My House/My Finds-Decorate – Re-Design In A Day (The Store)

$123 Farmhouse Dining Room!

My House/My Finds-Decorate, Painted Furniture

Once we finished our kitchen renovation (see it here ), the adjoining dining room “beach” decor clashed with the new urban French farmhouse kitchen. We had money in the budget to paint and a rug, but I only had $150 for a table, chairs, lighting, and artwork! Time to get creative!

I wanted the two spaces to flow together and the best way to unify the spaces was to paint the walls the same color..so goodbye yellow and blue,

Hello Front Porch (by Sherwin Williams). I love, love this color. Depending on the light, the color changes from gray to taupe, to gray/blue to gray/green. Four colors in one!

I rescued this table from my neighbors (Thanks JJ) trash several year ago and have been using it on our screened in porch.

I love the chunky legs but wanted an aged look for the top. To achieve that look, I left on some of the flaky vanish, then dry brushed the top with CeCe Caldwell’s Destin Gulf Green.

Nothing says “farmhouse” like mismatched seating.

Thrift shop Buffalo check settee. Cost: $75

Farmhouse chairs. Cost: Existing chairs, no cost.

Chalk paint updates a pair of french chairs. Cost: $12/pair — A pair of french chairs from the thrift shop. Cost: $12/pair

Paintedchairbeforeafter — Curb side Corduroy. Cost: Free (Click here to see how I painted the fabric and wood on this chair!)

Final touches include thrift shop artwork,

Bold colors and texture from abstract artwork. Cost: $14

Yard sale lighting,

Chandelier3 — Spray paint and swag add bling to a Chandelier. Cost: $12

And a thrift shop faux fur throw.

Pillows and a faux fur throw add more texture. Cost: Existing pillows, $10 throw.

Farmhouse Dining Room ! Cost: $123.oo

Thanks for checking out my post and Happy Decorating!

Nicole

Front Porch Makeover 2015

My House/My Finds-Decorate

It’s that time again, time for front porch living: talking to neighbors, sipping lemonade, and relaxing.

After a long cold winter, our porch is looking tired and worn.

I approach decorating outside spaces the same way I approach interior spaces. I start at the end…how do I want the space to look, feel, and live. Keeping in mind the hot, humid Washington summers, I want the space to be airy, breezy and relaxing. And of course, no color represents that more than “blue”.

This blue stripped rug (from Wal-Mart) dictates the color palette and grounds the space in shades of blue.

The blue chairs from last year still look nice but the cushions are dull. A quick fix include a ten cent Sunbrella sample and a new pillow.

The old red cushion is covered in linen fabric. Decorative pillows and a blanket, create a cozy nook

A vintage window, paper place mat and stencil create unique house numbers!

An old shutter painted Carolina Yellow (with CeCe Caldwell Chalk/clay paint) is the perfect backdrop for a basket of faux flowers;

And our mailbox goes Euro with spray paint and a stencil!

Other cool accents include:

An antique light fixture for vintage charm!

A picnic basket for storing garden tools.

A coffee table with good reading material!

Airy, breezy drapes, elevates the space from porch to outdoor room!

Thanks for checking out my post. Enjoy your summer of 2015!

Yes, You Can Paint Fabric (The Painted Chair)

My House/My Finds-Decorate

My friend Sarah and I found this chair in someone trash last year. Can you believe someone was throwing this out! And yes, I checked for critters and I left it on our porch for several months to be extra sure there were no uninvited guest.

I love the juxtaposition of the formal Queen Anne style with the casual corduroy fabric.

Rolled arms, nail head trim and cabriole legs–need I say more?

Since I have “no” sewing skills my original plan was to get new fabric and have the chair re-upholstered. Well, the cost for re-upholstery was not in the budget, so I decided the paint the wood and the fabric. Yup, paint the fabric!

Basically, I sprayed the chair (one section at a time) with water to get the fabric wet but not dripping wet, then applied the paint with a brush. Here’s the chair after one coat of CeCe Caldwell’s Vintage White.

Here’s the chair after the 2nd round of spraying and painting.

After the final round of spraying and 2 coats of CeCe Caldwell’s Simply White.

I only painted the front of the chair and here you can see the contrast between the front and side. I love the two-tone effect. The wood got a mix of CeCe Caldwell’s Vintage White and Simply White. The cushion will be covered in this fun yellow and white bird print fabric.

And here’s the chair in our family room. I think it looks amazing. We love sitting in the chair because it feels like soft leather.

Here is a collage of this project from start to finish. So cool!

Thanks for checking out my post. Happy Decorating and Happy Spring!

Nicole

Vintage dictionary + wire = Wreaths & more

My House/My Finds-Decorate

I was contacted by Hometalk (an on-line site dedicated to everything home), about writing a how-to post about holiday decorating.

I decided to share how-to make paper wreaths and more. To see the complete post, copy and paste the following into your browser: http://www.hometalk.com/6119762/vintage-dictionary-wire-holiday-wreaths-and-more

Thanks and Happy Decorating!

The Landing-A Decorating Opportunity

My House/My Finds-Decorate

The stair “landing” is not a place most people think about decorating. It’s usually a small space that’s mostly used as a pass-thru. But I decided to turn my boring landing into a stylish space!

Landing “Before”

I did not want to spend any money on this project, so I “shopped” my house” and found the following:

A bookcase with lots of cubbies! It’s really narrow-perfect for a tight space.

A french style rooster lamp (made by my father in law)

An old window (from a neighbors trash)

A chippy yellow vintage chair (curbside find)

And, an assortment of colorful books, pottery, pillows & a decorative throw. I combined these items to create…..

My Stylish Landing…………..

When decorating any space, I try to always include my “design trinity” for a well balance space. 1) lighting for ambiance; 2) textiles for softness and 3) artwork for sophistication!

Happy Decorating!