Dresser Love

Oh, was it years ago I told you I got an awesome dresser off craigslist that I was going to refinish? I had my idea in mind before I even picked up the pine-topped, crackle covered, country dresser from the house I was buying it from.  I put it in my garage, and then {let the excuses begin} winter hit, and of course it was too cold to go out, and then the holidays, and then I found out I was pregnant and was too tired, and when I started feeling better, it was spring, and I was too busy with the kids, and then end of the year school stuff. . . . aaaannd then my hubs gave me an ultimatum. . . "If it's not done by the end of May, it is going to the dump."  Well, turns out that was all I needed to get my tush into gear (He should have said that about 6 months ago when I bought it, haha).  It was finished by the end of May, I went to put the drawers in place, loving my finished product AND. . . . the top drawer wouldn't fit.  In fact none of the drawers would fit in that top spot.  It must be the warm weather, because I'm pretty sure that wasn't a problem before, but I really wanted it to be a cute AND functional piece of furniture.  So, the hubs stepped in, and trimmed down the tops of each drawer so they all slide in and out with ease.  We just touched up the paint, dusted it off and brought it to our room tonight. I have been laying on my bed trying to blur out the mess of mismatched furniture around it because it adds such a regal touch to our room.  I need a matching one now to replace our other, now sad and droopy looking, dresser.  There are so many wonderful details I didn't notice or expect until I got working on it.  Fun little holes and details that give it just the right amount of character.  Oh, and don't get me started on how much I LOVE this stain with poly combine.  It's a dream!  I was worried it would be hard to get even and the finish turned out silky and smooth.  I must say though, I had decided when I started (after seeing a table of my sister in laws) that I would try for a bit of an uneven finish to it.  I know it seems like a weird idea, but there is a depth that that sort of finish creates that I am adoring right now.  So, without further ado. . the dresser that took about 9 months to birth.  It sure does fill my room with warmth :)  I think this new arrival of mine {the baby} has taken less of a toll than this piece of furniture!    

And the AFTER......

Don't you just love those little holes?    Well, now I have a lot more furniture in my room that need the boot or a good creative eye to get it up to par with this piece of furniture or it may just drive me crazy, and no one needs a crazy pregnant lady around ;)

P.S.  Next on my list of things to finish is the girls dresser, for which, I have already purchased a fun raspberry pink, so I am hoping to knock that out this weekend!

Bold Colors, Awesome Furniture

I was purusing my local craigslist to find some cheap furniture gems when i stumbled onto a link for an etsy site that had the cutest shabby chic, and french country furniture in the bold whimsical colors. The site is Serendipity Chic Decor.  I was loving it. Teal salt and pepper shakers?  I mean,  it doesn't get much better than that, I just had to share! 

After looking at these cute things, I am am certain that one of the dressers in my house will soon be a bright bold purple :)

Christmas gifts on a Budget: Makeover Your Playroom

If you really want that WOW factor Christmas morning, nothing will make those kiddies eyes twinkle like a made over playroom.  I was feeling like our playroom had no pazzaz.  I could see why my kids didn't want to play in it, it was so boring!  There were a bunch of blah plastic containers filled to the brim, and blase colors on the wall.  So since my kids spend most of the cold winters inside, we decided to give our playroom a facelift last year.  Since our kids don't like playing in our basement it was easy to keep it secret, but most of the stuff we assembled on christmas eve after the kids went to bed.

WHAT YOU NEED:
Some spare paint
Acrylic craft paints (they come in little tubes for 40 cents at walmart)
Spare wood trim
Maybe a window two (these are surprisingly easy to come by in New England, people are always giving away old windows after they replace them)
Creativity!

COST:

For ours, we only purchased the fabric for the awning, the curtain rod that is hidden beneath the awning, the cash register, and the play food.  It totaled less than $30. 

HOW WE DID IT:
We just sectioned off a part of the wall, and painted it* some spare tan paint we had in the garage. I wanted it to be something that they could not just see but also feel and touch and be a part of.  So, we added real windows overtop of the painted windows on the general store that we got for free at a local lumber yard that had spare halves of windows, then we turned them sideways so they would be long and screwed them right into the studs (if you are going to add real windows make sure you know where your wall studs are before you paint what will go under them so they will be secure in the wall). 

For the awning, I measured how big i wanted it, and hemmed it under before we needed to assemble it.  Then we stapled the top end to the back of a piece of wood trim that was cut the right length, and turned it forward so the fabric then came down overtop of it, and we screwed the wood piece into the wall, but you could sew across the top and put it on a curtain rod and hang it.  Then, so the awning came out a bit, i positioned a metal curtain rod (those really cheap ones that are meant for valances, and turn in towards the wall) about a foot below, so it would lay over it, and hang out a bit from the wall.  You could nail the sides of the fabric to the wall if you want to make it nice and tight. 

I painted a door with the acrylic craft paint in a chocolate brown.  My husband then placed trim around the door to make it pop--so to speak (actually my kids thought we really had a store behind there, they kept asking how to get in!) and we had ourselves a little general store.  We found a bookshelf in our garage that was about to go to the dump and painted it red to put some play food on (the crates the food are in are from the clementine oranges you get at the store this time of year).  We also found another odd piece of furniture for their cash register to sit on, and i got some clearance bushels from walmart after the fall holidays for shopping baskets (i am sure the dollar store would have some cute baskets too). 

Santa brought my kids a kitchen** and table for christmas last year as well, so now they can go straight from the grocery store, to their little home to make dinner for each other.  It really has made our playroom so much more exciting.  My friend, after seeing our basement, offered to make a cute little General Store sign for it.  I have all sorts of ideas for more playroom fun, a small stage for their dress ups to sit next to, so they can perform for each other and with their friends, or a classroom with a chalkboard, and little desks.  All it takes is a little time and a little creativity to make a space for your kids imaginations to grow in. 

*I actually first saw this idea done on plywood boards that were painted as a little village and then screwed into the wall, so if you are in an apartment you could paint it on plywood and screw it into the studs {just make sure you buy some nail filler for when you move out ;) }!

**The Kitchen is that cute pink target kitchen, but, since i wanted something gender neutral, i got a can of cherry red Krylon (love that brand) spray paint and painted the 3 small pink pieces on it before we assembled it, no priming or anything, and it has held up great.

Piano Rehab

I found a piano on Craigslist for $60 and couldn't pass it up. I am no concert pianist, but i can play a tune or two, and every home needs a piano. . . or will, after you see how awesome they can look.  My husband got some guys and picked it up, the man we bought it from was so greatful to get it out of his basement he gave over half the money back to us.  So, our $20 piano was in our livingroom out of tune and looking drab.  I was wishing it was a different color,  like a shiney black but didn't really dare do anything, there is definitely a vibe out there to not paint wood {which i don't follow}, but especially not pianos.  But it was the kind of piano that would never be perfect and so i searched the internet again for some instructions or inspiration, and i found it. DESIGNMOM had this great old piano that seemed similar to mine, scuffed, imperfect, and not worth the money to completely restore, but still needed new life.  This is not the first idea i have gotten from her, and surely will not be the last. She painted hers a kelly green color, you can see it HERE {great, huh?}.  My livingroom was looking so blah and no matter what i did, it just wasn't my style and i was blaming it on my piano.  So after seeing someone else had taken the plunge i went to the paint store, grabbed a few samples and after narrowing them down, I came up with a nice soft pear green that i then antiqued by brushing over the whole piano with a hunter green paint and then wiping away the extra paint so it only remained in cracks and streaks around the piano.  After i was finished i did what i had been wanting to do, but couldn't with the piano brown, and that was paint the walls that bordered it a nice creamy chocolate bar brown.  With all the painting done, I enlisted the help of my uber-stylish mom and sister to help me find cute {and cheap} decor to put around it.  Not only did they deliver, but they found some great things i already had around my house (of course i now need a new dinning room centerpiece and wreath on my front door, but hey, they look great by the piano). It is the coziest room in my house.  It totally finished off my main level.  I LOVE it.  I seriously never had a comment on my living room status until i finished this piano and now everyone who steps foot in my house, goes in there and looks around. It's so striking and different, it really adds some personality.  Much better, huh?