DAV chair

I bought this chair at the DAV thrift store in Prescott right before Christmas. I didn't take a picture of it before I painted the legs and arms white but here's a peek at what's under the slip cover.

What a beauty huh?

I used a drop cloth from Home Depot for the slip cover. Partly because it's cheap and thick and I was already there getting some other things. Wouldn't it be great if they had fabric? I'd never have to shop anywhere else!

I sold it to my friend Adele for her photography business. She can take it out to a field and let kids jump all over it for the pictures and then just wash the cover for the next shoot. Genius.

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Painting Fabric

I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone on this post. I'm entering the January DIYclub project competition and giving a better tutorial for my 2 vintage grain sack inspired projects. These are the images I was attempting to copy

The bench is from Pottery Barn and the bedding is from Restoration Hardware

This first time I used fabric meduim, I'll admit, I was a bit skeptical. Every time I had painted fabric before, it dried hard and I hated it. I heard medium softened the paint and made it washable and also gave it a nice vintage look.

It did both for me. I wonder if I could buy this stuff by the gallon...

I started by taping off the stripes I wanted on the fabric. I used blue painters tape for the bench and then found out that white masking tape works a little better on fabric when I did the bedding. Then in a cup, I mixed black paint with the medium and painted over the stripes.

*WARNING! The paint will bleed through the fabric onto whatever surface you're crafting on. In this case, my kitchen island. But don't worry, it wipes right up with a damp washcloth!*

Then you peel off the tape and your stripes look perfect! Wait until it's dry and wash it a couple times. It softens it just enough to look like a pattern in the fabric. I stapled it onto a bench I had and it looks JUST like the one from Pottery Barn.

I did the boy's bedding project virtually the same way but used a yard stick to keep the stripes evenly spaced since there was 2 instead of just one.

Instead of black, I mixed the color Dove Grey with the medium for the bedding. It turned out a little bluer than I expected but it matched the blue duvet underneath better that way.

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New boys room

I wanted to put two beds in Porters room since baby #4 came a little sooner than we would have liked. The beds needed to be low to the ground since 20 month olds roll around in their sleep like they're on fire and I didn't want him breaking his neck falling out of bed. This was what Porters room used to look like.

Now it looks like this. I took out the vintage lockers because this room is only 10'x10' but they're safely tucked away in my garage until we move into a bigger house.

The beds are matching antique hospital beds that my sister gave me. With the casters off they're low enough that little kids won't get hurt from falling off. I have another one for my last, kid #4. In my some day dream house, all 3 boys will share a room with matching beds. I still have to get two duvet inserts from Ikea for the solid blue duvets on the bed. That's why they're all wrinkly.

Sorry the pictures are kind of dark. I bought a giant red letter "P" from an old store sign when I was in Canton and then found another one just like it at this great store called Modern Manor in Phoenix. It's kind of hard to find and has weird hours but their stuff is really cool. Anyways, I came home only to find my children had broken the one I had. So I'm on the hunt for another one. Again. I want to put them right above their headboards.

I moved the dresser to this corner and kept the locker baskets on top to store books and toys and junk. They don't have very much room to play but we live in Arizona so they're in my back yard most of the day anyways.

I made the duvet's at the foot of their bed. I saw some on Restoration Hardware that I LOVED but couldn't spend $750 for 2. So I went to Joann's and bought fabric that was $3.99 a yard and used my 50% off coupon. Making it around $27 for 14 yards. It was enough to do two twin sized duvets and pillows but I ran out of paint for the pillows so they'll be finished soon. I used craft paint and fabric medium for the stripes and just taped them off with painters tape. I did the same thing to a bench in my room that you can find here This is what Restoration Hardware's looked like.

I wish I could have used linen like they did but it was not in my budget. My fabric looks more yellow in the pictures than it actually is in person but when you have a $100 camera... One more look at my version.


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Craft Corner

I wanted a craft room but since my house is all filled up with babies, I settled on a craft corner. I do most of my projects in the garage anyways. But for the ones I need to sew or hot glue, I designated a corner of my sons room just for me. I moved the bookcase and put it on the left side of the room.

The "wallpaper" around the top of the room is actually pages from a 1912 atlas I bought at an antique store in Chandler for $10. I used double sided sticky tape to put the up and then attached the chair rail. I bought a board at Home Depot in the cull bin, painted it white and used brackets I bought in the as is section of Ikea to hold it up. I wanted storage for my fabric that kids couldn't get into and scatter from here to hell. So I got these amazing old locker baskets from my trip to Canton, Tx. to hold all my fabric remnants.

I covered some cork board with more old maps to display pictures and drawings and directions for projects (like I ever use those :). I have no idea what the black storage thing is I used to put little things like thread and pins in. The only real clue was when I got it, it had cow crap and grain in it. It looks like it's attached to a belt so I'm guessing it was used to scoop up grain and distribute to cattle. I know, I know. Just call me Veronica Mars.

My Mom gave me this cool old chemistry set that she got from my Grandma. My kids have broken all the beakers except one so I decided to use it for my paintbrushes.

It's not a huge corner but it's all I need for now. In case you're wondering, yes I've had this room done for a while. And it's already different again. And I did this post specifically for...

Need a change?

If you live in the greater Phoenix area and would like to hire me, here's a list of services I provide...

Interior redesign (Rearranging with items you already own. Husbands really like this because you can say you didn't even buy anything new!)

Complete room redo (Starting fresh with all new paint, linens, accessories and furniture)

Partial room redo (New paint, use of some or all existing furniture, accessories or linens but revamped)

Furniture or cabinet refinishing (I can refinish anything that's real wood. Prices will vary depending on type and size.)

You can contact me at nikki_grandy@yahoo.com for pricing, availability, or to set up a consultation.

Jen's piano

My other friend Jen (not the one who got the stockings, a different one) wanted her piano refinished. I tried to talk her into a red or a mustard yellow, but she decided on black in the end. I have to remember just because I have a loud and rambunctious personality and therefore like my furniture that way, doesn't mean everyone else does too. It all worked out in the end. Good call on the black, Jen. I also sewed her a slip cover for her piano bench out of a drop cloth from Home Depot.
Before

After

Pot Rack

My sister Dawn came to visit from Prescott, Az while her kids were on Christmas break. Like all "breaks" we took on a bunch of projects to do while our kids kept each other occupied. 9 kids and 3 adults in a 1600 square foot house meant we were cleaning or cooking most of the time though.

Anyways, she just moved into a house with very little storage in the kitchen. She wanted a pot rack to go above her island and we found this one from Ikea for $24.99

p.s. if you search for it, those fancy Sweedish folk call it a utensil rack, not a pot rack like us hillbilly's.

Using our own mothers sound logic, "Why do, when you can over do" we made a frame out of wood trimmed by molding to go around the outside. It covered the boring metal frame and added about 8 inches on the top to store pot lids.

Total this project was around $50. Which is better than the $200 one we saw at Bed Bath and Beyond.