gardening...

sunshine. birds. a light breeze. 

i love spring.

& i love spring even more now that i have 

a backyard to plant flowers & herbs!!

one (of my many) idea & project i have

is to build (of course with the help

of my husband and father-in-law) a craft shed.

and, it can also be my garden shed....

i want it to look something like this

via mrs moy

& a little like this

via junkaholic

okay, but in all honesty, the photo above is what
inspired me to dream and design my own garden shed/craft shed.
isn't it dreamy? i mean, really, wouldn't it be amazing
to sit outside on a sunny (or overcast) afternoon
and just sew/glue/cut/blog away?! 
with some tea/coffee/chai.
really.
and, as i said in this post, i found
free wood to help build my dream shed.
now i just need the time & help....
and just because it is absolutely amazing.

& in our garden, i want to plant gorgeous flowers 
& herbs & vegetables...
and use these to label them... yes?!

via monkeysalwayslook

& buckets like these (we have a few to start with...)

via myadobecottage

by the end of summer, i am determined 
to have a glorious backyard...
photos to follow, once the beautifying begins.


                                  .jessnicole.

[clocks]

i normally hate clocks - because of the ticking sound.

but i am in LOVE with these. and, clocks seem to

be a new fascination of mine....

just for fun, i wanted to post these 

adorable & amazing

clocks.

via reUnited

&

via decoylab

& then this

via SadieOlive

& umm, yes

via whiteport

maybe one day, i will have a room full of clocks. 

like in hook...

but even better.

on another note, the rain is making it

close to impossible to paint furniture outside today.

so hopefully i'll set up some space in our garage

tomorrow and work on my projects...

i'll keep you posted!

                                     .jessnicole.

kitchen inspiration...

i am so wanting to facelift 

our dining room

and kitchen. unfortunately, we don't 

own the house so i can't make permanent changes 

but i can add some color & shelves....

 and, i can dream and be inspired, right?  

here are some inspirations i've come across... 

via wideopenspaces

via magchunk

via magchunk

via martha stewart

via designsponge

so i know we can add some chicken wire to this 

horrible pantry-type shelf in our kitchen. and,

because of my amazing husband, we already have jars in

our pantry. all i need to do is add more shelves & 

a splash of color. and, get this:

last week i received, for free, italian floor tiles

for our kitchen -- that fit just right. no joke. free.

i love craigslist free. 

i cannot wait to start working on the kitchen.

i'll post some before photos...&, of course, some after photos.

remember how jonathan and i went to the pasadena

flea market last week? well, i found an 

amazingly glorious and adorable chest of drawers

that we are going to make into a hutch for our dining room.

cannot WAIT to show you. 

and some other projects this week. it's endless: some chairs, 

a table & the hutch for our dining room. oh, & of course

photos of recent projects (including a living room

i worked on last week) & my website!!!! 

i love how creating is picking up! 

if only there was more time in the day... 

                                        .jessnicole. 

art & craft

went to the pasadena flea market today.

i fell in love.

over & over again.

(my husband says i'm dramatic)

 we ate some fruit for breakfast

 love them.

 we found some fun books to use as decor

 i wish i could have purchased these. 

the problem with some of the vendors,

is that they know they have amazing things

so they charge too much for me...

 but i love how some of the vendors truly 

know how to make a presentation of 

their craft & art.

 my husband, jonathan & i fell in love

with these cobra bicycles-- they fold. 

they are awesome.

we want to ride bicycles down the 

pathway near our little home, on sunny days. 

one day. when we can afford amazing bicycles 

(after we fix our blown out tires...)

 these my friends, were a dollar each. 

i love the dollar tables. 

i found some fun things for my little business. 

photos to come 

(you know, i have to tell you about the 

business before i show you photos...)

& my husband found free upholstery, & 

unwanted hardwood floors a man was getting rid of 

on craigslist free. i'm telling you. 

craigslist free is my new favorite place to shop.

we are going to build a fun craft/art shed out of it! yes!

oh, and i found a desk for $3.00 

on our way to the flea market. 

projects projects projects.

here is a photo of the person i fell in love with the most today. 

 he helped me all day with my crazy ideas.

he is amazing and he is my husband.

i am one blessed lady.

now a night of rest and warmth so i 

can prepare for a week of creativity, upcycling & love.

                                        .jessnicole.

some finds & restorations...

found these two chairs on the 

side of the road... 

and upcycled them

and, i am finally posting a scale my husband & i 

found at a flea market while visiting family 

in the south. scales, old fans, clocks, & wire baskets

are my fetish right now....

here's our scale. 

 i love it.

& our old fan. restored by my wonderful husband.

 love this one, too.

now if i could have only emailed the woman getting rid 

of her twin four post bed earlier. 

i missed it by a few minutes...

craigslist free is our new favorite place to

find unwanted beauties. seriously, check it out.

but don't take anything i might want...

i'll post some more finds after tomorrow's 

pasadena flea market. 

i am so excited.

i love how my dreams are beginning to become

a reality. 

more to share on my small 

upcycling business 

this coming week. 

                         .jessnicole.

city of angels

i love los angeles.

it is a city full of life.

this morning i went on my monthly 

trip to the flower market off of maple & 7th.

glorious.

a warehouse full of colors & smells. 

but of course, after buying some 

ranunculas (one of my favorites!), 

i had to walk around & explore.

while i was enjoying life all around me, a 

beautiful man named al started talking to me.

there was such sweetness & softness in his demeanor, 

but you could see the brokeness & weariness that

comes from life on the streets. 

ah, but he was beautiful. 

(he is pictured below, walking away)

& i was reminded that the few blocks i was walking

were full of the two things 

that bring me

joy: the homeless & creativity.

[sigh]

here are some more photos taken during my walk. 

what a good day.

                         .jessnicole.

spring fever

my spring fever is coming out through

a deep desire to create, make new & improve 

objects.

and an increasing energy to find

fun & cute things. 

a few things i found 

while shopping on etsy

i want to put everything i own in a basket like this

photo from a cute vintage shop on etsy

& i want an office that looks like this

there might be a theme here....

apartment therapy is doing a spring cleaning contest 

spring cure 2010

which inspires people to create a vision

for their small living space &

make it look amazing & livable.

how inspiring. some of the living spaces 

are 

smaller than our little home. 

perfect. 

i love how people are redeeming rooms, spaces,

objects & such - basically what they already have

and making them work. 

okay, maybe they are buying a few things 

to make improvement...  

okay, and, if i could buy a few more things i might buy this dresser

i've found a few fun things of my own

on the side of the road & at some flea markets.

i'll post some photos when i figure out

how to work my husband's camera.

and, don't worry. i didn't forget i promised some photos of 

the upcycled bed i did for the

cutest red-headed girl (i posted last month). 

i'll post them soon.

                                   

                                  .jessnicole.