Business (Ad)Venture

owzers. I'm kinda making myself nervous.
I'm thinking about starting a little adventure; trying to flip Craigslist, Goodwill and garage sale furniture finds for a few extra bucks. I've gotten such a great response from my simple chair makeover and I keep wanting to try the shabby chic style I see in so many other blogs... Since my own home will not be cottage style, my only chance right now to use Heirloom White, Vintage Glaze and distress the edges of anything with sandpaper is to flip a few pieces, you know?
I've already gotten a coffee table and a chair to start with. They were $10 each. Not the best bargains ever, but I can't seem to find those $2 deals that everyone else discovers. Maybe I'll hit the thrifty jackpot someday.
So I started thinking about names for my "company." It will sound better when I list things on Craigslist to have a company name. The first thing that popped into my head is what I like best so far.

                                   Ready?

                                                        "Not Too Shabby"

Isn't that incredibly witty? Isn't it the cutest thing you've ever heard?  Just don't Google it because you'll find 20 other consignment shops and furniture refurbishing businesses that are already using that name.
Lame.

So then I started thinking of something I could do to set myself apart. I thought about having some sort of theme (besides the "I repaint everything white" theme), something that would unite all the pieces I paint. I'm thinking along the lines of a design of some kind, like maybe a lotus blossom. But a lotus blossom isn't very shabby chic. I don't know. It can't be a bird or a butterfly or a cricket. Too used. Whatever it is, I think it might help me find a more unique title for my "shop."

And as a side note. I officially HATE Valspar spray paint. I used Krylon on my first chair makeover and it was easy peasy. I picked up a couple cans of Valspar for the coffee table.... baaaaaad choice. The nozzle is so hard to work. The coverage is AWFUL. It spattered everywhere as it came out. It is NOT working for me and I am taking back the second can and getting my money back.

Hopefully, I will be showing you the finished first product in the next couple days! Fingers crossed someone will want to put it in their house.

Retro Upgrade

eing that I'm 30 now, I think I might need to stop wearing the Winnie the Pooh t-shirts and cut-off knit pants that I use for pj's. I'm slowly buying more grown up pieces for my pajama wardrobe. I bought three sets from Target and I got one pair of pj pants from a 50 cent bin at a garage sale. The garage sale pants are my new favorites, of course. They are from Old Navy and the fit is really ideal. I'd been wanting to try (I start lots of sentences this way, don't I?) to duplicate some pants for myself from a pair that fit well and yesterday had the hour I needed to take it on.
I took an old sheet set I've had forever that was passed down from my parents and used it for fabric. I laid our the pants one leg and one side at a time. I cut about an inch outside the edge of the legs and then matched my pieces and sewed. I was already quite familiar with simple toddler pant making and my experience certainly helped me with these.
It was close. In true Pretty Pickle fashion, the rear seam almost wasn't long enough to allow for a waistband. I did end up with super-skinny elastic, but I kind-of like the look. Not what I'd planned, as usual.
Isn't the pattern on the fabric sweet? I'm all about vintage lately. These sheets look much more stylish as pj's than they ever did as sheets in my opinion.
One plus, because they're old and well-loved, the fabric is sooooooo comfy!

Bought Me a Cat

ot really... Those are the first words to the first song on my toddlers fave music compilation CD.  And, so as not to sound too totally random, this idea really does tie in with my post.  It's really just a link, sorry if that dissapoints.  A link to the most creative furniture redo I've seen so far in my short time searching the bloggosphere for tips and inspiration.
And if I had a cat, this project would be getting bumped right up to the tippy-top of my list.  I don't know why I love it so much, I just do.  And since I didn't ask this blogger's permission to post pics, you'll just have to go visit her to see what in the world I'm jabbering about.  :)

ps. I have some sewing projects coming your way soon. Since we have an offer on our house and I don't have to worry so much about clutter being out, I brought the machine off the shelf and sewed up some things I had already cut pieces for. I just need some elastic and I'll have three (yes three!) things to show you!

The Better Stuff

Ok, so we all know and love Anthropologie. That beautiful, artistic storehouse of ruffled, flowered and creatively pleated goodness...
Well, a challenger has just entered the ring. Rouche.
Listen, just listen.
This website offers clothing, accessories, shoes and more. They have a category called "Decadent Ruffles." You can basically narrow what you want to look at by whether or not it has frills. How fantastic is that? But wait, it gets better.
Once you click on "Decadent Ruffles" then you get three more choices divided by color. But the colors are indicated by cupcakes. A strawberry cupcake: Pink Lady, denotes all frilly stuff that's shades of pink. A chocolate cupcake: Chocolate Peanut Butter, will take you to shades of brown, tan and taupe. A peach cupcake: Peaches N Cream, will take you to all things cream, beige and white.
Could you get any more wonderful?!

And then the clothes! Oh, the clothes! They are just as delicious looking as the cupcakes! Very Anthro, if you will, and not cheap. Not as expensive as Anthro though. I'd say they are 3/4 to 1/2 the price of similar Anthro finds. You really should check them out. The only drawback... not being able to try things on. Maybe that doesn't bother you, but things always fit me so weird.
Accessories always fit, though.

How about the "I Love to Sew" charm necklace? Cute, huh?

And if the prices are still causing you to struggle, just think of it as a whole new place to get inspiration for your own projects.
Happy looking!

Pillowcase Top

already posted this a while ago on Sterling and Topaz, but since I wore it today and I have nothing to post while at the beach...
It's my first ever pillowcase top.  I had no pattern, just used some of the knowledge I had gained from making dresses for my little girl and some of that Pretty Pickle beginner's luck. By the way, it's not an actual pillowcase, just in that style.  I'm a little too big in the hips for an actual pillowcase.  I used some fabric I had leftover from the "birthday dress" I made my girl who was turning two.

I was so jealous of the pretty fabric combination.  I wanted to wear them somehow, too.

I left a bit of fabric at the top above the tie to become a ruffle when scrunched.






This was the first time I ever top-stitched.  I didn't even know what it was called at that point.  I just thought it would look neater.

Vacation Consternation

on't think that the title of this post means I'm not enjoying my beach getaway. I truly am. I have gotten to walk on the beach alone, go to some antique stores with just my very easy, very happy 9-month old daughter, go to a thrift shop and Goodwill by myself, lay out on the beach under a huge umbrella and watch my two-year old play in the waves with her daddy, eat yummy smoked tuna dip, take some pictures that will be cherished...

and so much more!
Here it comes...

but

With all the cleared space I've had in my brain and all the alone time I've had on my hands, I've thought of so many projects I'd also like to be doing. I thought it might be a good use of my beach-air cleared brain to make a list of these things I've thought of.

I want to make 3-4 pillows. 2 using my Amy Butler fabric. 1 with a muslin ruffle, like this. 1 with some sort of design transfer, like one from Olive Rue. And maybe one of these, too... for my daughter's room.

I want to paint the two side tables a lighter grey than we plan to paint our living room walls. Or maybe a darker grey. And by the way, is it "grey" or "gray?" I guess since I don't know if I'm going lighter or darker, I'm not ready to do that yet.
I do have the color picked out for the walls. I can't tell you what it is, because I don't have the chip here, but I took a whole buncha greys into Abercrombie at the mall and asked an associate if she would mind if I stood around and tried to match them to the perfect grey of the store walls. She said I was the first to ask that, but, that, of course I could. She even stood there to help and brought another girl over to get her opinion too. :)

I want to choose the perfect blue-grey that will look fabulous against the orange I have chosen for the entry. The blue-grey will cover the buffet that will be our entry table. Unless I decide I want it that color forever, I eventually plan to refinish it. I'm just not ready for that yet. And I'm into paint right now.

I want to make a ruffled table cloth to cover my daughter's little square table.

I want to get several pictures, currently languishing in the digital world, printed and framed to go in our new hallway.

I want to create a large frame from moulding to go around our starburst clock that will hang over our new mantle.

I want to create a piece of art with the old window I got at a flea market.  I'm planning on hanging a "U" as a monogram from the piece of lock that's left and painting the frame some color other than white.  Something fun.  Not sure the color scheme of the kitchen yet, which is where it will hang, most likely.... although... I did say my next kitchen colors would be based on this.  hmmmmm... maybe lime green? But, I do love turquoise so. Then there's a happy shade of yellow to consider. Doggonit.

There's more that will come to me later. My girls just woke up from their nap and my brain is now occupied with them again.

Poppy Clip

air clips are a favorite quick craft of mine.  I like hair adornments because you don't have to be good at fixing your hair to use one and they take any hairstyle up a notch.  I knew I would need a lot of them once I had a little girl that needed her hair kept out of her face and I wasn't about to spend $5 -$10 per clip for something I could learn to make myself.  I ordered 50 clips, 50 no-slip grips, a few spools of ribbon and I was off!  That was over a year ago and I've made clips for my little one, myself and for baby shower gifts.  I wear them in my hair and I clip them on the necks or straps of plain shirts to make them special.
If you read my last post below about my poppy canvas, you know I cut out billions of circles.  Well, maybe it wasn't really BILLIONS, but I did end up with more than I needed.  Here is how I used some of the leftovers...

(I'm wearing a bathing suit top.  We're at my husband's family condo in Destin on vacation.  Sweet!  I've already taken a walk on the beach this morning BY MYSELF!  Can you believe it?!  A mother of two children under three taking a walk by herself?!  It was truly awesome.)

I usually cover the clip with a ribbon, but I was in a hurry, so I just glued the flower straight on and glued the no-slip grip inside.

I rummaged around in my underwear drawer where I keep all the extra buttons that come with clothing I've bought over the years and found this perfect pearlized button.  I especially loved the style of it.  I was able to pinch the flower a bit to give it some shape as I sewed.  I wouldn't have been able to do that with a regular flat button.

Linking up!