As mentioned in a previous post I was inspired to take a class in felting from alpaca fleece. There were a number of projects to choose from but I opted for the thing I thought I’d use most… a wine cooler.

After several hours of a process that is not particularly complex but does take time and attention I was able to produce a gorgeous wine cooler that is woven in colors of black, gray, and white. The best part is the fleece came from the alpaca right there on the farm so I got to meet the beautiful creatures too. I have to say their eyes are breathtaking and they are very quiet and gentle.

These aren’t the alpacas I met but they are just as sweet…

The process of felting starts with the alpaca fleece in this form.

Then over the course of several hours and through many steps of layering, water, rubbing, pressing, etc. around a form I created this:

Love it! I brought it home and embellished it with a few extra details including a suede string with silver beads (they have little leaves on them) and pewter buttons.

It now sits proudly on the bar in the family room waiting to chill the next bottle of wine.

 Who doesn’t love to drink wine in style? 

This past fall on an excursion to Rocky Mountain National Park to photograph the elk we wandered through a number of shops in nearby Estes Park. My husband saw a rack of coat hooks made of old railroad nails for a low-low price of $85. Are you kidding me? Well that sparked an idea that we thought we could do for less. We needed a place for blankets in the family room and what better way than to hang them on cool rustic hooks within reach of the sofa? … Yes, this was my husband’s idea and I just executed it. 

Materials used:

• Scrap rough-sawn pine from the location where our log cabin is in the process of being built (more posts on that in the future)
• Iron coat hooks acquired for half-price from a local craft store
• A few screws
• Total cost… about $12 (not including the blankets)

Once in place we hung the blankets and I added my cowboy hat for a little something extra.

On a recent excursion to an antique mall I picked up a cowboy bench. It’s a funny little piece that was an impulse buy for $20. When I brought it home I wasn’t sure what on earth I was going to do with it. Now it has a perfect home… a “not-so-vintage” 1970s inexpensive piece that looks just right next to the blanket rack.

I have to say I am happy with the New Year’s Eve project. So simple yet so satisfying… and just the touch of coziness our family room needed. 

Inspiration One: Design Inspired Websites… there are a number of them and of course millions of blogs. However when I need a little extra oomph in a design I like to turn to Houzz.com. It’s always fun to see what other designers and homeowners are up to and how they tackle interesting spaces in the home.

Inspiration Two: Books… two of my latest favorites are…

For its images of vast beautiful spaces both inside and out:

To find the best color that wills et the tone (literally and figuratively) for a space:

Inspiration Three: Classes… what better way to challenge the mind than to learn something new. “They” keep saying that using your mind and exercising your mind in different ways will ward off so many things later in life like Alzheimer’s and dementia to name a few. The latest class I took was all about learning how to felt. We are just down the road from an alpaca farm and as luck would have it we stopped by with a friend yesterday (Saturday) to buy some yarn. One conversation lead to another and voila… today (Sunday) I leaned how to felt! My first project was a wine cooler (photos to follow later as I need to finish a few details once it is dry). Who knew you could take this:

and make this:

The process was fun and interesting but word to the wise, it is repetitive and it takes some time (hours actually) to complete one item. Now I know why it is considered an art.

What are your favorite places to turn for inspiration? I would love to hear all about it.

Make a photo slideshow

we created an amazing backyard oasis with fire pit and all, we adopted a new puppy (now twelve furry legs running around), and I began a new job as a kitchen designer. Perhaps all of these things wrapped up on a ball is why I have not been as consistent with my posts (which is the downside for 2011). I hope that I can improve on this in 2012!

Thinking back over the year my favorite posts (top five in no particular order) in my opinion are…

1. Panel Molding or Wainscoting?
2. How to Decorate with High Ceilings
3. Kitchen Design Trend (Matchy Matchy is Out)
4. It’s Still All About Gray
5. Creative Ceiling Treatments