Counter Stools Update (before and after)

I found these great metal stools on Overstock.com.  They were way less expensive than others that I’ve seen online.  Great simple lines and pretty sturdy to use in place of a step stool too!

My sister liked mine so much she got some of her own but wanted a specific color.  I had mentioned that I’d heard of local auto-body shops painting metal furniture and she called around.

Some places responded “we don’t do that”, but she found one place that said yes and charged her $60 per stool.  So for a total of approximately $100 she got a great, punchy custom stool for her kitchen.  Great idea!

Finding New Life for Old Furniture

In my kitchen I’ve got a small bay window with room for a table and chairs.  The pedestal table there is my very first dining table I got years ago from Meijer (for those of you from the north).  And the chairs were very cheap chairs that I glued back together time and time again.

When I finally threw out the crappy chairs I needed something to sit on and looked to my back porch.  My old patio set had been in storage but when I stuck the chairs in my kitchen I loved the way they looked!

When you’re putting a room together don’t forget to look everywhere else in your house/garage/attic for items to repurpose…

Field Trips: Raleigh & Greensboro

This past weekend I ventured out to a couple places that I enjoyed.  On my way home from visiting my folks I had remembered seeing a billboard for “NC’s largest antique mall”.   Well….you can’t NOT go see what that’s about.

It’s located about 10 miles west of the new Tanger Outlets in Mebane and it’s called Grandaddy’s Antique Mall.  The building itself looked pretty rough, like it used to be an old Kmart or something.  But inside I was pleasantly surprised.  It was big with lots of vendors and decent prices from what I could tell.  Many antique malls that I’ve been to are like, 4 stories high and can at times be very cramped.  This was very spacious and on 1 floor.  The majority of spaces there were for smaller items but on 1 side there was a large space just for furniture.

I found a white soup tureen that I’ve been looking for.  It’s not the ironstone that I wanted but I liked the way it looked.

It also looks like downtown Greensboro has many antique stores although I didn’t go there…road trip part 2??

Another cute place I found was Seaboard Station in Raleigh (here’s their facebook page).  Anchoring the shopping area was the Logan Trading Post which is also a nursery with a gi-normous selection of trees, plants and flowers.

Other stores include the upscale pet store Phydeaux and Studio 123 which has antiques but it’s also a working studio.  They actively work in the store refinishing and painting much of the furniture that they sell.

Didn’t buy anything here but I sooooooo wanted to!

Automotive Design for Your Home

I’m increasingly loving the look of metal furniture.  Especially when mixed with traditional elements in a room.  And many times it’s the least expensive of furniture options.

I recently purchased a pair of industrial-looking metal stools for my kitchen.  They came in a grey finish but I’m considering an interesting idea…taking it to my local automotive painting place to change the color.  I could also spray paint them myself but I think the finished look from an auto-body place would be super cool in a bright green or aqua blue or punchy yellow.

I actually thought that would be easy but I’m finding that most auto-body places in my area are not willing to do that.  But after about a dozen calls I found one.  Most everybody else I called were like “Ummmm, no.  We don’t do that”.  But, really what’s the big deal?  You’d thing they’d be grateful for the business.  The last company I called were like, “I don’t see why not”.  And when I gave them the dimensions of the stool they said they would do it for $150.

I even think if I called around some more I could get a better price…which I would definitely do.

Friend’s Kitchen Renovation Done!

Take a look at the before pics of my friend’s kitchen renovation .  This wasn’t a complete remodel meaning they didn’t change the floorplan at all.  They merely wanted to open up the space as well as update everything.

The wall/counter was basically splitting the room in two making it a tight space to work in.  Even though the bottom cabinets didn’t move the removal of the upper cabinets improve the space incredibly.

The final project in here will be the flooring.  Instead of replacing the wood floor they’re going to save money by refinishing the floor in a darker stain to match the rest of the wood floors.

They added one open cabinet for display which was a nice touch.  Also these cabinets now extend up to the ceiling for added height and storage.

On the other side of the room they’ve gotten rid of the inefficient closet pantry and replaced it with a serving station and pantry cabinet with adjustable shelves…much better!

This kitchen was always the hub of the home here but now it’s a peaceful and enjoyable space as well.

Cost Plus Offers Furniture Bang for Your Buck

Shopping around town and seeing what some of the new spring lines are is always exciting.  I start making my mental wish list and picturing where my (imaginary) treasures will fit in my house.

Cost Plus has some really cool new furniture.  They really seems to be mirroring the trends well.  Although I wonder sometimes…when trendy items can be more commonly found at places like Cost Plus, Target or Pier One will they still be unique?

For me, it doesn’t really matter anyway.  I can really only afford those types of places so if they’re not unique I’d better fake it.

Right now I’m really liking the metal furniture as well as the weathered wood furniture.  I’ve always enjoyed mixing mod with antiques and a little industrial in there too.

The Campaign Desk from Cost Plus has that traditional shape with a weathered finish which makes it so much more comfortable and versatile.  The Kensington is a wonderfully weathered dining table that looks like it could last a lifetime.

If you like those old draftsman stools this Swivel Stool could be used in an office or as a side table.  And I like just about anything on casters so I may have to pick up this industrial-looking Aiden Console.

I really like the idea of having 2 of the consoles next to each other behind my couch if they’ll fit.  It’d be a great place to have baskets, books and lamps.  Then pull them out to place anywhere when I’m entertaining.

Coffee (color) in the Kitchen

 

 My kitchen’s coming along.  I think I’m pretty happy with the paint color. One of the reasons I choose this color is that I already had 1/2 a gallon in my garage from a previous project. But it seems to go well with my fabric I choose for the windows.

I also got some 1×2 lumber to cut up for my window treatments.  I’ll hang those about 5″ down from the ceiling to create a little height in my nook.  I just cut the wood about an inch wider than the width of the window trim & I’ll support them with little “L” brackets.

 

For the fabric, I’m just going to allow for a 1″ seam all the way around + 8 inches for the 2 corner box pleats.  It’ll be pretty simple but I wouldn’t want anything elaborate anyway since I want the focus on the fabric.

Above my sink I’ll make 2 small panels and hang them up with a cafe rod and ring clips.  Since I’m not worried about light right there I’ll only hang it across the bottom 1/2 of the window.

Man, I really need a sewing machine now!

Still Working on My Kitchen

Since I have a (very) limited budget I’ve been taking my time on deciding which fabric I’d like in my kitchen.

My kitchen now looks like I’ve just moved in and I have stuff piled everywhere.  It’s actually kinda liberating, I don’t feel I need to clean as much!

Since I installed my new (secondhand from sister’s house) faucet I felt like my kitchen needed a little freshening up with a better paint color.  I also wanted to finish off the bay window with some kind of fabric treatment & bamboo blinds.

The fabric I decided on is a jacobean pattern called “brissac platinum”.  Since I still love my painted cabinets I wanted to find something that would calm down that bright green a little.  I picked a “mocha” color from the fabric to go on my walls and will be painting this weekend.

My Mom’s going to help me sew up some box-pleated valances and a cafe curtain to go over my sink.

Mid-way pics to come, stay tuned!

Painting My Kitchen…Again

When I moved into my home 2 1/2 years ago the kitchen was the first room I worked on.  I stripped wallpaper, painted the walls and cabinets and added hardware.

Check out my kitchen pics!

My idea was to have the bright green lower cabinets but still have a creamy light color on top with subtle textures.

My sister tells me that it’s a little too subtle and now I’m starting to obsess…thanks.

Now I’m thinking something that will make my white platters stand out a bit more and draw you towards the bay window.

The room tends to have alot of French Country style but I don’t want a “theme” going on.  I was given these great dish towels as gift and really like that rustic gold yellow in them.

Now, I don’t want to paint to whole kitchen but I’m also wary of the “accent wall”.  So I’ll probably start by painting the bay window and the wall with my plates.  Then I’ll live with it & see what else I should do.

So off I go to the paint store for some samples!

Kitchen Remodeling Looking Good

My friend’s kitchen is coming along great.  Almost done.  The counters are in, the custom cabinet doors are done, fridge & dishwasher installed.

Take a look!

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