Things I am up to

I've been feeling crafty lately, and want a challenge. The picture frame I did was a test to see if I really could be crafty, and I'm feeling like it was a success. For my new office, I realize I need more storage/desk space. So, I've been thinking a dresser might be nice. Something like this or something like that might be nice to have. But, where am I going to find one?


So, I decided to go thrift store shopping. I have found the perfect dresser. When I start restoring it, I will let you guys know. But for now, its in the garage waiting for a cool weekend to get started. When its done, it will add quite a bit of storage space to my room, and hopefully add a nice, warm, homey feeling to the office.
Here is a picture of my dresser - the picture is from my phone, so I already know the quality isn't that great:
Look at those beautiful handles! And the details on it! This dresser is going to be perfect. The only problem is it is still sitting in the back of my truck. Hubby is out of town, and there's no way I can get it out of my car by myself..... so, this project will be started in two weeks.


The other exciting thing about the dresser is that it came with a mirror. At first, I thought it was ugly and I would end up throwing it away or donating it back to the thrift store, but then I had a wonderful idea (well, thanks to some other blogs I read)
Ever since I've seen things like this
or this (check out the link!), I've been wanting to make my own chalkboard. Cute, simple, looks great, and I have a spot for it in my new office! So, I will be using the mirror, painting it with blackboard paint, and it will also be hanging in the office. Now I have these two big projects, I better get to work....

My new office

So, we had a roommate who recently moved out, leaving us with an extra bedroom. This room was originally going to be the office before we had this girl living with us, so I have been spending time re-claiming this room to make it into more of an office.


The room was originally a red and peachy color, and it wasn't working for me. So, I did some research and found a color I really liked: Benjamin Moore's Smoke.

I wanted a color that was calming, and not too bright. I wanted something that had a bit of gray in it. This color seemed to fit perfectly. Only problem - when I began painting - was that it seemed too baby-blue-ish. I didn't want that for the office, so I went back to Ace and asked them to help me change the color.
This color - Cloudy Sky - was very similar to Smoke, only a bit darker. We weren't able to match it exactly because of the way the machines work, but we got close. This color of my paint is a little lighter than this sample, but more gray than the first one and looks less baby-ish in the room. And made specially for me thanks to the manager at Ace!


In this picture you can see the ugly red-peach combination that was previously going on. You can also see the light blue that I tried first. Granted, it probably wouldn't have been as bad as I think, but the darker color is just so much more what I'm going for.


Since Hubby has the camera and is now on the other side of the world, I do not have picture of the finished product. Those will come in time..... But, how's the color?

Picture Frames

Above is the final project of something I've been working on this summer. I really enjoy the Shabby Chic style, but its super expensive! So, I decided to try to figure out how to make a frame. Its actually very easy. It starts with a frame like the one below. I got this at Goodwill for $3.99. A little pricey, but much cheaper (and more fun!) than buying the one of these at a store.


I took the frame apart, cleaned the glass, and got rid of the picture in the frame. I started by painting the wood frame a brown color. It wasn't quite as dark as I had hoped, so I did a topcoat with a black. The finished product was a black-brown color.



I then melted a candle. You can use any cheap candle, but it does need to have white wax. I took the melted wax and dripped it over the picture frame. I spread it with my fingers and a napkin. It was quite thick.


I then painted two coats of white paint over the wax. As you can see, it is still rough-looking.



The last thing I did was take some sandpaper to smooth it out. The wax makes it very easy to sand. The black-brown color shows through quite nicely. I found a quote that I liked, printed it up and put it in the frame.



This project was super easy, and I have to say I love the frame! You can try different color top-coats - a light yellow, blue, or pink would look lovely in this style. I'm not very attached to the quote I put in the frame, I am going to be looking for something else to go inside this picture frame. Any ideas?