Sprucing up the Door Mat

Bored yet wanting to feel constructive I decided the door mat needed sprucing up. When I bought it, there were subtle, muted colors shaded blue, pink, green. Over time and wear the colors faded so that now the entire mat was just black rubber.

I used acrylic paint with the idea of sealing it with a varnish once I'd finished. I'd seen this idea elsewhere online. 

Seasoned painters and artists may already know this but;

I took the mat outside, laid it on the ground and gave it three coats of spray *varnish ( see warning) at 30 minute intervals.

*WARNING:  The directions say to spray in a well ventilated area. I  sprayed outside on the ground without a mask, goggles or protective clothing. Unfortunately, a breeze came up and blew the varnish back on me and I accidentally inhaled it. Later, I was wondering why I had a sore throat and upper respiratory discomfort.  After reading about side affects from inhalation, I knew it was the varnish.  This is day three and I'm feeling much better. By day four it should be completely gone. So, if you use this product cover and protect yourself unless you just happen to have a spare HAZMAT suit hanging in your closet.

I'm very pleased with the outcome. The bright colors are welcoming to visitors.

next week Will my Garden Grow?

That's it***

This Isn't Your Grandma's Button Box

It's been a while since I posted. Had what I consider major PC issues. Had to get a new modem. Then the PC had to be upgraded. Tech ,Tech,Tech.
 Anyway...

Since I enjoy crafts I've been hanging out once a week at one of the city libraries where they have crafts for adults. 
The first I participated in was making pictures with buttons.  
There were buttons of all shapes, colors and compositions. 

First we painted a tree on the canvas mat.

This tree looks a little angry. Maybe it'll cheer up after I decorate it.

We used E-6000 glue and a real canvas mat.  Choosing the buttons wasn't easy with so many choices






Here are some of the ones that were done .

 

Remember the angy looking naked tree at the top? This is how I filled it in.

 That's it***

Adult Coloring

My brother and his wife would color with their daughter when she was a little girl. I remember him saying how relaxing it was. This was over 25 years ago. Coloring with crayons for adults was not something you'd hear of back then. Sure, you could get away with it if you were sharing an activity with a child. On your own, it might cause other adults to give you  an over the shoulder, second glance. 

NOW there are coloring books for adults. Recently, I was in a local library where one of the activities that morning was adult coloring. I was invited to stay but because of previously scheduled commitments, I had to decline.

After seeing a flier for adult coloring at another library I decided to attend.  The catch word for me was, "coffee." There would be coffee and muffins or, if coffee wasn't your pleasure, bottled water. I'm a coffee lover so I was sold.

There were four other ladies in the meeting room. The librarian had us select a page from one of the several books available. Selections were printed on card stock.  The tables already had pencil colors so all we had to do was get busy. One person brought her own coloring book that she'd been working on. She'd been using  markers made especially for coloring books that didn't bleed through the pages.

I've seen the adult coloring books. They can go from tame to risque. 
The tamer ones usually have very intricate pictures. I chose a design that wasn't so elaborate. Otherwise, I'd become frustrated  and stressed  causing the purpose for coloring to become null and void.

I enjoyed the experience.  It reminds me of the vintage "Paint by Number" series so popular during the 1960's.

Interacting with other people in a comfortable environment made it even better.

THAT'S IT***