It is Getting Leaf-E Around Here

Terrible title I know but I love it. I haven’t done a whole lot of decorating for fall yet but I did make a wreath for our front door. I started with this tutorial for a leaf covered monogram that I had pinned on Pinterest but used mod podge instead of spray glue.
 
I have a small collection of Letter Es around the house, so for this project, I used one that had gotten broken and glued back together. The grapevine wreath and the lace are leftovers from the wedding I did this spring, so all I needed were the leaves. I got my leaves from Michael’s and they are dried oak leaves that have been dyed. I think the fact that they once hung on a tree shows in the paper-y perfect textures and veins.
 
The letter I used is pretty heavy and much heavier on the left side due to the nature of the letter E. This makes it tilt and spin when hung from the grapevine wreath. I would recommend using a letter that is made of paper mache or something light so that the difference between sides isn’t so much. I would also recommend using a letter that is flat like in the tutorial rather than 3 dimensional and thick like mine. It was difficult getting the leaves to wrap around the edges and cover all the corners sometimes.
 
My front door area can kind of be a tunnel of red. I was afraid fall colors would just make it worse so I tried to use more of the yellow leaves than the red and orange. I think it  balances out alright.

Marble Top

For some reason when I say that, I hear that old fifties lollipop song. Marble top. Marble top! Ooooh marble marble top! Now that this is stuck in your head.

I bought this cute little table for $4 at my favorite little thrift store. It wasn’t priced so I ask and waited to hear “$20”, hoped to hear “$10”, and couldn’t buy it fast enough when I heard “$4”.
The table came with a bad brown paint job but was real wood and marble so it was definitely full of potential.


In January, I strip the paint off just the top using Citristrip.I have never stripped the paint of something but I was pleased with how the Citristrip worked. The only problem is you have to wait 9 months before you can stain. (Not really. I was just looking for an excuse. Did you buy it?)


I stained the top using an opps stain from Sherwin Williams. I like the warm red tones to it. The bottom is painted using Glidden’s “Candlelight” that I got when they were do a mass free paint giveaway. Computer monitors are a tricky thing when looking at paint colors but it turned out to be a soft creamy white. Thanks Glidden!


The hardware was covered in goopy brown paint so I used a combination of sand paper and Brasso to shine them back up. The sand paper left slight scratches but I found that if I increase my grit as high as possible the scratches became more of an aged polished look.

Cost Breakdown: 
Table: $4
Citristrip: $12
Stain: $2? I’m not sure but it was cheap since it was an opps and I used hardly any.
Paint: Free! Thanks Glidden!
Brasso: $3.50
Total: $21.50 but most of that is the large quantity of Citristrip that I used about a third of so you could say $13.50. Let’s say $13.50! Whoop!

I’ve had this table up on Craigslist for a while and I haven't been able to rehome it yet. I thought I was going to get to put it in a booth at a monthly market but now that has fallen through. So for now, it continues to sit in my house, in the way, like it has for almost a year now… I wish I had a better place to sell these things.

Update: It finally SOLD!

Partying here!

Prop Your Feet Up

Sorry I have been absent so long. I promise even though you haven’t heard from me doesn’t mean I am not doing projects.

Sometime this spring, I curbed this lovely ottoman. I don’t usually curb upholstered things but I knew I could easily strip this one down to wood and springs so I picked it up along with several other odds and ends.
Lovely bird isn't it? Every time I saw it, I heard “BBRRAWWWWKKK!”

I started peeling back the nasty, dusty layers and lots of staples.

Which brought me here:

I bought 2 burlap coffee bags for $30 through Restore Interiors’ “Restore Alabama” silent action to help those hit by the tornados this spring. I got my bags from a cute little gal who blogs at reFreshreStyle. She covered a great chair with another sack. Check it out here!
I cut up an old duvet to use as the new padding. I put down probably 7 or 8 layers but which turned out firm but soft and free :) I didn’t take pictures through the recovering steps. It was so simple it would have bored you.

 One thing of note, I cut the edges around the legs to the right length and then just hot glued them down. To give it a more polished look, I added upholstery nails to around the tops of the legs.
 
Cost breakdown:
Ottoman base: free!
Batting/Padding: free!
Burlap Coffee bag: $15 (I only used 1)
Upholstery nails: $3
Total: $18!

I hope to re-home it through a consignment shop here in Dallas and make a little craft supply money. But mostly our house was overflowing with furniture so it will be good to have this tripping hazard gone.

My ottoman is party with these great blogs:

Pin-up #2

I just wanted to share a few pins with you that are on the top of my to do list.
This shower curtain is made with 5 dollar store shower curtains liners. Right now both of our bathrooms have just a single liner because I have a thing about shower curtains and the light they block. But they are definitely lacking style so this ruffled adaptation would be a perfect, prettier look. And cheap!

Source: seekatesew.blogspot.com via Jenni on Pinterest

I’ve been saving wine corks for a while now with nothing in particular in mind. I also acquired a large piece of foam board that was used to pad a recent Craigslist transaction. That means I could make this for free! Yippee! Except I think I don't have nearly that many corks :(…but it is free :)

Source: greenisuniversal-reuse.com via Jenni on Pinterest

My biggest post-wedding project has been helping my mother-in-law with her bedroom (which is slightly complicated by the fact she lives 4 hours away in Houston.) This is the quilt she bought for her new king sized bed.

She has new nightstands that we got her off Craigslist for $50 for the pair but I don’t have a picture. We also got her a vanity, mirror, and chest of drawers for $115. They are art deco waterfall style with their original hardware and I love, love, love them. As rude as it might be to say, DIBS!
They need a little work. I have researched how to shellac and should be able to return them to really good condition. I cleaned the dresser with mineral spirits and was surprised how much better it looked even after just that. Oh, and apparently once you shellac you don’t go back (teehee) Has anyone used shellac before? Any tips? One more picture to drool over. See that gouge on the 3rd drawer? I am fairly confident you wont even see it when I get done.
  
These aren’t pins so why am I showing you them? Because I have a board devoted to her room and because really this project is the top of my list. I hope to make my lovely MIL a large upholstered headboard for her bed. Something along these lines:

Source: crateandbarrel.com via Jenni on Pinterest

I really like the shape of this one. Simple but not quite a plain rectangle. I trying to decide between button tufts (which I think would be too busy with the quilt) or nail head trim (which I think would be too flashy and western with the quilt) or nothing (which I think will be too boring). Any other ideas? I am planning on using drop cloths for it and probably some curtains too. I like the trim and folded over edge of these.

Source: asoftplace.net via Jenni on Pinterest

She wanted the wall behind the bed painted a warm color but again with the quilt, I am scared to make things too busy and orange-y. May be pull out one of the blues or greens of her quilt? It’s not exactly warm tones but her quilt and all of the furniture pieces are.
One more pin for you, I think this antique specimen art would be a nice touch. I think the Graphics Fairy has several and I’d like to frame a few and hang them on either side of the vanity mirror.

Source: graphicsfairy.blogspot.com via Jenni on Pinterest

Alright, that is my plan. Now I just need a little bit of actually making it happen!

Post Wedding Pictures

I am sorry for the long absence. I have been so busy with the wedding I was doing for a friend that I didn’t have time to post as I went or even take pictures most of the time. Now that the wedding is done, I should be back to blogging regularly (or at least semi-regularly :)
I want to do more detailed posts including tips on DIYing a wedding and working with flowers but for now I am just going to share some pictures taken by my hubby. Unfortunately, some aren’t the best since we were running around like crazy people and occasionally had to use the flash and auto settings (gasp!)











This is the groom grinning silly and two of the groomsmen. These also happens to be the only pictures I have of the boutonnieres. And no good pictures of the corsages :( hopefully I can get some from the photographers.

Cute little buckets tied to the ends of the pews.
   I collected over 50 various glass containers for candles at the front of the chapel. It looked so pretty once they were all lit.   I had been planning on reselling them all but now I am kind of attached to my collection. It is silly really…now if only I can convince myself of that.

No good pictures of the bouquets yet either but here I am putting the finishing touches on the lace and heirloom handkerchief that wrapped the bride’s bouquet. You can see one of the bridesmaid’s bouquets behind me.

 

Here is the prayer tree at the reception waiting for people to write prayers and blessings for the couple on ribbon and tie them on. (Complete with crystals stolen borrowed from the chandelier in my dining room. Makes me giggle when I think about it.) And here it is again after a few people had tied on their prayers (and all natural light was gone)

And lastly, here are the centerpieces:

Proofreading this post, I found myself thinking "Wow! It looks like a real wedding."  Umm...It was a real wedding. And better than just looking like one, I think the bride and groom and their families felt like it was too. Can't wait to get more pictures to share and get started on non-wedding projects. Until then, it is good to be back sharing these creative notions.