A printable download of a 4 x 6 photo calendar postcard for April.

Hi again lovely blog friends. That month just flew by, don’t you think? I have a few posts in the works but the month has ended without me posting any of them, so stay tuned for at least a couple of things in April! And speaking of April, I hope you don’t mind me posting this April calendar just a few days early… The first of the month will fall on Easter Sunday, and I hope that many of you have better things to do that day than reading blogs.

Welcome March | Printable Photo Calendar Card

A printable download of a 4 x 6 photo calendar card for March.

Happy first day of March, blog friends! Yesterday was such a gorgeous day here, sunny and warm, it was almost surreal! I had gorgeous light for taking these photos, and opened up all the windows in the house to let Spring in.

Taking Advantage of Longer Daylight Hours with JORD

A few of my my favourite ways to take advantage of the longer daylight hours that come with the spring season. Plus, an exciting giveaway from JORD watches!

Hey there friends! Happy Friday, and welcome to Personally Andrea! Today I'm excited to host a contest from JORD Wood Watches.  You'll have to head over to my Instagram to enter, the link will be at the end of the post. Every entry will receive $25 towards a JORD watch, and one lucky winner will receive a $100 e-gift code!  Woo hoo!

Rustic Romantic Spring Bridal Shower

How to create a rustic and romantic theme for a spring bridal shower.   Food, decor ideas, take-home favors and a free printable included.  Also links to a series of posts on Spring entertaining for the first instalment in A Year of Feasting.

Thoughts on Breakfast in Bed and a Giveaway

Well that was a longer blogging break than I thought it would be, but I’m happy to be back!  I’ve missed you, and hope that life has been good.  So let’s get back on the blogging track by talking about two of the best things in life… breakfast in bed and getting free stuff.

Mini Eggs in Mini Peat Pots for your Easter Table

Anything mini is immediately cute, so pair some Easter mini eggs with mini peat pots for a cute addition to your Easter table setting.

Hot Cross Buns in the Breadmaker & Easter Plans

Well Easter's right around the corner!  It seems to have snuck up on us a bit, falling right at the beginning of the month.   Here’s just a quick post to share with you some of our traditions old and new, and then give you a recipe for hot cross buns you can make in your breadmaker.  If you try them I promise you’ll never buy them at the bakery again!

Dollar Store Easter Craft Goes Shabby Chic

Hey there friends.  Long time no see!  Maybe some of you have been hit by spring fever like I have? And now suddenly the end of the month is in sight and Easter is quickly approaching.  How about a little Easter craft?

* pin me *

I don’t know how you feel about Easter crafts.  A lot of traditional Easter stuff like flowers (too early where we live), pastel colours (not a fan), rabbits (they eat my favourite grape hyacinths to the ground as soon as they finally bloom) doesn't really work for me.  But for whatever reason eggs and nests and such do work for me, and I love to decorate eggs in lots of different ways.

Planting a Container Herb Garden with Kids

Hey there friends, what have you all been up to now that May is in the home stretch?  We're continuing to plough through home renovations, and we are bidding adieu to the play structure from our backyard, in hopes of having a longer ice rink in the backyard next winter.  I had a photo shoot for a beautiful newborn which you'll see a peek of on Photo Finish soon.  And Personally Junior and I planted a container herb garden.

Mid-May: High Notes & Low Notes

So it’s mid-May and here are few notes on the simultaneous highs and lows of life.  No craftiness, DIY or fancy stuff happening in the kitchen.  Life is full and the days are bittersweet.  So just a bit of a week recap with a few things happening in my little sphere.

Shabby Chic Personalized Flowerpots

How to give a shabby chic look to plain terra cotta flowerpots and personalize them for a pretty hostess gift this Easter and spring.

So we are being hosted at both sides of the family for Easter this weekend.  That means hardly any cooking for me, no intense house-cleaning, grocery shopping, table setting and all the rest of the entertaining requirements.  I love to do it but this time around it didn’t work out that way.  I decided to get a little craft on and make a little something for the lovely hostesses to enjoy.  (Plus one for me too!)

Blog Makeover Reveal

Hey-ho blog friends!  How is April treating you so far?  We came into it with a flu bug starting through the family, so hoping for healthier times ahead…

Dip Dye Ombré Tea Towels

Here’s a fun way to add a personal touch to your kitchen, or to have a hand-made gift to give away.  Dip dye your own plain white tea towels to co-ordinate with your kitchen decor, or simply add a splash of colour.  How about neon yellow?

DIY Distressed Frame Chalkboard

Happy long weekend everyone.  Hope you are all able to look back on a summer filled with some great memories.  Here is a crafty little project I undertook in the waning lazy afternoons of summer.  Framed chalkboards can be found all over the DIY world.  Used for everything from marking table numbers at weddings to elaborately written quotes for the home.  So if there is a little spot in your home that could use a touch of inspiration, this might do the trick.  And once you have a few supplies on hand, these are easily put together for another spot in your home, for party table decor, or for gifts.

I was inspired by this little frame that was no longer being used.  I’m kind of big on reframing stuff so I always have a drawer full of frames that are out of circulation.  This one was small enough to experiment on and also had some pretty detail.  But I wasn’t in love with the finish…probably why it got put out of circulation.  Here it is already sanded a little bit and the dust wiped down with some tack cloth.

So I experimented with a product called milk paint in powdered form.  I’d used it once upon a time in premixed form when we were setting up rooms for new babies.  We had bought unfinished Mennonite style furniture and this was the paint they sold there, by a company called Homestead House.  As you can imagine by the name it comes in beautiful heritage colours.  You can read up on their website about all its other amazing qualities…non-toxic, odourless, zero VOC…  Best of all you don’t need to use a primer.

It comes like this, and I literally mixed it half a tablespoon powder to one tablespoon water, in a paper cup with a kitchen whisk.  Not what the instructions said at all.  So there you go.  You can hardly go wrong with this product.  Play around with it till you get the look you’re after.

The paint easily dries within half an hour.  I used two coats of paint, then sanded it a tiny bit along the detail and around the edges and corners.  The finish is then very chalky and flat, and needs to be sealed.  This wax is amazing for that but unfortunately not easy to come by around here.  If you happen to have a Mr. Personally who is travelling to a random place like Alpharetta Georgia, you can commission him to do a bit of shopping and pick you up a jar of this, plus a jar of the antique wax while he’s at it.  On his way to the airport.  Before the shop closes.  I don’t think that’s too much to ask.

For the chalkboard I actually just painted the cardboard backing that came with the frame.  What a cheater.  Don’t forget before using a new chalkboard surface to rub it completely with chalk dust.  I wanted to add some other small embellishment as well, that’s the whole point of making things yourself, right?  This little flower pick is from Creative Bag.  I just tucked it through the frame backing to the front.

As I write this Teenaged Daughter is practicing the most exquisite Chopin Arabesque on the piano.  Heavenly.  Just one of my ten thousand reasons.

Just the thing to personalize this little corner on the mantel.  And the finish is exactly what I was hoping for…a little bit more textured and worn in a vintage-y colour.  Are you inspired?  On to bigger and better milk paint projects, I think…

...personally, Andrea

linked to DIY show off and the farmhouse porch and a stroll thru life

Siberian Irises in Bloom

Ah, what a few days of sunshine can do in the garden.  My Siberian irises began blooming yesterday!  Such a treat.  The blooms are exquisite are they not?  The perfect shade of purple crossed with blue.  A stunning contrast against the vivid green and simple lines of their leaves.  I look forward to the arrival of the first flowers every spring.

 

They have special sentimental value for me.  These were transplanted from my Oma’s garden after she passed away.  Oma and Opa had the most beautiful garden.  And they took great pride in it.  I still picture them sitting in front of their house in the shade of a tree on a Sunday afternoon, enjoying their garden and each other’s company.

This stand of irises lives in a lovely, mostly shady spot at the side of my house.  I needed to go out and around several times during the day just to take a look and enjoy them.  Then I had a better idea.  How about a little bouquet for my windowsill where I could enjoy them much more frequently?

Yup, good idea.

And don’t you love the pretty vase?  Here’s a true story.  I bought it from the glass factory in Corning which we visited on a road trip several years ago.  I bought it as a gift for someone.  But then I kept it.  *gasp*  Are you appalled?  Please tell me you’ve never done anything like that.

 

But it was worth it if only for the sake of a pretty composition like this on my kitchen windowsill.  And thank you Oma for growing these beautiful blooms which we can now still enjoy.

Road Trip Ruminations

Road trips.  An opportunity to expand your horizons.  To be bold and adventurous and see what you can discover.

It all started with this musical being on the Bucket List for Teenaged Daughter and me.  Last chance to see it was in NYC last fall, and we decided on Mamma Mia instead.  So fun!  Then earlier this year, some internet browsing revealed that the Broadway tour of Wicked was coming to Rochester around the time we both have our birthdays.  Rochester…who knew?  Let’s get tickets and figure out the details later.  That’s how it works around here.  Road trip, here we come!

Along came the big weekend, and we had this poignant moment at the border.

Tragic events in Boston during the week made this border crossing a long and sombre one.

Once we were across and Teenaged Daughter had navigated us through a pit stop and into the right direction she quickly got bored and took hold of the camera.  Along with some crazy Selfies, she took this fantastic shot.

Ah, the open road.  Discovery and inspiration await us, and there is a feeling of solidarity as we navigate it together.

First stop, Wicked.  Fantastic.  If you haven’t yet seen it you must make an effort.  If you have, what was your favourite thing about it?  The costumes from the Emerald City were spectacular.  Check out some of the hats and gowns.

The story is a great exploration of finding your own path in life, and a tribute to real friendships.  Best line from a song…Because I knew you I’ve been changed For Good.  True words.

The next day, a walk around the neighbourhood of the theatre and our hotel was like this.

I wonder how my life would be more creative if I lived in a blue house?

And many more opportunities to take pretty pictures…can’t go wrong with an old tree, weathered fence and wildflowers.

A happy discovery…Rochester is home to the Eastman House!  George Eastman was the founder of Kodak and modern photography, and generous patron to the arts and sciences.  We made a visit to his historical home.

Now this is a civilized way to start and end your day.  So exquisite and beautiful.

Can you imagine having a conservatory like this in which to soak in the light…the space…the view…the elephant head?

And check out this library.  Music, writing, books, art, light, fireplace…all my favourite things.  I could live in a room like this.  Couldn’t you?

Ah yes, a good road trip.  We’ve expanded our horizons and deepened our relationship.  Happy Birthday, Teenaged Daughter.  What’s next on the Bucket List?

I leave the rest of you with some decorating inspiration.

Be bold.  Expand your horizons.

Easter Bits and Pieces

So Easter has come and gone for another year.  There were lots of fun traditions that we managed to fit in.  The combination of family time, good food and some candy of course made for a memorable holiday.  Easter lilies are such a beautiful symbol of the season.

I also managed to defrost the outdoor urns enough to replace the evergreen and dogwood branches with some pussywillows and my crocuses from inside.  The blooms are spent but the foliage is so delicate and pretty.

On Good Friday my Family came for lunch.  Here you can see part of the tablescape at dessert time.
 

It’s also tradition for us to colour eggs on the Friday or Saturday before Easter.  The kids all insist on participating every year, which I love, and it’s a lot of fun.

These saturated-colour eggs we do every year.  I make up several glass bowls of different colours, deep enough to submerge at least a couple of eggs at a time.  The colour recipe:  boiling water, a big splash of white vinegar, and a dab of this icing colour paste.

 

 

Covering different parts of the egg with elastic bands, stickers or crayon between colouring it in several different colours makes the cool designs you see above.

This year I tried a new idea from Pinterest.  Brown eggs decorated with a white paint marker.  All the kids were into it and they turned out really pretty!

Magically the Easter Bunny shows up during the night, steals the eggs from the fridge and hides them in the backyard.  Super-fun!  Every year on Easter morning.

Do you think he’ll find it?  He’s pretty tricky, that Easter Bunny!