Turquoise Buffet Makeover

I painted my buffet many months ago…I know, I’m bad. My problem is that I just haven’t been able to find those perfect items to put on top of it. I’ve searched the stores and nothing pops out to me. That’s why I’ve hesitated revealing the makeover. I decided I couldn’t wait any longer though so I’m sharing it despite the lack of perfect accessories.

It took forever for me to find a buffet that I liked. Then one day, while searching craigslist, I found this beauty and then scurried my eyes across the screen to find the price while crossing my fingers that it wasn’t out of my budget. $45!!! I let out a tiny squeal of excitement and immediately contacted the seller and set up a time to go check it out/pick it up. This is how she looked when I found her. It actually had all the handles, just one was in the drawer. that was a major selling point because often pieces with those handles have one or two that are broken/missing. I know what you thinking though…how could I have gotten rid of the incredible marble effect? Well let me tell you…it was EASY!

This piece is pretty heavy and definitely a solid piece of furniture…minus the two curvy legs…those were plastic. It also had a thick polyurethane layer on the top that was old, chipped, and easily flaked. I sanded the top until the polyurethane was level with the wood and could no longer chip off and sanded the rest of the buffet.  Then, using Glidden’s Gripper in white, I primed the entire thing. I did light sanding in between coats of primer.
I knew I wanted a light turquoise color but after priming it, I fell in love with the white. The compromise was to have the top white and the rest turquoise with white handles and white legs. I think it was a pretty great compromise. I love the legs! 

For the legs, top, and handles I used Krylon’s Satin White. The turquoise color was harder for me to decide on. I didn’t like anything at Lowes and Home Depot…they were either too blue or green or gray. I finally found this color at Ace Hardware. The second I brushed it over the buffet, I knew it was perfection. Needless to say, I’m kind of in love with the newest addition to our dining room. I kept all the original handles except the two knobs and replaced those with crystal ones found at Hobby Lobby for 50% off.  The lamps were a Christmas present from my parents. I had seen them at HomeGoods just a couple days before Christmas and immediately sent my Mom a picture (she’s my go to opinion gal…along with Laryssa). I had to pretty much drag myself by the ear out of the store without them and just had to tell myself that I would go back after Christmas and get them. It was quite the surprise to receive both lamps for Christmas. Love my Parents!I know I’d like to do something with the shades, I just haven’t figured out what that thing is yet.
For now the buffet holds a few small accessories, our chore chart (yes, we I have a chore chart…helps to keep the house clean), and our “What A Difference A Day Makes” print art. I’m so thrilled with how it turned out. I love the delicate touches of white!  

5 of My Favorite Things to do With Baking Soda!

The husband has turned me into a little bit of a clean freak... not necessarily a bad thing... Just a little annoying at times.  Anyways, one of the things we ALWAYS have on hand in our household is baking soda! It is so incredibly versatile, how could I not keep it around. Here are some of my favorite things to do with it.

1. Clean the tub! I love wetting down the shower, sprinkling a little bit of baking soda and scrubbing away the grime!
2. Deodorizing the sinks. I hate a dirty/smelly garbage disposal, baking soda and lemon wedges does the trick!
3. Carpet powder. Sprinkle it on let sit for at least 20 minutes to an hour and vacuum up! Add essential oils to your baking soda for a more fragrant scent.
4. Cleaning tarnished jewelry. Take a little water and baking soda and gently scrub with an old toothbrush.
5. Sprinkle in your laundry! It gives it a little boost! Especially in your whites! Not to mention, it's great for kids laundry and for people with sensitive skin.

Reupholstered Dining Room Chairs

Want to know the quickest way to give your dining room chairs an update? Reupholster them! It’s easy, quick, and relatively cheap depending on which fabric you choose.
My older chair covers were cute but the fabric was thinning and had started turning from white to dingy yellow so it was time for an update.
The first step is to remove the seat from the rest of the chair. I used an electric drill and unscrewed the seats from the base. Once the seat is removed from the base, it’s time to take out all the previous staples holding the cover in place. I found that a flathead screwdriver worked best for me. I had previously covered over these chairs so I was back to the original cover. If you want to take off the original cover, than take off the backing that makes it all nice and neat (keep it, don’t get rid of it!) and take off the cover completely. Until I get a dining room set that I’m in love with (I’ve been on the hunt for 2+ years), I’ll just cover over the original. My thought is this, I don’t care if the underneath looks pretty because no one is going to be looking at it and quite frankly, if someone turns my chairs over to check my work, I’ll be slapping them upside the head. Here is a great tip for you…when removing the staples, either put them in a container or in the trash right away…whatever you do…don’t leave a little pile on the table and then accidently place your hand right on top of them. It hurts.Make sure your new fabric is ironed first. Then lay it out flat on the table.I found the perfect fabric at Home Fabrics. It was a light turquoise with dark turquoise and white specs. I love it!
Place the previous (or original) cover on top of your fabric so you can figure out the size needed to cut. Cut your fabric to the size needed, lay it flat (upside down) and place the seat (also upside down) on top of the fabric. If you have a pattern, make sure the lines are straight. I put a pin at the front and back so I could flip it over to make sure my pattern looked how I wanted it to. Once you have that all straight, take your staple gun and put your back into it, or boobs…I found that worked better for me :) Place 1 staple in the middle of the top and bottom. Now place a staple in the middle on both of the sides. I then placed 2 more staples on the top and bottom between the center one and the corners.
Now comes the hardest part….the corners! There are different ways to do the corners and each provides a different look so play around with it. I pleated the very middle and worked my way outward. Once I gathered the fabric how I wanted, I placed multiple staples in it to make sure it was secure. Flip your seat back over and there ya go! Now just screw the seat back onto the base and you have a pretty refinished chair! I love how simple fabric and a few screws and staples can totally give a new look!

Bakers Twine Lamp Shade

Let me tell you how this project came to be. I was frantically trying to get my house in order to prepare for an upcoming event that I was hosting. I was redoing pictures on the wall, spray painting misc. items, and cleaning, cleaning, and more cleaning (I’m kind of OCD about how my house looks before hosting an event, can we say no sleep the night before?) I feel bad for Mr. Awesome who inevitably stays up late with me and just nods and smiles as I explain why lampshade needs to be redone. What can I say? He’s a gem!
Okay, back to the project. I had been hating this plain lamp for a very long time but could never figure out what I wanted to do in it’s place until it was too late and the thought of not doing anything prior to the event took over an rational thinking and then I went looking for things to spruce it up with that I already had. I had purchased some Bakers Twine a few weeks earlier on Pick Your Plum (love that site!) and that’s when the light bulb went off. A Bakers Twine Covered Lamp Shade!!!!! Genius…right? So this project is pretty intense (not really) so let’s get right down to it and 1st let me apologize for the lack of before picture…again, last minute idea and did I mention it was late?
Supplies needed:
1 Lamp Shade
1 Roll of Bakers Twine
Handful of Push Pins (if you want something more permanent, use hot glue or a different adhesive)
Scissors (gotta cut the Bakers Twine)
Any extra embellishments you might want to add
A couch
A good T.V. Show or Movie
I settled on my couch and put on one of the best T.V. Shows ever..we all know the one I’m talking about…Gilmore Girls! Right?!? That was your answer too? Okay okay, don’t judge me!

I took my Bakers Twine and a pin and placed a pin in the Twine at the top of my shade where the seam was. I took the shade in one hand and the twine in the other and just kept slowly turning my shade while keeping my thumb on the twine to hold it in place.Now keep turning and turning and turning that lamp shade until it’s all covered. I chose to leave a strip of white at the top and bottom of my shade and secured the bottom with a couple more pins. See how intense that was? Once it’s all covered, you can add any embellishments you’d like. I had these 3 fabric flowers that I had made for Laryssa’s Bridal Shower Wreath that weren’t being used anymore and since they match my living room decor, I pinned them on there.  Now my lamp looked was something that I was happy to have around and no longer embarrassed about. So there you have it, a quick, cheap, and easy way to refinish your lamp shade. Bakers Twine…who know?

Quick Disguise!

Ever see something so lovely but think, the color just isn’t quite right. well duh, just paint it!

A Bread Box Makeover

Laryssa and I are back from SNAP and I apologize that Fab not Drab did not go up on Friday. I, for the life of me, could not get internet Thursday and Friday in the Hotel.
I can’t even begin to explain how awesome SNAP was so while I am editing pictures and writing up a post all about SNAP, I thought I’d share a simple little project.

“The Pineapple Incident”

“Who lives in a pineapple under the sea…?” That one was for Laryssa who use to LOVE Spongebob Squarepants…and I’m not talking about when she was a youngin'….I’m talkin' adult living on our own blasting Spongebob on the T.V. singing along to that wonderful, annoying, gets stuck in your head, nvm I hate it, song. On the other hand, who else thinks living in a pineapple under the sea would be fun? I hope I am not the only one raising my hand…awkward. Okay, so Spongebob wasn’t my inspiration behind this quick and super duper easy project, in fact it was one of our favorite shows…How I Met Your Mother. If you watch that show, you will get my humor behind this post. For those that don’t watch it, well, I apologize for the weirdness that is to come. We love pretty much every episode of that show but the episode of “The Pineapple Incident” is maybe in the top 10? Too many favorites, can’t narrow it down. In this episode, Ted wakes up from an adventurous night and on his nightstand is a pineapple. He can’t remember a single thing from the night before and has to have friends clue him in to what happened. However, no one can explain where the pineapple came from which really seams to bother Marshal. In the words of Marshal “WHAT ABOUT THE PINEAPPLE?” Yes, I realize we are a bunch of weirdoes, just go with it okay?
A few weeks ago, I was on a very specific mission at Goodwill looking for vintage luncheon plates for Laryssa’s shower, but for me, it’s impossible and unthinkable to not take a quick glance around at everything else, it is Goodwill after all. I actually passed up this pineapple (I think it’s a candleholder) the first time I saw it and on the way home, something clicked, I thought “stupid Jen, that pineapple has potential to be awesome!” I immediately went back and purchased it for $5.
I was so super excited about my idea that I couldn’t wait, I ran to the store and bought some Krylon Gloss White Spray Paint. We have all seen those random animal or objects that are painted a high gloss white and sell for $30-$40 right? That was what I envisioned. A high gloss, white, awesome, pineapple. Now this post isn’t much for a tutorial, I forgot to take a picture of the spray paint but literally, that’s all I did. I spray painted it to death and I LOVE the result.
I actually decided to Google "white porcelain pineapple" to see if something like this actually existed and for how much. I found this statue for……
………any guesses?……….$73! HOLY COW! Seriously?!? Makes me feel good about my $8 pineapple.
To top off this little project, I decided to surprise Mr. Awesome with it. I hid the pineapple and didn’t mention it and then in the middle of the night, I woke up, took it out, and placed it on his nightstand. IT. WAS. LEGEN…wait for it...DARY! LEGENDARY! He LOVED it and thought it was hilarious.
It is actually the first piece that will go in our new master bedroom…that is right, I got the okay, more like *sighed* “ugh, do you have to? If it will get you to stop following me asking pretty please then OKAY!" Ya, that’s how the conversation went. I haven’t officially started the makeover, but the color scheme is picked and a few pieces of fabric have been bought. I like the idea of having a random conversation piece/inside joke in each room. For now, this awesome randomness sits on Mr. Awesome’s nightstand and stares at him creepily as he sleeps….
So, did I loose any followers? Hope not!