DIY POUF

 This spring, I finally bought myself a sewing machine to rekindle those skills I learned long ago from home ec class and from my grandmother. I had been intimidated by the thought of all their is to learn, but after I saw the adorable and affordable IKEA machine, I decided it's now or never. I learned that you don't have sew completely perfect lines for your project to turn out!

My first big project was this pouf idea I had pinned long ago, with the tempting free pattern from Better Homes and Gardens. My feet longed to be propped up in my reading corner slouching in my leather chair, but being big on thrift, I refused to pay the $100 price tags I had seen in stores for foot poufs. I am so proud of my results-the best part is that it only cost me about $15 to make!

Here's how I made my foot pouf: 

I followed this tutorial from BHG

I scored some sturdy cotton upholstery fabric for only $2 in a cream color that I decided to PAINT, yes PAINT with yellow latex paint. I just rolled it on each panel before sewing with a paint roller and let dry. It actually makes the fabric feel more like suede than just cotton, but if I ever did it again, I'd paint the fabric AFTER sewing because it was quite thick to sew through (but still doable).

The project is so affordable because it says to use an old clean bedsheet as the second lining for the panels, and to stuff the pouf with old towels, blankets, etc. It saved me a trip to donating old things to the thrift store! Get this, I actually repurposed some 2 liter plastic bottles in there to fill up space. No one would ever know!

To finish, you just fill in the outermost parts with soft fiberfill for evening out the appearance of the pouf.  The hardest part about this project was the embroidery part-I guess I could have done without it, but it makes it look so tailored that way. You just have to measure between stitches and practice the stitch. Using a curved upholstery needle helped too!

As you can see, the pouf is great for tickling little toddlers on...and propping up the feet! My corner is so much more cozy and bright. So glad I tackled this big project and refreshed my sewing skills!  I am excited to try some of these fun projects from my Pinterest page: Sewing Skills

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Bedroom Revamp: Reclaimed Wood Headboard and Wax Paper Chandelier

 Our bedroom has been a work in progress. It actually started about two summers ago.(You can see what I worked on back then by clicking here and here.)

I had been wanting a cool headboard for a while, and a search through Pinterest led me to love the idea of nailing reclaimed wood into the walls. So, this spring, my husband found a pile of free untreated (chemical-free) wood planks. It doesn't get any better than free!

So, my husband measured and cut them to size, then drilled them into our wall panel in this cool pattern. I love it against the pale yellow walls! It reminds me of a barn door-so rustic and unrefined. And, the feminine part was added by me. I made the faux capiz shell chandelier-also seen all over Pinterest. It was the fifth one I've made-so I'm pretty much an expert by now! (for pictures of the other chandeliers and the tutorial-click here) 

Nursery Reveal

 
I am so excited to finally reveal my baby's nursery today! As soon as we knew this baby was going to be a permanent part of our family, I got busy working on the room remodel and some crafty accents to go with it.  I had been creating a Pinterest board of all my ideas and color schemes in the months leading up to the adoption.

I wanted to rip out the cheap tan carpet and paint the floors white. I wanted to paint the boring tan walls a paler color with bright accent colors. I also wanted an eclectic look with a gallery wall full of whimsical and vintage art.

Here are a few shots of what the room looked like before: 

I am a fan of nice hardwood floors, but these floors were in bad shape after 90 years!  The cheaper way to go was to paint the floors. My husband helped with that part and already had some practice from painting the floors for our older Boys' Bedroom Makeover  the summer before.

After painting the walls Whetstone Gray by Martha Stewart, I wanted to add some bright stripes to the entry wall. I used Frog Tape and this technique, since my walls are textured, for perfectly straight lines. 

I love how the bright orange and green stripes add pops of color to the room-I chose stripes because I think it's a look that will blend into big boy decor when he's older.

I painted the doors and table in the room the same green as the stripes-Lily Pad, also by Martha Stewart. I painted chalkboard paint on the crib panel so I can write fun messages on it for him-and in his toddler years I'm sure he'll have fun scribbling with chalk.  The tree art is was made for me by a local artist friend, Dani Herrera, who makes amazing things with reclaimed denim, zippers and more.

I've had this table for a while and this is now the third color it's been. After painting it, I distressed it with a sanding sponge to reveal hints of white and added new knobs for a brand new look. The thrift store magazine rack is where books are held, next to the comfy chair for bedtime stories.

I made this artwork with a printout given to me by a friend. I traced the elephant onto dictionary paper, cut it out and Mod Podged the whole thing to pallet planks. The curtains and fabric shades are both from IKEA. We have been replacing all of the wooden blinds in the house with ones without cords for safety.

I made this mobile by stenciling airplanes and clouds onto cardstock, cutting out, hole punching and attaching twine. I used an embroidery hoop for the top of the mobile.

I moved this IKEA shelving into the baby's room for clothing and the boys' got a bigger dresser to share. The accordian style wall hook fixture was a thrift store find. It also makes a fun display for finger puppets.

Here's the gallery wall-a combination of baby and family photos and some crafty things I made. I loved the idea of hot air balloons combined with Dr. Seuss' "Oh, The Places You'll Go" phrase, so I made this artwork by painting and stenciling a canvas, then cutting out a 3-D hot air balloon out of card stock and gluing to the canvas. I  repurposed an IKEA night light  by cutting out cloud shapes onto navy blue paper and attaching to the light fixture. I Mod Podged an old frame with sheet music, adding a photo of baby's newborn toes.

 It was so much fun redoing this room and I think baby boy loves it too. He squeals with delight when he gets to play there. It was created on a budget and most accessories were either handmade, thrift store finds or things I already had in the house that I repurposed and used for his room. There's so much for him to look at and play with and it was a really great way to celebrate him becoming "finally forever". We love having him be a part of our family!

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Boys' Bedroom Makeover:The Big Reveal!

What a busy month! These past few weeks, we have tackled the big project of creating a fun, colorful bedroom for our boys to share. It was past time for our two year old to be done with his crib so to maximize play space on the floor, we bought bunk beds for them from IKEA. (They have a nice low to the ground set perfect for toddlers and preschoolers that they can grow into). 

These past few weeks we ripped out carpet, painted wood floors, painted walls, assembled bunk beds, put up curtains, painted garage sale furniture and even created a huge chalkboard wall! Then, we passed out...

I added finishing touches with handmade decorations and transportation stencils.The end result was an eclectic blend of modern and vintage, salvage and store-bought and of course, repurposing and I am thrilled with how it turned out. And so excited to share with all of you!

Our whole house was painted with this shiny beige paint that reminded me of liquid makeup-not a huge fan. After a year and a half of slowly getting rid if it in different rooms, I decided to change them in the boys room to a soft gray called "Sharkey Gray" using Glidden paint and toned down the semi-gloss sheen by using eggshell. I also painted the white trim a shade lighter than this in a pale gray.

Then it was time to rip up carpet! I left this job to to the hubby. Why paint wood floors? Well, it was cheaper than refinishing wood floors. And, ours were dinged up and stained from age so it was a good option for us. And, the carpet that came with the house was pretty cheap and ugly.

 So, when I first thought about painting wood floors, it sounded a little intimidating, but after a little research and some easy tutorials, it sounded about as hard as painting a wall. Turned out to be so simple!

Here's how we did it: 


First, we patched up all the dents with wood putty. 
After they were dry, we sanded them smooth primed the floors and allowed to dry, using a brush for the edges and a roller on an extension pole for the rest of the floor. 
After the primer was dry we added two layers of floor paint. We used indoor/outdoor latex paint in a soft white. 

Then, it was time to paint the walls. I chose navy blue and bright orange as accents to paint in the ridged rectangle sections we were lucky enough to have in a few of our rooms. (Anyone know the technical name for them?) Gotta love built in character of an older home!

Wonder how I got those perfect paint lines on my textured walls? Click HERE  to see an easy trick using painter's tape to do just that.

Here I added some cute airplane and cloud stencils in the entrance using the Martha Stewart craft line, and switched out a basic ceiling fan for new lighting and bunk beds from IKEA.

My boys love their new room! The only downside is that my two year old has decided playing in his new room is more fun than sleeping...

A vintage 7-UP box makes a fun place to store their books.

Chalkboard monograms and huge chalkboard wall

my sweetie! 

I told you the chalkboard wall was huge! We painted this section with green chalkboard paint and it really feels like it's time for school. In the corner is a name pennant I made out of old jeans and burlap. I'll share more details in a later post about how I did it.

my other sweetie! 

IKEA has the best wooden toys! They are learning how to count with this abacus.

We created a fun school room look by adding vintage desks found at a consignment shop and an old globe snagged at a garage sale.

Another name pennant made with jeans, burlap and stencils.

A garage sale table transformed with paint, stencils and glow-in-the-dark painted tracks! (Don't worry, I'll show you what it looked like before in a later post).

Having fun coloring on their chalkboard-yes, they love their new room...

Another fun schoolroom accent was adding an old map to the wall framed in pallet planks.

No, I did not pay the $125 that Land of Nod suggests for this toy bin. Below is their version:

Modern Toy Storage design by The Land of Nod

I already had this one found at a garage sale years ago and painted it navy for a great knock off look for cheap!

Ok, another cute kid shot. I can't resist! 

So, there it is! All done on a budget to create a high-end look.  Our labor of love is finally done and I'm really proud of all the hard work it took to transform this space from blah to boy's wonderland.

Looking forward to sharing a few more detailed posts with before and after pics of my garage sale furniture revamps and how I created the room accents.

Hope you enjoyed the room tour and thanks for stopping by!

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