Bathroom reveal…NOT!

Posted by Tracy on Mar 27, 2012 in bathroom, books, DIY, movies, Uncategorized | 4 comments

Happy Monday/Almost Tuesday!

Who saw The Hunger Games this weekend?

Apparently, a lot of us!

I read the book after I heard several people rave about how fantastic it was. I’m afraid to admit this, but I wasn’t blown away.  It was ok, but didn’t keep me interested enough to run out and get book two. (For those of you living in a hole, this is the first of a trilogy.)

I felt the exact same way about the movie. I could take it or leave it. I felt bad for those of you that didn’t read the book. So many details were left out explaining why the hunger games exist in the first place.

So? Am I the only one feeling this way?

I’m anxious to hear your opinions.

So, I had planned to get the bathroom details finished up this weekend/this morning. I am so close, I promise.

I needed to take a few more before & after pics when my camera decided to die. Not a single AA battery to be found in this house!

I am headed to the store in the morning and hope to be back tomorrow with the pre-reveal reveal (minus the floor).

Here’s a sneak peek:

See you soon!

Friday Fashion Find

Posted by Tracy on Mar 23, 2012 in fashion | 1 comment

I’m baaaack!

I wish I could say I’ve been out soakin’ up some of this sun Mother Nature has been spoiling us with.

Not the case.

It feels like I’ve been locked in that bathroom for weeks now!

It’s almost done, but  unfortunately life gets in the way. Don’t you wish you could hit a pause button every once in awhile?

(In case you’re new, you can see where we started our master bath makeover here.)

I hope to have it all  mostly done (with the exception of the floor) & ready to show you by Monday!

In the meantime, look what I brought home from Old Navy:

Two pairs of cute flats for $34 out the door!

I was so excited about the Ikat pattern on the 2nd pair, that I did a little dance right there in the store.

I normally don’t do shoes that show my toe cleavage, but I adore these, so I was willing to overlook it this time.

So-what new items have you added to your spring wardrobe?

Finding any great deals?

Have a fabulous weekend!!!

Bath on a budget

Posted by Tracy on Mar 13, 2012 in bathroom, DIY, Uncategorized | 4 comments

While waiting on the fabric to arrive for my laundry room window, I decided to put that project on hold and begin my master bath makeover.

I warned you guys that I am all over the place!

I mentioned to Craig that I saw few blog posts on painting laminate counter tops and convinced him to trust that it was ok to try. I think the fact that we were experimenting in our master bath that no one ever sees was very helpful.

Here are the counters that I have lived with for nine years:

U* G* L* Y you ain’t got no alibi, you ugly!

Ugly hunter green laminate circa 1997. Stains courtesy of my silver jewelry cleaner. Oops!

I know the cabinets need help too, but I’ll get to those next.

Here is my master plan:

A pretty shower curtain is where I drew my color inspiration.

I know it’s hard to really see the colors, but I chose mild mint by Behr for the walls and mocha latte also by Behr for the vanity.

For the counters, I decided on a spray paint with a stone finish for a faux granite look.

Here’s a closer look:

The mint truly looks how it sounds. This is not even close to a true representation.

My goal is to keep this entire makeover under or around $500.

Let’s get started with those counters!

Step 1 was to clean them really well and tape off areas you obviously don’t want to paint.

Step 2 was to lightly sand with a medium grit sandpaper and then give another thorough wipe down.

Step 3 was to prime using an oil based primer. I used Zinsser, but BIF or Kilz works just as well.

Here it is after one coat:

Instead of a second coat, I decided to test spray and see what kind of coverage I got.

NOT good! I could tell right away that it was not going to cover the white the way I had hoped, let alone the green showing through.

So, back to Home Depot we went for a base coat. I had them match the inside of the spray paint can lid. Perfection!

Look at how much better that covers!

That was step 4 btw.

Step 5 was to spray after significant drying time.

I used four cans of the stone spray paint to get the coverage I wanted.

You can see the texture here pre base coat:

Step 6 was to add a polyacrylic sealer. I ended up doing four coats.

And the final result:

I am so happy with how it turned out!

Better than the green, right?

And here are the walls that have so far just been trimmed:

So much fresher than that brown.

Still to do:

Paint oak vanity and medicine cabinet.

Update cabinet hardware.

Finish walls.

Replace faucet, light fixtures, and towel bars.

Figure out inexpensive new flooring.

Hang shower curtain.

Add art and accessories.

Found fabric heaven!

Posted by Tracy on Mar 9, 2012 in fabric, laundry room, Uncategorized | 0 comments

I mentioned after my family room reveal that I was moving on to a little laundry room update.

I found a few pictures at Hobby Lobby that were half off and a rug at Target to get me started.

I was having a hard time finding a cute curtain or valance for the window in that room.

Then I remembered seeing or reading something about a site called Spoonflower.

Have you heard of it?

IT IS AWESOME!

You can create your very own custom designs on fabric or search the site for the hundreds (or more) already existing prints.

Here is the one I chose:

I had a hard time choosing! You could spend hours looking through them all.

At only $18/yard, you really can’t go wrong! To give you an idea of the price difference, one that I was considering at Joann’s was $29.99/yard on sale.

Now I just have to wait the 5-7 days for shipping and the time it takes my seamstress to whip something up.

I wish I would have paid more attention in eighth grade home ec class and learned to sew.

Another Pinterest art project

Posted by Tracy on Mar 8, 2012 in art, DIY | 2 comments

I LOVE a good zebra print!

Rugs:

Wallpaper:

Art:

The art comes from a great little Etsy shop called lulu & drew.

Go check out her other great pieces. I would take one of each, but unfortunately they’re not within my budget.

So…I decided to DIY my own.

On a white canvas, I free handed the stripes with a gold paint pen and then filled them in with gold paint.

Here is the result:

I’m not a professional artist, but when I asked my son what the painting looked like and his response was “a zebra”, I knew I could consider this a success.

Have you DIY’d any art lately???

If not, you should try! What’s the worst that could happen?

Top 10 Tuesday & a movie review

Posted by Tracy on Mar 6, 2012 in movies, top ten Tuesday | 2 comments

Let’s start with the movie review.

The story is about two best friends/CIA agents (Chris Pine & Tom Hardy) who find out they are dating the same girl (the always adorable Reese Witherspoon). So, naturally they decide not to tell her they know each other and instead turn it into a “may the best man win” competition.

I’m a girl so I can sit through any romantic comedy knowing exactly how it will end and still leave happy.

My BFF and I go to a movie at least once a month and usually choose ones we figure the guys would have no interest in seeing.

This one actually surprised me! I think the guys would have enjoyed it. It was laugh out loud funny and had just enough action to keep them entertained. It reminded me of  a watered down Mr. & Mrs. Smith, but in a good way.

She is faced with the task of choosing between two completely different guys, both of whom she likes for different reasons.

I won’t spoil it for you, but the BFF and I both chose the guy on the right.

Who will she choose?

I think you should go see it and find out!

Since we’re talking about movies, I thought I would share my top 10 favorites. This is really hard for me! I LOVE movies, but I will go with the first 10 to come to mind, in no particular order.

10. Pulp Fiction

9. Seven

8. Savannah Smiles

7. The Shawshank Redemption

6. Toy Story

5. The Shining

4. The Breakfast Club

3. Identity

2. The Notebook

1. Kramer vs. Kramer

All over the board, right? There’s nothing better than a really good movie! I can think of so many more!

I have heard that “Love, Actually” tops many favorite lists, but I have yet to see it.

So? Do we share any favorites? Any of these that you saw and didn’t like? Any must sees that I’m sure are not on this list?

Do tell!

Family room reveal

Posted by Tracy on Mar 5, 2012 in bookshelves, Family room, Fireplace, house tour | 3 comments

It’s done!

I used what I had on hand to style the bookshelves. I figure I will pick up accessories as I find things I like rather than go on the hunt and end up purchasing things just to fill in.

I originally planned to cover my books in a pretty paper, but that seemed too contrived. I like to be able to see what I have.

Here’s the new rug I ordered way back when. I’m so happy with it!

Did you notice I ended up giving in to that basket I liked at Target?

I also added the brackets under the faux mantel. It took four coats of black spray paint, but I think they make a difference.

The reading nook. (Honestly, we never sit in that chair. You slide right off!)

The picture to the left is a drawing of where we got married.

The one on the right says “Wherever we are together, that is home” purchased here.

There’s Gunnar trying to get his 15 minutes of fame!

Remember this top ten?

It feels good to be able to cross 1, 2, & 3 off my list!

Now I’m thinking of moving on to the laundry room.

Any makeovers going on in your homes?

Click here to see where we started.