DIY Buffett, WW & A Book Club

As if life isn't busy enough.. I'm adding a couple more projects to my plate. First off, I have this old dresser (yeah, I know what your thinking-stop stalking dressers & turning them into things...), sorry to dissapoint :). This was another "free" find on Craigslist, and coincidentally the guy I bought it from worked at our Paychex Webster Branch. Small world. Originally, I bought it to use as a buffett for our housewarming party. Then, I figured I'd leave it in our dining room to serve the same purpose year-round. I had all the intentions in the world of re-finishing it and having it out for display when people came over. Well, that was mid November. It's now almost January, and it still has the lovely tablecloth on it that I threw on last minute to cover the hideousness.

Well, apparently the last few months have been too busy because as we are taking down our Christmas Decorations and re-organizing the house, it dawns on me, that I still have not completed the project I set out to do. So, out comes the camera (for some before pics) and a quick trip to Home Depot for the paint.

My dining room theme is a sage green/purple color and decorated with a wine and grapes. The dresser currently, is a disgusting shade of white. So basically I was starting with a blank slate. I chose a simple off-white, originally I wanted to go w/ a Sage Green color but decided it may be "too much". My mind may change later though once I finish up my other dining room project.

I took out all of the hardware and threw it out.. see below pic to understand WHY these belonged in the trash.

Then, the madness began. I did sand or prime the dresser beforehand because I personally like the "distressed look". I think it adds character to certain items & it sure goes with our woodland/adirondack theme we've got goin'.

So now for some pics....

Before

After

The only thing missing at the time of the picture were the wooden knobs I purchased. Because I needed 16 matching ones, I had to order them online and they haven't arrived yet. They are the same ones I used on the kitchen island though, just not blue :).

As far as decorating it, I'm in the market for some really fun apothecary jars that I can fill up with random items such as wine corks or whatever I feel looks good!

Another item on my list of things to do, is the book club I've just joined. It's no secret I love to read & I love it when I can get recommendations on things to read. What a fun idea, thanks ladies for starting this up. I am set to purchase the book read for January, which is "I Do, Now What?". This may be suiting, although we haven't tied the knot yet, we have gotten a pretty good look at what "married life" is like. What a joy :). I'll be sure to post on here what my thoughts are on each read.

Also, January marks the start of my weight watchers journey. Yes, it's such a cliche to start a "diet" after the New Year, but let me start by saying this is slightly different folks. For me, it's more of a realistic "starting point". Let's face it, the holidays are a horrible time to start counting points & watching what you eat, so for me, it was my last "splurge" before I head back on the high road. I posted a year or so ago about Weight Watchers, but never really followed through with it. For me, it was the stress of being a new mom, mixed with being a working-mom and just general laziness.

Well, it's come to point where I'm just not happy. I don't feel comfortable with my current body weight, in fact, I have never been at this point before in my life. At first, I chalked it up to just having a baby...and let's be honest, he's turning 2 in May, it's time to stop blaming that. I wont post specifics, or turn this into a Diet-Driven blog, but I will be updating on my progress and my goals. Although I don't wanna broadcast certain details, I will tell you that after putting my information into the system, my goal weight is 45 pounds. I've had good luck in the past with this, my first year of college. Then, I stopped. Well this time, it feels right to me...and I will succeed. :)

Home-Made Deer & Bear Ornaments!

Making your own ornaments...What an amazingly crafty gift to give around the holidays! The recipe I used was super easy;

Fun Salt Dough

4 Cups Flour
1 Cup of Salt
1 & 1/2 Cups of Warm Water

In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour & salt. Gradually add the warm water and knead the dough until "smooth". Roll out the dough and using a flour-covered cookie cutter (we chose a moose & a beer, go figure) and then cut out the "ornaments". Then, using a straw, punch a hole in the top part of the ornament. Then, in a preheated oven (200 degrees), let them cook for 2 hours, then leave in the oven an additional hour after turning it off. Take out of oven, let cool and paint away!


I chose to paint the deer and bear in a bronze metallic acrylic paint that I got at Michaels. I then signed the back for Hunter and put the year (2010) so we can keep track of them :).


And I love the way they came out! We will definately add this to our list of yearly Christmas traditions! The possibilities are endless...We'll have to find some cute cookie cutters for next year!

The finsihed product! Well, I lied. After I took this picture, I wrapped them up, realized I never painted the "face" on and proceeded to unwrap them, paint a little red nose and blue eyes on them. I was way too lazy to RE-TAKE the picture. After they were dry I re-wrapped them, all set!


Then I put them in a little home-made bag and they are good to go!

Merry Christmas Everyone! Now for a small photo op...

Mommy & Hunter, dough making fools!



Someone's gettin' pretty upset that I wont let him eat our masterpiece.
It's. Not. Food. Hunter.
Children. ;)

DIY Kitchen Island

So, I am finally finished with my kitchen island project! It wasn't too difficult at all, and I am very pleased with the final result. If you are looking to do this on your own, I highly recommend research research research. Look online at Kitchen Islands that you would like to buy (If you were Bill Gates..). Take note of the dimensions and details involved. Decide what your style is... and then it's easier to sort through ones that will "work" for you, and which ones wont.

Depending on your location *although I'm pretty sure Craigslist.com, or something similar to it is popular in most areas these days* start searchin'!

For me, I knew what I was looking for, it was just finding the right one, in the right location, for the right price (since it was a DIY project, I didn't want to spend over $50 initially...). Once you've nailed down the right dresser you will start "preparing".

First I'll start with my before pictures...

(Before) Front View. There were actually (4) white knobs on the top shelves but I took them off before the pic.

(Before) Side View...

(Before) Back View. Just your typical dresser with an unfinished back. (Notice Hunter in the foreground, he wouldn't get out of the pic, he was far too busy getting into things...)

First, I pulled off all of the hardware...The knobs, the drawer "tracks" and made sure the nails in the back were pounded in. Then, I laid down a large tarp (I could have done this all in my basement but the dresser/island was VERY heavy and Trevor was gone for the weekend). I then began painting the entire body of the dresser (excluding the top). This part is completely up to your preference though. My kitchen has wood floors and white cabinets, so although the original wood on the dresser was in great shape, I wanted it to blend into the kitchen instead of standing out.

After I painted the body, I painted the "extras". I purchased plain wooden knobs from Home Depot and a plain wooden "towel ring". I then painted the knobs/towel rings the same color as my windowpanes, which match my curtains, etc...).


Here are the "before" pics of the add-ons I chose. If you click on the picture, it will take you to Homedepot.com and the page you can purchase them on. Keep in mind that these are super cheap because they still needed "finishing", if you decide to buy hardware in stainless steel or something fancier, it may be a little pricier.

Once I had everything painted, and of course after letting it dry I began to "reassemble".

*Just as a side note, the dresser/island was about 2 inches to short for my preference, so I had the lumber guy @ Home Depot cut me (4) 2x2 blocks of wood. After painting them white, I screwed them onto each leg to make it just that much taller. (I know, I know, I never claimed to be sane).

Instead of putting the drawers back in, I decided to leave the bottem part as "open storage", so I can slide by mixing bowls and baking sheets in it. Obviously this isn't too pretty to view, so I attached a set of curtains to it that match mine. This covers up the "storage" space, and adds some color to the island.

After attaching my towel ring and the new blue knobs, I began to work on the "backside".

What to do w/ the unfinished backside was the hardest part of the "decision" process. After reading reviews and DIY guides I had a couple ideas in mind.It was a close toss up between buying a sheet of white beadboard and just attaching it to the back or.... (be prepared for an extremely long run-on sentence........)

Buying a large (obviously measured to fit the back) piece of plywood, spray painting it with "Chalkboard Paint" (what a concept right??) and therefore creating a functional island for me and a fun activity for Hunter Charles to do while I'm cooking!! SOLD. Whew. This part was simple, I just measured the backside of the dresser, took the measurements into Home Depot and had them cut me a piece of wood. I purchased the Chalkboard Paint, painted the wood with a few coats and after it was done drying, just drilled it onto the back of the dresser/island. Ta-da!

I'm super excited to show Trevor, although, knowing him he may not even notice the new object smack in the middle of the kitchen. I say this, because last night I got about 4 inches cut off my hair & some bangs and he didn't notice ;). Men...

Now, for the finished product. Drum Roll Please........

Island from the Front (sorry to the pic is so dark).

View from the Side/Back. Like I mentioned before, I painted a piece of plywood with chalkboard paint and attached it to the back.



Hunter Charles enjoying his new Chalk Board. He was obviously only making scribbles but he seemed so proud of himself!

The hard work paid off, that's for sure!

DIY Artwork Display

I've been trying to put some "finishing touches" on Hunter's Big Boy room. I've had some ideas in mind, but this is one that I saw in a Better Homes and Garden Magazine. It is a nice way to display your child's artwork, without having a big tacky corkboard hanging, or putting small holes in your wall... :).

All I did need to buy was a (roughly 2 ft.) piece of plywood at Lowes, some cute "little boy" fabric from Jo Ann fabrics, and a pack of clothespins.


I took the fabric and used a staple gun to attach the fabric to the piece of wood. Once I did this, I placed the clothespins an equal distance apart, and stapled them to the cloth-covered wood. Then I drilled (2) small holes into the wood, and drilled it to the wall. Then, just hang the beautiful artwork from each clothespin and you are done!

*on a side note, obviously Hunter hasn't gotten into arts and crafts TOO much yet, but at his old daycare, they did some artwork w/ him, so I got lucky!*

Voila! Super easy, and cost maybe $7 from start to finish! Take that Pottery Barn, No one wants your stupid $45 artwork displayer...

Another thing I "updated" in his room, is I added some real Caution tape along the border of his Construction Truck Decals....


Please excuse the stack of stuff on top of Hunter's Toybox. We are still trying to figure out where to put all his lotions... diapers, etc. now that he doesn't use a changing table anymore. Hmm, the possibilities... Back on topic. I purchased the Caution Tape from Lowes as well. As much as I love the Truck Decals, I kind of felt like something was missing. The "truck-walls" just didn't look as complete as the airplane walls did. I wanted to add something without making it look over-done. I'm going to secure it a little better with some double-sided tape, but you get the general idea!

The only thing I have left to do, is hang his h-u-n-t-e-r letters. I'll post when 100% complete :).