Pretty new loo.

I've got an uncanny knack for never finishing stories on this ol blog.

Like the time three months ago I told you we completely tore up my bathroom

Fear not... I haven't been squatting in a bucket throughout the winter. That project actually came to completion and I have a functioning full bathroom again. I just did some other cool stuff, like go to Australia, and forgot to mention the "after" on here!

Shockingly, I have very few "before" photos to show you... this is the only one I could find (what, like you regularly photograph your throne room?)

This was shortly after closing on my house, I picked up a quart of a darker teal and called it a day.

Fast forward a few years.... I love it a LITTLE bit more now!

It just so much more inviting (can a bathroom be inviting? I kinda wanna hang out in there, even if I'm not using the facilities, little weird - eh?)

I still have plans to swap out the mirror for something else, and add more art to the walls, although I have THE hardest time settling on artwork for bathrooms. It's just such a weird place in my mind. Having actual photographs of people in restrooms freaks me out, and I absolutely hate the cliche seashell, ocean, or bath themed imagery. (Yea, that's a paint-by-number panda I scored at a local antique mall... I kind of adore him, the whole color scheme of my bathroom came from him to be honest)

On a whim, my dad and I decided to lay the (bargain!) floor on a diagonal.... best.decision.ever. I LOVE the little quirk it adds.

[ sink: home depot // faucet: overstock // flooring: local outlet (remnant) // rug, stool: TJ Maxx // basket, stool: antique ]

Today I'm Loving... Boho

It's no secret I detest the matchy-matchy. I like variety, zest, eclectic, kapow, va va voom, wait what?

Anyways, lately I'm absolutely drooling over these BoHo-inspired rooms. To the point where it takes great restraint not to toss everything "new" in my house in exchange for something well-worn and full of stories.

Source: bohodecochic.blogspot.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: moodboard.typepad.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: acoustic-garden.tumblr.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: buddhainteriors.tumblr.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: anthropologie.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: hullogertrude.tumblr.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: designsponge.com via Chelsea on Pinterest

Source: bohemianshoebox.tumblr.com via Barbara on Pinterest

Source: urbanoutfitters.com via Samantha on Pinterest

A love affair with ampersands

I think it's a pre-req as a graphic designer to have an odd appreciation for ampersands. There is just some sort of quirky beauty that hides in them.

As I was stuck at work on Christmas Eve, with no real work to do I started sketching ampersands with my gold paint pen.

 One turned into two, and two grew into six, and an idea formulated in my head.

Armed with a half a dozen ampersands I ventured into the craft store to pick up some frames. $27 dollars later I had six 14x14 picture frames and a giddyup in my step. (They were having a REALLY good sale!)

After much debate I decided they should grace the wall of my downstairs bathroom. I had auditioned a bazillion art pieces there, but nothing seemed to fit. And these, these little gilded ampersand beauties... they fit. Perfectly.

Call me a geek all you want, I love them!

(UPDATED: After much adoration, I have decided to offer these in my Etsy shop -- you can now own your very own set of custom gilded ampersands!) 
 

I spent my Sunday stripping. AKA "The Front Door Makeover"

Wanna take a guess at how many times I had to run to the sink on Sunday because I had splattered paint stripper and it was burning holes in my skin? If you answered "a bazillion, wear gloves next time dumbass", then you are correct.

My awesome parents spent nearly all day Sunday at my house helping me strip 40some layers off paint off my front door, sanding it down and painting it again and reinstalling all the hardware.

I would be flat out lying if I said I wasn't head over heels in love with my new teal door! I had been talking about painting it since I bought the house, and even picked out and purchased the paint but just never could find time to tackle that project.

 Before: 

 After:

I still need to add my house numbers to it, but it sure does make me smile every time I catch a glimpse of it!

(If you are curious, the colors is Valspar Woodlawn Valley Haze in exterior satin latex)

 

Brown paper packages tied up with string

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is decorating. Since it's my first year of having a house to decorate (my house was a torn up mess, with a broken furnace at Christmas time last year)

I didn't go all cuckoo crazy with decor, I don't have a whole lot yet... just a tree and some ornaments, really. Nor do I have the extra cash lying around to spend on new stuff. My mom gave me some of her old decor and I DIY'ed a few things too but I'm really happy with how it all looks!

The red frames were just Goodwill cheapies I tore the artwork out of and spraypainted, the origami star garland is from a local store that sells fair trades goods, the white candle stick was a dumpster dive find and the Believe sign I made myself with stencils, glitter and old barnwood!

I think my favorite piece is my Christmas tree though. It looked like such a sad little Charlie Brown tree when I first put it up.

But with a little love, a lotta burlap I am now in LOVE with it!

To make my garland I just roughly cut 2" strips of burlap and knotted the ends together. Super simple and I loved how it turned out!


Ok, I totally lied though. My absolute favorite are the gifts. I wrapped gifts in newspaper and washi tape the past couple years but this year I went with kraft paper and yarn. I used a chalk marker to write the receiver's name. Not to toot my own horn, but I adore the way they look all bundled up under my tree!

(For all who have asked: I got the Kraft paper at Staples, look near their shipping supplies. The ChalkMarker is from Joann's and I just bought 3 different colored skeins of cheapo yarn there too.)

A little bit of fall

Exactly one week from today marks the 1 year anniversary of the buying my house! Yep, November 17th was the day I got the keys!

Except, even though the house was mine, all mine, way back in November I didn't move in til January. So this marks my first true 'holiday season' as a homeowner. 

I'm still easing into all the holiday decorating hoopla, but my mantle has gotten a little bit of a fall touch!

I picked that wooden frame up at Goodwill for like a dollar a few months ago! It had the ugliest 'ship at sea' print in it... but I love the frame itself. And that candle... heaven in a jar (Yankee Candle's Mountain Lodge)

And just for sheer entertainment purposes, here was the mantle this exact time last year before the house was mine. Snazzy, no?!

Clearance artwork revamp

A few weeks ago (ok, if we're being realistic it was probably a few months ago) I found a set of 3 seriously ugly prints on super-clearance at Joann's for like $3.97 each.

As if the prints weren't bad enough, the pewter frames made me gag. Alas, I looked deep - past their $3.97 price tags, baby blue leafs and shiny frames - to see their true potential.

So I took em apart and spray painted the frames all white one weekend.

(yes, I frequently utlize a thorn bush in my backyard as a spraypainting station)

Except I have no patience, and didn't FEEL like sanding them down beforehand, so they came out bumpy & bubbly and yucky and, thinking back, I probably had even whined to Scott about it, because he took pity upon me and started sanding them down so I could try the white paint thing again.(Sigh... sad face)

Thankfully I had been standing over him and was able to halt the sanding process when I realized how great they looked in their distressed stage.

The project pretty much ended there, as I couldn't find any maps either large enough (18"x6") or pretty enough for my tastes.

That is until a few weeks later when we were in Jamaica and I found these two Caribbean souvenir maps that screamed out my name. Good things come to those who wait, right?!

So I spent a few hours cutting up maps, spray adhesive'ing them to my hands to the preexisting foliage shot, replacing the glass, moving the hanging hardware to the opposite side, struggling to hold all 3 on the wall and eyeballing the location (what, I'm stubborn and didn't want help from anyone), hammering nails in, rehammering nails in when I realized how uneven they were, and then finally stepping back to admire my handiwork.

I now have three pretty pieces of artwork hanging on my dining room wall reminding me of my favorite place to escape to! The Caribbean!

Even though this project took me WAY longer than it should have to complete, I'm still really happy with it! It makes me smile everytime I walk through there. And for $12 worth of frames and $14 worth of maps, I can't really beat the price! A grand total of $20some for three framed pieces of art - yes please and thank you!