Thursday, June 30, 2011

Sombre Happy Canada Day...

Not just because we have had such terrible weather so far this year, but because being responsible and keeping your sanity in the midst of a rip-roaring bubble (of any kind) is danged difficult.

Especially when you know the carnage that will fall upon our friends and our country, if and when the bubble bursts. In fact even those who have sat it out will be forced to share the pain.

It's like going with a bunch of friends to the bar and trying to get them to moderate their imbibing while they are guzzling down the booze. You are staying sober, and end up having to take them to the hospital and paying the bra tab and the medical bills.

It's already happening with 1% rates for savers and 3.7% inflation. The speculators are eating out money and all the idiot at the Bank of Canada can do is wring his hands and keep saying 'please stop borrowing so much'. He needs a good kick in the wallet and then someone should pull him by the ear and show him the excellent charts on Ben's site- duh! You did it! You and Flaherty and Harper.

Have a good one folks. We are lucky to live here, renter or owner. It is a great country. So by the way are the US and Spain and they are both reeling from stupid mistakes by their policy makers that led to a housing bubble that burst and caused carnage. How far away can we be?

Sofa Table

Here is a project that I did a few weeks back, and just never took the time to get it posted. I found this sofa table at a yard sale for $15. In it's original state, it was honey colored, and very well taken care of.
Of course, me being who I am, I couldn't just leave it in it's original state:o)
 Painting this table was a 3-step process. I spray painted a base coat of Krylon's Peekaboo Blue. I didn't worry about full coverage b/c I knew that I would be distressing it. I had just a smidge of the chalk paint left over, so I dry brushed a thin coat on top of the Peekaboo Blue.
Once that was dry, I sanded it to death. It was still a little too blue, so I dirtied it up with some Valspar antiquing glaze.
I found these glass knobs at Lowes. They were a necessity since every piece of furniture needs a little bling:o) 

It fits perfectly in our living room....It was meant to be...sigh:o)


Participating in these parties:

Furniture Feature Fridays












This project was featured at:



Wednesday, June 29, 2011

A Dress for S.R.

 Yesterday I got the sewing bug again:o) I have been on a sewing hiatus after my encounter with the bridesmaid dresses that I worked on. It was actually nice to take a break...but now I am back.
I have had a beautiful stash of fabric that I have been putting off using for far too long now. I came across 
dress yesterday, and new I had to make a similar one. It is so sweet:o)
So here is my version of the "Summer Dress".
 My mother gave me some baby ric rac and I had to find a way to incorporate it on the dress. It adds just a little bit more to the ruffle don't you think? The lace that runs down the center front is some vintage lace I had in my stash...also given to me by my mother:o)
I am so happy with the results! 
I love visiting Girl.Inspired. She always has the most beautiful outfits for her girls...she is definitely "inspired" and very inspiring!
I am hoping to get some matching "4th of July" outfits made for the kids today during nap time...we'll see how that goes:o)

Participating in:


Whimsy Couture

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Super Hero Birthday Party Inspiration

As you all may have noticed, I have been M.I.A. here lately. This summer has been jam packed full of things. Playgroups, swim lessons, family gatherings, and cutting hair have been filling my days. The laundry room still isn't complete. I haven't had time to finish it. Next week should be a little slower, so maybe I will get around to it then:o)
I thought I would share with you all some Super Hero Party inspiration that I have come across here recently. E has begged for a Spiderman/Batman/Superman birthday party....a.k.a. Super Hero Party.
I have been scouring blogland for inspiration, and here are some of my faves.
For those of you who are new to this blog, I always start planning the kids' parties 3 months in advance....I LOVE PARTIES!!










Aren't these some great ideas? To check out more from these fabulous parties, click on the links below:




Monday, June 20, 2011

Laundry Room-Part 1

I guess you noticed that last week was sort of hit or miss around here. Hubs stayed home last week....worked a little, and helped me a little. I decided on a whim that the laundry room needed a face lift....well we are still in recovery...WOW! 
We spent more time on that one small space than we usually do on a full size bedroom.
We are still putting the finishing touches on it, but I wanted to give a sneak peak:o)
The hubs built this riser for the washer and dryer....He's DA BOMB:o)
For the plans, go HERE.
baskets from Pier 1
Little decor action here. I'll share what these little guys are perched on in Part 2.
I will share with you a completed project.
This cabinet was purchased from a garage sale for $1. It's one of those cabinets that goes over the sink in your kitchen. I didn't know what I would do with it, but it was solid cherry, and a buck. I couldn't pass it up:o)
After much contemplation, I decided that this cabinet would make a perfect bench.
 I removed the doors and knocked out 2 of the dividers. I had the hubs add some rope wood trim around the perimeter of the opening, and add legs to the base.
This is one of the pieces I used the chalk paint on. I'll give my thoughts on chalk paint in Part 2.
 
 The cushion came from Target and is 30% off right now(score).  I'm so glad that I didn't have to make a cushion! I got lucky with the dimensions..it almost fits the bench perfectly...and it matches the rug!
Be sure to stay tuned for Part 2 of the laundry room. We have just a few more added touches & the room will be complete!


Participating in:
Restored It Wednesdays

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Keynes....


Ok folks - Keynes bashing has become a popular sport amongst commentators and the bloggers who have no clue what they are talking about.

They hear others say that the Fed and the Western economies are practicing Keynesian economics by dropping rates and incurring large government deficits and just parrot it.

Here is a mini-Keynes primer:

Keynes was in favour of active involvement by the government in the economy. He did not believe in an economy left to the vagaries of chance, speculators and big money.

He wanted Governments to actively intervene to BURST bubbles.

He believed that Government spending should go DOWN when things were good and then RISE when things were weak to smooth out the hills and valleys.

Government policy should be directed at high employment levels where ever possible.

OK lets see what happened:

1) We had total failures Bernanke and Greenspan and successive US Treasury Secretaries like Robert Rubin, Lawrence Summers and Henry Paulson who believed in the free market. They removed regulations (anti-Keynsian) and denied bubbles in the stock market and RE (both of which burst with catastrophic effects).

The laissez-faire market-knows-best philosophy is based on the theories of Milton_Friedman- the anti-Keynes. He did not believe in regulating or Government intervention at all.

He also espoused small Government, less spending and lower taxes. Margaret Thatcher, the PM of UK, was a strong believer in his theories. Well taxes were cut but spending was not.

2) When it hit the RE bubble in the US exploded and it hit the fan then everyone suddenly turned from free marketers to Keynesian interventionists!!

The Friedman philosophy would have you leave the speculators to go down and let the market fall. But this could not happen- why??

Because most of the assets that were collapsing -stocks and bonds as well as the big deposits in banks, the bank bonds, the banks stocks and the senior executives of the banks - were the very rich and well connected. And they brought out their big guns and convinced everyone to move all the banks liabilities to the tax-payers for the sake of economy!

This is NOT Keynesian.

The first thing that happens in many countries is the big bank deposits are guaranteed by government (not Keynesian) then Interest rates fall everywhere (Keynesian) .

Now if they were playing by the Keynes play-book they would incur deficits to spend out of the recession. Yup they did that in spades, except they hadn't dropped spending in the good times, so started off from a deficit position.

Now here is a major difference... Keynes said the Government should NOT support assets but spend on infrastructure instead, which will help productivity in the future and has a direct impact in the economy and employment.

The Governments did not do that.

The US bought non-performing paper from banks and hedge funds, then bought it's own debt - all in an attempt to bolster assets. It worked - the stock market doubled, commodities soared and Wall Street insiders made their biggest bonuses ever. The UK did the same as did most European countries.

However unemployment has remained high and housing is moribund, since it is still deflating from the bubble the idiot twins said didn't exist and it is linked to the US consumer which has not benefitted from this experiment of Bernanke's.

Canada did put some money into rather quickly thrown-together and often ill-thought out infrastructure projects -like earthquake-proofing a tiny foot- bridge over the Capliano river that no-one uses and which took months and many $$$$. China embarked on a major infrastructure program and fared the best.

However the Tories could not resist buying loans from banks and doubling the CMHC-monster.

All this would have Keynes rolling in his grave. Almost none of is Keynesian.

So now when someone starts to say that Keynesian economics have failed, you can slap them hard and direct them to the facts.

Not much to say...waiting mode

Vancouver is still selling and other parts are not.

Some great posts on the other RE bear blogs discussing Mark Carney's recent pronouncements on RE. He seems to be getting into panic mode about the state of our indebtedness, and belatedly, has realised that he is about to become our version of Bernanke...leading the folks into a chasm of debt and bankruptcy.

Once again his words are pointless. No-one listened the last time and no-one will listen this time, even when he uses words like 'housing is taking on the characteristics of a financial asset rather than being driven by fundamentals' . No kidding!

Why doesn't he go to China and look at all the houses bought to store value and left empty because no one trusts the value of their money, the government and carrying rates are still too low.

Well we have all those three except the last one is even lower- why shouldn't housing become a financial asset when you are trashing money so much. and why not just come out and say 'housing is in a bubble'! Why use this hard-to-understand BS that Greenspan used.

BTW- words without actions are pointless.

On the Chinese angle, I am hearing ego-driven bidding wars from mainland Chinese for properties in West Vancouver and the Westside. Literally hundreds of thousands being bid over asking so as not to 'lose face'. Why would they do that? How easily can you make money to pay tax on it, and then throw it away like confetti.

Maybe it is this type of money

If Carney has any balls , one of his actions would be to look more closely to make sure we are not the recipients of 'hot' laundered money.

Then tell Flaherty to kill the CMHC- bloated self-serving creature that it is, and finally move rates up to match inflation.

That would much more than hours of useless chatter which no one listens to. His speech didn't
even make it to the front page of our local papers with all the hockey stuff.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Quick Baby DIY Tip

Here is a quick tip for all of you mommies out there with youngin's....I mean really young;o)
Most people have those little tubs for their babies or a bath chair hammock. If you are in a pinch or out traveling and can't take it with you, here is a quick solution.
Use a giant sponge as your go-to.
Here are the step-by-step pictures in how to create a head rest for your baby's noggin.




Easy peasy, right?
Is that not one of the sweetest faces you have ever seen? I'm thinking model material!;o)
I want to thank my Best Bud for sending me this quick tute. She's quite crafty, you know:o)
***
I spent most of yesterday working on some furniture(using my chalk paint...details to follow). Today I'll be painting walls, and in between coats, hitting the pool. Can't wait to share what we have been working on!!
Have a great day!

One of these reports don't add up

First the Vancouver Sun touting a boost in Whistler sales 'this Spring'

So the article came out today....and..

We are 8 days away from the END of Spring!

Where is this big buying frenzy??

Here is a local realtors site, which I highly recommend BTW for Whislter RE info, and the picture seems to be very different!

In fact sales seem to be all but disappearing, and are running out of steam not gaining steam.

The sales rate has a MOI of 24 months and more at this rate.

So what do we make of this all, is it a typo? Did they mean NEXT Spring? Is it shoddy journalism - are they just reporting industry opinion without any fact checking?

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Summer Fun Fest Linky Party-Week 3

I hope you all had a great weekend! We had a fabulous weekend! The hubs and I got to attend a Vanderbilt baseball game Friday night with my dad and sister. It was awesome!
More to share about that later on;o)
And Saturday, we all attended my dad's company picnic at A Cowboy Town near Nashville. We had a blast there. The kids LOVED it! They got to ride horses, play fun games, & play on water slides.
I'll have some pictures to share with you later on this week....hopefully:o)


Now, let's get down to business.:o)



Here are the highlights from last week's party:


submitted by Mommy Minded

submitted by Making Memories.

submitted by Secret Pie Shoppe


submitted by This Too


Thanks for participating girls:o) You guys are great! Make sure to grab a featured button on the left side bar!!
I'm taking a break on the linky party this week. I have a few projects in the works for this week, and we have been having a few computer issues...
thanks to our "sweet little angels"
so posts may be few and far between this week. 
If you haven't signed up to receive email updates for new posts, make sure to do so. That way you won't miss out on any new postings.
Have a great day, ya'll!

Friday, June 10, 2011

Friday Faves

I missed last week's Friday Faves...not sure what I had going on...I have slept since then;o)
This week has been uber busy with appointments, playdates, and a sun scorching day at the water park yesterday that left us all burnt to a crisp, but happy as larks:o)
Next time I will make sure to check the expiration date on the sunscreen BEFORE we hit the pool!!!
So here are my favorites from last week, since I didn't have a chance to check anyone's blog out this week:o)

Lizzy painted this beautiful Diamond Pattern Wall in her bathroom. Gorgeous! Love that shower curtain too:o)

Would you believe that these are not real coffee mugs? I had to do a double take:o) Head over to Diary of a Ladybird, and check out her Hot Chocolate (fondant) Cupcakes.


This Picnic Blanket is so simple and yet so genius. Head to Infarrantly Creative and see how simple it is to make one yourself...and the best part..NO SEWING:o)


And last but but not least, I love these Watermelon Shaped Cookies. These would be perfect for a summer party. Head over to Glorious Treats to see what else they've got cookin'.


Thanks to you all for being such inspirations! Grab a "I've been Featured Button" if you like
(on the left sidebar)
and wear it proudly:o)
I hope that you all have a fantastic weekend. We plan to have a bit of fun tomorrow. Next week I hope to tackle a few more projects and share some new finds.
Plus I will have a 300 Follower Giveaway!

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Summer Fun Fest Linky Party-Week 2

Great news! We have hit the 300 Follower mark! How exciting, right?
I think there needs to be a giveaway to celebrate:o) Be on the look out;o)

I want to thank those who participated last week in the first Summer Fun Fest Linky Party. This week, I am going to change it up a bit. This week will be a free-for-all. I want to know what you are doing this summer. What projects do you have going on? What are you cooking? What are you doing with your kids? Anything you want to share is fair game:o)


Here are some highlights from last week:






Show these girls some love and visit their sites!
If you guys were highlighted, go ahead and grab a Featured Button.

Now it's your turn! Show us what you are up to this summer...besides melting in this heat:o)

Friday, June 3, 2011

Central Okanagan RE board report

Here are the first few paragraphs - my comments in italics

Kelowna, BC – The Central Zone of the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB) reported May 2011 sales activity of all MLS® property types were down compared to sales reported at this time last year but were up from April as serious sellers begin to compete for home buyers moving into Spring.


sellers COMPETING for buyers who would have thunk it! In fact the title of all three reports is 'Serious Sellers Compete for Spring Home Buyers'


Overall unit sales during May dipped 17.6% compared to 2010 (to 337 from 409) but rose 13.87% over the previous month (297 in April 2011). Sales volumes totaled $133.4 million compared to $168.1 million in May 2010. Total residential units sold last month were down 16.93% compared to 2010 (to 314 from 378) but rose 5.72% from April (272). Inventory continues to decline over last year at this time – down by 5.92% to 5,217 units compared to 5,545 in May 2010 with new listings falling by 7.97% over last year (to 1,212 from 1,317), and down 8.1% from last month (1,031 in April).


5217/337 = 15.4 MOI


“Hopefully, the gradual improvement in sales will continue as we move into the summer months and more out of town buyers visit our area. It is too early to see any consistent trends in the Spring market as many factors have affected consumer confidence and created buyer hesitation to date – from the tightening of mortgage qualifying rules, to HST concerns and referendum uncertainty. As well, distressed prices in the States have added competition for potential recreation, investment and retirement property buyers,” says Kent Jorgenson, OMREB Director and REALTOR® in the Central Zone.


More out of town buyers..sounds like they are almost begging for HAM!


North Okanagan Report


2627/123 = 21.3 MOI


Quote:


“Buyers still enjoy an excellent selection in the North Okanagan. We are noticing that houses coming onto the market that are priced to reflect today’s values are selling relatively quickly.


Shuswap/Revelstoke Report


1689/68 = 24.83 MOI quote:


“The gradual improvement in sales activity is expected to continue and will pick up further as the weather continues to warm up, bringing more buyers out looking at houses. It is too early to see any consistent trends in the Spring market as many factors have affected consumer confidence and created buyer hesitation to date – from the tightening of mortgage qualifying rules, to HST concerns and referendum uncertainty. As well, distressed prices in the States have added competition for potential recreation, investment and retirement property buyers,” says Karen Singbeil, OMREB Director and REALTOR® in the Shuswap Zone.



Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Milk Can Table

Last weekend I got a wild hair and decided to tackle a ton of projects that have been sitting in our garage for MONTHS. The hubs was getting a little flustered with all of the junk stacked up in there, so I finally bit the bullet and got down to business.
My mother gave me this milk can who knows how long ago;o). It belonged to one of her friends, and had been painted a taupe color. For the longest time I didn't know what I wanted to do with it, but after wandering thru Lowes the other day, I knew it had to be a table:o)
The table top was around $17...a little more than I would normally pay for something, but I needed the 24" round top so it would look proportional. I used one coat of primer and 2 coats of Cherry Red by Krylon for the paint. Because the top of the milk can was such an odd shape with concave and convex curves, nailing or screwing the table top down wasn't an option. So I decided that liquid nails was the way to go.
Here it is nested between our two chairs:o)
Isn't it so sweet?:o)
Here is the other side of the seating area.
The seat cushions came from Old Time Pottery. The swing was shorter than the cushion, so I wacked the ends off and stitched it back up


Other Projects we have going on around here: 
Here is our BIG work in progress...the hubs has been busy working to create privacy off the back patio. This is Stage 1. 
He has done a FANTASTIC job!
 The side of the house

My container garden:o)
can't wait to "harvest" these veggies!!
I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

Participating in: