2011 Wrap Up

Hello friends! 2011 has been a big year and I can't wait to share with you some of my favorite posts and happenings.

My five most popular posts this year have been:

#5

Easy DIY Art

I love these in my bedroom. The cream color adds some much needed light to the space!

#4

Another Waverly Fabric SCORE!

I paid $14 for 2.75 yards of this gorgeous Sun N Shade fabric and am planning on finishing up my deck project this summer. Here are the fabrics I'll be using.

#3

Downstairs Bathroom - DONE!

This summer I did a mini re-do of my downstairs bathroom. It was just the freshening up I needed...and SO simple! I've since added a DIY Sunburst Mirror to the spot next to the mirror. It's the perfect finishing touch!

#2

Craigslist Dresser...Done?

This was another one of those never ending projects. I had so many problems with the paint bubbling up and I spent so much time sanding and re-sanding. In the end, it was worth it! This is the perfect storage solution for DVDs, diapers and wipes, toys...I love it! I do still need to buy the hardware I've got picked out but I'm having a difficult time getting myself to spend the money. The knobs and pulls are $5 each and I know that doesn't sound like much but that's $60 total and I just don't want to take it out of my budget. I am planning on a re-do of this whole space sometime this year so when I begin that, I'll buy my knobs :)

#1

New Reading Bench

This was by far my most popular post this year and one of my favorite projects. This goes to show you what a little bit of elbow grease can do. I bought the bench for $20 on Craigslist, pulled off some nasty upholstry and padding, repainted and reupholstered it. For a $30 total investment, I have a fun new piece of furniture and a great addition to my little girl's room.

So, those were my most popular posts of 2011. I want to share a few of my personal favorites.

#3

Valentine Wrap-Up

I loved the Valentine's Day crafts I did this year and I smiled every time I looked at them. I can't wait to get them back up and to do even more this year :)

#2

Owl Love You... (Before & After)

I love this little guy. He just makes me happy :)

#1

Lattice Entertain You...

These are my absolute favorite project from this past year. I fell in love with the fabric and got an awesome deal when I found it in the clearance bin at Joann. Unfortunately, I only had enough for one window. I hunted and hunted for this online but this color isn't made anymore. (It's Waverly Lovely Lattice in mocha. They do make this in the Sun N Shade fabric but I had the 100% cotton and needed the same to match up to what I already had.) Finally, I tripped over a store that had this online.

I love everything about this fabric. The weight, color and pattern are perfect and the curtains are perfect for my living/dining area. Almost every time I look at them, I can't believe how lucky I was to find that second five yards :)

2012 is going to be a busy year for me too. I've got a monster list of projects and to-dos that I'm planning on posting soon. Included in that list will be converting my guest room/office into a nursery for a baby boy coming in April. That's my biggest DIY project planned for 2012. (The baby, not the room!)

I've had so much fun looking back on 2011 and it's inspired me to forge ahead in the coming year. I've loved all the friendships that have developed through this blog and all the support I've received. Thank you ALL for making it wonderful :)

Linking up to:

Downstairs Bathroom - DONE!

A while back I posted about a mini-redo of my downstairs bathroom I was planning on starting and I showed you some simple DIY art. Well, I finally figured out a solution and I'm happy to report that the bathroom is basically done!

Here is a before. First, this bathroom is tiny and it was impossible for me to get a decent picture of the whole thing so when you get to the "after" pictures, think of it like a patchwork quilt :)

I love the gray on the walls and the floor is a slate (linoleum) pattern. The shower curtain was never meant to be permanent. I'm not a big fan of the color and that together with the walls just made the room feel blah.

My inspiration for the little re-do came from the Waverly shower curtain I picked up on clearance. ($8.00!!).

I did some simple DIY fabric/canvas art. Then, I was on the hunt for a new mirror. I scoured Craigslist, rummage sales and thrift stores and just couldn't come across one the right size. So...I decided to DIY. I'll post that process later :) 

Here we go:

The mirror. I love the frame - it looks finished now! The candlestick is gone. I need something else there but just don't know exactly what...I bought a new soap dispenser from Dollar Tree. Seriously, one dollar and it's a huge improvement over the plastic one the soap came in that I kept refilling! I'm thinking of maybe doing some sort of pattern on there with vinyl...

Next angle. I like that you can kind of see all the elements in this picture...a peek of the shower curtain and the art.

I told you it was a small bathroom!

The Waverly print shower curtain that started it all...

And my art, up on the wall. I love it! It was such a cheap and simple fix. My daughter loves it and it's growing on my husband :) There are a couple small other things I want to do. I'm still trying to figure out a solution for niche on the counter and I'm going to make a small sunburst mirror to probably hang above the towel bar. I've got all the supplies, I just need to get it done!

What do you think? Do you have any suggestions for the niche on the counter? I will post a quick tutorial on the mirror and my process on the sunburst mirror when I get around to doing it. So far, I'm thrilled with what I've got. :)  I'll be back soon - I promise I won't have another huge lag between posts. I've been a bum :(

Linking up to:

Just A Girl

Young and Crafty

Funky Junk Interiors

Dittle Dattle

New Reading Bench

Hello, all! I've got to tell you, I've got several posts in process and I would love to be able to share but I'm having some issues with uploading pictures to Blogger. I'm working on the issue and hope I can show you soon!

Anyhow, last Friday I came across this bench on Craigslist and immediately knew I had to have it. I love the simple lines and the caning detail. It was listed for $20 and I didn't even want to dicker...it had to be mine :)

As soon as I got this sucker in my vehicle, I realized how horrible it smelled. The cushion was disgusting and smelled like cat pee. There was no way I could salvage the padding.

I have never ripped apart upholstery before so I just kind of guessed where to start. I flipped over the sucker and peeled the padding off the rusty springs.

I finally just ended up cutting the fabric so I could pull it and the foam off so I didn't have to smell it anymore. It was really that bad.

Aah, SO much better!

I then unscrewed the spring frame from the bench frame and removed about a million staples. I'm sure I had my neighbors wondering what was going on with the steady stream of expletives coming from my garage.

I gave it a few coats of white spray paint.

Looking better already!

I brought the seat frame inside to get a new cushion put on. I didn't want to spend a bunch of money on foam so I bought a twin sized egg crate mattress topper.

I laid the frame down on top and traced it with a marker so I knew where to cut.

I layered the foam on top, stapling the first layer to the frame so the subsequent layers wouldn't slide around so much.

I covered the foam with a few layers of batting to smooth it out.

Making progress!

Here is the fabric I used to re-cover it. And...as much as I was cursing the staples I removed from the original padding, I stapled the crap out of it myself :)

Viola! (Excuse the crappy cell phone pic. I do have better ones but can't get them uploaded!) I'm proud of the work I did and although it was really tedious, it was pretty easy and the finished result is a hit. I'm going to be putting this in my daughter's room and I think it is inspiring a mini-redo.

She loves her new reading bench :) My mom takes care of her during the days at my house and the first thing she said yesterday when she woke up was "Would you like to see my lovely bench?". I'm glad it was a hit :)

The bench was $20 and the mattress pad was $10. I had the paint, fabric and batting on hand. Not bad for $30!

So, that was one project for Memorial Day weekend. I hope you all had a nice weekend too! I've got more I need to get posted, like I said. I hope to be able to get my pictures uploaded tonight or tomorrow!

Linking up to:

Faded Charm Cottage

The Shabby Chic Cottage

Somewhat Simple

Miss Mustard Seed

Young and Crafty

SNS at Funky Junk Interiors

Amaze Me Monday at Dittle Dattle

Not JUST A Housewife

Thrifty Decor Chick

Simple DIY Art

I've been of the mentality that I have to wait until a project is totally done before I can post about it but recently I've started to move out of that mindset (as evidenced here and here) and realized that I can show you something before I'm done! In fact, I can do one even better...I can show you individual projects that make up part of a whole! Now, I realize that most bloggers have already realized this. I'm a little late to the game ;)

So, I'm in the process of a mini-redo of my downstairs bath. I had really wanted to wait until it was all done to show you but I realized...why would I do that? I can show you each project...one at a time!

First I'll tell you some basics. The room is very small. It is painted a medium greige. It has a basic builder vanity and mirror. I upgraded the light fixture so I actually like it. Here are a couple pics:

The shower curtain was an impulse buy. I just needed something to hang up. I like the blue but just not in that room. I'm going to give it to my mom :)

Here's that light fixture...

A sneak peek of my plan ;)

Okay, on to the art. I used these 16x20 canvases from a different (failed) project.

All I did was wrap the canvases with my new fabric. EASY!!

I hot glued the fabric on, starting with the middle of each side, pulling it taut as I glued.

...and here is the finished product! Seriously, this was so easy.

The fabric is Premier Prints Barber in Corn Yellow/Kelp slub. I'm a major fan of Premier Prints...I also got the fabric I'm using for the curtains in the office re-do at the same time.

I can't wait to show you everything else I've got planned. I did buy a mirror from Craigslist to replace my builder grade mirror but it was too big! That's what I get for not measuring!

So tell me, what kind of posts would you rather see? Teasers or everything at once? 

Linking up to:

Another Waverly Fabric SCORE!

Hey there! I'm just stopping by quickly to share another awesome deal I got on Waverly fabric. If you've been reading this blog for long you know how obsessed I am with Waverly and how somehow I am lucky enough to score some killer deals! I've still got this great fabric. I haven't decided yet what to do with it but it is sitting there, waiting for a fantastic project. You've also seen my living room curtains...I love this fabric!

Well, today on another trip to Joann I came across this fantastic Waverly Sun N Shade fabric. The pattern is called Chippendale Fretwork and the color is called 'Mineral'. (The same color in the cotton is called 'Mist'.)

It was in the clearance section for $6 per yard. There were two yards and 24 inches so I took it all. That's $12 for the two full yards and $4 for the last 24 inches, minus the 50% discount for end of bolt...$14 total! Sweet! I immediately thought of some other items I had purchased previously to dress up my deck this summer.

I got this set of four napkins in a brown and white geometric pattern for $2.48 on clearance at Target a while back. I think they will make great pillows for out there.

I got this 70 inch round tablecloth on clearance for $4.48 at the same time! This is their ever-popular bird print from Dwell.

So, the three fabrics together will make beautiful cushions, pillows and whatever else I can come up with. I love a great bargain!