Thrift Store Repaint of a Ceramic Puppy

 I was recently inspired by a couple Youtubers ( Moriah Elisabeth and Anja)

 to try my hand at a thrift store repaint.

 I kept my eye out for some old discarded item to give new life to.

I found this ceramic puppy at a Goodwill for $3. 

It was very dirty, chipped and overall just outdated. It was perfect! 

 It took me about 3 days from start to finish. I started by giving the puppy a good wash and getting as many stains off as possible. I attempted to strip the old paint with nail polish remover. I didn't think this through though as it took quite a bit of work to get all the paint off. I ran ot of acetone and gave up.

 I let the puppy fully dry, applied a white base coat and with a pencil sketched out the fur pattern I had in mind. I have heard drawing on rounded objects is tricky and I can definitely agree with that. I had to redraw lines quite a few times. 

The dog I based the puppy on was more of a true black color. 

I decided to go with a dark grey instead. 

I looked up the photos I had of Shadow (my inspiration) and tried to match his markings. Shadow was a beagle/ husky/ and something else mix.

Justin said it looked like the puppy had played in paint. I let this little guy dry overnight again. I should mention I used acrylics for this project. 

In the morning I tackled clean up and details. Painting the eyes was tough as my hands shake slightly. It took a lot of patience. 

Final look. I used a sharpie to outline the eyes before sealing with a glossy mod podge. 

The gloss is ok but looking at it now I should've used a matte mod podge.

The left ear still has the massive chip but you can't really tell now with the paint.

This project was a lot of fun and I learned along the way. I'm really happy with how the puppy turned out especially considering the hand tremor I have. 

Before and after. 

I definitely want to try this again sometime. I'm not an artist by any stretch of the imagination but I found the project very relaxing. I will be keeping my eye out for another piece to do sometime!

Love Rebecca🐇

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Our 8th Wedding Anniversary Trip, Day Two

We had a late start on the second day because I woke with a terrible headache, but some medicine and a heat pack helped. Once I was feeling better we headed to the Olde Mistick Village.  

One of the classic shops in the village

This bear has been a part of this shop since I was a kid. 

He told me the best shops to visit.

We also popped into a loose leaf tea shop. I was in love with all the bamboo plants

The shop also had various tea sets for sale. My husband really loves tea so we stopped into several tea shops during our trip. I enjoy fruity teas.

The village is so beautiful.

I made a friend

An old Anglican church building in the village.

Inside a Scandinavian shop

In another shop we saw these beautiful paper quilling cards. We got a few.

I could not stop laughing at the face on the sting ray.

The same shop had a large collection of Wee Forest Folk collectibles. 

An assortment of items displayed in the shop

A bug made from re-purposed computer pieces

More blown glass pieces. 

A steam punk Octopus candelabra 

Assorted animal sculptures

Wooden Owls

One of the old buildings. The water wheel doesn't turn sadly

My better half

Rocking my prescription sunglasses. 

The Weeping Willow at the center of the village is impressive

The duck pond

Inside an Alice in Wonderland Tea Room. I got a couple Alice in Wonderland post cards here. 

I really enjoyed the duck pond

These sparrows got pretty close to were I was sitting.

A duck scared the birds off 

I also saw a single duckling in the pond. 

Hands down the best part of the day (for me) was the Koi pond. 

I love Koi ponds so much. I could spend hours just watching the fish.

After grabbing a late lunch we got in the car and made the drive back home. I was very worn out after our trip and it took a week for me to recover. I had a lovely trip but the back pain, almost fainting and general fatigue made it hard.  We had planned to go to the Seaport during our trip but my body just couldn't make it. Justin did a great job taking care of me and cheering me up when I felt sad with my limitations. He is the best. 

Here's to another year with my best friend, I love you Justin! 

Love Rebecca 💗

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Our 8th Wedding Anniversary Trip, Day One

For our 8th wedding anniversary this year Justin planned a two day trip to Mystic Ct. 

Mystic is an old coastal town brimming with museums, antique shops and beautiful sights. One of the best aquariums in New England is in Mystic. 

Justin found an adorable inn for us to stay at during our trip.

I always wanted to sleep on a canopy bed! The decorations in the room were definitely 90s but it was very cozy and reminded me of my grandma's house. The bathroom had a hot tub too! That was very nice after a long day of walking. 

After settling in to the Inn we went on our excursion.

 We stopped at a cute little bakery first. Justin got us a delicious giant cookie to share throughout the day .We both love chocolate chip cookies with nuts, caramel, and dried fruits. 

The view from inside the bakery. The bakery is near the historic Mystic River Drawbridge, and there are a lot of little shops along the road to the bridge. 

Our first stop was in a little glass decor shop. It was absolutely gorgeous. 

More glass decorations. This is a glass horseshoe crab with a coral reef scene. A lot of these pieces were $100 and up.

I loved this glass blown bee display

Look at how cute they are!!

Because we were by the river we got some nice breezes

Some photos from a Steampunk themed shop. 

I thought this diver's helmet Octopus was pretty cute

By the river

The Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream Cafe, that is indeed slanting up on the right side of the picture.

 It is built right on the shore of the river. 

The drawbridge itself. Built in 1922 and quite impressive. Those are indeed giant concrete counterweights and are kinda scary to walk under. 

The bridge regularly lifts several times a day. Its really neat to watch. 

From inside the Ice Cream cafe

A video of the bridge lifting so boats could pass

Justin walking ahead of me. 

The beautiful Mystic River.

Inside a Spice and Sugar shop.

I had no idea flavored sugars were a thing. 

Boats by the drawbridge.

You can see the Mystic Pizza building way in the back. We didn't go this trip but I've been there several times. The pizza lives up to the hype and the movie!

We stopped at a place for dinner and then headed back to the Inn. Justin got a good laugh out of me struggling to get my 5'3" self onto the bed even with the step stool!

Sunset view from the porch of our room.

I took this photo after a thunderstorm had passed through.

Day Two coming soon! 

Love Rebecca 💗

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