TV stand

I got and put together this cute whimsical TV stand from Ikea! Well....not supposed to be a TV stand it is really meant to be a sideboard/buffet table. When I say I put it together really I mean I read the instructions and Kevin put it together. Ikea's instructions are supposed to be "universal". They have NO words LITERALLY! I was confused most of the time here is a pic of the instructions and Kevin putting it together:


After we got most of it together Kevin was getting tired so I stepped in and tried to put the drawers together. Ummm well... I failed! I put two of them together wrong and they were hammered together with this crazy plastic screw that was meant to never come out! Woops! Needless to say Kevin was pretty upset with me. Rut roooowww : (
I was able to talk my dad into saving the drawers for me and we got them in so this it what it looks like in place: (Note - the walls are not the color they are going to be, It will look much cuter when they are and I have decor around it)

Firplace Restoration

I am finally finished with my fireplace! After taking a nearly two month hiatus of working on it : ) My before picture is just a few post down check it out as a reminder. Here are the after pictures!


ENJOY!

Long time no blog...

I promised myself this blog would be only about my restoration and not about my life. Unfortunately my life has gotten in the way of my restoration lately! Since the end of March I started painting my parents old house that they are trying to sell. THE WHOLE HOUSE! BY MYSELF! I agreed to do this b/c I need money for my room decorating : ) I can't get everything I need unless I have money right? A few weeks ago my neighbor came to me and asked if I could look after her precious 8 month old baby girl. I could not turn down the opportunity to spend some time with her! So I just spent the last two and a half weeks playing mom. I know... I know... it is different watching someone else' kid than your own, but it was fun to pretend what it could be like at times. I did earn some more money towards my restoration for doing that too! Now I need to get back to work on my parents house and then once I am done it will be full steam ahead on MY room! YIPPPEEEE! Sorry it has been so long since my last post, but I PPPPRRROOOMMIISSSEEE there will be TONZ to talk about in the coming months. : )


Here is a pic of Carys!

Amy Butler

I love amy butler! She is FANTASTIC! Her colors together just make me feel happy inside! I am totally excited about using her stuff in my new room! I will for sure be using fabric from the BELLE line and possibly some of her other stuff too. : ) If you are looking to make some pillows or a bag or even a hat! Check out her fabric you will not be dissapointed she has something for everyone. Here is the link to her website!

painters hand

Okay well I am on day 2 of restoring the fireplace. I have come to realize it is not so easy. My hand hurts really bad and I realize as I am painting I need to go back and sand some more before the second coat... I woke up this morning with this horrible pain in just one hand I couldn't figure it out... then I realized it was from the spray paint! Holding the nozzle down for that long is quite the workout. It is starting to look much better though. I am still excited! I would like to be done with it by the end of next week. (It is my spring break! not that I need it I only work 1 day a week)

We all could you use a little restoration ourselves,
I leave you with this:


Restoration

---

The act of restoring or bringing back to a former place, station, or condition; the fact of being restored; renewal; reestablishment; as, the restoration of friendship between enemies; the restoration of peace after war.

---

The state of being restored; recovery of health, strength, etc.; as, restoration from sickness.

---

That which is restored or renewed.

Spread Sheet

I am using an Excel spread sheet to document the items I want to get for the room. It has the item, how much I will be willing to pay, and how much I actually paid for it. My goal is to come in thousands of $$$ off the original price. For example... I have been searching antique fireplace mantels for the last year. Most of the ones I see in stores, say downtown McKinney, cost upwards of $400. I decided to "budget" $200 for one. I found a Mantel I LOVED on craigslist and after bargaining the seller down we landed on $50! That is a savings of $150!

Moral of the story....you can ALWAYS get the look for less. NEVER settle!

First Restoration

I will be restoring this antique fireplace I found on on craigslist:



I am very excited about it! I have some really cool ideas for the mantel (btw that is painters tape around the inside) I will post the finished product when I am all done!