Are you ready to have some fun? I am!
First, I just have to say that I decided to celebrate this year in my true "Larissa" fashion by ripping out my entire front landscaping bed of my home. Talk about therapy!!
I have hated the ginormous bushes that were there since we moved in. I'll be sharing what ended up there later on. But, if you remember, I gifted myself my compost bins for my 40th birthday and spent the day building those. This year, I am turning on the DIY juice full speed to finish our garden shed remodel.
Okay, back to the Ask Prodigal Pieces survey answers to your questions...
To make this easy to navigate and also give as much information as I can, I tried to narrow down the top questions to my video interview (see below). However, I also wanted to answer the in-between questions you had for me too here in written form.
QUESTION GENRE 1 - PAINT
It may seem unfathomable, but I prefer to only paint pieces that have damage that needs hidden. Is that only the time? No. However, I am drawn to the pieces that nobody wants, but yet still have life in them that needs revealed. I do not stick to one type of paint at all times. I not only use natural paints, but latex, acrylic, oil, and so on. What I choose depends on what the project I'm painting is for. A modern piece requires a different finish, therefore, a different product. Same goes for rustic farmhouse versus an Art Deco era piece. Each have styles true to their era and I like to adhere to the origin. As for which paint, I use the most often, my go-to is Glidden Premium interior in whatever finish I'm after. The flat finish is the same thing as chalk paint, so if you're after that effect, it works like a charm. Also, skip the chalkboard paint and just use a flat black (or green). I use it on all my chalkboard projects, and it works wonderfully. If I want to skip a topcoat on light-use piece, I use an eggshell finish. Then, from there the satin and gloss come into play when I am working with modern piece.
QUESTION GENRE 2: TOPCOAT
There is not one product that I use every time I rework a piece. As for finishes, again, it depends on the end result I'm after. I will use waxes and flat finish polys for more rustic pieces, and a sheen for a modern piece. However, there is not a poly on the market that doesn't yellow (or amber) over time, so I take that into consideration as well when choosing colors. Wax needs time to cure and depending on the product, that can take up to 6 months based on some manufacturer instructions. It will need reapplied within 6 months to a year. Also, you can remove heavy wax build-up with rubbing alcohol. To apply a poly to a rustic piece, I will use a brush. However, when I am reworking a streamlined Mid-Century piece, I will use a micro foam roller for a smooth finish.QUESTION GENRE 3: DOWN-TIME
This question is kinda related to what I answer in my Ask Prodigal Pieces video interview, but I'll elaborate more here. Do I have down-time? haha...what is that?? Just kidding. Yes, I do. I love to take walks with my family, we sit fireside to enjoy chatting with each other. I take time each day to practice things I'm learning (more on that to come). My garden therapy is what I live for all summer. I'd rather be weeding in most instances. Also, I love to cook. Food gives wonderful therapy as well, doesn't it? In addition, I take a nap every day. I wake up early, so a great way to hit the reset button is to snooze a bit. My youngest and I will read some stories and then nap together. We don't, as a family, have TV access, but we do enjoy some of our favorite movies/old-school shows during winter evenings. It makes cabin fever a little more enjoyable. As a whole, we are definitely a bibliophile family, so books are always laying around and have gained the attention of most everyone.
QUESTION GENRE 4: CITY LIVING (OR LEAVING)
Again, in my Ask Prodigal Pieces video interview below, I briefly touch on this, but wanted to elaborate. When I bought our home, I intended to rework it and flip it. However, when pregnant with my second I near miss with leaving this earth because of pneumonia and a staph blood infection. That set us back in my energy and ability to do much. By the time I was pregnant with my 3rd, we began trying to sell for about 3 years in a row during peak season. We had many near-misses and entirely felt God was not showing us the next steps to where we were supposed to be. Kinda like a closed door. So, we stopped and began to rework the home again. My heart is set on the country and have had many tears over having to raise my kids in a city setting without an abundance of animals and having to worry about neighbors. We are ready to move the minute we find a place, but that just hasn't happened yet. Lord willing, it will happen in His time.
QUESTION GENRE 5: STAGING
When you see a finished project staged for my blog or shop, that means that my house underwent a demo in a mini sort of way. It is EXHAUSTING to take apart my bedroom, my family room, my kitchen, my living room, etc. to set things up. However, I'm anal about making my hard work look as it should. It also is fun to use what I have on hand to make project shine. I often joke to my kids that if one of the neighbors move, I'm going to buy their house to set up just for staging. Just think of how glorious that would be! Many don't realize how much work goes into blogging from the IT technology, the editing, the actual blood/sweat/tears labor, and into the final written piece. That is why your comments and time spent enjoying what I put forth means so much. Honestly, it irks me that I only hear from some on a giveaway day. Often it will even result in only talking about their intended use of the prize, and totally ignoring that I just displayed days and days of work. Comments to any and all bloggers are affirmation our work is relevant, inspiring, enjoyed, as well as educational. I'm also guilty of reading and not commenting at times, but I do make wholehearted effort to share their posts and leave love when I can. Thank you for your comment love!
ASK PRODIGAL PIECES WRAP-UP
As I conclude this survey session of Ask Prodigal Pieces, I hope you enjoy what I'm sharing with you today and find yourself getting better acquainted with me. While there is much information I could continue to share, I am aiming to keep it to a focused minimum. I thank you from the bottom of my heart on behalf of myself and my family for loving, supporting, and sharing your lives with us. Did you feel that? You're being given a huge bear hug right now. You're my extended family.
No matter what you are facing right now, just know that there is hope for a future. I have a birthday request from you. As I mentioned in my Ask Prodigal Pieces interview video above, I am feeling a tug at my heart to do something BIG. I need the Lord's guidance and your prayers to help me discern the right steps. It's been something that has been brewing in my head and heart for years and I'm trying to be patient and let my path be made clear.
AFFIRMATION
This song called "Reason" by Unspoken says it all perfectly.This year's felt like four seasons of winter
And you'd give anything to feel the sun
Always reaching always climbing
Always second guessing the timing
But God has a plan a purpose in this
You are His child so don't you forget
He put that hunger in your heart
He put that fire in your soul
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
When you feel like giving up
When you feel like giving in
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
If we could pull back the curtain of Heaven
We would see His hand on everything
Every hour every minute every second He's always been in it
Don't let a shadow of a doubt take hold
Hold on to what you already know
He put that hunger in your heart
He put that fire in your soul
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
When you feel like giving up
When you feel like giving in
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
It's the reason
It's the reason
His love is the reason
He's the peace in the madness
That you can't explain
He's the hope in the heartbreak
The rest in the suffering
He's closer than the air you breathe
From the start to the end to the in between
Don't you dare doubt even for a minute
What He started in you
Yeah, He's gonna finish
He put that hunger in your heart
He put that fire in your soul
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
When you feel like giving up
When you feel like giving in
His love is the reason
To keep on believing
It's the reason
It's the reason
To keep on believing
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