Dining Room Reveal

This room has been naked since we moved in and it was starting to wear on me.  I like things done, finished and homey so this was a bit of a depressing room to see everyday.  When we got back from our long vacation I couldn't take it anymore and started to put stuff up and accessorize and this is what it looks like now.

Thrifted mirrors and frames painted white with green accents fill up the large wall behind the dining table (The print is a Joann's clearance bin find) and our DIY oversized chalkboard fills the wall opposite the french doors.  These doors let in a ton of light, especially around dinner time and it gets HOT!  This curtains are actually tapestry throws I found at Target in the college dorm section on clearance years ago and have traveled with us since.  Hubby mounted the hardware so the drapes would just skim the floor, I am not patient enough nor do I have the math skills to do that so thankfully hubby's strengths are my weaknesses.

Our table was found on Craigslist and after bringing it home and doing a little research we found that it is actually a really expensive table someone put a formica top on.  The plan is to have an oval marble (loveeeeee carrara marble) made for the top so we can fit more that 4 people around it.  The gray chairs we're found at Goodwill in a horrible oak-ish finish (I say oak-ish because it wasn't oak and it wasn't paint but it was bad) and I used some paint we had on had to refinish them (the gray is the color of hubby's office/wildlife preserve).  The wood chairs were found at a hotel liquidation center, recovered in painters drop cloth and trimmed out in black ribbon.

and here's a little peak at my kitchen staff....

I would love to have a settee or bench go along the back wall to add additional seating but I don't know how practical that is with small children...here are some inspirations...any thoughts?

Victoria Neale Interiors

lonny mag

Little Green Notebook

 Have a blessed Sunday!

ashley

Bridal Shower

Hey guys! We are back home, finally!  We've been away for nearly a month seeing family in West Texas and going lots and lots of weddings.  Just about everyone we know is getting married this summer so it felt like a high school reunion each weekend.  But anyways, one of my close friends got married this past weekend and I decided to throw an impromptu bridal/bachelorette party.  

drink station

 

 pudding cups

ruffled streamers via Dana Made It

before all the food arrived, I didn't make them starve :)

On the menu:

Orzo with chicken and corn

Pasta Salad

Chips, Salsa and Queso

Pudding Cups

Margaritas

Sweet Tea

PS. here's the wedding/housewarming gift the couple recieved from us:

ashley

ps. what do you think of the new look on my blog???

Chair Re-Makeover

While we were living in our previous Apartments/Retirement Home we figured out that whenever someone "moved out" their belongings no one wanted usually ended up in the dumpster. That's where this chair came from.  Hubby thought I was joking when he saw the tired goldish, stained and flattened seat and continued on with our walk.  Nope, this sucker had potential and it was free so even if it couldn't be helped it could go right back in the trash and I wouldn't feel bad about wasting money.  I added some foam to the seat and covered it in painter's drop cloth I had in my craft stash.  That was 6 months ago.  This morning I decided it was a little plain jane and recovered the seat in a ikat fabric from the clearance bin and added a coat of purple gloss spray paint.  Now she's got some personality!

before

after

ps. hubby if you're reading this I NEED A REAL CAMERA :)

ashley

Back to real life :(

We just spent the week in Sandestin, Fl.  Beautiful white sand beaches, amazing weather and no med school!  We spent the week lounging in our bathing suits going between the beach and the outlet mall across the street.  Now it's back to real life and a trip back to Texas in a few days for wedding season.  But my minds already on next years trip!  Have a great week, sorry DIY projects have been slow and will probably continue to be throughout the summer but stick with me.

ashley

Busted Up Mirror Transformation

So I improved since last market....I sold one thing; but it was out of free will, not because of a potty accident.
Anyways, it got a little windy at market last night and a pair of mirrors I had refinished fell over and one cracked :(  but I didn't want to throw it away because it had a really neat frame.

(the other mirror that survived the crash with only a few bumps and bruises)

Fast forward to this morning playing in baby girls' room.  I've wanted to do a collection of art in their but didn't know where to start...brain storm! (yes, that is an Imagination Movers reference, lame...yes)  I have a really neat cracked mirror and a really cute fat quarter.... Voila!

You could do this with any cracked mirror or really ugly picture just be careful removing the mirror.  I used duck tape to fasten the fabric to the cardboard backing of the frame that way I can always change it out.

I found the gray frame (previously speckled gold) at Goodwill awhile back and layered it with a DIY glittered handprint.  Looking at that little hand everyday makes me smile especially since I know the mischief it gets into.

(very fake cry from Ms. Mischief)

Thanks for reading!

ashley

you know your crazy...

A friend came to me on Sunday with an opportunity to put some product in the local monthly market.  Being that I am crazy, I sewed like mad and finished Monday afternoon with piles of burpee cloths, blankets and onsies.  I was a little hesitant to do it though since my first try back in Texas led to complete failure.  COMPLETE.  I sold one thing...and that was only because the ladies kid had peed his pants and I was the only vendor selling children's pants.  True story. But you never succeed unless you try, or so I've been told.  Wish me luck...

ashley

Peanut Butter Ball Cupcakes

These little suckers got us in some trouble... 

I found this recipe awhile back but it looked a little time intensive for me (anything that takes longer than an hour is out in this house) so I bookmarked it and forgot about it.  Then dental school finals started. AKA hell weeks.  Poor hubby doesn't have time to see us much, let alone sleep so I thought these might be a nice "hang in there babe" treat.  They are time intensive, not going to lie but they are freaking delicious and so worth the time.

I used cake mix for the batter instead of handmade to save some time and I didn't wait hours for the centers to freeze because I have a toddler and if she gives me time to do it then it's getting done...FAST.  The icing was the best part for us, not too peanut buttery and not too sweet; just creamy fluffy goodness. We like them cold so all the veggies in the fridge had to make way for cupcakes for a week :)

The only thing was...I lost all but 1 regular size cupcake pan in the move; but I found a ton of minis.  So we had enough mini cupcakes to last us a week.

ashley