Redecorating Time!

It's decorating time!

This year I have let my house go so it's frightening!

I feed off of my surroundings for inspiration in writing, creating art and feeling whole...its that important to me.

This rubs off in every area including the meals I cook and my enthusiasm to clean, or lack of as is the case now!

The kind of redo I have in mind is the no budget/ take from the grocery budget kind ~

You all know what I mean!

Here are some of my inspiration pictures from the internet.....

I love the way the chairs and table are grouped together with everything away from the walls.

The mismatched furniture is cozy and comfy.

This is the paint color I want to use in my hallway , does anyone know the name or brand?

In this photo the old architecture and chipped wood is striking!

There is a such a beautiful glow to this room.

Fireplace idea?

Love the cool, soothing feel to this room!

My supplies on hand are ~


1. A $20.00 drop cloth from Walmart which provides lots of yardage to do some slipcovers.

2. A large white, chipped fireplace enclosure that is sitting in the garage

3. A ripped wing chair

4. 5 packages of $4.95 tulle curtains from Ikea.

5. A promise from my husband that he will have someone paint our dark,dirty looking 100 plus year old wood beams and ceiling in the living room.

6. My 25 year old collection of Country Living, Martha Stewart, Victoria Magazine and Home Companion for inspiration.

I have just a few weeks to get this done as I am surprising Frank with a 50th Birthday party Labor Day week-end.

Wish me luck!

                                                          pretty bollster pilow!

Make Your Own " Metal Look House " Number Plaque

I have wanted one of these cast iron house signs for so long but they are quite pricey.  My budget is $10.00 ~ let's try to make one for less than that!

I found an oval wood plaque from Walmart ~ on clearance for .50 cents.

Paint your wooden plaque with 3 coats of black craft paint.
Paint a ring of silver accent color around the outer edge of your wooden plaque.

I didn't have a paint brush so used a Q tip - giving it a bit of a worn look that I like.If you want nice crisp lines ~ go with the brush.

The letters were purchased at Lowe's for under $10.00.

Screw those in and you are done!

(Try not to strip the screws ~ like I did on the one at the top of the seven)

Won't You Rate My Space???

On a whim ~ I uploaded these and other photo's last week on HGTV's Rate My Space.
I was absolutely beside myself the next night when my kitchen was the # 1 viewed Space.
In the grand scheme of things ~ it's not such a big deal but for me ~ it was huge!
Me and decorating have been pals since I can remember............

The very first play activity I remember doing ~ next to digging in the garden and swinging on my swing ~
was rearranging and decorating my basement at age 4 or 5.
I once bite the boy next door on the ankle as he ran up the basement stairs because he didn't want to decorate with me anymore. ( we were both age 5 ~ sorry Gary Lear wherever you are!)
I swear this is true ~ when my Mom found out ~ she gave me a well deserved spanking and gently "placed" me on her bed.
As I fell onto her bed ~ I remember thinking how much I loved the white chenille bedspread!

When I was about 10 ~ a new boy moved in across the street. He LOVED decorating !!!
We spent an entire summer in my basement ~ making rooms out of all Grama's old curtains.
We nailed them to the beams on the ceiling and tucked them into wires.
We created entire "apartments" and then redid the whole thing ~ over and over.

Almost every Fri. night until I was a pre-teen and started going out with friends ~
I shut myself in my bedroom with the radio blasting ~
so Grama wouldn't hear me moving the furniture and see the scratches I occasionally made on the new hardwood floors.
I cleaned, organized and changed my room around a million different ways.
I would then put on my best jammies, climb into bed with a book and fold the top sheet perfectly down ~
I felt like a princess!
The whole room smelled like Pledge ~ which as the years passed ~
also hide the smell of the cigg I would sneak!


My Classic Kitchen With Vintage Touches

Here is the link to my "SPACE" ~

http://www.roomzaar.com:80/rate-my-space/Kitchens/A-Classic-Kitchen-With-Vintage-Touch/detail.esi?oid=6989925