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Craft/ Guest Room Update

January 5, 2016February 11, 2016 Karen

Over the holidays we got a little done on the craft/ guest room. We aren’t finished with the room, but I am excited with how it is turning out. I love that this room really will have two functions.

The Guest Room

It is a guest room when the Murphy Bed is down and the Expando-Matic is closed.

See my zinc mirror? It found a great home after I changed offices and lost space at work.

I am planning an accent wall inside the Murphy Bed.

The quilt 0n top was made by my great grandmother. I just picked up the turquoise suitcase for fifty cents at a resale shop. I had to show it off.

The shelves that hold my globes collected over the years are made from left over plywood from the Murphy Bed build and brackets from Lowe’s. The yellow clock has a story. My dad was getting rid of the clock frame so I snagged it. The shutter was out of my stash. It got a coat of paint and will be my idea board.

The Craft Room

When the Murphy Bed is up and the Expando-Matic is pulled out I have six glorious feet of craft space. The most unfinished function of the room is the craft part. I need the leaves for the epansion built, some things installed, and the closet redesigned.

It is going to be awesome.

I am a lucky girl.

Here are some closer shots of the walls. The Texas map was rescued from the trash. Someone used permanent marker on it, the frame was broken and the bottom was messed up. It was perfect for me. I got the market off with hairspray in case you didn’t know that trick.

The room is coming together.

Thanks for following our journey to make our ranch into our forever home.

Blessings,

Karen

Building a Home, cedar lumber, Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, Dining Table, Dresser, home decorating, master bedroom, new home, reclaimed wood, The bedroom, the guest room, the office

Weekend Home Tour Part 2

April 21, 2015 Karen

Here are the rest of the photos from the weekend home tour. The entry way was dramatic.

House 3

I really liked the ceiling in the dining or office area.

A black and white kitchen.

Mirrored side tables.

The house was fun to look at.

House 4

Much more my style.

Cedar timber ceiling.

Copper colored tile entry.

Master bedroom ceiling

I thought this wall/ headboard/ ceiling treatment was interesting. It

I like the rustic touches in this home.

I am such a fan of the herringbone brick ceiling.

I love this wall, clock, and storage.

I hope you enjoyed my visit to the model homes.

I would encourage you to visit homes near you when you get a chance. They really get the creative juices going.

Have a great day!

Blessings,

Karen

Blogging, Building a Home, Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, Dining Table, French Provincial, home decorating, master bedroom, mid-life, Mirror Display, new home, Ornate mirror, The bedroom, The City House, the guest room, the suburban home

Weekend Home Tour

April 20, 2015April 20, 2015 Karen

i love to visit model homes. Near my sister in law’s house they have 7 model homes open for touring. It was a muddy, stormy Sunday afternoon so she and I headed out to walk through the homes. This builder’s homes are well built and are part of a 55+ neighborhood. Today you get to see the first two.

I have never seen this designer/ builder’s work, and I really enjoyed getting to see their ideas. They had the most creative ceilings I have ever seen. My favorite home happened to be the first home we visited.

The very first room was… Navy and coral with a rustic, modern vibe. I can honestly say it was the only room I could see myself in, but I did take away some ideas.

We didn’t plan on going so excuse the iPhone photos.

House One

I loved this house.

The front bedroom was so cool. I really liked the china cabinet and the matching crib springs. The stripes wet navy, burlap, and a cream color. The art was stenciled canvas.

Loved the coral tailored cloth on the night stands.

Here is the rest of the house:

The master was a little too fussy for me. The side tables were way too full and the picture above the bed was too much. The mosaic tile panels are throughout all the homes.

I had to ask myself if that design in the shower would get old?

I loved the zinc topped hammerd table.

I liked the wood squares on the laundry wall.

I loved the wood flooring!

House Two

This house was totally not my style but still fun to look at and even in this house there were elements I really liked. I called this the mirror house.

Imagine dusting all those mirror frames.

A wall of mirrors in a 55+ guest bedroom?

I really liked this piece.

Loved the formal dining table.

I like the light fixture but two breakfast tables?

The backsplash was fun.

Oh my, the master was sensory overload. Tile and beam ceiling, tile insets on the wall, mirror edged headboard…

I did like the slate look ceramic tile.

burlap, Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, Dresser, home decorating, master bedroom, the suburban home

Master Bedroom Pinning

January 24, 2015January 25, 2015 Karen

Well, I had time on my hands in my day this week while out on school visits. Not enough time to go back to the office but too much time to be idle.

Two thoughts kept running through my brain.
1. I want to change the look of our master bedroom.

2. If we get the land we are looking at buying, the exterior of the house must change.

If you follow me on Pinterest (kasmithson) then you can probably see what I am thinking about working on because I start pinning like crazy when I am collecting ideas. This week I started a new board for the master bedroom and one for the front of the plain Jane ranch house with an undersized front porch that we are hoping to buy. (Crazy, I know but we love the land, the location, and the outbuildings. The house will be a project for years to come.)

Since we don’t have our lake house sold or the other place purchased yet, I decided to focus on the master bedroom at our Burb house.

I am totally blaming this upcoming redo on Joanna Gaines and HGTV. I love the look the homes she decorates. The rooms are restful, stylish, and have a sense of history. Our home is a newish, tract home that is long on space but short on character.

Here are a few shots of our master bedroom today.

It isn’t awful, but we really need to have a king sized bed, and the room is lacking in character. When our son and daughter in law come back from overseas and collect their furniture, the master bedroom furniture will move into our guest room.

Here is my wish list for our bedroom update:

A “Shiplap” wall.

( I did not know I loved this so much until HGTV’s Fixer Upper)

The House of Smith has a great tutorial for getting it up here.Planked Wall

A reclaimed wood headboard.

I want the bed to look just like this one from The Accent Piece

Faux built in cabinetry.

I like something like this for This Old House only I want the window seats under our two windows and drawers instead of cabinet doors in the center section.

I want a tripod lamp.

I already have the parts for one like this: Dwelling Cents Tripod Lamp

What stays:

The triple mirror and the crystal lamps will be a part of the design. The lamps will be going on the side tables and the triple mirror on the side wall.

The coolest chair ever. It was rescued by my mom and dad. When it was delivered to me it was in pieces. I love this 1940’s low-slung chair . It is so comfortable.

The side tables. They are a pair that I made over a while back. They used to be part of an entertainment center.

The bench. It will get recovered.

The curtains, although they will need to be raised to the ceiling so that they are raised enough that they fit with the benches that will go under each window. I really like those lined burlap curtains.

That means the headboard- which I love- goes, and the oak furniture will head to storage until the kids come home to get their furniture then move to the guest room.

The biggest project will be figuring out the built in wall unit. I want it to look like a built in wall unit but really be a piece that will come apart and move with us. It will need to go from one side of the room to the other with a drawers, closed storage and drawers. I am looking at ReStores and at Hotel furniture sellers for base cabinets.

I have a feeling we will get on this as soon as the lake house is on the market.

Thanks for reading my blog. I love hearing from all of you.

Blessings,

Karen

Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, DIY Painting and Glazing Furniture, glazing, Mirror, Ornate mirror

DIY Zinc Mirror

September 5, 2014September 5, 2014 Karen

I finally found the perfect mirror to give a zinc finish. I knew in my head what I was looking for and that is not always a good thing because nothing but what I imagine will make me happy. The elusive mirror was found in my all-time favorite honey-hole of a thrift store for $10.00. Here is what the beauty looked like when I brought it home:

If you ignore the painted flowers and the wood, doesn’t it have the same shape as the zinc mirrors from the fancy online stores I have been eyeing?

zinc mirror3

zinc mirror

zinc mirror2

Just in case you are wondering, the cheapest mirror I could find was over $500.00 I bought my mirror ($10.00) and enough supplies to do the mirror and several more projects for $10.00 more.

I am telling you folks, getting the zinc look is not as hard as you might think. After sanding off the flower design, my first step was to do a Google search of zinc mirrors and looked at them all very carefully before I dove in. What I think I like most about a zinc finish is the irregularity that each zinc piece has.

alhambra antiques Original Zinc and Wood Oeil du Boeuf Parisian Window Mirror french decorating ideas

Bjd Haus Design

zinc mirror 2

Eron Johnson Antiques

I love the mix of dark and light, the shine on the worn edges and the aged appearance.

The secret to the process is getting the right products and not being afraid to experiment. Go buy yourself a cheap mirror at Goodwill and dive in. If you hate it, paint it another color.

I used Rust-oleum Soft Iron metallic spray paint

Cheap acrylic paint that is less than a dollar a bottle. One of them was called zinc. The other is a lighter gray.

Finally, I glaze it all with a silver glaze.

Spray the entire item with the spray paint. Once it is dry brush on random places of the acrylic paint. Make sure to use a really dry brush. I dipped it in the paint then wiped the brush off on a paper towel.

Once you are happy with the acrylic paint, repeat with the silver. I focused on the outer edges.

Ta Dah.

My rescue, Lumi, cannot stay away when I am taking photos. I decided not to fight her tonight. She is a sweetie.

Apartment living, Christmas, Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, DIY Projects, home decorating, Ornate mirror, recycled furniture, Repurposed Furniture, vintage style

Turning an Old Door and Table Into a Buffet

December 26, 2012March 28, 2013 Karen

Sweet Amanda loves old, weathered, pieces with story as much as I do! When I bought The Southern Belle’s dresser I negotiated two other pieces of furniture for the asking price of the dresser. I got the owner to throw in a night stand that will be going to a Habitat for Humanity home this spring and an old white piece that I wasn’t sure what the original purpose had been but I guessed that it had been in a church at some point. I know that Sweet Amanda will appreciate me getting the piece free, because she is a junker like me! A little research led me to believe the white table was a Bible table. It was white, had peeling paint, crackle on the drawer, and was a little taller than an end table. I knew the table would be the perfect gift for Sweet Amanda with some creativity. I stared at the Bible table for at least three weeks then it hit me… This would make a great buffet for a small apartment. I started looking for parts. I knew I wanted the back to be an old door and I wanted a shelf on it. I cannot tell you why, that is just how I saw it in my head.
It took several weeks but the absolute perfect door was located in Coldspring for $10.00. It had the right amount of chipped paint, but was solid enough to hold up over time. Hubby cut off a small bit of the door for a shelf and to make the horizontal part of the door hit at the right spot on the table so that they could be screwed together. After adding the shelf it still looked incomplete. I knew I wasn’t finished with the piece but after several options that I did not like I almost gave up and started looking for something else to give Sweet Amanda. A trip to the Coldspring Senior Center Resale fixed my problem. A round, old plaster mirror was the perfect solution. a link to the senior center website here.
I got this amazing mirror for $10.00. It was the deal of the day.

Here it is all put together. I am crazy about this piece. It still needs a coat of polyacrylic to seal the potentially lead paint in place, but other than that, it is finished.

Here it is in The Lovebird’s Apartment

and… here are the Lovebirds

Decorating, Decorating with mirrors, DIY Art, DIY Projects, Painted Furniture, repurposed frame, Roadside Finds, yellow and gray bedroom

Finished Yellow and Grey Guestroom

November 8, 2012December 13, 2012 Karen

Finally. Last night we put the finishing touches on the guest room. I hope you like what we did. Here are pictures of the finished room. Final cost $154.63 Click on all the hyperlinks below to go to the projects that we got accomplished.

One day I am going to actually hit my cost goal, but this is not too bad for a great guest room. You will see that I added a cute pillow to the bed. I love the color and graphic. I got it on Etsy. The lamps make me happier than the globe lights. I love them but the chain was too busy for the wall. I am giving them to Sweet Amanda for the lovebird room.

Remember that it all started with a end table I picked up on the side of the road. I started looking for inspiration to get the table painted. Then it hit me. I had a whole room needing love.

Yuck.

This is the inspiration. A bedroom from The Hills Blog

I stenciled the wall.

I thrifted a milk glass lamp then made the shade.

I thifted and crafted this chalkboard.

I made these owls.

I love these owls.

Easy Artwork

I used a lot of my finds to create a mirror wall.

More thifted and crafted items.

A reused armoire is going to be my craft cabinet.

I tried these lights.

But I did not love them in this room.

I like this one so much better. I found some curtains I can live with.

I hope you like the room. We are proud of our hard work.

WE LOVE IT! Now bring on the guests.

Decorating with mirrors, silver-plate, The City House, the guest room

Using Mirrors to Add Light

October 4, 2012 Karen

Okay, who went to Hobby Lobby and bought all the plate discs? I know it was one of you because the nice lady in the frame section told me that they always have them. She was shocked they sold out this week. I am never telling my secrets again until I already have what I need on hand! 😉
Actually I found something I liked even better, and cheaper, for my silver-plated dishes. Command strips for picture hanging. The Velcro that connects the two parts is repositionable… Love that. It was cheaper than the discs… Love that even more! I also found a great yellow pillow on clearance at Pier One tonight too. I love it for $7.00! What do you think? The cat thinks she has moved in. That will not happen.