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...

Nina's Playhouse

I made a playhouse for all of our grandchildren - in the closet under our stairs. Evie, our 3 year old granddaughter, was enthralled Christmas day when she went on a hunt for our play kitchen and found it behind a door that she had never noticed before. If you come over when Evie is here prepare to be invited to "her house" and remember to duck your head. I've spent more time in this closet in the last week than I did in the 7 years that we have lived here.

You'll probably have to "go to sleep" at her house. Turning the lamp and overhead light on and off is her favorite activity.

Of course it is decorated for Christmas and we're making plans for other holidays.

Evie said, "Nina, Thank you for my very own house!"

Anabelle, 15 months old, loves it, too!

They are looking forward to sharing it with future cousins.

That's not a hint.

Sniglets

I had a shop in Avondale... (said with all the wistfulness of Meryl Streep in the opening lines of Out of Africa, "I had a farm in Africa...").
Megan and I actually rented a small space in a children's boutique, 3 Chicks, in the Avondale shopping district for the past 4 months. We moved out last Monday. It's a great shop in a trendy area but, it didn't work out for us. Oh well, we tried.This is how our original display looked.

We still have several of the items in these photos. Just let one of us know if you see something you need.

What I did on my Summer Vacation...

...and most of Fall.
I have been absent, but BUSY with several trips and many projects. (Of course I don't have pictures of most of these things, I'm bad at that.)
I've been to Montana, Mississippi, Louisiana, Pensacola, North Carolina & Georgia; all to spend time with precious family members.

I have installed a tile back splash, scraped hateful vinyl flooring, rewired and restored a vintage chandelier, painted a living and dining room, tailored 2 sets of curtains, made custom bedding for a nursery, recovered 2 chairs, altered a duvet cover, sewed at least a dozen pillows, and covered 10 patio cushions; all for other people. Then in October I made something for us.

Our empty kitchen corner bothered me, this magazine picture inspired me, that little blue tool (a Kreg Pocket-hole Jig) enabled me, and Lowes assisted me by making the rip cuts in the plywood."Before" - Almost "After" - Our new cozy kitchen corner.
We now have more pantry and dish space plus 2 additional drawers (we had only 4 small kitchen drawers before). The bench top lifts for more storage space.
This cabinet shelf slides out for easy access to the coffee maker.

The sconces, accessories and furniture are all estate and garage sale finds. The cushions are a Goodwill bargain that I recovered.

I did have help, Richard has been my sheet rocker, wiring guru, muscle, sounding board, financier and constant encourager. Thanx, Babe

http://www.kregjig.com/

Den Decor

I've been redecorating our den for 18 months; since we had brick floors installed. (Not exactly one of those quick redos on HGTV.) I loved the floors but, everything else felt so dark, I wanted to lighten the furniture and accessories. Here are some of the results...

I found this secretary at one of my favorite antique stores, marked down plus 40% off. I have a "before picture", but I don't know how to get it from my phone to this blog so, you 'll have to imagine it with a dark stain and decorative panels over the glass doors. I painted and glazed it more times than I intended (6) to get the color I wanted.

The front of the top drawer folds down to expose the DVD player. I plan to add 2-way mirror film to the glass in the center door to hide the TV when it's off and see through when it's on. I'll let you know how it works. If you know a better way please share.

I reupholstered two bergere chairs that I found in a consignment shop. This is how they looked before.
The fabric was nice and they were well done, but I had 6 yards of linen that I'd bought at a garage sale so, here's the "after".I painted, monogrammed and distressed two small side tables. One came from a garage sale the other from an antique store. Both were very inexpensive. Here is the sum of all the newest parts, you can tell that I appreciate symmetry. I'm still shopping for a coffee table and artwork. Maybe this room will be finished in another 18 months, I'm patient, I can wait.

Pie Anyone?

My granddaughter, Evie, and I have been "baking". After being inspired by a crafter on television I gathered pie pans, filling, felt, and trims and we got busy. Evie filled the pies and entertained me with original songs while I cut the crusts.
She will graciously serve you "lemon, cherry, chocolate or blueberry pie" when you come for a visit. So, y'all come!
Evie is now cooking and serving from this cupboard that I built when her mommy was her age. Time flies.... eat "pie".

Labor of Love

I found these 70's style chairs and their matching ottoman at an estate sale a few months ago and offered them and the promise to recover them to our daughter, Megan, as a birthday gift. She chose the fabrics and repainted the chairs with a distressed finish. (She did this painting12 hours before her second daughter was born. Crawling around on the floor, reaching and bending may have helped to start her labor.)

"BEFORE" with 80's Fabric

"AFTER"

The 70's are back...
and classy with 2000's fabrics.

I learned that this is not my favorite kind of upholstery because every edge is a finish edge. Megan says that every time I complete a project I say that I won't do that again. I don't want to do this kind again, but I imagine I will when I find another great chair and have forgotten the labor pains of these "twins". I believe that Megan will have another baby one day, too.