Flower Power Toilet Paper Wreath

If you are a Pinterest follower or addict like me, you have no doubt seen the amazing paper art made from toilet paper rolls.  I had a blank space on a wall that needed some color,  so one day I thought....why not make a toilet paper wreath?  There are so many different versions out there, but I decided to go with making a flower wreath.  So here is my version of the TP wreath, and I really love how it turned out.  I have had so many friends who are amazed to find out what it is really made of.

                                                                                  

I wanted this to be a little dainty, so I cut each piece of the roll very thin.  After I finished gluing all the flower pieces, I spray painted half of them brown and the rest gold.  Then glued it together alternating each color.  It fit perfectly in the corner wall.  

While I was at it, I decided to make a small little grouping of flowers for another spot that needed some color.  I painted this group all brown before gluing it together. 

                                                                             

 This is a simple, super easy little project to do to fill in a few blank spots on your walls.  It would also be                         

                      a fun summer project to do with your children when they whine they are bored!!! 

                                                                   Kathy

My Kitchen Vignette

Recently, I shared my washi taped Kitchenaid mixer.  I thought I would share why I needed to add a little something something to that silver mixer.  Here is a vignette from my kitchen.  I love the work of Pamela Gladdings by Certified International.  Below is the opening above my sink.

Quick and Easy Outdoor Pillow

Hi friends!  I want to share with you a super quick and easy way to make an outdoor pillow.  I must give Diane at  in my own style credit for inspiring me with her fabulous way to use plastic grocery bags to stuff a pillow that is going to be used outside!  Thanks Diane for the inspiration!!!!!  What an awesome way to recycle those mounds of plastic bags, and save money at the same time.  If you missed Diane's tutorial on her pillows, you can check out her post here.  The tutorial is great.  
                                                                               

                                                                         
So I'm going to give you the short version with a small twist on the pillow I made using Diane's idea.  As my daughter was cleaning out her closet, this American Eagle bag caught my eye.  First of all, it's one of the colors I am currently painting my Adirondack chairs, and the same color I used on my patio lantern  in an earlier post.   The bag is made of a very heavy canvas, and the perfect pillow size.  That's when the light bulb came on.

First, I cut the handles off, and then I stuffed it with the plastic grocery bags to a fullness I was happy with.

                                                                                 
For the next step, I folded the top down about an inch inside the bag.  Using the hot glue gun, I glued the 2 sides together in small sections at time.   VIOLA!!!  The entire project seriously took only about 15 minutes to complete.  I love it!  I will definitely be on the hunt for more canvas bags.

Here is a little sneak peek of my deck.  It's still a work in progress, and I can't wait to share the finished project with you!  I just finished repainting the wicker chairs yesterday.  I am mixing several shades of blue to brighten it up.  I love how my new pillow looks with the lantern.

                                                                                   
Below is a tiny glimpse of the Adirondack chairs I'm working on.  One coat of paint definitely didn't get the job done. With the temperature hanging near 100 degrees everyday, and the sun beating down I'm only able to work on the deck early in the mornings.  I hope to share this completed deck by the end of the week.  Fingers crossed.  :)

One more glimpse of the layout of the back of my house.  I took this picture the day we were  moving in.  Yes, I actually have 2 decks needing a makeover!!!  The houses in my neighborhood are designed to get the maximum view of the lake on both levels.  I can't wait to show you more.

Just as Diane has inspired me with her wonderful project, I hope I've encouraged you to look around your
                            house and find new life for something that was headed to Goodwill!


                                                                            Kathy


Linking to these awesome parties:   Craftastic Monday  Martha Monday's  You're Gonna Love it  Share it One More Time  Motivating Monday                             
                               

My Entry Table

Today I found another awesome estate sale find.  I was so excited to find a beautiful, extremely heavy mirror, and it matched my entry table to perfection.  I have to admit I really liked my wall arrangement the way it was, but we just couldn't pass up this beauty.  Actually, it was hubby who insisted we had to have it, and I am so glad he did.   Here is a before picture with my previous arrangement (minus a few decor items) of my entry way.

                                                                             
 I did love my Welcome sign and the "M" initial.  The colors all blended together so well.  Here is my entry way after we added that gorgeous mirror.  It definitely gave the entryway  a richness in color that it lacked before.

           

If you look closely in the mirror, you can see where my Welcome and "M" ended up!  They  filled in a blank  spot above my windows across the back of my house.   I will be sharing the living room very soon.               .                                                        

         The colors and details on the mirror are so beautiful.  It also has a beveled edge around the mirror.
  
The very best part about this mirror is that we got it for only $22.00!!!!!  Yep, we were pretty excited about that.  I was just sad that we had saved this estate sale for the last one of the day.  Booohooo!!  They really did have some great pieces of furniture at really great prices, but most  already had the sign you hate to see on something you really like.........SOLD!  At least we scored this great deal.

   

                                                                          Kathy

                             

                                                                                  

Quick and Easy Kitchenaid Makeover

My sweet family knew how I coveted those Kitchenaid Mixers. Especially a red one!!!   So that's what they decided to give me this past Mother's Day!!  The hubby knew I had my heart set on not only a red one, but the Pro 600.  I truly had no idea that's what they were getting me until one day I get a frantic phone call from my hubby asking me if I could live with a very pretty silver one.  He had been all over town (he really is a sweetheart!) looking for the size I wanted in red, when he happened upon an excellent price on a silver one.  There was no way I could say no after he had spent so much time on the search for my great gift!

I was more than thrilled to get my beautiful new silver Kitchenaid!!!  I seriously have  put it to great use already.  The only problem was everything in my kitchen is in the red and gold tones.  It just so happened that earlier that week I received my order from  GroopDealz  for washi tape and some vinyl initials in red!!!  The perfect combination for this quick and easy splash of color.

                                                                                     

It was such a quick way to get me some red on that baby!  I loved it before, but now I love it even more rockin the red!!!!  I must say my hubby did have ulterior motives for giving me this awesome gift........he is enjoying all the goodies being made with it!  :)  Smart man!!!

                               Add a splash of color to your life today!  Thanks for visiting!
                                                   
                                                                           Kathy

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Annie Sloan and Gold Gilding Table Makeover

Today, I am sharing a table that I painted for my daughter's room using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Emile and Duck Egg.  I also added gold gilding to tie in all the colors of her bedspread.  I love, love, love ASCP!!!  It is so easy to use, and the results are amazing!  This is how the cute little table turned out.

                                                                                

                                   Here is the sad  state it was in before getting all "doll"ed up!

                                                                                  

It was definitely in need  of some TLC!  The top was laminate and a real pain to deal with.  Plus that little round groove in the middle was deep, so I filled  in most of it with Elmer's Wood Putty, and that helped so much when I added the gilding.

                          The above is the first coat of ASCP in Emile.  I did give it two coats.

Here it is after adding the Duck Egg.  I love that color!  I want to note that the chalk paint does lighten as it dries.  As you can see in the picture above, it is almost dry except for a few wet spots that are darker.

After applying 2 coats of each color, I then waxed it with the clear wax.  IMPORTANT word of caution.....if you use gilding, be sure you take care of the waxing first.  Yep, I learned my lesson the hard way on a previous project.  The gilding will come off when using the wax.

                                                                                    

Next, I added the gold gilding.  I used Gedeo Gilding Wax in Empire Gold.  It is a bit pricey, but goes on like a breeze, and that tiny bottle goes a long way.  I have completed 3  projects with it, and the bottle is still a little over half full.  So well worth it!

                                                                                

The below picture  shows the color before I applied the AS dark wax.  I loved it this way, but my daughter wanted it darker.  So I very carefully and quickly applied the dark wax working around the gilding.  

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Before adding the dark wax, I stenciled some Duck Egg Blue on the top and sides.  After the dark wax, I randomly added some of the gold gilding to the stencil for a two-tone effect.  It added so much to it.  

                                                                                 

               
                                         I placed the stenciling around each section of the table.

                    We were so lucky to find some knobs that look perfect with the colors at World Market.  

My daughter is loving her "new" table,  and  glad she can now use her purple blanket to actual cover up with                        instead of covering the table with it!  

          Thank you so much for stopping by!  I hope you visit again soon.  I would love to hear from you!!

                                                                         Kathy

Linking up here: Classy Clutter: Spotlight Saturday 
                                     Shades of Amber

Fringed Out Queen Anne Stool

Today, I am going to share my Queen Anne stool makeover.  I shared in an earlier post that I lost my precious 97 year old grandmother in March.  Due to that loss, I gained many of her wonderful treasures.  This is actually the stool that goes with her sewing machine which I am currently using as a table on my upstair's landing.  I'm so sorry that I didn't take a before picture of the stool.  Shame on me!!   I am so bad about that!  I had previously covered the stool seat with material that I purchased from Hobby Lobby, but had not yet painted.

                                                                                 
The above picture is the completed project, but as usual, I always tend to do projects the long way!  Let me walk you through my mistakes so you can avoid them. :)

                    Here is the stool after being painted with Martha Stewart Metallic cast bronze paint.

                                                                                 
                            I love that color, and yes, it is the same color I painted my bar stools!!

Next, I added fringe by using my old faithful glue gun.   I was loving the look the fringe gave the stool, but was not loving the look of the covered seat.  

You can tell from this picture below it needed some extra padding in the worst way!

                                                                               
Screwdriver in hand, I pried out all those staples, and started all over with the seat cushion.  I have been using an old comforter my daughter no longer wanted for some projects in her room. I will share some of those projects soon!   I cut the trim off the comforter and stapled it around the edge of the seat.  It was the perfect size that I needed to fill in around the cushion.  I left the actual seat in the chair while stapling the trim, so the seat would still fit probably on the stool.

Then I added several layers of filling from the comforter.  That old comforter has really come in handy, and at least I'm still getting my money's worth out of it!

           Next, I added some filler from the comforter.  I cut out about 4 squares and placed them on top.

                          After getting the fullness I wanted, once again I stapled the fabric to the seat.

                                                                               

Here is the stool with its second makeover!  I love the way it turned out.  Adding that extra filler made a huge difference in the entire look of the stool.

 Those extra steps were well worth the effort, and I still have a huge piece of the comforter left!  I'm sure I will find something to do with the leftovers.  I can't wait to get started on my next project.  I am going to paint the sewing machine table with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Coco.  I will share that project soon.  Thanks for visiting.  I would love to hear from you!


                                                                             Kathy