using what you have

When I updated my style I wanted to get all new things. However I didn’t want to pay for all new things, didn’t want to get rid of what I had and didn’t want store bought things to define my style. SO I gathered everything up and stored them like a thrift store. The idea was to be able to see what I had and “shop” my own stuff. The way my brain processes I thought it would inspire me to use what I have and give me a vision like I would were I shopping old stuff to make new again. I grouped them by type. I removed shades from lamps, glass from frames, you get the idea. I also have a general tip. The new trendy color or the new trendy style is something that I believe should be an inexpensive or free investment. I now recycle the same pieces and prey them or hand paint them to suit my changing moods and the trends. I get bored easily and I won’t waste any money on something that I won’t love forever. SO look forward to seeing my recycled pieces re-painted to suit my constant changing lady mind.

chevron print for home and fashion

 Chevron Print is the new thing.
Subtle while still being bold & close enough to the stripe it is very vesital.

MY FAVORITE PAINTING SUPPLIES

My favorite painting supplies for wood. Of course ASCP is my favorite! I love every color, I love working with it. There is nothing I don’t love about it.

I love Restore-a-Finish. It’s a must when restoring old furniture.

I Love Valspar Enamel it’s a little can of amazing.

I love the short flat bristle cheap throw away brushes. They are terrific for getting texture and working fast.

my painting shoes

I love my hand tool with sander head. I love Kilz spray primer. I also love baby wipes. They are an amazing substitute and partner to-for the wet rag.


 

a little bathroom drawer organizing

I convinced the husband that there is nothing in our drawers the blog world cant handle. 
SO please peer away at the results of my 1 hr time...(including a trip to the dollar store) & $9.00 + tax  cost investment. 

           Products I don't use everyday, but want handy; 
                    masks & peels and bath whatevers.
                Tucked neatly between the containers. 

my child scratched my 100 years old buffet....and I let her live

I have mentioned before how I can not bring myself to even paint this lady because I want to preserve her history and value. My teenage middle child decided that this treasure, that I love, would be a great place to work on her science project. When I came in the room to see this I scolded her and picked it up to move it. I discovered she scratched my top! Insert tears and a minor freak out. 

wall of stars

I had about 9 billion  decor stars I was going to store in the basment as they were no longer in design scheme I was going for.

Amazing Lemon Cake Recipe

Check out the link for full recipe and post.
& then enjoy.

Wine Corks

I love reusing items and making them decor without the finished project looking like you decorated with garbage. I personally love using corks. I used to collect the corks or champagne tops from special occasions. I kept them in a little wooden box on a shelf.

high heat paint and a fire pit

Unfortunately our fire pit was left uncovered over the winter. The result was rust.

We spend a ton of time around this baby as a family & with company.
It’s a major part of our family time & summer nights. It was also a gift to my husband for Fathers Day. So I wanted to fix it rather than replace it.

polish your stainless steel with wd40

wd40 when used the right way makes a kitchen gleem.

cleaning your grill

Mine was gross! It took me the better part of the day to soak, clean, scrub, wash out and high heat spray the rusty parts.

after

Chalk painted accents

I updated a ton of stuff with ASCP; chalk paint. It’s easy to layer on and when you sand it a bit it blends so well. I also love to buff it with a dry rag. NO priming and no fumes and the color stay’s true unlike some spray paints. Click here for the stuff I did in arles; yellow chalk paint.

painted lamps

Its amazing what a little paint can do. I added a pop of yellow to a few lamps and fully chalk painted the others.

painted frames

I updated all of my frames with a little chalk paint. I love the way they turned out.

Updated areas-shelves and such

I wanted a cleaner look. Unfortunately I couldn’t paint the wood white or cream. SO I chalk painted and updated all the frames and the accents. I got dollar store trays and chalk painted them. They look like old wood trays now.

quatrefoil

My favorite shape is clover or quatrefoil. Can’t get enough. I found these mirrors at target for $20 each. In some places I didn’t want the mirror, so I removed it from the back. I found the big one at Lowes for $100 or less I think.

My bedroom tv cabinet has a clover pattern, its from Thomasville Furniture. I am considering painting a few more of these with chalk paint and placing them in a line above my mustard side board in the formal dining room.

Houndstooth for home and fashion

I adore houndstooth. In little doses fashion wise for a little pop and in major ways for home decorating. Classic and sophisticated. I found a stencil I MUST have. I am not sure what I will use it for just yet.

Splash of yellow

You remember my new cream lamps and a promise to make them pop with some yellow. Well here you have it. I also hit the white lamp and the frames that were not 100% what I wanted. Furthermore I brushed some of the arles chalk paint onto my accents on the side table to make them stand out more. Time investment 30 minutes. I think these little splashes coordinate well with my large yellow side board and existing yellow on the shelves in that room.

little white cabinet

This little cabinet was purchased in 1998 I believe. I got it at Shopko for $49.00 I think. It had a maple top and compressed board white bottom.

baskets-form & function

In my kitchen I use large baskets to hold and hide bread, chips and such

I use these baskets behind the screen in my bedroom tv cabinet to draw attention to the pattern and to hold items

I stackedbaskets on top of each other to fill the space up and give a uniform look

Updating my home for spring

I switched out my winter for spring. I decided to bring a splash of fresh spring color and add that same color to the entire space. I had a bunch of decorative plates and found these blue orbs at Gordmans. I then spray painted some of my other accents and changed out my lamp.