before & after & 11 things

grab a comfortable seat kids, because this is gonna be a long post! i'm just about the worst at being patient when it comes to showing pictures, sharing news, giving gifts, or anything that i'm excited about. have i bought you a gift? just ask me about it and i'll probably tell you what it is or give it to you early just because i can't stand the secrecy anymore! i hadn't planned to share these pictures until later, but i'm so happy with my new chair that i'm actually typing this early and scheduling the post so i can feel like i've shared it...sort of!

on saturday, when i was at chris' late grandparents' house with some of his family cleaning out the rest of their things, i spied this chair that hadn't been claimed by anyone else. it was ugly, even Fugly, but i knew it had 21st century potential. i also knew that i had a boat load of high end upholstery fabric that was very generously given to me free of charge. i'm not good at math, but even i could add up potential and supplies and see that together they equaled a project.

i know it's the blogger thing to do to have white on white on white everything, but i'm partial to the richness of dark wood, so i knew i wanted a contrasting fabric, and i figured a different fabric on top and bottom would make it a little more modern. the off white fabric i love, and in the picture with flojo, you can see the raised reptile skin texture.

now for the 11 things portion. one of my favorite people in the world tagged me, and since i think these things are kind of fun, and a great way to get to know one another a little better, i wanted to include these 11 things. the rules are:

1. Post these rules.

2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 random things.

3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post.

4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them.

5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them you've tagged them.

11 random things about me:

-i've never learned how to do makeup, that's why i hardly own any and think wearing tinted lip gloss is fancy.

-i just want for people to be proud of me so i feel like i've accomplished something with my life.

-i often feel like i have to wear my "filter" because i tend to be sarcastic with tendencies toward potty mouth and i know not everyone will understand i'm just kidding.

-although i'd like bigger boobs, smoother frown lines and a tighter butt, i'd never voluntarily go under the knife UNLESS it was to have the scars from a surgery i had when i was a child made smaller and less visible as they make me incredibly self-conscious.

-the older i get, the more i worry about the day when my pop will no longer be here.

-i'm a picker. i pick at my cuticles, i pick at sunburned skin, i pick at chapped lips, i pick at everything.

-i have a serious problem with laziness. get up, get out, and for god's sake, DO SOMETHING!

-i always tried to get my brother to teach me to armpit fart, but for some reason i was never able to. i still want to, though.

-i cannot, CANNOT sleep if there is a wrinkle in the sheet covering me. i thank my lucky stars for a husband that puts up with me getting out of bed up to 4 or 5 times to pull on and fix the sheets so that i can eradicate wrinkles, even though i wake him up in the process.

-i feel that if i can no longer smell the cleaning product, then my house is no longer clean. i go through a lot of cleaning products, and again, i'm lucky to have a husband that overlooks my insanity.

-i'm a hot sauce addict, and often times i plan a meal around my craving for hot sauce.

1. If you had to put 3 things in a time capsule for future generations, what would they be? i've actually never been good at this sort of thing. in elementary school when we had to make time capsules, i never knew what would be cool enough to discover 10 years or 100 years later. so i'm going to try and say 1. a newspaper so they could see what was going on in the world in february 2012. 2. candy, because who doesn't love candy? 3. some money and a list of some things it could buy today, because i'm sure the economy and cost of living will be different when they find my time capsule.

2. What is one skill/craft you wish you could perfect? one thing i've wished for the last decade i could do (and it's fitting for this post) is reupholster large pieces of furniture. i'm talking about ripping out the guts and completely redoing the entire piece.

3. If you had to describe yourself in senses, how would you smell, feel, color, taste, etc? i think i'd smell like boogers and taste like garbage. i kid. i think i'd have a soft, clean smell, but not perfume-y. i'd probably taste like nutella or a sandwich because that's what i'm made of. i'd feel soft but not squishy. i'd sound like this when i'm calm and this when i'm playful because i'd probably breakdance.

4. How do you take your coffee or tea? i can't take coffee at all. EVER. i like tea hot, iced, with lemon, with peaches, sweetened, unsweetened... i just really like tea.

5. What is your favorite junk food/go to snacks? my favorite junk food is french fries, but sincei don't keep them stocked, my go to snack is cheez-it crackers, granola bars, or pretzels.

6. Describe the wall in front of you. What color is it, what's hanging on it? it's white, on it hangs an old map, and it has a door to the bathroom.

7. If you could keep any animal for a day, without fear of getting maimed or killed, what animal would it be? my favorite bird is a flamingo, but my favorite animals (since i feel bad choosing just one) are polar bears, flamingos, beluga whales, and turtles, so any of them would be welcome companions!

8. Have you ever sewn anything? If so, what was your best project? i've sewn about a gazillion things, but i have no idea which would take the coveted title of Best.

9. Who in your family do you think you are most like? i think i'm a combination of my dad (his sense of humor, his carefree attitude, and the way he never says hello or goodbye without a hug or ten), and his sister, my aunt kimberly (her love of animals, passion for books, and sensitivity).

10. It's Sunday afternoon, what do you wish you were doing? if weather weren't an issue, i'd always like to be swimming.

11. What was the first blog you started reading regularly? bacwoods fern. kassi was the first friend i made though blogging, and she's the reason i stayed with it and grew to love it!

the 11 questions i'm asking for my tagged friends are:
1. if you could have any superhuman strength, what would it be?
2. what do you consider your greatest talent?
3. if you could live anywhere else in the world for one year, where would it be and why?
4. if you could make up a color, what would it look like and what would you call it?
5. what's the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you?
6. what is one quirk about you that other people don't understand?
7. if you could do one thing that would be felt worldwide, what would it be?
8. alive or deceased, what one person would you like to have as a best friend?
9. what's the most delicious thing you cook?
10. in your life, who has been your biggest cheerleader?
11. what scares you?

i'm tagging rebecca, megan, elizabeth, sara, and mars.