Facelift Friday | Bulletin Board Upcycle

How many times have you seen something like this at a garage sale or thrift shop and passed it up?

 I found a rather large one at a local thrift shop for $1 and I could not pass it up. It sat in my garage for a long time as I pondered what to do with it. {and worked on a ton of other projects!}

I finally stumbled upon this blog post by Chelsea at two twenty one and fell in love with the idea.

I had the perfect black and white stripe fabric that I picked up at IKEA this past fall. I used spray adhesive to attach the fabric to the bulletin board and then secured it with upholstery tacks I picked up at a big box craft store. The only thing I did different then Chelsea was to separate the tacks a bit more.

I simply used the wood frame as a guide for where to place the tacks.

I love how chic it turned out. I think it looks fantastic vertical or horizontal.

And I took this a step further! The upholstery tacks are a bit longer than regular push pins, and I worried about them sticking out on the backside. So, I found a lovely black trim to cover the back.

Voila! A reversible bulletin board!!

This is such an easy and inexpensive project. Keep your eyes open for bulletin boards this weekend!!

Facelift Friday | Let's try this again.

I found this awesome toy box crate at a thrift shop in the spring. It was a bright red, but I saw the amazing potential. It had casters at one time, so it was already perfectly outfitted to add them again. I first painted it in ASCP Paloma and added the French word for books, "livres." Well, it turns out that not everyone is a Francophile like me. (How?) I had it in my shoppe for $18 for months and no one touched it. Not every style suits every person, right? So, I brought it home with me to give it yet another facelift.

I painted the entire thing in MMSMP Grain Sack. It is a creamy tan color that I just love; perfect and neutral.

I added stripes in Shutter Gray to the front and back panels. I am loving stripes. I think they are classic.

Oh! And remember I mentioned the casters? I finally got around to adding them. I love adding just a bit off industrial decor to elegant French Country.

I covered the entire piece with MMSMP Antiquing Wax, except for the oval piece in front. (I'm still undecided about that part.)

For the graphics on this time around, I used a lovely vintage crown instead of a French word that no one seemed to get. ;)

I think this time the piece is much more versatile. It would be excellent in a living room holding all of your throws for the winter. It would also be lovely in a den holding books and so sweet in a kid's room. Where would you use this piece?

Room Refresh | Better flow in the dining room.

Thanks for joining me again for the before and afters of my first room refresh. Today I will be sharing the changes we made in the dining room. I think the dining room ended up being my favorite of the four spaces we converted. My client loved most everything about her dining room except for the flow of the space. 

Because the room is long and a bit narrow, her husband felt angling the hutch in the corner was the best use of space. In fact, it ended up having the opposite effect. 

She and I moved the hutch straight against the right wall with the help of these awesome furniture sliders. She was pleasantly surprised with the result. {I hope her husband will be as well!!} 

Another tip to create more space is to remove the end chairs from the dining room table. You can store them away until you need them or you can add some lovely pillows and use them as accents in your room.

My client chose the latter and I am so happy she did. I think the result is quite stunning. 

Next, we had only minor changes to make in the dining room. The first thing I thought would improve the feel was to move the Venetian figurines a bit lower and closer to the mirror. 

This gorgeous painting is special to my client. Previously, it was centered on one of the long walls and felt lost. We moved it to a smaller wall on the side of the window and I feel it gets the deserved attention in this space.

Do you see the cute little Queen Anne table under this painting? It was one of a pair that was acquired by my client's husband prior to their living together. My client felt they were a bit outdated. If you have similar tables and have the same sentiments, a super simple fix is to remove the glass tops. Voila! Easy. 

Another common challenge for my clients is window treatments. I would suggest to you to think a bit outside of the box when it comes to this. My client felt her only option was to leave the window as is. I sent her pictures of various treatments for arched windows and she chose this elegant swag.

The voile curtain is held in place with the most lovely tiebacks. I simply gave my client the ideas. She purchased exactly what she wanted and installed it herself. In fact, the longer I worked with her, the more confident and independent she became in transforming her home into a haven.

That is exactly what I desire to accomplish when working with my clients. My hope is to empower each of them with the tips and suggestions I give. I want to be able to give them the freedom to add pieces to each room as their schedule and their budget permit. 

White Party | Monochromatic Entertaining on the Fly

I had the pleasure of hosting some fellow homeschool moms in my home this week for a night a fellowship. I had planned to do desserts, tea and coffee. When I searched for dessert recipes on Pinterest, I looked for "wintry" desserts. While there were no real winners in the recipe department, I noticed over and over people decorating with white and silver for winter tea gatherings. I was inspired. 

While my older two were in piano, I made a quick trip to the grocery store and bought pre-baked sugar cookies, already beautiful white cupcakes, some large pink and white marshmallows, white icing and white crystallized sugar. I searched for the pre-made white meringues, but they were out. I also grabbed two bunches of inexpensive white roses.

Most of my home decor  and accessories are already cream colored or white, so that part was easy. I just set all the store baked goodies up on the plates and trays I had. I mixed a little bit of milk and rose water with the vanilla icing and dipped half of the sugar cookies. I neglected to get a picture, but they were pretty. Not sure how they tasted. ;o)

As for those heart shaped marshmallows.... I set the pink ones aside and got to work with the white. This is super easy and super cute. Stick a lollipop stick into the bottom of a jumbo marshmallow. Dip it in water and shake off the excess.

Slowly roll the marshmallow in a bowl with crystallized sugar. 

Gently tap off the excess sugar and place in a tall container to let the sugar set. When they are all arranged together, it is a lovely accent piece. I am sure they are quite delicious as well. 

Everything I did with the white foods and decor can easily be done with any color of your choice. There is just something so chic about monochromatic decor. 

Seagrass Storage Baskets { Local Finds }

I love these baskets. They are pretty. They are functional. And they will forever tell a story for me.

When we moved into our farmhouse in Simmozheim, we quickly realized we lacked one thing: STORAGE. Our house did not have a single closet or cabinet. We made do pretty well with what we had plus a few armoires from IKEA. One area that proved a little tricky was the bathroom. I don't know about you, but I have a LOT of bathroom stuff. Suddenly, I found myself sharing a bathroom with my entire family. This was going to be a challenge.

I envisioned the perfect solution to our bathroom storage dilemma. Something like this:

Or this:

Heck, even this:

One problem, I couldn't find anything remotely close to these options here in  Germany. I looked online and either the item was too expensive to be shipped over here or the option wasn't even available.

A friend of mine told me while living over here you buy what you can when you find it. Basically, you have to settle. I was okay with digging a little more and being more creative. I was not okay with settling. I admit, first I was excited about the challenge. However, my excitement quickly turned to frustration.

I kept looking and looking. Finally, at Mömax I found these lovely sea grass baskets with a hinged lid on them.

I thought they'd be perfect because I could stack them. I put the items rarely used in the bottom baskets and kept the more essentials in the top basket.

We've had them for 18 months now. They worked well at our house in Simmozheim and they have transitioned well into our house on post. I imagine they will be part of our decor family for a long time to come. I can see them having a future as toy boxes or a place to store extra curriculum. Regardless of where they end up. I am sure they will be well loved and look lovely in the process.

{PS to my local friends. If you happen to be on the lookout for products with a safe rating on the EWG's Cosmetic Database, this Pure & Natural soap has a rating of 2 and can be found at the Exchange.}

Making a Temporary House a Home | Fresh Flowers

I love fresh flowers. They have a way of turning a ho-hum day into something special. When I wake up very early in the morning and sit at the table to feed Sam, I currently see these beautiful ranunculus we picked up at the Stuttgart Market on Saturday. They just add a little something extra. I got one bunch for €7,50. This really isn't a bad price considering how many buds there are on here just waiting to open up!

My girls begged for tulips. At €4 a bunch, how could I possibly turn them down? I also want them to have those special little things in their lives whenever possible. They have some in their rooms, but I also get to look at these while I scrub pots and pans.

Also added to my collection this weekend were these lovely narcissus bulbs. Seriously, does anything scream spring more than this? I received these as a party favor at a baby shower. What a fantastic idea! We have enjoyed watching them sprout and bloom quite quickly!

Fresh flowers are an easy, inexpensive way to add a little something extra to your home. They don't have to be complicated or expensive or perfectly arranged. One of the best places I've found fresh flowers at is the local farmers' market. They are all over the world. I am sure there is one near you, too! In the States, I found extremely reasonably priced flowers at Sam's Club. My favorite were alstroemeria. I could get two bunches for less than $10 and they'd last two weeks! Also, try to stick with what's in season at the time. They will be much cheaper and easier to come by. Finally, don't overlook your own backyard. What types of flowers do you have sprouting right now? Cut a few, stick them in a simple glass or jar and sit them on your kitchen counter. They just may add a little bit of joy to your everyday chores.