Monday, August 26, 2013

New Life To A Set Of Shelves

Hey there!  Happy Monday to you....Wherever you are in this world I hope it's all good:)  It was a nice weekend here.  We enjoyed some sunshine and some good 'ole family time!  It's hard to believe my son is starting Kindergarten in ONE WEEK!!!  I have some serious jitters as he is my first to send off to school.  I am going to enjoy this last week with him and embrace our last week without a schedule.

I found this set of shelves at a garage sale awhile back.  Here they are before.... They just aren't my cup of tea.....they look dated in my opinion.


So I gave them a coat of white spray paint and then distressed them with gray paint.  Here they are after....



I hope you have a wonderful week and enjoy our last week of August....sniff, sniff.  I don't know how summer went by so fast....We sure had a good one:)

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http://ninthstreetnotions.com/
http://www.linesacross.com/
http://jembellish.blogspot.com/
http://diyhshp.blogspot.com/
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http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/
http://ourdelightfulhome.blogspot.com/
http://sewchatty.blogspot.ca/
http://blackberryvine.blogspot.com/
http://www.sugarbeecrafts.com
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http://www.notjustahousewife.net/
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http://funkypolkadotgiraffe.blogspot.com//
http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net
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http://www.adventuresofadiymom.com/
http://thewinthropchronicles.blogspot.com/
http://www.carolynshomework.com

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Friday, August 23, 2013

Updated Mantel

Good Afternoon, fellow bloggers.  It's is a beautiful Friday afternoon here in Michigan.  Still feels like summer and I hope it stays for a while.  I usually don't blog on Friday but one of my daughters is out of town and didn't get a chance to blog about one of her creations, so I am trying to fill her spot this week, but just a little late.  Anyways, I found this really cool mantle this Spring at the Springfield Flea market.  I just fell in love with it and I was really hoping that when I cleaned it up it would look like I wanted it to.  So here is my before picture:
As you can see it is a little rough.  The brown paint bubbled all over it.  Someone must have painted a latex paint over an oil base paint with not painting some Kilz paint first.  I love the columns and the leaf or scroll design in the middle was really cool, too.



I had to scrape all the bubbled paint off and it just took time and a little muscle.  I didn't really use any stripper because as you can see it had bubbles all over it.  When I had scraped the whole piece and almost down the original wood, I slightly sanded the mantel and than painted a base coat with Kilz paint.  I like to use this paint because if the wood has any oil stains or any stains the Kilz usually takes care of that and the imperfections usually don't bleed thru the finished paint job.  I used an oops paint that had a very slight tinge of green in the white.  One doesn't notice the green until evening when the shadows play off the mantel.  I painted two coats of the white and than accentuated the details of the mantel with a dark brown paint.  I wiped off the excess brown paint and got left with the paint in all the grooves and details.



When the brown paint was applied all of a sudden the details on the mantel started showing up.  I love the details just under the top of the mantel.

Now my scroll in the middle of the mantle really shows up.





Even the columns of the mantel really show up and I didn't distress the actual columns, but I did the bottom and top of them.






This is what the mantel looks like when the detailing was done and before we put back in the camp.

I was really  pleased with the end result and so was everyone else.  They really didn't think it was going to turn out so nice.

We put it back in the camp and now we have to do the floor and finish the wall behind the mantel.  We have to get a fireplace insert and than we will be done, but I guess Rome wasn't built in a day either.  Baby steps.  I had found this mantel and it took awhile and it only cost me $75.00 for something that is all wood.

I covered the hole with a curtain and the grandkids love playing in there.  When the project is all done I will blog again about my wonderful mantle.  What do you think, better or worse?
Until next time, Dianne........................

Linked to these Parties:http://www.thegirlcreative.com/2013/08/22/the-weekly-creative-link-party-8.html
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http://romantichome.blogspot.com/
http://missmustardseed.com/2013/08/furniture-feature-friday-link-party-favorites-8/
http://www.733blog.com/2013/08/do-you-subscribe-to-my-weekly.html
http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
http://www.houseofhepworths.com/2013/08/21/hookin-up-with-hoh-162/#more-14320
http://yesterdayontuesday.com/2013/08/project-inspired-28/
http://rhinestonebeagle.blogspot.com/
http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/
http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/
http://www.sew-much-ado.com/
http://www.handymancraftywoman.com/
http://theshadyporch.blogspot.com/2013/08/rock-n-share-55.html
http://www.itsoverflowing.com/2013/08/share-your-creativity-91/
http://hopestudios.blogspot.com/
http://www.notjustahousewife.net/2013/08/show-me-what-ya-got-134.html
http://www.redouxinteriors.com/2013/08/link-party-119-and-a-paint-brush-giveaway/
http://tatertotsandjello.com/2013/08/link-party-palooza-and-pink-lemonade-giveaway.html
http://www.jenniferrizzo.com/
http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/
http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/
http://www.homemakeronadime.com/
http://www.sumossweetstuff.com/
http://diyshowoff.com/2013/08/18/that-diy-party-30/
http://www.madincrafts.com/2013/08/mad-skills-party-160.html
http://www.skiptomylou.org/2013/08/19/made-by-you-monday-165/
http://itssoverycheri.com/2013/08/18/its-party-time-8-18-2013/
http://threemangoseeds.blogspot.com/
http://katherinescorner.com/2013/08/21/thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop-102/
http://www.posedperfection.com/
http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com/
http://www.craftberrybush.com/
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http://www.everydayhomeblog.com/2013/08/homework-wednesday-14.html
http://diybydesign.blogspot.com/2013/08/sizzle-into-summer-its-party-131.html
http://www.greenwillowpond.com/
http://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net/2013/08/diy-rustic-shelving-ideas.html
http://elizabethandco.blogspot.com/
http://www.rootedinthyme.blogspot.com/
http://www.bedifferentactnormal.com/2013/08/show-tell-saturday-082413.html
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http://ninthstreetnotions.com/2013/08/i-made-it-monday-70.html
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http://www.trulylovelyblog.net/
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http://thetrendytreehouse.blogspot.com/
http://thewinthropchronicles.blogspot.com/
http://thegrantlife.com/life-of-the-party-1/

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Thursday, August 22, 2013

Mirror Mirror on the Wall

Good morning everyone.  It's Thursday morning and I have a fun project to share and the best part it was not hard!  It really changed the mirror and made it into a fun chalk board that hangs on a wall.  This mirror was a funky gold  that was chipped, dark and not very pretty looking.  I had not used chalk paint yet and my daughter Jackie suggested that maybe this would be fun as a chalk board.  So I painted the mirror with KILZ paint and found this fun color paint called "Grassland" which turned out to be a yellowish green.  I loved the color.  Actually the  paint was really a sample paint so I didn't have very much of it.


I really liked the flowers and scrolls design that was on the frame and that was what really attracted me to it at a garage sale.  I find myself leaning toward pieces that have more scrolls and fancy legs and carved designs to them.
   
So I finished painting the piece in the fun yellowish-green color and than I painted the mirror with KILZ paint so that the chalkboard paint would adhere.  I wanted the design on the mirror to show up so I rubbed black paint into all the grooves and crevices and than wiped off the excess.
So what do you think?  I think it is a lot better and wow, what paint can do......
Until next time, Dianne......

Linked to these parties:http://www.733blog.com/2013/08/do-you-subscribe-to-my-weekly.html
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 http://jojoandeloise.com/2013/08/project-inspire-d-link-party-28/
 http://myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/
 http://www.elizabethandco.blogspot.com/
 http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2013/08/the-sunday-showcase-party-no-208.html
 http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/
 http://www.the36thavenue.com/2013/08/best-diy-projects-20.html
 http://www.domestically-speaking.com/2013/08/191st-power-of-paint-party-popp-2.html
http://www.itsoverflowing.com/2013/08/share-your-creativity-91/
http://theshadyporch.blogspot.com/
http://www.gingersnapcrafts.com/2013/08/wow-me-wednesday-117.html
http://www.handymancraftywoman.com/
http://wearethatfamily.com/
http://www.commonground-do.com/
http://www.houseofhepworths.com/2013/08/21/hookin-up-with-hoh-162/#more-14320
 http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
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http://www.aglimpseinsideblog.com/
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http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net/2013/08/one-project-at-a-time-82013.html
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http://hopestudios.blogspot.com/
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http://www.homemakeronadime.com/
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http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/2013/08/transformation-thursday-no-218.html
http://farmhouseporch.blogspot.com/
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http://farmhouseporch.blogspot.com/
http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com/
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http://www.everydayhomeblog.com/2013/08/homework-wednesday-14.html
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http://ivyandelephants.blogspot.com/
http://itssoverycheri.com/2013/08/18/its-party-time-8-18-2013/
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http://boogieboardcottage.blogspot.com/
http://www.skiptomylou.org/2013/08/19/made-by-you-monday-165/
http://www.madincrafts.com/2013/08/mad-skills-party-160.html
http://diyshowoff.com/2013/08/18/that-diy-party-30/
http://www.sumossweetstuff.com/
 http://www.impartinggrace.com/
 http://www.adelightsomelife.com/2013/08/home-and-garden-thursday-43.html
 http://katherinescorner.com/2013/08/21/thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop-102/
 http://www.posedperfection.com/
 http://nominimalisthere.blogspot.com/
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 http://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net/2013/08/diy-rustic-shelving-ideas.html
 http://www.rootedinthyme.blogspot.com/
 http://thethriftygroove.blogspot.com/


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Monday, August 19, 2013

It's Amazing What Spray Paint Can Do!!

Happy Monday!  I hope you had a good weekend:)  We enjoyed a weekend away with some good friends and spent some time on Lake Michigan!!  I love Lake Michigan.....it's just one of our beautiful Great Lakes!!

It always amazes me what spray paint does.  It literally transforms things from bad to GREAT....it's miraculous:)  Anyways....I found this little wire bowl at a garage sale.  The color was just not doing it for me...it almost looked rusty.


So, I gave it a coat of red spray paint and antiqued it a bit with black paint.  Here she is now......I think this would be cute used as wall decor too!


I hope you have a beautiful day!
Thanks for reading....
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http://theshadyporch.blogspot.com/
http://www.itsoverflowing.com/
http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/
http://www.commonground-do.com/
http://rhinestonebeagle.blogspot.com/
http://www.notjustahousewife.net/
http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net/
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http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/
http://www.sew-much-ado.com/
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http://handmadecuddles.com/
http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/
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http://sewchatty.blogspot.ca/
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Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Simply Stain

Good evening!! I hope you all had a fabulous Wednesday!! It came and went too fast. I seriously am trying to hold on to every summer day that I can. I do LOVE fall but I am not quite ready for it yet. I am excited to share with you something new that I tried today that I have been meaning to try for awhile but I just never got the nerve to do it because I wasn't sure it was going to give me the outcome that I was looking for. It did though and I am so pleased and can't wait to use it on more of my pieces.

I found this chair for only a DOLLAR!! Can you believe that people don't see the beauty in this dainty little chair? Anyhow, they just must not have seen what I saw in it. I mainly picked it up because I thought it would be a great prop for pictures. Since we are working on our back deck and re-staining it we had some white stain lying around for a few weeks and I just couldn't wait to get my hands on it and try it on a piece. So here it  is the piece I tried it on. I LOVE how it turned out. I only swiped about 1 1/2 coats of stain on it...if that makes sense. I didn't want to do it too thick because I wanted it to look worn and let some of the darkness of the pre-existing finish to shine through. This was a water-based stain so it wasn't messy or smelly. I coated it and then sanded it down and I am going to leave it as is. I think this white stain will come in handy for a few other projects I have in mind. It worked just as well...if not better than paint for me(especially for getting the look I was going for)...I think I may have fell in love!! :)











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http://theshadyporch.blogspot.com/2013/09/rock-n-share-59.html  
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http://www.astrollthrulife.net/2013/09/182nd-inspire-me.html
http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net/2013/09/one-project-at-a-time-91713.html
http://www.notjustahousewife.net/2013/09/show-me-what-ya-got-138.html


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Monday, August 12, 2013

A Fresh Look For A Dated Clock

Good evening!  I am blogging later than usual...however, better late than never right??  I hope you had a good weekend....we did here in Michigan.  We spent some time with friends and enjoyed a family birthday party on Sunday.  We are hoping to enjoy a weekend of camping this weekend on Lake Michigan....which happens to be my fave lake!!  Here's hoping for nice weather and things going off without a hitch!

I found this dated wall clock at a church rummage sale awhile back.  It needed some help.....or so I thought:)

Here she is before...


I gave the clock a coat of primer and then a coat of white paint.  After the paint dried, I antiqued it with a coat of gray.  I love the combination of gray and white.

Here she is now after.....


I hope you have a great week!
If you're reading...ThAnKs!!!

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http://www.adventuresofadiymom.com/
http://thewinthropchronicles.blogspot.com/
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http://www.domestically-speaking.com
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http://www.creationsbykara.com
http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/
http://www.sugaranddots.com/
http://www.southernlovely.com/
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http://thediydreamer.com
http://www.twindragonflydesigns.com/
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http://www.youngandcrafty.com/
http://www.flamingotoes.com/
http://www.bedifferentactnormal.com
http://www.niftythriftythings.com/
http://www.funkyjunkinteriors.net
http://www.whilehewasnapping.com/
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Thursday, August 8, 2013

Same Old Silverware-New Color

Good afternoon, everyone.....It's Thursday and it has been a busy week with all the back to work things that I had to do before the kids go back to school.  The summer has just flown by and I can't really look forward to the start of another school year.  This school year my first 2 grandchildren will start school and that 5 years have gone by so FAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Well, here is my project and my daughter Jackie just blogged about her fun red silverware but I decided that I also wanted to change the look of them, so I decided on another color.  Here is the before picture:

As you can see they are a little beat up and not at all fun looking.  Kinda of boring.....
The handles of the silverware are really carved out and fun.

So, the color I decided on was orange.  I really like color and it is so fun and can go with so many colors and it is a great accent color.

When they were painted I decided to rub some burnt umber color paint into all the grooves, which seem to pick up all the details on them.


On all the edges I rubbed the same paint to add a little bit detail.
So what do you think?   Until next time, Dianne......................

Linked to these parties:http://www.itsoverflowing.com/2013/08/share-your-creativity-89/
 http://theshadyporch.blogspot.com/2013/08/rock-n-share-53.html
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 http://www.handymancraftywoman.com/
 http://wearethatfamily.com/
 http://www.domestically-speaking.com/2013/08/189th-power-of-paint-party-popp.html
 http://www.733blog.com/2013/08/sugar-spice-175.html
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 http://www.houseofhepworths.com/2013/08/07/hookin-up-with-hoh-160/#more-14289
 http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
 http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/
 http://www.homemakeronadime.com/
 http://www.knickoftimeinteriors.blogspot.com/
 http://www.abowlfulloflemons.net/2013/08/one-project-at-a-time-8613.html
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 http://hopestudios.blogspot.com/
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http://itssoverycheri.com/2013/08/04/its-party-time-8-4-2013/
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http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2013/08/the-sunday-showcase-party-no-206.html
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http://romantichome.blogspot.com/
http://www.blissfulanddomestic.com/
http://serendipityandspice.com/2013/08/manic-monday-linky-party-85.html

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Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Ladder Love

Good afternoon!!! I feel a little bit rushed I am not going to lie. I am supposed to be finishing packing up inside while my husband finishes outside and I am sitting on the computer BLOGGING!! We are heading up north camping and we are supposed to be pretty much gone by now. I hope he doesn't mind. :) I just wanted to share with you a little purchase that I was so excited about and a great way to use it. I think some people question my décor because it is filled with a bunch of old, rickety pieces that were never made to be used as I use them. I think it's fun though and I never have to worry about my little 18 month daughter breaking them right?

Anyhow I could keep writing and chatting about my life forever but my husband still waits patiently downstairs or outside for me....not quite sure where he is right now. :) I bought this ladder with the intentions of using it for photography. I take pictures here and there for a few friends and family and I like to have a few props for it. Instead of letting it just sit in my garage and collect dust and whatever else it may collect in the garage I decided to put it in the corner of my room and decorate it. I love how it turned out and it might just stay there for a while. What do you think, would you put a  ladder in the corner of your room? :) I hope you all have a great rest of the week!!










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