Weekend Projects

This weekend we did actually get the priming started on the basement walls.  That's the "we" that means "Kevin."  I feel better and better each day, but this miserable cold has really zapped my energy.  Today is day 16 and I am still coughing.  I am so sorry for anyone else who has picked up this awful virus.
I did get two mini-projects in over the weekend.  One I love, the other, well, the jury's still out.  Project number one, I saw in a gardening magazine.  I bought a couple of African violet plants ($2.99 each at Lowe's) and transferred them into two tea cups.  I have a couple of teacups given to me by friends over the years, and they mostly sit unused in a kitchen cabinet.  When I saw this idea in a magazine, it seemed like a great way to add something living to the house (since we are all so desperate for spring to arrive) and get my pretty cups out to enjoy. 
Aside from the plant and the cup, you also need a bit for your drill that can go through ceramic.  The violets need really good drainage and also, you water them from the bottom so there has to be a hole in the bottom of the cup.  We found a bit with a diamond tip at Lowe's for $14.  It takes a long time to get the hole through the cup, but the result was very clean and neither cup was damaged.  Here are Kevin and his helper getting everything ready.

I took some photos of the drilling process but they are all blurry.  As I have said before, no photo taking skill here.  Anyway, here are the two plants in their new homes, I am very happy with how they turned out!  This one is by my kitchen sink:

And this one is on the desk in our office, for me to enjoy as I type away.

I guess African violets are kind of fussy, but I read all about how to care for them and I'm trying to follow the guidelines.  I hope they will continue to bloom.

OK so this other project, I'm kind of meh about.  Lucy wrote me this awesome poem for Valentine's Day.  It says "Roses are red, Violets are blue, I want you to know that I love you."  But - she did it all by herself and spelled the words out on her own.  It is fantastic.  I wanted to frame it and display it, so I made an attempt at painting a frame with a crackle finish.  I am not sure how I feel about it.  I am going to need some feedback on this one.

A while back, I made some blue "bath time" letters for the kids' bathroom and hung them above the tub.  So I did the crackle finish in blue and white to match the bathroom.  I just don't know that I am loving it.  What do you think?