Bookcase Revamp

I bought this little bookcase at the thrift store months ago. I actually hadn't been thrifting in a long time (and haven't much since then either), but I stopped in to get my fix that day. I wasn't planning on buying anything at all (isn't that how it always seems??), but I glanced over to the side & saw this calling to me. We actually did need a bookcase to house some extra books, and I wanted it to go in our guest room. I had plans for a pretty red & cream chevron pattern (which I may still use on another project), but I am so in love with my zebra pattern paper, and it's easier for covering big areas, so here I went with another zebra print project. Just for retrospect, here are some of the many projects where I have used this patterned paper:

- My old frame-turned-jewelry-tray re-purposing project

- My framed calendar vinyl project

- My organizer re-purpose (a.k.a. my first ever Mod Podge project)

- My framed "J"

So on this project, I started by spray painting the bookcase with Krylon 2-in-1 primer & paint in Cream. Not really thrilled with the finished look of this paint. I have used it on two projects so far, and I didn't like the coverage it provided on either one. I was happier using cheap-y spray paint from Dollar General than this stuff! Who knew?!

I then, of course, lightly distressed it, 

and applied a simple clear coat...

I did the painting in the basement when it was a little warmer, then I got bored in the basement and decided to move it upstairs to the living room to paper it. That's the only downfall of my basement crafting area- it can get really lonely down there by myself.

The trickiest part was matching up the paper roll with the sides of the bookcase, and holding it there while I trimmed the paper...

I papered the edges also, just to give it more color...

...and I also papered the back...

Now, my Before & After!

BEFORE

AFTER

Here it is in our guest room, 

now fully stocked with our overrun of books. 

That's a picture of my dad when he was little. Is he not adorable in that pic? Gah, I love it! :)

It is so nice to now have extra storage in our guest room! I highly recommend repurposing thrift store finds- even cheap-y laminate pieces like this one- for your simple furniture needs throughout your home. You won't have much money or time invested, and you'll have a piece that you uniquely transformed yourself. 

Love it!

Plant Stand Makeover

I scored this little plant stand months ago, thanks to a friend. She was part of a local consignment/thrift sale, and she gave me one of her tickets. The tickets were for the consignors to come to the sale one day early & look around. I was so excited to go!! I found a lot of little things, perfect for repurposing, but in the end, I took only this little beauty home with me...

(Please excuse our lovely basement backdrop.)

It was only 6 bucks too!

I took it straight to the basement & sanded it well all over. I then began by flipping it over to spray paint the underside first...

Easy enough!...

After the two coats on the underside were dry, I flipped it over & painted three coats all over.

Then came the fun part- distressing!! I wanted the finish on this one to be similar to the one on my first furniture painting project, my side table. Both pieces looked pretty with the smooth, glossy white finish, but I am just really into the aged, distressed look lately. And the beauty of it is that I can always change it up later IF I ever get tired of it.

I tried to zoom in on the detail...

You can't really mess up sand paper distressing. I always like to start easily and make a small spot, then if I want it bigger, I can always sand more heavily.

I thought I would immediately put this baby into the yard sale pile in the guest room, but I actually needed to use it, atleast for a little while. I have just three plants left from when my dad passed away. One is thriving & looks beautiful in our living room. The other two are slowly fading, so I need somewhere to house them for the time being. This was the perfect place for one of them...

The lighting is bad in the last photo, because it was a pretty, sunny day & I had the blinds open. So thankful for the sunshine we've had for a few days lately.

So, a quick Before & After!...

BEFORE


AFTER


Isn't it crazy what a little spray paint & sand paper can do??

Hope you all have a great weekend! I can't believe how fast the weekends are rolling around lately. The weeks have been so busy, so they come & go really quickly. Recently, we seem to have things going almost every weeknight too, so that helps. Two nights ago, I went with mom & some friends to see Safe Haven. WOW. Such a great movie! I was skeptical going in to another (cheesy) Nicholas Sparks movie, because he really disappointed me with The Vow, but this one really got me. And if you've lost a parent, it will get to you even more.

I have some really exciting plans coming up, so that makes the quick passing of time more exciting too. I am going to the Elton John concert in Chattanooga in March (which will be here before we know it- yay!!), and my sweetie & I are going with his dad to the Crimson Caravan in May!! I was so excited that we were able to get tickets to that! I am also really shocked that it will be here in our little town, but it is! Woohoo!! I have never heard Nick Saban speak in person (Zach & his dad have), so I am super pumped!

Roll Tide!!

Monogram Wreath

It's good to be back to posting projects again...

 I toyed with the idea of giving up the blog for Lent, then it was Facebook, but now, I've decided on giving up the radio. I will not listen to the radio in the car. I will use that time to just be in the quiet & have conversations with God. I am in my car alone every weekday- on my way to work, to lunch & back again, then on my way home. Why not use this extra time for that, instead of listening to mindless babble and music??

This is just a quick project that I threw together a few weeks ago. I had seen some ideas on Pinterest (gotta' love Pinterest)...some examples are here, here, and here.

I had to have a replacement for our Christmas greenery wreath, and I thought it was way too early for the Spring wreath. This is more of a transitional look from Winter to Spring, I guess.

My momma got me this gorgeous wooden monogram for Christmas. I had picked it out a while back, and she got it for me. :) I have since discovered that my granddad could actually make these suckers! (I hope to post on some projects soon that he created & I painted. We have 3 "creations" already done, and two waiting to be painted by me! I am loving the partnership we've started, and we hope to eventually sell some of these "creations". It's a fun hobby for us to do in our spare time, and we're really enjoying it so far. If it makes us a little extra spending money,
it would be even more enjoyable!)

I had purchased the base grapevine wreath at the thrift store a while back, and have already used it once in my framed Fall wreath. I love that it's just a bare wreath & you can add anything to it- makes it very versatile!

The deco mesh bow was from one of my dad's funeral arrangements, and I have used it ever since. It decorated our mailbox all during the Fall.

 

I'm going to enjoy this on the door for a while. I probably won't bust out the flowered Spring wreath until March or so. I will then need to find a home for my wooden monogram. I had thought when I first got it that I would paint it, but I am really loving the natural wood color.

For now, I love the wreath on our front door. To me, you can't go wrong with a cute, classic monogram!

I hope everyone is having a great week & will have a great weekend! I am not looking forward to the cold up ahead, but I'm already planning on spending all day Saturday inside the house, so it won't affect me much. I have some projects I can work on indoors, but I am really itching to get out & work in the basement, painting a piece of furniture that I am super pumped about! It has just been too cold lately to get things done outside or in the basement. That's the only downfall I've found for my little crafting area. Oh well, it gives me something to look forward to for now. :)

Chalkboard Minis

I'm very excited to share this quick little project with you. This only took me a few hours to complete, not including drying times in between. The idea for this project all started when I found these tiny little silver trays at the thrift store about a month ago...

They only had four, so I got them all. 25 cents a piece. :)

I had repurposed a larger version of these in this post months ago, and I've used the chalkboard paint at other times, like in my mailbox revamp. So, this would be something different. Basically, just a smaller version of my larger chalkboard tray.

I painted each one with two coats of spray paint, all different colors. I just used simple spray paints that I already had-

yellow, red, white & gold.

I then sand-papered each surface to distress the edges & smoothe out the middles to prep for chalkboard paint. I think I painted about 3 coats of the chalkboard paint on each, and they were done! Not much money invested at all, and not much time either.

Love these kinds of projects!

Some pics of the finished chalkboard minis...

So, a Before & After, because who doesn't love a good

Before & After shot?...

BEFORE

AFTER

I (think I) am planning on selling these little cuties. My family is planning a big estate & yard sale, slated for this next Spring, and I may debut some of my creations there to sell. Who knows if that will work out or not? I just feel like I'm creating all of these little projects, then they have nowhere to go. I am running out of room, both in our house & in my crafting area in the basement, so I need to get rid of some clutter. If any "big developments" on this front happen anytime soon, I'll let you know. It's just an idea for now. :)

As I said in my last post, if I don't post before then, Happy, Happy Thanksgiving, and Happy Black Friday!! I am so, so ready for those two days! I love everything about them- the family time, the food, the cooking, the clean house (since company is coming), the laughter... then the little rest & lots of shopping on Friday, getting & putting up our tree, and all the Christmas decor being brought up from the basement to brighten up our house.

I am so very thankful this year. Each year, we have more than the last. We are blessed more & more every day, and never want for a thing. God is so good to us. We have all of our family members together once again for Thanksgiving, and that's one of the biggest blessings. Zach's dad is also coming to Thanksgiving dinner at his mom's, so his family will all be together. I keep reminding him how blessed he is for that. You never know which Thanksgiving will be your last, or how different it will be from year to year. Love your loved ones while you have them- I don't know how much I can preach that.

Always remember, there is always, always, always something to be thankful for.

A Frame For Aunt Renea

Wow. We've been super busy lately. To summarize, we've been working every day (& Zach, some nights too), gearing up for an upcoming estate & yard sale, and car shopping. I promise- it's not as glamorous as it sounds. Life is still good though, and we're always blessed. As one of my favorite quotes say, "There is always, always something to be thankful for." :)

I'm still not back in project mode yet, but I did want to share two projects I finished up before we left. I had to wait until I gave this to the recipient, which was my Aunt Renea!

I actually created two things for her, but I wanted to split the two projects up into two posts, because I realized I had taken a lot of step-by-step pics in each one.

So, here's the frame first...

This frame was third in line, right after little Silas Finn's & Bryson's frames. I started this one simultaneously with those. Once the paint was applied & drying on one, I would work on the others. I love keeping projects going like that!

Just as with the boys' frames, I started with a simple wooden frame from the thrift store. They also have these super cheap at Wal-Mart & Hob Lob too...

I spray-painted it white to begin with. I then striped it off with blue painter's tape, and went to work painting this pretty pink. Pink is her favorite color (Aerosmith reference, anyone? :)), so I knew I couldn't go wrong. (Side note on the blue painter's tape: I love it! We used it when we painted the interior of our house, but this was the first time I've used it on a project. I am planning to use it even more- I'm thinking a chevron design on some pumpkins!- so we'll see if I still love it!)

To personalize it, I added an "R" with a white paint pen...

I was pretty happy with the way it turned out...



...and she says she loves it too!

I will post next on the sign I created for her farm, so stay tuned!

3 Things For Under $10!

Hope everyone had a great weekend! We enjoyed our last Saturday before football season with a trip to see Zach's mom. We had a wonderful lunch with her at The Boathouse, one of our favorites, then shopped a little that afternoon. We then had a wonderful service at church on Sunday morning, followed by a great lunch, then we spent the afternoon getting things done at home.

Lately, we are very excited about some home improvement projects in the works around here!! We are having ceramic tile put down in a couple weeks in our kitchen & two bathrooms, so tile is one of the things we shopped for on Saturday- it was so fun!! That project is going to be so awesome once it's done! I would love to say that we could tackle that project on our own, but we're not that brave. Might as well have it done correctly the first time, right?
I will post some before & after pics once it's done!

Other than that, we are counting down the days to our 4th Anniversary vacation to Walt Disney World!! I am still in disbelief that we are coming up on 4 years of marriage! We can't wait to spend it at our favorite place on Earth!! :)

So, I wanted to kick the week off by posting about my lunch break thrifting trip last week, because I am still so giddy about it!! I scored 3 items & paid $9.00. Yep, I got out for under 10 bucks. Woohoo! That's what I call a successful thrifting trip.

I wanted to also share somewhat of an "After" pic of each item, showing where it is in our home now (kinda' like what I did in this post), but I haven't really found a place for all of it yet- ha! I always want to show what I've done with my finds, but I also have to find the time to do that. Two of these things will more than likely be used at Christmas time, anyway. If you want to check out some other thrifting posts of mine, I'll make it easier for ya': there's one here, here and here. :)

Before we get to the important part though, I want to share what I scored at my first stop, The Dollar Tree, that day...

I am surprised every time I browse through that store. They really do have some cute things, not to mention the everyday bargains that save you a trip to the lovely Wal-Mart.

I just loved these little ceramics! If you remember, I bought these ceramics there last year, and set them out again this year...

Yay for cheap, but not cheap-looking, seasonal decor! Seriously, these could pass for a Kirkland's purchase- easily! My sweetie even mentioned how nice they are for a $1-a-piece purchase, so you know it's noticeable. :)

Now, back to the good stuff...I only had about 10 minutes of my lunch hour left, but wanted to stop by the thrift store right quick. And I am so glad I did!

I grabbed up this little beauty first...

 This was $1.00!

I have in mind to use this in my crafting area in our basement. I am wanting to just leave it as is- the chippy wood is so pretty,

I don't want to cover it up! 

I spotted this next...

This was $3.00!

Now, I KNOW I don't need another wreath form, but I couldn't pass this one up. (I've said that way too many times before.) The last wreath form I bought is versatile, and can be used for anything. This one is just a Christmas wreath only. This one is very heavy & filled with lush branches. It was definitely not a cheap-o wreath in its past life. (FYI, the first thing I'll do is take off the apples & bow.) :) 

I am planning on dressing this baby up with some deco mesh!

Lastly, I came to this...

This was $5.00!

This was a dusty little thing when I first spotted it in the store. But, you can easily wipe that right off. I am also not really happy with some of the items stuck in this little arrangement, but that is also easily fixable.

I have big plans for this beauty- I am wanting to mix & match a lot of different things to dress the arrangement up. I am hoping it will be my go-to arrangement for my dining table, which I've never really had before. This is mainly because of the expense of most of them & I have never really found anything I'm in love with...until now. You can add & take away to make it fit every single season and occassion... Yes, please!

I am just loving the heavy urn too! It is crazy how heavy

& sturdy it is!

I will keep you all posted on our home improvement ventures! I may not be posting much for a little while, with our vacation & "remodeling" projects going on, but I hope to still keep working on little crafting projects in the middle of it all.

And, just in case I don't  have a chance to post again before the weekend... ROLL TIDE!!

$1.50 Kitchen Soap Stand- Thanks, Pinterest!

Well, we had a GREAT weekend! Every day had something planned, which I love! We kicked the weekend off right by me & my mom & some great friends of ours going to a play at our local community college. It was wonderful!! It amazes me each time I see a play there just how much talent we have in our little area!

On Saturday, my mom, grandmother & I went shopping, and all three of us found some awesome bargains! I only bought clothes, and we didn't even step foot in their Hob Lob...it's killing me not getting to go to my favorite store, but I can make it- only one more week to go until August!! On Sunday, church was great as always, and we ended the day by cleaning our front porch, just as we did with our back deck last weekend. The front door, porch railings, columns & spindles are all now sparkling white!

So, for my post (that I am very excited about)...

I guess this little project post will be the first in a series of Pinterest-related posts, entitled Thanks, Pinterest! I have gotten into a habit lately of grabbing up my iPhone right before bed, and ending up wasting an hour (or more) on Pinterest. I go straight to the DIY & Crafts category, and begin drooling at all of the crafty pins. Since the beginning of this little obsession, I have created several new boards, including but not limited to, "Painting", "Mod Podge Love" and "Crafty Ideas".

The pin featured here was one of the first pins that I knew I wanted to re-create...I'm including the original link here. The originating website of the pin is here. Bless this girl for thinking this up, because it is a great idea!

We have always kept our brush, dish soap & hand soap along the rim of our sink. There have been countless times when I have either knocked one or all of these into the sink, and/or come close to making them a victim of the garbage disposal. With this handy-dandy soap stand, I won't have to worry about that anymore. Now they have their own little home, and the sink rim is
now free from clutter!

I actually had this pin in the back of my mind, and while at a thrift store stop one day (before No-Spend July began), I found exactly what I needed for the project...

A tray for $1.00...

...and a candlestick for 50 cents...

 The pin shows to grab up the two items and coat with spray paint (which is the fun part!), then glue them together. I used my E6000 glue for extra strength.

Complete the look with maybe a pretty, colorful dishtowel, and place your dish soap & brush in their new home- you're done!

I can't believe this little handy project only cost $1.50, not including the spray paint & glue I already had. Even if you include those in the cost calculation, it's still totally cheap & totally worth it! No more soap scum build-up on the rim, and no more brushes falling into the sink.

This will be especially handy when we have our new stainless steel sink installed. (I really wanted to wait and post this project until after we installed our new sink, but I couldn't wait any longer!)

A quick Before & After...

BEFORE 

AFTER

I think it looks great with a dishtowel to add color too...

 ...but I like it better without...

Stay tuned (possibly tomorrow), because I have a soup recipe that I tried over the weekend to share, and it's a good one!