Hallway Stripes Inspiration...

I have always wanted to paint stripes in the hallway, but felt is would be too time consuming. Well, I was right. So while I am tackling that project, I will show you some of the inspirational pictures that will make you drool.
This one is from Melissa at the Inspired Room-

Sherry and John from Young House Love Painted Stripes in their Old Bathroom-at the Old House

This one from It's the Little Things that Make a House a Home:



Stephen and Brittany's Hallway:

So while the girls are visiting their aunt tonight, I'll be measuring and taping, using the level again and again. Wish me luck!

Are you a fan of stripes?

Enjoy!

  ~Amy

Ikea Finds...

I went to Ikea a few weeks ago to browse for things I need for my new craft area I am creating in the enclosed patio area of the house. I can't wait to start that project. A place where everything will be organized and I don't have to search through drawers and cabinets to find what I am looking for. There will be areas to store:
    
     *Fabric Scraps and Fabric
     *Media Equipment
     *Scrapbooking Materials
     *Glue Products
     *Coloring Products
     *Kids' Books and Art Supplies
     *Paper and Stickers
     *Catalogs and Magazines
And the list goes on and on...
While I was at Ikea though I spoted some cute things that I picked up.
These plants were ONLY a dollar and the little silver tins/pots were seventy-nine cents. Talk about a steal. I also like having the sheepskin rugs to throw over a basket of toys or a chair. The three little picture frames are for the gallery wall I am planning once the hallway painting project is completed. (More on the hallway tomorrow)

To place the pots in the pots, I first placed rocks in the bottom:

Then I placed the plants inside the pots:

I am happy to say the plants are still alive. You only have to water them once the soil is dry.

Plant anything lately? Are you building a craft area in your house?

Enjoy!
  ~Amy

Painted Kitchen....

After painting the dining room the blue-gray-green color, I also thought the kitchen needed some paint too.
I pulled out the fridge to paint behind it and then painted the other walls.

Since the kitchen is so little it didn't take much time to complete this project. I just trimmed along the cabinets and countertops.

Now that the painting is finished, I still have to:
     *Paint the cabinets
     *Install New Microwave
     *New light fixture
     *Install new French doors
     *New hardware on the cabinets (you can see the one handle is broken)
     *Maybe update the countertops
My to-do list goes on and on. Does yours also? I guess our houses are never really how we want them to be!


Enjoy!
  Amy

Fill Your Vases...

After I took down all of my Valentine decorations, I was left with empty apothecary jars.

I found two vase fillers at Target to help fill the space. One was lemons and the other was wine corks. I am still thinking of what to put in the other one. I have seen pictures of tulip bulbs planted before and loved the way it looked. All you have to do is put rocks in the bottom of the jar and place the bulb standing up. Lastly, you just add a little water, but not too much that it covers the bulb. I may try that over the weekend.

(sorry for the lock- we have to lock our children out of the buffet or they throw our glass vases!)

Use vase fillers for anything lately? I just finished my order from my thirty-one party. I can't wait to show you what I got.

Enjoy!

  ~Amy

Go Ahead and Paint on Your Table Runners

I had this plain white table runner around for a while now. IT WAS BORING! I purchased it from Pottery Barn about two years ago. I  needed something to dress it up, and had wished I got it monogrammed when I ordered it. When shopping in Jo-Ann Fabrics one day I had noticed that there were fabric pens and thought that I could monogram it myself.

I printed out a W from the computer and used my scissors to cut it out.

I then traced the W on the fabric, measuring first where I wanted it to be on the table runner.

I filled in the W with the fabric pen and ironed over it to seal it.

I then placed it over my burlap table runner from Valentine's Day (that I turned upside down) and here you have it?

Have you colored on any table runners lately?

Enjoy!
  ~Amy

The Entry Way's Beginning...

I hate my entry way- did I ever tell you that?
It is small, too crammed to sit down, and not a lot of style. I knew I needed to come up with a solution for all of our winter gear: gloves, hats, and scarfs.
Entry way when we started:

I had a stand I bought a while ago for the downstairs bathroom, but since I have a new idea for in there, the stand wasn't being used. I got it from Ikea a while ago, but I don't remember the name or how much it was.

I got the baskets the other day at Target for $12 a piece. I then bought the unfinished numbers from amazon.com for $4.00 a piece.

I spray painted the numbers black. I then used a piece of painter's tape so when I drilled the hole it didn't split the wood. I drilled a hole in each number and then attached the numbers to the basket using twine.

I really like the way it looks. I also added a mirror on the other wall and hope to add some picture frames as well.

I have to now add some more picture frames, hang a new light fixture, maybe update the banister, add corner round around the flooring, and the list goes on and on...

I love organizing.... I had a Thirty-One party this past weekend and it was a lot of fun! They have so many awesome organizing bins, baskets, and bags. I think my wish list is at $500. I can't wait to order.

Look who came to the party to visit Emma- our friend Beth's little boy. Isn't he adorable?

(Look at all of these awesome bags!)

 

Enjoy!

  ~Amy

Do you label your baskets? Do you have baskets in your entry way?

The Dining Room with Stuff in it!

After I finished painting the dining room, it needed decorated. I laid the brown mirror up against the wall that was there before, but it didn't do anything for the room.
So, I switched it out for the white mirror that was in the hallway before- then on the shelves in the living room.

I used these plate holders that I found on amazon.com to hang plates I got from a dear friend for Christmas.

I hung two pictures frames with the girls' pictures that I already had. I thought about painting these- we'll see.

The chalkboard and curtains I already had in the dining room. So here it is...... finished for now.



Just because it is Friday and we need a little Emma love.. she was home when I was working on the room. Addyson was at her aunt's house

Happy Friday! Doing anything fun this weekend?


Enjoy!
  ~Amy

Gray That Really is Blue!

After a lot of testers and mistakes, I finally found a color I liked,

Benjamin Moore Wedgewood Gray- it is a mixture of blue-gray- and even green and I like it a lot better than the tan or yellow.

I only had to put one coat on the wall since it already had a coat of primer. I edged everything first. 

I waited 24 hours for the paint to dry and then rehung everything in the room.

 (Just got done painting the room in this picture)

(no curtains hung yet in this picture)

It brings out my furniture and makes me happier every time I look into the room.

This is the before again-

I ordered some fabric samples- might switch up the curtains. Already made a ton of changes in the room, I'll show you tomorrow!

What do you think? Do you like it?

Enjoy!

  ~Amy

Gray is the New Green!

My sister gave me these chairs that she bought a while back at Target, sold for $14 for the pair. She previously used them in her game room-at the craft table.

I really liked the shape of the chairs, but not the green color. Other chairs similar to this style can range from $50-$400.
I liked these ones from West Elm

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I sprayed each chair with two coats of primer- gray primer.

Then, I used two coats of Rust-Oleum stone gray paint in satin, allowing 24 hours of drying time between each coat. I chose satin because I didn't want the chairs to appear "shiny"

Without further adieu, here they are-

(see Addyson napping in the background- I was able to put these back together while she slept for an hour)

What color do you like better- the gray or green? I actually like gray, green, and blue. I just painted my dining room a mixture of all three. Finally, I was able to find a paint color I really liked for the dining room. I'll post more on that tomorrow, when I get the room put back together.

Did you paint anything recently?

Enjoy!

  ~Amy

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all!
Addyson and Emma are all dressed for school. Addyson will have a party since she is in the preschool room, but since Emma is only one they won't celebrate.



The girls' presents:

I am loving a ton on Pinterest for the holiday.

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Hope you had a great V-Day!


Enjoy!
  ~Amy