Vintage Chair Make Over

 

 I bought this great/ugly vintage chair for $10 and couldn't wait to spruce it up. Just a couple coats of yellow spray paint and some new faux bois fabric on the seat. Voila! An updated chair for $20 and an easy half-days work. 

Unfortunately, I couldn't quite get a yellow that matched with the art in my bedroom (more on that next time...) so I sold it. For $40. Woo Hoo! I love DIY. But I am still looking for another chair...

DIY Curtains for our New Kura Loft Bed

Daniel's room is very tiny and so we just just got a new Kura reversible/loft bed to try and open up some play space. I immediately knew that I wanted to make the space underneath into a fun little hideout. Curtains seemed like the right idea to soften and cozy up the space, while adding something interesting to look at. I sewed panels of fabric, in random widths, together for a patchwork look and pinned the 2 panels up with upholstery tacks/finishing nails. If you wanted to totally tent off the bottom, you could add a tension rod and an extra curtain across the front as well.

I was a little dark under the bed, so I bought 2 Larga Spotlights from Ikea and clamped them onto the bedposts at either end of the bed. They open just enough to fit on and they were only $4 each. It really brightened up the space, and once I'm finished the rest of his room, it will become a reading nook.

And for one last little custom touch, I added an old laundry bag to the end of the bed with a couple over-the-door hooks. It's full of our way-too-big collection of stuffed animals. One day, I might make a bag that co-ordinates with the curtain, but an already made bag was just too tempting to resist!

Hopefully you'll see more of this small space update soon. I have some great ideas!

Before and After: Updated Vintage Dresser Project

Now that my handsome handyman has installed the new handles, I have a before and after photo to show off. My $10 thrift store find had a face lift, and it looks 20 years younger!

The hardest part of this project was filling in the screw holes for the old handles, since they were not a standard size. I just used drywall mud, let it dry well, sanded the holes, primed the whole thing and painted it with 2 coats of high gloss paint. The paint and primer cost me about $25, the handles another $25 bringing the total to $60!

I was planning on putting this dresser in the hall by my bathroom, since we don't have a linen closet, but I changed my mind. I painted it in a friends garage and when I brought it home and saw it in the living room/entry (oh, the joys of small space living) I knew it was a perfect fit. It gives us extra storage for mittens, work bags, sunscreen and all those things you need when you're heading out.

I added a slightly retro lamp from Ikea, a mail sorter and invisible bookshelves by Umbra and a little tabletop organizer with compartments for our phones and wallets. Thanks to all my friends and FB fans for your color advice!

Easy Custom DIY Decor- Yarn and Twine Wrapped Ball Tutorial

Here's a super easy project that you can customize for your color scheme; yarn wrapped balls.

Materials:
Glue Gun or Glue Dots
Yarn/Twine/String/Rope
Styrofoam balls in desired sizes

Instructions:
1.) Glue one end of your yarn to the Styrofoam ball.
2.) Wrap and wrap until it's all covered and looks pretty.
3.) Cut the yarn and glue the other end down.

Yup, easy as 1-2-3. A cool DIY design project done in 20 minutes.

This would be a great housewarming or hostess gift! Easy, cheap, fast and made to co-ordinate with their decor!

Using Small Spaces- Kids Corner on the Stairs

My house is pretty little, and I'm starting to learn how to make the most of my nooks and crannies! Here's a little spot on the stairs that I created in less than 30 minutes with chalkboard stickers and vintage flash cards.

To string up my vintage Sesame Street flashcards I just tied string onto cute push pins and stuck them in the wall. If they're too loose, they droop a lot, so pull the string tight! I used a flat white tack in the corner so it was less noticeable (although I took the photos before I changed them out). I found some sweet mini clothespins to attach the cards with, although binder clips or even paper clips would work too.

I'm still looking for some way to store the chalk on the wall, so for now, we're using a mason jar to hold the chalk and the brush.

More redesigned nooks and crannies to follow soon!

Redecorating Time!

It's been a while since I've posted! I've been completely consumed with family stuff and trying to redo my house. 7 years of living the student lifestyle and our home is desperate for an update! I've pretty much finished int he living room and kitchen, and now I'm onto the bedroom. Big job on a little budget, but it's pretty fun. Here are some of my inspiration photos and I will post 'After' photos as soon as I'm done.

Thrift Store Find

Here's a little before photo of my latest project. I'm still trying to decide on a color, but I can't wait to see what it looks like once it's revived! The great thing about it is that it isn't real wood, which means it has some great faux bois etching. I'll post the after photo as soon as I finish.

Vintage and Salvaged Frames into Chalkboards: Tutorial

I ended up with an extra table to fill in a week at my last craft sale (don't ask...) and I wanted to make grown up things for a change. I went scouting at a few thrift stores and found some awesome frames. The plan was to spray paint the frames in nice lively colors and spray paint the glass in chalkboard paint, but as you know, something always goes wrong when I'm crafting something new!

What you need:
Frames
Chalkboard paint (spray or paint on)
Spray paint
Drop Cloth

It turns out that vintage frames are often made a lot differently than modern ones, which mean ripping out nails and hammering them back in and accidentally breaking glass that was seemingly permantently affixed. On one frame, it seemed that the glass was actually trapped in the wood somehow. On that one, I taped off the frame and painted, rather than spraying.

On the ones without glass, or where I broke the glass (wah!) I tried many things. First I called Michael's to ask about custom cut glass, but it was super expensive. Then I went to Home Depot to look for small cuts of sheet metal (magnetic!) or plywood, but no one could help me troubleshoot. I eventually came home and used some fiberboard/poster board from my office supply stash and it worked like a charm.

There was lots of troubleshooting, but the results were great, and people loved the big ones! I think I'll try it again, now that I know what I'm doing!

Daniel's 4th Birthday Carnival!

Some photos from Daniel's party. Such fun! My favorite touches are the popcorn boxes, the prize table and the ridiculous attempt I made at turning our shed into a big top with vinyl tablecloths.

We had face painting, tattoos, a prize table, cupcakes, and carnival music. A friend of our juggled for us (so grateful for you Rochelle, Ben, Mom, Natasha and Anna!) and played juggling games with the kids.

Game Ideas:

Squirt n' Win: Set 3 gold tees up on a foam block and top with ping pong balls. Squirt off with water guns (or in our case, squirt animals!)

Bowling: We set one of my mini bowling sets up on a long desk top (removed from the base) and let the kids go nuts.

Fishing: I bought a plastic fishing set from the dollar store (I wanted to make a felt or wooden one, but I'm not Martha...) and put them in a bucket of water.

Beanbag Toss: Always a favorite!

We gave out one ticket for trying and two for winning. The prizes ranged from 1-6 tickets.

I wanted to play a a basketball game (since we already have a little hoop) and a sidewalk chalk target with wet sponge type game, but it was SO busy! The biggest hit of all was definitely the prize table though! It was packed with all kinds of prizes (shopping for a few weeks in clearance sections made for a fun selection of great toys).

Glittery Christmas Reindeer (or "how to make a huge mess when you're already obscenely busy")

I had the Dayhome Christmas party on the last day that the kids were here. Usually we do a few activities, or a craft and I give them each a gift. This year I thought it would be a great idea to combine the party craft with the craft we make for parents. Oops. At least it turned out cute!

You'll need:
Spray adhesive (We used Elmers, but next time I'd try something else)
Glitter (Martha Stewart glitter worked best for us)
Something to Glam Out. Thrift stores often have ceramic deer figures, or you can use plastic animals, or anything your heart desires.
A lot of newspaper

I found these sweet little acrylic reindeer at Superstore (on clearance!) and thought they'd be perfect.

Spray the whole object with the spray adhesive, one object at a time. The glue becomes less tacky if you wait.

Shake glitter all over the place. We ended up taking handfuls of sparkles and rubbing them right on as well, there were a lot of grooves in these things! Notice how my hands look after about 4 seconds.

I also added a coat of Krlyon Acrylic Crystal Clear spray paint to prevent the glitter from coming off, but I don't think it did much. They look adorable, but I spent weeks cleaning the floors and washing glitter out of every imaginable place! Next year when I pull them out, I am going to tie bright purple ribbon around their necks. Cute!