A Sneak Peak at the New Dining Room Table

Well we made it. Good news - the world didn't end. Bad news - there is a crazy snow storm and lots of snow. Back to good news - we'll have a white Christmas. YAY! Okay, enough of the good news, bad news… As promised, I have a sneak peak of the new dining table for you. It's almost there… just a fee more pieces, some stain and then assemble time. Oh, and we may want to go find some new chairs - I'm thinking a little antique spot in the area that has a whole barn loft full. Anyways, here it is, made by the hubby himself - if he only knew his list is about to get that much bigger. :o)

What do you think? I will reveal the final and full details on where to get the plans when it's ready. Best news is... the plans are free! Oh, and did I mention that this table is estimated at $1000+ in stores and was built for just over $70. At first we thought it was $100 but then the hubby realized he had bought some extra wood. WooHoo!

designed by. martha.anne

Anyways, because I may not be around until after Christmas? I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and All the Best for 2013! From our family to yours (including Hank & Bailey).

Rickety Uncles Recipe

Need to suck up to someone, become the in-laws favorite or just have a huge sweet tooth? These will do the trick. By request of my mother and my father-in-law, I doubled up the batch and made these ooey-gooey treats. I won't make you wait any longer, with only five ingredients and no baking... these may be the easiest and messiest treats around.

rickety uncles - martha.anne

Rickety Uncles Recipe*

1/2 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
4 cups cornflakes
1 cup corn syrup (dark)
1 tsp vanilla

Place cornflakes in a large mixing bowl. Bring syrup, sugar and vanilla just to a boil. Add peanut butter and remove from heat. Pour mixture onto cornflakes, stir well and then drop onto waxed paper and cool. Store in a cool place.

rickety uncles - martha.anne

*Disclaimer: This is your final warning. These are extremely addictive for the peanut butter lover. They may cause tooth ache and pain to jaw from excessive sugar and chewing. You will make and eat these at your own risk. martha.anne is not responsible for any belly aches or other outcomes from overeating Rickety Uncles.

Now go make yourself a batch!

One Week Until Christmas!!!

Are you ready for it? As my mom said on the phone tonight, "one week today and it will all be over". I hate that there is such a build up and then bam it's over... But I'm going to enjoy it while I can.

Anyways, what's going on lately? My life has been hectic. I can finally say school is over... Well at least that class is and I passed with flying colours (a complete shock to me, I thought I would just squeak by... I guess I still surprise myself). Last night was spent in ER with excruciating pains in my stomach... Turns out after five hours that all tests came back good and the only explanation is that maybe something got stuck on my appendix and that it should dislodge itself? If not... I'd be in for more pain and emergency appendicitis. Good news for me, the stomach was still a little sensitive when eating today but I feel I'm well on my way to recovery.  :o)

Enough of that. On the Christmas front I did lots of baking this weekend and will be sharing a recipe or two this week. And... I may just have a new dining room table for Christmas! It cost us under $100 and the hubby is building it as I speak. It's going to be beautiful... I'll share later this week the plans and possibly the finished piece! Oh and before I go here is a pic of the Christmas tree... Which I think I promised last week...

Only seven more sleeps and we can finally enjoy some family time and the holiday season.

Before & After | Black Painted Railings

As promised, our very first before and after from the new house. It's not much but it's better than nada.

When we first moved into the house, the floors were an oak laminate and the banister matched. As we changed the floors over to maple hardwood, the banister looked hideous. So… we made the decision to paint it out - sorry to all you oak lovers!

At first, we thought we may be able to sand down the large spindles and rail and re-stain it to match the floors and take the rest of the spindles and paint them white. But, the more we looked at, the more we realized how much work it would be and it may not even work out. So… after about a week of searching and debating, I said… it's going black:

And man are we happy we did it. It looks awesome! I may not have huge confidence in my design skills but maybe I should start. It looks rich, it matches well, it's WAY BETTER than the oak and it will stay clean (something white wouldn't offer).

I can finally say I love the foyer and entrance. Okay, I lied. While we may have the lights, paint and floors switched, we still need to change out the closet and garage doors.

In the far future, I would love to see a solid glass back door and painted wood on the walls. Like so:

pinterest.

And, perhaps we could change out the glass in the front door… I despise the frosted rippled stuff that is there now. Anyways, that's it… that's my first reveal. Let me know what you think… is black better than oak?

P.S. I apologize for the poor pictures... I really need to take more time on those. :(

And the Winner Is...

Jennifer Connell Bruce - she is the winner of the Pamper You and Your Tree Giveaway! The Willow Wheat Spa and I want to thank everyone who participated... I have some new followers on Facebook and sold my first set of star ornaments - YAY!

star ornaments - martha.anne

I will definitely have to do another giveaway in the near future - maybe team up with someone else?

The rest of the weekend was a success. We painted the banister, I did a little baking (okay one batch of cookies counts?), went to a work Christmas party, visited with the family, the hubby made an amazing roast on his new smoker and our favorite realtor stopped by for a visit and spoiled us for Christmas! Oh and I'll be posting pics of the banister later this week... It's about time I shared some before and afters... Can you guess what color we painted it?

Oh and the countdown continues until the Christmas Break... which I am very much breaking for - two weeks off and I can't wait. Today... another Monday, was a good one. Let's just say the ice rain called for bad weather and working from home. I love these days... I can get up nice and early and be finished early afternoon. There's nothing better than working curled up on the couch.

Anyways, have a great work week out there...

Another Free Printable Christmas Photo Card

Free Christmas photo card - take two. Here's the other one you've been waiting for. (If you missed the first one - here it is). I have this available in two file formats, the .png so you can put it over your favorite photo and customize it or the .jpg so you can print it off and put a message on it.

Free Printable Christmas Photo Card (martha.anne)

Add the family - download the .png here

Add a message - download the .jpg here

If you love my photo cards but want something customized, be sure to contact me and I can offer you some pricing. Otherwise… this one is all yours. Of course, I must thank Spoon Graphics again for the mistletoe and penguins - they made this card a breeze. Oh and here's the card in use… a little bit of Hank:

Happy Holidays from Hank!

Other than that, we're almost at the end of the week. Lookout, here comes Friday and we're that much closer to the holiday season. YAY! I can't promise I'll be back tomorrow, so if not, be sure to have a great weekend.

The Future Mantel… So Excited!

I can't tell you how much I miss having a mantle to decorate this Christmas… let alone year round. I have so many things I want to display and no where to do it.

With the open space concept, I don't want lots of clutter and I've been begging the hubby for a mantle. We are thinking of doing the basement over and putting a propane fireplace down there and since the upstairs will only be used as a sitting room while cooking dinner or a family hangout formal room for the holidays, we don't really see the point of putting in an actual fireplace. But, that doesn't solve my problem of wanting a mantel.

Until, we found this one…

pinterest.

I'm in love! Need I say more.

Okay, so I think this is a real fireplace (the hubby and I have been debating that), but that doesn't matter, the design is perfect and we're thinking that putting candles in it will work perfectly. Like I said, it's only for decoration… not use. Gah.. I can't wait. I'm actually torn on whether we should wait any longer. There are three weeks until we can say Christmas is actually over and we can tackle this project. I'm not sure I can wait any longer. We actually pulled this picture out at every commercial break the other night and analyzed every part of it. I think it's going to be the first piece of character that we'll be adding to the house. Trust me, I have a list raring to go.

Anyways, enough of that… come back tomorrow… I have another free photo card for you. The one I told you about the other day during the Free Printable Christmas Photo Card post.

Free Printable Christmas Photo Card!

Okay so here is Christmas card one of two. I have another one coming your way before the end of the week, with an empty space in it… Which means, you can put it over your favorite photo and personalize it… YAY! Actually, I'll make it with a white space as well so that you can just write your favorite message if you aren't the photogenic type. The only deal is… you have to come back in a couple of days to get it. It's kind of like Christmas, no peeking!

Until then, here's another freebie. And, I must thank Spoon Graphics for the free illustrated snowman and bird. It definitely made the card making that much quicker!

Free Christmas Photo Card (martha.anne)

(Download it here.)

Not to toot my horn, but I really love this card and I hope you enjoy it too. I'm actually thinking I might get it printed and framed…

In other news… I think I've convinced the hubby to build us a mantle. Stay tuned, I'll share more info about that this week… I must say - I've fallen in love and can't wait for it to be built.

A Little Bit of Life… On a Monday

I'm back. Phew, what a week. I had one HUGE assignment for school due for Friday, Christmas hours to get in for work (so I can enjoy a nice long week or so off) and an exam to study for. Unfortunately, the exam wasn't sent to where I was supposed to write it, so that's still on my plate for this week. But… I managed to get the house decorated, the tree up and a little family time in. I CAN FINALLY RELAX. And, that's because anybody that knows me, knows I am probably not studying for that exam I still have. Oh… the joys. Anyways, Christmas is upon us… I'm starting to get super excited and the house is starting to get that warm and fuzzy feeling. I can't wait.

The Etsy Shoppe... is still sitting there… with products in it though. Okay, no new ones. But, I did manage to get in some experiment time with earrings last week and continue to work at those. As the husband says, I was a little late with the Christmas decorations (although I do battle that the stars can be used year round). He says I should be working on Christmas in the summer and working on Summer now. So… hmm… While I do agree, I need a plan. Besides, I only posted those ornaments so I could finally say the Etsy Shoppe is open… I need to work at it though. Something I will be doing in the coming weeks as I should have more time. :o)

Anyways, I can't make this all about me. Well, I sorta have to… but I will post something that is definitely a little more interesting. While I've been busy, I've still managed some Pinterest time… who doesn't have time for Pinterest? Here are a few of my latest pins… Hopefully you can appreciate them too.


White is Heaven (A Little Pinterest)

pinterest.

pinterest.

pinterest.

pinterest.

pinterest.

Alright, off I go. I hope to be sharing some Christmas decor with you this week and maybe a free photo card design you can use to send to the family!! So… don't send out your greetings yet… I'm hoping to get a couple made up soon… one with a spot for the family pic. And, be sure to enter my giveaway, I've joined up with the Willow Wheat Spa.

Okay… that's a wrap on another Monday… I'm a happy camper again. :o)
Talk soon.

Free Giveaway: Pamper You and Your Tree

Just in time for the holidays, I'm teaming up with the Willow Wheat Spa to offer you a chance to pamper your fingernails and tree before the holiday rush.

All you have to do is like martha.anne and the Willow Wheat Spa on Facebook and then tell us quickly why you and your tree need a pampering. On December 11th, if you've done all three things, you'll be entered into the draw to win a pedicure and five hand-stitched ornaments!

That's it… that's all it takes! What are you waiting for, go tell us why and be sure to stop by our pages and like them today. (I knew I could make this Monday worth it.)  :o)

The Etsy Shoppe... is OPEN for Business!

I did it. I did it. I did it! Okay, I'm super excited. Last night I opened up the Etsy Shoppe! I still need to add a few more details, but I have my first products listed - the Hand Stitched Felt Stars. I'm super pumped and anxious as I await my first sale. I've been reading the Quit Your Day Job Series for a while now and I heard it can happen over night or take months. I think I'll be grateful if it ever happens. Anyways, here's a peak at the new products:

What's next? I'm going to keep creating. I have clay ornaments that are ready to list but I'm stuck on how I should ship them - they're extra fragile! (Any ideas on packaging?) As well, I have some ideas in mind for other ornaments and jewelry. I'm hoping to get to my first pair of earrings made this weekend. If all goes well, I will just need to buy the packaging and they will be listed by the end of the month.

Ahh! So exciting. If you're reading this blog and know someone out there who loves handmade items, please spread the word. I'm hoping to get enough confidence up to build up a stock and go to next year's craft shows. What do you think?

Anyways, have a great weekend out there. Besides crafting, I'll be online shopping (yay black friday deals!), possibly getting out the christmas decorations, doing my last school assignment, attending a work party… and hopefully squeezing in some relax time!

The Willow Wheat Spa

I've been meaning to spread the word for a while. This December, my friend Danielle has been running her spa (Willow Wheat Spa) for two years! It's located in the heart of Spencerville (the old hotel for the locals that follow me). She has great prices, an amazing atmosphere and, even better, a Black Friday Sale starting today! But, before I share the full details, take a peek inside.

Okay, now back to business. Danielle has monthly specials, but for this Thursday, Friday and Saturday she is throwing a Black Friday Sale. Tell everyone! Manicures are $15, pedicures are $20, all facial waxing is $5, get a shellac for $25 or a 30 minute message for $20. Stop by her website or call her at 613-658-3330. And... be sure to like her page on Facebook!

Now go and pamper yourself - one more day until the weekend! :o)

The Cape Cod... Before and After!

Finally! The hubby has been bugging me for months. When are you going to put the cape cod before and afters up? Although I've already shared the kitchen & dining room and the laundry room, here is the whole thing! I was going to do all separate posts... but we all know how long that is taking. So here goes, bare with me and what may be my longest post yet!


The Foyer

The Second Bathroom

The Laundry Room

The Kitchen & Dining Room

The Living Room

The Family Room

Oops! I forgot to take after pictures of the family room. :o)


The Master Bedroom

The 2nd Bedroom

The 3rd Bedroom

The Main Bathroom

There. Finally, something that has been on every one of my blog to do lists since forever! What a huge relief and I am certainly glad I could finally share the before and after. Now, I need to keep working away at the lists - today I actually went to the post office to get pricing for my items. Yay! Happy hump day... we're getting closer to the end of another work week!