Trash to Treasure

Welcome to the 3rd edition of Trash to Treasure Tuesday.

The one where I ONCE AGAIN forget to take a BEFORE picture.

Just picture wooden wall candle sconces with a dark stain and glossy varnish.
Got it?

Okay, after a good sanding, a coat of Heirloom White, some Mod Podge and scrapbook paper:

I thought that burning candles close to paper would be a NO-NO, so I painted some plastic eggs to perch here.

Here's one on the wall.

I know, now I need to paint those frames and the shelf, they just don't mesh with my "lightened up" decor. The projects are never ending aren't they?

I'm participating in Mod Podge Mania at This is the Year. Check out the projects!

Okay, everyone, let's see those linkies!

Thrifty Teacher Gifts

Even I had trouble with Lindsay's $5.00 challenge, I mean, five bucks is A LOT of money. How would I be able to spend it all on one project? (I know, I'm laughing too.)

Since we had such a GENEROUS budget, I made two items. This is the time of year when the Religious Education school year comes to an end, and I rack my brain trying to come up with an inexpensive gift for the teachers that they'll actually USE and LOVE.

Every once in awhile I come up with an idea. Well, I mean, I have lots of ideas, but every once in awhile I come up with a GOOD ONE.

I started with these pots from the Dollar Tree. I love this store so much, I've been there three times in the past two days. So, it's really like the Twenty Dollar Tree. But these were $1 each.

I painted them HW, of course, and added a stencil with each teacher's initial. Then came the dots. I'm sure you're now wondering if I know how to paint ANYTHING besides polka dots, and the answer is, NO. I tried stripes and they were a miserable failure.

I added a Basil seed packet to each one ($3.00 for both) from another dollar store.

Then I finished them off with ribbon and a card.

"Thanks for helping my faith grow." Get it?

Here's the finished project:

I spent exactly $5.00, not counting the tax. I already had the paint, paper, and ribbon.

I guess this qualifies as a Metamorphosis, since those pots were kind of ugly to start with, so I'm also linking to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch. Be sure to check out all of the $5 dollar projects and the Met Monday transformations!

Happy Monday everyone!

Saturday Shout-Out

Good morning everyone! How are the painted pots coming along?

I'm thinkin' of having a Painted Pots Party (say THAT three times fast). Any interest out there?

We'd have to wait until the latter part of May, when it's safe to plant flowers in Ohio.

Anyway, now that it's finally GARAGE SALE SEASON, I was thinkin' about writing a "How to" post for those of you new to the adventure of garage saling.

Then I came across this series by Melisssa at 320 Sycamore. I'm pretty sure I couldn't write this any better than she did, these posts are sheer brilliance.

Check out all THREE:

Yard Sale 101: Before Heading Out

Yard Sale 101: At The Sale

Yard Sale 101: After The Sale

Happy shopping! I'm headed out to the Scott Antique Market, hopefully I'll find some great stuff to share next week!

Got Pots?

Hey Somewhat Simple fans!  I'm so excited to be here for Make My May!  Today I'm excited to share a couple of fun ideas for container gardening. 

Am I the only one that has a MESS like this behind her garage?

I'll be in SO much trouble for that, my husband thinks the garage is HIS.

If you don't have an unsightly pile of pots, now is a great time to find them. As folks get ready to plant their gardens,they are donating, selling or even discarding old pots.

While I think classic clay pots are, well, CLASSIC, they're kind of boring.

I like a little WHIMSY in my outdoor decor.

Last year, I bought two plain pots for my front porch at an awesome garage sale. Now they look like this:

I used a spongey stencil brush to make the polka dots.

Soon, I'll add red geraniums, sigh. Hopefully very soon.
Garden whimsy doesn't have to come from spray paint. Oh my gosh, I can't believe I said that. Doesn't all that is good come from spray paint?

This is/was my herb garden. My fourteen year old daughter got tired of being pulled around in the wagon, so we drilled holes in the bottom for drainage, set in the pots and filled in around them with landscape rocks. This year I'm going to add chalkboard paint labels to the pots.
Come on everybody, add some PANACHE to your POTS!

Poetry and Paint

Who wants more DR. SEUSS???

Oh, come on, you know you do.

I am continually amazed by the POWER OF PAINT. Spray paint, of course, but also craft paint, chalkboard paint, glass paint, fabric paint...

It brings out the poet in me (okay, maybe not). Emily Dickenson is spinning in her grave.

You can paint in on a FRAME,

Or take a pillow to fab from LAME,

You can paint a cloth for under your FEET

Or write your name on your chair, how NEAT!

You can even paint a metal SEAT!

I'm always excited to find new ways to use the ultra cheap transforming power of paint. These are all projects I've yet to try, future projects to share! Have a fabulous day!

(all picture are from bhg.com)

Trash to Treasure Tuesday

Happy Tuesday! 60 degrees and sunshine AGAIN in central Ohio. We just don't get weather like this in Ohio in March, y'all, we just DON'T.

I can say "y'all" because it's 60 degrees. And because it's fun to type.


You all know that I have a well established and well documented love of other people's TRASH.


This sorta explains why I didn't link up to the FABULOUS Toile Party at Pretty Organized Palace today, that you really should check out.

Because people generally don't throw away toile, that's why. Or donate it to the Goodwill.


And the other reason is,
Come here,
Lean in close, 'cuz I have a secret,
I don't have any toile in my house.


I've always thought that toile was too formal for my casual style, but I've seen so many great ideas, I may have to adjust that thought and add some.


So...on to the things that people DO throw away. I find the most fabulous frames at the Goodwill store. Thick, chunky looking, real wood frames.


Remember these?




The pretty mamma on the left is today's Trash to Treasure Project. My kids broke the glass while shooting each other with Nerf guns, so I thought this frame would make a fabulous message board.

You'll never guess what color I painted the frame!

Oh shoot, you guessed it.

I attached the fabric to a piece of foam core board with spray adhesive on the front, and a glue gun on the back. My little Target birdie wanted to check it out while he perched on his thrift store candlestick.

This could be hung on a wall with the original hardware, or I think it would be equally cute on a countertop.

On more thing before I attempt to make nice with Mr. Linky. While blog surfing today, I found the Junk Mammas. Maybe you already know them, but I was thrilled to make their acquaintance. Their blog header says "Live Well, Laugh Often, Junk Much." Isn't that awesome? Why, if it wasn't already taken, that would become my life's motto.

Got a Trash to Treasure to share? Link up!

Hey! I also linked this post to the party hosed by Jen at Sanctuary Arts at Home! Check it out, I linked my party to hers!

Headboard Heaven And A Butterfly!

It's Done!!

That old caterpillar has FINALLY metamorphosized (I have no idea if that's a word or not) into the BEAUTIFUL BUTTERFLY!

First things first. THE HEADBOARD. You knew that the headboard made from the home store door won, right?

I used a door that we already had, bought some trim from Home Depot for less than $20, and spent $4 on paint. The original door looked like this (no, I didn't use this one):

Now it looks like this:

WOOHOO!! AIN'T IT GRAND?? I sincerely HEART how this turned out. After hubby had glued the trim on, I spray painted the whole thing, Heirloom White, of course.

You're right, now the bedside tables need a coat of Heirloom White. I'll get to that. And I still need a lampshade.

I used a dry brush with the paint color from the shelves to weather and age the door, wiping it down with an old T-shirt as I went. Here's a close-up of the finish:

My hubby hung the headboard, that part is WAY beyond my skills. He attached a 1x2 board with screws to the wall studs, then screwed hooks in to that. He hung the headboard from those hooks by the original door hinges. This way, no holes were drilled in to the actual door, so if we ever need to use this as a door again, we can just take off the trim and repaint it. We ( and by "we", I mean "he") also removed the handle, the hole where it once was is hidden by the pillows.

Here's another picture, 'cuz I just LOVE lookin' at it. My hubby wants to know if we're done with the *&#*&%&** bedroom now.
The only thing left to do is find some art for above the bed, and I PROMISED that he wouldn't have to help with that, so I said "well, you're done."


I've linked this post up to Donna's Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors. You're invited to the party, so check it out!

When Only New Will Do--A Great Deal!

Since this is a budget decorating blog and all, I feel that it's my blogging duty to let ya'll know when I find a good deal that we can ALL take advantage of!

Especially when it's NOT at the Goodwill.

The Company Store has a fabulous home decor sale going on right now.



I ordered two of these linen pillows for 50% off! They are actual removable linen pillow covers and the inserts are included. I LOVE a chance to buy quality at a reasonable price.

Just in case you're wondering, I bought the blue one and the "natural" one next to it for my "springified" family room. I may experiment with applique, fabric paint, or iron on transfer to jazz them up. Well, I'll actually do the experimenting part on something else, 'cuz I've been known to ruin some nice fabric before...

By the way, The Company Store has no idea I wrote this, so they're not paying me or anything, although that sounds fun! I'm just Hooked on Great Deals! Check out the other great Hooked on Friday posts at Hooked on Houses.

Thanks to all for your kind comments about the drama queen and her illness. The puking has ceased, but the fever lingers.

Lamenting Laundry

What? You've never been to a decorating blog with morbid humor?? Well, SOOOORRRRY!

I've just discovered this blog, Organized Doodles. This guy, Rick is pretty good at drawing stuff.

So, anyway, I've got a sick kid at home today. My 9 year old daughter is the world's biggest DRAMA QUEEN, so she's not just sick, she's DRAMATICALLY sick.

Why is it that even reasonably intelligent children can't be taught how to puke IN the toilet?

I'm at home today doing LOTS of LAUNDRY.

A thankless task that has me lamenting the state of my laundry room/area. I do laundry in the basement. I could have a first floor laundry room, but I wanted a MUD ROOM, and the space was too small for both.

One of these days I'm going to devise an ingenius way to make a basement laundry room CUTE. Until then, I'm gonna dream about these:

OOHHH, the inspiration! One could actually ENJOY doing laundry in these spaces! Maybe.

Interested in updating your laundry space? Check out the fantastic laundry room art at Fulcrum Gallery.

Trash to Treasure Tuesday-The Frugal Storage Edition

Those of you who have been reading my blog from Day One remember this:

Yeah, okay, well I remember this. My first post was about repurposing glass food jars into attractive storage containers. I used spaghetti sauce and applesauce jars, glued or tied on labels, and spray painted the lids. The original contents of these jars are long gone, and they've been refilled at least once, so I guess they're CONVENIENT AND EASY TO USE too.

Okay, now you're caught up.

We love Italian food around here, and though I TRY to make homemade sauce, I'll admit there were a few empty Ragu jars lying around.

A little swipe of the ultra HOT chalkboard paint and now they look like this:

Now, food storage ain't all they're good for. I'm thinkin' buttons, ribbons, seashells...

And toothpaste. That's what the one in the middle is for. My kids don't have drawers in their bathroom, so I need something to hold three different flavors of toothpaste. 'Cuz there's no way they'll EVER all like the same flavor at the same time, that's why.

I also slapped a little chalkboard paint on an ugly plate. After I had spray painted it and added the polka dots, that is.

I wrote down something I could use a little more of these days. Oh! and we're out of bread.

Next week I'm going to TRY and figure out Mr. Linky, so get your Trash to Treasure projects ready to share! We'll have us a TRASHY PARTY!

Shabby Shelving

Why didn't someone TELL me that the paint color I chose for the shelves in my master bedroom is the color of, well, UNFINISHED PLYWOOD???

Don't try to tell me you didn't notice, because it's OBVIOUS!

So obvious, that I didn't notice until a couple of days after they were on the wall and ON THE BLOG.

I'm WAY too lazy to repaint them, so I found some pretty grosgrain ribbon and used my trusty hot glue gun to embellish the shelves.

I think if someone ever asked me that age old question "If you were stranded on a desert island, what would you take with you?", I'd bring the glue gun and a can of spray paint.

Seriously, I could build a cute little cottage and be endlessly entertained.

The accessories are mostly things I already had:

• some old nursing textbooks from my great-grandmother
• a Bible
• some potpourri in a crystal bowl
• a picture of my hubby and me the day I graduated from college
• a square basket
• an old wooden spool with a candle on top
• and a piece of pottery

The baskets on the bottom were 50% off at Joann Fabrics. I didn't want a lot of little things cluttering up the shelves, so I used fewer, larger items. The baskets are empty for now, but I'm sure we'll use them for storage.

The total for the shelf project was about $70, and that includes the MDF, brackets, ribbon and baskets. I already had the plywood paint color.

This week I'm working on the headboard, and the room will be complete!

Check out all of the great Metamorphosis Monday transformations at

Between Naps on the Porch! (only don't look at Susan's bedroom, 'cuz hers is WAY better than mine) :)

Reinvention Convention

You can take them on a BOAT

You can feed them to a GOAT...

Oh, yeah, I promised I'd stop that.

I found some great "reinventions" this week that I thought I'd share. As much as I LOVE to brainstorm my own ideas for repurposing stuff, I get positively GIDDY over other people's ideas.

Joys of Home posted about her bookshelves made from old doors. Check this out:

This creative lady also wrote a tutorial to teach us how to make a cute gift bag from a plain brown paper lunch bag.

Just think of the possibilities! Find the tutorial here.

Kim, from Forever...Wherever shows us how to make a Seashell Frame from all those shells we pick up at the beach. She's lucky to live at the beach ALL YEAR ROUND, I have to settle for 1 week in July.

How pretty is this?

I hope you find some inspiration! See you all on Monday!

Whiten Up!

Welcome to Friday, ya'll. Although each week seems to get away from me so quickly, we don't seem to be getting closer to spring around here.

As far as I know, the earth is still orbiting the sun, so eventually we'll get there, right?

Today I'm waxing poetic about white dishes. I'm sure I'm about the 1,235th person to LOVE white dishes, but since Country Living magazine thought it appropriate to bring up this month (see above pic),

I'M SO GOIN' THERE.

Roses are red

Violets are blue,

I love white dishes

They're such a versatile hue.

(I'm tellin' ya, spring fever has made me delirious.)

I have this basic white set from Target. I love the simple, kind of diner-like style. I don't have many serving pieces, so I'm on the look-out for those.

Sometimes I dress them up with Grandma's red dishes.

You can hang them on a WALL

Or you can paint them blue YA'LL!

You can perch on them a bird DIVINE

Or keep them handy for cheese and WINE.

Help! I can't get Dr. Suessisms out of my head! Maybe I should just go to bed...

Please check out other Hooked on Friday posts at Hooked on Houses. And I won't blame you if you never darken my doorstep again...

Headboard Hullabaloo

A beautiful headboard elevates your bed to focal point status in your bedroom, drawing the eyes of all who enter.

IF you're not too embarrassed to let others SEE your bedroom, that is.

I WAS.

Lots of couples, especially the ones with kids, let their rooms become a catch-all, or dumping ground for all of those items that don't have a real home, and won't fit on the kitchen counter or the dining room table.

BUT, we all deserve a bedroom that is a haven, and a getaway from the chaos that can exist in the rest of our homes. Who wants to retire to their "boudoir" at the end of a long day, only to be reminded of chores that still need to be done?

Okay, I feel better now. Could you tell that I was gettin' the "GUILTIES" for spending money to redecorate my room? And that I was having trouble justifying the purchase of a HEADBOARD, no matter how frugal my choice was?

WHEW! Now that we've established that I NEED a headboard, it's time to look for ideas.

I found LOTS at BHG.com, in an article titled Cheap and Chic Headboard Projects.

This is a bench cushion hung from a shelf! Perfect for the cottagey look.

An artist's canvas covered in fabric. Very easy to change on a whim, or with the seasons.

I heart this screen. Wouldn't it be fabulous to repeat the scroll pattern on my shelf brackets on the opposite wall?

I could LOVE an upholstered headboard, but is that too feminine?

What about painting one right on the wall?

I think this is my favorite. This was originally an unfinished door from the home improvement store. Some paint, sandpaper and a piece of trim for the top, and you've got some major architectural interest! I'm thinkin' this would be the "man-pleasing" choice.

Which do you like best?