Mason Jar Succulents

Three weeks to go before the Lodi Street Faire and I'm finally starting to cross things off my list.  This weekend I got all my mason jars painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, sanded and the succulents planted.  I love the way the turned out!

Here's to hoping I don't kill them before October 5!

Linking to:
Between Naps on the Porch,  DIY Showoff, Keeping It Simple
The Girl Creative, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Coastal Charm
Elizabeth & Co., Sugar Bee Crafts, 

Painted Oars

I've always loved wooden oars.  So when I saw all the cute painted oars on Pinterest, I knew I wanted to paint a couple to put over our TV.  I found both of these oars at antique stores.  One was $10 and the other was about $15.  I didn't care if they were exactly the same.  I just looked for two that were similar.

I painted two coats of white with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, then taped off different areas with painter's tape.  I used acrylic paint from Michael's for the stripes and number.  Then distressed everything once they were dry.

They were still a little boring to me, so I used some thin jute twine I found in the garage.  I held it in pace with tape until I had it where I wanted it.  Once it was in place, I used a little hot glue on the ends to hold it down.  I added triangle hooks on each end so I could hang it on the wall.

Love the way they turned out!  And it only took me an afternoon to finish the whole thing.  

Linking to:

Elizabeth & Co., A Bowl Full of Lemons, Coastal Charm

The Blackberry Vine, Sugar Bee Crafts, Between Naps on the Porch

DIY Showoff

Tea Light Candle Holder

My favorite Christmas project so far this year has been my wood tea light holders.  I love the way they turned out, but I also love that they were completely free!  Everything I needed, I already had in my garage.

I used leftover 4x4 blocks from when we built our new fence a couple years ago.  I drilled the holes using a 1 1/2 inch drill bit (like this) for the tea lights, then stained the block of wood with a dark ebony stain.

When the stain was dry, I painted two coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Pure White.

I printed the words onto a piece of paper, then traced over them with a ballpoint pen.  I pressed just hard enough to see an outline of the letters in my wood.  Then I used a tiny paintbrush and filled it in.

I don't have a very steady hand, so I was really disappointed with my paint job.  However, a little distressing takes care of all the painting outside the lines.  It also took care of all the paint marks when I dropped my brush!

I let everything dry, then started sanding away with my sanding block.  I love how soft this paint is after you distress it.  So soft and smooth.  My girls kept "petting" the wood because they loved the way it felt.

I think this will make perfect hostess gifts this season.

Linking to:
Elizabeth & Co., A Bowl Full of Lemons, Coastal Charm
Blackberry Vine

DIY Growth Charts with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

I have always loved growth charts.  So when I saw all the distressed growth charts on Pinterest, I knew I would eventually make one. 

They are so easy and inexpensive to make.  It took me a couple days to complete because of drying time, but the actual work is quick.

 

I used a 1x6 from Home Depot, sanded all the edges and corners and then stained it.  I let it dry overnight and then lightly sanded it again so it was nice and smooth.

 

I marked every six inches and then taped my squares so I could apply paint.  I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint because it dries quickly and distress easily. 

 

After the painted squares were dry, I used a plastic stencil from Michaels to paint the numbers.  I did get a lot of bleeding from the paint under the stencil, but once everything was distressed, it was not noticeable. 

 

 

 

I did two coats of white paint and only one coat of the blue paint before distressing.  I definitely like it better with two coats of paint.  The blue looked too washed out, not really distressed.

 

I love the way these turned out.  I can't wait until I can actually starting marking both my girls' heights!

 



 

 

Linking to:

DIY Showoff, Elizabeth & Co., A Bowl Full of Lemons

Coastal Charm, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Blackberry Vine, Sugar Bee Crafts, Hope Studios

 

 

 



Wooden Christmas Signs

The Plumgrove Boutique was this past weekend and it was so much fun.  I can't believe how many people came to shop.  There was an endless stream of customers.

So, I'm really happy that I made the extra effort last week to finish up these little wooden Christmas signs.  They were so easy to make and I had a lot of fun painting them. 

 

I used an old 1x6 I found in my garage.  I stained it with Minwax in Ebony (my favorite because it is such a dark color), painted it with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Pure White, and then used regular acrylic craft paint to paint on the words.

 



After the paint dried I used my sanding block to distress it, added a couple eye hooks and twine and it was good to go.

The only thing left to do is decide which one is my favorite!

Linking to:
Between Naps on the Porch, DIY Showoff, Keeping it Simple
Making the World Cuter, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

DIY Bookshelves

We started working on Madison's room earlier this year.  She is so excited with all the new stuff in her room and I am excited that I almost have one complete room in our house.

Our most recent project was a set of bookshelves for her wall.  I love that it adds a little bit of decoration to the room and I love that it's so easy for both my girls to put away the books.  No more piles of books laying around on the floor.

I had some leftover wood from an old project so the only thing I had to buy was a countersink drill bit. 

I used a 1x6 for the back piece against the wall, a 1x4 for the bottom and a 1x3 for the front piece.  I put all five shelves together in one afternoon.  The priming and painting took the longest with all the drying time.  Once they were done, I hung them by drilling right into the wall studs.  It was such an easy project.

Most days I find Madison sitting in front of her shelves reading a book, then rearranging the shelves so they look pretty.

Linking to:

Elizabeth & Co., Coastal Charm

Between Naps On The Porch, DIY Showoff

Keeping it Simple, The Girl Creative

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

 



Bedside Tables

It's not very often that I hear the word "No" from my husband.  In fact, I don't think it was until this project that he ever said no to any crazy thing I wanted to try.

I searched for bedside tables for quite some time.  I wanted something substantial, and I wanted them similar, but not matching.  I found one at a garage sale for $7.00 and the other at a rummage sale for $20.00.

Here's what they looked like before I started painting.

 

The original plan was to paint the bottom yellow and stain the top.  I actually like the way they turned out, but the yellow was really pale, almost white.  It looked so bad against our white walls.  I knew I would have to redo them if I wanted to keep them in our bedroom.

Every time I look at this table, all I see is a smiley face.

They sat in my room for a couple weeks before I could figure out what to do.   I ended up deciding on purple.  Not something I would usually consider, but it was that or gray, and I really wanted some color in our room.  When I told my husband, he didn't even consider it.  He said no and walked away.  Obviously he ended up giving in, because now I have purple bedside tables.

So, an unusual color choice for sure, but I love them.  I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Emile.

Linking To:

The Girl Creative, The Shabby Nest, 733 Blog

Somewhat Simple, Shabby Creek Cottage

One Project Closer, Thrifty Decor Chic



Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

So, it's been long time.  Anyone still out there? 

I recently discovered Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and I've been painting like crazy.  I love this paint so much.  It makes everything look so good and it is so easy to use!  After I purchased my first can, I drove back to my local stockist (The Vintage Bricoleur) and bought more 3 more cans of paint, clear wax, a wax brush and two paint brushes.

We've been looking for a buffet since we moved into our house two years ago.  It couldn't be just any buffet, it had to be the one I pictured in my head.  And, it had to be cheap.  We found this buffet at an antique store in Sacramento and when I spotted it at the other end of the store, I knew it would be coming home with me.

It was completely scratched up and had dings all over the top, but the drawers worked great and it was solid. 

I sanded the top and took off all the original stain.  I restained the top using Minwax in Ebony.  Then three coats of polyurethane to get a streak free finish.

Next I filled all the scratches and dings with wood filler, then sanded it down after it dried.

The great thing about Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is that it the furniture does not have to be primed before you start painting.  However, I wanted a little bit of white showing after I distressed the buffet, so I did prime this piece before I started painting.

I came home from work one afternoon and thought I would be able to paint the drawers before I had to go pick up my girls.  I had about 45 minutes.  I ended up painting the drawers and the buffet while I was waiting to pick them up.  I picked them up, painted my second coat, waxed the entire thing then distressed it a little bit.  I had done almost the entire thing in one night.  I only had one more coat of wax and I did that the next day.

I could not believe how easy it was and it turned out exactly the way I wanted it.  My husband is always pretty skeptical when I start something, especially something this big, and he loved it.

I used Annie Sloan's Louis Blue paint and the hardware was spray painted with Krylon Oil Rubbed Bronze.

Linking to:

Keeping It Simple, The DIY Showoff, Mod Vintage Life,

Between Naps on the Porch, Elizabeth & Co.

Bowl Full of Lemons, Coastal Charm, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Sugar Bee Crafts, Miss Mustard Seed, One Project Closer

Thrifty Decor Chic

Buffet Redo

I found this buffet on Craigslist a few years ago for $40.  It came with a hutch so it was a pretty good deal.  When we moved into our current house, we used the bottom half to hold the TV until we could find something better.  We ended up really liking the set up, so we kept it.  The only problem was, the buffet hadn't been painted yet.

It sat in our family room like this for almost a year, through parties and holidays.  My mom was so embarrassed for me.  Every time someone came over, she would tell them that it would be painted soon and that's not the way it would stay.

Finally, before a big family party, I took it out to the garage and painted it.  The original plan was to paint the bottom and stain the top a dark brown, like our dining room table.  For some reason, the stain would not take, so I had to paint the whole thing.  I used a flat interior paint, distressed the edges and then used Minwax Finishing Paste to seal it.  I love the way it turned out.  I have a hard time with the gloss paint because it leaves too many brush strokes.  With the flat paint, I don't have any.  The paste gives it a smooth satiny finish. 

It's been painted since May and I don't have a single scratch or ding on it.  The finishing wax is so durable!  Even with both my girls opening and closing the doors constantly, it is still holding up. 

Linking to:
Making the World Cuter, The Girl Creative, Sumos Sweet Stuff
The DIY Showoff, Keeping it Simple, C.R.A.F.T.

Dining Room Table Redo

I bought a dining table and chairs off Craigslist several months ago and it sat in my dining room taking up space, collecting junk.  I had towels on the chairs because the fabric was dirty, and it was just a mess.  I started working on the chairs a few weeks ago and kept dragging my feet, not really getting it done.  I didn’t really know what I was doing and I was scared to mess it up.

Today we had a housewarming party and I really wanted the table and the chairs to be done so everything would look nice.  So I was outside in the garage every night last week stripping the old stain, sanding, painting, more sanding, more paining and then I put a top coat on the table.  I can’t believe how different everything looks with a little bit of paint and new stain.  I love how it turned out and it was much easier than I expected it to be.

Before:



After:





I’m totally hooked on redoing furniture.  I have a buffet for our TV that’s next on my list of things to do.   Hopefully it won’t sit in my garage until Christmas!

Linking to:
I Heart Naptime, Under the Table and Dreaming, Funky Junk Interiors Tatertots & Jello, Dittle Dattle, Between Naps on the Porch, The Girl Creative The DIY Showoff, Skip to my Lou, Keeping It Simple, CRAFT
Making the World Cuter, Sew Can Do, Embellishing Life

New File Cabinet

Can you believe it?  My first post in almost two months!  I have been working on a few things, but most are sitting half finished in the garage. 

When I first saw Miss Mustard Seed's chalkboard cabinet, I knew I had to have one.  I've been searching for a cheap two drawer file cabinet for all my paperwork and scrapbook paper.  I finally found one a couple weeks ago.  Who knew it would be so hard to find.

Here it is before.  Not too bad, just a few chips.  I lightly sanded the entire cabinet and then wiped it down to remove any dust.

After a coat of primer and two coats of chalkboard paint I ended up with this:

I'm still trying to find just the right spot for it, and something cute to put on top, but I like it.  And once I actually file all my paperwork, my office will look so much more organized!

Linking To:
Embellishing Life, The Girl Creative, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Somewhat Simple
Fireflies and Jellybeans, Beyond the Picket Fence, Romantic Home,
Tidy Mom, Sassy Sites, Simply Sweet Home, Dittle Dattle