Lighten Up!

I’ve been trying to fix up our master bath room to make it well, a little lighter.  When we moved in the cabinets were black and looked way too dark for a light and airy feel.  Sorry, I had already taken the cabinets off when I took this picture so you get to see how disorganized they were as well. 

I took all of the hardware off from the door hinges to the knobs.  Note to self: it is much easier if you keep all the screws and hinges/knobs together in separate bags so it is easy to put them back together.

Next, I sanded each of the cabinets to get the black paint off and to roughen the surface up. I used a fine grit sandpaper and a hand sander since I didn’t really have that many cabinets to do.  I then wiped each one down with a wet cloth to get all the grit off of them.  

I decided I wanted a greenish grey color on the cabinets since I feel like spas use that color scheme for a relaxing atmosphere.  Instead of priming each one and then painting, I decided to try the Behr paint and primer in one.  I used the sample first to make sure it would coat the cabinets enough.  Lo and behold it was perfect!  The color I went with was Juniper Ash and it has a lot of grey in it so it doesn’t look like toothpaste. 

While I let the cabinets dry I decided to freshen up the hardware.  It was all looking a little too varnished and I wanted the chrome look to…you guessed it…make it look lighter!

Bodie took a page from Oliver’s book and decided to help me spray paint the fixtures.  Well, actually he kept throwing the ball into the mix so I switched off throwing/spray painting with Rustoleum’s Metallic spray paint.  I used thin, even coats and did maybe 3 or 4 to make sure they were well coated. 

After all the cabinets were painted and dry (took a while since you have to paint both sides) I coated them with poly for extra shine and protection.

So here you go…..the before and after (note I didn’t even bother cleaning in the before picture so my after would look so much better!)

Before



After

 Behr Paint and Primer in One: $13 ($10 coupon)                                                                    

Rustoleum Spray Paint in Metallic: FREE                                                                   

Sandpaper: FREE

Total Cost: $13

And here is a sneak peek at what I still want to do to update the master bath for a prettier, spa look:

·        Hang some art or a picture that is actually to scale

·        Frame the bathroom mirror DIY style

·        Hang the glass vases I bought 6 months ago next to the candelabra

·        Add cool twig art to the vases

·        Take out the heater on the ceiling that doesn’t work

·        Make a DIY chandelier or pendant to replace the heater

·        Put privacy film over the window so that we can keep the window open for natural light

·        Add baskets for towels

·        Add a towel knob near the shower

$2 Pottery Barn Holiday DIY Pillow

Welcome to our third installment of holiday link parties we told you about our participation in here.  Today’s theme is “Holiday Crafts” and we found our inspiration in a Pottery Barn catalog.  Don’t you love all the holiday pillows they offer like these? 

We both fell in love with this one called the ‘Poinsettia Decorative Pillow.’  Not only was it out of our price range ($29 for just one pillow cover – not the pillow itself) but it also was no longer available.  We loved all the neutral colors and decided we would try to make our own version of this lovely pillow for the holiday times for both of our houses.

Since Kim had some extra burlap hanging around at her place we decided to use this instead of the linen Pottery Barn used.  Since holiday times are extra busy around here we wanted to forgo any sewing so we searched for a DIY no sew pillow tutorial on Pinterest.  We found this awesome one that basically involves folding and tying the fabric into a cute bow.  Look here for a great tutorial.  We both had extra pillow forms or old pillows so we didn’t need to purchase these for our pillow cover. 

We did need to purchase felt and the tiny bells.  As you can see in the pic above, the center of the Poinsettia is in fact miniature ornaments, not bells...there was a slight hiccup when Kmart "ran out" of small jingle bells so we had to choose an alternative.  The ornaments were on sale because there weren't many left and they were breaking fast (we had to do the whole switcharoo trick to get a whole box of perfects), so we got a box of 28 for $2.89.  Only using 7 ornaments per pillow, we can make 4 Poinsettia centers for around $0.75!  We picked up some off-white felt at Joann’s for $4.99/ yard that was marked down to $3.13.  With our 40% coupon, the total came to $3.10 for a yard and a half of the fabric.  

From there all we had to do was cut out the felt into different poinsettia petal and leaf shapes.  We cut them from large to small so that we could layer them like the inspiration pillow.  We used a total of 8 large petals and 4 small. 

As mentioned, we wanted no part in a sewing machine but we did want the cute vein (not such a cute word?) look running down the petals.  We took a small square of burlap and just stitched each petal onto the square and created the center stitch running down the petal as we went along.  It took absolutely no time and was too easy.   We then stitched each of the ornaments (7 total) into the center of our petals and pulled tight for them to bunch together.  After our poinsettia was complete, we anchored it down with a few quick stitches into the small burlap square behind the petals.  

We were so shocked at how much we adored our new poinsettia pillow.  It looks so close to the one that would have cost us $29 for one and we spent under $2 for each one!  Even if you don't have burlap on hand you can find it very cheap usually or you can use any fabric that you do have.  It will still come in well under the $29 Pottery Barn price!

We are so excited to use them with our holiday décor this year.  Check us out on Kate's link party! Any other Pottery Barn holiday inspiration pillow projects out there?  13 days til Christmas!

Pottery barn images found here, here, and here. 

A Picnic Inspiration

Whenever I complete a DIY project, I always think it is my favorite...this project definitely became my love for quite some time because it is pretty much beautiful.

It took a while for me to realize that I had paid no attention to my sunroom and didn't even have a kitchen table!  I was so focused on getting my living room squared away that one day it dawned on me that I needed a place to sit and eat.  The hunt began for something.  What it was that I was looking for, I had no idea!  This cluelessness didn't last for long though because I quickly became inspired by picnic tables!  I actually saw a picture in the Better Homes and Gardens magazine - May 2011 and it was exactly what I didn't even know I wanted...does that make sense?  The girl on this magazine page to the right is a smart cookie, what a fabulous table idea!  

My picnic table project began by measuring my sunroom.  It is long and skinny with a big pillar type structure in the middle of the entryway so I was working in a difficult space.  Once I figured out the dimensions, I got my wood working helper to create this masterpiece.  He didn't quite understand at first that I wanted a really beat up looking table that is super rustic and looked seriously old so I had to go with him and pick out my own wood from The Home Depot.  I looked for imperfections throughout the wood...the more knots, kinks, and scratches, the better!  The table came together and was delivered to my place still looking so raw and clean.  For the rough and rugged look I wanted, I knew I was going to have to beat my table up. Courtney is always ready to DIY, so I called her and her man Ben to help haul it over to their place because my Jetta can't carry a large picnic table on it and my space is definitely not one for a project this large...off to their garage we went one Saturday afternoon.

So Court and I DIY all the time and so her fiance, Ben already said he wanted no part in our weekend projects.  You should've seen how fast his mind changed when I took a chain, hammer, screws and anything else I could find to do work on this table (distress it).  Ladies, get your main squeeze to help on this one...they'll like it, swear!  We went to town on the table until
we felt it was pretty marked up.  Then it was time to stain it and it is definitely a 2 person project.  ***Make sure to cover the floor before starting because it is such a liquid base and will drip everywhere if you aren't careful!  I bought Minwax Red Mahogany for my stain because it was perfectly rich!  I'm not sure if this was the smartest process but we stained the pieces of wood individually and wouldn't move on until it was wiped clean (we used old rags - make sure to have plenty on hand)....speaking of hands, make sure to wear gloves!  For the most part, the stain is consistent
throughout the table but some areas are lighter/darker which looks super neat.  The wood acted as a sponge to the stain so it felt like forever before it was dry but a couple hours later and it was time to coat it in gloss! I used Semigloss Fast-Drying Polyurethane to cover the table.  You want to put the top coat on to give the table the finished look and so that your table is protected from stains, food, rain (if outside)...you never know!  Between each stain I would let it dry and then sand the table with a light grit sand paper.  The coat become a little chalky looking but that is fine!  Wipe it clean and then gloss over. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Become bored and anxious. Let it dry and you're done!

Voilà!  

Better Homes and Gardens - June 2011

Courtney and Ben helped me take it back to my apartment and then my next project was to start looking for chairs.  Ever notice how ugly some chairs can be when you really start paying attention to them?  The search for my chairs seemed never ending until my mom showed me this magazine clipping which would soon finalize everything. Director chairs...duh!  It's so simple and I am so lucky because my mom just so happened to have 4 laying around in her garage that she wasn't using (this is seriously lucky, I know).  They were really ugly and so I thought about painting them and getting new slips for them but they are the old school chairs and I couldn't find slips at the store to fit them but I did find slipcovers at Pier 1...and they were on sale (lucky again).  I jumped around to 2 different stores to collect a set of 4 and it was well worth it.  The slipcovers were so on sale it was a steal at $10/cover compared to the original $40/cover.  I got 4 slipcovers for the price of 1 at original price which is really unheard of.  

Anyhoo, I now had a complete kitchen table with 4 matching chairs! That blue chair is now painted gold and I have an old church pew at the opposite end of my table.  LOVE this table and this room!

Total Cost:

Table Labor & Supplies - $210

Minwax Red Mahogany Stain - $7.56

Minwax 1qt. Semigloss Fast-Drying Polyurethane - $10.46

Gloves - Personal supply

Drop Cloth - Personal supply

Wiping Cloths (for stain) - Old shirts - Personal supply

Paint Brushes - Personal Supply (make sure to use one for oil based stains / top coats to limit air bubbles)

Utensils for Distressing/Beating the Table - Personal supply

Chairs - Fo Free!

Slipcovers - $40 (4 @ $10/cover)

Total: $268....Not too shabby

Christmas is the Best Time of the Year!

Holiday Home Parties....Here We Come!

We're one day away from December so we thought we would fill you in on some 'Christmas Crafting' we will be getting ourselves into this winter.  We'll be teaming up and linking to the following blog parties to show off how we are DIYing some Christmas decor.  So don't forget to check back in on the following dates to see what we have to offer.  And feel free to share some of your holiday decorating skills as well!  Can't wait!

"B" Stands for Barber

So I had this absurd idea...to hang a large sized B above my wet bar.  I wanted something sleek and sexy yet industrial to add flavor to my very blank wall and my very tall ceiling.  I have had this idea for a while but couldn't ever seem to get myself to get it done until this past weekend!  Literally my friends would come over and I think they all started believing that the photography papers I taped on the wall for size was my permanent art fixture.  I went to the local Home Depot and bought the cheapest piece of wood I could find that I could have the nice man in the back cut down to the size of 36 x 44in.  I had this piece of wood lying around
 
my apartment for weeks before I took it home and had my mom help me with hand drawing a font that I would love looking at for a while.  I then drove it to the gentleman who is located near me and has helped with some of my other wood creations and had him cut out this beautiful letter "B".  He took a couple weeks to get it back to me and although the wait was painful it gave me time to pick out the perfect paint color. My living room has lots of deep tones with pops of color so I needed to stick with a dark and rich color since it was to go above my tiffany blue wet bar; I chose Mystical 
Shade by Behr.  While I was at Home Depot I went to the hardware aisle for inspiration on industrial ways of hanging this B.  I saw a gold link chain and fell in love.  I told the man the project I was doing and he looked at me very skeptical and said, "what are you on some HGTV design on a budget show?"  Silly old man.  It was also funny because as this older man is giving me a hard time, the young guy that helped cut all 18 boards for my DIY headboard saw me standing there in the hardware section and came over to see how I was doing.  When people start recognizing you at The Home Depot, you know you have a DIY problem.  It also made me feel like a real designer though because he was asking about my headboard and wanted to see pictures since he couldn't envision my idea from the start.  Anyways, he liked it and now understands what a DIY headboard with 18 squares can look like.  The older gentleman was still cutting the gold chain and looked up and said, "well are you going to bring me a photo when you get done with this project?"  Oh networking at Home Depot...it's fabulous!  With my chain (picture

this but gold), paint, and ceiling fastener in hand...I was ready to FINALLY finish this bad boy B.  The project took me less than an afternoon...the longest was waiting for the paint to dry.  While I was letting it dry, I was able to put in my ceiling fastener hooks and measure the gold chain.  I bought 2 chains and both were about 4 feet long which was way more than needed but at only $.98 per foot, I was willing to pay for more than to not have enough.  The paint finally dried and I was able to put some little hooks (for example click here) on the back of my B to hang on the chain.  The screw on the hook was actually too long so I took some extra cork board I had laying around and used it in between the board and screw so it wouldn't pierce through the front.  I had this BOLD letter B hanging in no time and it was the perfect statement piece for when people came over to my apartment that evening.

Inexpensive project: 
Paint - $10.88 (should've gotten the sample size but I got a quart, oops)
Ceiling Fasteners - $3.92 (2 pack)
8 Feet Gold Chain - $7.84
Wood - around $5
Labor - $30 for the cut
Cork Board - Free (had it laying around)
"Little Hooks" - Free (had them laying around)
Satisfaction - 100% Happy with my Bold new B

Backsplash Picture Hanger

I have been attempting several DIY projects for my new apartment...well I don't know if you could call it new since I moved in back in May but my projects are finally starting to come together and it has just been a SERIOUS work in progress!  One of the first decorative and DIY projects that I attempted after getting all my furniture and clothes settled was my sink backsplash/picture hanger/old ugly shutter thing.  My parents went down to our bed and breakfast in Bat Cave, North Carolina and had to clear it out after two men that were renting it had started hoarding junk / collectibles ...junktibles?  One thing they found was an old shutter that had 8 frames...4 frames had mirrors and 4 frames had old, smeared plant packages and both were caulked to the whazoo.  I wish I had a picture that showed how bad this thing looked, just ugly.  So one day Ollie and I started to work on taking apart this old piece...

Has to check out everything!

Getting lazy and making it difficult!

You can see that he is obviously a very good helper.  Always wanting to be involved with whatever I am doing.  Can you see the ugly paint color? The mirrors? And the fading/water stained framed planter pictures?  Yes, all of this had to go!  I first had to take a blade to the caulking to try and loosen it up to remove the frame and mirrors.  I hope it's not bad luck to break mirrors because several may have been cracked in this process.  Once all spots were clear, I sanded and painted this masterpiece a magenta pink color called Exotic Bloom by BEHR for a nice pop in my kitchen (the color looks way duller online than in person and paper).  While the paint dried, I went to the office supply store and bought bulldog clips

and printed several pictures from my local Walgreens.  Once home, I realized the bull dog clips were not really the ones I needed.  The ones I bought had magnets on them and so rather than running back out to the store, I just pried the magnet away from the clip so I could use what I really needed.  The paint had dried and so I was able to nail the clips onto my freshly painted frame.  I tried to nail the clips in the center or I would do 2 in one frame but I normally don't have the patience to measure so it was more a trial and error and it turned out GREAT!  I love my final product and here it is for your very own viewing pleasure.