Mudroom Makeover

I'm not sure it should be called a makeover since it wasn't ever really "made" to begin with.  When we built our house 16 months ago, our mudroom was all function and no flare.  It served a purpose, albeit a good purpose, but it wasn't welcoming.

Before:

Every person in this family walks through the mudroom at least twice a day, so I wanted it to be a place that inspired on the way out and welcomed on the way in.

After:

We had some leftover wood from our keeping room ceiling, so we decided to add a little character to the wall.  I would prefer white, but this is a MUD room and mud is BROWN.  We make a lot of dirt on this plot o' land so practicality wins again.  I'm okay with that. :)

 I needed an inexpensive way to fill up 16' of bare wall space.  Thanks to Melissa, I found these maps at Paper Source.  They are actually considered wrapping paper, but they look and feel like real maps.  I will probably add more eventually, but for now I chose maps of the world, the U.S. and places I've visited.

I love the colors and texture it brought to the space.

This is a very functional room in our home so I wasn't sure it could feel warm and inviting.  We use this room to wash eggs, feed the dog, and drop the coats and shoes.
We recently added a new granite countertop (I love small scraps that can't find a home!) that our granite-guy friend cut grooves into for egg drying.

This space also leads to the half-bath.  With so many events at the farm, we are constantly pointing people to the bathroom.  I made this little sign to help them find the way:

A little metal frame found in the dollar section at Michaels, a Sharpie, and a fun ribbon made a quick little project.

For the first time since we moved in, I finally really like this space.  Instead of the mudroom, I'm thinking of renaming it the welcoming room.  Doesn't that sound better?

I'm linking up with Imparting Grace today.

The Church Pew Revival

On New Years Day, whilst still in a vertigo fog, we had brunch with some dear friends.  Though much of the conversations were a blur, I do remember my friend Suzanne saying, "Gretchen, I don't want you to feel like you have to take it, but I have an old pew..."

In which she was interrupted with my over-eager YES!  I'll take it!!!

She described it as "chippy" and in need of some TLC.  

I like chippy.  And old.

 But the chips were falling off like snowflakes.  Chips that were probably fully leaded.  So I decided to give it a good spa treatment... of sanding.  Well, actually, my sweet farmer did the sanding for me.

Yes, I'm wearing "mom jeans" because the barn was freezing cold and I had 25 layers underneath. 

We buffed and cleaned and brought back her original beauty from the ashes of a 1976 mustard colored bad decision.

My original plan was to give it a glaze treatment but when I saw the price of glaze, I decided to try white washing it.
Because I wanted the grain of the wood to show through I combined
1 part paint/2 parts water
Using some leftover white paint we already had, this became a FREE project.  Woop woop!
 It turns out to be the best place to display my great-grandmother's quilt, too.

 It fits perfectly between the windows, separating our dining area from the living room.  Being over 7' long, I was sure hoping it would fit!

I'm so thankful my sweet friend couldn't find a spot in her home for this beauty.  I'll think of her every time I walk by.

I'm linking up with Coastal Charm, A Stroll Thru Life, Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Cozy Little House, Imparting Grace

I Like Fun Fabric

We desperately needed some new pillows... indoors and out.  I borrowed my mom's sewing machine and had fun in my "spare" time over the summer.  Most of my fabric came from Fabric.com  They have an awesome return policy and great prices.

For the sake of time, I made simple pillows with no chording or fancy corners.  The pillows pictured above are in my keeping room... for now.  I love to change things up, but for now, these work great with the newly painted desk behind the couch.

Stuffing pillows can be costly, so I ripped apart my old pillows and used the stuffing.  It isn't pretty but it was still in good condition; just needed a little fluffing.

Hi ladies.  No, I won't steal your feathers for stuffing pillows.

I made these in early June and they have held up great in full sun and a ton of rain.  I love the selection of indoor/outdoor choices at Fabric.com

I find myself drawn to the bold geometric patterns for outdoors and the softer hues for indoors (well, except for my new dining area curtains).
What kind of patterns catch your eye?

Do You Antique?

Does the word "antique" make you smile or turn up your nose?  I have to admit the smell of most antique stores makes me wrinkle my nose.  Literally.  The thrill of the hunt is what keeps me coming back, even though 97% of the time I walk out of those places empty handed.

But then I run across an inspiration like this (at the local coffee house) and I suddenly want to search for an aqua phone and an old fan.

Isn't that the cutest display eva?  When I retire from motherhood (ha!) I think I'll open a coffee shop and create cute little montages like this.

There is a delicate balance between using antiques with discernment and having antiques that scream J.U.N.K!  It is important to find things that share a common ground.  In the photo above, it is the light aqua color and school day charm.  

I've started a collection of enamel pots above my kitchen cabinets.  Don't get grossed out, but the pot  with the red handle is the pee pot my husband's father used growing up. Yes, it's been washed.  I think it's pretty cool.  The others have been yard sale and antique store finds.  

Speaking of my father-in-law... he found a ladder back chair for me.  When I turned it around, I found this gem on the back:

"State College Property 1935"  Oh the learning that occurred in that chair!

I love that some antiques have a story that speaks for itself.  I recently ran across a quilt that had been lovingly made by a group of women.  They each stitched their signature on the squares they had quilted.  Oh the conversations that occurred at that quilting bee!  Totally regretting not purchasing the quilt, by the way.

The best thing about antiquing is finding something that you know you can use with something you already have.  Old and new.  It's a beautiful combination.

Check out this idea, again, from the coffee shop:

 A-mazing.  Painted pallet.  Bike on the wall.  Red watering can.  Sigh.

Summer ReFresh (without buying a new couch)

  Do you feel refreshed when you walk into your living room?  Do you wish you could create a new space without spending a fortune? Now that the summer months are upon us, you might be dreaming of a light and bright space, but your big brown couch is in the way.

Let's suppose you are starting with a basic brown couch, like this Ikea Ektorp.

Most of us can't afford seasonal couches, so today we are going to see how modifying just a few accessories can completely change the feel of a room.  

Let's suppose we started with this:

The lamp is a good starting point because the base is neutral enough to go with any color scheme.  The shade can easily be changed, but as you will see, it can look fabulous (as-is) when paired with the right side table.

By adding just a few accessories, this winter couch can become a summer delight.

 Shop the house before heading out to buy. Many of the small accessories might be something you have around the house.  If your room is still feeling dark or heavy, try adding a mirror to reflect more light throughout the room.  Your budget may allow for new end tables, but before you purchase, see if what you already own can bring new life into the room.  You might have a small table hiding in the attic that could be painted back to life.

Don't let that old couch get the best of you!  Bring on the summer fun!

Teen Room Reveal

We moved to the farm in October, and by the last week of December, we were already starting our first makeover project.  Seriously, we. are. nuts.  But there is a GOOD, sweet reason.  That reason is my precious 13 yr old daughter.

When we built the house, we decided to paint her walls grey and use her hot pink duvet cover.  

Hot pink and grey sounded so hip/cool/teenish in theory.

But when we moved in, it really wasn't working.  My sweet girl never complained, but I could tell she didn't love it.  I didn't either.  Several people mentioned her "lavender" room and we both cringed because neither one of us love that color. I think the reflection of the hot pink onto the grey resulted in lavender.   So one day I suggested that she look at Houzz.com and show me rooms that caught her eye.  Unbeknownst (what a big word) to her, all of the rooms she showed me were hot pink and black.  

So we came up with a plan.

My talented husband spent his vacation days measuring and applying firring strips to the wall.  We then painted the lower 3/4 of the walls white (glossy trim white) and the upper 1/4 Tricorn Black (SW6258).   If this technique looks familiar, there is a reason.  We did this same color combo on our son's room in our last house.

She was thrilled with the results.

With the board and batten, the room feels bigger, yet more cozy.

As usual, we were doing this makeover on a very tight budget.  So we chose items that would really give the room the punch it needed.  The zebra sheets and sparkly turquoise pillow were a gift from my mom.

The zebra clock is from Dollar General.  Crazy find!  

The zebra lampshade on her desk came from Garden Ridge, $7.

Curtain tie back brackets were a clearance find at Ross, 2 for $2.99

The deal of the century were the IKEA curtains.  Two 96" curtains for $9.99.  Glory hallelujah!

Making a space your own doesn't have to cost much.  You just have to be willing to look in odd places.  ;)

It's hard to believe she's already a teen.  Rather than wish she were little again, I'm trying really hard embracing this season of life.  Because, after all, every season is beautiful when it is filled with life!

Linking Up With
Southern Savvy Style, Elizabeth and Co., The Winthrop Chronicles, If It
s Not Baroque  Home Stories AtoZ, Imparting Grace

Dining Room: Before/After

 When we built our house nine years ago, I took a big risk and put wallpaper in our dining room.  It is sort of separate from the rest of the house, so it worked; even though it was a busy pattern.  It lasted longer than I thought it might.  Err, I should say I lasted longer than I thought I would in not getting tired of it.  This past winter, though, I had had enough.  We decided to have it taken down and painted.

One itty bitty little problem.  The biggest wall was covered with mirrors.  I know!!! What  was I thinking when we did that?!  My husband had some guys in the mirror business come and remove the mirrors.  When they took them off the wall this is what remained:

The guys said they had never seen a mirror hung like that.  Someone got a little happy with the black tar glue.  We started scraping and the more we scraped, the more sheetrock came off.  Talk about frustrating.  We quickly realized that we were going to have to replace the sheetrock if we didn't stop.  So we added 3 sheets of thin wallboard on top of the existing polka dots wall.

Calm and serene was what we were going for when we chose Behr Jubilee for the paint color.

Before:

After:

The room feels so much bigger and spacious.  With a solid color, I have more freedom to change the mood of the room.  Right now I've summer-ized it:

I shopped the house and found some fun stuff to put together.  Remember my globe?  It went so nicely with the map from our vacation.  Add a few shells and the room has that world traveller feel.

Room Makeover

Last summer my daughter asked for a "new room."  She had lived with periwinkle blue and sage green her entire life.  I can't believe I kept her room the same for 9 years!  That is a record for me!  

 We scoured the PB Teen magazines and she got a general idea of the colors she liked.  Then, we did the Target version of her choices.  She chose bright navy walls (which look more royal in the picture above than they actually are) and lime green accents.  It is now one of my favorite rooms in the house.

If you are wondering about the blurry thing above her bed, it is her name in vinyl attached to an artists canvas that I painted with acrylic.  I ordered it from here.  Seriously, it is a GREAT deal!  Below is the example from her Etsy shop.  You get to choose 2 colors and all of the words that go behind the name.  SO personalized!!!
The dots on the wall came from her store too.  Total cost?  $20 for a whole wall of yumminess!

The comforter set and throw pillows came from Target.  The throw pillow covers were from their RE line for $5 each!  I love dots!

She got the green butterfly chair from Target Santa ($18).

She inherited the feather boa wreath and I love how it shows up on the dark wall.  Oh, and the desk swivel chair came from Target ($18) too.

I hesitated posting this last picture, because I rarely leave a project unfinished.  My goal is to make a little pendant flag window treatment that swoops down in front of the two windows from the top of the bookcases.  But you get the picture.

My parents gave her a "husband" for Christmas (that green pillow thing on the window seat).  I had one from childhood through college and loved him it.  Now I have the real thing and he's so much better.  :)

The colors in her room make me happy every time I go in there.  Since she did not inherit my "I-love-change-gene," it's a good thing I like it, because she will probably keep these colors until she moves out.  Well, maybe.  :)