Estate sale-ing adventures

Estate sale-ing is something I love but rarely have time for these days. Last weekend there was a nice one not far from home and we all three managed to stop.

I always look on the Estate Sales site before venturing out so I can see the pics in advance and get a feel for whether or not there's going to be anything good.  I usually have something in mind that I'm looking for but not always. In this case it was a lovely wooden antique bar cart that I saw in the pics online, but when I got there I found it to be wobbly and over priced and a not so friendly lady that wouldn't budge on price. So instead of a bar cart I went home with this lovely brown leather weekender bag!  Much more practical. And something I've wanted for awhile to be honest! Win win! Oh and I did manage to talk her down by $5 on this.

Easy Photo Ledges

So these might have a lot of stuff on them, but that stuff happens to be near and dear so I'm fine with it! In this case, bring on the clutter!

The resident handy man cranked these out in two nights (with his lil helper). He combined various tutorials on the Internet (because they are EVERYWHERE) and modified accordingly to fit our needs.

The jist of it...

1 inch screws (15 total)
2 1x4's (8 feet)
2 1x3's (8 feet)
2 1x2's (8 feet)

Kreg Jig - to help drill the pocket holes
Chop saw
Drill

You may need to trim up the pieces slightly using a circular saw as they may not all be exactly 8 ft when purchased from the store.  Oh and then paint all of the boards (this is where I helped alittle).


Start assembling once the paint is dried.  Attach the 2 in board (which will be your front ledge) to the 3 in board with your screws that you will recess into the 3 in board with your Kreg Jig. The Kreg Jig acts as template and helps you create a perfect pocket to insert your screw.  Once you have those 2 pieces together, you can simply screw the 4 in board into the 3 in board from the back since this will be the part against your wall.  Then, align your new shelf with the studs in the wall and attach.  Once attached you can paint over the screws that you see and decorate with all your fave memories!

Voila!

IKEA LATT Table Makeover

I finally got around to painting the IKEA $20 Latt table we picked up in Chicago over the summer. Luckily we have a lot of leftover paint in our house so I didn't have to purchase any new colors!

A little black, a little white, a little chalkboard paint for the table top and some gold spray paint for the tips!

Voilà!

BEFORE:

Disassemble with an Allen wrench set and paint!

AFTER:

Check Out Chairish!

So. . . I've been a little MIA lately, but I'm back!  The latest project under our roof has been finishing the basement in time for Layla's 1st bday party.  It's amazing how hosting a big event like that will kick you into high gear and get it done! Ok, well maybe not DONE, but livable.  Next up is continuing to decorate a fun and colorful playarea down there for Miss Layla!

All of her toys have moved to the basement and out of our living room. SUCCESS! It's time for me to start taking some strides in making a pretty sitting room on our main level. Sticking with the style of the rest of our house, I've slowly accumulated some vintage/used furniture over the last couple years via Estate Sales and Craig's List, but there is still a lot of potential for this room.  I recently stumbled upon a site called Chairish (www.chairish.com), and I'm in love.  The concept is simple.  Buy. Sell. Adore. Every day people, like myself, can now buy and sell vintage furniture, decor, jewelry, and accessories to one another online from all over the country.  The shop features curator-approved treasures in a full-service and trustworthy environment.

I've had a lot of fun window shopping the site lately, and picked out some of my favorites as inspiration for my sitting room.  I want a room that is fancy, fun, and functional.  The pieces I found on Chairish.com encompass all three of those.  Fancy is the Vintage French Settee with New Linen Upholestery, Vintage Victorian Round Mirror, and Curved Golden Mirrored Side Tables.  Fun are the Adjustable Barbara Berry Brass Floor Lamps, Early Brass Bronze Finish Globe, and Antique Inspired Antlers on Plaques.  And functional is the Vintage Jajim Rug and Belgium Game Table.  The game table opens into a real table!  Throw a linen table cloth on it and voila! You have an extra table for entertaining guests!

If you're a lover of design and vintage furniture, I highly encourage you to visit chairish.com ASAP!  You won't be disappointed!



Happy Hunting!

Layla's Nursery

I've been a little busy lately but I wanted to share Layla's nursery.  It was a project that took up the better half of my 2013!  I had a fun time planning a little girls room and I hope that this will be a room she can enjoy for a couple years and we can transition it into a "big" girl room in the future. I think she likes it so far from what she has seen of it!

I hope that I have the same dedication to room planning for a 2nd child down the road!  :)

Enjoy the tour.

For more nursery pics, check out A Family Affair Photography!

Nursery Sneak Peek: Changing Table Nook

It's been awhile since my last post, but I will say nesting is in full effect.  I truly did not believe "nesting" was a real thing when people would talk about it, but it is in fact a very real thing.  I can't stop washing her clothes and making time to put things away and finding little last minute details to finish in her room.  I recently finished her changing table dresser and tall dresser (details on the tall dresser later) and got those pieces moved into the room which is nice because I can FINALLY begin putting things away. 

For her furniture, I decided to use CeCe Caldwell Paints. It's a mineral based chalk paint that is easy to use and safe to use.  There is virtually no smell at all and safe for even preggos to use.  I purchased the paint from Encore Consignment Gallery here in Saint Louis, as they are a certified retailer.  A quart of this stuff will go a long way.  To complete the changing table and tall dresser I only used a quart and a half.  The reason I love this stuff is because it is the easiest paint ever to give a distressed look.  You literally paint the piece (I chose to do 2 coats in Simply White, with the Portland Rose on a few accent parts), no sanding required at all, let the paint dry for a few days then distress.  You can roller this paint on but I found it easier to work with by painting it on with a quality brush.  And to distress, all you have to do is literally wet a rag and rub off the paint in the areas where you want it to look "worn".  Once you have done your distressing, paint on a coat of the Satin Finish onto the piece to seal everything in and give it a protective layer.

This particular piece was purchased for $100 on Craig's List...that middle drawer is not missing, it's just missing from this before picture, I had already taken it out. The knobs on this piece weren't that exciting so I replaced those with some from Hobby Lobby.

BEFORE

AFTER

 The mirror was spray painted with Valspar gold spray paint.


Changing Pad is the Shell Basics Diaper Changing Cover from Serena and Lily...I'm sure it won't remain that crisp white for very long though :)

Black and white stripe hamper is from Hobby Lobby.

The curtains were a find at an Estate sale and I'll post about those later...still need to finish the tie backs for those!

The accent pieces that stick out are painted in CeCe Caldwell Portland Rose

White diaper basket and chalkboard label are from Pottery Barn (Sabrina Diaper Caddy)

You've gotta start somewhere...

This phrase rings true for a lot of things in life.  In this case though, I'm talking about taking the plunge and attempting to paint my first piece of furniture.  For me, the whole painting furniture craze came about with Pinterest and with me trying to find stylish, cheap ways for us to decorate our new home last year while we were renovating it.  So as my husband, FIL, and father all worked on some of the more heavy duty, manual labor type of projects (i.e. busting out bath tubs, knocking down walls etc), I scoured antique malls/thrift stores and flea markets for furniture to paint.  I present to you my first furniture painting experience, which quickly spiraled into the DIY bathroom vanities and many other pieces throughout our home. In this post, I'll tell you what I did for this specific piece...with each piece I've done I've tweaked certain things because no piece is the same and it depends on what you want the end result to be. 

-STEP 1- FIND THE ITEM YOU WANT TO REDO.  In this case, it was an old record cabinet from a local antique mall that I paid way too much for to be painting, but you live and you learn right. I picked it because I liked the size and shape of it and knew where I wanted it to go (in our foyer with a mirror above it that I already had purchased from a different antique mall).

-STEP 2- PREP YOUR PIECE.  As I've mentioned, this was my first painted piece so I can't say that this is the best way to do it, but this is what worked on this particular project.  I'll be honest, I didn't sand this one and believe it or not the primer and paint still stuck and doesn't peel off!  I used the Glidden Gripper Primer in gray this time (same stuff I used on our bathroom vanities) and gave this one good coat.

-STEP 3- PAINT YOUR PIECE.  Given the fact that this was a small item, I was able to paint the entire thing with a $3 sample jar of paint from Lowe's!  The color I used was Swim by Valspar.

-STEP 4- ANTIQUE YOUR PIECE.  I knew I wanted this to have a "worn" look to it so I bought the Valspar Antiquing Glaze.  This stuff was super easy to work with.  I painted this on with a normal paint brush (i.e. that you would use to paint walls) in sections and then gently wiped with the grain of the wood with an old t-shirt.  If you want the glaze to be darker, then just apply more.  

I finished it off with a decorative knob (Hobby Lobby has a whole aisle, and can't beat their prices/coupons).  Voila!  You have a revamped, and colorful accent piece for your home!