Dear Stephanie

Yes, it’s odd to name a piece of furniture, unless you work for Ikea I suppose.  But, as I was ripping into one of the wingback chairs, a small tag fell out of the tattered batting.   It read, "Stephanie." Well Stephanie, if you’re out there, (if that’s really your name …if you’re even female…I digress) you did one heck of a job putting this wingback together.  There must have been over a thousand staples holding the upholstery on.  I may have cursed you a few times as I slipped up with the needle nose pliers and cut my hand.  Sorry.  Anyway, I’ve decided to name the chair after you.  Consider it a tribute to all of the hard work you put into this chair back in her day...which...by the looks of these before pictures, was way, way back.  Here is “Stephanie” when I first brought her home from the lovely land of craigslist:

And here she is now, outfit with sparkling white duck cloth and snazzy gilded nail head trim:

 

 

 

 

 

Let me be the first to say, I am not a professional, not even close.  I really winged it on this, (no pun intended) and yes – it does show, but I don’t care.  It’s…perfectly imperfect let’s just say.  Some might even call it “shabby chic.” More shabby than chic, but who’s counting.   I litterally took it piece by piece, guessing as I went along.  I plan to take better "during" pictures when I do the second chair (this one was the proverbial guinnea pig)  so look forward to a DIY tutorial coming soon.   As for now...lookin' good Steph.  You almost killed me a few times, but I survived and am ready for round two.  Bring it.   

Making (a "yiddle") Progress

I blame the hurricane as I find myself talking like my 2 year old this week.  Amazing how much we rely on power with little ones.   Just as we thought we had made it through the storm unscathed– out went the lights…and off went the monitors and sound makers…annnd yep, cue baby crying.  Ah yes, it quickly became a long night for all of us.  Thankfully though, a little sleep deprivation was all that we suffered, and our thoughts and prayers go out to those who were not so lucky.

Slowly, I made a little (or as my 2 year old would say, “yiddle”) progress in the “odd” room this week:

I think a little bit of paint can bring the random pieces some unity.  I haven’t decided if I want to go all white or mix things up a bit and do tone on tone like I did in the adjacent living room.  As I contemplate…remember these guys? 

 

    

Finally decided to get started on them. I know, it’s about time! Here’s what one looks like after a few hours of ripping, tearing, pulling, sweating:

 

Kinda looks like a cat got caught up in it…but I keep telling myself, it can only get better...stay tuned!

 

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!