1920's Side Chair

Pictured here  is an old chair with a second chance at a charmed life.  It proudly wears its history but  has been fitted with completely new upholstery padding and a romantic seat fabric (from Waverly).  This sweet thing just came out of my Workshop today.

Dressy Dresser

Visit My Decor & Furnishings Shop to see  an unusual and charming antique dresser reconditioned in my workshop and ready for a home.

Art: For the Mini Show

I'll submit this little painting (9"x9"), Croquet Balls,  gouache on Arches paper, for the "Small Works" exhibit next month (Utah Watercolor Society).

Above:  Croquet Balls, Toni Youngblood, gouache on Arches paper 9"x9", 2012.

Constraints of the Mini Show:  No part of the work may be greater than 12 inches, and that includes the frame.

May Gallery Stroll -Tonight 6-9PM

Charley Hafen Jewelers- Gallery features a grouping of three exhibits:  Thangka Paintings:  Tibetan religious paintings offering a beautiful manifestation of the divine, Photographs of Nepal by Carmen Fournier and the rare ethnographic jewelry of Jacki Marsh of Rabbask Designs.

For a complete listing of this evening's Gallery Stroll, click here.

Lace Window Screens

Visit My Decor & Furnishings Shop to see how four tired old window screens have a second chance and another purpose:  Suspended room dividers, wall art...

Antique Framed Menu Chalkboard

This is a chalk menu board I created by preserving/stabilizing a lovely tattered antique frame.     

Above:  Details of the top center of the frame.

Some of the decorative pieces of the frame had been lost.  I sealed the remaining ornamentation and secured the frame connections and joints.

Mirrors originally occupied the three openings in the frame.  This tripartate style mirror was a common fixture in homes for centuries and was designed for hanging over the fireplace mantel.

Above:  Details along the side of the frame.

I made chalkboard panels cut to fit the openings where the mirrors once were (long gone by the time I discovered this piece) and installed them into the three openings of the frame.  I attached new wall-hanging hardware, thus giving this discarded old frame a second life as a unique menu board.


The menu board is now available at Home Again Consignment at 1019 E. 2100 S. in Sugarhouse.

Recently Completed Painting Commission

Painting by Toni Youngblood 24"x24"Acrylic on canvas

I recently completed this painting of a favorite Beatles' album cover, commissioned by a musician as a gift for the birthday of his girlfriend.

Tree House Hotels

I love being outside this time of  year.  The thought of curling up under a feather quilt on an old sleeping porch to spend the night is appealing.  And how about a tree house hotel for a little get away?  I found these images at Garden Design Magazine's website.  See the entire article here:
Garden Design Tree House Hotels.

 photo: TreeHouse Point - Washington State

photo: Margaret Whittaker, Northumberland, England

photo: Cedar Creek Treehouse, Washington State

 photo: Hapuku Lodge, New Zealand

photo: Tree House Hide Away, Madhyah Predash, India

photo: Redwoods Treehouse, near Aukland New Zealand

photo: Tree House Cottages, Eureka Springs, Arkansas

photo: TreeHouse Point,, Issaquah, Washington
OK, the photo below is not a tree house, but it does say "getaway". Andthere is a "hotel" in Sea View, Washington that is full of Air Stream and other travel trailers that you may reserve for your own little vacation, if you prefer it to their original classic lodge or individual cabins.  See it here at the Sou'Wester Lodge, since 1892.  And if you'd like to become a unique hotelier yourself, I just read on the Sou'Wester Lodge blog that the lodge is now for sale!
Below photo:   Nordeck Photography

Revitalized Workshop Progress

This is a snapshot of the new 9-foot-long work bench.  This heavy duty beauty was constructed from recycled decking materials that my friends gave me when they demolished their backyard deck.

I can now place large project furniture on top of the bench when needed.  The 30-inch depth of the workbench top allows space for small tools and other objects along the back wall of the bench and still have plenty of working surface.

Prior to the construction of the wunderful workbench, we insulated the window wall shown in the photo and installed drywall (left over from remodeling my back garden room).  There's now an official space for my table saw and shop vacuum. Colorful rubber floor mats make working while standing, much easier on the feet. The mats are also reused.  General reorganization of the whole space is in progress.  Yippee!

My builder is the same gentleman who invented this wunder, which you may have seen on Jay Leno, the World's Best Inventions and YouTube.