Kitchen Table Sneak Peak

Ok so here is the first part of my table and chairs overhaul.  For this project I bought Valspar Gloss spray paint and let me just say that I will now only use valspar.  It coats evenly and looks great.  Krylon is easier on my poor trigger finger, but it just doesn't cover as well and its kind of drippy.  Ok that being said, the color was Mediterranean and it is such a pretty blue.  I also incorporated this color into a frame wall that I am working on in our dining room.  I love it, pics to come soon.  :)

So far I'm happy with the transformation.  The big question is whether I want to apply a black glaze to the whole thing, or just leave it alone and put a clear gloss sealer on it.  hmmm decisions decisions.  I'm leaning towards just the clear gloss sealer so that it looks clean and crisp.

Enjoy!

BEFORE

I sanded it with a medium grit sand paper - really just the top.  Since I had painted it black and applied a stain, I wanted to rough that up a little bit to help the primer stick good.

See, it already looks way better and that's just the primer!

One of the things I really love about this table is the drop leaf on both sides.  Makes it very versatile.
That's all you get for now... But let me tell you the blue on my table looks so fanfreakintastic I can't even stand it.

Chair makeover

Not to be confused with my kitchen table/chair makeover.  I've had these chairs for several years.  I got them at a garage sale.  Yay for garage sales!  Which reminds me, I am in desperate need of a garage saling Saturday.

Anywho - like I said these chairs were from a garage sale, and they have seen better days.  So now they are in a nifty little corner of my living room and I painted them a sundried tomato and then wiped on a light coat of stain for a little dimension.  Totally livens up my little corner, don't you think?

Chairs - $10 for 2 - which may sound pricey, but he wanted $10 each, so I basically got one for free.  :)
Krylon sundried tomato spray paint - $10 for 2
Small can of minwax early american stain
Pretty new chairs - priceless

Notice the spray paint -no need to prime or sand.  Now that's my  kind of paint!

BEFORE

AFTER

Cleaning

Let's talk all natural cleaning supplies... Quite a while ago, I switched over to all natural cleaning... I get lazy sometimes and don't feel like mixing up a new batch of whatever and reach for the windex, but for the most part, I only use all natural ingredients to clean the house.

This is one that I use all the time on everything including windows and it works great...
I can't remember exact measurements, I think I usually just eyeball it

ALL PURPOSE CLEANER
Spray bottle
1/2 vinegar - vinegar is an excellent disinfectant and deoderizer.  Once it dries, the vinegar smell goes away
1/2 water
1-2tsp liquid soap - I use ivory, but you can also use Dr. Bronners liquid castille (found at health food stores or drug stores)
2 tbs borax - found in the laundry aisle

Leave a little room in the bottle so you can shake it all up. And just shake it a little before you use it.  But we clean counters, tables, windows, outside toilets with this mix.

TOILET BOWL
You can use straight vinegar inside your toilet.  Disinfects, deoderizes and cuts through any rust stains.  Just pour maybe 1/2 cup in, let it sit just a bit, and scrub away.

LAUNDRY SOAP
Ok, this one takes up a little more time, but it is worth it.  I do notice a difference when I use this compared to a store bought brand.  The clothes just seem a little brighter and fresher...
2 bars of grated ivory soap, or you could use 1 big zote bar - can be found in laundry section of grocery
1 cup borax
1 cup washing soda - NOT baking soda, they are slightly different products - also found in laundry section
Blend everything up in a food processor until it looks like powdered laundry soap, store in a covered container.   For large loads use 2 TBS, for small loads use 1 TBS.  Doesn't sound like alot, I know but trust me your laundry will be clean.  You can also use straight vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser in your machine.  This helps to deoderize your laundry and prevent static cling.

Look at that, you learn something new everyday.
I would love to hear if you have a great all natural cleaning recipe that you use.

I have a few more to share, but I'll save those for another time.  :)

Kitchen Table/Chairs Re-do

So in my last post I showed off some fabulous pics of what I wanted to do to our kitchen table and chairs.  This weekend is when the transformation will take place.  Actually I have a couple of projects on my to do list for this weekend, including cleaning my entire house.  I wish I could just read design blogs all day and do projects.  :)

Anyway, here are a few pics of the way our table and chairs look right now.  I will post during and after pics once I'm done, hopefully next week sometime.

I have to say that spray paint is like my new best friend.  Why have I never utilized paint in a can before??  So much easier than a paintbrush.  And they make so many different kinds of spray paint.  I find myself in the craft store and I've spent like 45 minutes in the spray paint aisle.  No joke.   Anyway, just a little side rant there for ya.

Enjoy the before pics.  I can't wait to show you the afters!!

Follow me if you'd like to keep up with my random musings.  The link is just on your right side.  :)
You can also follow me on twitter - I'm not really all that exciting, but it makes me feel special when I get a new follower.

So Many Ideas So Little Time

I have been itching to repaint our kitchen table for quite a while now.  I did refinish the top several years ago.  I painted it black and distressed it.  The chair seats all have roosters on them, and I love roosters, but I've looked at them long enough now.  The table and 4 chairs were given to me for free!  Holla!  The set itself is quite country.  Everything has that crackle finish on it.  But while I was searching the web for ideas on what to do with the table I came across these kitchens.  Hello!!! Aren't they just perfect.  Holy cow, I love the turquoise and red together like that.  So the decision has been made.  I will definitely post before and after pics on this set.

Kitchen table/chairs inspiration

I love these old 1950's tables. They always remind me of my grandmothers house.
 I keep my eye open for one every now and then.
I just don't want to pay as much as they sell for.  :(

Isn't the turquoise and red just so classic and clean looking together??  I wonder if the landlord would freak out??

So I am in the process of figuring out exactly how I would like to re-do our bedroom.  Our bedroom has always been a catch all for anything I don't want anyone to see.  :)  I just throw stuff in there and shut the door.  After 14 years I think I'm finally tired of it.  So I think I've decided to turn our bedroom into a nice relaxing space rather than a trash heap.  Ok, it's not quite that bad, but you get my meaning.  If I decide I'm brave enough I may post before pics - laundry heaps and all... maybe.

I love love love purples, oranges and greens and silvers together.  So I think thats the direction I want to go.  I know it sounds like alot of colors to try and make work together, but I think I can pull it off.  Here are some pics of the color schemes together. Aren't they just so pretty.  I can't wait to get started!

The good thing is I don't need any major furniture pieces.  All that will really be involved is painting existing furniture, painting walls, and adding some accent pieces.  Guess that means I'll have to visit some flea markets and thrift stores... oh darn.  :)

Re-purposed old door

I got this old door (door knob included) at a flea market a couple years ago.  I had it just hanging on a wall, and I had attached some antique hooks and had vintage aprons hanging on it.  Well, it needed a change.  So I turned it into this fabulous piece of wall art instead!

I really love how this turned out.  It was already pretty beat up (which only makes it better) when I bought it, so I didn't bother distressing it anymore than it already was.   I washed it, and very lightly sanded it just to get off some rough spots.  Then I applied stain to the whole door to give it more of an aged look.  The stain also settles into the worn spots and looks really neat.  After the stain had dried I applied scrapbook paper with mod podge into the middle sections of the door.  I put on like 3 thick coats of mod podge to give it a really shiny, textured look.  Then, since we live in the woods and we have tons and tons of tree branches, I gathered some small branches, spray painted them white and then attached them to the middle sections of the door.  I also applied a very thin coat of copper glaze to the outer edges of the door and wiped it off with a cloth after applying.

I really like how this turned out.  These pics aren't very good.  I wish you could see it in person.  :)

Linking this up with http://www.notjustahousewife.net/

Ok so I am completely and totally in love with this blog.  It is like the best blog E. V. E. R.
In my own little world we are best friends.  Anyway, she has an utterly fantastic sense of style - she calls it thrift store chic.  I love thrift stores.  So much good stuff.  I love finding something that I can turn into something else.  AHHH I may or may not have a problem with thrift stores. 

Anyway, Mandi has so many great ideas, that I just have to steal and tweak a few.  :) 
Brandon just wishes I would finish painting the trim in the living room, but what's the fun in that??

So anyway, I have a project that I just finished and I LOVE LOVE LOVE the way it turned out.  I also just bought some copper glaze today for another project that I am starting tonight, and will be using this glaze.  I will let you know if I like it or not.  And I will post pics of my projects soon. 

My Firstborn

Today is my oldest's birthday.  Kalyssa turns 11 years old today!  I cannot believe it, I mean really really not believe that I have a pre-teen!  Are you kidding me?

Kalyssa has always been our easy child (for the most part).  When she was a baby, she slept through the night almost right away, she never cried, she took great naps, she was a happy baby, she ate good, she never got into anything.  I'm not lying when I say I never childproofed anything with Kalyssa.  She was such an easy going baby/toddler.  And she still is a pretty easy going kid.  I don't usually have to worry about Kalyssa getting into trouble or being irresponsible.

She can however irritate her sister to no end, and she thinks she's being sneaky like I can't see or hear her torturing her sister.

Kalyssa is responsible, smart, funny, artistic, grounded, curious.  It's fun to watch her turn into a little lady.  She's not such a little girl anymore.

They just need to stop growing up so fast!

More Fun Stuff

So here is a nifty little project that I did Sunday afternoon.  It didn't take that long and I think it came out really cute.  I decoupaged the letter W with some scrapbooking paper and mod podge (this stuff is fantastic by the way).  I think I am truly addicted to decoupage.  I covered the corkboard with some pretty orange fabric and lepoard print ribbon.  I just used hot glue to stick everything.  For the buttons, I used large glass beads (found at michaels) and I stuck a piece of scrapbook paper to the back with some mod podge.  The paper matches the blue flowered paper I used to do the W.  Kinda cute right?  I think I might do one for each of the girl's rooms.  It is so easy and so cheap.

I See The Light

Holy cow!  Our house is in complete shambles right now.  On the bright side though, the majority of the painting is done and 1/3 of the laminate flooring is laid.  It only took Brandon about 8 hours to figure it out and get in a good groove yesterday.  I had to force him to turn off the table saw at 9pm last night before our neighbors called security.  So while my house is a disaster, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  And I have a couple of new projects I'm working on as well.  I'll post pics when everything is done.  If I showed you what my house looked like right now, I think I would have that hoarders show giving me a call to see how they can help me.

Happy Friday everyone!  Here's to a productive weekend - at least for me.  :)