The Girls' Room

It's almost done! Meg and I have been working on redecorating her girls' room for... a while. Meg has chosen adorable fabrics, curtains, paint colors and accessories and has arranged them all so creatively.

I offered to do the sewing and upholstery projects.
Several years ago I made a headboard for Meg and Ben that was a simple tailored rectangle covered in linen. When they gave it to the girls I cut it into a more feminine shape and slip covered it. The fabric is from only one pillow sham from Pottery Barn Kids, with all the seams opened it was large enough to cover the whole headboard! When Evie (5 years old) saw the quilted pillows with bows she said all the right things, she was thankful and complimentary, as usual. Then she asked me very diplomatically if I thought that they might need a little more "fashion". When I asked if little pillows made with the blue fabric and pink trim would add enough "fashion" she was satisfied because they would match her bed and "Relax Chair". Her "Relax Chair" was purchased many years before she was born at a yard sale for $5. A little paint and more PBK fabric made it just right for their room.

I made the lumbar pillow from a blouse that I bought for $1. It was no longer in style but, had beautiful embroidery, eyelet trim and shell buttons, so I knew it could have another life as a sweet little something.

All that is left for me to do is make the window valances (I think). I hope to show those to you soon! You can see their adorable, almost finished room on Megan's blog.
Annie added a little "fashion" of her own to the bed...

Bridgett's Chair

I met Bridgett through Megan. She is an adorable young mother and very talented children's photographer. She asked us to help her find props for photo shoots. We found this fabulous French Bergere at a local antique shop.

Meg painted it this playful funky green, Bridgette supplied the fabric, and I reupholstered it.
This vintage trim and fringe from my collection brought it all together.
Wouldn't you love to have portraits of your babies in this fun chair?

Powder Room Update

We had a nice vanity in our downstairs powder room but, we decided to make it a little more sophisticated.

This one was recycled by installing it in our daughter's master bathroom.
I bought this piece of furniture at a garage sale about 10 years ago. It looks like a chest of drawers but, was originally a clever TV cabinet. The top 3 "drawers" are actually a door that used to lift up and slide back to reveal a space large enough to hold a tube-type television.
I rehung the door to open from the right side and cut a hole for the sink.
Richard helped me repair the floor and did all of the plumbing.
I flipped the light fixture over, took off its glass globes and added lampshades.
The mirror, starfish collection, and sterling silver dish under the soap dispenser are all garage sale finds.
I'd like to add grass cloth wallpaper one day, but I'm holding out for a good deal...

Budget Bolster

Last year I shared in a blog post that I planned to make a bolster to match the headboard I made for our guestroom. The most promising result to my search for the right size foam insert was on-line and $30 before shipping.
That may not sound like much to you but, I am convinced that there is almost always a less expensive way to do just about everything.After a few failed attempts with fiberfill that resulted in a pillow that resembled a giant anaconda that had just eaten a donkey, I found this solution...
...a pool noodle from the $ store, wrapped in a foam "egg-crate" mattress pad, held together with a little foam glue, and covered with quilt batting (the last 3 items were purchased from garage sales).

I'm pretty happy with my custom bolster and even happier that I only spent $3!

Janet's Chair

Janet recently found this great chair and ottoman at a garage sale!
They were covered with a funky "coffee-house" sort of fabric that wasn't too bad but,she bought this beautiful fabric on sale and asked me to recover them.

I love your choice, Janet. It looks so classy!

Ella's Baby Bed

Baby Ella arrived yesterday!
She'll be going home soon to sleep in this beautiful bedding that her mommy designed just for her. Isn't it delicious?

I put it all together with monogramming help from Megan.