Mini Table Make Over Progress

{Did I mention...}

That I found a cute little table for $6.00, that was the PERFECT size for that itty-bitty spot under that oh-so-curvy mirror by the back door, at a Memorial Day garage sale?
Well, a little to Cason's dismay... I did
:)

It was a whitewashed and stained, lacquered mess.  So I've been working on it today, trying to get it a bit more "Smith house friendly." ...

Decorating a Large Wall, Pottery Barn Mirror, Bookends turned Corbels, & a Cheerful Space

Remember these guys?  From this post.

The bookends, that I bought for a few bucks at the thrift store,

that turned out a little something like this, after a little white paint and some distressing ...

Well... I told you that they weren't going to stay "bookends" for long

:)

Ooo, and you remember my new "pet" right? ... that I got around Halloween time?  From this post.

Kinda just hangin' out and lonely, over the stairs...

Well... I needed to anchor that big guy somehow ...

so here's how everything came together!

Table Decor Tray Revamp

A few weeks back I picked up a couple of things at my local thrift store.

Surprised? lol

This brown metal tray was one of them.

Funny story.

When I saw this cute tray I immediately picked it up and put it in my cart.... then I wheeled around for a while... took it out... picked it BACK up...

and then took it out again.

lol

I'm trying REALLY hard to use what I already HAVE...and not buy more stuff (more on that later)

... unless I can use it RIGHT away!

And I KNEW I loved this tray... but I just couldn't think where I was going to put it!

Then... as I was standing in the checkout line to get my little frames... a light bulb came on!

On the kitchen table!!!

So I turned my cart around... headed back to get it... and it was GONE!

Noooooooooooooooooooooo! (okay that's dramatic, but I was bummed, to say the least)

So... I dragged my feet and my squeaky cart BACK up to the front of the store...

... when I saw "THE TRAY"

.

.

.

It was in ANOTHER lady's CART!

Oooooo!  No she DI'INT! lol jk.

TOTALLY my fault, right?  How DUMB of me!

Anyway, I watched the lady as she unloaded all her things and payed for her purchases... 

and MY tray! :(

But then... like a blessing from above... 

HER CREDIT CARD DECLINED!

:)

(ps.  I've TOTALLY been there!  It sucks!)

She didn't have any other form of payment and then said to the checkout lady... 

"eh, I didn't NEED anything really, anyway"  and walked out the door.

SWOOP! 

Me: (acting all innocent, like I just saw the tray for the first time) 

"Um... can I buy that tray, if that woman isn't?"

LOL LOL LOL.

I know... a crazy story for a $3.00 tray, right?

The moral of the story is... KEEP EVERYTHING YOU WANT or even MIGHT want... IN YOUR CART, when you are thrifting, RIGHT until you are ready to checkout!

haha!

Here's what she looks like now.

Nothing extremely dramatic, just a little sprucing up.

Some white spray paint and some light distressing.

I think that the layering effect, with the pitcher and the contrast between the black table, just adds that little "pop" :)

Pretty cute for only about $4.00 (with spray paint)

What was I thinking EVER leaving her behind??? lol

Thrifting Advice: Tips and Tricks

So, everyone knows by now that Cason and I LOVE thrifting... and discovering new places that offer awesome products at SUPER cheap prices.

I'm gonna venture to say that I think Cason has become more into it than I have.

 lol...

It's the thrill of the hunt, and the amazing deals that keep you going back for more!

One of the MOST common questions I get asked is...

"I go thrifting and NEVER find anything!  How do you do it?  Where do you go?"

Monogrammed Fabric Thrift Store Frame Revamp

I'm totally thrilled to introduce you to my newest sponsor!

Kimberly from Poppy Seed Fabrics!

You guys are just going to DIE when you see everything she's got in her shop!

Okay so...

I couldn't help myself!  I ordered her "custom fat quarter bundle" for myself.

You get 10 fat quarters of your choice for only $20 bucks! Whoo hoo!

When my package came, it was like Christmas morning. I was SO excited!

I mean look at all this AWESOME fabric goodness!

(((sigh)))

lol.

I knew exactly what I had in mind for my first project, so I got to work!

Hallway/Entryway Before & After

Okay folks... here it is!  finally, right!? jeesh :)

The big picture...  With the entire entryway and hallway, together!

It's so nice to have this area... done presentable! :)

I'm thrilled with how things came together!

Slip Cover for Lampshade Tutorial

After a bit of "lamp shade covering issues"... I've finally gotten down to work and FINISHED my thrift store lamp shade, re-do!

My first issue that I had, before, was that I chose a fabric that had a straight pattern.

 Although I LOVED this fabric,...this made it VERY difficult, with a cone shaped shade, to get the pattern straight.

Drum Shade, would be perfect for this print!

So...off I went to find some fabric that had a pattern that didn't need to necessarily be perfectly lined up.

ANOTHER concern I had, when redoing this shade was...

"What if I want to change it later?  Will I have to RIP apart the shade, to get new fabric over it?"

That sounds like a lot of work.

QUE smart Hubby:  

"Why don't you just make a skirt type cover to just slide OVER it?

Then you can switch it out if you want."

GENIUS!!!!!!!!!  

Why hadn't I SEEN or thought of this before?

oh how i love this creative man :)

So... Here's how I did it.

Chippy Blue Window Project

Here is the cute chip-y blue window I bought at the Salvage yard.

I love this little guy.  He's just the perfect color and size!

No touch-up or work needed! :)

Here's what I did with it.

Thrifty Picture Frame Craft & Other Finds

For our young womans church activity a few nights ago, we made some personalized picture frames for our Mom's for Mother's Day!

I don't think I'm actually going to give this one to my Mom, but we had lots of extra unfinished $1 frames from Michaels, so I jumped in on the fun, and made this perfectly purple picture frame!

So nice to do a crafty "small" project. LOL.

Thrift Store Oval Frame Revamp

Thought you guys might want to see what I started with. :)

Quick Picture Frame Fix

This was just a quick little fixer-upper project, but I thought I'd share anyway.

I was at Michaels the other day and found this cute frame for $7.00... pretty good deal, right?

Shelf Revamp

{Shelf Life}

Remember this shelf I used to have over the stairs? I got it for about $4.00 at a store. They were closing, and it was a display shelf, and I asked if they would sell it to me.

Well... I didn't really have a place for it anymore... and my neighbor, Ronda needed one for her boy bathroom redo, so I let her take it!

(check her bathroom out! It's really neat)

This chick has let me borrow about EVERYTHING under the sun, so I was THRILLED when I finally had something I could let her take!

Here is the shelf before...

Entryway Table Revamp: Painting Furniture

Finally! This little guy is DONE... (till I want to paint it again... is what the hubby says. LOL)

I can guarantee you that I'm not painting this thing, again... for a LOOOONG while! lol.

Not that it was even hard... It was just one of those projects that stare you in the face... that you just can't seem to get motivated enough to finish!

Maybe it was the cold... maybe is was the lack of time... either way... it's done now!

yay!

Thrift Store Towel Hanger Revamp

{Chic .50 Cent Thrift Store Find, Re-do}

So a trip to DI (Deseret Industries) is a weekly event for me. I usually find at least one thing that I can't pass up for a dollar or so.  This last time I was there, I found this SUPER cute, but kinda banged up, door knob, wall hanger thing, for .50 cents....yes, that is what they are called

Anyway, I immediately had an idea, where I wanted to put it! The girls' bathroom!

So I went to work.

BEFORE

Chandelier Revamp and Fabric Cord Cover Tutorial

{$4.00 DI Chandy Find & Cord Cover Tutorial}

Yes! Can you believe it? This baby was only $4 BUCKS at the DI!

Ronda actually scoped it out for me (she's a master DI finder-er) and called me to tell me about it. I darted over there, and snagged it up asap!