A Little Off-Topic Post About Some Remarkably Fun Hair

I know this is quite a bit off topic for me but I knew you had to see this.  I have recently stumbled across a blog that has sent my creative juices flowing!  The Story Of A Princess and Her Hair(PrincessHairstyles.com) is written by a mother showcasing all of her fabulous hair designs that she has created for her daughter.  Now this woman is CRAFTY, not in the sense of the word that I have known but, this definitely is a craft...art made from hair! 

Who knew there was so much more than ponytails and clippies, where were you when I was a child!  Any little girl is guaranteed to feel like a princess with one of these "do's"! 

I just want to say a BIG thank you to this hair doin' Mama that writes this blog for helping me to see that there are so many ways to do kids hair!  My girls and I had a blast today trying out one of these super do's!!!

A Little Halloween Inspiration...

With it being October I am feeling a little fallish...Okay a lot fallish, especially today even though where I live it only feels fallish every other day!  Oklahoma weather definately puts the "trick" in "trick or treat!  Yes, I know I'm a little behind and yes I have been seeing all of this gorgeous fall decor!  I LOVE IT!  There are so many really great ideas out there that I find so inspiring!

Here are some that I love. Thought I'd share them with ya'll:)


How about this bone mantel display from Martha Stewart Living.  Who knew that something as creepy as bones could look so classic! Martha definitely has some talent working for her!  This is my favorite!

Beautiful!

Would be great at a party!

This could so easily transition from Halloween theme to every day living.

Just love these things!

Everybody needs a little sparkle!

So cute!

Inspiration, Ahh like a breath of fresh air!  Thanks for stopping by!

Cedar Chest Makeover

Once upon a time...

 I found this little beauty in a thrift store for $15 dollars.

What?!  Not such a beauty you say!  

Well, that's because she just needs a little makeover!

To become this...

And here is an up close picture of the fabric that I used to upholster the top of the cedar chest.  It was left over from my daughters crib bedding so it is extra special to me.  This chest is for my daughters room.

 And she lived happily ever after!  Well, almost but lets take a look at the makeover process!

and

Here is how I got the look:

• I skipped sanding this time and went straight to priming I used Kilz oil based spray paint to prime but for some reason half way through the bottle it started coming out in blobs and made the chest look texturized.  But luckily it was easily fixable, it sanded right off and left enough primer on for the paint to stick:) Whew!

• I gave it two coats of Valspar's Windsor Way (looks like it should be named Cinderella Blue to me but... hmm what a fun job that would be naming paint colors!)  I did water it down a little bit.  This helps the paint to dry smoothly instead of having all those yucky bristle marks made from the paint brush.

• I gave it a good wax on/ wax off of antiquing glaze making sure to focus on the details in the wood.

• finished it off with 2 thin coats of poly.  OOPS!  I forgot to lightly sand around the details!  I just grabbed my little sanding pad and sanded anyway, then just very lightly reapplied the poly over these areas. No harm done!!

Fabulous, Inexpensive and Simple Chandelier Makeover

Do you LOVE chandeliers as much as I do???  Well, If you said yes, then you have to see this! 

 The moment I found this chandelier at the thrift store my wheels started turning!  I know you all have probably seen these standard builders chandeliers before!    BORING!!!

 But with the help of my hubby I am going to show you how to take this chandy from drab to fab in step by step instructions.

 First you start by unthreading the wires from the top of the chain to the ring on the top of the chandelier.  

This is what it should look like with the wires unthreaded all the way down to the ring. 

Now we must take it apart.  So start by unscrewing the fenniel which is on the bottom of the chandelier. 

Next the top should just pull up but with all the wires attached.

 

The ring should then be unscrewed from the center shaft that runs through the body.  Then pull the wires down through the ring.  This is what the top looks like after the wires are removed and the ring is unscrewed.

This in turn frees the rod that runs through the body of the light fixture.  Now flip the rod over and feed it along with the wires back through the body of the chandy in the opposite direction until it  all comes out at the other side.

See how the arms are now facing up?!

Now feed the wires back through the top cap and ring.

 The hubby says to check each wire one at a time by gently pulling on it to make sure that it is not loose.  If a wire pulls out of the cap it will not be safe to use! So it is important to check. 

 You are almost done! 

Screw the top cap back on and then the fenial.  Don't forget to run the wires back through the chain as well.

 Ta Da!!! Now it is flipped over!

Now it is time to grab the spray paint and have a PARTY! But do remember to cover the sockets with tape before spraying!

And here is the finished product!

Chandy= a couple dollars

spray paint= a couple dollars

The Look= Priceless:)

I used decorative light bulbs but this would be just darling with lamp shades.

They are inexpensive and can really change the look.

What color would you do yours? I can't wait to see!

I have exciting news!

I just recieved the "One Lovely Blog Award" from Support Blog for Moms of Boys! 

How sweet is that!?

 Thank You I am thrilled to recieve this and honored to be able to pass it on!

Here are 5 Blogs that I am excited to have recently found!

1. Love Leigh Again
2. Homemade Mamas
3. The Penny Parlor
4. Take the Side Street
5. This Home of Ours

Here are the rules to accept the award....

1. Post it on your blog with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.

2. Pay it forward to 5 other bloggers that you have newly discovered.

3. Contact those blog owners and let them know they have been chosen.



Thrifty Finds Special Edition

Today was a very special day today in my "neck of the woods"!  I bet you are wondering why and I'm going to tell you. 

On my way to take my oldest to school this morning I noticed that is was...drum roll please....Trash haul off day!!!!  And yes I did!  And yes, I was one of those who participated in raiding my neighbors trash.  I like to think of it as going easy on my pocket book by looking for thrifty finds somewhere other than my local thrift store. { Insert big cheesy smile here }.

Well, actually I kinda tried to pull it off without everybody staring at me and I am ashamed to say I was "a lil' embarrased" {hangs head}.  So I pulled up to said curb hit the button to raise the trunk of my van, got out ran over and attempted to throw the goods in the back, Unnoticed.  Then ran back and about the time I started to get back in the van to hit the button to close the trunk so that I could blow that popsicle stand...I heard it fall out of the back of the van and onto the road!  So much for incognito!!! 

You would think that would be enough embarrassment for one day but a couple houses down I spotted this awesome mirror that I had to have.  However, the house that it was sitting in front of was getting a new roof and there were people all over it.  I did not pass it up or try to grab it and run.  I was very proud of myself I simply got out and put it in the van. 

So here is the loot:

      Love this mirror! Will propably end up above my fireplace mantel.

Some new pulls a little paint.  It has potential!

I ended up with it sitting beside me in the passenger seat and is now safe in my garage waiting for its chance at a new life:)

I will be linking this to the parties in my sidebar.

Table Makeover

                                                    
Remember this table I showed you in my Thrifty Finds Post? The twenty dollar one with the cute little legs!

Well, after I got it home and went to work on it I started to think that perhaps I had just flushed twenty of my hard earned bucks down the drain.  Oh yes it was THAT bad!  Every screw that was in it was hanging at least half of the way out and the leaves were not flush with the rest of the table.  One of the leaves was so warped I had to trash it all together.  Sniff.  Sniff.

So after MUCH tightening and MUCH sanding and priming,  I started to think that perhaps it might have some potential after all. Maybe. 

I already knew that I wanted it a gray color so off I went to the Home Improvement store to find the perfect one.  I decided on Valspar's Vintage Gray.  I mixed the paint and some water to get a very thin, watery consistency.  Then I just brushed it on going with the direction of the wood grain and immediately wiped it off with a towel; Just like you would a stain.  I went over the table 2 times using this technique.  After letting it dry I went over it with an antiquing glaze, immediately wiping it off as well.


And here is how the finish turned out.  It is hard to tell in the pics but you can still see the wood grain in it.







This is what it looked like with the antiquing glaze on it before wiping it off.  I used a foam brush making sure to get into all the spindles on the legs.

 I used sand paper to distress it around the legs and finished it off with a Satin finish Poly.  I love the worn look, like it has been used in an old farmhouse for many delicious Sunday breakfasts!

And here she is! 

 

 I think in the future I will add a board to fill in the gap in the aprons that is created when the leaves are added but,

 I really love how it turned out and can totally see it with some of these Darling chairs!  Can't You!? 

I will be Linking this post to the parties in my sidebar...and to Primitive and Proper;)