DKM art

Flea market fun, & the horrors of "Concession Trailer" food.

Hello, my darling friends!  When last we spoke, I was making plans to hit up the Springfield Antique Show & Flea Market, located in the armpit bucolic, southwestern portion of Ohio.  (Little known fact: Springfield was named the, "unhappiest city in America", in 2011.  Don't believe me?  Here ya go!) And so, on one of the hottest, and most allergy-laden days of May thus far, that's exactly what my boyfriend and I did.

We arrived at the fairgrounds quite a bit later than we had originally anticipated...due to the fact that the turnout was HUGE, and the one lone, retired, 90-plus-year-old-sheriff was a little slow moving in the directing of traffic off of Interstate 70.

After begrudgingly handing over our $24.00 (What the hell!!!  It was $10.00 only two years ago!!!) entrance fee, we were shown our parking space by a scowling, older gentleman who had more sweat stains than he did teeth.

Upon vacating the car, and walking the mile and a half through tall grass and biting, winged critters, our noses were met with the smell of yummy, fried goodness.  Ahhhhh....funnel cakes!  Things were looking up!

I will forewarn you, some of the photos I took didn't turn out too hot.  I apologize for that.  I also apologize for the "guest appearances" made by some people who have no business being photographed.  Ever.  I tried to crop out as many as I could, but you will notice the occasional creepy bare foot, and/or a grimace or two.  (The facial expression, not the beloved McDonald's character.)

One thing I did notice this year was the overabundance of crafting items.  In all of my years of attending this thing, I have NEVER seen so many flash cards, Scrabble tiles, bingo cards, typewriter keys, metal letters, and vintage milk tabs.  They were in almost every single "shop" and, although lovely to look at, were outrageously priced.  It just goes to show you how hot crafting has become...again.

Lunch time.  Seriously, the best brat in the U.S...Schmidt's!  I was MORE than ecstatic to see that Schmidt's had set up shop at the flea market.  If you find yourself in Columbus, Ohio, and you're craving brats, or even a half-pound "Jumbo Cream Puff" (yes...that is a real thing), this is the place you'll want to hit up.  I would recommend the actual restaurant, though.  Unless you enjoy standing in line for 30 minutes at local fairs and festivals.  It's THAT popular.  We opted for their regular brat, with sauerkraut.  But, although delicious looking, we passed on the half-pound cream puff.  There's something not right about ordering anything with cream in it, in 90 degree heat..ya know?

One of our fellow Schmidt's fans, enjoying the sun in her "Tangerine Tango" tutu.

The next photo is one of the last few pics I took.  Although the furniture was pretty cool, especially that old pie safe, my stomach was not prepared for his display of alligator purses.  Now, when I say "alligator purse" most of you will think of alligator skin.  Okay, keep thinking that...but add a head, feet, and a tail.  It was an actual alligator, molded into a purse shape.  Yes, I have seen them before, but not immediately after ingesting a brat as big as my head.  'Nuff said

Of course, no trip to the flea market would be complete without a funnel cake.  So, on our way out, we just had to stop and, well, our conversation went something like this, "Wait...what...what does that sign say?  Is that for real?  Do you think that maybe they hung that as a joke?  Oh dear, I don't think they did, cause they don't look like the joking types.  In fact, they look downright sweaty, angry, and not very good-humored, AT ALL.  Should we even get a funnel cake?  Well, maybe they got a deal on the sign cause it's missing a letter.  I mean, an IMPORTANT letter, but maybe they thought it was funny....???"

As it turns out, the allure of the funnel cake won out over our safety, and off we went with our paper-plate-covered, plastic-bag-melting, blob of powdered-sugar-covered, fried dough.  Yum.

As for the goodies we brought home, aside from heartburn and a thin layer of grease, I managed to pick up a couple of sweet little embroidered pillowcases, some heart-shaped glass ashtrays for my earrings, a bright orange and gold planter, and a fabulous stack of children's books.  All in all, a pretty good haul for less than $30.00!

Okay, my darlings, I hope this post gave you a few chuckles.  Thanks so much for stopping by for a visit, and I hope you have a fab-u-lous week!

Much love to you all,

xoxoxoDeirdre

Illustration Friday submission - Kernel.

Hello to all!  Well, here it is...my Illustration Friday submission.  Kernel.  That's right, I chose to take the completely obvious route, and go with a corncob.  Oh well, at least I uncovered a few yummy sounding recipes for grilled corn on the cob during my endless search for inspiration.  If anyone is interested, drop me a line and I'll send you the links.  Who would have thought...cumin!  Sprinkled on top of the butter.  Huh.  How 'bout that?  But I digress...

Okay, my darlings, I am off to bed.  I have a big day tomorrow that involves puttering around the Springfield Antique Show & Flea Market in the heat, dust, and debris that is Springfield, OH.  Actually, it's one of THE BEST flea markets I have EVER been to, and I'm not just saying that because they sell Bratwursts as big as my car, and funnel cakes with enough grease to render a paper plate completely and totally translucent in a matter of seconds.  They really do have some fantastic vendors, and will actually be offering a class in furniture painting tomorrow, which I think is awesome.  Needless to say, I will have my trusty camera with me, and will most likely be bombarding you with photos (hopefully of vintage goodies, but quite possibly a few of me being taken away by ambulance due to heat stroke, and over-indulgence in pork products), by Monday.

So, on that note, I wish you all a fab-u-lous weekend, and thank you SO much for stopping by for a visit.  As always, I really appreciate your company!

xoxoxoDeirdre 

Happy Mommy's Day!

I thought I would stop by and wish all of you Moms out there, as well as you Dads that have also taken on the role of Mom, a very happy and wonderful Mother's Day!  And while very few of you are able to sit back, relax, and eat a bon-bon or two...or three, here's hoping you are able to at least take a few moments for yourself, and reflect upon the fact that you are very much loved and adored, whether it's by a 2-legged child, or a 4-legged fluffy one. 

And to my own Mommy, I love you VERY much!  Happy Mother's Day!  (Now, go out and make Dad get ya a nice big cheeseburger, and some ice cream!  xoxoxoxo!)

Have a fabulous weekend, all!  And thanks so much for stopping by.  I'll talk at ya soon!

xoxoxoDeirdre

A nice surprise, & the loveliest color combination...EVER!

Hello darlings!  I hope this post finds everyone well and happy.  I don't have too terribly much to write about...my life tends to go this way once every three months, or so.  You know, when everything is simply normal.  Nothing exciting (unless you want to count changing the alignment of my blog post), nothing hellacious.  Just...average.  But, hell, I guess sometimes that's a good thing.  Especially in MY life.  Anyhoo...

...as I was going about my morning routine of picking up whatever crap Bonny had managed to track in across the floor after her morning "potty time", in walked my boyfriend, bearing the loveliest bouquet of what can only be described as coralish/yellowish/peachish/pinkish roses.  (I'm not a fan of red roses.  I find them ordinary.  Pretty, but ordinary.)  And, get this, he did it "just because"!  That's right..."just because"!  Sigh.  I'm a lucky gal.

Of course the first thing I did, aside from prying a stem from Bonny's vice-like jaw, was race upstairs to grab my camera.  Now, if you have been reading this blog for a while, you will remember that I suck at taking pictures of flowers.  Actually, suck doesn't do my suckiness justice.  I TOTALLY suck at it.  Don't believe me?  Here's your proof.  Told ya.

As for these photos, surprisingly enough, I actually don't mind a couple of them.  The one that gets under my skin is the middle photo, but I figured I should post it anyway so you can see the entire bouquet.  Isn't it pretty?  What a great combination of colors.  I would LOVE to have sheets in those colors...with a sort of ombre effect.  Hmmm...guess I know what I'll be Googling later this evening.

Well, my darlings, thank you once again for paying my humble little blog a visit.  I certainly do appreciate it!  Oh, and if you have time, why don't you swing by on Sunday for a chat?  I have a little bit of pretty to post for Mother's Day.  Now, normally I would do a "holiday" post a few days early. However, the item that I will be posting a photo of is the actual Mother's Day present I sent to my Mom.  In other words, if I put the photo up prior to Mother's Day, my nosy-britches Mom will sneak a peek.  And that is not cool.  Ya hear that, Mom?  NOT cool.

Have a fabulous weekend all, and if I don't see ya prior to Sunday, I wish each and every one of you a VERY happy Mother's Day!!!!!!  (And, yes, having a pet counts you as a Mother, too!)

xoxoxo, Deirdre 

A little sneaky-peeky of my pattern submission...

Hello, you precious things, you!  Well, believe it or not, I HAVE been working on my Fabric8/Spoonflower submission.  The tedious time consuming part of it is finally complete.  Don't get me wrong...I love watercolor.  But attempting to stay "within the lines" is pretty much a pain in the ass, considering the detail.

Anyhoo, today I start on the "ink" portion of the drawing, and then off it goes through cyberspace.  I'll post the final submission in a couple of days.  Until then, hope everyone is in the process of having a fab-u-lous weekend, and thanks so much for the visit!

xoxo Deirdre

A little marker test sketch, and mushroomy goodness #2.

Hello precious friends!  I'm in the process of testing out a few new ink pens, and figured I would post at least one of the results.  Yup...another mushroom sketch.  I can't help it, they're just so much fun, and so damn easy, to draw!

Anyhoo, I'm currently testing some new ink pens because I have decided to submit a drawing to Spoonflower's contest with fabric8.  I'm actually looking forward to this one because the theme, "Pen & Ink", is right up my alley.  I mean, let's face it, that's really the only medium I work with, and will probably ever work with...cause we all know how I feel about change.  (cough, cough).  So, if there is anyone out there that is interested in submitting an illustration that could possibly end up on fabric, give it a try!  Something tells me that I'm going to be one of the few people that is submitting something that is actually done by hand.  I swear, does no one physically draw anymore?  Is everything done by computer these days?  Everything?

I hope you all have a fab-u-lous week, and I should have a little something to post for you by the weekend!  Thanks so much for stopping by.  I appreciate it oh-so-much!

xoxoxo Deirdre

Happy Easter to all!

Just a quick post to wish each and every one of you a wonderfully brilliant Easter holiday!  Now, go fourth and gorge upon sugary snacks, and I will see you soon!

Much love to you all, and thanks so much for visiting!

xoxoxo Deirdre

Another little birthday gift, and a stern letter to Mother Nature.

Dear Mother Nature,

Apparently, we have a problem.  I don't know if you are aware of this or not, but it is SPRING.  Not Summer.  Not the flippin' hella-hot days of July, or August, but...S-P-R-I-N-G.  Ya know, I looked the other way when my winter was totally lacking snow.  Yes, I bitched about it quite a bit, but figured you were maybe off your game, and I let it go.  However, it has now come to my attention that you did it on purpose.  You had me all kinds of excited about fall.  Do you remember that?  Do you remember how I smiled when the trees turned orange, and my mornings were chilly?  Remember?  Cause I do.

Do you remember how I was giddy about the prospect of winged, blood-sucking insects dropping dead in mid flight, due to plummeting temperatures?  Or the fact that the top of my car would no longer be covered in inches of yellow, powdery pollen, and I could safely walk outside without a Kleenex shoved up my nose?  Seriously, do you?  Cause I do.  And then...you blew it.

As you will recall, Mother Nature, my Thanksgiving was H-O-T, and my Christmas wasn't white, and the only ounce of winter weather I had was a whopping 2 day period where you forced 18 degree temperatures upon us all, AND added hellacious winds to it.  I mean, what the hell was that about?  I couldn't walk my dog in that crap, and you knew it.  And now, it's personal.

So, here are my demands.  The 80-plus temperatures must stop.  Now.  It's not cool.  There are nasty, icky, flying things hatching right and left.  Things that should be percolating for AT LEAST another month, or two.  You are freaking out the flowers, the trees, ME, and all things blooming.  I am a snotty, watery-eyed, disgusting mess, and I just...can't...take...it...anymore.

In conclusion, Mother Nature, I would like to remind you that many of us have air-conditioning.  If your bad behavior continues along it's current path, many of us will rise up and...well...stay inside.  So, I beg of you, let spring happen.  Summer is really not all it's cracked up to be.  I mean, let's face it, sweating sucks.  It really does.  So, let me enjoy the cooler temperatures, and I'll make ya a deal.  You play fair for the next month and a half, and I won't curse you when, during hella-hot July/August, a bug ultimately flies into my eye/open mouth.  Deal?

Sincerely,

Deirdre 

 

Fun with vintage wallpaper, an endless love affair with Mod Podge, and my (unhealthy) relationship with ebay.

Okay...so...we all know that I'm not exactly the craftiest of gals.  Do I love to get my craft on?  God, YES!  But, let's face it.  I'm not one of those fantastic women that can create something that no one has ever seen before, and take the front page of Etsy by storm.  It's just not gonna happen.  What I AM capable of, however, is taking the "been there, done that" stuff, and tweaking it to MY liking.  Case in point: the lowly, stocked-by-every-craft-store-on-the-planet, wooden box.

To tell you the truth, I've had three of these things on a shelf in my office for at LEAST 2 years.  I'm quite sure I had some fab-u-lous plan for them at their time of purchase...which, of course, now totally escapes me.  If you are interested in picking some up, check out one of those "dollar store" places.  Mine were purchased at Dollar Tree for...um...a dollar.  But, hell, if you feel like spending more than that for equally crappy craftsmanship, you can always pick some up at Michael's.  I recommend actually going into the store, as opposed to purchasing them online...you'll find a larger selection.

Now, as for how I covered the wooden box pictured above, the process was fairly simple.  I wanted to use mine as an actual gift box.  A pretty little trinket box that could be used AFTER the gift inside was taken out.  My bestie friend, Mindy, gave me the gorgeous vintage wallpaper you see in the above photo, so I thought making a trinket box for her, using the vintage wallpaper, would be a hair-pulling fun thing to do.

Now, the first thing I did was remove the hardware.  Keep in mind, these boxes are not exactly made by artisans.  9 times out of 10 the hardware is flimsy, broken, or totally crooked...so inspect it before you buy it.  Next, sand the inside/outside of the box, really well...cause splinters S-U-C-K.  After sanding, if your box has a glass insert, go ahead and tape off the glass, making sure to do the top, AND the bottom.  Now you're ready to hit the inside with some spray paint.

Ahhh...Robin's Egg blue.  Is there anything better?  I used Design Master spray paint which coated the inside pretty well.  It took about three coats until it was completely opaque.  However, they're NOT kidding when they say "spray in a well-ventilated area".  It stinks, with a capital S.  As for drying time, I let it dry overnight, and it was good to go in the morning. 

Time for the vintage wallpaper.  (By the way, this is where an X-acto Knife will REALLY come in handy!)  I started by laying the front sides of the box (top AND bottom) on top of the wallpaper, and lightly outlined their shapes with a pencil.  It's really as simple as that.  I then adhered the wallpaper to the wood box with, drum roll please, Mod Podge.  There are so many kinds these days, but I really don't think it matters which one you use for this project.  I used the "Matte".  Make sure you only do one side at a time, fyi, because it will take a while for it to dry.  If you cover the whole box in one sitting, you'll end up with a big ol' sticky mess.

There's really not much else to it.  Once everything is dry, you simply take your X-acto knife and cut off any pieces of paper that are hanging over the sides.  From there, you can file down any little bumps or unevenness.  I wanted the box I was working on to look as though it was old, so I even ran sandpaper around the edges to make them look worn.  The final step is to spray the entire thing with a clear coat of acrylic to protect it.  I used Krylon Crystal Clear, which was just "okay".  Although I sprayed lightly, a little bit of it pooled up into a corner and left an ugly yellowish tint.  Lesson learned, I guess.

Now for the fun part...the goodies that I placed inside of the box!  Aside from the doodle that I drew on an ATC card, I included a vintage doily that I picked up from a little antique shop, and quite possibly the CUTEST little vintage charms/trinkets, EVER!  Seriously, could these be any cuter?  I purchased them from the most wonderful store on ebay.  I'm even willing to admit that I was almost too selfish to include a link to the shop because I was afraid everyone would go and clear it out.  Oh well, here goes... ALL WILD JEWELS.  I have no idea where she finds her items, but they are to die for.  As for the cute little mushrooms, I found those at Sugar Camp Cottage.  Her store is filled with amazing vintage-inspired items, and I could easily spend hours browsing her stuff, as well.  I have no idea what my thing is with ebay lately, but I find myself spending hours on that damn site just looking and lusting over so many things.  Don't get me wrong, Etsy is still a fun place to shop.  But the whole account set-up thing is really nothing more than a pain in the ass.  I STILL can't get anyone at customer service to fix the ongoing problem I've been having with my account info!  So, until then, I will spend my evenings happily immersed in vintage trinkets, paint-by-numbers paintings, and spaghetti poodle figurines.  Cause, let's face it, if ebay were a person, I would have countless restraining orders.

Well, my darlings, sorry for yet another hella-long post.  My boyfriend and I have had a lot on our plates recently, and we're just now getting around to catching up with things.  So, hopefully, you'll hear from me sooner, rather than later.

Have a FANTASTIC weekend, all!  And, thanks SO MUCH for stopping by!

xoxoxo Deirdre  
  


A fabulous box of goodies, and my luck at having such talented friends!

Hello my darlings!  I certainly hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day, because you ALL deserved to!  Mine, with the exception of my boyfriend making me a yummy dinner, was spent taking care of our newly spayed Bonny.  Poor little Bon-Bon.  Oh, it was just horrific...she was in so much pain.  My nights were spent sleeping on the floor, and then the sofa, just to be near her in case she cried.  Thankfully she was prescribed pain medication, which she took like a champ...hidden beneath a mound of peanut butter, of course.  I think the worst part was when the surgeon called to tell me that everything went really well, BUT...Bonny was a little overweight, and needed to lose 5 pounds.  To be honest, I wasn't surprised.  Douglas, however, was horribly insulted.  You would have thought the surgeon told HIM to lose 5 pounds.  He was LIVID.  And then, of course, came the ranting and raving..."How DARE that woman say that MY puppy is FAT!  Who the hell does she think she is?  MY puppy is PERFECT!  That's bulls**t!  I'm gonna call her up and...blah, blah, blah."  Here's the bottom line, folks.  Doug gives Bonny people food.  I'm not talking a little snack here and there.  I'm talking a "one for me, one for you" type of deal.  Now, this is the same guy that told me, when we first got Bon-Bon, "Don't EVER give her people food.  EVER!"  Have I?  Nope.  Does she beg when I have dinner?  Nope.  I can honestly say I have not contributed to her weight gain AT ALL.  Douglas, however, is nothing but a 24 hour buffet.  "I can't help it...look at that face!  How can you say no to THAT FACE?"  Mmm-hmm.  I can say no very well, thank you.  So, to make a long story short, not only have I been TRYING to keep Bonny's physical activity to a minimum this week, due to her stitches, but I have also been TRYING to keep my boyfriend from slippin' her Cheetos on the sly.  I swear to God...it's like having toddlers.  Now, onto a much more fun topic...PRESENTS!!!

How jealous are you???  ;)  These fabulous goodies arrived on my doorstep earlier this week, and I have been DYING to get a picture of them for you all!  My bestie, bestest, best friend, Mia, sent these to me.  She called them a "belated Christmas gift", I call them incredibly thoughtful, generous, and absolute perfection.  But, then again, that's Mindy for ya, and that's the kind of gal she is.  We actually met way-back-when during our Freshman year in college.  It's hard to believe we have been friends for 25 years.  25 YEARS!  She, as well as her sister Audrey, is the closest thing to a sister that I have ever had.  We are exactly alike...except her potty mouth isn't nearly as bad as mine, and she's MUCH cuter.  (In fact, the whole Hackman clan is good lookin'.  Not a dog in the bunch!  How the hell does that even happen?  Genetic freaks.)

Mindy, in fact, is the reason why I moved to Ohio.  There was actually a job opening on the Visual Merchandising team that she traveled with.  I applied for it, got the job, and moved here a week later.  Now, of course, the tramp darling has up and moved to California, leaving me here to rot and wither away.  (Hey Mindy, have I thanked you for that lately?  Remind me to.  Heh, heh, heh.)  Thankfully, my Audrey is still here.  So, I guess I haven't exactly rotted and withered away.  I'm just sort of wilted and bruised.  Like a peach.  Nice.  Anyhoo...I am over the moon about my box-o-goodies!  It's a little hard to see in the first picture, but the felted crab pouch is ADORABLE!  And look at those precious little colored pencils!  The glass glitter!  The Tim Burton playing cards!  Have you ever seen anything so wonderful???  And don't even get me started on the L.L. Bean slippers.  That sneaky little Mia texted me, ASKING if I knew where SHE could find some slippers that were well-made and cute.  I told her L.L. Bean, and look what she did!!!  Sneaky, Mindy.  Very sneaky.  (Thank you, my little Mee-haa.  You totally made my week.  Love you and miss you SO very much!!!)

Now, aside from all of my wonderful goodies, and the spaying of my pony, I have actually been working on a couple of things.  It sure doesn't look like I've accomplished much, but I HAVE been working on the above wallpapered canvas all week long.  I swear!  Okay...so maybe I've been a little preoccupied with the first season of Downton Abbey (I now refuse to watch the second season until I have thoroughly watched the first, again.  Yes, I'm that anal.  But you should have come to terms with that long ago.), and I DO have another little side project that I'm working on for Mia and Audrey, which has taken up some of my days.  BUT, doodling on vintage wallpaper IS rather time consuming, so you'll have to give me a break on that one.

I gotta tell ya, I don't know how thrilled I am with the colors.  At the time, everything SEEMED as though it would work well together.  Now I'm not so sure.  I guess I'll have to wait and see the further I get into it.  Here's hoping it doesn't end up in the endless pile-o-crap in the back of my closet.  Can you even tell that I tried to make it look as though the wallpaper is "peeling" away from a wall?  I guess the whole idea is about discovering a bunch of drawings, or doodles, that have been wallpapered over, and years later are being found by the new homeowner.  Crap...is that totally corny?  Oh, who cares.  Let's move on to some actual talent, shall we? 

Told ya!  Now, THAT is some talent!  Care to hear the story behind the beautiful prints shown above?  Well, for the last couple of days, Dougie has been working on a side job for our fab-u-lous neighbors, Richard and John.  He's in the process of working on their cabinets, sanding, restaining, yada, yada, yada.  So, get this.  As a THANK YOU, the ever so darling/talented/what-the-hell-CAN'T-he-do/Richard GAVE us the two gorgeous signed prints pictured above!  I love them.  Absolutely love them.  In fact, I love them SO much that, although I am going to have them framed, I can't bear to keep them in my "needs to be framed" pile.  They are currently on view in my bookshelves.  Want to hear the sad part of the story?  THEY'RE MOVING!  I mean, seriously?  We just met them, and now they're moving!  Ugh, I could cry.  However, they won't be moving far, which is a plus.  Here's hoping that once they get settled, we'll be seeing more of Richards gorgeous artwork.  Speaking of more gorgeous artwork...

Lookie, lookie, lookie what I have!  I swear to you, I have NEVER been so excited about a calendar in all my life.  Every year around Thanksgiving time I say to myself, "Self...you need to REALLY look hard this year for the perfect calendar."  I really do.  And every year around Christmas time, I end up finding something that "will do the job".  Not necessarily one that I am crazy about, but one that I can live with...and ultimately use for scrap paper once it's gone on to calendar heaven.  I have never owned one that has made me want to save, and frame, every single month.  Except for maybe the year my Mom bought me a Barbie doll calendar.  Sigh.  Barbie.  But I digress...

This year, however, is different!  FINALLY!  I'm an adult!  I have the most perfect calendar, EVER!  Thanks to the lovely and talented Renee, of Wolfie & The Sneak fame, my friends will no longer mock me...and my sketchy taste in calendars.  Oh, her illustrations are so marvelous.  And what makes this purchase even better is the fact that all proceeds go to CancerCare.  How wonderful is that?  So, there ya go.  Drop the lovely Renee an email to see if there are any left, make your donation, and bask in the knowledge that you are the proud owner of some incredible illustrations that, once the month is over, you can frame!  Oh, and by the way, if you are in the market for some gorgeous fabric, seriously folks, check out her fabric for sale on Spoonflower.  I've got my eye on the "Kristen" design.  Now, if only I could sew...

Okay, all.  I know this was a hella-long post, but I've been away for over a week, and had lots-o-goodies to share with you.  I guess I could have broken it up over 2 posts, but, well, that's too much work...and I'm old and tired.  Hope you all are having a fab-u-lous week, and I'll talk at ya soon!

P.S.  My darling and uber-talented friend, Anna, posted the nicest entry about the Birthday Princess crown I sent her...as well as the other little goodies I included.  You MUST see what she did with the animal cards.  Her creativity amazes me!  Go!  Run!  Drool!

xoxo Deirdre