chalkboard closet

I've wanted to use chalkboard paint for a long time so when decorating my son's room I knew there was a chance to get creative with a chalkboard. I went through a number of ideas before i landed on this one - a chalkboard closet door. 

I like the fact that I can write messages on here, whether for encouragement of just to remember what we are doing that day and therefore what he needs to wear. I also like that the low level of the board on the bottom makes it the perfect doodle spot for him now. 

A quick tip on using chalkboard paint - read all the instructions about curing. Frankly, I was not aware of the process and how many coats I would need (x5) or the time I would have to wait before using the surface (3 days). It seemed to take forever and for my 2.5 year old the wait was torture but we are so pleased with the outcome that it was worth the wait. 

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend. 

I am linking to some super link parties - check them out. 

novel wall decor

Generally I would be opposed to chopping up books for almost anything. But as my little boy's room began to take shape I needed to find some fun things to put on the wall. 

I had two matching frames that went with the previous 'girly' guestroom style that was there previously. You can see one below. They were from Marshall's I think.

I took out the pictures of the flowers which was a bit tricky because the backs of the frames was firmly sealed. But with a bit of tuggin' and pryin' (and swearin') I got the backs off without causing too much damage. 

So, what to fill them with? I went online to Amazon and did a search for kids' cowboy books. I found this cute little one and did a "quick look inside" to see what the pictures were like. 

Sure enough there were two pages that were perfect. You can see the finished product below. The book was $2.99 and in excellent used condition so it was a cost effective way to get some updated artwork in his room. The best part was that the pictures were from the front and back inside cover pages so the book is still completely readable. 

I have shared this post at some funky link parties - check them out here. 

room makeover - furniture refurb

The painting is finished! On to the next and what feels like the 110th part of my project to turn our guest room into a little boy room was to  refurbish 2 dressers. These dressers have been around since my husband was a kid and he had them in his room. When he moved out, they moved with him and into our first apartment, our first house and now our son's room. If wood could talk.....

Dresser with white primer

Anyway, rather than buy new furniture I wanted to update these pieces because frankly, there was nothing wrong with them except the color and hardware.Spray paint is the way to go. I tried other paint and it is just not good. You can see the brush marks and it takes many more coats. Here is a tip though. I decided to spray paint inside - bad idea. Apart from possibly developing "the black lung" (Zoolander) it is such a mess. I covered everything near the direct spray but it created a mist that went everywhere. Luckily it's easy to clean up the 'dust' with just a vacuum or damp cloth but needless to say when I began the second piece of furniture I hauled it out to the garage.

Even with the mask I had paint up my nose - ick.

On the first piece I used a primer. It took longer but I think in hindsight it has a better gloss look because of the primer base so I would say it is worth the time to do that. The second piece is in navy blue so I didn't use a primer and the finish is slightly lacking. Still, it's good enough and I'll share that picture soon.

I had some crackling which made me crackle I can tell you. It wasn't cold or too hot when I was spraying so it may have been a substance under the paint that caused the issue. However, when I didn't use primer I didn't have any crackling. Not sure what that means....

Sun is shining very brightly! Almost makes my dresser look angelic. 

The hardware if from Home Depot. I was kind of limited because the old hardware was 64mm wide and the selection was not great. Still I think it worked out nicely.

So far I'm about halfway through the list of things to do in this room. Just finished the trim today and wallpapering starts this weekend - gulp. 

I shared this story at some awesome link parties - check them out. 

bulletin board

I am slowly working my way through a long list of home projects the biggest of which is moving my little man from the "nursery" into his own "big boy" room. As I am working my way through turning the guest room into his room I am coming across various things that have been stashed in there, out of the way so to speak! This includes the little hand and foot print set I did 2 years ago and never put together - it's now proudly hanging in our bedroom. Better late than never.

I have so many frames that were in that room and I have no where to put them so I decided to do something creative with one of them and make a covered bulletin board. I found some inspiration online and did some pinning. Love Pintrest!

Here are some of my favorites.

I like the layering of the buttons on these push pins

great color!

Totally my favorite. Love it.  

simple and nice

dreaming.....

love the idea of painting on the board

So after browsing through these lovely examples and many more here is what I made! I painted the frame in some fun purple/grey paint I had and used some funky 1970s style fabric. I also made some pushpins by making fabric flowers and hot glued them on to the pins. I also roughed up the frame with some sand paper to create a shabby effect.

I need to add some hooks on the back so I can hang it up but for now it looks nice on the shelf in my kitchen.

I just love the fabric It's actually a whole jungle them when you see the fabric. It was so cool I bought it without a particular project in mind and I haven't found the right way to use it yet but this is a start.

Here are the push pins I made. So easy and cute.

Hope you like it!

MC


Linked to:
Sundae Scoop Link Party
Think Pink Sundays
Show & Tell Saturday
Friday Frolic
Pity Party 
Friday Flair
Frugal Friday

paper snowflake window display

After watching Elf for the 100th time I went in search of templates for paper snowflakes. If you've seen the movie you'll remember how Buddy decorates pretty much everywhere he goes with paper snowflakes.


I found some cool templates here. And I just saw another post today for some really fancy ones. Trust me, once you start making these, it becomes addictive!

I chose to make mine in red paper stock and used a heavier weight paper so that they would look more substantial. I felt like the red paper would really stand out against the white window nook.

I used red thread to hang them and I used a needle to pierce a hole in the paper while simultaneously threading the snowflake.

The neat thing about these snowflakes is that when I put candles on the windowsill below they rotate beautifully throwing shadows on the wall.

These cute little antique Santa mugs finish the look!

'A' for embellishment

Years ago I purchased a wooden letter 'A' from Anthro. I also purchased a 'Q' in an attempt to create a unique design on my office wall! Since that time, in a fortuitous coincidence my last name now begins with the letter A. The letter Q is in a pile marked "Yard Sale"(This is beginning to sound like an episode of Sesame Street).

Inspired by a blog post I can no longer find (sorry!) I decided to update and embellish this wooden letter for the holidays.

 Firstly I covered the letter with festive material and added in some fiberfill just to pad it out a bit.

Then I cut up a lot of little circles from red felt, plus a few from purple felt just to add some interest. 

I hot glued the circles on to the material and put them really close together to create a petal effect. 

I'm really happy with the finished product which completes my Christmas mantle perfectly.

Happy Holidays from the A's!

vintage christmas decorations

The other day my father-in-law brought over a bag of ornaments that he no longer wanted.

Some of them are great and really charming, especially these little elves.

The decorations are mostly from the 60s and 70s and although some of these ornaments had long ago seen their best days and were just too shabby to hang up there were others that made the cut.

I call the one below a Samurai Santa!

Some of them were made by my husband in 1st grade - obviously keepers!

I'm trying to think of something crafty to do with a whole cast of characters like this guy that are made in wool. I've got 10 of them. Any ideas?

christmas bunting

I am so excited! I have completed my first holiday project of the season and my first using felt. Felt is so easy to work with, no fraying edges, so easy to cut and to glue. It is the perfect material for applique.

This mitten bunting is a total knock-off of this garland from The Land of Nod. I got the catalogue a week ago, saw these and thought, I can do that. So I did. I made my bunting 12 mittens long and I created my own designs for each mitten. 

Although I don't usually decorate until after Thanksgiving once I put these up I found it really hard to take them down. They are so cheery and fun!

P.S. I have made another strand just like this available in my etsy shop. I am also offering custom lengths.


This post is linked to Today's Creative Blog.

glitter gourds and pimped pumpkins

I picked up the usual bag of baby pumpkins and gourds at the grocery store and I thought I would put  a classy twist on this harvest arrangement.

I sprayed two coats per veg and let them dry in between. They look so pretty sparkling by candlelight and it would be a perfect centerpiece for a fall dinner party.

Free advice - wear gloves when spraying or get a bonus coat of glitter nail polish!

patio furniture redo

When I took our patio furniture out earlier this summer I realized the cushions were very faded and really needed a makeover. I selected fabric to compliment our table umbrella. I bought the fabric at Joann's and it was on sale at the time so it cost about $60 for 5 yards of fabric.

For the seat cushions I simply enclosed the entire old seat cushions in fabric and I machine sewed the closure. The fabric can be spot cleaned with a sponge so I didn't see the need for a cushion that was removable for washing. For the pillows I cut open the old pillows and filled the new ones with the stuffing. I ran a bit low on fabric at the end so I had to improvise. I made a panel cushion using two of the fabrics and I made a long roll pillow using a leftover section of fabric.

I am really happy with the results and I can't wait to get out there and enjoy it - now that the sun is finally shining again!