Main Floor Redo

I have been slowly updating the living room.  And when I say updating, I should say retro-ing.

Actually, we are kind of working our way through the whole main floor.  We started with the kitchen (which still needs counters and a back splash).

 Jim is working on a light fixture for the dining room that is similar to this.

The buffet between the living room and the dining room got a makeover as well.  I finally found a place for Great Aunt Ruth's needlepoint.  The mirror is made of plastic spoons painted in varying shades of orange.  I love it.  All of this is hung with my new favorite product. I am using 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips for everything!  They work just like the hooks, but are heavy duty velcro type stuff.  Just stick both sides to the back of the picture, peel off the sticker, level and press to the wall.

The owl and orange vase are from Homegoods.  The scale is from Lost & Found. As you will later see, I have moved the teal cloche to a new home.  

I am sure that this display will change with time, but I love it for now.

 My mom got me these adorable owls for my birthday.  I bought the teal cloche at Lost & Found (a great resource for all things kitchy an old.  The plate is from an estate sale. All of this is on the shelf above our TV.

This is my old lamp.  I spray painted the base orange (of course) and took a scissors to the shade.  Jim thought I was nuts, but I love the way it turned out.  He likes it, too!

The shade is made of strips of fabric and pieces of ribbon tied together and woven through the shade.

They were re purposed after using them as chair accents at the girls' Butterfly Birthday Party.

The newest addition is this HUGE lamp.  It was a craigslist find for $10.  

 I decided it needed some sprucing up.  I primed and painted the base and gave it a dark teal update.  I then spray painted the shade white.  It looks good when the light is off, but is spotty when it is on.  I think I will paint it with a roller to try and get a more even coat.  You can see the new drapes in this shot.  They are actually shower curtains from WestElm.  I bought 3 panels and used one to lengthen the other 2.

I will post some full room shots when we are closer to done (and all of our crap is put away).

Wardrobe Revamp

A couple of weeks ago, Jim told me that he disliked a sweater I have been wearing for a couple of  years now.  I wondered why he didn't tell me earlier, but shrugged it off.
I have gotten a little bit tired of my clothing choices lately and decided I needed a change.  I didn't want to spend a lot of money, so I started looking at my closet.  There was the sweater.  Definite wardrobe revamp material.
I started with the sweater, some lace, buttons and RIT dye.

Rit Dye can make a dramatic change with very little $ or effort.  Ok, maybe it takes some effort, but it is way worth it.

 

Here are the sweaters after the teal dye.  I used a large soup pot and did the stove top method.  I am a little afraid of trying my washing machine to do this stuff.  I don't want to revamp my entire wardrobe to teal.

I also did a batch of orange, but that sweater will have to wait.  I did dye some lace at the same time in both orange and teal.

 Here is the finished product.  I think it turned out awesome.  I added the lace to the sides and changed out the buttons for funky antique ones and some new ones made to look old.

When I was done I showed it to Jim.  He still doesn't like it.  But now I don't really care.  I wore it to work today and love it!

First Cheer leading Game

Claire's Halftime Cheer

Dribble It Pass It

Lilly getting introduced

Lilly's Cheer