Photo Day 29: Fleece

Photo Day 29:  Fleece.  I think fleece anything is frumpy and not so flattering.  However, fleece socks rank high on my list of "I don't care how much they cost...I CANNOT live without 'em!" 

Photo Day 28: Tuna = Meow

Photo Day 28:  Tuna = Meow.  Decided to take a tuna fish wrap for lunch.  Cracked open the can of tuna and my sleepy cats came-a-running!    And so I began my morning to a chorus of meow, meow, meow, meow.  Of course I gave them some....I'm such a sucker for their cuteness!

The Coffee Table (Part 3)

I lived with the dark brown stain for a while.  Not really feeling it!  So on to priming and painting the coffee table a light cream color.  I think this is round 3 for the coffee table - we had the natural look, dark stain look, now the painted cream look (and I added contrasting stripes).  And let me just say that if this doesn't do it, there will NOT be a part 4!  Waaaayyyyyy to much effort into my $10 pile of wood!

**latest update here**

The Ottoman

It's Saturday night @ 10pm....do you know where your children are? Guess I'm getting too old for my parents to ponder that question. However, the hubby was wondering what happened to his wife when I left @ 9pm saying I was going to the garage for a few minutes and would be right back. An hour later, I still had not returned...hubby found me in the garage building an ottoman. "See what had happened was.....LOL!"

What can I say....I can't control when inspiration and genius strikes me (or so I think it's genius)! Long story short - we have an extra cushion for our couch. The story part is that the delivery guy accidentally marked a cushion with his ink pen right in front of us - on our brand new couch. So the company sent us another one. The funny part is the couch is microfiber so the pen mark came right off after a little scrubbing with water. Fast forward 7 years and here's this extra cushion that has moved all over the country with us and been annoying taking up space in our closets for years. Until now!

The genius part.....why not turn that little sucker into an ottoman/footstool type of thing. All it needs is a base of some kind. So I measured the cushion (20" x 20") but needed to check out my scrap wood selection.  Hence my heading out to the garage for a few minutes.  And since I was out there and dragging out pieces of wood...why not plug in 'ol miter bob and get all my pieces cut.  So I cut the 1x3's @ 20" -> the plan being to glue them together to make one solid piece with 2 horizontal 1x3's nailed underneath to attach it all together.  So then my thinking went something like this:  "....if I'm going to build this tomorrow, I should glue it together tonight so the glue has time to dry."  Totally logical, right?!  Nevermind the fact that it was late, cold, and kinda dark (i.e. bad lighting in there).  Note to self:  take more lights and space heater to garage next time.

Well since I was already in the glueing process...why not nail the underneath support pieces and finish cutting the trim (I learned a new way to angle cut with miter bob - so fun!)  Since almost everything was done I headed in for the night. 

On Sunday morning, after painting the fireplace wall and coffee table, I headed back out to sand and finish assembling my ottoman.  The weather was not cooperating - totally windy, raining, and cold.  Building in the gargage with the door closed is fine but it's best to sand outside.  Oh well....it's a small project....how much dust could it possibly generate?!  Yeah - everything in the garage is covered now (guess I'm cleaning the garage again next weekend)!  Darn Minnesota weather!

I moved the ottoman base into the living room and put the couch cushion on it's new home.  And it's PERFECT!  Not only does it look way cute but it's so comfy and super functional.  It practially turns my leather club chair into a chaise of sorts.  I think it's my second favorite project to date...the bed, of course, is the best-est ever! 

And what's even more amazing is none of this cost me a penny more.  I used wood scraps, glue, nails, and screws already in my possession - mainly all supplies left over from building the bed. 

Update:  2 coats of some gel stain and I'm in love with my ottoman! 

Photo Day 27: S@#%

Photo Day 27:  S@#%  Nasty little 4-letter word....SNOW!  Although the more popular "s" word may have also been uttered when I looked out the window this morning and saw everything covered in that white stuff.  Snow....really?!....but it's still October (whine, whine).  And this is where I'm reminded that I do live in northern Minnesota - okay thanks for the reality check.  Gotta go - no time to chat further....I need to check on flights to Florida.....ASAP!

Photo Day 26: More Rain

Photo Day 26:  More Rain.  Dark, gloomy, and raining.   All day.  Great day to be a duck I suppose (Minnesotans say "I suppose" all the time)....too bad I'm not a duck.

Photo Day 25: Tea please!

Photo Day 25:  Tea please!  Well the coffee HAD to be replaced with something...and plain 'ol Lipton wasn't working for me.  What's a recovering coffee addict to do?  Target's tea aisle.....(cue the music now) Hallelujah!  Tea in every flavor imaginable...my saving grace!  I was tempted to buy one of every kind but I restrained myself and only picked up a few, well, 4 boxes to be exact!

Photo Day 24: Irish Proverb

Photo Day 24:  Irish Proverb.  Isn't there some proverb about the Irish get more done before sunrise or something like that....dang Irish heritage!  And thanks to Paris....there's no chance of sleeping in on weekends.  (Free cat to good home:  serious inquiries from early risers only!) 

So before the sun came up, I had painted the fireplace wall and coffee table.  And go me....I even had the paint brushes and trays cleaned too!

Photo Day 23: Build-ies

Photo Day 23:  Build-ies.    I caught a case of the "build-ies" = the need to build something.  The hubby was studying and I went out to the garage for a "few minutes" (or so I thought) to take some measurements and survey my scrap wood pile.   Hummm....a few minutes turned into 2 hours.  Once I was out there it only seemed logical to plug in miter bob and cut some pieces.  Then it seemed logical to glue and nail them together.  The hubby thought I had been kidnapped! Did I mention it was 9pm when I went out there?  Kinda not normal - I know - is there therapy for the "build-ies"?!

Photo Day 22: Sesame Street?

Photo Day 22:  Sesame Street?  Meet Burt and Ernie.  Nope....not the comic duo from Sesame Street.  The Burt and Ernie I want you to meet are Paris's friends, I mean, "toys".  Actually they are just small elastic hair bands.  Back in her kitten days, she got a hold of one and years later it's still her toy of choice.  Gotta love a cat who fits right into our financial plan and money-saving philosophy.  No expensive trips to Petco for me.....I can get a ton of Burt and Ernies for about a buck.

And since Paris is kinda a quirkly little cat, she can't play with just one.  Nope...my girl has to bat 2 of those things around the house.  No kidding - we have a ton of Burt and Ernies but after the catnip dust settles and she's off to take a nap, there are usually 2 hanging out close together.  More than you ever wanted to know, huh!  I wonder what would happen if I get her a rubber ducky.

The Metal Star

I’ve wanted a large metal star for a long time - well at least since we took a trip to Austin a few years back. There’s something catchy about that Texas spirit – the whole Texas pride thing and that everything is bigger and better in TX. Gotta appreciate a state with that much arrogance, um, I mean, pride. Those large metal stars remind me of TX and our good times there so I had to have one. However, it never seemed practical to get that star home on the plane.  Hummmm...maybe I could stuff the hubby in the overhead bin and strap the star in next to me??  Would the hubby mind?!  Large metal star = happy me.  And isn't the saying "happy wife, happy life?" 

So the other day I came across a metal star. It was 3ft of metal happiness calling my name and totally on sale! Score – I knew it had to come home with me. Welcome to the family = I can’t wait to introduce you to my living room! 
The problem: it was kinda orange-ish, well, not kinda but really orange. I was looking for rusted metal like the ones I passed up in TX. Oh well, it’s not like I have a lot of options up here. Good thing for paint (first red spray paint, then copper spray paint, then dry-brush on some brown/black craft paint)!

So here’s my star in all her faux-Texas glory (with a mini-facelift) spending some quality time in our living room.  (And yes that's last week's Indy vs Wash game on the TV - didn't you know that decorating and football go hand-in-hand?!)

Photo Day 21: Caffeine

Photo Day 21:  Caffeine.  Coffee withdrawal sucks!  I'm sleepy and my head hurts.  I just want to crawl back into bed and snuggle up with a gallon of Caribou Coffee!  Hummmm....hook me up to a coffee IV while I nap.  Did I really just say that?  Add delirious to my withdrawal symptoms.

Did I mention I also kicked to the curb my other bad habits this week?  Bye-bye splenda, sweet tea, processed foods, anything with sugar.  Hello raw veggies and whole grains.  And I got my flu shot to boot (ouch)!  No wonder I feel like crap.  And yes...this is what my cats were doing while I was working.  Can you say jealous?!?!

Photo Day 20: Java Jones'in

Photo Day 20:  Java Jones'in.  I miss you coffee.  It's only been a few days since I quit drinking you but it feels like a lifetime! 

Yes - I am admitting to being a coffee addict.  Paid-in-full, card carrying member in the I-can't-function-without-a-cup-a-joe club!  So I knew it had to go.  All things bad for me (that taste so yummy) must come to an end - sigh!

Photo Day 19: Baby Shower

Photo Day 19:  Baby Shower.  If you like playing those "party games" at baby/wedding showers, raise your hand.  Yep - just what I thought - I don't see any hands raised and ESPECIALLY not mine!  I think secretly that most women agree with me but are too scared to come out of the closet about it.    Not me!   "Hi...my name is Michelle and I'm not coming to your shower if you are going to subject me to those games."  I think that says it all.  (This pic is of the cake and doesn't do it justice - it was a full on 3-D teddy bear and that pink fur is really frosting...can you say AMAZING!) 

Photo Day 17: Simple Reminders

Photo Day 17: 
Simple Reminders.  These little vases are in our kitchen window.  So cute and a little daily reminder to slow down and not rush through each day on auto-pilot. 

Photo Day 16: Wedding Bells

Photo Day 16:  Wedding Bells.  Today we drove to “small town in the middle of nowhere Minnesota” to attend a wedding.  Seriously 3 hours of driving to the middle of nowhere - we past many 'o farm after farm, ventured down a dirt road with rocks a flyin' (so glad I finally washed the car a week ago for the first time in like 6 months 'cause it's nice and dirty again - thank you dirt road...that clean car thing was becoming a burden....ughhhh!)  and finally arrived at this really old church in the middle of a corn field (with a creepy graveyard across the patch of dirt street.) 

But after finally arriving, it was really peaceful and beautiful and picturesque in a small town kinda way.  However, let's keep things in perspective here.....that was during the daytime.  And I'm not a small-town-wilderness-kinda girl.  So if I had been there alone or it had been nighttime, I would have been on the look-out for a serial killer or something...ya know it was the kind of location that Freddy Krueger or Jason would have picked! 

Photo Day 15: Tick Tock

Photo Day 15:  Tick Tock.  The time just flies by on most Fridays and it’s “Hello Weekend”!  Today was not one of those days.  Nope.  Ask me what I did today?  Hmmmm….I looked at the clock ALL day.  Yep pretty sure I spent 8 hours staring at the clock or at least that’s what it felt like.  I even started talking to the clock, “what? It’s only 2 minutes past the last time I looked?  Are you kidding me? C’mon clock work with me here!” 

Photo Day 14: Weigh In

Photo Day 14:  Weigh In.  Stepped on my scale this morning and I didn't like the number looking back at me.  So - did I go to the gym and eat a little healthier today???  Noooo WAY!  I did what every "rational" female does....I sulked all day, ate junk food, and skipped the gym for some couch time!  And somehow this same twisted logic will make me think that after being a total sloth today, the number will go down when I weigh in tomorrow morning.....  Hey I didn't create the female brain....I just live in it!  :-)

The Bed

Ahhhhh…..the bed project – it’s a long story so get comfy!  It all started when I went shopping for a real bed (headboard/footboard/etc).  A girl can only live so long with just a mattress and box spring on a metal bed frame.  Hummmm – did you know real beds are really expensive?  Especially king size!  Add in some delivery fees and holy cow, we are talking some serious cash so that I can sleep with a headboard.  But it was really nice of those CRAZY people at the furniture store to offer me financing.  Hummmm – monthly payments on a bed……ummm - NO!!  We don’t even have car payments so I’m certainly not going to make payments on some over-priced wood furniture.  (If you know me, you know my philosophy on money matters – thank you Dave Ramsey.)  Also, the question came to mind about how this “delivered” bed would fit up the stairs since our mattress barely made it after much bending and shoving.

So I kept searching for a solution for my bed dilemma.  Maybe I would do one of those DIY padded leaning headboard things I always see them make on HGTV.  But that would require a large piece of plywood (that would not fit in my car) and buying foam padding and picking out fabric and then hoping it wouldn’t look “home-made”.  I was almost ready to admit defeat and just continue living headboard-less until I stumbled across Ana White.  Perfect!  I had a solution – build my own bed.  If all those people on her website could do it, certainly I could build one, too….right???

Somehow after completing the kitchen “furniture” I believed that I had enough experience to tackle building a king size farmhouse bed.  Yep – that’s right – farmhouse! – not just some flimsy little headboard.  The bed I wanted was farmhouse style – so we’re talking 4x4 posts, 2x4’s, 2x6’s, 1x8 planks – nothing wimpy about it.  So I printed off the plans, measured my room, made some modifications, measured again, made several scouting trips to Home Depot to check out wood options, measured again, made more modifications, more trips to my friends at the orange box, more measuring, and finally decided on my plan.  After a week of all this, I was brave enough to commit to buying  some wood and having orange cut my pieces that were too big for trusty miter “bob”.   Well, only half committed – I only bought the wood I needed for the main headboard plank.  So at this point, I had only invested $30ish into the project.  That way if my plans totally tanked, I rationalized it was the same cost as eating out one night.

So on to building…..well, actually more like endless hours of sanding.  I learned that sanding each piece of wood first will make a much more professional-looking end product.  And I really wanted the bed to turn out fabulous so I knew I had to be patient and sand everything first.  But after everything was sanded, I was still just left with a pile of wood – although it was a very smooth and pretty pile!

Now – let the building begin!  I took my time (that patience thing again) and laid out all the boards to get them straight, measured, restraightened, used wood glue, restraightened, nailed by hand, restraightened, and finally I had the main part of the headboard done.  It was straight, smooth, and looked pretty impressive.  So I made a few more trips to my friends at orange for the remaining pieces of the headboard.  I’m pretty impressed by the amount of service you get when someone sees a chick picking out 4x4 posts (8 ft length).  Now if only I could get that kind of attention when I need something at the grocery store!

More wood = more hours of sanding.   Once I cut the remaining pieces, I realized I had to make some decisions on the finish.  Do I leave it natural, stain it, paint it, distress it?  Who knew there were so many decisions to make?  So I spent a few more days of torturous pondering.  I finally committed to painting it a light cream color.  Actually, we had a ½ gallon left over from repainting our living room and it seemed to be a good match – “free” paint – perfect!  I spent the next several days priming and painting.

I had to enlist the hubby’s help to carry the headboard pieces upstairs and assemble them once in the bedroom.  A few hours later, we had a fully assembled headboard attached to our bed frame.  It looked really good – I was so proud.  BUT….I knew it could be SOOOOOO much better if I built the footboard and attached the whole thing together with wood side pieces.  So we had to un-attach parts of the headboard and move our mattress into the office so I had room to work.

And I started the whole process over again to sand, build, prime, paint, distress, and attach a footboard.  Of course, Beau managed to get paint on his tail and feet during all this - good thing he's a white cat and it was white-ish paint!

What started as a shopping trip, turned into a project that I thought I could whip up in a week, but actually took over a month to complete.  However, after putting the whole room back together, it was totally worth all the work, and we are happily enjoying the bed that I built!!!

The Kitchen

My first project started out of annoyance and necessity. The kitchen in our house had a free floating stove with no cabinets or counters on either side. Who can cook like that - not me! After shopping for a solution and not finding anything affordable (a kitchen remodel was not an option), I decided I should build something to meet my needs. So I designed 2 pieces which would meet my cooking needs, accommodate the space/heating vents, and neatly house the microwave.

Remember....it's an old house with lots of character, a.k.a. quirky spacing and inconvenient outlets. So I gotta work with what I've got. Maybe it should be called problem-solving instead of decorating!

Below are pics of the shelves I made for the left side and the microwave cabinet thingy on the right side.  I added granite tile to the tops to make the counter space super usable and easy to clean.  I also painted the artwork above the stove - it was really easy and makes me smile each morning as I stumble toward the coffee pot. 

In case you're wondering, no we did not inherit the kitchen color.  That was actually my choice.  It's crazy and bold and really blue but it's such a cheerful place to be in the middle of winter!  When it's negative 20 outside and snowing and dark at 4pm-ish for months on end - you kinda need a bright space.

The Coffee Table (part 1)

In many of our moves around the country, we tend to re-purpose different furniture items depending on the space available and our needs at the time.  When we moved to Minnesota, we started using our Pottery Barn bench as a coffee table so we donated the old one.  When moving into our house, the bench came upstairs into the bedroom and we decided to just be coffee table-less.  It’s been kind of freeing not to have one – very clutter free, I must say.  However, I can’t live with one style for long and the hubby put in a request to build him a coffee table.  Hummmmm  - a chance to build something else – oh yeah….I hopped right on that one! 

After coming up with some modified plans, I made a trip after work to my friends at orange to pick up some 2x6’s.  Again, it’s amazing how helpful people are when they see me picking out wood!  This time, I had a customer offer to help me.   I headed home with my $10 pile of wood, excited to start my next project. 

On this one, I decided that based on the quality wood, the table plans, and the overall shape of the table, that I could build it first and sand it later (I so love projects that offer instant results!).  After 3 hours in the garage, my table was built.  Here are some pics of it hanging out in the living room.  I decided that I should live with it for a while prior to putting in the time (sounds like prison, doesn’t it – lol) to sand and finish it. 

I’m still undecided on the finish – do I stain or paint it?  A dark stain to match the other wood?  Maybe - but that’s a lot of dark wood for one room.  Maybe paint it cream like the bed?  I still have left over paint and primer so that would be free and easy.  I can’t decide…..maybe a combination of both – stain the center dark and paint the sides and legs cream!?!?   

Update:  The Coffee Table (part 2)

The Lawn Furniture

After surviving 2 Minnestota winters, I completely understand why everyone up here goes bonkers over spending time outdoors during the summer months.  This year we too caught the "warm weather bug" and jumped on the outdoor bandwagon.  After a stretch of warm days in May (warm = meaning temps around 50ish), we quickly went out and purchased a gas grill.  Then we grilled everything for about a week straight.  Well - Shaun grilled everything - which was great for me since it required no cooking on my part!  Hummmm - was the grill part of my master plan to get out of cooking.....maybe?! 

So it's kinda hard to enjoy hanging outside with the grill going, kicking back with a beer, when all we had were camping chairs.  I decided we needed some kind of outdoor table/chair set so we could properly enjoy the Minnesota summer.  However, again - terrible shopping options - and I could not bring myself to spend so much money on lawn furniture that I wasn't sure would last or worse - get stolen!  Surely there had to be a solution I could be happy about.  I tried rummage sales (that's what these northern folks call yard/garage sales) and Craig's list.  Totally came up empty. 

Ahhhh ha...I remembered the metal table base that I had in Florida (the top had broken but the base was still solid).  Maybe I could add a mosaic tile top.  I was inspired, this could be a fabulous solution, I could totally see us having a glass of wine after work, enjoying the wonderful weather, endless hours of summer daylight, etc, etc, etc.  Can't you just picture it???  Only problem - the table was still in Florida!!  It never made the move due to space issues.  Bummer.  Back to square one - now what?

So let's tangent for a moment.  For several years, we spent many a weekend at the beach in Englewood, FL.  At some point, not sure when, I started collecting beach rocks during every trip.  By the time we moved to MN, I had filled a huge storage bin full of beach rocks.  Funny thing looking back now is that the tub of beach rocks moved to MN with us but the table did not.  Go figure.  Anyway...this storage bin takes 2 guys to lift and move it.  During our last move, our friend tried to pick it up himself not knowing what was inside.  Comment to me "chell - what do you have in here - a box of rocks?"  My reply (trying to keep a straight face) "actually yes - it really is a box of rocks!"  Then there was a long conversation with me trying to explain why we have a box of rocks and why I keep moving them from place to place.  I'm sure he thinks the Florida sun fried my brain or something.  But in my head, I always imagined that my beach rocks would make a wonderful table top.

So I'm talking to my brother about this outdoor furniture dilemma and my idea of creating a table with my beach rocks.  The problem - what would be a base for the table?  Good thing for wise siblings - he brought me out of the "design cloud" and reminded me that the rocks are really heavy and the base better be just as hefty to support all that weight.  Hummmm - now what?  We came up with a great solution - I should use one of those wood spool things that electrical cable/wiring comes on  - one that's table height.  And guess what - my brother has access to several - and free!  Great solution bro...but they are in Florida, too!!!!  Yeah - how about ship those to me and while you are at it, throw in the table I left behind.  LOL

Good thing I'm resourceful and the hubby doesn't mind helping with my crazy schemes.  So I enlisted Shaun's help and a day later, we had not 1 but 2 free wooden cable spools of different sizes!  A girl needs options ya know!  I'll spare the details of how we got those home in our car - that was another fun adventure as I'm sure you can imagine. 

So I got to work sanding my new "table".  Now let me say that I was not interested in making an outdoor table that would outlast me.  I approached this project as fun and hopefully it would last a summer or two.  So I skipped the primer and just went with a coat of spray paint.  Next on to the top.  If I were to do this properly,  I would have used concrete board and all the stuff to tile in a wet environment, weather-proof, etc.  But how much do you invest in a free table - life is all about balance. 

So I used liquid nails and glued my rocks and tiles to the top.  The tiles were key because otherwise the drinks would tip over since the rocks don't make for a very level surface (that was Shaun's idea - genius!!).  Then I used stepping stone concrete mix to "grout" the table.  And added a final coat of clear spray paint on the top to "seal" it. 

That same weekend, I went by our local "free-cycle" center and found 2 wooden chairs - totally free - my favorite kind of shopping trip! They both got a coat of spray paint and some outdoor fabric for the seat cushions ("reupholstered" with my stable gun). Voila - an outdoor table set with tons of character for under $20 in supplies.

My neighbor thinks someone would pay $100 for the table - well, if that person exists, come on by and you just bought yourself a table!