4.30.2012

iphone

normally i have an abundance of instagram photos to choose from, but apparently this week i only have four.  so here we go...


1. my girls first place trophy at a volleyball tournament  2. trying to pick the perfect paint color  3. my absolute favorite purchase of the week  4. ann's favorite purchase of the week

4.26.2012

music stand lamp

when husband and i were picking out furniture for the basement, he insisted he didn't want table lamps.  he thought lamps would "girl" up the space too much and wasn't having any of that.  the basement is his space, so i wanted to respect his wishes and opted for no lamps.  after a few too many times of us sitting on the couch arguing who was going to go turn the lights on/off, however, we decided a lamp was a definite necessity.  i wanted something simple, masculine, and most importantly, inexpensive.  i found a picture of a lovely lamp here, and my wheels started spinning.  unfortunately, i had no vintage music standing sitting around my house and zero patience to go searching for one.  cue sister's chrome music stand from fifth grade.


check.  and why wouldn't i have considered using this lovely thing earlier?  it is beyond me.  but like anything else i come across, all the little beaut needed was a thin layer of Rustoleum metallic bronze spray paint.  i seriously only put one coat on.  not because it covers so amazingly well, but because the unevenness of the paint seemed to give it more of the worn look i was going for.  it was almost too easy actually.  now let us turn this thing into a lamp, shall we?

lamp kit with harp from home dept...check

lamp shade i had lying around the house...check

a light bulb...check

handy husband who is willing to cut the legs in half so the darn thing doesn't have a 4 foot wingspan...check


  that was seriously all it took.  the lamp kit was slightly confusing {unless of course you are a pro at tying a conductor's knot based on two drawings}, but it only took around ten minutes to get it all together.  i had to rob the lamp shade from another lamp that is not being used, so eventually i will have to replace one of them.  

total cost of this little lamp...$7 (holla!)

unless of course you have to purchase spray paint and a new lamp shade.  in that case, i would budget, say, maybe 13 more dollars?  although i'm sure i will have no troubles coming across a lovely shade for a whole lot less at goodwill.

4.24.2012

chalkboard clipboards

my basement projects are coming along very nicely this week.  it is such a nice feeling to wake up and know i have an entire day to dedicate to projects.  most of the work i have been doing has been preliminary project stuff {lots and lots of priming}, but i have to start somewhere!  just one step closer to checking off more things on my never ending list.  whenever i am working on big projects, i like to throw a couple smaller projects in the mix.  it helps me feel that i am actually accomplishing something, even if it only takes a few minutes.  for one of my small projects, i purchased a few clipboards from the dollar tree.


i contemplated leaving them the color they were, but ultimately decided they would be much more useful with a little chalkboard paint.


i even took the time to hang them up {first things to be placed on the walls in the basement}.  they are situated by my soon-to-be craft table and will be used as inspiration boards and possibly to-do lists.  now it is time for me to enjoy this beautiful day we are having and get my spray paint on.  happy tuesday!  

4.19.2012

laundry sorter

we are half way through april and this is, what, maybe my third post about organization?  this is why i do not make resolutions people.  but alas, it is time to get this little house organized and address our laundry situation.  


i bought this laundry organizer a couple of months ago from home depot.  i really like having the laundry presorted for when i when i want to quickly throw a load in.  but i can't tell you how many times i have heard, "babe?  which one do i put my socks in again?"  or even worse, "i don't remember where my jeans go so i am just going to throw them on the floor".  okay, he never actually said the last one, but i imagine it is what is going through his head every time i find a pile of clothes outside of the hamper.  no more excuses dear husband.


i cut out labels using my silhouette cameo and contact paper.  as i mentioned before, i prefer using contact paper over vinyl because it is cheaper.  


i mixed some fabric medium and acrylic paint and carefully blotted the stencil with a paintbrush.


my laundry sorter is now clearly labeled and ready to be filled with dirty clothes.

iphoto mash-up


4.06.2012

house tour-the before

as promised, i will now give you a private tour of ann and log's new home. 




 the front of the house needs a little landscaping and love.  the pictures begin in the basement, because that is when i started snapping away.  be prepared.


this would be the very last room if you actually took the tour.  it is the 4th bedroom in the home, but will serve the purpose of annie's studio/sewing room.  it currently has a cement floor, so it will be perfect for her art projects.


this is the view of the hallway leading to the 4th bedroom.  as you can see, there is lovely wallpaper in the basement.  the door on the right is a bathroom.


i noticed the carpet in the bathroom right away.  besides that, the basement really gets some nice lighting.  the pale yellow wall color will need to go.


this is the family room in the basement.  


ann and i are still arguing about what is going to be done with the paneling.


the storage/laundry room is very large.


we will now begin our trek upstairs.


in this picture, i am standing in the kitchen.  the door on the right leads to the basement.  the door straight ahead leads to the garage.


the kitchen isn't huge, but it has some nice cabinet space {especially compared to my kitchen}


the appliances may need a little updating.


especially the dishwasher


next to the kitchen is the dining room.  i am a little jealous of this feature since my home does not have one!


it even has a lovely chandelier.  the plan is to remove the upper cabinets that you can see above the peninsula to make the space feel more open.  and of course, the wallpaper will need to go.


now we can start at the beginning of the tour, which would be walking through this lovely front door.  it will eventually need to be refinished.


this is the main living room.  discussions are still happening about the built in shelving and furniture arrangement for this room.  it will need paint, but otherwise nothing will be done in here.


while standing in the dining room, you can look down a long hall and see the three upstairs bedrooms.  the first door on the right is the bathroom.


i'm kinda liking the wallpaper in there, if there wasn't so much of it.  ann really hates color though, so she will be tearing that down right away.


the occupational therapist in me is loving the modifications in this home, but the decorating side of me agrees they need to go.  this bathroom has only a bathtub and a couple grab bars.


the smallest bedroom in the home was being used as a laundry room {again with those home modifications}.  the plumbing will be removed and this room will be ann's closet.


i believe it has been decided that this is the master bedroom.  there is more wallpaper to remove and more painting to be done.


this room has the largest closet of all the rooms.


there is a third bedroom {possibly a guest room?} that has already been filled with their furniture purchases.


after the full house tour, we went out back to check out the backyard.  we realized the back of the house was actually cuter than the front so i snapped a picture.  it's almost like the house is walking away and saying "goodbye, come back soon".

4.02.2012

the weekend in pictures

i can't help but share some pictures from last weekend that i was able to capture with my new camera.  


on Saturday, we stopped over at logan and annie's new home to move in some furniture and check it out.  they won't be moving in until july, so there is plenty of time to do some much needed adjustments.  more "before" pictures to come later on in the week!


i was also able to watch my brother-in-law's girlfriend play on saturday night.  i thought she was pretty awesome.


just the cutest.


on sunday we celebrated my sister's birthday.


 mom was feeling extra springy as she made the cake.



and me? oh i'm just counting down the days until i can breath again...and that would be twelve in case you are wondering.  have a fabulous week and stay tuned for some house pictures!