Keep Calm & Share Ideas

A friend overheard me sharing my “chalk” paint recipe and couldn’t believe it. Why not share? I’m not trying to sell paint.

 
 


I don’t mind sharing my paint recipe. If you bother to ask me, I’ll bother to tell you. The paint is super easy to make. What comes after that is the hard part. I believe in helping people get started. I’m not trying to sell paint. If you take that recipe and figure out how to use it, well, good for you! I want you to know that you can do this. There’s nothing special about me that you don’t have.

Here’s the thing though: Don’t make the mistake of thinking that because the paint itself is easy to make that the process and finished product isn’t valuable. The process of using this paint is lengthy with multiple steps involved. While it doesn’t require that you spend a lot of time prepping the surface to be painted, that doesn’t mean that the piece didn’t need repairs first. The paint needs to cure in between coats. Once the final coat is dry there are at least two more steps.

 


I was recently participating in an antique fair and I listened as one woman oooh and ahhhed over one of my pieces and her friend proceeded to talk her out of buying it. “Oh, that would be so easy to make. You could make that. You could have your husband do that. Don’t pay for that.” I’m absolutely sure that she could make it. I’m positive that her husband could, too. But I’m am 99.99% certain that they wouldn’t. She left that day without buying the piece that she admired and stood in front of for 15 minutes. Do you think she went home and made it? I’d be surprised if she did.

These pieces aren’t found on a whim. I research and drive, and drive, and drive some more before I find anything decent to buy. Yes, buy, as in purchase. I buy the materials: paint, brushes, rollers, LOADS of sandpaper, plaster, repair materials, and many times new hardware. That doesn’t include the cost of gasoline and my time. And just imagine, I actually want to make a profit on top of that.

I’ve decided that every time I blog about a piece I’m going to list at the bottom the amount of time it took and the amount I spent on basic supplies, not including the price of the piece. You can do this. And I hope you do. I want to inspire you to paint your own furniture and create your own decorations. But, please, please do not belittle the time, knowledge, and money that I have invested. And please, for pete’s sake, don’t come up to me at a fair while I’m trying to sell something and ask me how I made it. Not the time, folks.

P.S. Y’all rock!
XOXO,
Abby//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Easter Mantle Ideas



 I’ve decorated our mantle for Easter. And, as always, I’ve used a mixture of new and old. That’s the best way, don’t you think? If everything was vintage or antique, we’d be missing out on some of the great new decorative items out there. And I love shopping way too much to do that. 😉


I like how effortless it looks. A lot of it was pulled from “shopping” in other rooms in the house. The only things that are always on the mantle are the antique mirror and the clock, everything else was borrowed from other places in the house.



Here you can see how I combined new and old.
What’s “old?” The Fire King hobnail milk glass vase, the Brush-McCoy robin’s egg blue egg & dart dish, the picture of my great-grandparents.
What’s “new?” The garland, the eggs, the rabbit plaque, and the picture frame.



Sometimes when I am putting together a vignette or mantle, I simply walk around the house looking for certain colors. These old books were the perfect spring time color for the mantle.

Here are some other mantles that I found on Pinterest. I think they’re lovely, don’t you?

This one is from marthastewart.com. I like that it uses different shades of just pink and blue. 

This one is from Tattered & Inked. I love the mix of natural wood and burlap with the bright colors of the eggs.


Here is another one from Emerald Interior Design. It’s fresh, simple, not too busy, and it will definitely carry past Easter and through Spring.



Finally, this was was too bright and cheerful to leave out. It’s from Positively Splendid, and it is. Positively Splendid.



I hope you’ve been inspired to create a beautiful Easter mantle of your own. I found all of these lovely ideas on Pinterest. Join me there!

XOXO,
Abby








//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Drop Leaf {Table} Like It’s Hot


I love marking things off of my “list.” And this table has been on my to-do list for wayyyyyy too long. I have procrastinated doing this table like nobody’s (I’ll get to it) tomorrow.

I paid more than I thought I should have. (We left it in the garage.)

I thought it was going to be very difficult and time consuming to fix. (We dumped stuff on top of it.)

I thought the existing finish was going to be stubborn. (We never even completely unwrapped it.)

But you’ll never guess what happened. It’s the first piece that I have been able to refinish 100% on my own. As in, no one had to move it for me. No one had to hold it up while I did anything to it. I did it all. On. my. own. Oh, how glorious it is to say that. I hate asking for help. For anything. (Do you know that about me yet?)

I sanded the top just to rough it up a little bit for some “tooth.” “Tooth” means something for the paint to grab onto. Chalk paint isn’t supposed to need priming or sanding, but like I mentioned, I was worried about the existing finish being stubborn and difficult. I didn’t sand anything other than the top.

I make my own chalk paint. I used Martha Stewart Living in “Duck’s Egg” as my base.
After that I used Valspar Glaze in “Mocha.” 
Lastly, I used Krylon UV-Resistant Matte spray finish. I didn’t use a wax as I normally do because I didn’t want any sheen (shine), however I did want some protection on the table top. The trick to using this spray and having it be truly matte, with no spray marks, is to hold it at least 12 inches away from your surface. If  you hold it much closer than that you won’t have an even finish. As the directions on the can say, wait at least 2 minutes in between coats to avoid “white-ish” spots.

It’s more green than in this pictures. Don’t know why this came out so much lighter.

This table is perfect for our house. We like to have big family meals with the whole family, which is 15 and counting. If we open this up with the two leaves and combine it with our other dining table which seats 8. there will be plenty of room for everyone.

I hope you love it as much as I do.

XOXO,
Abby

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Functional Push Pins.

I like it. I don’t like it. 

I want it up. I want it down. 

It motivates me. It irritates me.

The sun is shining. The sun is not shining.

Life changes. I change my mind. Sometimes. A lot. Every day something new inspires me. Colors, People, Quotes, Photos. I needed a way to be able to actually use my bulletin board that I made in yesterday’s post.

Typically I put the bulletin board up, and then I pin some things onto it. And then those same things stay pinned up onto the bulletin board for 3 (or 11) years, while the little things that I use every day stay on the surface of my desk.

What if there was a way to avoid looking lazy improve the functionailty of my bulletin board? When I really thought about it, the reason that I wasn’t using my bulletin board as an organizational piece on a day to day basis was that I was constantly needing to pin up, remove, and repin what I was using.

For example, a paint chip. Found one I love: pin it up. Want to hold it next to something: take it down. Lose the pin. Leave paint chip on the desk. Need to take the paint chip to the fabric store. Can’t find the paint chip.

Example No. 2: Put up a fancy-schmancy quote to inspire me throughout the day or week. Get used to the quote being there. Stop looking at the quote. Stop being inspired. But leave the quote up because if I take it down, it’s going to get lost on my desk and wrinkled. Then I’ll have to throw it away and that will hurt a tree.

Solution: Pins for my bulletin board that are also…CLIPS. I’ll let that sink in for a minute.

Pin once. Clip over and over and over again. Clip several things together. Switch them around.

The best part? NO. PIN. HOLES. *gasp*  So simple to do:

Both from Walmart in the Office Supply aisle. Next to all the cute Post-It Notes. You could use flatter push pins, but I like these.

Glue Gun. You’ll need one. Also found at Walmart. Craft section.



Life changer.

Functionality.

And don’t forget. You’re a Peach.
XOXO,
Abby

Abby Smolarsky4 Comments

Fabric Covered Bulletin Board

So, here’s the thing:

To a creative person originality is very important. When a creative person comes up with an idea and then suddenly discovers that it wasn’t their own individual idea that they can take credit for entirely, it’s not a good moment. It’s like a HISSY FIT inside the head. “No, Ma’am. I do not think so, Missy! That idea was mine, mine, mine!”

That is exactly what happened to me. At any given time I have several blog posts in progress at the same time. Sometimes there are even snippets of other projects in the background of other projects that I’m posting about. I’ve had this project done entirely (and up on my wall) for weeks now. I’ve even used it as a background for other posts and for some Etsy listings.

That being said, the other night I was browsing Pinterest before bed. I don’t know what it is about scrolling Pinterest on the iPad, but it always lulls me right to sleep. Anywho, suddenly, there it was. My project (this project) done entirely, exactly like mine. Same exact fabric and everything. So ahead of time, if you happen to see a similar exactly the same project on Pinterest, it was not intentional. I did however get inspiration from a Pinterest project, and I want to give that project credit for inspiration here. 

~~
I’ve mentioned (either here or on our Facebook page) that I’m revamping my office space. Step one for me is organization. I want it to be organized so that it’s not only functional, but also enjoyable.  One of the small things I’ve done is to take a bulletin board that I was already using and make it beautiful and even more useful. Today I’m going to show you the more beautiful part, and tomorrow I’m going to show you the more useful part.

I started with my bulletin board, some spray adhesive, my fabric of choice, my handy-dandy staple gun, and some upholstery tacks.

Next, I cut my fabric to size so that I could wrap it around the edges. I rolled it up, so that after I sprayed the adhesive it would be easier to apply.

Once the fabric was wrapped around to the back, I trimmed off the excess and used my staple gun to attach it to the wood trim in the back.

The last step was to use the upholstery tacks as a finishing touch around the edges. Since they are sharp, they simply push into the cork board. To make this project a super easy snap, below are links to the supplies that I used.

Time to get to work!
XOXO,
Abby
 

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Cosmetic Sugery: A Furniture Facelift

I have a big birthday coming up in a few weeks. Okay, no I don’t. It’s not a big one! It may or may not be a mid-life number. Okay, it’s not. I refuse to believe that half of my life is over. It’s not. I’m calm over-reacting.

*sigh* At what number did I stop wanting to get older? One minute I’m wishing that everyone would take my super-young, over-achieving, bossy-pants self seriously. The next minute I’m wishing that everyone would just chill out, relax, and get over themselves. How did I get from having two small kids, to having one that is bigger than me? Today is the day. It’s the day that I start my savings account for cosmetic surgery when everything is sagging and dragging on the floor mid-life crisis therapy.

Speaking of “cosmetic surgery.” Check out what got a facelift! Within a couple of weeks, we found two, almost identical chifferobes. This one, I’m embarrassed to say,  has been sitting in our foyer hallway for nearly 6 months. If you aren’t familiar with chifferobes, basically it is a closet, outside of a closet. Houses never used to have the enormous walk-in closets that are standard in today’s new construction. Closets were tiny, and if you needed more closet space, a chifferobe is what you got.

On one side (the left in this case), are drawers and a small cupboard. On the other side is a door that opens to a bar for hanging clothes. In this particular chifferobe, when you open the door, there is space under the drawers for a pair of shoes.

This piece definitely needed a face lift. It’s wrinkles cracks were spackled. It had a limp (one missing wheel). Surgery was successful.


I made my own chalk paint using Martha Stewart’s “silhouette” from Home Depot. Afterwards I used Valspar glaze in “mocha.” I finished it off with Minwax Paste Finishing Wax.

We had originally planned on keeping the mirrors, but while adjusting the hinges I dropped one of the doors. The mirrors were out and the chicken wire and burlap were in. I’m actually kind of glad it happened, because I love how it turned out.
I am having a hard time saying “goodbye” to this one. I would love to keep it in my foyer to hang guests’ coats in. Or perhaps it would be good for hanging the kids’ backpacks in. I can also imagine this being used in a kitchen for aprons, kitchen towels, and other linens. 
I will most likely have this for sale at my next antique festival in April.
I hope you love it!
XOXO,
Abby

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

DIY Dry Erase Board & Notepad

Every Friday I find myself under a mountain of paper. The kids come home with folders, newsletters, and graded papers. Add that to the pile of mail, receipts, and lists and the “paper problem” gets quickly out of control. One of my ongoing (and often failed) goals is to keep this pile of papyrus organized and under control. It often feels like as soon as I tame the problem that the cycle begins again.

One thing that has been helping me is our dry erase frame that sits in the kitchen next to the phone. I simply took an old 8×10 table top picture frame and put fabric into it instead of a picture. Add a dry erase marker and  now you have a dry erase board and notepad. Simply write on the glass and wipe it off when you’re done.

I recently used it as a menu board when we had guests for lunch. The frame was originally a dark wood color and I spray painted it celery green.

I made another one using an 11×14 frame. (What was I thinking using a table top frame that big?!) I spray painted the natural oak (90’s oak) a glossy gray color.
Then I added a vintage sugar sack into the frame instead of a fabric scrap. I thought this would work nicely in the kitchen, and would also look nice when nothing was written on the “board.”

Love it with the sugar sack in the frame.
Now when we need to take the grocery list to the store, we simply use our phone to take a picture of the list on the board. No more paper list or forgetting the list! This was my 8 year old’s idea, which I thought was a great one.


The battle of the papers is far from won, but we’re making headway. 
XOXO,

//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js

Abby Smolarsky2 Comments

Before & After: A dresser saved from the dump.


Last weekend I revived a dying 1930’s dresser. I assumed that it was going to be a fairly straight forward and easy project, but it turned out to take quite a bit of time. Grrr. I’m happy with how it turned out, and I’m even happier that I was able to save the fantastic Art Deco hardware.

Here it is before:

During:

Everyone refinishes furniture on their kitchen floor, right?

I decided to use Martha Stewart “Barn Red.” I make my own chalk paint, but that is the base that I used.

After the chalk paint, I used Valspar Glaze in “Mocha.” I bought this at Lowe’s. A little goes a long way.

The hardware needed some love and elbow grease. I used steel wool, baking soda and vinegar, baking soda and Dawn and vinegar, baking soda and water, more steel wool. You get my point; it took a while.

All said and done….

XOXO,
Abby
P.S. This dresser was not saved literally from the dump. As in, I did not go to the dump and get it. Rather, it was close to being headed to the dump. I don’t even know where a dump is. But if I did, it wouldn’t be beneath me to go there. And look for a dresser.//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Spring Wreaths


 I can’t believe it’s been two weeks since I’ve posted! There are several reasons, but the main one is that the flu hit our house hard. The females stayed healthy, while the guys were stuck in bed. Taking care of sick people is a lot of work!

Another reason is that, well, blogging can be hard! Blogging, in itself, can be a full time job. I know that some of the bloggers that inspire me are putting in long hours, and I have an appreciation of that. My brain (and attitude) needed a little break from blogging.

I have been busy, though! Sometimes when I get bogged down by the list of big projects that I need to get done, or the storehouse of furniture in my garage that needs to be refinished, it feels really good to have a project that I can get done from start to finish in a few hours.

I’m ready for spring, can you tell?

Flowers with sparkle, a songbird with her nest, some sweet blue and white baker’s twine. Even on a gray day, this wreath puts a pop of spring in your day!

Here’s a similar version, but in pink. I forgot to get a picture of it after I added the nest and the rhinestones. But you can get the idea.

I thought this one turned out so sweet. The antiqued pearl accents added the perfect touch on the lace ribbon on the left.

Do you know what’s better than burlap????

Colored burlap. True story!

I hope you like them!
XOXO,
Abby
P.S.
If you’re looking for baker’s twine, here is a great set:

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment

Chevron Chair Makeover in Minutes

Alone in a dark corner, she captured my heart! Isn’t this chair awesome? I paid around $5 for it at an Atlanta Mission thrift store, which I considered a steal!  It’s awfully utilitarian looking, so I imagine it came from either a dinette set, or it was a desk chair. 

The wood was dry as a bone, but I loved the patina and the wear. I decided that all I wanted to do with the wood was to condition it. I’ve used butcher block conditioner before on a previous project, so I knew that it would do the trick.


So I have to say that this is a very easy project that even a beginner DIY’er can do. If you gather your materials ahead of time, this should take less than an hour from start to finish. To remove the cushion from the chair you will need a screwdriver. This is pretty much standard for all chair cushions. Save the screws and set them aside.

Next you’ll need to remove the fabric from the cushion. This will most likely be attached with staples. My tool of choice for doing this is a flat-head screwdriver. Occasionally a set of pliers will be needed to pull a stubborn staple out. Discard the fabric and staples, set the cushion base (wood or mdf) aside. I was all too happy to throw out the nasty Naugahyde covering my chair. Ew.



Now that we’re out with the old, it’s time to bring in the new. I have a piece of cushion foam ready to go.

I simply laid the wood base from the seat onto the foam and traced around it.

I cut it out and was ready to put some fabric back on. A half of a yard of fabric is plenty for a project like this. Here are three different fabrics that I was considering:

All of these fabrics are from Hobby Lobby. Love them! I decided to go with the gray chevron fabric, and saved the other two for future projects.

I used the same method as the foam to cut out my fabric, except it left a wide enough border so that I could wrap it around to the back. Being careful that my fabric was straight, I put one staple in the middle of each side. (Seriously, you NEED a staple gun!) I then began working my way out from each middle to the sides, periodically checking that my fabric wasn’t moving.

Once your fabric is on, reattach the seat to the chair using the screws that you removed at the beginning. And you’re done!

A single chair project is a great first project if you’re interested in reupholstering pieces. Don’t be intimidated; just jump right in. What do you think? Do you like the wood, or would you have painted it?

XOXO,
Abby

Abby SmolarskyLeave a comment