A Gray and White Bedroom

 

For a few years our master bedroom had been a lot of white with a splash of cottagey blue…

Also included was the headboard that I made using an old door…

I loved the look, but our bedroom isn’t very big and the headboard took up a lot of room. I had about one wall that was suitable for the bed and to me, that’s a little scary, since I couldn’t rearrange the furniture now and then. I also tired of the blue accents and knew the room needed a new look.

So, I thought of what I had around here to use. I didn’t want to spend a lot of money on the makeover.

The duvet and shams had a blue strip of fabric sewn on them, which I discovered could be torn off without too much hassle. I quickly did that and washed them so the little needle holes would disappear.

I sewed a few cushion covers and covered some pillows I had around here.

I wandered through storage and my eyes were drawn to these roman shades that I’d stored for a number of years…

I painted them white, using my sprayer. After that, I used a paint brush to apply gray painted stripes. It took some time but I loved the end result.

I found two industrial looking lamp shades in a flea market that I knew would land in our bedroom. They were a dull silver finish so I spray painted them gray.

Hubby kindly bent some conduit for me, to hold the shades. I also painted those pieces gray. (This will make sense later on.)

The wall beside the bed needed something big hanging on it. Partially to cover some scuffs & nail holes and partially because the wall was just too bare and big. I knew I wanted to display pictures on that wall but I wasn’t sure how. So a few Pinterest pages later I found what I wanted.. a mod podge image transfer technique. I will share a tutorial on this later.

Oh, and lets not forget the old wooden gates that I had made a few years ago for our porch. They have a major part in this makeover.

So,again, here is a before picture ( not a very good pic, but you can kinda tell how it looked)..

Now, the after…

The room seemed to grow after removing the big door headboard! As you can see, we used the wooden gates to mount the conduit for the lights. Hubby made so we each have our own personal light switches within easy reach, which I love!

I like the cozy glow when the lights are turned on..

I used painted suitcases as a night stand…

As you can see, these pictures were taken earlier this spring when the lilacs and columbine were in bloom. Right now I have beautiful lilies in the vases.

I painted a plain white plastic Walmart fan gray and silver to add character to it..

I transferred the words onto the white pillow using carbon paper and a paint marker.

The mod podge image transfer piece…(which you will hear more about soon)

I am happy to say that I spent barely $30.00 on this makeover! The fabric for a few of the cushions comes from Jo-Anne fabrics and that was probably my main expense.

I hope I can inspire you to use what you have and get a nice, new look to your home, which in turn can bring cheer to your life!

Blessings, Mary

2015 Vintage Fair

 

It’s that time of year again.. the vintage fair! Okay there is one damper (literally) .. this weather! But since there’s absolutely nothing we can do about it, we may as well accept it and see the beauty of it.

 

Looking back now, I see how I totally took it for granted.. the weather last year. I don’t believe there was a cloud in sight all day!

2014 Vintage fair

2014 Vintage fair

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I wanted to take bright, outdoor pictures of some of the items I will have in my booth this year, but with all the rain, they ended up being drab, dark, indoor pics… but anyhow, here goes…

 

I will humble myself and show you my cluttered spaces around here containing my fair stuff.

Shop 1

Shop 2

Basement

 

Now, up close…

 

My sister made these awesome shabby chic pillows!

Okay, I have a hang up with painting jars.

 

I will be a bit sad to see this Farmhouse table go. :/

 

Three beaded room dividers

 

A before picture of one of three panels I picked up that were ready to be thrown out…

After…

 

Before picture of an old dresser I got at a garage sale recently…

After…

 

(this was taken on a rare sunny day)

A guy that I had to drag out of bed to help me a bit helpful guy that showed up in the shop the other day.

We love these little tables around the house. We use them for the laptop when sitting on the couch or as little end tables that can be conveniently folded and stored away.

The dresser pictured above will make a nice island for someone. I used my presently favorite color of paint (rainwashed) for the base and the top is white. If you look closely, you can see that I added a wooden ledge. The matching bar stools would go great with the island, along with the ladder to hang pots and pans. (I’m almost wishing I would need an island!)

I have many more items than what is featured on this post, but hopefully it gives you an idea of what to expect. The last I heard, there will be close to 40 vendors, which is very exciting! For more info visit: The vintage Fair’s facebook page.

I have had the time of my life working on these pieces and I’m so excited for Saturday. I hope to see many of you!

Following is the Vintage Fair ad, if you need directions…

See you Saturday!

-Mary

Create a Home

 

Okay, so in my last blog post, Springtime Musings, I promised to share with you what I’ve been up to the last half year that’s kept me from blogging on a regular basis.

First,I apologize for not sharing this sooner, but I admit I jumped the gun a bit upon announcing that I have a surprise, since the “surprise” hasn’t been working out quite like I’d hoped, but oh well, so goes.

So, that being said, I am excited to let all you DIYers out there know that I designed a book filled with some of the things we all love to do! Instead of listing all the topics I covered, I will show you a picture of the table of contents…

 

 

So you get the idea?

I, of course don’t have the answers for all decorating, painting and repurposing needs, but I do feel the urge to share with people what has worked for me. It may not always be the best way, but I can guarantee it’s probably the thriftiest!

Working on this book has been one of the best things that has ever happened to me. I totally enjoyed every minute of it. I felt my way through a new program (for me), Adobe Indesign. I am blown away by this program! Definitely the best ever!

I enjoyed it so much, that I felt almost saddened when I was finished. I’m already contemplating future books. :)

There’s still a slight chance that it won’t happen, due to some things I’ve been running into, but I’m trying to stay positive!

The title of the book is “Create a Home” The phrase under the title says “Thrifty, do it yourself ideas to turn any house into a home using a shoestring budget”

It starts out with a tour of our home, complete with marked projects and the page number where you can read about it. I also inserted little vintage tags throughout that section with tips on them that have worked for me.

I also stuck some pictures of the nature I love throughout the book, along with inspirational little messages that fit the photo. (just because I couldn’t help it!)

I made sure every single picture in the book was taken by me, so I am sure it will be easy to tell they weren’t professionally taken, but I needed the feel of the book to be simple, just your average homemaker taking pictures of things she loves to do.

Okay, I will stop the raving now and if everything turns out the way I hope it will, you will have a copy of “Create a Home” in your hands soon! (and if not, it wasn’t meant to be)  After all, there’s still nothing better, to me, than  physically holding a book, perhaps curled up on a swing underneath a willow tree, with a cold glass of garden tea, birds singing all around… you get the drift… :)

I am also bursting with a few new things I tried that I want to share on my blog. My days right now consist of wood,saws, drills and paint. I am daily making things for the upcoming vintage fair June 27th. I will post more about that in a few days. I also have a friend’s gardens and home that I took a few pics of and would like to share with you all soon!

If any of my sentences aren’t making sense, it may be due to the fact that it’s 1:20 am! Why do I enjoy blogging the most in the wee hours of the morning?!

 

-Mary