CHRISTMAS DECOR 2018 - our living room






This year we are hosting a casual Christmas dinner for 12 family members in 666sq ft. with no dining area. Wish us luck!
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EASY CHRISTMAS CENTER PIECE - using a pie plate



I created this center piece in a few minutes with things I had around the house and a hand full of cut cedar.



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NO MANTLE FOR STOCKINGS? - alternative ideas





We don't have a mantle to hang stockings from. I have been asked for ideas where or how to hang stockings for those without a mantle like us. Here are some of my solutions over the years.
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10 CHRISTMAS VILLAGES I ADORE - with blog links


I just adore looking at little Christmas villages. One day I will find some neighbors for my triple peaked house but for now I am just going to be an admirer. Please enjoy these 10 unique little house displays and DIY builds I have included below.




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HOLIDAY HOME TOUR 2018 - christmas bedroom




I have done some very traditional Christmas decor in our main living space but I want to share my favorite room, our bedroom and how I decorated it this year.
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PAINTING AND DISTRESSING PLASTIC CHAIRS - white dining chairs




Parts of these lovely vintage chairs are made of plastic. The front legs and the decorative backs are all a hard plastic composite. No worries thou I still painted and distressed them.
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A LITTLE AS* PAINT GOES A LONG WAY - annie sloan red & blue




This is another Emperors Silk Red project I did. Isn't the color amazing, "the knobs made me do it!" With this project I get to show you how far Annie Sloan Chalk Paint can really go.
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APPLYING WIPE ON POLY - dark stained desk top





My go to product for a hard durable finish on a top surface is ...

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WIPE ON POLY OVER RED - ascp emperors silk red chalk paint





I finished this beauty of a buffet with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint in Emperors Silk red and I used wipe on poly for the top coat.


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INDUSTRIAL DRESSER - silver and wood





This is how I took a simple wood dresser and turned it into an Industrial piece.

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ANNIE SLOAN's EMPERORS SILK RED - vintage buffet





It can be scary choosing such a bold color but that one bold step I made resulted in one striking piece of furniture.

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BLACK CHURCH PEW - bench build




Part three of the church pew being cut in half brings me to painting the second bench. I choose black for the look of this one. 


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WHITE CHURCH PEW - entry bench




Recently I shared how I cut an old church pew into two. Last I left you the two new benches I created from it needed to be painted.

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CUTTING A CHURCH PEW IN HALF







At almost 9 feet long this old church pew was just too long to use as an entry bench so I decided to cut it in half.


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BIRCH CANDLES, GIANT STARS, WOOD LADDERS, & CHEVRONS





I finally got to build some birch candles holders. I have been wanting to create these for several years but time and birch had eluded me.




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OUR SECRET GARDEN PART 2 - zero budget






Our summer goal was to reclaim an outdoor space that we had been avoiding for years. We set our sights on using only things we had or could get free and that meant it was going to be a zero budget project!

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OUR SECRET GARDEN PART 1 - team work







The secret garden is coming along and looking great. We now get to enjoy coming out here in the evenings to have a bite to eat or just wind down from the day. We did it on a budget of zero dollars.


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VINTAGE VANITY TURN EUROPEAN DESK - working with what you have





Some of you know we host fairly good and definitely fun yard sales even in the RAIN! This year we ran out of time and stuff to sell. So I thought I would share an old yard sale makeover with you to help makeup for it.
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DRUMHELLER TO VANCOUVER RV TRIP - the last 4 days





Had we had a enough of our young travel companion after 3 days on the road all the way to Drumheller? It was time to head home and find out who would survive.

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VANCOUVER TO DRUMHELLER RV TRIP - the first 3 days






We went to see the dinosaurs in Alberta and we had a nephew join us on the trip in our RV.


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GREY AND WHITE DRESSERS - faux weathered boards






I had a pair of these smaller dressers. They had a hard
glossy white finish that was in pretty good shape that I was going to work with. The drawers however had gold detailing around the edge that I was going to change.

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BLACK HARP TABLE - paint and primer




This was a simple revamp I did on a wonderful find,
but this piece is anything but simple. Come take a look ...
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DRIFTWOOD FINISH ON A DINING TABLE - using annie sloan chalk paint







This is a dining table I brought back to life creating a driftwood finish for the top and beautiful dark legs on the bottom.


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MY SISTER'S DESK - white with dark wood top






Many years ago I created this desk for my sister. She is now changing her decor but before I get to that let me recap the
 makeover I did ...



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CHANGING UPHOLSTERED SEATS TO WOOD - turquoise dining chairs






Not everyone likes upholstered chairs. Let me show you how I went from upholstered chairs to wood seats on these cute little 50's dining chairs.


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DRIFTWOOD FINISH & PAINTED UPHOLSTERY - a new look for grandma's chairs





These chairs I worked on are probably 100 years old and unfortunately they were showing their age. Beloved by their family they were brought to me for much love and attention.
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RECYCLED FURNITURE APPLIQUES







Want cheaper options to add appliques to your next painting projects?






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HOW TO WHITE WASH BOARDS - tutorial



White washing boards is one of the easiest paint techniques to do and fun in the summer weather.
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RV BEDROOM MAKEOVER REVEAL - white and navy pillows





Here is our motor home bedroom reveal for this summer.
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DUCK EGG DINING CHAIRS - chair makeover






I'm sure some of you are wondering what DUCK EGG DINING chairs are and I will explain. Duck Egg refers to a soft blue paint color that is available in Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint line.




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LINING FURNITURE - wallpaper, fabric, or paint




Sometimes it can be just as fun to redo and enjoy the inside of your furniture project just as much as the outside. This is a compilation of some of my favorite interiors I have done.




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PAINTED BAR STOOLS - duck egg






Annie Sloan's chalk paint in Duck Egg blue is a very attractive soft turquoise blue. It has that special something that reminds me of the ocean and the beach.


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HOW TO DEAL WITH DAMAGED VENEER -delftware blue & white cabinet






I definitely had some fun working with this antique washstand. And absolutely love the Delftware Pottery look I  create on the face of it.


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DIY GARDEN LIGHT - reusing a large glass bottle






Last time I left you with our latest outdoor project I had closed in the porch stairs and built new railings. Right next to the stairs I also built a small garden and created a garden light that illuminates the surrounding pathway.





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THE CHERRY CROP




Our back yard is full of cherries.




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MIRROR GALLERY WALL - in the hallway






Our hallways has always been a place I can display my collection of mirrors and enjoy them every day.

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NEW FRONT STAIRS - the wasps made me do it






I was dragging a piece of furniture up our front stairs when all of a sudden I was swarmed.

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A FRENCH PROVINCIAL HEADBOARD - my favorite gold paint





I built and painted this headboard to coordinate with a special set of gold and cream nightstands I had finish.



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BIG LEGS ADDED TO A SIDEBOARD - woodworking






While working outside in the warmth of the summer's sun I took several photos to show how a frame would need to be built to install a set of legs on a buffet. I had imagined these big carved legs added to this cabinet, just like the picture. I had the legs in a crate in my back room but I would need to see how the cabinet was built before I knew if I could make it a reality. 




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SHIPLAP COAT RACK - farmhouse style






One of the great elements of this shiplap coat rack is the hand made corbels I used. I made them with a new tool I have.











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RV LIVING / DINING ROOM MAKEOVER REVEAL - couch, curtain, & macrame






I finally finished off the last elements I had been working on for the living space of the motor home. Our motor home is straight out of the 80's, the pink 80's. Check out the before picture below.






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OUR FRENCH COUNTRY BEDROOM - bed details






Our home is all about using found pieces that we love. We  want the unique decor items that we find in our neighborhood to inspire the decor in your home. Our french country bedroom makeover was so much fun to create and continues to evolve in little ways all the time.



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FARMHOUSE DRESSERS - stacking for storage





I love this project. I knew re-doing our dressing room I need more storage but I didn't know it was going to come in such a rare beauty.



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ALTERNATIVE WAYS TO MAKE FURNITURE TALLER - gorgeous carved nightstands





Sometimes you can add legs to 
your furniture to get more height but other times you can't. This time I had to come up with an alternative plan to get these
bedside tables taller.


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PAINTING TURQUOISE MIRRORS - oval plastic mirror frames




Verdigris is the common name for the natural green patina formed when copper, brass or bronze is weathered
and exposed to air or seawater over a period of time. 

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LAYERING MIRRORS ON THE MANTLE - and a new mirror


MIRROR, MIRROR, ON THE WALL
When I am out and I see a second hand mirror that I like it is hard to say no. The benefit is I end up having a few different mirrors hanging around whenever  I want to re-decorate. 
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LADDERS, FLOWERS, and FAVORS - peonies in the bedroom




STOP AND SMELL THE FLOWERS
I have been playing with some photographs and a new bunch of flower.



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HOW I PAINT BLACK FURNITURE using latex paint



I have painted many black pieces of furniture in my time and I can tell you the darker the paint color the longer the cure time.
Keeping a black piece of furniture dust free is as hard as getting a black paint job to look good. It takes a lot of time and never feels like it is done. 

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MY GREEK COLUMN SOFA TABLE - build with old bed posts



WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE LOOK LIKE?
What can I say about my most favorite piece of furniture. I use it every single day, and it couldn't be more me.  I built it with salvaged furniture parts.



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BLACK MILK PAINT - used on a chest of drawers

 
BE-CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
I wanted to working with milk paint more to see if I liked it. I had only dabbled a bit with it to this point. I decided to jump head first in to do a big black chest of drawers. Black is also a very tricky finish to get right but I tried.

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