Something's In The Works

I have to admit, I haven't been working on too many projects lately.  Well, at least fun, creative projects. Why, you ask? 1) Because it is just too dang hot to be outside or in the garage painting away (we're talkin' triple digits here!), and 2) Because I have been a busy bee trying to get things packed and organized. If everything goes as planned (which so far nothing has gone as planned), I will be making my cross-country move in about 4 weeks.  That means going through oodles and oodles of stuff, trying to figure out what to keep or give away, packing a bazillion boxes, finding the best moving company, and hammering out lots and lots of details. But unfortunately, on top of all of that excitement, I still have a billion projects (the fun, creative kind) to work on before moving.

My current project should be done within the next several days, although it's really more like a 'half project' because the other half is awaiting me in New Jersey. And of course I can't leave you with no pictures, so here's a sneak peek of what I'm working on.

Check It Out

Tatertots and Jello is having an awesome giveaway worth over $300.  It's a Silhouette Craft Cutting Machine. I honestly had never heard of it before, but it looks amazing! Go check it out!

Shower Curtain Hooks

I found these shower curtain hooks at Ross a few months ago for $4.99. Liked the shape, but not the color.

I first sanded them with sandpaper for metal, then I primed them.

Like my setup? I knew those random pieces of floral foam would come in handy someday =)

I actually did this project a month or so ago and it took several days to finish because it rained on and off for about a week.

Here comes the rain clouds!

Ok, so maybe that picture doesn't look so bad, but to the left were some dark, grey clouds about ready to unleash some fury.

I don't know if it was the weather that caused this or what, but the primer ended up cracking.

Do you like my lame attempt to scratch the primer off my finger nails?

I decided to to just leave it as-is and I painted over them with espresso spray paint. I figure nobody will notice unless the shower curtain hook police decide to stop by for an unannounced visit. I'm not too worried about that happening though.

I forgot to take a picture after I painted them brown, but they were really plain, so I went to Michael's and picked up a package of little mirrors (with a coupon, of course!). I used E6000 to glue them on and they fit perfectly on the front.

I might eventually put some kind of trim around the mirrors to give it more of a finished look...or I might just leave them.

The Perfect Seashells

I've been looking for a while now for something to go in between my framed starfish (I already have a frame in NJ that I am planning to paint the same).

But I just wasn't finding any inspiration anywhere. I'm going for more of a refined coastal look, rather than tchotchke central, so I didn't want anything cheesy.

So, I was very delighted to see that The Graphics Fairy posted this beautiful print of antique seashells.

The only prob with it is that it's not your standard size. I had to crop it a little in Picasa and it's still a lot longer than it is wide, but I think I will end up backing it with burlap like I did with the framed starfish.

I'm getting more and more excited everyday about moving and getting my place decorated!

Cage Light For Under $15

I'm not gonna lie - I'm really excited about this project! It all came about when I found this pendant cage light on wisteria.com.

LOVE it, but not for $129!! So, what's a girl to do? Why, make one herself, of course!

I started with a hanging planter basket from Wal Mart that cost $5, and a light kit from Ikea that cost $4.

The hanging basket had a slight metallic sheen to it, so I gave it a coat of flat black paint.

Unfortunately, the hole in the bottom of the basket was too big for the light to stay in place, so I went to Lowe's to try and find something to help. I was thinking of some kind of metal flange, but I saw the size I needed was over $7, so I moved right along. I was coming up on the closet storage aisle and immediately thought of those things that hold a curtain rod in place. And when I found them, I learned that they are called closet rod flanges...makes sense =) Oh, and it cost under $4 too.

I ended up painting it black, but I think it would look cool to leave it as-is for an industrial look.

I attached it to the top of the basket (turned upside down) with a twisty tie that was originally holding the light cord together. Now that's what I call being resourceful!

Next, I just slid the plug up through the opening and hung the light to take pictures.

But as you might be able to tell, the light was sitting kinda crookedly, but I had an easy solution for it. It's kind of hard to explain, but I took the cord out, and then took the black piece (right above the light bulb) off by unscrewing the light bulb. Then I moved it to the opening at the top and threaded the cord through again.

I wasn't crazy about the lighting in this picture, so I hung the light outside on a tree and I loved the way it looked! (Please excuse the billion pictures you're about to see!)

 

Coral

I have been scouring several stores for a while now trying to find some coral. Perfect timing since summer is right around the corner and beach decor seems to be popping up out of nowhere. The only problem is that I'm picky. Oh, and cheap. My sister called me this weekend to see if I wanted to go to Home Goods (what kind of silly question is that?!). I seriously think she could read my mind because I was already planning on going there in hopes to find my perfect coral. I had gone about 2 weeks ago, but they didn't have the size and price tag I was looking for, but this time I found the perfect pair.

The color? Not so perfect. But as we all know, you can change the color of just about everything.

I chose to paint them a glossy white to add a slightly modern touch to my bedroom. They are going to go on the shelf pictured below, which will be getting a nice coat of stain and the walls where I am moving are supposedly painted a light beige, so the plan is that the coral will really stand out.

Sorry I can't show more yet, but I promise I will soon =)

Finally Finished!!

Ok, so I guess I lied in my last post when I said I didn't finish any projects today because I finally finished my tv stand. I don't know why I've been calling it a 'tv stand' this whole time 'cause really, 'tv stand' sounds so puny and this is one honkin' piece of furniture! Buuut I guess I'll be consistent and just call it a tv stand. Ok Ali, quit jabbering and show a picture already!!

Isn't she lovely? I wish I had more pictures to show, but the garage lighting is horr.ib.le. You can compare my original drawing below and see it turned out almost exactly how I wanted it.

We ended up making it a little shorter which is why the doors on the real piece look squattier, but I just love it! And that's a good thing considering I was out there polyurethaning it when it was in the upper 90's today!

Teaser

Today I was without the little guy and I have been working on projects left and right. Anything that crossed my path got painted!! Unfortunately, I don't have anything that is truly finished yet, so I will just show you a picture of something I'm working on.

Any guesses? I know just showing you a picture of bamboo doesn't tell you much. I have 2 bamboo poles -one is painted and one is stained. Any guesses now? Well, even if you guess right, I'm not gonna tell ya 'cause I want it to be a surprise =) I'm super excited about this project and can't wait to show it, but it's one of those things that I can't reveal until I move...so stay tuned!!

Yummy Snack

Well, it's that time of the year when I start scrambling, trying to lose at least a few pounds (is that really too much to ask for??) before Summer really hits. I'm pretty much nowhere close to where I want to be, but I guess you gotta start somewhere.

I'm trying to eat healthier and I wanted to share one of my new fave snacks. It's just graham crackers, Yoplait Whips yogurt, and fresh strawberries.

Now, you have to understand that I have the BIGGEST sweet tooth in the whole wide world and usually fresh fruit tastes bitter to me (yeah, I have issues), but this tastes so yummy that I actually look forward to eating it. You should try it!!

P.S. My posts might be a little sporadic for a while because I just started babysitting my nephew for 12 hours a day and I'm trying to get all the loose ends tied before my move. But once I move (hopefully in about 6 weeks) I'll have LOTS of things to post!

A Few Great Finds

This weekend, my sis and I decided to go to a yard sale on a whim. She had her son and was babysitting our nephew and I had my son too. We packed them all in the Highlander, which required us to slam the doors shut then lock them. Yep, we were determined. We had no idea what to expect. Her boyfriend called her from the road to tell her about this yard sale that was about 30 minutes away and we trusted there would be good stuff.  I have to say my most favorite thing I walked away with was this awesome chippy drawer that I got for $5.

Don't you just love it? And that keyhole? I'm in love! Here she is up close.

The next thing I found was this:

It may look like great chipped paint, but in person it looks like someone attempted to prime it without sanding first and the paint just didn't want to stay on. I have no clue what I wanna do with this yet. Any ideas? I'm sure I'll come up with something eventually, but I could use suggestions. There was another one of these that I should have snagged up. It was $5 and I probably would have tried to talk them down, but the money was going towards charity so I just couldn't do it.

My last little finds were these picture frames.

The 2 smaller ones are 8x10 and I got them for $1 each. I'm guessing the larger one is 11x14 and that one was $3. I can never pass up some good quality frames!

Do people really decorate with pictures like this??

Well, I guess maybe back in the 80's?

In other news, my tv stand is almost finished! I'm just in the process of staining it then I need to do the poly. I don't know what the weather is like where you live, but it's been very hot here in Sacramento and I'm just trying to find the motivation to drag myself into the sweltering garage to finish it up.