Monday, August 8, 2011

What I'm Working On #1




A few days ago, our neighbor was throwing away this perfectly fine and adorable wicker bench. We rescued it (which, I might add, my husband wasn't exactly thrilled about, but hey, it was free) and it's been sitting uselessly in my yard ever since, looking a little like this:

Except it had cushions that I took off before I realized I wanted a picture. My bad.

Tonight, I was feeling a little bit swamped, a lot of frustrated and pretty much unhappy. I needed a craft fix in the worst way. However, my sewing room is a dangerous place to be right now, so I decided to go outside (basically as far away from that mess as I could get).

I took the necessary supplies with me - two cans of red spray paint.

(What? Don't YOU always have them on hand for emergencies? If not, take it from me - you should.)

The first unsuspecting victim I came across was that wicker bench. Twenty minutes later, I had this result:



Now, since this is just a temporary fix, I wasn't too worried about how splotchy the paint job was at this point. I just shook up my other can and went back to work.

When I was done, I turned the cushions that came with it (again, for free!) over to their brighter side and this is what I had:


I swear it's not blotchy anymore. It's a little...wavy?....from being outside in the rain unprotected, so that's why the color still looks off.

And, this is only temporary because I didn't want to have to buy anything to finish it, and everything I had was in my stash. Eventually I'll put one more coat of paint on it so it's a really bright, cherry red.

To match my new sewing room.

Which will be in my new house.

But more on all of that later!

So, to sum it all up:

one rescued wicker bench (with cushions)
+
two cans of red spray paint
+
one bad night =

A cute new bench and a much better mood!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Daydreaming about our future perfect rooms

I've been daydreaming about our perfect rooms. The one thing I've decided on for the kidlet is that she's going to have a seriously amazing bed. Pinterest has been helping me narrow my likes and dislikes down to a manageable list. I thought I'd share some of my top favorite inspiration pictures here!

#1
I love this option because it looks so built in. Check out the molding all around the top - it's more proof that it's all in the tiny details, right? Also, I absolutely love the way the railing is built in and looks like so much more than a railing. We don't need bunk beds though, so we'd modify the bottom to be a desk area and/or reading nook.



#2
Now, this whole entire room is perfect and amazing, but what I'm intensely drawn to are those amazing rain-gutters. Yep, I said rain-gutters. Can you spot them? I'll give you a hint: This beyond ingenius blogger is using them to help hold her boys' books!


#3
This is a double decker type bed without being actual bunk beds. I love multi levels. Also, don't forget to gawk at that gorgeous ceiling, it's stunning.

Source: houzz.com via Beth on Pinterest



#4
I don't think my ceilings will ever be high enough to do this exact setup, but that doesn't stop me from daydreaming about it! And the colors are just amazing. And, again - it's all built in, sigh.


#5
There isn't one thing I don't love about this picture. The curving lines, the green curtains, book shelves and what looks like a closet area...even a piano!


#6
This one isn't a bunk bed and isn't as built-in looking as some of the others. But, I am in lover with all the colors, the softness of the fabrics, and the little light and book cranny. Loving it!


One thing I've noticed is that you have to be careful with beds with the open spaces below them - make the space underneath look as comfy and cozy and sturdy as the bed itself. I'm going to plan big, chunky corners on our bed to avoid that spindly-leg look that can happen too easily.

All of these images are credited beneath them and are pinned on my Favorite Spaces and Places board on Pinterest. You can follow my boards here:

Follow Me on Pinterest

What about you? Do you kill time daydreaming about your future perfect rooms? Wanna share with us? Give us your ideas and/or links in the comments!

Monday, January 18, 2010

2010 - 50 projects/craftalong

1)There are not enough rainbows in this world, and for sure not enough patchwork skirts. I will make one.
2) tampon case (maybe x4, one for each of my sisters and my mother)
3) yoga pants from t-shirt (I also plan on losing 40 lbs this years, one can never have too many cheap workout pants to help with that goal!)
4) a wallet. No specific type in mind yet.
5) wash clothes (crochet, my own simple pattern)
6) dish rags (there is a difference, so these are two separate posts, lol)
7) de-stash as much as I possibly can, and quickly as possible!
8 ) make and wear an entire outfit
9) Make a king sized quilt and love it! I am tired of starting quilts only to hate them halfway through. I may go with a rainbow theme for my room and the hubby will just have to grin and bear it. Right?
10) Begin making ATC's and inchies, again with a rainbow theme
11) Finish an altered book
12) begin an art journal. (On the first post of this thread, the writer mentioned an "everything" journal, with writing, art, inchies, fabric, everything in it. I may do this instead of just an art journal.)
13) Log cabin lap quilt in muted colors.
14) Learn to make undies!
15) Bathroom organization and redecoration - it needs it in the worst way!
16) Create a reading corner somewhere in the house with a comfy chair, a lamp and a shelf.
17) Set up my new crafting space after convincing hubby to let me have it (lol)
18) Make reusable bowl covers
19) make reusable "paper" towels (find the link in this thread to them first, obviously)
20) Reusable sandwich wraps for the hubby and the kiddo and I to take on picnics
21) make at least 10 grocery and produce bags. Our local stores are starting to charge for plastic bags, and if I gotta pay for them anyway, I'd rather use my own adorable ones!
22) Make dryer balls
23) speaking of which, learn to felt wool
24) and learn to reclaim it from sweaters at the thrift stores.
25) sew a crochet hook/rag rug tool holder and NOT lose it.
26) make a toothbrush area-sized rug based on these amazing tuts
27) for the art/everything journal, I need to learn to bind better.
28) also, I really want to focus on taking pictures and posting the projects I actually do. I don't know if that counts as a whole project or not, so I may take it off my list eventually, but I really want to work on being consistent with this one.
28) Make paper at home with the paper making kit I bought LAST year (procrastinate much? lol)
29) make some art work for my living room
30) make some couch and floor cushions for my living room.
31) make remote control organizers (2, one for living room, one for bedroom)
32) Make my mom's paperback book cover
33) make a bible cover
34) make a ziplock-bag folder thing (I don't know where to find it online, I looked all over but can't find it yet. Donna Dewberry made one on this show on Cutterstv and it was AWESOME.) with a hard back insert for writing on
35) make the DD a twirly skirt (rainbowy?)
36) make the DD a rag doll with blankets and pillows and accessories (x2, the other for my niece)
37) make the nephew a fun toy (or taggie blanket) so he doesn't feel unloved after the girls get their presents!
38) make my own Swiffer wet jet refill solution and covers.
39) Make a memo board for my sewing corner.
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Wednesday, December 16, 2009

I love Photoshop so much!

Up until today, I have had PS CS3 installed on my computer but haven't been using it much. When I came over here to Blogger and realized all the amazing customizations I am now free to use, I started looking for some digital scrapbooking elements to make my own backgrounds in Photoshop. I am already addicted in a big way! Less than a whole day into this new blog and I already love it ten times more than wordpress.

I realize this isn't TRULY a crafty blog...but then again, it kind of is, since I am talking about digital scrapbooking and photoshopping, right?

I will be updating this post soon, but I just have to say, I am so excited to be here.