Recent Projects

Hmm.  I guess I don't have it in me right now to update the blog very frequently.  I have been wanting to post a few photos of some recent projects and little things I have been working on.  There are several more things I am wanting to do, but right now all of my paint things are off limits as the drywall guys work in our basement!  We had to move everything into one small corner and the paint things are temporarily buried.  The other day I considered climbing over the stacks of bins and tools in our storage/work area to reach them, but reconsidered.
On to the photos!  Of course I am constantly changing things and playing interior design Where's Waldo.  So, these are the current configurations that might (probably will) be different next week.  Or tomorrow.
I can't remember if I've posted this photo already on Facebook but here's our office.  This old rocking chair has been in our family for probably 30 years.  My dad gave it to me, I painted it and sanded it down.  I love it.  The quilt was a gift to Lucy from Kevin's coworkers when she was born, and she used it for a long time.  I like having it out, it reminds me of when she was a baby.  The pillow was made for me by my friend Erin Taylor, with fabric that used to be the curtains in Lucy's room when she was a baby.  So, there is sort of a Lucy baby theme going on there.  The little table is covered with a curtain panel that I took off the window, but really loved and still wanted to see around the house.  I stuck a black woven charger on top for a little texture.  It needs a lamp.

 

This next photo is the family room (or den or whatever you call it).  This little table was Kevin's when he was little, again I just painted it and put a coat of polyurethane over the top for durability.  The tiny stool is Isaac's favorite little seat, it was only a couple of dollars at Hobby Lobby, and I painted it with the remainder of the test sample can of our basement paint color.  Yes there it is!  Palladian Blue, which will be covering our beautiful drywall in short order.  The TV stand used to be red, I got tired of it, changed it to black and added some textured baskets which I like a lot better.

 

 Here's a close-up of what's behind the TV.  I bought this old weathered frame at Hobby Lobby, I love it.  I painted a large piece of fiberboard and then glazed it with Valspar Antiquing Glaze.  (I bought the Valspar brand because Donna used to work there.  Really!) Then Kevin drilled a hole in it and attached a knob for me.  I made this wreath out of an old hanger and long strips of burlap for a total of about $4.50. 

 Here's the current configuration of the mantle.  This is one thing I just can't be satisfied with but I'm almost there.  I've already got the paint to change the mirror from blue to white.  The blue color just isn't right, I've never been happy with it.  But I painted these old frames silver and took them to a glass shop.  They put mirrors into the frames for me for $13.  The branches are from our tree out front, and the other trinkets are sale items of course - because I am so cheap as you all know!  I think they are from Target and Gordman's.  I am also planning to use the antiquing glaze on the mantle itself, I love the brown color but it needs a little something, some depth or something.  We'll see how that goes.  I also added some wooden accents to the mantle, it was so plain before, I think the little scrolly flowery things add a little something to it.

A couple of people have seen this already, but I took down the picture wall!!  I am going to replace it with a couple of long shelves that the photo frames will rest on, instead of hanging them on the wall.  Then I can change them at will.  I am also going to try and match the frames up a little more, instead of the random frames I liked for so long.  The purple couch also got covered up with a washable slipcover, which I am very happy with. 

I added this little black table, lamp and tiny plate to our entryway.  The additional light from the lamp is very nice.  So far we haven't really used it to put keys, mail, bags, etc. on, so maybe it's just in the way.  I like how it looks though!  We'll see if it stays!

Here are a couple of wall hangings I made.  The top one is simply framed fabric.  The second one is a painted frame and a piece of chalkboard I made.  It is very easy to make with fiberboard and chalkboard paint ($8 for a quart).  The bottom one is a painted frame and a piece of scrapbook paper!  Really anything can be art!

Finally here's the front door to our house.  We really need something where people can put their shoes, coats, purses, etc.  I got this new rug which I really like, and added this little table stand.  But so far, nobody has really used the table stand to put anything on.  I think I need some entryway lessons! 

  I hope you've enjoyed all my little projects and home updates!