Originals by Gail & Tony McCormack

What’s happening in my world at the moment?

2012-01-22T18:15:00.001+11:00

I’m reporting in to say Hello!
Everything’s ticking along nicely for all of us down here.
On the Home Front:
New little Grandson Xavier is Extremely adorable! see pic below
Guss is on the mend, see post below, slobbery thanks to all for your concern. He’s such a sensitive doggy, both skin and tummy wise (mentally too come to think of it) and obviously taking him to a Hydro Bath with highly scented shampoo did NOT agree with him…never again!
On the Work Front:
Our Shop here in Mornington is going along nicely.
Having fun stocking the shop up with Clothing and Accessories! Well why not? I noticed how expensive 2nd hand clothes at Charity Shops have become, what goes on there?

Picture below....Example of clothes in our shop!

Our Website here is stocked up with a few gorgeous chippy old, postable sized stools and boxes

~~ ~~

Here’s Xavier, I couldn’t get a smile from him cause he was concentrating too hard on doing his new trick…Yep Rolling over.

~~~~~

You know, I’ve just realised how much I’ve missed updating my blog, funny isn’t it how we drift away from things?…I think I need to get back into blogging again

Be back in touch soon

~ Gail ~

2012!

2012-01-02T17:17:00.001+11:00

Happy New Year Everyone! We were very boring and feel asleep in front of the TV at about 9 o'clock, the fireworks woke up us at midnight! We did have an excuse though, as poor old Guss has a nasty skin infection and was up with a very high fever the night before…Visits to the Vet & $500 later he’s slowly on the mend

We were using damp towels to try and keep him cool, the infection is also in his ears, we’re constantly shouting at him…poor old doggy.

Gosh but it’s hot down here in Melbourne today. I’m in the process of building up a collection of local beach photos, I had this idea they’d be great mounted on a standard size 8 x 10”, 3mm board, thought they might appeal to the Holiday Makers as mementoes or even thank you pressies for neighbours feeding the pets and of course they can easily be framed in a standard size frame

Anyway, it was way too hot today to walk around taking photos and I should imagine the beaches would be packed anyway.

I thought I’d share some of my scenes, I have a few available on our website here for anyone interested or in our Second Hand Heaven Shop at Mornington here

Here’s one I’ve framed.

Thanks for coming over….

~Gail~

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-20T17:54:00.001+11:00

Wishing you all

A Very Merry Christmas

(I’m saving the Happy New year Wishes till next Week)

thanks to daughter Ellie for the use of the photo above she took of our new Grandson Xavier

I’m wondering if he’ll be such a placid model for next Year’s Christmas Photos…???

Thanks so much for all your Friendship and Support

~ Gail ~

Putting my Beach Cap on

2011-11-21T18:18:00.001+11:00

I’m a little late this year starting work on my Beach themed treasures. I guess due to the fact we haven’t been selling at our usual Markets, cause we’ve been busily keeping up stocking our Shop and Website.

I do have a few Original Beach Paintings and other “One of a Kind” treasures nearly ready….and just to prove it, here they are:

My Original painting is nearly finished

Thanks also for your well wishes on the arrival of our darling little Grandson Xavier, I can’t believe he’s already 3 weeks Old! I make every excuse possible to pop down and see the precious little bundle, of course with Camera in hand..

poor little baby is probably thinking…

"Oh no here she is again with the Camera!”

~ Gail ~

Baby Excitement

2011-11-01T17:54:00.001+11:00

We’ve had a very exciting end to October with the arrival of our Grandson,

he decided to enter into his new world on Sunday Night @ 11.59 pm, I’d been predicting he’d arrive on Sunday, but geez Xavier only one minute before midnight was leaving things a bit fine to prove my prediction right!

~ Xavier Anthony Liardet~

8 lb 12oz

OK, one more brag photo before I go, of me having a cuddle

Tony & I were only just saying last night how grateful we are for our beautiful family…nope, not always Smooth sailing but realistically does anyone every have a Smooth Running Life?

Thanks so much for coming over to visit and to meet Xavier

~ Gail ~

An Overdue Update

2011-10-15T18:30:00.001+11:00

Hello to all!

Seems these days there are too many options to share news over the internet, I’m getting a bit lost keeping up with my blog, website, face book profile and 2 face book business pages on face book!

I don’t think I’m alone..??

Anyway, thought I’d report in here, because I do love blog land, and wanted to do a post on what’s happening in my little world:

.First exciting Happening was for our DIL Mel to be featured in

October 2011 issue Weight Watchers Magazine (page 108)

Wow! What a well deserved experience for Mel to be flown up to Sydney for the photo shoot with Weight Watchers!...CONGRATULATIONS Mel!

.Our daughter Ellie is due on the 1st November to have her first baby, we’re all very excited to say to the least! Baby Shower completed and very much enjoyed!!

The girls put so much into the day….wonderful food (above pic is before the rest of the food came out)…fun games, although the smell “What’s in Nappy” game made me feel a bit icky….has anyone else played that one at a Baby Shower?

and the prezzies Ellie got, believe me, they were WONDERFUL!!

How lucky and proud I am to have such a beautiful Daughter and Daughter In Law!!

I shall be sure to share photos of the new arrival

Thanks so much for coming over

~Gail ~ xo

HOMESPUN

2011-09-11T18:06:00.001+10:00

Thanks for coming over and I hope all is well with you.

I’m reporting in with a link to a magazine who kindly included my artwork in their “Bed of Roses” promotional page

I was thrilled and was looking forward to the “Australian Homespun” September Issue coming out

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed reading the magazine from cover to cover, I am not a practising Patch Worker, Appliqué or Stitcher, although I have dabbled before I started painting and time permitting would love to dabble again.

Can you spot my Artwork featured on page 11?

and see what I mean about the Magazine appealing to a wide range of readers…trust me it’s very very inspirational for decorating ideas!

Thank you Homespun!

~Gail~

Happy Weekend!

2011-09-02T18:37:00.001+10:00

Hi to all

Popping over to wish you all a Wonderful Weekend

We’re celebrating the 2nd day of Spring here and boy ‘oh boy the weather has been absolutely perfect

Tomorrow I’m off on my first ever Official Shopping Tour, on a Bus, an early morning start and I think about 8 full hours of shopping in front of us. Shall report in after the event.

I’ve been working on a larger series of paintings to complement our new Shop…..a Retro theme seemed to POP, they will be larger sized ready to hang canvases and I would welcome any fav pieces of furniture or even accessories you may have

so Here’s my first for the series and you can click on the photo for details

Once again:

Happy Weekend to you all

~Gail ~

Second Hand Heaven

2011-08-28T18:03:00.002+10:00

andHello, Hello and thanks for coming over

Finally we have a Sign for our Shop, I now feel I can go full Steam ahead with the Promotional side of things

and tah dah ….Here’s the sign proudly positioned….

Just a brief background on our “Second Hand Heaven” Shop

The Shop is run by Tony (my hubby) & Ken, I get to come and go, create and paint for when need be, which means I’m able to keep working from my little Studio at home…Perfect don’t you think?

I think I may also be responsible for the internet promotional side of things…so next up will be a face book page….I shall keep you updated on that one.

Our Flyer best describes Second Hand Heaven

We’ve tried to offer a “Mixed Bag” of treasures

I’ll leave you with just a few photos to give you an idea of what to expect when visiting us…

Thanks so much for taking the Tour!

We would Love for you to visit us in person if you get the chance

~ Gail ~

I’ve gone larger

2011-08-26T18:06:00.001+10:00

Hi there and hope all is well for you

I’ve been working on a series of Larger Sized canvases, I’m becoming quite addicted to painting these ones and thought I’d share a few with you.

I also will be offering them in print form from my website

All of the Original Paintings show above are available to buy from our website but are for pickup Only

from our Shop in

Gordon Street Mornington…please click here for details

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

Happy Weekend to you all !!!

~Gail~

Comments

2011-08-02T17:26:00.001+10:00

Hello to you all hope everything is well in your part of the World?

For some reason, which I’m yet to figure out, I’m unable at the moment to leave comments on Blog Posts, I can read and enjoy your posts, but can’t leave comments? Not sure why and will certainly spend more time investigating the issue soon….but for now I didn’t want you to lay awake wondering why I haven’t visited you…LOL!!!

A blog post isn’t a blog post without a photo, so here’s a bit of a botched up project of 3 jars I painted….my aim was to have them look like the beautiful Blue Mason Jars I’m seeing everywhere and can’t afford.

Thanks for coming over and hopefully I’ll be able to communicate with you soon

xx Gail xx

I found my Book Ends

2011-07-30T18:03:00.001+10:00

Hello to all and thanks for coming over

You know how you have a few very sentimental things which when you misplace them, it really gets to you?

I’m actually not sure how I manage to loose anything in our house, as really it’s not that big

I was thrilled today to find my treasured, tatty, chippy old book ends

Aren’t they the sweetest?

I think they may have originally belonged to my Mum.

Yes they’ve been dropped and glued so, so many times…but I love them just the way they are.

Since the photo above, I did a bit of a clean up and managed to very gently remove a few stains from their dear little faces

I am a little tempted to use these little darlings for a painting subject.

Happy Weekend to you all!!

~ Gail ~

Just in case you’re down our way

2011-07-22T18:13:00.001+10:00

Hi there again!

I’ve just been for a visit to our New Place, camera in hand of course, I must say I was very impressed!

Thought I’d share a few photo’s with you….

So, let’s take a look what’s inside:

I was fascinated by the section above….the shelves are ones I bought from a garage sale about 15 years ago, I love this display and think it would make a great subject for me to base a painting on?

So many wonderful treasures, pretty much something for everyone I think?

I hope you enjoyed your visit, I also hope my blog didn’t take ages to load, I must admit I got a little carried away with the photos!

below you can find details of exactly where we are in Victoria Australia:

Thanks so much for visiting

Gail xx

Black board paint

2011-07-21T18:08:00.001+10:00

Hello to anyone popping over here to read my post, hope all is well in your World

I had to laugh to myself today when I went to buy a can of good old fashioned “Blackboard Paint”….I’m very sorry to say, there is no such thing anymore…It is now known as “Chalkboard Design Paint” and I might add is twice the price!

How things have changed, surely it wasn’t that many years ago I bought my good old fashioned “Blackboard Paint”??

Anyway, I just had to complete these projects that have been spinning around in my mind….here they are:

I love the vintage chippy frame I used for the one above and the frame below was once a fireplace screen, so is free standing…perfect!

Last but not least: I’ve painted up a timber door frame and embellished the chalk board with a swag of pink roses, this one is available from our website, you can view the details by clicking here.

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

Gail xx

I’m back in business!

2011-07-13T17:56:00.001+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over! I’m very happy to announce I have my computer back from warranty repairs, I was grateful to have my old one as a back up, but was getting frustrated with the poor old faithful machine, if you know what I mean?

Here we go then, this is a little update on our news

Thought I’d share with you, once again, two projects I finished last Saturday. Isn’t it always the best feeling to make use of old bits and pieces

I won’t claim it was us who hinged the wardrobe doors together, I bought them ready done from a Garage Sale, but I will claim it was me giving them a bit of a distressing

and here they are all finished…both sides

You can see the before pic below

I did my layering of colours technique to achieve the final chippy old look, I also worked on a timber not so old bunk bed ladder

These two will go into our new shop, you know the one I mentioned on my previous Post?, the one that’s stocked up and open!

We’re thrilled with the customer feedback, another large load of stock arrives this week!

We’d love you to pop in and visit us, you can click here for details

Until Next Time……

~~GAIL~~

We're Moving

2011-07-02T18:32:00.000+10:00

Hi to everyone and hope all is well with you

Just a quick post to update on our activities

I have my Newish computer in for repairs at the moment...yes very annoying, so I'm back on my old faithful one, which is a little slow. So here goes on loading a few photos up of our new Venture.

I'm sure I mentioned many times we have a Showroom/Workshop at Gordon Street Mornington?

Well, the opportunity came up for us to move into the LARGER building next door

We're in the process of doing so and will be sharing the space with another lover of "Vintage, Collectible and Useful Treasures"....this guy has the most amazing treasures

I took a few Photos of our move today, keeping in mind it's only Day 2, so lots more work to be done, both on the building and bringing in treasures.....here's just a little looky

Lot's of pondering going on in the photo above!!

Thanks so much for coming over and I will be reporting back soon,

hopefully on my Normal Computer

~ Gail ~

A Sentimental Painting

2011-06-11T18:01:00.002+10:00

Hello to everyone

Just thought I’d share with you a painting I’ve been working on, which is quite special to me

And why you ask is it special?

I’ve based the cottage in my painting from one in an old sketch book given to my Grandmother in appreciation for her services in 1917

I’ve loved and cherished this book forever and ever, I think it maybe guilty of starting my obsession with sketching and painting!

Thanks for reading my little story.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend whatever you maybe doing

We have our last booked in committed market at Mornington Racecourse tomorrow, for the next Market Season we will be playing things by ear.

Please drop in and say Hi if you’re in the area.

~Gail~ xo

And yet another Make over

2011-06-06T17:46:00.001+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

I’ve just realised my last few posts have featured “Make over's” I’ve done, just goes to show what an exciting life I lead at the moment….although, I like it that way, you know nice and normal, ticking along with no dramas!

Here’s an easy one I’ve just finished

& not forgetting the before pic

I’d planned to paint roses on the finished shelf and list it on my website, but it’s a little too big to post, it’ll stay as is, I’ll keep it home with me for a bit to play with, then put it up for sale in Tony’s Shop.

Speaking of Tony’s Shop, he’s got some wonderful goodies in stock at the moment.

His shop is one of those ones where you can fossick, some of his stock he’s revamped, others is up for sale as is ready for you to take it home and use your imagination… not forgetting his originally made furniture….OK so I’ll show you a few photos so you can get the idea of what I’m on about

Of course we have a supply of our prints, gift cards and my original paintings also!

And wait there’s more…always supplies of traditional pine bedside tables etc…you know that useful stuff!

For anyone interested our Shop is situated at

Gordon Street, Mornington Vic Australia

check my website here for details here if you like

Well that turned into quite a longish post…thanks for staying with me and please always pop in and say Hi if you’re in the area, we would love to see you

~Gail ~

Instant Rust

2011-06-02T17:37:00.001+10:00

Hello there

Just thought I’d share with you a little project I finished which I found amusing along the way.

I found a newish bottle stand thingy in my travels, it was originally black….you know that new matt black, not really the look to fit into my kitchen. I planned to use the stand for my growing collection of Jars, perfect place to drain them after washing and also for storage.

I give it my usual treatment of matt white spray paint undercoat, then brushed on assorted tones of white paint, gave it a bit of random sanding here and there, yes it turned out OK, but thought it could do with a bit of rust to give it “The Look”. You may have already used this rust treatment before? The idea is you paint on the liquid iron, let it dry then paint on the rust exhilarator and before your eyes the iron turns rusty!!

The problem was, I’d had my bottle of liquid iron in the cupboard for so many years, it actually turned to solid iron in the bottle. So I went to Bunnings to buy another bottle, all I could find was Anti Rust and Products to Prevent Rust!! I didn’t want to Prevent it, I wanted to grow it in a big way!!

I eventually found my Liquid Iron, I might add the rust will improve with aging

I also have some new Originals painted on wonderful vintage chippy board

You can go to my website here to see the full view

Thanks so much for coming over

Gail xx

I’d nearly forgotten how

2011-05-14T08:11:00.001+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over, hope everyone is well and happy!

Goodness but it’s been so long since I’ve posted, for a moment there I’d forgotten how, bit like riding a bike though, it soon came back to me.

Thought I’d share a little project I’ve been working on over the past few days, the horrible wet weather here in Melbourne slowed me down with this one, but finally it’s done

A solid timber bread or storage box I’ve given a good old, complete going over to!

Here’s how she looked BEFORE

Really this was stage 2, as I had to smash the glass panel out

A few coats of fresh paint a darling little glass knob on the front, then my Original Rose Painting inserted into the front and there we have her

if you'd like details just click on the rose above

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

Happy weekend to you all

~Gail~

I couldn’t bring myself to painting it

2011-04-23T18:17:00.001+10:00

Hello and I hope you’re all having an enjoyable Easter Holiday Break.

Tony and I are in working mode over the Easter Break, we live in a touristy spot, so why not take advantage of the influx of people.

Anyway getting back to it: I was so lucky to find some gorgeous vintage frames the other day, they are very hard to come across now days. This lot really has inspired me!

I’ve just, just finished this one, I had planned to paint the frame white….but just could not bring myself to do so…I love the slightly tarnished brass frame just the way I found her.

So I propped her up in front of my Easel with a few fresh roses attached as subjects and created my original painting.

and there she is below finished and ready for a new home or if not I would be happy to hang her in our upstairs little Oasis

The painting is available for sale on our website if you’re interested you can click here to see,

I guess I could offer the option of painting the frame to buyers…??

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

Once Again Wishing you All a Happy & Safe Easter Break!

Gail ~ xo

Herbs & Roses

2011-04-18T17:26:00.001+10:00

I’m really just popping into say Hello & I hope all is ticking along nicely for everyone?

Not really much going on in my little world at the moment.

The excitement a few weeks ago of our Son’s Surprise Wedding and our Daughter’s wonderful news of a new baby on the way!! I think that’s ample news to do me for a little while.

Of course a blog post can’t be done without a few photos. Thought I’d share a very quick little project I did today.

I love fresh herbs, love to have them on hand in the kitchen, how good are they?, not only do they smell and look pretty, but you can use them!! I thought my bunch deserved a bit of pretting up, so I popped in a few roses and designed a label for the front of the jar

And there they sit on my kitchen window sill

Here’s my label close up, I printed it on the back side of an old Music book: I just knew I kept that book for a reason!!

Thanks so much for coming over ~ see you next time

~Gail~

Using Fakes

2011-04-07T18:08:00.001+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over. Goodness it seems like ages since my last Post!

I’ve always had this little ritual where after I clean the house, I pop outside and pick a bunch of flowers, or even sometimes simply an interesting assortment of foliage.

I miss my fresh roses in winter time though, so when I came across this bunch from one of those “Cheapo” shops, I grabbed it, and isn’t it amazing what a little bit of fiddling around can do to make them look real

They started off like this

After giving them a bit of a rough up, so as they didn’t look so uniform, I went outside and picked the last buds and leaves from my Rose Bush, mixed them in with the fake ones and…there you have it!

I meant to mention; seen as I had my paints out, I added a few blemishes to the fakes'…because you rarely see a perfect bunch of roses, specially home gown ones!

I think my $2.50 bunch of fake roses was a good investment

So while I was at it, I got to work on these fake Snow Balls I bought at a Garage Sale last week, I always remember our Snow Ball Tree we had in our front garden when we were kids.

Thanks so much for coming over and visiting!

~Gail~ xo

The Mystery of Treasure Hunting

2011-03-28T18:01:00.001+11:00

Hello, Hello and how are you all?

After all my years of Treasure Hunting, I still scratch my head as to why in a short time span I find things in categories: One week it maybe loads of vintage china, the next gorgeous vintage ornate frames (although I would be happy if that happened all the time). Do you find this happens to you too?…How strange

The last finding Category were these:

Apart from the scoop on top of the Pail, which my son made in Metal Work at school, these are my finds for the week.

I have given the Lid to the bucket a bit of a revamp, couldn’t resist painting on some white roses…just because I thought the bucket would be perfect in the Laundry for Washing Detergent and don’t well need a bit of cheering up when we’re in the Laundry?

Oopps, I nearly forgot to show you the Shoe Stretchers I found on the weekend….see what I mean, it was a Silvery, tinny, aluminium week for me

I wonder what next weeks finds will be categorized under?

Thanks so much for coming over to see what’s being going on here

and if you were interested in my hand painted Tin Pail please click here as it is available on my website

Happy Week to you all

~Gail~

Not sure what to call this Post?

2011-03-21T18:30:00.002+11:00

First thing to get off my mind on this Post is how much I enjoy reading the comments left on my posts, but I’m also aware of how time consuming it can be to leave comments for each blog post you read…

Bottom line is: I love reading your comments, but I don’t always have time to leave comments in return: Visa Versa no doubt!

OK: so I’d love you to read and enjoy and comment if you want…but don’t feel obliged.

That said, let’s get on with what’s been happening with me

First of all I wanted to share my weekend find with you, maybe not anything sensational, yet something that simply appealed to me

Found at a garage sale, I love it, it’s a genuine hand painted, vintage one…

~&~

I confess it wasn’t this weekend I found it, it was the weekend before, because this weekend we Celebrated Tony’s Dad’s 80th Birthday

…all I can say is, I hope I’m as fit as he is at the age of eighty

He played Eighteen Holes of Golf in the morning, then his big 80th Party in the afternoon….goodness knows what happened that night??

Not a good quality photo, but there he is on the left, and any Footy fans wondering – yes on the right is Tom Hafey, his best mate from many many years ago.

HAPPY 80th BIRTHDAY

John McCormack!!

Just a little p.s. to say I’ve listed 2 hand painted black boards on my website…pop over if you like by clicking here

Thanks so much for coming over, have a wonderful week and see

You again soon!!

~Gail~ xo

The fun’s over and work’s begun

2011-03-12T17:52:00.002+11:00

Hello and thanks so much for your congratulation wishes on my last post, your comments meant so much to us.

Yesterday I was so lucky to be invited for Lunch by Alison (Alison Gibbs) for a bit of a get together with Mandii (Shabby Dreaming) & Kirstie (Adeline Country Cottage).

We of course chatted, laughed and ate a delicious lunch; then chatted, laughed, and ate Cup Cakes!!

Thanks so much girls for a wonderful time and for your beautiful gifts…I’m hanging my head in shame as I came unprepared and didn’t Give Back!

and here is what I was spoilt with

How’s this for a brilliant idea by Alison, a beautiful, powder blue pot and pack of Daffodil bulbs…Love it

from Mandii, don’t you just love this key ring? She said when she saw them she thought of me….cause I love shoes, unfortunately I’m not so good wearing high heels anymore, so I just paint them instead!

What’s inside the box you may ask

Kirstie, where on earth do you find all these beautiful treasures?

I’m tempted to get my sewing machine out of retirement, come to think of it, that maybe a bit drastic, I think an inspiration board with some of the beautiful fabrics and doilies sounds like a good idea. And don’t you love Kirstie’s handmade tags?

I certainly have had a wonderful few weeks but was happy to get my paint brushes out today and work on this Larger sized shelf, which I’ve just listed on our Website, please click on the picture if you’d like details

Hope you have a wonderful week!

~ Gail ~

Welcome Mel!

2011-03-10T18:47:00.001+11:00

Gosh, we’ve had an exciting few weeks

I mentioned a few posts ago about our son Todd’s up and coming Engagement Party….well…Surprise Surprise…the Engagement Party turned into a

SURPRISE WEDDING!!

Tony and I are now proud to have a beautiful new DIL and Ellie is over the moon to have a beloved SIL.

We Welcome Mel into our family with big open arms!!

The most beautiful Surprise Wedding held at Parkdale Yacht Club, a perfect Evening….I can’t put into words what a wonderful time was had by all!!

This is our family shot (missing from picture was Clint, the man Ellie lives with: mind you he was lingering, probably at the bar I think)

I am so lucky to have such a wonderful family!

Little sister Cass doing a wonderful job of taking the Wedding photos…we thank her so much.

I could post heaps more pics, I don’t know about you, but I’m finding uploading blogs with loads of photos on seems to take ages…so for now this is it for me

~A Huge thanks for coming over~

I am back to work from tomorrow

Gailxx

My little Sister’s Sculptures

2011-03-02T18:24:00.001+11:00

Hello, hello

I’m just popping in for a quick Hello and to show you my little sister Cass’s latest Sculpture, situated at Turners Beach, Yamba. NSW

Is it not absolutely STUNNING?

I’m a little overwhelmed on what to say, each one is made from copper, that I know….I think the best thing would be to get more information from her in person when she comes down to visit this week and go from there

We have lots going on here for the next couple of weeks,

lots of celebrating and catching up with family and friends

The reason being our eldest Todd, is getting Engaged on Saturday Night!!

I will be sure to post photos next week of the event….

Thanks for visiting

~ Gail ~

My Mojo came back

2011-02-23T18:21:00.001+11:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

I know I’m not alone in saying every now and again, I loose my inspiration.

I don’t know about you, but usually for me it’s often a a very basic something that will bring my inspiration running back to me

Yesterday was the day

The lovely Andrea from Pink Poodle invited me and a few other bloggers over to her beautiful home for lunch

I’m not quite sure where to start in describing Andrea’s stunning home

I thought I’d taken more photos to share with you, but I think we were talking and laughing so much, I slipped up on the pics

I think if you pop over to Andrea’s blog by clicking here you may get a few hints on her decorating techniques

please note: the home made delicious food,

I had 4 serves…but who’s counting?

We ran out of time to eat the cupcakes…but I did get to take one home

and thankyou Andrea it was absolutely delicious

Thank you so much Andrea, Allison, Alicia, Tamarah and Shelly for a wonderful day and of course for helping me get my Mojo back!

Here’s the result from my returned Mojo I finished today

Have a great week everyone

~Gail~

My Book I can hide Secrets in

2011-02-15T17:19:00.001+11:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

You’ve probably seen the Paper Mache blank books around, I bought quite a few in various sizes….with plans to sell them on my website, you know, like a series

Volume 1 has taken me soooo long

I’m not sure if it’s worth working on them

I’ve designed everything myself, I’ve even scanned the pages from one of my old vintage encyclopaedias, created in photo shop the cover and spine of the book, using scans of my roses

I love the way this one turned out, just maybe, now I’ve my basics worked out I will be able to work on Volume 2?

What do think?

Have a great week

see you next time

Gail xo

Keep Calm AND …

2011-02-10T18:03:00.003+11:00

I loved this version

"Keep Calm and Stop Carrying On"

Couldn’t resist, it was on special at

my favourite “Typo” store today for only $5.00

~Gail~

Sharing with you how I did my Basket Makeover

2011-02-05T17:54:00.005+11:00

I thought I’d share my Picnic Basket makeover I’ve just finished

Perfect for a Valentines Day Celebration Picnic!

I started off with this plain old Cane Picnic basket with the blue and white gingham lining.

I have a love for silvery washed out cane baskets, but they’re very hard to come by, so I thought I’d try giving this one the look I had in mind

First of all I unpicked the check material lining

I then sprayed it inside and out with a Grey Paint Primer, sprayed on a bit of flat black too…why not?… I kept randomly layering the spray paint on

Once dry I brushed on my soft white coloured paint, just brush it on though, don’t go trying to get into all the crevices

But wait there’s more…

It looked a bit stark….time to get out the sand paper and give it a bit of distressing to let those sanded back silvery hints of cane show through

and just to make it a one of a kind

I’ve added a blackboard disk which I’ve painted a single white rose on, the disk is blackboard painted both sides, which makes it perfect to write a message in chalk on the back

Thankyou for coming over and I hope my cane basket makeover was of help to you?

Gail xo

Handmade Wreaths

2011-02-01T17:51:00.000+11:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

I wanted to show you these beautiful hand woven wreaths I came across at a Garage Sale.

I fell in love with their simplicity, but doubly fell in love once the owner of the house told me how she makes them each year from a Creeper which she cuts back every year that covers her Pergola.

Gosh, I’m fairly sure she said it was a Wisteria, come on all you Garden experts, does that sound right, do Wisteria’s have extra long flexible branches with gorgeous little random curly tendrils?

I bought 4 from her, I’m not completely sure where and how to display them; so far one is hanging at the side of our stairway, I attached my little birdie just for fun.

Update:

Tony has claimed 2 to put in his Shop, they look great, I forgot to take my camera, but will get some pics tomorrow

In the meantime:

I’ve been continuing my roll of finding treasures to revamp

Here’s the B4

After~~~

Have a great week and stay safe where ever you maybe!

~Gail~

Do you like it as is?

2011-01-25T18:35:00.001+11:00

Hello and thanks for your comments you left for me on my previous post, always wonderful to hear from you

I had the best night’s sleep ever that night, I was totally exhausted!

So…Tony bought home this table, he’d sanded it back and it’s all lovely because it’s that silvery timber which I love and it’s just perfect for my upstairs “Retreat”

He’d had it up for sale for $65.00 in his shop for a week, no takers so he bought it home to ask me if I wanted him to paint it white and for me to paint roses on the legs. I may do that eventually, but for now I whipped it straight upstairs and it is perfect

We’re enjoying our new space upstairs, something about sitting up high and looking down….

And in the picture below, you can see what I’ve just poured myself ready to head upstairs to sip and relax….

I best just let you know of my new Prints on Fabric Section I’ve added to my website here

I’m testing the water with them… I’ve tried to keep prices to a minimum, it’s so hard! But I think they are quite unique and if any of your creative ladies happened to buy one, I would so love to see how you use it.

Happy Australia Day to all my Aussie Friends!!

Thanks for dropping over

~Gail~

Would you like to Come up Stairs and See What I’ve Been Up To?

2011-01-20T18:06:00.002+11:00

Hello and thanks for coming over here

For ages and ages I’ve been meaning to do a bit of a Revamp upstairs in the front section of our Loft Bedroom, I guess you’d call it a Parent’s Retreat, although we don’t have any kids at home now, so who are we retreating from? For awhile there it was a Dog’s Retreat (Guss), no more!

Here was the state of it this morning

The actual painting of the window and walls was the easy bit, don’t you find it’s the preparing and cleaning that takes the time

I managed to do 3 coats of paint all in one hit, it was so warm today and the paint was drying extra fast

I was very resourceful with the decorating side, isn’t that always the favourite part?

I won’t bore you with details, apart from saying I’d bought the couch cover ages ago at Ikea on special for $10.00, it was designed for one of those fabulous corner module couches…OK, so I got the scissors out and adapted. The Timber Chest in the picture above, was one of my very 1st stripping back projects, I think about 15 years ago, I did it in Caustic Soda.

No it’s far from perfect, but keeping in mind our house will be probably sold this year and bulldozed

Why not do a bit of a revamp, it’s so nice and clean now, somewhere I can maybe escape to and eat my lunch with a book or magazine, instead of eating it while I’m working.

~~~

I’ve also had a little time to work on a new project

I’m planning on offering Printed Fabric Panels on my Website, a little fine tunning and they’ll be available very soon

Thanks for coming over

I’m now off to rest my absolutely tired aching body, I think I may have overdone things today…you know how it goes though

Gail xx

Revamping

2011-01-15T17:48:00.005+11:00

I'm linking this Post to Sarah at "A Beach Cottage"
Sarah is one of the most Inspirational Bloggers ever!
Click here to pop over and visit her
*Warning*
Her blog is, shall we say, very addictive!
~~~

The Sun's Shinning so I've been a'painting!

First on the Agenda:

My Library Steps, that's what I call them anyway

I love these steps, I'm hoping Tony will be able to take a pattern and make more..

They are so practical

In the photo below, you can see them in their original condition

I've given them a bit of a revamp

2nd on The Agenda:
A Vintage School Case

Do you remember these? I think I still have mine somewhere, I do love them in their original condition, but this one didn't quite make it if you know what I mean?

I didn't feel at all guilty covering it in white paint

Couldn't resist painting on a Single White Rose

The Steps aren't for Sale on my Website

but the little School Case is

if you're interested you can click here

Thanks so much for coming over

Hope you're safe and well wherever you maybe

Lots of kind and positive thoughts to those effected by the Floods

~Gail~

xxx

More White Roses to add

2011-01-10T17:50:00.003+11:00

Hello lovely friends;

Thanks so much for your comments on my last "Post"

Seems I have a bit of a fettish for white roses at the moment

Here's a few new additions I've come up with over the past week

I've kept the colours very neutral in this latest original painting

The finished dressing tabel topper I showed you on my previous post

Thanks so much for coming over

please click on photos if you would like details on either of my new White Rose editions

Have a great week

~ Gail ~

My Post

2011-01-04T17:53:00.001+11:00

Hello, Hello

and thanks for coming over.

Hope you've all survived the New Year Celebrations, it was a quiet one for us this Year, which was fine by me. I've enjoyed the festive season, but to be honest, I'm glad it's over. Sort of nice to be back into my routine.

As I mentioned before Tony's moved into a Workshop/Showroom, which is wonderful for both of us, the creative juices are overflowing!

The weather is just perfect here now, no better a time to gather together some hoarded goodies and give them a bit of a revamp

Thought I'd share this one I've just finished:
I've just listed it on my website, if you're interested you can click here

It finished as above

and started out as below

Just a plain solid timber hand turned piece of timber I bought quite a few of these sometime ago, I painted the others pink, with pink roses, but thought this one would be good painted in white tones, this is the last one.

As the light was fading this afternoon, I didn't get to do such a good display...but you get the general idea.

and below is another work in progress...

since the photo, I've painted it, I'm yet to distress it, once I do I'll decide if I need to hand paint anything onto it....very confusing..

Shall post photos once it's done

Have a great week everyone

Gail ~~ xx

2010-12-31T17:08:00.000+11:00

Achieving

2010-12-17T18:43:00.000+11:00

Thanks so much Girls

for your encouraging comments on my last Post!

Phew!! Finally I feel I've achieved a little today:

We've had a very annoying dripping shower tap for months, I finally managed to take the tap apart and replace the washers
I did a bit of a rush job on my Annual Home Made |Christmas Tree Challenge, I think it turned out OK, considering I didn't spend one single cent on it, all bits and pieces, including plant clippings from home
I nearly completed a very large canvas painting to sell in Tony's New Showroom

below:

First off I put together my frame from rusty old plant holders stacked on top of each other

I then simply snipped foliage from our over grown hedges and secured everything together with Florist wire

since these photos:

I've being snipping and adding a more foliage to my Christmas Tree, I'm sure you're all a bit over seeing Christmas Trees, so I'm not going to post my pics

....in between I've been

painting my large canvas

below

Still a bit of finishing off to do on the painting, I'm very much enjoying working on this one.

A work in progress..

Thanks so much for coming over to see what I've been up to

take care

~Gail~

Something New

2010-12-16T17:55:00.000+11:00

Hi there!

Hope you're getting organised for Christmas, as I certainly don't seem to be.

I honestly have not put up one single Christmas decoration yet, how bad is that of me?

I have made a little start on the present buying, but no wrapping has been achieved.

Maybe because we're not having Christmas Lunch or Dinner at Home this year? Even so, I best make a bit of an effort!

I do have a bit of News

Tony was offered to share a Show Room, the best thing being, he can work on his furniture and our prints at the back of the Show Room!

I popped in quickly today and took a few photos to give you an idea of what's going on.

Unfortunately not all the pieces of furniture are ours!

This is our very first day in here, knowing Tony, all will be organised very soon

although I don't know about you, but I sometimes would rather fossick.

The other exciting side of this Show Room is, I can now guitlessly buy old interesting bits and pieces to resell...I so love them, but have been very good lately, due to the fact we were only selling at Craft Markets (strictly handmade items only)

Between Christmas Markets, filling Christmas orders for my Website (thankyou buyers!) and doing a bit of an overhaul on the products on my website, I have not been able to Paint, which I have so missed, please though, don't give up on looking, hopefully those poor old paint brushes will get a bit of a run soon.

We would love for you to visit us in our new Show Room/Workshop

it's in a fabulous spot

Rear of Mornington Central (behind Target)

we're not exactly sure of the exact hours yet

the address is:

10 - 11 Gordon Street

Mornington, Victoria

Enquiries are very welcome

Tony - 0488 163501

Gail - 0409 002629

Thanks so much for coming over

I'll post more photos of our venture soon

~Gail~

Roses Outside my Window

2010-12-02T18:03:00.000+11:00

|Hello and thanks for coming over

We've had absolutely crazy weather here in Melbourne....

Whoever is doing the

"Rain Dance" could you please stop!

My little studio flooded today, I was trying so hard to finish a painting I'd been working on, inspired by a Rose Bush my Dad gave me when we first moved in here about 17 years ago.

It's right outside the window where I do my internet stuff!

The Roses are the best at this time of the year and I often gaze at them while I'm waiting for my computer to load

I took this photo just after we had the downpour of rain, poor roses are a bit battered now

I did manage to finish the painting

click on the painting if you'd like details

and now I best get off here and start mopping up the mess!!

I wish the mess looked as harmless as it does in the photo!

Hope you all have a wonderful week

~Gail~

My Pasta Salad Recipe

2010-11-18T18:59:00.000+11:00

Hello, hello

I think most of us have a good old reliable recipe we fall back on when we need to come up with something to "Bring Along" to a BBQ or Party

I've had a few requests for my good old reliable.. Pasta Salad, but it's one of those recipes that's in my head, I have no idea of the ingredients or quantites, so when I had the kids over last night and made it, I took note of what I was doing and took a few photos too...well sort of anyway

~~~~

First off cook a few cups of your favourite pasta

I find larger sized pasta works best, as it doesn't tend to go soggy

Meanwhile put about five eggs on to hard boil in a saucepan of water which you've added a little bit of vinager too

this takes approx. 8 minutes and to easily peel the shells off, rinse the eggs under cold water as soon as they are cool enough to handle

Don't stray away from the task though, if you do the shells will tend to stick to the eggs

not nice, specially for an impatient person like me!

Now drain the pasta and add a handful of frozen peas and corn...yes straight from the supermarket packet!

stir them around so they defrost in the warm freshly cooked Pasta...we don't want them to go soggy and over cooked

Good O, the Basics are done

Now the fun begins:

Find a nice largish serving dish for your Pasta Salad

add

about 300 grms of your favourite mayonaise (1/2 one of those supermarket tubes)

add in some water and stir it up till it's all creamy and sort of runny

add chopped fresh spring onions

a little bit of curry powder, salt and pepper and cheese (whatever cheese you choose),

whatever herbs you have, I picked some fresh mint, parsley and basil from the garden

Give it a good old stir around before you add your extras

Then gently fold in your extras, mind you I don't sometimes add extras!

Just whatever you think would be good...snow peas, celery, green beans... or whatever you have left over in the fridge

Once that's all done

Simply chop your boiled eggs up

Lay them on top of your Pasta mix

Squirt more Mayonaise over the whole top of the dish to keep everything moist and tasty

then add a little Paprika, Curry powder, more cheese to the top

Cover it up with Plastic Wrap

Pop it into the fridge until ready to serve

Then bring it out and give it a bit of a toss around

DELISH!!

Really a very easy recipe, which I hope I don't make sound complicated

Hope you can use and enjoy it

~ Gail ~

A Tea Cup a Month

2010-11-10T17:19:00.000+11:00

I've had this idea to paint a special themed Tea Cup and Saucer once a month

I've already noted on my calender for next month, around the 9th of December

"Paint Tea Cup"!

This is my first painting in the series

Each month I'll try and choose a theme appropriate with the Month/Time of Year

I'd love you to let me know of any ideas you have...February Valentine's Day....Halloween..etc. etc

I've got in mind a Calender for next year featuring the Monthly Tea Cups

I'll also be producing prints from each painting

This one is available now

you can click on the tea cup for details

Thanks so much for coming over

~Gail~

This and That

2010-11-09T18:28:00.001+11:00

Hello there..

Just thought I'd pop into say Hi!

Finally we're enjoying some beautiful warm, sunny days here on

The Mornington Peninsula

Thought I'd buy Guss, yet another Bed, last count he has five...welcome number six

This one is meant to be an outside under the shady trees, bed for the warmer days....setting it apart from his "Day Bed", "Night Bed" ...etc. etc.

hee hee...have a look who claimed it

Yes

Non Other than Miss Bella!

"Cats Rule"!!

Let's hope the weekend turns out OK!

We have Mornington Racecourse Market on Sunday

go here if you need details
Cause we'd love to see you!

I've Just listed some cute Christmas Card Packs on the Website,

you can click on the card for details if you like

Thanks so much for coming over

take care

~ Gail ~ xo

My Computer Adventures

2010-11-01T17:44:00.004+11:00

Hello there!

Hope everyone is well and happy!

Goodness I've had a funny up and down month, hoping things in November will run a little smoother?

Mind you no real dramas have happened, nothing that couldn't be worked through or fixed.

My latest episode was my Computer, keeping in mind it's five years old and has been worked hard! A few days ago it started making static noises....then all of a sudden a black screen, I did try all sorts of things to bring it back to life, this has happened before.

OK, I have my laptop which I only bought a few days before we went on our holiday, I'm actually not one to have to have the Internet available 24 hours a day, but just thought it would be good to have in case Tony and I had time to pop in and visit any of Customers...all the information would be at my fingertips!!...ha ha, the day we ended up visiting Julie at Rambling Roses (see pics below) I ended up looking her details up in an Internet Cafe!...I'd forgotten the laptop!

So back to my computer saga, I found my laptop hard to work on when it came to editing my artwork etc.

Yes, time to buy a brand new Desktop, which I did yesterday

As you know all these things take time to setup customize and install programs etc etc.....still a work in progress

Now here comes the funny part

I'd assumed it was my actual computer that died, turns out it was both my Monitor and Speakers, not my Computer, so really all I had to replace was my monitor and all would have been fine....arghhhhh!

At least I can retrieve my files from my old computer, trying to look on the positive side and

I now have three computers! Think I'd rather have spent the money on a Big screen TV!

Here's Julie's beautiful shop
Rambling Roses (click for details)
in Dorrigo NSW

please pop in for a visit if you're up her way...WOW!! gorgeous shop, gorgeous surroundings!

so so so pretty

What's Tony spying in the pic above??

It was lovely to meet you Julie....

Tony and I are looking forward to lots more Travelling/Visiting trips in the near future

Speaking of Tony

He's been selling at our local mid week Wednesday Street Market here in Mornington

(weather permitting) it's a great mid week community street market.

a few pictures below

For anyone interested

I've just loaded some very affordable Accessories onto my website, all based on images from my original paintings

They'd make perfect Christmas gifts

Love these latest Ballerina Bag Tags.

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

I'm planning on getting my paint brushes out this week!!

take care

~Gail~

Time Away

2010-10-19T18:37:00.000+11:00

Hello, Hello

Thanks for coming over!

We've been away on Holidays

We've had a wonderful very overdue break away up on the Northern NSW Coast

Lots of Eating out and no Cooking for me, for a whole seven days...are you envious?

Lots of Birthday Celebrating for my brother Mike (50th) and Fiona (not telling!)

Always wonderful to spend time with my darling little nieces Clara and Jacqui

(see below)

and above

Tony, Todd and Mel enjoying the spectacular view

The Beach above

was a 5 second stroll from where we stayed

Back home now !

Batteries recharged and ready to start stocking up for the pre Christmas Rush

Always a busy inspirational time for us, so please excuse me if I disappear from

Blog and Face Book Land

Take care

"Pears"

2010-10-01T18:17:00.001+10:00

Hello and how are you all?

For anyone doing markets, or in retail etc. etc....it's coming into our BIZZY time for sure

We've both a Saturday and Sunday Market for the next few weekends

It can sometimes be a little overwhelming to keep up with the changing buying trends for our Markets,

I like to think of this as a good thing though

as it gives us both a bit of a chance to let loose

I bought some lovely fresh Pears from our Local Farmers Market

did a little stage prop with my favourite French Urn.

In the background you can see my finished painting...

I've changed the colours of the pears and added my fav stencil to the French Pot

It's way too large to Post

so will be coming along to the Market with us to sell

Forget to mention

Tony made a wonderful rustic frame...which you can see below

I think I'd like to keep this one....

Thanks so much for coming over to visit

Have a wonderful weekend

Show your Vintage Charm - Launch Party

2010-09-26T17:47:00.000+10:00

I'm blogging today to join in on the

"Show Your Vintage Charm"

Launch Party

You can click here to see details on this wonderful new magazine

and to visit all the other bloggers participating

For my contribution I thought I'd share a few of my vintage frames

as I think old Frames are my absolute favourite Vintage Charms...the tattier the better!!

I don't think I can find a better inspiration for creating a painting than a beautiful vintage frame

I find the frames then create the painting

A little back to front I suppose.

and above

Tony's used a vintage frame to feature around this Hall Table

Thanks so much for coming over

Happy Weekend to Everyone

Gustavian Day Bed

2010-09-23T18:28:00.001+10:00

Creating Vintage Charm Launch Party
you can go here to see what this is all about

Hello There!

Thanks so much for the interest in my Tagine

If you happen to come across one, I'd love to hear what you think

I cooked vegies on the stove top in mine last night,

very quick and delicious,

they tasted like roasted vegies but cooked in less than 20 minutes

So back to this post
I have my Blog Page as my Home Page..
just so I can check on new blog updates when I turn my computer on...as you would!

Was getting a bit sick of looking at my Lamb Shanks from my last post

Thought I'd do a post about our Genuine Gustavian Day Bed we've just listed here on our website

I think I've posted about the Day Bed ages ago...never mind, here we go again

Better photos this time, cause it's at home with us for now...although no room in our house to keep it forever unfortunately

The actual fabric on the seat needs attention as you can see by clicking here

For now I've tossed a throw over on the damaged section...it looks fine, would look even better if I had some suitable cushions..

Isn't it always fun doing a bit of research

Although sort of like a Rabbit Warren!

So along the way
I found a wonderful blog, which had sourced a company selling reproduction Gustavians
You can go here to see more

Thanks for coming over to visit

Lamb Shanks in the Tagine

2010-09-20T17:55:00.002+10:00

Hello All

I've been eyeing off Tagine's, have you heard or do you have one?

Hmmm..?? Wasn't sure if I was willing to pay around $100.00 for one

You know what it's like, another kitchen gadget you love for a few weeks

Then it either gets used to death or shoved in the back of the cupboard, never to be seen again until you move house

What do you know I came across one on Saturday at a Garage Sale

Brand Spanking New!...

Has anyone else cooked in one?

I'm very impressed so far

I cooked Lamb Shanks and they were Melt in Your Mouth Delicious!!

here they are ready to pop into the oven

I loved the fact you can brown your meat directly on the stove top, apposed to the slow cooker where you throw everything in raw, or have to brown in a separate frying pan first, I like my onions and meat slightly browned

This is a quick version of how I cooked the Lamb Shanks:

I marinated them for four hours in

Lemon Juice, Mint, Red Wine, little bit of Olive Oil, fresh Rosemary and Mint, Salt and Pepper

I heated my stove cook top and browned the Lamb Shanks, removing them to a separate plate once done

I then added onions, a little bit of flour, then the juices from the marinade and white wine to make a thin gravy

Stirred it all around till smooth

Then added the Lamb Shanks

I added extra fresh Rosemary and Mint...cause I love it

Put the cone top on

Pop it into a preheated 150 deg. oven and let it cook for a Minimum of two hours...no time limit...the longer the better

Turning and basting when you feel curious enough to see what's happening in the Tagine

I served ours with pumpkin, potato and cauliflower

Now this is where a larger sized Tagine would have been better

I would have loved to have added vegies to the Tagine instead of cooking them separately

Woops...I forgot to take an after photo of the finished Lamb Shanks

I was hoping there would be left overs for dinner tonight

but NO Tony ate the extras

Thanks so much for coming over

I would also like to add

I've had trouble returning visits to a few bloggers leaving me comments,

Annie, if you're reading you're one, I can't seem to get your blog to load fully...??

What goes on, I don't know!!

Sorry Mate

2010-09-17T18:29:00.001+10:00

Shame on me!

I've just realised I'd forgotten Guss's Birthday

Funnily enough, I took this photo of him on the 14th of September, which was his actual Birthday.

Poor Guss, I feel bad now, no wonder he's looking so sad.

HAPPY BELATED "6th" BIRTHDAY TO YOU GUSS!!

How old would Guss be if he was a human?

Oh! what am I thinking he is a Human!!!

The Weather's Looking Good!

2010-09-08T18:02:00.001+10:00

Hello, Hello, hello!

Hope you're having a great week so far.

No rain here today, not one drop

Now there's a first.

A few wet spots over the next few days though

But apparantely fine for our Market this Sunday

PLEASE...YES...!!

I've been working on a LARGE painting for the Market

It's way too Big and Heavy to Post if I list it on my Website

So thought I'd pop it on my blog for you to see

Somewhere along the line,

Years ago, I bought/bartered a few of these

BIG - HEAVY - WIDE - CARVED
style frames,

thanks Meg if you're reading

This frame is our very last one in existence.

Please if you're in the area on Sunday

Do drop in and see us at Mornington Racecourse Market

you can go here for details

Thanks so much for coming over

I'm Reconnected

2010-09-06T17:57:00.000+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

We've had some wild, wild weather here in Victoria!

Crazy high winds and rain

Although nothing compared to the tragic conditions in New Zealand

A branch from one of our trees fell on our telephone line on Saturday Night

Needless to say I've been Phone & InternetLESS for a few days

here's the after photo of our repaired telephone line

Finally, the Workman came today to do repairs, mind you only temporary repairs

Turns out there's been over 200 hundred damaged phone lines, in our area alone

He'd fixed six this morning and had run out of cable....thankfully he could do a patch up for me today

It's been very stange withouth the internet there at my finger tips

Most things I do I look up on Line

I don't even have a phone book anymore

Apart from the weekends I read the Newspaper online

I don't look at my massive collection of Cookery Books now, simply Google Recipes

As they say

"Everything Happens for a Reason"

In this case the Reason being

For me, I think I need to go back to doing a few things the Good Old Fashioned Way!

Let's see how long that lasts for!!

I have been enjoying full on painting

Thought I'd show you this one I finished , you can go here if you'd like details

May you keep
Safe and Happy
Where Ever you Maybe

Can you relate to this?

2010-08-27T17:49:00.002+10:00

Hello, Hello and thanks for coming over

I've been a bit remorse with my blogging this week

both visitng blogs and posting

I'm now reporting in

with a painting I've just finished

I guess you'd have to be a Cat Lover

or own a Cat

to appreciate the title I've given this painting

which is available to buy here if you're interested

Is it true in your house?
Does your kitty...sort of Claim

The "Best Seat in the House"?

Hope you have a great weekend

It's nearly time...

2010-08-21T18:17:00.001+10:00

Hello and Thanks for coming over

It's nearly 6 p.m. here almost that time of the day where I start winding down from working...

Working from Home,

I'm finding it hard to try and completely cut off from work at the end of the day

when I say work, I don't mean emails etc....that's fine, that's fun, they can keep coming in 24 hours of the day
I mean the real creating.....painting etc.

Is there anyone else out there finding this a problem?

so for me I've come up with a few ideas that seem to work

The first was to declutter and repaint our Lounge room
...still a work in progress if you know what I mean?

but is starting to feel like a little Haven away from work!

Every night now

I light my Tea Light Candles...that to me symbolises it's time to relax

What have you found works for you?

I'd love to know

I hope you're all having a fabulous weekend!!

~~~

Please for anyone in the Melbourne area and wanting something to do

visit us at

Flemington Market tomorrow

go here for details, we would love to see you

Take care

catch up with you again soon

Meet Debbie

2010-08-14T18:18:00.003+10:00

Hi there and thanks for coming over here!

First of all, thanks so much for your Mince Beef recipe ideas on my last post

and the encouraging comments on my new painting.

Loved the recipe ideas, will we ever get sick of swapping recipes?

I ended up, sort of making up a stir fry version, served with rice, it was delicious.

Now back to some News...

I'd like you to meet Debbie

Any "Australian Home Beautiful"

fan will have probably already read about her

I've scanned photos from the September Home Beautiful feature article on Debbie's beautifully renovated Californian Bungalow to share with you.

As I was scanning, I was trying to remember how long we've known her for?

It all started when she bought, I think a largish piece of furniture from Tony?

I ended up going with Tony to help him deliver this piece of heavy furniture to Debbie's funny old run down Bungalow.

I might add in a very good location.

POSITION POSITION POSITION!

Although we see Debbie often, we haven't had a chance to visit her completed project

All I can say...... after seeing what she's achieved....... is WOW!!

Keep reading...keep scrolling down...keep drooling!!!

Can you pick my Paintings in the photo above and below?

Would you like this kitchen?

My original painting above was Debbie's colour inspiration for the kitchen

I even got a mention in the magazine!! thrills!!!

I hope you've enjoyed your visit to the very talented Debbie's home

There are lots more photos to see of her house, but you'll have to buy the September issue of Home Beautiful to see.....

She has a wonderful inspirational website which you can visit here..

You'll be pleasantly surprised on how she can Help You!

What do you think?..

Should we talk her into starting a blog???

What's in the Cupboard?

2010-08-12T18:11:00.001+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

How's your week been?

Every thing's been ticking along nicely here...

We have a relatively New Butcher here in Mornington, selling the most delicious meat, supplied from Gippsland

So today I bought Premium Mince Beef...hmmm what to do with it?

I love Spaghetti Bolognaise, but Tony isn't extra keen, spoil sport his is!

I find it to be a comfort food

Any suggestions on yummy recipes using minced beef ?

Only thing is I need them within the next 20 minutes!

...they need to be quick and easy using ingrediants you'd find on hand in the Cupboard

In the meantime, I'll be doing a Google Search...as you do for anything you need to know

Speaking of Cupboards

I've been working on one for the last few days

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I decided to start this one

It is large and there are quite a few pieces of china, I think more the fact the patterns on the china took me longer to paint than the actual china itself

Anyway, just thought I'd pop in a photo for you too see how it turned out

you can click here for details if you like

OK, since I'm here

I'd love to share with you another idea I came up with today

I've been working on ideas for children's bedrooms

This one is my Boy's bedroom version

This Original above is painted on canvas

Below you can see how it would look framed

I better go,

Yakes

I've got no further on the Dinner Inspiration!

See You Next time

Just thought I'd show you

2010-08-06T17:49:00.002+10:00

Hello and thanks for coming over

Hope you've had a fantastic week?

Thanks so much for the encouraging comments on our new furniture section.

I've listed another Fabulous piece of furniture since, which you can probably see on my sidebar...I love this one!

It's been so, so, so cold and wet down here, I've had the flu, then was left with a horrible infected sore throat, finally gave in today and went to the Doctor....my Doctor is lovely, but nothing personal, I just don't like to visit her, unless it's absolutely necessary, are you like that too, I have a sort of phobia I think?

Anyway, decided to paint a largish canvas for our Market this Sunday

it's at

Mornington Racecourse and if you can, we'd love you to pop in and say Hi

you can go here for details

Where, was I?...

..yes the painting, loved, loved working on this one

as I said it is a larger size, 20 x 20" (51 x 51cm), I've used large brushes and kept it free and easy

I felt the chippy pottery urn in the painting needed a little something....

I love the look of black stencilled anything's at the moment, thought I'd try it on my

Pottery Urn

After a bit of hunting around I found my old metal stencil

I bought it from a Garage Sale years ago

I think from an Apple Orchard in the Red Hill Area?

It was their Logo for branding the Apple crates....

Tony and I, over the years, have used it over and over again, mainly for rustic furniture. Here it is, wanted again and used in my painting.

See you again soon!

New Furniture Section on our Website

2010-08-03T18:30:00.000+10:00

Hello again!

This is unusual for me...two posts in a row!!

The reason being for this one,

Tony decided today to keep bringing furniture home for me to list on the Website....hmmm, I wasn't really ready for it, but on the other hand, pieces of furniture aren't like paintings, you can't simply store furniture in a corner

Where on earth am I going to keep all these pieces?

They've got to move on...

I got to work straight away, camera out

listed three pieces on the website so far and at very reasonable prices

You can see here if you like

Tony and I, have so many ideas running through our minds at the moment to how we are going to run our business...thinking maybe a pick up base from here at home...loads more products on the website...???

This one above was my fav...probably because Tony featured sections from a vintage ornate picture frame around the edges...maybe I could have used the frame though..??

I must say I enjoyed taking the photos.

For once his beautiful handmade furniture could be displayed in a real room, not in the middle of a paddock at a market, although I would love to work on my photography skills and Styling!

Speaking of, I found some beautiful china, I'd forgotten about, in the cupboard as I was looking for props

I remember buying this lot of china for about $10.00 from a Garage sale...aren't they so sweet?

Below

Latest Furniture additons to our website

So our Lounge room is in a mess

and Stay Tuned there's more to come!!!

This Gust avian Day Bed is to Die for.....not sure how and where to list this one...any ideas??

Thanks so much for coming over

I so much enjoyed sharing Photos of my funny old day with you

Please pop over and visit our NEW Furniture section on our website if you get a chance

all you have to do is go here

Olive Tree Topiary Painting

2010-08-02T17:44:00.000+10:00

Hello, hello, how are you all?

Good to know I'm not the only "Typo" addict!

I've had a largish sized Gallery Stretched Canvas just waiting for me to give it a bit of attention....

Up until a few days ago I was undecided on what to paint on it

Bingo!!

A French Inspired "Olive Tree Topiary"

I've only just finished it

My photos don't actually show the true background colour, which for anyone interested is

"Taubmans Kid Skin"

Yes for this one I actually used a premixed colour for the background.

I've scanned a section of the painting....which should give you a very good idea of the true colour

It is a large sized painting

I plan on working on more for this series...same large size

Thanks so much for coming over, have a wonderful week

if you want to details on my new painting you can go here

My Week

2010-07-30T18:35:00.009+10:00

Thanks for coming over to see what I've been up to.

Not sure where to start...?

It's been a busy enjoyable week

My little sister was down from Interstate for a few weeks, was great to catch up with her.

I have blogged about her before...but go here to see her latest Sculpture
(It's the large one in front of the tree)

WOW!!

what do you think?

Wonderful she could bring Dad down to visit Ellie's new house...locations are a bit tricky, so this is the first time he's been down to visit Ellie

Ellie (daughter L) Cass (sis R)

back at our house with Guss lapping up the attention

Just a few quick snaps I took....sorry girls, I bet you don't want to be on my blog, but I'm proud of you both...

Our Dad had to go into Hospital, the plan was Ellie and I would pick him up to take him home today...

Were on our way to do so and got a phone call saying they wanted to keep him in a little longer....so we decided we'd do a bit of Shopping instead

Ended up at DFO (Direct Factory Outlet)

Have you heard of a shop called "Typo"

It's one of my favs

I don't think I've ever been there and not come home with a little something

They have the most wonderful Specials

I couldn't resist these photo frames

$2.00 each!

My photos don't do the recycled, natural colours justice

I've popped one of my prints in so you can see how they look set up

aren't they great?

Not sure if this next purchase from Typo was such a wonderful Idea

A Wall Decal

for $1.00......really how could you go past that?

I had an idea it would look wonderful above our Toilet.

I thought it would be so easy to do

NO...NOT...is it just me, has anyone else had trouble?

Although I think mine was quite involved with all the little buildings etc...

Anyway...here's my effort

I might add it's staying where it is, because

although they say it's removable...yes it is but the plaster and paint from the wall came off too.

update...Tony asked me how to shut the blinds...so he could have a bit of Privacy! ha ha

Have a wonderful weekend

Chalkboard

2010-07-24T18:22:00.002+10:00

Hello, Hello!

Thanks for your comments on my last post. I must have been way behind the times with my previous Blog Post Editor...told you I'm not up with things!!

Anyway, I just thought I'd show you a new idea I've been working on

Seems to be so many wonderful Black Board ideas around at the moment.

I had a bit of an idea to paint a solid timber door frame with black board paint, then paint on my original tea cups and birds

You can easily use the actual frame to jot down anything you like

What do you think?

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend

For anyone interested, we will be at Flemington Market tomorrow the 25th July,

you can go here for details
Would love you to pop in and say Hi!

bye for now

'Experimenting' with our Bathroom

2010-07-19T18:06:00.002+10:00

Hello, Hello

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend

I managed to do a bit of revamping in our bathroom on Saturday, you see, we have no kids at home now

Beware though!

When they leave home, they leave possession's behind...

old shampoo bottles, makeup, perfume, hair gel..and much, much more

Keeping in mind that's just the bathroom!

With this decluttering, revamping bathroom in mind...I'm thinking, I've had an old wardrobe door in the shed for ages, dragged it out and gave it loads of coats of white paint and a bit of a sand back around the edges.

OK....I'm going to now confess

The real reason for this Post is cause I wanted to try out this updated blog posting

version...yes you're right, I'm a bit slow on updating anything, I do realise the up date's been around for awhile!

Here we go then, I'm going to put a few photos on now, using the new up loader

...all seems simple enough so far

Well how about that, one click and the photo's on, no dragging the corners to enlarge it, seems to be staying exactly centred and where I want it to...easy

Just for fun I've added the "Bath" hanger... these signs make me giggle sometimes...as in the word Bath hanging above my bath....really you don't say, is that a bath?!

The Soap...really is a cake of soap!

I'm having a bit of trouble deciding on a particular theme for our bathroom, no doubt I'll change it quite a few times yet until I'm satisfied....which is usually never!

Thanks so much for visiting and putting up with my little experimental Post

Love to hear if you're using the new Blogging Posting thingy, if yes, what do you think?

My Cup Cake friend and Weekend Market Dates

2010-07-16T17:18:00.008+10:00

Hello, hello

Hope you've all had a great week

I know I have, I really feel I've achieved this week, mind you sometimes it doesn't matter if you don't achieve all the time does it?

I had a delicious lunch out with my little sis Cass and Paul (who are down visiting); my cousin Sue and my Dad on Thursday.

I forgot my camera on the day which was a shame! on the way to driving up for lunch, I dropped in on my Cup Cake friend Kathy....oh goodness she is the Queen of Cupcakes, you have no idea!!!

Think anything cupcake and she sells it.. quirky cupcake themed aprons, tee shirts, decorations....I could go on and on, or you could just click here to see her new website, the web site's not completely stocked up yet...but you'll get the general idea.

Kathy originally started out baking cupcakes and catering for special events as you can see here

Sounds to me like she knows which decorating products work best

She's even written a Cupcake themed book....

Here's just a few of her new products...Next time I visit her I promise to take my camera, she lives in a beautiful Older styled home..extremely close to the beach and has set up the most gorgeous Cup Cake themed show room.

In the meantime I'm trying to convince her to start her own blog up
**

I better finish this post off and go back to working on some lovely goodies for our weekend markets

Spur of the moment Markets they are, so please if you're in the area, pop in and say Hi!

Saturday 16th July
- Boneo Primary School Market
Boneo Primary School Reserve Cnr Limestone & Boneo Rds, Boneo, Victoria
8.30 - 12.30
**
Sunday 17th July
Lardner Park Market
Drouin
click here for details

Happy Weekend Everyone

Finished Tussie Mussie

2010-07-13T18:03:00.007+10:00

Hi there!

Just thought I'd do a quick Post to show you my finished painting..

I found the most gorgeous, creamy white, WIDE, ornate frame....absolutely perfect for my Tussie Mussie Painting I've been planning on doing...see my post below

So here she is

Painted and framed....if you're interested you can click on the painting for details

Thanks so, so much for information on the silvery foliage in my Tussie Mussie featured on my previous post...I must drag my Cottage Gardening Books out oneday and have a good old read up

Hope you are having a Great Week

Tussie Mussie

2010-07-11T17:32:00.003+10:00

Hello, Hello

Sunday night here, we've had a Market today, thankfully the weather was kind, not a drop of rain, chilly wind with a little sunshine, you can't ask for more than that in the middle of winter.

I think I've mentioned many, many times before, the Antique Centre where Tony was is closing...it'll be bulldozed to make way for a new Woolworths Hardware.

Finally he's completely moved his workshop to Moorooduc, not far from us.

He's all settled in now and we're planning on working "Full Steam A Head" on our products.

I will be listing new, larger prints tomorrow if any one's interested.

I loved, loved the bench in the photo above Tony sold today...

oh well it Sold, so is not coming home with me.

Mind you I have no where to put it, our kitchen is compact!

I love to wander around and look at all the stalls at our markets, today I came across one selling the most heavenly Tussie Mussies....they were only $5.00 each, which I thought was reasonable, they smelt Oh so good, each one a mixture of fresh roses and herbs...I choose this one which included .... Pink Roses, Lavender, Rosemary, Mint and a Silvery foliage that I don't know the name of...do you?

I plan to paint it, so as soon as I got home, decided on a pretty vintage blue jug...and took loads of photos

Thanks so much for coming over and for your interest and lovely comments

~ Gail ~

Join me on "The Front Porch"

2010-07-04T17:08:00.006+10:00

Hello, hello!

Seems a long time in between blog posts lately

and that's probably because I don't have much to blog about at the moment

It's so cold and dreary here, can't even take any decent outside garden photos to share.

Hope you're not getting bored with me continually posting pics of my paintings.

Anyway the chilly weather inspired me to paint a little fantasy scene...I do wish I was sitting on this Front Porch in the sunshine, cup of coffee, glass of wine in hand??

...although I've just noticed one of the legs on the table looks a bit ifffy!! best I fix it!

please do click on the painting if you'd like details

Thanks so much for coming over and for all who left encouraging comments on my last post.

I've been a bad blogger lately, but look forward to catching up with everyone soon

~ Gail ~

Another Laundry Addition

2010-06-26T16:20:00.010+10:00

Hi there!

Thanks for coming to visit

I've been happily working away on another Painting to add to my Laundry Series.

This will be the last for now I think

The Painting was inspired from my Old Wooden Pegs, I remember when I was little, these pegs used to fascinate me...remember the Peg Dolls?

Of course I would never use the pegs for pegging out my clothes on the line, they live in a jar and are for display purposes only!

Here's my prop I used for my Painting, I didn't have a Box of Soap Powder, so had to use a box of tea bags as a fill in character. Isn't it annoying the way those tiny little Macro Boxes of Laundry Washing Powders have sky rocketed in price, they're meant to be POWER PLUS and cost effective, but I find myself using the same sized scoop as I did with the older versions...umm, maybe it's just me??

As for the Packet of Starch, I've had it in the cupboard for years, I bought it when I went through my phase of reselling vintage linen, that phase didn't last long. I wasn't good with the starch, I somehow managed to always get my proportions wrong, I remember once I got them so very wrong the table cloth was so stiff the edges wouldn't fall over the edge of the table, sort of like a piece of cardboard sitting on a table!! Quite comical when you think about it.

Here's another from my Laundry series, this one has sold, but just thought I'd pop it in to show you.

Happy Weekend to Everyone!

~ Gail ~

~~~~