Non-Consumer Photo Essay — Maps, Chalkboard Paint and Veterinary Tattoos

by Katy on April 9, 2012 · 14 comments


All the supplies needed to make more map coasters for our Japanese host families. My mother donated four coasters and I was easily able to find an extra $4 set at Goodwill. A $1 Goodwill map of Portland provided all the necessary map-age. So cute and easy, I'll probably make this project over and over again.

 

A couple coats of Mod-Podge plus a spritz of Polyurethane spray finishes up the coasters.

 

I bought a huge bag of tulip bulbs for $4 at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore not too long ago. It's amazing how fast they've started coming up. This pot is ready to start blooming!

 

Our new sod backyard is looking great. The rain has been keeping it moist, so this is only the second time that I've had to water it. I love how the early morning light catches in the spray of water.

 

This goes under a new blog category that I'm going to call "The Weirdest Thing at Goodwill." It's an original piece of art that reads, "Spay and Neuter Everyone." and features scissors dripping with blood. And I'm pretty sure it's a prototype for a tattoo. *Shudder*

 

I got the great idea to use chalkboard paint on two of my kitchen cupboards. Sadly, this is what it looks like after the first coat. I'm using some leftover paint from a friend at work, and it think it has thickened with age. I now need to sand it down, thin out the paint and start over using a paint roller. This is for all of you out there who think I have a knack for DIY projects. This door pretty much sums up my crafty skills, which is why most of what I attempt is highly UNskilled.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }

Megg April 9, 2012 at 10:12 am

While I agree with the thought, that’s a pretty intense tattoo.

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Rebecca B.A.R. April 9, 2012 at 10:24 am

I am really all for spaying and neutering pets (even people, sometimes!), but that thing scares the willies out of me!

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Katy April 9, 2012 at 11:08 am

The idea here is that pets are neutered by repeated stabbed by sewing scissors?!

Katy

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Trish April 9, 2012 at 2:38 pm

it just says spay and neuter everyone – maybe it is for misogynists? it doesn’t really make reference to pets.

or for a vet who had a bad experience – I was just reading Readers Digest in a waiting room, and a vet commented that a no kill shelter had sent over 70 cats in one day to be put down. that would almost drive me to get a scary tatoo to make people sit up and take notice.

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Jo H. April 9, 2012 at 10:46 am

“Shudder” is right …

Thank you for showing the projects that don’t turn out, not just the ones that are a success 🙂 Good luck with the rescue and let us know how it goes.

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Katy April 9, 2012 at 11:07 am

Happy to oblige! 😀

Katy

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AnnW April 9, 2012 at 3:11 pm

Whoa, wait on that sanding! Chalk paint doesn’t always cover in one coat. Thin it out with water and paint again. If you don’t like it then, add another quick coat. Let it dry for a day or so. Called “curing”. Then lightly wax with almost any clear wax. I used Fiddes that I found in the house. You could probably even use Johnson’s floor wax. After the wax dries, Then you sand. The wax makes it so that you don’t have tons of dust. You can rough up the edges, or where normal wear would be. Go to Miss Mustard Seed’s blog to see what she usually does. After the sanding and distressing, you can add a little more clear wax, then touch up with darker wax for an old world look. You can even use shoe polish. If you put on too much dark wax, usually the clear wax will take it off. Good luck. I think more people will respond, because Annie Sloan just had a US Tour.

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Katy April 9, 2012 at 5:42 pm

I am not a fan of faux distressing. But thanks for the tips! 🙂

Katy

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Practical Parsimony April 9, 2012 at 6:25 pm

Okay, If the sign is meant for us to all spay and neuter our animals, it should read:
“Spay and neuter, everyone.” The sign would then be directing everyone to spay and neuter animals.

As it reads: “Spay and neuter everyone.” It sounds like a command to all of us or someone to go and get” everyone” and spay and neuter “everyone.” The suggestion seems to be to do it with scissors. That might work for cutting off boy parts. But, for girls?

The lack of a comma makes it into a statement that, I believe, is contrary to the artist’s intent. This is why we need to learn to punctuate. “mumbling to my self…I need to remember.”

That is really creepy. Thanks, Katy, for the bedtime vision.

I think sanding the door first would make the paint cover a bit better first time.

Once upon a time. I painted some paneling and the paint seemed to “part” as I put it on. It was not that it did not cover. I finally sanded first and there was no parting of the paint.

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Katy April 9, 2012 at 10:09 pm

Perhaps the tattoo artist wished to end the human race. And BTW, I’ve watched enough bilateral tubal ligations at work to probably do one myself. With scissors. But I won’t. Because that’s horrible.

Sweet dreams.

Katy

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Miss Roman Apartment April 10, 2012 at 9:39 am

Okay. I LOVE the coasters. I had really fug coasters in my rental apartment in Florence last fall (I know, First World problems), plenty of maps and an art store a mile away. This would have been a great project to do there.

Those are great souvenirs–functional, lightweight, and cute!

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Paula in the UP April 10, 2012 at 12:34 pm

Your weather looks beautiful as does your very green lawn and budding bush/ flowers. We are still quite brown and very few sprouting leaves or flowers! My husband drI’ve through a blizzard today, the joys of living in MI’s Upper Peninsula I guess?

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Jenn H April 12, 2012 at 3:56 am

So does the chalk board paint make that same sound if you scratch your nails on it as a regular chalkboard does? Is so you might want to leave a little border of wood around to account for the area w/ the handle. I can’t imagine accidentally scrapping my nails down a chalk board every time I wen to open the cupboard. Yikes.

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Katy April 12, 2012 at 6:39 am

I’ll try not to scratch the chalkboard surface with my long Cruella DeVille nails. 😉

Katy

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