free storage....always a good thing......

do you remember this piece of trash?.....literally, i pulled it out of someone's trash pile....

it was really rough, inside and out,  but i loved the curves and the sturdiness 

that comes with an older piece.

the edges were pretty chewed up but i knew a little sand paper would work wonders...

I used annie sloan paint in paris grey for the piece.  i figured it would be a neutral shelving unit and any color of fabric that was placed in there would show off as pretty.  

because we all need pretty in our lives, don't we?

 i love that all of my vintage sheets now have a beautiful home....

  to make it even prettier, i painted the shelves in a pretty turquoise. 

 i still plan on getting a piece of beadboard for the back which i will paint the same turquoise. right now i have a piece of wood covered in blanket fabric that i use for photography.  it's a perfect little niche to store that behind the dresser and it works for the backing right now.   

the shelves had to be cut in half though, because there was cardboard there before which was pliable.  the backer board that i replaced the shelves with was more rigid and the only way i would have been able to get them into their spot would have been to cut and remove the post in the back.

once the fabric is on the shelves, you can't tell that it isn't one piece.  

sometimes you just need to improvise to make your design plan work.

 the finish was distressed since it was so rough to begin with.  now it looks like the flaws are on purpose.....

crappy old dresser....0 dollars

beautiful storage for pretty fabric....priceless....

a curvy beauty.....

i can't believe that this is my first post for 2012....someone has not been sorting out her priorities....

ahem,.....

i have had my hand in about 5 different projects at once.

i rock at the multi-tasking....

i have been redoing this dresser 

and want to use it to store my stash of vintage sheets and 

finished quilts. 

i picked this out of someone's trash last spring.  it was in pretty bad shape and all of the drawers were destroyed.  but the frame is in good shape.  the shelves (drawer bottom bases) in there are just made of cardboard so i plan on replacing them with mdf.  the inside is going to be painted creamy white and the outside with annie sloan paris grey.  i have removed the back of the piece and will replace that with beadboard.  it is in progress as we speak....

this lovely table.... 

a cute little duncan phyfe

is getting a makeover.

it  has cool brass caps for the feet that i thought were missing.

but one of them was still attached and two others (i have located a replacement for the fourth one online) were in a bag taped to these 

cool chairs that came with the table....4 of them....

they are very similar to three other chairs that i had found at the goodwill back in the summer

for $5.00 each...

here is the back story on the table and chairs...

last summer i redid a lot of furniture for my friend lisa.  she has since moved to minnesota

(i miss you girlfriend)

but her parents still live here.  she called me last week to tell me that her mom, penny,  had a table & chair set for me.  i thought that penny wanted me to make over the table for her but she had actually rescued the set from her brother who was going to burn it.  literally.  burn it in a fire pit.

she snatched it from him and delivered it to my house a few days ago...

for me to keep.  for free....free. 

thank you penny and walt... 

after she left i started inspecting it. 

the top is in pretty bad shape

 but it is really nice mahogany 

and all of the hardware is intact.  the sides raise and lower very easily.  

 and the legs and base are in really good and sturdy condition.

and it is hea-vy!!!

 i wondered if there was a leaf that went with it but penny said that her brother couldn't find it.  

but guess what????   

 a self-storing leaf......

(insert a long, high-pitched squeal here)

 obviously this leaf didn't get much use.  maybe no-one knew that it was there.  

 this little beauty is going to replace my current table and chairs in the kitchen.  it is a little less long and wide than my current set is and will fit better.  i think i'm going to refinish the top and paint the bottom.

the gouges and scratches on the top are pretty deep, so i'll see how that goes....

i'm really excited about it. 

the other project i am currently working on started out like this...

 and will be revealed in a few days....

stay tuned!!

handmade christmas gifts.....

i thought that i would share a few gifts that i made for christmas this year.  now that the gifts have been given, i can post pictures of them here....

the girls each got a quilt this year

scarlett's

and tessa's.

both were strip quilts made with my ever growing stash of vintage sheets.

the girls share a bedroom but are getting separate rooms soon.  scarlett's is going to be pink and gray with   

this bedding with comforter, shams, sheet set and dust ruffle, that i scored at target for $7.59 for the entire set.....yes, $7.59.  it was an online purchase that was returned to the store and never sold.  it retails for $59.99 and is still available...

score!!

tessa's room is going to be painted lilac so she got this bedding.  it came with a sheet set, sham and dust ruffle and i got it at goodwill, brand new and in the package for $30.00.  not quite the same bargain as scarlett's but still a great deal....

i was totally excited when i found a vintage pillowcase that (sort of) matched and was used when i made her quilt.  

she also got a little chair that i got from goodwill and refurbished for her new room.  

the veneer on the harp was broken so i used filler on it....

 and recovered the seat in another vintage pillowcase that i also used for her quilt....

  she loved it....

the girls also each got these doll beds

which i neglected to take pictures of with the bedding that i made for each one.  

my parents got this.... 

 i forgot to take a picture before i started painting it, but it was copper metal with dark wood ugliness....

 yukka.....

my parents have a beautiful wooded backyard with some very whimsical garden art. 

this screamed bird feeder to me.....

 i collected teacups and saucers from thrift stores and 

don glued them on for me.  

my mom loved it.....but my dad didn't know what to think and it rendered him speechless while he tried to figure it out....

 i'm still hoping that it will grow on him....   :)

i made a few other gifts but i was so busy trying to finish them up that i didn't take pictures of them...

but they were cool.  i will try and get pics and post them soon...

a bit of vintage....

Yes, i am still here.....and i am sorry i haven't posted for so long.  the truth is, i just haven't been motivated lately.  i don't know if it is the impending christmas season, the change from fall to winter, all of the photoshoots i have been doing lately or a combination of all of these.  probably the latter. 

 i am going to make it a priority to post regularly, though.  if only to challenge myself....

so.  one of the things that has been taking some of my blog time inspiration??  i have been collecting vintage sheets.  that darn pinterest has inspired me once again.....

i tried my hand at quilt making.....

a huge undertaking for someone like me. 

let me start by saying that i am no seamstress.  to be honest, i don't even like to sew and i suck at it. it reminds me of 8th grade home ec class when i had to sew culottes (yes, culottes) from a pattern.  i brought them home the day before they were due and they were a hot mess....my mom, bless her heart, and i spent the entire night redoing them and i ended up with an A on the project. (thanks mom)!  i have had an aversion to such detailed sewing since....

  but i have to admit, this was fun.  and it was easy....

 the goodwill and salvation army have been a treasure trove vintage sheets and pillowcases.

i know, it sounds gross and disgusting and i thought so too until i started seeing these beauties all over pinterest.  

 there was just something about the soft colors, the well worn and faded textures

 and to be sure, the nostalgia associated with seeing a sheet that i had as a child.  see the turquoise flower and stripe (top right) below?  i had sheets just like that when i was a teenager...

now, the thought of cutting and piecing little squares daunted me but i found instructions for a strip quilt.

sewing the fabric, batting and back all at the same time?  in long strips instead of little squares?  

sign me up!!...

it literally took me about 5 hours to complete.  most of that time was spent deciding which sheets to use and cutting the strips.  the actual quilting consisted of sewing straight lines and some curvy ones to hide my mistakes on the back just for interest.  

it is just a lap quilt and is 50 x 72.  i used twin and double sheets as well as a few pillowcases for it...some of the strips are actually the decorative tops of flat sheets,

a lot of them are trimmed in lace or other fabrics and added color and textural interest.  you can sort of see the lace trim above and below.  the pink strip was also a sheet top.....

  the backing is a full sized sheet... the salvation army had the top and bottom sheet as a set for $6.99 which was way more than i would spend but it was half off that day.  where can you buy probably 7 or more yards of fabric for $3.50?   the batting for this quilt was $14.99 for 72 x 90 which was on clearance at hobby lobby.  the vintage sheets (i used 5) and pillowcases (i used 3)  ranged in price from .99 for a set of pillowcases to between .75 and $4.00 for the sheets.  i probably used about 1/4 of each sheet that i used and just the folded edges of the pillowcases, so my best estimate is under $20 for the quilt.
it is a nice lightweight quilt, perfect for snuggling up under in the winter and light enough to use in the summer air conditioning...
i have tons more vintage sheets

and i think they will make beautiful quilts.....