Pallet for Home

I don’t tell you enough just how wonderful you all are!  Everyday you bless me with your sweet comments and each week you are kind enough to share your creations on the Amaze Me Monday meme.  You’ll never know just how many smiles you have placed on my face….

Thank you!  Thank you!  Thank you!

No, I’m not one to eat my Thanksgiving dinner next to a Christmas tree (except for the year that the Hubs didn’t take care of the tree!).  My life is rush, rush, rush as it is now.  There is no reason to not enjoy each holiday before jumping onto the next.   Maybe I’m getting a little too sentimental as my kids get older and I know that there will be very few opportunities for us to be together. 

Last year at the Wood Worker’s Show, I spotted a photo of these napkin rings and knew that I wanted to make some for myself this year.  During the big storm back in May,  it took out one of the very large Pecan tree in our front yard.  I snag a small branch and wrapped it in newspaper (drying the wood without it cracking).  

I simply cut the small branch into inch disks, drilled a hole out the center with a spade bit, sanded the center’s smooth, and sprayed with a poly finish.   Cute huh?

Recently my mom and I went out shopping where my mother talked me into I snagged a couple of zebra Parson chairs from Kirkland’s!  They definitely add a little fun and whimsy to the kitchen. 

I also purchased a basic set of white dishware from Ikea and the placemats came from TJ Maxx.  TJ Maxx didn’t have enough of one style placemats so I had to mix and match the circles and the squares.  The platter is from Wal-Mart and the bowl is custom-made from my dad.  I believe it’s made of Pecan, too.  The oversized acorn set where purchased from Big Lots.

I have been so crazy busy lately with work, kids, and my so many unfinished projects!  This weekend will be the first weekend in 7 weeks that I don’t have something on the calendar!  But don’t think for a moment that I will be sitting around with my feet up (at least not the entire weekend!).  After I host Thanksgiving dinner and the dishes are done and everyone leaves the house, I have a project for me and the Hubs.  No shopping for me, unless it’s at the hardware store!   I set a timeline for us so that we can get it done, but still have time to enjoy the long weekend. 

Want to know what it is????  Join me on Facebook.  Many of the projects that I have done haven’t even made it to the blog yet (sorry I have been soooooo busy), but I always try to keep you up-today with my Facebook statuses.

Have a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend,

Here are few snap shots of our powder room with a few touches of fall.

Carrying on with the “POP” of orange.

The wall color is all hand painted without a stencil!

Crazy I know.  One winter day I woke up and thought it would be fun to spend NOT hours but DAYS hand painting a diamond pattern all over the walls.  In my mind I was sure it would only take the better part of the morning.  Psssh…. 

I have wanted to repaint this bathroom for some time now.

Maybe I will repaint on the first cold winter day.

This cute little sconce came from Michael’s. 

Super cheap décor….  Dollar Store fall leaves and raffia!

I hope you enjoyed this tiny tour of our powder room. 

Have a great day,

The seasons have changed, but I’m still wearing shorts and the air conditioner still kicks on from time to time.  If you never been to the Carolina’s before there is one thing that you should know….. the weather can change dramatically from one day to the next.  It can be near 90 one day and then barely in the 60’s the next.  Oh and there isn’t a lot of  70 degree days.  You either have the air conditioner or the heat running for most days out the year.  There are even days when you have the air-conditioner running during the day and the heat on at night!

Enough about Carolina weather….

How about some fall decorating?

I started arranging a fall tablescape (shown above) and had to walk away for a minute.  When I came back, my daughter mentioned that the orange really POPs out, so I decided I would run with the POP of orange.

You might notice this console table as the table that once found a home in the foyer.  It has now moved to the family room with a new finish.  I restained the table with a red mahogany stain but of course that was too red and it had a weird purplish color.  I applied an ebony stain over the table to both darken and hide the purplely-red color.  I must say, I like the rich color but not the daily dusting!  Know I understand why so many of you are going to lighter and brighter color schemes in your home.

The leaf garland was something I made a few years back using brown twisted paper and dollar store faux leaves.  The twisted paper was left in  the rope-like-twist that it comes in and I simply hot glued the leaves on.

A fall display above the TV entertainment center (made by my parents).   Oh how I wish I had a mantle to decorate for the season.

Lazy Boy wing-back chairs with new burnished-orange pillows from Big Lots.  I personally think these chairs are too big for the room and have been thinking about listing them on Craigslist. 

The desk in the background is my first beloved piece of furniture that I ever bought.  I believe I was 19 years old when I made the purchase and it is still in wonderful condition!  It’s actually not a desk at all, but a vanity. 

Top Left:    I had a little wooden box (made by my Dad) that I turned the top upside down and placed a creamy velvet pumpkin that I made last year.

Top Right:   A new fall colored pillow from Big Lots and a leaf pillow that I made from a placemat.

Bottom Left:   I added this basket from Michael’s to hold some new throw blankets from Wal-mart.   Have you seen the Better Homes and Garden throw blankets at Wal-Mart?  They have a wonderful selection!  Plus the blankets are soooooo warm and cozy. 

Bottom Right:  A new acorn candle from Wal-mart.  I am not crazy about the scent of the candle but loved the little container.    Plus my all time favorite photograph of my kids at Halloween time acting goofy!!

One last thing…. I am sorry for the lack of post, replies to comments and emails, and Facebook updates.  I have started my second seasonal job and got back into my exercise routine last week.  To say the least,  I am tired!!!   I definitely need to refigure my schedule to allow  more blogging and creative time.  If only I wasn’t the type of person who needs 8 hours of sleep, but I am. 

Until next time,

Please come on in and meet the new member of our family. 

I must start by saying that I am sorry that I teased everyone with all the color options that I shared in my Photoshop collage.   I really am thinking about repainting her (yes, I am going to refer to her in the female sense), but something stopped me quickly….. the approaching holidays!!  

Please , please, please tell me that the majority of you decorate your homes with the holidays in mind.   The color that I am thinking about painting her  just wouldn’t go with my winter holiday decor.  Is that silly?

So if I remember,  in January, I think I might try giving her a new color.

I purchased this sweet chest of drawers at the local flea market about a month ago.  From looking at the before photo you don’t see all the chips on her top and at the drawer edges.  I could have fixed it  and restained, but I have a lot of stained furniture in my home and really wanted to add a painted piece. 

I broke down and placed my first order of chalk paint.  This piece is painted in Old White.

Distressed.

Here is the reason that this piece took me a month to finish~

I added another top over the existing top. (see top left photo)  This was way over my head and I had to have my Dad do most of the work.  Two Poplar planks were glued together, then the edges were routered to marry the two tops, and then stained a dark Walnut.

I used the original knobs.

I love this unique copper emblem from the manufacture in the side of one drawer.  I didn’t show a photograph of it  but the drawers are dovetailed (a sign of good craftsmanship).

In this top drawer there is a divider.(bottom right photo)  I don’t know much about furniture, does anyone know it’s purpose? 

I was a little shocked at the size of the holes behind the knobs and that’s part the reason why I didn’t change out the knobs.  The other reason is that the ones that I want to replace them with haven’t gone on sale yet.  lol. 

New top in it’s dark Walnut stain.

Ooh la la.  My Pottery Barn mercury pumpkins!!!  Love. Love. Love them. 

Please ignore the awful looking floor.  New floors are the next thing on my to-do list for this foyer!  

Later I will share with you my thought on AS chalk paint.

PS.  Doesn’t the new chest look awesome with the new foyer mirror?!?!

Fall has arrived in the Carolinas (inside and out)…. the temperature has dropped and the scenery has changed.   Love this time of year!

A few simple changes to the overall décor and you have an autumn foyer!

Confession:  I can over do it when it comes to decorating.

So to keep things simple, I used a few felt placemats as wall art!  Yep, you read that right!  Placemats and a shadow box frame, that I have had for years, creates a simple but welcoming foyer.

My original plan was to add some glitz to the otherwise plain placemats, but after seeing them up on the wall,  I have decided to stick with the less is more attitude.  For now! 

This was the easiest wall décor ever!  I pulled down all the picture frames and plants from the wall, and literally stuck the vein of the leaf over the nail already in the wall!  I just gave each placemat a nudge so they hang on an angle.

Here is one of the shadow box frames that I purchased from Big Lots years ago.   They still had the cardboard over the corners! 

I added a few leaves, pumpkins, and acorns to the ledge.  The leaf pillows (stuffed in the urn) were also once placemats.

I am still looking for some faux topiaries for the ledge.  I am surprised that this has been such a difficult process. I really thought I knew of a place that would have them locally.  They had a few but they were all too small.   I search continues.

I had way more photos to share with you but Photoshop decided it wasn’t going to work.  Well, it did work up until I wanted to save the photographs and then it crashed.  I believe a recent computer update has interfered with the workings of PH.   Please don’t suggest I  use another program, because do you know how hard it is to switch from your favorite photo editing software?  It’s like going to a new hair stylist!  Not. going. to. happen. 

Not without a lot of whining and crying.  lol

After completing my recent large projects, I was in the mood for something quick and easy.

I found this garden pedestal in the neighbor’s yard that they left behind, after they moved out a few years ago.  The pedestal was missing something off the top.  I believe it use to be an orb.   It’s been sitting down in the children’s playhouse just waiting for me to make something fabulous out of it. 

My immediate thought was to replace the small glass orb that once sat on top, but I never found one that was small enough or that I liked.   So I needed to come up with a new idea.  Lamp?  Wouldn’t this make a cute lamp base?  and it would be easy enough to do too, but like I said I wanted a project that was both  quick and easy. 

Instead, I created a candle stick.

I lightly sprayed the base with ORB (oil-rubbed bronze) spray paint, and with a dry brush,  used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White to go over the top. 

For the top, I glued (E6000) a glass vase to the top.

There you go……  a quick and easy project.

As you can see, I’m slowly bring out the fall décor.

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