Sneak Peek Projects

Just giving you a little peek at a couple of projects in the works here at the Farmhouse.

I have a 3rd project in the works, but it's being held up while I search for the last piece of "the puzzle."  I'm SO excited about this one and can't wait to finish it!  I'm on the fence though, do I spend more money and get it done faster or try to go cheaper by continuing to search for the last piece elsewhere?  The reason I'm leaning towards fast but a little more expensive is that I don't want somebody to beat me to it, lol! 

What would you do?

Funky Junk Wall Decor

 Donna over at Funky Junk Interiors always hosts a Saturday Nite Special link party and this weekend's topic is wall decor, so I thought I'd join in the fun and share a little much-loved  funky junk I use as wall decor.

I found these great  fabulous shutters at a yard sale a couple of years ago for $5.  I offered $3 and they took it!  I was in love...I woulda paid $5 in a heartbeat, but I can't resist haggling, 'cause once again, I'm cheap like that.  They have such a great patina!  Cracked paint everywhere and visible layers of paint underneath, lovely rusty hinges...the whole 9 yards!  (Sorry, no close up shots, I wasn't planning on blogging about them specifically and didn't take any)

Before we moved, they hung on the wall in the living room. 

(Everything was decorated for Fall in this picture.)

Now that we've moved to a different house, they've found a new home in our upstairs bathroom.  They're sitting on the bathroom counter, leaned up against the mirror.



The mirror is humongo, covers almost the whole wall above the sinks.  And since it's a rental house there's nothing I can do about that.  So I really like how the shutters help break up the expanse of mirror.  Plus, it gives me something to look at instead of just realizng that the baby left me a gift of pureed squash on my shoulder.

I hope you enjoyed my version of Funky Junk wall decor.  I can't wait to see what everyone else is sharing.

Linking up to: FJI Saturday Nite Special

Dollar Store Chic{k}

Some of you probably know that birds seem to be all the rage here lately in the decorating world.  They're popping up everywhere with their chirpy cuteness.  Well, I saw a really pretty ivory one at JoAnn's that I thought would look adorable in Halie's room on this little miniature shabby chair I had bought her.  But...with a $12 price tag...it continued to grace the shelves of the store and we left without it.

A few days later we were in the dollar store searching for a glass piece I need for an upcoming project, and we came across this lil' fella.  He had the right shape, (and definitely the right price), just not the right colors.  We took him home and named him Fred.  Not really.  But we did take him home.

I gave him a couple of coats of Candy Pink spray paint, then dry brushed some sage green craft paint all over him and rubbed a good bit of it off.  

I like how he turned out, and he really does look adorable on that chair.

AND I like the price tag of $1 much better than $12, how 'bout you?


Linking up to:
 Restored It Wednesday
Saturday Nite Special - Funky Junk Interiors

A Fun Discovery

I came across these fun lil' guys today at the Habitat Restore.  Yes, I know, they're cigar boxes, and as a Christian I don't agree with smoking and don't intend to promote it, but.........for some reason I love cigar boxes.  I love the artwork on them and the vintage style.  I also love that they're great for storage!  My grandpa gave me one as child and I always kept it full of little keepsakes and odds 'n ends.  I've loved them ever since.  

Anyhoo....back to my story.  I found a big box full of these at the Restore.  I didn't see any price so as I was waiting for a worker to happen by, I rummaged through them and picked out the best ones.  A few minutes later a gentleman came by and I asked him about them.  He said, "Oh yeah, those just came in and we haven't priced them yet."  Apparantly, I had wandered into the receiving area, lol!  He called another guy over and they discussed them for a minute, "Those look old."  "Do they have any antique value or are they just junk?"  "What do you think they're worth?"  Meanwhile, I'm standing there thinking, "Oh no, they're gonna ask way more than I want to pay."  Then the guy says, "Ohhhh......how 'bout a quarter a piece?"  I almost fainted!  He said, "You're smiling awfully big, maybe I shoulda asked for more."  : )



I looked up similar ones on E-bay when I got home and the nearest I can figure my little $1 collection is worth more like $35.

I'm not exactly sure what I'll do with them.  I'm thinking they'll go in my scrapbooking/craft area to be used as a cute and fun storage solution.

What do you think, did I get a good deal?  Do you have anything you love that's a little off the beaten path?

Two Fun Little Mini-Makeovers

One day while on a quick lil' perusing Goodwill trip I came across this vintagey tissue box cover.  I immediately thought, "Yeck, how tacky is that?"  But then I put on my superpower goggles (you know the kind, most of you have them too, the kind that lets you see what this could look like once you're done with it).  So, I looked a little closer.  If you could see past the glare of that shiny brass finish, it really did have some beautiful detailing.  I wasn't really sure at the time what I would do with it, because even fixed up, it wasn't really my style.  But for $1.99, I decided to experiment.

 

It sat around my house for a week or so and every time I passed it I tried to picture it fixed up a different way.  Painted white and distressed, painted the all-so-popular aqua blue, etc.  Finally one day it hit me.  This would be perfect for my mom!  For as long as I can remember she has always had 1 or 2 boxes of tissues sitting around.  And it worked out perfect because her birthday was coming up! 

So I decided to paint it black to match her living room decor, which is a French Country theme.  I ended up using ORB (oil rubbed bronze) and it turned out gorgeous!  It picked up the brassy highlights underneath, but overall still had the black finish.  BUT.........being all black, all the beatiful detailing was just lost.  You couldn't even see it, it just blended in.  I had read on someone's blog (so sorry, I can't remember who's it was or I'd give you credit) about using Rub-n-Buff to bring out the details in things.  So I bought a tube of the antique gold and set to work.  (My advice if you ever use this stuff, practice first!  I used TOO much the first time around and had to repaint the whole thing.  A little goes a long way!)

I love how it turned out!

The Rub-n-Buff picked up the details perfectly, made them stand out and be noticed, without looking overly "beat up" and roughed up.



 

This shot got a little over exposed, but you can still see some of the beautiful detailing along the top.



I was excited, but a little nervous, as I packaged it up for Mom.  I thought she'd like it, but wasn't for sure.  I included a little note with the "before" pictures and asked for her honest opinion.  Turns out she LOVED it!  Had been looking for just such a thing for quite awhile, but never could find one she was satisfied with.  Made my day to hear that!

So...on to the 2nd mini-makeover.  I found this little container at the dollar store and knew exactly what I would do with it and where to put it.  It's home was to be in the upstairs bathroom.

I gave it a couple of coats of ivory spray paint, roughed it up, added a lil' antiquing glaze, and then waited..........and waited.......and waited some more to find just the right flowers for a good price (cuz I'm cheap like that).  I'm not a big fan of fake flowers, so they have to look just right.  All the ones I liked were the uber-expensive ones, of course (the most realistic looking ones).  Even with a 40% off coupon at places like JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby, they were still much more than I wanted to pay.  FINALLY, one Saturday when the Hubster kept the kids and I was shopping alone (seriously...alone...wow!) I went to JoAnn's.  All their floral stuff was 50% off that day AND I had a 20% off coupon that was good even on sale items!!  Score!  So I got two bunches of these cute little guys for $4!

The truth is, even after I bought them, they sat on the bathroom counter for like a week and a half before I did anything with them.  But...eventually I got tired of moving them out of my way and did something about it.



I like it, not bad for $5, and it added a nice little touch of femininity without being overboard.   What do you think?  Have you done any fun little makeovers lately?  Are you cheap like me and would rather wait until the container is rusted for real before buying expensive flowers?  Or would you have just taken the hit, dove in, and finished it right away?


Gonna link up here:  DIY by Design, Restored it Wednesday - Restore Interiors, FJI Saturday Nite Special

Welcome Welcome!

I'm so glad you decided to join me here on my new blog! For those of you coming over from my original blog, A Blessed Life, thanks for tagging along here too. And for any of you who might be new, I'm so glad you found me and hope you'll come again soon.

I decided to start a 2nd blog for 2 reasons. #1) The original one was intended to be about our life the kiddos for friends and family to be able to keep up with our goings-on. But the more I'm discovering my passion for all things decorating, the more the blog was becoming about that. I didn't want to bore or frustrate family members who were more interested in the kids than in my latest makeover project. #2) I love joining in the link parties and sharing my projects but I didn't want to begin to build a following of people who are more interested in my projects than the latest funny saying from my 3 year old.

Thus, I decided to separate the two. That way there's a choice for those not blessed with a decorator's heart, and for those not privileged enough to know my 2 beautiful children. : ) And for those of you who DO care about both, well God bless ya!

Stay tuned for my first project post, 2 mini-makeovers, coming soon!