What's on My Table: Tulip Edition

I thought it might be fun 

to occasionally share with you 

what is gracing the top of my coffee table.

It's a spot I enjoy changing out often. 

If I need a quick pick-me-up that's one of 

the first places I'll decorate. 

Yet for many, coffee table accessorizing is a chore. 

Hopefully my quick and easy changes

 will inspire you.

I started with a pot of freshly planted tulips

that I just dug up out of the ground so I could enjoy their beauty indoors. They were a bit top heavy

and even though I tried my best to tie them upright 

they insisted on flopping over.

 I actually preferred their floppy, more relaxed  appearance so I just added in a little nest 

to balance things and hide the dirt.

Then I finished things off with a, 

thrift store acquired, silver leaf and branch.

It was quick, easy, and cost next-to-nothing.  

 I think it shouts, "Springtime is Here!" 

Not a Stick

My oldest granddaughter is in kindergarten. Every year her charter school hosts a fundraiser auction with art projects from each class. This year everyone was asked to base the project on a children's book. My sweet daughter-in-law volunteered to head-up the projects for the kindergarten classes.  For one class she choose the book, Not a Stick.

She had each of the children paint a paint stir-stick and then she brought me the colorful sticks.

I glued the sticks on a large piece of MDF, 

then added legs and some trim. The sticks became a beautiful table 

that can be used as an end table 

or a spot for children to sit. 

It was a fun project for both me and the children---and 

it sold for a great price too!   

 

 

Trophy Love Two

When I saw this metal urn at the thrift store it reminded me of 

a huge loving cup trophy. 

 

When I got it home I began to 

strip off the layers of paint. 

Unfortunately those layers were hiding rivets and seams and different tones of metal.

 To unify the piece I rubbed on a coat of Rub n'Buff. Then I gave it a little age with a dark glaze. I think it looks great! 

It's almost like a real vintage loving cup trophy 

but for a fraction of the price.

Stalking a Trough

One day at the thrift store I noticed an item in another shopper's cart. It was a lovely, perfectly aged, long, skinny trough. I was in love, yet sad that I had missed such a wonderful piece. Because it was love at first sight for me, I had a hard time letting it out of my sight. So I very nonchalantly stalked the pretty little trough. Please tell me that I'm not the only one who stalks other thrift store shoppers hoping that they'll put back a coveted item! Actually I already know that I must not be because one thrifter told me that she had a woman come up to her after she purchased an item and offered her more than 10 times what she had just paid. Fortunately I did not have to go to such extremes for this trough. The other shopper put it back on the shelf and walked away. That's when I swooped in to make that little trough mine and we have lived happily together ever since! It's been such a fun piece for decorating for summer and fall.

A Quick Mix

I quickly threw together this

little vignette in the landing of our stairwell.I think it's the perfect mix---
masculine and feminine elements,
faux and real nature.It's fun when things come together
without a lot of thought or time!

***Enter to win a Cutting Edge Stencil here***

A Bedroom Retreat

Son #3 just returned home after two years of serving our church in New Zealand. As a welcome home I gave his small bedroom a makeover using furniture from our storage and the thrift store. Even the prop hanging above the closet was a thrift store find.We've owned the lawyer bookshelves for years. They've been used in the family rooms of two of our homes.We pulled the vintage chest of drawers out of the garage. They were used by my husband years ago when my style was a bit more country. A change of hardware gave them a nice update.My favorite piece is the antique bed, a thrift store find. The details are stunning! It likely was originally a tall four post bed; what remained of the posts had been attacked with a saw and were rough and uneven. My husband cut, filled, and sanded, then I stained the ends and now they look original.
Although the room is small (about 10'x10') I love the way the large furniture pieces make the room warm and cozy.I'm pretty pleased with how the budget bedroom makeover came together and so is my son.

The Evolution of a Wall and a Giveaway

Our dining room
is really more of a nook off of our living room. The living room has vaulted ceilings. However the dining area's ceiling is the traditional 8 feet
making it seem like a design afterthought.
Years ago in an attempt to give the dining area
a little more character I gave the far wall a
special color and plaster treatment.
I loved that it drew one's eye to the little nook,
even when viewed from outside our home.I adored the dark green aged wall, but last year I was
ready for a change.
I began by painting the wall a very dark blackish-green
with the idea that I would put a light gray glaze on top to
give it the look of a well used chalkboard (without the mess of chalk). It turned out to be not as pretty in real life
as it was in my mind.
I was so disappointed that I didn't even photo it.

Next I found a geometric shape that I liked
so I enlarged, repeated, and painted it on the wall. Again the design didn't thrill me.

I then asked myself what it was that really bothered me about the previous design attempts. I discovered the problem was that I really was tired of a dark painted wall.
My next step was to paint the wall the same color as the other walls.
This gave the area the fresh, new look I'd been wanting. But I still wanted the wall to stand out so I considered my options. I thought I would try my hand at the new type of wall stencil. I have stenciled walls before, years and years ago, when stencils were small and tedious to use. But the new stencil designs are so much better! I ordered the Marrakech Trellis Allover Stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils. Let me tell you, this isn't anything like stenciling in the 90's! The stencil is huge and easy to use. Instead of a little stencil brush to paint on the design you use a foam roller. And probably my favorite thing (because I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist) is the little level that you can attach to the stencil to keep it lined up perfectly. If you're a novice at stenciling you can watch the how-to videos on the Cutting Edge site. I reviewed the video just to regain my confidence in stenciling.

With a lot of patience, trial and error,
and the use of the beautiful Marrakech stencil design
our dining wall now has that
"wow factor" I've been searching for.If you're searching for a wow factor for your home
Cutting Edge Stencils is giving away
a choice of stencil (up to a $50 value)
to one very fortunate Joys of Home reader.
Just go to their site, pick your favorite stencil and come back here and leave a comment. For additional entries Like them on Facebook, &/or Pin them on Pinterest, &/or follow them on Twitter---for a total of four entries!

The giveaway will be open until midnight Leap Day, February 29th 2012. Best of Luck to all of you!!!
***GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED***

A Shelf Story

You've seen the shelves in our family room before but I don't think that I've told you their story. Several years ago I dragged my husband into a quaint little consignment shop. While I was there enjoying all of the furniture and home accessories, my hubby stood enamored with metal items piled into an old wooden crate. He was so excited with the contents, asking if I knew what they were. I was clueless as to their use so he explained to me and the shop owner that the vintage metal pieces all fit together into a shelving system. Once I understood what that old crate held I was enamored too! After a little dickering on the price we walked out of the store as happy, chippy shelf bracket owners.Sometimes it really pays to drag a husband into a quaint little shop!

Lamps, Shades, and Hot Glue Tips

When I changed the color of the walls in our family room
from red to brown it caused
a do-over domino effect
on several other items in the room.All of the lamp bases in this room were black
but now they lacked pizazz against the brown.
I replaced a few lamps using ones I had
in other areas of our home. And then I gave the two large lamps behind the sofa
a pretty little make-over.

(And the door sofa table got a fresh coat of paint too!)First I spray painted the bases an aged brass color,
then rubbed on a glaze to bring out the details.Then I changed out the shades with ones
I found at the thrift store.
The drum shades originally had a pom-pom accessory
from it's previous owner. I pulled off the trim,
unfortunately some of the hot glue remained. After a quick Google search I discovered that
rubbing alcohol helps remove old hot glue. And it really does work magic! (There was only a very slight remnant of glue left in spots
where the glue was really hot when applied)

I finished off the shades a new,
more sophisticated trim. Now I'm in love with my lamps once again!