Skiing Into Christmas

I don't have to type it but I will, 2020 can move on out after Christmas, but wait... I can't keep the new rules straight... is Christmas cancelled? 

It doesn't really matter the "official" rule on this, Christmas is not cancelled in my house or heart, and not at my craft table either.

As if everyone's lives weren't a mess in at least one aspect, be it maneuvering through child care and home schooling, working from home, or not working, or just trying to stay healthy among a million other little worries, inside my walls is an actual mess. 

We started a remodel in February with removing walls, and all the mess that goes with it, and here we are 9 months later and I haven't birthed a new kitchen yet. And you know what? While that mess has gotten old along with me, there are more important things, because in the big picture of where the world is at I don't really care about my kitchen. Well I guess that's a lie - I do care because I have to live among the disarray - but not like it matters much to me since the important things haven't stopped. I'm still able to put meals out, stand around the counter, albeit plywood ones, and I've got a broom and know how to use it to keep remodel rubble at bay.

And skis. I've got skis.

Several sets of skis to be exact, that came in a bunch of won auction junk last year. Useless to this klutz who many years ago on a trip to Lake Tahoe, spent most of the time on her azz at the ski slope - I couldn't even master the tow rope.

Since the skis were in no danger of being used by me, even if they were usable, I got out some Homestead House Milk paint in Trading Post Red and the new Christmas Sweater stencil from Old Sign Stencils, and married the two together as winter decor.

Here is a before photo.... just regular old snow skis.

First I spray painted the skis red so I didn't have to use repeated coats of milk paint to cover the much too modern design, and also so I could sand the edges in a few spots and red would show through, then I used Fusion Mineral Paint in Ash to take the boot hardware from bright brass to a warm charcoal.

The Christmas sweater stencil was just applied random, and I also used the Christmas Crate stencil for the 'North Pole Approved' lettering.  

Below are some of the 2020 Holiday designs from Old Sign Stencils that I will be also putting to use this month, the Christmas Sweater design is on the bottom right.

I decided to only stencil one ski since the Christmas Sweater stencil is busy as an allover design.  The skis also received a coat of Homestead House wax in clear which boosted the vintagy red color.

The two skis were attached together from the back so they would quit tipping over. The poles were left in their original condition, I liked them just how they were.

I have decided photographing and staging skis has to be the worst item to showcase. Finding an attractive place for them was impossible, mostly because as I said, I'm missing walls and the disarray part means there is cabinet contents as a backdrop just about everywhere. Any other year we'd have snow to use as an appropriate ski backdrop outside, but there is not a speck in my yard right now.

They finally ended up in my entryway, against a half painted wall and some plants I'm attempting to keep alive over winter.

 

Hopefully next Christmas we won't have glassware and cabinet contents in the office or anywhere else they don't belong, and all the walls will be painted. maybe I will get all fancy and put some greens and a big bow on the skis then.

 

 

 

Or maybe not, because really I like them just how they are, sort of old ski school.

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Old Sign Stencils

Homestead House Milk Paint