Fireplace Facelift: Before & After

On Black Friday this year, I wasn't in those crazy lines at the stores. No, I was at home, in my grungy painting clothes, ready to transform my fireplace!  I had decided that before we got our Christmas tree this year I HAD to do it. The heavy dark fireplace was overpowering the space for too long and was really bugging me.

The brown painted brick had been coated with a shiny poly finish and I had wanted to change to something brighter and softer ever since we moved here almost two years ago. I had painted other rooms first and put this off because I had never painted a fireplace before and it looked like a tedious project. But it actually turned out to be much easier than I thought and it was finished less than a day!

Here's what it looked like before and what I did to update the look:

Because of the shiny surface on the brick, I decided to use the same floor primer and paint I had used on the floor for my Boys' Bedroom Makeover.  I only used a brush, not a roller which went on really smoothly. I loved color, called "historic white"and how it softened up the space. 

And here's what my fireplace and mantle looked like when I was done: 

I am so happy with this transformation I feel like I could stare at it all day. I love the clean, modern look and how my mantle, tree and garland pop against the lighter colored brick and floor. Good riddance to my ugly fireplace!

Linking up with these parties.

Shaker Style Cabinet Revamp

One of the big projects I've been working on this summer has been my bathroom makeover, changing up paint, lighting, mirrors and adding storage after I took out a medicine cabinet. I am almost done, but wanted to do another post update on my progress.

I got a good deal on this shaker style cabinet I found at a consignment shop a few years ago. It was originally green with these cutesy, horrific pink cherries someone had painted inside it. So, I painted it white with blue distressed doors and it sat in my living room for a year and a half.

Until I needed more space for storage in our small bathroom. After taking measurements I found out the cabinet would fit perfectly in the upstairs bath right next to the tub. Like it was made for that space!

The nice thing about this cabinet is that the doors pop out-how convenient for me and my idea adding chicken wire after painting a cheery pop of tangerine orange on the shelves.

my finished cabinet!

I used small baskets to hide toiletry items neatly in the cabinet

As a finishing touch, I added chicken wire easily with wire cutters and a staple gun so the pretty orange shelves could show through.

I can't wait to reveal the entire bathroom remodel-new lighting is in, new mirror, paint colors too. All I need to do to finish is create some homemade art for decorating the walls. I found some good deals today at Saver's that have lots of potential to be transformed....stay tuned for the big reveal!

Linking up with these parties.

Transportation Stenciled Kid's Table

What would you do with this table if you found it at a garage sale? 

I wondered the same thing when I found it at my neighbor's sale last summer. It must have been their daughter's nightstand because her name plus a crush's name had been scratched into it, complete with little hearts all over. Still, I knew it had potential to be something amazing. But I needed to wait for my mind to be inspired...

 So, it sat untouched all winter until I was remodeling my boys' bedroom  and I finally figured out what I wanted to do with it. 

I love browsing through expensive catalogs like the Land of Nod for ideas I can copycat on my budget. They had a lot of cute transportation-themed ideas I wanted to try for the boys' room. I could easily do this because I already had these fun Martha Stewart craft stencils of cars and street lines and a whole lot of paint colors. 

I was ready for my table revamp! 

Here's what I did:

First, I painted the table with bright orange latex paint.

Then, I applied my street line stencils with a foam brush. (I used glow-in-the-dark craft paint for fun.)

Finally, I added my cars after the street lines were dry, using navy and aqua blue. 

After a finishing spray of acrylic sealer my table was done! 

It fits perfectly wedged in between the bunk beds with a tiny fan propped up on it and adds lots of color to the room. My two year old loves using the track to push his cars and trains on- it turned out to be the perfect play table.
(Come and see what I did to their entire room! click here for the big reveal!)

The nice thing about experimenting on cheap furniture is that you don't have to worry too much about messing things up-you didn't pay a lot to begin with, and paint is so forgiving.

So, if you haven't painted furniture before-what are you waiting for? What potential treasures do you have waiting to be given new life with a fresh coat of paint?

Linking up with these parties.

How to Paint a Straight Line on a Textured Wall

So I've been in the middle of painting our boys' bedroom and we have these built-in panels that we decided to paint in bright pops of color while leaving the rest of walls gray. In case any of you reading have textured walls like I do, I thought I'd share this helpful tip-if you want perfectly straight lines to separate colors, it really is possible!

First, I'll tell you what NOT to do: Don't expect to apply the tape (I used Frog Tape) to a textured wall and just simply paint your color over it and expect it not to bleed. I did that last spring and ended up having to use a eyeshadow sponge applicator to tediously touch up my dark blue that bled through = no fun!

I assure you, there is a much easier way! This time I read the fine print on the tape package, which tells you for textured walls to go to their website for a technique to make straight lines on a textured wall.

Here's what you do:

1. First apply Frog tape where you want your line to be. Make sure you smooth out any air bubbles.

2. Then, with your original wall color, paint along the edge of the tape. Frog Tape is not like regular painter's tape because it has this Paint Block technology that reacts with the latex paint and gels to form a barrier that seals the edge of the tape to prevent paint bleed. Pretty helpful.

3. Allow to dry completely.

4. Then paint with your accent color all the way to the edge of the tape.

5. After the accent color is dry, it's time to remove the tape.

6. Ta da! For the most part, my line on my textured wall was pretty straight with no bleed through, creating a bright pop of color in the room against cool gray.

No, Frog Tape didn't pay me to write this post, (but wouldn't that be nice?) I just wanted to share a helpful tip so you could avoid the headache of doing it the wrong way.

I've been a little missing in action lately because of all the hard work of painting their room, helping my husband put bunk bed together, persuading the boys to sleep in them,  and working on accessories and stencil accents for the room. It's really looking like a little boys dream and I can't wait till its done so I can show all of you!

(And, in case you've been following along and wonder what's up with my bathroom redo-well the painting is all done, but there's been a little delay in getting the lighting and mirrors-we took a trip to IKEA and I guess a lot of their stock is being stored away for remodeling. I was disappointed but it is a good excuse for us to go there again-I love that place! It is so good for hauling kids along with you with all their play areas and cheap kids meals...)

Anyway, enough rambling! I do think the bedroom will be done before the bathroom-so excited for the big reveal!

Thanks for visiting ReMadeSimple!

Bathroom Progress

For those of you who've been following along, you'll know that I've been tackling the big project of repainting my bathroom and then adding updated lighting and mirror as well as replacing a door that is falling apart.

Above are some of the colors I liked-in the family of pale greens, yellow-greens, and beige all from Behr paint, who Consumer Reports gave a very good review. And, I wasn't disappointed either-I bought the paint with primer in Satin sheen and it went on really smoothly with none of the previous color showing through after just one coat of paint.

It's funny to me that I actually like paler colors on walls now-the last time I painted a bathroom I did it in a deep eggplant purple. My husband said that phase was "interesting"-but I'm glad he lets me try whatever my creative heart wants!

Well, I loved it then, and still love bright and bold colors-but more as accents colors on doors, cabinets, accent walls, and decorations against lighter walls.

Below is the color I chose called "Silky Bamboo". I love how soothing and peaceful the color is. But, I promise you it won't be boring: I plan on adding bright pops of tangerine with a painted door and handmade salvage wall art I can't wait to get started on.

Silky Bamboo by Behr paints

Here are a few of my "Pinspertions" for my bathroom remodel: 

Source: bhg.com via Kristina on Pinterest

I love the pale walls with bright tangerine pops. This looks a lot like my bathroom with the size, beadboard and window. 

Source: modernpalmblog.com via Kristina on Pinterest

I love this tangerine door and how it looks against the pale walls-like a creamsicle. I plan on painting my new door this color (and when I get to my kitchen, I will do that door tangerine, too, I think).

Here's what I'm working with:

Here's what I lived with for almost a year and a half from when we first moved in: 

Icy blue walls with a darker blue ceiling. Not terrible, but not me. 

Now, I'm cringing as I post a really ugly picture on my pretty blog: The hideous floral door with a 1980's wall papered cardboard panel that is peeling off. What the heck where they thinking?

I see no other option than replacing the whole door. On the other side is a mirror where the wooden edges are chipped. Luckily, we have a salvage warehouse in town where we can replace it with one from the 1920's-like the rest of the doors in my 1920's home.  So ready for my pretty tangerine door!

Here's the lighting and mirror I want to replace. I don't like how wide the lights are and their lack of style. Also, the mirror is pretty basic and not very safe with its sharp edges. I plan on taking a trip up to IKEA for replacements that will fit my budget but will for sure be more stylish.

Here are the first coats of Silky Bamboo on my walls:

I painted all the walls above the beadboard and the ceiling this color. I love it! It really makes my small bathroom seem bigger and it is for sure brighter and more cheerful.

Just a few touchups this week and I'll be done with the walls. I already went out and bought new bathmats and towels to compliment my new color-just need to clean up my painting mess. Next, will be the mirror and lighting replacements and the wall art I want to make. Can't wait to reveal the rest.

Thanks for tuning in and I hope you come back in the next few weeks to see the end result!

Linking up with these parties.

Painting Technique: Faux Subway Tile

Well, I feel like I've been neglecting the poor blog here but I have been working on the big task of painting my upstairs bathroom-and with my three boys as my full-time priority, I can only squeeze in a few hours at a time for that (hello, bedtime!)

So, this week, I have paced myself each night, grabbed my Frappucino, paint brush, paint and rollers and done a little bit here and there and I am almost done. And I can't wait to reveal it to you! I love the colors I chose and am dreaming up some homemade salvage wall art to go along with it. The big reveal is coming soon, please stay tuned!

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you a painting technique I loved that I saw on This Old House's website.

Do you love the look of subway tile? If you're trying to save money or time and want a similar look, you can try this technique using painter's tape and either two different colors of paint or for a more subtle look, just two different sheens in the same color-try a flat sheen for the "grout" and a shiny sheen for the "tile" in a simple white or cream shade.  Pretty cool, isn't it?

Click on my Pinterest link below for the complete step by step process:

Source: thisoldhouse.com via Kristina on Pinterest

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Bathroom Inspiration

Happy Friday, everyone!

I have been enjoying some unusually warm March weather-maybe you have been too! I love being able to open all the windows, eat outside and let the boys get out all their wild energy. It also makes me excited for my bathroom paint redo.

We have lived in this house a little over a year and I haven't been able to decide on colors for the upstairs bath, but thanks to Better Homes and Gardens, I have officially been inspired by some of their beautiful ideas. Right now, my bathroom had been painted icy blue with dark blue ceilings (not a huge fan)  but since I wanted to focus on repainting the dining, living and our bedroom, I decided to pace myself and wait until this summer.

I am sure I will now be doing pale walls with bright pops of tangerine-have you heard it's Pantone's "Color of the Year?

I am in love with this color as an accent and I want to do some wall art similar to the one shown in this picture. I don't have a before pic of my bath, but that will come sometime down the road,
it does looks similar to this one with the beadboard walls. I have an old garage sale mirror I plan on revamping and installing in my bath. Hope you enjoy my inspiration too!

love the pops of orange against pale walls

Source: bhg.com via Kristina on Pinterest

Source: bhg.com via Kristina on Pinterest

Source: thedesignerpad.com via Kristina on Pinterest

Source: bhg.com via Kristina on Pinterest

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So, once I'm off my "maternity leave" of bigger projects, sometime in May or June I will be buying paint, installing a new mirror and getting my hubby to change the lighting and door, which is really old. It is fun to dream up ideas--can't wait to show you my finished bathroom!

Have a great weekend everyone!