art changes everything.

I have been on vacation for TWO WEEKS. One week was blissfully spent doing nothing at the beach, and this past week I have used my days wisely to catch up on DIY/house projects. I keep telling husband I need to quit my job and be a housewife. I am so productive, and I have so much to post!

Today we're posting about wall art. I've done a similar post before, but this changes things up a bit. This past week, I finally cleaned out our guest room (it was the catchall room for a year). I painted and started setting up some furniture. Instead of enjoying it, I was staring at all the empty wall space. UGH! And art is so expensive, especially canvas art, which I love. So- I headed down to Michael's (my most favorite spot).

Here's what you'll need:

1. Canvas'. 12x12 are the easiest, as they are the same size as the paper.

2. Scrapbook paper! Any pattern you want.

3. 2 foam brushes, one small, one large.

4. Modge Podge

5. Acrylic Paint

Step One:

With your paint, paint the sides of your canvas. I chose a green to coordinate with the patterns I chose. The paint takes about 15 minutes to dry, and two coats looks best.

Step Two:

Generously apply Modge Podge to your canvas with your large foam brush. Place your scrapbook paper on top, and center to the canvas. Smooth down with a brayer if needed. Once dry, apply another coat on top to seal.

Step Three(optional):

Sand! You must know by now... I sand everything. I don't know what it is. Do I hate things that look brand new? Do I just love the "aged" or "antiqued" look. Regardless- my art was sanded. I used a high grit sanding block- which is very gentle. I lightly sanded the front, and then did it a little more aggressively on the side.

Step Four:

Hang! Here is the finised products on the wall. I am obsessed, and will be buying more canvas' for the rest of the house.

Happy Papering! xx

Distress.

Wow. I have really neglected my poor little blog. Wedding planning is a lot more stressful than people lead on. Since the wedding has been completed, it's finally time for me to get back to what I really enjoy- refinishing my heinous furniture.

I have had this side table that we bought a million years ago, when we moved into our first apartment and we were poor. It was just a basic light wood table.

So gorgeous- right? If you haven't noticed from my furniture redos from the past, I am REALLY into the distressed look. Apparently, everyone else is too, because on my trips to HomeGoods, it's all I see. So I decided that I was going to paint the table a nice cream color, and to spice it up, do something fun to the drawer face.


You will need:

1. Cleaner (TSP works amazingly well. Bought at any paint store.)
2. Primer (I use Zinsser Cover Stain- when you prime with this, you avoid sanding the furniture.)

3. Paint color of your choice. When painting furniture, I always use a semi-gloss or a high-gloss finish.
4. Modge Podge (always!)
5. Wallpaper/scrapbook paper if needed.


Step one: Spray down with TSP and clean, clean, clean! Removing oils and dirt well help the primer and paint adhere better.

Step two: Prime. Zinsser also sells Cover Stain in spray paint form, which, if you're a novice painter, will prevent brush stroke marks.

Step three: Paint. It's important to make sure you're patient and let all the coats completely dry. The primer should take about an hour to dry, and depending on humidity the paint is about an hour as well. Two to three coats will make the furniture look best. Two usually is good, but depending on how well you prime and the color you've chosen, you may need three.

Step four: I remembered this amazing french script scrapbook paper I had left over, and I knew immediately I wanted it as my drawer face. I removed the drawer from the table and measured the front. Leave about an inch of additional paper around the edges. Apply Modge Podge to the front of the drawer and press the paper to it.

Step five: After Modge Podge has dried, and paper is well adhered, apply LOTS more Modge Podge on top. This will seal it on. I did two coats over the paper.

Step six: Once dry, place the drawer face down, and use an exacto-knife to cut the extra paper off the edge. Reapply drawer hardware.

Step seven (optional): Using sandpaper, lightly sand areas of the furniture, making it appear aged and distressed.

You're done! You have a new piece of furniture for little to no money! (Or doll-hairs, as I like to say.)

'

Tomorrow I will post on a hutch/server/entry table I redid. What's your favorite piece you've redone?

my life in photos- week 2.

Happy Monday, dolls! Sorry for my lack of posting this week. Work was out of control busy, and it was 85 degrees all week. It is now back to 34 degrees, so I knew I had to be out enjoying it. I did find plenty of time to Instagram though. There is always time for Instagram.



1. First crocus of the spring!

2. Sweetie Newman, one of my fur babies.
3. Jelly beans before bed. Love Easter time!

4. Sexy? Long hair!

5. Bucky, one of our tree faces.

6. Brunswicks extra toes.

7. Delicious Ocean Roll. MMMMMMM.

8. My friend Toby helping me play Yahtzee.
9. First frappe of the season!

10. Newman learning to make Brunswick Stew.

11. Grants first IPhone photo- of him attacking me.

12. Productive Sunday- refinished an old hutch.

Tomorrow I will be posting photos of my hutch redo, and DIY instructions.

Happy Instagraming- xxx

 

 

 



My life in photos- week 1

I religiously follow the blog of Jenni from Story of My Life and I just can't get enough of her. Every week she does a "Best of Instagram" post, and I've really started to look forward to them, and so I've decided I shall do my own!

Yesterday it was 76 degrees out. As someone born and raised in New England, I can tell you there has never been a time that I've ventured to the beach on a mid-March day and not been able to park. Anywhere. It was filled with beach combers and sunbathers (even though the ocean is still a brisk 40 degrees). Eventually I did park, and walked the beach, enjoying extremely early summer weather for us New Englanders. I can't imagine living in a landlocked area. The ocean is amazing, stunning, and vast. It is my calming factor and in some ways, what I worship.

1. love Galileo thermometers. decorative AND helpful.

2. rocky shore at North Beach

3. start fish found among the pools
4.&5. hookahing on the deck. perfect way to end a beautiful sunday
6. one of my parents babies, tosh.


Have a great week, all. A new DIY project will be here soon! xxx

To wallpaper or not to wallpaper?

This is a question I've been asking myself, for quite some time. And I decided, yes, yes, and yes! Originally I was going to wallpaper the risers of my stairs, but decided that since we plan on reselling the house, that wouldn't be my wisest decision.

So, I started my search. What could I wallpaper? The better question is what CAN'T I wallpaper? I settled on Grants old dresser, which is a piece of furniture he brought into our relationship. It sits next to where I lay my head every night, so I have to stare at it. Today was my day off, and it was 70 degrees, so it was time for a change!

So, lets start with your supply list:

 Wallpaper (mine c/o: Graham Brown)

Spray adhesive

Exacto knife

Screwdriver
Paint/Primer
Paint brush/Foam brush
Polyuerethane

80 grit sandpaper

1. Remove your drawers from dresser.
2. Sand down everything. (Don't worry too much about this, but any sanding helps.)
3. Prime the base of the dresser
4. Remove the hardware from the drawer fronts
5. Lay out the drawer, face down, on the wallpaper. With your exacto knife, cut around all four sides. I think it is best to leave extra around the edges, as it can easily be removed later.

6. Spray your adhesive onto the front of your drawer and the back of your wallpaper. Wait until adhesive becomes tacky, then position your wallpaper on the drawer front. Rub your hands along the front to adhere and prevent bubbling.
7. Paint your base it's first coat of paint.

8. While that dries, cut the excess wallpaper off the sides of the drawers.
9. Paint your base it's second coat.
10. With a foam brush, paint a THIN coat of poly onto the wallpapered drawer fronts. Let dry for 3-4 hours.
11. Once dry, reattach hardware (or attach new hardware, as I did) and replace drawers.

I did a distressed look on mine, because I have a small obsession with distressed furniture of any kind. I love the way it looks in any room. If you want to distress, simply use the same sandpaper you used in the beginning. Lightly rub until some paint/wallpaper starts to come off. Don't get too picky with your sanding, distressed furniture is supposed to look like it aged on its own.

I will definitely post a picture once it is up in the bedroom and set up. Husband and I were just too sleepy to do this tonight.

Happy Papering! xxx

Love is in the air

Incase you were wondering, the reason our "Love Story" is incomplete, is because I am waiting until our wedding to tell the whole story. Our wedding is this coming June 9th- so we are in full planning mode. Today, a few of my gorgeous ladies and I made the invites for my bridal shower. I know, I know, this event should be a surprise to me- but I detest surprises. So, I help! And lets get real, if I didn't help there'd be no tutorial, so it benefits us all.

So to start, let me just say that 2 of my girls own a Cricut. If you have never seen this machine, it's a godsend for the crafty folk. We used the Cricut to cut out the umbrella, and the words Bridal Shower. But, there are always ways around this. I found a ton of umbrella stencils online that you could use to cut out, and you could use a stencil to do the words if need be.

1. Supplies: Scissors, glue, ribbon, words and card. The card was printed in a regular printer from a Word document.

2./3. Glue your umbrella to the middle of the card. If you have cut out words, apply glue to the back and stick them on either side of the umbrella.

4. Apply a small amount of glue to the edges at the bottom and stick on your ribbons. Once the glue has dried, cut your ribbon edges off. Done!

Since everything was preprinted and cut, this took us 15 minutes. You could use this for a bridal shower like us, or a baby shower, with just a change of colors.

The Power of Paint

Happy Friday! I wish I could get as excited as everyone else about Friday, but I have to work 9-5 on Saturdays- so today is no good for me. Alas- spring is quickly approaching. Looking for an easy, inexpensive DIY project with a lot of punch? (yes, Christa, yes!) Why not update your kitchen? Incase you haven't ventured into the novel that is "My Home", you haven't seen the wonders a few coats of paint can do to a kitchen. Let me give you an easy visual:

Time consuming, but cheap and effective. Here is a step by step for you.

1. Remove all doors and hardware. Buy a good degreaser and wash, wash, wash. Nothing prevents paint from adhering like grease. And your doors are dirty, trust me.
2. If your cabinets are finished (which they probably are), you need to sand. I apologize, I know sanding is awful. I have yet to try the primer sold that supposedly eliminates the sanding step, so I can't reccommend that to you.
3. Once sanded, find a well venetlated area to paint your doors and PRIME. While the primer dries on your doors, you will also need to prime the bases still attached to the walls. This step is pretty quick, since priming doesn't need to look perfect. If you're feeling ambitious, prime twice.
4. Once primer is dry, start the painting. My cabinets are painted with Benjamin Moore "Bare". We used less than a gallon for the whole kitchen. Alternate between painting your doors and your bases, and this will be more time effective for you. Once one is done, the other is usually ready for its next coat. I did three coats of paint to make sure I had complete coverage.
5. If paint is all you want, once it is dry you need to seal it. I used a spray polyuerethane. I antiqued my cabinets using a Minwax stain.
6. After you've sealed, it's best to let dry overnight. Once dry, add your hardware back on. I bought new knobs and pulls, since mine were gold and outdated. I also went to buy new hinges and DIED over the price. It would have cost me more than the whole rest of the project. FOR HINGES. So, I bought some spray paint that matched my new oil rubbed bronze hardware and spray painted them to match. $7.00 hinges.
7. Hang your doors! New kitchen! I also have added a new wall color and glass backsplash (clearly), but you can not believe what a difference the paint made. Even made me hate the floor and countertop a little less- though there will be no stopping me from ripping both out soon.


Happy Painting. xxx