Buntings

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I am thrilled to have a front porch where I could hang our July 4th buntings!  

 The heat the last week has been unbearable and all our new bushes are struggling to make it, I hope we can save them.  Crossing all my fingers and toes that the rain in the forecast actually appears.

(More) Map Wall Art

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I loved the framed maps I had hanging at our old house.

  If I hadn't spotted this amazing atlas book at Goodwill for $2.49, I probably would have gone ahead and hung the same framed maps in the new house.

The atlas is over 50 years old and full of vibrant color pictures.  I just had to use them in some way at our new house!  I admit, I felt a teensy bit guilty cutting pages out of the book.  I was very careful though and the book can still be enjoyed on our coffee table.

I found 3 clearance 16x20 frames from Hobby Lobby for $10 each and spray painted them white.  They were probably on clearance because the glass broke in every single frame while I was taking them apart!  Oh well, good thing I hadn't planned on using the glass anyway.

I picked 3 of my favorite maps from the book.  Then I purchased a charcoal gray mat board for $7.99 (also from Hobby Lobby) that I was able to cut down to the correct sizes.  I used some Mod Podge and coated each mat and the back of each map, before the glue had totally dried I placed the pictures on the mat and gave it another good coat of the Mod Podge. 

I'll admit, at first I thought the project was going to be a complete disaster!  The maps looked like they were puckering and would not stick at all.  After they dried though, the puckers flattened out and because of the Mod Podge coat on the entire picture, they look like I bought them that way!  At least I think they do.  :)

It's very important to put a coat of Mod Podge on the mat and the back of the picture first...trust me, I learned the hard way! (see those few little puckers at the bottom?)  lol  Thank goodness for Pinterest, I was able to stop and get some tips so I didn't mess things up too much.  The puckers give it character.

The wall behind our couch is large and was very empty!  The 3 pictures filled it nicely and came it a total of $50, including atlas, mats, frames, spray paint and Mod Podge.  Tomorrow I will show what I did using the index pages of the atlas.  ;)

Design Boards...again.

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I keep playing with the whole design board thingy...here is what I came up with so far for the family room.

I honestly have no idea what artwork, lamps, etc...are going to go in that room! 

The rug was impulse by this morning from RugsUSA...I hope it matches in person!

Design Boards?

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I love looking at design boards from others...but wow, I tried making one a few month's ago and they are harder than they look!

  I wanted to see how some of my ideas for the front workroom would look all together.  Here is my first feeble attempt at a design board...

In other news, we took the first of two trips to Ikea yesterday to get some of the furniture that we need for the house.

Of course, I didn't have my real camera, but here are a few awful phone pictures! 

I am inspired by the colors of these boxes.  The cardboard tan for the walls and the raspberry pink boxes I will buy for somewhere else in the room.  Hopefully, to put on the Expedit desk thingy...but I haven't made a final decision on purchasing that yet.

My kids scarfing down the meatballs and ribs...note the many used napkins!  They made quite the mess.

Paint Colors...again

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I'm pretty sure I've talked about this before, but I am going to talk about it again.  Paint colors. (I am using you all as my place to talk about this out loud.) The hubby says I need to pick them all out right away so he can paint the house before we move in.  I already told him the downstairs was all my brain could process right now!

At first, I was going to go tan in the entry way.  Good, right?  Can't go wrong there!  Buuut....now I am leaning towards gray.  I love gray.  I worry though that people will think my house feels like a prison....why am I thinking about paint colors for MY house that other people will like?  lol

Picking the curtain fabric for the workroom changed up my color thoughts in there a little bit.  I originally wanted that room to be dark blue, which did not go with my fabric.  I decided to go ahead with the dark blue in the dining room instead...after seeing this picture.  I already have a brown table and am purchasing 4 white slipcovered chairs.

The family room, kitchen and dining nook are easy!  They are going to get the same Upward blue from Sherwin Williams that we had in the old house.

I was pretty settled on a light pink powder room....but...hmm...after looking at pictures online, I might be back to the drawing board there.

Maybe brown instead?

And finally...light green for the workroom.  But again, I am not sure about that.  Personally, I would LOVE to go light pink that room, but I don't think McKinley would ever do his homework in there if I did that.

My thoughts were a few more fun colors towards the front of the house in the smaller, closed off rooms...and more neutral colors in the larger spaces.

Thanks for letting me talk it out and I can't promise I won't want to talk about it again! It will be fun to see what colors we actually end up with!

Gallery Wall Update

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I love the gallery walls I see that are a mish mash of everything!  However, I also love that my gallery wall is only 6 photos and I can easily change them all to match the season or my mood.

Here is my gallery wall updated for fall/winter:

October

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Aaahh....it's my favorite month of the year.  Who doesn't love fall?  I think almost every person I know claims it as their favorite season!

This morning I made the kids pumpkin spice hot chocolate...just a little pumpkin pie spice in their cocoa mix.  I'm not sure if it would be good enough for Starbucks, but they sure enjoyed it!  I have heard a tiny rumor that there is pumpkin spice cream cheese from Philadelphia out there and I am going to go on the hunt for that!

 Last year I threw out almost all my fall decorations...so I am starting from scratch this year.  I wanted to get an earthy sorta natural feel from my decorations.  A picked a few new vases and candlesticks from the dollar store and added some fun colored candy sticks to one vase.  Another vase I already had, got some tall birch sticks (also from the dollar store!) while a third new vase received layers of dried beans and peas with a candle.  I replaced the summer catch all plate with a cream platter I already had.

 The front door got a new grapevine wreath from The Christmas Tree Shoppes...however I could not resist wrapping some fake leaves around the wreath.  Earthy and natural or not...I still love fake autumn leaves!  lol

Here is the rest of the decorations I came up with in the living room and kitchen....including the yarn wreath I already shared with you.

 The printable I made in photoshop with the cookie cutter tool.  The glass pumpkins came from the dollar store.  I picked up the acorns from Meijer, but also saw them on ebay...and of course you could always go out and find your own real acorns!  lol

The Yarn Wreath

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Yeah...I know the yarn wreath is everywhere right now...but I love the way they look and wanted to try my hand at making one.  To me, the textures of the yarn and felt just lend themselves to autumn!  I had an old styrofoam wreath on hand so that is what I used...I think a thicker wreath might have looked a little better.  However, I only spent $2 on yarn and $2.17 on felt to make my wreath.

Here is my wreath and sneak peek at my fall decorations...I have been slowly putting them out over the last week, but haven't reached that point where I love how they look.  I threw out almost all my fall decorations last year so I am starting from scratch this year!  I promise I will share whatever it is I put out for fall soon.

Living Room Before & After

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About 8 weeks ago I decided to get over my fear of repainting my living room & kitchen. The paint color was a lovely green that I really did love, but it was feeling too dark and I was ready for a change. Back in January my hubby (who happens to be a professional painter, which works out well for me!) brought home a bunch of samples in the colors I thought I wanted...but in the end I just had him touch up the green...fast forward to July...I was finally ready.

 Of course...there are still lots of unfinished projects (covering the bench, I am missing a gallery photo, stainless microwave and stove...the track lighting?!...remember that list I was telling you about?!) but what is the fun in a totally finished space anyway!

I didn't really have many before pictures, here is the last I one snapped...when I look at it I can't believe I even hesitated to repaint!

Before:

AFTER:

I also recovered my cornice boards in a black & white quatrafoil fabric and got all new white curtains.  I picked up the bench coffee table for $100 from World Market.
   

The white slip-covered chairs, Ribba ledges, and frames all came from Ikea.  I also picked up new baskets for my Expedit shelf and a reading lamp while I was there.

In the kitchen the cabinets got repainted from cream to bright white.  I picked up an apothecary jar for $15 from Homegoods...the lemons came from Target.  The 3 pictures were originally Home Interiors and were pictures of vegetables...I found the vintage restaurant sign photographs and added some scrapbook paper behind them.  $.99 for scrapbook paper and a few minutes of my time was all it took for a big change above the cabinets!

 I love the large charger, which I also picked up at Ikea for $19.99.  I am on the hunt for some vintage crates to use on top of the fridge as chip storage.

Map Art

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I think maps are so interesting and beautiful...so do a lot of others because it seems like maps are everywhere right now!   This picture is one of the first things I pinned when I joined Pinterest.  I loved the vertical trio of frames with the tall lamp.

 When we repainted the living room (which I promise I will show you the whole room soon!!) the poster I had in between the windows did not feel quite right.  I remembered 3 pictures frames I had been using on my old gallery wall that I had stuffed in the closet...they worked perfectly!

What I love most is that this project was free and is meaningful to our family.  The top map is of our town, the middle map is of my husband's state, and the bottom map we collected on a trip to Disney.  I think one of the most important things I have learned from bloggerdom is the realization that I do not have to spend a lot on my wall art.  (please pretend not to notice that one curtain is shorter than the other, it's on my "list" ....you probably have one of those "lists" too, right?!)

In case you have forgotten, here was the same wall just a few weeks ago!  Don't worry, in a decorating switch the poster (which I still love) has been relocated to the old gallery wall. 

 

Ikea Lack Side Table

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This is nothing new to blog world...but I am loving all the free printables you can find online these days!  They are a super simple and inexpensive way to add some whimsy to your decor.  Because they are essentially free, you can change them whenever the mood hits!  I already have several saved that I can't wait to use for fall and holiday decor.

I found this adorable quote on Pinterest yesterday.  You can download your own here.

Here is how mine looks on my little side table.

 

A few weeks ago while at Ikea with my husband, he threw this little table on the cart at the last second.  "I need a place beside the couch to put my drinks" he said....I figured for $7.99, why not at least try it?!  

I actually like the way it looks.  The white balances out some other darker furniture in our living room.  The $2.49 basket (I think I need to spray paint it a different color...silver, maybe?) underneath holds random pillows and of course it keeps my favorite catalogs in easy reach for me to browse when I have a free moment!  The wooden tray was something I had seen at Target, I bit the bullet (I say that because the little tray was 2.5 times the cost of the silly table!) and bought it along with some $1 starfish and sand dollars from The Christmas Tree Shoppes.

Sugar & spice...and new canisters

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A few weeks ago I shared my inspiration for new chalkboard canisters.  The little project is complete and I am loving the new corner of my kitchen!

  Things have been busy around here the last week or so and I haven't had much time to cook in my new space.  I had the opportunity last night and I am so happy with the way things turned out!  I have to admit the whole Ikea knife magnet used to creep me out...but having my knives, canisters, and most used spices (kosher salt, black pepper, minced onion, minced garlic, seasoning salt, and Italian seasoning) right there above long counter makes cooking very seamless!

The chalkboard canisters were the perfect choice for me!  I am thinking of adding one more for powdered sugar or whatever else I might be using at the moment.  I love that the chalkboard allows me to rewrite what is in the canister and play with the "fonts."

I really wanted the metal scoops and my BFF saw them at Walmart...I ran out that day and picked them up!  They were $3.97 for 3.   The canisters were from Target and chalkboard contact paper came from Amazon.

In case you had forgotten here was my little kitchen corner before:

When projects don't work....

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Do you remember the last time I showed you my entry way...this was before we repainted everything to light blue...

I loved the leaf prints against the green...but against the light blue they did not work at all, they just blended into the lighter wall color.

I had the idea to repaint the canvases and spray adhesive these fun photo letters that I found at Hobby Lobby for $1.99 each to them.  (In case you are wondering the letters spell our last name.  lol) Well the project came out pretty good!  However...it looked horrible above the new mirror I picked up for over the dresser.    (If you haven't heard this...mirrors brighten up spaces and it's true!  I love what that little mirror has done for my entry.)  The scale was way too large.

 

Here is a grainy picture I took with my phone to give show you how it looked.

On my last trip to Ikea I picked up some Ribba frames and the scale is much better!  I also snagged a large wire basket for $2.49 that fits perfectly under the dresser.  It's a great place to stash things that need "returned"...such as library books or Target purchases gone wrong.

I am keeping the canvases and will use them somewhere else in the house.  ;)  So there is my project that didn't quite work out, more sneaks of my new paint color, and my new entry mirror.

Now I have to make a decision on if  I want to paint that dresser or leave it stained...I am on the lookout for a new lamp...I need to pick up some Rub 'N Buff for the dresser knobs...look for a new rug...it never ends!