{thrifting score}

The thrifting Gods were most definitely shining down on me this weekend.

That, and my awesome Mother-in-Law, who discovered this treasure for me.

Say hello to my new chair...

Isn't she adorable? Perfectly mid-century and she was $40!

I think my favorite part is the upholstery...a wonderfully nubby gray chenille that looks brand new.

She is the perfect piece to bring the blank wall in our family room together.

For now, I have her paired with pieces we already owned...our  IKEA rug, and an olive green ottoman {not sure if that will stay}...

And I'm planning a frame collage using a variety of frames and a lot of olive green spray paint...

Here is a little mock-up of what I have planned...

I have a white frame that I want to throw into the mix for a break from all the green. I will probably leave a few empty and fill a few with photos or other fun items.

I'm also looking around for fabric to make a pillow for the chair. This one is at the top of my list right now...

And to finish off this cozy corner, I have a wooden tray for the ottoman that I'm going to makeover. It will serve as a great place to sit a drink and a magazine. 

So what do you think?

Not too shabby for $40, right?

Linking up with Apron Thrift Girl 





 







My entry into Thursdays are YOUR Days at 52 Mantels is sponsored by Appliances Online and their Best Freezers!

{refinished craigslist chairs}

Remember our Craigslist dining room set?

It looks pretty good in that photo, but the chairs were in need of some major TLC. I already covered the seats with a fun Amy Butler fabric which helped to perk them up. My husband has been working on refinishing them and I'm happy to have a finished one to share with you...the difference is pretty amazing!

Just as a reminder, here is one of the chairs right after we bought them with the worn and dirty seat cover...

And here is one after I recovered the seat...

If you looked closely the wooden frames were really dirty and worn, especially on the top...

Are you ready for this after? I'm amazed at how beautiful the wood is!

And here is a little side-by-side comparison {the different in the finish on the legs is pretty amazing too}...

He has finished two of them and I can't wait to see the entire set looking shiny and new. Not bad for a $75 set of chairs, huh? I'm really proud of my husband because this is his first furniture refinishing job. Gotta love a man who can handle some stain and poly! :)

Hope everyone is having a great weekend. I have some entryway decorating planned for tomorrow that involves a new lamp! Have you done any decorating projects recently? Link them up!

Linking up with Thrifty Decor Chick's Before and After Party!

{the little things}

One of my favorites finds on our Chicago trip this past weekend was also the smallest.

We took a shopping trip to Joann {the largest I've ever been in!} and I was drooling over their huge scrapbooking and yarn selection. But then I saw the cutest little blue ceramic knob...

And I knew it would be perfect for our mid-century credenza turned TV stand in the family room. The cabinet came with a little metal knob, which wasn't offensive, but just didn't have any character or flair. You can barely see it here...

So I unscrewed the little metal guy and added the new ceramic beauty. And voila...

I absolutely love it! It adds so much life to the piece, like the perfect little accessory. And it was only $2.50 which makes me even happier.

And do you see my little fall touch?

I added three white pumpkins to the empty space next to our cable box. I'm so excited to be getting out my fall decorations...my favorite time of the year!

Do you have any little decorative touches around your house that make you smile?

{dining room progress}

After lots of small peeks at our dining room over the past few months, I finally feel confident showing off pics of the entire space. While it is still a work in progress, I'm excited at the changes we have made so far.

What I'm most excited to show off is our "new" dining room set that we found on Craigslist. You probably remember my post about recovering the chairs with a fun and bold fabric. Well, I finished recovering all four of them and now they have a table to sit around!

They aren't a matching set, but we bought the chairs and table from the same Craigslist seller. For...get this...$75 for the chairs and $60 for the table! And she delivered the table. Pretty sweet deal.

We love the midcentury details...

All of the pieces still need to be refinished...you can see a few bad spots on the table top here...

But it has a really lovely grain. I'm wondering if it is teak? I'm a total wood dunce though, so if someone can educate me, please do!

So for now the table is sporting a tablecloth to keep its unfinished surface safe from toddler {or Mandy} spills. I'm actually clumsier than they are.

And during these crazy hot summer months our friend that we love to hate, Mr. AC is out in the open...

Oh what a love/hate relationship I have with him.

And the gray curtains. Not sure what to do with those. They are pretty blah now that we have some fun colors going on with the chairs and artwork.  I'm thinking once we have the walls painted something other than white, some white drapes with a fun fabric accent would add a lot of brightness to the space.

The wall opposite the fireplace has this little art gallery of sorts...

And then there is the corner to the left of the fireplace. Right now it has this sad bench and a random pillow...

Remnants from when this space was our family room. Working on some ideas for that little nook.

And of course we want to paint the walls, and I'd like all of the trim to be white. And still on the fence about painting the fireplace. Gotta remove that brass door. Lots to do. But when I look at the space now I smile, and that is a good feeling.

When we moved in it looked like this...

And now it looks like this...



I love a good before and after, even if it is still a work in progress.

{yes, please}

 I have a feeling this new chair from Urban Outfitters will sell out quickly...

I'll take one in gray please. And also one in yellow {they are calling it khaki?}. I can't decide.

{Swedish island}

We are now the proud owners of our very own private island.

Sometimes I relax there several times a day. It is really fabulous.

It is actually a Swedish island...no sand or palm trees. But it is a great spot to prep our dinner or sit and enjoy a snack...



I'm sure you figured this out by now, but our little Swedish island came from IKEA. It was a super simple and affordable DIY project that the hubby thought up and put together for us last week.

It consists of a premade desk top and two white trestle bases, both of which can be found in IKEA's home office section.

It is the perfect spot for the hubby's Paula Deen cutting board, our most used utensils, a cute white IKEA pot with the boys' little forks and spoons, and a few glass bottles waiting to house some spices.



The trestles are adjustable, so down the road when we can afford a kitchen remodel and add a built-in island, we can re-purpose it as a desk {or craft table...I have ulterior motives of course.}

The stools are also from IKEA, and we are very happy so far with the quality and comfort. The boys can even climb up onto them without much trouble. Ben loves to sit here and eat his snacks.

The most exciting thing, other than the great look and function of the island, is the cost! The island components came in at a total of $100, and the stools were $30 each. So for $!60, we gained a lot more counter space and a place to sit and enjoy breakfast or a snack.

And now I really, really need to do something with those kitchen cabinets. And the backsplash. But I'm stumped on paint colors. Any suggestions?

{thanks for the memories}

I let go of something today that I didn't think I would ever be able to.

About seven years ago, after my Grandpa passed away and we had to move my Grandma into a nursing home, we helped my parents clean out their house. We brought home a lot of their things {a car full actually!}, but my favorite was their dining room table.

My Grandpa stripped and refinished it himself. I can just picture the care he put into every little detail of the sanding and staining. And for being over 70 years old, it is still in amazing condition.

My Dad had his childhood birthday parties around it.

For Mother's Day in 2007 it was the centerpiece of the tea party I hosted for my Mom and Mother-in-Law...

It held all of the yummy goodies at my baby shower...

I completed dozens and dozens of scrapbook pages sitting at it...



And in the past three years we have had lots of family meals with the boys around it...

 {That's my chunky hunky nephew Noah at Thanksgiving last year}

Lots of living goes on around a dining room table.

But the style didn't fit with what we want for the house anymore, and I found a lovely couple who were very excited to have it in their home. So it went to live with them today. And I shed more than a few tears. But I still have all of the wonderful memories to carry with me.

I hope that one day, their grandchildren will be as attached to it as I was.

On a happier note, we have a new table {from Craigslist!} that I can't wait to share with you. It just needs a little TLC first.

{cheap pedicure}

I performed a little pedicure of sorts on our Craigslist find china cabinet today. See...its feet were in need of a little bit of TLC...

Can't quite tell from that photo? Let me zoom in a bit for you...

Yeah...kinda scary. Including that dust bunny I just spotted. Note to self...dust underneath your furniture. {It is empty because I moved it today...keep on reading to see an after shot filled with my pretties}

Considering this piece isn't solid wood and cost us only $90, I wasn't too worried about finding a perfect way to perk up these tired feet. I figured it wasn't anything a little craft paint can't fix. So I picked up three different shades of brown at Hobby Lobby for $1 a piece, and hoped that one of them, or a mixture of the three, would match the wood tone of the feet.

And luckily two of them were close to a perfect match! So I used a bit of each color and mixed the two so it wasn't all one solid color. And here is the after...

Not too shabby, huh? And it took me all of five minutes, literally.

Cheapest.pedicure.ever. :)

And do ya see some of my yard sale find dinnerware in there? I think it is happy in its new home.

 Have you done any simple projects with a big impact this weekend? I'd love to hear about them!









Linked up at...