Take my word for it...it was BORRRR 'ing (in my best JoAnne Worley voice. What? Who's Joanne Worley? Ohhhhh, never mind.) And by boring, I mean that only in a decorative sense. I cast no aspersions.
Again, I have no before photos but trust me, it was just a thrown together room that never looked terrible but never looked good. You've probably had, or have, similar rooms. All it takes is a little inspiration, a little thought, a bit of time and only a little money, and you can have something that makes you feel good every time you walk through the door.
I've had this night stand for several years and love it. I drug it home from some thrift store. And I do mean drug because it's solid wood, and I mean solid, and very heavy. I painted it a rich, dark brown (it was so long ago, I don't remember the paint name) with a black glaze. With a new brushed silver handle for the drawer it's now a sleek, contemporary piece.
My mother-in-law (83 years young) made the stained glass frame. It holds a flower done with Rust-Oleum aluminum spraypaint on a piece of black cardboard.
The Big Ben clock is another thrift store find from several years ago. If I remember correctly, it was all of 25 cents.
Another thrift store piece I've had for quite a while (If I were a better photog, I would probably camouflage the plugs and cords.) I bought this because I liked clean lines, it is solid oak and it had room for books, etc. Since I've had it, it's been various colors but is now painted in the same way as the previous stand.
The 2 pieces on the wall are trivets which were a hideous navy blue. I loved the lacy look of them and they were only .99! I brought them home, roughed them up with some sand paper as they had quite a glossy finish, and sprayed them with Rust-Oleum Lake Blue. I then found some cardboard pieces that fit the back of the trivets which got a new look with the RO aluminum paint. I then called them wall art and hung them on the wall.
See the fake orchids on the left-GONE! Sorry you had to see that.
I do occassionally buy things new! I found these lamps on the clearance rack at Target. Some crazy price like $7.48 apiece. I had just recently moved my bedroom lampsto the sofa table in the living room and since my bedroom was becoming a more grown-up room (with a headboard and everything) I thought these classic shapes would do the trick. However, I knew the color wouldn't, as they would be sitting on tables very much the same color.
What's a girl to do?
Spraypaint, of course!
and a little black glaze.
The shades were a happy find at Ross.
I found this 24in. wooden shelf at Savers for $2.99. Funny thing, it was about the same blue as the comforter in this room. So, I painted it brown. I do know the color of this one: RO Dark Brown. The photos are of my babies who are now grown. The angel is sucking its thumb and actually holding a small piece of a "blankee."
This little shelf is just a reminder of how quickly time passes and once those moments are gone, they are gone forever.
More to come...
The best part about recreating stuff you find at yard sales and thrift stores is that you have a story for every item in your room (and entire house). When you buy things new, that's usually the end of the story.
ReplyDelete~Michelle
I've purchased a few things new lately and I
ReplyDeletem appalled at the amount of packaging, especially for things like sheets and pillowcases. Plastic with metal zippers! Come on!
I am so looking forward to when we get to the point of "making things look pretty". As you know there is a lot of work that goes into building a house that doesn't exactly fall into this catagory...but are very important. For me the "pretty making" is the fun part. I'm a treasure, junk, reuse, recycle, redo fanatic also....love the posts on the stuff you transform into beauties!
ReplyDeleteHTF,
ReplyDeleteIt will happen. I usually have to wait awhile after the building process for my energy and creativity to return, but it comes back with a vengeance.
Found your blog through Tearing Up Houses and I had to let you know (even though this post is from last fall...I was rolling back) that I KNOW who Joanne Worley is! Being 57 does have some perks. :)
ReplyDelete