It's true- most people have heard of vinyl peel and stick tile. We both have used it in our homes in the past. But, what's also true, is that most people have never thought to create an awesome herringbone pattern with that tile! These tiles are ridiculously easy to cut which makes it the perfect material to go crazy with pattern! We have to say that this floor is one of our favorite projects to date- we transformed this dated floor into an expensive, slate-look-alike.
To say this flooring was dated would be the under-statement of the year. It was yellow and green and oh so bad! Even though the kitchen was tiny, we didn't have enough money or time to go with real slate tile.
Instead, we got our DIY on… Lowe's sells lots of vinyl peel and stick tile and while it does actually look like stone, when installed the traditional way it looks good, but doesn't have a big wow factor…
So, we had an idea… This flooring comes in 18x18 tiles- we decided to cut each tile down into three 6" strips per tile. Vinyl flooring cuts easily with a utility knife- Just score it and then fold it to divide.
We cut down all of our tile into strips and then measured to find the center point of the floor. We used a chalk line to snap a guide for us to follow. Then, to give it a unique and high-end look, we laid the tile in a herringbone pattern. You just make"L's" over and over again. It's one of the easiest patterns to do!
How's that for a before and after?? And, honestly… these pics don't even do it justice! You definitely have to watch this segment of the episode! (Here)
I honestly was amazed and how good we made inexpensive vinyl look. It's like it was all dressed up for prom or something! Fancy!
Changing out the flooring played a big part in making this tiny kitchen renovation complete! No one would ever guess that this flooring was installed with some of the cheapest materials on the market! Changing the shape of the tile and the installation layout gave us amazing style, without the expensive price tag!
If you haven't already done so, please GO VOTE for your favorite in the fourth and final round of CWTS! If you missed all the amazing projects in the first three weeks of CWTS, be sure to check them out below! Round 1 Projects & WinnersRound 2 Projects & WinnersRo und 3 Projects & Winners
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We can't believe we are already in the final week of Creating with the Stars! This contest has far exceeded our expecations and has opened our eyes to so many new blogs and talented people! This week's challenge was Home Decor, and I knew right away that I needed to tackle my kid's bathroom. It was in bad shape- boring, dingy and gross. It had ugly vinyl flooring, yellowed rubber trim and purplish walls (we bought a $5 can of"oops" paint when we first moved in- big mistake!)
We made a lot of easy and inexpensive upgrades like replacing the old flooring with vinyl peel & stick tile (it cost under $30!), adding chunky baseboard trims, painting the walls and the vanity, framing the mirror, hanging a new shower curtain and throwing a new bathmat down (both were from World Market). Not to mention, I accessorized with fun stuff from HomeGoods. Thanks, HG!
This adorable bird shelf coordinated so well with the shower curtain and was marked waaaaayyy down from $120 to $30, which made me super happy. I lined the back of the shelves with coordinating paper for a fun pop of color.
And just for fun, here's the before and after shot for you.
Now it's your turn to link up your favorite home decor projects from the past year. Anything home decor-related, room makeovers included, are fair game! We can't wait to see what you've got!
Don't forget to checkback tomorrow to find out the Winner of the first ever Creating with the Stars contest! We're biting our nails over here!
When Jess and I saw this tiny galley kitchen, we knew we had to help! It's the kind of space that most people on a budget would call"hopeless" because it's really, really tiny and everything was dated. Thankfully, we really love a challenge, so we headed to Matt and Linda's to give them a colorful kitchen renovation for under $1200! To watch this full episode online, click HERE.
Matt and Linda are a great couple and this kitchen makeover meant a lot to them because they have a family of four using the kitchen, but also because Linda owns her own baking business out of their home.
She was the one responsible for all of the amazing desserts and decor at our premiere party. If you're local and in need of any desserts, you have to check her out. Frog Prince Cake & Cookie Design
Take a peek at these before pictures… does this look like a kitchen for a woman that spends a ton of a time cooking and baking?
Two things made the biggest difference in this space… Paint & Opening up the wall. Here's a rundown of all the changes we made to this space.
Painted Cabinets, Counters, & Appliances Paint is one of the least expensive and high impact things you can do to a space. We painted the cabinets a crisp, semi-gloss white and added new hardware. The counters were painted using a Rustoleum paint just for laminate. The appliances we coated with a stainless steel appliance spray paint. We'll give you the full rundown later this week. Flooring- The flooring project we did in this space could be one of my favorite DIYs of 2013 so far! I can't believe how amazing the effect was! We'll share all the details later this week on the blog, but who would have imagined that peel and stick vinyl tile could look this amazing!
Faux Subway Tile Renovating an entire kitchen for $1200 is tricky, so rather than installing subway tile we painted it! It took a LONG time, and I might have gotten a few grey hairs in the process, but it looked amazing in the end! (Full tutorial coming this week!)
Opening the Kitchen Wall This kitchen is tiny and we couldn't change the footprint, but we wanted it to feel bigger and less closed off from the rest of the house, so we removed the top half of the left wall. Instantly, the kitchen seemed twice the size!
Add Open Shelving Once the wall was down, we really didn't want to put the cabinets back up, because it would make the space seem closed off again. Instead, we purchased inexpensive Ikea floating shelves and displayed their dishes added lots of fun colorful accessories.
Create Additional Workspace We never like to waste anything, so rather than just getting rid of the cabinets we removed, we used them as base cabinets in the dining room. All we had to do was build a counter using inexpensive pine, and for almost no cost, we created a huge workspace and kept all of their storage!
Lighting and Window Mirror We added a fun pendant light and backed an old window with a mirror to add more light to the room. We love using old windows to decorate a space. This really helped make this tiny space feel larger!
DIY Bake Marquee Sign This was Linda's favorite project in the space. It was really simple to make, but added such a fun pop to the room! Jess will be back with the full tutorial later this week!
Fun Accessories Of course we added lots accessories to complete the space. We don't have a full source list, but most of the items were from Homegoods and Ikea! We really keep our eyes open for clearance and sale items!
This kitchen took a lot of hard work. All of the projects saved us big time budget-wise, but required some serious (wo)man hours. We were SO excited with how it turned out and actually, we were even more excited with how happy the homeowners were!
Our first Knock It Off kitchen renovation was a huge success and we can't wait to tackle another one! Kitchens are usually the most expensive rooms in a home, and to think we did an entire kitchen and dining room for about the cost some people spend just on countertops alone makes us pretty sure that Knocking It Off was the best route to go!! Check back later this week for all of the tutorials! To watch this full episode online, click HERE.
Hey all! We're back from our trip to Haven in Atlanta! We learned so much and met so many great people, so while we collect all of our thoughts about it to share with you tomorrow, I thought I'd show you a project I did recently to spruce up my kitchen and entryway. I'm super excited about this because it opens up a whole world of possibilities for us DIYers who would rather make something custom than buy it at the store. Did you know you can make a floor cloth (basically a floor mat) out of fabric? You totally can. Hallelujah! Plus, it's so ridiculously easy you'll want to make one for every room of your house! Let's get right down to business, shall we?
Step 1: Gather your materials. Fabric: the amount depends on the size of your mat. I used about 3/4 yard for my kitchen mat, and 1 1/2 yards for my entryway mat) Rubber Mat Runner:I've seen similar floor mats made with vinyl flooring remnants (check out Diane's floor mat from In My Own Style!), but I wanted something sturdy with traction and this fit the bill! Found at Home Depot in the flooring section. Spray AdhesiveWater-based PolyurethaneScissorsDuct Tape
Step 2: Using your scissors, cut your rubber mat to size. I wanted an octagonal shape for my kitchen so I measured the angles and then cut accordingly.
3. Measure and cut your fabric to size. Leave approximately 2-3 inches all the way around your rubber mat, because you'll be wrapping the fabric around it later. Don't forget to iron your fabric before moving to the next step! I used two different fabrics for two different mats. I had extra fabric from the pendant light I made for my kitchen. It's called Waverly Solar Flair in Lime & Indigo, and it's fabulous. I can't remember the name of the other fabric- sorry! But I love.them.to.pieces. (I realize that loving fabric that much is wierd, but I'm ok with that)
4. Determine your fabric placement. Then fold the fabric back about halfway and spray the rubber mat with spray adhesive. Fold the fabric back down, smoothing out the bubbles and wrinkles as you go. Lift the other side of fabric up and repeat that method. The fabric should stick well to the rubber mat.
Don't mind me…just loving on my fabric while smoothing out the wrinkles.
5. Brush a water-based polyurethane on to your fabric. Make sure it's water-based so that your fabric doesn't yellow! This will seal your fabric and protect it from water. You'll also be able to wipe the mat down should anything spill on it (let's be honest, I wish I could poly every surface in my house for this reason). I did 3 coats of poly, letting it dry completely in between coats.
6. Once the final coat has dried, lay your mat fabric-side down on the ground. Begin folding the edges of the fabric towards the center of the rubber mat. Spray each edge with adhesive and press down until it sticks. Then take your duct tape and run it along the edges to create a seal. No one will see the underside of your mat and you'll want the extra security the duct table provides!
To create perfect corners, just follow these simple steps: 1. Grab the corner and fold up towards the center of the mat. 2. Fold one side up flush against the edge of the rubber mat to create a straight line. 3. Fold the opposite side up in the same way until both sides meet in the middle.
Once you've finished duct taping, you're done! Lay your floor cloth down and admire your handiwork. So easy, and so cute! Here's the one I made for the entryway (It's 4 feet by 2 feet, if you were wondering):
And the one for my kitchen:
Because this mat already has traction, it doesn't slide around really at all. However, if you wanted extra stay-put-ability, just run a line of caulk around the edges where the fabric is, and it will better grip the floor. Ok, be honest, who's going to dig through their fabric stash today or run to Joann's to give this project a try?!; )
I've decided that it's about time I dedicated some of my decorating/reorganizing energies to our master bedroom. I am in love with our Nautica paisley bedding (a Christmas gift from my parents), and I even like the paint colors in the room, but the artwork, flooring and disorganized closets are just not working for me. Let's start with the artwork, shall we? Nothing in our room says"Kevin and Jess". It doesn't capture our personalities, or even our design style. Most of what I have hanging on the walls were gifted to us for our wedding, and while they are lovely, almost seven years have gone by and I'm ready for something new.
Artwork above bed: BEFORE
Baby on the left is my daughter at about 1 month old, and baby on the right is my son at about the same age. (The colors are sort of wierd- must have been a different time of day. The colors on the right are more true to life.) The babies are adorable, but take a look at the artwork. Too country-ish. And the picture really is a nice picture of lilies, but I was over it. (Also, if you are wondering, my husband made our headboard from an old door that he cut down, painted and mounted to the wall. I love its simplicity and the fact that it was FREE, since we had removed the door from another area of the house to open it up a bit. It's a really easy DIY project for those of you looking for a headboard.) Right before Christmas, Monica and I went to Hobby Lobby, which, sadly, is all the way in Easton. If you are in to crafting/decorating, you will want to plan a day trip to this store. We planned a special trip where we had dinner and then meandered throughout the store for hours. I was so giddy at the checkout counter that I rambled on and on about my love for Hobby Lobby and how far we travelled to get there. I'm sure the lady thought I was crazy and wanted me to move on, but I didn't even notice so high was I on all the possibilities of this amazing store. Anyway, one my purchases was two chipboard letters, a K and a J. They cost $1.77 each, and I knew I could use them for artwork above the headboard.
The first thing you may notice is that I'm extremely impulsive. I didn't really think this project through, and so I took many, many steps to get to the finished product. But I'm a trial and error kind of girl, and I've accepted that. My first thought was to decoupage a really cool french script paper to the letters. They looked awesome and I was thrilled. Until…
…I held them up against the wall. I hated the color of the paper against the color of the wall, and it wasn't working hung next to the awesome brassy-gold ampersand that I also bought at Hobby Lobby.
So, I decided to rip the paper off, and try spray-painting the letters in a metallic finish. Turns out that ripping off paper that has been decoupaged is no easy task, so I decided to stop that, and sand the paper (really? Sand paper? Yes, I told you I'm impulsive and not always sure of what I'm doing.)
The metallic finish was equally awesome, but again I didn't like the finish of it against the wall, in the dark brown frames, or next to the brassy ampersand. So, what did I do? I painted the darn things the same color as the headboard.
Artwork above Bed: AFTER
I love it! It's just a touch modern, which is fun against the more traditional lamps and bedding. And you can't tell from the picture, but the"&" really brings out the goldish color in the bedding. I'm super happy with the finished product.
Just to keep it real, here's an up-close picture of my bedside table.
Eeeeww! Dust much? I have a few other projects up my sleeve for our master bedroom that I hope to start in the next few weeks. (I guess I should add dusting to that list.) It may take some smooth talking and the perfect timing to get the hubby onboard, so we'll see! Next up: the floors
We have disgusting carpet that was disgusting before we moved in, and is even more disgusting now since we've lived here for 3 years. We are planning on ripping it out and then painting the subfloors, ala Ashley. Not exactly traditional, but it's cheap and pretty!
We won't be doing an elaborate stencil, though. We're thinking big, broad horizontal stripes in muted colors. I can't wait and I'll keep you posted on the progress. I also have a few other ideas for art for the other walls that includes some of my favorite photos of the hubs and me. Time to get crackin'!
So, we're one step closer to ma king the master our own.
I didn't know Jess was going to mention one of our favorite blogs yesterday, but it was the perfect lead-in for my post today. Layla and Kevin from The Lettered Cottage have a wall that I love and want to create something similar to.
Now, their wooden walls were hiding out under the drywall, because they have an old home, but I'm going to have to bring in wood to create this look. Eric and I were talking about where to get inexpensive old, wood flooring, but then we thought about pallets. They're free, they're easy to aquire, and I think they just might work. Thus began my search for pallet inspiration.
This wall is not my style and I think the TV is completely out of place, but I was able to get some good tips from this DIY project. I'm pretty sure I want to whitewash or colorwash my wood.
Moma and Her Drill During my pallet search I found tons of other ideas and creative uses for pallets… I'm learning that they're all the rage right now! Children's Headboard
Apartment Therapy I really love this headboard. I'm not sure if I love the headboard or just the fact that it's in my favorite colors and my style bedding.
House Tweaking This reading nook is adorable! I need to find a spot in my house to create one for my kiddos! I might need to wait until we finish the basement, but I'm saving this project idea for sure!
Kojo Designs I'm not a big coffee table fan (perhaps because we have four kids and have had a toddler around for the last 9 years) but this is a cool idea and I think you could give it a rustic or very polished look.
DIY Ideas A Sweedish company makes interrlocking furniture that doubles as art. This is just a sample of their colors, but check out the link below to see how it's used functionally. So cool!
Sibylle Stœckli How fun are these bright outdoor chairs? This company sells them, but there are tons of DIY directions online. They would be fabulous in an urban backyard or patio.
Inhabitat Lastly, an adorable idea that my kids would love! Seriously, what little kid wouldn't love to play inside this… of course I'd add some fun accessories and a pop of color, but the idea is awesome.
Tiny Pallet House What do you think of these Green building ideas? I think I'm all about it and I just need to decide which room I'm going to attempt it in… I'm between Callen's bedroom and the Master Bathroom. We're leaning towards Cal's room because the master bathroom has really high ceilings and is a much bigger project for the hubs. Currently"Pallet Wall" is about # 4 or 5 on the Honey-do-list… Eric's Honey-do-list… 1. Hang DIY hardware in kids bathroom (I'm pretty sure he's doing that now. I hear banging!) 2. Build Dining Room Table (we're in the planning and researching stage still, but making progress) 3. Assemble the kids' new swingset (a Christmas present, but we've been waiting for grass to grow) 4. LANDSCAPE this crazy yard (the builder is re-seeding this week and then we can start!) 5. Create Pallet Wall I'll keep you posted on our projects, and until we get to #5 on the list, I'll just keep being inspired by other people's DIY ideas. What cool Pallet Possibilies can you think of?
When we bought our house, there were several outbuildings scattered throughout the property. There was the old sheep barn that was collapsing in beyond repair, there was an aluminum shed, a quirky wood shed, a pole barn, the barn with the guest quarters, and the sauna (pictured above). The old sheep barn, the aluminum shed and the quirky wood shed all got hauled away to the rebuild it center. The rest we kept, including the sauna.
I'll give you a quick tour. It's a small two room sauna that reminds me of the old rustic camps I use to visit in Maine.
I can tell you that Hubby was beyond thrilled when he discovered this building on our first tour of the property and imagined sitting in here after a long day of skiing. The above room is the changing room and has lots of old vintage towel racks, old hooks, a little vanity and benches to sit on.
Even Lucy was excited about the sauna. Here she is taking in the ambiance of the old steam room. Aren't the benches classic? And see the old shower faucet hanging from the cross beam?
But Hubby's dream came to a screeching halt when the house inspector warned us that the above water tank was a ticking time bomb just waiting to explode. In other words, don't use the sauna in its current incarnation — ever. Hubby had ideas to update the system but when we realized that all of the wood in the steam room had been coated with urethane, we knew we'd have to reside the whole interior as to not get high on toxic fumes. The charred wall was also a deterrent — obviously the barrel stove was a fire hazard. So it sat.
Until one day a couple of winters ago, we put my old treadmill in the changing area and started using the space as a workout room. And that's when we decided that the building would serve us much better as a home gym than a sauna. Let me just say that we're not gym people. We know this because we bought gym memberships a year ago this month and pretty much never went. This was mostly due to the inconvenience of driving into town all the time. When we did go, all we used were the treadmill (which I had at home) and the elliptical machine (which we just bought). So instead of renewing our very costly gym membership, we've decided to use the funds to create a home gym, conveniently located within walking distance from the house. We'll be tearing out the wall in the middle in order to create a large one room space so that both the treadmill and the elliptical machine will fit side by side. These will go where the steam benches are now. We'll insulate the vaulted ceiling, perhaps add a sink since there's already an existing water line, and paint everything white. We have some extra tongue and groove flooring left over from the porch, which we'll use to cover up the concrete floor. We'll paint the floors historic gray as they already have primer on them. We also plan to replace the plywood door with the old french exterior door we removed from the main house. So that's the plan but I can't say for sure when the cosmetic stuff will happen! But I'll keep you posted! AFTER PHOTOS HERE!
I wish I could tell you this post was about my gardens but to be honest I'm just not that industrious. Between family, home and job I don't have that kind of time let alone these gardens are much too formal for my humble dwelling. These are highlights from Stan and Cheri Frye's stunning Edwardian garden, a local garden that I was fortunate enough to visit last weekend.
One of the lower ponds at the bottom of the gardens facing up with the mainhouse barely visible on the right and the guesthouse in the center. The Frye's gardens occupy four properties, on 12 acres with 40 garden areas, all on a rocky hillside with an elevation change of 110'. The gardens are linked together by lawn, mulch, pebbles, and granite stone paths. New Hampshire is called the granite state so we have no shortage of this material, ask anyone who has tried to garden here. You'll see from the pictures that there's a repetitive use of boxwood, evergreen, yew, holly, hosta and hydrangea to add a sense of unity.
The garden rooms surrounding the main house are kept formal as seen in thisgarden with areflecting pool, statuary, urns and clipped boxwood. As you wandered down from the first terraced area you come upon a 300-foot allee, a French word meaning a walkway lined with trees or tall shrubs, of pollarded sycamore trees. Pollarding of trees means to cut the branches back to the trunk in the spring to promote dense heads of foliage and to control the trees height. New growth on these trees can be as much as six feet per year. The tree branches are trained to grow to the north and south leaving the pathway open.
The 300-foot Allee with sycamore trees surrounded bypachysandra, a shade loving ground cover growing to eight inches.
At one end of the Allee you come upon a large urn called 'Pope's Urn', named after Alexander Pope, who was considered one of the greatest English poets of the 1700's and is visible from the back deck of the main house. At the other far end is a cottage and Stan's office. Can you imagine the tough commute he has walking down that allee each morning to his office? Torture!
In the geometric garden, boxwood is clipped into spheres to mimic the round architectural balls. While a lead boy balancing on a sphere gets sprayed in a small pool. Just look at that fabulous collection of antique garden ornaments and use of granite stone.
Here's a great idea, an arbor made out of nothing more than rebar tied together. Planted on each corner are Japanese maples that have their branches tied to the rebar to create a canopy. A laid stone flooring and voile, you have a stunning area out of the sun for a picnic. I hope you've enjoyed a little of the garden tour and you go away with a few ideas of your own. Me, while the temperatures wavier in the three-digit area and dangerously close to my whining point, I think I'll go sit on the air conditioner and contemplate how the husband has over pollarded our tree and the deer have made a tasty snack out of my hosta!
I have to tell you I love that wall of windows, its like being up in the treetops! Now that the windows are in they need to be framed out and I for one was wondering how they did curves since wood doesn't come rounded. I don't know about you but I was hugely fascinated by how they did this process.
Before the half round window went in they made a template on plywood by simply laying the window down and drawing a line around it. Then they cut and screwed pieces of wood around the inside of the template. Next it was a simple matter of cutting thin long lengths of wood, the thin wood bends, and they glued and nail each piece together.
They just kept adding layers until the desired frame thickness was achieved.
Then sanded the whole frame and filled in tiny holes with epoxy glue that really sealed the whole thing together.
Since our barn doors on the outside needed arched framing our contractors took over part of the barn for this building process while the annex was being insulated with spray foam. (Look out that big window, see the tree tops!)
You can see one arched frame for the half round window standing up in the annex along with its template. See how big they are compared to the door? This picture was taken after the annex was insulated with spray foam, you don't insulate inside walls. You can also see some of the plasterboard going up on the ceiling between the rafters. No insulation needed there since we raised the roof and insulated on the outside.
See how nice the framing came out and you can't even tell it was made out of several lengths of wood rather then one.
One of the changes mister man and I decided on was the staircase leading up into the barn. Originally it was going to be all wood but since mister man had a bit of antique granite stone left from building the two end walls (and lets be honest he can't help himself) he thought a stonewall staircase would look amazing. Unfortunately that meant deep digging for the footers since stone is too heavy for a simple sonatube.
It was a little hairy having a small excavator in the lower part of the barn under the floor joists, there were only mere inches above it to move and every once in a while the whole barn was rattled from the slight bumps from the excavator. It would have been infinitely easier had mister man decided the staircase sooner but there you go! Because the mountain we live on has a natural water aqueduct the hole the excavator dug wanted to fill with water so we had our very own mini moat in the lower part of the barn.
We were going to need the dirt the excavator removed to fill the hole back in after mister man built the footers so it was placed on the other side of the barn. See that back wall of boulders, the entire back of the barn sits on the wall and it extends about twelve feet out into the back under the soil so no fear of that puppy ever coming down. Our entire home sits on a foundation of boulders.
Speaking of puppy, Dylan couldn't help himself and climbed up on the mountain of dirt. It was cool, he likes heights for some reason, and lets be realistic, he's a dog, it's DIRT! Look at that happy face!
So while mister man went to work on the footers for the staircase and the barn was being insulated it was now my turn to head off and do some wheeling and dealing, time to see about purchasing the antique flooring! Up next the stonewall staircase, wait until you see!
While perusing the Internet looking for a certain antique item for my new kitchen I remembered Michael Trapp Antiques and web site Here. While browsing his pages I had a look at his profile and was very surprised to find a little box right below his picture. Michael Trapp is a garden and interior designer extraordinaire, theatrical designer, antiques dealer, and trendsetter, who is well known on the east coast, is selling his amazing home in Sharon, Connecticut.
View of the house before renovation Perched on the edge of a cliff with spectacular views of the Berkshires foothills sat an unassuming 3000 square foot bungalow style house that Michael purchased for $365,000 in 2003 and set about creating a little magic.
View of the house after renovation with landscaping, stonewalls, steps and cobblestone walkway. Notice the color of the house and trim.
View of the dining room, notice the wall color, with a 19th century Spanish chandelier, the teak chairs are sold on his web site. The dining room and living room face out to the deck so the windows and French doors were all elongated to capture the view.
The antique French limestone table base and the fabulous 18th century flooring from Burgundy are all available on Michaels' web site.
The 900 square foot deck that runs the length of the house brings those captivating views home! This picture was obviously taken in the fall since the leaves are changing. Now do you understand why someone with so much talent bought such a house?
The living room is outfitted with eight dead birch trees, while an unusual decorating statement inside they would have been worse outside for a garden designer. Upon arriving for the front yard Michael found they were diseased and dying so he brought them inside. The living room is bigger in height then width so he needed something to make the scale more human like without blocking the light coming inside.
The other side of the living room noticed how Michael used black paint to mimic wainscoting on the lower half of the walls. He has another variety of tree hanging above the large clam shell, an orange tree. I love all the antique frames on the wall, sometimes they make more of a statement empty.
The master bath is tiled with late 19th/early 20th Century Spanish glazed concrete tile that are available on Michaels' site in three different colors. The sinks are all carved stone.
In the bedroom, a pre-Rafaelita painting of St. Sebastian is framed on either side with finials from a Samuel McIntire house. You can see Michaels' love of antique architectural pieces in the side tables and throughout the house.
The floors are all inlaid 18th century French Terra cotta tiles from Burgundy all outlined with bands of dark stained wood. Michael was able to open the house up and bring the light and outside in blurring the line between the two. If you're interested in seeing a wonderful slide show featuring this house go Here. If you're interested in seeing Michaels' shop with attached gardens and house go Cote de Texas Joni did a wonderful spread not to be believed. Oh, if you're interested I did buy my new kitchen a little something from Michaels' shop here....
a 16th century Italian wine vessel Happy Shopping!
Ever since I saw the cover of the February issue of Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles magazine with this image I have been coveting those pedestals and urns. Unfortunately they're antiques and already sold from a shop that no longer exists. I've searched everywhere for affordable antique pedestals but they're usually over a thousand dollars and new ones somehow never look the way I want them to'...what to do?
WHAT TO DO, why show the magazine to mister man of course because he could build those pedestals easily. I mean how tough could they be to make, they're just a couple of pieces of wood banged together, some decorative trim and voile, wife happy right?
If there's one thing mister man is it's accommodating and he likes building stuff so he said no problem. He took a look around to see what he had on hand to make them with, of course this is where I had the problem'not spending any money to buy nice new clean wood? You see that dirty piece of wood he's working on and the one leaning up against the table saw, when he said he was using it for my pedestals I had a moments hesitation. Those dirty 2x4's were used for the cement forms for the footers of the barn stone walls and he used that wood as a straight edge when building the stone walls, haven't they've done enough duty already? I was a tad panicked!
I tried to say something but he said not to panic and I guess when someone else is doing you a favor you shouldn't question'yeah right! But it's all good he was only using that dirty wood for the center forms and nobody would ever see it.
He even had some nice clean 100 plus year old antique pine wood for the face, it was a rejected piece of pine from our antique flooring going in the upstairs part of the barn. It was rejected for the floor because it had a very large knot and split in it but mister man had no problems with it. Kind of nice that the things that went into renovating our antique barn was also going into my pedestals.
He even had cut nails that look antique since the round new kind wouldn't look right. The only thing he had to buy were the two different trims for the top and bottom and those only cost $24 all total. The heck with thousand dollar pedestals mine just cost $24 bucks and twelve hours of mister man's time! He even made them to the height and size I wanted'what a guy huh? (Yes I'm sucking up here!)
So what do you think? They came out exactly like the picture minus the beautiful gray stain but now it's my turn to add those touches since I never ever let mister man paint anything. He hates to paint/stain and he's really bad at it, it's always good to know ones strengths.
Some beautiful antique urns courtesy of Brimfield, the lichen was free!
I've ordered some dried moss to place in the urns and I think we're almost set, just have to stain those puppies but it has been raining here for a solid week! Mister man is definitely a keeper huh? He's always making me things from pictures, love it! So what do you think of my new/old pedestals? ?
image viacote de texas I love settings such as these there's something about them that draws me into them. These rooms look so calm, so relaxed, so perfect''.
image viaa perfect gray I noticed something about these settings, notice the high ceilings, not just the ceilings but notice the details....
image via ? The amazing flooring, the perfect European furniture....
image viagreige
image viavoorhaven 7
image viaItalian Style ? Without architectural elements you would simply have a room devoid of personally. I love how these rooms don't have a lot of furniture but they lead your eye around the room, they say look at me. What do you think, do you like rooms that are simple but elegant?
We're so excited to finally share this project with you. We wrote it for Infarrantly Creative last week, and now we can reveal it to you! We're going to give you an awesome, low cost way to frame a humongous photograph that will totally be a traffic-stopping scene-stealer! Not only that, this project is super easy and takes very little time. We were actually very surprised at how quickly it came together. You know when you have a creative idea, and you think it should be easy, but it almost never is? You won't have that problem here!
Here's our cast of characters:
1 Piece 4x9 Underlayment/Luan 24x36 Engineer Print (from Staples!) Spray paint Spray adhesive Modpodge Mini-projector (or a regular one will work too!) Picture hanging hardware
Luan, otherwise known as underlayment, is a type of plywood usually used in flooring. Not today, folks! It's ultra-light (I don't know maybe 5 pounds for the whole sheet?!), and so was the perfect medium for making a frame. We chose it because we were planning on hanging it high on a wall in Jess' entryway that has vaulted ceilings. We wanted something that would be light enough to stay put on the wall so that it didn't accidentally knock off one Jess' guests as they entered the house. Plus, because it's so thin, it was really easy to cut using a jigsaw (more on that later), and cost only $10 for the whole sheet. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We recently introduced you to engineer prints from Staples? Remember Monica's Industrial Art?
Oh.My.Goodness. They have completely changed us for the better. Just wait, you'll feel the same way. Take your favorite picture into Staples and ask for an oversized print (they come in multiple sizes, but the largest is 3 feet by 4 feet. That's huge!) They'll make a copy right there for you, and the best part…it costs less than 5 bucks for a print! You're only able to get the picture in black and white, but who cares?! It's 5 bucks! The tricky thing is that the picture is printed on very thin paper, so you have to be careful not to bend it or mark it.
Here's where having a crafty best friend comes in: Monica has an adorable mini-projector that was perfect for this project. She brought it over and set it all up using the image of the shape we pulled off of Google images.
If you can't get your hands on a projector, We're pretty sure you can make your own using this fun little tip. Monica downloaded the image of the shape onto the projector (you just use"save as" to save any file format you'd like to the drive)
Then we turned out the lights, and voila!
The perfect shape to trace!
Then, we took that bad boy out to the garage and started cutting out the shape using our trusty jigsaw. We use this thing more than is normal for a pair of moms, but what can we say? We love this tool!
Make sure you take a cheesy picture of yourself holding the frame for posterity.
See what we mean about how thin the luan is? I would say it's about 1/2 inch thick.
The next step is to sand all the rough edges so it's smooth. We recommend using a sanding pad vs. an electric sander because of how fragile the underlayment is.
Because my framed picture is going to hang high on a wall, I wanted our faces to be large so you could see them, so I printed the picture as 3 feet by 4 feet, and then cut off the extra space using an Xacto knife. You could avoid this step by cropping your picture close before printing. Make sure you're using a high-quality photo so that it prints clear. Our photo was taken by the fabulous Salvatori Photography, so we knew it would turn out great! (Need pics? Totally check her out!)
We used Rustoleum Painter's Touch spray paint in Satin Lagoon. It's such a pretty shade of blue- almost like a peacock blue.
It took a few coats, but the underlayment takes the paint really well.
Before adhering the picture, Monica added the hardward to hang the frame. We didn't want the picture to get messed up, so we made sure to do this first. You should definitely use actual picture-hanging hardware, but this is what we had on hand and it worked well. We screwed them in about a 1/4 of the way down from the top of the frame and then threaded picture-hanging wire through.
After determining the placement of the photo on the frame, we marked the corners in case we had any slippage during this next step. Since the picture is so big, we decided to place one hand squarely in the middle of it, and fold one half back towards the middle, spray the spray adhesive all over wood on that half and then smooth outward from the middle. You can use a rolling pin to help get all of the air bubbles out, but we didn't find it necessary. Having a friend help you with this is very helpful, though!
Finally, we brushed matte Modpodge all over the picture to seal it and keep it from fading over time. It just makes it look more finished, too. The Modpodge should be applied in a really thin coat to avoid any bubbling. Actually, if it's going to be in a place where it won't be touched, you could skip this step.
Then it was time to hang our beauty up!
Told you it was high! I'm not sure how Monica got this job because she's afraid of heights, but hey! She did it like a good best friend.: )
We're so in love with it, and can't get over the beautiful pop of color it brings to the entryway.
The total cost for this project was exactly $20, and the impact it makes is HUGE!
So what do you think? How many of you are heading to Staples ASAP?
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I 'm almost too tired to type. We put in another full weekend converting the old sauna into our home gym. But due to my inability to focus on just one project at a time, I also managed a few other side tasks. One task was a five minute bed makeover....explanation to follow.
Hubby worked every second of the weekend putting in fir floors.
While he cut, I pitched in by installing some of the boards. The paint on my jacket is from painting this room last weekend.
The tongue and groove fir flooring went over the concrete floors. It was surplus from the wraparound porch. Some of the boards had been pre-primed and some had not, but for our purposes, it doesn't matter because we plan to paint the floors grey. These boards are mostly seconds, so the paint will cover a lot of the imperfections in the wood.
I took advantage of Hubby's every pause, and wandered inside where I replaced our old beige quilt with the above antique popcorn quilt.
I also managed to repair an antique frame (a piece of the rounded detail was missing).
After the spackle was dry I touched it up with gold paint, which I need to finish.
Lucy provided the supervision needed to accomplish all of our tasks (even my multi-tasks). She is still wearing the bright yellow bandanna she received when she had her hair and nails done at the beauty spa.
I like the brightness and the old-fashioned charm the popcorn quilt offers. I also think it defines the bed better than the beige quilt did against the jute rug.
And of course the detail of the crochet is just beautiful. As you can see, I haven't yet reupholstered the Victorian chair. I ordered some velvet samples but none of them were the right color. And after the bench upholstery job I did for the closet vanity, I know I will have to take it to a professional. No doubt about it.
The lovely and talented Brooke over atBlueprint Blissdid a post on our farmhouse last week. She has a beautiful, inspiring blog....go check it out!
We've been making some slow and steady progress on our hallway bathroom redesign (see my game plan here), but it feels like the eternal job. This is because of two things: we're making sure all the funds are in place (even though this is a small job, we still want to be smart with our money), and I've been searching for all the right pieces. Here's what we started with:
Not the worst bathroom you've ever seen, but it definitely had lots of room to improve. I'm so excited about this bathroom because it will be the very first room in our house that will be completed in the coastal/cottagey (neutral colors, weathered materials and warm wood tones) direction I'm heading in. I finally feel like I know what my style is, and now am taking baby steps to get my house in line. We started by breaking down the process into steps: Step One: Prep the Area First off, we had to take down that plain jane mirror and remove the builder grade vanity.
My he-man hubs cut through the caulk around the countertop with a razor and after that, just lifted it right off.
Removing the behomoth vanity came next. This was a bit tricky because we didn't have a clue how to didn't want to turn the water off completely to the entire house (he turned the water off locally, of course, though). After a bit of debating, Kevin decided to cut a small hole around the pipes with a jigsaw so that we could lift the vanity up and over the pipes.
Can you even believe the color of the walls behind the mirror? When we moved into this house 4 years ago, this was one of the first rooms we painted. The color was just unsettling. Still is, as a matter of fact.
Uh-oh. This was so not a happy moment. Actually, as we were pulling the vanity out, I said to the hubs,"I really hope the wood floor continues to the wall under the vanity." Ugh. It did not, and so, this project just got a little trickier.
Thankfully, the previous homeowners kept a few extra planks of wood flooring, but no matter what we do, there's going to be a difference in the staggered pattern of the floor where the vanity used to be. It's a good thing I don't care about everything being perfect. Why sweat the small stuff, you know? The final part of the prep stage was spackling and sanding the walls, and applying the base coat of paint to the walls (Olympic Quill color-matched in Valspar Premium from Lowes- A warm neutral gray.) Step Two: Beef up the Moulding This is a very simple and inexpensive designers trick that makes a world of difference. Some homeowners (ahem! Monica) are fortunate enough to have chunky baseboard trim, which just has a high-end, finished look, but we are not so fortunate. So, why not fake it? We bought 32 feet of half-round trim- enough to go around the entire bathroom, plus a little in case we made any mistakes. Then we took a piece of wood we had laying around to use as a guide (this is a must! It makes the whole job sooooo much easier).
Our piece of wood was roughly 3.5 inches tall. Cut the half-round so that it has nice corners that will match up using a mitre saw.(You can find loads of tutorials online that will teach you how to use a mitre saw and make the right cuts.) Place the wood on the top of the existing baseboard trim, lay the new cut half-round trim on top of that, level and then shoot in a few nails using a nail gun.
Next, use paintable caulk to fill in any gaps, and wood filler to fill in the nail holes. Finish with primer (ok, we did not do this because we NEVER prime, but you should do as I say, not as I do. We are such rebels.: ), and a fresh coat of white trim paint.
Voila! Chunky and fabulous. Step 3: Paint Stripes I'm not going to go into detail about this step, because we followed the exact instructions for painting the perfect stripe. I decided that we would paint a total of 3 stripes, and the middle stripe would be the darker color (Olympic Stormy Weather, color-matched in Valspar Premium)
The perfect stripe method worked perfectly! No bleeding at all. This picture does not do either color justice. They both lean towards gray, but are still warm like a neutral tan. I'm seriously in love with both of them, and am now contemplating painting the hallway/foyer one of these colors as well. Step 4: Make a Huge Mess (Optional) This is what our hallway currently looks like. How long can one live like this and not go crazy? We are are trying to figure out the answer and will fill you in. You're welcome.
Step 5: Install New Lighting Yup, after all the votes were tallied, I decided to go with this large, bronze fixture for above the sink.
It's awesome and huge, but there's just one problem: Because it's an outdoor light, the recommended max wattage is 60W. That makes for a very dim bathroom. I'm not giving up on this light, though, because I'm basically already married to it. I'm toying around with adding additional lighting somewhere else, and switching out the bulb to a 75W bulb (I'm a rebel, remember?)
See how there's almost no light shining above the fixture? Any suggestions? Here it is, as it stands today:
Lovely beefed-up trim.
Gorgeous stripes in neutral colors. I just had to throw my old ladder in there because I'm so impatient. And guess what? It's a keeper.
Wheeee! I'm totally loving it so far.
To Do List: 1. Add crown moulding. We're holding off on this until we can get a friend to help since we've never done it before and we've heard it's pretty scary. 2. Fix the flooring under the vanity and install baseboard in that area. 3. Paint and apply an antique glaze to the mirror. 4. Figure out the vanity situation. 5. Accessorize! (My favorite part!)
So, it's slow and steady progress, but it's progress nonetheless! Happy Thursday,
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After 14 years of waiting for my ugly kitchen to give out our renovation of it is finally complete! The blinds are hung, decoration in place and everything is new and clean. It wasn't without some tears, the husbands not mine, think cost, but it was a hard fought battle and I wouldn't go back for anything. The dust left a bit to be desired along with the noise and I don't mind saying the shock of seeing my kitchen gutted down to dirt took my breath away!
My wish list was mostly met, wish list, but with a room only 16' x 14', six openings with doors and windows, and a wood stove that had to stay for warmth my grandeur ideas of clean open spaces was bumped off immediately. But that's OK I was happy to work within my limitations. Those aren't the same cabinets just the same simple shaker style. We thought we would be able to keep the old cabinets since they were nice but when our contractors started taking them down they completely fell apart. Nice fronts but the rest were cheaply put together obviously to save on cost along the way.
Before
After With such a small kitchen we wanted to keep everything simple so as not to overwhelm the space such as using clear pendent lights so the eye travels through. We went with the wolf stove /sub zero refrigerator package because we liked that the refrigerator is in the same line as the cabinets, it doesn't bump out into the room by a couple of inches like most refrigerators. This is where the husbands' tears came into play since showrooms don't place price tags on these appliances for a reason! While I would have preferred an antique tiered console/table as my kitchen island I hate seeing microwave ovens and all the things that go with cooking out in the open let alone they get dusty. This island is perfect to hide all those things and gives me more working counter space.
We went with soapstone tile since it's durable enough for an eighty pound bouncing golden retriever. The slightest scratch is simply sanded out with a piece of fine sandpaper but so far that hasn't been needed. Laying the floor tiles in a long straight stretch helped to make the room look more elongated to the eye. The floor couldn't be sealed since it changes the color from shades of gray to black but it cleans up beautifully. We put radiant heat underneath that I love but the dog, not so much!
Before
After Since our kitchen has the lowest ceiling in our home of 8' 2' we wanted to make the room seem taller. We did that by playing with perspectives and tricking the eye into thinking the ceiling was higher so we played with the different height of cabinets to make the room seem more expansive. We were able to do that because the refrigerator was so tall, the sink window sash goes right to the ceiling and the small pantry on the other end is tall. We had to keep the same configuration because of all the openings but hey it works.
I absolutely love my new bridge faucet from American Standard here since it reaches into the middle of the sink unlike the one that originally came with this kitchen and it has a sprayer!
Before
After Our kitchen really came down to the use of materials to give it a new look. Since we had enough of the black soapstone, used on the counters, we used a slab for the hearth under the wood stove. We pile wood in an antique copper bin during the winter and used to ding the old walls so we thought it would be a great idea to pull the flooring tiles up on the lower part of the wall around the wood stove giving it a European flavor. That's a 16th century Italian wine vessel hanging over in that corner that I purchased from Michael Trapp here. I love green and tried to use touches of it throughout our kitchen.
After table and chairs Gone are the antique table and chairs and in its place a small more solid table from restoration hardware that unfortunately they no longer sell. This table was actually sold as a hall table and is only 30' in diameter, plenty of room for two people to have dinner. The chairs from pottery barn here were kept open to let light pass through. Thankfully gone are the fabric roman shades from the windows and in their place custom made bamboo blinds from Smith and Noble here that are much easier to keep clean.
Before
After I love this dishwasher from Fisher Paykel that has two drawers! It simply makes sense for us since we're a two people family, dog bowls don't go in there. I don't like dirty dishes hanging about for a week and since the drawers run independently from one another that is no longer an issue. I've added a few antique pieces, a cappuccino machine and voile, new kitchen! Gone is the clutter and somebody else's design ideas. Absolutely everything in our kitchen is new right down to the wood stove. After all these years I've made my kitchen my own and the ride has been so worth it!
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