There’s this skinny little piece of wall in between my pantry and microwave that I thought was desperately in need of a memo board.  I’ve always wanted a little chalkboard right there so I could remind myself of what I needed to pick up at the grocery store that week. 

My problem was that I couldn’t find anything tall and skinny with character to fit that narrow patch of wall.   Also, there’s a meddlesome electrical panel inside the pantry, which restricts any decor in this space.  But then I spied an old wood framed mirror with chipped paint at the local salvage yard.  I decided to give it a makeover, and repurpose it as a little chalkboard in my kitchen!

Here’s my sweet little salvaged mirror turned memo board !

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Picasso went through his monochromatic blue period ~ clearly, I am going through my own blue phase.  I went through my first blue period when I was first married over ten years ago, but it was more of a cobalt blue fixation back then.  Then I rejected blue altogether and banished it from my house.   Blue was forbidden for years!  But being a fickle and forgetful gal, I’ve returned to yet another blue and white phase, this time I’m drawn to soft gray blues, robin’s egg blue, soft turquoise, and intense hues like peacock blue.   

My home office?  My living room?  My master bathroom?  Yep, they’re mostly blue.  I make no apologies, I happen to find the shade is extremely calming, and compliments just about everything.  Think about it.  Soft blue works with chocolate brown, red, pink, orange, gray, green, white, everything !  So I prefer it over other colors, as long as it has plenty of gray in it. 

Now I’ve gone and saturated the family room with blue too, but more by force than by choice.  Allow me to explain.   

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I’m have a love of objects that project glamour, and lately white lacquer is on my mind.  There’s something about the glossy smooth surface and clean lines that had me wanting to incorporate this very modern look in our bedroom.   

For example, this white Parsons desk had me thinking it was the perfect bedside table.

 House Beautiful

so did this white console table. 

 via Elements of Style

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So as I was touring the backyard the other day, I realized there’s definitely some sprucing that needs to happen, especially with guests coming on the Fourth. 

As I meandered up the hill behind the grapevines, I was reminded of the thrift store bistro set I found a couple of years ago that I had every intention of refinishing but I just never got around to it.   The set sits on a little gravel patio that has a great view of the vines, but it certainly been been neglected.  After leaving the bistro set out all winter (so dumb), the set was, how shall I say . . . . what’s the word ?  . . . oh yes.  

GROSS. 

I meant there was moss growing on top of the table, the paint was chipping everywhere, and it was covered in spiderwebs.  ICK. ICK. ICK. 

So I decided the time had come to give it a makeover.  I convinced myself I’d have a fresh new set in no time at all with just a little paint and fabric.   Well, that’s what I did, repainted and recovered the seats.  But in the middle of my revamp, something rather unexpected happened.  Something I hate to relive.  But you’ve just got to know. 

First, take a looky loo at this retro bistro set Before:

And After:

Purty, huh ? 

It’s just such a great set for sitting and watching the grapes grow. 

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My little boy has the teensy tiniest bedroom in our house and it doesn’t fit much more than a bed, his dresser and an armoire.  Nevertheless I’ve been wanting to find him a little play table for under the window for the longest time, but I wanted to spend very little since he will outgrow it in a few short years.    

I happened upon a little coffee table a few weeks ago, and some funky little chairs (at where else, a thrift store) and decided we could give them a little makeover so they would work in his room.  I paid $25 for all three pieces. 

Here’s the not-so-attractive set before (ew, yuck)

And here’s what a little paint, new foam and fabric turned them into:

Here’s the simple steps in their transformation. 

I stripped down the chairs as fast as possible and ceremoniously burned the fabric.  Heh heh.  No, I removed the fabric and tossed it out, yuck yuck yucky.  Then I painted the legs white and added some foam to the chairs.  

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Last week, I picked up a pair of dusty chairs at a thrift store.  I loved the classic cottage shape and the cheap price, but the finish was so grungy.  I brought them home and sanded them down to the raw wood, removing all the dirt and grime.  Then I gave them a fresh coat of spring green paint ! 

Here they are Before . . .

. . . and After

All it took was half an hour of sanding and and an hour of painting to give them a fresh new look with some paint and a little distressing !

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Happy Monday all, hope you had a fantastic weekend !  Last week, you saw the upgrades in the dining room, and one of those changes included this trestle bench that I found on Craigslist a few weeks ago. 

The bench was the perfect size to add seating to our dining space and very sturdy too since it is solid wood.  However, I wasn’t using any maple tones in the room, so I decided to give it a new look.  The bench received a two phase transformation to arrive at two different looks.

Here’s a reminder of the bench ‘Before’:

Here’s the first new look I gave this bench:  

And another different style achieved by adding a washable cotton slipcover:

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I’m such a fool for vintage linens.  I especially love heirloom fabrics with hand embroidered details, or cottons with a touch of ladylike lace.  Vintage tea towels remind me of something I’d see nestled on top of my grandmother’s vanity beside her silver comb and mirror. 

So when I spotted a stack of vintage tea towels at a local antique store for a few dollars each, I purchased three to create some unique pillows for friends who are about to have little ones. 

Just like a bride, I think every nursery deserves a touch of something old and something new.  So I created these tea towel pillows  – they are sewn together with a crisp cotton  vintage tea towel, a scrap of accent fabric, and some modern trim. 

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Every time I go to antique fairs, I am always drawn to those pieces that someone has glazed with a bold color.  My entire house is filled with mostly dark wood tones or white painted furniture, so this time, I thought I’d have some fun !

As you know from this week’s sordid tale about stripping paint off furniture, I had my little heart set on giving my previously white Craigslist dresser the look of a French antique.   With spring drawing very near, I thought it a good time to add a pop of color to our home.  To me, turquoise is a color that is simultaneously vibrant and calming, and a reminder of coastal waters by the sea.

You’ll recall the ‘Before’ with the multiple layers of white chipping paint, and here is the dresser after it was mostly stripped of it’s paint. 

Here is the patina dresser, given a romantic new look, and refinished in this fresh new color.  

I just love this piece now.  It looks like something I’d want to buy from an antique shop!  To achieve this look, I invested in new knobs, some appliqués, and some paint.  (Sources below)

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So I bought this little dresser many months ago from Craigslist for twenty buckaroos.   It was the perfect fit for my mud room niche by the back door.  I needed its drawers to store all sorts of family things like those gym membership cards I rarely use, or the computer cords that belong to some contraption lost somewhere in my house. 

I also needed it to store winter scarves, hats, mittens and other seasonal items.  This dresser’s proportions were perfect and its price was right !  So I brought it home and tolerated its chippy white paint job for many moons until it dawned on me. 

This dresser was the perfect candidate for a little experiment I call ‘The Patina Project’.   I wanted to transform this little dresser into something with a little more personality and a Provencal feel.  I also wanted to find out just how two strippers would match up in the ring.  Old school chemicals vs. nouveau citrus paint peelers. 

The victim:   

There were several layers of paint all over this baby, and I had no idea what kind of paint it was.  Since my ultimate plan was to give it a rustic antique French country look, I boldly decided to strip all those layers off.   To me, painting over it would have felt like putting on dirty socks after a shower.  Or clean socks on muddy feet.  Or something sort of like that. 

Enter the two contenders.  In the left corner, weighing in at 32 fluid ounces was the old school KleanStrip, famous for its speed and paint crushing abilities.  Dangerous.  Flammable.  Unpopular with the greener public for its toxic reputation and the methylene chloride pumping through its veins. 

In the right corner, weighing in at 32 fluid ounces, was the young newcomer Citristrip.  A kinder smelling non-caustic version missing the methylene chloride, daring to challenge the old school establishment.  

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