Desk phase 2

It's full steam ahead on the desk project.  I picked up 4 storage cubes at Michaels which put my flat-pack-putting-together skills to the test (more on that here).

I had the perfect space for the desk, a wall area next to the sofa.  The cubes are only 14" square, so the desk would be slimline, the perfect size for the space.

Here's Murph admiring my handy work, (or wondering what on earth I'm up to now!).

For the desktop I really wanted wood to contrast against the white cubes.  Ideally I would have used some wood we had leftover from another project, and stain it with some leftover stain, and seal it with some leftover sealer.  Unfortunately, we don't have any wood, or stain or sealer.  And we are on a major budget, so it was time to get creative and shop our house (ie rummage around to see what we already have).  I found lots of cardboard boxes and shelving and you can't get better than free!

I initially thought that a couple of sheets of thick cardboard might do the trick, but it was waaaay too flimsy, and wouldn't have held a cup of tea, let alone a laptop!  My next idea was to combine the cardboard with the shelving.  I started by cutting the cardboard the length and width I needed, and taping the shelving to the underneath.  It was all very technical :-)

Using a mixture of hot glue and packing tape, I sandwiched the second piece of cardboard so the metal shelving was covered on both sides by cardboard.  Just the lip was sticking out which would run along the back of the desk to help secure the desktop and prevent it from sliding.

I sealed all of the edges with some more tape.

I'm all for rustic, but even I draw the line at cardboard - could it look any more temporary!!

Check back on Monday for the big reveal - I guarantee you'll be surprised!  I've got a bit more styling to do and it'll be finished.

 

See the finished desk HERE

Kate

xxx

All Bar None

Until recently, the corner of our dining room was home to a small dark wood table  Unfortunately, I don't have a before pick because that sad little rickety table was out of here as fast as it's wonky spindle legs could carry it!

On a recent trip to one of my favorite flea malls (Bama Flea Mall), I picked up this amazing bar cart to take the tables place: 

 

It's in amazing condition, no chips to the glass or scratches in the gold.

It originally had 4 care home style wheels on the bottom that I managed to pry off as they didn't go at all with the faux bamboo modern gold finish and hexagonal shape.

I've seen lots of examples of amazing bar carts, these are some of my faves:

 

The Life Styled - I heart the paper straws

 

 

Interiors by Studio M

 

 

Interiors by Studio M

 

 

Style by Emily Henderson

 

Kate

xxx

 

Find more Thrifty Finds HERE

Dollar Store Ampersand Art

I really like the wood grain art I have seen popping up around the blogosphere recently, and was inspired to do my own take but on the cheap.  I mean really cheap.  I mean Dollar Store cheap!

What does Dollar Store have that is wood grain.........drawer liners of course!

I whizzed round my local store and picked up these supplies.  I printed out the Ampersand sign in a variety of fonts (I'm slightly obsessed with "&" art at the mo. but this would look just as great with your initial).

(Side Note: how amazing are these Dollar Store 11x14 frames!  I picked up two but will be going back for more).

I cut out the paper sign, traced the outline onto my wood grain drawer liner and cut around it with my Exacto knife.  I made sure the piece I used had a nice wood knot to really highlight the grain.

As if wood grain paper for $1 wasn't amazing enough, it's sticky so is super easy to mount on whatever colour background you choose.  I went for black card that we already had.  I added a simple matte and this is how it looked.

So for $2 I have some funky new art and if I still need to line my drawers, there's plenty left!

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Kate

xxx
 

Bathroom Update

Our guest bathroom isn't the biggest bathroom in the world, but it's functional and has had a bit more botox since we last checked in on progress, here.  Not a full facelift, but definitely some botox.

This is a look at the before, floral shower curtain and all.

The view from the door (a window covering is high on the 2013 "to do" list).  We quickly painted over the orange and changed out the shower curtain for a white waffle.

We were lucky that the vanity was already white, so we just had to change out the hardware.

We took down the builder basic, no frame, mirror and added a new light fixture.  All quick easy fixes that make the space look much more modern.

A closer look at the new light fixture from Lowes.  The mirror is a dark grey (it looks a bit brown in this pic) from TJ Maxx.

The hubby has been holding on to this Pearl Jam pic since 2006, so it was time to frame it up:

 And a nice Ikea Grundtal towel bar to finish the look:

Kate

xxx 

 

I'm a candle

In the Christmas clearance shop-a-thon, I picked up this little candle from HomeGoods.

It was just a couple of dollars and smells amazing.  The only thing was the ugly festive pine cone pic on the front.  Luckily it was just a sticker that I could peel off easily (easier than the price ticket was to peel off - thanks HomeGoods, a little less sticky goop next time please!).

But when the sticker was gone the candle was very plane and in desperate need of something to jazz it up a bit.

I looked around Michaels for some sort of decal.  I thought about a simple monogram or maybe a boarder around the top and bottom, but settled on some basic alphabet stickers.  I wasn't sure what I was going to spell out but really liked the font:

Now for what to put on the candle.  Hmmm, I got nothing!  Seriously, for about an hour the best we could come up with was "I'm a candle", but then the puns slowly started coming, and we couldn't stop.  Light my fire, get fired up, light up, fire starter, see the light, lights out, great balls of fire.  Ok, so we drew the line at great balls of fire, and opted for "Got a Light?" 

 

We have a lot of storms and power cuts in the south, so this will definitely come in handy.

 

Kate

xxx

 

See other Crafty projects HERE

 

2013 To Do List

Who doesn't love a good old to do list.  It's hard to believe that we moved in only nine months ago,
but progress has undoubtedly slowed with holidays and Murphy and just life in general.

As we move into 2013 it's all hands on deck.  This new year has got me feeling optimistic, so lets ride the wave of confidence before reality inevitably comes crashing down around me.

Our to do list is split up into 3 main categories: Got the Goods, Starting from scratch and You're out of your mind.

Got the Goods - we have all the supplies to hand, we just need to get on with it.

Starting from scratch - just a few of the ideas I have buzzing round that I hope to accomplish this year.

You're out of your mind - if we had buckets of money, endless time and the expertise and resources of HGTV.  Clearly, I have none of these, but a girl can dream.

                                                                                         Calendar from RestyleShop                      

Got the Goods

*  hang storage pots in the kitchen
*  hang gallery/photo wall in the hallway
*  seal bottom of front door
*  hang art in tall landing area
*  hang curtains in guest room
*  hang shelf in guest room
*  replace picture in master

Hmmm, it would appear I have developed an aversion to hanging anything - will need to grab my hammer and nails and start making some holes in these walls.

Starting from Scratch

*  paint and furnish man cave
*  pick fabric and make kitchen blinds
*  add shelving and storage to pantry
*  paint stripes in hallway
*  add etched "hello" to door glass
*  find and refurb rockers for front porch
*  laundry room makeover
*  make/source blind for guest bath
*  half bath makeover
*  paint beige room
*  find master nightstands
*  add shelving to master bedroom
*  introduce desk area to living room
*  revamp coat closet
*  replace fan in guest room
*  replace doors to laundry room

You're out of your mind

*  paint stairwell and landing - we don't have a ladder tall enough (or any ladder for that matter!) to reach the highest point.  So unless we develop Spiderman like climbing skills, this may be out of the question.
*  garage sale - I have been banging on about having a garage sale for months, so hopefully 2013 will be the year it actually happens.
*  master bath reno - this would require a lot of money.  So do we change what we can now with a major budget or live with it and save the money to do it right further down the line. 
*  add new counter top to island - I would love quartz in the kitchen.
*  pendent light to kitchen - with zero electrical skills we'll be calling in the experts for this one.
*  replace garage doors - a big ticket item.
*  landscape garden - low on the list if priorities, maybe we should apply to Curb Appeal!

Wow - it's funny to see how all of the big budget updates ended up in the "You're out of your mind" category!!

If we get just half of this done I'll be happy and I'll be documenting all of the progress right here so you can follow along with the inevitable chaos!

Kate

xxx

Velvet spool

Anthropologie had the sweetest little spools wrapped in velvet, but they were expensive!  I want to say they were $12 - i gasped and put them back on the shelf so quickly I'm not 100% on the price. 

A couple of weeks later I saw the exact same ones in TJ Maxx, and decided to splash out the $5.  That's still a ridiculous price for a spool and bit of velvet but they were just so bright and cheerful I couldn't resist.

The only thing better that one velvet spool is TWO velvet spools!!  I already had a spool from one of my many thrift store visits.  I picked up some velvet ribbon from Michaels, wound it round and pinned it.

Ta-da:

Kate

xxx

See more crafty ideas HERE