ONE ROOM CHALLENGE WEEK 4

Oh boy....that was hard to admit....week 4.  Since I participated in the first ORC and didn't finish I have been diligent about being prepared in the last 4.  This one might be an exception.

I am struggling y'all.  It's  just a big old fat reminder that my time management skills suck.

And...here is the kicker.  I have actually had more than 6 weeks to finish.  I mean I had to order furniture right?  I can't really put my finger on where it went south.....

I can say that last weeks decision to paint the floors might be the culprit.

Yes....the bid to refinish them came in at over 1200.00.  It seemed like a no-brainer.  

We prepped by renting a sander.

Vacuuming 3 times.....lightly mopping and then using a tack cloth.  I read numerous articles about using SW Porch paint so that is what I went with.  Tinted to SW Alabaster.

3 coats later and I realized this....

See where it says in essence no furniture for 7 days?  WTH.....I do not have that much time!  Then as much as SW said I do not need to put a clear coat of Poly over it....I have read online that I should.  Good Lord....why don't I ever read the small print.  Have I learned nothing in 63 years?

But they look oh so pretty:)

Reminder....

Then I started re-thinking the dining area.  Cause I got all the time in the world right.

So I started auditioning.....

I brought this bench in along with a 30" round table that I would skirt in a cream linen....

Found this great throw at HG's.

The verdict is still out.

While I was doing the first round [of many I'm sure] of accessorizing the bookshelves the "bunny" helped with this last minute decision.

A word about one of our sponsors....Karastan!
My selection is called Woolston Plaid and it is made from 100% New Zealand wool.  It's available in 8 colors and the good news is that it's National Karastan Month!  Yep..... and along with the lowest prices of the season you can go to this link where they are offering a 1000.00 cash back coupon! 

This gorgeous rug is waiting for me along with the beautiful sofa and chairs from Lee Industries and as soon as I figure out what to do with the floors then all will be delivered.  Let's just hope it's sooner rather than later:)

A reminder of the furniture.  Sofa in pinstripe and chairs in solid.

But here is an unexpected piece of news with someone who decided I needed help....Ballard Designs.  They gifted me these Marguerite barstools!

My sister was elated!!!

Another sponsor is Decorators Best!  Since I wanted to wallpaper something....I decided the foyer could use a little love:)

Ya think?  Yes.... this was a popular wall treatment in the late 90's.  Shocking.

So this Schumacher Lace went up yesterday and I feel like I won the wallpaper lottery.  I have always loved this classic paper.

I am in love......

17 days to go....but not really because I have to  photograph and write the darn post....so let's just say 12 days.

I just got the shivers and threw up in my mouth a little.

That's life.  It might be smoke and mirrors but I will style it up best I can!

Time to catch up with everyone else and see if there is panic among the ranks!

Apartment 34 | Arianna Belle | Because It’s Awesome | Coco+Kelley | Design Darling | 

Design Indulgence |Design Manifest | Christine Dovey | The English Room | Vanessa Francis | 

Hi Sugarplum | Honey We’re Home | Jojotastic | The Pink Clutch | The Pink Pagoda | 

Simplified Bee | Style Your Senses | A Thoughtful Place | Kimberly Whitman | The Zhush | TM by CIH

Shadreamer

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STAINING FLOORS

I think many people struggle with choosing a stain color for hardwood floors.  The most common material is red or white oak.  If you go with a natural stain over time it seems to turn an undesirable yellow/orange color.

Since cleaning out the bedroom was halted by a 3 hour delay while I looked over a few old Cottage Living magazines.....I went into my office to file a few things and found this page from Domino magazine.

And that delayed the "great purge" of the bedroom until I can motivate myself again....possibly sometimes in 2014.

Now I realize you would have to have the eyesight of a buzzard to read this....

So I took a picture of it with my trusty iPhone. 

I was looking at the white ones and realized I did not follow these rules at all when I did my floors in white.  #rebel

For my bedroom I used 50% white latex paint [BM China White] and 50% water painted on and then wiped off.

Here is what I started with....white oak and I think they are 4 1/2 inch width.

Here is the outcome after a few coats of matte poly applied.

I love them and they still look good 5 years later.

For the rest of my house I used 50% water and 50% paint [same color] but no wiping off.

This is a picture of the floors BEFORE sanding and painting.  They are the original floors installed in 1946 when the house was built.  They were pretty darn orange.  You can see the new floors ready to be installed in the area where we had a leak.  

Here they are after a few coats of poly. 

To say I love them is an understatement. 

And after 3 years they have held up really well!

Why am I telling you this....well there are a few new Minwax stains out that I also love.

Classic gray and Weathered Oak are 2 of them.  Instead of that red/orange undertone they have a more "ash" look to it which I love.  My "go to" stain color used to be 1/2 dark walnut and 1/2 jacobean.

Here is [left to right] Red Mahogany  Pecan, Classic gray on bead board.

Now I could research a million images on pinterest but "ain't nobody got time for that"....so get to searching.  I did pin a bunch of stain colors on my DIY board....

Have a smoking good weekend.....

Do you like the new look of my blog?  If you do you can thank Shari from Little Blue Deer.  She is the bomb and so dang easy to work with.  Does it all website....wordpress...blogger.

You might need a little fresh up?

Shafiredupforholidayweekend

35

Kitchen pulls

You guys.....I have never received so many comments before!!  So exciting.  You would think I invented black and white stripes!  Every one of you that said you were going to do the same thing.....go right ahead.  I certainly don't own the rights to any of my design ideas....and just like all of you, I find inspiration from everywhere....blogs, magazines, flea markets, you name it.  It's a crap shoot.  Sometimes you nail it....other times, not so much :)  Send me pictures if you do.

There were some questions.  I bought the pillow fabric at Lewis and Sheron Fabrics.  I did not see it online but I was there recently and they had it.  I believe it was something like 19.99@yard.  Maybe you could send them a picture.

The paint is Annie Sloan Chalk paint.  Google it.  It is about the best invention since flip flops.  Rubbed a little Brixwax on it.  NOW I know that you are supposed to wait 24 hours before waxing.  Being prepared is not really my strong point.  When I waxed it the paint started coming off a little in areas.  Plan B....OK it is distressed a little.  I just rolled with it.

You can get those tacks at Hancocks.

2 bloggers featured my foyer so a shout out to Lori May [who I met during the Room Service makeovers] and Amber from Simple Dwellings.  Thank you and I say stripe away people!

I know it is a holiday weekend and most of you have already uncorked the wine and started the festivities.  When you sober up on Tuesday....you can check out my new kitchen pulls.

You likey....?

From Restoration Hardware.  My cabinets are painted BM White Dove.  Seriously people I wanted to paint them a cool color, but it is pretty dang expensive to have those suckers painted.  I have had white for 18 years and it looks like I am going to have white for 18 more.

I did change the outside of my island from beadboard to

The insurance covered it so why not.  

They had a hard time getting the old corbels off the granite and the beadboard.  I was standing right there  hovering and I know they wanted to punch my lights out.  You see they thought they were going to have to take out my kitchen island to run the wood under, but after they pried up the granite and took off the beadboard...well looky there....we didn't have to go to all that trouble at all.  We can run those floors right up to the cabinet.  Oh well....beadboard ruined.  Replacement.  Whoop Whoop.  You know I wanted them to drop my granite.

Uh Uh...there are those white floors again.  Who is going to come to my door and slap me if I say that one more time?  Come on, bring it.  Cause I am going to be that annoying person who just won't shut up about them.  White...white...white.

I actually just threw this in cause of it's beauty.  These are pretty easy to grow and I love the texture of them.  Go get yourself one.

Happy 4th people.....Here in Atlanta they have a little 10K called the Peachtree Road race.  Honestly if you don't run in it you are a loser.  So what who cares.  Not doing it.

Leaving you with a picture of my cute nephew.  He was at my house for 3 days and he wore this the whole time.  He has swag....

Notice the key hanging from the necklace.  It was 95 everyday.  He said kids don't sweat.  Alrighty then.

Sha Dazzle

34

West Elm Love

It's Friday.  Can I get a whoop whoop.  I am slowly digging out from under the rubble of my "stuff".... which I have way too much of.  Seriously like a hoarder but with better things and no dead animals.  I am not sure if I mentioned it but we had to get a new HVAC system last week.  This home was build in 1946 and when we renovated we left the old one in the basement and had another system put in the attic for the new part of the house.  Well...dang after 45 years the old one was refusing to work and ask to be retired.  So....long story short, we just took out all the systems  and put one mac daddy in the attic [which by the way is HUGE and looks like something from outer space].  

Where am I going with this you ask?  Cause I know you do not give a rat's ass about HVAC systems.  Well now it now leaves an area in the basement as big as Texas [maybe not that big but to a semi-hoarder it does] so I can stash more STUFF!  But I have to be very sneaky about filling it up or else this might be my last post if you get my drift.  Kind of like Joan Crawford when she shouted "no more wire hangers" in the movie "Mommie Dearest".  Only insert "stuff" for hangers.  And say it loud with a deep voice and with veins popping out in the forehead.

I had to go to Ikea yesterday to get some white frames and I thought I would swing by West Elm for a quick looky.  Yum...glad I did.  Just to remind you of some of their great stuff I took some pics.

Honestly their bedding is to die.

Seriously....you know you want.

Why do I always go for the pillows.....the shoes of design!

Love this color with gray.

Yep...almost went in my bag.

Hello you cool as hell desk!

Yes you!  The top.....

Stop kidding me....for real?

Beautiful white vases.....I had to refrain from kissing each and everyone of these.

More whiteness....

More grayness.....

Get yourself some of these

And these....

Tufted cuteness.  Great at the foot of a bed, or in a foyer.  Not mine, as it is the size of a stamp.

Black and white for the bath.

On sale....put them in your beach house.  Or your dream beach house.

Anthro is gonna be pissed......

This is their first kitchen line and they have some great things.

These would be cute with herbs planted in them on the kitchen windowsill you think?

Lots of colors.

Summer dining.

I know you are thinking why this picture....well when I was young [back before cars] and I had my first apartment this was the only plant I could grow.  Everyone had them....kind of like the fig tree now.  The nickname is "mother in law tongue".  Why you ask?  Cause they were so sharp :)  Hee Haw.  But here is the good thing....you CAN NOT kill them.  They can go forever with no water, seriously like a year or something.  I was so shocked to see them here.  

I took a few shots of my floors for you.  I am trying to wait until I have a good one with everything back in it's place.  Ha!  That's kind of funny because really nothing has a permanent place around here.  It feels like a Gap store where they get new merchandise in every 2 weeks and change up everything.

This is my guest room.  Got that little vase at Scott's for $5.

You can see how some of the grain shows through.  Messy bed.

More white....pretty much everything!

Kitchen.  Love this indoor outdoor rug!  Just take it out back and hose it off when it gets dirty.  Dash and Albert.  Check them out.

More when I get organized in 2014.  Can you wait that long?

I will be working on it this weekend.

By the way I am on sale now.  Yep...on the ipad it is only 99 cents to download the BH&G May issue and you can see the video of me shopping at Scott's. 

Later. 

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