're here!  I hope you're all surviving Back-to-School time!
 Welcome back to  Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!
 Shoestring Elegance is joining up with my friend, Linda, from Crafts a la Mode,  to host our "What to do Weekend Party", and we couldn't be more excited!
 We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations,  If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 
First off, my Bonus Feature!  I Fell in Love with a Vintage Green's Beautiful Tutorial of Le Petit Gateau and Bakery Signs!

What to do Weekend's #186

Good evening. I hope you're all having a beautiful August.
 Welcome to  Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!
 Shoestring Elegance is joining Linda, from Crafts a la Mode to be your hostesses and we could not be more excited to have you here, joining us for our "What to do Weekend Party"! We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations
If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 
Here are some of my beautiful favorites for this week and Shoestring Elegance's Features!

I loved Lolly Jane's Distressed Farmhouse Pots!

and Debby Goes Shabby's beautiful Friday Goodwill Finds in these cute little Mr. & Mrs. pillows, perfect on her rocking

Sam @ Raggedy Bits created this adorable DIY Rustic Pallet Bath Caddy! I need one!

What to do weekends #184

Hi, Friends, and Happy last week of July! Can you believe it?! Although, it is no secret to my regular readers, right now I am truly, once again,  Anxiously Awaiting Fall!  :)   

 Welcome to  Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!
 Shoestring Elegance is joining Linda, from Crafts a la Mode to be your hostesses and we could not be more excited to have you here, joining us for our "What to do Weekend Party"! We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations
***Please note:  Shoestring Elegance and Crafts a la Mode each select and display their own Features, each week. So, If you don't see your entry Featured, here, make sure to see if you're one Linda's Features this week~!**

If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 

On with it, then!
Here are some of my beautiful favorites for this week and Shoestring Elegance's Features!
I'm totally in Love with

My DIY Envy's Farmhouse Furniture Makeover with Old Fashioned Milk Paint

What to do Weekends #182

Hey Friends, My sincerest apologies. I'm having some computer issues, so I'll try and just get the party going and hope to come back and add some of last weeks faves for my features!

 Welcome to  Shoestring Elegance and the What to do Weekends Party!

 I'm Theresa, here, from Shoestring Elegance, joining Linda, from Crafts a la Mode, and we are your hostesses. We could not be more excited to have you here, joining us for our "What to do Weekend Party"! We'd like to Thank you all of you, who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY creations

***Please note:  Shoestring Elegance and Crafts a la Mode each select and display their own Features, each week. So, If you don't see your entry Featured, here, make sure to see if you're one Linda's Features this week~!**

If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!  We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 
For starters, though, I loved Honey and Birch's Brie with Pickled Blueberries and am definitely going to be trying this out!

What to do Weekends #162

Welcome to What to do Weekends Party! Can you believe this is the last party of February?!!
 Theresa from Shoestring Elegance and Linda from Crafts a la Mode are your hostesses and we could not be more thrilled to have you here to help us kick off the Weekend and the Party!!  Before we start, Thank you so much to all of you who come join us here, each week, with your wonderful Crafts, Recipes and DIY incredible creations with us every week~

If you are new to the Party, Welcome! We are so very glad you are here!

We have been pinning away, during the week, so, Please do check out the Party Board! 

Please try and connect with us both in some way!

You can find Linda Blogging here @ Crafts a la Mode

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You can connect with me right here @ Shoestring Elegance

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Theresa's Bonus Feature this week belongs to Heathered Nest's  We're On a Roll

Forever Decorating's Logic Won Out

Chalk Painted Mason Jars!

I have been a very busy blogger here, this Spring! I LOVE it!  The weather has been nice enough for beautiful blooms galore everywhere you look, yet cool enough that it's not uncomfortable and still a good time to have projects to do inside. It really would be the best of both worlds, if we weren't in the worst drought in history, here, in Northern California.

I am often asked, for one occasion or another to make floral arrangements. Whether it be for a church function, holiday festivities or family event. I imagine you have seen some of my arrangements, here, by now. If not, where have you been? And, Welcome!

(Distressed with twine, just baby's breath)

I am very excited that my Nephew is getting married in July! His quite, smart and savvy fiance, is a Pinner, a Cook, and a DIY'er, too, and quite gifted! So, when I heard she wanted a budget-friendly, country shabby-chic-ish reception, I, of course, asked what I could do.

May -- Chalk Paint Tray!!

I hope you are all enjoying the beautiful weather, as I have been. I’m quite excited to share with you all the wonderful project I've been working on.  I have been so excited about doing this for the last   month, since I found this little treasure at the Goodwill…

It made me wonder through. What is about the vintage? The Old French Country?  The Antiques, that we find that excites us and makes us want to restore or remake them to into something beautiful, something that feels as if it’s from days Gone by?I have in my home a beautiful little floral tray with handles and an edge. I love it!!!

I prepare my noon meal, snack or an early supper and place it on my old floral tray, along with my napkin, my drink, the salt and pepper and butter and take it to wherever I feel like dining. Whether on the front porch, on the couch, down to the garden, or even here at my desk.   Did I mention, I love it? 

I don’t know if it is so much the tray or the joy of preparing it and then feasting from it as if I was Jane Austin’s “Emma” in the garden and the cook had just brought it to me. I believe it is that feel of yester year that is so simply and  elegantly irresistible.. That for those 15-30 minutes were transported back in time… Maybe it’s just me!! But if sounds like you too, you’ll love the project I’m sharing with you today!

So here it is!  I happened upon this rather tattered , well-used wooden tray at my favorite thrift store.  It had wear, some water mark a few scratches, but over all the bones of it were quite good and I believed with a little chalk paint and some work it could be possible my new little favorite luxury.. Did I mention the price? Oh yes, it was a little more than I usually pay, it was $2.99, but I decided it would be worth it.

So as much as I would love to have some of Ms. Annie Sloan’s beautiful Chalk paint and wax, I simply can not afford it.  So, I searched for alternatives to achieve the same type of finish and found that Lowe’s carries Behr’s version of Chalk paint, a sample container for only 4.99!!! Everybody has told  me a little goes a long way so I decided to test the theory. And, I am pleased to say I was very happy with the results.. What do you think?

So here’s what I did;

Sanded the tray and wiped clean with damp cloth

Applied 2 coats of Behr’s White Linen Chalk Paint (only took 1/3 of the sample)

Sanded the edges....(distressed it) to my liking

Applied regular wood wax for light woods rubbed it in then wiped of any excess. Waited  for an hour then applied Clear Polyurethane That’s it!!! 

Used it twice already.  I hope you enjoy making something that speaks to your heart today!

The best part of my little tray Re-do;  total cost for this project approx. $5.50, given that I have two-thirds of the chalk paint left.  What fun I am going to have deciding how to use it!

 I hope you all have a Heavenly day!