A Proud Wife

Hi all!
I had to share what I woke up to this morning.  I started to walk completely past, then turned back to stare, then woke my Greer up with a thousand kisses.

He made me a stencil of the (modified) flag of Spain!!!!

He is so talented!  As soon as I find a home for it (probably kitchen, maaaaaybe studio), I will post a picture.  I just had to share. I love his work and creativity and patience for the kind of painstaking detail stenciling requires. 

And for anyone interested....he does custom orders ;)

The only modification he made was of the toreador (bull fighter) and toro (bull).  That makes it even more symbolic for me because bulls are a big symbol of southern Spain, including Salamanca (where I studied).  I don't know if he knew that ahead of time.  Maybe, because I but a (rather ugly) bull belly button ring when I was there.  Don't worry, I didn't wear it much and I have let that hole close up!  Still fun to have the bull though.

Back to the modification... the crest on the true Spanish flag would be way to intricate for him to stencil, at least in one night.  This is what it looks like:

I like mine better.

:)

Ideas I love

Hello again!

I found some wonderful posts while catching up on what I've missed in blog land.  I really have to share...

Cate at A Tree Lined Street is not helping my "I want a baby" mode with her freakin' adorable nursery re-do.  I love trees and birds and watercolor and she just pulled them all in!

Please visit her blog to see the rest of the nursery room and read her story about the wall paintings.  I want to keep this in mind for 2.5 years down the road when we have a nursery to decorate.  I might use pages from Beatrix Potter or The Giving Tree.

I would love to better organize my closet... although it is semi-organized right now.  But check out this closet re-do showcased at High Heeled Foor in the Door:

I also stopped in to my favorite website Ana White Homemaker, the beauty who designs and maps out DIY furniture.  She had some good additions that I would love to build.  I don't have any room for this Washer/Dryer organizing, but I want to make a mental note of it for when I do, because I love this idea.

Lots of people like their washer/dryer raised a little bit.  Why not sort and store dirty laundry underneath?  GENIUS!  If only we had that kind of washer/dry area.

I also want to add these nightstands onto my list of projects.  Greer and I need some nightstands, but it's not my main priority at the moment.  I like the look of these "Cabin Collection Nightstands" from Ana White Homemaker.

Perhaps this would be a nice little peice for the upstairs landing.....

From Ana White Homemaker of course!

And lastly from Ana White, I will be making this little number to store my sewing machine...

It's March?

My goodness time is speeding by, which is good and bad.  Good because I cannot WAIT to start grad school (June 13!).  Bad because my projects have fallen by the wayside.  Between work and Zumba, I have almost no free time.  The free time I do have is usually spent laying on the couch napping.  I shouldn't complain, though.  I'm lucky to have a job, especially one that is flexible with my Zumba career.  And Zumba.. how many people can get paid for the hobby? Paid to exercise and dance?  Yes. I am lucky.

So... update on projects:

1. I did finish the dresser.  Just need to screw the handles back on (holding off on specialty knobs) and I'll throw a picture on here.  I think it came out pretty well, 3 coats of paint though!  I don't think I'll use glossy paint again.  I don't like the stickyness of it. 

colors are funky with my camera

2. I just need a few more tiles of the shelf I've been playing with and then that will be finished and posted here.  I still don't know where I'm going to put it.  I'd put it for sale, but the wood is kind of junky and it was just a fun project.

you guessed it...colors aren't right

3. My co-worker's custom bench is nearly done!  My dad and I worked on it for a long time yesterday and got the rest of the peices cut, sanded and assembled.  I only stripped 2 screws! Wahoo!  All that's left is sanding and painting.  I can't wait to give it to her- I think she'll love it.  I'll post that up here too when it's finished.

4. While I've been crazy busy, my dad has cut a lot of the pieces for Greer's and my hutch base.  A little back story: We have a DVD shelf that is just the old shelf my dad built for me in college to put on top of my flat desk.  It's come in handy, but we have used up all the shelf space and then some.  So I had the idea to make a base for it with some doors and turn it into a hutch.  More DVD storage and perhaps some record storage for Greer.  He doesn't want doors, but I'm afraid I will insist.  The top can stay sans-doors.

5. The dollhouse is nearing completion.  It has been the. biggest. pain. ever.  I do believe I now hate Greenleaf dollhouses.  They do not assemble easily.  It is not just shove the tab into the notch.  It does not just take wood glue.  It took multiple tries and an different solution to get the main walls and floor assembled.  I will go into more detail when I post it.  I don't think I will ever make another dollhouse. 

7.  The $5 end table I purchase from Seed for the Nations Thrift Store- I have done one thing.  Pulled of the old leather.  Eventually I'll get around to completely stripping the thing.  I'm kind of nervous about the intense chemicals I'll have to use.  Part of the hobby I guess!

6.  New project on the list!  My parents are re-doing their laundry room and they got rid of the big old hanging cabinet in there.  Where did it go? Me!  They know I love finding peices to re-do, and always need more storage.  So that giant is in our storage shed for me to play with when I wrap up the other projects. Which gives us plenty of time to decide where to put it.  Here it is...

7.  Downstairs storage bathroom- just an idea.  What was supposed to be a pantry was converted to a half bath when the house was built.  So we have 2.5 bathrooms and just Greer and I live there.  Right now that half bath is a scary thing to open, with Greer's laundry literally falling out the door and the vacuum balancing on top.  My goal to straighten this up?  Install some high shelves for storage and a TALL laundry bin for Greer.  Turn it into the pantry it should have been (and possibly usuable as a bathroom?).

I think that's it for now.  Share what's up in your world!

Knobs, Knobs, Hardware and Knobs!

Helloooooooo Anthropologie!  You are so much monies but so very adorable!

I have seen loads of DIY Anthropologie-inspired projects in the creative blog sphere that have turned out fantastically well that I thought I'd take a look at this pricey store for inspiration.

Then I found the hardware section and went nuts!  So many beautiful drawer pulls and doorknobs!  Who gets excited about this stuff!?

Me.

I have a few favorites of course......

 
 




Among my favorites are a few I am deciding between for my dresser re-do.  I want your thoughts!  Think 1930s-40s carnival flavored and which do you see? 

I have my idea...but I want yours too.  And it can be a combination...

 

What do you think, eh?

Office/Dining Chair Revamp

Hola todo el mundo! 


My sewing machine is a little homeless right now....in the bottom right..



First, I am sorry that I forgot to take a "before" picture of this chair.  I just get too excited to start projects that I forget the "before" pictures!!  I am trying to get better at that...I've taken an "in between" picture of a recent project you will soon see.. but I digress.

We have 3 dining chairs, cheapos from a yard sale where the woman paid us to buy all 3 instead of the 2 good ones.  So 1 is kind of sketchy as far as staying together, but it has lasted since summer so that works!  I also like that we got such cheap, ugly chairs that it doesn't matter how much Marzipan scratches the seats.  She does that when we get home- like she's so excited she just has to scratch something!

She thinks personal space means space is personally hers.
All of it.

The point is.. we have 3 dining chairs.  So if say, both of my parents walk over for dinner, we have to whip out my small ottoman/storage/desk seat and someone gets stuck using that.  I've also hated using it at the desk.  Originally, I bought it from Target, needing a cheap seat for the desk that could be slid under (lacking space in the apartment) and I liked that I could store things inside.  Now, I'm not getting rid of it, but I did want an actuall chair for my desk.

Little brown stool. [snicker]

Enter disgusting, junked up, 100-year-old (maybe) leather upholstered, brown ugly material reupholstered dining chair.  My dad picked it up (at the dump?? Auction??) and stripped it down for me. Having too many projects on my own to contend with, Greer lovingly stained it (Minwax Natural) and threw on two coats of polyurethane. 

Thrilled to be re-upholstering

Not only did he do this, but he ripped off the crummy layers of upholstery and reupholstered the seat himself, even stuffing it with new foam!




New cushion woot woot! Sorry about the photo quality



So now we have an extra dining chair that will live at my desk. 

No more slouching!  There is a back to my chair! It is the appropriate height!  Ahh...joy.






Saving the Winnie the Pooh sign for future kids?  Originally for our neice.



I really want to re-paint that desk I just haven't decided on color or off-white..it's kind of fun the way it is but yesss the chair and desk don't match. WHATEV.

I'm participating in Metamorphosis Mondays & Good Life Wednesdays & Transformation Thursdays: 

  

I Put The Hammer...

.......through the wall.

oops.

I was trying to hand this small shelf I picked up at Goodwill to add something 3-D to the bathroom wall. 

[ you can tell it is not in the bathroom ]



I got one nail in smooth as buttah!  But the next guy...nuh uh...

First, I realized I hit the stud.
I decided I could win.
Then I bent the nail, making the hole bigger.
Not winning.
I tried to use the claw end and pull the nail out...
And you can see those little bruises on the wall to the right of the hole.
More force... I thought...
And as I pushed the hammer to pull the nail out, the hammer head went through the wall.
And the nail stayed.
Blast.

My wonderful, patient, humorous husband was able to get the nail out with a smile and a "we'll fix it later."  Phew! 

I gave the shelf a new home in my office.



Permanent? Probably not.  It's rather dwarfed there... but I'm not messing with it until I have a better plan.....

Ten un buen dia!

Communication Station!

Ay amigos tantas cosas que decir!  It was such a productive, fun long weekend that I haven't taken time to s l o w  d o w n  and catch up here.  The college application deadline for our school just passed so work is piling up! 

First things first, my easiest project:  The Burrow's Communication Station!

Click "Continue Reading"