From the window, to the wall...

Do you ever start a small update and then it just grows and grows and grows into a big honking expensive update.  Well, that's exactly what happened with the living room.  It started with selling the old sofas and buying new ones.  We have wanted to update the carpet since we moved in so hey, why don't we do that now too?  For a second there I thought about just replacing old carpet with new carpet.  Then Murph got sick.  I mean projectile vomit sick (think Exorcist - only smaller and fluffier).  After that swift dose of reality, we decided to replace the carpet with some kind of wood or laminate flooring.  And while we're replacing the floors, we might as well paint the walls, right?  And that's how we ended up redoing the whole living room.

In for a penny, in for a pound!

I liked the teal, but I didn't think it would look good with the new dark grey sofas.  Dark sofa, dark-ish walls and dark-ish floors was going to be, well, too dark!  So out came the testers.

I LOVED not having to cover the carpet before starting to paint - I just pulled it up around the edges so I could get low into the baseboard.  The flooring guys were going to remove the crusty old carpet as part of the new floor installation.  We literally painted the walls on Saturday and the flooring guys arrived on Monday so it wasn't too long to deal with the chaos.

We heaped all of the big pieces of furniture into the middle of the room so we could get around the outside of the room easily.

And two coats later we have a much brighter room.  It's a light taupe/grey colour that really changes depending on the time of day.

Do you like the floor lamp smack bang in the middle of the room?  It's a new trend I'm starting.

Next up are the floors..........

Kate

xxx

Sofa so good!

And we have new sofas!  We lived with the hand me downs for the last 6 years so it was definitely time for something our own taste.  I tried my best to disguise the lumps and bumps with pillows and throws.

But ultimately, they looked like this.  Holy 80's Batman!  They did, however, wear really well, were a nice neutral colour and were super easy to clean.  I had a load of interest on Craigslist and they ultimately went to a good home.

And for their replacement we chose the Luxe Sofa from World Market.  I shopped around loads online, I must have ready about a million reviews.  The Luxe Sofa is slip covered so we can take the covers off and wash them (important with a mischievous little dog) and it means we can change the colour easily if we want to update the look of the room.  We took full advantage of World Market's post Christmas sale and managed to get a 3 seater frame, a 2 seater frame and both slip covers for $600.

To save on shipping costs I ordered them at the store to be delivered to the store and picked them up using a Home Depot rental truck.  I saved about $200 doing it that way so it was definitely worth it.

Here's a little sneak peak.

Next up are the floors.  Oh yes, and the walls too.  It's all change around here!

Kate

xxx

Around the House

Today I wanted to share a few smaller updates that we've been working on over the last few weeks.

First up is our shiny new fridge.  We had always planned to update the appliances at some point, but when the freezer section of the old fridge stopper working completely, we were forced to act sooner rather than later.

I can't believe we managed to fit this beast in the same space as the old one.  As you can see, it has French doors and is working out really well so far.  It's waaay quieter than the old one, has loads more room and is energy efficient.  We bought it from Lowes and managed to qualify for the military discount which was a major saving.  Plus they offer free delivery and free haul away of the old one.

Sold!

Next up is a sneak peak of the new family room rug.  Excuse the terrible pic - I was trying to hold it up with one hand and take the pic with the other.  Rugs are HEAVY!  I thought it was a little bit like the West Elm souk rug?  Maybe?  If you squint?  I picked up this guy at HomeGoods.  We've made some major changes to the family room - updates soon I promise.

And of course I couldn't buy just one rug!  I grabbed this little one too.  It's like walking on velvet.  Seriously.  In the morning I'll pop into the guest room just so I can stand on this rug!

I bought the radio you can see on the nightstand during Targets after Christmas clearance.  It was only $10 and reminded my of the Crosley radios you see (only this one was way cheaper!).  Perfect for guests.

Kate

xxx

Metallic madness!

Happy Wednesday! I hope you all had a great weekend. I wanted to stop by to show you how our mantel is looking these days.

After taking down all of the Christmas decorations, I decided a change was in order. This was how it was before.  A little pink and a little spring-y and a lot thrown together!

And here it is after messing about with it this weekend.  You might recognise the star burst mirror from around the blog world.  It's the Martha Stewart mirror from Home Depot.  It's a complete steal at only $35.  For that price it was only a matter of time before I bought one!

 This pic from Handmaid Tales shows the original colour it comes in..

I spray painted this little one Champagne mist by Rustoleum.  It's just leaning above the mantle for now (there is painting to come in the very near future), but we do plan to eventually mount it.

If you look closely in the mirror you can just about make out our new sofa.  We managed to lug the old ones into the garage and they're currently lurking on Craigslist waiting for a buyer.

More living room updates to follow!  Big plans I tell ya, big plans!

Kate

xxx

DIY Chalk Paint

I made something!  Ok, technically I didn't make it, but I did refinish it which is close enough.

After a bit of a dry spell craft/DIY wise, I decided to chose a nice easy project to kick off 2014.

I found this little cabinet at our local thrift store for $25.

It had a couple of scrapes but nothing major and the top glass panel is in perfect condition which is a major bonus.  It's made by Lane so is a good quality piece, is really sturdy and ridiculously heavy.  I thought it would make a perfect tv cabinet.  

I've seen chalk paint all over Pinterest and the blogosphere.  I Googled a couple of major brands, and making my own (while saving a few pennies) seemed to be the best way to go.  Plus the 'no prep required' really sweetened the deal - you know I love a shortcut!

I picked up a tester, a couple of mixing cups and a box of plaster of Paris all from Lowes.  I mixed:

1 Lowes paint tester (221 ml)
75ml plaster of Paris
75ml cool water

These measurements are all in milliliters because that is what's on both the tester and the measuring cups.  Much easier than having to Google conversions!

The mixture itself was like slightly watered down paint - but not to the point where it would run or drip more than usual.

I removed both doors and the hardware, then used a regular cheapo paintbrush to apply 2 coats - no sanding or priming needed.  It went on unbelievably easily with each coat dry to the touch in about an hour.  I'm not sure how well the mixture will last, but I had enough paint left to refill the tester jar so I'll let you know!

I left the cabinet overnight to dry completely, then applied a coat of Minwax finishing wax with a cloth to seal the piece.  Next up I spray painted the hinges and pulls using Rustoleum in Champagne Mist.

I picked Almost Charcoal for my color, but failed to take into account the fact that the plaster and water would lighten the color.  So it's not quite as dark as I wanted, but I'm still pleased with how it turned out.

I'll snap some more pics once we've heaved it upstairs.  We just need to drill a couple of holes in the back for the cable wires to run through and we'll be all set.

Kate

xxx

And the winner of the 2013 saddest un-christmas christmas ornament is...

this amazing creation from West Elm.

Can you guess what animal it is?

It's the same colour as a Zeigler hot dog with the face of a pig.  Clearly it can only be one thing, a fox!  And it can be yours for only $4.  Ha, it had me laughing for hours.  I'm all for hand crafted but seriously West Elm!

How about choosing this little cutie from Etsy instead.  Ah, much better!

Kate

xxx

Holidays are coming!

Can you believe Christmas is less than 3 weeks away??!!  Time for panic buying Christmas presents - keep your gift receipts people!

For the 5th year in the row I dusted off our sad little 5ft tree.  By the time I had attached all of the branches, there were more papery pine needles on the floor than on the tree.  It had more than a little of the Charlie Browns about it!  There was only one thing for it, I hot footed it to Target and picked up a half price 7 footer.  Weirdly it didn't look that big in the shop, but in our living room it is a complete whopper!  As in, I had to move the furniture to fit it in, whopper!

When it comes to Christmas decorations I'm more of a buy rather than make.  Each year I have great intentions of crafting my ornaments from string and bits of twig (or something like that) and each year I completely run out of time.

Festooning our tree this year we have a London bus.

Some cute string ornaments that were from the Michaels dollar section last year.

And some vintage style glass ornaments from Target.

I used some glittery gift boxes to jazz up the mantle, along with some white ceramic accessories that I already had around the house.  The white window frame was only $5 from Habitat for Humanity and was the perfect height for hanging a feathery wreath.

And of course no Christmas mantle would be complete without a teeny tiny Santa.

Kate

xxx

Lime Chair

And the newest member of our household is this little beauty:

I'd been eyeing this chair on the Target website for weeks.  It went from regular price, to sale price, to clearance, to gone!!  Ugh, don't you hate it when you wait too long to buy something then it's no longer available.  I know, I know, 1st world problems! 

So when I saw a stack of them at our local Southeastern Salvage for only $50 I knew one of them had to be mine.  It was super easy to put together: plop seat on base.  And it's really comfy too.

Kate

xxx

Runner Runner!

Can it really be nearly 2 months since my last post??!!  Where does the time go!  In short it's been filled with work, a surprise trip to Vegas, a not so surprise trip to England, and finally some booth space.  The booth is only just beginning to take shape so I'll post some pics later this week.  For anyone in Birmingham it's at Urban Suburban in Crestline.

It's been a little quiet around here on the jazzing up the house front.  Sorry about that folks, but we have made a few small updates.

I nabbed this black and white striped runner from Target the other day.  I can't remember the exact price, but it was under $20, which seemed like a real steal.

It's a little Beetlejuice, humbug, Halloween-ish, but I really love it.

For a cheapo, it's surprisingly heavy duty. 

Kate

xxx

Headboard History

Happy Monday, and Happy Autumn!  Today I wanted to share the transformation of my $30 head board.  This is how it looked when I first brought it home from a local flea market.

After an allover coat of cream, this is how it has looked for the past year.

It seemed to be the perfect candidate for a chevron paint pattern given that the wood was already carved into that shape - so no measuring or taping needed, yippee!

I used the existing cream as one chevron colour, and picked a colour 2 shades darker than the wall for the second chevron.  I wanted to make sure the tone would work in the room, so using a colour on the same paint chip was the easy option.  It only took a couple of coats and it was evenly covered.

It's like a little hidden surprise when you lay the pillows down, and is a much more interesting than it being in one colour.

 

Kate

xxx

Guest Room Before and After

It's fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinished!  Ok, so the ugly black ceiling fan is still up, but everything else is D.O.N.E!  About a week later than planned, our Guest Room makeover is complete.

Sit back, because this post is pretty photo heavy.

The bedding was from Ross, lamps from JC Penney, throw from TJ Maxx, nightstands from Target and crazy cat pillow from H&M.

I've had these 2 wall shelves sitting in a cupboard for months, so it was great to finally get them on the wall.

I mixed some vintage family items with thrift shop finds and a few new pieces.

The camera was my Grandads, the print was from the Christmas Tree Shop (for only $4!) and the little bowl was from a thrift shop.

You can just about see the newly painted headboard behind the pillows.  I left 2 of the panels in the cream, and painted the rest 2 shades darker than the wall colour.

I tried to add something to read and a place to put rings or coins or watches on each nightstand.

And of course no nightstand would be complete without a felt owl.

Can you believe my mum made this?  Love him!

Every time I see this pillow it makes me laugh.

And now for a good old before and after.



And after!

Kate

xxx