DOING SURGERY ON A ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI GARDEN STATUE.

 Someone from our church rescued a large St Francis of Assisi garden statue that was damaged in the rose garden by some snowmobilers who were trespassing on the church property. The weathered statue was brought inside the church lobby to protect it from further damage but its base was already damaged and it fell down, receiving further damage to the head.

Here is the statue in question.  You can see the back of the neck was very thin. The statue was propped up by a pillow against a glass table from where I did the reattachment of the head. The fingers had to be rebuilt with green body filler. 

The statue was wrapped in a blanket and given to George to see if his brother Paul would fix it, but his brother wasn't feeling well so I took the statue home to see if there was a possibility of fixing it myself. When George removed it from the car, the head fell on the cement floor where the top of the head received major damage with cracks and a hole. Luckily only the top of the head received further damage.

I went online to see how to fix a fiberglass garden statue and my husband bought a container of short fiber auto body filler and some hardener at an Auto Machinery shop.  I sanded the areas to be fixed and slowly started to mix the filler and hardener and began to repair the top of the head from the inside and shave the excess. That stuff hardens so fast, you can only do a little bit at a time. 

When attaching the head, I had to hold the head in place and the filler hardened on my paring knife. I couldn't even clean it afterward and had to throw it away.

When I finished sanding the excess green filler the best I could, I mixed the following four following colors,  off-white, black, cobblestone, and moss-green acrylic paint, and got a color that was close to the finish. My years as a ceramic teacher came in handy. When the paint dried, I sprayed the painted area with a Super matte spray and the job was done. 

My first fiberglass statue repair job... As you can see I did not clean the statue, just the parts that needed some body filler. 

I have no idea to whom this statue belongs to, but I did the best that I could. If I was to do this kind of job again, I would get myself a Dremel kit as it was difficult to smooth in the neck crevis.

That was the most satisfying thing that I did last Monday.

Thanks for your comments and I hope spring has found you.

OUR LADY OF GOOD COUNSEL, MY NEXT RUG

 Hello everyone, 4 days to official spring and we still have lots of snow on the ground but I can feel the change of season in my body.

I finished my Madonna of the Street rug and have only a little bit left to whip. I kept it to work at the Evening Matters rug hooking meeting but it was canceled.

 I signed up for a rug hook-in in St John  New Brunswick with the Carnagie Rug Hooking group in April. I can't wait to see everyone again. I had a lot of fun at the  St Andrews N.B. rug hook-in and I'm sure it will be a lot of fun again.

I drew the pattern for my next rug on the same monk's cloth backing as for my previous rug because I plan to use a #3 cut again for the face. This one is called Our Lady of Good Counsel. I haven't dyed the wool yet or even looked at what I have to work with. Lately, I've been busy with what life has given me and I work around it. 

Our Lady of Good Counsel's halo and lettering need fixing. It is a free domain picture.

I printed the photo with my computer and used a sheet of mylar and trace the outline. I taped the mylar to a hole cut in a cardboard box and used my cell phone light to project the image to the wall but it was so close to the wall that it was a challenge to trace it to the bigger piece of paper on the wall.

My brother Gerard spent the weekend with us and we had a lovely visit. He arrived with a big bottle of wine. We chatted all evening until late. We took him to our favorite family restaurant on Sunday morning but he pulled a fast one on us and paid the bill before we even blinked.

Thanks for visiting and leaving comments. I really appreciate them.

Julia

CHRISTINE SENT ME AN OLD PHOTO

Today is our 57th Wedding Anniversary and we went out to breakfast with friends this morning. 

My daughter Christine sent me an old photo of our wedding day that she found in her photo library.

                            *******************************************************

To celebrate, I made this tasty soup that appeared on Saundra's blog. Woodland Junction. Sorry, somehow, I couldn't get the link to work but you all know who Saundra is.

I had all the ingredients except the pearl couscous, so I bought some yesterday.  Pearl couscous is different and larger than regular couscous. It's more like pasta. I used some chicken parts instead breast as it has more flavor.  I also used some chicken bouillion concentrate from a bottle to add to the chicken broth I got from cooking the chicken.

George gave it a rave review and said it was a keeper. He's all for healthy food.  I like getting recipes from blogger friends. I really enjoyed the soup with fresh hot biscuits.

  Instead of a cake, I made some biscuits with butter since I gave up sweets for Lent.

                             I used a cord inside the seam and whipped the binding tape in one step. 

                                   Finally, I remembered to add annotations to my photos. 

                               

                                         I still have to finish whipping the edge of my rug. A view from the top.

  This is the image I chose for my next rug from the public domain. Our Lady of Good Counsel.

   I need to get some ink cartridges for my color printer before I start this project.

   It's always a pleasure reading your comments. Thanks for your visit. Stay safe and warm.

Hugs,

Julia

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL NAME IT IS THE NAME OF JESUS.

On this freezing rainy day, I want to share a great song to bring some sunshine into your lives.

It brings me joy to listen to it. I hope it will bring joy into your lives also.

COMPULSIVE HOARDERS, COLLECTOR OF EVERYTHING Donates It All To Homeless Fire Victim...

This video is 10:34 long. Sorry about the ads.

I've been watching some Youtube videos for entertainment in the evening lately instead of working on whipping and binding my rug as I should have. I watched youtube videos of magnet fishing which was sort of interesting but then I came upon Compulsive Hoarding videos which came into my feed. 

I got fascinated with finding out what makes well-educated people from all walks of life become so bogged down in their possessions that they no longer can function properly. Some people live like that for many years unable to help themselves. 

I thought that I would share one such video with you since I can't think of anything else to share on my blog at the moment.  I've been wanting to share this topic but hesitated. For better or worst, here it is.

A lot of compulsive hoarders, start hoarding to fill the void in their lives after some terrible tragedies that happened to them. They fill their houses to the max until they have no place to cook, sleep or go to the bathroom. They live in total squalor. It's hard to believe, but according to the statistics,  there are 19 million compulsive hoarders in America. Many other affluent countries also have hoarders too, to name a few, UK, Canada, Japan, Russia Australia...

Some are compulsive shoppers and end up in the same predicaments. They spend all their money filling their home with their purchases until they are heavily in debt but still they can't stop buying on credit. Some even steal to fill their need to hoard.

Compulsive hoarding is a physiological disorder. It's a very sad situation and they need help.

Since I've watched quite a few of these videos, I no longer can stand unwashed dishes in the sink. lol...

which isn't a bad thing.

Now I think it's time to stop watching Youtube videos and whip and bind my rug. I'll leave the Youtube videos to you,  for now. lol...

I look forward to your comments.

Hugs, Julia

ANOTHER UPDATE ON MY MADONNA OF THE STREET RUG.

 Why have I dragged my feet for so long on this rug? For some reason, I keep my rug frame upstairs in my craft room and it's probably one of the reasons  Out of sight, out of mind. 

I've not been hooking much this winter.  I had dyed  several shades and thought that I had enough so I didn't bother writing down my own recipe because I was in a hurry that day. 

I ran out of a darker shade, so I had to dye some more by putting a little of this and a little of that until I got very close to the color I needed. So now, I'm hoping that I won't have to dye anymore but I'm not certain that I have enough of a certain shade as they are all in the same bowl. lol...

I haven't done anything on the blue color and just want to finish the background for now. I'll worry about that when I cross that bridge.

I have found that this rug was easy except for the shading of the blue mantel. I could have pulled my hair out, I was so frustrated with my job of shading... It's funny how we run into a wall and we get stuck on some details.

Thanks for your visit and kind comments. I wish you all a great week. The daylight is getting a wee bit longer every day. Take care and be well.

Hugs, Julia

WINTER IS TIME FOR PUZZLES

 In my last post, I showed you the Cats of the World puzzle and I had said it had 2000 pieces, this was an error that I edited this evening.  I want to show you the 2000-piece puzzle that I was talking about. This one also was a challenge, especially at the bottom as I had difficulty finishing the edge.  The reason I got mixed up was that I had difficulty uploading my photo from my iPhone and then totally forgot about it and published my post without the second puzzle. 

This is the 2000-piece puzzle that I put together.  It took most of the table. It measured 38.5X 26.5 inches.

Today I've been helping my husband declutter a storage cupboard of things he seldom or never uses. It was jam pack with assorted things. Some are going to goodwill, some to the dump. Tomorrow, we'll clear another shelf and only keep what is necessary and I'm hoping it will go as smoothly as today. My husband is a packrat. He never throws anything away and I'm the opposite. I get overwhelmed with too much stuff and I easily can detach myself from stuff.  I find it so freeing.

Today we had freezing pellets and the mall was closed but Walmart was open my husband said. The rods were slippery.

Stay warm and safe. Thanks for your comments. I appreciate them.

Julia

FINALLY, THE SUN IS SHINING WITH CLEAR BLUE SKY (Edited)

I have nothing newsworthy to blog about but I thought of dusting my blog with a little post so as to try to have at least something to blog about.  I've pulled a few loops on my rug but nothing worthy of showing, just worked a little on the background. I haven't walked outdoors except to the communal mailbox to fetch the mail.  I admire those who walk even in cold weather. I put on almost 5 pounds this winter so far. I'm not complaining just because...

I've been somewhat inactive for the most part as the sky has been gloomy for days it seems. I guess you could say I've been in hibernation. I need sunshine to function on all my cylinders. lol... I've been doing what is necessary every day but  I've wasted a lot of time just watching some of my favorite YouTube videos. I avoid Facebook and Instagram because I feel they have nothing to offer me personally,   except for making me want more things that I do not need or want anymore as I'm satisfied with what I already have and at 76,  I'm in the winter of my life and I know that material thing won't bring me lasting happiness anyway. By the grace of God, my health is still good except for the usual old age minor discomforts. I'm already yearning for spring and new life.

Here is a picture of the usual after-Christmas puzzle. It measures 38.5 X 26.5 inches. I know that making puzzles is not everyone's cup of tea but I enjoy the challenge. 

Edited: This puzzle only has 1000 pieces and not 2000 as previously mentioned. The other one that I did was a 2000-piece puzzle which I was supposed to show here but somehow couldn't upload the photo because my iPhone was low on battery and I then forgot to upload it before publishing my post.

I think those Cats of the World kind of look ridiculously cute. I started to work on this 1000-piece puzzle after Christmas and finished it in four days. It looked easy but I found it was harder than it looked because some of the pieces were of different sizes and shapes and didn't all fit in straight lines. It was bought secondhand at the church fundraiser and I thought that there were pieces missing but in the end, all the pieces were there. 

I meant to post this photo in my last post but totally forgot about it. 

Wishing you all a peaceful day. Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment. I hope that the sun is shining where you are.

Hugs, Julia

HAPPY NEW YEAR MY BLOGGER FRIENDS

 We made it through another year, marked by so many ups and down and we have survived. Having caring blogger friends to accompany us, and cheer us on, makes it easier somehow.  May you keep on blogging so we don't lose our connection. Having blogger friends to cheer us on is something to be thankful for. 

Counting our blessings is not always easy when feeling overwhelmed or going through some rough spots, but nothing lasts forever.  After the storms, the sun will shine again. We have so many things to be thankful for when we look at the positive side of things.

 I'm thinking about all those who are alone through no fault of their own during the Holidays, those who couldn't make it home to be with their families because of snowstorms, I hope that at least you could connect with families through technology. For those who are sick, I pray for a speedy recovery. May the new year be a better one for everyone in 2023.

May God grant me the ability to accompany you again on your blogs throughout this new year. Best Wishes for a Prosperous New Year.

Hugs

Julia