Fragile'

Ok I promised a tutorial for my leg lamp. I have wanted one of these lamps since I very first saw "A Christmas Story" . I loved it.

"It's a major award!"

Well looking around for ones of these they are expensive, IE 200-300 bucks! Too rich for my blood for a lamp I will put up for a month. So I got to looking I could make one. First stop Ebay, I found a "stocking leg" that was 28" tall for $9.99 with shipping it was $18.99. After a week I was the proud owner of a leg. Next was time to do some shopping.

First I stopped at Hobby Lobby for a base and black fringe. For the base I got an unfinished wood piece from the area near the build your own clocks. Regular price it was $2.99 but was 40% off. The fringe they sell by the yard and I got 2 yards and used all but about 6 inches. Also on sale for 30% off off $3.99 a yard.



I got the heels at goodwill for 99 cents. Just an FYI the leg wears a 6-6 1/2 and needs a 4 inch heel. Please do not make my mistake and get a 5 1/2 and have to nail the shoe on while acting like she is Cinderella's ugly sister cramming her foot in the heel.

Next was Wal-mart for a 3/4 inch dowel, a pair of thigh highs, a light kit and a lampshade. You may be about to get the lamp shade at Goodwill or other thrift stores for cheaper but mine did not have one and I was in a hurry to get her made.



You will also need heavy gauge wire and paint or stain. Tools you will need a 4 inch screw and a drill with bits and a saw.

Supplies in hand I begin. First I took the base out to the garage and stained it. You can paint it also but I had stain already.

Next I came back in to hot glue the fringe on the lampshade.


Next I failed to take pictures of but I took the leg to the garage and I cut the "sole" of her foot out. This is so you can thread the lamp kit thru the leg.

Next you will need to drill a quarter inch hole thru the bottom of the heel for the lamp cord to come out. It is easier to do this now and thread the cord thru before attached to the light.

 After giving enough room for you to be able to plug the lamp in you run the lamp cord thru the leg and put the lamp kit together per the instructions. It is very easy to do.

Now the next thing I did was drill a small hole through the now stained base for a 4 inch screw to go through.

Based on the size of the screw you are using you will need to drill through the high heel at the "sole" close to the arch of shoe. You also will need to drill a pilot hole thru one end of the dowel for the screw to come into.

Once you have all your holes drilled now you can begin to assemble.


When you put the stocking on the leg you will have extra at the foot. I just tacked mine to the "arch" area of the foot so it was out of the way.

I glued my stocking around the "sole" cut out and then cut a hole in the stocking so I was not tearing it up with screw.

Now I placed the dowel in the leg with the pilot hole side down. You will screw thru the base, the shoe and the leg to the dowel till the screw will not tighten anymore. at this point it should be about to stand on its own.

All you have left is to drill 4 small holes for the heavy gauge wire to go thru the top of the leg















Now I know this does not look pretty but it does the job and it is all covered by the lamp shade. If you have a better way go ahead I just wanted to be done and put it up! This is what it looks like from the inside.

Now all that is left is attach the lamp shade and stand back and admire!!!!

All in all it cost me around $45 to make and that was only that high cause I could not fine a cheap lampshade at the thrift store. I think that is a pretty good knock off and way better than spending $250 on it don'tcha think?

I am linking to 

Christmas Decorations

Ok so I may have mentioned that Hubs and I like us some Christmas decorations. OK we love to decorate for Christmas. We began out outside decorations last weekend. I know you should not turn your lights on till after Thanksgiving and we did not cause we finally finished the day before. It took us 6 days to get everything out, countless hours painting all the yard cutouts. Hello I started painting them in September! Ok so here is a picture over load...

I give you the Kopecki's version of Grizwald-ification=

Here is what is on the left side of the driveway. Hermie, a elf and Sam the Snowman telling a story

In the middle of the yard is Cornelius putting the lights on the tree, a stack of elfs putting the ornaments on, Bumbie putting the star while the head elf directs.

I peek of the window and the lights in the back.

Santa is talking to Rudolph and his girlfriend Clarice as Rudolph's nose glows.

Yes even the backs of them are painted!

Our flower bed

Just a little lamp that is in our front window. ;) 

All LIT up!

I had to slow the shutter speed down so it was not a blur.

All the Misfit toys that line our drive way and side walk.

Plus not shown is my front door wreath cause it is not done just yet and let my happy fall ya'll wreath get few more days use before it gets packed up.

So that is our outside! What do you think are we nuts? Next up with be the inside and a tutorial to make this.....

P.S. Sorry the pics are so big but I am too lazy to change the size and post the new codes for all the pics. True story

Ten on Tuesday

Chelsea and Roots and Rings is still as her Ten on Tuesdays and todays edition asks about the holidays.

1. What are your plans for the holidays? Do you travel at Thanksgiving? If you celebrate Christmas, do you travel then, too?

Normally there is alot of traveling for us at the holidays but this year everyone is coming to us. We are hosting the IL's on thanksgiving, the IL's Christmas dinner the Sunday before Christmas and my family is coming to stay for Christmas and my MIL and FIL will come for dinner. 

2. How do you make the plans for the holiday? If you have a significant other, how do you decide which family to visit?

I am lucky that my husband and his family are easy going. His mother does not expect much for Thanksgiving get togethers and years ago decided that instead of having her sons drive all over the world on Christmas to do their Christmas early.

3. Do you have your Thanksgiving meal at lunch or later in the day?

Normally @ 2 so that you can graze all day on food. Appetizers come out @ 12 and the bird around 2.

4. Do you have a favorite Thanksgiving tradition?
Eating is my favorite Thanksgiving tradition. <----I agree Chelsea!

5. After a big meal do you lounge around or get up and take a walk?
I circle the food table numerous times. Does that count as a walk?


6. Do you shop on “Black Friday” or do you avoid it?
Yes I normally get 90% of my shopping do this day. I have gotten great deals on big things to like my washer and dryer last year and a plasma TV 6 years ago.

7. When do you usually finish your Christmas shopping?
Early -Mid December. I like to see everything wrapped under the tree for a bit before it all goes out.

8. Do you and your significant other exchange gifts? Is there a budget?
To a degree, we tell each other was we want and I like to wrap stuff but Hubs like to give it right away even if it is in the beginning of November. This year we are not doing much for each other cause it has been the year of giving with a new house, all new furniture, etc.


9. When do you decorate for the holidays?
We started last weekend only cause we are nuts and have alot of stuff to put up.


10. Do you go “all out” with the decor or do you keep it simple?
All out. When we built the house we had plugs put in the soffets with a light switch at the front door, and extra amps just for Christmas lights. Yes we are those people. We have over 6000 light outside, 21 characters from Rudolph the red nose reindeer cut out and painted front and back from wood we made, 5 Christmas trees outside, 5 inside, 3 wreaths, and countless other thing I have put out. I also am waiting on a "fra-gile" shipment to finish out our decor. This is our favorite time of the year.

Christmas Cards

Let's talk Christmas cards. There is a lot of ways to do them. You can buy a box at and sign and mail them. You can order some from a kiosk at that has a couple of options and minimal customization to them and be done with it.


I however am a control freak. Enter Shutterfly. First off they are offering bloggers 50 FREE cards for blogging about them so that was a no brainer on my part. They have so many options for Christmas cards it is not even funny! I have used Shutterfly for a long time now. I created my wedding sign in book from my engagement photos with one of these. I also made a poster collage that now hangs in my hall way to my bedroom.


These are so far my favorite and it is going to be tough to decide on just one or even two to use!




Red Revamped



Peppermint Dots



Sweet and Merry



Swirling Ornaments



Hehe Naughty or Nice


In case you did not notice I am a traditionalist and like the red and green and it must say Merry Christmas. I am all for the holiday season but I do not say Happy Holidays on my cards! You can check out your favorites here. There are hundreds of them to choose from and plenty of different colors and sayings.

I am also loving the Wall Canvases they offer. I have been wanting one of these for a while so now is time to go thru all my wedding photos from last year and find my favorite.


Sign up with Shutterfly and they will also send you great deals for printing pictures too! (normally it is a few free ones to start you out)


Here is how you can blog and get 50 Free cards too!

Ketchup

My goodness I have once again been a bad blogger. But that is about to change cause it is getting to my favorite season and Hubs and I have done WAY too many projects and crafts for our first x-mas in our new house to not blog and share everything with you. I have been playing a game on facebook book with my statuses of things I may or may not have been doing to get ready for Christmas_

I May or May Not have:

Already decorated 3 of the 5 trees I am putting up in our house

Planned every meal's menu for the time my family will be in town for Christmas

Purchased a mannequin leg off ebay to use in my Decorations

Painted 21 yard cut out

Spent 3 hours purchasing lights to Griswald-ize our house

Plan to have all decorations up and done this weekend.

So needless to say I will have to share some pictures of all this. Now for the Ketchup part of the post. We have been so busy since my last post. Hubs dear friend got married at Inks Lake at the Circle H Lodge and it was Gorgeous! I did not take many pics but here is few:

Then the next weekend I hosted my sister Wedding shower at my Aunt and Uncles house outside of Houston. It was an Alice and wonderland themed tea party. Everything was sooo cute!

Then we had National Night out with our neighbors and stayed up way to late on a school night.

Next up was The Halloween Block party. Again up way too late!

Finally my sister wedding in Galveston and let me tell you that was a LOOONG weekend even if we were home on Saturday. Here are a couple pictures from it that I have gotten back from the photographer AKA one of my besties Pretty Girl Photography .

Let me tell you it is hard to be the wedding planner, venue decorator, cake decorator, groom cake fixer, bridal party hairstylist and makeup artist and bridesmaid all in one day!

I will be back with my post and review of Shutterfly.com for X-mas cards which I am sure you have seen 500 times in the blog world this year but hey for 50 free cards I am game!