Sewing Room

It had been a while since I'd painted a room, so I decided to tackle my sewing room.  I discovered this tranquil blue/grey/green color (Zen by Behr) and immediately fell in love.  I usually gravitate toward warmer tones, but there was something so soothing about this color.  I need all the soothing vibes I can get when I sew, too!


I bought the furniture soon after we moved in.  The desk and shelving unit are part of the EXPEDIT series from Ikea.  The black bins and chair are from Ikea as well (although I used the Ikea slipcover as a pattern to sew my own to match the window treatments).  I store all my sewing supplies and keep my fabric neatly stashed in the bins.  The small drop leaf table came from Target, and is the perfect size and height to use as a cutting table.


I love to sew and create things, but I almost always need a reminder to remain calm during a project.


Next to the sewing table, is my quilt planning wall.  The flannel fabric stretched over lightweight insulation panels is just nailed into the wall in a few places.  Quilt squares stick easily to the flannel and allow for convenient moving and planning of my quilting projects.


I've been wanting to try my hand at sewing window treatments, and decided this was the perfect room to give it a try.  I found the pattern and material at Hobby Lobby, and I'm really happy with the fun pattern and pops of color.


And the last addition to the room was this trunk I stole brought home from my Grandmother's farmhouse.  (It also happens to be full of beautiful antique quilts.)  My mom painted it for my grandparent's anniversary gift over 35 years ago.

Sydney's Bedroom

Sydney's bedroom is complete!  She opened her quilt Christmas morning and napped under it that afternoon!


Her room was definitely a labor of love.  Not only did I sew her quilt, but I painted and distressed her furniture as well.  I brought the bed home from my Grandmother's attic- it's a family heirloom that my dad slept on as a kid.  If family lore is correct, my ancestors from Germany brought this bed with them when they sailed to America in the 1860s! The miniature roll top desk was also an attic treasure, and had belonged to my aunt in the 1950s.  The bedside table is also an antique that I remember from my house growing up.  All three pieces were different wood tones and all needed some TLC.  They got a good sanding and 2 coats of paint before they were distressed and sealed with a polyurethane top coat.  I found the cute bird lamp at Kirkland's.



The dresser was also painted to match the other furniture, but I ran out of energy (and paint) so the bookshelf is from Target!  I sewed a slipcover for the chair so it would match the room and added glass knobs to the dresser.

I love how everything turned out, but I hope she realizes she is NEVER, EVER allowed to redecorate her room!

Pinterest Links:
-  Name sign above bed: http://www.shanty-2-chic.com/2011/11/letter-photo-art-for-christmas.html#comment-28729
-  How to recover kid's foam chair:  http://www.honeybeevintage.com/2010/10/foam-chair-slipcover.html

Paint color:  Behr Hawaiian Shell

Master Bedroom, Stage 1

For Christmas, we treated ourselves to a bedroom upgrade.  I ordered new bedding and we painted the walls dark greenish-brown color.  There is still so much to do for this room, but this is a step in the right direction.  We will eventually furnish the seating area by the windows, but the kids  currently enjoy using this space as their dance floor.  Maybe my next sewing project will be drapes...

New Paint:  Behr Butternut Wood in flat enamel
New Bedding: Pottery Barn Sienna Paisley  http://www.potterybarn.com/products/sienna-paisley-duvet-cover-shams/  

Sydney's Quilt

Sydney's quilt is finally done, and that means her room is one step closer to being finished as well!  

The quilt was nearly a year in the making...I ordered the fabric and pattern in January!

The fabric is Urban Cowgirl by Urban Chiks for Moda Fabrics.  It's inspired by vintage western shirts, and I thought it would go great with the antique distressed furniture.

The pattern I used was Tumbling Nine Patch by Sweet Jane's Quilting and Design.


I finished this little bird appliqué pillow yesterday.  I was inspired to do the birds after buying some pictures to hang in her room.  (I can't wait to finish the whole room so I can show off my finds...I'm so happy with how everything is coming together!)

P is for Purple Powder Room

So, let me start this post by saying that stenciling is a pain in the butt.  I think it looks gorgeous and I love it, but it will be a long, long time before I stencil another wall.  I stenciled the powder room in the last house, but that was before kids and I don't remember it being this time consuming.  I guess I had 17 hours to waste before kids (Yes, I logged 17 hours on the stenciling alone).  I should quit whining, because the room is just how I envisioned it and that's all that matters.

When I decided to paint the powder room, I knew I wanted a bold color.  I think you can get away with being bold in a powder room.  I was leaning towards a gray-almost black until I saw this deep plum color.  I used Sherwin Williams paint, and this color is Expressive Plum.  The stencil color is called Jogging Path, with silver acrylic paint layered on top.




(Right before I started prepping to paint, I remembered to take a 'before' shot.  It's not great, and I somehow managed to get a child and myself in the shot!  Oh well, it just makes the 'after' shot look that much better!)

A Sneak Peek at Sydney's Room

Sydney's room is not complete, mainly because she's still sleeping in her crib which takes up a large corner of the room. I have finished painting all the furniture and couldn't resist posting a sneak peek!

The Pool

The pool was technically finished February 26, but I didn't want to post pictures until the landscaping was in place. It is now not only finished, but it's officially in use as well. 

Here is the BEFORE shot. This big backyard was just begging for a pool, so who were we to argue?!

The fun begins...The digging started January 27, 2012.


No turning back now...The hole looked REALLY big.


The next step was rebar and plumbing...



They did the gunite January 31, 2012.  This was a really interesting process to watch, and the pool was finally starting to look like a pool.


By February 9, the gunite had cured, flagstone coping was in place and the patio was formed.  Oh, and we'd had about a week of rain...


After many more days of rain delays, it was finally time for the plaster.  We chose to go with a darker blue Quartzscape and couldn't be happier.  This was another fun day to watch, as this was also blown in with hoses, then smoothed in place, like the gunite.


While the plaster cured, they pored the pea gravel decking around the pool.  All done (minus some much-needed landscaping) on February 26, 2012.


And here are some pictures I took today.  We added beds and lots of palm trees.  Our favorite palm varieties are the Canary Palms, and Robelini Palms.  We also added a couple lounge chairs and new umbrellas to the patio area.


Here is a shot of the equipment area.  We added a second gate for security.  The rocks around the equipment have been great, but the BEST addition has been the sidewalk that runs from patio to the driveway. There are so many great things about the pool so it's almost silly that the sidewalk is one of our favorite things (but it is!).


This is the view coming through the gate into the yard.


And the view from the lounge area.