Lampshade Makeover

What do an iron and a lampshade have in common? One very wonderful makeover project!

I bought this lampshade on clearance at Target with the purpose of giving it a makeover. Though it is cute, it is just not quite cute with the decor of my home so it needed a change. Using my iron, I set it on full steam and steamed around the shade. The steam and heat loosen and lift the glue making it possible to separate the fabric from the pieces needing to be reused.

 Here is the first part of the metal frame. In this particular shade there is a bottom frame as well rather than being all in one piece.

 Now that the shade is separated from the frame, it is time to separate the fabric from the shade.

 Using the steam once again iron over your fabric. Begin to lift the fabric from the shade.

Once you have separated the two, you now have a shade ready to be recovered. Lay out your shade face down on top of your fabric to use as a pattern. Cut around your shade leaving enough (but not too much) fabric to be wrapped around the edges of the frame. 

Then with spray adhesive or fabric glue brush on the glue on the wrong side or your fabric. Once your fabric is in place, use your hot glue gun to glue the top part of your frame in place. Once that is done it is now time to glue your bottom frame. After your frame is in place you will need to glue the edges of your frame. Go around the frame with your hot glue gun and wrap the fabric around the frame. 

Now time to "fun" it up with fringe! Don't let that glue gun cool because you will need it yet again to give your new lamp shade some sassy style. Remember the adorable play kitchen remodel? This stylish lamp coordinates with the bottom part of the ruffle. Oh the ear piercing squeals my girls let out, yes they love their new set up as much as I do.

 P.S. The lamp base was a garage sale find that used to be green. It got a fresh coat of black paint along with a new "hat" and I have to say this very inexpensive makeover turned out swell.


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Play Kitchen Remodel

When my oldest daughter was two she received a wooden play kitchen for Christmas from her grandparents. She was so little she could barely see over the top of the kitchen. Eight years and four more kids later this wooden play kitchen is sill played with and well loved. So well loved that the paint on the burners was chipped and needed refreshing. Why stop there I thought? Why not do a kitchen remodel? That is exactly what I did and boy am I glad I took the time. The adorable factor was kicked way up! It is amazing what a little paint and fabric can do. Now many more fantastic "meals" can be created by my five darling little chefs!

For the knobs I added scrapbook stickers and then sprayed them with Mod Podge sealer.

 I simply hot glued the ruffle onto the kitchen door. I also used my nifty hot glue gun to add the embellishments.  I just love an upgraded kitchen don't you? Simply adorable and perfectly simple to do.

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Mod Podge Peg Hook

 Mod Podge + ribbon = a little something extra!
This peg hook couldn't be easier. Paint the hook the color of your choosing and then Mod Podge on the ribbon you choose. First paint the Mod Podge onto the wood, stick the ribbon on and paint the Mod Podge over the whole peg hook in nice even strokes.
I suggest spraying or painting the peg hook with a sealant if used for wet towels. 

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Desk and Chair Beautified

A while back my nine year old daughter asked me if she could have a desk in her room. Being that we homeschool and she is now at the point of working more independently, I said, "absolutely!" I knew the trick was going to be, finding a desk that was small enough for her room.
When I came across this desk on craigslist  I knew it was the perfect size! My darling husband set out to pick it up for me. Based on the color of the desk I knew I would be refinishing it. Based on the Craiglist add it was supposed to be wood. Well it was laminate. Oh well because it truly is the PERFECT size!
Now I had a new adventure ahead of me... painting laminate! Here is what I learned... even though the primer (Zinsser water based) said no need to sand... I sanded! What I would have done differently... paint a second or thicker coat of the primer before beginning to paint!

The chair is solid wood but did have some scratches. I sanded it a bit, painted it with primer and transformed it into pink perfection!

The desk was missing a drawer handle, but that was fine by me, since I was going to replace them anyway. Here is what I replaced them with.

 Sweet, glass flower knobs! I wanted the knobs to really be the personality of the desk. Especially since I chose to paint it a creamy white (Winter White by Olympic). Having the three different colors really adds personality, don't you think? Not so matchy, matchy.

Next to my daughter's bed is this custom made castle piece. It was left by it's creator in a natural wood finish. I decided to give it a more finished look and painted it the color I used on the chair.

 I now have a very overjoyed nine year old with a darling little desk and perfectly pink chair!
On to the next project... a chair cushion for her chair! The fabric I found is just adorable! Can't wait for you to see it!

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Built In Desk Makeover

I have a built in desk in my family room right off the kitchen. It has been a source of frustration for me for awhile now. It seems to not only be a bit of an eyesore but a clutter catcher as well. Since ripping it out was not an option I had to get creative. What could I do that would take away my extreme dislike for this area is what I began to ask myself. Well... here is what I came up with for now. I do have to say the dislike has disappeared! Amazing what a little paint and some creative touches can do to transform frustration into a feeling of satisfaction.

One of the things I really did not like was the open cubbies. My sweet husband uses this desk as well. Though I don't think he has ever sat at it, he does "store" stuff here. So I knew the cubbies were one area I needed to tackle. The paint color matches the accent wall in my family room as well as the bit of green I have in the kitchen. The cubby curtain matches my kitchen window valance that you can see here, as well as pillows I made for my couch. The top wall above the cabinets I am still deciding if and what I will do up there. 

The memo board... can you keep a secret? It is a plastic bin lid that I turned into a memo board. Remember the plastic bins I made into drawers in my daughter's room? You can see them here. Well the lids were just sitting with out purpose. Purposeless no longer! The fabric matches pillows I made for my family room couch.






For the letter bin I used Word once again to create what I wanted inside the frames.

The toile back ground in the above picture was copied from a wall paper sample I found on the Internet. I just Googled toile and found different options. I then pasted it into Word and added the text I wanted.
For the roosters I also used the Internet and Word. I found the rooster prints I liked, copied them and pasted them. Each rooster is an individual print that I just stacked one on top of the other. The background I used for the roosters is the same one I used for my letter bin.
The frames for the pictures also found themselves made over with paint. gotta love black paint!

For the curtain here is what I did. I measured the fabric to the size I would need. I then pinned the edges and sewed them. To create the ruffle, as I was sewing the top I folded the fabric, reversing the fold each time. For example if I folded to the left the next one I folded to the right and so on. I used a zig zag stitch with silver thread. To attach the curtain I used double stick Velcro.

The folder cover is a background you can choose for a blog. I copied and pasted it into word and then added the words I wanted. The folder is a great solution for me and all my random ideas I come up with. It helps me keep my thoughts of what I would like to do around my home organized. I have each room or area in my house broken down and divided with dividers. Each section has a plastic insert where I can slide magazine clippings in of things that inspire me.

So there we have it! Simple touches that have taken my frustration away! Total cost for me to transform this desk area... my time and that is all.
May I encourage you, if you have an area around your house causing you frustration. Look around and see what you could do to improve upon it with what you already have. 

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A "Word" on Homemade Art

Using the help of the internet and Word I made very inexpensive art work.
I painted frames I already had, used scrapbook paper, printed out the pictures I wanted and viola!







Again backed with scrapbook paper I made a collage.

I painted this frame red, black and blue... it came out rather well for the look I wanted. Considering it used to be an unattractive laminate brown frame.

Word! Don't you just love what you can create using Word? To personalize these prints I added to the one on the left, Cowgirl and my daughter's name. To the one on the right I added my son's name to the top and bottom. To think I could have bought these prints on canvas for over a hundred dollars each! I am quite content with my print out version.

A thrift store frame that used to be natural wood... brown. Getting the idea... yup another print out backed with scrapbook paper.

What used to be an ugly green frame got a coat of black paint and topped with a coordinating ribbon. I love my hot glue gun!

Here is before adding some additional art work.

After. For being on a budget it came out fun!

My horse loving cowgirl is very pleased so that is all that matters! I did not need to spend hundreds of dollars on art work to make her smile and feel loved!

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Basket Case

I love baskets! As a young child of four years, I took dance classes next door to a shop where all they made and sold were baskets. My mom took me in there once and  from that day on, after every class I would beg her to take me back. The smell, the different shapes, colors and textures of  the shelves and shelves of baskets was so fascinating to me. Here I am decades later and baskets are still woven into my heart.
I found these baskets on clearance and knew I would find a use for them. I just had no idea when I bought them how perfectly adorable they could become. Here is the transformation of three very plain and ordinary baskets into cute and purposeful.

  I began by threading the ribbon through the top and bottom of the basket.

I then hot glued the ribbon to the basket. On the bottom I folded the ribbon in and glued it's edge so it would not fray, before gluing it to the basket.

I stenciled a star between the two ribbons. I used a stencil brush, but I am sure a paintbrush would work just fine.

 

There are so many great things you could do. Instead of stenciling the star directly on the basket you could attach a wooden star cutout. Or add a small chalk board. Add a word in wooden letters. Or a monogram. Add a small picture frame. The possibilities are limitless. These baskets have a specific purpose now and I can not wait to put them in their new home. These baskets will be "hanging" out in my baby boy and horse lover daughter's room. I will reveal their special spot in a post to soon to follow.

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