I'm Back Part II

So the smell of new carpet was starting to sit in.  It felt so good on our feet, so good in fact that the Cheetah carpet was starting to be very appealing to some faces in our family.  I actually caught my husband and children laying down on it.  I, for one, was not going to do that.  It just felt weird to me laying down right next to our dining room table.  But if it's what makes a person comfortable, then go for it.  After having the satisfaction of having "new" carpet to call our own, it was time to think about our next project.  That didn't take long at all!!  We then had some company who stayed in our guest room.  When they left I knew automatically what it was going to be.  The smallest room in our home...

#5 The guest room make-over.  After stripping the bed and being stuck between the wall and the mattress, I knew it was time to do something different.  So I decided to sell the furniture that was painted to fit the space when we first moved it.  It was a pretty good idea but it just didn't work for the space.  I consigned...again!  Which means, I sold it on a garage sale site and that gave me the money to buy a sleeper sofa.  One that wasn't too pricey, but could do the job of giving our guests a place to lay their head when coming to visit.  It fit the space well and gave the room a more open space concept.  Again, I chose RED.  What can I say?  I love, love, love it.  However, I had that red table so it clashed with the sofa so I painted with a brown chalk paint to accent the brown tones in the room.  But after purchasing a sofa, I noticed that the room lacked storage and appeal.  There was no place for towels, linens, etc for our guests so my husband and I both went to the furniture store to see what we could find.  We were able to purchase an electronic cabinet that had doors and a place for towels and sheets.  Eventually, we'd like to put a TV in there and our computer and make it more of a home office, but until then this is what it looks like.

By this time it was getting close to our daughter's birthday and school.  I just couldn't believe that all of this has taken up so much time that it was already time to think about school supplies, clothes and to settle down with our nightly routines.  That just meant that Winter was coming to me.  Yuck, I dislike the cold months.  But the good thing is that someone was going to celebrate turning a year older.  My husband and I had to ask her what she wanted and all she could come up with American Girl stuff and a new room.  When she said a new room, she literally meant a new room!  She wanted a "big" girl bed.  

#6 Big girl room for a pre-teen was in the works.  We started selling everything she had in her room to start fresh.  Well not everything, but pretty close.  All her furniture that she had in her room was white and she wanted to change it drastically by asking for all black.  But by the time we had already done so much to our home, our funds were stretched to the max so I did what I normally did and sell her existing furniture and purchase project pieces I could finish myself.  That too went well!  Her trundle bed, dresser and decor sold fast.  Once that was sold, we went shopping for that perfect comforter.  She wanted a lot of color, but requested pink as her main color.  Funny to me, because her original bedroom, I was instructed not to use pink.  Her other request was something with Chevron.  I found a Duncan Phyfe full-size bed for a fraction of what most beds sell for, so we purchased it and they painted it for me.  I found a Broyhill dresser online, a nightstand online and a desk on an auction site.  This gave me the opportunity the refinish them to her liking.  I let her pick out the knobs and colors.  Do you know that they make chevron and other "shaped" painter's tape, made by Frogger?  Awesome stuff!!  To add more space to the room after adding a full-size bed from a twin, I took off the doors to the closet and put curtains up.  It gave it another 2" or so of playing room.  The only thing she has asked for the make the room complete is a chair.  That should be easy enough.  Well, so I thought.  It's been 3 months and we still have not found anything.  Maybe for Christmas?

This was one of the most enjoyable projects I had this year.  I loved all the colors, the paisley, polka dots and chevron all mixed together.  It made for a unique and fun place to hang out.

Stay tuned for our latest to complete our home.  More to come with the big reveals!

'Til next time,

Stay Decorated!

I'm Back

Not sure why one of my last year's post was just posted.  It was even unfinished, but oh well maybe this will get published correctly and I will try my best to keep on top of it this time.  It's been almost one full year since I've blogged but it's not because I've had nothing to blog about but because my internet is slow and I've actually been too busy to really blog.  So much has been going on with my OCD (haha), I'm dumbfounded on what actually I should write about.  I don't want each person to read my posts and eventually get bored.  So here goes...after the holidays last year we decided to tackle our house for the last time this year.  Projects seem to always have a "to be continued" instead of "The End".  I told myself this year would be "The End" since I have a freshman in high school.  Most of my mother friends, co-workers, and family members would agree with me when I ask, "where has time gone"? I don't want my child's last four years of his childhood to be nothing but projects.  Let me get you caught up on what all has been going on here.  This is a lengthy post and hope to get better at posting.  There's not much of step by step in this post, but will kind of give you a idea of what we/I did to update and make our house a HOME:

#1 - Master bathroom vanity and cabinets were repainted for a vintage feel.  Other than the floor to ceiling wall paper in our hall bath the one thing I hated the most in this house when we first bought it was that orangish oak cabinetry.  It was "cool" in the day, I guess but it's gotta go.  However, I just wasn't brave enough to ruin oak woodwork.  So I sat on it a whole year until I could really do some research. With all the new craze about chalk paint and how easy it was, I thought I'd give it a try.  There's no sanding and really no prep needed to use this paint.  It covers everything...I mean, everything.  Plus if I didn't like it, it would be fairly simple to take off and start over.  My master bathroom was an easy target because no one would see my booboos except us, so I went for it.  I added new knobs too, which finished it off quite nicely.  After I finished I was so proud of myself, that I sent the pictures to Allison with Refunk My Junk and she showcased my work on her blog.  I was so excited!!

#2 - Birthday present bedroom for a teenager who is a sports fanatic and has tried just about anything.  Since he was about four years old he's played baseball, soccer, football, a little golf and has made some great friends in the process.  The down fall of all his memories was our move.  It was hard, but I know God has plans for him.  He had so much stuff I decided to make him a memorabilia wall using his trophies, jerseys, medals and very important pictures of most of his firsts or his teams.  

Why let all the memories be tucked away in a box?

#3 - Ugly Fireplace removal then refinished with added cabinetry was completed.  My husband is an awesome man when it comes to DIYers.  Our back family room had no room for more than three people to really sit comfortably and watch T.V. due to the placement of the the television.  However, in order for that to be fixed someone would have to crawl in the attic and redirect the lines for the cable.  Yep, you guessed it...it was my amazing husband.  That led to more headache!  He then had to remove that awful mirror that was placed over the mantle and start with demolition.  After that was complete it was time to go shopping for some type of storage for our electronics, movies and such.  Things that you'd find in a family room or movie room.  We decided after our thought process to go to a builders warehouse to see if they had any leftovers.  Since we were planning on painting them, it really didn't matter if they matched or not but was really worried about the type of wood and the quality.  We lucked out!  After using his master skills he was able to position them nicely where they were flush with our existing fireplace.  That tile though...gosh it was ugly.  That meant more work for my husband but he never complained and in fact he was the one who was ready to tackle such project.  The part I liked the most was the end result and the tile we picked out together. And that lead to our next thing...the carpet!

Before

Just need to add decor and seal the tile.  Almost complete!

#4 Carpet replaced throughout the whole house.  In one of my posts I talked about how removing your shoes before entering a carpeted area would help with keeping allergens to a minimum and will help with having to replace your carpet later rather than sooner.  I also talked about how pricey flooring can be.  Since this is an added expense to your home every 5-10 years, this is a decision you want to make with great thought process without having to spend an arm and a leg. Right?  They just don't make products like they used to so we shopped around until we found a place around the furniture capital of OKC, called Budget Flooring Store.  Yes, we used a store with the word "budget" in it's logo.  They did not disappoint us at all.  The gentleman there knew his stuff and sold us exactly what we were looking for without using builder's grade or top of the line carpet.  But first there was one thing I asked for and that was a touch of animal print.  The two areas that we wanted something different was for our formal living space and our formal dining.  Since these are two rooms off our foyer, we both thought it would be nice to have designer grade carpet in there.  My husband once again was all for my design and agreed on cheetah!!  The other was a diamond shaped beige/taupe colored carpet.  I'll try to find picture of the formal living space to show contrast in design.

I have more to write about, but my OCD has kicked in so it's time to rest for now.

Until then,

I hope you stay OCD!

Deck the Halls - Part II

Busy...busy...busy!  That pretty much sums it up.  Even though this is my favorite holiday, the running around, wrapping packages, hosting parties, etc has had me so busy that I've been unable to sit down and finish my first original post.  Not only that but I've been unable to take pictures of all the fun décor, family gatherings and simply just my life that past few weeks. 

This is my foyer table.  I used Christmas fabric, battery operated lights, ornaments (again) and sequined trees.  I added the Santa hat for a little whimsical flair!

The top of my foyer table seemed a "little bare" so my husband said so I had to fix the problem.  I just used a tree topper turned it upside down and began to use picks, ribbon, and deco mesh...viola!!

An added "Merry Christmas" chef's hat and aprons makes this area festive.

Our "family" tree!  Collected and homemade ornaments adorn this tree with a touch of animal print burlap.  I bought a cardboard tree with some copper glittered sprays.  There wasn't any paint to match so we must used Elmer's glue and glitter to top the tree and the E.  We as in my daughter and I!



Deck the Halls - Part I

This year it seemed as though the times came too early.  Shops were hosting Christmas in July and Thanksgiving was more about who could find the better shopping deal than really sitting down at a table experiencing the gift of thankfulness!  Not only was the public eye gearing up for Christmas a little too early, but I did too.  What can I say?  Christmas is my favorite holiday!  Not just because of what it represents, but I love to see the looks on my children's faces that morning.  Plus, it's the only time of the year that I can leave my house a mess and not worry about it.  Last year we moved during the holidays and we really didn't get to enjoy it at all.  So, that's why I felt I wanted to "Deck the Halls" a little early this year.  I love the fact that once it's all decorated, I can come home to the smell of cinnamon, spruce trees and freshly backed pies.  All the twinkling lights make it extra special too.

It took me at least a week to get all my decorations out and organized to know what I had and didn't have from the move.  Once I can get past the exhaustion of taking all the totes up and down the attic stairs, I then have some fun putting together all my favorites.  Each year I change out ribbon, move things around just to spruce up all the current decorations I have.  I am not just one collector and never plan to be one.  I like everything Christmas!!



This is a new tree that I purchased this year.  I've always wanted a color themed tree so I chose lime and red for this room to coordinate my "formal" living space.  After I got it decorated I thought the space needed something so I tied back the curtains with some leftover ribbon I had from the den and used some ornaments to accent it. 
 











He looks old but I love him, the elf that is!!  Oh and when I decided to move the table I placed it so it was horizontal instead vertical with the chair.  Love how the design of the table is now noticeable. 



Think outside the box!!  Use already made curling ribbon as a pop of something on your tables!



 These are just those craft glass blocks and a gift box.  I just changed out the ribbon this year and added some glow to Santa's sleigh.



Lighted branches tied with ribbon...again, think outside the box.  Ornaments go a long way and they are inexpensive!  They are not just for trees anymore and can be purchased in all different designs and color.  I was going to make an arrangement for the gift box, but I think I'll save that one for next year.



My foyer table.  Use Christmas fabric!  Battery operated lights are always a good choice to add some twinkle to your decor.  Under the trees, I added candlesticks and in the basket I added a small strand of lights.

 

"All I know about Christmas I learned from Jesus".  My favorite!  If you look closely baby Jesus is missing.  My kids started the tradition that he is put in the manger on Christmas morning.  Love how their creativity turns into great ideas!  Happy birthday Jesus!!

 

This is still a work in progress but I'm liking how this is turning out.  I'm more of a whimsical girl who likes stripes, polka dots, patterns and a touch of animal print.  I couldn't really find some candle holders/sticks that I liked for my "formal" table, so I went with a different look.  I found these goblets that work perfectly upside down.  They are just the right size to hold pillar candles and they matched my table runner.  Once again...think outside the box!

All that Color Chevron Baby Shower

Whew...I finally have my internet working properly and I'm able to get this blog going.  I am hoping that after this post, things will go a lot smoother.

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of going back home to help with a baby shower.  This was not just an ordinary shower, this was a shower for a young lady who used to babysit my own children so I wanted it to be extra special for her.  However, that was not an easy task.  It's always harder to plan around something/someone who is miles away.  I was in charge of the decorations but had a volunteer to help me (thank goodness).  She was having a girl and had already ordered her baby bedding to get the room started.  My first thoughts were how do I incorporate that design without going overboard?  And where do I even find that design?  Before I even had a chance to be sneaky, the mother let me know where to find the fabric so it made it easier to plan around her choice of colors.  As I prepare my mind on how I wanted to decorate the space, I researched to find out what was in these days besides the Chevron design.  With the help of another friend, I think we pulled it off.  She was a great helper and without her, I wouldn't have been able to pull it off.

First I started by getting yards of fabric that was used to make her baby bedding to use as table runners for the tables.  Since it was so bright, I didn't want to use it everywhere.  Too much of a good thing sometimes is too much.  The pictures say it all!






As you entered the room, I used a onesie as her guest book so she can frame and hang it in her baby's room.  Her invitation was framed and the sign in the background was from the grandmother and we just added some leftover tassels from the garland to accent.  I am sure if there would have been more time, the table cloth would have been ironed too.  ;)



The cake was made by a super woman from church (she did an amazing job matching the fabric).  The tulle tutu under the punch bowl was made by the grandmother and the candy dishes were made by me.  It was a very simple project.  I just used crystal candle holders and glued votive holders, purchased from the dollar store, to them using glass glue to that cures with UV light.  They took about 5 minutes to make!! 



Since this shower was given at a venue instead of a home, it was evident that we would have a few more tables to decorate as well.  I chose cream colored table clothes with bright colored ones underneath and tied them up with bows with tulle to match the centerpieces.  I hope to get the picture of all the tables where both table clothes are used but for now here is one that shows the centerpieces we used on the back three tables.  Each one has coordinating colored balloons and "It's a Girl" balloon as the topper to match the backdrop for the below table.  Every new girl who arrives in this world deserves a crown, so I made sure that there was at least one at this shower.  I didn't get pictures of the other two tables where mirrors, baby socks and crowns were used.  Unfortunately since the place of the event was over two hours away I was unable to finish the tables (due to my drive home for another obligation I had) but left it in the hands of two great people.  After I showed them my photo of ideas, I think they did a fantastic job!  They finished the centerpieces, added tulle bows to the tables and put together the cake table and entry table.  The above pictures will show what they did.  I have some amazing friends!!

I wanted her table to be pretty enough so when her new daughter were to look at photos there would be something worth looking at instead of a blank wall.  Not only is the homemade tassel a good choice, but I love the streamers and balloons as the backdrop to finish off the table.  This was the part that took the longest.  We had to tape strips of crape paper to packing tape in order for it to stick to the wall. 

See this link for the tutorial on tissue garland: 
\http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f71yVgdmisw


All in all even though I couldn't be there to finish the decorations or be there for the shower itself, I think she liked it and it turned out beautiful.  Not only were we able to incorporate her bedding but she'll have the fabric used in the nursery.

 

 

'Til my next post,

 

 

Stay decorated

 



 

New Blog/Past Blog

Today is the day I finally am able to sit down and write about some things that's been going on here in the Everyday Tidy world.  First of all, my other blog has been removed from my profile and I for one am a little upset.  I've tried everything to get it back.  I started the blog this last summer to free my mind and help with some of my OCD issues.  However, just after a couple of months, I was unable to get into it to start new posts, edit or design the thing!! 

I have taken additional time to create this new one in hopes that I will not have the same problem in the future.  I am going to try and post a few things that I have done in the past few months, but it may be a challenge, so please bare with me.  In the meantime, take a look at just the few I was able to blog about.

Old Blog:  www.tidyness101.blogspot.com