A BIRDHOUSE SPRING MANTEL

Good morning everyone !

It started with this

and led to this ( it takes a village )

Well I did it - I worked on a Spring mantel !

Is it nice & Springlike in your corner of the world?

We still have snow - it's rapidly melting but I'd rather look outside and see none at this point -

Spring means everything will start blossoming - including these never ending reno's ( which have kind of been on a stand still the last couple of months ).

I decided to jump on the blogging bandwagon and do a Spring Mantel ( to give me hope give me hope give me peace on earth  )

The birdhouses come from the dollar store - cheep decor ( is that witty or what ? )

Now please keep in mind that we are renovating - what you see through the mirrors is an unfinished home - I probably should NOT have used a mirror as a back drop - s.t.u.p.i.d.

I'm so pretty  and WITTY and wise   I'm still witty...............you can't take that away from me..... yet

Some branches in one vase -

blossoms in another -

a few sprigs of flowers peaking out of the birdhouses

Here you can see a ladder leaning against the wall ( in the heart ) awesome !!!

Think I'll just hide it with a butterfly instead

The houses were all dry brushed with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint ™ - pure white
( but wouldn't different pastel colors be pretty too?  hmmm there's still the mantel in the bedroom )
and the letters were stencilled on with a sharpie

I'll change the letters up to S U M M E R later on and hang these outside - maybe on my ladder?

or on my ladder arbor?

And then Autumn - with berries

And Winter with icicles

And I'll never have to change the mantel again LOL !!!

Suzan says - John let me know next time you run in the dollar store ?
John says - Well that's unlikely................

Have a wonderful day everyone !
Hugs,
Me

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FLUSTER BUSTER                                                           LIFE ON LAKESHORE DRIVE

UNCOMMON DESIGNS

WHITE DRY BRUSHING...................

You know when you get to the bottom of the paint - I mean really at the bottom - scraping the barrel type of thing?
Well I usually find something to paint quick when I get to that point
Either by adding a bit of water to the tin to create a " wash "
Or dry brushing something......................

John says - WHY are you walking around with an empty tin of paint and a paint brush?
Suzan says - I have to find something to paint
John says - You sound like an addict - put the tin down - you can do it
Suzan says - No - I'll find something 
John says - They say you have to admit you have a problem before you can be helped
Suzan says - I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM !!!

Anyway I found something !

My layered tables in the living room - the bottom one was white - the top piece was wood.................
I thought it looked ok for the winter...........but truth be told it always seemed a little " off "

John says - Wow - I like it ( sounding very surprised
John says - It looks very Slavic
Suzan says - What does that mean exactly?
John says - It's a style isn't it?
Suzan says - Do you mean Nordic?
John says - Same thing.......................

Slavic Shabby?
Here's how it looked before - sorry the photo was taken at night................

It fits the room better I think

and the teeny tiny bit that was left on the paint brush at the end of it all?

a new project was born...................

Now excuse me - I'm off to the dollar store to buy a whole slew of these !

Paint used :  ANNIE SLOAN CHALK PAINT ™ - PURE WHITE

Have a wonderful Thursday one and all!
Much love,
Me



LOOKING FOR INSPIRATION?
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THE CHARM OF HOME                                  FRENCH COUNTRY COTTAGE
MY ROMANTIC HOME                                   LOVE BAKES GOOD CAKES
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I SHOULD BE MOPPING THE FLOOR          UNDER THE TABLE & DREAMING
DWELLINGS - THE HEART OF YOUR HOME
BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH                A STROLL THRU LIFE
STONE GABLE                                                 KATHE WITH AN E
AN EXTRAORDINARY DAY                          SAVVY SOUTHERN STYLE 
SEW CRAFTY ANGEL                                    MY SALVAGED TREASURES
DIY BY DESIGN                                              THE DEDICATED HOUSE
HAVE A DAILY CUP OF MRS. OLSON        THE UPTOWN ACORN
FROM MY FRONT PORCH TO YOURS       I GOTTA CREATE
KATHERINE'S CORNER                                 SIMPLE NATURE DECOR
THE SHABBY NEST

A Vanity makeover !

Good morning everyone -

Well I finished it !  ( not waxed - but otherwise it's finished )

It's soooo difficult to get photos in a tiny space - I'm like an acrobat trying to do this !

I painted this piece in 3 layers.............( 4 if you count priming it ) but they were all very quick applications

Once I had primed it - I kind of liked that greyish color that comes from one coat of primer over wood
( those of you that paint furniture know exactly what I'm talking about ) those of you that don't paint furniture, it almost turns out drift wood ( ish ) looking.
Here's what I mean

So I gave it a coat of Paris Grey ( Annie Sloan Chalk Paint - all three steps ) and trimmed out all the edges with Pure White - sloppily actually - because I did NOT want a pristine look for this piece.

and then I made a " wash " using French Linen / water ( half - half or so )
I brushed the wash on - and then rubbed it all over with a paper towel - until it looked like this

and then I used a white wash right after - before it had dried -

Make sure your cloth is damp for this process so that the paint can soak into other layers................
And rub it all in until you're content with the results -
This is only paint - if you've used too much, you can simply add more of the darker color - not enough and you can add more of the white................

The end result was exactly what I was going for - aged layers of paint and washes.

I had this applique on hand and decided to add it to the middle drawer on top

Doesn't it look like it was meant to be there all along?

This didn't come with a bench - I have a couple in storage but for now I just grabbed a tiny one I have here after I painted it Paris Grey

and then I placed a faux sheep skin rug on it ( IKEA 14.99 )

and that's it !
transformation complete !

I can't wait for the little ones to see it - it's in " their " room after all

Have a wonderful day everyone !
I'm, once again, having computer problems - took me forever to upload the photos to this post -
Have to call my son-in-law over for supper LOL

Much love,
Me

Looking for inspiration?
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An Extraordinary Day                                                         Kathe With an E
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Do that to me one more time...............................

That's what my furniture says to me -

I can never get enough of a girl like you ♪♫
Paint me, like you just did, oh baby  ♪♪
Do that to me once again   ♪♫♪

I don't usually post on the weekends and here I am posting on both days - there's just so much going on with that little guest room !

Last week I asked if I should keep the armoire in the little room - or a dresser - most of you voted for the armoire - so I decided to go with the dresser LMHO - but I did give it a quick makeover anyway - and I do mean quick - as in 20 minutes or so.
Paris Grey - the white was already on it ( when it was duck egg blue )

This thing is heavy - as in if this thing fell back it would have killed me instantly.  With just my legs sticking out like the wicked witch that I am..................
So heavy that I should have worn depends when we lifted the top piece off to move the bottom piece ( too much information I know )
So heavy - as in I may have popped a blood vessel or two and I can lift heavy things believe me.

My Son dropped in for a visit and I asked if he could help John take the top piece off ( again ) because it wasn't level
He did it himself !!!
Oh my God - I don't know how he did it

Mom says - Did you pee a little when you did that?
Gordie says - Ugghhh Mom - why would I pee?
Mom says - From the weight ?
Gordie says - That's gross - you're my MOTHER - don't talk like that
Mom says - Like what?  Sheesh - it's just pee
Gordie says - You should have worn Depends
Mom says - I know that.........................

But I digress - you didn't come by to hear about my bladder after all.

It's a very light coat of grey actually - some duck egg blue is peaking through here and there but I kind of like that
And I left the white parts as chippy as they were - cutting the painting time in half I'm sure

 It's in the hall landing - and it's ridiculously too big for the space but that's where it's staying until I get the office done - ( and God knows when that'll be - it's the last room to do upstairs and I'm not in the hurry that I should be )  I DO have the perfect spot for it in the reading room downstairs - but JOHN'S t.v. is in the way.

But it suits the space better then the duck egg would have

It can always go back to it sometime in the future - no big deal-ee-o - right?

I DO love the color - it just didn't fit

( I'm writing that because now that I'm looking at it - I'm afraid you're all going to say I shouldn't have touched it ) 

You can see the original 2 part posts on the first makeover HERE and HERE

I dry brushed a little gray on the 2 interior drawers as well - very little actually.

Paint me - like you just did  ♪

Oh baby................... 

Do that to me one more time  ♪♫♪

Now I officially have clothes in my bedroom - in both guest rooms and the upstairs landing

John says - Are you sure you have enough drawers

Suzan says - I could probably use just one more 

John says - I think there's a corner in the shed outside we could probably squeeze one more in 

John says - It's too much - there's dressers all over the bloody place 

John says - It's like living in a shop

Yaddy yaddy yadda

I'm thinking of secretly taping him - so you get the audio

Have a wonderful Sunday everyone - 

Hugs,

Me

Looking for inspiration?
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