Touch of Spring
Here’s a quick peek at the bit of spring I brought in today…
And just a little sneak peek into the kitchen and living room. Hope that helps brighten the day!
Budget Bathroom Redmodel
I recently bought my first home and armed with a tight budget and a big dream I set out to fix the place up. The house was built in the 20’s and plumbing was not originally indoors. The bathroom is large, but appears to be in an old bedroom or closet. There was a bathtub, but because of the slope of the roof, there was no room for a stand up shower without hitting your head. I had to get creative in order to stay within my means and also make the place functional for everyday living…
Here are a few before shots of the old retro bathroom:
Not only was there no shower, but this baby also had carpet, dingy tile board walls, no outlets, and only one tiny light. I had my work cut out for me.
I decided to refinish a clawfoot tub and move it away from the wall a couple of feet in order to add a diverter faucet where the ceiling was high enough to stand to shower. The rest fell into place after that. All was done for under $1000. Check it out:
Yea, that’s right, it’s the same bathroom. Clean, functional, bright, and a bit glamorous. My own personal dressing room!
Chair Love
I love the round shape of this vintage chair… and also the cabinet behind it!
“chair,” by lngthings on flickr.
Chair Love
These chairs are so interesting… not to mention the whole room being gorgeous!
An Office Project Finished
As I said before, I have recently started a new job. With that has come a new, but bland, office. So, I got to work. The first project I have completed is a table for the office. I found this ugly guy with a paper top for a couple of dollars at the thrift store:
I started by sanding the wood legs and sides a bit and then painting them black. I then used scrapbook paper on the top. I taped the paper down, starting with a full sheet in the very middle of the table. When the sheets were lined up nicely, I used ModPodge to cover the sheets, using a foam brush. I did several coats of this, drying in between.
Black and white, of course!
One thing I learned from using the ModPodge was that it makes the paper wet, so at first it will bubble up. This smooths out as it dries. But, I did make the mistake of lining the paper sheets up perfectly edge to edge. Lining them up with a bit of overlap would have prevented the sheets from moving as they dried. I do have a few tiny spots where there are gaps between the paper now. I learned! 🙂
Bathroom Facelift
I got the shower curtain in the mail… and I love it! I ran out the next day to get a new curtain rod that is curved (I hate the curtain touching me, and we hated the gold!). I also picked up a couple white and black towels and a new rug. The new toothbrush holder is actually an old jar. What a huge difference these touches made!
Here is the before:
And here is the updated bathroom:
A bit more sophisticated?
Of course there are still changes we would like to make, but it was a great start for such a small budget! With the new curved rod we are thinking about getting a second curtain, as it is a tight fit. We would also like to paint the walls. Next year we are getting a new shower, and would still like to try the corrugated metal idea. Its getting there! What do you think?
Ruffles For Me
So craving this entire bathroom right now! I love the industrial look mixed with very feminine touches. I’m sure you can all tell from the rest of my home that my style isn’t usually very feminine, but in small amounts I think it can be a great touch.
So, when I found the budget bathroom remodel in the Country Living magazine I was swooning! Unfortunately, I can’t post pictures from their site here. So, here’s the link: http://www.countryliving.com/homes/makeovers/budget-bathroom-makeover-0609?click=main_sr . I particularly fell in love with the ruffled shower curtain from Anthropologie. But, $98 was quite a bit out of our shower curtain budget. So, I started searching…
Here is the curtain from Anthropologie:
Snow Field Shower Curtain by Anthropologie: http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/category.jsp;jsessionid=ED2A98B77A9062003BA15D4E3C0DB04C.app43-node4?popId=HOME&navAction=middle&navCount=5&isSortBy=true&pushId=HOME-BATH&id=HOME-BATH-SHOWERCURTAINS
Bed Bath Store: http://www.bedbathstore.com/rushwhfashcu.html?id=rushwhfashcu1
Ruffles Curtain by Target: http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/179-2733649-8695932?ASIN=B000HPTSE2&AFID=Froogle&LNM=B000HPTSE2|Ruffles_Shower_Curtain&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=B000HPTSE2&ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001
Ruffled Curtain by India Rose: http://www.burkedecor.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=09223-24-25
Lawn Chair Paint Project
I got the new lawn chairs done just in time for the party. Remember these sweet but boring old fashioned lawn chairs we picked up?
Well, with some bright paint and a bit of handy work, they are now unique and look good together!
What do you think? I think pretty soon all of these random tid bits will come together!
Vintage Cofee Table
We have another coffee table added to the shop. This one was so cute, but in bad shape:
And… Here’s the after:
Actually, it is also getting little white feet, but I couldn’t resist showing you how it turned out. Let me know if you are interested.
SOLD!
Counter-Tops!
They are in, and it’s official- I love ’em! Here is a dark before to remind you:
What an improvement, don’t you think!? It is all coming together so nicely. We do have a few more projects in the works. See that vent pipe above the stove? That is getting boxed in, no more tacky-ness. We also have a great set of lights that are being installed which I will reveal later. A few creative touches are in the process as well.
Notice the old microwave is gone and a hood was installed in its palce as well…
What do you think? Suggestions?
Make Mine Eclectic 
