Introducing... Clay Stud Earrings!

They aren't available in stores yet, but on the weekend I put together these bad boys - clay stud earrings. I'm still working out the kinks, but I want to know what you think??

clay stud earring by martha.anne

I've been wearing them every day since... And I must say.... I'm in love!

sporting the new clay stud earrings (M's) at work

I have original clay studs, cutout clay studs (which are one of a kind or limited addition) and soon to come... that will hopefully work... clay stamped studs.

a tray full of earrings and wanna be earrings

All the little cutouts you see, amongst the earrings on the tray, are waiting to be made.

I've been making new ones every day for the past three days. Oh and if you ask the hubby, I'm also dreaming about them. Last night I insisted in my sleep that we go to the craft store so I could get more glue for my earrings.

Just waiting on the jewelry varnish to arrive and then I'll add them to the Etsy Shoppe. Oh... And maybe even give away a pair (stay tuned).

Happy Tuesday! :o)

Hungry for Change: A Resolution or Two

I don't really believe in New Year Resolutions. In fact, I think most statistics will tell you that more people fail than succeed at New Year Resolutions. Just because its 2013, doesn't mean I'm going to all of a sudden turn my life upside down. But, I do want to resolve to do a few things throughout the year. Some changes, some goals. They don't necessarily start today but are things I can work towards throughout the year... Things I can start tomorrow.


1. Hungry for Change

I watched this documentary the other day about the food we eat and how unhealthy it is for you. For some reason, I veered away from the natural eating path in the past few months, but I would like to get back to it again. If you haven't had a chance to watch this documentary - Hungry for Change - you should. It's on NetFlix right now and it pretty much sums up all of the added junk (especially processed sugar) in the food we eat and how it can be just as harmful and addicting as cocaine or heroine. I want to be realistic and make a long term change, not just attempt another diet. I want to try and eat more natural foods and cut out as much of the refined stuff as possible. I'm not going to lie though, if I want to treat myself, I will make it - this way I will know what is in it and it won't have a shelf life of six months!

2. Makeover Time

This year is going to be the year that martha.anne takes off. Okay... hopefully it is. I'm going to work really hard at making it happen (on the weekend I started creating another product for the Etsy Shoppe... so excited!!). Anyways, this year I need to sit down and rearrange the blog. I need to do a whole bunch of stuff that I won't bore you with. It's going to take some time and is my major goal for 2013.

3. Keep It Local & Handmade

I want to succeed so much at my business that I believe I should pay it forward in order for it to happen. I want to try my hardest to shop local (as long as it's feasible). More importantly though, I want to try and shop handmade. Being on Etsy I've seen lots of great gifts and other items that are inexpensive, more meaningful and absolutely lovable. In 2013, I'm going to try my hardest to give my business to the little guys. I now understand how important it is.


4. Pay It Forward

Finally, I want to spend 2013 paying it forward. I know when Monday rolls around I whine and complain that I'm spending another week in the cube. But let's face it, there are people out there wishing they had my opportunities - even if it is just being able to do the little things and not having to work weekends. The other day a friend posted a Creative Pay It Forward on Facebook (see below). I commented and copied it... hoping to do the same. I have already came up with some ideas for those who commented and can't wait to surprise them. It's the little things that make a difference for someone else. This year when Christmas rolled around, the hubby and I talked about paying off someone's layaway (someone with children) - hopefully this year will be the year we can do it.

2013 Creative Pay-It-Forward: The first five people to comment on this status will receive from me, sometime in this calendar year, a gift - perhaps a book, some homemade cookies, or a - a surprise! There will likely be no warning and it will happen whenever the mood strikes me. The catch? Those five people must make the same offer in their FB status.

Anyways, those are my hopes for 2013. Hopefully I can work a bit towards each and say I tried my best to make them happen. Now that I've shared mine, tell me, what's up for you this year?

The Dresser is Sold!

Okay, you know the dresser I asked you about painting a couple of months back (what oh what color should I paint?)... well it's SOLD! In all honestly, I just didn't think it looked right in our new house. The decor is completely different - modern - and I believe it should go in a house that suits it.

bye, bye bonnet chest.

Lucky for me, and the dresser, the new owner comes from an old stone home filled with antique furniture. His passion is collecting pieces that suit the home and investing in "real" furniture that gets more valuable with age. The reason I say real because it seems that most furniture these days is pressed board or veneer and doesn't last any longer than five years.

The sad part about losing my first antique treasure is that he confirmed that it is in fact from the 1890s, if not earlier. He also confirmed that they are very hard to find. So, while my good eye caught me a piece of history at a busy auction one Friday evening, it will now be treasured and loved even more by someone else. My investment back then turned out to be a good one and I am happy to say I didn't take a loss and your much sought after advice didn't go unnoticed. I want to thank everyone who offered up their colour suggestions - no worries, it will still be used. I have another dresser in the basement that I picked up for free... it needs to be finished and I'm pretty sure I've finally decided on the perfect paint colour. :o)

Before and After - The Master Bedroom

While we still finish a few details on the main floor at the new house, I think I can finally share the master bedroom before and after. We just got the curtains hung, which were nicely hemmed by my mother-in-law - they are from Ikea. :o) I will try and give you some details about where things are from and what not as we do the tour...

First up... this bed set is from Home Hardware Furniture. I believe it is the Bonneshire set?? Anyways, truthfully we hate it. For the amount we paid it hasn't been that good of a set and I don't think the hubby will let me buy another piece of furniture from HH as it has been nothing but problems. I won't bore you with the details, but maybe someday we'll have a homemade set that will make us a little happier.

Here's a first look at the before and after as you enter the Master - that little bed at the end is where Hank is supposed to sleep at night. Although he can sometimes be found on either side of the bed or even in the walk-in closet under the hanging clothes.

And here's a look from the end of the bed... as you can tell we still need to hang some pictures and get the ceiling painted.

This is a look from the bedroom into the master walk-in. And of course, Bailey joined us for this picture. One of the rare times I can seem to snap one of her as she seems to be camera shy.

Excuse the messy shelves & dirty laundry. :o)

And here's the before and after of the walk-in closet. Okay so not much was done. We only ripped down some of the wood panelling because the clothes were too heavy and pulled it away from the wall. The hubby decided to re-anchor the posts appropriately. I also wanted to let you see it as we may be turning it into an ensuite and walk-in. I'm still trying to figure out a layout that will work best... we want it to be a three piece ensuite with a shower only, but I also want a walk-in closet.

Pillows from Home Sense

Okay, back to the details. Here's a peak at one of the presents Santa dropped of this year. These pillows are from Home Sense... I'm slowly trying to make the house a home and get details in every room. One thing you'll notice everywhere in our house is that the walls are very empty.

I Love Hydrangeas

I scored this pottery from Joann Fabrics on sale plus an additional 50% off. You'll see a few of these through the house when I finally do the reveal. The throw was either a wedding gift or a first home gift - I have lots of these too. And, the hydrangeas are from our wedding. I've dried them and managed to get a few to make it from the cape cod. They are one of my favourite flowers.

Okay and since you could see into the closet and just one of my obsessions... clothes. Here's an even closer peak at one of my weaknesses - scarves. I scored four new ones over the holidays alone! Everyone who knows me knows I love scarves and I'm usually seen wearing one, especially during the colder months.

That is it. A peak inside the master bedroom and the future ensuite/walk-in. I guess we'll both have to wait and see what happens there. As for pictures, I hope you enjoyed them. I'm trying to do a better job and get better lighting as well as more creative than I did at the last place. :o)

Happy New Year, Happy New Table!

Happy New Year! Wow, what a great vacation and lucky for me it isn't over. While most people venture back to work today, I took the rest of the week off. It's great to be at home doing nothing, but I know it's going to be even harder to go back to reality when Monday roles around. Until then, I will remain lazy and enjoy the company of friends and family.

Christmas was great as always and I was definitely spoiled by great company, good food and of course the big jolly guy - Santa. New Years was spent quietly enjoying Lobster, Scallops and Periwinkles, watching movies and enjoying each others company (the hubby and I). We aren't big on the party scene and it was a great way to end a fantastic year for both of us. And, we did manage to stay up past 12:00 which is always a bonus. :o)

Anyways, what I'm really here for today - the new dining room table... it is DONE! Of course, it is chair-less, but there it sits waiting to be enjoyed and man am I in love. Before I took a vacay from all of reality including the blog, I posted a sneak peak at the new dining room table. And just a few days later, while we both stumbled through a nasty flu, the hubby finished it. Here it is:

martha.anne - diy pedestal farmhouse table

martha.anne - diy pedestal farmhouse table

martha.anne - diy pedestal farmhouse table

As promised, here is where you can find the original plans - Ana White: Triple Pedestal Farmhouse Table. The hubby altered the plans to make it smaller with only two pedestals and he did a fantastic job. Ringing in at around $70, the table is made out of spruce and pine and was finished in Early American stain. I'm in love.

Anyways, although the vacation was great and much deserved, it certainly is great to be back and slowly facing reality again. I will enjoy another few days before going back to work though. And in that time, I will be sharing the before and after on the master bedroom!