Got Rope?

I've been roping.

Not this kind.

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This kind.

(Although I might have let out a "Yippee Ki Yay" when I finished roping my chandelier.)

Rope and twine are big in home decor. 

Haven't you seen it more and more these days?

Check out these wine barrel chandeliers suspended by rope and antique pulleys from Restoration Hardware.

I had some rope left over from a macrame project and here's what I did with it.

You can buy the rope at Restoration Hardware with nice metal finished end hooks, but it's pricey.

 

Vintage Birdcage Chandelier Extension Rope

$150 - $350

Or you can buy it by the foot for much less at your favorite hardware store.

I hung these these H4H lanterns over my island on either side of a candelier.  To see how I took these $15 lanterns and replaced my can lights with them go here. 

Swapping out the middle chain for some rope was an inexpensive (free in this case) textural change. 

Here is the heavy metal look.

Here's the new rope look.

 I just removed the chain and looped the rope into the ceiling mount and the candelier. 

I secured it with some twine and it's done. 

I liked it so much I added rope to the chandelier over my dining room table.  Adding it over an electrical cord takes a little longer.  This isn't the the greatest tutorial I've ever done, but it's easy.  First determine the length of rope you need. Make sure you have enough for the loop at the top and the bottom of the chandelier.  Because this was an existing chandelier, I had to remove each link of chandelier chain with pliers.  This is the most time consuming part of the project.  I had to use pliers to open each piece of chain to un thread the electrical wire that was snaked through it.  You will need to support the weight of chandelier during this step.  The electrical cord is not made to support the weight of a chandelier.  Get a friend to hold the chandelier while you work on the rope.  If you don't support the weight of the chandelier, it could pull out of the ceiling and fall, very bad. 

Unwrap the rope and re wrap it around the wire, starting from the top and working down.  Wrap it as tight as you can because it will untwist sightly when you're finished.  Secure the top with twine and work your way down.   

Secure the bottom, trim the extra and you're done. 

After taking these pictures I realized I needed to trim a little more from the top loop.

Pictures are great for fine tuning projects. 
For some reason it's easier for me to notice what needs tweaking? 

That's better.

Even if you don't have extra rope laying around and you have to buy it, this is a pretty inexpensive project to add some texture to your hanging lights.
 I like the rustic rope with the crystal and metal chandelier.

What do you think?

Heavy metal or rustic rope?

Made any rope projects lately? 

I'm out of rope for now, but I'm looking out for more rope project possibilities.

Thanks for checking it out.

To see more rope projects go here.

Spring In A Bubble

It's 75 degrees and gorgeous here in San Diego today. 

Is it Spring yet? 

Maybe not, but I'm adding a little spring to my hanging glass bubbles.

Here are my Christmas bubbles.

Here is their Spring debut. 

Tillandsias with a side of mushroom, served on a bed of hot pink and purple moss, garnished with a sprig of lichen branch.

I call it it "Spring In A Bubble."

I've been in love with these little miracle air plants since back in the day when I used to make and sell table top fountains. 

I'm not the first to stick them in a bubble.
I found this Christmas ornament on Pinterest from Floragrubb

Here are some of mine from last September. 
To see more of this post go here

I found the pink moss and mushrooms at a great store called Pigment in North Park, San Diego.

The little faux mushrooms were inspired by the real thing.

This little guy appeared in one of my terrariums all by itself.

It was love at first sight.

 I think I have a case of "fungi fetish." 

I appologize if my humor tends to be juvenile. 
I used to teach middle school and I thought Beavis and Butthead are funny. 
They reminded me of some of my students. 

That's about my level of witty sophistication.

Come to think of it, Beavis and Butthead would probably try to smoke my faux "shrooms."

 

 Those prepubescent teenagers made me laugh everyday.

Enough of my trip down memory lane, back to the bubbles.

One good thing about having a neutral color pallet in my house is that I can add any color, at anytime and it pretty much goes.
Perfect for a changeaholic like me.

I'm loving the pop of hot pink right now.

It's a nice contrast with the adjacent succulents.

 

The wood pallet vertical planter is doing awesome.  If you would like to see how I made it go here. 

I've only had one succulent casualty so far and the weight of the soil hasn't pulled it off the wall.

Are you ready for Spring yet or am I too early?

Thanks for checking it out.

Has It Really been Almost a Month?

Hello bloggy friends, I have missed you! 

Sorry I stepped off the blogger train. 

I got a little off track. 

It's much easier to jump off a moving train than to catch back up and jump back on. 

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In my mind I have written hundreds of posts.

  I guess you could compare it to planning on going for a run and never actually putting my running shoes on?

It's amazing how I filled up the time I spent blogging with other "stuff." I know you would all laugh at me if I said I was "busy," isn't everyone?   I'm no busier than any of you, I just lost my sense of time management for a bit, but I'm back and I can't wait to see all the wonderful things you've been up to.

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We have had some huge changes in our family this last month. 

My husband is retiring from a job he has LOVED for the past 21 years and starting a new career in the private sector.  Our girls think their Dad's job is the "coolest" in the whole world and don't want him to leave it, but the timing is perfect and it just feels right.  It's happening so fast.  Very exciting and scary all at the same time.  We are definitely stepping out of our hula hoop (comfort zone) to new uncharted territory.

On top of that I'm coaching club volleyball and have been traveling to tournaments out of the San Diego area. 

Both my girls continue to be busy with their own school work, club sports, and school teams.

While I haven't been blogging I still am addicted to projects and here's a preview of some of the things I've been working playing on. 

Painting Project

 

Sewing Project

 Mixing It Up

 Rope Project

Spring Decor

I'll show you more soon and I'm excited to see what you've been working on this past month.

 Thank you to all my bloggy friends that sent me an email to check up on me, so sweet!

Thanks for checking it out.