Free July Calendar and Desktop (2nd Try)

I tried to post this on the 12th. I know it was the 12th because the little thingy on the left side (which I can see, but you cannot) tells me so. That's not a whole lot better than the 16th, but at least I know I didn't just imagine making the post. I guess my internet connection was bad or there was some other hang up that caused the upload to fail. So now I'll give it another go! 

This is short and sweet from 7/12:

Oops! I lost track of time. I can't believe we're already halfway through July! I have to get the calendar posted so maybe I can come back in a week or so and show you some pictures of my kitchen that we just finished. You know what to do with this one -- save it as your iWhatever's lockscreen to have quick access to a calendar. 

Here's another version for your desktop. It can also be used on your phone or tablet if the full sized one doesn't fit properly. 

Enjoy the rest of the month! I hope to be back in a few days to share the kitchen pics. See you then!

Thanks for stopping by!

Free June Desktop and Calendar

Hello June! 

I hope everyone had a lovely May. We have had some fantastic weather here in southwest Missouri. The forecasts called for Memorial Day weekend to be a total washout, but it was warm and sunny until Monday afternoon. Beautiful! 

To welcome summer, I have a calendar with denim and daisies. (Kind of....) Feel free to print the one above to hang on your fridge or save it to any of your electronic devices. Here is one to use for your computer desktop:

And here is one that works well for iWhatevers....

For some reason some idevices enlarge pictures when you save them as a lock screen, and this calendar allows for that. 

I think that's it for now. Have a wonderful June! Thanks for stopping by!

Free May Desktop and iWhatever Calendar

Hi! Remember me? 

I've been pretty sporadic lately, huh? For the past few months, my creative powers have been focused on my kitchen, so I haven't had a lot of mojo left for calendar making. Or anything else! But I am happy to report the kitchen is coming along quite nicely. I wanted the room to function like a modern kitchen, but to look and feel like it could have been my great aunt's dream kitchen when she added it to the turn-of-the-century farmhouse in the 1950's. 

To reinforce the old-timey feel, we added beadboard to the ceiling and painted it white to match the two rooms from the original farmhouse, and had the old pine floors refinished. (We did them ourselves when we bought the place twenty years ago, but they needed some patching and TLC, so we called Terry The Floor Guy this time.) 

My 1950-something O'Keefe & Merritt stove holds the place of honor, in an alcove that is lined with stainless steel, a great backdrop for the big white enamel stove with its chrome griddle and trim. When I get the timer/light combo that goes up on top I'll add an updated photo, but this is what the alcove looks like right now. I love this stove so much that I've used it for years with a defective thermostat. If the oven is on, it's on. Period! Not that big of a deal for roasting meats and veggies, but it makes baking a little challenging. Ok--a little MORE challenging. Baking requires too much precision and recipe-following for me. Anyway, on the rare occasion I do bake, I have to monitor the oven temp and turn the oven on and off to keep it from getting too hot. Is that true love or what?! I recently found a place that refurbishes these old thermostats, so I will have a properly functioning oven soon. :)  No, I will not start baking more. 

I do need to make a small adjustment. I'm going to ask the Dan The Cabinet Guy to paint the small cabinets on each side of the stove the same color as the island. They blend in to the stove too much now.  Dan told me one of his co-workers asked if he was sure he had the right color for the island and another said he hadn't seen that shade of turquoise since the 50's! Perfect! When we pulled the stove away from the wall, I found three or four paint smears on the back that are THE EXACT SAME COLOR AS MY WALLS NOW! Crazy, huh? 

There's one mor thing about the kitchen that I love as much as the stove. Those red doors to the right of the stove hide my pantry. Yes, it is basically a closet sticking out across the corner of the room. You got a problem with that? (The contractor we had twenty years ago--who doesn't get a cute builder guy name--said it would look stupid. That's why. :P ) The curtains on those doors come from a blanket my great grandma made me when I was only three or four years old. Said blanket had hung over the back of an old high chair in the corner for at least fifteen years. When I was packing everything away so we could get started, I realized it had all the colors of my new kitchen! So I scanned a section and uploaded it to a place that prints fabric. I ordered a yard of gauze for the doors and a yard of French twill for...napkins...table runner...placemats...who knows? 

The last cool thing I'll tease you with is our concrete countertops. Robert The Contractor Guy had never done concrete countertops, but was eager to learn how, and we were quite willing to be his guinea pigs. They turned out great, but they don't photograph well. I'll find the right time of day and get some good pics to share once everything is done. 

Ok. It's time for calendars. May's calendar is, of course, inspired by my kitchen! There's a little stainless in one of the frames, Grandma's blanket, white painted wood, a lot of turquoise, and a little red. Go back up there ^ and look. I'll wait....

...

...

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See what I mean? :)

Here is one for the iWhatevers that like the extra space:

And this one is for your desktop:

That's it for now. I hope to be back with a new calendar and updated kitchen pics in June, but you know how I am.... Heeheehee.... Thanks for stopping by!

Free February Desktop and iWhatever Calendar (and a Digital Valentine)

Happy Valentine's Day! If I lead off with that, I feel like I'm right on time. Otherwise I'm just posting a calendar half a month late. 

If you have a last minute Valentine emergency, here's a digital Valentine you can share:

Here's a pretty background for your desktop:

And one for your iWhatever:

And even one to print if you like: 

Sorry to post and run, but I hear the cries of some wood flooring we are trying to rescue....

Free January 2016 iWhatever and Desktop Calendars

I know, I know.... It's already January 3rd! Your phones, tablets, and computers are ready to put away their Christmas decorations, but Michele hasn't got their January attire ready yet. My apologies. I've been playing Photoshop. (I've said for years that Photoshop is my version of a video game. As soon as I click on that little icon, I get sucked in and lose all track of time, just like a gamer.) 

My son told me about Photoshop's "Magic Wand" a couple of years ago. He was a bit bewildered that I did not know how to use it. His exact words were, "You don't know about the Magic Wand? Prepare to have your mind blown." That's how cool the Magic Wand is: I remember, word-for-word, being introduced to it. I still think it is mind-blowing, especially when I'm able to do something like I did for this calendar! 

The snowflakes in this calendar were crocheted by my 92 year old grandmother! Aren't they beautiful?! She made a dozen for me many years ago, but they were lost in our garage fire in February, along with most of our Christmas decorations, so SHE MADE MORE FOR ME! I have The Best Grandma. (Hi Grandma!)

So anyway.... I was able to scan in the snowflakes and use (you guessed it!) The Magic Wand to remove all the background around each snowflake and in between all the stitching with just a couple of clicks of the mouse! Now I have digital images of some of Grandma's snowflakes that I can use over and over again. How cool is that?! Each finished snowflake is saved as a png file, so it's just the image--no background. I'm not sure how this will show up, but I'm going to give it a shot....

Now, back to the calendar. Your phones are probably getting impatient. Here is one for your iWhatever:

I hope these ^ have been working for you. Sometimes phones and tablets blow up the picture so big that you can't see the whole calendar, so this way, the empty space around the edge is all that is off the screen. (Hopefully.)

And here is the desktop version, with all that empty space for your icons.

If you'd like to see more of my family's hand-crafting skills, click over to last January's calendar, where I used a photo of the quilt my mother-in-law gave me for Christmas. Beautiful! 

Here's to a wonderful 2016 for all of you! Thanks for stopping by!