Awkward Inspiration

As I slowly make progress on the “awkward entry” as I’m referring to it…I thought I’d share with you some of my inspiration:

(Better Homes And Gardens)

I pinned this photo on pinterest months ago.  It is similar to our space in that they have a breakfast bar open to another area which, in this photo, they made into a living room.  I love how the sofa, the tufted coffee table, and the soft color scheme make this space so cozy and inviting.   Well, since an office space and dining area didn’t seem to work out in here…why not try and give it new life as a living room?  I’ll certainly give it a try anyway! 

An Odd Space

Hi There! I hope you had a nice weekend and are enjoying the lovely fall weather as much as I am. We’re expecting family this weekend so I’ve been doing my usual feathering of the nest. Funny how the small projects left on the backburner suddenly jump out and scream for attention when company is coming. First on the chopping block is the entryway, a.k.a. dumping ground. This room has always been troublesome. First off, it’s oddly shaped. It has one diagonal wall where the garage is attached which makes furniture placement quite the challenge. It also has 4 doors/entryways, so it needs to be set up in a way that allows for good “flow” from room to room. Third, it has two baseboard heating units on the two walls, thus a 4 to 5 inch gap is made if furniture is pushed up against it. Lastly, there is a breakfast bar/half wall that divides this space from the kitchen. Like I said, it’s odd. Since we’ve lived here, it’s also worn many “hats.” It was at first, an open empty space. Then it was an office space, and then a dining area…none has really fit the bill. If you have a space like this at home, and have found a good solution, I’m all ears! In the meantime, I’ve got my work cut out for me. This is what the room looked like just yesterday:



Here’s hoping that I will get it in ship shape by the end of the week! Thanks for stopping in...

Furniture Switcheroo

Ahh, finally…Friday night, kids are asleep, cup ‘o tea in hand. Thought I’d pop in and share a quick little update I made to the living room before calling it a day. I’ve wanted to put something up against the picture gallery wall to help balance out the room a bit…let me show you what I mean:

It's missing something right? Something to anchor it down…So, I decided to take the table and stool set that I’d painted for our dining room and give it a new home in the living room:

For now it fits the bill, or at least until I come across a real buffet.  Do you move furniture from room to room, repurposing it and giving it new life too?  I'd love to hear what you're doing...OK I'm off to put these tired feet up...and do a little pinterest surfing...Happy weekend! 

Brightening Up

I decided that now was as good a time as ever to paint the mirror in my living room, especially since I still had paint left over from the downstairs bath (same color I used for the motley crew: Benjamin Moore’s “Healing Aloe”) The perfect solution, I think, to tie everything in the room together and give it a tone on tone look. Here is the mirror before:

And here it is now:

 

I think the lighter shade gives it a softer, more cottage-y feeling.  Do you?

 

Here’s a tip: if you’re looking to buy a light-colored or white-framed mirror, don’t. For whatever the reason, they are (at least in my experience) usually more expensive. Save yourself some cash by getting a less expensive mirror and painting it to whatever color your heart desires.

You might also have noticed that the sconces on either side of the mirror are gone. I sprayed them white but may be moving them to another place entirely. Check back in later this week to see what I’ve got up my sleeve as their replacement.

The Motley Crew (Finally) Gets A Makeover

I forgot that chairs are deceivingly difficult to paint.  First, they seem to have a million rungs and hidden corners that need paint, at every different angle.  Second, they take at least 4 coats of paint to get full coverage.  So, 4 chairs times 4 coats...16 coats of paint (at least!) equals a lot of time and patience.  (Two things that run a little low these days.)  Perhaps it was the weather last week, but cuddling with the little guy and catching a few extra z’s during naptime was much more appealing to me than painting.  Can you blame me? Excuses aside, here are the chairs (finally!) outfit with Benjamin Moore’s “Healing Aloe.” Best part of this makeover, it cost $0 to do. (I already had the paint leftover from the downstairs bath, and I had extra fabric from the ottoman makeover.)  So without further ado, here are the "beauties" before:

 

And here they are now:

 

Around the table before:

 

Around the table after:  

 

 

Hope you enjoyed today’s project!  Have a great day!

 

 

 

 

A Motley Crew

Over the past year or so, I’ve come across a handful of chairs that I couldn’t pass up for one reason or another.  Whether it was by the side of the road, a hand-me-down, or a bargain at a yard sale, I just couldn’t resist.  All sturdy more than beautiful, but I am hoping to fix that:

I’ve been seeing a lot of mismatched chairs unified with paint color on pinterest and thought this the perfect opportunity to give it a try. Here is my inspiration:

Olive and Love

 

The cottage of Vinnord

 

Unknown



 

Check back in next week to see how this motley crew comes together...have a great weekend!

Kitchen Stools Finally Get Paint

Fabric, check.  Nail heads, check.  Tack strip, check.  Staples, check.  Rubber Mallet, check.  Yes, it was a successful trip to JoAnn Fabrics today.  Now I just need to find out how to add a few hours onto the day...Until then it may be awhile before I have before and after shots to share of the wingback chairs.  I do however have something for you today that took me a lot less time to do (we’re talking two naps, tops).  A few months ago, I found two counter-height stools on craigslist for $10 (Oh, Craigslist, how I love thee).  They were mismatched, but I didn’t care.  A little paint could fix them right up.  There they sat under my kitchen table, mismatched for weeks until I found the perfect shade to paint them.   I had been admiring a photo of a door on pinterest that had the loveliest shade of blue on it.  I had no idea what I’d use it for, but I bought a small sample of it anyway.  It’s called “Boca Raton” by Benjamin Moore.  Finally it came to me as I was unloading the dishwasher. The paint is exactly the same color as my Dansk dishware.  Perfect, I'll paint the stools!

 

Here they are before:

 

 And here they are now:

Cinderella-Inspired Bath

Funny how kids can influence your décor decisions. My daughter is just at the age where everything is “Princess.” We’re talking princess cookies, princess toys, princess shoes, princess pillows…the list is endless. I have a feeling a princess-themed birthday party is in our near future. I digress. Perhaps it was all of this princess talk that drew me to my upstairs bathroom paint color: Benjamin Moore’s “Glass Slipper.” As you can imagine, she was thrilled to hear it was going to become a “princess bathroom.”

Here is the bathroom before:

 

 And here it is now:

 

 Another "before" Shot:

 

And one more after:

I found the tarnished gold-colored mirror hidden in a corner of a tiny antique shop that I thought just perfect for the space, and better yet only $12. After we hung it though, it seemed to shrink in size (ever happen to you?) Since it had to be high enough for my 6ft husband to see into, it left a large gap between it and the vanity below.  Just about ready to give up and start looking for a replacement, the perfect solution appeared. I was in the basement doing laundry when a small shelf with freckled-gold brackets caught my eye. Quicker than you could say “Bippity boppity boo” it was unscrewed and re-screwed under the mirror upstairs.  And what says princess more than a ruffled shower curtain? I made it out of an old sheet and a plain white shower curtain I had on hand from Target (I think it was around $12 or $15 back when I purchased it). We had the floors professionally done with tiles from Home Depot. A huge belly and too many trips up and down the stairs made this an easy decision, though I would have loved to have tried tiling myself. The eyelet valence was also an antique find, for only $4. Oops, the clock must say 12 because I’m turning into a pumpkin…no really the kids just woke up from their nap…Thanks for stopping in!

Fall Décor and Upstairs Bath Redo

Can anyone else believe that it’s October already? What happened to summer? I do love this season though, the cozy clothes, the foliage, the smell of crockpot meals cooking…it’s all so lovely. I finally put away the “summer décor” and replaced it with a few bits of fall around the house. We also took the kiddos to pick out pumpkins, and even went as far as carving! Hooray for us for not waiting until Halloween afternoon to carve the pumpkin. Cinderella has now graced us with her presence thanks to my fantastically talented husband! No frightening faces this year, nope we’re ALLLLL about the princesses:

 

I’ll tell you what was scary though, our upstairs bath. From the bright yellow on the walls, to the peeling linoleum flooring…it was screaming for some attention. Here are a few “before” pictures:

 

Check back in tomorrow and see how Cinderella has inspired our upstairs bath makeover!  Before I go, here's a small "before and after" snack to hold you over. Kitchen shelves now have a whisper of fall decor:

Before:

After:

Thanks for stopping in!  Have a great day!