Practise Run

I got this set of drawers at Savers almost a year ago for $14.00.

(Started sanding and painting before I remembered to take the "before" picture. "What's new, Pussycat?" )

 It was meant for the Tween Room before a friend gave me this one.

So, it ended up residing in my garage to the utter delight of my husband.

This week, I decided I could use the drawer space in my closet. I was going to just use it as is...I know, what was I thinking, right?

But then I got the idea of trying out a new look I have seen, and wasn't sure how to accomplish.

The temperatures in Phoenix have been 110 degrees and up, so this is where I'm painting at the moment.

I always grab carpets I find on the curb. They are usually cleaned sufficiently by a good spray with the hose, and are then used for things like this...

After one coat of Zinzer Primer, I applied a coat of green, then some dry brushed yellow, green again, and then spots of dry brushed blue.

 Then the sanding began....

This is the look after sanding and some brown antiquing glaze.

 See the spots of blue showing through?

Just like it had been painted different colors through the years.

 A little bit of yellow showing...

I liked the hardware and kept it just as it was.

All in all I am pleasantly surprised and pleased with the outcome.

What do you think?
Any suggestions on different hardware?

Joining These Parties...as well as the one's on  Parties Page

Saturday Night Special by Funky Junk Interiors

http://christinasadventures2010.blogspot.com/2011/07/20-below-thursday-29.html

http://www.perfectlyimperfectblog.com/2011/07/favorites-a-chair-makeover-and-all-things-furniture-party-6.html

Little Girl's Surprise Two Hour Room Make-over

I want you to meet my (crazy) friend Kim and her family...

 After having two of her own children,  she adopted first a boy, and later a girl, from Ethiopia.At one stage she had three 3 year olds in her home...
Most times her home is a crazy, crazy, circus beehive of activity. Because of this, she has the funniest stories to tell. Go check out her blog here .

As if that was not enough, she had another baby girl last year, who is now nine months old.
Recently, they moved to a bigger house, on a small farm, where the kids each have their own bedroom for the first time .
But, with starting to raise chickens, planting a vegetable garden and starting a fruit orchard, there was not much time (or energy, I am sure) to worry about decorating the kids' rooms.

That's why I decided to do it for her...on a very low budget (between $0.00 and $20.00 per room)
I started with A's room

Isn't she just beautiful with those huge blue eyes? Kim told her that there is surprise waiting for her when she gets back from summer camp. We had two hours to get everything done! That's why we did not paint. Luckily the paint on the walls are still pretty good.

It started with this little shelf, that I told Kim, she could have. It was a hand me down from my other friend, Amey, who got it at Goodwill and prettied it up. Since I was doing a garden theme, I of course had to change it up a little again...
The reason for the garden theme? "A" likes green, and I had a lot of garden related decor items lying around. My daughter's old comforter, (before we did her "Tween Room"), was perfect for this, too.
I got some really cool gift wrap at Hobby Lobby, and decoupaged the backs again. Then I just dry brushed green and yellow all over the white...

                                    And this was the result... 

Sorry I did not get a better picture. Was not even planning on blogging this...
I got two things of vinyl butterflies at The Dollar Tree, and decoupaged the little holder that I had at home with the same gift wrap..

Since she loves butterflies as well as birds, I spray painted the little bird cage that I had white, and hung it from the ceiling. ( She later said this was her favorite part). See the birdcage on the top of the above picure?

 

The curtain was a panel that I got at Goodwill once, and just bought because I liked it. I used it horisontally here, folded over one third, and stuck to the wall with tacks. Then I hung the flowers on the tacks. The flowers, along with the rest of the stuff, was bought at a Michaels sale once...$90.00 worth of stuff, for $2.50. It was all kinds of garden decor, all thrown into a shopping bag and sold for $2.50. At the time I did not know what I was going to do with it, but, dang! , no self respecting thrifter can let a deal like that go by...

O wait, no, the white frames used to belong to me, and the "Faith, Hope, Love" words were from the Dollar Tree too

BEFORE

 AFTER

This little girl was speechless when she got home and saw her room. Her mom said she just stared, and stared. Then she said, "Now I don't have a geek's room anymore. I feel so special."
I can't wait to get going with the other kids' rooms!

After seeing how much "A" appreciated her room, we have decided to do this on a regular basis for a child who is underpriveledged.
So, if you live in the Phoenix area and know of someone who could be made feel special in this way, let me know.

Bye for now!

Linking to..

                                                A Little Knick Knack

Sometimes I think a Straight Jacket will look good on me..

I have recently come to the conclusion that I have a problem. OK, I have a lot of problems, but this is one I have been unaware of .

I have a hard time enjoying myself, or having fun, when I feel unhappy with my looks. I know...this sounds so shallow, but its true, and I wish I could change it.

Because, do you realize that this means that I have only very sporadically been happy for the past...well, actually, 40 plus years?

Sad and pathetic, and I know psychologists everywhere will have a field day with me and this little tid bit of information, but this is not what this post is about.

It is actually about our  vacation to the beach.

 The Beach............(.add in horror movie music here)

Dreaded words for those of us with an on again, off again relationship with the scale.
And to be quite honest, it has been off again for a little too long  now.

I have tried to lose some weight before our vacation, ...enough at least not to feel like a natural disaster on the beach, but alas, I got side-tracked every time.

Eventually, with only a week to go before our vacation, I realized that even if I did not eat a thing until we leave, and exercised Biggest Loser style every day, it would not have a big enough impact to ensure me a happy, confident beach experience.

So I did the only thing any girl in my position could do....I shifted my obsession attention to my hair....

I went to see a new hairdresser in the rich, posh part of town, in the hopes that he could magically transform me into a beach goddess ......even if just from the neck up.

That proved to be no easy task, as his instructions were to trim only, and condition.. I am, after all, trying to grow my hair back out after a previous, similar event. (different destination, same motivation)

Needless to say, I was not satisfied. The image in the mirror did not resemble a beach goddess at all.

This was Wednesday.

Friday I went to a different hairdresser, whose instructions were to trim more in the back, and to color the sides a daring bright red,  "to accentuate the style".

Well, turns out we did not have the same vision. I was thinking beach goddess, and he, apparently was thinking McDonalds' Clown.

Out the window goes my theory that all gay hairdressers are good..

My husband, bless his heart, said I looked pretty. I think he just wanted the madness to stop.

Saturday:   Decided to commit the number one sin in all things hair....... I cut my own bangs.
(Number two is getting a home perm)

I am sure I don't have to tell you how that turned out. Now I not only had orange hair in the front and sides, I also had a weird little cheese puff on my forehead. There is a reason why people with curly hair don't wear short bangs.

Do you think this is bad? Wait! I have not even gotten to the actual part of this crazy story..

Fast forward to Thursday morning: The day of our departure. We planned to leave at noon, as soon as the boy got out of school. Hubby went to the chiropractor one last time to help his back survive the 20 hour drive. That left me alone at home for a couple hours...packed and ready.

NEVER a good situation for a crazy, hair obsessed person to find herself in.

I went to Walmart and got the funky hair color sets that Teens use to dye their hair blue, or purple, or pink.
I contemplated the blue or purple for a while, but to my credit, I chose the fire engine red. It was still just going on the bangs and sides, since the McDonalds red had already faded to dust rag orange.

Of course I did not follow, or read, for that matter, the instructions of how you should carefully protect your skin with Vaseline to avoid staining. Noooo. I just slathered that red stuff on, bare handed.
I did get some of it on my face...
    OK, OK, I got splatters all over my face. So bad that my 10 year old daughter came in and exclaimed, "Mom! It looks as if a vampire threw up on your face!"

To me it looked more like a really bad car accident. I wasn't worried, though. I have done this before. Just wipe it off with some soap and water, maybe rub a little,.... it usually comes right off.

Oh but not this time. Not this stuff. I wiped it with nail polish remover...still just as bright.
Bleach, toilet cleaner, even Goo-gone...nothing . And I`ll have you know that I have used Goo-gone to remove paint before. I still looked like someone who needed to go to the emergency room STAT.

Well, this should work to get the attention away from my thighs...

My hairdresser friend said to try shampoo, and to not worry, it would fade in a day or two. I was afraid that we might get stopped at a roadblock and Hubby might get arrested for beating his wife, so I took a cleaning sponge...the ones with the rough, hard,  green side...and I scrubbed that stuff off.

It worked. But only because I also scrubbed my skin off in the process . I now looked like someone who had been dragged face down on a carpet.

You think I'm lying? Here's proof... and these pictures were taken three days after.

I know, I need a nose job.... and I looked totally drugged. Must still be from all the chemical inhalation.

 I am done. Done doing stupid things with my outward appearance. It's what inside that counts, anyway, right?

Oh! Wait! I just remembered! My totally awesome super duper teeth whitening kit came in the mail yesterday! Maybe all is not lost...

Err....see ya!

Joining:

Funky Junk Enteriors

Tween Room Reveal

The Room has been done for a while now, but I am so busy packing, that I have not had a chance to show it to you.
    In case you missed it.....I am busy packing ...
Off to the beach in two days! LALALALALA!

I know, it doesn't take a whole lot to get me exited. But I can't wait!
The Princess and I are going to take the day tomorrow to celebrate the end of the schoolyear, as well as our homeschooling journey. (For now)
She is going to attend a wonderful charter school that just opened up a branch near us.
 But, more about that in another post. (Or not...)

Now, on to the room...

 The pink paint is Silk Ribbon by Behr Premium Plus.

That is the one with the paint and primer in one. We left the top lime green like in the old room, because I was lazy, and I thought it would look OK.

 The bedding is just from Walmart, and not exactly what I was looking for, but close enough and in my price range.

Do you remember the black Bureau from this post?

 The Eiffel Tower Vinyl is from Hobbie Lobby, and the posters came from my bathroom.

You know what that means, right? I see a bathroom makeover in my future...

This little shelf I've had forever...it has been in almost every room in the house now.

The little purses I've collected a few years back...also from my bathroom.

This stunning little black metal table was one of my very first Goodwill buys, a long, long time ago.

I have never really had a place for it, but now it has found its home. Isn't it pretty? I did not even do anything to it. 

 The opposite wall with hat hooks, and frame transformed into blackboard (from my laundry room)

Notice the empty window. I have sprayed the rod and rings silver, but am waiting for the right thriftstore find in window coverings.

You can read about the corner cabinet here and the vanity here

 The big black hooks with her jewelry on, were earlier Goodwill finds that we "shopped the house" for.

 The mirror was a donation by a friend, and used to look like this...

I sprayed it with ORB and rubbed it with silver.

One more wall to go...

The chicken wire hat, shoes and purse was a gift from a friend, who was cleaning house and getting rid of stuff in her garage. (yeah me!)

 The pink shoe I got at a flea market in South Africa when I visited back home a couple years back.

It was rusted metal, but I sprayed it gloss hot pink.

And lastly, the chandelier....

 It used to look like this....

Sorry about the overload of pictures, but I hope you get the idea.

So, basically the only things I bought especially for the new room, were the pink paint and the bedding.

What do you think?

"Grown up" enough for a wanna be Teen?

   Thanks for looking!

                                                                                                

Joining:

Motivated Monday

Please look at my "Parties" Page to see all the parties I join weekly.