Clearly CANADAce? The Montreal Home Invasion

HOWDY!!
Yes, I'm alive and well!  I'm sure many of you know what I've been up to, but for those that don't, I have just moved to Montreal, Quebec, CANADA!! Yep, you heard right.  My hubby was offered a wonderful job contract opportunity that required us to move from central Texas to French Canada! Oui Oui!  It's been quite the adventure and I've been too distracted for the blog and creativity as of late!  No offense to my lovely followers, but our big move created a priority shift in my life, as you might expect! :)

However, I did decide on a worthy new post!  We found a lovely home for lease on the West Island of Montreal, close to the water (aka the Saint Laurent River).  It's a great house and I've been settling us in since July.  It's really starting to feel like home now...at least to me!  I thought a "before and after" of the place would be timely.  The problem was, I didn't take any before shots because we arrived after the furniture and boxes did!  However, I remembered that I still have the home's real estate listing photos!  During our home search, our realtor sent a PDF listing that included small pictures of the house. Voila! A solution to the "no before pics" problem!

WARNING!!
I am not a professional photographer.
I am not a real estate agent.
I am not a real estate photographer.
The PDF listing photos are tiny and grainy and I had to crop them out.
My photos are pretty dark in places, bright in others and a little warped.
My photos were taken with an iPhone 5 (pano mode).
SO...lower your expectations from "amazing home magazine/blog-worthy pictures" to "semi-decent house phone pics."

Regardless of photo quality, I DID enjoy discovering how some real estate pics are taken.  You know how they can make rooms look HUGE and spacious?  Well, a real camera (DSLR), panoramic mode and lots of light/image editing can make a home look pretty darn amazing! Then you walk through the home in person... Fortunately for us, the home wasn't far off the pics and was to our liking.  I recreated 21 listing photos using (almost) the same camera angles.  Below is an example of the PDF photo pages.  I cropped the pics out and posted them in the size giving the clearest image and the least grain and blur. Plus, it made most of mine look better - SCORE!

This post doesn't really give you a great visual walk-through or layout, but it shows the main spaces.  Yes, there are still plenty of changes I'd love to make on the inside, but since it's a leased home, I will hold back some of my OCD tendencies relating to home decor. ;) Some will be fine the way they are, while others may do...for now. We didn't paint, but the owner let us request a color in one room, as they were already hiring a painter.  We're using many of the original window treatments (not really us), so we'll see how I do. :) The owners did choose nice wall neutrals and colors and left plenty of wall art to use if we like.  Good people and a good home.  So, with that introduction, here we go!  

Welcome to the Lakeshore Casa!

Then (Summer 2013)

Now (Summer 2014) 

 Gig'em Montreal!

Entryway then

 Entryway now

We want to add a sitting/storage bench under mirror for shoes.

Living Room then

 Living Room now

I think I'll be okay with the living room curtains. ($$$)

Formal Dining then

 Formal Dining now

Same curtains. Living room is to the right. 

Nope, 16 new panels is not in the budget...

...and 16 would also be a DIY nightmare. I'm good.

Kitchen then

 Kitchen now

 The Fiestaware, Pier 1 plates and Longabergers worked out I think.

Kitchen to Dining then 

Kitchen to Dining now

Kitchen Dining then

 Kitchen Dining now 

Loving our World Market table. Last thing we got before moving.

PS: You will not get a zoom-in of the curtains, with respect to those with a fear of a certain creature.  #imaygocrazy

Powder Bath then

 Powder Bath now

Sorry for the bright light this one!  I'm not good at photo editing...

Back Porch then

 Back Porch now

 Yes, you are allowed to laugh at our lovely patio furniture. (in due time)

Girls Room then

E's Room now

E's Room - Better pano pic!

Just had to post this one.  This room is such a neat space! 

She just has too much girlie stuff in it! :)

Girls Bath then

 E's Bath now

 This bathroom has a step-up entry from inside her bedroom. Complete with her Boston Terriers from a former CC blog post you might recall. :)

Boy's Room then

B's Room now

Sorry for the crazy brightness!  And the height of their rods was a bit high for our 84" panels....not sure if I want to rehang and touch up or not...

Boy's Bath then

 B's Bath now

 A Fightin' Texas Aggie shower curtain to come!

 Master Bedroom then

 Master Bedroom now

 Same rod problem in this room with my 95" panels, even! Those were some tall handmade curtains!  Is non-textured wall touch-up and rehung rods worth it?

Master Bath then

 Master Bath now

 Notice the  new shelf cabinet to the left.  

None of the baths had ANY STORAGE!! How did they function??

Tiny, RED 3rd Bedroom then

New Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue Creative Space now!

 Vastly improved, wouldn't you say?  I am enjoying the calming blue over to my fun green chosen in my former space makeover .  (Blog post plug!) Thanks to my friend Kelly for the color recommendation!

Basement Family Room then

 Basement Family Room now

I keep meaning to take down those sheer panels! Pointless right? 

Basement Bedroom then

Basement Bedroom now

My TX guest bedding from isn't great with this room, but it'll do...maybe I'll find a deal. ;) WAY better than the prior room color!

Basement Bath then

Basement Bath now

 Another red to light blue! They actually did this before we even saw the house. 50s diner theme for a bathroom? Hmmm...

Basement Office then

 T's Office now (HA!)

Due to a broken desk, this room has been put on hold. #moverclaimsubmitted

Backyard (Summer 2013)

Backyard now

Benefits? 1) an added shed (yay!) 2) a clothesline pole (nope) 3) our beautiful TX jumping contraption 4) WEEDS! and 5) pretty sunflowers lining the left side.

OK, just for fun...

POP QUIZ!

(no scrolling up!)

1. How many chandeliers are in my home (now)? (Yes, a bit of an obsession, I think.)

2. What lovely creature is on the kitchen/powder bath curtains? (yeeeaah)

3. How many fireplaces are in my home? (score for winter!)

4. What Benjamin Moor color is my creative space?

5. OK, you can scroll up for this one: Name 3 things that were added to my master bath to make it more functional....excluding the obvious (the cabinet).

6.  Besides the Fightin' Texas Aggies, what is another of my boy's obsessions?

7. Guess how many outdoor cooking apparatuses are on the patio (you can't see them all in the pic).

8. What was your favorite space?

I hope you enjoyed the tour!  My daughter has been giving her friends FaceTime video tours. It's pretty cute.  Perhaps she has room in her calendar for a few more. Just be forwarned of dizziness! :)

As our family makes this a home, we must also remember to keep Christ at home in our hearts, recalling Paul's words to the Ephesians as we embark on this new family adventure...

"I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong."

Thanks for visiting!

Keeping Him in mind,

PS: Pop Quiz Answers!

1. 6 are shown, but 7 total (one in the stairway), 9 when it was listed!!

2. Monkeys!  WITH CLOTHES AND A HAT! #killmenow

3. 2, Living and Master , with remotes!

4. Palladian Blue - their most popular blue at the moment

5. Large, rectangular mirror (the skinny divided one had us wondering)
    Baskets under the sink for storage
    Toilet paper holder! It's the little things...
6. L.E.G.O.S. #killmyfeet
7. 3 - grill, propane turkey fryer, electric turkey fryer (They left a small smoker/grill in the shed! Hubby is set!
8. Mine are my creative space and master bedroom (minus the curtain issue)  Feels cozy.

Super Sacks!

Ok, I have to admit.  I'm a bit of a geek.  I have a thing for super hero movies.  I think Keaton and Nicholson probably started it with Batman, but ever since Tobey and Kirsten brought us Spiderman, I got into them....X-men, Dark Night, each Avenger's series, Man of Steel., etc....  I love them all!

I also have a love for super hero-themed birthday parties.  However, I have yet to host a hero birthday for my son, oddly enough.  Apparently ninja (Legos & turtles) themes are cooler. ;)  That's ok.  I won't let that hold me back!  With the popularity of the Ninja Turtle party favor sacks, I came up with a new favor idea - Super Hero Party Sacks! (I won't share how geeky giddy I got as I made each one of these because that might ruin me...)

Ok, so I got a little carried away...  I had way too much fun creating them.  (I know... geeeeek!) I got face shape ideas surfing Google Images.  I created PDF sheets of the white face/mask shapes that were printed on white cardstock, cut and glued to colored gift sacks.  The tops of the sacks were then cut into the shape of the heroes' heads!  These shapes are made to fit sacks 5 to 6 inches wide.  The bags I used came from Hobby Lobby, Party City and Wal-Mart.  Michael's packaged colored sacks are too small for these printables.

These super hero printables are now in the Clearly Candace Etsy Shop!  
Avengers-Themed:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/178602941/super-hero-gift-sack-face-printables
Batman-Themed:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/178603991/super-hero-gift-sack-face-printables
Other Super Heroes: https://www.etsy.com/listing/178605625/super-hero-gift-sack-face-printables

Worried about your abilities in cutting the sacks?  Just keep this post handy to keep my photos to help guide you! The shapes to cut can be divided into three "head types"....

"The Baldies"

Just cut the top of the sack into a rounded head for these guys. Simple!

Spiderman, Wolverine, The Flash, Captain America, Thor and Ironman were my "Baldies."

"Dudes With Do's"

The heroes sporting hairdo's are a little trickier.  Just use the photos to guide you to draw the hair shape on the bag with a pencil to make things easier.  I found that freehand cutting isn't easy...especially for The Hulk! ;) Draw it first!

"The Ladies"

My ladies just needed a few curves cut into their bags. Two big curves for Wonder Woman and a few smaller ones for the Black Widow!

"The Ears"

Batman and Catwoman just require drawing and cutting a couple of pointy ears!



I hope these bags might make for a fun addition to a precious child's super hero party! 

If I can't use them for my son's birthday, I'll just live vicariously through moms that can!  :)  Happy party planning!

In Keeping Him in mind....One can give US "super strength!"

"By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see an know was made strong.  It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see." Acts 3:16

Just as super heroes are strong, we can also be made strong by a faith in Jesus.  In this verse, Peter tells us how a man healed and "made strong" by his faith.  May you already know or come to know what a strong faith and healing by Jesus can give.



Do You Want To Build A Snowman?

"What?!  An actual Clearly Candace post?!"  Yes, my friends, the holidays were beyond my control this year.  I could go on for days...  I apologize for being 2013's Worst Blogger, but I plan to come back and fill you in on some missed 2013 goodies (Kelvin The Elf included). Now, on with the post!...

Do You Want To Build A Snowman?

{Cue singing!} I have yet to meet a single person who didn't love the movie Disney's Frozen.  It was SO good! A magical adventure about princesses, that boys even enjoyed!  My son went to see it for a boy's birthday party!  The story and meaning were beautiful. The characters were great. One character, in particular, captured our hearts with smiles and laughter....

OLAF!!

This adorably funny snowman comes on the scene with "Hi, everyone, I'm Olaf! And I like warm hugs!"  What's not to love about this snowball of fun chasing his body parts all over the place? He was precious.

We had a Christmas party at our place this year with LOTS of kiddos in attendance.  I decided they needed a craft activity.  Frozen was in its peak, so I came up with an Olaf craft for the kids to enjoy. Sweet and squeezable, meet Marshmallow Olaf!  

I thought he would be a fun keepsake, since marshmallows harden with time.  I opened and aired out the marshmallows for a couple of days to stiffen them some.  This step helped reduce some temptation to eat them, with special warning of the feet (the minis were in the back of my pantry!) Successfully, most of the Olaf's were not eaten and the kids had a great time building them! I also made sure to include some extra (fresh) marshmallows and a orange slices as a treat.  What's a Christmas party without some extra sugar, right? ;-) Unfortunately, I didn't get photos of the building session. :-/

How to Make Your Own Marshmallow Olaf

Each Olaf requires:
2 regular marshmallows (head and chest), 1 jumbo marshmallow (bottom), 2 mini-marshmallows (feet)
1 brown pipe cleaner, cut like so: ____ __ __ (head twig, bent and arms)
2 coffee straws (1 for body, 2nd cut in half to connect feet) or 2 toothpicks, with supervision
1 orange slice or an orange marker (nose)
2 adhesive wiggly eyes (or draw the eyes)
Black marker (eyebrows, mouth, buttons)

To Build Olaf:
Push straw into bottom, through chest and into head (see Olaf craft photo).
Push straw halves through the bottom to attach mini marshmallow feet.
Push arm pieces into the sides of the chest.
Bend the larger pipe cleaner and press into head for head twigs.
Attach/Draw eyes and nose (lick the orange slice or use end of a toothpick for support)
Draw on eyebrows, mouth and buttons.
OLAF is DONE!

You can even make true to character by "losing his head" as I did in my first try using toothpicks and leftover eyes. So very...Olaf!

When brainstorming for this craft, I was inspired by all the Frozen birthday parties already pinned on Pinterest!  If I were still a girl, my January birthday would've had a Frozen theme!  Lucky for my husband, I no longer require birthday themes. ;)

Similar to the idea of the Ninja Turtle party favor bag masks (my Etsy bestseller), I drew up a file for an Olaf party favor bag!  I thought it turned decent enough.  What do you think?  Does it look like him?

I hope you said yes, because, the Olaf Party Favor Bag Printable is already in my Etsy Shop!  The PDF file is in color or b&w that can be cut and glued to a folded white lunch sack!  I found my bags on the paper goods aisle at Wal-Mart.  I also trimmed out his upper lip out to give the bag a little more Olaf shape. :)

Maybe this craft and printable will bring a little joy to some birthday parties this wintry season.  

Stay warm out there and be sure to share your own warm hugs!

With Him in mind,

"Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:10

A "Boston" Girl After My Own Heart

My 5-year-old daughter has been asking for a "girl bathroom" for a couple of years now.  When we moved into our home almost 5 years ago, we used her bathroom (in her suite bedroom) as the kids' bathroom until big brother was big enough to shower on his own in his bathroom.  Well, that day came and went way back and Mommy had put it off this request long enough!  It was finally time for our first Mommy-Daughter DIY project: E's Bathroom Makeover.

When the idea came around, she originally wanted the typical girl's "pink" bathroom.  She thought of adding butterflies.  The next idea was rainbows, and since the rainbow request included rainbow walls, I had to nip that idea in the bud quickly.  This room was way too tiny for that - and Mommy's not much on extra bold rooms. ;)  As time passed, something else came to mind.

My daughter is a lot like her mommy when it comes to dogs.  She LOVES dogs.  She has more stuffed dogs (and a puppy vet station), than she has babies, cribs and Barbie's.  More than anything, she loves her REAL dog Lucy. :)

I also love this precious dog, and all the other Bostons I have helped love and raise since I was a child in a Boston Terrier-loving family.  My family goes way back with Bostons and I might have been the biggest lover of them all....that is, until E was born. :)  With ideas bouncing around in my mind, I posed this question to her:

"E, what do you think about a Boston Terrier bathroom?"

With a smile ear-to-ear, my girl preceded to jump up and down yelling "YES! YES! YES!  I want a PINK Boston Terrier bathroom!!"  I also grinned ear-to-ear as well, thinking of all the possibilities. It was uber-exciting to take on a DIY project that I was just as excited about as she was! Or more! LOL

Since I didn't take pics of the previous decor, here some from the bathroom in our former home, so you can get why this girl was ready for some PINK! :)

Here are pics of the bathroom before we began painting.  It's tiny...and I knew pink wasn't going to work.

INSPIRATION:

Since bright pink walls seemed a bit much for this tiny room, I told E that if we did a lighter color on the walls, I would get her a pink shower curtain and towels.  Surprisingly, she was good with that!  I already had a color palette in mind that I've been wanting to try somewhere.  It's very fitting for a girl, and since it includes pink, she was good with that too.  Yes!  It was meant to be, I tell ya! :)  My inspiration was a combo of these two pics from Pinterest, adding in the coral to pink, blue and grey. I still smile looking at these two pictures.  These colors are so happy!

E chose the light blue over a light grey. I could've predicted that one. ;)

 We went to Home Depot and chose Behr's Sea Ice. Like?

PAINTING:

Let the painting begin!  E got to do two walls as high as she could reach.  She was quite thorough and did great for her first paint job!  I was a little worried the color was too light when we were painting, but by morning it was the perfect shade of blue!  (These phone shots barely give a blue tint, plus it's wet.... )

The next day...Perfection!!

WALL DECOR:
I really wanted E to create her own Boston Terrier artwork to go on the wall, but I knew she'd need a little help.  I found a few different Boston graphic images online and let her choose one to use.  When she chose her favorite one, I created a stencil of it using my Silhouette.  We went to Michael's and got four 6" sqaure canvases and craft paint in the 4 inspiration colors.  I cut out 4 stencils on adhesive vinyl via Silhouette and stuck them to the canvases.  I covered the edges with painter's tape (my vinyl is 4").  E then painted in each stencil in each inspiration color.

Once dry, she got to peel them off for the reveal of her fabulous artwork!  This was her favorite part.

These make me absolutely giddy!  I also loved that she chose this super adorable graphic out of the ones I chose for her. :)

UPDATE:  These adorable pup stencils are now available for purchase (cheap!) in digital cutting format (.svg) via the ClearlyCandace Shop on Etsy! Tell your Boston-loving friends with Cricuts and Silhouettes! :) 

For the wall opposite the toilet, I initially considered some cute Boston Etsy prints, but then I found a graphic surfing Google images that I tweaked and re-created in Silhouette Studio.  Framing this on cardstock was a much more inexpensive idea than Etsy! As all Boston owners know, this is a true depiction of one of the cutest aspects of the breed. :)

As a final wall touch, I had a cute, white wooden "E" on hand from Hobby Lobby that I thought would look nice next to her wall cabinet.  I added this scrapbook paper with ModPodge for a feminine touch of pink.

SHOWER CURTAIN:
The focal point of this tiny room is obviously the shower curtain.  Finding one was a painstaking process that pushed things back another week.  I wanted one that didn't cost an arm and a leg, in the right shade of pink, with a feminine touch. NOT. EASY.  No local stores had anything but an occasional hot pink, much too bold for the room.  I wanted a more subtle pink and some kind of flare.  I ordered THREE curtains online before finding it.  Sending the other three back wasn't a piece of cake either.  Tip: Read detailed descriptions AND return policies well!  Here were my returns...

Polka-dot Vinyl. Too see-through, cheap quality...

Pink Ruffle.  Too bright and overbearing...

Solid Pink w/Grommets.  Better shade of pink, but boring...

When the 4th curtain came, it was like the angels were singing when I opened it.  ABSOLUTELY PERFECT.  I don't want to show it just yet.  You'll see it in a few scrolls. :) 

Another reason I passed on the grommet one was because I'd decided that she needed fun shower curtain hooks.  I'd seen cute felt Boston gifts and crafts while surfing Etsy that inspired me to make felt Boston heads for the hooks...with E's help, of course!  Unfortunately, I read the Silhouette doesn't cut felt well, so I opted to hand trace and cut.  Cutting parts for 12 boston heads was the 2nd longest phase of the project.  As a Silhouette girl, cutting by hand has definitely become a pet peeve. ;) Some of you may recall this recent Instagram mystery photo (also via Facebook).  I loved seeing all the guesses of what these were! :)

While I had the "fun" job of tracing and cutting parts, E got the better job of gluing googly eyes and noses.  Why does she always get to do the fun stuff?  :(

 I found these simple metal hooks at Ross - cheap!  Once cut, I hot glued the heads to them.

{SQUEAL!}

BONUS ITEMS:

Since we had no accessories for her counter, I had to get creative.  I happened to have a box of Boston collectibles in my attic.  It was fun going through it after years in storage!  The collectibles were the perfect finishing touch to the room.  As shown, there were antique ceramics to cheesy bobble heads! 

THE UNVEILING!

It's FINALLY time to show you the finished product!  

E and I are proud to unveil to you her newly updated Boston Terrier bathroom!

And here are the extra "Boston Pops of Fun," including her new towels!

And how about that shower curtain? 

Nailed it! (as JD on Scrubs would say)

We both totally love it.  We hope you like it and we thank you for allowing us to share our first Mommy-daughter DIY fun with you. :)  My girl is overly-excited about her new bathroom and has been showing it to all her friends.  

We both love how bright and cheery it is when you walk in.  It's funny how a blue room can be brighter than a white one!  The bright pink helps. ;)  And I leave you with a "bright" verse from Proverbs...

"The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day"  Proverbs 4:18

Thanks for visiting!

Keeping Him in Mind,