Project Weekend Re-cap

Hey Y'all! 
I hope the weekend was kind to you! We had a really busy weekend around here ... complete with my sweet cousin / "older sister" & her baby boy in town to visit, surprise early birthday gift for Momma, antiquing & decor shopping with Momma & the sister, as well as lots of painting and DIY'ing on my 2 current projects.
Man - I'm tired just thinking about it all!

Vintage Staple Gun, circa 1970s

I wanted to share with you my "Chair Redo" ... as I mentioned a few posts back, this little chair came from a thrift store over near Clearwater - snagged her for $15 & knew she had potential. In the past few years she had been recovered in whatever my living room decor was at the time, and most recently, she needed to become neutral to go with a new color palette. After much deliberation over paint colors, I went with Sleighbells by Benjamin Moore. You can't tell much in the photos but it is a very very light grey. Painstakingly I hand painted her, as spray paint would have just beaded up / run down the sides. Then it was to the details with a tiny artists brush. On the rest, I used a 1& 1/2 inch brush of nicer quality {to avoid streak marks}. 

Painters Drop Cloth

The seat was recovered in a $5.99 painters drop  cloth from a home improvement store. You can do so much with these drop cloths, this was just my first experiment with them! 

The hardest part of this whole project, was knowing that I needed to find the right tangerine/orange colored fabric for the pillow, which will be the "pop" of color in my living room {when I move in to my new place in a couple of weeks}. Thanks to Hobby Lobby, this fabric works!! I didn't make the pillow yet, I just sort of draped the fabric over another pillow to give you the illusion of it all together :) 

Chair Re-Do

Well, as I mentioned, we did a lot this weekend... Momma is re-doing her breakfast nook / piano student "waiting area" & now that the walls are primed, we scored big at Homegoods and a few antique stores with the Sister on Friday. Here's a sneak peek at some of the decorations. The door is from an old governor's vacation house, and the sign, which I found - is a perfect addition for the room which we eat in and serves as a waiting area for her piano students. I'll be sure to post photos when it's all put together! 

Preview, Antique Door & Sign

 The dresser-turned-entertainment center is well on its way to becoming what I envisioned. Last night I began to sweep out the ... vermin droppings ... {aka - roach poopie} when all of a sudden, I see little brown antennae in the back of the dresser. I dropped the shopvac and screamed, which is when Step-dad jumped in with the can of Raid and out fell 4 roaches. UGH! I was sooo glad I didn't take this piece inside the house to work on, I'd have had a coniption fit~ once they died, we puttied up one corner of the dresser and bunjee corded it to stay til it dried. Momma helped me to get 1 coat on the dresser in Sleighbells, and we are painfully painting the insides of the drawer slots, since I *Finally* found baskets large enough {but yet, smaller than 6" tall} to fit where we've removed the drawers. I'll be sure to add photos of our progress later. 

Baskets From Old Time Pottery

Well it's time for me to be off ~ tomorrow I'll be able to share some of the dresser, a preview of Momma's early birthday surprise, and a few other goodies. Enjoy the day! 

xo 
B

Painting Day 2

Hey Y'all!

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! I spent the evening {once the sun went down + it was no longer 107 with the heat index} painting the entertainment center / dresser.

Now since the white latex paint it was previously done with is peeling off in chunks, this hasn't exactly made my job easier. After going at the top with the mouse sander, and the drawers {the 2 that will stay} with a block sander by hand, I realized it was going to require some Kilz primer to cover up whatever wretchedness had happened to the top of this dresser. We're talking, orange paint, globs of paint running down the edges, puddles of glue stuck to it - so with sanding tools, hammer and screw driver, Momma showed me how to gently "knock off" the globs of randomness stuck to this piece. Last night I took the tack cloth to it and began to prime the top, and painted 1 coat of Benjamin Moore "Horizon' on to the drawers. It's a beautiful clean finish paint, but it's a bit too close to white for what my minds-eye had in mind. So, off I go to the paint store today to get it darkened up a bit.

Figured I would share with you a fun little craft that Momma and I also did on Friday - the $4 pillow.
Get ready - it's as cute as a West Elm or PotteryBarn one!

1. Buy or round up some mis-matched buttons
2. Use a pillow you have {we found ours for $1.50 @ a thrift store & since no one will be laying their head on it, we figured it would work!} 
3. Satin ribbon, approximately 12'' {left over from a headband I made}
4. Scrap of fabric that coordinates, approx. 12" {we used linen scrap}
5. Needle & thread

• Line up all your buttons on the ribbon ... we like the randomized look best

• Attach each button to the ribbon first, then sew the ribbon to the fabric scrap in 3 places, to keep it secure 

• Once finished, put in your favorite chair or bench. Ours is going in the old church pew that mom has out in the breakfast nook. By the way, we lint-rolled and Febreezed this pillow, and it's solely for decoration. :) 

Happy Monday! 

xo

B

Furniture Updates

Hey Y'all! 

Sunday is here & I finally got started on some of my furniture projects! There was a really nice breeze out {impending clouds with rain} and I grabbed the chair & sanding block and got to it! An hour later, the varnish was off & her edges were smoothed over.



Here are the plans for the soon-to-be entertainment center ... going to require some power tool usage - thankfully I have my step-dad around to help with instructing me! I really can't wait to pick out hardware for her - I'll have to wait til she's all done to see what "goes" with it! The two drawers on the top {either side} will hold board games, Yahtzee, Farkle {have you discovered this game??? Holy Moly Fun!}, Wii remotes, etc.
I know the baskets will just hit me when I see them - but we're going to need 8 of them, so unfortunately I think the PBarn baskets I love, are outta the question!! These can hold magazines, books, remotes, etc.

 Now here is the inside of the cabinet in the center, she holds 3 drawers, 1 of which we're taking out & adding a flat shelf for the DVD player and cable box. Then we're going to have to drill a hole for wires in the back ... to keep it from overheating!
The drawers have some hideous paper lining in them which I want to remove and maybe replace with a Mod Podge covered fabric {something fun & funky!} or maybe some old book pages covered over with Mod Podge.

Going to be saving for a medium {girl-sized} flat screen TV to be on top here, with some accessories / vases / photo frames on either side of it to personalize it! And we're going grey with her! I have a coupon to any Benjamin Moore retailer for 2 free pint size jars of any paint ~ so might be able to score some of {or all} the paint for free! whoo-hoo!





And last but not least, I had to show y'all this little plastic {yes, great faux look} frame, she was an ugly gold color and I took at her with Krylon Heirloom White. Not sure what I'll do with it, but one day I'll figure it out!

xo

B

Bright Sunshine'y Day

I suwannee! {now that  is some good ol' true Southern slang for ya'll}

It's the weekend y'all, and although I am working with the Lil One for a few hours tonight, I'm very excited to have one of the roughest weeks behind me. I can't help but sing in my little mind:

March Madness - No basketball Necessary

Hey Ya'll!

I don't know where the time has gotten to these past few weeks. I know I've thought about blogging, I've talked about it, and I've snapped pictures for my blog ... but all remain unseen until now.

Oh wait-  I remember. Last weekend I was gone, home with my Love to celebrate his mother's birthday + visit with family. The week prior to the weekend, was filled with baking adventures and event design fun.

• Yours truly made her very first carrot cake. It was divine {humbly}, frosted & for Ma D's b'day

• Yours truly also made about 2 dozen sugar-butter cookies from scratch {no other way}, cut into shapes of flowers, ducks and chicks for a baby shower for C. Hand piped and royal frosted.
• Yours truly crafted for hours {thank you Momma} on C's baby shower goodies.  

That left me all but brain dead by the time Friday rolled around. Then we packed it up in the truck and headed home for family time.

So, that's where I've been. It's a tad scary when I have to recount my last steps to know why the heck I've been so busy :) I did have such fun with the cookies that I think I may try my hand at selling them on an order-only basis through Etsy. $10 for 4 isn't bad, right?

C's Baby Shower Invite

Now, I know you're dying to see it, but I can't show pictures of the shower yet, although we staged quite a few, it's not until next Friday. Once the Mama-to-Be has seen her shower in reality ~ I'll share photos. Trust me, you'll want to check back.

Vintage Silverware

I mentioned a post or 2 ago that while Handsome Love was away on Spring Break {lucky} I antiqued my little rusty heart out. Came home with some awesome mix+match William Rogers silverware, dating back to the 1920s, and a 1929 Hoosier cabinet from Hoosier, Indiana. {Love the old furniture stamps}. Here's proof of the damage:

I'll Be Pretty One Day

Please rest assured that once Handsome Love is finished with his first year of law school {May 11 come quickly}, we will be tackling this lovely Hoosier cabinet. I've played around with 3-4 paint chip samples so far, all in a shade of mossy light green .. and we'll update the hardware, paint over that dreaded ugly Southwestern indian design, and facelift it :) I'm sure he's just as anxious as I am about getting done with school, solely for the purpose of not having to look at an ugly cabinet anymore! In the mean time, the picture displays that I did what I could to live with it, for the next few weeks! Any suggestions on painting the insides of the breadbox area? I'm thinking a "pop" color ?!





This weekend is going to be great, we are going on a bike ride tomorrow morning in chic+comfy San Marco. It's kind of become "Our" area. We took our Christmas card photos here, eaten many meals, become favorites at stores, etc etc. Then, we'll jump down to St. Augustine so that He can get his J.Crew fix & then it's off to dinner at Bistro Aix. I was feeling fancy, so I bought a little number in a bright coral silky fabric and can't wait to wear it out!

I'll check back with ya'll and post something on Sunday if time permits.

Love The One You're With.

xoxo
b

Antique-Inspired Lovelies

Hey Y'all! 

Well, let me start off by saying - "Thank You" designer of Pottery Barn, Restoration Hardware, and Ballard Designs furniture. You have the most gorgeous furniture, inspired by antique reproductions and for those of us ((like myself)) who crave genuine antique pieces, drool over your catalogs monthly. You're in for a visual treat here tonight & I can't wait to start this "BIG" project. Literally.

Now -maybe I'm the only one in my position ((I'd like to think not)) that is young'er and cannot yet furnish a home full of antiques or repro's for that matter - but you give me endless inspiration for DIY projects galore!

I recently found a catalog "NapaStyle" that uses antique pieces and transforms them into some quite amazing pieces... lampshades made from vintage door plates, chandeliers from wine glasses and telegraph insulators. I am so inspired by the mere flipping of pages in 5 minutes' time that I come home, show my findings to my Love and find myself so very amused by the gorgeous home decor made from "junk" at antique stores all over the country. Meanwhile, he is probably anticipating more antique shop stops, more tools required for projects that I dream up ... and secretly, I know he loves to DIY. He told me so ;)

Pottery Barn

Our first contender was inspired by the Pottery Barn Fall 2010 catalog where they released an "antique reproduction Factory Cart coffee table". Love at first sight? I think so! $600, I think not!

Restoration Hardware

Then, I run into one at Restoration Hardware "Factory Cart" for a mere $1,000 at the time of release.
Somewhere, probably in the midwest, people are digging up these amazing treasures, which ranged in use from hauling cotton bales to factory use for transporting fabrics through factories. Hence their name "Factory Cart". Many originals date back to the 1900s, and were made of sturdy materials that will allow them to be around for another hundred years.

Finds like these on Etsy

Before I fell in love with this project, I hadn't ever paid attention to wheels and casters. And lumber. And stains. On top of all that, I am a nut about having chemicals in my house ((call me granola, I don't mind!)) and I am searching for a Low VOC, non-toxic interior wood stain to cover the **untreated** pine boards we're using for this project. So far, the brands I'm looking into are SoyGuard, Livos, and BioShield. Since products like paint and stains off-gas for years ((hello, in my house and the environment, no thank you!)) it's important for me to be conscientious in my choosing!

Apartment Therapy

My Love & I have started researching the tutorials for how-to on DIY'ing this factory cart and it's looking promising. I'm so thankful for others who have taken  on this adventure before me, and that it proves, I'm not alone in my coveting PB, BD, and RH in their products!
Prince Ryan is heading out of town next week for his spring break and I'll be here with the Pup... which I'm thankful for her company. She's a professional snuggler and loves to wake me up with a lick on the nose!

We'll start gathering materials and I've got to order casters in the next week, then I'm not sure HOW long it will take us to complete, but you'll get pictures of our progress! 

That's all for now, glad tomorrow is Thursday! Weekend, you're almost here!! 

XOXO

B