Friday, July 27, 2012

I Need A Sewing Table


Here is the sewing cabinet I finished for a friend the other day.  
I took the photos for the blog post in my great room and 
then I put it in my foyer until it is delivered.  

Well...now I need a sewing cabinet.   


I have always wanted a table of some sort next to my lawyers couch in the foyer...but nothing ever seemed to fit just right.  I did the wall of mirrors a while ago and love it.  But now I want a sewing cabinet to go with it.  

For free.  


As always, thanks for visiting.  

Renae


Thursday, July 26, 2012

Lots Of Pieces To Love

I have to admit it.  I did not want to be outside yesterday afternoon.  
I just wanted to be inside...out of the sun and in the a/c.  

I know, it was gorgeous outside. 

Temperatures in the 80's and low humidity.  We have had a gorgeous summer filled with all kinds of outside fun in the pool and on the beautiful Missouri River...I will be taking advantage of both today and decided that yesterday I could be inside.  

So I got to work on a few projects that have been staring at me all summer.  



Recently I did a few pieces for a friend, Marcene.  
She asked if I would do another sewing table for her guest room 
(she is using them as night stands). I had told her I would wait for a "rainy day" and complete it.  Well we haven't had any rain, so it's been in my garage for a while.   


It was in pretty tough shape and when you start taking it apart...
there are "lots of pieces to love."  Seriously, I should have taken pictures or organized the screws and hinges better.  Nothing matched up, screws were bent and the little arm that holds the top in place when open is another story.  I told my son that if I went crazy, he could tell people that a little piece of metal caused it.  



Wow.  So pretty in ASCP in Old White.  


All the "pieces" were painted an antique bronze. 


Inside there was a cute little storage area for needles and thread.  



It came together beautifully!  

I can't wait for Marcene to see it.  

Thanks again for visiting our blog.  

Renae

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Too Pretty To Paint

I picked this wardrobe up about a month ago.  
Initially I thought I would paint it and keep it for myself, 
then I remembered I have too much stuff already.

 So I decided to paint it.  Today.  

As my husband was helping me bring it inside from the sweltering garage...
he said, "why are you painting this?"  

Well, he hit the nail on the head...it is a nice sturdy piece and it is in great shape.  It is truly "Too Pretty To Paint."  


So, I dusted it off, cleaned it up, tightened some screws and set a few nails that were poking out.  And decided to sell it as is...perfect.  


Measures 42" wide, 20" deep and 62" high.  

Functions beautifully.  



greenbriargoods@hotmail.com

Thanks for visiting our blog.

Renae

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Beachy Bath

Our boys have never really used their upstairs bathroom...they go the bathroom in there, but they have always showered in our master bath and brushed their teeth and combed their hair in the guest bath.  Why?  Not sure.  



The decorating in their bathroom was okay...remnants from the dinosaur days, some of their artwork, hand-me-down shower curtain and accessories.  
It needed an update. So, one night as my husband cruised away on the 
boat to meet up with some high school friends...we went shopping.  

It was fun.  We popped through Kohls and the boys had fun laughing at the shower curtains that they thought looked like dresses.  No luck there.  

Next was my ever reliable TJ Maxx...Thomas walked in and saw all the fun college gear and exclaimed "I love TJ Maxx".  He was serious...there are treasures everywhere.  
But we had no luck. 

We were in search of a beach theme...so we headed off to Target.  
And guess what?  

We found EVERYTHING we needed to achieve our beach theme.  



Shower curtain in navy and white stripes ($14.99) and a framed 
starfish print (on sale $16.99).  I had found the towel hooks a couple years ago on major clearance (at Target) and finally put them to use.  The walls are painted a soft tan by Sherwin Williams (they look yellow, but they are tan).  

The towels and rugs they had in the bathroom were navy and the green that you see in the above picture.  They were like new and did not need to be replaced...so we were able to find the perfect shower curtain and use the current towels and rugs. 


The frames below previously held the boys' artwork.  
We had lots of shells that their Great-Grandma Lois had collected over the years...so we placed them on the photocopier to make prints.  


This one was larger that our copier could accommodate...so we cut 2" squares and made this.  It is awesome...and free!  


Here are the other two they made.  Love them.  


We found this fish ($19.99) and the lantern ($16.99) below at Target too.  We filled the lantern with the shells from Grandma Lois.  Love them!  




A couple closer pictures of the shell art we created.  


The final touch was a new light.  The old one was dreadful.  
Now it's modern and fun.  

The best part...they love it and they use it for #1, #2, showers, teeth and hair!  No more chunks of toothpaste in my guest bath.  Mission accomplished.  

FYI:  We arrived home at about 9:30 that night and got to work.  Finished it up at about 11:00.  They loved pulling it all together.  

We've recently redecorated their bedrooms (Casey's room and Thomas' room) and I find that if you let them have some input, use their ideas and work together...they will appreciate it and take care of it.  

Renae



Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Headboard Re-Do

Last summer I bought this footboard (headboard, below) at a rummage sale for my daughter's room...

this is the headboard with a coat of primer

here is the "after"

headboard

footboard

This blog post is to show what a difference paint makes.  I bought this bed frame & the matching dresser last summer.  I re-did the dresser right away, but took a little longer getting this done.  I had to buy a new boxspring & mattress since her old bed was a twin size.  I finally purchased the boxspring & mattress, so I decided the time was right to finish the bedframe.

I used a deglosser on this since it was quite glossy.  I then primer it, and painted 2 coats of a high gloss white paint.  I always feel like these retro pieces (which tend to be glossy anyway), need a high gloss paint to keep with there original feel.

It's amazing what a little paint will do.... with some rummage sale finds & a little elbow grease, her room is transformed ~ to see her dresser, check out 1950's Dresser Redo from our June 2011 blog post.  I tried to link it, but for some reason it wasn't working...sorry!

Thanks for stopping!
Heather

My Custom-Made Buffet

before ~ I really liked the buffet hutch when I bought it 7 years ago, but it was really large for the wall & I was ready for a change & something functional

the wall without any furniture

my new custom-made buffet (built by my father-in-law)!!

I really love that I can use this during parties or coffee dates ~ it serves a purpose & it looks great

I bought the shelf hung above at Hobby Lobby ~ it has 4 little metal baskets for coffee/tea/cocoa/cappuchino mix & cute little hooks to hang coffee mugs from....

I asked my father-in-law over Christmas if he would consider building me a custom piece for this wall....  he told me to draw something up with dimensions & this is what I came up with.  I actually designed it as a rectangle, but he thought I would get more use out of it with a trapezoid top.  I knew I wanted the beadboard look on the doors & a nice wood top.  He also included roll out shelfs in the middle 2 doors & shelves on the outer 2.  I just love it & can't wait to fill it with appliances that are large & are taking up much needed space in my kitchen.

I painted my kitchen cabinets last spring (blog entry to come when we get the backsplash done), so I used the same paint for this buffet & the same hardware (that way it almost looks like an extension of my rather small kitchen)!

Thanks to my very talented father-in-law, I have a buffet that I absolutely love & that I'll use everyday!!

Thanks for looking & thanks, Paul!!!

Heather :)

Retro Two-Toned Dresser!

before

after ~ love the new look



So I was rummaging one day last month & saw this little honey....  I stopped the car, mini van, & snatched it up.  It was a very nice retro piece before the redo, but with a crisp white paint, it looks even better!

I used some deglosser on the base of the piece to roughen up the smooth finish.  I then followed with 3 coats of satin white paint (just plain ol' paint).  I did a little distressing (just on the edges), and then painted a coat of wax on to finish.

The drawer fronts were so beautiful.  I saw a similar dresser on Pinterest which did the same technique of the base painted & the drawers left original (which I really liked).  I think the two tones are really striking!

This could be used as a buffet or a dresser.  A really interesting piece that could turn heads!

SOLD


56"w x 18"d x 30"tall 

For Mia!

Beautiful, antique dresser


looks a little rough, but really nice piece


Crisp & white does the trick every time!



great details


Our friend, Mia, asked us to look for a dresser to put in her lake cabin, & when Renae found this one, she knew Mia would love it!

I got started on it with a fresh coat of ASCP in Pure White & finished it off with a painted coat of wax.  Renae found a new wax product that paints on & we just love it!  It covers every little nook & cranny & buffs up very nicely.

This piece had character before, but now it is updated & looks fresh & new!

Thanks for visiting,
Heather

P.S. ....and Thanks, Mia ~ enjoy!