Sewing Room Before/After

It is finished!! It took an entire week from start to end, but the sewing room makeover is done.  (Well, almost...I have a few things to hang up, but I haven't decided where to put them yet.) Last Monday, I started by moving everything out of the room and painting the walls grey.  After breaking the sewing table and spilling a gallon of paint on the floor, which put me behind by a day, I finished painting.

Then I painted the lamp and bookshelf.  I reassembled the bookshelf with fabric on the back wall.  I put together the Ikea chaise longue, and created a pressing table out of a TV tray.  Then I used the big drill and fixed that sewing table good! 

The before--looking into the room from the doorway.

The after

The before--looking from the back corner.

The after.

The fixed-up sewing table and pressing table.

The pressing table, chaise longue, and bookshelf.

I think that the bookshelf was the most dramatic part of the project--from a cherry-colored particle board boring bookshelf to something exciting and fun to look at! I found the fabric at Hancock Fabrics where all the home decor fabrics were 50% off--yea!!

The last thing I did, which was the first part of the project started, was to finish the fabric valences.  I just adore them, right down to their little white pom-pom trim!

DIY Disaster

I was so excited to start working in the sewing room on Monday.  Got the paint at Home Depot and emptied the room out.  About half way around the room, I needed to move the sewing table so I could work on that side of the room.  I picked up one end to slide it into the middle of the room and heard a CRACK!!! And the legs on the opposite end of the table came off the table and the whole table collapsed.

It was like slow motion.  I watched everything slide off the table and tip over--the paint tray, the open gallon of paint, a bunch of nails, screws, the phone, my coffee, and other tools.  I just stood there for a second taking it all in.  I didn't even know what to rescue first!!

Here's the damage:

I scraped up as much as I could.

It ran down the wall and onto the moulding and onto the carpet.  I used the paintstick to scrape it back into the gallon.  There was dust and fuzz mixed in, a bunch of nails, too.  Ugh, it was ugly.  And here's the worst part--my poor table!

I love this table. It has huge sentimental value, so I am going to try to fix it.

 Luckily, we have a carpet steamer here, so I put it right to work and got the job started.  It wasn't strong enough, though, to get everything up, so I rented a commercial version from the grocery store.  That did the trick and the stain is hardly noticable.  I'll post the "after" pics later.  Time to paint the trim!

The Before

I am getting ready to start the sewing room makeover.  It was never "made" in the first place, so I'm not sure this is even considered a makeOVER.  It's just a room that's finally getting done!
I remembered to take some before photos, so I can document the progress made.  Here's what it looks like now:

Lots to clean out before I get started.

The sewing table sticks out into the middle of the room.  I like to have the TV or ipod on while I work, so that will pretty much stay that way.  I am not totally in love with the chrome shelving unit, but I do like that it's open, so I guess it's staying.  The denim curtains will stay, but I'll add those valences I made above them.  I'm going to paint the walls a medium gray and paint the trim white.  I think it will look very smart. You can see the paint chip on the wall in the photo below.  It'll be the bottom color.

The sewing table and big, blank wall behind it.

 I am not exactly sure what to do with that big, blank wall behind the sewing table.  I used to have a bulletin board on it, but that got moved downstairs when the scrapbooking area moved into the basement.  I am considering getting several empty frames, painting them white, and using them to highlight different things.  Still working on this idea...we'll see.

The closet--not exactly sure if there will be any makeover here.

Yeah, I don't really see anything much happening here.  I like having the fabric in the closet where it won't get faded, and my winter clothes are now stored in there, too.  And since this is another spare bedroom (#3, in fact!!), there are linens for the blow-up mattress here as well.  I might just close those doors and not think about any changes there.

The windows and bookshelf before.

The bookshelf in the middle of the photo is just a little particle board shelf, but I have big plans for it.  I'm going to adhere fabric onto the back surface and paint the actual case and shelves gray.  I think it will look awesome with a bright yellow/orange background.  I may move it to the opposite side of the room where the new chaise lounge from Ikea will go.  That's sitting in the garage ready to be moved in after the painting is finished.  Then it will be a nice little reading nook, and I think I'll paint the floor lamp that's in there, too, so it will match. 

So the big question is, how long will this take?  I'm giving myself until Saturday to get it put together.  Tuesday and Wednesday are full of non-house obligations, so that gives me Monday, 1/2 day Tuesday, 1/2 day Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.  Totally do-able, right?

Getting so excited!!

Updates on Projects

I have been having so much fun working around the house--it's about 100 degrees outside, so inside projects are definitely the way to go these days.
First, here's the laundry room.  I painted it a soft yellow, hung a valence that I made, and mod-podged the switchplates.  Heres are some pictures:

I don't love the way these turned out--
they don't quite fit flush anymore because of the bulk of the fabric.

In the sewing room, I have been planning the new space.  I picked out the paint color, and my sister and I got a chaise longue from Ikea that we'll put up there once the space is done.  There's a lot to do in there, but this is one of my favorite additions--the bottle lamp.  My sister gave it to me in probably 1987 or so, and this lamp has been up and down the east coast and is still in one piece.  Amazing, really.  I found some fabulous trim at Hobby Lobby for $11.99 a yard.  While I would've loved to trim the valences in it, that's just a little too pricey for me.  So I bought a yard and a half (with a 40% off coupon!) to trim the lamp. Check it out:

I had a smidge extra trim, so I cut the buttons off and decorated the lampshade.

Isn't it just the cutest trim ever?!?! Perfect for a sewing room!

The lamp is currently on an old tomato box, now filled with yarn.

When we get back from the beach, I'll be painting the sewing room a light grey, the trim white, hanging the valences, setting up the new chaise, and getting some blank frames to hang on the bare wall.  Still thinking about that last idea, but I'll work something out. I'll try to remember to post before and after pictures, not just after pictures!!

DIY frenzy

It's been crazy around here this weekend and into the week. The more I look at pinterest, the more ideas that fill my head and make me not sleep. Today, I painted the laundry room. i had to stop short, though, because I ran out of paint (I hate that!) and while I went to Home Depot for a bit more, I also dropped off two bags of clothes at Goodwill. The attendant asked if I wanted a receipt and coupon, and at first, I said no, but then my brain took hold of COUPON. Into the store I went. I scored a chalkboard and a large galvanized steel bucket for just over nine dollars together. i was really hoping for a TV tray table, but so far, no luck. A lazy Susan would be nice, too, but nothin' doing there, either. I will finish the laundry room tomorrow and post pictures. That reminds me that I need to get better at taking "before" pictures. Also on my list: adding some gorgeous trim to my new lampshade, painting the sewing room, finishing the valences, modge-podging the sewing table with little fabric scraps, painting my yucky office/scrapbooking chair and re-upholstering it, and I am sure 10 moremthings... It will be a busy week! Pics tomorrow!

Crafterjann!!

I should rename my blog--I am in a very crafty mood these days! Ever since I discovered Pinterest, my creative juices have been flowing like crazy.  I can look on that site for hours, and it helps me decide what's my style and what's not. Yesterday, I spent a few hours scouring the antique stores downtown, looking for a lazy Susan.  Well, I started at Walmart, no luck.  Then I went exploring.  I found two of them; they're not exactly what I was looking for, but with a little spraypaint and creativity, I can make them into something I like.  I'll post pictures when that project is finished.
Meanwhile, I worked on this cute little decoration for the sewing room. The chipboard "J" was $1.99 at Hobby Lobby, my favorite craft store ever.  I just started hot-gluing buttons until they covered the whole thing.  I love it. It's about nine inches tall, I think. It will look cute on the wall in the sewing room.

I am still in the middle of a curtain project for the sewing and laundry rooms.  I got the idea for these valences from an old scrapbooking magazine that I was going through, and I went through my fabric stash to use up some bits. I am so in love with the valence!!

You can click on the picture to see the whole room and lots of great storage ideas.  That's Erikia Ghumm's stuff. Here's the inspiration:

from bhg

Here's my version--the before and after.  I am going to paint the room a light grey color and paint the trim white, so it's not totally complete yet, but I already love, love, love it.

The before--denim tab-top curtains.

The after--how darling is that?

That was a fun project.  My sister helped me go through my stash and line up the fabrics, and then I cut out the pieces and used the serger to put them together. I've never used that kind of trim before, and I hemmed the curtains with it--I love the white trim against the denim curtains--it will look great once the room is painted, too, with white trim (instead of that god-awful contractor off-white everything).

OK, the last project from yesterday was this cute little footstool for the scrapbooking table.  I like to prop my feet up when I'm working, and I've been using my scrapping tote since I moved the room downstairs.  I realized that I was ruining the tote, so I set off to find a footstool.  I made this awesome find at Hobby Lobby.  It was listed at $27.99, and it was stained.  When I took it to the cashier, I pointed out the problems and asked if the manager could maybe make me a deal.  A deal she made!! She asked me if I'd buy it for $2.79.  DEAL!!!!!!!!  90% OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So it was hideous to start with:

Picture this in black and white vinyl.  Ugh.

Here's the after--now it matches my fabulous bulletin board I wrote about a couple of weeks ago.  I added a layer of batting under the fabric because I could still see the cowprint coming through under the new fabric. 

Frida Kahlo fabric footstool

I made sure to center the Frida image at the top of the footstool, and it looks great! I love the way this turned out.

I have a few more Pinterest-inspired projects to get to this week--laundry room painted a sunny yellow, finish up the valences, print out a couple of cool pictures for the laundry room, work on the lazy Susans for the scrapbooking space (sanding, painting, embellishing), and create an ironing board from a TV tray table.  Lots to do!!

Pinterest

Oh, my.  I have spent an inordinate amount of time these past few days on pinterest.com.  It is so much fun.  I love looking at all the pictures--fabulous products, ideas, and design.  The DIY section has given me so many ideas. I'm going to try to imbed a link to pinterest here on my blog.  Check it out!

I just can't wait to give my home some style.  I'm working in the sewing room today, creating some valences that I saw in a picture in one of the scrapbooking magazines I was going through last week.  Of course, I will post photos to pinterest when I'm done!!

Crop Tonight!!

     So excited to be going to our CM consultant's house tonight for a crop! My sister is going with me, and that always makes it more fun.  Can't wait!! I did some power layouts this week, so I don't have to drag all my stuff with me, and that makes me REALLY happy!!

My New Space

Here it is! Almost finished, but already being used.  The scrapbooking space has moved to the newly-finished basement, and I totally love it.  I have lots of storage and all my favorite things all around for inspiration. 

The fathead is my favorite baseball player, Mariano Rivera.  That storage cabinet is full of pictures and paper, Cricut cartridges and embellishments.  The bulletin board is really my "favorites" board--pictures and inspiration of all kinds.  The new bulletin board on my chair was made by a new friend, Amy, and I'm trying to decide where to put it.  Here's a great close-up of it:

I bought the fabric for it, and Amy put it together--she has a great sense of color.  I love the ribbon and the buttons, which complement the fabric perfectly.  I'm actually thinking that when we paint the walls, that ribbon fabric would be a great color.  It's a light taupe.

I just picked up this bookshelf at Hobby Lobby, and I think it's perfect for the space.  The shelves are spaced far enough apart to hold the 12 X 12 albums, and I still have three more to bring downstairs.  It's so nice to have everything together!

The best part of this space is that it is just next to the living space, not separate from it.  Before, I'd be in an upstairs bedroom, completely isolated from the rest of the house, but now it's part of the room with the great new sectional and TV.

Woah. Where did the time go?

     Really?!?!? Has it been almost 3 years since my last post?  That is ridiculous. I took a break from scrapbooking for almost a year while I worked on some professional development stuff at work. And then we got the basement finished and I moved all the scrapping stuff to the basement.  My new area is great--I love it and the fact that it's not tucked away in an upstairs bedroom space.  Here's a picture:

I've added a bulletin board on that wall to the right.  It has more of my favorite things on it, and just today I bought a bookshelf that will go on the wall next to the window (on the left side--out of the picture).  That will hold the albums I've completed and a few decorative items. 
I've been busy with scrapbooking events, but I haven't gotten very far in my own scrapbooking.  The PTA at my school sponsored a crop at the beginning of May, and that was a blast.  Since I was in charge of it, I didn't get much done at all, but it definitely got me in the mood!  My CM consultant had a crop at her house in the middle of June, and I did get a few pages done there, oh, and I went to National Scrapbook Day back in April.  But I was working on the nametags for my school's crop, so I didn't actually do any of my own scrapbooking.
I am currently scrapping Christmas of 2009, which isn't too far back, really.  I'm excited about the page I'm working on and will post a photo of it when it's finished. 

Digitize Them

A friend sent me a link to an article in the NY Times about a company that will digitize pictures for a reasonable price. Here's the link.
ScanMyPhotos.com is the company in the article, and I like what I see. I am sure that I have over 1,000 photos, so I'll probably go for the "fill the box" option. I was so worried about what to do with the pictures, but this is a reasonable option.

W.O.W.

Delta! Delta! Delta!

What an amazing crop it was!! The Tridelts really know how to do it right!! I got there a little before 9 am and stayed until about 12:30 am. AND I was SO DARN ORGANIZED!!! I had all the layouts planned and in order, which is definitely my new favorite way to scrap. Never again will I drag around that huge tote and all my paper holders. I will spend a few hours getting organized before heading out and just take what I need. So worth it.

Here's a picture of my favorite layout from Saturday. OK, it's above my post. Why can I never get the pictures where I want them? Some of my table mates helped with the colors and the ribbon. They were all so nice, and we will hopefully scrap together sometime soon.

I won prizes, too! I won a table prize, which was a bag chock-full of embellishments and tools. Stuff I have no idea how to even use! I got some Heidi Swapp stuff--I just LOVE her! I love reading her blog, especially her Olympic updates. I also won a door prize, which was a page kit from MM. Very cool. And we got a goodie tote and even a t-shirt. It was really great.

8 AM to 1 AM

That's how long the next crop is that I am going to on Saturday. How many hours is that...12 plus 5. Seventeen hours of scrapping!!! OMG.

The local chapter of Tridelts is holding the crop in a vacant store right next to a Scrapbooking store (how cool is that!), and for only $40, I will get food, a t-shirt, AND a goodie bag! I have to say, this may be way cooler than the crops I usually do with my CM person. It certainly seems like a better deal, hours-wise and freebies-wise. And the proceeds go to a good cause, which makes the whole thing worthwhile.

I have been thinking about getting a Powerlayout box from CM to get organized prior to going, but then I always worry about changing my mind when I already have things picked out. I think the Powersort method takes away some of the creativity and spontaneity of the craft. I will just have to pare down, as I only have 3 feet of space to work in. Sigh...

The Box is Gone

That box full of albums (above) is no more. I have taken out every photo and piece of memorabilia from the albums and put them into CM power sort boxes.
What a lovely trip down memory lane. Most of the pictures are undated and unmarked, but every so often, I'd find one that had writing on the back, a description or identification. It was so much fun.
I ruined two pictues, which I think was pretty good. Many of the photos were stuck to those old magnetic sticky pages, and it took some work to get them off.
Now I have to sort through them and figure that part out.

Got Started

Yep, I got started in the scrapbook room again. I spent an entire afternoon there trying to make sense of the mess. For a few months now, I've just piled bags and boxes on top of the table while I've been working on other projects (mainly sewing).

I've gone through about 1/2 of the photos in those old albums in the header picture. So far, all I've done is get them out of the albums and into a CM sort box. There is absolutely no order to it at all, but at least the albums are going into the garbage. I'll finish that project tomorrow or Monday and then start thinking about step 2, which will be to organize the pictures somehow.

Feeling the itch

I am feeling like I want to do some scrapping. I have not worked on it in forever, which is usually how these things go.

Our LSS (the one I wrote about last post) is closing, and I went there to use up my store credit. I bought so much paper; it was crazy!! I ended up spending $97, which was almost &20 more than I had in credit, but that's okay. I suppose I have to organize some stuff before actually scrapbooking. And CM had a few things on clearance for 1/2 price, so I bought some paper organizers (good thing!).

When I look at the picture of our little pup (who is now 50 pounds of not-so-little-pup!!), I can't wait to do some layouts of him. I guess I'd better stop thinking about it and start DOING!!

Scammed?

So I am not totally thrilled with the results of the Yard Sale. I made a list of everything I took there along with how much I'd listed stuff for. On Thursday night, the store called me to remind me to pick up the stuff I had left over, so I went right over. I had about 6-7 things, mostly stickers, my Totally Cool tote, my quickcutz and a book. That's it. When I subtracted these things from what I took there, I should've made $104.50, but I store credit of only $78.50. That's a difference of 26 dollars, and I am not sure what to do. I wasn't told to expect any loss, but I know what retail is like. I know that things get taken, but $26 dollars worth, out of 100? That's a pretty big percentage.
Maybe when I go back to the store to spend some of my account money, I'll mention it and see what they say.

Yard Sale

Today was fun! Our LSS, The Cropper's Corner, had their semi-annual yard sale. It started today and finishes up tomorrow, actually. For the first time, I found a bunch of stuff to sell at the yard sale, cleaning out tons of old stickers and accessories that I don't use anymore.

I went by after lunch and bought a few things, but truthfully, there wasn't much there that I was interested in. I got a year of Creating Keepsakes magazine for $5.00 and a few stickers and quilled paper stickers. My total was just over $8.00 for everything.

The good news is that I've already sold over $40 worth of stuff!! I added up everything that I took over, and it was just under $200, so there's still quite a bit there to sell, but we'll see how it goes tomorrow. I get 100% of the money in store credit, which I am sure I will have no trouble using!

Something New to Scrapbook

This is our new little guy. He is an 11 week old Black Lab puppy, who, at this moment, is nameless. We're still waiting for something to strike us. He is very sweet and very good, and I am sure he'll have many pages in the next scrapbook!

What have I gotten myself into?

Last week, I visited my parents' house in Pennsylvania. My dad was showing off his new cuckoo clock, a clock he bought to replace the one they lost in the 1972 flood. I remembered a photo of that clock on the water-damaged wall of our old house, so I went digging. And digging. And digging. Finally I found it! The clock my dad bought recently is almost exactly like the one my uncle had brought back for us when he was stationed in Germany in the late 60's. Very cool.

Anyway, while I was looking through all the pictures, I asked my dad if I could take them home to organize them and get them out of the bad albums. The above pictures are all the photos I could find in their house. There was no storage plan there. Some of the photos have been in albums since the 70's and 80's. More recent photos are still in their packages or in rubber bands. Every so often, a photo from 1945 is mixed in with packs from last year. Pretty much in every drawer I opened, no matter what room of the house, I found pictures.

I have my work cut out for me. I think that I'll organize all the photos chronologically and then digitize them--or maybe just some of them. And with the digital photos, I'll create some digital scrapbooks for my parents and my sisters. The photos themselves will go into storage all together and organized by year. This is the plan. We'll see how it goes.