Christmas Joy

As I sit here listening to the rain drizzle outside my window and smelling that sweet pine that has permeated our home, I couldn't be happier.

Over the weekend, we picked up a tree and decorated it with love.  Even though the right side has one too many ornaments on it where my three year old decided to station herself, it's perfect in our eyes.

I truly love the spirit of Christmas.  I love what it stands for and enjoy every minute choosing gifts for my family.  Usually we make our gifts every year.  I have a very crafty family.

But this year they will be purchased.  I spent a lot of time on Etsy this year. 

I hope you all are not getting too stressed about your Christmas shopping. Give a gift because you want to, not because you feel you have to. That's my motto :)

Now Showing!

Meet Louis.  Louis XV, he's French.

I moved out my other desk, which didn't quite fit the bill.  We were struggling to fit our legs under it and it  was too wobbly.  The color is the same as the desk before, Woodlawn Valley Haze by Valspar.

 I took my sweet time styling my new love for it's first photo shoot.

Hello lovah.

During my research on Louis XV desks, I found that they can range anywhere from $800-3,000! In original, near perfect condition of course. Unfortunately mine needed a little help. And I wouldn't even think of selling it now.

The amazing little details are what really gets my blood pumping. The delicate, metal accessories that adorn the corners and feet are fixed on individually with several tiny screws to hold them in to place. 

Even the pulls on the drawers are placed with little screws. I had never seen that before. 

  

 

I'm happy.


Link Parties
Primitive and Proper
Redoux 
Classy Clutter 
Miss Mustard Seed 
Finding Fabulous 
Knick of Time 

Coming soon...

Sometimes I walk in to a thrift store, not intending to find anything spectacular.  But secretly hoping I will find the piece that will make my year.  This was one of those times.

I'd never even heard of this style desk before.  But as I was on my way out of the Goodwill with a little coffee table, I ran smack dab into a really cool desk that was just coming out from the back to be put on display.

I stopped this poor guy in his tracks and told him to "Stop, I want to take a look at this desk!" So he stood there patiently as I did so. 

As I rounded the back, I couldn't believe my good fortune.  It was in great shape and might be the perfect piece to replace the computer desk we are currently using,  which isn't working out the way I hoped.

I bought it and never looked back, in case they figured out what this thing was really worth.

Here's a little hint at what's to come later this week.

 

 

 

Stay tuned, I hope to have it finished by the end of the week.

The ol' switcharoo

It's like buying a gift for someone else, and ending up keeping it for yourself.  That's how I see it.  They never know.

There are just some pieces that are destined to stay in my home.

 Take this dresser for example, a non descript, free dresser that I dressed up and tried to sell at the Barn sale.
But alas, she came home with me.  And I wasn't too upset about it.

I saw it as my bedside table immediately.

My old side table

                          

My "new" one.
 

Check out what I was using when we first moved in.

 

Nothing at all wrong with having a dinky side table, if you like that sort of thing.  I just need  plenty of room for all my bedside needs.

For those of you who paint and sell furniture, you are nodding your head and know exactly what if feels like.

Tell me your story.

Today

Today I'm going through all the furniture I didn't sell over the weekend.  The sale was not as busy as we'd hoped.  The furniture was not moving an inch.

We had a feeling that all the gifty type stuff would do well and the furniture would do best at the Spring sale.
And we were right, unfortunatly.

The weather was beautiful, about 60 and breezy.  We huddled together by the fire pit and drank hot cider.  The crowd was intermittent,  and I sold several of my things the last 30 minutes of the sale.

So here is one of the dressers I had that didn't sell.  So on to Craigslist she goes.  It is the sister dresser of this one.

Looking forward to spending time with family this week, some of whom I have not seen in two years.

Have a happy Monday friends!

Link parties
Primitive and Proper 
Elizabeth and Co.

Small antique dresser

The weather has been sunny and perfect the last few days.  The leaves on the trees are still in the transformation process and I'm loving every minute of it.  I often thank my mom for delivering me in  November.

This weekend was the celebration of my birth.  I ate dinner with some amazing ladies, and consumed many a desert.  My man also took me to a movie.

 And now I can't say "but it's my biiirrrrrthday" anymore.

Apparently there's a limit to how many times I can use it.



I have a cute little dresser to share with you today.  It came from an antique store down the way, and it had been sitting under a leaky ceiling.  The top was damaged beyond repair, therefor  I had to peel off the veneer and sand like a mad woman.

This one's headed to the barn sale this weekend.

Link Parties~

Primitive and Proper
Elizabeth and Co. 
Miss Mustard Seed 
Redoux

The Little Red Barn Sale

It's time for our bi-annual Little Red Barn Fall sale.  I'm loving the hustle and bustle of getting everything ready.  We are less than two weeks away and I'm looking forward to sharing what I've made with the public.

Here are a few items I have ready to show you.

I made some canvas pillows.  

And the chair goes with a table set.

Also I've made some ruffled tree skirts

 There are also several pieces of furniture half finished that I plan to share with you as well. 

 Next week perhaps?

 If you live in the Atlanta area please come out November 17th and say hello!

For more info click on the red barn in my left side bar.

Boo Y'all!

Halloween is one of those fun days that I really look forward to.  Even though the excitement has faded  some since I was little, the day still holds a special energy that I can't deny.

My older girl has been wearing her costume everyday for the past 2 weeks. I've already had to wash it 3 times.  We have gone over the ritual of what she is to do once she reaches the front door.

Knock
say "Trick or treat!"
get candy
Say "thank you!"
walk away.

Gosh, it really is an odd tradition huh?
Walk up to someones door and demand they give you candy just because you say 3 silly words.

Anyway, I've got the crock pot simmering away with potato soup.  An easy meal we can enjoy before we head out tonight.

My girl is busy hammering away some nails into the pumpkin.  The idea I got from Katie over at Bower Power this morning.

Genius idea I tell ya.  Kept her busy for awhile.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Hope you all have a spooktacular day!!

Light blue

This is one of my favorite colors to paint furniture.  I used it first on this great little buffer/dresser.  It's perfect because, it's not white and it's not too bold.  I love color, but I wanted this piece to be neutral enough to fit into anyone's decor.

Too bad it's an "oops paint"  don't have a name for it.  So we'll just go with light blue, okay?  I know, I'm super creative huh? If you've got a better name, I'm all ears.

I'm getting ready for the Little Red Barn Fall Sale, so I've been very busy with furniture and new creations.  I participated for the first time back in the spring and it was so successful, I decided to do it again.  A great group of women getting together to sell their creations, what could be better than that?

Here is one of the pieces for the sale~

If you live in the Atlanta area and want more info on The Little Red Barn Sale, click on the link in my side bar.

Link Parties
Redoux
Primitive and Proper

Kitchen before, during and a little later

Just for fun, I'm put together a side by side comparison. A before, during and after photo series of our kitchen.  We still have the back splash to finish, curtains to hang, plus a bunch of other little things on the list.

Here we go.

This is the original MLS picture of the kitchen before we moved in.

It's hard to see, but the wallpaper had bunches of cherries all over it.

A dark cave, but we could see the potential.

Here we are right before the painting began.  We lived with this for almost 5 years.

All the lights had to be on in order for it to feel less cave like.

And here we are as of today

Even with no lights on, it's bright and very un-cave like.

The glass cabinets really open up the room.  And let's not forget the painted counter tops.

This reno was done on a very tight budget.  So far we've spent less than $2,000.

If you have dark wood cabinets like we did and are battling with yourself over whether or not to paint them,  I say
GO FOR IT!

Yes, it will be time cosuming.

Yes, it will take a lot of work.

Yes,  it is worth it!

Here we are again before and after