tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78814356074640696232024-02-18T21:15:58.069-08:00Fabulously FlawedKelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.comBlogger99125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-18624949500432588372015-06-08T14:38:00.000-07:002015-06-08T14:38:00.620-07:00When things changeAnyone still here? "tap tap"<br />
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So...many apologies because it has truly been forever since I have written on the Ole blog. My life has gotten busy and posting about cute and ultra creative diy projects hasn't been a priority when I was raising THREE humans and trying to maintain my sanity!<br />
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So here's the thing....<br />
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I know this is MY blog. I know that I can write whatever I freaking want on this blog. But. I have felt a bit stifled about the fact that the original direction that I had for this blog was based on crafty stuff and diy and my kids. and as my life, interests, goals, and motivations changed...I kinda felt like I didn't have anything to offer by way of DIY inspiration, and so I just didn't write. I kinda just avoided the blog. Lame...I know.<br />
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So I am going to change that! Like...FOR REAL. My life right now looks pretty different than it did the last time i posted. And I am honestly tired of just sharing the cute, the creative, the inspiring. and NOT sharing ALL the other remaining stuff that makes up about 99% of my life day to day. So this blog is going to get a little revamp of sorts. I'm gonna post. About whatever I feel like posting about. It may be cooking. It may be plants...because...OBSESSED. It may be travel. It may be a funny story about a diaper explosion (because they are always funny...for the ones NOT involved). It may be about my loving heavenly father who never gives up on me and always pursues me...even when I am a butt face. Its gonna look different on different days. And thats ok.<br />
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So...stay tuned! I am back. Promise. :)Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-53257417583751126192012-12-23T12:50:00.001-08:002012-12-23T12:50:29.817-08:00What's happening lately... Hey there blog friends!! I'm again so sorry for my long absence. I have been reading your amazing blogs but not blogging myself because of a fairly severe sickness I've been having. It's called pregnancy! Yes that's right...we are expecting baby number 3! We are very excited, as are the kiddos, who ask every day if the new baby can come out yet?! I am due mid June of next year so I am right at 15 weeks right now. I'm feeling much better these past two weeks which is a huge blessing as I've been able to pursue our second huge announcement...<br/><br/>We are building a house!!!!!!!!!!! <br/><br/>Yes my LONG standing dream of home ownership will finally be coming true! We are going to be done with the building process right around mid August so we will have a two month old! Yikes! It'll be so worth it though as this house is truly our dream house. I have always been a bit of a wanderer. Never feeling settled in one spot and always researching where we were gonna move next. But when we got to Denver we knew it was forever! We LOVE it here and have truly blossomed since moving here! So excited to build our dream house here and expand our family even more!!!! The hardest thing is gonna be waiting to decorate a nursery until this new baby is already here and were in the new house!! I'm such a nesting freak and I know I'll be tempted...but alas...I will resist! I hope you are all well and safe and gearing up for baby Jesus's birthday the same as I am! This is the first Christmas that my little Lyla kinda knows what's going on. So fun experiencing Christmas through little eyes! <br/><br/>I will be sharing the building process as we go along and probably showing you all far too many pics of the foundation and other not so exciting stuff...but bear with me! This is not only our first time being homeowners but we are building this house exactly to our specifications which is amazingly cool!!! <br/><br/>Ok I'm off to run errands and buy baking ingredients for my Moms famous fudge! Merry Christmas to you all!!!<br/><br/> <br/><br/>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-141015868766569392012-09-05T19:49:00.000-07:002012-09-05T19:49:52.380-07:00Campaign Dresser re-do<br />
Hey People! Sorry for the LONG time away. We are now "almost" fully settled in BEAUTIFUL Colorado! We are in a suburb outside of Denver and seriously loving it. Every day we thank God for allowing us to live here!! <br />
I have seriously been a creative maniac since we moved in here. Moving from CA to CO we more than doubled our square footage in our home which is a HUGE GINORMOUS blessing, but also a challenge to decorate and plan the spaces since we have so much more space now. We have an ENTIRE basement that I haven't even touched. The space is empty! So if ya'll see any amazing basement spaces that you think I'd like PLEASE send them my way! Ok so I have a lot...and I mean a LOT of projects to share with you guys. Too many honestly to share in one post so I'm gonna start with a dresser that I scored for free on CL when I was still in CA and hauled it to CO. This thing was in pretty amazing shape. It doesn't have the typical campaign pulls that totally sink into the casing...but I didn't care...free is a very good price! Here's the dresser in its "Ohnoiwanttostartthisprojectbutiforgottotakeabeforepic state"<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTttT6yt18xoAUrm15nTE_hQpf5zw2RDYd107uquWs9xjNCFD5jTps_ImMOwlSxS8pWyRiiYXALWYNI7TxskASTkYAQTYm3iNnvwt-tKycv0LJa4kyUZOzopVwluWXRZt-dgwJOiIfHc/s1600/IMG_20120807_171927.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTttT6yt18xoAUrm15nTE_hQpf5zw2RDYd107uquWs9xjNCFD5jTps_ImMOwlSxS8pWyRiiYXALWYNI7TxskASTkYAQTYm3iNnvwt-tKycv0LJa4kyUZOzopVwluWXRZt-dgwJOiIfHc/s320/IMG_20120807_171927.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>It wasn't in that bad of shape. Just needed a quick sand, prime, and paint. One of the easiest re-do's I've done in a while! Here's the super sassy after...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinjpSw5vHbPfUK_w-bp6R08o8P41nRyUu3wuDCif20vzNDDAAFmh2WNxJeRJaWbU4XEzm3fUOoZ1BZ2RooLDPIGsgIVWeLSX6Q7KvZTTFinAxpLxYZaDXmDQ-AcNYXdvP_8pEw985GW8A/s1600/IMG_20120808_125252.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinjpSw5vHbPfUK_w-bp6R08o8P41nRyUu3wuDCif20vzNDDAAFmh2WNxJeRJaWbU4XEzm3fUOoZ1BZ2RooLDPIGsgIVWeLSX6Q7KvZTTFinAxpLxYZaDXmDQ-AcNYXdvP_8pEw985GW8A/s320/IMG_20120808_125252.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFt5oemgUsTfz9PFb6nCegCiHERtIYPI06uxX6MEExHF7gtqm12nEqZ26W5YjMWbIRPmMXTcTBmkiq45xfac1r8qLPENUOYb5HDh-j59QeBAbM59-UZGLJErdpOM5iG7j0eIGl-l0Lov4/s1600/IMG_20120808_125303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFt5oemgUsTfz9PFb6nCegCiHERtIYPI06uxX6MEExHF7gtqm12nEqZ26W5YjMWbIRPmMXTcTBmkiq45xfac1r8qLPENUOYb5HDh-j59QeBAbM59-UZGLJErdpOM5iG7j0eIGl-l0Lov4/s320/IMG_20120808_125303.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>I used a really pretty deep blue gray oops paint and Shellac clear coat that I already had. This project was CHEAP! Soaked the amazing campaign hardwear in vinegar and it brightened it up just the right amount. I'm in LOVE with this dresser! I actually gave my daughter my old dresser so I could use this one instead. I love it!!!<br />
The lady that I got it from was the SWEETEST lady ever. She totally didn't think I'd want the dresser because its "Old" and no one else had wanted it! lol if she only knew...she also gave me the cutest drop leaf kitchen table that was her parents kitchen table when they were married. This lady was over 80 years old...so the drop leaf table is at least 150 years old if not older...and what amazing shape its in! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg5myozaMdC75WFo84gCgIk2O4nd00dYkLsPSlCPgRuLKG5SH9qjf7oshBtlHA63jPQQXBv6y-H2UzSj0ldCl6OjZT6YXSoaV12EiFht7wrxNRUuLuoM5puDTaLy_OrWvkA0AnM_VPmdY/s1600/IMG_20120815_185630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg5myozaMdC75WFo84gCgIk2O4nd00dYkLsPSlCPgRuLKG5SH9qjf7oshBtlHA63jPQQXBv6y-H2UzSj0ldCl6OjZT6YXSoaV12EiFht7wrxNRUuLuoM5puDTaLy_OrWvkA0AnM_VPmdY/s320/IMG_20120815_185630.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>See what I mean? I haven't decided what to do with it yet. The leaves are not the strongest ever and my kids love to pull on the table as they climb in and out of their chairs so I'm just hoping they don't pull the table on top of them one of these days! Oh and check out those chairs...those are a sneak peek...posting about them next week. I hope you all like my new dresser! What do you think I should do with the table? Paint? Stain? Its bare wood except for a thin layer of orange oil. I hope you all have a fabulous week!!!<br />
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Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-35900321229251242942012-07-08T13:53:00.000-07:002012-07-08T13:53:56.933-07:00Denver bound!Hey everyone!! I wanted to fill you guys in on a little family adventure were getting ready for. Were moving to Denver!!! :) My husband's job change is allowing us to pursue our dreams of living in The Mile High City! 300 plus days of sun per year with GORGEOUS snowy winters? Yes please! Were super excited to get out of Southern California and move to our dream location...or should I say...our dream U.S. location. If someone told me I could move to Italy I'm sure that would trump Denver. lol. If I'm a little on the flakey side with the blog for the next few weeks please forgive me. Two toddlers, a house full of stuff to pack, plans to make, deposits to pay (grr...why are they always so expensive), and plane tickets to buy (were flying instead of driving. Insert a very loud Praise the Lord!!)...and ALL in the next few weeks. our move date is August 4th so were gonna be busy bees for a little bit. Our area in CA is starting to get 100 degree temps...which will last until mid October...so you can imagine my excitement at getting out of here before we all boil to death! lol. I love you all! I would majorly appreciate prayer during this transition. Especially for my kiddos that aren't big fans of change. Wish us luck and I'll be posting some house pictures when we are in and settled!!! Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-40574316036072170212012-06-29T15:43:00.000-07:002012-06-29T20:28:03.628-07:00Restoration Hardwear hack bookshelfHelloo lovely readers!!! Just wanted to share a recently completed project with ya'll. My hubby and I were SO excited/confident after we built our <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2012/06/i-built-farm-table.html">Farm Table</a> that we decided to tackle a rustic bookshelf. I was majorly inspired by <a href="http://ourvintagehomelove.blogspot.com/2011/07/salvaged-wood-shelving.html">this one. </a>Check it out. (Our Vintage Home is a treasure trove of awesome DIY ideas! I was actually about to copy the same bookshelf from Restoration Hardware when I saw their version and I loved it SO much!!) We have a lot of books! Not like "hoarders"..but we like to read so we buy books. We have been relying on one small bookshelf for about a year now because...lets face it...bookshelves are expensive unless you go the rickety Ikea route. We wanted solid wood. I have two demolition derby toddlers and I want it to be sturdy!! Well I've been a busy bee accumulating pallet wood and various scrap wood lately and I was determined to build this bookshelf out of wood that I already owned. So I got to work during my kids nap (in 90 degree weather I might add) disassembling pallets to build the bookshelf. I spent two hours, got about 5 slivers, and sweated profusely before I realized that the wood I was getting off these pallets wasn't going to be strong enough...or straight enough...to build the shelf. FAIL. So off to home depot I went with my measurements in hand and supplies list to see if I could score some inexpensive wood. I knew I wanted to shelf to have a "planked" look rather than being super clean and perfect. I wanted it to look like I made it with nasty old barn wood. I ended up buying two 1/12's for the top and bottom shelves and as I was waiting at the wood cutting machine in Home Depot I was in EXTREMELY close proximity to the overflowing with awesome-sauce wood "cull lumber bin". Have you seen the cull bin? Get thee to HD or Lowes and scavenge like a vulture!! Seriously awesome wood to be had in those bins. And the best part is it is CHEAP! Like 50 cents a board cheap! They had just refilled the bin that day...and they had refilled it with RED CEDAR (yes I'm shouting!). And did I mention that the length of those beautiful boards was the exact length I needed? Yup pretty much awesome! It was thick too...and had beautiful imperfections that you just can't create easily (and to think that the imperfections that I was wanting was WHY it ended up in the cull bin to begin with...SCORE!)<br />
So when I got home with all my supplies my hubby and I started building. I decided to splurge and use rebar for the backs of the shelves so the books didn't fall off. I love the industrial vibe it added. And we also got some super cute small metal casters for the bottom so we could move it easily.<br />
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This is a close up of the wood sans stain or poly. So pretty and unusual!<br />
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Here's the shelf pretty much built with no stain and the rebar in place. If you want step by step instructions for putting this thing together go to Our Vintage Home's site...they did a great tutorial!<br />
We were gonna use the pocket hole system that we used on our table but we just didn't have the energy and wanted it to look rustic so we opted to just put the screws in through the side and have them show. We used silver screws that matched the rebar so it actually looks intentional! Bonus! We adore this shelf. I haven't loaded it up yet because were moving and can't fathom lugging all my books out just to pack them up in a month and a half...but when we get settled you best believe that this shelf will be styled and loaded down with awesome books! Here's the finished product! What do you guys think???<br />
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There ya have it! Custom built shelving to fit our needs and our budget! All in all this shelf cost me about 50 bucks to build. No joke! The restoration hardware version is like 2000!!! BAM! I'll take my version any day and I had a blast building it! So please...if you like this shelf do share. I would love to answer any questions you guys have! Oh and to finish it I used my new favey fave rust stain that I mentioned <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2012/06/i-built-farm-table.html">here</a>. SO easy and makes wood look so fab! And I poly coated it with shellac a few times for protection. Done and done! :) Hope you guys have a FAB-U-LOUS weekend!<br />
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Linking with the following fab parties:<br />
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<a href="http://akadesign.ca/?cat=174"><img src="http://akadesign.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/diy-link-party-button.jpg" /></a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-71124462618717293442012-06-01T16:43:00.001-07:002012-06-21T20:26:11.958-07:00I built a farm table!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>I guess I should say, My hubby AND I built a farm table. </i><br />
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How is everyone? Me? I am GREAT! I have been a busy lady lately....as you could all probably assume since I have been MIA for a while. My son started pre-school...sniff sniff...he's SO big and LOVES it! He's truly blossoming and I couldn't be more proud! I also got my booty back in the gym and am feeling really great being more active. I also have been dreaming up a new project. I wanted to build a rustic, chunky farmhouse table. I wanted it to look like this....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDZiMIj1gooyqJsQZqIHb7YcXpQUGJpvgdAdOBRpFyAMO7o-_RfuNyU16pzJX_eG_PgNmH9GPUOPxxqKkM2NUIb9fiTgkAcc7RXLDWZ7PGmsGVpFrBInh7RJVQtycNjPhE5XicNtjx8is/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDZiMIj1gooyqJsQZqIHb7YcXpQUGJpvgdAdOBRpFyAMO7o-_RfuNyU16pzJX_eG_PgNmH9GPUOPxxqKkM2NUIb9fiTgkAcc7RXLDWZ7PGmsGVpFrBInh7RJVQtycNjPhE5XicNtjx8is/s320/Capture.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
<i> </i>Gotta love Restoration Hardware!<br />
So I turned to <a href="http://ana-white.com/2009/11/plan-modern-farmhouse-table-knock-off.html">these plans</a> on Ana White's website to give me a rough guide for how to build it myself. I did a lot of tweaking to the plans to accommodate for some materials that I already owned (several old reclaimed 4X4 posts that i wanted to use for legs) and we also opted to copy RH's table totally and notch out the outside boards on the top to show the legs.<br />
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So since I was using reclaimed lumber for my legs I really REALLY wanted to use reclaimed lumber for the top and aprons too. But for whatever reason NO ONE wants to GIVE AWAY 100 year old barn wood. What's wrong with people nowdays? I couldn't afford the barn wood I saw on Craigslist and I REALLY REALLY couldn't afford to do amazing old growth large planks from a cool lumber store near my house. So instead of breaking the bank MAJORLY I opted to head to Lowes and buy new lumber to make up the rest of the wood for the table. Douglas Fir to be exact. It came in to around 70 bucks for the wood. I bought (4) 2x10's for the top that I had the guy cut to 6ft long, (2) 2x2's that we cut at home to use as cross bracers, and (3) 2x4's to use for the aprons. <b>MAJOR TIP: </b>When you are in the lumber store buying your wood. Don't just grab boards off the rack and buy them. Lay them down on the ground...lay them next to each other...Do they match up? Do they have any bends or twists? Are they warped at all? Do they lay perfectly straight? You do <b>NOT NOT NOT</b> want crooked boards and its a <b>HUGE</b> pain in the booty to have to go back to the store when you are in building mode to buy new boards! I speak from personal experience....<br />
Ok so after buying all the wood...cutting all the wood to the proper specs...laying it all out and making sure it matched up...I decided to assemble it in whatever way seemed like the best way. Nevermind the way Ana White...who does this ALL THE TIME...says to do it. I know better right? WRONG! My hubby and I basically assembled this table about 3 times. We did it once...realized that we put the legs on too soon and the aprons wouldn't fit properly...did it again with the aprons on too soon and then realized the cross bracers wouldn't fit properly. There was A LOT of that going on in my garage on building day! It was not fun and we each had about 40 splinters when it was all said and done! Here are a few pics of the table during the process...<br />
This was us laying out the boards to make sure they matched up...see...NOT perfect...we ended up needing to recut a few. <br />
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Here's where we lay out our apron pieces to see if they match up with our notched out side boards. They did! Woot! <br />
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Here's the whole table put together...minus screws...with my fabulous salvage legs!<br />
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I could show you a TON of other pics....but I'm impatient and want to get to the BIG REVEAL already!! If you want detailed pics of the process then go to Ana's site. She rocks!<br />
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Here we go....deep breath....<br />
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TAH DAH!!!!!! I am beyond obsessed with this table. Like....I want to marry it and have its babies!!!! It turned out exactly the way I was wanting. Here's a close up of all the distressed goodness on the top....<br />
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See those dents...err....gouges on the edges? That was accomplished with a chisel...a LOT of sweat in the 95 degree weather...and determination to make this new wood look fabulously old.<br />
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Here's another shot...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ie7viWh0FTO8cxF6CBhaItbZB5zRRiPMP_66es10vz_Q2tG_j9oPibh0UX_A8HQA71vL7kqudtlEfIYihTn897QmpcrEbUNC6hqRWY5qt0wTgoIpf5DsR2UlkdRA30tem6g8dpEpjos/s1600/IMG_0316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ie7viWh0FTO8cxF6CBhaItbZB5zRRiPMP_66es10vz_Q2tG_j9oPibh0UX_A8HQA71vL7kqudtlEfIYihTn897QmpcrEbUNC6hqRWY5qt0wTgoIpf5DsR2UlkdRA30tem6g8dpEpjos/s320/IMG_0316.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
Yup. Pretty much obsessed. If you guys are curious what I used to "age" the new wood....here's a secret. RUST! I soaked a couple of chopped up steel wool pads in a jar of white vinegar for a few days. It dissolved...and then I mixed a splash of that mixture with enough water to get the right color and painted it on. let it dry. and poly coated the top. Seriously a genius method and I LOVE that you don't need to wipe it off or let it "cure" before you can finish the rest. Its my new go-to stain!!<br />
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I seriously apologize that I've been neglecting you all lately. Pinkie promise that I'll do better!!! Hope you all have a fab weekend!!<br />
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Sharing this project at the following fab parties:<br />
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<a href="http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/">Coastal Charm</a><br />
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<a href="http://akadesign.ca/?cat=174"><img src="http://akadesign.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/diy-link-party-button.jpg" /></a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-70066351837362526092012-03-19T09:47:00.000-07:002012-03-19T09:47:39.161-07:00My new conquest...Hey awesome people! Sorry SO SORRY its been forever since I've posted. I have had...not only a severe creative drought...but also 4 people in my house with a severe virus. My son decided that starting preschool 3 weeks ago gave him the right to infect his whole family with the plague! The worst cold/fever/cough that has hit us in a while! Plus it turned into bronchitis and an ear infection for my son. Good times. Good times indeed. Anyway, So the reason for the title of this post is to tell you all about a new connection that I made that I'm OVER THE MOON excited about!!<br />
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So the other day I was driving down a road not too far from my house and I spied a huge field with a bunch of super cool looking wooden crate things in it. I also saw tons of twisty piles of industrial scrap metal and such. I drove past...and was SO intrigued that I had to turn around...drive around the perimeter of this field until I found what it was. Well imagine my surprise when I found a large building supply company connected to that field. I knocked on the door and inquired about the crates that I saw. Well after talking for a while with the nicest guy he mentioned that the area that I saw that amazing architectural "junk" is <b><i>actually</i></b> their <u><b>junk pile</b></u>!!!<br />
I then asked him if I could..you know...look around in their junk pile. He said...are you interested in any of it?? Stifling my extreme joy I casually said, Ya maybe.<br />
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Cut to me rummaging through PILES AND PILES...actually more like ACRES AND ACRES of rusty scrap metal...industrial carts that look like they are straight out of the Anthro catalog...pallets with just the right age and patina...rebar...etc. ALL JUNK! this company pretty much told me to take as much as I can off their hands because its more expensive for them to dispose of it then to just let it sit.<br />
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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<br />
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So after building my <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2012/01/pallet-coffee-table.html">Pallet coffee table</a> I've been really motivated and excited about building more furniture. I have several projects in mind but I'm now going to incorporate industrial salvage items into my furniture plans! Can you imagine? All of it for free??? I am SO excited you guys!!! Stay tuned for a lot of "junk related posts" in the very near future!!! Hope you all have a great great week!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-53645343900052918112012-02-21T13:19:00.001-08:002012-03-08T14:28:07.177-08:00New uses for old things!I have a profound and undying love of old things. Windows, door knobs, shutters, molding, crates, pallets, etc. The age and patina of old...and especially reclaimed items can NOT be duplicated.<br />
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Want to see some of my favorite old things? Well here ya go...<br />
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Master bedroom pallet bed and antique ammunition box that I JUST refinished a few days ago. A LOT of people probably thought I was a freak of nature when I wanted to sell my traditional 4 posted bed and make a bed of pallets instead...but you know what? I couldn't love it more! It was free...unique...functional...and looks super chic with the light colors in my room and that dark sassy rustic-ness! The ammunition box was a 5 dolla find at a garage sale...i am in LOVE with how it turned out. Adore. Swoon. I will keep it forever! Had to do a LOT of reinforcing and A LOT of bleaching and vinegar-ing to get the smell out. It was NASTY...but I couldn't be more excited about it now!<br />
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Old wood and metal ladder with paint splattered all over it in my entry way. I adore this ladder! It is actually really sturdy thanks to some majorly large bolts and metal rungs...and it works great to drape scarfs over and hang coats on too! Plus I like to pretend that you can't see our non-functioning alarm system box that came with our house! ;)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmmheYYHGOjpkcvHeuaVuSihuHwCp012SGYiTnkJh1-FtOsJgILoTEPydSjQ27NJemS11r8OVUjF2DrI6SWLDkGfOlKaxBD1UPQ67arq7WgmJFnZk_tfSMR-KhVJYQZGmnuGwcWSY5sT4/s1600/IMG_0268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmmheYYHGOjpkcvHeuaVuSihuHwCp012SGYiTnkJh1-FtOsJgILoTEPydSjQ27NJemS11r8OVUjF2DrI6SWLDkGfOlKaxBD1UPQ67arq7WgmJFnZk_tfSMR-KhVJYQZGmnuGwcWSY5sT4/s320/IMG_0268.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Shoe baskets. The one on the left is from Target and isn't old...but i love it. The one on the right is an old veggie crate that I got outside of a Hispanic grocery store by their dumpsters! I actually grabbed 4 of these on the same day and I use them EVERY.WHERE! They aren't particularly sturdy but they are filled to the brim with character and so useful! Toys, kid shoes (see above), files and such in the office, they work great for so many things!<br />
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Old Naval trunk. This thing is probably one of my fave Craigslist finds EVER. Oh and did I mention it was 10 bucks?! It has brass corners, silver hinges, is HEAVY and sturdy. Fits everything you could imagine! Right now its storing our DVD's and my cookbooks and they are all hidden away! Love it! The bottom picture is the name of the Navy dude that owned it (really hard to make out what it says) and the Port that he was going to. Portland! Which just so happens to be my home town! :) Love a piece with character AND style!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV91asLa_HB_jVHwUXq1-vHXoFJfekB0GLvgEYbPW_4KbDuA7-aN9ZVeIBqF-pONXsq8WOcokqUuj54I1byQhYsNb4jhnNtL1rDJ3mNsH4nuusKtLTqnfYyMwSMsuigoK10ZCOcob3QCs/s1600/IMG_0271.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV91asLa_HB_jVHwUXq1-vHXoFJfekB0GLvgEYbPW_4KbDuA7-aN9ZVeIBqF-pONXsq8WOcokqUuj54I1byQhYsNb4jhnNtL1rDJ3mNsH4nuusKtLTqnfYyMwSMsuigoK10ZCOcob3QCs/s320/IMG_0271.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Old shutter as picture display! This is actually not a shutter...but a bi-fold closet door that I heavily distressed and hung on the wall. I adore the way it looks! I also stuck the kick stand of a few of my fave pictures down inside the slats and they make a really pretty picture wall! Oh and it was free!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSKhqmfp2DhjCQdS128gPCQUS83TrK48hfUEoAy9eghzwDbyEIGr1GcOAuBE2WVtcPuI1Tv2wCBDf1bh4ePrH280fK3ckecilmTcYxgJ_qzzsSG7ZF_hiDRytsSqqM6DYX7hNmTyEgKDo/s1600/IMG_0272.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSKhqmfp2DhjCQdS128gPCQUS83TrK48hfUEoAy9eghzwDbyEIGr1GcOAuBE2WVtcPuI1Tv2wCBDf1bh4ePrH280fK3ckecilmTcYxgJ_qzzsSG7ZF_hiDRytsSqqM6DYX7hNmTyEgKDo/s320/IMG_0272.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtq7OOQOmIQ6THX4h88gGC7xTd3odCVQpK_2Jn3gIPBoBveUNbEAKfjGiYjNZpLLH3vErW1uNTlc_n8qcAppWRseKIiJM-DYPSAUPW_ljDt-_-UZ3PaRKCEZ6xln5X1j9A4fVw8GAgMaY/s1600/IMG_0273.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtq7OOQOmIQ6THX4h88gGC7xTd3odCVQpK_2Jn3gIPBoBveUNbEAKfjGiYjNZpLLH3vErW1uNTlc_n8qcAppWRseKIiJM-DYPSAUPW_ljDt-_-UZ3PaRKCEZ6xln5X1j9A4fVw8GAgMaY/s320/IMG_0273.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Old window as mirror! I scored a couple old chippy windows at a garage sale for 2 dollars a piece....AND...was able to bring them from Portland to Southern CA in a moving truck without cracking the single pane 100 year old glass! AMAZING accomplishment! I mounted this guy on the wall after using looking glass spray paint on the back side to turn it into a mirror of sorts. The glass is very warped and marbled so it looks crazy awesome and antiqued and old! I achieved a very spotty mirror finish by lightly misting the bare glass with half white vinegar/half water first...and then immediately spraying my first coat of looking glass spray paint over that. Then another layer of vinegar/water...then another of paint. Over and over again until I achieved the darkest finish I could. I left the chippy paint intact and even left the latch on it. Love all those details!<br />
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Ok so that covers a few of my favorite old things. I hope you guys are inspired to bring home all that nasty old "trash" and make your home more beautiful for cheap!<br />
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Have a blessed week!!!<br />
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Linking up to the following parties...<br />
<div align="center"><a href="http://savedbysuzy.blogspot.com" title="Saved by Suzy"><img src="http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd408/lizzygal18/Savedbysuzypartyblogbuttonchevron-1.png" alt="Saved by Suzy" style="border:none;" /></a></div>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-78107888351334864972012-02-14T07:56:00.000-08:002012-02-14T07:56:59.401-08:00For my husband...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/284923113894843520_TU5rFYAB_f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/284923113894843520_TU5rFYAB_f.jpg" /></a></div><br />
You are upstairs right now...putting our son to bed...which is precisely after you had just put our daughter to bed...gotten me a glass of wine and a piece of chocolate cake and turned on my favorite classical piano Pandora station so I could relax. You amaze me. You have the most giving and generous heart. You have a huge heart for the less fortunate and the handicapped. You are very concerned with making sure my love tank is filled and that you do things daily to be a blessing to me. You are so talented musically and that is one of the reasons that I fell in love with you!<br />
God didn't just bless me when he pointed me in the direction of you...he sheltered me. He knew that my heart had a lot of healing to do. He knew that you and only you were going to be loving enough...consistent enough...patient enough...to see me through all the insecurities and allow me to heal. I adore you Ron! You need to know that the almost 7 years that we have been married have been the best years of my life and I look forward to dozens and dozens more with you!!! I love you!!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-71499333973242111222012-02-13T14:17:00.000-08:002012-02-13T14:17:34.718-08:00How to refinish what you have...a VERY random blog postTwo blog posts in ONE day! That must be a record right?! **crickets***<br />
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Ok moving on. <br />
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My lovely sister in law mentioned that she has A LOT of furniture that needs redoing and wanted me to write a tutorial post on how to go about that. Were talking 80's ugly oak, metal, furniture with stickers on it, etc etc. She has 4 amazing kids so you can only imagine the beating some of the furniture has taken!<br />
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Ok here we go...<br />
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Wood-<br />
Is it real or fake?<br />
How to tell-Turn it around and look at the back of it. Do you see a thin overlay on top of particle board? Fake!<br />
Do you see wood grain? Real!<br />
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Ok now that we know what kind of wood we have lets get to refinishing it.<br />
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What do we want to do with it? Do we want to strip it down to its bare nekid original form? Do we want to add amazing turquoise paint and distress it to high heaven? Decide that part first!<br />
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I am a BIG fan of sanding. It smooths out the surface...fixes imperfections...and makes the piece ready to look brand new again. If you plan on painting over something then usually just a light sanding on the entire piece is good enough...except for those deep dings and scratches which will need more love. I use a cheap Ryobi Corner Cat palm sander from Home depot that I got about 3 years ago. It has a dust catcher on the back and I have used and abused that sander. Its still going strong and I'll use it until it breaks! I think it was about 30 bucks! If the piece just needs a light scuffing up before paint use 120 grit sandpaper all over and then wipe clean. If there are some severe dings use 80 grit and then 120 grit...and.wipe.clean.<br />
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Did you find out that you have fake wood? Particle board Ikea quality cheapo furnishings? Nothing wrong with that at all...you can still make them look pretty...just can't sand them!<br />
In the case of particle board with a veneer overlay your BESTIE is gonna be primer. I love and use Zinser oil based primer. Apply it with a good quality brush (Purdy brushes are THE BEST and worth the small extra investment) and aim for see-through coverage. You want the whole outside of the piece to be covered...but not thickly. It'll give the paint something to grab on to and make the finish really even and durable. You can get Zinser at HD, Lowes, Ace, etc.<br />
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Are you wanting bare naked wood...maybe oiled to bring out the grain...but pretty natural? You are gonna hate me here...you are gonna have to strip...the paint that is! Stripping paint or varnish is an ICKY job. I detest...loathe...stripping furniture but sometimes its necessary! If you must strip...you will want to use Citristrip. Its bright orange...smells like...uh...Oranges...and is sold at HD or Lowes. It works great! Follow the directions on the back and watch your old nasty 80's finish bubble up before your very eyes! Make sure to invest also in a good metal scraper while your at the store. You will be doing LOTS of scraping. You might also want to grab a wire brush to remove hard to reach finish in grooves. After your finish has been totally stripped (this may require two or 3 applications of stripper) then you'll need to wash and dry your piece thoroughly (i usually leave it overnight to fully dry) and then sand as mentioned above.<br />
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Ok now that I mentioned how to prep your wood surface...now lets get to painting or staining.<br />
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Once you've primed your piece and let it dry (in the case of painting the wood) you'll want to choose a latex paint that you like ( I adore the oops section at HD) and paint your piece. If its a large piece you can either use a sponge roller...which are great but don't leave your finish very smooth...or a nice brush (enter your newly purchased Purdy brush). Brush on two coats of your paint color...letting it dry fully in between coats. Satin, semi gloss...doesn't really matter that much on furniture what kind you pick because you are going to seal it with a poly or wax after the paint is dry. <br />
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Now that your paint is dry you can distress it lightly, heavily, leave it alone, etc. I really like distressing because it tends to make you less irritated if natural dings happen to it later. I ALWAYS distress furniture that's gonna be around my kids...so that pretty much means I distress EVERYTHING. Only distress your piece in the places that would naturally get dinged. Aim for edges...corners...legs...etc. Never the low points of the piece...always the high points. Get it? Good!<br />
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Now time to seal that bad boy! I ADORE.POLY.SO.MUCH!! My favey fave brand is Minwax wipe on Poly (metal can). Satin or gloss finish is your choice. If you want a smooth as a baby's bum finish and wipeable durability then this guy will be your best friend! You apply it with a rag or paper towel...no brush strokes...lightly sand with 220 grit in between coats...and you have a finish that'll stand up to pretty much anything your kids can throw at it! Literally! I use poly on any piece that I stain or paint a darker color...but if you are painting a piece white SKIP poly and use a basic furniture wax. Poly can slightly yellow over time and it'll piss you off if your pretty white dresser looks yellow in six months! Apply wax with a cloth...let dry for about 20 mins..buff off with a new cloth and see a nice sheen. I usually apply at least 3 coats and the finish will be almost as durable as a poly coat!<br />
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Ok so say you want to stain a piece. Good for you!! ;)<br />
Staining is fun...it makes wood pretty and I enjoy it.<br />
My fave stain is Minwax Dark Walnut. In my humble opinion its the perfect dark color. Here's a piece where I used it...check it out....<a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2011/09/refinishing-veneer-tablea-tutorial.html">here</a>....You apply it with a rag to bare wood....allow to sit on for a few mins...and wipe off gently. ( I really like using old soft t shirts for applying and wiping off stain. No lint and they apply only gentle pressure) After the first coat...if you like the darkness of it then you're done and need to let it cure (dry for about 24 hours)...if not then let it dry for a couple hours and apply another coat in the same way...wipe off. Once all the coats have been applied and wiped off you need to leave that baby alone for a while. Preferably in a not too cold place...so it can cure and the color can harden. Give it about 24 hours before you touch it again!<br />
Once its cured you can poly it like I mentioned above. it'll look gorgeous. <br />
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Metal:<br />
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So lets say you got a killer deal on a SUPER ugly brass lamp from good will! The shape rocks...but the finish is blech! Spray paint is your friend! I use lots of different brands but Rustoleum is my fave. There are TONS of color options and it just goes on really pretty.<br />
Here's your process....<br />
1)Clean lamp thoroughly and dry<br />
2)Put on a ginormous costco box out in your yard away from anything that you don't want painted<br />
3)Prime that sucker (use spray primer...rustoleum is the best)...aim for a very light coat...keep the can moving and spray from a ways back. Let fully dry.<br />
4)Paint time! Spray it lightly. You do NOT want full coverage on your first...second...or even third coats. You want to apply short...light bursts of paint from a ways back and lightly dust the piece with paint...it'll minimize drips and make it look a lot more professional. If you are painting something super small then one can should do it. If its a piece like a bar cart or a metal shelf unit you will need at least 3 cans of spray paint. do yourself a favor and get double what you think you'll need...it'll save you trips back to the store and you'll use it later if you have leftovers.<br />
5)Let dry fully in between all those coats<br />
6)You can use a spray on clear coat to protect the finish if you want...but I usually skip this step if its a piece that won't be getting a lot of abuse. If it will then by all means use a clear coat!<br />
7)Place in home and marvel at your craftiness!!!<br />
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Ok so I think this about covers the basics of painting wood, metal, particle board...if I missed anything please let me know in the comments section and I'll edit and include it! I hope this helps someone create furniture that they LOVE with the stuff that they already have!!!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-11385220974228271172012-02-13T10:36:00.002-08:002012-02-24T20:14:54.487-08:00One of my FAVE dresser redo's EVER...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO11wkFuv38inZVxEYiw8zwVCc0_ycioFKGPYaNeNNPtvtcRE23geFYReD2gFow6BAYrVEBnAfUbukmJ-CUTVsJrKJWdzURNVOdGgMli0KL8FxJvJgrLKCkKOYzJlhu6GeJLN7-jN7N8o/s1600/IMG_0251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO11wkFuv38inZVxEYiw8zwVCc0_ycioFKGPYaNeNNPtvtcRE23geFYReD2gFow6BAYrVEBnAfUbukmJ-CUTVsJrKJWdzURNVOdGgMli0KL8FxJvJgrLKCkKOYzJlhu6GeJLN7-jN7N8o/s320/IMG_0251.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Hey people!!!! Ok here is a dresser in its pre-fabtastic days. Picture those drawers actually inside that case and not sanded m'kay? This dresser was on CL...only about 10 mins from my house...and they had it listed for 20 bucks. Now THAT would've been a great price...but I always offer less to see if they'll take it. I offered the guy 10...he was stoked...I WAS MAJORLY STOKED! ;)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This dresser is one of those iconic mid century modern styles that everyone has seen...and everyone loves. The molded drawer handles...the cute stubby feet...the height is perfect! I just love this style! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Now the picture on the right is after I had already sanded the drawers with 80 grit and then 120 grit to remove the old finish. The drawers were in totally decent shape (except for some MAJOR gluing that was needed)...the frame...was...not. I would've LOVED to be able to keep the frame in its original wood but there were several chunks of missing veneer...several LARGE scratches in the veneer that I knew would be hard to cover with stain and have not show. So I went to my FAVE resource for mid century furniture re-do inspiration....enter <a href="http://www.designsponge.com/">Design Sponge</a>! I searched before and after pics of dressers and found this...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://assets4.designsponge.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/meagan_after.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://assets4.designsponge.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/meagan_after.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>This is what I'm talking about! Beautiful wood grain...outlined with crisp white! So pretty and modern and funky! I knew I would shamelessly copy them since their case was in bad shape too but their drawers were salvageable. I did have to do some major repair on pretty much every drawer. The wood was in really good shape but the drawers handles were all cracked...the trim was coming up...so i used A LOT of wood glue and put everything back together again. So after thoroughly sanding the drawers (see above pic for the pretty raw wood that I ended up with)...I applied a thick layer of Howard's Feed and Wax to the drawer fronts. Here is a pic of the before the wax and after...<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Insane huh? I was AMAZED at how awesome that stuff is and how it brought out all that fabulous wood grain and color with just a layer of citrus smelling wax! Adore Howards...I will be using it from now on! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So after the drawers were waxed and polished I filled all the scratches and holes in the case veneer with wall spackle. (I use it instead of wood putty...MUCH cheaper and works just as well...and MAJORLY sandable)...let that dry and then primed and painted the box with two coats of oops white paint. I left the feet in the raw wood for some variety. Here's the after.... </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg34R_ML9yiDwijk-mdnZkXWhEJg9hG1VPlCUVeuB4zbt7t0OXlNfaktyTMhAEjjRDACzSZ1ypuJoSayifr1zWt-E3yAR7pnPXOFN6YI4mTd7_YXybQwYOmiSxxjrXGezVzUXpjZPLuEOk/s1600/IMG_0256.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg34R_ML9yiDwijk-mdnZkXWhEJg9hG1VPlCUVeuB4zbt7t0OXlNfaktyTMhAEjjRDACzSZ1ypuJoSayifr1zWt-E3yAR7pnPXOFN6YI4mTd7_YXybQwYOmiSxxjrXGezVzUXpjZPLuEOk/s320/IMG_0256.JPG" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRl_J5_40s1gXA1l_dEicB3YCgpR4cuZg0z8ASAbxducVuUl6uuCYQq4JKfMl0mKHt7_KoN4ky3XMLBBP1ysgk98MJFmmAYxoA2EE75m2mEsHnXsjuBeobsi8d53n7_YplZQfOzDCOvLM/s1600/IMG_0255.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg34R_ML9yiDwijk-mdnZkXWhEJg9hG1VPlCUVeuB4zbt7t0OXlNfaktyTMhAEjjRDACzSZ1ypuJoSayifr1zWt-E3yAR7pnPXOFN6YI4mTd7_YXybQwYOmiSxxjrXGezVzUXpjZPLuEOk/s1600/IMG_0256.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Sharing my dresser at some fab parties:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<a border="0" href="http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r87/mmoo1978/LindaBtn.png" /></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="Funky Junk's Saturday Nite Special" src="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/signmakergirl/satnitenew150w-1.jpg" /></a></center><br />
<a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://tatertotsandjello.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/978446890_7b2ZN-O2.png" alt="" /></a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-58787233530632730432012-01-30T13:45:00.000-08:002012-01-30T13:45:20.196-08:00Sneak peekHey people!! I scored the COOLEST old box on Craigslist the other day for 5 bucks! I have NO clue what to do with it yet...I'd LOVE some help from you guys..not only on what this thing is or "was"...but what to do with it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFgV7f9sdup1TdJCdjXmXRPfvV0itz563BiABuaMxHGjeHaHPsSehOkQxyuKp1I3famq3QwSQMsm59BB7YNXrBDJ2-Gv_CYgx5uQ33qA0TWp8Jo6gTYoQMQcGuOS956AEYxdExkIKFLE/s1600/2012-01-29_11-46-48_690.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFgV7f9sdup1TdJCdjXmXRPfvV0itz563BiABuaMxHGjeHaHPsSehOkQxyuKp1I3famq3QwSQMsm59BB7YNXrBDJ2-Gv_CYgx5uQ33qA0TWp8Jo6gTYoQMQcGuOS956AEYxdExkIKFLE/s320/2012-01-29_11-46-48_690.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Pardon the crappy cell phone pic. At least I got a before pic this time right?<br />
So what do you guys think this is? Is it an antique? I know its old...but is it valuable? Should I paint it? Or strip it and leave the bare wood...with some wax? Should I add feet? I'm really stoked to redo this thing but totally stumped on WHAT to do. Any help would be...uh...helpful! :) Have a good week guys!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-78661535439694549692012-01-27T13:05:00.000-08:002012-01-30T18:54:24.666-08:00Growing up...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div> My shortcomings as a Mom are plentiful....some days they are all I can think about...and I forget that I do a lot of things right too! I try and prepare my kids to help themselves...to be autonomous...to find their own toys instead of always needing me to find them. While that's a good skill to have, it also has caused my mind to compartmentalize their needy behavior....and that is NOT good. Something that i realized today is that my kids need to learn how to stand on their own two feet...but they also REALLY need a Mom that rocks them to sleep and allows them to be little. It honestly makes me tear up just thinking...and regretting...all the times that I have NOT done that because "they have to learn". This is true...they DO need to learn...but rocking them...singing to them...nurturing their precious spirits...doesn't screw them up...it allows us Mommy's to remember how precious and fleeting these little kid days are. It allows us to have those still quiet moments with them. Smelling their hair. Rubbing their back. Wishing that we could record this moment and remember it always. I am going to make a "belated New years resolution" to be present with my kids...and to take it all in...because life with small children is an amazing selfless time that we will never get back...and we need to hold on tight for as long as we can!!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-54630780511223842612012-01-24T20:26:00.000-08:002012-02-01T19:55:58.594-08:00Pallet Coffee TableHey everyone! So I got a little creative this week and decided to build something. Most of you are probably familiar with...and obsessed with...<a href="http://www.ana-white.com/">Ana-White.com</a> (formerly Knock off wood)...as am I! I have looked at so many plans on her site and wished and hoped that I owned all the great tools that would make those projects possible. Well our good family friend's...and neighbors...were over for dinner recently and I mentioned Knock off wood to them. They had never heard of it and upon showing them the site they IMMEDIATELY planned to make a new bed for themselves. Well they needed a few new tools in order to make the bed so I took advantage of their tools recently and built this....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1w_bmo8dgklAXPAmhc4qck91qfnS2rjwdIdI_aCpvdoGSlKrnLk0ux47YVvx3LxqPSKw0d4KZLFBGnpMsn7zBwYs8I01GEqgt_A5iocsMfjkkYTXvZZDRiAX-o9Y7a3Np-4QVVBLZ6x4/s1600/IMG_0196.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1w_bmo8dgklAXPAmhc4qck91qfnS2rjwdIdI_aCpvdoGSlKrnLk0ux47YVvx3LxqPSKw0d4KZLFBGnpMsn7zBwYs8I01GEqgt_A5iocsMfjkkYTXvZZDRiAX-o9Y7a3Np-4QVVBLZ6x4/s320/IMG_0196.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I built a coffee table. Out.of.pallets. Yup..totally out of pallets. No other wood was used other than that fabulous, rustic, often-overlooked-for-the-true-beauty-it-possesses Pallet wood!<br />
Now all of you have seen pallets around the blog-osphere. You've probably seen them behind grocery stores...mini marts...in people's trash cans on garbage day. Why not pick these up rather than putting them in the land fill? You will have free scrap wood...BRIMMING with character and potential just <i>waiting </i>for you to unlock it. You could build shelves, frame out a cool piece of art, build your kids a fort, make benches for your deck, build a coffee table, etc. The possibilities are endless! Visit my <a href="http://pinterest.com/kelseycafferky/pallet-obsessed/">Pallet Pinterest Board</a> to see way more options for projects! I am kinda obsessed...I should just warn you before you click that link.... Ok so here's some more pics of my purty table. I'm gonna give you a VERY quick and VERY informal run down of my process.<br />
Step 1-Leave pallet outside for about 6 months waiting for someone with tools to feel bad enough for you that they let you use them.<br />
Step 2-Oooh and aaaah over all the extra rustic-ness that was added to the pallet from all the neglect.<br />
Step 3-Take the bottom boards off the pallet frame. I used a crow bar and a large burly hammer. It really really helps if the pallet is wet by the way...makes the wood MUCH more pliable. I just put the tip of the crow bar between the base and the boards I wanted to remove and hammered it in a ways...and then just wiggled it up and down and back and forth until each board was free. SAVE THE NAILS that are in the pallet....all that rust will add MAJOR character to your piece of furniture.<br />
Step 4-Once all the bottom boards are off you will be left with just the frame and boards on top. Most pallets have 3 or 4 (depending on the size of course) boards on top with fairly large spaces in between. I used the bottom boards that I had just removed...cut them in width so they fit in the gaps on top...and nailed them on (with my rusty nails of course...and some wood glue). I used a jig saw for this...and you'll want to too...you will most likely not be cutting a straight line. Pallets are not straight or square. You will have to just trim off a little at a time until you get the right width....but its worth it...they have SO much character!<br />
Step 5- Once all your boards are on you'll need some legs. You could use whatever legs you want as long as they are the length you want but I wanted to use pallets for legs as well. I had another pallet that was kinda in pieces...and I used part of the frame cut into 4 equal pieces for the legs. The frame is made of 2/4's and is very sturdy so it worked great.<br />
Step 6-Sand...sand....sand....oh...and sand! You will need to sand...did I mention that? Pallet wood is FULL of splinters and very rough...but once you get through all that yuck you find great wood underneath. I used about 8 sheets (yes FULL sheets) of 80 grit sandpaper and then a couple sheets of 220 to get the level of smoothness I wanted.<br />
Step 7-Paint if desired. I opted to do a very subtle gray wash. A tablespoon of light gray paint mixed with about a 1/4 cup of water. Just slop it on and let it dry.<br />
Step 8-Wax. I used Minwax plain furniture wax...and applied about 3 coats. Super smooth finish and has a nice sheen. WINNING. (Please tell me I'm not the only one that thinks of that when I hear the word SHEEN!!!)<br />
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This project took me two days to do but only because I couldn't work on it straight through without a couple toddlers needing me....and because I'm an EXTREMELY amateur power tool user. AND because I had to rip those friggin pallet boards off! That takes a while!<br />
So this project cost me $0.00...a little time...a friend's power tools....that's it! Totally love how it turned out. I am on a furniture building kick now. I WILL be making a new dining table soon...stay tuned! Here's some more pics....<br />
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Linking up with the following fab parties:<br />
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<a href="http://www.domestically-speaking.com/%20" target="_blank"><img alt="DomesticallySpeaking" height="125" src="http://i1232.photobucket.com/albums/ff368/domesticallyspeaking/popp_edited-1.gif" width="125" /></a><br />
<a href="http://primitiveandproper.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i933.photobucket.com/albums/ad174/tatahmar/CASSIE%20BUSTAMANTE/btt.jpg?t=1286337961" /></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://creatingahouseofgrace.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="HOG" src="http://i684.photobucket.com/albums/vv204/bonniejane03/HOUSEOFGRACEBUTTON-1-2.jpg" /></a></center><br />
<div align="center"><a href="http://chiconashoestringdecorating.blogspot.com/" title="Chic on a Shoestring Decorating"><img alt="Chic on a Shoestring Decorating" src="http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/ae163/kstrieg/flaunt_it_friday_button.jpg" style="border: none;" /></a></div><a href="http://www.missmustardseed.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Furniture Feature Fridays" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Qrx9aV-dHZVdb-bNejUJIEokm34DWsF7pKrWW3Jvyumyh0P_8_GU1zQUI563UY1kXeGhy8jdNCJKfqg3FdLsGcC-RUW26iG4wtelMlWAy62FfXIknigYSpepqxkat8bFSlPrjAKiukNQ/s1600/fffbutton2.jpg" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.shabbynest.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="The Shabby Nest" src="http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j480/theshabbynest/Shabby%20Nest%20Blog%205-2011/ShabbyNest-GrabButton.png" /></a><br />
<br />
<center><a href="http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Funky Junk's Saturday Nite Special" border="0" src="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/signmakergirl/satnitenew150w-1.jpg" /></a></center><br />
<a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="" src="http://tatertotsandjello.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/978446890_7b2ZN-O2.png" /></a><br />
<center><a href="http://jaimelyn11.blogspot.com"><img src="http://i1086.photobucket.com/albums/j449/jaimelyn11/button4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" /></a></center>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-39307933496117909392012-01-19T15:29:00.000-08:002012-01-30T18:54:42.271-08:00Keeping it real....Random tid bits about my life this week...<br />
- I haven't done a load of laundry...or folded any of the probably <b>5 </b>loads of laundry that's piled on our bonus room couch at all this week.<br />
-My upstairs hall way outside the kid's rooms is always a pile of various dirty laundry items (see above), dirty diapers, toys, books, etc.<br />
- I really REALLY Love Taylor Swift's new album. Its pretty much the only thing I listen to right now.<br />
- I adore being a stay at home Mom...really I do...but there are SO many times a day that I think I am failing miserably at being a Mommy...I always have to check my attitude and pray throughout the day to get through.<br />
- I was buying fabric at Jo Anne's a couple days ago. While in line at the cutting counter with both of my kiddos in the cart I was talking to some older ladies in front of me. They were both watching me...watching my kids...watching how I acted towards them..watching their behavior. I felt very uncomfortable until one of them leaned over and said, You know your kids are VERY well behaved! Whatever you're doing is working! I could have kissed that woman! Sometimes it takes a random person telling you that you are doing a good job to totally change your mind set.<br />
-I really struggle with the idea of perfection in both my own behavior and my kids attitudes. I need to look for progress...not perfection.<br />
- I am NOT good at working out. I really love it but am not very self motivated. I really need a personal trainer to move in next door to me and kick my butt daily. Drag me out of my sweats and make me jog. That'd be awesome!<br />
- I adore hand me downs! For my kids. For my self. For my home. I am never too proud to accept something that's free and needed. One person's trash is another person's treasure. <br />
- My daughter's smell is the most intoxicating aroma to me. I ADORE the way she smells when she first wakes up in the morning. I sit in our living room chair holding her while she holds her blanket and I just sniff and sniff her cheeks and neck. I wish I could bottle up that smell and the feelings that come with it...I always want to remember it!<br />
- Driving in the car yesterday my son started singing...Here I am to worship, here I am to bow down, here I am to say that you're my <b>guy!</b> I didn't even know he knew that worship song...it was so adorable. Then...two seconds later he looks at me and says, Mommy you're beautiful...you look like an angel! I could've melted into a puddle right there! Love that boy!<br />
- My husband is my soul mate. I don't say that because we've always had a great marriage...in fact we haven't always had a great marriage. We have both grown so much over the past year. We've learned to put each other first. We've been married almost 7 years but I feel like our marriage JUST started.<br />
- God continually surprises me. When I imagine what my dreams are...and then I see Him answer them one by one I am just in awe! He's SO good to me!<br />
- I adore living in Southern CA...I really do! But I am seriously jealous of all the people in the US getting snow. We have sunny skies at 70 degree weather! Not like I'm complaining....but I would've liked to wear my sweaters a little more this year!<br />
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I hope that wasn't too random for you all! I'd love to hear random stuff about all of YOUR lives!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-44550390021776287152012-01-19T08:13:00.000-08:002012-01-19T08:35:51.379-08:00Brighten upHey peeps!! I wanted to share a little craftiness with you guys. I have had my sewing machine out lately...and when I say "Out"...I mean its taken up residence on the end of my dining room table for easy access. I wish so bad I had a sewing room..but alas...I do not....anywhoo. I realized that I needed to update my couch pillows. We have the Ikea Karlstad sofa...with we LOVE...and it has a dark gray slipcover...which we LOVE (with two messy kiddos with sticky fingers) but the couch cushions that were on it were from our last couch. Our last couch was cream microfiber so I added dark gray pillows to it to balance out all the light-ness. Well this couch is gray+gray pillows=Way too much gray! Is that even possible?? I adore gray. <br />
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Anyways I wanted to bring A LOT of color to my couch. Bright fabrics...fun for spring (which we are having in southern CA) I adore using random things to make pillows. Remember my <a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=7881435607464069623&postID=14801004173016897">Place Mat pillow from many moons ago?</a><br />
Well I was in World Market the other day looking for some new...well...everything! World Market has so many gorgeous things that I could simply move in and live there!<br />
I stumbled across their table linen area and my eyes fell upon the most gorgeous cloth napkins to ever be created!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIhJFzlOHNC38zY7y34WaLWX8eNYJ5i-_N312vC4sGEaTz4rnjM1KdNu_UotQ0PY52-OyuWa1WV6aQNAedZKasgGone8ivHqWA4Z6akvNUVPOrTyTc_fYu-40aGcwIH6Es0kLyDW5hr9Q/s1600/IMG_0185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIhJFzlOHNC38zY7y34WaLWX8eNYJ5i-_N312vC4sGEaTz4rnjM1KdNu_UotQ0PY52-OyuWa1WV6aQNAedZKasgGone8ivHqWA4Z6akvNUVPOrTyTc_fYu-40aGcwIH6Es0kLyDW5hr9Q/s320/IMG_0185.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>OOH LA LA...that bottom fabric is the cloth napkins (linen..soft as a baby's bum..and saturated...amazing colors!) and the top two fabrics are some other fun ones I found at Jo Anne's to make some other fun pillows. The left one is a mustard yellow paisley...and the right one is a bright fun colored Ikat fabric. I love me some Ikat. That is all.<br />
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So because I'm a follower...I used <a href="http://www.prudentbaby.com/2011/03/how-to-sew-zipper-pillow.html">Prudent Baby's zipper pillow tutorial</a> for the napkins. They just happened to be the same size as the pillows that I needed to cover so it was easy peasy to transform them! This tutorial is seriously AWESOME people. I never ever follow patterns. I'm a lazy seamstress and I like to just sit on the floor with my laptop and watch someone else do the tough work. Yup. That's me. Not really...its because patterns scare me. Anyways.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8fvo_IH5f_T0_nQy65wY3NxGhak1Y_ReF5n0CeyYEGiX5hpcK7rUnOIoiRneHB_pD3KpssDOsf2LvrJwB8ZRMP_jMNgTjsg5qZy8qcmHQkLdcjbHI1a9UQO3aBMu0MPmIQiS02qXhUGY/s1600/IMG_0189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8fvo_IH5f_T0_nQy65wY3NxGhak1Y_ReF5n0CeyYEGiX5hpcK7rUnOIoiRneHB_pD3KpssDOsf2LvrJwB8ZRMP_jMNgTjsg5qZy8qcmHQkLdcjbHI1a9UQO3aBMu0MPmIQiS02qXhUGY/s320/IMG_0189.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Tah dah!!!!! I seriously adore how these pop on our dark sofa. They brighten up the room so much. This is gonna be my decor inspiration fabric from now on...or at least for the spring thru summer time period.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif3ihfQbIm1ptakace4BpKal4pK7bHcGBZ6qhlEIl159HdrKAb-YExgxeONFENk-zfjiU_8_Bm38uj5gtpY1u5patmcqYA-MrrQN-xRvKYpDHAFUQCotWBpsdgMSLgwCrXtoYUgqz6Pw/s1600/IMG_0190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif3ihfQbIm1ptakace4BpKal4pK7bHcGBZ6qhlEIl159HdrKAb-YExgxeONFENk-zfjiU_8_Bm38uj5gtpY1u5patmcqYA-MrrQN-xRvKYpDHAFUQCotWBpsdgMSLgwCrXtoYUgqz6Pw/s320/IMG_0190.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Here's my zipper. I adore being able to wash my pillows. Sure a non zipper pillow is fine...but a zipper pillow looks like you bought it. It makes a huge difference in how professional a pillow looks I think.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiLxinsddARc1TAuD44wzshMukK04BF0Nz3u9hkMPdw6QNtv7iW4GfyM15WbPeDcVDu0CsGnX3XFTDYG3mpBAZx_2IFKn2AzwPWRaJYJljSulJLcFIYUEqmts_TQ75CJn4mHkRwoAWBFk/s1600/IMG_0191.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiLxinsddARc1TAuD44wzshMukK04BF0Nz3u9hkMPdw6QNtv7iW4GfyM15WbPeDcVDu0CsGnX3XFTDYG3mpBAZx_2IFKn2AzwPWRaJYJljSulJLcFIYUEqmts_TQ75CJn4mHkRwoAWBFk/s320/IMG_0191.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>That Ikat fabric became this snazzy number. Check out that sham edge. Oh ya that was all me! I didn't put a zipper on this one. I created a sham edge on 3 sides and made a button closure on the far left side with orange vintage buttons.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiRjWP0nDq4OC7uf3lDL1agB3ISO3SsKKjG8uVnUZe7-wHULfTjzQBIYuBmWHmuB1T2sugPTbIPTO-w_etRwxjWnodY9LwTpUx0-RhfWrHFlrI0LbmQtYS2ZJtgmPx0r9LEuYYNCS8SAw/s1600/IMG_0192.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiRjWP0nDq4OC7uf3lDL1agB3ISO3SsKKjG8uVnUZe7-wHULfTjzQBIYuBmWHmuB1T2sugPTbIPTO-w_etRwxjWnodY9LwTpUx0-RhfWrHFlrI0LbmQtYS2ZJtgmPx0r9LEuYYNCS8SAw/s320/IMG_0192.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HwZHvCJVOeoL5u9QYXshDBaxTytsqeIE0OhNO4cIk6Pvll7_8HGhhDJ9Jo0gD7Uhq_qyniI_VXi0KS39rOChtFcEPF4iQ74zO8qaOxo0p01Bjy6qAiGl65VggpZ8GvT57KgXs8IY6Wc/s1600/IMG_0188.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0HwZHvCJVOeoL5u9QYXshDBaxTytsqeIE0OhNO4cIk6Pvll7_8HGhhDJ9Jo0gD7Uhq_qyniI_VXi0KS39rOChtFcEPF4iQ74zO8qaOxo0p01Bjy6qAiGl65VggpZ8GvT57KgXs8IY6Wc/s320/IMG_0188.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I really love how a simple sewing project can transform your space. I seriously love how these came out!<br />
So what have you all been crafting lately?? Anything inspiring? Share with me puhlease! :)<br />
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Sharing at:<br />
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<div align="center"><a href="http://savedbysuzy.blogspot.com" title="Saved by Suzy"><img src="http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd408/lizzygal18/Savedbysuzypartyblogbuttonchevron-1.png" alt="Saved by Suzy" style="border:none;" /></a></div>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-38640152959522347092012-01-16T15:43:00.000-08:002012-01-17T21:24:30.591-08:00Gray bench redoHey everyone! So I just refinished a bench. No big deal...but I wanted to share it with you! I had been looking for a bench for a LONG time. I wanted one to go on one side of my dining table so my kiddos could share it. I wanted NO upholstery...totally wipable and kid proof...and a dark gray-ish black color. Well have any of you tried to find a bench on CL and not pay a fortune? Its almost impossible!!! You could make one yourself for not much money thanks to <a href="http://www.ana-white.com/">The fabulous Ana White. </a><br />
But I wanted one pre-made...SOLID...kinda ugly but good bones...and CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP! Well the other day when I was perusing Craigslist I found my bench. 15 bucks and the perfect size!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhowsIScap3bH9Jg3oTaRl9_aoUOOvHEo_z-A7uKnUHH18JIqQGkGv15-YiwXsEV9SeHb12CKLG8wCodIHQb1qSMCN3syRCW-8qsZi_fr-igm8Eai7ry0A672MPwYpHY2HN2_ejINCm7So/s1600/IMG_0155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhowsIScap3bH9Jg3oTaRl9_aoUOOvHEo_z-A7uKnUHH18JIqQGkGv15-YiwXsEV9SeHb12CKLG8wCodIHQb1qSMCN3syRCW-8qsZi_fr-igm8Eai7ry0A672MPwYpHY2HN2_ejINCm7So/s320/IMG_0155.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Pardon the partially primed top. I was DETERMINED to be a good blogger and take a before pic...and I ALMOST forgot! Phew. Ok so you can see...sturdy...kinda gross looking...good bones! Just what I wanted to be able to make it glam and functional!<br />
So here was my process...<br />
Sand the top thoroughly with the palm sander.<br />
Wipe clean<br />
Prime that sucker<br />
Dry time<br />
One coat of my most favey fave new color...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHrcv4O0EssFuKOLnEZuWC7d0Qw9XzBBXgNqFRWwz4y6TyjYh7pXfzERQGVaDfOginbHiTUDoARuIsRH1dRBzMpH6NH01lqk8abdF1-EVXA41KvZayDc017VuGW5b4B362KL5xGEO4MxQ/s1600/IMG_0159.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHrcv4O0EssFuKOLnEZuWC7d0Qw9XzBBXgNqFRWwz4y6TyjYh7pXfzERQGVaDfOginbHiTUDoARuIsRH1dRBzMpH6NH01lqk8abdF1-EVXA41KvZayDc017VuGW5b4B362KL5xGEO4MxQ/s320/IMG_0159.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Dry....<br />
Another coat of the above super rad color<br />
Dry<br />
SHELAAAAC like crazy a few times with adequate dry times in between of course...I wanted this thing to be tough as nails!<br />
<br />
So after that whole process I decided to let it simmer in the garage and get less fumey before I exposed my kids to it. Now its in the house and we LOVE it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3jnjvK6Huc4r1wdMhNoxFqsSfFD9qE57w1BWuFEnJOPBwKJ8biMnDwXIaIyaiswHmrU2Xy2lu8206_6fi3RdiCz4nECuWI3ae5vrdKARTBF-AcKvBaYtTAEXBc_Ki0BuUBv6AM-n_6AA/s1600/IMG_0180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3jnjvK6Huc4r1wdMhNoxFqsSfFD9qE57w1BWuFEnJOPBwKJ8biMnDwXIaIyaiswHmrU2Xy2lu8206_6fi3RdiCz4nECuWI3ae5vrdKARTBF-AcKvBaYtTAEXBc_Ki0BuUBv6AM-n_6AA/s320/IMG_0180.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8iU9XbRfeqi_7sMWf7Mwx4roz9PLlgAf3aoHbhz47FI_x5L8W78HMXwTt0C63e2WHCILi9htlDxheYKZ75EqFL7FAxNAYxrNsMsXKEY8ojlSG4TkAWgNrFDtcKWDneJdyL3Dz43vhe_A/s1600/IMG_0181.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8iU9XbRfeqi_7sMWf7Mwx4roz9PLlgAf3aoHbhz47FI_x5L8W78HMXwTt0C63e2WHCILi9htlDxheYKZ75EqFL7FAxNAYxrNsMsXKEY8ojlSG4TkAWgNrFDtcKWDneJdyL3Dz43vhe_A/s320/IMG_0181.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimWqnFUqKFw92HdnDZjAxLton6wolDVAdkCn-RbYzojVDUKjftA5waj2Ow1DX1EuDLYe72-WYD8gI5PmKxVbXRhe4fLaPt0MQBrpqHUUYevbvb7TnkrZaaXh_IRZKmRK_lhGwBKE6_hXA/s1600/IMG_0182.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimWqnFUqKFw92HdnDZjAxLton6wolDVAdkCn-RbYzojVDUKjftA5waj2Ow1DX1EuDLYe72-WYD8gI5PmKxVbXRhe4fLaPt0MQBrpqHUUYevbvb7TnkrZaaXh_IRZKmRK_lhGwBKE6_hXA/s320/IMG_0182.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Oooh....Aaaaaah! What is it about a bench with a shiny top that just makes my heart sing? I adore this thing...such an easy makeover but so practical for our family and all those sticky fingers! Love you guys! Hope you have an awesome week!!!<br />
<br />
Linking up with my fellow partiers:<br />
<a border="0" href="http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r87/mmoo1978/LindaBtn.png" /></a><br />
<a href="http://www.domestically-speaking.com/ " target="_blank"><img src="http://i1232.photobucket.com/albums/ff368/domesticallyspeaking/popp_edited-1.gif" alt="DomesticallySpeaking" width="125" height="125" /></a><br />
<a href="http://primitiveandproper.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i933.photobucket.com/albums/ad174/tatahmar/CASSIE%20BUSTAMANTE/btt.jpg?t=1286337961" /></a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-12899061652423348772012-01-13T16:49:00.000-08:002012-01-13T19:18:59.052-08:00Laundry room Make-Over...the reveal!!Hey People! So in <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2012/01/laundry-room-make-over.html">This post</a> I told you about my extremely icky laundry room. We moved into this house 5 and a half months ago and I just couldn't take it anymore!! I showed you guys the vibe I was going for with this space. Bright. Cheery. Fun. Those were things that I felt this room needed. Its small and a small room needs some punch sometimes! So here we go....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnP9ubLFLCz7Jge9zZCbFi8P4nPbRfRwWH5tmY2k2mCUtGHrn3YSJXuY9VaeMgRhyUsgkr-wtdugrfwgCdk9BpTNcSg-3RHzPYpT9RXVewp0yTZXYy3XrycPPMmLkb6CagsNFjY9mcDRI/s1600/IMG_0169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnP9ubLFLCz7Jge9zZCbFi8P4nPbRfRwWH5tmY2k2mCUtGHrn3YSJXuY9VaeMgRhyUsgkr-wtdugrfwgCdk9BpTNcSg-3RHzPYpT9RXVewp0yTZXYy3XrycPPMmLkb6CagsNFjY9mcDRI/s320/IMG_0169.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> I was originally going to do horizontal stripes in here. I had seen SO many adorable rooms with horizontal stripes and I just loved the look. But I had an...ahem...mishap when I decided to just jump right into the project and start taping without painting my base color first. Well lets just say I was VERY meticulous taping off those stripes. They were even spacing...level...and they looked perfect! After I got the whole room taped (4 hours approx) I realized that I should've made it easy on myself and painted the turquoise on first. ***Slaps forehead in disgust!*** I shed a few tears...violently ripped off my tape...and started painting. So needless to say I didn't have enough energy or tape to redo the horizontal stripes. I did vertical instead and I love the way it turned out!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3X91T6lyUqxJEw1zAgvF5h2zUDuxfiRyT9ait2dsIC-IkYYw4ZZjlEpzIU03F6hjKRRa1LRULcItF_UcZLIvLm81kt4y2g4I9Qg1CtBNe_RFF_Yi-zQnpu4s0xm-lmj63eRlQdKVmNAE/s1600/IMG_0163.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3X91T6lyUqxJEw1zAgvF5h2zUDuxfiRyT9ait2dsIC-IkYYw4ZZjlEpzIU03F6hjKRRa1LRULcItF_UcZLIvLm81kt4y2g4I9Qg1CtBNe_RFF_Yi-zQnpu4s0xm-lmj63eRlQdKVmNAE/s320/IMG_0163.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Pallet board with hooks attached. Great for holding hangers and drying my un-mentionables! :) Oh and towels...those too!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEUJvFCBxDndjPSKjNXBUq5fu29hI9JCpdvrFFnl71OboIWJz7oPC7kQtXJNtK1ZxPlnVGKoIGfjVkNanvu965dmFJhtW_qBunJ8QwfncNU9V6F7cgRVRaMYWDC6oZGwYSIDiv72LZbU/s1600/IMG_0164.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSEUJvFCBxDndjPSKjNXBUq5fu29hI9JCpdvrFFnl71OboIWJz7oPC7kQtXJNtK1ZxPlnVGKoIGfjVkNanvu965dmFJhtW_qBunJ8QwfncNU9V6F7cgRVRaMYWDC6oZGwYSIDiv72LZbU/s320/IMG_0164.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>AWESOME-SAUCE rack that I've had for years...from Ikea. Never thought of using it in the laundry room but was super STOKED to discover that not only does it fit perfectly on this wall...it holds 4 laundry basket while only taking up a small amount of space. WINNING! It also matches my stripes. Added bonus! (note to self...buy matching laundry baskets)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEe88nL95AdcXsniqXdEkzyEtUxXailz0-BlaPqqtsJgTEKMAVGBQgoQ_wo4i9HUgT_A6H-FyHlDCWQ67nlnKPD9HLM43j6DzDEdhkj94Zwt2MSsZlZwrZ97vlQCDk6q3EdaQFd5Hv7U8/s1600/IMG_0165.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEe88nL95AdcXsniqXdEkzyEtUxXailz0-BlaPqqtsJgTEKMAVGBQgoQ_wo4i9HUgT_A6H-FyHlDCWQ67nlnKPD9HLM43j6DzDEdhkj94Zwt2MSsZlZwrZ97vlQCDk6q3EdaQFd5Hv7U8/s320/IMG_0165.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Crib side rail drying rack. I'll let that last part sink in for a minute....<br />
So have any of you stopped using those potentially harmful drop side cribs...but couldn't bare the idea of throwing it away so you've further jammed your garage full of yet another "sentimental baby object". Well clear out space in your garage and dry your clothes at the same time! I simply attached some heavy duty hooks into the ceiling studs...got some silver chain cut in 4 equal 2 ft lengths at Home Depot...and hung that baby from the ceiling! It works seriously awesome! I hang all my hubby's work dress shirts...keeps me from having to iron them. Ya...i don't like to iron...you probably don't either so make this drying rack and save yourself some time!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwenADjM3RU4Nv14O4x0I_Y5biE1EWTIYaxOs0-fGzwIWaLjtPYUpeZAuCp8ebwMzLwCUuGB1yYIKioqF4LRb1XeYCqy5WxdgPnttwVR4vKCwhCqr0o77x5zTwIVmNMJUJKYyQbMKZVyg/s1600/IMG_0166.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwenADjM3RU4Nv14O4x0I_Y5biE1EWTIYaxOs0-fGzwIWaLjtPYUpeZAuCp8ebwMzLwCUuGB1yYIKioqF4LRb1XeYCqy5WxdgPnttwVR4vKCwhCqr0o77x5zTwIVmNMJUJKYyQbMKZVyg/s320/IMG_0166.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>This is an old chippy entertainment center....ya know...when tv's were small and could fit on top of one of these. This thing has had MANY jobs in our house. Shoe rack. Side table. Computer cart. And now laundry organizer and trash can holder! Its a jack of all trades and I love its rustic look! Added a cute cloth box from Target (my second home) to the top for all the odds and ends that end up in the laundry room.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbTStYxJAhuqPuwuJK4UOFEgtjGqCRSEriGQXS5myqbcdijTruim_CzV7odDzU-IKGqvjwha-q1Ga93hZvWAGx07mVafTfV7xdDXX5Kp0Om4V_yKAw5-MMI1cyDMufMMRvZ17N0iix6tI/s1600/IMG_0167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbTStYxJAhuqPuwuJK4UOFEgtjGqCRSEriGQXS5myqbcdijTruim_CzV7odDzU-IKGqvjwha-q1Ga93hZvWAGx07mVafTfV7xdDXX5Kp0Om4V_yKAw5-MMI1cyDMufMMRvZ17N0iix6tI/s320/IMG_0167.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>I made this sign in Microsoft Word and printed it out...stuck it in this old frame and VOILA...laundry art! Also my little jade plant loves this room! Lots of light all day!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVjuad9_7mb4kGR_8QOaA6nx9DmaU575iU-M9x7pVj8pYC4U-kbBTU2Dgi2LCMBv5GYz9htJvtJgvOdm36luYoT2gDhtFL_9SUK3JeEdHicxS98UeYuINkXk6fhk8ZdY9RzxucrlKkMrE/s1600/IMG_0171.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVjuad9_7mb4kGR_8QOaA6nx9DmaU575iU-M9x7pVj8pYC4U-kbBTU2Dgi2LCMBv5GYz9htJvtJgvOdm36luYoT2gDhtFL_9SUK3JeEdHicxS98UeYuINkXk6fhk8ZdY9RzxucrlKkMrE/s320/IMG_0171.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Cheap pine board that I painted white...super sturdy and big. Love all the storage it brought to the room!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMFB-gLp-BoIc6EpCMzCU9CVvxye4QQ7-yA-bA0Uc0_u4xN7Kr3cs_Vvp9gRNa2tDrqCwhFWUB5UZDjVMvja_cPqKjPEWZZsJuqyCcK2aOF63pkwSEEJYhg4pKJ0RWphM1AZxL5zarjQ/s1600/IMG_0170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMFB-gLp-BoIc6EpCMzCU9CVvxye4QQ7-yA-bA0Uc0_u4xN7Kr3cs_Vvp9gRNa2tDrqCwhFWUB5UZDjVMvja_cPqKjPEWZZsJuqyCcK2aOF63pkwSEEJYhg4pKJ0RWphM1AZxL5zarjQ/s320/IMG_0170.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>See that...over on the left side? That's my faux roman shade! I already had this cute fabric and it fit the room perfectly! I like to wing it so I made this roman shade in about 10 mins and tied up each end with jute twine. Its also attached to the wall above the windows with upholstery tacks! Cheap and cute!<br />
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That's it. Its done. I have several bruises and my sciatica flared up from all the bending...crouching behind the washer and dryer...etc. but I'm SO glad I did it. LOVE this space. Laundry is more fun now!<br />
<br />
Sharing at the following fab parties:<br />
<center><a href="http://funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="Funky Junk's Sat Nite Special" src="http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b243/signmakergirl/smallsns.jpg" /></a></center>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-33523115891940947232012-01-10T09:14:00.000-08:002012-01-10T09:14:43.700-08:00Laundry room make-overHey people! I wanted to share a little....er....not so little laundry room makeover that I'm doing. When we moved into our house in California we were STOKED to find out that we had a laundry ROOM (an actual <i>room) </i>upstairs near the bedrooms. It had a door and everything! (we've always had the laundry closet...or the garage laundry set up). We love the convenience of it but HATED the way the laundry room looked. The walls were stark white and stained and dusty...and the landlord had started to paint the room and then ran out of time. He painted one wall DARK brown...and he didn't do a good job...i mean seriously it looked like a 2 year old went at the walls with their hands! eww. (wish I had a before pic to insert right here...hangs head in shame...BAD blogger!!) Anyways, I scoured Pinterest for inspiration pics. I wanted something FUN...since its a small room I wanted it to have a lot of punch and interest. I have a pretty decent collection of fun Oops paints that I planned to use...one of which is a fun turquoise. Well one day I was on Pinterest and found this picture....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/244742560969615943_XENSy9vW_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/244742560969615943_XENSy9vW_c.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>It was super cute...didn't require any demolition...and was fun. Perfect!<br />
Well yesterday was painting day. After lugging my kiddos to Home Depot for some supplies I came home...parked those kiddos in front of Yo Gabba Gabba (thank God for educational TV sometimes)<br />
and got started taping. Well I was meticulous with my taping..took my time (a total of 4 hours off and on)...and made sure my lines were not only level...but even with the others...equal spacing...etc. After I got all my lines taped I grabbed my paint and got ready to start...realizing that I should have painted my BASE COLOR FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!! GRRRRRRRRR! 4 hours wasted. Now I could have painted the first set of lines...and then waited...and then retaped and painted the second section...but that would have been WAY more taping than I wanted to do...and after shedding a few tears....I violently ripped down all my tape and started painting my base color...A Martha Stewart turquoise color. Well after two coats of that and taking care of kiddos...making dinner (which was pb/j last night since I could barely lift my arms by that point) it was 11pm. I taped off all my stripes again...which I decided to do vertical this time since its easier. I got through 3 cream stripes and could barely move I was so tired. So I'm tackling the rest of the project today and hoping that I can get it finished and put the room back together. Here's a pic of a GREAT bathroom with veritcal stripes...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/263882859385841909_lJDnwEUU_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/263882859385841909_lJDnwEUU_c.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>So pretty huh? Wish I had that tile...and that dormer...that rustic shelf unit would be nice too. Anyways....so I will share my dramatic reveal "hopefully" today!!! Have a fabulous day friends!!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-61649748372222719372012-01-03T15:26:00.000-08:002012-01-12T21:30:27.774-08:00Green Hutch with hot legs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDAhp66ijNusnFFFW8kr4kw-bp_gwYbrZiF8gtqkxODefxzlpAJDgF-V4ohRSRLyjv732fnVMAjWH8yOV20RI9TJY_1lF95yIgOIiGWxJo2s0qPlcQb3lFD_rkKn6SlkE8HA0fAUdpMw0/s1600/IMG_0124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDAhp66ijNusnFFFW8kr4kw-bp_gwYbrZiF8gtqkxODefxzlpAJDgF-V4ohRSRLyjv732fnVMAjWH8yOV20RI9TJY_1lF95yIgOIiGWxJo2s0qPlcQb3lFD_rkKn6SlkE8HA0fAUdpMw0/s320/IMG_0124.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Hey guys! I posted <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2011/08/settling-in-and-recent-re-do.html">this post</a> a while back about a hutch that I got for free from my friend. She didn't like it, wanted it gone, and I GLADLY took it off her hands. Swoon..I was in love with the spindly legs and curved front...and those knobs. to.die.for. Well I lived with it in its birdseye maple-ness for several months before I just couldn't stand it anymore and I HAD to paint it! I used a combo of two pints of oops paint that I had in my garage. I wanted a kind of bright mint green and I think I achieved my goal! I went completely against my normal protocol on this piece. I didn't sand it AT ALL. Didn't prime it either! GASP. I also didn't strip it to remove the wax. I wanted to get it painted while my kids napped and I was trying to be <i>quiet</i>...so I mixed the paint...realized I dug the color...and slapped it on this sucker! I LOVE how it turned out. The color is bright but goes so well in the room! Its amazing how much more I love this piece now. Its a statement maker...that's for sure! What do ya'll think?<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Linking up with the following fab parties:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a href="http://primitiveandproper.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i933.photobucket.com/albums/ad174/tatahmar/CASSIE%20BUSTAMANTE/btt.jpg?t=1286337961" /></a><br />
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<center><a href="http://creatingahouseofgrace.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="HOG" src="http://i684.photobucket.com/albums/vv204/bonniejane03/HOUSEOFGRACEBUTTON-1-2.jpg" /></a></center><br />
<a href="http://www.missmustardseed.blogspot.com" onclick="javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outbound-widget','http://www.missmustardseed.blogspot.com']);"><img alt="Furniture Feature Fridays" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Qrx9aV-dHZVdb-bNejUJIEokm34DWsF7pKrWW3Jvyumyh0P_8_GU1zQUI563UY1kXeGhy8jdNCJKfqg3FdLsGcC-RUW26iG4wtelMlWAy62FfXIknigYSpepqxkat8bFSlPrjAKiukNQ/s1600/fffbutton2.jpg" /></a><br />
<center><a href="http://jaimelyn11.blogspot.com"><img src="http://i1086.photobucket.com/albums/j449/jaimelyn11/button4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" /></a></center><br />
<div align="center"><a href="http://savedbysuzy.blogspot.com" title="Saved by Suzy"><img src="http://i1218.photobucket.com/albums/dd408/lizzygal18/Savedbysuzypartyblogbuttonchevron-1.png" alt="Saved by Suzy" style="border:none;" /></a></div><a href="http://www.shabbynest.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="The Shabby Nest" src="http://i1087.photobucket.com/albums/j480/theshabbynest/Shabby%20Nest%20Blog%205-2011/ShabbyNest-GrabButton.png" /></a><br />
<div align="center"><a href="http://chiconashoestringdecorating.blogspot.com/" title="Chic on a Shoestring Decorating"><img src="http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/ae163/kstrieg/flaunt_it_friday_button.jpg" alt="Chic on a Shoestring Decorating" style="border:none;" /></a></div><a href="http://myrepurposedlife.blogspot.com/search/label/catch-as-catch-can" target="_blank"><img src="http://i940.photobucket.com/albums/ad249/MyRepurposedLife/catchascatchcan_1502.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket" /></a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-68976349218219766492012-01-02T20:57:00.000-08:002012-01-30T18:54:59.250-08:00My healing....Hey everyone! Sorry I've been MIA lately. Christmas, family in town, general craziness with two toddlers, lack of inspiration, etc. I hope you all had a great Christmas...<br />
Ok so I've been meaning to write this post for a while but needed to not only be inspired...but also have time to think back....majorly hard for a tired Mama!<br />
A while back I wrote <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-hurt.html">This post</a>...that was a tough post for me to write. I'd never been so transparent on my blog...showing my scars and wounds for the world to read. I am on a mission though...a mission to be the memory keeper for my family. To record my most precious and painful moments so that I never EVER forget them...even the bad and painful moments were invaluable lessons. If you want to have the full story then please read pt <a href="http://fabulouslyflawedhome.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-hurt.html">1</a> before reading this....ready? ok...<br />
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The night I met Ron....<br />
I had broken up from my long term, on again off again boyfriend a week before and I wanted to go out! A friend of mine offered to take me out to play pool and blow off steam. I got off work, hurried home to change clothes, and met my friend Sarah in downtown Portland. Sarah had a friend with her...a guy friend that was visiting from college. He was nice and we all had fun together. About half way through our evening, and while walking from one bar to the next, The guy friend called his friend Ron and asked him to come meet up with us. He leaned over, while on the phone with this guy and told me, Hey you'll like him...I want you guys to meet. I gave him a rude and annoyed look. The LAST thing I wanted or needed was to meet a guy or be set up. I wanted NOTHING to do with men for a LONG time. I had been hurt badly by my ex and really needed to heal. Rather than saying this to him I just smiled and said ok. (I am a people pleaser at heart and can never hurt people's feelings). We were at a different bar...it was packed...smoky...loud...people were everywhere...and Sarah's guy friend leaned over and said...Oh hey there's my friend! I looked toward the door and saw him....<br />
He was cute!! He had dark shaggy surfer hair, a skate t shirt, shorts, and flip flops on, and a big smile on his face. We were introduced and I was immediately drawn to him. The weirdest thing was that I didn't feel scared, or apprehensive, or guarded at all. I felt at ease, and excited to get to know him. We felt an instant connection. He was super nice, easy to talk to, laid back. He invited all of us to go back to his house to hang out so we all left. Sarah and her guy friend had rode together and they agreed to follow me, as I followed Ron. When we got to his house I went inside with him and we waited for Sarah and her friend to get there....they never showed. They stood us up on purpose so we could get to know each other! We spent the next 6 hours talking nonstop. Family, God, School...no subject was off limits and we were excited to learn as much as we could about each other. I left his house as the sun was coming up but I was not tired. I felt electricity...a feeling I had never felt before. I called my Mom on my way home and woke her up. I told her I met the guy I was going to marry...<br />
Obviously she was terrified for me considering I'd ended a bad relationship one week prior. She was concerned that Ron was a rebound but that couldn't have been farther from the truth. God had truly designed this...from start to finish he had aligned our paths so that we would meet that night.<br />
<br />
When I met Ron he wasn't currently living in Oregon. He had been living in Orlando Florida and training with a Wakeboard coach (he was a semi-pro sponsored wakeboarder...hence the shaggy hair lol) and was only in Oregon to visit his family for a couple weeks. I didn't know that he was going to leave in a couple weeks...he didn't tell me until I was already majorly falling for him. We spent every day together...with the exception of when I was working. We spent every night talking in person or on the phone. I was truly in love with him. It only took a couple weeks and I couldn't imagine us ever being apart. I vividly remember one night, as I was on the phone with him after leaving his house (he used to call me as soon as I left and we would talk on my whole drive home) and he told me he was leaving. He had to go back, to finish his training, to pursue this career. I was CRUSHED. I felt an ache so deep I could barely stand it. How could things work if we lived on opposite sides of the country?? I got home...sat in my car crying on the phone with him for an hour...and then he said something that I'll never forget...he said, Hey do you want to get breakfast? (We had spent the whole night talking, the whole drive home talking and crying, and it was now 5:30 am and he was asking me if I wanted to get breakfast?) Heck yes I do! We met at a little restaurant near my house and while we were eating he leaned over...with the hood of his sweatshirt up...and kissed me. I knew he was the guy God had planned for me....and he knew it too.<br />
<br />
He left for Florida a few days later...<br />
<br />
And came back! :) He couldn't be away from me and I couldn't be away from him!<br />
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We got engaged one year later and married a year after that! We've been married for going on 7 years now and I can truly say that God makes things happen for a reason. If I hadn't broken up with that ex when I did I would have never been out with my friend that night...I would have never met Ron and my life would not be what it is today! I am eternally thankful to God for his crazy amazing plans. I would not trade my husband for the world!!Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-28922735304203391472011-11-17T21:39:00.000-08:002011-11-17T21:39:02.657-08:00Lyla lately...Lyla turned 16 months old yesterday!<br />
(moment of silence for my Mama heart)<br />
My precious girl went from this....<br />
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<b>To THIS</b><br />
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I can.not.believe my baby is that old already! She's growing like a weed...finally sprouting some hair...talking LIKE CRAZY (see the list of words below)...eats more than her 3 year old brother....and is just an amazingly happy girl! I am crazy in love with her! I melt every day! She has this amazingly spunky yet mellow spirit and she makes her parents very proud!<br />
Ok so Lyla has gotten super verbal lately. She's practicing saying lots of words that we say. I tried to do baby sign language with her...Liam was a whiz at it and still uses the signs a lot to this day...but she never was interested. I tried and tried...and the only one I could get her to do was "all done". Hey I'm ok with that. I guess I should just go ahead and get used to the fact that she does everything on her own time. She didn't crawl until she was 11 months...didn't get her first tooth until she was 10.5 months...but she started walking at a year and hasn't slowed down since! Her current words are : Mama, Dada, Wawa (water), Cheese (when I tell her to say please she says cheese lol), No more (said with her index finger pointing at the offending subject...usually her brother or our dog), Momeeee (usually she squeals this VERY loudly when she's tired or hungry), Top it (stop it), um...i think that's it. She "talks" ALL.DAY.LONG...but it is this gurgly baby talk that is so stinking adorable and I need to record her talking so I can always remember it.<br />
Liam and Lyla are becoming closer and closer as they get older. Liam loves Lyla...he plays with her and they have a nightly scream-a-thon...which is where they chase each other and run around the house screaming at the top of their lungs and laughing! They are so cute together doing it that I don't even mind. They are bonding!!<br />
This motherhood thing...it is an amazing, crazy, stressful, busy, meaningful, love-filled journey that I wouldn't trade for ANYTHING! <br />
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<span id="goog_1569430871"></span><span id="goog_1569430872"></span>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-68582960480887305342011-11-03T11:01:00.000-07:002011-11-03T11:16:36.811-07:00My Pinterest addiction has reached obsessive proportions!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>So...I'm sure you guys have heard about <a href="http://pinterest.com/">Pinterest</a>. If not...let me enlighten you. Its only THE.BEST.THING.EVER! Have you ever seen something amazing online? Like...I have to save this somewhere so I don't forget about it...so let me copy paste this website into a file on my computer that's getting bigger by the day. Well you don't have to do that anymore! You can actually save the idea...WITH A PICTURE...and the address that it came from ALL IN ONE PLACE! Boooyah! It rocks. Seriously. You can compile a huge database of all your favorite ideas, recipes, DIY projects, places you want to visit, photos, etc. There are literally billions of ideas out there and you could save them all to remember for later! Pinterest should've been invented years ago. It totally changed the way I research projects too! Now instead of going to google all the time I go to Pinterest!<br />
So I'm sure after I've gushed and rambled about how great it is you're all gonna want to get on there right? Well you need an invite to join. If you would like one you can request it from Pinterest or you can leave me your email address and I'll send you one right away! Leave it in the comments section and I'll hook you up! Here are some of my FAVEY FAVE ideas and goodies from my Pinterest account...links to all these fab projects found at the bottom....<br />
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I could've shown you about 500 other pics but that would've been a REALLY long post! Please check it out! It'll have you hooked! Remember to leave me your email address and I'll send you over an invite if you are interested!! I hope you all have a fabulous weekend! Can you believe its November already? Crrraaazy!<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/204626345/">Ugly lamp covered in rope</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/16432762/">Shelf made from old crates</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/213262351/">Aged paint technique with soap</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/135185293/">Yarn wrapped letters tutorial</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/381938565/">Fabulous inspiration room</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/248380489/">Heavenly Frye boots. SWOON!</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/143082467/">Fab Fall Outfit</a><br />
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/430140582/">Hanging planters as toy storage...or fruit storage...or hair dryer/flat iron storage...The possibilities are endless!!!</a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-4972950553850489422011-09-29T15:43:00.000-07:002012-01-12T16:45:45.001-08:00My hurt<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I have wanted to share my story for a while but didn't know how. How do you share the deepest details and hurts that you have experienced? How do you streamline all of that into something that's readible and makes sense when its all just a huge ball of pain inside of you? I'm just going to start....I hope I don't lose you. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">***takes deep breath***</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I was raised in a small town on the Oregon Coast. I am the youngest and have one brother who is 8 years older than me. My Dad was in the Navy when my parents were first married and they did quite a bit of traveling, so they waited a while before starting a family. When my Mom finally told my Dad that she wanted to have a baby, my Dad's response was no. He didn't want kids now...sure he did when they first got married but now he didn't. No kids. My Mom was understandably upset and angry. She walked out on him and was gone for about a week..staying on her parents couch</span>. <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">She agreed to come home if my Dad would change his mind and start a family. He agreed and they had my brother. He loved my brother and embraced being a father. They went fishing, played sports, and really had a tight bond. After my brother was about 6 my Mom wanted to have another child. She approached my Dad again about it and my dad emphatically said no. There would be no more kids. He was done. My Mom left again...this time for about 6 months. She moved to the city, got a job and an apartment and prepared to raise my brother by herself if my Dad wasn't willing to be sensitive to how badly she wanted another baby. My Dad was basically parked on my Mom's doorstep during that time begging her to come home. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">She finally agreed after my Dad agreed to another baby. He made it clear that<b> he didn't really want this baby but was doing it for her.</b> That's when I entered the picture. As most of you can probably guess by now I have had some issues from that situation. I have known since I was a child that my Dad didn't want me. I don't know how I found out but I've known for a long time. As a result of this knowledge my Dad and I have always had a strange relationship. I have never felt close to him. In the beginning I tried really hard to win his approval..which was always nearly impossible. I played the sports that he wanted me to play so that he would spend time with me...although all the time that he did spend playing sports with me was spent with him instructing me on how to do things differently...not being proud of me. I spent most of my childhood trying in vain to win his affection and approval. I never felt like he loved me...although he told me he did. He honestly just didn't know how to relate to me. He thought if he was hard on me it would show that he cared...or if he criticized my sports that he was interested. A 10 year old girl doesn't see things that way though...they feel <b>unloved</b> and that their Daddy isn't proud of them. I grew up being very close to my Mom. She was everything that my Dad wasn't. Nurturing, caring, patient, and gave me unconditional love. She filled in the gaps in my heart. My Dad was very emotionally abusive to my mother. He never hit her or was violent with her but he told her on a fairly regular basis that she was stupid, etc. He would not let her have any say in how things went in our family. All the vacations were where my Dad wanted to go, the budget was done by him, the bills were paid by him, he decided EVERYTHING. He was extremely controlling and my Mom was a passive peacemaker. Not a good combo. I vividly remember an occasion when my Mom decided to invest in something similar to a 401k through her work (she was working part time while I was in school) without consulting my Dad. I came home just before dinner from playing at my neighbors house. I saw my brother sitting at the end of our driveway on our fence. He looked stressed. I climbed up next to him and listened...I could hear my Dad screaming at my Mom all the way out on the fence (we had a VERY long driveway and very good insulation in our house). My brother eventually had to get involved in that argument so my Dad wouldn't be violent towards my Mom. My Mom left my Dad when I was 14. They had been married for 30 years. My brother was in college and out of the house and I moved with my Mom from our small town to a big city. I started over. New friends, new house. I was damaged from so many years with an unloving and emotionally abusive father and didn't know where I fit. I carried that feeling with me all through high school and in to college. I tried to overcompensate for my pain by being outgoing, bubbly, happy ALL the time (at least on the outside). I made friends easily and kept myself very busy. I fell in love for the first time when I was in college. He was dark haired, brooding, had a major chip on his shoulder, and was pretty moody (sound familiar? Ya he was pretty much exactly like my Dad). We were serious almost instantly! He became emotionally abusive towards me pretty gradually. He would occasionally say things that were rude or very insensitive but follow them up with a couple good things to keep me from getting too hurt. It got worse...and worse. We were together off and on for about 3 years and whatever sense of self worth I had before that relationship started had dissolved completely by the end of it. He lied to me all the time. Always kept me guessing. I was a Christian and loved the Lord...went to church regularly before him and for my whole childhood. While in the relationship I stopped going to church and stopped praying. I disconnected from all my Christian friends and replaced them with partying friends. The only way I can describe it is that <b>I lost myself</b>. After I finally broke up with him I couldn't believe how far I had fallen. I was a miserable waif of a human being. I honestly didn't believe that I deserved better...I just knew I couldn't take any more! I changed my phone number so he couldn't contact me and I could make a clean break!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">My family helped me heal and I got back into church. I knew that God loved me and wanted me to have more. More love. More consistency. More fellowship with believers. More time with Him. I went out with a friend about a week after the breakup and met a really amazing guy. That guy would end up changing my life and making me a mother!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">To be continued.... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Linking up with <a href="http://www.thewiegands.com/2012/01/addison.html">On my heart @ The Wiegand's</a> </span>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7881435607464069623.post-71186067247258467872011-09-27T10:41:00.000-07:002011-09-27T11:10:45.603-07:00Burlap Fall banner and a harvest mantleHey guys! I got a little creative yesterday...you know...instead of cleaning my house or doing the 12 loads of laundry that needed to be washed. Sometimes the mood just strikes and you have to give in! ;) I wanted a Fall mantle that wasn't too theme-y or busy. I wanted to work with what I have and "shop the house" for the pieces to decorate with. Isn't it amazing how things that you already have can be re-invented to make something totally new? Love that! So I have a few things that always live on my mantle. I have a faux topiary in a white antiqued urn, the mirror on the wall, and a vintage cursive handwriting sheet from a college in my hometown. I wanted to add in other things that went with the season but would work with what I already had going on up there. So here's what I came up with...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmX2HRsceAWnBeKcWFx5yB2RUYWIQSyU-13XEc3B2sRRmk_4JySQRG7hj_TQuBwVSJ2i-rGt0KCoF0wp8FkIZ3SzWKqZJqC8CTub-Rrd6KKSO5KWT_0IvcogsiWHvYXGAYtvfcFSUeeOE/s1600/IMG_2047.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmX2HRsceAWnBeKcWFx5yB2RUYWIQSyU-13XEc3B2sRRmk_4JySQRG7hj_TQuBwVSJ2i-rGt0KCoF0wp8FkIZ3SzWKqZJqC8CTub-Rrd6KKSO5KWT_0IvcogsiWHvYXGAYtvfcFSUeeOE/s400/IMG_2047.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>I added some small pinched flowers all over the topiary in both orange and burlap...looks a little funky from that angle but its cute in person..promise! :) I also added a cream candle in a large amber glass pedestal vase, I took a small orange dish that I made in high school ceramics class and put a large pinecone in it. I added an old book that I plan on putting something on top of...any ideas? I also added my mod podged jute vase project from a year ago with some pom-pas grass from my yard. Oh and of course my new burlap Fall banner that I made yesterday! You too can make one! Sooo simple....here's what you need...<br />
Burlap-Cut into triangles that are roughly the same size. One triangle for each letter.<br />
Acrylic paint/small paint brush-Black for me so its easy to see but orange or white would've been really cute too!<br />
Your computer- I printed out the word Fall in a font I liked<br />
Mod podge-I used matte<br />
Twine for hanging<br />
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Cut out your triangles of burlap first. If the burlap is wrinkly you can rinse it with water and smooth out the fibers and stretch it lightly when its wet. This will remove the wrinkles to give you an even surface to paint on but it also causes the edges to fray a little and looks really cute when dry.<br />
Once your triangles are dry you want to cut two slits in each one to feed your twine through. The slits need to be parallel and near the wide edge so the point is hanging down.<br />
Next sketch your letter on your triangle. You could use the light trick and put your paper behind your burlap but I decided to wing it. I'm crazy like that! I used a plain black sharpie to sketch it with because my paint was black and I wanted it to blend.<br />
Fill in your sketched letters with acrylic paint and let dry.<br />
Apply a layer of mod podge on one side of each triangle and let dry. Once dry do the same thing to the other side and let dry. This will prevent your burlap from fraying and give the triangles a stiffer and more obvious shape.<br />
Feed your twine through your new triangles and hang! I put mine over the mirror and I love it there but it'd be super cute in a doorway or on your porch outside (keep it out of the rain though). I hope you all try this...super easy and fun!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUrajagXgYfgjTKvIlJ6PeoHmd_XGz_R2kHI3NDu6BL5UFbymMhHlvlXQDuxICxgPRqUClyw30Z59jr-Fl6rp1FTt-WkbYEtDYUXDRnB8hQexBSo8yLuF9szHjjgkqkXd0z0bBw6r0Hjk/s1600/IMG_2049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUrajagXgYfgjTKvIlJ6PeoHmd_XGz_R2kHI3NDu6BL5UFbymMhHlvlXQDuxICxgPRqUClyw30Z59jr-Fl6rp1FTt-WkbYEtDYUXDRnB8hQexBSo8yLuF9szHjjgkqkXd0z0bBw6r0Hjk/s400/IMG_2049.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvGk11Af_9UTRFjgEN0WgXQa8bCLbA8Rx6TpLWIXkWPTcvH4LB-kZb-VIqm_GoWHHiNR7F2QJ2g0KBOWw8WcY7sfLQvnN3T-QWEE3Q3-mylqo8uH-CIZOTn4Occmjsy2aIXnQKQ7MJ_70/s1600/IMG_2050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvGk11Af_9UTRFjgEN0WgXQa8bCLbA8Rx6TpLWIXkWPTcvH4LB-kZb-VIqm_GoWHHiNR7F2QJ2g0KBOWw8WcY7sfLQvnN3T-QWEE3Q3-mylqo8uH-CIZOTn4Occmjsy2aIXnQKQ7MJ_70/s400/IMG_2050.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>Have a great week!!<br />
<br />
Linking up with...<br />
<a href="http://mommahenscoop.com/?page_id=952">Whatever Wednesday at Mommahenscoop</a><br />
<a href="http://abowlfulloflemons.blogspot.com/">One project at a time @A bowl full of lemons</a><br />
<a href="http://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/">Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @Coastal Charm</a><br />
<a href="http://typeadecorating.blogspot.com/">Anything goes party@Type A Decorating</a>Kelseyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06200120123017047498noreply@blogger.com3