Tropical Storms and Outdoor Concerts

There was a good chance that tonight I was going to see the Zac Brown Band play in Massachusetts with my hubby and some family....but things just didn't work out. Some of my extended family decided to go anyway and watch the band play in this tropical storm moving up the east coast. Now that's and exciting concert.
I can't say it's a concert I would enjoy, though. I would rather be dry and dancing in the moonlight (cue the song) or just the right temperature inside a nice theater. I could kick it old-school and go see Crosby Stills and Nash as the Beacon Theater on the 30th. Or maybe buy some Metropolitan Opera House Tickets. Never actually seen an opera before!! I love listening to them on NPR and trying to imagine what the words mean.
More locally (for me) is the show South Pacific....all you need do is buy some Boston Opera House tickets. On November 25th they even have the Nutcracker starting. YIKES. It's a little too early to be thinking about that.
If you check out Madison Square Garden tickets you'll find you can buy Duran Duran tickets for the 25th of October. :-) In November, you can buy Taylor Swift tickets. I bet she does a good show....I know she gets a lot of flack and also a lot of attention.....personally I think her best skill is her songwriting abilities. She is very capable of connecting with her audience that way.

A Lawnmower flubb. :-)

Don't forget to link up to my Marvelous Mess party.... I'll be choosing one project to feature on my sidebar for a week!!  
 
There are some people who are the essence of grace. They never make mistakes. They never put their foot in their mouth. Never stumble down some stairs in front of a crowd. Or, snort inelegantly in public at a joke that wasn't all that funny. They have total poise.

Gawd. I wish I had that.

The video you're about to see is only one example of thousands of mistakes made in my life. I can be trusted to make this kind of mistake happen at a whim.....it used to truly embarrass me when I was a teenager. Now, I am a wizened woman.....fully aware of my capacity to be a total ass.

How to Distress Furniture

(Don't forget to link up to my Marvelous Mess party.... I'll be choosing one project to feature on my sidebar for a week!!)
 
Have you ever seen some beautiful "shabby chic" furniture pieces and wished you had the ability to make a coffee table look so fantastic?? I know I have. I've tried a variety of ways to age a piece....from buffing and sanding, to throwing and whacking it with chains (okay, I haven't done that one....but I watched a video tutorial on how to do it). It's all so much WORK. Ya know? We crafters need a break from the heavy labor sometimes required of our occupation.

I found the solution. I call it (aptly) The Distressor.

Take a look at these photos of a table who's distressing required nothing of me:

Fantastic, right? The piece looks so aged and distressed. Heck, I feel distressed just looking at it.
Here is my special tool that does all the work for me:
Actually, he does it all in *spite* of me.
I thought maybe I could rent him out to those interested. I have a satisfaction guarantee....something WILL get distressed (and it will probably be you).
What IS IT with Labs?!?!

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