The Viceroy Performing Arts Center in Oak Grove, KY

There’s a little-known gem nestled in the fields of Oak Grove, Ky. Right beside the War Memorial Walking Trail stands the Viceroy Performing Arts Center, a full-service entertainment complex offering the ambiance of an outdoor venue with the amenities of an indoor reception hall. But you want to know the best part?

You can get married at the Viceroy.

Clarksville Bride Ashley Parsons found the Viceroy after having complications with her original wedding location in Clarksville. “We were working on a small budget and didn’t have a huge guest list. Wanting something outdoors, yet intimate, we thought we found the perfect location,” says the September Bride. “After several hoops and hurdles we dropped the venue. We went and looked (at the Viceroy) and I fell in love.”

Matt and Ashley Parsons walk through the Military Arch of Sabers at their Sept. 4 wedding.

Ashley was the first bride to get married on the stage of the Viceroy.  “We got our outdoor wedding, by candle light and had our first dance under dimmed lights by the stars. It was perfect and I couldn’t have asked for it to be more beautiful.”

Because it is ran by the Oak Grove Tourism Commission, the Viceroy offers something many local venues cannot, true affordability. “We are not a money-making business like many venues in the area,” says Oak Grove Tourism Director Traci Cunningham. “This gives us the ability to stay far below the average pricing when renting out our facility.”

With three wedding packages, the Viceroy and War Memorial Walking Trail can fit into even the smallest of budgets. “We are a transient community and a lot of the military couples want to get married but have to plan around deployments, training and anything else they are called to do,” explains Traci. “We don’t want anyone to have to put off their wedding because they cannot find an affordable venue, not when so many of these couples have given up so much already.”

The Viceroy boasts a 1946 square foot stage, complemented by a fully equipped kitchen, two furnished dressing rooms, restrooms, and full lighting and sound capabilities. The open-air Veteran’s Picnic Pavilion, located on the edge of the wooded walking trail, seats 112 and offers electricity, grills, trash cans and water, making it perfect for receptions.

Couples are free to use outside catering, or they can prepare food themselves in the kitchen. For just $2 a day, the happy couple can even have their own message displayed on the marquee.

“Just come out and see the Viceroy,” says Traci. “We believe this venue speaks for itself.”

If you are interested in having your own wedding at the Viceroy Performing Arts Center, contact Oak Grove Tourism Director Traci Cunningham @ 270-439-5675 or email *protected email*. For event planning, contact Brandy Breuckman @ 270-439-5675 or email *protected email*. For general information, visit www.oakgroveky-tourism.com.

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Our home was built in 1991, when floral wallpaper was all the rage, and our walls were certainly fashionable then. The master vanity was complete with bronze light fixtures and bright whole wall floral wallpaper. But what worked in 1991 did not work in 2008, so one of the first things we did was remove that red and green catastrophe.

Good Bye Flowers!

To make your own wallpaper remover solution, just mix equal parts water and vinegar in a spray bottle. Spray directly on the wallpaper and allow to saturate for 15 minutes. Then try to scrap off a little paper using a putty blade or trowel. If the wallpaper does not come off easily, apply more solution and allow to saturate 5 more mintues and try again.

I’ve used this solution to remove an entire room of wallpaper as well as numerous wall paper borders around our house. For best results, work in smaller sections and do not allow the solution to sit on the wall for extended periods of time. When you’ve removed all the wallpaper, wipe your walls with a damp rag, and your walls are ready for paint or fresh wallpaper.

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Whatever your reason for wanting a change, reupholstering kitchen chair cushions is a quick and inexpensive way to bring new life to your kitchen. It only takes about 30 minutes, and is so easy; you’ll be wondering why you didn’t do it sooner.

Supplies Needed:

• Choice of Fabric (apx. 1/2 yard x 1/2 yard per chair)
• Scissors
• Staple Gun
• Screw Driver
• Iron
• Foam Stamps (optional)
• Acrylic or Fabric Paint (optional)

How-To

Step 1: Flip chair upside down. The seat should be attached to the chair with 4 screws. Unscrew the seat and lift it off.

Step 2: Make sure your fabric is pressed and wrinkle free. Lay your seat on the fabric, facing down. Cut fabric, allowing about 1 ½ inch on all sides.

Step 3: Using your staple gun, attach the fabric to the underside of the seat. Staple the sides first, then the front and back. Gather the fabric and fold to create pleats along the corners.

Step 4: Re-attach the seat, and you have just re-upholstered your own kitchen chair!

Tip: For added style, embellish your cushion by adding a fun word or design using foam stamps and acrylic or fabric paint.

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Does he really know what he’s doing?

I”m a former HGTV junkie. I used to sit and watch hours of it, and I absorbed more interior decorating, real estate, and DIY than I could possibly use in a lifetime. I would probably still be that way, but my current occupations as mommy, taxi, nurse, teacher, finance manager, counselor, cook, maid, and of course, writer, do not leave much of an opportunity for television.

But if there was one thing I learned from my HGTV education, it’s that preparation is key when doing any type of project. I’ve put this principle into practive with every job I have done and have always had great results. Whether it is painting a bookshelf or completely gutting a bathroom, you have to start out the right way.

I wish someone had told that to the handyman I hired a couple of weeks ago to paint my kitchen buffet. As the  DIY mommy, I prefer to do things myself, but for this particular project I was pressed for time and wanted it done before my husband returned from a business trip. So, I found two local “experienced” handymen who came complete with referrals to tackle the simple task of painting a hutch along with a few other small things around my house. Sounds great, right?

Not really.

The handymen arrived rather promptly, give or take 30 minutes, and I laid out all the supplies they would need: drop clothes, 220-grit sandpaper, hand sander, brushes, primer, paint, and trays. I told one of  the guys I wanted the entire hutch painted, the other started working on another job, and I was off to take Little Man to pre-school. I will admit that I am sometimes what you could call a micro-manager. That is one of the reasons why I like to do things myself. But this particular morning, I welcomed the break. Ater dropping Little Man off, I stopped to grab a quick bite, feeling confident that with two able-bodied men working at my house, my hutch was going to turn out beautifully.

When I arrived home, my hutch was black. I was shocked. While black is the color that I chose for the piece, I could not believe that he had had time to sand, prime, and paint a large piece of furniture in the time that I was gone. Pleased that he was such an efficient worker, I went to work in the garage while he helped his partner finish up another small job.

As they neared the end of their work, one of them called me into the house:

“Ma’am, what is this primer in here for?”

A little concerned, I look over to the kitchen table, and there sits a brand new can of primer, unopened, with an unused handsander right next to it. Very concerned, I tell him, “It’s for the hutch, didn’t you prime the hutch?”

“Um, no, you only said you wanted it painted.”

I cannot express the irritation that I felt at that moment. While I did not explicitly say to “sand, wipe, prime, and paint” the hutch, any person who has ever done any type of painting should know that you have to prime first. Especially if you are painting over finished wood. Otherwise the paint will not adhere. For a handyman familiar with painting, this should have been common practice.

So now, even after almost three weeks, I cannot place anything on my buffet.  The paint is still tacky. canisters, boxes, dishes, place mats;  they all stick right to it, pulling the paint off when you pick them up. With nothing to hold it to the wood, the paint comes off at the slightest touch.  The only fix? Sand it down and start again.

Morale of the story: If you want it done right, do it yourself. If you absolutely must hire someone, explain everything. Do not assume that they have any professional knowledge. Leave a list, and if they do not complete everything on it, dock it from their pay. Otherwise you may find yourself redoing and spending your own time, and on your own dime.

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But with a price tag of $50 or more, it may seem that wall decals are meant only for the prosperous and affluent. But you can create the look of wall decals for a fraction of the cost of buying one. Here’s an easy way to create this tree decal, using one of my favorite friends… contact paper.

Supplies Needed:

• 2-3 colors of Contact Paper
• scissors
• pen/ marker
• tape measure/ruler
• small piece of cardboard (not pictured)

How-To

Step 1: Determine your desired size and cut the paper to fit. Lay paper on a hard flat surface, facing down.

Lay out paper

Step 2: Draw a free-hand pattern for your tree trunk. Cut out.

Draw pattern

Step 3: Starting from the bottom, apply to wall, peeling off the backing about 3 to 4 inches at a time. Use a credit card to smooth onto wall.

Apply to Wall

Step 4: Using a thin piece of cardboard, draw and cut out a template for your leaves, in two different sizes.

Cut templates for leaves

Step 5: Using your cardboard templates, trace pattern for leaves. For a two-tonal look, use one color of contact paper for your large leaves and another for your small leaves. Cut out.

Trace template for leaves

Step 6: Apply leaves to your liking, and you have just created your very own tree wall decal!

You’re done!

The basic principles used in this project can also be applied to make many other types of wall decals. Trees are certainly not the only design you can create. Stars, hearts, circles and clouds are all very easy to do. So take this idea and roll with it!

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In terms of functionality, our countertops were fine. They were good enough to hold small appliances and prepare food on, but after years of use and abuse, there were a couple of burn holes and lots of discoloration. Not to mention they were utterly plain beige, with no personality.

After just one trip to the home improvement store, it was easy to see that replacing the countertops outright was not an option. Even the cheapest most basic laminate countertops we could find were well over our limited budget. Since admitting defeat is not my style, I knew there had to be a way to do something about the countertops without depleting our already shrinking bank account. After many days of brainstorming, I discovered this creative way to bring those ugly countertops into the 21^st century.

Not Your Grandmother’s Shelf Liner

Shelf Liner, I know, you hear the words and picture that floral junk with peeling edges that infamously graced the shelves your grandmother’s cabinets, right? I am pleased to inform you that shelf liner has come a long way since then.

Contact paper comes in many different patterns and designs. Many look like exact replicas of the most common patterns found on today’s laminate countertops, so for me, using it on a countertop seemed like the thing to do. I chose a granite pattern with a small amount of sparkle.

Here’s how to achieve a similar transformation with your old uglies:

• Fill in any burn holes or other damage with wall putty. Allow to dry and sand until smooth.
• Wipe down the entire counter with rubbing alcohol to remove any dirt or residue on the counters. Allow to dry. (This will help the adhesive adhere better to the counter.)
• Carefully apply shelf liner directly to the countertop, using a credit card to smooth out air and prevent bubbles. Follow the natural shape of the top of your counters, smoothing all the way to the edges with about 1 inch of a hangover.
• Trim the edges using an Xacto ® or utility knife.
• Apply liner in the same manner to the sides, with the same 1 inch hangover.
• Trim the edges with your utility knife. Be careful not to cut into the liner you have already applied on the tops.

By now, your countertops should already look like a totally new set, but in order to use them in the kitchen, you must seal your countertops.

• Using a sponge brush, apply a thin coat of Polyurethane over the entire countertop. I used a water-based polyurethane, Polycrylic ® by Minwax, because I was pregnant at the time.  Polyurethane comes in three sheens: satin, semi-gloss, and high-gloss. I went with the high-gloss to really make the counters shine.
• Allow to dry at least 2 to 3 hours.
• Reapply 2 to 3 more coats, with dry time in between.
• Allow the counters to dry for at least 24 hours after you apply the final coat before use. It is very important that you allow this time for the counter to cure. Although it may feel dry to the touch, polyurethane takes 24 hours to cure completely, and it is not food safe until it is fully cured.

While I wouldn’t recommend that you place a hot pan directly on your new countertops, there is no need to practice any special care. Our counters have survived nine months of food preparation, dish washing, baby baths, and toddler torture.  My two-year-old has even added his own special touch in the form of graffiti with a permanent marker, which, thankfully, came right off with a little rubbing alcohol. If you do choose to go with a water-based poly like I did, you may experience some temporary water spots if you leave wet items on the counter for long periods of time, such as overnight. But do not be alarmed, these go away in about five minutes after you wipe the water up.

You can change the entire feeling of your kitchen in about the time it takes to waste a Saturday watching a marathon of “That 70’s Show,” so why not try it? After all, what do you have to lose? Those already ugly countertops?

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