Playroom Update {Pt. 2}

Hi friends and HAPPY FRIDAY!!

What are you up to this weekend?  Any big plans for the Super Bowl?  We usually have a BIG party at our house each year for the Super Bowl, but I just really did not feel up to it this year.  We usually go all out and I make tons of appetizers and desserts and we have food catered in and there’s usually about 40-45 people here.  I just didn’t want to deal with it this year so we’re not having the party.  Which, I guess is a good thing since the Giants are playing.  That’s Scott’s team so he’ll be glad he gets to actually watch the game!

Anyway….on to the reason for today’s post!

As you know, most of the rooms in our house are a constant work in progress (isn’t that how it is for everybody?!?).  I made a tiny little update to the playroom.  The last time I showed you guys the playroom, I had just painted it and we installed rain gutter bookshelves and set up a little desk/art area for Emily. 

The wall above Emily’s little desk (which also used to be mine when I was a baby) was blank and needed something.  I thought since the space was right above her art area, it would be a perfect place to display some of her scribble scrabble art.

A while back I was browsing in a thrift store that is right down the street and I found this HUGE gold mirror.  It actually used to be the front of a fancy medicine cabinet.  It was super heavy but there was no way to hang it up, since it was just the “face” to the medicine cabinet.  Weird.  Anyway….I snagged it for $10 and brought it home simply because I loved the frame.

And here is where I’m kicking myself……

I cannot find my before pictures of this mirror!!!  ARGH!  They must’ve somehow gotten deleted off my camera.  Just picture a huge, gold framed mirror.  Got it?

I had to unscrew about 25 screws from the back of the frame in order to get the mirror out.  But I popped it out and was left with just the frame.  I cleaned it up and went to town on it with some white spray paint.  It took a ton of coats (about 4) to get the coverage I needed.

I needed something for the middle.  Hhhhmm…..styrofoam!!  Yes!  I had a huge sheet out in the garage so I simply cut out an oval to fit inside the frame.

I then used some spray adhesive and fabric I already had on hand to cover the piece of styrofoam.

Then I just hot glued the styrofoam to the inside of the frame.

{See the back of the frame in all it’s gold glory?  And all those dadgum screw holes??}

I was stumped as to how to hang it up for a few minutes.  Then the lightbulb went off and I simply took a piece of sisal rope and tied it to 2 of the screws that I had taken out and then just screwed the screws right back into the frame.

And here she is all hung up in the playroom:

 

There’s no art on it yet, but we’ll get there!  It really makes a big statement in the playroom and I love that the fabric matches some of the fabric in the bunting on the wall to the left!

Now I need to make some cutesy, bling-y pins so I can pin Em’s artwork to the board.

So what do you think?  How do you display your kids’ artwork?  I’d love to hear ideas as I’m sure this isn’t going to be a permanent solution.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog, Making Monday Marvelous, Polly Want A Crafter T: Get Your Craft On, Tip Junkie, Home Stories A to Z, Homework, A Bowl Full Of Lemons W: Uncommon, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark , Not Just A Housewife Th: 36th Avenue, Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Every Creative Endeavor F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday, Pity Party, Weekend Wrap-Up, Weekend Bloggy Reading S:  I Heart Naptime, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely,  Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic, Homemaker On A Dime

Playroom Progress

Hi, friends!!  Man, I just realized I’ve been pretty MIA this week!!  Yikes!  Sorry about that.  I literally cannot believe it’s already Friday!!  Where did the week go??

Well, my week started off pretty hectic.  I had made up my mind Sunday night that I was going to start painting the playroom on Monday (more on that in a minute).  Well, Monday morning the hubs tells me that he would like to invite some coworkers over for dinner on Wednesday night.  No biggie.  I probably shouldn’t have started painting the playroom and focused on cleaning and getting ready for guests on Wednesday, but I had already made up my mind that I was going to paint.  You know how when you decide to do something, it kind of can’t wait (please tell me you guys are like that too)?  Well, I was in full-on playroom project mode and there was no stopping me.  So I spent Monday and Tuesday painting the playroom and Wednesday cleaning and cooking.  Naturally on Thursday, I crashed!  I napped when Em napped which I NEVER do! 

But, it’s FRIDAY and no one can complain about that!  Whoop!

So….back to the playroom (that is what this post is about, right?)

Earlier this month when I was thinking about my home goals for 2012, I knew the playroom was one area I really wanted to tackle.  It’s one of the first rooms people potentially see (depending on if they look left or look right) when they first walk in the front door.  Although this room is usually a disaster thanks to my busy little 15 month old, I would feel better if it were a cute, decorated disaster.  Wouldn’t you feel better??

First things first…..PAINT!  I mean, painting really is the worst.  Some people love it and find it so relaxing.  I can’t stand it.  But I do it because the end result just tickles me pink for months on end.  So I knew I had to paint this room. 

I’ve mentioned before that the playroom and dining room are like one giant room (they are totally open to each other).  So, the paint color I chose for the playroom was close to the same color as the stencil in the dining room.  I say that it’s “close” to the color because when I went to Lowes to get the paint for the playroom, the color match machine was broken.  Not to mention, there were dried up paint drips that ran right over the label that had the numbers of the formula for the paint color.  DOH!  So I took the paint swatch to Home Depot and crossed my fingers.  And I’m happy to say it’s pretty darn close.  It didn’t have to be perfect anyway.  By the way, the paint color is Benjamin Moore’s Crystalline but I had them take a little bit of the blue out.

On Monday as soon as I got Em down for her nap, I set off to paint!

I’m not labeling that last picture as “after” because I still have a lot to do in here.  First off, I need to hide those ugly cords coming from behind the TV.  I guess my method of sticking them to the back of the TV with blue painter’s tape was a major fail (as evidenced by the above picture).  Plan B.  I’d also like to add labels to the black storage bins.  I’m also still thinking about adding some stripes to the curtains in here like the ones in the dining room.  I just LOVE the curtains in the dining room and I think they’d be fun over on this side of the room too!

We hung some rain gutter bookshelves that I just adore!!  It’s another one of those projects that makes me wonder why we didn’t do it sooner!

I made the fabric bunting with some scrap fabric I had in my stash and some white grosgrain ribbon.  Easy peasy and it looks so cute!  I’m really trying to “de-stash” so this was a good little project for that!
See that little wooden desk and chair?  It is a handmade piece that I got that from my aunt and uncle for MY 1st birthday!!  It is such a great piece and is still kickin’ and quite sturdy 29 years later!!  It is sooooo incredibly special to now have this in my daughter’s playroom.  I plan on painting it with some white DIY chalk paint and doing some chalkboard paint on top!  The little tin bucket hanger came from Ikea.  I would like to put some frames above it on that blank wall to hold Emily’s art!  Picture a gallery wall of scribble scrabble. 

So, this room is still a work in progress but I’m excited about the progress I made this week.  The paint is just perfect and it really makes the white trim just pop!  Oh….and I love the way the framed pattern pieces look against the blue paint!

So fun!

So that’s what has been going on in our crazy house this week.  Painting and dinner parties.  Good times.

What have you been up to?  What do you think about the playroom so far?  If you like what you see, won’t you be a dear and “pin it”.  There’s a nifty button at the bottom of this post!  Thanks guys!

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog, Making Monday Marvelous, Polly Want A Crafter T: Get Your Craft On, Tip Junkie, Home Stories A to Z, Homework W: Passionately Artistic, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible, Not Just A Housewife Th: 36th Avenue, Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Every Creative Endeavor F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday, Pity Party, Weekend Wrap-Up, Weekend Bloggy Reading S:  I Heart Naptime, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely,  Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic, Homemaker On A Dime

 

Thanks for reading! 

Don’t forget to follow along on Facebook & Twitter!

Wicker Chair Makeover

About six months ago, my girlfriend and I went to this huge baby/kid consignment boutique sale that they have here twice a year.  This is a great place to get gently used toys, furniture, strollers, etc. 

While strolling through all the stuff, I found this really cute wicker chair!  It was mini sized for kids!  I fell in love.  I thought it was so stinkin’ cute and could totally picture Emily sitting in it for first birthday pictures with a ton of balloons strapped to it, or sitting in it in her playroom playing with dolls or reading a book one day.  I had to have it.  I paid $30.  I had visions for this chair.

We had already started work on Emily’s playroom so I knew that is where this chair would go.  Only problem, it was brown.  Yuck!

{I had already started priming it in this picture.  I didn’t buy it with white sprayed on it!  Hehe.}

So it sat in the playroom brown and ugly for a good two months.  Then one day I finally got the gumption to tackle this project {I’m making it sound like I was doing a kitchen renovation or something.  Sheesh.}.

I took the chair outside and gave it 2 good coats of spray primer.

That pretty much did the trick, but I obviously still wanted to go over it with some white spray paint. 

I let it completely dry then I brought it inside and put it back in the playroom.  It looked soooooo much better!  I was so happy with how it turned out.  But, I thought it was kind of plain.  Missing something.  It needed a cushion, for sure!

So I headed out to Hobby Lobby to find some fun fabric that matched Emily’s playroom.  Of course, I found just what I was looking for.  But then, the fabric sat in my fabric basket for oh….about another 2 months.  GAH!  What is my problem?  Well, I’ll tell you what the problem was here.  I had nowhere for my sewing machine to go.  We have been moving around bedrooms and that is how my craft space went from downstairs back up to the guest room now downstairs again.  It has just been a never-ending saga at this house!  Anyway, I’ll get off my soapbox now…..

So I was telling you guys about how I finally solved my craft space dilemma, right?  So I finally had a place to sit and sew.  Now I could finally finish this stupid wicker chair!  Whew.  Now let me tell you, that cushion gave me the run-around.  Everytime I sat down to sew it, my dadgum {yes, I’m from the south and we say dadgum} sewing machine would go haywire.  I finally gave up and called my wonderful mother over to help me figure out my sewing machine.  We fixed it and I finally finished sewing the cushion!

Here is the finished product:

Yay!  Isn’t it cute?  I think I’m going to make her a small hot pink pillow to go on it as well.  I’m good at those! 

Six months later and the wicker chair is finally finished!  Thank you, Lord!

So what do you think?  Have you ever had a project that has taken you forever and ever amen to finish?  Spill it!

xoxo,

Amy

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog

T: Get Your Craft On

W: Passionately Artistic, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible

Th: Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths

F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday

S:  I Heart Naptime, Weekend Wrap-Up, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely

Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic

Painted Beadboard Bookcase

I won’t bore you with the long drawn-out story of my battle with finding a craft space in my home.  I am so frustrated with the whole situation.  How is it that we have a very good-sized, beautiful home but I can’t seem to be satisfied and I stay frustrated with the fact that I don’t have a room for my craft stuff. 

Uuuhhhh……get over yourself, Amy.  Seriously!

Good news!  I think I found a solution!  Now, my craft space has gone from the carriage house (our mother-in-law suite above the garage), to the guest bedroom upstairs, to the dining room downstairs, back up to the guest bedroom upstairs, and now it’s coming back downstairs and sharing a space with Emily’s playroom.

There is a good, unused corner in her playroom that I decided I wanted to occupy.  It will be perfect because Emily can play to her little heart’s content and I can do some crafting and/or blogging while she plays!  Win, win for everybody!

I didn’t want anything fancy or expensive.  I needed to do this on the cheap but yet also try to match the décor already in the playroom.  So I went to my home away from home Target and got a white 5-shelf bookcase {$30} and a white desk that was on sale {$80}.  The desk was a little more than I was hoping to pay but was the perfect size for the space! 

I got home and put together the bookcase.  I knew that if I nailed down that flimsy white backing to the back of the bookcase, it would leave me bored.  I knew I could do something more to “shnazzy” it up a bit and really make it stand out.

So I decided I would paint it!!  I had some $5 oops paint from Lowe’s that would match the blue in the playroom perfectly!  Great idea, right?? 

WRONG!!! 

I am an amateur painter.  It’s not my forte.  Apparently, the paint wouldn’t stick to whatever this backing was made of.  Dangit!  What now??

I figured I’d just wallpaper it.  Great.  But I don’t have any stupid wallpaper. 

Waaaaaiiittt a minute!  Yes I do!  About a month ago I bought a roll of that paintable beadboard wallpaper from Lowes.  I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I wanted it and I knew I’d find a project for it sooner or later.  The lightbulb went off!

I broke out my spray adhesive, cut some strips of the beadboard wallpaper to fit the backing and glued it down!

At this point I was so tickled that I almost left it white.  But I just knew that pop of blue color coming through would be to die for so I went ahead and painted it.

I am so impatient and almost died waiting for it to dry!  But I was good and waited.  Once it was fully dry, I brought it inside and nailed it to the back of my bookshelf.

 

Isn’t it perfect??  I am going to get some baskets today to put on the shelves and hold my craft stuff!  I was going to wait until then to show you guys, but I just couldn’t wait any longer.  I am so thrilled with how it turned out!!!  I love the beadboard and I love the blue color!  I can’t wait to show you when the space is completely finished!

So what about you?  Have you ever done a project with paintable wallpaper? 

xoxo,

Amy

 

I am linking up to many of these great parties:

M: DIY Showoff Project Parade, Metamorphosis Monday, Made by You Mondays, Just Something I Whipped Up, Today’s Creative Blog

T: Get Your Craft On

W: Passionately Artistic, Twin Dragonfly Designs, Creative Spark @ Clean & Scentsible

Th: Just A Girl, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths

F: Sassy Sites, I’m Lovin’ It, Remodelaholic’s Anonymous, Frugal Friday, Friday Fun Finds, Feature Yourself Friday

S:  I Heart Naptime, Weekend Wrap-Up, Be Different, Act Normal, A Little Lovely

Su:  Under The Table & Dreaming, Remodelaholic

Playroom {Keeping It Real}

 

 

Emily’s Playroom

 

This is the current state of Emily’s playroom.  *sigh*

I didn’t stage or even pick up for these pictures.  I’m keepin’ it real!

  It’s getting there though.

This used to be our formal living room.  But let’s face it, no one ever really uses their formal living room.  And we’re not really “stuffy” enough to have a “formal” anything {No offense to people that have formal spaces.  They’re beautiful.  Just not practical for us.}

Here’s what we have done so far to this space:

• Added white “cubbies” and black canvas baskets
• Lowered the TV in between the taller cubbies so Em can see the TV
• Added some carpet padding and a rug
• Moved the pack ‘n play into the room
• Moved all of Em’s toys into the room
• Hung 1st birthday party inspiration piece from IKEA
• Printed & framed pattern pieces from Sprik Spaces

Not too shabby.  But there is still so much left to do.

I would love to paint this room, but I’m scared because it basically shares the room with our dining room.  It’s one big room. 

I got this wicker chair at a local kids’ consignment.  It’s so cute and miniature.  I plan on spray painting it white.  The wad of fabric you see in the chair is the fabric I am going to use to make a cushion for the chair.  We’ll see.

We got the cubbies from Lowes.  It’s like Emily’s mini entertainment center.  They provide great storage and as you can see, I don’t even have most of the cubbies filled.  I love it though.  I just need to clean it up a little bit.  I am also hoping to find a solution for hiding those wires coming down from the TV.

These are the pattern pieces I downloaded and printed from Sprik Spaces.  Seriously…..how awesome are those?  And she just has them available for FREE!!!  Gotta love that!  We got the frames from IKEA for $5 each!  See the center picture?  See the splotches behind it?  Yeah, that’s where we spackled where the TV used to be mounted and I just didn’t paint over it.  Hah.  La-zy!  I’ll get to that one day.  :-)

My true battle with this room is the fireplace/mantle.  I think I am going to use the same fabric from the chair to make a long cushion to go in front of the fireplace.  It just doesn’t seem to safe over there.  The mantle is also giving me a hard time.  It’s still in it’s “formal living room” state.  I’d obviously like to take down the art print and replace it with a large mirror.  I’d also like to bring in some fun, colorful framed art {maybe some more pattern pieces}, maybe spray  paint those candle holders a pretty turquoise or something, and add some other fun & colorful elements.  Maybe a stack of children’s books?  Dr. Seuss?  I don’t know.  I’m kind of stumped on this mantle.  But I have found some great inspiration on Pinterest, so hopefully I can come up with something soon. 

I’d also like to either get new curtains for the room, or stencil the ones we have.  I think stenciling would be the more economical choice.  But again….I’m scared!  It seems so permanent to me {although I know it’s not and it’s an easy fix}!

Hopefully the playroom will be finished by the end of the month.  I’m ready for it to be finished. 

What do you guys think?  Do you have any ideas or inspiration to share with me?  Does your little one have a playroom?  Spill it!