Pretty in Pink...

If you “came of age” in the 80’s chances are you saw a John Hughes film. If you haven’t, you are missing out! “Pretty in Pink” was one of my favorites! Check them out…you won’t be disappointed and I can’t think of one that isn’t “kid friendly.”

Which brings me to pink…a color I have always loved but have never really used in my home decor. I must have gotten a “pink bug” because all of a sudden I can’t seem to get enough of it….and since next week is Valentine’s Day, this is a great time to infuse a little pink into my home decor under the guise of “decorating for the holiday.”

I found this little bench in 410 Vintage…the tag said it is walnut but I really think it is mahogany. I used this process to refinish the frame and recovered the seat with the same pink velvet I used for the club chair pillow (makeover here).

Several years ago I refinished a little piano bench to set by the closet so I would have a place to sit and put my shoes on.

In one of my “purging” marathons I moved it out but in all honesty I kinda missed it…so this little bench is a perfect little replacement!

I love my office…a simple room that is really multi purpose…a “thoroughfare” from the living spaces to the master bedroom, a “dressing room,” and of course, an office.

I featured the desk here.

I have seen a few desks over the years that peaked my interest but I still love this desk…it is perfect! Prime example of “buy what you TRULY LOVE and you will never tire of it!”

My office chair looks a lot like a Marcel Gascoin C-chair….I can’t find a picture of this exact chair so I don’t know for certain! Again, I don’t buy pieces like this for their potential value…but because I LOVE them.

I bought it years ago and share it’s little makeover here. Again, still love it!

I have replaced the dresser several times over the years but I LOVE this one! Shared the makeover here and while I loved the dresser that was here before, this one is MORE better!

The little bookcase…just adorbs!

I digress…off to the living room … I found the cutest pink pillows…

…and a yummy smelling pink candle!

The little white pillow was kind of plain so I decided to add some cute pink pom-poms I made out of “furry” yarn. I just tacked them on so they can easily be taken off when I tire of the pink.

The pink pillows will go well with the little bit of Easter decorating I do!

While digging around TJMaxx for pink pillows and candles I found a few other things I thought would be fun for the holiday….cute hedgehog mugs and fun little Valentine’s hand towels!

You don’t have to (or need to) spend a lot of money dressing your home for Valentine’s Day…but it is fun to infuse a little fun and color into an otherwise “drab” time of year!

Funny…I was wearing my pink tennis shoes and a pink vest when I was buying all this pink stuff…the check out lady remarked that I sure must like my pink…lol!

Turns out, I really do! It is so dreary and “wintery” outside and the pink just seems to brighten things up a bit!

I have some leftover pink velvet from the bench makeover…just enough for a few more pink pillows! Now if I can just being myself to sew them…eck!

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Bookcase round up....

Get it..."round up." Okay, seriously, I give up trying to come up with clever titles...they aren't clever, they are just corny!

I love sniffing around thrift stores and flea markets. I shop those stores like I shop for clothes and shoes....I walk through the store and wait for something to "jump out at me." Unfortunately I have very little interest in clothes or shoes, but I LOVE unique and interesting pieces of furniture!

I have "googled" every possible description of this piece and can find nothing even close to it. So I have no idea what style or period it is. But I think it is so awesome and it gives me a unique and interesting way to display more of my book collection!

I found this piece in the White Elephant Flea Market in Fayetteville and it is by far the most interesting piece I have ever discovered! It was in mint condition so I didn't have to refinish it...and at $45, I thought it was a steal.

I rarely have time to just "leisurely" shop thrift stores and flea markets! Normally I just drop in for a quick walk through to see if there is anything new and interesting...or something that catches my fancy. You don't have to take an entire afternoon to dig through these stores...just pop in and walk through...if a piece wants to go home with you, it will make itself known. For me, shopping in thrift stores and flea markets is like cleaning out a closet...if I have to look at something for more than 10 seconds and ponder its usefulness, I don't need it!

For some people, and especially novice DIYers, it may take a little longer to "see through" the grunge or imagine how a piece can be repurposed....but over time you will find that the more you have to "think" about a piece, the less likely you are to like it no matter what you do with it.

Happy hunting!!!

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Type A personalities should not blog......

It's not that I haven't been doing DIY projects for decades, it's that I have SOOOOO many I want to do and share NOW. So I am going in 50 different directions trying to get a dozen little projects done so I can post them. A dresser, an ottoman, an old office chair, pillows, the 3 legged table, ANOTHER table I picked up at Goodwill today (it has all it's legs intact), cork boards...you name it, I've got it going on here. It's madness and my house is a disaster....NOT a good thing!

Seriously, I think I have a few years left in me....I mean honestly, eventually I'll run out of things to post if I try to do it all right this minute....typical "type-A" personality.

But I did get one project finished today....thank goodness.

About a month ago my son asked me to spend a Saturday at an auction with him....I LOVE auctions but more than anything I love spending time with the kids when they actually WANT to spend time with me! And it was a cabinet shop going out of business...fun fun!! Ask me how much of the stuff I bought I REALLY needed....ummm...probably NONE of it. But I picked up a huge stack of cork board....and of course that stuff is not cheap and who doesn't need a cork board?

So I set out searching for old frames...any interesting frame I could find. Found most of them at Goodwill for next to nothing!

Pop the picture and glass out, cover the backing with cork board and paint the frame....PRESTO!!! Nifty cork board!

The large one is for Matt's girlfriend, Kaitlyn. She is the mother of my grandpuppy, Beau. Did you ever read "Marley and Me" or see the movie (OMG, if you want a good cry....) That is Beau....silliest dog in the world but I just adore him.

Anyway, when I went back to Hancock Fabrics today to buy the other THIRTY BOXES of pearl and bead strands (seriously, who could pass them up at 90% off....I just didn't realize they had soooo many left!) I found these nifty little 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 magnetic picture frames on clearance for .40....paint them up and they are cute as a bug on the cork board.

Now, here is where I ran into a "design" problem. When you run into a design issue, or your "best laid plans" aren't panning out, do what I do....wing it. My PLAN was to put a strip of magnetic tape across the board, cover with the cute houndstooth ribbon and then stick the magnet photo frames on it. No dice. The magnetic tape was crap and NOTHING would stick to it and the magnets on the frames weren't any better. To top it off, I soon found out that hot glue is NOT a good medium for cork board.

So, I used regular glue to attach the ribbon onto the board, glued 3 super powerful magnetic "dots" on the ribbon, hot glued magnetic dots to the back of the frames, and PRESTO....we have take off!!! Or at least we have some cute little frames that can easily be changed out from time to time!

There are soooo many things you could do to spruce up a cork board. Cover the cork in fabric, attach vinyl lettering or even paint on the cork, cover with ribbons and bow....just so many ideas...Google cork board imagines and you will be surprised at the ideas that are out there.

I have some old window panes I took out of an old house...they have three divides in them and I am going to put cork in one, metal for magnets in one and chalk board in the one....I'll post that if I ever get to it....but before I do that project, I am bound and determined to get some of the others completed!

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Off with its head...or upholstery...either one!

I promised to tell you the story of this sad little chair.

I bought it YEARS ago at an estate auction. I paid to have it reupholstered...lots if I remember correctly. And 15-20 years ago, the green fabric and the style was to my liking.

But over the last few years, I have matured a tad and my taste has become more refined. Okay, so I changed my mind about what I like and don't like. Regardless, I didn't like it any more and I didn't want it.

So, on Craigslist it went. But for some reason, this pathetic little chair didn't seem to appeal to anyone...not even a little nibble. So one day in one of my manic "I CAN'T TAKE THIS CRAP AROUND HERE ANY MORE" moods, I picked it up to haul it to the curb. See, in my neighborhood, if you set something on the curb of ANY value, it will be gone within an hour...I have done that with cabinets, vanity tops, light fixtures, furniture. Gone. Awesome. Until you realize you could have taken it to Goodwill and gotten a tax write-off...but whatever.

But then I got to thinking...if I can sew on a button and make a decorative pillow, why can't I upholster a chair?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Seriously, what sane person thinks like that.

Obviously ME! Because that is exactly what I did. I stripped the little thing naked, taking hundreds of pictures along the way, bought the amount of upholstery the little chart told me to buy for this style chair, Googled "how to upholstery a chair", found a great tutorial...and settled in to complete a project I was certain would take me a day at the most. Lets just say, it took me MORE than a day just to get all the stinking nails and staples out of the thing. I can't even remember how long it actually took to finish the job entirely. (My youngest daughter agreed to help initially but quit when her hands began to bleed...not me, I'm a trooper!)

This is now my little reading corner in my office...okay, so its really the cats' chair, but it looks good. And a few side notes on the other items...the table is one of my Lane Acclaim tables I truly LOVE and adore...and buy whenever I can find one affordable. Hard to see, but on the bottom shelf are old wooden tape measures and a wooden level that were my great grandfathers and an old hand tooled leather briefcase that was my grandfathers. The wall is adorned with "things I love" as well....two original works of art by very talented artists (okay, my kids, but they are beautiful), my college diploma (nice to know it has some use) a cross stitch picture I did for my dad 20 years ago for Father's Day, and a picture of my BFF (my better half, Brian) and me on one of our first ski trips together! Things I love! The neeto mirror was a clearance at Hobby Lobby and the sweet little crystal lamp is a TJMaxx find! And the red lantern was $1 at the thrift store and is filled with sea shells I picked up in California!

Oh, and the pillow? It was a lady's houndstooth jacket I bought at the thrift store for $2 and cut up for a pillow....sweet!

And now you know the story of the sad little green chair that was headed for the curb when a demented women thought she could actually turn it into something beautiful....see, this stuff isn't hard...it just takes a bit of imagination and a tad of insanity!

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My home office....

I will try to post "before/after" projects as I muddle along and try to figure this all out. I always have something new in the works, but a lot of the "old" projects are fun and interesting....and hopefully inspiring!

Last year I decided I was fed up with my old office....big clunky desk, big clunky dresser, big clunky mess. The problem is, when I first bought this house 13 years ago, my "style" was more traditional...now I am to the point where I want sleek and more "mid century." Honestly, if the only cleaner I had in my house was windex, I would be happy....which might explain why I put glass tops on all my furniture!

Anywho, I was digging my way through a little "junk" shop one day and stumbled upon a desk and a dresser with distinct "mid century" flare. I couldn't get it in my truck fast enough! This led to a complete transformation of my entire home office!!

Once I got the desk home and stripped down the nastiness from the top, I knew I couldn't paint it. Less one little cigarette burn (a reminder of WHY I shouldn't start smoking again) it was beautiful! So I coated it with 4 applications of my favorite tung oil and kilzed and painted the bottom of it. I had the "modern" hardware leftover from my masterbath remodel, so I slapped it on there to save my nails. The desk chair has been in my attic for 13 years...and honestly, I have NO idea where it came from or how long I have had it. But again, after stripping it down, there was no way I was painting it....solid mahogany under all the dirt and grime! So it too got a few coats of tung oil and a new seat cover.

One of the things you will see I do through out my house, is decorate with things I love. The large diploma on the wall (to the left) is my great grandmothers University of Arkansas diploma from 1920. The little bulldog statue on the desk (left corner) is one that sat on my great grandfather's desk umpteen years ago....both worthy of display!

I will feature the dresser, refurbished paddle fan, and the sitting area (including the antique wingback chair I was literally carrying to the street when I decided to experiment on it) in later posts....this room is loaded with "charm" and almost every piece has been refinished, reupholstered, repurposed or reinvented....stay tuned!!!

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