Fretwork Cabinet Redo

I paticipating in DIY day at A Soft Place to Land. Stop by and check out all the great projects!

I got this little pine cabinet for free on freecycle several months ago. She was sitting in my basement just waiting for a makeover...

Then I found these die-cut scrapbook pages on sale at Michaels. When I saw them they reminded me of all the gorgeous fretwork I've been seeing in decor lately in furniture and fabrics. I thought they were just begging for a home decor application. Can you guess where I'm going with this? Let me give you a hint- the glass insets on the cabinet doors are roughly 12x12...

Poof! (I gotta get my hubby to make me a little graphic for that!)

Here's the how-to:

1. First I removed the glass and pulled out the wood in front of the glass.


2. I used the glass as a template to cut the die-cut pages to the right size.


3. I gave her a couple of coats of Java Brown Valspar spraypaint and also painted out the die-cut pages.


4. I reinserted the glass panes (they are held in place with tiny brackets and even tinier screws- this part took waaaay longer than I thought it would!)


5. I affixed the die-cut pages to the back of the glass with a little bit of plain old scotch tape!


6. I lined the inside of the cabinet with scrapbook paper, again, just a bit of tape so I can change it out later.

And here she is in place in our upstairs hallway under our new family photo wall! I haven't decided how to accesorize her yet, but you get the idea.

P.S.

I had the hardest time trying to decide which color to paint and ultimately chose brown because I had two cans leftover from spraypainting my master bathroom cabinets (reveal coming shortly). The pack of die-cut pages came with two designs- this curvy pattern and also a more modern interlocking squares pattern. I think this would look awesome with the modern interlocking squares and a high gloss white, red, canary yellow or peacock blue.

Love,

Three-Sided Fireplace Dilemma

I'm linking up to the Decorating Dilemmas Party at Serenity Now. Hop on over to help a sista out!

The first time I stepped foot in our house I was totally enamoured with the idea of the three sided fireplace. After we moved in, it became the bain of my decorating existence. It presents quite a multifaceted challenge.

Here is my Top 5 list of things I hate about the three-sided fireplace!!

5. No mantel, but my dad is going to remedy that shortly.

4. It's trimmed in brass. I've heard that these trims can sometimes just pop off, but I haven't had any luck with that. Perhaps I can paint it?

3. The hearth is roughly bench height. This makes any kind of furniture arrangement in front of the hearth look redundant. I've tried a pair of chairs with a little table between and it's just odd. Perhaps I could make some big square floor cushions and lay them on top? But then would I have to move them whenever we use the fireplace? Fire hazards and all?

2. Weird upside-down "L" shape of wall to fill above and beside the fireplace. Maybe I'm just too attached to symmetry, but this really bugs me. The portrait of my daughter that currently hangs above the fireplace is probably a bit too small for the space (I'm also still not satisfied with that frame and matt after repainting it three times!), or maybe it just needs to be flanked by some sconces or something? I have tried all kinds of groupings in the L-shaped space, but it always looks weird when I try other frames on the side portion- like it's competing. This metal vine thing looks far better than anything else I've tried, but it still seems too small to me. Maybe I should scratch trying to hang stuff here at all? And do some kind of decorative wall painting treatment instead? Maybe something like what Britt did in her dining room? But then will it look out of balance if I have anything at all above the fireplace. ARGH!!! Can you sense that I'm just a teensy bit frustrated with this!!! Suggestions please!

And my number one thing I hate about the three-sided fireplace is... (insert drumroll here....)

1. Two words. PINK TILE!!! I'm sure the original owner thought "mauve" was just the most perfect color when the house was built in 1990. Seriously, mauve?!! Who does that?! Anyway, we have no budget to change out the tile and I'm scared to death to try doing it myself, especially since it's both horizontal and vertical surfaces. I suppose I could attempt to paint it? I also wonder if there are any pipes inside the hearth portion or could we knock it out altogether? But then we'd have to do something about the portion of the subfloor which would then be exposed- again- no budget. Thoughts?

Love,

Revamped Child's Chair

Today I'm participating in Trash to Treasure at Reinvented
Remember this?

I finally gave "Brady's" chair a little revamp.

I spray painted it a glossy white and used modge podge to decoupage the front and back of the top piece and the seat with scrapbook papers. I added the little tulip design to match the bedding.

A full girls' room reveal will be coming soon!

Love,

M-O-M-M-Y Needs C-O-F-F-E-E!

This is the sign that hangs over my kitchen sink:



It is so true!



This one is probably also true (but I don't look nearly this pulled together as I'm drinking my morning cup cups.




Hmmm... perhaps I just need one of these?!



Oh coffee, I heart you. You're always there for me. You smell so wonderfully inviting and you feel so nice and warm in my cup. You know just how to pick me up when I'm feeling not-so perky. What would I do without you?

Here's a guy who gets it. If you're not familiar with children's musician Ralph Covert of Ralph's World, give a listen here.

Now that you know of my addiction to the loveliest of legumes, it probably doesn't surprise you that I wanted a coffee themed kitchen. I didn't want the theme to be too, well, themey, so the sign is the only obvious coffee paraphenalia in the room.

The kitchen chandelier (if you can call it that) that came with our house was one of the first things to go when we moved in. It was seriously u-g-l-y. It was this weird suspended disk shape that I think was considered to be "contemporary" in 1990, when our house was built.

I got our current kitchen chandelier on craigslist (I know! You're shocked!!) for $20 and was quite pleased when I brought it home and discovered that the exact same chandelier was still selling for $135 online. I loved the chandelier but the little shades that came with it had to go. They were actually rather pretty, but the red and gold stripes were just different enough from the striped cafe curtains and valances I made for the bay window in our kitchen to look a bit odd. I almost bought new beige shades, but they were going to cost twice what I spent on the chandelier, so I figured I'd find another way.

I wanted to tie into the coffee theme, so I found this cute coffee bean fabric (kinda kitschy without being over-the-top, no?) and had to have it. I pulled off the outer fabric from the existing shades (leaving the lining in place) and used it as a pattern to cut out the coffee bean fabric. It was just two pieces per shade. I stiched the sides together, pulled what then looked like a little lampshade-shaped sleeve over each naked shade and hot glued it to the top and bottom of the shade frame. Make sense? (Sorry about my lack of photos, I did this project before I conceived of this blog!)

At this point it was about 10:00 at night and I had 4 cute little shades, except the edges were looking a bit raw. I thought about waiting until the next day to go out and buy some brown trim but my impatience and cheapness took over (I wanted it DONE! Without spending another PENNY!) and I'm glad.

I decided to glue whole coffee beans to the top and bottom of the shades and I'm pretty happy with the result.

I could have ROCKED that design star grocery store challenge!



They say necessity is the mother of invention, but I'm beginning to suspect impatience and cheapness are the more likely culprits.



I'm participating in DIY day at A Soft Place to Land. Be sure to stop by and check out all the great projects!


Love,

Pantry Makeover

I have seen a ton of pantry makeovers in bloggyland lately. Like this one and this one. Mine will certainly not take the cake, but I'm so glad I finally tackled this!
Here is my pantry as it looked a couple of days ago...

Not too terrible as far as pantries go. Not so great either. I knew where everything was, but I was sick of answering "Hon, where's the soy sauce, I can't find it!!"
"Um, second shelf up, right hand side, behind the worchestershire sauce"
"Huh? Where? Behind the what?"

Hopefully this will clear things up... POOF! (are you sick of that yet?!)



Ahhh... I can't tell you how it relaxes me to open the pantry now and see this...

Neat rows of matching labeled containers.

I searched all over the place (I mean I seriously left no stone unturned) for inexpensive, big, flat-sided, clear containers with tops wide enough to easily scoop out a cup at a time without making a mess. I would have loved big glass ones, but couldn't find any that didn't totally break the bank. Then I came across this post and I was sold. I bought a slew of these large square plastic containers from Wal-Mart. A 2-pack costs $2.13. They have a 16 cup capacity. They are exactly the right size for a 5 lb. bag of flour.

I also bought 6 of the shoebox-sized totes from target for $1.99 each. I had planned to buy something similar at the dollar store, but all of the dollar stores in my area were out of them due to back-to-school shoppers (daggonit!) so I sucked it up and spent an extra $6. It darn near killed me, but I'm very happy with the results. The Target totes are definitely sturdier than what I would have purchased at the dollar store.

I also papered the shelves with a roll of wallpaper (you can't tell in these pics but it's actually a really pretty damask design) that I got for $1 at a local wallpaper shop. Whenever a roll gets a little dirty or dinged up on the edge they sell it as a "craft roll" for a dollar- woot!

When I finished my pantry I stepped back to take a look and I was distracted by our big old ugly green trash can and recycling bin. I was not going to spend $50 on a new stainless trashcan, so instead I did this with some of the leftover paper (I still have a ton left, how much is on those rolls anyway?!)

And I am satisfied with the results...

Hmmm, the inside of this pantry could really use a coat of paint...



Oh, and I also papered my magazine boxes. See, way up there?

Yeah, right there...

I bought them a while ago in the dollar spot at Target and they function well, but they had weird little birds all over them (okay, I know there is a certain affinity for our winged friends around these parts, but just trust me, these were scary-weird). Bye-bye birdies!

Ah, a little piece of heaven...

And here's how I made my DIY chalkboard repositionable labels. I already had a can of chalkboard spraypaint, and I bought a roll of repositionable contact paper at the dollar store. It happened to be Disney Cars contact paper, but that didn't matter one bit since I was going to spraypaint over it. I simply unrolled the contact paper and gave it two coats of chalkboard spraypaint (outdoors, of course)

Once it was completely dry (the directions said 24 hours, but I was too impatient) I colored over the entire sheet with the side of a piece of chalk as the directions indicated. Then I erased the chalk, cut the sheet into the shapes I wanted (I used a refrigerator magnet as a template), peeled off the backing and stuck them on my containers and shelves.

Of course after I did all this I found out here that you can buy chalkboard contact paper for around $7! Ack! Oh well, if I had ordered it I would have had to wait for it to arrive. Again, impatient!! Perhaps someone else out there has a can of chalkboard spraypaint and some random contact paper (doesn't matter what print it is as long as it's not textured) that they'd like to use...

I love that the chalkboard labels allow me to relabel easily as my pantry supplies change and I can peel off the label when I wash the containers and stick 'em back on afterward.

And here's a little sneakpeek of tomorrow's post...

I'm participating in the Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick! Make sure to stop over and check out all the great B & A's!

Love,

Poofed Wall Art

Here's a little something for everyone- a great looking project involving just paper, scissors, tape and glue. The only abilities required are tracing and cutting.

I'm participating in the Make-Over Open House at Sanctuary Arts at Home and in DIY day at A Soft Place to Land.



My girls' room has been in need of some finishing touches in the way of artwork. Now, I am greatful for the talents the Lord decided to bestow upon me, but when it came to artistic talent, my husband got all of it in this duo (and the gardening touch, and the map gene, but I digress). Much beyond a stick figure and I'm no good to anybody.

One night as I was reading "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" to Jellybean for the eleventyseventh time I had a flashback to this post about silhouettes and realized that I could do this:



I just printed out the photos I wanted to use and then used a pen to outline their hair, face-shape, dresses... I taped scrapbook paper to the back... and then I started cutting...

and cutting...

and I used a combination of gluestick and scotch tape to put it all together...

Poof!


then I mounted it on another piece of scrapbook paper...

pulled out the frames I got at goodwill...



added some ribbon...

viola!

And because I've really been looking for some pretty religious art for their room...


I printed out this coloring page...

to make this:

and I printed out this image I found online...

to make this:

Pretty cool, huh?

Love,

Bargain Alert!!

I just stepped out to go to Sam's Club for some groceries and found this stool (look under the table) for $20.87!

I know it used to be around $50 and I think it was $70 before that. If you've been looking for a ceramic garden stool, you know $50 is a bargain. I've been looking for one on CL for months and haven't found a single one. Oh, and it also came in a mossy green.

BTW- what do you think about this mirror? It was a hand-me-down that I've had for a while, but I'm thinking maybe it's a bit too ornate here. It was a brighter gold that I toned down with this trick from CentsationalGirl. I'm thinking of using the same technique on the bamboo mirror and hanging it here instead.

Then I found these rush storage cubes for $14.39 (they don't seem to be available online) and bought two. They're a good size and they are sturdy. I haven't totally made up my mind about where they're going but I have a few ideas...


My store only had a few of each left so if you're interested you should act fast!