Updating the old bedroom set...

Although we're completely revamping the bedroom, I couldn't bring myself to part with anything but the old king size pencil post bed.

I actually love all the pieces that went along with the bed, so we're keeping them. We purchased the entire set at an unfinished furniture store back in 1989 and then "we" (aka hubby) stained it dark brown (Jacobean Minwax). 

It has served us well over the years and the drawers are as strong and sturdy as they were when we first bought it.

Of course Baby had to check everything out before we started painting.

I got all of the pieces painted within 2 days because we had a tight deadline. The painting had to be done before the floor people arrived.

Mission accomplished! The floors went down and the newly painted furniture went back into the bedroom.

Painting everything white really gave the set a whole new look. By putting an applique above the mirror....

... and replacing the old wooden knobs with glass ones, the set took on more of a cottage/farmhouse look rather than the previous country/primitive look.

One thing that didn't change was the boudoir chair that I've had for close to ten years. I always said that when I eventually updated the bedroom, this chair would be the inspiration for my color scheme.

And is this not the cutest little vintage wicker hamper? $4 at Savers. I couldn't pass it by!

More of the bedroom to come. There's still a LOT to be done, but little by little!

Have a great week, everyone!

Donna

Top Projects of 2008 (Makeover and Craft)

Rhoda at Southern Hospitality is hosting a "Top Projects of 2008" party... This party actually started a couple of days ago, so I'm a bit late on joining in (par for the course for me!)...

Be sure to visit Rhoda's beautiful blog to see all of her favorite projects. There's also a list of all the other bloggers showing off their favorite projects (what a fun way to get some new decorating or project ideas!!) Thank you, Rhoda!

Project 1 - Fireplace Makeover

(click on any photos to enlarge)
We enclosed our old brick fireplace (and by "we," I mean my husband - but I painted it!!)...


... so that I could have the fireplace of my cottage dreams!

I love the way this project turned out! (Here is a little 'step-by-step' from the original post.)

Project 2 - "Primitive to Cottage" Furniture Makeovers

These makeover projects have actually taken place over the past couple of years, but since I just started my blog this year, I guess I can count them! When the cottage bug hit me, I decided to give all of our old dark-stained 'prim' pieces a brighter cottage look by using paint, appliques, and glass knobs.

Nana's hutch went from this:

To this:

(I call it Nana's hutch because I have all my Nana's china displayed on it - and her photo prominently displayed in the plate rack above the hutch.)

The dining room jelly cupboard went from this:


To this:

Here's my old pie safe in its original state:

I found this mirror at a junktique shop and thought it might dress up the pie safe a bit...

So I painted both pieces and then mounted the mirror to the top of the pie safe:

A very old mirror I found...

... paired with this inexpensive black CD cabinet...

... became this:

The old pine corner-TV armoire...

....after white paint, appliques, and new knobs:

(You can also see from the above makeover pictures that I finally got my hardwood floors after living for two l-o-n-g years with plywood sub-floors [that I painted white after ripping up our ancient wall-to-wall carpeting!!] And although I can't take any credit for laying the floors, what a nice project to have completed!!!)

Project 3 - New uses for old windows

They make great picture frames....

...or bulletin boards...

They can add architectural interest to yards and gardens when mounted over windowboxes...

..or just propped up against fences or arbors...

Project 4 - The 'Roswell Crater' project

After dismantling our old above ground pool, this is what our little backyard looked like:

It's still a major work-in-progress, but this past summer we began planting a garden and built a patio in/next to the old pool area...

We still have a long way to go, but it's a heck of a sight better than what it was!!

Project 5 - Photo Pumpkins

This was a fun project - transforming fake pumpkins...

...into photo pumpkins of my girls (when they were little) and my black kitties (perfect for this Halloween project!). Instructions can be found here.

Project 6 - Recycling old Christmas cards

If you love sparkle and glitter, this is the project for you! Don't throw away all those beautiful cards you received!

Instead, repurpose them into glittery ornaments or gift tags (Instructions can be found here):

I hope you enjoyed some of my favorite projects. This year we will be giving our bedroom (which hasn't been touched since the mid-80's) a major facelift!!! I'd say it's definitely about time for a makeover in there! So here's to a year full of new and exciting projects!!!

Donna

If I had a million dollars...

If you didn't know it before, you will now... I'm addicted to cottage blue (of course, "cottage blue" to me is any blue that strikes my fancy!)... These are all items from Maine Cottage (http://www.mainecottage.com/), and the blue I am drawn to is Porch Blue... So, for my "someday" cottage by the sea, if I had a million dollars I would buy....

The Living Room:




My Office:







The Dining Room:




And most definitely these sheets for the bedroom...



Heading off to bed now to dream of my cottage by the sea...


Donna

Armoires...

The Rolling Stones once sang, "I see a red door and I want it painted black." Well, my theme song could be, "I see a brown hutch and I want it painted white." Actually, my obsession with painting things white goes way beyond hutches (the more I post, the more apparent that will become!).

This is the small corner TV armoire in our living room. We purchased it in the 80's at an unfinished furniture store. Back then, I stained everything dark brown. (click here for before photos)... A few years ago, when I caught the shabby/cottage bug, this armoire became a prime target!

I primed it, applied some neat appliques (there is such a wide variety to choose from!), painted it creamy white, sanded along some of the edges to lightly distress it, and finished by putting on some nice glass knobs. (More photos below.)

I recently saw a post on a favorite blog that I read daily, where Cindy from My Romantic Home was also doing a transformation on an older dark brown armoire. She decided to paint hers white as well and it came out spectacular!

Donna