Transforming Home

hand painted wallpaper and a new (old) table

2012-01-20T13:39:00.002-06:00

A couple of weekends ago my husband and oldest son were sick. The twins go down at 8, so I was left alone, by myself, on a Saturday night. I drank a couple of diet mountain dews that day so I would have the energy to do all the laundry, cleaning, etc that is involved with sickos in the house, and ended up with a ton of extra energy while everyone was sleeping.

So this is how I spent my evening:

I had been wanting to do something with these walls for a long time, so thought I would paint some trees on them.

I've been enjoying them, but now the room feels much busier and not so calming, so I will probably paint over them. I am thinking a faux grasscloth paint treatment. Because I change my mind all the time and don't want to fully commit to wallpaper.

On another note, my parents are consolidating from two houses down to one and were going to put their wooden kitchen table in storage. It is an awesome table - I used to do my homework on that table - and I thought it would look nice in my kitchen, so my dad brought it up to us.

I am really happy with it.

The only issue is that it is much nicer than my old white table, so I have to really watch the kiddos to make sure they aren't gluing or using markers on it.

I keep cloth placemats on it all the time and I think that kinda scares my boys away from it.

It certainly makes dinner nicer.

And I am thinking about putting a rug underneath - one of those indoor/outdoor rugs from Ballard Designs. We'll see.

So, to completely fancy up the kitchen I decided to move the wicker chairs from the kitchen table to the dining room, and I moved the fully slipcovered chairs from the dining room to the kitchen.

Moving those chairs around really made a difference in the dining room.

It feels much less formal now, which is great.

Because this table is used for legos, ninja battles, games, etc.

It is only used twice a year for dinner.

And it opens up to the playroom.

The winter mantel

So that's what has been going on around here.

We are getting 6-8 inches of snow today. School pickup should be........interesting.

I'll post again once I decide on the playroom walls.

Stay warm!

Mod Podge photo letter answers

2012-01-03T12:08:00.000-06:00

I have had a few questions about the mod podge photo letter lately and thought I would just put together a quick post.

The letters are actually called paper mache letters and can be found here. They only sell a few letters - I have no idea why - but hopefully the one you need is there.

I have also found them online here , although they are a bit pricey. But it looks like they have all the letters.

For Felecia - not quite sure why the pod modge messed up the photos. I glued all my photos on with the mod podge, then let it dry overnight, then sealed it all. Was yours dry when you tried to seal it? Your other option is to just not seal it. I made a photo heart, didn't seal it, and it has been fine.

Hope that helps everyone!

my stenciled floor, skirted buffet, and kitchen prettiness

2011-12-20T13:10:00.000-06:00

Right before every holiday or party when we have people visiting our home, I get on a decorating kick.

I want to have a new project or two to show off.

So this year, prior to our Christmas guests arriving, I decided to tackle a few projects that have been on my mind for at least 6 months. That deadline of an arriving plane is a great motivator.

To start, the downstairs bathroom floor:

This floor is just no-wax vinyl squares, that are stained and gross because for whatever reason I chose white floors for the bathroom and mudroom when we moved in 7 years ago. What was I thinking??

I found a pretty 12 by 12 stencil online.

Eventually I would love wood floors in here, but until then, this will do.

Then there's the buffet in the dining room. That is overflowing with toys.

I have been wanting to hide that mess for a really long time, and finally decided to break out the ironing board and adhesive to get 'er done. I avoid my sewing machine at all costs.

Finally, I wanted to pretty up the kitchen corner a bit and had extra muslin from the buffet skirt, so I decided to make a faux skirt for the kitchen sink.

Faux, because I just attached a cafe rod to the cabinet door, instead of removing the door completely.

Because I still have kiddos running around and don't want them playing with the clorox wipes.

That's it, folks!

Our guests arrive tonight, my twins turn 5 tomorrow, they have a party on Thursday, I work on Friday, and one of the twins is puking today.

Such is life. Hoping my sweetie pie feels better for cupcakes tomorrow.

Have a wonderful holiday!!

Okay. Figured it out.

2011-12-14T17:35:00.001-06:00

Well, not quite sure what happened, but I figured it out.

So here are the rest of the pics.

My new favorite spot in the house. Right next to my Christmas present (the fireplace).

The dining room.

Christmas

2011-12-14T17:07:00.002-06:00

I keep waiting for the time when my house is perfectly clean to take Christmas pictures, but I have realized that is not going to happen. So I went around the house this afternoon and took some pics.

Now for whatever reason my post and all the pics are only showing up in html code.

So I have no idea what pictures are what.

So I can't really comment on stuff. Sorry. Hopefully I can figure this out soon.

In the meantime, enjoy the pics!

Above the kitchen cabinets

2011-11-13T20:43:00.003-06:00

Happy Fall!

We had a great Halloween - when we got home all our toys were gone! I guess that's a good sign. We'll have to do that again next year.

You know that space above the kitchen cabinets? The one that is always so difficult to know what to do with? I have never been a fan of decorating up there...maybe some baskets or cookbooks would be okay. With our recent kitchen "redo" I decided to go a different direction.

This space was empty for several months, but it soon began to feel cold.

I really love the current "living room kitchen" look that is in all the magazines lately - you know, making the kitchen look more like a room as opposed to a function. So I thought, "brass frames with matted pictures". More living room, less kitchen.

So this is what I ended up with.

The frames were 1/2 off at Hobby Lobby - I think $12 a piece. Then I purchased the mats, put in some cardstock the same color as the wall, and cut pictures out of my favorite coffee table book.

I think it really brings things up a notch. And maybe for Christmas I'll put in some vintage Santa pictures.

Now I just need to put in some glass cabinet doors, maybe a skirt for under the kitchen sink, some bun feet for the lower cabinets, chalkboard paint the island, etc.

On another note, I am working on launching my own health coaching business! I will let you all know the launch date when I have it set. Please feel free to contact me if you know of anyone who wants to live a healthier lifestyle but needs some help getting there. It is very interesting going through this process - learning how to "sell myself" - let go of the "employee mindset" - and allow myself to dream big.

Here's to looking at things from a different perspective!

Have a great day!

something different for Halloween this year

2011-10-20T13:29:00.004-05:00

We are trying to make healthier choices, eat more organic foods, more fruits and veggies, and exercise more. So when I was at Sam's club ready to pick up 3 off those huge-mongous bags of candy to pass out to all the trick-or-treaters, I kinda felt like a hypocrite. Sure, we could be one of those houses that hands out raisins or pennies, but I thought I would try something different.

I bought a bunch of cheapo fun toys from one of those party supply catalogs we all get in the mail and throw away.

Puzzle erasers, pumpkin puzzles, activity books, glow-in-the-dark plastic slinky's,

eye puppets,

and glow bracelets.

We also got some cute hamburger, hot dog, and french fry erasers.

Oh, and these:

When was the last time you played with a boomerang?

They even have instructions on how to throw them!

The cost? About the same we would have paid for all the candy. Because we get a gazillion trick-or-treaters. And this way, I don't have to eat whatever is leftover and gain another 5 pounds. I can give it to the school for behavior rewards.

What are you passing out for Halloween this year?

Halloween decor and an apology

2011-10-18T14:41:00.006-05:00

Okay, so I was all excited about the 31 days thing, but got too busy with life that I just couldn't do it. So - I'm sorry. And Michele made the absolute cutest blog button for me...THANKS!! I really, super appreciate it!

I thought I would share some Halloween decor pictures from around the house, as well as our candy apple day.

The mantle:
I made the garland and "BOO" with scrapbook paper.

The fireplace is stuffed full of candles. Some are real and some are those fake ones. That way I can have ambiance without worrying about the house burning down.

The playroom:

In the kitchen:

Everyone's trick or treat bag is hanging on their chair:

Oh - and I have a "new" table coming soon. It is actually about 50 years old...I can't wait!

My orange coffee table:

Outside:

Candy apple day:

That's it! Hope you have a great Halloween!!

31 Days

2011-09-30T15:05:00.002-05:00

I'm sure you all have heard about the 31 Days challenge starting tomorrow, and I thought I would join in.
I know, I haven't even completed 31 posts this entire year! So let's see if I can do it.
My subject??

31 Days to a Happier, Healthier Home.

Chalkboard paint, positive motivators, recycling, healthy meal choices, that kind of stuff.

I already have some posts in my head, but I don't have a blog button and guess I need one. I have been trying for 2 hours and just can't figure it out.

Any ideas?

See you all tomorrow!! I'm excited!!

A little fall and itty bit of Halloween

2011-09-27T15:07:00.006-05:00

I love decorating for fall.

If it was up to me, I would have all the pretty pumpkins and leaves out the first of September, but that is a tad bit early. So I wait until the leaves on the trees start changing color, then I start changing up my decor.

A very simple mantel, because this will be full of cobwebs and spiders in a week or two.

I had this tray in my basement and filled it with pumpkins and fake leaves.

In two days it turned into:

The Great Bionicle Pumpkin Battle of 2011.

Kids. What can you do.

Anywho,
I also kept the front porch easy because of the Halloween changes that will be occurring next week.

I was feeling the creativity bug yesterday, so made these black and orange pom poms.

I thought they gave the playroom a festive, fun feel.

And this is the first room you see upon entering our house, so it will be interesting for all those trick or treaters.

This really is just the beginning, but wanted you to see what I've been up to.

I would show you all the progress I've made in the kitchen, but it looks exactly the same as my reveal! I have painted the kitchen island three different colors, only to finally paint it back to its' original cream. Ugh. Such is the creative process..

Have you started decorating for fall yet?

I am linking up with Hooked on Houses!!

the kids' artwork...

2011-09-20T09:16:00.005-05:00

...and miscellaneous items.

I started getting sick and tired of cleaning up the same things every. single. day. Things like markers, paper, wipe-off boards, puzzles, well-loved books - so I decided to corral them all into one main area where the kids can get to them easily. And also clean them up easily.

I had this little bookcase:

in my basement. I put a coat or two of paint on it then filled it up.

The bookcase houses puzzles, notebooks, letter boards,

books, LEGO magazines, workbooks,

and special friends.

The wall behind the bookcase looked very lackluster, so I painted a huge rectangle area of the wall the same color as the bookcase. I then trimmed it with ribbon and filled it with my boys' artwork.

I also trimmed the top of the bookcase with the same ribbon:

My boys can get to everything whenever they want.

And it is sooooo easy to clean up!

If there is a new, exciting toy or magazine, I always put it on this bookcase so it doesn't get misplaced, broken, or lost.

Well, this is outside this morning:

A cup of tea and the new House Beautiful are calling my name!

Believe it or not, I actually have some other posts written! I'll be posting those this week.

See you soon!

The 7th birthday party

2011-07-09T20:25:00.006-05:00

We usually have my oldest son's birthday parties out somewhere - Chuck E. Cheese, Bounce Town, etc., but this year he wanted a party at our house. And he wanted to invite all 26 kids from his class. I nixed the 26 invitees, but did say okay to having the party at our house and inviting all the boys along with some neighborhood friends.

We had a Super Mario Brothers theme and he asked for cupcakes:

so I made them to look like the mushrooms from the game. I also decorated a cardboard cupcake stand I bought from Joanns (with a coupon, of course!).

We had an obstacle course:

scavenger hunt, and pizza:

It was in the high 80's with little breeze, so my birthday boy was super sweaty when it came time to blow out his candle.

A little Charlie Brown to cool down:

and that's a wrap! The invitation said from 11-1, but friends ended up staying until 5. All in all a successful party!

Love you lots, sweetheart. I absolutely cannot imagine my life without you. Here's to another great year!!

A couple of changes in the dining room

2011-07-06T10:10:00.004-05:00

Because of the warmer summer weather, I was feeling the need to take down some curtains and let the sun shine in!

I took away the floral drapes:

and added some cedar, exterior shutters instead:

I also moved the vase with branches from in front of the mirror over to the window.

so now the mirror really bounces around the light since there is not something in front of it.

I love the shutters:

I found them on homedepot.com, but they were custom order so they took a few weeks to arrive. But that's okay....they were well worth the wait! They make the room feel more open, less formal, and even a bit rustic.

The next project for this room will be adding beams to the ceiling. Check out the tutorial here.

That will wait until fall since I am officially project-ed out. With the kitchen, dining room, and gardening outside complete (for now), I am taking a break to enjoy the rest of the summer with my kids. We have only one more week of swimming lessons and baseball, then we will be free to:

go to the pool
have a bubble day
go to the library
have a campfire and roast marshmallows
play in the sprinkler
have an art day
go to the Field Museum
go to the Children's Museum
have a picnic
lay around and watch movies
catch fireflies

am I missing anything?

In preparation of my now-7-year-old's birthday party we had at our house yesterday, I added some fabric to our outdoor spaces. I'll post about that, and the party, soon.

Have a great day!!

kitchen reveal

2011-06-30T09:01:00.006-05:00

I know I promised this yesterday, but the kitchen was a mess the whole day. I was of course waiting for the kitchen to be spotless and kid-less to take the pictures...that never happened.

I realized that the kitchen is always the most clean first thing in the morning, so I took the pics while the kids were eating breakfast. Hence the pop-tart box on the island, placemats, etc.

Remember before?

New granite, backsplash, paint, and window valances.

I am completely in love with the tile. I found it on overstock.com

I installed it myself, which saved me a cool $500-$600 install price. The tile itself was only $300, and I bought a wet saw as opposed to renting one, just because I knew I had to work on the tile whenever I had the time. I didn't have a full day to just focus on tiling.

It took me 3 weeks to complete.

I bought the saw from Lowes for $89. Best money I ever spent. I made about 350 cuts, and it is still going strong!

Because the tile did not have a finished edge, I had to install trim pieces on the top around the window and on the edges.

I also bought new outlet covers. The cheap plastic ones just didn't cut it once the pretty tile was in place.

I bought the huge drum pendant over the kitchen sink from Ballard Designs. It was one of those adapter kits - all that was there before was a recessed light. Sure I could have gone with a smaller size, but why?

I went with a really dark brown paint on the walls. The kitchen feels so bright now with the glossy white tile and shiny countertops (not to mention all the windows), so I was ready to do something "wow".

The paint "wow"s me! I love it.

So, here is where I am today.

Deciding whether or not to paint this wall the dark brown also.

It's just paint, right? I'm thinking of trying it out...

And just because they were so good and cute:

Oh, and thank you Country Living for the reminder:

There it is, folks! Hope you have a great day.

I have also made a few changes to the dining room...will post that soon.

busy, busy, busy

2011-06-28T09:34:00.004-05:00

We've been incredibly busy lately. Even busier than during the school year! Things will slow down soon once we finish up baseball and swimming. Oh, and I still need to complete plans and make it through my soon-to-be 7 year old's birthday party.....that is at our house. Mario Brothers theme. Any ideas? I could use some!

Anyway, I will post pics of the kitchen soon which now has a full backsplash, new paint, new curtains, and soon new lighting. The light is supposed to be delivered tonight. I wanted to wait until it was pretty much all done before showing it off. So, hopefully tomorrow....

Today, I wanted to wish my wonderful husband

of 8 years

a happy anniversary!

I am even happier and more in love with you today than I was the day we got married. You are a wonderful husband and daddy to our 3 beautiful boys. I am so lucky to have such a caring, supportive, responsible, fun, goofy man to share my life with. The past 8 years have been incredible....looking forward to the next 80....

I completely promise a kitchen post tomorrow. Seriously.

May 3rd - granite day

2011-05-19T12:19:00.004-05:00

Remember this?

Well, after this:

and this:

now we have this:

Oh, baby.

Love it!

The kitchen feels much more bright and airy now.

And the hubby wanted black granite....silly. I think he has changed his mind. Not that he has a choice at this point.

Of course, now we are stuck with the ugliness on the walls from the ripping off of the old laminate "backsplash". My hubby filled in the big holes with joint compound, and we plan on covering them with this:

I was pretty much set on a subway tile backsplash, but at the last minute decided to go in a very different direction. I know subway tile is "classic" and will "be around forever", but everyone is putting in a subway tile backsplash nowadays. I think, for that reason, in several years it will date some kitchens. So I decided on a tile that is very different and, I think it is safe to say, this will be the only kitchen in a 60 mile radius with this tile. Maybe even more.

Oh, and I purchased it all for around $300! Can't beat that!

Now, to install it.

I have a couple of phone calls out for quotes, but I am thinking of tackling the tile install on my own.

To help me get the nerve:

I'll let you all know.

Maybe I'll start posting more frequently again. School's almost done, but baseball has started. Then swimming. Then camp. Then gym classes.....

Photo gallery and some granite

2011-04-28T13:16:00.004-05:00

I have a small desk in the kitchen that was supposed to be a butler's pantry - it is basically the walkway between the kitchen and dining room. When we built the house I decided we absolutely did not need a butler's pantry, but definitely needed a desk.

Best decision I ever made.

I have done many different things with my small "office", as far as decorating the walls and such, and recently decided to surround myself with a photo gallery of my boys.

I used 3M "picture hanging strips" for the cabinet doors, and took the glass out of the frames (just in case).

So now, when I look up from the monitor, I see this:

and this:

All my sweeties.

On another note, 5 days till granite installation:

I know some of you think granite it overdone, trendy, too difficult to care of, etc., but I love it.

Love it!

I looked at every (affordable) option out there, and nothing came close to the granite. I did have to shop at 5 different places before I found just the right slab, but once I found it I knew it belonged in my kitchen. Honestly, if we had white cabinetry, I probably would have gone with butcher block countertops. But since I love my wood cabinets and refuse to paint them, so here you go:

Now to choose a backsplash.

I figure I will have to live with the granite for a month or so before deciding on the backsplash.

Hope you all have a fabulous day!

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T16:44:00.006-05:00

We had a fun-filled Easter this year.

The festivities started on Friday with cupcake baking:

Then onto Saturday with the neighborhood Easter egg hunt,

cupcakes,

and the (creepy) Easter bunny!

Back inside to color eggs with Memaw:

This was the first year ever that we could have our Easter day egg hunt outside! It is usually in the 30s on Easter, but because it was so late this year, we ended up with a beautiful day in the 50s.

Baskets full of "stuff".

And happy boys.

I found these fun blow up things from Oriental Trading - the boys completely love them! They can rough house with each other and nobody gets hurt....

We had a fantabulous holiday this year.

Today is back to chilly weather and rain. And school. And I have eaten at least 10 pieces of chocolate. And now I have to put all the Easter decor away and find a place for all that candy!

Next week is granite installation (did I mention we are getting granite countertops?), then I need to decide on a backsplash. I love subway tile, but is it too ---trendy??

Hope you had a wonderful Easter!

See you next week.

Too clean and too organized?

2011-04-12T20:25:00.003-05:00

photo from here

Is it possible?

Can your house be soooo put together and perfect that it sways into the realm of unhealthy?

photo from here

I have been thinking about this lately.

I am a magazine junkie - 7 subscriptions - and one thing I have always liked about magazines and the beautiful, perfect homes in them is "well, these aren't real people...the house had help from a stylist for the photo shoot....it was professionally decorated.....these people have a ton of money....", etc.

But in blogland we have real people, with real homes, and real incomes.

And it drives me nuts when I see perfect, non-messy, clutter-free, sparkling clean homes. Especially when it is a home that children live in.

Because if she can do it, I can do it too. I should do it, right?

So I clean, and organize, and put toys away constantly, and put dishes directly into the dishwasher so that they never touch the sink, and clean the kitchen floor 3 times a day, and on and on.

And then I started thinking - why on earth am I spending all this time cleaning? And putting things away? And re-organizing things that have already been organized?

I mean, how important - in the grand scheme of things - is a perfect home?

IT'S NOT! Not at all. Actually, it is probably one of the least important things in life - in a happy life.

Don't get me wrong, I love having a tidy home and decorating and that will not stop. But the perfect-ness of it all will stop. I didn't clean up toys until bedtime today, the breakfast dishes were still in the sink at dinnertime, and I have 3 months worth of magazines sitting on the coffee table - because I like looking through them, especially when my husband is watching basketball. And guess what? I am still here, I still love my home, and my family still loves me.

Lesson learned.

How clean is your home?

How to add crown molding to kitchen cabinets

2011-04-04T13:05:00.003-05:00

Yes, I'm still here.
Just busy.

So glad it's spring...can't wait to dig into the garden. I'm thinking landscape lighting this year. And a new flower bed.

Anyway, here is your tutorial.

****I need to start off by saying I am NOT a carpenter, cabinet maker, or woodworker. I am a DIYer and I learned how to do this project by surfing the web, and by lots of trial and error. My job is not perfect. I am not planning on selling my house anytime soon....if I was, I would have probably hired someone to do this for me. So if you tackle this project and it looks lousy, please don't blame me.****

This project is as simple as:

1. Nail a 1 to 1 1/2 strip of wood or plywood to the top of your cabinets.

2. Cut the crown molding to the proper lengths.

3. Nail the crown to the wood strip you installed in step one.

4. Fill in the corners with caulk and paint or glaze to your liking.

Yup.
That's it.

Sounds easy, right?

Actually, it is easy once you are comfortable with your miter saw, measuring, angles, nailing, etc.

I went through 3 6-foot pieces of crown because of mistakes in measuring and cutting the wrong angles.

So my advice is: practice, practice, practice. And have lots of patience with yourself.

And buy extra crown.

I wanted to get a bit fancy and have a staggered look to the cabinets that is so popular right now.

So I built a 3-sided box with 1X6 pieces of wood to fit right on top of the cabinet I wanted to stagger. I just glued it together. Then I glued the crown to the box. Then I put the whole box right on top of the cabinet. I could glue it down, but I would like to be able to remove it if the staggered look becomes dated.

A lesson learned:

READ AHEAD if you are going to do this project. Know how to do the whole thing before you start. I should have cut an outside corner here, but I didn't read ahead and just made a straight cut. I didn't realize until after the crown was already nailed that I made the wrong cut. So I had to make a corner piece and glue it in place. And it doesn't look pretty.

So I decided to remove the cabinet doors and make a "custom hood" complete with shelf.

I took off the corners that I made and am still working on finishing it off.

So there you have it!
Are you ready to tackle yours?

Recent projects....

2011-03-03T12:35:00.004-06:00

Yep.

Almost one month since my last post.

Things are busy around here.

And I have been making lots of changes.

You know the whole cowhide rug thing? There is a great discussion about it here at The Stories of A to Z.

I completely fell in love with with Emily's rug, so:

I bought it.

I know, I am a total copycat. But isn't it awesome? It's fake. I was a little freaked out with the shape of it, so I put it here under the coffee table and couch, and now it isn't so freaky.

And it is super-duper soft and cozy.

It cost under $200 so when I am sick of it, I'll just move it somewhere else. Or put it away for a bit. No biggie.

The room didn't look right with the cowhide and the previous floral curtains, so I bought dark brown faux silk panels and love them! They are about 6 inches too short, so I will be adding a coordinating fabric to the bottom. Soon.

Then the room felt so brown, without my pretty blue and cream curtains, so I decided to add a bright and colorful picture to de-brownify the room.

I couldn't find one that I liked so I painted one:

I don't know a single thing about art, but I liked these colors together and started putting them on a canvas, and this is what happened.

I like it for now - we'll see how long it will last in here.

I'll probably take it down the next time we have guests. Just because it's a bit embarrassing....I mean, who am I to paint a picture and hang it up in my house for all to see?

Anyway, the blue rug that was in the TV room is now in the playroom:

And in the kitchen:

Can you see it?

The island now has a butcher block top, thanks to IKEA and some great tips from TDC here.

Love it! And it will look even better once we put in granite countertops on the perimeter.

Today I am finishing up a pantry project, then on to the "custom hood" project over the microwave.

And I promise to post a tutorial on the cabinet crown molding project.

And someone asked a few posts back about the glazing on the banisters - no rubbing off at all. Not yet, anyway.

Did I miss any other questions?

I can't wait 'till spring - where is it already?

touches of valentine's day

2011-02-04T12:28:00.003-06:00

Since we have been snowed in, we decided to decorate a bit for Valentine' s Day.

I always forget I can draw on this mirror with dry erase markers. It adds a fun touch...

I found this awesome 2-sided Valentine's scrapbook paper at Michaels. I went crazy with it and used almost the entire pack for paper chains:

freehand hearts:

and crumpled it up for inside my favorite lamp.

Not bad for 10 bucks!

These little plastic heart boxes made it into my cart at Target - one of the kiddos snuck it in. But for $1 I couldn't say no.

Do you decorate for Valentine's Day?

Happy blizzard!

2011-02-02T16:32:00.004-06:00

We had a blizzard yesterday and last night.

Tons of snow, and wind gusts up to 70 mph.

It was kinda scary - my oldest ended up in our bed last night because the winds were so loud.

But it sure was a lot of fun to play in today!

In preparation of being snowed in for a day or 2, most people go to the grocery store.

But I went to Home Depot for a can of turquoise paint, and look at what I saw:

A whole kitchen cabinet refacing system including deglosser, primer, paint, and glaze. About $80. Not that I am in the market, but I thought it was really cool! "No sanding, stripping, or priming".

If any of you use this, let me know how it is! It seems like a really good idea.....

Stay warm!

fun v-day project

2011-01-24T11:55:00.003-06:00

It's been pretty cold around here lately,

so I thought I would warm things up a bit with a cute heart:

There is a small wall next to the chalkboard pillar that opens up to the dining room.

I decided to make this a heart wall (once I realized how many heart pictures I had around the house). I just decided to group them all together in one place.

And I needed an area to keep some books and activities easily available for the kids. As well as the "marble jar". This bookcase was just sitting in the basement, so I made my wonderful hubby bring it upstairs. It fits in this spot perfectly! It just needs to be painted a fun color.

I'm thinking turquoise?

Anyway, the heart:

It's just a piece of poster board that I cut into a heart shape.

Then I printed out family pictures onto regular paper and cut them out to fit the heart.

They are overlapping in places and it isn't perfect - but then again, nothing is.

Once the pictures were printed and cut, I just mod podged the whole thing together.

Just like the mod podge photo letters I made last year.

I taped it onto the back of that paper that comes with a frame. Because that area is kinda busy, I didn't want to do much more with it. But you could use scrapbook paper, wallpaper, a picture your child painted - whatever you want for the background.

Hope you like it and will maybe try it. It took me about an hour to complete.

What do you think of the bookcase? Is turquoise too----crazy?

How to glaze a banister

2011-01-20T15:22:00.006-06:00

As promised, here is the tutorial on glazing banisters.

First, the supplies:

latex paint, glaze, lots of rags, small disposable bowl, and plastic spoon for stirring.

I used this paint:

a nice dark brown to help cover up the orange, but still keep the banisters wood-toned and rustic-y looking.

Pour the paint and glaze into the bowl and mix together. I cannot tell you the paint:glaze ratio - I just work with it until it seems right. It is better to go with more glaze than less - if you do not use enough glaze the mixture will not go on smooth enough, and the paint will glob up and make the banister look (and feel) dirty.

This is the ratio I used:

As you can see, once it is mixed together the color of the paint does lighten up a bit. So keep that in mind when choosing a paint color.

Next up, "paint" the banisters with the paint/glaze mixture. With a paint brush.

Then immediately wipe it off with the rag.

I found it is easier, and less sticky, if the rag is just a little damp. Don't get the rag wet, because you will end up completely wiping all the paint off. The goal is to wipe off whatever is laying on top and not soaked in.

Here it is after one coat:

And after 4 coats:

So, you are not going to see much of a difference after the first coat, and you'll think "why on earth am I doing this?". But after a few more, it is a noticeable difference. Less orange-y, more rustic-y. Just make sure you allow it to dry for at least a couple of hours before starting a new coat.

And you can keep the bowl with the mixture in it in a ziploc bag and work at your leisure - it won't dry out if it is sealed.

This project is not a huge, dramatic change. So if you are looking to really change things up, you should probably go through the whole sanding-everything-down-and-restaining-it-all process. There are some fabulous tutorials in blogland about re-staining or painting your banisters. Why didn't I do that? Because I like the wood, I like rustic looking stuff, and I refuse to use any chemical in this house that lets off unsafe fumes. I have 3 little kiddos and will not allow them to be exposed to anything that says "must use gloves" or "open windows for ventilation" or "wear a mask". No home project is worth that to me.

On a side note, how cool would my multitude of stairs look like this:

I am currently in love with Dash and Albert rugs.

I want to rip up all the carpeting, paint the stairs, and staple on an awesome runner like the one above. And they have a million choices. Should I do it?

Let me know if you are going to glaze your banisters - I would love to hear about it!

Lately......

2011-01-19T11:41:00.008-06:00

This month has been great.

We are having a "month of nothing".

That means we buy only the necessities - groceries, gas, toiletries, etc.

Nothing extra.

We have, however, continued with certain things that are paid monthly with our bills - karate class, Netflix, I take a pilates reformer class.....and while we realize these things are by no means necessities, we decided to keep them anyway.

that's my guy on the right - testing for high white belt - so proud of him!

The point is not to take everything away, but to become more aware of our spending habits. When we shop, why we shop, how much we really spend.

And how much time we spend shopping.

So far, so good.

If I need to go to Target, I get what is on the list and that's it. And I only go when I need to, not every time I drive by.

No fast food, sale shopping, Home Depot trips, IKEA trips - nothing.

And believe it or not, I had enough supplies laying around that I was able to tackle one project, and I am ready to start on another.

don't worry - it's not what you think

What have I learned?

I am not going to "impulse buy" anything anymore. I think I have wasted a lot of money with "impulse buying".

If I see something I want, I will make myself think about it for a least 3-4 days before deciding to go back and buy it. I have seen a lot of things online and at Target recently that I would have just purchased last month, but because I am forced to think about it for an entire month now, I can honestly say there is not one thing that I will go back and purchase.

And if I would have just bought those things - money down the drain.

I have been eyeing this:

from IKEA. For the TV room. I have been looking at it since October, and I think I will buy it.

Next month.

Maybe.

Anyway, I have also noticed how much more time I have - because I am not running a multitude of errands for whatever reason I felt was necessary.

It's great.

I think my spending habits have been changed.

12 days left, and I am fine.

I'll let you know what happens on Feb. 1st.

I promise you a tutorial on the banister glazing tomorrow, and the crown molding tutorial soon.

the long awaited post

2011-01-03T21:45:00.007-06:00

Alright.

Here it is.

Things are finally starting to calm down a bit, so I thought I would just post pictures of the last two months worth of activities and projects.

December was very busy with our gingerbread house party:

which was a huge success!

A few days later my little babies turned 4:

How on earth did that happen so fast?

Then Christmas hit our house. I was lucky that my parents, sister and her family were all able to drive up here to celebrate the special holiday with us:

To get the house ready for all the festivities, I purchased a new light for the dining room:

and added some molding to the playroom ceiling:

Then there was the kitchen cabinet project.

I said I was going to do it by Thanksgiving, and I finished half of the cabinets by Thanksgiving morning. I finished the rest about 6 days before Christmas.

So here is the before:

and now with the new crown molding.

I added a box/extension to the middle cabinet, to give it that staggered look that is so popular right now.

Then I just glued on a wood accent from Lowes to spice it up a bit.

I'm thinking I would like to figure out a way to make that whole upper cabinet look like a hood - take off the doors and put up some beaded board, maybe a shelf to hold a picture or plates or something. I'm still working on that....

The other wall of cabinets before:

and now, with a straight piece of molding across the top and a plate rack:

I think the plate rack makes the cabinet feel more like a custom piece.

I also added a small piece of trim to the bottom of all the cabinets:

I added the same trim to the shelves I made for my cookbooks:

Still working on the accessorizing of these.

I am not a good accessorizer.

Last, but not least, my orangey railings got a couple coats of glaze.

Before:

Now:

Whew.

I'm exhausted.

What do you think of everything?

Please don't tell me to paint my kitchen cabinets white. Believe me, I have thought about it. And I have seen some drop-dead gorgeous white kitchens out there - but it's just not my style. I know everyone is doing it and it makes such a big impact, but I really love the warmth of the wood and I love seeing the grain. I know white cabinetry would look fresh and modern, but that is not what I am going for. I love kitchens (and homes, for that matter), that are lived in, warm, and cozy.

So the wood stays.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.

I'll drop in more often now that things are back to normal.

Please let me know if you all want tutorials from any of the above projects - I will be happy to post that for you.

I've been a bad blogger.....

2010-12-13T11:57:00.003-06:00

.....I know.

I have done sooo many projects lately - crown molding on the kitchen cabinets, made and trimmed out new shelves for my cookbooks, glazed the banisters, hung a new light light fixture in the dining room, made a plate rack....oh, and decorated for Christmas.

And I haven't blogged about any of it.

We are having a Gingerbread House decorating contest this weekend for the neighborhood kids, and then my parents, sister and her family are joining us for the holidays - YEAH!!!

Oh, and my cutie twins turn 4 on the 21st.

I guess I have just been so busy planning and getting the house ready for the next 2 weeks, that I have forgotten about my blog.

Sorry, ladies.

And now - believe it or not - there is not enough space on this computer for me to download new pictures of everything. So I am waiting for my husband to install more memory......

Once he does that, I absolutely promise to have a nice long post of all my recent projects.

For now, I must work on new curtains for the sliding door in the kitchen, and figure out what to do with the dining room ceiling...trim?paint?trim AND paint?

See you all soon...

Happy holidays!!

What you can do with 3 bucks and 5 hours

2010-11-16T16:59:00.005-06:00

Thanks to Nichole over at Parlour I figured out how to turn this:

into this:

It was really quite simple.

You just need a paper lantern:

a glue gun, and about 500 coffee filters.

Oh, and a few hours.

I love how dramatic it is.

And different.

And how it adds a nice feminine touch to my otherwise masculine playroom.

This project - DONE.

Now onto the next.

I did it!

2010-11-12T13:08:00.005-06:00

But it's more of a chalkboard column, than chalkboard wall.

(Please excuse the messes in all these pictures. I'm too tired to clean up and I still have to go to work today...)

Overall, I love it.

But you know that whole snowball effect?

How one little change can lead to another, then another...

Somehow the blue island doesn't seem to work anymore.

And I think I need to get rid of the "Family" vinyl lettering on the wall in the foyer - that craze is on it's way out, anyway. Right?

And the stuff on top of the cabinets is too much - doesn't look right anymore.

And the cabinets need some crown molding - I wonder if I can do that before Thanksgiving?

And maybe some little shelves here instead of the candle sconce?

Anyway, back to the chalkboard column - I thought in keeping with the current holiday season we should have an appreciation wall:

Per my 6 year old's instruction, we will add 5 things to this wall everyday until Thanksgiving, so the whole thing will be "all filled up".

Have a great weekend!

I will try to post more than once a week - I promise....

i want one....

2010-11-04T16:16:00.002-05:00

A chalkboard wall, that is.

Like the one in Tyler Florence's kitchen:

or in Lisa Teague's kitchen:

or this awesome wall found here:

But I have no idea where I could do this.

My home is open concept, so not a lot of walls.

But I am working on it.

I mean, it's just paint.

But it's awesome!!

Do you have a chalkboard wall?

This week

2010-10-29T12:41:00.002-05:00

It's been really busy this week.

I finally finished the foyer (more on that later), I have been running errands, working, cleaning, doing stuff for my boys' schools, etc.

My mom is visiting which is really nice. She helps get the kids going in the morning and does all 3 baths every night. Ahhh....

Before the crazy wind storms we have been having the past 3 days, the leaves were on the trees and were beautiful.

It was in the 70's one day, so we played outside.

We rode bikes,

raked leaves,

made leaf angels,

and jumped.

The porch is ready for Sunday night.

The candy has been purchased and is already in a bowl, waiting.

Still to do:
Costume parade at school at 2pm today.
Make Star Wars cookies for a Halloween party tomorrow night.
Date night with the hubby tonight.
Fall festival and corn mazes tomorrow.
Figure out a way to put a yellow lightning bolt on my black sweater so I can transform into a conservative, family friendly Miss Marvel.
Go to above said party.
Carve pumpkins.
Go trick-or-treating.
Eat lots and lots of candy.

I went out to breakfast with my mom yesterday while the kiddos were in school. Upon sitting in our booth I read a sign posted above a door:

Do one thing every day that makes you happy

Okay.
I'll go play with this guy:

Hope you have a wonderful and safe weekend!

Happy Halloween!!

The playroom

2010-10-23T22:27:00.004-05:00

I saw that 6th Street Design School put up a linky party for playrooms, and realized that I have never done a post showing where all the toys are in my house:

This is our formal living room.

We use it as a playroom.

It is currently decked out for Halloween - hence, the skeleton and spider webs (yes, I dust).

I love this room because although it functions great as a playroom, it can also serve as an adult space if necessary.

The basket of toys on the coffee/train table can easily be tucked away, and the toys in the carts are always hidden.

The shelves behind the doors are stuffed to the brim with cars, puzzles, kiddie laptops, etc.

Pretty baskets on the shelves provide extra storage.

Even the small "table" between the 2 chairs is full:

Every space is storage. The kids know where the toys belong, so clean up is easy.

Someday this will be my beautiful library; but for now, the kids and I enjoy sharing it.

Have a great weekend!

upstairs hallway finished!

2010-10-19T15:04:00.003-05:00

Well, here it is:

I love having all our family photos in the hallway - it makes it feel more like a "room".

And if things feel too busy, I just close the doors to the bedrooms.

The door to our bedroom stays closed most of the time anyway.

I couldn't get a great picture of the desk, but this is what I have so far:

It is a corner desk and fits almost perfectly into the space.

Now I feel like my man really has an "office".

Don't you love the feet on the file cabinets?

I was nervous about the black, but I think it works well.

The upstairs is all open to the foyer, so it can stand more black than I am used to.

Yay! Project - DONE.

Now on to the next.....

Spookified....

2010-10-16T08:56:00.003-05:00

...sort of

I didn't go all out with Halloween decor inside the house this year. Last year I made a bazillion bats and banners and hung things everywhere; but like the fall decor, I decided to go more simple this year.

Besides, my oldest now has to sleep with his blinds open and 2 nightlights, so I didn't want to make that situation any worse....

Just some spider webs, a few spiders, and this guy:

I made him in college. He (could be a pregnant "she" but I lost the plastic fetus and big round belly) is an anatomic model for learning bones, vessels and what-not. I really like him and had him on my desk for a number of years until my husband thought he looked rather silly, so he has been living in the basement recently. I thought he had a good Halloween vibe, so I pulled him out for the occasion.

Believe it or not, this is only one pile of all our Halloween books....

I usually leave the kitchen island empty, but I leave out sweet treats for the Halloween season.

My oldest made this cat dish at art camp last summer.

The big jack o lantern is filled to the brim with cookies.

That's about it this year.

Except for the outside.

We have a graveyard, skeletons, bats, spiderwebs.....

Is Halloween up at your house?

MIA

2010-10-14T13:43:00.005-05:00

I know.

I've been missing in action lately.

But I have good reason.

I've been installing some wainscoting in the upstairs hallway and landing.

This time I used my new compound miter saw for the chair rail and all those 45 degree cuts.

It took me a good day and a half to really get the hang of it - huge learning curve for me. But well worth the effort, because that thing rocks.

I love it.

Makes the upstairs feel very fancy.

I still have some touch ups to do, but I am getting ready to clean up and put a big DONE stamp on it.

And what is that big landing for?

My husband's office area.

I don't have any before pictures because it has been a mess of papers, mismatched file cabinets and bookcases, an ugly desk top, and all of my man's important stuff - like bobbleheads and star wars lego sets.

Now we have a new, beautiful corner desk sitting in boxes in the garage, waiting to join our family.

I just have to figure out how to make everything look nice, but still let my man have his stuff out.

I will work on that later, but for now:

a messy house is calling my name.

And the boys are getting haircuts today.

And The Office is on tonight.

I'll show you girls the desk once it is up - hopefully by Monday...

Have a great one!

Oh yea, and that Halloween post will be up tomorrow.

I'm joining:

Out of the norm for me

2010-10-07T12:12:00.005-05:00

So, I have been drooling over pictures like:

and

and

all photos from Houzz.com

I love the orange.

So I decided to do something a bit daring:

I painted my coffee table orange.

I don't have any orange in my house - the decor is blue, khaki, white, and some black.

But I love orange right now and really wanted an orange table, so I just did it.

I did buy a new pillow with some orange in it, but that's it.

I am usually much more matchy-matchy with my colors. But not this time.

I am surprised at how well it seems to fit in, despite the fact that it is the only orange thing in the room.

I love it! For now, anyway.

I may not like it once it starts snowing outside, but guess what?

I can just repaint it.

No biggie.

And I get my orange coffee table.

Do you have any orange furniture?

WIWW

2010-10-06T11:36:00.006-05:00

It's another Wednesday, girls!

Here are my outfits for WIWW and Inside Jewelscapes.

Thursday:

White ruffle tank - Chaps
Green cardigan - Ann Taylor Loft
Jeans - Levi's
Necklace - April Cornell (purchased 9 years ago - I don't think the stores exist anymore)
Sash - Ann Taylor

Friday:

White t-shirt - Target
Cardigan - H&M (last year)
Jeans - Target
Necklace - Lia Sophia
Shoes - Target

Saturday and Sunday I worked, dressed up in heels and everything. I didn't want to take pictures in a dark house at 6AM and by the time I got home I was too tired. Sorry.

Monday:

Shirt dress - H&M
Skinny jeans - TJ Maxx
Shoes - DSW Warehouse (Nickels)

Tuesday:

Black cami - Target
Black cardigan - TJ Maxx
Jeans - Ann Taylor Loft
Shoes - DSW
Necklace - Africa

That's another week!

Now off to look through the party links.

I have a simple project to show you tomorrow, and Halloween has officially arrived at my house! I'll show you more later this week.

This weekend

2010-10-03T18:05:00.006-05:00

This guy is finally feeling better:

He will be going to school tomorrow.

And I will go for a jog.

I got to go to the mall all by myself Friday night. And shop. I went to H&M. The last time I did that was December 2009.

J wanted marbles so badly on Friday that he did his homework when he walked in the door from school. That left Sunday evening free.

We ordered Olive Garden carryout Saturday night. My hubby ordered extra breadsticks, so I get to eat them all this week with breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

I made a crazy decorating decision today. Totally out of the norm for me, but something I drool over in magazines. So I will get started tomorrow.

And then I will show you all when it's done.

Brothers and Sisters is on tonight, and it is my hubby's night to bathe the boys - yeah!!

The best part of the weekend: laying on the couch with the hubby watching the Giants game, the house a complete mess, J playing legos on the floor, B looking at a toy magazine, and C cuddling up with me on my lap.

The worst: waking up at 5am, getting ready for work in the dark, having to sneak out of the house before anyone else is awake.

Just to have it documented somewhere so when my guys are talking normally, I don't forget how cute they sounded when they were still working on it:
Lucky Charms: "lucky chanas"
Cinnamon: "finasin"
Video: "dedeo"
Crisp: "frisp"
Spiderman: "hmhm man"
Milk: "gilk"
Lunch: "munch"

See you all tomorrow.

How was your weekend?

Have you put up Halloween yet?

New found inspiration; oh, and cool clothes, too

2010-10-01T13:47:00.004-05:00

I have finally found the Nienie Dialogues.

She is amazing. Very inspiring.

She reminds us all to slow down and enjoy every. single. second.

She makes me want to hang bird wallpaper in my foyer.

And go to Anthropologie. Now. To buy a ton of cute sweaters.

If you don't read her blog, you should. And start at the beginning - 2005.

And have you visited Ruche?

Extremely reasonably priced.

Actually, quite affordable. The necklace is $12.99.

I am loading up my shopping cart. I figure I can get 3-4 times the amount of clothing here for the same price as one sweater from Anthro.

Not that I don't love you, Anthro, because I do.

But I don't love spending $200 on a sweater.

I just can't do it. I can't.

Anyway, hope you all have a fabulous, fun, fall weekend!

marbles

2010-09-30T11:51:00.004-05:00

We have always used the 1,2,3 method of discipline in our family: 1 is a warning, 2 is you really better not do that again, and 3 is it. At 3, something is taken away - TV time, desert, extra playtime outside, whatever. This has always worked well for us for the discipline side of things.

But now that my oldest is in the first grade, I felt that he really needed to earn certain privileges - like playing the Wii, getting a new lego set, etc.

So we set up the marble system.

2 jars, one full of marbles, the other is empty.

Everyday, he can pick things off his list to earn marbles.

The marbles go into the empty jar.

5 marbles = Wii, computer, or i touch time
15 marbles = new lego set

Some things on the list, like homework, he has to do anyway, but earning a marble for it has really revved up his motivation. And the 15 minutes of reading? He read for 45 last night (so he earned 3 marbles). It really makes homework and reading time a positive experience. So I'll take it for now.

On a side note:

PLUS

EQUALS

Hoping the strep throat goes away really, really fast, sweetie!

WIWW

2010-09-28T17:05:00.007-05:00

Alright, so I have decided to participate in my first ever WIWW!

Aren't you excited? Just kidding.

Anywho, I only took 2 pictures this week.

Monday:
Tunic from TJ Maxx
Skinny jeans from TJ Maxx
flats from Target last year

Sweater is DKNY from Macy's
Tank underneath is BR
Jeans from Ann Taylor Loft
Skinny belt came with a pair of shorts
Necklace is Brighton

I had fun and this is definitely keeping me out of the sweats!

I have learned that when I am wearing nicer clothes and making an effort to look better, I do more. I do more laundry, more house cleaning, and run more errands. I don't take naps or lounge on the couch watching TV. I guess I feel that, since I am dressed nicer, I am ready for a day of work, instead of a day of lounging. Who would have thought?

Hope you have a great day.

I have to go get dressed now.

I am also linking up with Bejeweled Wednesdays

Fall

2010-09-28T16:56:00.009-05:00

Just some touches of fall around the house.

I'm keeping things really simple this year.

Horrible picture, I know, but I was trying to get a close up of the lanterns filled with pumkins and gourds.

My all-time favorite Home Goods purchase. Because of the wiring, there is no cord going down the middle of the jar, so I can fill it with larger items. Cool!

Happy fall!

I am joining the Hooked on Houses fall decor party and The Nester's fall mantel party.

This and that

2010-09-24T17:43:00.003-05:00

My oldest made it through his first math test yesterday. He went through 41 practice questions the night before. The test was "really easy". Thank goodness. One down, countless more to go.

Oh, and on the way to Tae Kwon Do tonight, he tells me he would rather have private karate lessons. Yea. Sure.

I am making these
I think I will have them for dinner.

My husband worked late Monday and Tuesday, I worked Wednesday and Thursday evening, and now he has been called back in this evening. Hopefully we will have some time together this weekend.

We have 9 opened boxes of cereal in the pantry. How many do you have?

I have become mildly obsessed with the What I Wore Wednesday linky party at Pleated Poppy. People wear some really cute stuff. It inspired me to go out and buy a pair of skinny jeans and a new sweater. Maybe I'll participate next week.....

Hmmm, maybe?

Because I need a good place to keep all my favorite recipes, I have decided to put them all in another "recipe" blog. Purely for information purposes. If you would like some ideas, the link is here. It's not fancy yet - just a couple of recipes for now. I'll add pictures and more goodies soon.

That's it. Hope you have a great weekend!

Letting go

2010-09-22T09:43:00.005-05:00

Thank you so much for all your kind words - this is why I love blogland.

Are you a Law of Attraction believer? I am. I also strongly believe in angels, and that they try to send us messages to help - it is up to us to notice and listen to those messages.

At the end of my "day of overwhelment" I was cleaning up in the playroom, tidying up the bookcase, and a book literally feel on my head from one of the higher up shelves. Now, my first thought was "Great, my house is attacking me. Just what I need." Then I took a step back and thought, maybe I should look at it.

It is a book called The 7 Stages of Motherhood and it's good. I haven't looked at it in years, so I decided to just to flip through to remind myself of its contents.

This is what I read on the first page I flipped to:

Of course, preschoolers are never pressed for time; they may pick up on your anxiety when you're rushing them out the door, but they don't understand why or what's making you so upset. In that sense, they remind us daily of a lesson that I too often forget: Stop thinking about tomorrow. Seize the present and really enjoy it - even if "it" is basically nothing. Yes, that sounds corny, but it's far wiser than trying to cram soccer, art classes, music lessons, and preschool into your child's life at a time when it's often just as satisfying to sit on the stoop and watch the world go by.

What an excellent reminder, and just what I needed.

So, yesterday afternoon, I watched a movie. I laid on the couch and watched a movie while the twins were napping and my oldest was still at school. It was great.

And today:

a morning jog.

I have let go.

Whatever happens, happens.
If the house isn't perfect, so what.
If I can't fit into my jeans, I'll buy new ones. And try to make better decisions.
Projects can wait until I am ready for them.

And if I absolutely cannot find a navy blue paint that actually looks like navy blue paint on the wall (instead of turquoise - why is that?) then I will choose a lovely gray blue.

Have a great day, ladies!

And thanks again for all your well wishes.

Feeling horribly inadequate

2010-09-20T12:20:00.004-05:00

I've been feeling overwhelmed lately.

I'm assuming it has to do with the new school year (including daily homework assignments and daily reading), new karate classes, working, realizing I've gained 5 pounds and worrying about it, trying to look nicer everyday, watching reruns of Sarah's House:

and wanting to change every single thing in my home, reading other blogs and looking through link parties while feeling horribly inadequate, realizing how much work the upstairs hallway project is really going to take, blah, blah,blah.

And the happiest I felt in the last few days was spent laying on the floor, playing around with my boys, while the house was a complete mess. I typically can't relax when things are out of place and the house is in chaos, but at that moment for whatever reason, I was extremely happy, satisfied, whole.

I am trying, really trying, to put things in perspective.

I mean, in the end, what really is important?

Is having a perfectly decorated and continually clean and organized home a necessity for a happy and fulfilling life? I not, then why am I spending so much time on projects, vacuuming, dusting, decorating, re-decorating.....

I love decorating, I really do, but I am wondering if I am losing my balance. I am crabby, difficult to be around, and everything bothers me.

I am going to try some new things this week. I will work with my Sedona Method book (if you haven't heard of this it's really worth a quick view of the website) and will release the need to be perfect. To have a perfect home. To want others to be impressed. To want my husband to be impressed. To want to be the best most perfect mommy in the world. To want to make everyone around me happy.

So, off I go. Wish me luck.

By the way, did you notice the dining room chairs in the above picture? I flipped out when I saw that she used the same chairs in her dining room that I just bought for my kitchen table!!

A $2 custom dining room touch

2010-09-15T10:22:00.004-05:00

Once I bought my new chairs for the kitchen table, I was able to move the upholstered chairs back to the dining room.

They looked too matchy, matchy, so I decided to cover them with slipcovers I bought at IKEA last year.

They were only one dollar! Seriously. They actually go with a different chair,

so the fit is far from perfect. But for a buck, who cares.

They looked a bit stagnant, so I decided to embellish them a bit:

I cut a big "K" out of some old blue fabric that actually matches the blue of the side chairs perfectly. I just drew the "K" on the fabric with a sharpie (after practicing on some scrap paper first), cut it out, and used fusible webbing to iron it on the slip cover.

And voila! A whole new custom look for the dining room for only $2.

Chair happiness

2010-09-10T15:35:00.004-05:00

I have been waiting and waiting to buy these new chairs from IKEA ever since I saw them in a recent Country Living magazine:

They finally were in stock yesterday, so I grabbed the kids and made an afternoon IKEA run.

I am so happy!

If you can remember:

I used to have 2 blue upholstered chairs (that actually belong in the dining room) at either end of the table, and that happens to be where my twins sit for every meal.

Needless to say, the slipcovers on those chairs are ruined, faded, and done.

And I was nervous of spilled milk, juice, cheeto's fingers - on upholstered chairs. Not easy to clean. Really, what was I thinking?

Anyway,

Oh, so happy.

And only $80 a piece.

I cannot wait until winter - I love photos of wicker furniture all dressed up for the holidays.

I am thinking of hanging my mini wreaths on them....

How to fit a mud room, laundry room, food pantry, outdoor gear storage, gift wrapping station, and coat closet into a 7' X 9' area

2010-09-06T15:40:00.009-05:00

Our mud room is the most popular room in our house, and it is the tiniest (only 7' X 9'). It is where we enter the house all the time. We never use the front door. Even when our families come for a visit, they use the mud room.

It needs new flooring, new lighting, some fun wallpaper..... all that is on my list. But at least for now, it is a completely functional, multi-tasking, flexible area that suits our needs, despite it's ultra-wimpy measurements.

The door with my zebra bag hanging on it goes out to the garage.

To the right is our mismatched washer and dryer with a ton of shelving above for food storage (Sam's club and bargain shopping stuff), cleaning supplies, the laundry basket, etc. One thing this room has is super high ceilings...

In front of the washer is a stool for sitting while dealing with your shoes (we don't wear shoes in the house), a mirror for a quick check before running out the door, hooks for keys, a lint roller, and a special place for the karate uniform my oldest wears 3 times a week (it is soooo much easier just keeping it in this room all the time).

To the right of the stool is the door that leads to the TV room. Backpacks and jackets are hung here.

Next to the dryer is our ugly utility sink which I made a skirt for. Umbrellas and my "gift-wrapping station" are in front.

A cute waste basket from Home Goods holds rolls of wrapping paper, gift bags and tissue paper inside, and a wine gift bag on the side holds ribbon. It is so convenient having the wrapping paper out like this - it saves a ton of money. Do you buy wrapping paper or a gift bag every time you buy a gift? I used to....

The opposite wall is my favorite:

an IKEA wardrobe unit.

It fits all our shoes, winter coats, spring jackets, baseball hats, winter gear, summer gear..... for a family of 5!

The bottom portion of the wardrobe has some drawers:

for swimsuits, beach towels, life jackets:

winter gloves, scarves, hats:

and even shoes that are not in season:

This room gets messy and needs to be cleaned up every single day, but it is what it is. I cannot make it any bigger. And I love having everything so easily accessible.

Is your mud room working for you?

Saturday

2010-09-04T15:33:00.013-05:00

(for my next project)

Have a great weekend!

- Danielle

School papers organized, year 2

2010-09-02T16:32:00.003-05:00

Last year when my oldest was in half-day kindergarten and the twins in their preschool program, I put together this organizing system that worked great.

This year, however, it seems as though the paperwork has increased by at least tenfold (I kid). So I needed a new system in addition to my system from last year.

I view blank doors as blank walls - I have pictures hanging on doors, plaques, and now, the home command center takes center stage on our kitchen pantry door.

I bought the wipe-off calendar and month labels at Michaels - it is really made for a classroom, but I thought it was a lot cuter than a plain calendar from Office Depot.

I put everything on this calendar, and it is all color-coded.
"When is Karate class?" - look at the calendar
"When do I need to be home from work early for you to go do that school thing?" - look at the calendar
"How many more days of school this week?" - look at the calendar

Then I needed some place to put important papers (weekly homework assignments, newsletters, lunch menu) where I wouldn't forget about them.

I cut each of my kiddos names out of scrapbook paper and glued it to card stock. I then used that sticky tac stuff to adhere it to the door.

I found this cute owl ribbon at Michael's and put up a line of ribbon under everyone's name. Important papers are then clipped to the ribbon.

Easy, cheesy. And it might be fun to change out the ribbon with the holidays - spider ribbon at Halloween, turkeys, then Christmas trees.

So there you have it!

Are you ready for the new school year? Please don't tell me all your school papers are sitting in a pile on the kitchen counter.....

Have a great day!

Entering a new phase...

2010-09-01T09:10:00.003-05:00

Well, it's official:

School has begun.

My oldest in now in 1st grade, which means he is gone all day. No lunches at home, no afternoon games, no backyard picnics. sniff sniff.

And these sweeties:

are in school every morning, 5 days a week.

So I am gaining some "me" time every morning which, believe it or not, is taking some getting used to. I think when we so much of our time taking care of the kids, house, husband, etc., taking care of ourselves just doesn't happen. Not only that, but it is so easy to feel guilty for being at home when the kids are all gone.

But don't fret - I have a ton of projects all planned out just waiting for me.

Also, throughout my "summer blogging break" I noticed a few things. The blogs I continually read day after day were blogs about life, motherhood, and fun. I also realized that I enjoy these blogs because they are real and don't care about "blogging rules" like no music, clean format, stick to one subject, blah blah blah.

So I am reclaiming my blog.

I will make a new fancy banner. I will talk about my kids and my life.

And I will of course share all my decorating projects because that is a huge part of my life.

So, onward and forward.

I hope you all will join me.

island reveal....

2010-07-08T19:09:00.006-05:00

So, this is what I chose:

The medium blue.

I felt that the light blue was too light, and the darker blue was too much of a statement (I'm not a "make-a-statement" kinda gal). The turquoise was beautiful but didn't match a single thing, and that would have driven me crazy.

I thought this blue fit in with the other blues but wasn't matchy-matchy. And I think it will look even better with a butcher block top on the island (my next project).

After painting it things looked too nice and neat, so I decided to do some distressing:

One of the benefits of painting it the darker blue first:

Isn't it cool how the darker blue and also white show up after some sand paper?

Now, should I paint my kitchen desk cabinets the same blue?

Hmmm, I am not sure.

Opinions?

I am linking up to Furniture Feature Friday - wow, I haven't joined a link party in months! Thanks Miss Mustard Seed!

Also,

Opinions please, and STAT!

2010-06-29T14:37:00.003-05:00

Thanks everyone for the welcome back wishes! You all are so sweet....

Okay, I need some help:

Do you see it?

My beautiful multi-colored island?

I just can't decide on a color. I primed the island with a white paint, thinking I was going to paint it white, then I really didn't like it. It was too bright, too stark. Boy am I glad I didn't start painting all my cabinets white - I would have been very disappointed. I know white kitchens are "the big thing" right now, and I have seen (we all have) some gorgeous white kitchens, but I guess it just doesn't work for me.

I am so glad I figured that out before it was too late.

Anyway, I decided to go blue, but which blue?

The light blue is the same blue that is on the playroom walls.

The turquoise doesn't match a thing in my house, but it might be nice to have an unexpected color.

The darker blue is the color I started out with, then I wasn't sure so I painted over it, now I am liking it again.

The darkest blue is closer to a navy blue. I picked this because it matches the chairs and curtains, but now I am thinking maybe it is too matchy-matchy.

Hmmmm, I can't decide.

And it has looked like this for at least 2 weeks now.

And I have family coming in town in 2 days. So I need to get moving.

Oh, and I am thinking about painting the desk area cabinets the same blue that I paint the island.

Please tell me what to do......

61 Days....

2010-06-23T15:45:00.005-05:00

Yep.

61 days since my last post.

But I haven't given up on my blog completely.

I think what it came down to was, "why am I doing this?", and I didn't have a great answer. I was burned out. Not on the decorating (I will never tire of decorating), but on the blogging, what was my next post going to be, was it interesting enough, how is my traffic, will I ever make money with this, do I want to make money with this, how is my template, I can't find the time to return everyone's comments, blah, blah, blah.

I have taken a break, and I am kinda missing it.

There are a few blogs I still visit every single day, but my computer time is way down. And I am happy with it.

I have made lots of changes around my home and have plans for lots more.

Just thought I would share some updated photos with everyone, and let you all know I am still around:

I rearranged the bookcases in the playroom and added royal blue paper to the back.

The dining room got a new coat of paint and a break from the white plates for now. I think it looks much more sophisticated. I also added a band of blue fabric to the bottom of the curtains, which matches the blue paper on the back of the bookcases.

And I completely stole the Nester's idea of painting the fireplace surround with chalkbaord paint. No more faux brick.

I wrote some of my favorite quotes on it. I think it looks kinda Ballard Design'ish.

And my sweet, cutie pies.

I promise I will post more often. I still have other projects in the kitchen and TV room I need to show you all.

Glad to be back!

Transforming Home is transforming

2010-04-24T18:11:00.006-05:00

I can't believe it has been 2 weeks since my last post.

I don't think I have ever gone that long between posts.

My blogging motivation is pretty much completely gone.

So what have I been doing with my time (besides working, taking care of the kids, cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.)?

Well, some of this:and this:
trying to get my body into summer mode.

We finally broke down and bought one of these:

Honda Odyssey

Can you believe we have been putting all 3 boys into the back seat of our Accord for the last 3 years? I was not all that thrilled about buying a minivan, but I have to say it is really nice, roomy, and the kids completely love it. So it was a good choice (and I promise to never, ever wear mom jeans. ever.).

I have made some changes to the dining room, TV room, and kitchen. I am always making changes - that is what is so much fun about decorating, right? And I am proud to say I haven't spent a dime.

So what is up with the blogging?

I don't know - all the other things are just becoming more important now. The time I used to spend blogging (in the mornings while the kids are all in school) I now spend at the YMCA doing yoga or step aerobics. And I am feeling great.

I no longer spend 2-3 hours a day sitting at the computer. I spend less than 1 hour, and I am very happy about that.

I am becoming more and more conscious about the choices I am making, and spending a lot of my time at the computer just doesn't seem right anymore.

I need to be outside.

I need to exercise.

I need to meditate and visualize.

I need to read more.

The yoga is incredible - I have tried it many times in my life and never really got into it. But this time I am in love. I guess I am finally in the right place to accept and enjoy it.

So there you have it.

I hope you all don't mind.

I will post some updated house pictures this week. I think I am ready to paint the kitchen island.

How is your blogging going? By the way, do you yoga?

The twins' room reveal.....

2010-04-09T09:33:00.006-05:00

...finally.

Just a reminder of what it looked like before:

And now, as you walk upstairs:

and then enter:

Please excuse the really ugly sticker on the headboard - it took me 1 1/2 hours to peel off the sticker on the other bed. I am peeling-off-stickered out. Maybe on a rainy day I will sit in that bed and work it....someday...

I love these beds. We actually have them set up backwards in the room - we are using the headboard at the foot of the bed and the footboard at the head of the bed. We did this because of the nice little open shelf on the outside of the headboard:

We didn't want this part pushed up against the wall. We wanted to use it.

And here is the other side:

These beds will work out great for my guys for as long as they live in this house.

And don't forget, these are bunk beds. So, in a couple of years, we will bunk the beds and that will free up a ton of floor space in here.

I put up a large bulletin board for all their art work:

It is just rolled cork on the wall with a simple frame made of the same lattice board I used for:

the really easy, simple board and batten I put up.

I found this bookcase in our basement:

It is great storage, but looked uninspiring just filled with stuff.

So I lined the inside with some old maps that were in my husband's closet:

I will likely add some trim to this bookcase when I am having one of those "I really need a project to do" days.

Even the closet was in on the fun:

And my favorite part of the room?

The ceiling. The stars glow in the dark. They are awesome. I want some in my room.

The twins are very happy - they love their new room and cool beds.

What do you think?

I am participating in:

Technical issues

2010-04-05T14:18:00.002-05:00

Hi ladies!

I know I promised the twins' room reveal today, but I am having internet issues.

Our router is broken.

My husband ordered a new one, but it will take 2-3 days to receive it.

So I have to put the reveal on hold - as soon as our internet is up and running again, I will post pics ASAP.

The room is pretty much done - the beds are awesome (totally worth the 3 1/2 month wait) - the comforters look great - the accessorizing is completed - I just need a working internet connection!

Hope you all had a fabulous Easter...

Waiting....

2010-03-31T09:53:00.004-05:00

One more day.

The beds come tomorrow.

They probably won't be put together until Friday.

I have a few finishing touches to add to the room.

I am hoping to post the room reveal on Monday.

Until then, here is some eye candy:

all photos from My Home Ideas

Wouldn't you just love to wake up in these rooms every morning?

$5 kitchen cabinet update

2010-03-28T21:04:00.012-05:00

So sorry for the absence this past week.

Things have been crazy around here - spring break, nicer weather, and I have been working at the hospital a bit more.

Also, the bunk beds are due to be delivered this Thursday (hip, hip, hooray!), so I have been in a mad rush completing the twins' big boy room.

In the midst of buying some molding and what-not at Lowes, I strolled through the wallpaper section and found the most wonderful thing: rolls of "grasscloth" wallpaper for 5 bucks! Awesome, I know, but it isn't really grasscloth. It is flat pre-pasted wallpaper that looks like grasscloth. But for 5 bucks, how could I not buy it?

I got it home, unrolled it, and decided to put it here:

I just cut it to size and put it up with double-stick tape.

This way when I get tired of it, I just take it off. No problem.

Since I was updating, I decided to clean out one of the upper cabinets, make it look pretty, and take off the doors.

I then backed the cabinet with the same grasscloth.

Again, super easy fix if I get tired of it. Just put the doors back on.

I had a post a while back about white kitchens, and I have decided to leave mine as-is for now.

While I was going through my decision-making process, I realized that although I enjoy white kitchens, I also love wood-toned and dark kitchens. So did I really want a white kitchen? No, I think I just really wanted a change.

So, for now, I have my change. And I am happy.

I do plan on painting the island a creamy, distressed white. As well as my computer area in the kitchen.

Now I need to figure out what to do with the other 2 rolls of "grasscloth" I bought.

Do you have an area in your home that a $5 roll of wallpaper could jazz up?

This is exactly why I love House Beautiful so much

2010-03-17T19:52:00.005-05:00

No, not because I think I could ever decorate a foyer as beautiful as this:

or cook in a gorgeous kitchen like this one:

or lounge on this sofa all day:

or curl up and read a good book in here:

all photos from House Beautiful

House Beautiful has always been about stunning homes and professional designers.

It has been my "bible" of decorating for over 6 years now.

But while the homes featured are incredible, the majority of them are completely unrealistic for most of us.

Still, I love it.

Why? I love it because the homes are never "showroomy". You know what I mean? They are all unique and different and have tons of personality.

And I think because of that "uniqueness", I can relate. I can relate to covering up the foyer wall with framed pictures and photos. I can relate to decorating a room around a big sectional sofa. I can relate to wanting my home be a beautiful, artful expression of myself and my family. And I can relate to wanting my home be different than everyone else's.

When I saw the cover of the April 2010 issue, I gasped. It is about wood! Which makes me very happy because I decided last week against painting my kitchen cabinets (more on that soon, I promise).

Then, when I quickly flipped through to the back section to read the little blurb by Stephen Drucker (the editor in chief), I gasped again. For those of you who do not read this great magazine, here it is:

I don't usually do this, but I'm going to get up on my soapbox this month: There's a mean streak creeping into the design world, and it concerns me. It started on TV; I'm seeing it more in comments on blogs; then recently there was a decorating contest here in New York that turned way too Simon Cowell for me. Hurling around your opinions is part of the fun of design, but there is a line. Decorating is not a blood sport. I don't want to see the less confident among us playing it safe, just to avoid criticism. That's the fifties all over again. The decorator Mark Hampton, who had strong opinions and the eye to back them up, once wrote, "I look askance at people...who have these enormous refined senses of hate." That thought always makes me think twice before I speak. As much as I like decorating, there are some things I like even more: individuality, and an open mind.

Well said Mr Drucker.

In your face RMS.

Do you have your House Beautiful subscription?

How I saved $1500 on groceries....

2010-03-15T11:35:00.005-05:00

....in the last 7 months.

Seriously.

And you can do it too - it's really, really easy.

This time last year my weekly shopping trip went like this:
1. Make a dinner menu for the week.
2. Make my list including all the ingredients needed for those recipes and all the other stuff.
3. Go to the store and buy what was on the list, typically sticking with the brands I was used to.
4. Monthly, I spent about $550 (for our family of 5).

Now my weekly shopping trip goes like this:
1. Carefully read through the sales flier every Tuesday.
2. Decide what is on a good sale and buy those items. If the sale is really good (meaning half off or buy-one-get-one (BOGO) free), then I will buy 2-3 months worth of that item.
3. Make my dinner menu according to what is on sale.
4. Go to the store without the kids (I always spend more when they are with me) and buy only what is on my list.
5. If I need something that is not on a good sale, I will find whatever is the best price of that item (not paying attention to brands) and only buy what I need.
6. Monthly, I spend about $320.

I have not changed the way we eat - we still have steak, lots of chicken breast, a special meal here and there, pot roast, prime rib......

Now, I know there is a ton of stuff out there about couponing. If you are in the Chicago area, you can visit JillCataldo.com or MashUpMom.com. These sites tell you what the really good deals are at grocery stores and even some good Walgreens and Target deals. These sites also include what coupons to use on items already on sale so you end up getting stuff super cheap. I remember last year I ended up getting 6 boxes of cereal for $.30 a box.

Couponing is a great way to save money, but I noticed that I ended up buying a lot of junk I would not have purchased otherwise, just because I got a great deal on it. So now, I only cut out coupons for items I know I will purchase at some point, like yogurt and soup.

So how did I save all that money? Basically, I now shop the sales and buy in bulk when something is a great price. That's it. Easy, huh?

Take home tips:
1. Most stores go through a 3-month price cycle. At some point in that 3 month cycle, every item will be at its' cheapest. The trick is figuring out when that cheapest price is, and buy 3 months worth of that item (which would take you until it is at its' cheapest price again).
2. When anything is either half-off or buy-one-get-one free, that is a really good deal. I almost always stock-up when something I need is at that price.
3. Any meat $1.99 per pound or less is a great deal. (I just bought 12 pounds of chicken breast this morning at $1.88 per pound - that should last us 2 months or so.)

Do you make a weekly or monthly dinner menu?

If not, you should! You will save yourself a ton of stress and money if you have a menu. Want some ideas? Check out Organizing Junkie - there is a meal plan link party every Monday. So far today there are 310 entries! Holy cow, Batman, that's a lot of recipes!!

Hope this helps some of you who may want to trim some money off your grocery bill.

And where am I going to go with my savings?

Just joking. I would need a lot more money for Bora Bora.

But we are planning a family weekend downtown this summer:

How much do you spend on groceries every month?

Could you trim that down?

In a blogging rut?

2010-03-11T12:22:00.003-06:00

I am.

I am posting every other day. I usually post daily.

I have visited maybe 2 blogs in the past 2 weeks. I usually visit at least 15 everyday.

My computer time is way down - to less than 2 hours a day (which includes email, news, and shopping time).

all photos from Country Living

What's up?

Is it the 6-month slump?

I am blaming it on the nicer weather.

I am spending a lot of time spring cleaning and organizing, which feels great.

I have finished a project or two. And I have made a decision about my kitchen cabinets (more on that later).

The bunk beds are on back order - for another month. We ordered them almost 3 months ago. I would have canceled the order but the beds are really cool. Meanwhile, the twins' bedroom is a complete mess with blue painters tape on the walls, paint cans in the corner, and toys strewn about everywhere.

So here I am.

Shouldn't this be fun? And exciting?

Please tell me I am not the only one who goes through this.....

Are you a minimalist?

2010-03-08T19:40:00.004-06:00

Or do you like to be surrounded by the things you love?

I switch back and forth between the two.

Typically, once the holidays are over I put everything away. I get so claustrophobic with all the greenery and decor that it feels like a breath of fresh air to have nothing out.

Then some time will go by and see a picture in a magazine like this:

It feels so comfortable, inviting, and cozy. I could easily spend an afternoon reading a book here.

So I start taking accessories out, enjoy them for a month or two, then I feel claustrophobic all over again and put everything away.

Ahhhh:

Nothing out but the basics and a few well-chosen accent pieces.

Since I am currently purging, I am in the "put everything away" part of the cycle.

How about you?

Do you prefer your decor simple and uncluttered:

or full of accessories, thrift finds, and the things you love to admire?

all photos from My Home Ideas

Apologies and a winner!

2010-03-06T11:20:00.003-06:00

So sorry for my absence the last few days.

That cold really knocked me down.

Yes, we did make it to Dr. Suess night and it was a lot of fun.

Now I am feeling better - the sun is shining today, it is in the forties outside, and I am feeling the need to purge. My husband is finally taking down the Christmas lights.

We have a winner! Congrats to Jennifer at The Apple Grove! Random.org chose your number. Email me with your address and I will get the books out to you ASAP.

Here is a picture that is motivating me today and stirring up some ideas:

from My Home Ideas

Hope you have a great weekend!

Get-well soon dance

2010-03-02T16:30:00.003-06:00

Well, I caught a cold from the twins.

I am congested, sneezy, have a headache, and just want to crawl into bed and stay there for a day or two.

Tonight is Dr. Seuss night at school.

My oldest heard there was going to be cake, so he has asked me at least 10 times today if I can take him.

I told him I wasn't feeling well, so he decided to do a get-well dance to make sure I am well enough to take him.

Hmm, I might be feeling a little better.....

Guess what??

2010-03-01T08:41:00.004-06:00

It's Transforming Home's 6 month blogiversary!!

When I started this blog 6 months ago, I had no idea how fun and educational this experience was going to be. I have learned so much about - people, decorating, motivation, happiness, creativity, determination, computers, writing, writer's block, photography - LIFE. I have come across such incredible blogs and inspiration, and I can honestly say may life has improved since joining this blogging community.

Since I love you all so much, and you are such an important part of my life, I have decided to celebrate TH's blogiversary with a giveaway!

You ladies know how much I love books, so I thought it was appropriate to have a book giveaway. And who wants just one book?

Leave a comment before March 5th for your chance to win both of these books (a couple of my very favorites):

The top book is great. It is easy to read and is full of usable information and tips about being less serious about everything and starting to really enjoy life.

And the Domino book?
Awesome! I love this book because it has a lot of "outside the box" ideas - that even us normal people can use. And if you don't like what's inside, just set it out on the coffee table - the cover is gorgeous.

So there you have it!

Have a great day everyone....

Why do you buy things?

2010-02-26T12:20:00.003-06:00

I have decided to get rid of "stuff".

I used to think that "stuff" was good and made me happy.

So I bought, bought, and bought.

I would spend my monthly budget on things because it was my money and I wanted to spend it. I guess I felt that, since I take care of the house and the kids and I go to work, I deserved to spend that money on whatever I wanted. A new decorative pillow (even though I easily have over 30 in my house), another basket, more picture frames, a new black t-shirt - most months I would search out things to buy just to spend my budget.

Now I am finally starting to realize that all that "stuff" is just "stuff". And it is slowly filling up my home. It doesn't have anything to do with happiness or well being. In most cases, it is not even a nice reward. All it does is cause stress and frustration when I can't open up a cabinet door without something falling out, or wear the shirt I want to because it is wrinkled from hanging in an over-stuffed closet.

So, I am rewarding myself by purging. I am getting rid of everything I don't use regularly, and I will only spend my money on projects and things I need. If I have excess at the end of the month it will go into savings for a large purchase (like a new workstation for upstairs or a pergola for the deck).

So, I have started in the kitchen.

Ahhh, that junk drawer is finally cleaned out.

We use restaurant coupons a lot, now we can find them easily.

My coupon book in now organized and ready for my next trip. Do you use coupons? I have saved $1500 off my grocery bill in the past 7 months using coupons and shopping the sales. $1500! I can do a post on that later if you like....

The kids cabinet. I should have taken a before photo, but I was so excited to get it cleaned out that I forgot. Anyway, things always feel out of this cabinet every time the door opened. Now it houses just the necessities (with room to spare!).

And next on my list:

I'll get there.

Have a great weekend everyone! I'm working at the hospital, so I'll see you on Monday.

House tour party highlights

2010-02-24T21:04:00.008-06:00

Hi ladies!

The house tour party was so much fun - we must do it again! I am thinking a March party, maybe kitchen tours this time? I'll let you all know.

Anyway, I found inspiration in pretty much every home tour that was linked up. Since reviewing every tour on this post would take too long, I just thought I would highlight some of my favorites.

I am finding so much inspiration from this entryway at Whisper Wood Cottage:

And how about this gorgeous piece of furniture? Man, that girl knows how to accessorize.

Aren't these the best closet doors ever? Seriously, I am ready to change out all my doors now.

This is Kim's entryway and living room at Savvy Southern Style:

I am sooooo ready to move in with her. What a comfortable, beautiful home.

How about Debbie's ceiling at DebbieDoos?

And her awesome lamp?

I love this formal, traditional dining room at My Domestic Bliss:

and I am already trying to turn my mudroom into this:

Ahhh, what a relaxing master bedroom.

I hope you all enjoyed the tour as much as I did.

Have a great night!

Are white kichens a trend?

2010-02-23T12:09:00.006-06:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - we have been very busy with visitors, the Chicago auto show, taxes, and lots of illnesses.

On a happy note, the home tour party was a great success! Thanks to everyone who linked up. I will post highlights tomorrow. I will also let everyone know when the next party will be.

With spring coming up soon I am thinking about bigger projects I want to complete:

I have started toying around with the idea of painting my kitchen cabinets white.

I know, I know - everyone is doing it. So do I want to follow along with everyone else?
Is the white kitchen just a trend?
Will I be disappointed in 3 years when everyone wants wood toned cabinets again?
Or is the white kitchen classic and will be around for ever?

Here are some photos that are definitely pushing me to get out that paint brush:

photos from My Home Ideas

Here's my kitchen - can you see it with white cabinets? And crown molding?

Door plaques

2010-02-19T12:28:00.010-06:00

This is a super easy project that took $30 and less than an 1 hour to complete (for all 4 doors). It was fun and I am very happy with the way it turned out.

I bought these plaques at Hobby Lobby:

They were in the clock section.

I also purchased these knobs:

for hanging the plaques on the doors.

When doing a project like this, be careful that the screw isn't longer than your door - otherwise you will go through to the other side.

Next, a coat of chalkboard paint,

then get out that drill and drill 2 holes for the ribbon:

Thread the ribbon through,

and now you are ready to decorate!

I like using chalkboard paint so I can change out the guest room door plaque whenever we have visitors.

I simply drilled a small hole into the door and screwed in the knob:

The completed hallway:

Have a great weekend everyone!

I am participating in: Made It Mondays

Chalkboard Linky at Nesting Place

We're still going strong!

2010-02-18T08:50:00.002-06:00

We are still receiving links for the house tour party! You gals have some lovely homes. I hope you have time to visit everyone.

Once the party is over (Sunday evening), I will post a summary of the tour with some favorite pictures.

I am thinking of making this a monthly thing, but maybe just one room next time. A dining room party, a bathroom party, a mudroom party, a backyard party (once the weather is nicer).....

I know this isn't a huge party, but I think it is just the right size - big enough to see lots of pictures, yet small enough so we all can get through everyone's links.

Hope everyone is well. That GI virus in my household finally made it to my oldest, but I think we are on the tail end of things. Two of my boys made it to school today! That is a huge accomplishment for us right now.....

I'll have a project for you tomorrow.....

Can't wait to see more homes!

Real-life house tour party!

2010-02-16T19:31:00.004-06:00

Yay - it's party time!

Do you have your pictures ready? Is your post up and running?

I am so excited to see everyone's homes.

Here are the rules:
1. You may tour your entire home or just a few rooms if you like.
2. You may tour completed rooms, rooms that are in progress, or before photos of rooms you plan on working on this year.
3. You may clean your home and tour it as though you are expecting guests, or you may show us your home as it typically looks on a daily basis.
4. Please make sure you post the link to your home tour post, not the link to your blog.
5. Mention the party in your tour with a link back to Transforming Home.

That's it!

The party will open tonight at 10pm CST and will stay open through the weekend for those of you who still need to take some photos or are waiting to finish a project.

I can't wait....

what to do with that huge bathroom mirror

2010-02-15T11:37:00.006-06:00

If you have a newer construction home, you likely have one of these huge mirrors in the bathroom:

(please excuse my outdated light fixture - it's on my list)

Boring, right?

I contemplated several different options to jazz up this mirror, and the above is what I ended up with. Now, if I had an unlimited budget I would certainly get rid of the mirror and vanity, then put in 2 separate mirrors with vanities and an armoire or built-ins in between. But for now, this is what I am working with.

I also looked at framing the mirror using MirrEdge:

My issue with this was that our mirror is so ginormous, I didn't think the frame would help much.

So instead, I bought 2 backless frames at Hobby Lobby, a couple of window scarf holders, and some ribbon.

After I screwed in the window scarf holders above the mirror,

I just looped the ribbon around the top of mirror,

and tied it into a simple knot.

Super easy, and I am happy with it for now.

Actually, I probably won't change it until we get rid of the huge mirror for good (or if I find great oval frames in the right size - how cool would that look?).

I have also seen other ideas such as painting a frame on the mirror and framing out the whole thing with molding.

What do you think?

Do you have a ginormous mirror you aren't sure what to do with?

I am participating in:

Valentine's evening...

2010-02-14T18:44:00.003-06:00

It is 7pm on Sunday - Valentine's Day.

The twins both have a GI virus. Ugh - the laundry.

My husband is also not feeling well. He was in bed by 4pm yesterday and will probably be turning in early tonight as well.

Luckily my oldest son and I are both feeling fine. We ate dinner together, just the 2 of us, at McDonalds tonight. It really was a lot of fun. No rush, no yelling - just us eating our fries and playing I-Spy.

I am feeling so much better about the whole RMS situation - thanks for all the encouraging comments. I will work on returning those tonight.

I know for sure that blogland is where I belong - it is such a kind, supportive, encouraging environment. I feel like I can be myself here and everyone truly appreciates that. I have met so many creative, inspiring people who have really motivated me to break out the fear of being "not liked". I think most of us in the blogging community are true to ourselves, and that is what is so wonderful here. You all have made a big impact on my life.

Okay, I have a decorating post coming up tomorrow and a project this week.

Until then, here are some cozy living room pictures (since I will be spending my Valentine's Day evening alone in mine).

See you tomorrow!