Antique Vanity fit for a shabby-chic Princess....

who is heading off to college in a few days.  

Mind you, this is the second antique vanity that I have given new life to.  The first antique vanity I never took before or after photos and it now belongs to one of my daughters(who will also take hers to college).....and now this antique vanity.  I remembered to do before and after photos so I could share.  This one now belongs to my other daughter....and she is taking it with her to college as well. (They both live off campus now..otherwise these would never have fit in a dorm room)  

my little helper

I actually picked up both antique vanities pretty cheap while scouring craigslist for weeks until I finally found 2!  You see both of my daughters are only about a year apart and it has been pretty much like having twins for the last 19 years...gotta get 2 of everything! 

They both really wanted shabby chic old feminine vanity sets.....not the new modern ones but the old antique kind like these.  (They are actually getting into the love of antiques & old stuff like me......LOL!!) 

 They both wanted them painted white with a little bit of distressing...not alot....they still are not quite into the really old chippy looking things YET.....hahahaha !

So I made my own chalk paint in an off creamy white and did just a tiny bit of distressing on this piece...and the best part is that she totally loves it!  I'm happy , they are happy and they both now have beautiful antique pieces of furniture to keep and pass down to their kids someday ;)

So if you have a little shabby-chic princess....you may want to find an antique vanity that nobody wants (try your local craigslistings)  and give it a little paint.....I bet your daughter would adore having one of these oldies....they just don't make them like these anymore! 

Shots of Summer

Summer Time......

Got some flowers this weekend........

 One of my things on my "to do list" was to  go to the garden store and pick up some beautiful flower baskets to spread around my homestead...... thought I would share some images....(above) found this old salvaged wood post at a flea market (yup...got it for $10 bucks!)  and had hubby mount one of my birdhouses on it to put in the landscape......LOVE!

 Finally found time to put some flowers in my old chippy galvanized metal watering can....

(above) See my really cool colorful metal art rooster in the gardenscape?  I got him last summer while out treasure hunting.....This year I want to find a cool metal art piece to put in my pond....perhaps a flamingo or pelican type bird.......

Kitchen Food Pantry Project.....

The new Kitchen Food Pantry Project....... above is the completed .....Below is the Before kitchen facelift....we moved the frig from inside the wall to across the room and we used the "hole" to build the food pantry.

BEFORE Kitchen Facelift

 First we had to build the inside with a shelves to hold the pantry shelving units.....

We used the old antique cabinet doors from an antique cabinet (that we repurposed) ..... I purchased these really big heavy antique barn door hinges rather than buy brand new, which were necessary because the shelving units that hang on the door hold can goods....... see here is the inside of the door units where cans and such are stored.....

The bottom section I was going to put matching baskets...but decided to use what I already had .... a couple of really old crates.... I put those grocery plastic bags in one crate and the other less used big items like the big jugs of olive oil in another......

For the door handles I decided to use these antique door knobs with the original face plates!  They already had this wonderful old chippy cream paint left on them so we just screwed them to the front of the door cabinets....... what a great conversation piece....and it functions PERFECTLY.  I'm glad we used door knobs because the doors are really heavy and they needed something bigger with more substance in order  to grab when opening..... your average cabinet knobs from the store would not suffice......  plus it gives the kitchen way more one-of-a-kind character too :))))

Here is what the inside looks like...... it is one of those pantries that swings open with shelves in the back too......  we bought the "GUTS" which is (4) pieces,  online from Kitchen Source http://www.kitchensource.com/pantry/rv-4wbsp18-25.htm

The only thing is it took well over a month for them to deliver......but the product is great and of good quality....not flimsy.....and I shopped around for the exact same cabinets this was the cheapest place and I got free shipping......perfect for the DIY and you save big $$$ by installing your own cabinet organizers.....

AFTER

I have another "repurposed" project that is on my list for my husband.......not sure when he will tackle it but I will be sure to share the project posts with you...... 

I hope I inspired some of you to stop procrastinating on those projects and just get started ....... go for it!!!  Feel free to share your repurposed projects on my Whendi's Bears Facebook page :) 

Kitchen Facelift .....

 Welcome to my kitchen (facelift).  I am very pleased at how it turned out....and we did not spend alot of money to make the change.  We did all the work ourselves but most of it was just painting and rearrangement.  still gotta paint those couple stools.....perhaps this weekend...

Here is a picture of the food pantry in the wall on the left.  I will have to post that project next.  It was where the refrigerator used to be in the old kitchen.  The doors came off of the cabinet that we recycled into the country plate rack shelf unit.  We used very old chippy painted hardware on the doors....and the bottom shelf part I put a couple of old wood crates for additional storage.

Now I am thinking about a painting my kitchen table & chairs.....LOL  ...perhaps an old black or gray color.....hmmmmmm...lots of work there with the sanding off the old factory finishes and all......

 Thanks for stopping in to visit!

Kitchen Facelift - Part 2

(BEFORE) large antique wood cabinet - we took the big 50" doors off to use for our other kitchen project built-in food pantry......

Finally, my kitchen facelift is 99% complete .... Hooray!

Thought I would share one of the last projects we worked on.  I wanted a "country kitchen" open shelf type cabinet with a plate rack to put on the wall where there are no existing cabinets and was an odd part of the kitchen where the ceilings were not the same height and was close to the entryway of the house and beginning of the kitchen.

So we took an antique wood cabinet I had been using as my "food pantry" for years but now have no use for it because we made a built in food pantry (show that project in next blog post) ..... sooooooo, I talked my husband into recycling the cabinet and making it into my open country cabinet plate rack.    I LOVE to repurpose old items ....

My husband agreed and gave it a go..... I tried to remind my husband to take pictures of his progress so we could share it.....   So here are some of those pictures of the cabinet repurposed..... 

He cut down the cabinet to just 2 shelving units.... this is approx 3 feet tall now....that was as big as I could put on the wall........  He took out the middle wood piece and put it on the bottom shelf.  Had to purchase some new wood for the middle shelf piece.

Then he added a new wood backing but ended up putting bead board on the inside back (not shown).  Like I said he wasn't really good about taking pictures of his progress ;)

Added the dowels to the bottom shelf section for the plates...holds 18 plates.

Painted the inside the vanilla bean cream color that matches the island...and the exterior my old red color.

And here is the finished piece..... I really love the look it adds to the kitchen.  I will have to take a picture of the whole kitchen to show you the overall project.

My Kitchen Facelift

I can't tell you how long I have been wanting to remodel my kitchen.  It is the only room in the house that has not been remodeled with up to date cabinetry, etc.  My cabinets & countertops are 23 years old.  We went out looking at new cabinetry....but after a getting STICKER SHOCK on the prices of what all this new stuff would cost.....I decided to do a little (what I am calling) a KITCHEN FACELIFT on a budget (UNDER $500).....to get a fresh new looking kitchen and hopefully many more years of use before a real kitchen remodel.......

This is what the kitchen looked like before.....which I liked but it was tired and I was tired of it too ....and our frig was in another spot located across from the cabinets in the wall as shown here in the before......  

BEFORE

now the after....

AFTER

Newly Painted Cabinets and frig location

We turned the kitchen island around and centered it in the middle  -  $0 - it opened the kitchen right up so now you can walk or sit/stand all the way around....

We cut it down a little because it was too long (still need to trim that end) - $0

We added wainscot, tim and a new bottom cabinet to the island - $55

painted the island a vanilla bean color - $20  gallon paint lots o leftovers there

Painted all the existing cabinets an old red color - $35 gallon paint

Painted my one green wall to the red color and painted my entry way green walls the red (not shown but will take pics) - $0 used the red paint from cabinets

Moved  the refrigerator to the other side of the kitchen - $0  (husband is an electrician so no $$ for wiring)  WISH THE FRIG WAS BLACK...

Bought new cabinet for over the frig 20% off unfinished - $45

painted existing stools (still have 2 more to paint) $0

Turned the light fixture above the island around - $0

Hung this WONDERFUL french country antique door/shutter distressed piece on the wall  LOVE IT! - $0  (had it in my basement family room)

Purchased this WONDERFUL distressed big wide farm bench to sit under it - $66 (yes I can't believe it! I got it at an antique shop during a sale....these run $250..and it is definately authentic! )

Oh...and a HUGE change was we spray painted the overhead stove fan/exhaust black - $8 ( was one of the best things and least expensive)

hmm.what else...... for the empty "hole" where the frig used to be, we are installing one of those pantry cabinet organizers and hopefully using cabinet doors from an antique cabinet I have......  When that project is done I will post the pics.....

So overall I love the kitchen .... especially for the little money we spent....just alot of time and patience ;)   

Thought I would share my kitchen facelift.......just in case anybody is thinking about a kitchen remodel but doesn't want to go out and buy all new stuff...... think about painting and re-using alot of things you already have around the house plus just a couple of unfinished "off the rack" wood cabinets at Lowes ...it really does make a difference :)

SNOW........LOTS OF SNOW !!!!!

Snapped a couple pics with my phone this morning as I headed out for the studio......we are getting hit with lake effect snow....lots and lots of snow......

My boys eating breakfast.........

Enjoy your day!

Collections In My Home

Thought I would share some of the collections I have throughout my home.....



I like to collect old & antique quilts....here is a little stack that I display on an antique cabinet in the front entry hallway.....and below is one of my favorite smaller antique quilts with applique flowers, it hangs in the side entryway under a shelf of goodies.....

My collection that is displayed in the Kitchen above the cabinets.

A beloved old antique bear, an antique typewriter, antique candlestick phone.....they are displayed on an old table that sits behind the sofa......and below a little collection of Americana items in the living room......

We have been doing alot of yard work outside so I'll have to share some outdoor pictures of my home once we get it all spruced up.

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My oldest daughter graduates from high school this year and we are planning a big grad party for her in July...... we have a long list of "TO DO's" before the party.......so you know what that means, lots of prep work .......clean, paint, repair, finish unfinished projects ;) .....etc...... lots & lots of stuff to get done and not alot of time to do it!