Sweet Family Heirloom

Hi All!
I wanted to share with you this sweet little table that was recently given to me.  It was my parents and they picked it up from an Estate sale many, many years ago.  I have such fond memories of this piece. I can remember it in my parents house from when I was a little girl and always thinking how pretty it was.  I would hide little notes in the drawers any chance I could get!  My father passed away this past February so this piece will always be near and dear to my heart. I am very excited to now have a piece of my childhood in my own home! :)

With that being said, it did have some of the veneer missing on it. This is very common with pieces of this age.  I knew I was going to have to paint it and originally thought about using wood filler in those areas for a smooth finish but I didn't want this piece to look at all new.  I wanted it to look old with loads of character! So, I didn't repair anything and just started painting....

I used a dark wax to pick up on all of the details and I love how it looks where the veneer is missing! 

The top of the table was in excellent condition so I left it alone.  I'm so glad that I could keep a part of the original details!  

Dining Room Make-Over!

After the floors were installed downstairs I started painting and redecorating one room at a time.  I knew there was no way we could replace our dining room furniture because it was a very expensive set from Ethan Allen and Scot would kill me if I even mentioned it! Ha!  So, I had to make it work into my vision.

This is what the dining room was prior (please ignore the large blue paint sample on the wall!)...

I wanted the walls in this room to have some interest so I decided to distress them!  I researched and researched how to do this and honestly, I think its just one of those things you just jump in and learn as you go.  Here is what I did to accomplish this look... I used the current wall color as my base, indigo white, and 2 other light tan's - brown shades.  I used a dry brush and would dab a tiny bit of paint on it, blot it on a paper towel then on the wall and then I went back with cheese cloth and rubbed it in leaving some areas darker than others.  I worked in about a 1 foot by 1 foot section of the wall at a time.  Once this was done, I thought it wasn't quite dark enough so I went back over it with the same method but using a watered down stain.  I just love how it turned out! 

These mirrors on the wall are all antique and are my most favorite part of this space! I saw this idea on Pinterest awhile ago and started collecting vintage mirrors since.  It honestly, took me over a year to collect them all.  They had to be the right size and the glass had to have aging to it!  The mirror wall I saw on Pinterest had all white painted mirrors and I wanted something a little different.  4 of the mirrors I left with the original frames and 3 I painted with old white and then waxed them.

Now, I had to get rid of the green and red plaid fabric on the chairs but didn't want to recover them because the fabric was in excellent condition and with the way styles change so often would probably come back in again sooner than later. So, I had to come up with another plan.  I decided I wanted to do a sweet little skirted chair cover instead.  So, I first found my fabric for my window treatments and then chose 2 coordinating solid linens for the chair covers.  I love DIY projects but sewing is one thing I simply just do not enjoy nor are good at.  So, I told my seamstress exactly what I wanted and she made them perfectly! 

The centerpiece is made out of an old tool box that I found at an antique market and hydrangeas that I dried from my hydrangea bush this past summer.  It took the entire bush to fill it up so I planted another  one this past fall and cannot wait to make some more arrangements this upcoming year!  

Finally!!!!

Hi all and welcome to my blog!
I am SO excited to finally be getting this started.  My husband, Scot and I have been remodeling our house for the past year ( I know, slow process!) and I have been wanting to start this blog since the beginning to follow along! Well, needless to say that didn't quite go as planned.  With all of the craziness of trying to get the house together while raising a family the time just didn't allow.  Now that we're well into the process I feel that I can take a breather and start to share our journey with you.

So, our first big project was the kitchen remodel.  We had an unfortunate (um, maybe 

not-so-unfortunate!) leak in our back door that connects to the kitchen so all of our floors had to be replaced.  I have hated our kitchen cabinets since we moved in 7 years prior and have been wanting to paint them for a long time. So while we had to tear out the floors we decided now would be the time to go ahead and get the cabinets painted and well, that lead to new countertops, new back splash, and the list goes on!

This is our kitchen before the remodel started....

 We knew this was going to cost a pretty penny so we had to cut corners where we could. So, my oh so handy hubby, Scot started by adding some mouldings to the cabinets.

He also beefed up the island by extending it about 6" on each side with plywood and adding fence post to the corners. The posts are seriously only $10 a piece from Home Depot!  

 Then the real transformation started when the painters came and started their magic! While I am always eager to DIY projects, this one we left to the professionals and boy am I glad we did!  What they finished in two weeks would have taken me 6 months! With two small children my painting projects only get done while they are sleeping.  I couldn't imagine the amount of sleepless nights that would have taken! 

Look how beautiful that island looks once painted! Have I told you how awesome my husband is?!?!

While they were here we also had them install the back splash, under cabinet lighting (don't know how I functioned without it before) and then Scot installed the hardwoods in the kitchen and throughout the rest of the house. 

This is our finished kitchen! Boy, was I glad when I no longer had to wash dishes in the 1/2 bath sink!

The color of the wall cabinets is Sherwin Williams Origami White. I wanted a white that was not a bright white. I wanted something soft but did not have a yellow hugh like a cream would.  Origami White was the perfect white! The island is Sherwin Williams Downing Slate with a custom glaze. 

We also replaced some of the cabinet doors with glass for very little cost which I think added such a beautiful, custom touch!

Here's our wide plank hardwoods that believe it or not we found on Craigslist for $2-$3 a square, normally $7!!! 

This granite is absolutely stunning! I wanted something light to contrast with the butcher block island and it was perfect! It has bits of cream and grey throughout! I just love how the grey picks up on the hardware and stainless appliances! Oh, and it's called millennium cream!

Oh, and my farmhouse sink!  This is a dream come true!  At first we thought we would not be able to have it because the apron on a standard size farmhouse sink calls for a custom cabinet. Well after much research I found one that offered a shorter apron that fits perfectly in the space where those ugly faux drawers sit.  So, my husband saved the day once again and just cut those out and reinforced the inside of the cabinet to hold the weight of the iron sink. 

Also,  I was so worried about not having the divided sink but I have not missed it one bit! This sink is so deep and big I could stack dishes up for an entire week and still have room! ha! 

This is truly my favorite part about the entire kitchen! I just love it!

Now, it's time to accessorize....