Showing posts with label For the Home. Show all posts
Showing posts with label For the Home. Show all posts

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Seizing an Opportunity

Our house is pretty old, I think about 80 years. Eleven years ago we bought it from a fixer-up kind of guy who had purchased it in a foreclosure sale to flip. He did the minimum so it would look good enough to sell; cheap paint, cheap cabinet doors, etc. Fortunately he did install good double-pane windows downstairs. It is a very sturdy double brick house in a great neighborhood and we love it. Over the years it has been our canvas as we have added a bath, a garage, a carport, a screened porch, a garden and a studio. We have painted the entire downstairs and replaced the windows upstairs. I so want Handy Randy to make new farmhouse style cabinet doors, but first we must finish the upstairs and rebuild a fence that was damaged in an ice storm a few years ago.

All of this to say, the paint on the doors beneath the kitchen sink was peeling and looked pretty tacky. I saw an opportunity to be creative! Off the doors came and down to the studio where I copied Alisa Burke’s style.

After painting the doors with chalk paint, I used a Sharpie to draw on the panels. I sealed them with two coats of wax. The knobs were painted with enamel paint (because I had some in my stash) and multi-purpose paint.

Using the Silhouette Portrait, I cut the words from Oracal 651 Matte Black Vinyl. I learned that all vinyl is not the same. My first attempt I tried an inexpensive vinyl; it tore easily and did not adhere to the wood (So frustrating!) Then I did some research (I know, I would have saved time if I did this first) and learned Oralcal 651 is highly recommended. I can understand why! It cut smoothly, didn't tear and adhered beautifully.

I like it even if it doesn’t look as polished as Alisa’s work. If you are not familiar with her, you should hop on over to her blog and see what I am talking about!





Friday, July 25, 2014

What to do with all those Walmart bags?


Make a pillow, of course!  (Saw this on A Beautiful Mess blog and changed it just a bit.)

 

I just stuffed a bunch of those bags into a 1-gallon Ziploc bag,


 
 
 made it snug and zip it closed and thus, a waterproof pillow form.


I headed over to Hancocks for some outdoor material and whip up a pillow. On the Beautiful Mess blog, they made an envelope case, but I closed it with hand stitching.  

 

Okay, there is a bit of crunch, crunch when you squeeze it so you probably wouldn’t want to use it for a nap, but for an accent pillow, it is cheap, weatherproof and keeps those bags out of the landfill just a bit longer. Win/win!


Sunday, July 6, 2014

Painted Cushions





It has been a bustling late spring and early summer in and out of The Underground! Travels, granddaughter visit, weed battles in the garden and our annual Texas BBQ have kept me hopping! I think the next few weeks will be a bit slower; at least that is what I am hoping. I am ready to work on projects for our new screened porch, which is almost completed.

Yes, HR built it!

While searching Pinterest for decorating ideas, I happened upon a pin for painting fabric. Sounded like a great way to spruce up faded outdoor cushions.

Using Martha Stewart Fabric Medium and craft paint, I followed a link and revived a couple of bistro chair cushions. They look great, but feel a bit stiff, yet comfortable enough to sit on. They haven’t been through a rain so I don’t know how well the paint will hold up when drenched.

I used 1 ½ ounces of medium (cost$5.99 for 6 oz.) and 1 ½ bottles of craft paint (1 part medium to 2 parts paint,) so I figure it cost around $3 for both cushions. For that price, the cushions aren’t really that stiff!