The Fall Facelift for Home

I've been busy with washing windows in these possibly-last-days of sunny and warm weather.

My living room was looking sad, so...I got out my sewing machine.

New drapes have given my living room a facelift. 

I made them!  Hobby Lobby:  I LOVE YOU!!!

The rods I found at a garage sale - $1 for 5!  Plus a huge sack of drapery rings.

After cleaning my windows, I decided it was time.  The Pier 1 curtains had been up for 15 years. 

before

And always painting furniture for sales, I never enjoy it in my own home, until now.  I found this darling antique table at a yard sale, paying $10, which is a lot for me to pay for a table.  But I love it!

I dressed  up my boring crystal lamps.  They went from this:

to this!

Yes, it's a different lamp, but both cute, but dull little crystal lamps.  It just takes craft paint on the base.  I dressed up this lamp with a vintage fiberglass shade. 

What a quick transformation.  And orange is my new favorite color.

Free, Like a Saint Bernard Puppy

From the curb during a neighborhood yard sale, I rescued four chairs - free.  The owner even helped load them into my truck.  They turned out to be as free as a Saint Bernard pup.

These pics above are the "after" shots.  I must say, the finish is now terrific.  I am happy with the outcome.  But they were a lot of work, more than any chair I have re-done.

They required lots of sanding, which I do by hand.  I went thru a lot of sandpaper!  Then I painted using a semi-gloss paint.  After a few days of curing, I sanded and distressed the finish, following up with Bri Wax in Light Brown.

Painting and finishing the wood frames was the easy part. 

I used a double layer of burlap, which is inexpensive.  However, the tedious process of finishing the backs was time-consuming.  I went through 18 yards of Chinese braid. 

While I like the finished product, I wouldn't attempt these again.  Typically, people don't want to pay very much for chairs at local venues and I feel like I should get $80 to $90 each.  We'll see what happens - they're at Good Company for this weekend's sale. 

Here's the before picture - they were covered in a polyester fabric.  They are solid chairs - Salem House Furniture pieces. 

French Provincial Child's Chair

I found this darling French Provincial child's chair at Good Company.  The bones are great - the fabric was shot!  So...I mod-podged the fabric to keep it from tearing further, and covered it with burlap.  Of course, the terrific legs must show! 

Heywood Wakefield - Is It Wrong to Paint It?

Okay, I may have been impatient.  But, this hutch top was abused by its previous owner - scratches, ink, water damage. 

Nothing that a coat of paint can't solve, I thought.  So I painted it with a gallon of "oops" paint from Lowe's.  Then after distressing lightly, I used Briwax with a light brown tint. 

I never think to take a "before" photo!  But you can see what the design is like.  I love it!  It is now at Good Company in Merriam, setting on a harvest table.  Kudos to Kelley, the owner, for recommending such a piece of furniture to anchor the space. 

 

Breaking Up My Button Collection

My button collection is breaking up!  And I will start selling it at The Fleeting Flea this weekend.

 It's sorta painful, but just having buttons set in tubs in my little studio - pointless!

So...I have bagged and tagged over 160 packages of buttons.  Some on cards, most not though.  And it's only a drop in the bucket.  There are many more buttons in my studio.  I have sent emails to the Kansas Button Society and Missouri Button Society chapters.  I'm trying to get the word out because there are others who love buttons as much as me.

This week I'll feature pics of other vendors who will be at the Fleeting Flea in Overland Park, Kansas.

Good Company this Weekend!

Good Company!

(it's this weekend at I-35 and Lamar Avenue, just a block north)

It's a fab shop.  The darling owner, Kelley, just purchased a barn FULL of junque and I can't wait to see what's in there!

Chair Re-Do

After paying $10 for this chair at a garage sale, I decided to strip off the red plaid fabric.  Beneath was the original fabric - very drab.  So, I reached for the Sherwin Williams Pro Classics paint and changed the looks.  With a tad of sanding, I distressed it and finished the look with Johnson Paste Wax. 

The decision to leave the front of the chair back loose and blousey may haunt me!  It's going to Good Company in Merriam for this weekend's sale.  Wish me luck!

Antique Booth at River Market

It was time...

I sort of neglected my space at River Market Antique Mall for a few weeks.  Traveling, prepping a kid for college, etc...just...life!

I added these 2 mid-century end tables.  They are $90 for the pair at River Market.  The fainting couch has never sold and I don't want to bring it home.  It's standing on it's end to make room for other stuff. 

Check out my etsy and ebay sales.  I sold a couple of nice pieces of jewelry on etsy last week.  One item sold within 10 minutes of posting at 10:00 in the evening!

Now, it's weekend time...I skip yard sales most Saturdays.  I would rather hang around home if the family is here.  If everyone's gone, I go junkin'.  But not today.  However yesterday I hit some sales and brought home a full truck.  I got a set of 4 chairs free;  they were on the curb and the owner came out and helped me load them.  Now there's generosity!  The material is not great, so I'll paint the wood and re-cover.  Pictures will follow!  And I'm still working on other projects for Good Company and The Fleeting Flea.

A Very Slow Kitchen Transformation

Wouldn't it be nice to be able to plop down $25K and transform a kitchen at once?  For most of us, it the changes happen in small increments.  Like new kitchen chairs, which I scored at Good Juju this weekend for just $97.50 for all four.  Yes, that's right!  There were some stains, most of which I was able to remove with my little green machine.  But overall, they're great and what I've been dreaming of.  Besides, we'll add stains to them ourselves!

before

after

I love the change!

One of the next projects - a new chandelier!



Guess Where I've Been

Yes, I've been gone awhile.  I went on a trip to San Francisco.  We spent most of our time downtown  - just a little at the Wharf.  My husband had a salesforce.com conference.  So I tagged along. 

Riding the cable cars is a treat.  We don't have those in Kansas City.  We had a wonderful dinner at Trattoria Contadina.  One dinner was barside at Jillian's, sharing a couple of appetizers.  And the trip wouldn't be complete without a meal at Boudoin's.  Gotta have that sourdough bread!

On past trips, I've toured Alcatraz and taken a ferry to Sausolito.  Muir Woods is a wonderful trip and I hope to go there on the next trip.  Coit Tower is great to see and tour.  If you are there on a Saturday, they have a wonderful market in the morning at the Ferry Building on the Wharf. 

Around the corner from our hotel was Glide Methodist Church.  They are famous for their care of the homeless.  I would love to attend a Sunday service sometime.  I heard of it first when Maya Angelou was talking about it.  The homeless ministry was featured in a movie starring Will Smith, in which he and his son stayed there. 

There is so much to see in San Francisco.  And I needed to buy a fleece while there;  on the same day I bought the fleece, it was 100 degrees here at home!

Today I visited the West Bottoms - Liberty Belle and Good Juju.  I will show you my treasures soon.  Long story short - I am rearring my kitchen eating area with an unused antique oak table and some Good Juju chairs.  Can't wait to share!

No Safe Beige Here

Thank you, inspirationsdeco.blogspot.com, for sharing these beautiful rooms.  How I'd love to have any one of them adorn my home!  They are vibrant and full of personality.  No safe beige here.

Why do we always play it safe with our homes?  Shouldn't we aim for different designs from our neighbors?  Model homes? 
If you plan on selling your home in the near future, you're told to neutralize.  I get that.  I have been angling toward selling my home for a few years now, even though it was only on the market a portion of that time.  And it's not on the market now.  But I play it safe.  Beige walls.  Nothing too "out there".

It's kind of like our lives.  We play it safe...don't speak up...don't rock the boat...don't get involved...

My beige life.  I want a vibrant and colorful life.  Now, there's a goal.

Mid-Century Flow

It's all about the flow - you know - getting in the flow of what's hot.  What people want.

Mid-century is hot, so this starburst clock by Rycoco, battery-operated, is in my booth at River Market Antique Mall - currently 20% off of the $99 price tag.  I think it will sell soon.  Notice that cool lamp above it!  River Market is full of mid-century, primitive and industrial finds.

While they will be closed - just this once - Tuesday through Thursday for a facelift at the front of the store, they will re-open Friday for a 10%-off-storewide-sale.  Everything!