Before & After: Beachy Cupboard

 

Sometimes I have things that just don't seem to find a home, even though I think the piece would be perfect for someone!  This cupboard was one of those pieces!

Now, I thought it was great in my space when I did a Halloween display - the cupboard held all sorts of little pumpkins, scarecrows, owls, etc.  with the red interior I thought it would work in a country home or boys room - but maybe it was just too 'sorcerer'! 

With the Twilight movies so popular you would have thought this would be a hot item! 

But noooo!  I had this item for too long so it was time to do a makeover!

Maybe it was the star - so i decided to take the star off to make the design more neutral. But the cupboard looked really plain so I went in search of something and found a seashell embellishment and decided to transform the cupboard into 'Beachy'

I painted the inside an aqua color that is so popular right now and painted the outside in Annie Sloan's Old White chalk paint.

I added the seashell to the outside -Voila!   I'll be bringing this beachy cupboard to my booth at our Annual Nicolaus Labor Day Parade!

It can hang on a wall or sit atop a table and It has so much to offer in terms of display space - perfect in a bathroom to hold little perfume jars or lotions - 

Or maybe in a bedroom to display a cherished collection!

I hope it finds a loving home!

I've linked up to http://snapcreativity.com/show-and-tell-linky-092612/

Detours in Life!

Life has a way of creating detours day to day.  I've been on sort of a detour since January!  With my husband undergoing major back surgery, which involved installing two rods on either side of his spine and twenty screws, I've had a little readjustment in my daily life! 

Mike is doing great and I have a new found appreciation of all the daily chores he did before surgery which I've inherited over the last six months!  Remembering to take the trash out on trash day has become a major focus for me on Wednesday nights!  God forbid we miss trash day - we only have one toter and sometimes it just isn't enough!

On top of major surgery, we've also been busy creating a new home for my mother in law!  There was finishing the building of the new home, cleaning out the old home, moving all the stuff to the new home, disposing of debris on the property and now selling the old home, and getting her boxes unpacked at the new home! Whew! 

 We make a living by rice farming, so despite major surgery and moving my mother in law,

 the crop still had to get in the ground!  Our eldest son, Max, was offered a leave of 
absence by American Airlines where he is a pilot, while they go through bankruptcy 
structuring,  and it came at a perfect time for him to help on the farm during Mike's 
recovery!  

With all the bumps in the road, it was hard for me to get out to Melange, the store in Historic Folsom where I rented a space to sell my treasures.  I was able to find a new space to rent, in a store in Marysville, a short 15 minutes from my home. So between 

nursing my husband, moving my mother-in-law, and farming rice, I managed to relocate 
as well! 


 
If you find yourself in Marysville, CA come on by Fabulous Finds, 506 D Street in Historic Marysville - I'm in the "Boutique" room!  I adore my new space as it has a used brick wall
 that adds to the 'shabby chic' feel!

I have so much to catch you up on!  Before and after furniture projects, new artists and crafters, and new stores I want to feature!  I've missed blogging and telling you about the amazing creations and talented people I've come across in the last six months!  I feel so blessed by all the community members who have helped us out during this time.  Detours happen in life - but sometimes you need to go down a different road to appreciate all you have, and I am truly blessed!

Hawaiian Pancakes!!

OK - I'm a little late ringing in the New Year - but better late than never!!  Christmas came and went and I never managed to get a post done! Lots of good intentions and lots of posts started - some of which I will be able to use and some will have to wait until the next holiday season.  We took a quick trip to Hawaii to visit our son Sam, an Army RN stationed at Tripler Medical Center on Oahu.  It was a week long respite before my husband undergoes back surgery - and it was, well - Paradise!!

Our visits to Hawaii are a bit different than the typical vacationer is some ways. We stay with our son in his two bedroom apartment in Kailua, on the opposite side of the island from Waikiki.  It is the rainier side but this year we were fortunate to have only two short rain showers in the seven days we were there so the humidity was much more bearable than last year.  Sam works the night shift and has to catch up on sleep a few of the days we are there so Mike and I set out to explore on the days he has to sleep.  But after a twelve hour shift, he is pretty hungry so first, we go to breakfast!

Hawaiians love their pancakes and Cinnamon's is the place to go for some of the best pancakes on Oahu!  Cinnamon's is known for their famous Red Velvet Pancakes served with White Chocolate Sauce - decadent! It is hard to go to Cinnamon's and NOT get an order so we decided to get a short stack of two just so we all have a taste!  Unbelievably good - I have to try to recreate them at home!

I knew I couldn't eat an whole order of those so I ordered the frittata breakfast - another fantastic gastronomic creation. Artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, basil, zuchinni, a bit of pesto, along with cheddar and some parmesan cheese all mixed with some scrambled eggs and cooked up into a blended omelet of sorts - so divine and with all those veggies I felt I offset the bites of the red velvet pancakes!!

The other crowd favorite at Cinnamon's is the Guava Chiffon Pancakes.  We had never tasted them before and when Sam's other favorite breakfast place in Kailua was closed for the yearly kitchen clean up and maintenance we headed back to Cinnamon's and ordered a short stack.  The Guava syrup is so sweet and along with the Chiffon whipped cream makes an impressive dish!  Super sweet - the Hawaiians definitely have a sweet tooth! We all decided there was no way any of us could eat a whole order by ourselves and we marveled at the customers who could!

 Sam used to live in Kaneohe, also on the windward side of Oahu, but when his house mate got married last year, he had to find a place of his own.  In Kaneohe, one of the best breakfast spots was the Koa Pancake House.  It was here Sam would order the Banana Pancakes!  Yes Banana!  Sliced Bananas fried right into the pancakes and then served with papaya or coconut syrup to pour over all - a tropical breakfast treat!  You know you are in Hawaii when you take a bite of these!

After breakfast, we took Sam back to his apartment to catch up on his sleep and we headed towards our destination for the day - North Shore - home of the big waves! More about that tomorrow! And more about another Hawaiian breakfast favorite!

Trailer Trash Party Cake

I thought I'd share with you the cake I brought to the "Trailer Trash" party that I talked about in my last post!  When I told Bonnie I'd bring a dessert, I began to wonder what I could bring that would blend with the theme - then it hit me! I could make a trailer cake!  I love watching the program "Ace of Cakes" so it would a fun challenge. I didn't have time to make a cake from scratch so I mixed up a box of white cake mix and mixed some rainbow sprinkles into the dough so the cake itself would look trashy on the inside.  Unfortunately, I didn't think to take pictures so I'll describe how I made the cake as best I can!

I poured the batter into a 9 x 13" glass cake pan that I had sprayed with "Baking Pam" - this product is great because the flour is already in the spray so it is way less messy to "grease and flour" your baking pan!  I choose this pan because the corners were really rounded which I was going to need to shape the trailer.

TIP: Always hold your pan low in your sink when you spray it so the over spray is in your sink instead of all over your counter! So simple - but I didn't learn this trick for years! (Sorry - I needed a third hand if I was going to get a shot of my spraying the Pam while taking the picture!)  

When the cake was done cooking, I set it out .  

to cool for ten minutes and then flipped the cake out of the pan onto a cooling rack

While the cake was cooling, I covered a piece of cardboard with some foil to make a base for the cake. When the cake was completely cool, I cut the cake in half across the width. I spread canned vanilla frosting over the bottom of one half of the cake, and then stood the cut- end of the half up on the foil covered board. I then grabbed the other half and pressed the bottom against the frosted side make a cake sandwich that was standing up with cut sides on the bottom, and the frosting in the middle.  The round corners of the pan help form the top rounded 'trailer shape'.

I wanted to make it look like the 'trailer cake' was sitting in a dirt lot.  I spread a then layer of the vanilla frosting around the cake on the foil covered board.  Some caramel corn was perfect for the dirt - I just crushed it and then sprinkled it over the frosting covered board.

Next step - make the frosting gray to match the outside color of Bonnie's Streamline trailer.  They make black food coloring now!  It comes in the regular liquid like the tall cox here or in paste form, like the little containers here. You can buy food coloring in this 'paste' form at Michael's, Sur La Table, and Hobby Lobby.  Using a paste coloring, instead of liquid, gives you the benefit of getting a more saturated color to your frosting,without changing the texture of your frosting.  In this case, I used the liquid black because I needed only a smidgen to make my vanilla frosting turn light gray to simulate the silver Streamline trailer.  I spread the gray frosting over the entire exterior of my cake.

Next I googled "vintage airstream trailer" in Google Images so I would have a visual reference.  My cake trailer needed some windows, so I cut down some squares of candy foil wrap and stuck my "windows and door" directly onto the frosting with the shiny foil side out.  Wrapped Hershey's Nugget candies were perfect for the air conditioner that was on top of the trailer.

I needed a roll out awning to make it look more like a real trailer so I grabbed a bamboo skewer and broke it in half.  I cut a small square of waxed paper out and rolled it around a pencil.  The wax paper held the curl after I took the pencil back out so I placed it on the cake with the two pieces of skewer on either side - the awning looked great!

 I decided to write " Bonnie's or Bust!" on top of the cake and I had some pink squeeze tube frosting which worked perfectly.  I also outlined all the foil pieces and added some other details.

I poked around my baking cupboard to see what else I had that would add some finishing touches - a flamingo candle and a drink umbrella were just what I needed!  What trailer would be complete without a pink flamingo?!

 I used chocolate marshmallows for the tires.  If you have never tried these marshmallows from Williams-Sonoma try them sometime - they take marshmallows to a whole new level!  They are a seasonal item so watch for them. The mallows are individually packaged so they stay fresh for a long time and they are huge! Each mallow is about a 1.5" square cube - I cut two mallows into circles and attached them for my tires.

Voila! My "Trailer Trash Party Cake"!  Bonnie liked it so much she froze it to share at her next party! Whenever I see party goods or baking decorations on sale, like the pink flamingo candle and drink umbrella,  I grab them because you never know creation will need to be made next!

Bonnie's Vintage Trailer Redo!

"Want to come to my Trailer Trash party?" was the question I was confronted with one day by my friend, Bonnie Rosser.  My first thought was "Are we going to be eating possum?" but it was quickly answered when Bonnie explained how she throws "Trailer Trash" parties to display and sell her vintage western home decor!  "Sounds like fun! What can I bring?"  I decided to bring a dessert - a cake.

I arrived with my cake in hand and was warmly greeted as Bonnie showed me in, and then presented the "Trailer Trash" feast:  margaritas, cheese curls, vienna sausages, potato chips, and the grand daddy of them all - SPAM!  The rest of the guests arrived, we grabbed the food and heading out to the trailer for the party. 

Bonnie had found an old Streamline trailer, talked the owner into selling it to her and then undertook remodeling and decorating the interior of the trailer in a vintage 1950's western theme.   The original oven, sink and banquettes from the seventies helped Bonnie determine the color scheme of turquoise and red.  Bonnie painted the rest of the cabinets to match the oven color.

 The food was set on the table in the 'banquette' part of the trailer. Bonnie restored the original turquoise vinyl ulpholstory on the bench seats and found a folding table from Ballard Design which allows her to use the space in different configurations.  Bonnie stores some of her vintage western merchandise inside the banquette seats between shows.

The window above the banquette is dressed in window coverings designed and made by Bonnie.  The shelf above is dotted with conchos all attached by hand and houses Bonnie's collection of personal favorite Roy Rogers' memorabilia on a daily basis, and serves as a display shelf when she is selling her wares.

 The pair of child's Roy Rogers boots are one of her prize finds!


 

The custom curtains were designed and made by Bonnie out of turquoise leopard print, vintage western fabric and large cotton fringe.

 The vintage chandelier is suspended above the banquette - Bonnie painted the canopy a bright red to go with her color scheme.

 Zane Gray books are clustered together and held in place by two vintage horse head bookends designed by Gladys Brown. 

A vintage Roy Rogers rider toy sits atop the shelf displaying collectibles.

The sconces flanking the banquette were designed and Bonnie hired a Cal Poly graduate, Jessica Kong, to give the horse head's a custom "Trigger" paint job!  Boonie added the conchos to the shelf herself.

 The longhorn cabinet hardware is just one of many special details!

Conchos also embellish the mirror Bonnie installed, with a longhorn head centered over all.  You can see a reflection of the bed and curtains on the opposite wall.


 
The bedspread is a vintage cotton spread Bonnie found in Gilette, Wyoming, when her daughter, Linsay, was competing at the National High School Rodeo Finals.  The guitar is another vintage piece Bonnie purchased at the Sacramento Antique Fair.

The bedroom counter displays an vintage western scarf under glass.  Bonnie added the beaded fringe to her curtains.  A vintage bottle cap belt is lined up at the front of the counter and is a fun touch!


 
This cabinet is adorned with a vintage toy fence panel.

Bonnie sells vintage western themed collectibles out of her trailer including this Sky Ranch platter.  Other merchandise includes: Wallace China, Monterey Ware, Siesta Ware, vintage enamel ware, Gladys Brown bookends, horses and other western memorabilia to name a few!

 
Candy cigarettes fill a vintage vase with steer roping detail.


 All the Rosser's are involved with rodeo in one way or another so the vintage western theme was a natural choice and it is where Bonnie's love lies. The repurpose and remodel was a two year labor of love and Bonnie's attention to detail is evident in every niche of the charming space.

 The color scheme continues to the outside with special sidewall tires rimmed in turquoise.

 The "Happy Trails" propane tanks were custom painted and the family brand was painted on the trailer.

Keep track of Bonnie on her Facebook page, Trailer Trash: Old Timey Trash and Treasures of the Old West.  Bonnie just joined "Sisters on the Fly" and no doubt will have many adventures in her tricked out trailer! This sassy gal, another of Bonnie's vintage finds, sits waiting for visitors - so until then - Happy Trails to You!