Brighten up

Hey 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.

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 Place Mat pillow from many moons ago?
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!
I stumbled across their table linen area and my eyes fell upon the most gorgeous cloth napkins to ever be created!

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.

So because I'm a follower...I used Prudent Baby's zipper pillow tutorial 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.

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.

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.

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.

I really love how a simple sewing project can transform your space. I seriously love how these came out!
So what have you all been crafting lately?? Anything inspiring? Share with me puhlease! :)


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Gray bench redo

Hey 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 The fabulous Ana White. 
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!

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!
So here was my process...
Sand the top thoroughly with the palm sander.
Wipe clean
Prime that sucker
Dry time
One coat of my most favey fave new color...

Dry....
Another coat of the above super rad color
Dry
SHELAAAAC like crazy a few times with adequate dry times in between of course...I wanted this thing to be tough as nails!

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.

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!!!

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Burlap Fall banner and a harvest mantle

Hey 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...

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...
Burlap-Cut into triangles that are roughly the same size. One triangle for each letter.
Acrylic paint/small paint brush-Black for me so its easy to see but orange or white would've been really cute too!
Your computer- I printed out the word Fall in a font I liked
Mod podge-I used matte
Twine for hanging

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.
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.
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.
Fill in your sketched letters with acrylic paint and let dry.
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.
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!

Have a great week!!

Linking up with...
Whatever Wednesday at Mommahenscoop
One project at a time @A bowl full of lemons
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @Coastal Charm
Anything goes party@Type A Decorating

Refinishing a Mid Century Modern dresser part 2

Hey there! Sorry this post is slightly delayed. I had major issues with this beast of a dresser but PHEW its done now! Ok so in part one of this journey I showed you guys the demolition process of this re-do...the gritty...not pretty...but VERY necessary steps to getting this dresser ready to be painted and shined! So...diving right in....
After I stripped ALL the laminate off the dresser on the fronts, top, sides, etc I sanded it all down really well...starting from 80 grit and then 120...so that I had a nice smooth surface to start with. I then put on a thin and even coat of primer on the dresser body but left the top and drawer fronts bare since those were gonna be stained. I didn't take a picture of this step but I just made sure the primer coat was light and even...I prefer Zinser primer...its what Centsational girl uses...and it really does work awesome. Super grippy and smooth looking under the paint. I let the primer dry over night and in the meantime I stained all the drawer fronts with Minwax liquid stain in Dark Walnut. I only did one coat on the drawer fronts...the wood was really pretty underneath and I wanted that to show thru a bit. I then laid out my plank top (paint sticks) and started gluing. There isn't really any rhyme or reason to applying the top. I just drizzled Gorilla wood glue liberally on the dresser top a little at a time (it dries fast) and then put the sticks evenly on the top...making sure that they were smooshed up next to each other completely before moving on to the next one. I also used paint cans to keep them flat during the drying process. As they dry the ends tend to lift a little...make sure you put something heavy on there and really concentrate on keeping the ends flat. Here she is with the unfinished paint stick top..

Cool huh? I really loved it in its bare and naked state but alas...I'm in love with dark stains! So after the top of the dresser was totally covered I gave it a couple days to fully cure before I did the staining. I applied the same Minwax stain to the top. I normally apply stain using a t-shirt or rag but I used one of my Purdy paintbrushes this time to get a thicker and more even application. I LOVE how it turned out. I let each coat cure for about 25 mins before I wiped it off...let it sit for a few hours...and applied the next coat. I did a total of two coats on the top. While the top was curing I painted the sides and front of the box with an oops white paint that I had in my stash.

See the bottom part...well that had a thin cardboard like panel that originally covered it and made it a solid section..but the moisture had damaged that part beyond repair so I simply removed that and sanded down the frame. I LOVE the modern edge it gives the dresser...and its solid wood too so no worries about durability! So this is the box with one coat of paint on it...get ready....I'm about to reveal the dramatic "after" pictures...are you ready? You sure? Ok here you go...

TA DAHHHHH!!!!!! Ok so you guys are probably wondering what I used for my handles on the dresser...well that was kind of a happy accident. I searched all over for modern handles that fit the overall look that I was going for, were cheap, and just happened to have the same width holes that the old ones did. Well I couldn't come up with anything that would work. I was majorly bummed and thinking that I would have to drill new holes and just settle for something that I didn't really love...when I remembered seeing different dressers that people have done that use rope or ribbon in place of handles in the drawers. Well that sparked a MAJOR bonfire of creativity and I remembered that I had a huge bundle of scrap leather pieces that would work AMMMAAAAZING in place of handles....plus they are stiff and will hold their shape well! Yay for using what you already have!! The leather pieces that I have are strips...all the same length so all I needed to do was cut them each in half and use one half for each handle. I widened the holes in the drawers just a tad so I could get the strips (which I trimmed the ends a bit to get it to fit) through the holes. Once I had about 3/4 an inch through each hole I simply folded it flat against the inside of the drawer front and stapled it firmly in place. I did this 9 times...and MAN was it tiring...especially with my kids running around me the whole time! The payoff was HUGE though and I could not be happier with how it looks! Its a little modern...a little funky...and it was TOTALLY FREE! I hope you guys love it as much as I do! I'd love to hear your thoughts!!!

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All things furniture @ Perfectly Imperfect

DIY mobile for my baby girl...A tutorial

Hey there! So my wonderful son decided to yank down a cute bright pink paper lantern that I had hanging above my baby girl's crib the other day (how did he reach it you ask? Well he was IN the crib! I promise...I do watch my children...cough cough) He then decided to play soccer with it. Well its paper and paper is fragile. It lasted all of one kick and it was toast. Well I couldn't leave my baby NOTHING to stare at when she's in her crib and I despised all the plastic and ugly ones at the stores. Plus I wanted something unique with random objects hanging from it. I'm weird...I know. Well I needed a round something or other to hang the random objects from so I headed to Craft Warehouse to look for something. I didn't want an embroidery hoop...I wanted something thinner. I found this random gold ring for 2 bucks..perfect!

So when you're making a mobile there are a couple ways you can go about hanging the stuff from it. You can hang them all from around the outside but I didn't want to do that with mine so I created a dreamcatcher of sorts with jute twine. I wrapped one end around the outside and hot glued it securely

I then just wrapped the twine around and across the ring in a pattern that I liked...if there were any large gaps I just wrapped over them.

Once I had enough jute and I liked the look I just cut the end and glued it down securely. I also put a glob of hot glue under each part of the twine as it wrapped around the ring so it was nice and sturdy.
I had a random mish mosh of objects that I wanted to hang from it. I wanted it to be girly but not generic. I had some pinkish fake hydrangea that I cut pieces off and hung from heavy thread from some of the jute, I also had an iron flower that I got for 50 cents from the craft store, I also bent a purple baby spoon into a circle and hung it, I also made some Faux zinc (check out my tutorial) letters spelling out her name (Lyla) and hung them individually, I also grabbed a twig decorative ball and stuffed it with small fake hydrangeas and hung it. Here's the finished product...

I also took small pieces of the hydrangea and glued them into every criss cross point in the jute so it had some sweet decoration. I love how this turned out! I think Lyla likes it too!

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Natural texture from the dollar bin!

Hey friends! I scored balls of jute garden twine in the dollar bins at Tarjay a couple years ago and I've seriously used it SOO much!! I grabbed about 5 balls of it and I'm just in love with its nubby texture. I used it all the time! I made a jute wrapped vase about a year ago...just like all the tutorials you've all seen on jute wrapped wine bottles and such...but I used an ugly free florist vase. I use that vase CONSTANTLY! Whenever my hubby surprises me with a purty bouquet I plop those suckers in my jute vase. It allows the attention to be on the flowers without looking boring and utilitarian. I just adore it! Well that vase is my bestie and all but I wanted a smaller version for some of the gorgeous daffodils that are literally COVERING my back yard! I have about 5 varieties that our lovely landlords planted last year...you can be jealous...I won't mind! :) Well I was rinsing out an old jar the other day and it occured to me that the jar was the perfect size for the jute wrapped vase I wanted. So into the dishwasher it went and once it was nice and clean I got to work! Here's what I used...

I loved the shape. Its the 16 oz size if any of you want to recreate this look. Its the perfect size for smaller flowers and it holds a lot of water and the mouth is wide so you can cram A LOT of pretties in there!! I'm not gonna give you all a formal tutorial on this because it is brain dead easy...I mean you could seriously be asleep and make this. I almost dozed off making it. Its THAT boring! But the results are Way worth it! So after you've removed the label and washed it thorougly you want to grab your twine and cut the end so its fresh and not frayed. Coat the bottom couple inches in Mod Podge....put the freshly cut end of your jute on the bottom most part and start wrapping it around the jar layer upon layer horizontally (does that make sense?) You want to spin the bottle not the twine..it'll make it A LOT easier to hold it tight so one layer sits on top of the previous layer...you just keep wrapping and wrapping. Every once in a while hold up the bottle and look at the twine...do you see gaps? Then just push it down a little so those are covered and the layers are tight. Just keep going and going and GOING AND GOING. It'll take freaking forever! You'll feel the wrinkles forming as you concentrate on this dumb vase. Once you have all the vase covered ( I personally left the jar part on top uncovered because I liked the look) apply a thin layer of mod podge all over the jute on the outside. It'll also allow you to smooth down all the little hairs that are poking out of the twine. It also makes it water resistant so you can rinse this out and it won't hurt it. Don't put it through the dishwasher or anything though...be careful it doesn't get too wet. Once you are all done and your mod podge is dry you can load er up! Here's mine...

Love it! Isn't that chicken wire basket adorable? Goodwill for a buck! Gotta love those kinda deals! It makes the perfect spot for cute Ikea napkins (why buy ugly napkins when you can get adorable ones for the same price??)  Hope you all like it! I never thought a salsa jar could look this cute!

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Anthro inspired faux zinc letters tutorial

Hey everyone! I am certifiably obsessed with Anthropology... as is the rest of the world!! I guess that's where they get the excuse to charge so much... Anyways I was perusing their site the other day and came across these

SWOON! I was IN LOVE with them and trying to scheme how I could justify the 18.00 a piece price tag. Ouch! Especially since I wanted to spell out Yummy on my kitchen wall and that would MAJORLY break the bank! So I started researching DIY ways to replicate these and I came across a couple of great tutorials. I modified them to make it a little easier on myself but the premise was very similar. Here is what you will need...
1 unfinished mdf letter of your choice from the craft store (I wanted to try out one letter first to see if I liked the results...I totally did) mine was 2.00 on sale.
Black spray paint or black acrylic craft paint
Metallic acrylic finishing paint in Oyster Pearl
Sponge brush or small paint brush

Ok here's the process...its simple and I mean SIMPLE to create that look. It literally appears before your eyes in all its shiny metal looking goodness!
Step one-paint your letter black with either spray paint or craft paint...wait for it to dry completely
Step two-paint a layer of the pearl paint over the top of the black make sure that it doesn't go on perfectly...make sure there is some variation in the color so it looks as yummy and distressed as Anthro's.
Let dry...and hang on your wall to be loved and adored by your family and friends!

I am seriously so in love and immediately after I finished my letter I ran around the house looking for other things I zinc-ify! I had some garage sale A to Z bookends that were in the garage waiting for me to get around to them so I added my zinc touch to those bad boys using this same process...

Now run...Don't walk to your nearest craft store and pick up the supplies! You will not be sorry!!! :)

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