22 April, 2010

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


& a little like this


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.

20 April, 2010

[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.


&


& then this


& umm, yes


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.

19 April, 2010

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... 








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. 


11 April, 2010

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.

10 April, 2010

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.



09 April, 2010

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.

08 April, 2010

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






& i want an office that looks like this



there might be a theme here....

apartment therapy is doing a spring cleaning contest 
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.