Coral and Gold Desk

If you follow me on Facebook, you know Big K and I started a little impromptu bedroom redecorating project this weekend.  It's still in progress, so I don't have any additions to the house tour.  But, as soon as everything is put back together, you know I'll have a post for you!

One thing that I can share is my new desk.  I've desperately been seeking my own workspace and I've finally done something about it after being inspired by Carmel over at My Fifth House...use a desk as a bedside table.  Genius!!!

Luckily, I had this guy sitting in my garage just waiting for a makeover.  I picked it up for $10 at a yard sale earlier this summer.

Can you spot Emma back there?  She seems to sneak into every picture.  If I was that cute, I might try to be in more pictures too!

I also had some Krylon spray paint in Coral Isle in the garage that I sprayed the desk with after priming it with Kilz.

I hadn't spray painted something in FOREVER.  I had forgotten how easy it is.  No messy brushes to clean.  No waiting days for paint to dry.

Here's the final result.

I think something is wrong with my camera.  All of my pictures have been super-grainy lately.  I have no idea what is going on.  Do you have any ideas????  I don't know what to do, besides buy a new camera.  This camera used to take great, clear pictures.

My favorite part of the desk is this gold detail.

In the background, you can see my new blue-gray paint...also done this weekend.  It's called Oyster Pearl by the Ace brand Clarke & Kensington.

Over in the corner you can see my "new" file cabinet.  This was a old Target dealio...you know the fake wood pieces that you have to assemble???  I just primed and spray painted it glossy white.  This was my first attempt painting this type of "wood."  It looks pretty good and I think the paint will stick.  I made sure to prime well with Kilz.  Otherwise, I was afraid the material might have been too slick and the paint would have peeled right off.

One last look, just because I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my new desk/bedside table!  One of my favorite things - it was almost free!  All of the materials I used were found in the garage.  I didn't have to buy anything except for the $10 desk.

Linked to some of my favorite DIY blogs:  Liz Marie, House of Hepworths, My Simple Home Life, Happy Hour Projects,
Elizabeth & Co, DIY Dreamer, Today's Creative Blog, Sugar Bee Crafts, Not Just a Housewife, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Primitive and Proper, Home Stories of A to Z, Savvy Southern Style, DIY by Design, Tip Junkie, Type A Decorating, , The Thrifty Home, Domestically Speaking, Primp,
A Diamond in the Stuff, Restore Interiors, The Shabby Chic Cottage,  Beyond the Picket Fence, My Simple Home Life,
Addicted 2 Decorating, Just a Girl, Remodelaholic, Miss Mustard Seed, Finding Fabulous, Tatertots and Jello, Under the Table and Dreaming, Thrifty Decor Chick, Coastal Charm, Serenity Now, Get Outta My Head Please, You are Talking Too Much, The Southern Institute  My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Color My World Link Party!!!

Thanks to everyone who has been following the Color My World Challenge!  We've reached the final week.  This is where we invite all of YOU to link up a post sharing how you challenged yourself to try a new color in your home.

The best thing about this party is that your link will show up on all 15+ Color My World challengers blogs.  Next Tuesday, we'll all feature a few of our favorite links.  So start linking at the bottom of this post!!!

In case you missed the last few weeks, I added navy to my living room. 

This challenge forced me to finish some projects that I've had lingering for a while.  Thanks Jessamie for dreaming this whole thing up!

It also gave me a good excuse to purchase some new chairs that I've had my eye on.

After I picked navy, I realized that I cheated a little bit.  I already had some navy in my living room, but the challenge encouraged me to add more!

I already had these navy banded curtains.

And these navy chevron chairs.  Wow, that's an old picture...I almost forgot I used to have that ugly carpet!  I must have blocked it out.

I promise I will show you pictures of the entire room soon.  I had ordered a jute rug from West Elm that came with some damage.  I had to ship it back and am waiting for the replacement.  West Elm has been great to work with through this process, by the way.  As soon as the new rug arrives, I'll show you some pictures.

I also have my eye on these pillows from World Market.  I love the colors.

I would like a throw for the couch to hide the drab olive green.  This one frome Serena & Lily is cute, but at over $200, I think I'll look for something a bit less expensive.

And the room won't be complete without the elusive fiddle leaf fig tree.  This tree doesn't seem to exist anywhere near me!

I don't think I have any "finished" rooms in my house.  They are all works in progress that are continually changing.  At least the living room is now on the right path!

Show us what you've got and link up!!! 

I know you want to see what the other challengers have been up to as well.

Ange - The Blooming Hydrangea
Anna - A Newfound Treasure
Carmel - Our 5th House
Cassie - Primitive and Proper
Jadyn - Dutch.British.Love
Jessamie - Bird and Branch Redesign
Julia - Black Tag Diaries
Julia - Pawley's Island Posh
Kristy - Hyphen Interiors
Lisa - Shine Your Light
Lisa - Trapped in North Jersey
Maury - Life on Mars
Shaunna - Perfectly Imperfect
Shelley - Crazy Wonderful
Suzy - Saved by Suzy
Tiffany - Living Savvy
Tiffany - Worthwhile Domicile
Vashti & Jamie - Like me Some...

Estate Sale Finds and Link Party Reminder

On Friday morning a friend texted me about an estate sale she saw in our area.  I hurried over and this is what I saw:

It was a little overwhelming, in a good way!  It looked like nothing had been thrown away in decades.  There were half-empty jars of Vaseline that looked like they were from the fifties.  There were numerous (at least 50!) complete sets of china and glassware galore.  Those sticks in the front of the picture above are all fishing rods.

There was so much stuff that it was piled on open trailers.  The lady hosting the sale said that they had to much more that they would be continuing to bring stuff out for at least two more weeks!

I got a couple of small things.

These plates would be fun for a tea party or to serve dessert.

Big K picked out this rocking chair.

I've been looking for a little table for my entryway.  As you know, I usually paint most of my furniture, but I kind of like this dark wood "as is."  The brass cranes were from the sale too.

I got a couple of mirrors.

This bookcase was only $3.  I'm thinking about painting it and putting it in one of the kid's rooms or maybe selling it.  All of this, including some books and another mirror came to $50!  I might have to see what they have next weekend.

Speaking of selling, I finished my first piece of furniture since last September.  As soon as I put it on Craigslist, it sold!  I'll show you some pictures later this week.

Did you get lucky finding any treasures at yard sales over the weekend?

Don't forget, tomorrow is the big linky party/blog hop for the end of the Color My World Challenge.  Link up a post showing how you incorporated a new color into your home.  Your post will show up on all of the Color My World participant's blogs and each one of us will be picking a few features.  Link up and YOU could be featured!!!

Color My World Week 4: Fabric

We are in the home stretch of the Color My World Challenge.  In case you need a little recap, here's what we've been up to in this challenge:

Week 1: Introduction and Color Choice
Week 2: Decor
Week 3:  Paint

This week we were challenged to bring our new color in via fabric.  Remember, next week (May 1st) we are having a blog hop/linky party extravaganza where you can link up a post showing how you brought a new color into your home. 

Back to the fabric.  Not wanting to sew anything, I kind of took the easy way out and ordered new chairs.

They have fabric on them...that's not cheating, right?  I actually ordered these chairs a few weeks ago from Target when they were having a buy one, get one 50% off sale.  I got both of these chairs, including shipping and tax, for about $180 total.  They remind me of the chairs pictured in this room that I like:

I was feeling guilty that I didn't DIY anything with fabric, so I whipped up this fabric-covered box too.

I used an old shoebox and some fabric scraps.  I would show you pictures of the process, but the pics are on my laptop, which is in the shop being repaired.

I basically followed this tutorial from Lori May Interiors.  I used Mod Podge and hot glue to adhere the fabric to the box...pretty simple.  I used a heavy weight, outdoor fabric, so the corners are not as crisp as I would like.  If you try this, I would recommend using a thinner, light weight fabric to reduce the bulk.

Stop by the other Color My World challengers to see how they used fabric this week and be sure to get YOUR posts ready to link up next week!

Ange - The Blooming Hydrangea
Anna - A Newfound Treasure
Carmel - Our 5th House
Cassie - Primitive and Proper
Jadyn - Dutch.British.Love
Jessamie - Bird and Branch Redesign
Julia - Black Tag Diaries
Julia - Pawley's Island Posh
Kristy - Hyphen Interiors
Lisa - Shine Your Light
Lisa - Trapped in North Jersey
Maury - Life on Mars
Shaunna - Perfectly Imperfect
Shelley - Crazy Wonderful
Suzy - Saved by Suzy
Tiffany - Living Savvy
Tiffany - Worthwhile Domicile
Vashti & Jamie - Like me Some...

Remodelaholic Feature

Some of you  might remember that when I started this blog, my main source of content was furniture makeovers.  If it seems like it's been a LOOOOOONG time since I've done a furniture makeover, you're right!  Once the weather gets cold, I like to stay warm and snug in my house and don't like to venture out into the garage to work on a furniture project.  Garage sales are also my best source for furniture and I'll have to wait until the weather warms up for garage sale season to start again.

With the days getting just a little bit warmer and longer, I'm getting the itch to get back out there and paint something.  I was even browsing Craig's List to see if there was anything worthwhile out there (there wasn't, unfortunately).

I have this pretty piece in the garage.

After being removed from the clutter that has piled up around her, all she needs is some glazing and her hardware put back on and she'll be ready to go.  Poor old girl has been sitting in this half-finished state since maybe September!

I got an email this weekend from Remodelaholic, you know the big blog that features all kinds of amazing room and furniture remodels???  Remodelaholic is featuring one of my little pieces on their website today.  It's been so long since I've done any furniture, that I was a little surprised, but deliriously happy as well.  It's a good feeling to know that somebody out there likes and appreciates what we do on our blogs.

Stop by Remodelaholic to see what piece they are featuring of mine.  It's an oldie, but a goodie.  It was destined for sale, but has ended up in my living room as the perfect storage place for craft and art supplies.

And, I have another furniture makeover that I'll show you on Wednesday as part of the One Room Challenge.  It's bright ORANGE!

Top Posts of 2011 and Link Party Announcement

As you know, I hold a link party every Thursday.  People usually link up projects they have been working on.  However, I doubt many of us have been creating anything new this week.  If you have, kudos to you!  So for this week's party, I would like it to be a holiday open house where we are able to meet some new bloggers.  Link up your favorite post from the year; write a new post introducing yourself; share your most popular post; etc.  Feel free to link something that best represents you and your blog.    It doesn't have to be a project! But, if you have a new project, feel free to link that too.  I'm looking forward to this party on Thursday.

I like this time of year.  The Christmas madness has passed and now I'm able to relax and reflect on the past year.  I'm also enjoying spending time at home with my family and not having to be anywhere or do anything that we don't want to do.  Such a nice change from the normally frantic pace of life.

I wanted to share my three most popular posts from the past year with you.

#3:  Coffee Table Makeover
This was my personal favorite as well.  This table is still in my family room and it just gets better with age and the more beaten-up it gets.  Love it.

#2 Buffet Makeover
This $10 buffet makeover was one of my first projects.  I like the gold greek key detail, which was my husband's idea.

#1 How to Strip Furniture

This post was the most popular by a landslide.  Unfortunately, I don't think the content is what attracted viewers.  The post was titled "How to Strip," and I think this might have caught the eye of some "unseemly sorts."  Readers might have been looking for a different sort of tutorial...one not involving wood and various chemicals!

I hope many of you are enjoying some relaxation and quiet time this week!  Remember to stop by on Thursday to join the link party and to get to know some new bloggers!

Linked here:
Home Stories of A to Z

Lisa from A Vintage Vine's Dining Room

I'm so happy to have Lisa from A Vintage Vine sharing her fabulous dining room with us today.  I first "met" Lisa when she linked up to one of my House Party's and I'm so glad she did.

I immediately fell in love with her dining room.  The color palette is perfect and she did an amazing job finding and refinishing the furniture in the room as well as stenciling the walls.  Stop by A Vintage Vine to see tutorials on how she made the faux stone top on her dining table as well as lots of other great furniture before-and-afters.  She is one talentedand sweet lady!

Good Morning Friends! I am Lisa from {A Vintage Vine}. I am so happy to be here at Suzy's wonderful blog! I was very excited when Suzy asked me to Guest Post for her today! Thanks Suzy!

As you know, her blog is a wealth of inspiration and her weekly House Party is a linky party you can not miss!

Over the summer, I took a break from blogging. When I returned to blogging, I ran across Suzy's Blog and it has fast become one of my daily reads! I am here today to share with you my most recent room makeover, the Dining Room....This room had many faces before it became the "Dining Room" again. It had been an office, a dining room and finally an extra bedroom for child #4...Needless to say this room was having an identity crisis!

I started out with a very blank canvas. All this room had was paint on the wall and 4 black chairs. In order to complete this room makeover...I needed furniture! I found a table at my local thrift store. The table had great legs but the tabletop was a wood laminate and would need painting. I created a faux stone finish on the top and painted the legs with a homemade chalk paint.  

The next piece of furniture I wanted for this room was a buffet. Again, my local thrift store came through for me! I found a 70's something bedroom dresser that would work wonderfully as a buffet in that room! It even had the original "Bassett" furniture stamp located inside the top drawer. The buffet also needed some TLC and a new paint job. The original hardware was in great shape, I cleaned it with "KRUD KUTTER" and decided to keep it.   

To complete this rooms makeover, with Hubby's helped, we installed bead board below the already existing chair rail. I also added a chalkboard wall and made a homemade stencil to put above the chair rail and bead board.

Here are a few more after pictures....Hope you enjoy!

Thanks again Suzy! It was a pleasure to Guest Post here today!

The Case of the Missing Camera

I am happy to say that the case of the missing camera has been solved.  I initially pinned the theft on the wily Baby Jaguar.  However, after lots of cleaning and searching, I discovered the camera in a toy bin in C's room.  The damning evidence were the numerous pictures C took of herself in poses such as this one:

How can I stay mad at that cute little thief?  It's impossible.

On to a little before and after.  Check out this cute table I got at the thrift store.  It is solid wood and heavy, very well made, but in rough shape.



I primed her with Kilz, gave the legs a coat of gray spray paint, and painted the top white.

I have seen so many cool projects lately where graphics have been transferred onto wood.  I thought I would give this technique a try.  I found a little bumblebee design at the Graphics Fairy that I thought would be perfect.

According to a bunch of websites, all you have to do is print out the image on a laser printer, tape the image down, wet it with a solvent called Citra-Solv, and burnish the image onto the wood.

This is going to look so cute: vintage French distressed coffee table.  Ready for the big reveal???

It didn't work!  As you can see, all I was left with were some smudgy black lines.  This technique has been successful for many others, so I'll give it a try again in the future.  I think my paint may have been too glossy...there wasn't anything for the ink to cling to.  Does that make sense.

On to plan B.  If only there were a plan B.  The table sat for a few days and here's what I finally came up with:

I'm donating this table to an enterprise called Cavalcade.  It is an art/performance space that recently opened in my town.  They have all kinds of interesting programs, classes and performances.  They even have an open crafting/sewing time where you can bring in projects and work on them with others and get help making things.   I'm happy to be able to support Cavalcade and the work they do to bring intellectual diversion and art to my community...something we are all in need of!

If you haven't linked up to my weekly House Party, now's the time to join in.  It's so fun to see what everyone has been working on.

I'm linking this coffee table to some of these great blogs:
Today's Creative Blog, Sugar Bee Crafts, Not Just a Housewife, Reasons to Skip the Housework, Bella Before and After, Primitive and Proper, Home Stories of A to Z, Savvy Southern Style, DIY by Design, Tip Junkie, Type A Decorating, http://sistersstuff.blogspot.com/, The Thrifty Home, Domestically Speaking, Primp,
A Diamond in the Stuff, Restore Interiors, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Somewhat Simple, Beyond the Picket Fence, Fireflies and Jellybeans,My Simple Home Life,
Addicted 2 Decorating, Just a Girl, Remodelaholic, Miss Mustard Seed, Finding Fabulous, Tatertots and Jello, Under the Table and Dreaming, Thrifty Decor Chick, Coastal Charm, Junker Newbie