Genius

So, Jill saw this idea that I think everyone has now seen because it's so smart and super simple. Take a headboard, cut the legs off, paint it and add some hooks.

Here's Jill's take on it.
The before (with the legs already cut off).

And all done.



So jealous. I'm on the hunt for the perfect headboard now.

Transformation

This is little sister, Jill's boring master bedroom BEFORE:







Bring in big sister Marilyn and she turns it into THIS:



Jill is renting so you know how that goes. No painting. Luckily the wall color was already a nice neutral tone so it went nicely with the new decor.

Jill fell in love with the color in the 2 side table lamps. As far as she knew that's all that was going into that room because it was all done in secret, a While You Were Out kind of thing.

Marilyn took some of Jill's existing thrift store finds and gave them some TLC.



Of course she made the bedskirt and all but 2 of those pillows on that bed. She made the window valances and the picture frame shelves.

Oh yeah, and she made the headboard too. Maybe someday she'll provide us with a tute on how she did it. I have a door headboard in my master bedroom too, but now I think I'm going to order me some tin and add to it.


Such talent our sister has.

I've been planning a While You Were Out for my girls' room for awhile. Helping put Jill's room together has lit a fire under me to get going faster on it.

I ♥ My Bathroom

Our master bathroom vanity redo has been technically finished for a few weeks. I've just been working on the details but decided to post since it will probably take a little while until it's completely done, down to the tiniest thing. I'm not an impulsive shopper or decorator. I like to take my time.

Anyway....

Goodbye old bathroom.

Goodbye formerly dark-brown laminate cabinets
with the white paint peeling off.

Goodbye stained and chipped countertop.
Bye-bye ginormous, plain old boring, cracked mirror.

Adios sassy brassy leaky faucet.

Bye-bye overly textured, partially painted walls.

See ya later soap and toothbrush holder that I'm sure had to be
included in the original blueprints for the walls of the bathroom.

Hello beautiful, clean, bright white bathroom I have been dreaming about!


Check out that mirror!
Jill reluctantly gave that beauty up just for me.
Thanks Jilly! ☺


A few little things still left to be done.
Deciding on a ribbon for the drawers is one. I love this idea. I saw it in a magazine and on this blog. I'm just having a hard time finding the perfect one.

I really like the blue.

I like the white too.
But probably the blue more.
Just not sure if I like that particular blue....


Definitely not the yellow.


Painting the little mirror on the floor.
It's for little people who can't see in the big one since
the vanity is quite a bit higher than it used to be.

I'm searching for a glass knob for the closet door.

The light fixture is temporary. It's the old one, painted white,
which is fine but one of the sockets doesn't work.

The picture frame on the wall needs something in it and
we'll probably put in a small towel bar on the opposite wall.

The little houses in the birdcage need a new shade of blue paint.
They're a shade that's too far off everything else in there.

And I've been eyeing a couple of wire baskets
to put underneath the sink for towels.

Details of the project:
Rip out old sink, countertop and vanity.
Install floor to ceiling beadboard.
Tile the area of the old vanity.
Install baseboards and crown moulding.
Paint everything.
Paint buffet to be used as vanity.
Cut a hole and fit the sink.
Reconfigure plumbing for one sink.
Fun Fun Fun!

Bathroom Furniture

Once upon a time about 5 years ago, I became impatient with my guest bathroom. The year before, in an attempt to update things in there, I painted over the very dark laminate of the vanity and got rid of the matching wallpapered light switch cover. I so wish I had a before picture, but I do not.

It was better with the new paint and such but I was still not satisfied. I was thrifting one day and stopped at one of my favorite thrift stores but they weren't open. As I was leaving I noticed this awesome piece of furniture - a buffet - in the window. I was in love. I'm telling you I went back to that store and gazed at it through the window 3 more times before they were actually opened. It was one of those places where the owner shows up whenever they want to.

Anyway, they finally opened and I finally got in there, pushed all the other customers out of the way (not really) and bolted straight to the buffet, asked how much it was, whipped out my handy little tape measure to be sure and took it home. (It was 60 bucks - a no brainer.)

I left it the original color because it went well with the new wallpaper and paint I was going to use.

After pulling out the old vanity myself (when I get excited about a project I can't wait around for my husband to get home from work to help me), and installing a sink and new plumbing, after a few days this is how it turned out.


I was able to salvage some space in most of the drawers by cutting and rebuilding the drawers around the plumbing. For the drawer that's directly under the sink, I removed the actual drawer and then permanently screwed the drawer front back in place so it doesn't open at all.





Today I took these pics of the antique dresser turned vanity I helped make for a friend. She's very close to moving into her newly built gorgeous home after a fire destroyed her other gorgeous home over 2 years ago.

Here's the before.

The sink she bought prior to buying the dresser was slightly to big for the dresser top so she had a counter top made to fit the sink and I think it turned out beautiful! We were able to save almost the entire bottom drawer for toilet paper storage.





Doing that vanity for her got me more excited to do one for my master bathroom. I've been looking for a looooooong time to find a piece of furniture that is precisely the right measurements and just last week I lucked out and got this beauty.



(Only I talked him down to $110. ☺)

I hope I can have it done in the next few weeks.

Garbage To Gorgeous!

Okay, I just finished the headboard/footboard project - the one I got out of the garbage on the side of the road.

Here is the before, fresh from the trash.


And here is the after.




Yummy, huh? I really LOVE the black. I've made several of these and have never painted one black before. I'm very happy with the result. I may just have to find a place in my house instead of giving this one away.

Here are a few more.

Ottomagic

Here's a before of Jill's $5 thrift store ottoman:



And here's the after, with a new slipcover:


Whoever made that slipcover is pretty awesome. :)