tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36938137664754650602024-03-14T03:24:36.873-04:00allison's everyday journeyallison @ allisons everyday journeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18275970047658387387noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-3459914217047469572012-07-18T12:43:00.003-04:002012-07-18T12:43:49.262-04:00This blog has moved!<br />
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Thank you to everyone who has followed me on this journey! I feel that it’s time to make a fresh start with my furniture refinishing venture and, therefore, am excited to announce that I have moved to a new blog. I would love for you to follow me over there! Check out my new blog <a href="http://www.thegoldensycamore.com/" target="_blank">The Golden Sycamore</a> where I’ll be sharing my furniture transformations and a little about our house updating progress!</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Thanks again and hope to see you over at The Golden Sycamore!</span></div>allison @ allisons everyday journeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18275970047658387387noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-85225840397335014852012-07-02T20:34:00.001-04:002012-07-02T20:34:41.401-04:00DIY Chalkboard<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I have been SO busy this past week! My daughter and I were at church all week for VBS, we had company over for dinner on Tuesday night, and I had two appointments during the week! Needless to say...we're tired! Especially my daughter!</span></div>
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I finished up this chalkboard last week, but <span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I finally had some time today to sit down at the computer and write up the blog post! </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-23REI40A1xg/T_IeBOB4n4I/AAAAAAAAAwI/97z24ZqUV34/s1600/framed+chalkboard+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-23REI40A1xg/T_IeBOB4n4I/AAAAAAAAAwI/97z24ZqUV34/s640/framed+chalkboard+close+up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I found this frame at a garage sale. It was originally a mirror, but once I cleaned it up, I noticed a small scratch. Sound familiar? I obviously need to be more diligent about checking things out thoroughly before purchasing them!<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> Here it is fresh from the garage sale.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6vlvuW0Oo98/T_IfwxIgMdI/AAAAAAAAAw4/jZaZjkhKjEo/s1600/square+gold+mirror+before.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6vlvuW0Oo98/T_IfwxIgMdI/AAAAAAAAAw4/jZaZjkhKjEo/s640/square+gold+mirror+before.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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I didn't want to use it as a mirror even if the scratch was really small, so I took the mirror out and replaced it with hardboard. We got a big sheet of it since I'm sure I'll be using more of it in the future!<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1CIJir2jo80/T_IeOtBMzMI/AAAAAAAAAwU/UW0ZTqEkD2M/s1600/hardboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1CIJir2jo80/T_IeOtBMzMI/AAAAAAAAAwU/UW0ZTqEkD2M/s640/hardboard.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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My husband<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> cut out the size I needed for my project (because I think he not-so-secretly enjoys helping me when it involves power tools!) and I sprayed it with spray primer. I wasn't going to prime it, but the hubby thought the chalkboard paint would soak in too much on such a porous surface. So, I decided to listen to his wisdom just this once and prime it! Haha!</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RCa7mQjJayc/T_IfbW17DeI/AAAAAAAAAww/tm_v_LuT01o/s1600/spray+primed+hardboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RCa7mQjJayc/T_IfbW17DeI/AAAAAAAAAww/tm_v_LuT01o/s640/spray+primed+hardboard.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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After two light coats of primer, I was ready for the chalkboard paint. I used the paint you have to brush or roll on as opposed to the spray stuff. No reason, really. That's just what I used for <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/05/my-first-piece-for-sale-duck-egg-blue.html" target="_blank">my last chalkboard project</a> and we had a ton left over, so that's what I used! Here is the hardboard painted with chalkboard paint.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c4Giyo0khXM/T_Ic4w4LWuI/AAAAAAAAAvc/Qasbscj02Is/s1600/chalkboard+painted+hardboard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c4Giyo0khXM/T_Ic4w4LWuI/AAAAAAAAAvc/Qasbscj02Is/s640/chalkboard+painted+hardboard.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I used a foam brush when I painted with the chalkboard paint this time. I will say, as you can see in the next picture, it does leave a texture to board. I'm still debating on whether or not I like the texture. I think if I knew I was going to sell a piece, I'd use a small roller to apply the paint for a smoother finish. </div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">After the paint dried for 24 hours (okay, maybe a little less!), I rubbed a piece of chalk all over the board. See the texture come out? Apparently you have to rub the chalk on and then wipe it off to make chalk work on it. I don't know if that's true or not, but I've heard it so many times that I just do it every time now!</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gO5esNS3NAA/T_IfC5nwA4I/AAAAAAAAAwk/TPiQeTli9uA/s1600/prep+chalkboard+with+chalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gO5esNS3NAA/T_IfC5nwA4I/AAAAAAAAAwk/TPiQeTli9uA/s640/prep+chalkboard+with+chalk.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Next, I had to attach the chalkboard to the frame. I tried wood glue at first, but it just didn't hold, so I tacked a few finishing nails into the back of the frame to hold it in there securely.<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gO5esNS3NAA/T_IfC5nwA4I/AAAAAAAAAwk/TPiQeTli9uA/s1600/prep+chalkboard+with+chalk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7u33Vcv0QxE/T_IceDnLd-I/AAAAAAAAAvI/3HwIfDYBiTQ/s1600/attach+chalkboard+to+frame+with+wood+glue+and+finishing+nails.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7u33Vcv0QxE/T_IceDnLd-I/AAAAAAAAAvI/3HwIfDYBiTQ/s640/attach+chalkboard+to+frame+with+wood+glue+and+finishing+nails.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I am hoping to eventually have a gallery wall on our living room wall filled with family pictures and I knew I wanted this to be included in it somehow. But since this is the first piece, I don't know exactly where it is going to end up on the wall. So, I used Command adhesives to hang it. It's much better than using a nail, since I may end up moving it in the future.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bnQk-jfPrvk/T_IdUU0c_CI/AAAAAAAAAvs/eb77U7OCX8E/s1600/command+adhesive+strips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bnQk-jfPrvk/T_IdUU0c_CI/AAAAAAAAAvs/eb77U7OCX8E/s640/command+adhesive+strips.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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I believe there are specific Command adhesives for picture hanging, but these are left over from a hook we had once used and they worked perfectly for this. I may use the picture hanging strips for the rest of the pieces on the gallery wall, so that I can change them around if I want...and I won't have a bunch of holes in the wall!</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o3aaLMSLSpE/T_IdLjFR13I/AAAAAAAAAvk/w3sp5hph_6g/s1600/command+adhesive+strip+attached+to+back+of+chalkboard+frame.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o3aaLMSLSpE/T_IdLjFR13I/AAAAAAAAAvk/w3sp5hph_6g/s640/command+adhesive+strip+attached+to+back+of+chalkboard+frame.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">I should add in here before I go too far, that I painted the frame with Annie Sloan chalk paint in Provence and then used a coat of clear wax over that. The frame does look a little distressed/dirty and that's because I was using dark wax on something else before I waxed this frame, so my brush had some dark wax on it already. I'm okay with that, though! I think it turned out nicely!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Now, on to the rosettes. I already had made the canvas rosette for a different project, but ended up using it on this. I put it on the frame and felt like it needed a little something extra, so I made the yellow one. To make a rosette, first you cut (or rip) a strip of fabric. This one is a little small, so the rosette turned out a little small. The bigger you want your rosette to be, the bigger (longer AND thicker) you need to cut your fabric strip.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ak9GMqHa--M/T_IgIaZYdFI/AAAAAAAAAxE/SkiViU8q7Kg/s1600/strip+of+fabric.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ak9GMqHa--M/T_IgIaZYdFI/AAAAAAAAAxE/SkiViU8q7Kg/s640/strip+of+fabric.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see, the edges can be a little jagged. It just adds to the character of the flower!<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Next, tie a knot in the end of the fabric strip. Then you just start twisting the fabric and turning from the knot. I don't have a picture of this part because my husband was sleeping at the time and I was working on this alone.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FAQV_TlU8pw/T_IgUP7X8OI/AAAAAAAAAxM/j7EULKsosH4/s1600/tie+knot+in+end+of+fabric+strip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FAQV_TlU8pw/T_IgUP7X8OI/AAAAAAAAAxM/j7EULKsosH4/s640/tie+knot+in+end+of+fabric+strip.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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I kind of "winged" it as I went anyway, so a picture probably wouldn't do you any good! I think it's good to wing it sometimes and just let it turn out how it's gonna turn out! ;)</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">And here is my rosette! </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rps0OFxzCbU/T_IgzVPgEPI/AAAAAAAAAxc/5OR2Q_iSaIM/s1600/yellow+fabric+rosette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rps0OFxzCbU/T_IgzVPgEPI/AAAAAAAAAxc/5OR2Q_iSaIM/s640/yellow+fabric+rosette.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I used hot glue to keep the rosette together. I just picked several places on the back and front to dab a little glue, held it for a couple seconds each time, and it held together just fine. I also used the hot glue to attach the rosettes to the chalkboard frame. Just a couple dabs and they were good to go!</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gTH8MmhO_Qo/T_Ieh85R1rI/AAAAAAAAAwc/L-hTI6AvO8Y/s1600/hot+glue+rosette+to+frame.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gTH8MmhO_Qo/T_Ieh85R1rI/AAAAAAAAAwc/L-hTI6AvO8Y/s640/hot+glue+rosette+to+frame.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A3_bJF4ciyc/T_Igr1uUQyI/AAAAAAAAAxU/pIuC55fPVc4/s1600/two+fabric+rosettes+on+chalkboard+frame.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A3_bJF4ciyc/T_Igr1uUQyI/AAAAAAAAAxU/pIuC55fPVc4/s640/two+fabric+rosettes+on+chalkboard+frame.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here are a couple shots of the final product.<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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As you can see, it looks a little strange just hanging on the wall above our couch all by its lonesome. But as I find more garage sale frames, I'll be adding to my gallery wall collection!<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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Thanks so much for stopping by! I really appreciate all the comments being left lately! I'm definitely feeling loved! :)<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-74371941296189107352012-06-27T06:00:00.000-04:002012-07-02T10:19:40.586-04:00Magnetic Burlap Memo Board<div style="color: #2a292a; font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 18.0px 0.0px;">
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zKTQKOcQQsU/T-dqFGO2UsI/AAAAAAAAAuk/3QXDcoltvJA/s1600/rylan's+room+memo+board.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zKTQKOcQQsU/T-dqFGO2UsI/AAAAAAAAAuk/3QXDcoltvJA/s640/rylan's+room+memo+board.jpg" width="457" /></a></div>
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I got this piece at a garage sale for $1. Originally it was a mirror and I was intending to keep it that way. Until I got it into the trunk of my car and realized that some of the mirror “treatment” was flaking off. Here is the before shot. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oqervxgPv9M/T-duCKRpC6I/AAAAAAAAAu0/mg5vAxKzJVI/s1600/burlap+memo+board+before.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oqervxgPv9M/T-duCKRpC6I/AAAAAAAAAu0/mg5vAxKzJVI/s640/burlap+memo+board+before.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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And here you can see the detail of where the mirror was flaking off. </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3TBvCNzS6KQ/T-duNGBwVlI/AAAAAAAAAu8/5fkWjIAJjnQ/s1600/burlap+memo+board+close+up+before.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3TBvCNzS6KQ/T-duNGBwVlI/AAAAAAAAAu8/5fkWjIAJjnQ/s640/burlap+memo+board+close+up+before.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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I saw it and immediately thought I had just spent one dollar on trash. I’d just have to throw it away when I got home. One for the “lesson learned” file. </div>
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Well, somewhere between then and now I had a brilliant idea. Why not try to take the mirror out and see if I can still use this cool frame for another purpose? I thought about making it into a chalkboard, but had done a chalkboard <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/05/my-first-piece-for-sale-duck-egg-blue.html" target="_blank">recently</a> and thought I should try something else. When I went to the flea market a couple weeks ago I picked up some great burlap sacks (which I forgot to picture on that post). I was thinking of using them for another project – and still am – but I thought about this frame that I didn’t know what to do with and it came to me to make a burlap memo board. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NeWo2lsldZ8/T-dofOC-KZI/AAAAAAAAAtw/MF9OSdWh9zE/s1600/burlap+memo+board+and+chandelier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NeWo2lsldZ8/T-dofOC-KZI/AAAAAAAAAtw/MF9OSdWh9zE/s640/burlap+memo+board+and+chandelier.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IIvZ13djsRY/T-dotp6-_rI/AAAAAAAAAt4/bbGy9lTsTHk/s1600/burlap+memo+board+and+garland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IIvZ13djsRY/T-dotp6-_rI/AAAAAAAAAt4/bbGy9lTsTHk/s640/burlap+memo+board+and+garland.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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After I took out the mirror, I painted the frame with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Emperor's Silk (red). Then I painted over that in a light pink ASCP color, Antoinette. Once the red color was totally covered and the paint was dry, I used a damp rag to rub off some of the pink paint in places. It is a fun way of distressing that I've really enjoyed the most, I think. It gives me freedom to make it look the way I want and I don't get a ton of "scratch" marks from using sand paper.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fElZhzjK2l0/T-dpfLE3VyI/AAAAAAAAAuU/XwhSLHlBQCc/s1600/burlap+memo+board+top+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fElZhzjK2l0/T-dpfLE3VyI/AAAAAAAAAuU/XwhSLHlBQCc/s640/burlap+memo+board+top+close+up.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uRXfwN8udOI/T-dpTruYVNI/AAAAAAAAAuI/IN2FHENL5oQ/s1600/burlap+memo+board+fabric+magnet+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uRXfwN8udOI/T-dpTruYVNI/AAAAAAAAAuI/IN2FHENL5oQ/s640/burlap+memo+board+fabric+magnet+close+up.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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At first I was going to make it a cork board and use push pins, but I’ve never been a huge fan of push pins, so I decided to make it magnetic. I bought a piece of sheet metal from The Home Depot and laid the burlap over it, but you could see the metal through it. After wracking my brain, I came up with an idea. We have these old, ugly, faded pillowcases on our guest bed that I absolutely hate, but haven’t been willing to replace. Well, they just so happen to be the perfect color. So, I cut one of the pillowcases in half and glued the sheet metal to it (which I had already glued to a piece of foam board to help stabilize it) and then wrapped the burlap around the whole thing and glued that down. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zFayRFBaBCo/T-do5d883LI/AAAAAAAAAuA/NSTGYnrwimw/s1600/burlap+memo+board+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zFayRFBaBCo/T-do5d883LI/AAAAAAAAAuA/NSTGYnrwimw/s640/burlap+memo+board+close+up.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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Now you can’t see the metal and you can’t even tell that there is that thin piece of fabric behind the burlap. AND, it’s not too thick that magnets won’t stick to it, which is what I was nervous about. I am not selling this piece (unless someone is REALLY interested in it). It is going in my daughter’s room which we are slowly changing over from a nursery to a big girl room. This is the jumping off point along with the pillow I shared with you last week. I think the memo board looks a little out of place where it is now, but I am not really sure how we're going to arrange the furniture once we're all done and I wanted to get this on the wall now. So, there it hangs...for now!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Bp9kHfCevnk/T-dpzdQlflI/AAAAAAAAAuc/kusNCq2m-gU/s1600/rylan+on+floor+and+burlap+memo+board.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Bp9kHfCevnk/T-dpzdQlflI/AAAAAAAAAuc/kusNCq2m-gU/s640/rylan+on+floor+and+burlap+memo+board.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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Thanks again for stopping by the blog today. Sorry about such a long post! I feel like I want to share my steps and thought process behind the pieces I create, but I don't want my readers to be bored by a long, dragged out post. So, what do you think? Should I keep my posts short and sweet or do you like me to explain what's going on in my head?! Please leave me a comment with YOUR thoughts...and be honest. I can take it! :)<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.freckledlaundry.com/" target="_blank">Freckled Laundry</a> - {air your laundry friday} Textile Party</span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-60963227711028175932012-06-24T14:05:00.003-04:002012-06-24T14:09:12.801-04:00Two tiered end table<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">I’m so excited to share this table with you! </span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7XkuqUE0-ak/T-dTdopGdGI/AAAAAAAAAtg/bhGWy95sOHs/s1600/two+tiered+table+room+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7XkuqUE0-ak/T-dTdopGdGI/AAAAAAAAAtg/bhGWy95sOHs/s640/two+tiered+table+room+shot.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">It was looking pretty shabby when I picked it up at a garage sale a month ago.</span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The top really needed some help!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I am really loving the look of a stained top and try to do it on all the pieces with tops that are in good enough shape. I think it lets the piece keep some of it’s previous life and still get a fun makeover! </span>For this piece, I used Dark Walnut stain by Minwax, the same stain I used for my <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/05/painted-nightstandand-my-new-venture.html" target="_blank">first painting project</a>.</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I absolutely love the color!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The body of this table is done in Provence, an Annie Sloan Chalk Paint color. It is such a fun color. Very vibrant and cheery!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I also tried a new technique on this piece! I taped off stripes on the drawer and dry brushed them in Old White by Annie Sloan. It was my first time ever attempting dry brushing and I really like the way it turned out. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I’m really starting to enjoy taking more risks and trying new things when I refinish these pieces. I feel like it gives the pieces more personality than just being painted one color and doing nothing else with it. I’m having fun with it and I feel more and more creative the more I use my creativity! I love it!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Thanks for stopping by and checking out my latest project! I'm still working on finding a way to sell my painted furniture, but once I figure that out, this piece will be for sale...or you can always contact me if you are interested in it.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I'm linking up to the following blogs to share my project!</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://todayscreativeblog.net/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Today's Creative Blog</a> - Get Your Craft On</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.domestically-speaking.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Domestically Speaking</a> - The Power of Paint Party</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://micheleravendesigns.blogspot.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">{Primp}</a> - Primp Your Stuff Wednesday</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://staceyembracingchange.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Embracing Change</a> - Creative Inspirations</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://restoreinteriors.blogspot.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Restore Interiors</a> - Restored it Wednesday</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.lizmarieblog.com/" target="_blank">Liz Marie Blog</a> - Link Up With Me, Liz Marie</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.houseofhepworths.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">House of Hepworths</a> - Hookin Up With HoH</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">The Shabby Creek Cottage</a> - Transformation Thursday</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tatertots and Jello</a> - Weekend Wrap Up Party</span></span></span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-4574997796842183852012-06-20T06:00:00.000-04:002012-06-25T20:55:16.041-04:00I sewed my first pillow cover ... and Rylan’s big girl bedroom design ideas<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">This weekend I sewed my very first pillow cover. I already had a pillow form that had an ugly cover on it, so I just made a new one! My in-laws were here this past weekend and my mother-in-law helped me with the pillow cover. She walked me through it and was there for me to ask questions of, but didn’t really do any of the work. Which I’m really happy about. I learn best by doing things myself and having someone there to bounce questions and ideas off of.</span><br />
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Here is the pillow! </div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">And here is the back.</span><br />
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I’m so happy with how it turned out! As you can see in the backside picture, I made an envelope cover, and it was surprisingly easy. I followed this <a href="http://thethriftyabode.blogspot.com/2011/03/no-zipper-envelope-pillow.html?m=1" target="_blank">tutorial</a> which was very straight forward and easy to understand.</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This pillow will go in my daughter, Rylan’s room. She is 21 months old and we are starting to transition her to a “big girl” room. I don’t know what the normal age is for that, but we feel like she’s ready. We took the side off her crib two and a half months ago and she’s been doing great in it, so we think she’s ready for a big girl bed. We just have to find the right one at a garage sale or something so that I can paint it and make it special just for her! </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Which brings me to the design scheme for her room. I originally saw this first picture on Pinterest and just fell in love with the colors.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5VVR9ujmeG0/T-C9FFb4GYI/AAAAAAAAAsQ/SuMYJHgReS4/s1600/rylan+bedroom+color+inspiration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="378" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5VVR9ujmeG0/T-C9FFb4GYI/AAAAAAAAAsQ/SuMYJHgReS4/s400/rylan+bedroom+color+inspiration.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://blog.photocardboutique.com/2012/05/18/color-crush-palette-5-18-2012/" target="_blank">via</a></div>
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I think the dark pink in the inspiration might end up being red in Rylan's room, but I'm okay with that.<br />
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Here's another room I really liked!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AtCbLPk_dmc/T-C9DBz6kGI/AAAAAAAAAsA/Ur-czU2GWHg/s1600/rylan+bedroom+color+inspiration+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AtCbLPk_dmc/T-C9DBz6kGI/AAAAAAAAAsA/Ur-czU2GWHg/s400/rylan+bedroom+color+inspiration+2.jpg" width="347" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.countryliving.com/homes/decor-ideas/bedroom-designs-gallery#slide-43" target="_blank">via</a></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I just love this color combination and I think we can make it work, in our own way, for Rylan’s room.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">To start off, we have the fabric I used on the pillow which is called <a href="http://www.fabric.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ProductID=90bfff51-6381-4f6d-a681-89aa4c7d7244" target="_blank">Shine On Americana by Waverly</a>. It has red, light blue, navy, and cream in it. We’re just missing the pink.</span><br />
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I think I’ll bring my swatch back to the fabric store one of these days and see if I can find some coordinating fabrics to go with it. And I need to find bedding that brings everything together. The fabric is always the hardest part for me. I guess I get scared and overwhelmed by all the choices and I think I’m going to pick the wrong ones. </div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">What part of a room design is the hardest for you? Is fabric easy for you to pick out or do you struggle with it like me?</span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I'm linking up to the following blogs to share my project!</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.freckledlaundry.com/" target="_blank">Freckled Laundry</a> - {air your laundry friday} Textile Party</span><br />
<a href="http://www.itallstartedwithpaint.com/" target="_blank">it all started with paint</a> - pillowpalooza link party</div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-48461077985493010902012-06-17T20:28:00.000-04:002012-06-24T14:07:27.407-04:00My first custom order … more yellow!<br />
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If you remember my post about my <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/06/my-very-first-flea-market-adventure.html" target="_blank">flea market finds</a>, you’ll remember this chair I found that day. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RROhn1LxITc/T95xScCmAxI/AAAAAAAAAqg/HtjIV8Ebas0/s1600/_HOP3752-1w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RROhn1LxITc/T95xScCmAxI/AAAAAAAAAqg/HtjIV8Ebas0/s640/_HOP3752-1w.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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While looking at the furniture in this particular booth, I found a chair I liked and considered buying, but I kept looking through the booth at the rest of the furniture for sale. When I saw this beauty I fell in love with it. It has so much character – much more than the first chair I had looked at and consequently passed on. The legs on this chair are just so cute. I knew I had to have it. I asked the man selling it if he’d accept $10 less than the ticketed price and, to my surprise, he said yes! I thought he’d haggle with me, but he just said yes! I handed over my money and that baby was mine!</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">As I walked out of the booth with my new treasure tucked under my arm, my mother-in-law says “Would you be willing to paint that chair and sell it to me?” Talk about an easy sale! I was originally planning on painting and selling the chair anyway (although I’m still in search of a shop in which to sell my painted furniture), so the fact that I “sold” it 30 seconds after I bought it made me quite happy! I showed my mother-in-law the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint colors and let her pick out which ever color she wanted. She really liked Cream, so we went with that. After some paint, a little distressing, and clear wax, it is ready to go to its new home! </span></div>
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I love this chair and wish I had a place for it in my own home, it’s just so darn cute! But, I suppose I can “visit” it at my in-laws’ house whenever I want! ;)</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Thanks for stopping by my blog to check out my latest project.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Hope you have a wonderful week!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://todayscreativeblog.net/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Today's Creative Blog</a> - Get Your Craft On</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.domestically-speaking.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Domestically Speaking</a> - The Power of Paint Party</span></span><br />
<a href="http://staceyembracingchange.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Embracing Change</a> - Creative Inspirations<br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://restoreinteriors.blogspot.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Restore Interiors</a> - Restored it Wednesday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.lizmarieblog.com/" target="_blank">Liz Marie Blog</a> - Link Up With Me, Liz Marie</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.houseofhepworths.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">House of Hepworths</a> - Hookin Up With HoH</span></span><br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">The Shabby Creek Cottage</a> - Transformation Thursday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.missmustardseed.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Miss Mustard Seed</a> - Furniture Feature Friday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" style="color: #d5c226; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Tatertots and Jello</a> - Weekend Wrap Up Party</span></span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-44780493757351323032012-06-04T05:00:00.000-04:002012-06-08T08:23:40.016-04:00My very first flea market adventure<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">We’re in Minnesota this week spending time with my husband’s aunt and uncle on their 90 acre sheep farm, but I wanted to stop over and share my very first trip to the flea market with you all. On Memorial Day weekend, I went to a <a href="http://www.alleganantiques.com/" target="_blank">flea market</a> on the west side of the state with my daughter and my in-laws. Although the temperature was somewhere in the low 90s that day, we had a great time and I found some fun pieces.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Here are a couple shots of the market. It was absolutely huge and went on forever and ever! We didn’t even see the whole thing that day! After several hours in the hot sun, we just couldn’t take it anymore, so we eventually had to quit. But I know I’ll be back someday!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">And here is what I found at the market. The price on the table was perfect, I just couldn’t pass it up! And when I saw this little chair, I instantly fell in love. The legs are just beautiful! The seller said it was originally a vanity chair; that’s why the back is so low. I love finding out the history behind pieces. It makes it that much more special to me! </span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This window was my first purchase of the day. We actually already have an old window hanging above our bed, but I just really loved this one, too! I picked it because it has those two “hangers” on the top. Honestly, I’m not sure if they’re original or not - I don’t know what they would have been used for - but I thought it was perfect for hanging on a wall as we did in our bedroom, so I snatched it up! </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Lastly is this dresser. A lot of furniture at the market was priced way above what I could afford - especially since I’m buying pieces to refinish, not to keep as they are. I was getting pretty discouraged at times and figured by the time I got to a booth, all the well-priced pieces would be gone. We walked by this booth and I saw this dresser and thought I’d pop in to see what outrageous amount they wanted for it. To my surprise it was marked at a really reasonable price. I was ready to buy it on the spot, but thought I’d ask if they could give me a better price on it. No sense in paying more than you have to, right? Well, I’m glad I asked because the seller came down $20 off the already affordable price! I was so happy I whipped out my money and handed it over! That thing was mine and I wanted to make it official as quickly as possible! Haha! </span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I’m so happy I went to this flea market and really had a great time looking around at everything, but I can’t tell you about my fun trip without giving a shout out to my in-laws, especially my father-in-law. He was so sweet about hauling all my stuff to their vehicle and getting it all in there for me. And did I mention it was over 90 degrees that day?! Thank you Wayne and Terri for all your help! I can’t express how much it means to me!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nana, Papa, and Rylan at the Jenison Memorial Day parade</td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I can’t wait to show you the “afters” these great finds!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Take care!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I'm linking up to the following blogs to share my project!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.missmustardseed.com/" target="_blank">Miss Mustard Seed</a> - Furniture Feature Friday</span></span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-27302025588987906862012-05-30T14:29:00.000-04:002012-05-30T14:29:23.814-04:00Fun take on an inspiration board...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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A few weeks back I shared with you my <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/04/garage-sale-finds.html" target="_blank">free garage sale crib spring</a> find. I had seen <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/2011/01/easy-peasy-crib-spring-memo-board/" target="_blank">this</a> project and had been keeping my eyes open for a spring, but never thought I’d find one...and for free at that! </div>
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This project was SUPER easy and didn’t take long to complete. I won’t give you a tutorial here because it wasn’t my idea...and I’m not into stealing more creative people’s ideas and pretending they’re my own. I loved this project so much that I knew I wanted it in my own home, but I didn’t really change anything from the original because it was so cool nothing needed to be changed! :) So...make sure you head over to The Handmade Home and check out her <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/2011/01/easy-peasy-crib-spring-memo-board/" target="_blank">tutorial</a>...and her great <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/" target="_blank">blog</a> while you’re at it! :)<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span></div>
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The inspiration board is above my computer in my office and I'm going to be using it for personal things like cards and pictures (as shown in these photos), but also for anything that might inspire me in interior design and/or furniture painting. I'm so excited to have a place for all of my inspiration instead of scattered all over my desk!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">Oh, and sorry about the weird fading on the pictures. It has something to do with the way the light comes in my window, but I'm not sure how to fix that. I'm just a beginner photographer, ya know?! ;)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">Hope you’re all having a wonderful week! So glad the weather is starting to cool back down here in Michigan! I’ve got a lot of projects in the middle stages of completion and I’ll be blogging about them as I get them done.</span></div>
<br />Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-62478769042941505872012-05-26T12:18:00.000-04:002012-05-26T12:19:29.583-04:00A quick hello...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I certainly do love peonies! They are so beautiful! (and I'm loving my new vase that I picked up the other day!)</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! I’m off to the other side of the state to go to a flea market tomorrow. I’m so excited!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Take care.</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-2604567166841178372012-05-25T14:23:00.001-04:002012-05-25T17:34:47.132-04:00Yellow end table : The little table that could<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">I’m so excited to share my end table makeover with you! You saw this shot of it in my <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/05/living-room-updatealmost-done.html" target="_blank">living room update post</a>, but I wanted to share a few before and after shots with you today.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">This end table started out very sad and run down. It looked like it had been painted by someone for their daughter’s bedroom. It had butterflies, flowers, ...and crayon marks! It really had seen better days and when I bought it, I was determined to give it new life. Little did I know, it would take a lot of lovin’ to get this piece back to a happy place. </span><br />
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First I stripped the paint off the whole table. The paint was quite uneven on the table and I thought I’d better just strip it rather than sand it down. Here’s a shot of me taking the stripper off of the top. </div>
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I, in all of my beginner “wisdom”, figured the paint would strip off of the table the same way as it did on my <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/05/painted-nightstandand-my-new-venture.html" target="_blank">nightstand</a> top and all would be well with the world; I’d paint the table and be done. Well, it didn’t work quite that way. When I took the stripper off, there wasn’t wood underneath, there was this weird laminate or whatever that blue stuff is. I figured it wasn’t that big of a deal since it was smooth, but once I got to the sides of the table all hell broke loose! The sides were covered with press board and they started just basically disintegrating when I took the stripper off. It got even worse when I tried to sand the surface smooth. It was an absolute disaster and several times I debated just giving up and moving on. But part of me wanted to see if I could actually make this work somehow.</div>
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My husband suggested covering the sides with a wood veneer so that it would be a smooth surface to work with that we knew wouldn’t fall apart. We tried it on the sides (and he also added it to the inside of the back panel to cover up that hole you can see in the before picture) and it worked out really well. He primed the whole table and once the primer was dry, I realized there were bubbles in the veneer! Grrr!! By this point I HATED this table and just wanted to throw it in the trash! I was so over all the problems it was giving me. But, obviously, I pushed through and was still curious if it could actually work out. So I popped a few tiny holes in the veneer, filled the holes with glue, clamped them down and then filled the holes with wood filler once the glue was dry. I also filled in the little dent on the top of the table with wood filler. Once I got those spots sanded down it was finally ready for paint. I don't have any pictures of this whole ordeal because I was so upset and embarrassed that I thought I'd just sweep this whole thing under the rug and not tell anyone about it if it didn't turn out! Haha!</div>
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Maybe in hindsight, I wouldn’t have stripped the paint off the table and would have just sanded it down. But I had no idea this would have happened, so I never would have known. This experience makes me a little leary of buying painted furniture in the future (to refinish/paint) because I can’t actually see what’s underneath the paint. I haven’t bought any painted furniture since, but I’m sure I will again...I’m just going to have to really love it!<br />
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I knew I wanted to try out some of my new Annie Sloan Chalk Paint on this table because of all the varying surface types. I had heard that ASCP covers tons of different surfaces including stained wood, painted wood, metal, leather, and new wood, so this was the perfect test to see how this paint actually held up to three different surfaces on one piece. I was hoping the chalk paint would help everything look cohesive once I was finished. I mixed up one part Arles and four parts Old White to make this color and when I compared it to my ASCP color chart, it is almost identical to her Cream color. So now I know, if I want to create this color again I can just buy the Cream color instead of having to do all that mixing! And for an extra little surprise, I painted the inside of the drawer Duck Egg Blue.<br />
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And here it is...the finished end table in all of it's glory!<br />
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I still wasn’t sure about this piece until I got it totally painted, waxed, and buffed. Every step of the way I was unsure about if I could really pull this off and makeover this piece. I’m SO happy I persevered and didn’t give up on this piece. I absolutley love how it turned out! I obviously didn’t do any distressing this time. I was not about to take any chances with having the blue show through on the top or having anything else go wrong!</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The table now sits in my newly painted living room and I must say - I love it! I’m just so happy with it, maybe partly because it is such a pretty, happy yellow color!</span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I'm linking up to the following blogs to share my project!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://todayscreativeblog.net/" target="_blank">Today's Creative Blog</a> - Get Your Craft On</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.domestically-speaking.com/" target="_blank">Domestically Speaking</a> - The Power of Paint Party</span></span><br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://micheleravendesigns.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">{Primp}</a> - Primp Your Stuff Wednesday</span></span><br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://restoreinteriors.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Restore Interiors</a> - Restored it Wednesday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.houseofhepworths.com/" target="_blank">House of Hepworths</a> - Hookin Up With HoH</span></span><br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/" target="_blank">The Shabby Creek Cottage</a> - Transformation Thursday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.missmustardseed.com/" target="_blank">Miss Mustard Seed</a> - Furniture Feature Friday</span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" target="_blank">Tatertots and Jello</a> - Weekend Wrap Up Party</span></span></div>
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</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-20641524682064637872012-05-22T21:07:00.001-04:002012-05-23T07:10:46.684-04:00Living room update...almost done!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">As you know, we've been working on updating our living room. A few weeks ago I shared our <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/04/im-still-here.html" target="_blank">progress</a> (be sure to check out the before pictures, it's such a big change!) and now I'm back with the (almost) finished product of all our hard work! We're finally rid of that crazy olive colored wall and we have nice, crisp, white trim.</span></div>
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When my husband and I started talking about how to update the house, we tossed around the idea of buying all new interior doors and trim. The doors and trim were all a dated, orangey, stained wood and that just isn’t our style. When we estimated how much replacing all of that would cost, we started to think of other ways we could update the look of the house while on a budget. We decided that painting the doors and trim would be the most cost effective and since they were really in pretty decent shape, we decided to go for it. Knowing we wanted it to look as professional as possible, we bought a really nice paint sprayer to help us with the task. We cleared out most of the furniture from the room and taped off the areas we didn’t want to paint and got to spraying. I realize our “really nice paint sprayer” came with a large price tag, but it was so worth it to us. We got the spraying done SO fast. And with a toddler running around and not being able to use the main room of the house, that was important to us. It only took us a day to spray three coats of trim paint in the living room. The foyer took an extra day because the trim was being stubborn and the paint wouldn’t stick to it, so we had to do some extra sanding and then re-sprayed it. If we had done all that work by hand, it would have taken so much longer and probably wouldn’t look as clean and crisp as it does now. We’re really happy with the finish the spraying left on our trim. It looks very professional.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a292a; font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">After we got all the spraying done, we primed the walls and then picked out a wall color and started painting. The color we chose is called Repose Gray by Sherwin Williams. It’s the same color as the inside of our pantry. I should mention that I am terrible at picking paint colors for walls. I absolutely hate it. I don’t know what it is about it, but it is so hard for me. We ended up trying about 8 different colors before we ended up choosing the color we did. Our walls looked like they had the chicken pox because we had so many samples painted everywhere! When we were done painting, I was a little, okay a lot, nervous about the color. I thought it looked too gray, cold, and modern. I was a little stressed since we had taken so much time trying to find the perfect color and then it didn’t look like I had envisioned it. But when we got all of our furniture back in the room, it really warmed it up and made it feel more like “us”. I’m really happy with it now and I think as we add more accessories, pictures, etc. it will look and feel just like we as a family want it to. We definitely need some sort of focal wall over the couch. I’m thinking a gallery wall of all different sized frames with family photos in them. I think it will be fun and different!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here you can see the hallway to the right. We have one painted door, but the rest of the doors and trim haven't been painted yet. We're getting there!</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #2a292a; font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">I’ll share more as we get more done (including more info on that cute yellow end table next to the couch!), but I wanted to show you the major progress we made. I know we want to paint the rest of the house, but we are going to take it slow and do projects as they fit in our budget. I’d love to hear from you if you have any questions or comments!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Thanks so much for stopping by my blog!</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-26142999964887895142012-05-16T14:09:00.000-04:002012-05-16T14:33:47.126-04:00My first piece for sale : Duck Egg Blue mirror<br />
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I’m so happy to be sharing my first for sale painted piece with you today! It's actually a mirror with a magnetic chalkboard! The black area that you see above the mirror is magnetic - that's a flower magnet on it (it comes off - and is not included with the mirror). It's also a chalkboard. So, like I have shown, you can hang the mirror in your entryway and write "welcome" on it. Or you could even use it for notes, a menu, grocery list, whatever you want! And, if you use magnets on it, you could use them just for decoration, like I did, or you could use them to hold notes, important receipts, etc. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">If you remember my post from a couple weeks ago, I found this <a href="http://allisonseverydayjourney.blogspot.com/2012/04/garage-sale-finds.html" target="_blank">mirror</a> at a garage sale and it wasn’t all that cute. I knew it had potential, but the finished product surpassed anything I could have imagined for it! I’m really happy with how it turned out!</span></div>
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This is how the mirror looked when I bought it. The decorative pieces above the actual mirror was the part that gave me the most concern about revitalizing this piece. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">please excuse my daughter strutting her stuff! ;)</td></tr>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I1h3P9p_oQY/T7Ppo0KJpZI/AAAAAAAAAl4/Aed0mL9jrwI/s1600/_HOP3190-1-4x6w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I1h3P9p_oQY/T7Ppo0KJpZI/AAAAAAAAAl4/Aed0mL9jrwI/s640/_HOP3190-1-4x6w.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">But then I thought about covering them up. Couldn’t be that hard, right? Then you wouldn't see all that craziness and it would look less dated. And then my husband and I had a great idea. Why not just knock them right out? So I knocked the decorative pieces out with a rubber mallot. It was super easy to do. Just a couple taps and they popped right out. Then I filled the holes with wood filler. Lots and lots of wood filler! All I had to do then was paint it (with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, of course!) and attach the magnetic chalkboard to the back! Super easy! </span><br />
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And if you’re wondering how I made the chalk board, well, that was super easy, too! We bought a small piece of sheet metal from Lowe’s - which is already magnetic. Then I covered it with a couple coats of chalkboard paint and tacked it in from the back! Told ya, super easy!<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I’m selling this magnetic chalkboard mirror for $50. If you’re interested in purchasing it, be sure to either leave a comment below or email me at <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="mailto:allisonhop@hotmail.com">allisonhop@hotmail.com</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Also, check out my new "for sale" tab at the top of my blog where I'll be adding pieces as they are ready to sell.</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-9364048202714344812012-05-15T10:38:00.000-04:002012-05-15T23:13:33.165-04:00A painted frame - my first experience with chalk paint<br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Hey blog readers! Sorry I’ve been away for a little while. I’ve been painting and wood filler-ing and sanding and painting and wood filler-ing and sanding... You get the idea! I’ve been busy and I’ve been LOVING it! I’m really enjoying painting and that makes me happy!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I wanted to share my first small project using <a href="http://www.anniesloanunfolded.com/" target="_blank">Annie Sloan Chalk Paint</a> with you today. I had heard so much about chalk paint, I even tried to make my own. But after finally seeing the paint in action at <a href="http://rlucasscott.com/" target="_blank">R. Lucas Scott Co.</a>’s store in Holland, MI, I knew I had to try it out for myself. By the way, if you’re ever in the area, you MUST check out R. Lucas Scott Co.’s store. I met the owner, Randy, while I was there and he is such an inspiration. He is super talented and his painted furniture is absolutely amazing! That day I left more inspired that I thought was possible. It was such a great feeling!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Ok, on to the paint. Now, first I want you to know that I haven’t had much experience painting with latex paint (other than walls, trim, etc.), so I can’t really compare chalk paint to latex paint. All I can say is so far I’m loving chalk paint. It is easy to use - it’s consistency is similar to latex. It dries SO FAST! Like, within 15 minutes to an hour! It is virtually odorless, which means I can paint a piece while I’m in my office and my child is in the next room. No odor. Windows closed. It’s amazing! (I’m sure Annie Sloan would recommend good ventilation, just FYI.) Oh, and the best part? No sanding or priming! Yes, I did mention earlier that I was sanding, but that’s on pieces that have holes, nicks, etc. that need to be filled with wood filler and then sanded down. On a piece that has no real issues, I just wipe it down with a damp cloth, let it dry for a minute, and then start painting! I love that there is very little prep work with this paint!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Ready for the before and after? This is a picture frame I found at a garage sale for $.50! It doesn’t have glass or Plexiglas to protect the picture, but for $.50 I didn’t really care! And the picture they had in it is priceless! ;)</span></div>
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The frame was actually in pretty good shape aside from being an ugly color, in my opinion. It had great detail, which is all I really cared about! All I did was wipe it down with a damp cloth and then I got started painting. I first painted it with two coats of Arles which is a gold yellow color. (Sorry, I didn’t take a picture of this step. I’ve gotta get better at taking more pictures!) I wanted to do some sort of distressing treatment on it, so I painted a coat of Old White over the entire frame. I waited for the paint to dry, maybe a half hour, and then started distressing. Per Annie’s instructions in her book <a href="http://anniesloan.com/acatalog/Books.html" target="_blank">Quick and Easy Paint Transformations</a>, I got my wax brush damp and then dipped it in a little wax and brushed it onto the frame. I had to push the brush into the wood a little when I was waxing to help take off some of the Old White and show the yellow Arles color underneath. Using this method of distressing, the first coat of paint shows through instead of the wood.</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I love how the frame turned out! I’m a perfectionist, so distressing is difficult for me because I want everything to be even. But I’m learning to just let go and not work too hard at making things look perfect. Here are some close up shots of the distressing.</span></div>
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Here is the final product on my daughter’s bookshelf.</div>
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And here it is with a cute little pinwheel print from <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/" target="_blank">The Handmade Home</a>. I love this print. It’s so cute and goes perfectly in her room! And, guess what? The Handmade Home has a TON of cute, free printables, so be sure to <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/freebies/" target="_blank">check them out</a>!</div>
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Well, that’s all from me. Like I said, I’m working on some other painting projects, so I’ll be back with more before and afters soon.</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Take care!</span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">*Update: Here are a few links to some great information on chalk paint - said way better than I ever could! ;)</span><br />
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<a href="http://missmustardseed.com/2011/03/mystery-paint-revealed/">http://missmustardseed.com/2011/03/mystery-paint-revealed/</a><br />
<a href="http://www.perfectlyimperfectblog.com/2011/06/chalk-paint-faqs.html">http://www.perfectlyimperfectblog.com/2011/06/chalk-paint-faqs.html</a><br />
<a href="http://www.perfectlyimperfectblog.com/2011/11/chalk-paint-cost-ideas.html">http://www.perfectlyimperfectblog.com/2011/11/chalk-paint-cost-ideas.html</a><br />
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<br /></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-55839977011811898202012-05-08T10:39:00.002-04:002012-05-08T10:39:42.025-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 17 {negative space}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I loved this shot from our stay in downtown Detroit this past weekend (I know, I’m behind on my weeks!). I initially hoped to get a shot without the fence in it, but as I started shooting, I really liked that the fence was there. It worked perfectly with my theme of negative space.</span></div>
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<br />Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-84307031255189222642012-05-02T15:17:00.000-04:002012-05-02T15:17:12.130-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 16 {water}<div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Week 16! I’m getting closer to being caught up! Almost there...</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mcDR8u3c7kM/T5vpUYrYHxI/AAAAAAAAAi8/HININQq28Ws/s1600/week+16_HOP2917-1-4x6w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mcDR8u3c7kM/T5vpUYrYHxI/AAAAAAAAAi8/HININQq28Ws/s640/week+16_HOP2917-1-4x6w.jpg" width="426" /></a>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-54217988683598735402012-05-01T13:40:00.000-04:002012-05-03T19:45:26.791-04:00A painted nightstand...and my new venture<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I’m so excited to share my nightstand with you! I got this baby off Craigslist for $25 and was super excited about it! It was my first time buying anything off Craigslist and it went really well, actually. </span>When I bought the nightstand, I really didn’t have a place for it in our home. I knew I wanted something old and I wanted a piece I could paint/refinish. I just started cruising Craigslist and found this beauty and thought it would be a fun piece to start on. When I got it home, I tried it out in different places and finally ended up putting it next to the guest bed in the basement. My mother-in-law kept telling me we needed a nightstand down there every time she spent the night, so I thought this would do the trick. And, for $25, plus a few supplies to refinish it, it cost less and has much more personality and detail than anything I could have bought at a chain store.</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">(sorry about the quality of this photo - it was taken with my phone)</span></div>
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I knew before I bought it that I wanted to do a stained top and paint the rest of the piece. I had seen that look over on <a href="http://www.missmustardseed.com/" target="_blank">Miss Mustard Seed’s blog</a> and thought it looked so sharp. Since this is the first piece I’ve ever painted - well, besides spray painting - I was a little nervous and didn't know where to start. I had heard a LOT about Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and really wanted to try it, but wasn’t ready to commit to the high price tag yet. And my husband REALLY wasn’t ready! ;) So, my husband went searching all over the ‘net to see if there was a “better way” and found a recipe to make your own chalk paint. To make it, you use 1 part Plaster of Paris and 2 parts latex paint. The homemade chalk paint turned out pretty well, but I’m not sure I love it. I really want to buy a quart or a few sample pots of ASCP to see how it works and compare it to the homemade chalk paint I made. From what I’ve been reading, I’m going to assume that the ASCP is far superior to my homemade chalk paint. I guess I just need to save up a little money and just go for it. And ya know what? If I hate it, I can just try something else. I know I can just use latex paint, but I've been hearing so much about ASCP, I can't get it out of my head!</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I was excited to start on my project, but wasn’t sure how I would like it once I got going on it. It is a lot of work at times, but I found that the painting, distressing, waxing was such a stress reliever for me. It gave me time to be alone with my thoughts and I could even let my creativity out a little bit. I’ve had a hard time separating myself from being a mom since I had my daughter and I found (so far, at least) that painting is something that can give me that separation. Not that I don’t want to be a mom, I just need to be Allison, the person, sometimes! I need some time to be able to think about things other than sippy cups and potty training!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This painting project brings me to my new venture I want to share with you. I have decided to start buying and refinishing/painting antique furniture. I have always loved the look of antique furniture when done in a tasteful way. I love the look of an updated home with a few gorgeous antique pieces thrown in there to spice it up a little. Heck, I would LOVE to live in an old farmhouse, renovate it and have antique furniture tastefully strewn about the home. But that is only in my dreams since I’m pretty sure my hubby doesn’t share those same thoughts! Oh well, maybe one day I'll change his mind! Anyway, I want to start refinishing pieces for my home that will have a purpose and meaning for my home and family. Eventually I would love to start selling my pieces and be able to contribute to the family income - being a stay at home mom - while doing something I love at the same time. I don’t know what this will look like for me in the future. Selling my pieces in an antique store? Selling pieces online? Doing custom orders? I have no idea, but I’m open to just about anything right now! So, I’ll be researching a lot more. Colors and finishes I like. Styles of furniture I want to focus on - good thing I saved my furniture book from college when I was going to be an interior designer! I knew I should hang on to that book for a reason. I kept taking it with us when we would move to different houses. I felt like God was telling me to just keep it, that it may come in handy someday. Well, maybe this is why He had me hang on to it. Now I just</span> need a larger vehicle so I can buy bigger pieces of furniture! ;)</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Thanks so much for checking out my new project! Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><br />* Update: I forgot to tell you ... I used Sherwin Williams Versatile Gray on the body and Minwax Dark Walnut stain on the top.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I'm linking up to the following blogs to share my project! (This is my first time "linking up" anywhere...we'll see how it goes!)</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://todayscreativeblog.net/" target="_blank">Today's Creative Blog</a> - Get Your Craft On</span><br />
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://micheleravendesigns.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">{Primp}</a> - Primp Your Stuff Wednesday</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.houseofhepworths.com/" target="_blank">House of Hepworths</a> - Hookin Up With HoH</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://www.missmustardseed.com/" target="_blank">Miss Mustard Seed</a> - Furniture Feature Friday</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><a href="http://tatertotsandjello.com/" target="_blank">Tatertots and Jello</a> - Weekend Wrap Up Party</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-55172527775301193412012-04-30T07:00:00.000-04:002012-04-30T07:00:11.331-04:00Learning lessons…and liking it?<br />
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Alternate title…”I may be going crazy!”</div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">For some reason I like to learn things the hard way. Which makes absolutely no sense with my perfectionist personality! I have this process of researching something until there’s nothing left to research anymore, deciding that half of the world feels that you should do it one way and the other half of the world thinks you should do it the totally opposite way, and feeling so overwhelmed that I finally just decide to go for it and make my mistakes and learn along the way. I guess it’s good that I do the research and know the possible problems that may come up, but eventually you just have to dive in and figure it out yourself.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">So, you may be asking yourself what the heck I’m referring to. Well, I’ve started a new little venture that I’m really excited about. I have decided to start refinishing/painting furniture. Right now it will just be a hobby and will mostly be pieces for my own home, but I’m hoping it could someday turn into something I can get paid to do. I don’t even know how I got into this, but I can probably blame it on Pinterest! ;) I think I must have been searching for something and saw a piece of painted furniture and one thing led to another and I was on a couple different blogs falling in love with all these pieces these women had refinished/painted and thinking that it might be fun to try it out myself. So, I got my booty over to Craigslist and found my first piece, a 1960’s nightstand that would be perfect for our “guestroom” in the basement. I got the nightstand and kept doing research. Which kind of paint to use – chalk paint or latex? Would I stain the top or just paint the whole thing? Do I strip it or just sand it? Lots of things I needed to figure out before I felt confident enough to start. But ya know what? I finally got to the point that I needed to just start. I guess I figure if I do enough research, I’ll do it “perfectly” and it will turn out beautifully and all will be right with the world. But then how will I ever learn anything? So I just got on with it and painted the darn thing. The nightstand is almost done now, just need to buff the wax topcoat, and I’m really happy with it. But I did learn some lessons along the way. And the weird part is that I’m happy about it. This is where the crazy comes in! When I completed each step in my refinishing process, I thought, “well, I don’t like this or that, but now I know and can try something different next time.” That thought kind of disturbs the perfectionist side of me. It scares that part of me because that part of me thinks everything should turn out perfect the first time. But I’m just gonna go with it and be happy for my positive outlook. Yes, I want what I produce to be beautiful and look professional, but it doesn’t have to be perfect. In fact, perfect to me could be totally different than perfect to someone else. And if I start selling my pieces, the imperfections I see and dislike may just be the things that someone else likes and the reason they buy a certain piece!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I’ll be sharing my nightstand makeover later this week, so be sure to stop back and check it out! I’m so excited to share my process and end result with you all!</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-67111926222141302682012-04-29T21:29:00.000-04:002012-04-29T21:33:55.537-04:00Garage Sale Finds<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">Just wanted to share a couple quick garage sale items I found while out with my new friends </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;"><a href="http://hfick.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Heather</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;"> and Rebecca this weekend. We went to a ton of garage sales on Friday in South Lyon where they were having a city wide sale. It was the first time I’d gone to so many garage sales in one day and I had a great time!</span><br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Here is a crib spring that I got for FREE!! </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This was our first stop and I saw the crib sitting out front with a free sign on it. I really didn’t need or want the whole crib, but I had seen something cool done with a crib spring over on <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/" target="_blank">The Handmade Home</a> and thought of it right away when I saw that spring. I asked the woman if I could just have the spring and she hesitated a bit because she really wanted to “sell” it with the crib. After several seconds she said I could just have it! I was SO happy! I never thought I’d even find a crib spring let alone get one for free! I know everyone probably thinks I’m crazy, but I’m super excited about it! (And I really hope it turns out as cool as the <a href="http://www.thehandmadehome.net/2011/01/easy-peasy-crib-spring-memo-board/" target="_blank">inspiration project</a> did!)</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">My other find at the garage sales was this mirror. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not sure if I want to hang it this way...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...or this way. (Don't mind my toddler strutting in the mirror reflection!)</td></tr>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I know, it’s a bit dated, but I think with some paint it will be a fun piece to put in our entryway! It’s not exactly our style, but I got it for $2.00! We can always update it with something else when I find the "perfect piece". The lady selling it was selling everything at her garage sale for $5.00 or less! Now that’s my kind of garage sale! She even had a couple dressers! It was crazy!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Alright, well that’s it on the garage sale finds. I did get a few other things, but mostly just clothes and toys for Rylan, so I won’t bore you with those!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Check back soon to see how I’ve transformed my garage sale finds. I’m excited to share the end results with you!</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-90269660752371020792012-04-29T08:12:00.000-04:002012-04-29T08:12:00.212-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 15 {two}<br />
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I went a little outside the box on the theme this week. My subject this week was tulips...get it “two lips”?! ;) I know it’s a bit of a stretch, but it’s my project and I can interpret it the way I want, right?!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Frost on the grass on a cool spring morning...</span></div>
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<br />Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-57189132601582426142012-04-23T23:12:00.001-04:002012-04-24T10:00:49.020-04:00I'm Still Here!<br />
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Hey guys! Yeah, I’m still here. I know I haven’t posted in a while, but I’ve had a lot going on lately. I have been doing a lot of work on myself from an emotional standpoint and let me tell ya, it’s exhausting. But it will be well worth it in the end...just gotta keep pushing through! <br />
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On a brighter note, this year my husband and I decided to use our tax return money on improving the inside of our house, so we’ve been busy with that. So far we’ve taken out the carpet in the living room which revealed hardwood floors that are in pretty darn good shape. I know that part is free...but the rest isn’t! We’ve also moved our old couch down to the basement and our new couch upstairs. The new couch had an off white cover on it, but when it came upstairs, there was just too much activity with the cats, dog, our daughter, and us sitting on it all the time, that we decided to buy a dark gray cover for it to hide the spills, dog hair, etc! It gives the couch a little more of a modern look than I’d like, but overall I really like the color and the fact that I don’t constantly see imperfections and feel like I have to wash it every 24 hours!<br />
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My husband took down the wallpaper and fake cove moulding in the entryway and it is looking better already. The ceiling in the entry way looks so much taller! I can't wait to see what the living room will look like when we take it down in there, too. My husband and I were talking about it the other day and we both agreed that we like coved ceilings in old houses and think they are an interesting and fun design element used back in the day. We don't, however, like fake cove moulding made to look like a coved ceiling. It just looks cheap and actually makes the room look smaller. It really makes no sense! Okay...on to the next subject! ;)<br />
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We’ve also taken down the awful drapes in the living room and we got a new rug because the doggy had no soft place to lie once we took the carpet up. Poor thing! I think we are headed to the store today to find some blinds to cover up our huge window so that the neighbors can’t see our every move. And then we just need to decide on curtains to flank the sides of the windows and that part of the project will be done. Oh, and we bought two chairs last night online to put in our living room and I’m really excited to get them! I finally feel like this house is going to look like we live here, ya know?!<br />
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Here are a few before and "after" pictures. They're more "progress" pictures than "after" pictures. Oh, and sorry about the crappy quality of the before pictures. Turns out they were all too dark and most of them are shaky. I guess I was in a hurry on moving day or something! And the after photos...well, I'm keeping it real and showing you our daily mess. Our house is crazy right now with toys and tools all around us. At least the toys get cleaned up at night...well, most nights!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before - Living room/window wall (notice the yucky old drapes and carpet)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Progress so far - Living room/window wall (removed the drapes and fixing up the window...it was all jacked up! And...no more carpet...just a rug!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-29PUSTjpcSg/T5YSQN5cUsI/AAAAAAAAAh4/Rzuh9Trka-0/s1600/_HOP7731-1w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-29PUSTjpcSg/T5YSQN5cUsI/AAAAAAAAAh4/Rzuh9Trka-0/s640/_HOP7731-1w.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before - Living room/green wall</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Progress so far - Living room/green wall (can't wait to paint this room and cover up that awful green!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before - Entry way (Weird random moulding and awesome wallpaper)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before - Entry way</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wfWI1tUVDVA/T5YRqXKKyVI/AAAAAAAAAhg/90GcjxMTgjw/s1600/_HOP2827-1w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wfWI1tUVDVA/T5YRqXKKyVI/AAAAAAAAAhg/90GcjxMTgjw/s640/_HOP2827-1w.jpg" width="456" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Progress so far - Entry way (vertical and cove moulding and wallpaper all removed, primed and ready for paint...eventually!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Progress so far - Entry way/living room</td></tr>
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Next on the agenda is painting all the doors and trim white and this summer we are hoping to remodel our main bathroom...because it really needs it! Can you say MOLD?! Yuck! I’ll be back along the way to show you how things are progressing.</div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-5099146212215906692012-04-07T07:34:00.000-04:002012-04-23T23:20:04.200-04:00Project Simplify 2012 : Week 2 {the pantry}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Alternate title : The worst paint job I’ve ever done...</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The second week of Project Simplify dealt with getting the food in the house under control (Project Simplify has since ended, but I’m way behind, so I’m posting this now!). Our fridge is pretty clean/organized since we just bought a new one a couple months ago. I try to keep things fresh in there and rotate items out so that we are using everything and not keeping old food.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">My pantry, however, is a different story. The house we moved into in October of last year was built in the late ‘50s/early ‘60s and I’m pretty sure the pantry was never updated. I’m sure it didn’t really start as a pantry when it was built over 50 years ago. I think it was actually a small broom closet with a few shelves for food or tools or random stuff! Whatever it was used for, it wasn’t serving much of a purpose for us...as you can see below.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">So, a couple of months ago, we started updating it. We took everything out...including these fantastic finds that had been left behind. Not sure what year they’re from, but they’re old!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">We got all the food and shelving out and decided that the closet would work much better as a pantry if the shelves went all the way across. Novel idea, huh?! So, we got to work on that and immediately were impressed with how much more space we had!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Then the project stalled out. I knew I wanted to paint the pantry and get some containers to decant my food into, but I just didn’t know where to start. I had some ideas, but just wasn’t feeling anything in particular. Then the Project Simplify challenge came into my life and gave me the extra push I needed. My two HUGE sources of inspiration were <a href="http://www.thehouseofsmiths.com/2010/07/pantry-remix.html" target="_blank">Shelley from The House of Smiths</a> and <a href="http://thesocialhome.blogspot.com/2012/02/pantry-pretty-dollar-store-pantry.html" target="_blank">Jen from The Social Home</a>. I really liked how organized and pretty both of their pantries looked and I knew I wanted to incorporate their successes into my own pantry. Once I was armed with these images of pretty pantries, I was ready to finish my project. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">First, I bought all the containers that I would need to decant my boxed and bagged food into. I then bought the paint and got to work on that. And that’s where my alternate title comes in. Once I got in the pantry and started painting, I realized how bad of a job the previous owners had done painting the pantry and how many different colors it had been painted. I also realized how much NO ONE is going to see any imperfections that may come up when I paint the pantry because it’s a tiny closet and the shelves would be covered with food! I’m usually a perfectionist, especially when it comes to painting, but I just didn’t care enough to really take my time on this project. And you know what? Now that it is all said and done, I can’t even tell that this was the worst paint job I’ve ever done! That may be because once I was done, I saw some imperfections and went back and touched things up a bit! :) </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Overall, I’m really happy with how it turned out. It is so much cleaner, prettier, and more functional than our old pantry. The one thing I’m not thrilled about are the labels on my canisters. I think the design is cute, but I have never liked my handwriting and I certainly don’t like it on the canisters. I know I should have just waited to find different labels that I really liked that I could also print on, but I wanted to complete the project, so I just bought these. Someday I’ll get new labels. Even better, someday I’ll MAKE new labels with my new Silhouette CAMEO...ya know...when I can actually afford one! ;) Until that day happens, I can live with the slightly imperfect labels!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">So, what goes where? Well, the top shelf holds flour and sugar along with our milkshake/malt machine and our electric griddle. The pantry is really tall, but you can’t really store anything up so high that you can’t reach it, so the griddle fits perfectly there. It is just sitting on the shelf, leaning against the back wall. You can’t see much of it because the actual pantry shelves go about 10-12 inches to the right of the door opening. Good for extra storage, but not for being able to see what’s there!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">On the next shelf down, we have the spaghetti - mostly because that’s the only shelf it would fit on. Also, the snacks and a snack box bin are on that shelf. The bin is the smaller of two bins in the pantry that hold random boxes that I didn’t want to decant. Things like crackers, boxed mac & cheese, and microwave popcorn go in those bins. I l-o-v-e having those bins rather than just having the boxes sitting on the shelf. I think it really cleans it up and makes your eye focus on the crisp white bin, rather than a ton of random boxes. That makes me happy! I wanted the things we used most frequently to be displayed at eye level and not shoved in the corner, so the most-used snacks are on this shelf in clear containers, front and center! Also on that shelf tucked all the way to the right is the whole wheat pastry flour. I almost never use that, but when I bought it, it came in a 5lb bag! So that’s in the corner in a random tub I already had in my cupboard. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The next shelf holds the baking goods and canned goods...and peanut butter...all the round things, I guess! I love the containers I have on that shelf. They look so pretty to me and now I can tell what I’m getting low on so that I can buy more before I totally run out. I also really like the cans being tucked away in the corner. I don’t really like having cans on display - I think they’re ugly. Plus, I rarely use them, so I don’t need to see them every time I open the pantry. The peanut butter gets to be seen, though, because I like it...and we use it a lot! </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Okay, almost done...the next shelf holds the decanted cereal...plus an open box of Rice Krispies that I haven’t decided whether I want to keep or not! It also holds a tiny snack container and the second, larger snack bin with mostly cracker boxes in it. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Okay...here are my sources:</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I don’t have all the info written down, but this is what I can remember...</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Paint: Sherwin Williams - Repose Gray SW 7015</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Cereal containers: IKEA - <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90066708/" target="_blank">365+ 2qt</a> : $3.99ea</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Snack containers: IKEA - <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90066708/#/80066723" target="_blank">365+ 44oz</a> : $2.99ea</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Small snack container: IKEA - <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90066708/#/80066718" target="_blank">365+ 10oz</a> : $1.99ea</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Large white bin: IKEA - <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30155019/#/70177255" target="_blank">RATIONELL VARIERA box - large</a> - $6.99</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Small white bin: IKEA - <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30155019/#/30155019" target="_blank">RATIONELL VARIERA box - small</a> - $5.99</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Flour, sugar, and spaghetti containers: OXO, we already owned these, but one still has a price tag on the bottom reading $24.99! Yikes...don’t think I’ll be buying any more of those any time soon!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Wire shelf: Target - Room Essentials “Helper Shelf” - I think it was around $5.99</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Chip basket: already owned this - I think we got it from Michaels or Target a few years ago.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Glass containers: Hobby Lobby - small ones were $2.49 and large ones were $2.79, I believe. Got them half price, though, during a glass sale.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Labels: <a href="http://www.staples.com/Martha-Stewart-Home-Office-with-Avery-Kitchen-Labels-Red-Border-Round-2/product_366158" target="_blank">Martha Stewart (Staples)</a> - $5.99 for a twelve pack. I got two twelve packs and had $4.00 off, so it wasn’t too bad.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">As you could probably tell, I really love how my pantry turned out. It is clean and organized and updated and pretty and those things all make me happy! </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Alright, I think I explained everything, but please let me know if you have any questions!</span></div>
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<br /></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-29796224028519108982012-03-31T21:48:00.001-04:002012-03-31T21:50:50.903-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 13 {catch lights}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This week’s theme was catch lights. Catch lights are basically “lights” in the subject’s eyes that kind of make the eyes “twinkle”. I’m no expert on the subject, but I learned a bit about catch lights when I took <a href="http://www.clickinmoms.com/cmu/archives/listing/shooting-101-the-best-darn-beginner-course-ever" target="_blank">Lynne Rigby’s Shooting 101 class from Clickin Moms</a> a couple months ago. A great way to achieve catch lights in your subject when you’re shooting inside is to have them face a window and you stand in between your subject and the window and have your back to the window. Then the light from the window reflects in their eyes and you get that dreamy look.</span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 22.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">These are two photos (I know, can you believe I’m submitting TWO photos ON TIME!!) of my daughter from this past week. She is so hard to photograph because she’s always on the move...and she immediately runs when I get the camera out! Fun stuff, I tell ya! ;) The first photo was achieved in the morning when the light is amazing coming in my dining room - there is a sliding glass door behind her and a large window behind me. And, hey, she’s strapped into her highchair eating her breakfast...so she can’t run away from me! ;) The second photo is of her standing rightnexttome, which was a little difficult because she was so close and I was shooting with my 50mm lens. I was sitting in a chair and she was playing with the lamp on the table next to the chair. The catch lights in the second photo are from a combination of the huge picture window in our living room and from the lamp she was turning on. I was surprised that the lighting worked out as well as it did in the second picture with having the two light sources. A happy surprise! ;)</span></div><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Tekton Pro'; font-size: 18px;">Hoping everyone has a wonderful next week!</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-6153254113856127082012-03-24T21:52:00.003-04:002012-03-25T21:54:29.856-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 12 {white}<div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This Spring is going to be interesting for us as we get to know our new yard. We moved into this house in October of last year, so we don’t really know what kind of plants and flowers we have in the yard yet. Since Spring arrived early this year, we’ve seen some flowers starting to sprout up here and there already and are excited at what we’re seeing. I think we might have tulips coming up, but I’m not that great with flowers. Yes, I know what a tulip looks like, but so far the plants just have leaves, no budding of flowers yet! I’m sure we’ll find out within the next week or so just what they are! </span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 22.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This morning, when I was pondering what to capture for my theme this week - being the last day of the week and all, I looked out to our back yard and saw WHITE!! At first glance I thought it was either daffodils or hyacinths. I couldn’t really see the shape from inside. So, after I put my daughter down for a nap, I grabbed my camera and headed outside to see if I was right on one of my guesses. When I got out there, I found that they were, in fact, daffodils. Ha! I was right! ;) The thing that threw my eyes off while I was inside, thinking they could be hyacinths, was this patch of ground cover just behind the daffodils - that I hadn’t seen until today either. I have no idea what they’re called, but they sure are cute! Since the daffodils weren’t really in good shape, I’m glad these guys were there, too, so I could snap a couple pictures of them - ya know, just in time to complete this week’s theme! ‘Cause I’m a procrastinator...but you already knew that! ;)</span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fs9UqWxUqbw/T2_MBVY58qI/AAAAAAAAAfw/yDNsUhHXTp4/s1600/_HOP2441-4w.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fs9UqWxUqbw/T2_MBVY58qI/AAAAAAAAAfw/yDNsUhHXTp4/s640/_HOP2441-4w.jpg" width="456" /></a></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><br />
</span></div>Allison @ The Golden Sycamorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03894056657504821717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3693813766475465060.post-19075240147061611642012-03-19T13:48:00.001-04:002012-03-19T13:56:08.655-04:00My 52 Week Project : Week 11 {motion}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Week eleven’s theme was motion...and it was really hard! Hence the reason I’m REALLY late with my submission! I tried just slowing my shutter speed down while shooting different subjects, but I wasn’t getting the effect I was looking for and I was getting really frustrated. I thought about trying panning, but I couldn’t think of a good subject to try it on - I don’t think my daughter would be able to follow directions well enough at this age.</span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 22.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">It was well past the submission “deadline” when I remembered reading about implying motion while zooming in Bryan Peterson’s book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Exposure-Photographs-Digital-Updated/dp/0817463003/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332179706&sr=1-2" target="_blank">Understanding Exposure</a>. I thought it sounded like fun and I didn’t even have to have a moving subject. All you have to do to imply motion while zooming with your camera is slow your shutter speed down long enough so that you can zoom your lens before it takes the picture. Once you have your shutter speed slow enough (you may need to do a little trial and error with your settings) and you’ve got your exposure set correctly, then hit the shutter and quickly zoom your lens - either in or out, whichever is the opposite of how you started. It’s not that difficult once you do it a couple times. </span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 22.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"></span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">The subject matter in my photo isn’t amazing, but I like the effect. Now that I’ve tried this new technique, I think I will look for more interesting subjects to try it on and see what I can come up with!</span></div><div style="font: 18.0px 'Tekton Pro'; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><br />
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