A Place to Create and a Place to Dream

I have two budding artists in my house. They love to paint. They love to color. They love to make messes in all parts of my house. For Molly's second Christmas, we bought her an art easel which quickly was put into time out after Maggie arrived. After staring at it (and the crayons that were also put in time out) for months, every time I went down to the basement to do laundry, I decided it was time to create an art area for Molly and Maggie. 

I took an empty wall in our basement which is partially finished but not really a "liveable" space and painted it with chalkboard paint. It took about three coats and honestly, I probably should have done a fourth but I was anxious to get on with the project. Next, I hung some big Bullfrog binder clips on the wall. My plan was to have a space to display finished artwork. It's also turned out to be a great place to dry some of the watercolor masterpieces my little Picasso(s) have created. 

I attached ribbon to two small chalkboards and hung those up too. So far, they haven't used them but I like how they look. I also strung up some lantern lights, I had laying around in the basement. Sometimes keeping things forever is good! (most of the time though, it isn't.) I also repurposed a plastic rolling cart that Scott had but was no longer using as an art caddy. I put all the girl's paper, crayons, stencils, scissors, playdough, etc in the cart and placed it on the side. Above the little Ikea table, which used to sit in our dining room but got shoved out after some rearranging, I hung three command hooks. I added three silver buckets that I found in the dollar aisle at Target and filled those with chalk, paint brushes and crayons (we have a lot of crayons around here). And finally off to the side, I put Molly's art easel. 

My final addition was a rug from Ikea. The floor in the basement isn't the best and while we have plans to remodel someday, I knew we needed something to make the floor more attractive. I searched on several sites before finding the perfect rug on the Ikea site. While shipping was a bit more than I wanted to spend, I justified it by saying that I would have spent a lot more if I had actually gone to Ikea. I always spend more than planned when I go there.

So far the art area is a hit! Molly asks to go down and paint daily. Scott pulled out our camping chairs so I've been sitting in them and folding laundry while she paints. We're working on letting Molly hang out in her art area alone but so far our experiments haven't really worked. Molly gets bored with painting on her art paper and moves to a more exciting canvas, herself! Maggie also loves creating in the art area and has made some fantastic pieces. I sense this area is going to get a lot of use as Fall and Winter close in.

Converting the Nursery to a Big Girl Room

With Chicken Nugget's impending arrival, we've been hard at work re-doing Molly's room into the Girl's Room. Molly will be moving to a big girl bed and her baby sister will be taking over the crib. We've decided to have the girls share a room so we don't have to give up our den/playroom right now (this room is getting some love early next year to make it even more playroom friendly). Eventually we hope to remodel the basement and give the girls their own rooms down there.

A few weeks ago, Scott and I visited a ton of furniture stores in search of a nice but inexpensive bed for Molly. We decided to go with a twin bed for longevity. While a toddler bed is significantly cheaper, I knew we'd have to buy a twin bed within two years and decided to just bite the bullet now. We were lucky enough to find a sweet little bed with a mattress for under $500. 

Of course, adding a twin bed to Molly's room meant some furniture re-arranging and the room is now much more cozy than it was before but I really like how it turned out. 

I have a few more decorative items to add to the room. I need to add a letter for Chicken Nugget's name above the dresser, figure out how to move the monitor camera so it shows more of the room enabling me to see both kiddos and I really need to replace the laundry basket with a nice hamper. I also need to figure out the wastebasket situation. I bought the one we use for $1 at Target shortly after Molly was born. It's worked out fine but it's open and I worry about Molly getting into it once she's moved to her big girl bed and has more room to roam. 

Our next challenge will be moving Molly into her big girl bed. So far she has not been interested in it and I guess we do have plenty of time since the Nugget will be sleeping in our room for at least the first six months but I'd rather do this move sooner than later. 

Bedroom Re-Do!

When we moved into this house two and half years ago, we decided to prioritize which rooms were decorated when in an effort to use our money wisely. We had moved from a 600 square foot condo into a 2,200 square foot house which meant we had a lot of extra space. I now wonder where all that space went and we are still in the midst of decorating our "new" house.



We started with the dining room since we were hosting Thanksgiving that year and I wanted it to look extra nice. Then we moved onto the den and made that into a "man cave" though with the addition of Molly, the room is now covered with toys. I also spruced up my laundry room and still have plans to paint floor one day. When we did Molly's room, we also spiced up the kitchen with new paint.



In January, I decided it was Scott and I's turn to have our room done. We didn't want to spend a lot of money but we wanted the room to have a lot of pop! We talked about inspiration and settled on an Amsterdam theme. We wanted a feeling of Amsterdam in our bedroom, from the colors to the artwork.



I then visited my favorite place, Home Depot to find the perfect paint color. After narrowing it down to two, I came home and painted them on the wall. While mulling over the two paint choices, I decided to paint our closet. The previous owners had removed some sort of wallpaper border in the closet, leaving a long strip of ick. I spackled and sandpapered my heart out before applying a nice clean coat of white paint.



We debated a bit more on the paint color before settling on the dark purple. We decided to do the wall behind our bed with the purple and finish off the other walls with a crisp white. The painting took me over a month to complete. I tackled walls during Molly's naps and on weekends. We lived with our bed in the middle of the room for a very long time. It was annoying to have one's pillow fall off the bed in the middle of the night. That is when we decided that a headboard was very important to us. We talked about making a headboard but when I saw a white, tuffed headboard on The Foundary for an awesome price, I knew it was going to be better to purchase one than make one.



We next moved onto the curtains, the previous owners had left these hideous roman shades. While they worked to block out the sun and provide privacy, they were not something we wanted to keep around. Window treatments are notoriously expensive though and I was not interested in spending $500 for some curtains.



After a lot of research and a lot of discussion, we decided to go with cheap vinyl roller shades paired with some sheer curtains. We found the roller shade at Home Depot and Ikea had an ingenious corner curtain rod which was perfect for our corner window. I added four curtain panels and it was complete!



I also found some fun frames which we are filling with photographs from our honeymoon in Paris and Amsterdam. I replaced our non-matching lamps with two matching lamps in brushed nickle and purged our room of any unnecessary items. That was a BIG trip to the Goodwill!



We are so happy with how the room turned out. We're still looking for some artwork for the wall across from our bed as we fell the one photo is a bit lonely. The most important lesson I learned from this project is that home improvement projects take two to three times as long with a child. Everything just takes longer with a child. I'm not building that into all of my future plans.

Bathroom Freshen Up

We have two bathrooms in our house. The one on the main floor is huge and pretty much perfect for our needs. The color is soothing, the floor is beautiful and the accessories are stylish. We love that bathroom (well as much as one can love a bathroom).



Downstairs, we hide our other bathroom, the spare bathroom which is only used by guests or when the other bathroom is occupied. It's a small room with a garish shade of yellow, actually two shades of yellow because why paint all the walls the same color when you can paint them different shades of the same color! Full disclosure, the bathroom was painted by the previous owners.



The toilet is small and seriously the strangest toilet I've ever seen but it works. Most importantly it fits in the small bathroom which is an important point.



The sink is plain and yet pleasing. Again, it works and fits within the space limits. I'm not a huge fan of the faucet nor the pipes showing beneath it.



The shower is cozy. The shower head is hideous and I apologize to all our guests who have been pelted by it. I showered down there one day after mowing the lawn as I didn't want to track grass clippings into the house and I was appalled at the pelting! THE PELTING!



The floor is utilitarian. It works. It is boring and needs some spark but it is extremely easy to clean!



So this Spring, I plan to update the bathroom. There isn't room in the budget for a new shower, toilet or sink but I think I can make some vast improvements by adding a tile floor (which I'll do myself, heaven help me!), new accessories, new shelves, possibly a new sink faucet and new paint. I'm actually going to paint the bathroom the same color as Molly's room. I have almost a full gallon from the nursery project and I love the color.

I'm planning a few scouting expeditions in the next few weeks to figure out what kinds of accessories I want for the bathroom. I'm looking forward to the scouting expeditions because they allow me to dream big. Once I have the inspiration down, I can look for cheaper alternatives but I love dreaming big. Where do you like to get your bathroom accessories? Where can I find the best items?

Kitchen Accents

Just over a month ago, I asked your opinion on the color for our kitchen accent wall. The response was overwhelming and wonderful!



We left the swatch colors on the wall and whenever someone would come over, we would make them tell us which color they liked the best. This may have led to a few uncomfortable moments for our guests cornered in our kitchen but in the end, it was decided both on the internet and in-person that our kitchen called out for a teal blue.



Last weekend, my parents come over to help Scott paint the nursery (more on that later) and I thought since I had my minions cornered, I'd also have them paint the kitchen. I prepped the area by taping the wall and moving all the stuff off the counters. I had Scott wash the wall with TPS (toxic but effective cleaner) before handing over the paint brushes and paint.



Scott and my Dad did a wonderful job on the kitchen (and nursery!). I'm in LOVE with this color. It was just the punch of color that the kitchen called out for. Now I want to replace the curtains with something funky and fun. Of course that might lead to having the other walls repainted so I'm going to hold off until my minions have forgotten about all the hard work they did for me last weekend.

Crowd Source Kitchen Paint Color

Our kitchen needs a fresh coat of paint and I figure if we are going to paint it, I'd like to add a bit of color. My problem is that I can not decide on a color at all.



At first my husband suggested yellow but after putting a few samples on the wall, we noticed that they matched the cabinets (light maple) way too closely and that we needed some contrast.



Then we thought, Green! But the dining room which is adjacent is a light green and really that feels like a lot of green.



We also have this beautiful tile back splash that we'd like to coordinate the paint colors with.



Finally I just took all my Martha Stewart Paint Samples out and we painted swatches on the wall that we plan to paint. The rest of the walls will remain a nice cream.



So tell me, which color would you paint my kitchen? I'm not married to any of these particular colors but I need direction and lots of help!

The Movie Room (aka Man Cave)

When Scott and I moved into our new house, he announced that he wanted a space for himself. He ALMOST got exactly what he wished for. We made one of the bedrooms (it doesn't have a closet so it's not a true bedroom which works for us right now) into the Movie Room.



I talked with Scott to find out what he wanted. Since this room was going to be his room (with me constantly invading to watch TV), I wanted to decorate the room to his liking. He indicated that he wanted a room that reminded him of a movie theater. He wanted a plush couch with lighting that could dim to create a dark space. And of course the TV would be the centerpiece of the room.



We added four movie posters after much discussion. Scott already had a one that featured "Clockwork Orange" so I wanted to work off the orange and red theme. We finally settled on "Amelie", "Trainspotting" and "Vertigo" which also happen to be movies that Scott loves. He also requested that Boba Fett be in the room. I agreed even though Seriously? BOB? the Paper Doll?



I still need to make pillows for the couch. I have the fabric, I have the pillows, I have the design plans. I just don't seem to have the motivation. It will come soon!

The Craft Cave

In our new house, I have my very own craft cave. It's down in the basement so it can get a bit chilly but with a sweater and a quilt, it is a wonderful place to craft.



I have plenty of space to spread out which means the craft cave has gotten a bit messy in the past few months. I'm on an organizational kick though and this room is next on my list.



I also have a few projects that I need to finish up. I have enough blocks for three quilts. All I need to do is sew them together and get quilting!



I love my craft cave. It's a very good place to craft.

From dingy to Saffron gold

I've been searching for the perfect entryway table for a few months. We don't have a large entryway but we needed something for our keys and the mail, a landing station if you will.

With my very particular parameters and measurements in hand, I dragged Scott all over town from consignment store to thrift store to high-end furniture store. I finally found the perfect vanity at a consignment store by my house. The price was also perfect at $40. The finish on the vanity was not so perfect which was great! I wanted to paint whatever we found and since the finish wasn't in the best shape, I didn't have any guilt painting over it.



Of course, once we purchased the entryway vanity, the debate over what color to paint it began. I suggested green. Scott wasn't in love with it. I said RED! He said Nope. I chanted blue, he mumbled ehhh.



Finally we settled on this wonderful Saffron Mustard color. I did get some of my blue though. I painted the inside blue which meant that when the doors are closed there is this tiny sliver of blue that shows. The two colors together make me so happy.



Now I just need to repaint the entryway, hang a photo above the vanity and another "room" will be complete!



*Please excuse some of the grain-er before photos. I used my iPhone in the dark basement to capture the images.