Can We Do Something Else?...the Waveland

Along came a buffet on Craigslist in February, price $50.

Hey Dan, it's my birthday, there's my present!

SO,

he was sent he went to get it in Chicago.

It's HUGE.

But in the garage it sat for March, April, May,

~June, and July,~
and along came a BIGGER project,

and now August is here.

Dan, can we take a break from the camper restoration and

DO SOMETHING ELSE?

(There's a boatload of furniture in the garage).

So, out came the sander and primer,

and then my paintbrush,

and here is my 1920s Waveland,

purchased on Waveland Ave, Chicago.

(ok Dan, I went back and fixed the spelling for 'Waveland' on the blog).

I did paint the hardware...
(I have a secret thing for painted hardware,
especially painted tear-drop hardware, don't ask me why, I really don't know).

Some of you know that we keep redoing buffets

only to send them on their merry way...

but the Waveland

got sent straight to the front room.

She will be my new festive furniture piece,

to decorate with pumpkins, and nativities, and spring bunnies.

I love this photo with my slice of blue ceiling showing.

And,
the garage is now on the way to being organized,
so I am content with that, too.







My candlestick holders
and Sacred Heart are from an old church,
aren't they neat?
Those are the finds I never pass up.







And then she went to party at...






Ivy and Elephants
Common Ground
French Country Cottage
Redoux Interiors
Coastal Charm

Loving the New Sofa Bench

Who loves it most?  Dunno.

But it has become the perfect place to take 

a summertime afternoon nap.

Sometimes I think SHE thinks the sofa bench was redone just for her.
(see $15 sofa re-do).

Well, well, does anyone tell her otherwise?
(only when it's my turn).

My Boys Needed A Desk

And it has not been a good summer for street finds

because let's face it,

gas is freakin expensive,
especially if you live in Illinois,
which has the HIGHEST gas rate of the nation.
I last heard they charge more here than Hawaii.

So... I directed myself to the thrift store and 

I picked up this art deco desk for $50,

which was high for me for a desk,

BUT I needed to get this done before they go back to school.

Subby is going into 5th grade and has reached ~desk age~.

The boys' room is blue and has a nautical/navigation theme.
Here's my transformation.
(I still need to find a cool looking chair, too!)

I used mostly everything I had on hand,

except I was out of polycrylic sealer and needed to pick up a tub,

which was another $20, but that will last several more projects, too.

I used my signature white chocolate finish by Ben Moore,

which is my favorite antique white.

For the drawers.

I had some sample pods of different blues

that I picked up on clearance last year.

None of them were a suitable blue for my desk,

so I mixed them all together

and came up with the perfect blue that way,

it's more of a blue-grey.

I had left over dark red and grey that I used for the stripe

and compass on the desktop.

Are you still with me?

Of course, I distressed the whole thing

because that's how I roll.

They're going to ding it up anyway,

so I might as well give them a head start so it blends in.

I also lined the drawers with old maps.

I did not paint the drawers this time,

I usually do,

but I'm trying to conserve a bit of paint and primer.

The bottoms of the drawers definitely needed

something to cover them up, and maps did the trick
and Subby is obsessed with geography anyhow.

I just redid the boys' room a month ago anyway,

in soft blues,

and now there are maps everywhere in their room.

They also have a huge sailfish which we redid as well.

And there's my three day re-do,

I'm takin' my time, it's summer!

Linking to:

Savvy Southern Style

Primitive and Proper
Miss Mustard Seed
Common Ground
Redoux

Gross Wet Chair

Last year, I picked up this gross chair 

in the pouring rain

when the vehicle was loaded down with kids on the way to school.

It's pretty big.

I was immediately taken by the caning,

my true love.

My only regret

WAS THAT THERE WERE TWO CHAIRS

and I could NOT fit both in the van with the kids

and their backpacks

AND it was garbage pick up day, 

so I knew the other would not be there after school.
And Dan was crabbing that it was raining and we were going to be late
if I didn't get my butt back in the van.

:(

Yesterday, I finished this puppy in one day.

I primed and painted her a light aqua.

I just stapled fresh drop cloth tarp over the original base.

I wrapped the cushions up like a present

and hot glued the tarp-

(you KNOW I don't sew!)
Here's my regular 'hot-gluing a cushion' photo:

AND, for a final touch,

hot glued red grogain ribbon over the stapled edges 

as a contrasting trim.







Each leg got a pretty bow detail, too.







NOW, for the REVEAL!





TA DA!






I think she's in need of a cottage placement.






I'm in love with the color choice,
but have no room for her in my house.
I'm on chair overload right now!







Now she's ready to PAR -TAY!





Sharing with:

Sunny Simple Sundays
Coastal Charm
Savvy Southern Style
Ivy and Elephants
Share Your Cup
Common Ground
French Country Cottage

The $15 Sofa and No-Sew Slip Covers

Ever since I saw this image of a cane-backed sofa

in Country Living magazine last year,

I have wanted one.

No, I have NOT found one.

BUT,

I DID find THIS:

For $15 at the local thrift store that I frequent.

I hemmed and hawded for a few...

and paid the cashier.

I came home and told Dan he would have to go pick it up with the van.

He arrived and was less than thrilled.

THIS?

THAT.

She sat in the garage a few weeks,

and began to grow on Dan as a garage couch.

Great bones, right?

He could not see what I was seeing.

I thought it might fill the void of the absent cane sofa in my mind.

It seemed to have a similar structure.

I cleaned her up;

I primed, 

I painted.

I DO NOT SEW,

so I hot-glued

sections I cut from a drop cloth 

to cover the cushions.
I just wrapped it like a present.

She was shaping up.

She took up a new station in my front room.

She's not a cane sofa, 

but she will do until I find the right piece.

For $15, presto, change-o!

BTW, Dan is still working on the vintage camper.
It's slow going, you know.
Big MAT-zah ball.  BIG.

Sharing with :
Coastal Charm
Share Your Cup
Common Ground
French Country Cottage

Market Pantry Reno

When I first picked up this cabinet last year I was really excited.

I had wanted one with this type of shape for awhile.

It was $20.

After I had had it for several months,

it's faults became more apparent and I lost ambition.

I have found better items on the street.

However, yesterday, I had a change of heart,

and in one day, I re-did her into a farm-style pantry.
I decided to play into the rustic charm of the piece.

I made it my goal to only use what resources I had on hand...

Valspar turquoise interior satin paint with the primer built in from Lowes,

some leftover aqua paint, a glass knob from the hardware bucket, 

and cloth cut from some sacks from Farm and Fleet that I had in the gargage.

I just dry-brushed the paint over the surface,

leaving much of the initial brown to show through.

I lightly covered that with some aqua.

I lightly sanded the paint finish a few hours later.

We were out of chicken wire, so

I hot glued the burlap sack to the frame and covered it with 

the original wood trim to complete the door.

I left the bolder blue-er graphic for the interior

and traced a plate with a Sharpie to create the vintage postage stamp

on the front door.

My photos are also featuring
some morning sun, here.

Pickled beets, anyone?

Sharing with:

Savvy Southern Style

Primitive and Proper

Share Your Cup

Common Ground

French Country Cottage

Miss Mustard Seed

Funky Junk Interiors