annie sloan chair redo (before & after)

June 2, 2015

It’s baaaack…painting season, that is! Once the weather gets warm, I love being outdoors and transforming some old furniture with a little paint! This season started with an old chair. When I saw the detail on the back of this chair, I was hooked! I needed to paint it!

I had some great fabric left from a chair project I completed last summer, so that spearheaded the color choice for this chair. I started by putting a sealing coat, since the type of finish on this chair often bleeds through paint.

Then, I painted the entire chair with a coat of Annie Sloan Paris Grey.

The next coat I painted was Annie Sloan Old White. Using those two paint colors and, also, some Duck Egg, I mixed the paint to add a design to the back of the chair. Because the chair fabric had an abstract kind of a look, I went with the same type of feel for the back of the chair, using soft, loose strokes.

Once that was complete, I added a coat of Annie Sloan clear wax to the entire piece. I then did some distressing of the piece before adding a second coat of wax.

What do you think?

I am calling my first piece of the season Rockport. :)

Thanks for stopping by. Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with House of Hipsters, Sand & Sisal, Thoughts From Alice, and Finding Silver Pennies.

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pink, white & gold baby shower

May 26, 2015

I promised to give a few decorating ideas for a pink, white, and gold baby shower. You know I love a theme – so, I took pink, white, and gold; added a few polka dots and created some fun ways to decorate!

Finding a pink beverage is certainly not a problem. There are plenty of options including pink lemonade, rose, sangria, or punch. Some easy favors? No problem!

The votives shown here are really easy to create – adding a candle is a nice touch.

A small plant (these are English daisies) wrapped in a coordinating tissue paper, square of fabric, or burlap is also a nice option, or…

A theme colored candy in a cute container. :)

For my shower, I made state shaped sugar cookies (and gift tag), because I was recognizing the hometowns of the families of the soon-to-be parents. Change it up to suit your own shower. Take your cues from the way the nursery is decorated or from the registry. For instance, if the nursery is decorated with a jungle theme, make animal shaped cookies. If the registry shows a crib sheet in a heart motif, make heart shaped cookies, etc.

Of course, the gift has to also be right on theme! I chose a baby outfit and wrapping to coordinate with the theme and also made a gift. I painted a personalized canvas for the baby’s room. You can get the DIY by clicking here.

If you don’t know the baby’s name in advance, leave the heart blank to add later, or paint in the word ‘love.’

I hope I have jumpstarted ideas for your own pink, white, and gold shower!

Thanks for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with Crafts a la Mode, House of Hipsters, Nancherrow, The Shabby Nest, and Craftberry Bush.

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a wordless year

May 22, 2015

I didn’t choose a ‘word of the year’ for 2015. I was thinking about that on my walk by the water today. I wondered why I wasn’t inspired to come up with one this year.

I thought if I had, it would have been something that expressed a need to keep things fresh…to constantly learn new things…to go on new adventures.

I don’t have the ability to travel to foreign lands or visit exotic cultures. But, I am still able to find new adventures every day.

Not a day goes by when I don’t learn something new that creates a special interest or the need to explore.

But, I certainly wouldn’t want to confine that need to discover to a single year…maybe that is why no word for the year?

I hope you enjoy joining me on my walk today for Friday field trip…

Have a wonderful weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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a visit to ben wolff pottery

May 15, 2015

Because I am so enamored with his handcrafted pots, I have wanted to make a visit to Ben Wolff’s studio for a long time. Even though it is located right here in Connecticut, the studio was one spot on my ‘to visit’ list that never seemed to get crossed off.

That changed this past weekend when my son asked what I wanted to do for Mother’s Day. I decided I could pass on a meal and, instead, we aimed to get Ben Wolff’s pottery studio crossed off my list of places to visit- yippee! It was a great day for a drive and the ride provided some great alone time with my son – catching up on what was going on with him.

If purchasing flower pots were my goal, it would have been easy enough to just order them online. I’m not saying I didn’t want any pots, but that was not my main reason for the visit. I wanted to see the studio and meet the artist. As luck would have it, I was able to do both.

Ben and his wife, Corinne, were both in the studio when we arrived. I knew Ben was a third generation artisan and he was happy to share his history and explain how he got started learning his craft at the age of two!

It was a great visit and it turned out my son’s gift also included a few of Ben’s pieces! As a lover of neutral color schemes, the pots Ben creates in white clay are my favorite! I carefully picked out a few; choosing ones with Tuscan rims.

They are just so gorgeous! It is hard to imagine using a terra-cotta pot after you have seen Ben’s work. (If you read this blog, you probably have already figured out that I don’t use terra-cotta pots because of my aversion to the color and that my passion in the garden is for all white flowers!)

With pieces starting as low as $8, they are affordable pieces of art – each signed by Ben.

I haven’t yet planted in my new pieces, but for Friday field trip today, I hope you enjoyed sharing some of Ben’s works of art – a few from the thousands of flower pots he creates each year on his potter’s wheel in Goshen, Connecticut. I photographed them with some of the early bloomers from my garden.

I hope you are enjoying some of your own garden flowers. If you follow my Instagram, you know I have been enjoying mine!

Ben Wolff Pottery Studio pleasure in simple things blog

The outside of Ben Wolff’s pottery studio in Connecticut.

Thank you so much for stopping by! Have a fabulous weekend, Jackie

Sharing with Craftberry Bush and French Country Cottage.

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state shaped sugar cookies

May 12, 2015

Remember when I made the state gift tag for a baby shower I was attending? I was attending a party in Connecticut for a baby being born in Florida. I really wanted to acknowledge both states in my gift and I came up with the idea of using both shapes as a gift tag. (See the gift tag by clicking here.) As the date of the shower got closer, I thought “Wouldn’t it be cool to make cookies in the shape of the two states to add to the dessert table?”

I had visions of spending many hours cutting each state cookie out by hand – since once I have an idea like this; I have no choice but to follow through on it! No question, I have cut out many unusual shaped cookies in my day – particularly for children’s birthday parties. In the past, I have made cookies of each one of the Wizard of Oz characters and all the Ninja turtles – cutting out each shape carefully with a dull knife.

With visions of cutting tons of Florida and Connecticut shaped cookies using a knife, I wondered if there might be state cookie cutters available. Sure enough, I searched the Internet and quickly found, not only could I order a cookie cutter for any state, but I could get them pretty darn cheap! What a time saver!

So, I made my sugar cookie dough, rolled it out, and cut out the shapes of the two states using my new cookie cutters. What an awesome way to acknowledge the two states!

Are the wheels turning? Are you thinking of all the ways you could use state cookie cutters? Showers, rehearsal dinners, reunions, graduations – even Christmas tree ornaments! So fun!

I decorated my state cookies to match the colors of the baby’s nursery – pink, gold, and white. (Did you see the shower gift I made? Click here to see. )

After the shower, when the baby gifts got packed up to be sent to Florida, the Florida cookie cutter was tucked into the box. :)

Thanks so much for stopping by. Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with Crafts a la Mode, The Shabby Nest, and House of Hipsters.

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flip flop messages in the sand

May 8, 2015

For today’s Friday field trip, I am taking you to the beach.

Why? Not that I really need a reason to go to the beach – but, today we are going to test out my message flip flops.

It is a very simple concept. I attach letters to the bottom of some flip flops, so a message will be imprinted in the sand as I walk across the beach.

At least I thought it was a simple concept! I quickly found a major flaw in my execution! I forgot I would need to flip the letters when I attached them to the flip flop! That is the reason ‘love’ is backwards!

Other than that, it worked like a charm! If you want to replicate this, just glue some letters to the bottom of an old or inexpensive pair of flip flops. You will want to create a depth of ¼’ with the letters to make a nice imprint. I used a foam letter, but really any material will work. You may be able to find wooden letters at the craft store. If the letters are thin, just keep adding layers until they reach a ¼” thickness. They can even be crafted out of cardboard if you prefer not to purchase pre-cut letters or symbols.

There are many applications for this ….I think it would work really great for a prom proposal…a walk at sunset on the beach when ‘prom?’ magically appears written in the sand…cool, right?

I know. We are not all going to prom – no matter how much we wish we were! Maybe instead, come up with some ‘mom’ messages to use on your beach walk this weekend? Just remember to flip the letters before you glue them!

Have fun with it! Thanks for stopping by!

Have a wonderful weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at Sand & Sisal, Coastal Charm, and The Shabby Nest.

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may book giveaway!

May 1, 2015

Doodles have been getting plenty of attention. In recent years, Google has definitely helped elevate doodles to an art form – don’t you agree? Who hasn’t checked out the cool doodles on the Google search bar? Now, there are a flurry of books published on the topic of doodling.

One of the more popular published works of doodles recently is Secret Garden by Johanna Basford. Designed to be interactive, this book is touted as a coloring book for adults – chock full of black and white doodles just crying out to be colored in!

Like me, many of you life-long doodlers out there may be thinking “Why the heck didn’t I think of that?” Somehow, the fact that a published book of doodles exists seems to validate the compulsion we all have to create scribbles on paper. I wonder if the author’s grade school teacher complained when the margins of her assignments were full of squiggles! Ms. Basford has made those squiggles pay off – literally!

For the May book giveaway, I will be sending a copy of Secret Garden to one of my readers. In addition, I am including a box of colored pencils from Target. (Have you seen Target’s newest section of craft supplies?!) To win, be sure to leave a comment on this post. I will pick a winner at random from all comments I receive about the giveaway on my social media during the month and announce the winner at the end of May. Good luck!

The winner of the April giveaway (that includes two books – click here for more) was chosen at random from the comments I received. These books will be going out to Michelle from New York. Congrats to Michelle!In celebration of all things doodle, the May Instagram Challenge will be to share your doodles! For Instagram followers, please share your doodles throughout the month of May using the hashtag #pleasuregram. Doodle on!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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a twist on may day

April 28, 2015

Hi friends. You know each year as May Day approaches and I post some type of hanging flowers? Well, this year I am posting something hanging….but, flowers? Not so much!

Have you seen the little hanging glass globe terrariums? I have seen them in some of my favorite garden stores, but, because of the price, could never justify actually purchasing one. Then, I saw some online at World Market. They had two sizes – the larger one was $6.99! For these prices, I could purchase a couple! So, I did! I thought they would be great to use for May Day planters.

But, as I started experimenting with them, I found my favorite items to showcase in these containers were not necessarily flowers!

The globes each came with a piece of twine, but it would be easy enough to change out the twine for ribbon. I actually ended up keeping it – I like the natural/rustic feel of the twine.

What to display? Because the containers are small, I found ‘the simpler, the better’ fit my taste.

Today I am sharing a couple of my favorites. May Day this year is less about flowers and more about hanging! So much fun!

I did do one with a few pansy blooms for the more traditionalists out there!

For some previous May Day ideas – click here for May Day with some coastal flair, and click here for some May Day flower globes.

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with Craftberry Bush, The Shabby Nest, Sand & Sisal and Coastal Charm.

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diy decorative file folders

April 21, 2015

Something about my sense of aesthetics makes it really hard for me to use manila file folders in the office. And, keeping them in plain view is irritating!

It would really make my work life more pleasant if I could keep a dozen or so file folders handy on my desk for current projects. So, I set out to find some pretty file folders to replace my manila eyesores!

After shopping around in stores and online, I was shocked to find out that any cute looking folders would cost me $15 for a package of 6! How could they be $15? A box of 100 plain manila folders cost $7.95!

The solution, of course, was to make some myself. I would simply cover some of the inexpensive plain ones I already owned. And, with Earth Day on my mind, (it is tomorrow – April 22nd) reusing something to decorate the folders seemed an appropriate and earth-friendly solution!

I would transform the inexpensive, manila folders at no cost by reusing something I found visually appealing. Right away I thought of my favorite item to recycle – Terrain shopping bags! Perfect!

There are plenty of attractive options for reusing that can substitute for Terrain shopping bags if you don’t have a Terrain store near you – here are a few ideas:

• Sheet music
• Old maps/nautical maps
• Newspaper from a significant date or a foreign newspaper (if you use newspapers, you will need to cover them with a clear laminate paper to prevent the newsprint from making a mess!)
• Pages from unwanted books or magazines (library book sales are great for this!)
• Wrapping paper (when you get a gift with great paper, don’t you always save it?)

If all else fails, and you have no paper you can recycle, pick up some decorative paper at a paper or craft store. I love Paper Source for finding great decorative papers. (The feather motif paper shown here came from Paper Source.)

Attaching a decorative paper to the manila folders is pretty easy. Be sure to have one straight edge. Then, apply spray adhesive to the front of the folder – masking off all surrounding areas from overspray. Use that straight edge to line up your paper on the folded edge of the front of the folder – good side of the decorative paper facing out – smoothing the paper flat. Trim excess paper with a craft knife or scissors.

I adhered the decorative covering to the front of the folder – the part I see – but, I also wanted the visible part of the tab covered. I decided to use chalkboard Contact paper for the covering on the tab. This way, I could easily update the information on the tabs. Since I will be using these folders on my desktop for current projects, the chalkboard tabs will make for easy updating!

I cut 12” x 2” strips of chalkboard Contact paper for this purpose and adhered them to the inside tab section of the folder, smoothing the paper to eliminate air bubbles. Then, I trimmed the excess with a craft knife.

Cute file folders? Check! Sigh…so much better! :)

Happy Earth Day! Other fun Earth Day projects:
Items to make from Terrain bags, click here.
Instructions to make decorative pencils from tissue paper, click here.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with Sand & Sisal and Elizabeth & Co.

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a cluck and an oink and healthful eating

April 17, 2015

For me, more so than the start of the new year, spring is the signal for new beginnings. And, just like the tradition of making new year resolutions, I always try to start spring off on the right foot. One thing that I am constantly trying to improve upon is my nutrition.

Each year, I try and take one or two baby steps that continue me on the path of healthy eating. Some of the steps I have taken in the past, for example, are the ones that have totally eliminated diet soda and artificial sweeteners.

Healthful eating is a real challenge. As a consumer, it is not always easy to make good food choices. This task definitely requires a lot of time and effort!

chickens up close pleasure in simple things blog

Up close and personal. What it looks like when a chicken pecks your camera lens!

One baby step I have added that really helps me in the time department is to shop in places that have virtually eliminated what I consider to be bad food choices. How do I do this? One way is by shopping locally at farmer’s markets and local farms.

This spring, I have already started visiting a local farm – Sporthill Farm in Easton. Even though there is not much product out yet, it is helping me develop a habit of visiting a healthy source for foods – another step toward a healthier lifestyle. And, as you can see by this week’s Friday field trip photos, I am meeting a few new friends along the way!

In the words of Dave Weinbaum: The secret to a rich life is to have more beginnings than endings.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend!

Wishing you many new beginnings! xo Jackie

Sharing with Nancherrow and The Shabby Nest.

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annie sloan chair redo (before & after)

pink, white & gold baby shower

a wordless year

a visit to ben wolff pottery

state shaped sugar cookies

flip flop messages in the sand

may book giveaway!

a twist on may day

diy decorative file folders

a cluck and an oink and healthful eating