Dill Pickle is Better than Terra Cotta.

When we bought this house every wall was covered in wallpaper.  Wallpaper with LOTS of flowers.  Big Flowers, little flowers, pink flowers, blue flowers.  FLOWERS.  I'm not a flower girl, I'm a color girl.  We covered the Waverly flowers in the kitchen with Terra Cotta.  I loved the color.  I don't love it anymore.  Today I love Dill Pickle.  The kitchen gets no natural light and even with the bright Terra Cotta it always seemed like a dark room.  Not anymore.  Dill Pickle to the rescue.  You've seen a little of it in previous pictures but here we are in the process of change.

LB had to take over cutting while I took pictures.

This is the view of the breakfast nook when you are standing in the kitchen.  You can't see the new window seat for all the crap on the table.  The little spots of seafoam green is the foam that now is covered in drop cloth with pillows on it.

LB trying not to be ugly to me.  The man is a dead game sport.  When I said I hated everything in this house he looked at me and asked what I wanted to change and did I want to start right then.  I think I'll have to keep him.

There's the kitchen in progress.  I'm still working on it but I hope to have mostly finished pictures soon.  The painting is all completed.  I'm trying to decide if I want to tile the backsplash.  Can't decide.  Still contemplating what's going on the floor.  We'll finish it sometime this lifetime.  Is there something painted that you loved the color of but now can't stand?  What room is your paint brush being used in now?

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM

Awful to Awesome Chair

I found this chair at a local thrift store that I made LB go with.  He couldn't see anything but an awful icky chair, but I could see the bones and imagine what it would become.  It was $20 and I promised I would do something with it.  He didn't believe.  AT ALL.  See these bones?  Aren't they lovely?

Of course I didn't think to take any pictures before I ripped it apart or when I had daylight.

 This is the faux suede fabric that was on it.  Yes, that is a roach egg and mildew on it.  Gross didn't even begin to cover the condition.  I stripped it bare before I would bring it in the house in case something else thought it would make a lovely home.   Under that fabric was the most fabulous 70's wool looking plaid you have ever laid eyes on.  ICKO!!!!

Here she is in all her new glory.  I used Annie Sloan Chalk paint in Paris Grey.  I did two good coats then waxed with AS clear wax.  I then distressed it just a bit.  Not a lot, just here and there.  Then I used AS clear and dark wax to get some definition on all the groovy details on the frame.  I stripped the back and seat to the wood frame and started from there up.   New strapping, new memory foam, a layer of cotton batting and then topped it with this cotton fabric from Premier Fabrics.  Even LB thinks the chair looks awesome now.  What a doubter he is, so left brained...

Here's the chair with all the pillows I made to go on other pieces in the room.  The only pillow that stayed in the chair is the one with the monogram.  They are all Premier Fabric also.

The blue on the right arm is just a shadow.  That's what happens when you take pictures at 2 in the morning.

I now love this chair.  LOVE IT!  My hands did look like claws for a couple of days from pulling staples.  I swear I pulled a gajillion staples.  I think it was worth the claw look.  

I've never recovered a piece of furniture.  I just took it apart carefully and labeled everything as I went along.  If I can do it anyone can.  Have you ever recovered anything?

I finished a major huge project yesterday at the new job and was so tired when I got home I just went straight to bed.  Now that it is behind us I think I'll have a little more time at night to work on some projects that have been sitting waiting for me.  And that means I'll have more entertaining projects to show you!  Hope you had a great weekend!

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM

A little shopping trip.

Unfortunately this post isn't about how fabulous and amazing the counter tops look.  As a matter of fact life stepped in and I haven't even started on them.  They are at the top of the list and I hope to have some progress pictures to show you before this week is out.  

I ended up with a stomach virus over the weekend.  I just had to embrace the SUCK!  (LB loves to say that.)  I did go to a great auction Saturday morning before I got sick.  It was FREEZING and the auction was held outside.  I didn't get what I went for, there was a lady there with no financial restrictions who liked everything I wanted, but I ended up with some cool treasures.  Once I get them cleaned up I'll take some pictures.

Monday I started a new FULL-TIME job.  I know people work, so that's no big deal, but this is the first full-time job I've had in over 12 years.  It's a great opportunity and I've worked part-time for this company for 10 years so I know I'll be working with great people.  I am still having to get used to new hours and not staying up all night working on projects.  I'll tell you more about the job after I get my feet wet a little more.

Since I have no new projects because life happened this week I thought I would share a little shopping trip I went on last week when we were in Atlanta.

I love, love, love IKEA and wish there was one closer to us than Atlanta.  While LB was in meetings I went first thing Monday morning.  Just looking at this picture makes my heart pitter patter.

I think this light is so fabulous and I look at it every time I'm in the IKEA.  I wish I could figure out someplace in the house to hang it.  It's seriously huge and just doesn't work with our ceiling height.

I normally don't think the rooms they have put together in the store work on every level but I absolutely adore this whole room.  From the orange walls to the rug on the floor I wanted to buy everything in here.  Of course if I was going to buy a whole room I know I would end up changing something or thinking why buy that when I could make something just like it.  But for the sake of argument I love this room.  I like the low bed with the gallery wall above it best.

This is actually a big square knob.  I wanted to buy them for a piece of furniture in the foyer.  It is an old oak dresser that was my great grandmother's at one time.  It lived in my mother's garage for years and looked like absolute hell.  When LB and I were first married he refinished it for me and we have had it in every house we have owned.  I thought these super modern knobs would look so cool on an oak piece that is over 100 years old.  Of course as I stood there drooling over them I couldn't remember how many knobs the piece had.  I thought, looked to see if I had a picture of it on my phone, walked away, went back and finally took this picture.  I'm glad I didn't buy the number I was thinking about because I would have been 2 short and that would have griped me to no end.  We are heading that way again in May and if they still have them I'm buying them.  And I know exactly how many I need now.  I did think it was cool how I got my reflection in the picture.  Didn't even realize that when I took the picture.

So now I've truly blathered on about basically nothing everyday life.  I'm hoping to start working on the counter tops tomorrow.  It's much warmer so I think the paint will work better anyway.  I won't have to turn the heat up way higher than we keep it to paint so I guess waiting was a good thing.  Happy hump day!

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM

I have had it...

Disclaimer: There is not a drop of natural light that comes into the kitchen at any point during the day and it is a horrible room to photograph so bear that in mind.  

I really hate our counter tops.  The formica is in great shape but the color screams 1980 is calling and wants it's counter tops back.  It's a greenish, sageish, sorta pale teal.  UGLY.

It's a horrid color now that we have painted the walls with Benjamin Moore Dill Pickle.  I love the wall color so I have been trying to decide what to do about the counter top color.  Needless to say there is no budget for any type of new counter top.  I've stewed about it for months now.

 Today while toodling around the interweb I came across a product.  After reading for a couple of hours, isn't it amazing how much time you can burn sitting in front of the puter, about said product I made a decision.  Sometimes you just have to go right to the edge with no fear.  I pulled myself together so I wouldn't scare anyone and ran out the door.

I went to the closest retailer listed on the companies website and got there right at 5.  Apparently they close at 5 because as soon as I walked in the lights were turned off.  Once the dude realized I was there, and I'm certain he was thinking "great it's 5 and the start of the weekend and this witch walks in wanting paint.", he was willing to answer the few questions I had.  I guess my mind was pretty much decided before I walked in.  This is what I purchased.

I ended up purchasing the chocolate brown.  I don't want really dark counter tops but the Sicilian Sand looked too white in person.  From reading on the website you can add colors as long as you use water based acrylics.  So I plan to add a couple of stone like colors to lighten it up and give it more depth.  

I'm going to an auction in the morning in search of a lamp that looks like it matches one I already have.  Once I get home I plan to start cleaning and taping and practicing my sponging technique so I have a plan once I actually start painting.  Hopefully I'll love it and it won't end up an epic fail.  I figure for the price I'll give it a whirl.  I'll keep you posted on the progress.

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM

I didn't mean to be a tease....

Okay so I didn't really mean to tease with a picture and then not post for days.  I ended up going to Atlanta with LB and the hotel wanted $15 a day for internet service.  Really?  This was a nice hotel and they can't provide free WiFi?  Even McDonald's has free WiFi.  But anyway...

So I took what was left of the drop cloth I used to cover the window seat cushion and decided I would make some pillows to jazz it up and bring the colors together.  Bear in mind I've never stenciled anything before, but I had never covered a cushion before either.  I used Martha Stewart craft paint and added textile medium and a Martha Stewart set of stencils.  A word of advice, start in the middle and work your way out.  Don't start on the edge and hope for the best.  Trust me on this.  LB commented immediately when he saw what I was doing that I started wrong.  Thanks so much big helper, where was he when I was starting?

 SO, here is what I ended up with.  And I used the remaining welting.  Go me!  Didn't want to waste that since it took forever to make.

 In the tease picture I only showed you the three patterns.  Once I sat them on the cushion I realized I needed another orange pillow or it would look wonky.  This is what I came up with.

 Then I had an even number of pillows.  That was never going to work and totally threw my chi off.  I dug through all the fabric in my studio, that's a lot of fabric, and found this oriental print.  I originally found Chiang Mai Draggon fabric by Schumacher online and wanted it for this space but the $ was WAY out of the kitchen budget.  Like there is no budget to work with so fabric that is over $200 a yard isn't even a pipe dream.  This fabric had all the colors of the other pillows and added a different texture to the whole thing so I made a pillow that was a little larger than the others.

I decided I want to make two more pillows to go on each end.  I'm going to make them from the solid I used to make the welting on the oriental pillow.  I hope to get them finished tomorrow and then I'll be done with this pillow business for a while.

So did you know there is actually fabric out there that cost hundreds of dollars for a yard?  I didn't.  And to be honest I doubt there will ever be any fabric that cost that much in this humble abode.  Although I'm certain the beasties that share our space would absolutely LOVE anything made out of fabric that cost that much.  After all they think we are their support staff and they would deserve something made from the costliest fabric we could find.

I went to one of my favorite places when in Atlanta.  I'll tell you about that soon.  Have a GREAT weekend!

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM

Just a little tease...

It was a dreary day here today.  It looked like winter outside but if you went out there it felt like late spring.  I don't know where winter went but it needs to come on back for a longer visit.  It was well into the 70's which is entirely too hot for the 1st of February.

I was hoping to get a new project finished today but as usual it took longer than I thought it would.  I swear you get a great idea and it seems like you should be able to do it in a short short.  NEVER turns out that way.  I got about half way to the finish line but I have to call uncle.  It's late and I'm tired.  LB and RH are already sleeping like babies.  Anyway, here's a little tease of the project.  I hope to finish tomorrow and show you the completed items.

Do you start projects thinking you'll get them finished in no time and then it ends up taking way longer?  I hope I'm not the only one with that problem.  Eventually the tortoise won the race...

Love, Love, Kiss, Kiss!

SNM