My Favorite Redo of the Year

I must do a better job this next year with my project postings.   The last time I posted a project was last July.  I want to share with you my favorite redo of this past year.  This was truly from trash to treasure.  

Last summer while on a luncheon and shopping spree with 2 of my best friends, we decided go into the Goodwill store and just browse around.  I found the ugliest piece of furniture.  It was a coffee table that looked like it was someone's first attempt at building something.  I wanted to try an experiment to see if I could transform it into something beautiful.  The price was only a whopping $5.84.  That's right FIVE DOLLARS EIGHTY FOUR CENTS!  Even if I messed it up, I haven't lost much so I bought it not knowing what in the world I would do with it.  It was heavy and I had to get someone to help load it into the truck.  

 I told you it was UGLY!  Whoever made it, glued floor tiles to the top.  But it had a solid structure. 

 It even has a little door that opens on the front.  I don't know why because it would be hard to store anything in it.  

 My husband put a brace between each of the legs.

 We ripped the floor tiles off the top and then sanded it.  By this time I had decided to make a bench out of it. 

It still looks ugly! 

 

 

 Next, I painted it with some leftover paint from a previous project.  

I

 I used a dry brush technique using some left over brown paint to make it look distressed.  It was starting to look better.  We then added some foam to the top and covered it with some fabric that we also had left over from a different project.  I wish I had taken pictures of that part of the transformation.  With a little bit of trim work and new handles, our new BENCH.......

 I wish the original owner could see this little beauty now.  Not bad for $5.84.  (The only other thing I had to buy was a piece of foam for the top)  I think my little trip to Goodwill was worth it. 

Chalkboards Aren't For School Anymore

This is part of my desk at school.

I haven't had an old fashioned chalkboard in my classroom for at least 15 years.  I always hated them because of all the chalk dust and my hands stayed so dry.  Then came along white boards that use dry erase markers, overhead projectors that use water based markers ( Then my hands were always covered in ink) .  Now it's a smart board, iPads, and projectors.  

Chalkboards have made a comeback, but not at school,  at home.  You can transform anything into a chalkboard now with chalkpaint.  

 I made this for my son and daughter in law's wedding rehearsal.  I got the picture frame and easel from Old Time Pottery and the chalk paint from Lowe's.  My husband cut a piece of plywood to fit the frame.  The wood was very rough after the first coat so I sanded and gave it a second coat.  

After the wedding, I brought it home and decided to use it in my living room.  There was one thing that was bothering me about this chalkboard.  

The back of it was ugly.

 I had so much burlap left from the rehearsal dinner tablescapes so I light went off in my head.   

I covered the back of it with burlap

Better!

I really like my chalkboard.  I can change the phrases with the seasons.

I'll tell you something funny, a parent made my teacher neighbor a little chalk board as a gift for her classroom.  She said that the kids thought it was so much fun to write on it because they had never used a chalkboard in the classroom before!  I thought about that, I teach 12/13 year old students and they have never used a chalkboard at school either!

An Upstairs Birdfeeder

On my last post, I gave a little teaser about a birdfeeder that I helped my neighbor install outside her kitchen window.  She found so many of them online but they are all made of plastic and have to be attached to the glass by suctions cups. 

She found this one online:

Close up views of birds are thrilling. Cardinals, chickadees and finches alike just can't resist this open-concept windowpane feeder. Our durable, clear-plastic feeder is easy to use, simple to hang, quick to fill and clean. Three suction cups provide a strong grip to any window. 12 x 4 x 5-1/2 inches.

Item: 742

Price:$25.95

Quantity:

Neither one of us liked the fact that the suction cups were visible and look at the price of this piece of PLASTIC!

Say hello to a little teacher creativity!  Yes, my neighbor is a teacher also.  

A pretty wooden birdfeeder and clear command strips.

It was pretty simple to install too.  I love these windows.  They can be opened to the inside which makes them so easy to clean on the outside.  It also makes it a lot easier to hang a window birdfeeder without using a ladder.

If you look really close you can see a little bit of the clear command strips but we strategically placed them  (that's teacher lingo) where they are not in the center of the glass and can be covered by the blinds. 

Perfect! You can't even see the command strips.

I want one now!  (Took the picture with my iPad so that is why it is so dark)

A Burned Tabletop That Was Rethunk Junked

I want to share with you a project that my neighbor just completed.  She has a beautiful dining room set but there was one problem, there was a large burned spot that happened by accident.  

If you look at the top left corner of the table, you can see it.

Here is a closeup. 

 It just made her sick because it is in a spot where it can't be hidden with a place mat and she didn't want to keep a tablecloth on it all the time. So what do you do without spending a lot of money to have it refinished.   You RETHUNK JUNK it!

Rethunk Junk is a paint that she found at a unique store in our area called Woodstock Market.  I am sure you all know about the popular technique that is being used of painting furniture with Annie Sloan chalk paint or Miss Mustard Seed milk paint.  (I remember back when I was a little girl, there was a version of this process that my Dad did on a desk for my room but it was just called "antiquing").  Rethunk Junk is a type of paint that is similar to chalk paint but it is made and sold locally in the Woodstock area and costs a little less. Click here and like her facebook page.   Why not try it!  Anything would look better than that big burned spot. 

This base color she used was CLOUD.

No sanding required. Just roll or brush it on.

This was after the first coat.  She put two coats on it.

Next she rubbed a mahogony stain over the base coat to get a color that matched the legs of the table.

The "cloud" was still too white around the bottom of the tabletop and clashed with the fabric on the chairs so she toned it down by mixing a darker beige that she already had with some glaze and brushed it along the bottom. 

The next step was to lightly sand in places to give it the aged look and then brush on a coat of polyurethane.

I love this detail!

No more burned spot!  This table is absolutely beautiful because it was RETHUNK JUNKED!

A Beautiful Southern Wedding

I shared with you recently pictures of the wedding rehearsal for my son and new daughter-in-law and now I want to show you some pictures of the actual wedding.  It was also held at Pickett Place in Florence, Alabama.  You can like the facebook page to see pictures of other events that have taken place there.  

Last August, we were searching for a place to have the rehearsal dinner and when we went in Pickett Place for the first time, I immediately fell in love with the place.  It is beautifully decorated with antiques and is filled with southern charm!  As I toured for the first time I managed to take a few pictures. 

Love, love, love this Japanese Maple that was in the courtyard.

This is the sign above the women's restroom.  Adorable!

I love this vignette.

I didn't have to think twice, this was the place!

This sign has a little history of Colonel Pickett.

My son and future daughter in law at the time loved this place so much, why not have the wedding at Pickett Place too.  I mean who wouldn't want the wedding of her dreams in a beautiful venue like this! So her mother got into action and made it happen.

The beautiful flower arrangements and wedding decor were done by Jut's Wedding and Special Events.   Click here and like his facebook page to see other beautiful weddings that he has created.

Words cannot describe how beautiful this wedding was so just sit back and enjoy the pictures.

Upstairs there is a bridal suite that has everything you need, even a kitchen!

This is a view from the upstairs balcony.

Bride and her Dad on the balcony before the wedding.  Love this picture!

Bride and her Mom.  You made the beautiful wedding of her dreams!  Fairy tales do come true!