Bench and Bookshelf

I need a new camera. BAD! But, I managed to get these pics. This bench was a recovering project. The cream in the fabric matches the cream in the wood. But before I recovered it, I dipped the fabric in linseed oil and made it an oilcloth so it could withstand the rigors of the kitchen table. Then I stapled the heck out of it on the the original cover. Fun, fun. By the way, anyone who wants to make oilcloth, it takes at least a week for the cloth to dry. But it's very durable after. (Even though it still smells like linseed oil.)

And this bookshelf is what my hubby and son made for my daughter's bedroom. (Which is coming along quite nicely! If I ever get a camera again, I'll be sure to post.) But this shelf is something I wanted very badly for her room. I wanted a reading corner (still needs seating there) that would also look nice. So, the shelf is actually 4 ft wide x 6 ft tall so it could display all her beautiful children's books. The art on the covers of those books is so fun and often gorgeous, I always felt it a shame to just show the spines of the books. So we made it big enough to be a display shelf as well as a book shelf. I can't tell you how nice it is. Perk 1, she reads more (which means we all read more). Perk 2, she keeps her books cleaned up (don't know why this helps her do it, but it does. No complaints there!) Perk 3, I get a functional piece of wall art and the books don't hide. I'm thinking a bean bag chair or two would do the reading niche trick. Any suggestions?

more living room project materials

I have collected a few more bones for the living room. We'll see how this goes. The green velvet chair was a $10 yard sale find. And the beige beast below, a $5 find. I promise it will be recovered and, most likely, painted. But the caning is good on both chairs, the velvet is in flawless condition on chair number 1, and the comfort level on beige-ey boy is a 10.

I just need some great flashy fabric and good paint and I think I resurrect the beige-man.

Suitcases, I think I'll use them for an end table that holds games. Got some good brainstorms for that one. And casters!
And the final project: (what am I saying! Nothing is ever final!) Snow White's wicked stepmother's mirror! Oh, this thing is cool. Don't know where it goes yet, maybe you could give me some pointers? And it is absolutely in the category of "I can be any color" if needed. Gold doesn't have to stay. So, help anyone?

More living room pics

Here are more pics of my living room that's got potential. But that's all it's got. And a couch and a bird painting, of course. All you creative brains out there, help!



This wall is the same wall the couch is on (first picture). It is opposite of the fireplace wall.

Vintage modern stuff

I really like it. Could I go this way?

The photo is by Tim Walker photography. Here's the url: http://www.urbanlifestyledecor.com/2009/04/home-couture-european-eclectic.html. Beautiful.

So it's been forever and I have a new couch

What would you do with this couch? And this painting? These are the bones of my new living room. I know this blog has been in the "dead blog" log for the past five months, but I'm thinking of beginning a resurrection of sorts for the blog. I don't know if anyone ever reads this anymore, but if you do, I'd love some input on what to do with this and the room. Thanks for checking back. See you soon.

Easter basket improv

So, we went up to visit my sister for Easter and I forgot to get baskets. I remembered everything else. And since Easter is on Sunday and I didn't want to go buy something on Sunday, I improvised. No surprise. Here they are: Easter baskets out of cereal boxes! We used Trix and Waffle Crisp and Captain Crunch. Yum! I'm sure they could've looked better, but I was in a hurry and they played the part just fine.

Paper Easter Basket

My son wanted to make Easter decorations today. This is one of the projects he and all of us made: Easter baskets out of paper. You know, the kind you make in 1st grade where you fold the paper into 16 equal squares, cut the corners to fold in and glue them up to make the box. I used brads to fasten the handle to the basket. I wish the photos turned out better. Fun little project.