LIVING ON A SHOESTRING BUDGET.......................

I have posted before about the realities of living on a budget as one gets older.  When you leave the working force your income will invariably diminish somewhat.  

You can do one of two things, you can complain about it or you can embrace the circumstances and get creative about how to deal with the circumstances.  For the most part, I have always been one who tries to make the best of my situation....this especially applies to my immediate surroundings.

I have always been pretty good at making something out of nothing and I continue to do so today.  In fact this ability actually has nothing to do with getting older or being younger.  For some reason I am able to realize that IT IS WHAT IT IS and be somewhat content with that realization.  This probably comes from having a fairly complicated childhood and having very little in the way of expectations.

Anyway.....enough of my rambling....the above pic is of my fireplace.  I have not liked the way it looks since the day we moved into our sweet little spot.  I have tried various fixes and nothing really tickled my fancy until this fix.   Painted the mantle a charcoal black and covered the marble with small pages from a French/English dictionary.  Used Elmer's glue and water to affix it to the marble, so it can be removed easily should I ever feel the need to change things up here. 

I know this pic is a little blurry as it is still a work in progress.  

Will let you know when I am done with this project  and will post pics as well.

"USE IT UP, WEAR IT OUT, MAKE IT DO, OR DO WITHOUT" is pretty much my motto.
I think this phrase was coined during the war years and it certainly can be applied to today's environment in which we are endeavoring to reduce our carbon footprint on our wonderful planet. 
Just keeping' it real here.

Jo