The big reveal

TA-DA!

  My little side table is complete! I can't believe it only took me an evening to complete the makeover on this little beauty. If I had known, I would have done it long ago.

  A reminder of the before:

Here's a rundown of the process:

I took it outside, gave it a light sanding, wiped off the dust, & taped off the black top & chrome trim - 

I kept those as is.

Got on my painting duds & broke out the spray paint.

My painting pants...
you can actually see all the past/present colours of my house on these babies!
They're like a work of art in themselves! :)

I used Krylon Metallic spray paint in Aluminum.

And all systems go! I sprayed on the first coat:

And a second coat:

After 2 coats. Before distressing.

It was looking a little too space age for me at this point so I got out some black craft paint I had kickin' around & played around with some dry brushing on the corners & edges. I ended up dry brushing on some black paint & then smudging it (purposefully) with a paper towel to make it look a bit more distressed.  

After distressing with black craft paint.

The finished product:

I think it will look especially stunning at Christmas time with my silver/white colour scheme. 

Here's some more after shots:

  Thanks for stopping by! Please feel free to leave a comment & tell me what you think.

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Linking up to: The DIY Showoff,  Crafty Scrappy Happy, Just a Girl, Common Ground, Miss Mustard Seed, & Tater Tots & Jello

Before & After home tour (part 3)

  We recently finished our kitchen renovation. It had been mostly done for a long time, but we put the frosting on the cake this summer by completing the back splash. We opted to go with a simple white subway tile. I'm enjoying the clean, sleek look it adds to the kitchen. 

  Here are some before shots. These were taken before we moved in. We thankfully had 1 month to start our renos before we moved into the house. This kitchen was the first thing to change. It just wouldn't have worked very well for us - no dishwasher, single sink, no upper cabinet doors (I like "stuff" out of sight behind doors), very little counter space...

After shots complete with the new backsplash

  We reconfigured the kitchen layout by adding this peninsula with a high bar top which adds more cabinet & counter space. It also doesn't crowd the fridge & stove so much.

Our control centre 

Here's a better shot of my Paris gallery - B&W photos from a calendar &frames fromIkea - easy peasy.

Recap:

Sources:

Paint: Camalot by Benjamin Moore
Cabinets, countertops, hardware, light fixtures: Ikea
Flooring: Floor It
Backsplash Tile: Home Depot

If you'd like to see our living room makeover click here.
If you'd like to see our main bathroom makeover click here.

  Well, I'm off to start my fall decorating. I'm warming to the idea of Fall arriving & my oldest had his first day of Grade 3 today. My little girl starts Kindergarten at the end of September so I have some extra time to cherish with her. I hope you'll join me next week when I link up to Nest of Posies Fall Festival. September promises to be a month full of beauty & inspiration.

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Using my vintage finds

  A couple weeks ago I went thrifting / vintage shopping with my mom... remember?  I came home with several great finds & today I'm going to show you what I did with some of them.

  In one of last week's posts, I showed you what I did with the vintage postal scale I brought home. It sits beside some favourite books on our book case.

  The chair I bought from Great West Warehouse went into our son's room under his loft bed as a place for him to read. I'm going to find or sew some cushions to add to it. We also have a wall mounted lamp to hang in this space as it can get quite dark under the bed when the sun goes down. I'll post pics when it's all put together.

  The Sleeping Beauty record I bought from the Salvation Army Thrift Shop went in a record frame & now sits on top of our daughter's cupboard in her bedroom. I think I'll keep looking for other vintage Disney princess records & perhaps do a collage of them on her wall if I find enough.

The silver basket I found at Value Village now holds my mini scrapbook albums in my scrap space.

  The more I look around my house purposefully looking for items that I've purchased second hand, the more I find. I'm going to be posting more about them in the future.

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Old Books

  I have an affinity for old books. I love how they cozy up a room & call to a me: "Open me up. Discover another time. Learn about another culture."

  I have some favourite authors I keep my eyes peeled for when I am looking at second hand books. L.M. Montgomery, Jane Austen, & Charles Dickens to name a few. Hardcover classics catch my eye. The colourful fabric covers with the metallic titles.... Mmmm. My favourite one of all? My copy of Heidi as seen in the top photo, second book from the left. Just the way it looks makes me smile. The vintage-y fabric is so cheerful.

  And they just plain look good on a book case. :) I've also used old books as part of a display on a side table or dresser. They usually add just the right touch.

  Speaking of bookcases... Remember that little postal scale I bought on my vintage shopping day last week? Well, it now holds a place of honour beside a stack of books on my book case. I quite enjoy it.

Side note: the fun 60's photo effect on the above photos is available here.

This week's papercrafts tomorrow! Woot!

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Before & After home tour (part 2)

  My Before & After home tour continues today. I've got a few a photos to show you of our home makeover.

  This is our main bathroom before. It was truly awful. In fact, when we first viewed the house, I think I laughed out loud when I saw this room. It was SO dirty & outdated. Pictures do not do it justice. Mauve toilet & tub, dirty lilac walls, dusty lace curtains for the shower curtain & on the window. Nasty, grimy lino floor. The tub surround only went halfway up the wall so we couldn't use the shower. The list of nastiness just went on & on.

BEFORE

BEFORE

This after picture literally makes me breath a sigh of relief! 

AFTER

  We (and when I say we, I should give credit where credit is due. My fabulous husband & DIY expert, James, did most of the work. I just picked the stuff out.) started by ripping out everything but the tub. We had it refinished in white since it was in good condition other than the awful colour. We did the tub surround in a simple white tile, tiled the floor, painted the walls a pale green (it doesn't make me look sick, I promise!) put a new toilet in, new vanity, light fixtures, & towel bars. 

  I'm so pleased with how it turned out. Since we painted this room, I've heard that you should never paint a bathroom green because it can make a person look sick. This shade doesn't. It's General Paint's Ocean Bath CL 2041W. Check it out if you want a nice, soft green.

Recap:

If you'd like to see our living room makeover click here.
If you'd like to see our kitchen makeover click here.

We're very happy with how our renos have turned out & I'm enjoying sharing the journey with you all.

I've got recipes, highlighting some favourite vintage finds, & this week's papercrafts coming up later this week. 

Enjoy your day!

~Steph

Before & After home tour (part 1)

Two posts in one day? What is this world coming to? I'm feeling very inspired now that I'm blogging & am having all kinds of ideas of things to post. So today I'm going to post twice.

I don't know about you, but I love a good before & after show. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, all kinds of shows on HGTV (Summer Home being my favourite new show), & What Not To Wear are a few favourites. What is it that we love about them? Well, besides the fact that we see something that looks nasty (or boring or outdated) turn into something that looks beautiful.

I was visiting with my friend, Vanessa, today in her great new home. She & her husband are in the midst of picking paint colours & embarking on a home makeover of their own. I had the pleasure of helping her pick a paint colour for her front entrance. I hope she doesn't disown me as a friend after she's done painting! ;) Seeing her home & talking about renovations, painting, floor plans, etc. got me remembering our home makeover...

Four years ago we purchased the home we live in now. It had been pretty neglected & someone who lived there in the past had been crafty... in a not-so-great, don't-quit-your-day-job kinda way. We're talking orange tie dyed paint effects in the living room, stained glass insets in the bright yellow kitchen cabinets, fruit wallpaper applique on the roll down blinds, a stainless steel paint effect gone terribly wrong... oh ya, this house was a piece of work. But we were excited about the challenge & knew we could turn "her" into something beautiful.

After painting, putting in new flooring, painting, knocking out a wall, painting, putting in a new kitchen, painting, replacing the mauve toilet & tub, & painting some more it was finally ready for us to live in. But the work wasn't done.

It's taken us this long & it's not quite done yet. There are a few things left to be done. But since when is a house ever "done"? We're very happy with our progress thus far & I thought I'd share some of it with you all.

Nasty orange tie dyed paint effect in the living room. This wall actually got removed to open up the kitchen/dining room area.

Living Room BEFORE - complete with African Safari style homemade curtains.

Living room AFTER

Where the wall used to be.

Recap:

I'll post a little of our home makeover at a time. We're pleased with how things have turned out so far. I hope you enjoy seeing the transformation.

If you'd like to see our kitchen makeover click here.
If you'd like to see our main bathroom makeover click here.

Enjoy your day!

~Steph