My Heart's All A-flutter... Butterfly Chair Revealed!

I've been telling you about this chair for ages.  Probably because I bought the chair frame last summer and the fabric last fall.  And, pretty much since then have been alternating between chomping at the bit to finish this and procrastinating refinishing it til I had the cash to have it upholstered.

When I bought the chair frame it was raw wood...not a stitch of paint, or poly or anything on it.  Of course I didn't think to take a picture of it back then because I wasn't blogging and I knew what the before looked like.  And I didn't take a picture after the first coat of very bright aqua oops paint from my neighbor either.  But lucky for you, I did take a picture after the second coat of teal-ish paint that I put over the bright aqua.  (Mind you, I liked the aqua...but i wanted a layered effect.)

So here's what it looked like 2 coats of paint in...

I have the can of paint downstairs somewhere...and if you want to know the exact color I can tell you, but for right now that'd require me getting my tired tookis out of the bed and that's just not happening.

I still love you all though.

So after 1 coat of crazy bright aqua, and 1 coat of delightful teal-ish, I grabbed another lighter can of paint I had (Benjamin Moore Wythe Blue) and dry brushed over all of the higher areas to get just some color variation going again.

After that it looked something like this. ------>

Sorry that the color variation is looking kinda wacked out between these 2 pictures.  Take that as a lesson in what happens with different lighting during different times of day in different spaces.  Just fyi, the picture on the right looks a bit more accurate as far as the darker teal-ish color under the drybrushing goes.

After that step, I took a sanding sponge to the thing to rough it up.

<----- So then it looked like this.

Do you see how it left some of the Wythe Blue color, but then also exposed some of the crazy aqua under the teal-ish as well as some raw wood beneath?  Woo Hoo.  That's what I wanted.

And I'll tell you a little tip of what NOT to do.  Don't ever rub a candle on the piece to keep paint from adhering to certain areas.  This was one of the pieces I thought I'd try some different techniques on and I'd read a few things that said to rub a candle on before you paint to get a weathered effect.

Don't do that.  It's awful and messy and hard to get off of the raw wood (which means it made it harder for the wood to absorb the gorgeous walnut stain later too.  Just trust me on this one...it's a bad idea.

So that being said...the next step was rubbing walnut stain over all of this.  I wanted it to dull the color (which is also why I used brighter colors to begin with)  I painted the stain on in very small areas and wiped it most of the way off almost immediately.  I used a paintbrush to apply the stain in this instance because this chair as you can see has a lot of relief areas and I wanted to make sure the stain would seep into the grooves.  So then it looked something like this. (in some seriously yellow afternoon light!) ------>


And after I finally finished all of that...which I didn't do until I had the money to have it upholstered, I sent it off to a professional.  The reasons being for sending it off were...

1. I wanted it to have springs in it so it'd sit comfortably and I don't know how to do that since it was just the empty frame.

2. I spent way too much money on fabric and didn't want to crap it up.

3. I'd also spent way too much time aligning and taping off exactly as I wanted it to be on the chair.  Yes, I did tape giant circles on the fabric with painter's tape to make sure the upholsterer got it right.  I marked each part and labeled them so my vision would be perfect in the completed product.

And it was.

Even the arm fabric is perfectly aligned!

Ps. The color of the frame in these pictures is pretty exact to what it looks like.  Oh yeah, I had it piped in lime green linen.

And now....the whole thing.

SWOON!

I absolutely adore it!  Now on with the rest of that room since this was my inspiration for it all!

Happy hump day to you!

Castle on a Cloud....Dreaming in Whites.

I once told someone that I thought that the color white was

"Completely void of personality" and should basically be avoided....pure white that is.

But now, I have changed my mind...and I think I was wrong!  Because I love this...

And these....

And this....

And this....




Seriously...GOR-geous!

But I'm just gonna tell you....I'm not good with void of color!

Now if you want color....Begonia or Aqua, Periwinkle or Apple green, or a colored polka dot couch....well, I'm your girl!  I do pretty well picking paint colors and 99% of the time, they turn out just like I expected them to turn out.  I am not afraid of color...in fact, I love it...and that is reflected pretty much everyhwere in my house.

But when it comes to creating a cloudy white oasis...we'll the good Lord just didn't seem to wire my brain naturally that way.  But I'll tell you one thing....for a person who's too prideful to post a mediocre recipe, I'm sure not too prideful to admit when someone else is better at something than I am.  And my gal pal Emily....well, the girl can dream in white....

ALL. DAY. LONG!

And I have to confess...I'm just a tid bit jealous.

So the best thing to do when you don't know how to do something, but would like to learn....well friends, enlist the help of a professional....who knows better than you!

So that's what I'm gonna do here.  Next Friday the 18th, Emily is going to teach us how to love us some white.  And while she's doing that, I'm gonna to add a punch of color to the Crisp she's used to over on her site!

I could not be more excited!  And the next time I see her...I'm gonna pick that brain of hers in person for what to do to make my own little castle in the clouds out of my master bedroom!

Thinking of revamping my stairs...

My stairs still have a runner on them from the previous owner that just isn't me.  See look....

Not me at all.  I do like how we painted the spindles black though...poor man's wrought iron I call it.

So here's more along the lines of what I'm thinking...

Love it!!!   Isn't it so fun?!  I just have to finish making the bench before I can move on to something else.  But I have a new idea for the bench though.  I think I might upholster the back of it with burlap...and then put a cushion on the seat....what do you think?! (The more I've looked at the headboard that will be the back, the more I'm thinking I either need to paint and antique it or do something to it.  The spot that the previous owners gouged is starting to get to me, and I don't love it like I've been trying to convince myself to.  It's just furniture though, so if you don't love it....change it!

Anyways...just a random little thing I've been thinking about that i thought I'd share!

Time to feed my kiddies dinner!  I have a hot date tonight with a 4 year old to watch Peter Pan here at home.  Got to get to it!

- Logan

Part 2: Musings of a Master Bedroom Makeover...

I told you I'd take pictures when I could.  So I did it.  But be forewarned that it's still messy.

Someone once told me and I'll tell you..."If you want to see me, come anytime...if you want to see my house, call ahead."  So today we're gonna pretend that you're here reading because you want to have this chat with me about how to beautify my bedroom...not coming with the expectation of seeing something perfectly put together. Ok...now that's out of the way...moving on.

This is my room.  And all of it's challenges.  I'll tell you some of what I like and what I don't.

I think I like the stripes that we painted.  I say I think that I like them because I really do think that I do, but I'm also not sure if it's just that it was so laborious to paint them that I have some unknown reluctance to paint over it all.  I kinda think I want the whole room to be gray.....or maybe just the headboard gray? The trim meeds to be painted white also...it's still antique white (tan-ish) like when we moved in.  I bought the headboard for $75 at a consignment sale and I actually really like the shape...the color however I think is HIDEOUS for what I want this room to be.  I'm thinking of putting a "W" for our last name in the circle....hmmm.

 I also LOVE the little sofa at the end of the bed.  The shape is adorable, the tufting divine, and I love the fabric on it too even though here it's just looking plain brown.  It has a grayish bluish dot on it and is darling.


We don't have an overhead light here or even a wired box...which is $250ish to put in...just the wiring...that's not including the fixture.  SO I rewired the old dining room chandelier (which was too small for the dining room anyways) and hung it in the corner on my side of the bed.

 See what I'm talking about with the dormers.  Not wide enough for drapery and my husband is really almost vehemently opposed to any treatment on them at all.  Mostly because he's 6'6" and anything even kinda covering the window seems like an imposition to his ability to look out.  I told him they'd only cover maybe an inch or so under the top of the window moulding, but he's still not convinced.  And that one spot with the messily covered dresser...well that dresser is the only thing I can think to put there! (and we need the storage of it too!)

 And then there's this EYESORE!  The TV and it's messy looking cabinet.  Can't be too deep though because the dormer is right there too.  I moved a bookshelf into it so that my hubby's book collection wasn't immediately viewable as you walked into the room (as it used to be close to his side of the bed and just looked cluttered all the time RIGHT when you walked into the room.


I love THIS piece!
---->




I found it on Craigslist for $30 (along with a headboard that I'm currently making into a bench) and it was hideOus-O!  I was going to sand it down and then paint it, but once I started sanding I realized it had layers of olive paint, and cream paint, and taupe paint....you have to work your tootsie off to achieve patina like that, so I worked with it and love the end result.  The knobs on the top continue to elude me though...can't seem to find ones that I love (which is why there are 2 different ones now...neither of which is speaking to me.)

<-----I also love this other piece...which serves as my bedside table.  I've had it since I was a kid and there's something about it that I just love.  I even actually like the hardware on it...there's a light blue ball in the center of each handle...love!

Oh, and PS. I don't like the rug in here at all.  My mom gave it to me as a loaner and it's like 10x14, so even if I just put a piece of decent bound carpet, I'm still in for like $300 or more buckaroos. For now though it's at least something soft to stand on.

Let me show you something I like....



LOVE this---->
That's how I want my room to feel!  But I still think I might like the walls a lighter gray for me.







SO what do you all think?!

PS. After looking through my paint deck, I think I've decided I need to paint, and the color I think I need to paint is this...Benjamin Moore HC-172....Revere Pewter.

- Logan

Bon Bons... I really couldn't live without them...

Have you ever had your husband ask you what you did all day?

You know...in a way that perhaps would put into question if you had in fact done anything all day long?  Because when he comes home, there are toys strewn all over the den, the paper plates from lunch are still on the table, there is half a pile of folded laundry on your bed and the rest in a pile on the floor, and your kids are filthy running around like little gypsies.  You know what I'm talking about right?  And so when the question is asked "WHAT have you done all day?!" you find yourself wanting to say "What do you think?! I sat around watching soaps and eating bon bons all day long...OBVIOUSLY!"


You know how it goes... you go about your day that starts in the kitchen with breakfast, but as you look for a clean fork you realize you have yet to empty the dishwasher, which as you unload it, you then find a bib that didn't wash as clean as you'd have liked in the dishwasher, so you head to the laundry room to give it some more stain treatment, but first you stop to feed your kids breakfast which was what you came down for anyways... and as you're feeding your kids breakfast you notice a piece of craft paper that you then proceed to put back in the craft cabinet, only to notice on your way that you left the bib on the counter, which you then pick up and proceed to the laundry room to stain treat, but then on the way you trip on a boot that should be outside in the garage, so you head out there to put it back, only to then notice a box full of stuff that needs to go to Goodwill, so you then put that in your car only to realize that the floor of your car looks like a veritable trail mix, so you then go to get the vacuum to clean it out, but then on your way you realize that the baby is now done with breakfast and so you clean him up, and then forget what you were doing until you see the bib you were cleaning.  You know what I'm talking about right?  And some days, the whole day is like this and by the end of it you're putting your kids to bed only to realize that the bib has yet to see any stain treatment.  And somewhere round about 5 o'clock your sweetie comes home and says "What on earth have you done all day?!"  And you have no idea really other than your children were fed and you were insanely busy.  So you say "Well honey, isn't it obvious that I spent the day eating bon bons."  (just fyi here...I don't really recommend saying this, it really makes you sound like a jerk.  Not that I'd know from experience or anything. )

BUT NOW ladies...now you can have your bon bons and wear them too!

Goody Goody Bon Bons that is!

 

I don't know about you, but when I'm home all day, I really see no reason to wear shoes.  Call me the antithesis of the women's lib movement if you want to, but whatever...so what if I'm barefoot and in the kitchen?!

But in the winter, my hard tile floors are brutal to the little piggies and I just can't take it.  Which is why I don't do a day without my Bon Bons!  (See that cute aqua pair above...with the giant pink roses....yeah, I have those.

 But I think next I might like these--->






                        Or these
                             <----




Really though, with so many fun choices how can a girl decide?!  I'm sure I just don't know myself!

So this is my footwear of choice at home.  Bon Bons all day long!  They cost about $35-40 a pair and really when you think of how often you wear them, it really makes loads of sense.  Now be aware, that if you wear them like I do to the mailbox outside, and to get a package from the UPS man, and to say hello to your neighbor in the street, and sometimes even to the grocery store (ok...so I don't actually wear them to the grocery store...I just wanted to give you a moment of horror) then they won't probably hold up as well as a pair of moc slippers from LL Bean....but these are WAY cuter!

It's like wrapping your foot in a really fun present.  A comfy, cute, and totally addictive package!

You should totally get some.  Then when your husband asks what you've been doing all day, you can honestly say "just wallowing around in bon bons!"

Happy Tuesday friends!

- Logan

Oh my goodness...I almost forgot to mention that they make them for babies too!  My friend Rebecca just posted a picture of some on her most adorable daughter the other day and that's what got this on my brain!  She had no idea of all the options out there for everyone.  It's such a good thing I'm here to enlighten!  Check out these little snacks to the left....makes you just want to nibble a baby foot for sure!

** I would like to add a note here (the day after I originally wrote this) that I in no way want you to read this like I have some sort of difficult husband who questions how I spend my time...I don't!  He is amazing and really has never walked in the door demanding to know why our house is a mess, so I hope you didn't read this that way! My intent was really to say that there truly are days when I have no idea how things are the way they are when I know I've been running around like a crazy person and sometimes you really do wish you could sit around and eat bon bons!)

A Load a Day keeps the crazies away!!!

I've been thinking about what I want this blog to be, and among all the ideas i have, i find myself drawn to what I think I might call "Tales of a Lesser Woman."  You know, the things that make you feel silly, idiotic, bad about yourself...the junk.  I'm not saying I'm gonna "air my dirty laundry" or anything, but you know, the human stuff that we all live with!  And this first one, well, see the picture below...it's part of the Lesser Woman in me for sure!

I guess the bad part is that it took me a cup of coffee, piece of cake, and over an hour to wade through folding this mess while sitting in the middle of the laundry room floor.  The good part is that i can say with all honesty that this is the first time I've found myself literally up to my eyeballs in laundry in almost a year.  I think it was the week of snow and having my husband at home that threw off my groove, but whatever i want to blame doesn't really matter because it sure didn't help me dig out of this pile!

When i had Little Bit a year ago and my amazing mother was here helping out for a couple of weeks, she gave me a piece of advice that I'm not kidding you...CHANGED MY LIFE!  She said "do yourself a favor and think of one or 2 things you can do that will help you manage life a little better...like try doing a load of laundry a day."  So i thought to myself, "I think i can, i think i can."  And for a year...that's just what I've done.  Wash, dry, fold, and put away. Every. Single. Day. And here are a few things it helped do:

1)  Each day even when i couldn't exactly figure out what i had done all day, but knew I'd been SO BUSY...i had at least 1 thing to show for it...clean, folded, put away clothes! What a confidence builder!

2)  It makes my marriage better.  Why, you might ask? Well...for one, my master bedroom isn't insanely overrun by clothes (both clean and dirty), thereby creating a stress-less place for my husband to come home to. I liked things tidy better too and it became easier to keep things that way. Plus, he felt loved by my efforts to do all of the above things, and the love cycle just keeps circulating!

3)  I realized we all have too many clothes.  When you wash often, you don't have a need for as much.  So i think somewhere in there HAS to be a stewardship principle! So, since we have more clean clothes more often, i don't feel the need to buy more, which saves $! (Or in my case if I'm being honest, frees it up for something else I'd rather do)

4)  Reduces my stress level. I have a tendency to get overwhelmed when i feel like i might never get something done, and by this small efficiency, i know i won't have a couple of miserable days hanging over my head just to do laundry!

Anyways...i can say with confidence that i will be picking back up where the snow got me off track in the laundry department, because while i did enjoy the coffee and cake this afternoon, I'd rather my company next time be a friend and not an endless mound of clothes!

- Logan

Question for you: What is one thing you do for yourself to help "keep the crazies away?"