Little Blue Chairs: February 2011

Winner, Winner Chicken Dinner

Thank you all for stopping in and leaving a comment.

The winner of the Zibra Triangle Brush is...

Heather!

Heather said...: Just Facebooked it! twentysomethingtransue@gmail.com; February 23, 2011 10:46 PM

Congratulations Heather. I will be contacting you through E-mail.

-Laurie

The CSI project is highlighting trim, molding and board and batten. Which we all know is crazy big right now. And yes, I too have decided to put some up in my home.

I had been waiting to install it in my daughter's room, but got so impatient I went ahead and put it in our downstairs bath, which was a good choice, since my daughter had other plans that did not include board and batten.

Now being as frugal (OK cheap) as I am, I knew it was to be a faux treatment. I have seen it all over the blogisphere, so I knew it could be done. However, I wanted to find a way to disguise the orange peel finish I had on my wall where the "board and batten" was to be.

To smooth out the orange peel I simply but a skim coat of drywall mud (left over from another project) on the lower half of the wall and sanded it smooth.

It worked. I just made sure when painting, to use a brush versus a roller. The brush gives the "boards" a grain-like feel.

You have to look close, but you can see the difference in the above photo. There is a slight texture above the rail. You can really see & fee the difference in person. I am happy with my decision to skim coat. It really didn't take that long, just a lot of clean up.

Here is where we started from...

With the room being so small (4x4) it really needed something to give it that extra something special. The board and batten treatment does that and allows the rest of the room to be fairly simple but still interesting.

-Laurie

February Project: Daughter's Room - Week 4

Here we are at week 4 and the end of the month. I am sad to say I am not finished with her room. I am close, but this will not be a final reveal. If everything goes well, I am confident that next week will be the big reveal. This week has been mainly small, but necessary tasks.

I sprayed her lamp, but I still need to get a new shade...

I put the hardware on the closet doors...

I put shelves in the closet, started moving her clothing back into her room.

I placed the furniture...

Installed a mirror...

I even ordered the fabric for her curtains. Unfortunately the fabric is still being delivered, so no sneak preview today.

I also vacuumed and cleaned all the mess that was left and put all the tools away. So when I say I am getting close, I am getting close. I hope to have the curtains sewn and hung, get the new bedding and get my daughter all moved back in.

So far, she is very excited with the progress. She even told me she is going to live in this room until she **dies**, she can be a bit dramatic. But I am loving, that she loves her new room.

Remember, stop in next week.

-Laurie

The Doll House- Before and After

The Doll House is done, well... the paint is done. It is now sporting new lighter shades of pale.

Here is the before...

I even lightened up the color on the interior.

My Daughter was insistent on having a purple kitchen. I tried to talk her into gray, in the end we compromised...

And as a reminder, the before shot...

I am loving the new lighter colors.

I'm still thinking I may need to make some curtains. And I am sure I will be painting some small furniture in the near future as well.

-Laurie

the Big Hoop- Window Wednseday

How do you dress a bow window? How about with a big hoop?

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Isn't this delicious?

Of course it is all in the details. Can you imagine closing all the curtains and having a intimate candle light dinner with your sweetie?

-Laurie

The Doll House

My daughter has inherited my old childhood doll house. And I am thrilled that she loves it as much as I did when I was younger. My Dad gave my sister and I this house when we were younger, probably my daughters age. He bought it from and older gentleman who put it together from a kit. My father then added his own touches. He added the shingles, the shutters and installed a custom kitchen.

It has had a hard life, but I am glad to be able to take it in and give it some new life.

When I inherited it, 4 years a go, it had been spray painted hunter green. Yes, all of it. It had been used on a parade float. I cleaned it up and gave it the colors you see here.

However, with 4 years of play, it has gotten a bit banged up. And since my daughter is getting a whole new color scheme for her bedroom, why not go ahead and update her dolls house as well.

So that is what I am doing. I don't have any after pictures yet, you will have to check back for that.

-Laurie
and don't forget to spread the word about the giveaway. It is open until the 27th

February Project: Daughter's Room- Week 3

I am still not done with my daughter's room, but I am making steady progress. This week was mainly focused on painting.

But, before I was able to paint I needed to tape.

And can I take the time to rave here about the wonders that is Frog Tape?

It really does work. It is worth every extra penny when you need that crisp line. For room this size I used close to 3 rolls.

My daughter really wanted to have pink, lavender, blue and green stripes.

She wasn't sure when I picked out the colors, but when I removed the tape she was happy. I think I even heard her squeal.

I even got the picture rail up.

And some work done on her little desk...

Next, week we are picking out fabric, finishing the interior of the closets. We are getting so close to moving her back into her room. :)

-Laurie

Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway

The big blank wall-decortaing the stairwell

Whats not working now? How about my bare walls in my stair well.

I may have addressed the carpet on the stairs, but I have neglected the walls.

And I have to say, I have just not been inspired. But the nakedness of the wall is finally getting to me.

I know I could do a gallery of pictures...

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But, I'm already working on my photo gallery upstairs. I could extend it down the stairs, but I kind of wanted to keep the personal pictures in the more private space of our home. Also, I think if I have too many gallery spots it will start to look cluttered.

Another popular idea is installing a wall treatment.

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But since I will not be continuing the treatment throughout the main floor or hallway upstairs, I think it would come off as incomplete. So I have ruled this option out as well.

So where does that leave me? What other options are there?

In my perfect world I would open it all up and put in book shelves...

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But at this point is is cost prohibitive.

Mirrors- Antique mirrors

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I do love this idea. I love the use of mirrors in general. How it helps bounce the light around the room. I am a big fan of light.

I could think of going with one large statement piece.

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I would need to stumble upon that perfect piece- I am not ruling this one out, just yet.

One idea that I do keep coming back to is an accent wall, of sort. I keep thinking most of the other options may be a bit busy for the house. And the wall may be perfectly constructed for paper in a subtle pattern.

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But the logistics of getting the paper to the ceiling makes me reconsider. Also, wallpaper is expensive, and knowing how I like to change my interior, I am not sure it is the right move.

There is also the option on stencils or mural-like treatment. It would allow me to chose the color and not worry if I want to change it in the future.

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So where do I stand after all this looking? Still unsure. I know I need to do something to fill the space, but I am still not inspired. I will need to let this one stew for a bit more. I am sure a big idea will come to me. I just hope it is sooner than later.

If you have any ideas of your own, please let me know. If you have blogged about it leave me the link in the comments. I am totally open.
-Laurie
Don't forget to sign up for the give away

My first Giveaway at Little Blue Chairs!

Yes that is right, I am hosting my very first giveaway. I have been thinking about doing this for a while, and I finally found the item I wanted to share.

Recently, I came across the triangle corner paint brush from Zibra. It got me curious.

It is being sold as a corner brush, but I wanted to try it for cutting in and edging.

It has become my favorite brush! I even went out and got myself a second one, just for back up.

I want you to have a chance to try it as on well.

To enter:

Become a follower of Little Blue Chairs and leave a comment including your email address. I will honor additional entries for promotion on your blog, FB and Twitter (leave separate comment for each)

I will keep the giveaway open until 2/27, and announcing the winner on Mon 2/28. I will contact winner by email.

I am really excited to share this tool with you!
-Laurie

Stripes

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I made mention on Friday that my daughter has made a decision on what she wants for her room, which is causing me to ditch the pretty board and batten treatment which I had envisioned.

Country Living

What she wants is stripes- pink, blue, green, lavender and white stripes to be exact. So I am on the hunt for a pattern. Which is why I am dedicating this post to striped walls in hopes to stumble upon the right "stripes".