silver lining....

This post is an ode to the silver lining....

that was once hidden in a drawer and  is now on display in my dining room!

I have all sorts of silver trays, bowls, lids that I have inherited from Andy's family.   

It is the sort of thing that a couple generations ago people used all the time to entertain....

and now they are being repurposed as beautiful wall accents.  why not!  it is beautiful!

What I am also loving about this is the photo display on the little table....

I have always loved old family photos and having them around this space feels

even more appropriate since almost everything in this room was 

inherited from both of our grandparents.

I recently purchased this beautiful vintage photo cube from my friend's Etsy shop

The Vintage Violet

Yep, that is me playing dress up as a little girl on the inside of the cube.....

this cube is beautiful and holds all those treasured family photos.  I love browsing through this little cube seeing the generations of photos... 

My children will be able to see these photos that go back 5 generations. 

Isn't that amazing... I love, love, love it!

buffet makeover

In my thrifting madness I came across a deal through a friend of a friend.

$25 buffet....and I have the perfect spot in my dining room for it!

It was in need of an update....

I got so excited and didn't get a true "before" as I added this great stencil to the back of the display.

I loved the dark terracotta color I mixed up for the stencil so much I started dry brushing it on to the piece....this is the before, pretty basic.

   I actually like the mustard color, but wanted more character for this piece.   So I wanted the mustard to pop through the terracotta color.

Love how the mustard is popping through and the terracotta is giving this piece a sense of style...

Funny, I never thought I would be so excited about a formal dining room buffet.   

I mean formal dining rooms are almost a thing of the past.

Maybe it is a sign of age.  Or perhaps nostalgia for all things beautiful.   

My grandmother's simple white and silver china that has been in drawers for years will now be on display....and that to me is beautiful.

Lovin my cheap buffet and what a little paint and dry brushing can do!

Voila! 

living room face lift

Ahh.....
a new couch in the living room, which I have waited a long time for and I love.  But I quickly realized a new couch needs an updated space.  A little living room facelift was in order!

This was the accent wall in my living room that I once loved.  The blue color is from the dining area and the stencil is the green from my kitchen.  But with the new couch it felt way too dominating.  And I was tired of it.

So, I decided to lighten the wall and pull in the charcoal gray from the couch and granny smith green color from the kitchen walls for a totally new accent fireplace wall.
I started with painting the wall a buttery cream color.  It looks like French vanilla icecream (it is an old paint from a bathroom in the house).
Then I took the plunge on painting the brick surround a charcoal blue-gray (our house exterior paint).   It was a risk.....but I love how it turned out.
Then it was time to beautify the French vanilla cream wall with a damask stencil and colors from the fireplace (same color as the couch) and the green color from the kitchen.   Using 2 colors on a wall stencil is a bit more time intensive, but the effect is beautiful and worth it!

I didn't pay a cent for this wall makeover because I already had the stencil (which is also in my bedroom) and used house paint we already had!   freebie....bonus.

I do love the way it turned out.  The room now has a modern vintage feel.  

It is comfortable and more open with the creamy wall.  

The accent wall makes sense pulling the colors together from the couch and kitchen.  

gotta love a facelift....I mean a makeover!

venting....

Sometimes you just need to vent.  right?  this is a rather lame play on words to introduce my latest project with antique vents.   But here is the thing....a project like this feels as good as venting my feelings with a friend.  I feel so rejuvenated by a creative project and this one is fun, easy and results in a beautifully unique wall decor!

First....I found a variety of antique "vents".   4 of these were a real deal from a garage sale= $50.  The other 2 were from an antique store for $9 (small, simple rectangle) and $30 (ornate rectangle).

There are a variety of shapes and sizes for visual interest.   All but one were painted with a heavy black paint when I found them. This small rectangle is the only one I left with its original "patina" and I used it as inspiration for the rest of them!

I decided to leave this rectangle vent as is....and use it as inspiration to make the rest look as authentic as possible.

This is the first step of layering the vent with undercoats of paint. I used what I had in my house....both spray paint and house paint.

I layered paint colors on the black pieces with the intention of sanding to expose these layers back creating dimension and an aged look.   The top layer of paint was chosen to be different for each piece (blue, silver, green, cream, copper) as to create a "collected" look.

Using the sanding block and a wire brush lightly in some areas and more heavily in others gives the paint an aged, worn look.   I continued layering paint and sanding randomly until it looked authentic and full of interest and character!

I am in love with this wall.  It took a bit before I like the arrangement of the objects.  I laid it out on the floor first, and then ended up doing some rearranging on the wall....which means a little patching and painting, but that is easy enough.

I ended up adding the horse shoe for fun and variety.  I also like that once someone told me that if you have a horse shoe in your home it would "hold the luck...

The rod iron candle holder is another item something I had had for years (from my Mom) and just felt right in the composition.

What all the items have in common is that they are old, iron and served some purpose long ago.
It really was such fun to collect the items, create something new....and because I used paint I already had around the house, literally cost me only $89.  (I think it would be possible to get that cost way down with more garage sales and more time to collect).

So, there it is.   I vented!   It is much better to vent in this manner than listening to me vent about how tired I am, how my back is bothering me or how I wish someone in my house would listen to me.
 opps, just vented.

stencil love....

I have a not-so-secret love for stencils....but please, not the bows, duck and goose country-type.  Oh no, that is so 80's!  Don't get that idea when you think of a stencil, today the options are beautiful, modern and stunning.   I am hopelessly in love with what a much more modern stencil can do for one's home.   In fact, I have to restrain myself from over-stencilling my home.

I have had the recent good fortune of being asked by a dear friend to paint the stencils below in her new home.  I love this sort of thing so, of course, I jumped at it.  But that means I had to practice these stencils in my own home first.  It really is a win-win....I get these gorgeous stencils in my space and I did work out the kinks (can be a little tricky around edges and corners) in the stenciling process.

Now, for what you have been waiting for:

"stencil love"
 the beginning of the stenciling process on the lucky wall in my kitchen.

Oh yeah, baby....

It is oh so satisifying....

The finished product with frames back in place.  Now the wall sings!!!!

And now brace yourself for the guest bedroom makeover......
(I was so excited I forgot to get a before shot.  Just imagine the sad, simple wall)

Now it is totally awesome.  Dare I say, stunning!
I love the warm gray color (Gibraltar Gray-Pittsburg paint) on top of the light blue (Blue shamrock- pittsburgh paint)

stencil....how I love thee, let me count the ways....
i love how rich you look.  i love that you don't overpower a space (when done correctly) but create a point of interest.  i love how you are a little dramatic and complicated.  i love that you express my personality.  i love that you are not wallpaper.  i love you dear stencils...and I am not done with you.

***These stencils were ordered from cutting edge stencils   ****
check out their awesomeness!

decor rehab- art studio- part 2

The decor madness has continued....  I have rehabed a few more pieces, which all live in my art studio and love it.  The space is finally coming together.  Feeling like a space in which I can relax and create.

before on the coffee table:

A great thrift store find.  $10.   yeh!  

I gave it a good sanding.  Had a red stain that came through primer and required several coats, but is worth the result!  Also took the rollers off of it to paint.  I love that it has cast rollers.

i painted it a gray, sanded the edges, dry brushed on some white and then stenciled the top.

after:

 Here is you get to see the studio coming together a bit more all in preparations for my art critique group that is visiting.  More on that "art love" gathering later.

For now, focus on my vintage chair.  I got 2 for $50 from the same thrift store!  (Even at this price, my husband doesn't understand these)  They are in great condition to boot!  Some may not get it.....but I love them.   Perfect for the studio.  And designer Amy Butler just came out with a new fabric that is nearly identical to this vintage one....what goes around comes around.

Amy Butler's Soul Blossom line.  love, love, love

look  at the fabric right above ** Well, maybe not identical, but it is very similar and very vintage like these chairs.  To top it off the window treatments that are being made are from the fabric that is right above it (in peacock).  Love!I can't wait for those window treatments to arrive!  it is the little things....but creating this art sanctuary for myself has been so very therapeutic! Then this little table that was given to me......needed to be toned down a bit. Used a paint to just dry brush a color over the bright color and tone it down a little, while letting some color through for dimension.   I like this effect with a bright color underneath! the table turned out really nice....great place for plants in the studio Then we have this wonderful rug that I found at the Swiss Colony Outlet store here in town....once in a while you can really find a discount treasure!   The rug is so soft and fun, the kids love rolling on it's shagginess!  How to vacuum it is still a mystery, but like many things I will figure that out later.  And then onto the framed mirror I found at an antique store... I really need to get a grip and always get a before shot.  But sometimes I just get so excited. Trust me, it was gold and belonged in a cheesy, smoky, Vegas hotel.  But now it has a whole new life and message! Now it is one of my "Favorite things"!!!

the art studio has been re- created, it is inspired and truly loved!  Now I need to share, share, share it!


Check out other awesome DIY home decor "favorite things" at the link below....its just fun
 

dreaming of green

Dreaming of green.....sprouting fiddleheads, dew on the grass and twinkling in the morning sun.

Winter has me c...o..o..p..e..d- up.   This time of year is just really hard for me.  

It doesn't help that the boys' favorite pass time seems to be wrestling.  

Someone always ends up yelling and crying.  

I long for the days of being able to soak up rays and seeing the boys happily romping outside for hours.

Thus, I am still in obsessive decorating mode.  

It could be that I am on the verge of discovering a new DSM diagnosis...

"enviro-mania" characterized by a hyper-sensitivity and reactivity 

to lack of color in outdoor environment.   

At the same time this condition means that I am just getting all sorts of tasks accomplished 

and the result is a decor fabulosity. (post to come as they are complete!)

Best treatment seems to be simply adding color inside, changing one's environment when it is just stinking colorless and unchanging outside.   

My Mom passed on her vanity to me.  

Here it is before.... (I need to take this photo before I get started!)

And after.....fabulosity!   I love the way it turned out.   

Steps:  primed (2 coats), then painted a county white, sanded edges to distress it, then rubbed an "ebony"(black) stain very lightly and sparingly.  If it got too heavy I would rub off or sand it lightly.  Sanding is our friend in distressing!   Then some new pewter knobs (from ACE hardware).....

and voila! the vanity has a mini face lift.

So, "enviro-mania" continues....the chalkboard was bothering me a little.  I couldn't see the awesome carved details enough on it.  So, I white washed it with watered down country white paint.  Then wiped the excess off the top so that the white accented the details a little more.  love.

before the white wash-

After....see those awesome details in the wood popping now!?  Love it.  

So does JackJack.

And guess what....in one week Andy and I will have a major environmental change for the weekend.  This will definitely help with "enviro-mania".   In one week we are cheering on the Packers at the Super Bowl.  Yep, that's right.  I am not worthy....but that is another post!  For now it is all about dreaming of green!