Spring has Sprung!

Hello all!  I am loving being on spring break -- it has given me lots of time to spend with my family and husband.  Today, my mom and I took a field trip downtown and I bought my very first piano!!  It should arrive in the next week or two - when it does I"ll be sure to share it :).

On another note, today I wanted to share some smaller springy touches I've added to my home.  Spring has come early in the midwest!  Although today was windy, overall we've been very fortunate to have some absolutely AWESOME weather.  It has inspired me to put lots of springy feeling decor around my home.  Here are a few...

My spring book page wreath!  I made this way back in January when I was just wishing spring would come so badly.  Now I can finally put it up!  Sorry the pictures not the greatest - it is on our front door and as you can see we still haven't finished scraping off the paint from when we painted it....in October (woops!).

Spring banner for the kitchen!

I love glitter.

My Easter display.  I just love all the fun pastel colors!  It might have been one of the most fun to put together yet.

Cake plates, fiesta ware, and colored glassware....3 of my favorite things!  The fun glasses are from my cousins Ashley and Morgan :).  My mom and I did the "Tour de Goodwill" on Monday - that fun glittery tea light holder is one of my many treasures from the trip.

These are cute vintage garden shears from my husband's grandmother.  They cleaned out their shed when to move up here this spring and were kind enough to let us have some of their tools.  

I hope you enjoyed all the fun springy picks!  More to come later this week :).

The Napoleonic Blue Chair

Another finished project!  I have a few more smaller things to share, but I was so excited to complete this one I figured I'd start here.  I found this little beauty at Goodwill a few weeks ago.  I had a before picture, but accidentally deleted it when I thought I'd moved all my pictures on my memory card to my computer :(.  I'm mad at myself, but I will tell you - it previously had a yucky puke green colored seat.  So I'd say big improvements have been made :).  Anywho, here is the finished product!

I used Annie Sloan Chalk paint in Napoleonic Blue, distressed it just a tad, and finished it in Annie Sloan Clear Wax.

This was my first time doing any type of reupholstery.  I found this pretty canvas print at JoAnn :).

I love this part of the chair's detail.

I just love it!  Hope you do too :).  More to come later this week!

Hankie Valance

Hello all!  Life has been busy, but I am starting to finish some projects here and there!  I'm going to spread them out over a few days.  Today, I want to show you our new kitchen valance made entirely of hankies!
I'd seen some hankie curtains on Pinterest that I loved and my Aunt Colleen had something similar to this in her kitchen as well.  So, after collecting some handkerchiefs from an estate sale here and there and the Geneva Antique Market in town I went for it!


I decided to make it a valance since it just seemed more appropriate for the kitchen (and easier :).  It took a tidge of trial and error, but here are the results...

And some detail photos...

Hope you like it!  It was fun to make and just makes my kitchen feel even more cozy.  I can't wait to share the next project :)

St. Patty's Decor

Hello!


Sorry it has been awhile once again...I have several projects underway (something I tend to do... starting lots of things at once and, therefore, taking lots of time to finish them all) BUTTT many are near completion!  This is just a little in betweener post to show some of our St. Patty's Stuff.  

Our built in hutch filled with St. Patty's white, green, and gold fun!  Ignore me awkwardly taking the picture in the mirror.

Luck of the Irish :)

The little footed candy dish and gold and ivory dish are both Goodwill finds!  The beautiful Kate Spade carafe next to them was a wedding gift from my Uncle Steve :).

Not the best picture, but some fun candles we have as our centerpiece right now.  The cute frosty green one is an Anthro sale find.

Once again, not the best quality picture, but I made this banner using paper and some fabric.

Anywho, I hope you enjoy my St. Patty's decor!  I should hopefully have some new and exciting projects posted in the next few days!!

Our Kitchen Facelift

I have a few projects underway currently, but I hadn't posted anything in awhile and had the thought of sharing something we'd done to our home since moving in.  My husband and I became homeowners this summer!  It has been so fun to pick out paint, hunt for furniture at estate sales, and fill our home with warmth and fun pretty things.  I've also learned the challenges of being a homeowner.  Doing all the  work to change things can really kick your butt and wear you out...but when you get the result you want there is nothing more rewarding :).  Our kitchen has been one of those rewarding/buttkicking things.   This is what we moved into....

It was okay...just super super bland.  The house was clean, but basically hadn't been updated 

since the late 80s.  

So....I was kind of feeling a retro, colorful kitchen vibe.  The everyday dinnerwear we'd registered for was fiesta ware!  My Aunt Colleen had it growing it and I loved going to visit her because she had a cozy colorful kitchen filled with all different colored fiesta ware.  I decided I'd try to achieve the same feeling in my own way.  So first came the cabinets.  We made the decision to paint those just plain old Benjamin Moore oil based white.  As far as wall color - I was feeling blue.  We put about 6 different paint swatches on the wall before finally deciding on something.  I learned an important lesson here....EVERYONE is going to have an opinion.  And while you can learn lots of things from others opinions and should value them - the one person whose opinion really matters in the end is yours.  So do want you want with your home... and thats exactly what we did.  I love the color!

This is a picture after the cabinets and walls were painted.  We were in the process of getting the cabinets back on.  Note the ugly linoleum floor.  This picture doesn't even really do its ugliness justice.  I just didn't like it.  It was ugly and dirty looking and just didn't go with my cute retro kitchen.  So I decided - it had to go!  I did a lot of research on painting linoleum and vinyl floors.  I saw encouraging blogs and how to websites that said that it absolutely could be done.  I also saw people who said it was a BIG no no.  I decided it was ugly enough I didn't care if it didn't work out.  It was worth a shot.  So I went and bought some Benjamin Moore floor paint.   It's built to even paint patios and garage floors so I figured it could handle the traffic in my kitchen.  I had the color made to match one of my yellow fiesta teacups.  

Here is the same shot with our new, fun yellow floors!  It is such a difference from the yucky brown.  I will say too - it has held up beautifully so far.  It's been about 5 months since it has painted and it hasn't shown any sign of wear and tear.  It does show dirt more easily than the brown floor (obviously), but its easy to wash and we've found that as long as we're diligent about not walking around in dirty shoes it's not an issue.  Now all that was left were some finishing touches...

One day I hope I can have some of those adorable colored appliances I see on Pinterest :).

My husbands parents were generous enough to let us have this table and to let me paint it!  I had the people at the paint store color match it to one of my red fiesta plates.  I then finished with a few coats of oil based poly to give it a nice shine.  It looks so cute in our kitchen. Only problem is I haven't gotten to the chairs yet, haha.  One step at a time here people ;).

I put different scrapbook paper in the back of each cabinet.

Fiest ware :)

Fiest ware, cakestands, and vintage pyrex - so fun!

Anywho, I hope you've enjoyed my kitchen as much as I love it.  It still needs some finishing touches - possibly some wall decor.  Heck - maybe I'll do something crazy and paint the refrigerator!.....(but seriously...saw it on pinterest and looked super cute!).  I'll keep you posted!

Banners and Decor

Wowzers - so this is long overdue.  I've been crazy, busy with school, basketball, and what not so it has been hard to find time to finish any of my current projects.  I have a real fun piece of furniture that is half way done in the basement.   I was hoping it would be my next post, buuut I'm just going to need a tad more time to get it finished.  So I figured, in the meantime, I would share some of the smaller things I've made for my home.  


This is a banner that I made for New Year's way back when.

February is just around the corner and I think it is just a fun month to decorate for.  It's probably the teacher in me, but isn't this display including Valentine's AND President's Day just fun :).

Below is a fun pinterest craft :).

Our kitchen table - I painted the candlesticks and made the runner from burlap and lace.

Hope you enjoy!  I hope to be able to post my latest furniture project soon :).

Finally a Finished Project!!

I apologize it has taken me so long to complete a project.  Life has been busy with work, the holidays, etc.  However, I have finally officially finished one piece!  Remember the secretary desk from my last post?

I put a wash like coat of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White.  However, I had an inspiration for the inside of the desk from a secretary desk I'd seen this summer at Scentimental Gardens 2. I chose a latex paint at home depot (Annie Sloan didn't have the exact hue I was thinking of) and painted it inside before distressing the piece and finishing with Annie Sloan clear wax.  I then changed out the knobs and had what I felt was a great result!  I am happy with the completion of my first piece :).  I hope you think it's just as cute!