wordless wednesday: the screened in porch

a little pink

A couple weekends ago my neighbor had a yard sale. I spotted this adorable little Hitchcock chair sitting on the curb. I drove by and regretted not picking it up. The next day I saw it on the curb again with a sign that said "FREE"!! I could not believe my luck. I immediately took it into my garage and gave it a coat of primer.

I had no use for this chair of course but could not resist a piece of free furniture. I thought it would look adorable painted in a light pink, perfect for some lucky little girl's room.

I used Glidden's Sweet Baby Girl, it's the perfect pale pink! After some distressing here she is!

beadboard love

I've been really loving beadboard recently. It has such a timeless quality to it. I've been debating putting it up in my powder room, but am still undecided about it. I am going to add it to my kitchen island when I paint in this summer. I love that it looks good in just about every room!

Here are a few rooms that have some gorgeous beadboard!

I especially love it in bathrooms...

It looks great as a kitchen backsplash!

And perfect for a cottage or beachy bedroom!

friday finds: Hilton Head

Hilton Head is my absolute favorite vacation spot. We go down every summer to spend a week with family and it is the ultimate place to relax. One of my favorite things to do while I'm down there is check out all the antique and used furniture stores! So this week we're seeing what we can find in Hilton Head Island.

First up are these adorable nightstands. A fantastic find at only $75 for the pair. I think they would be gorgeous painted a beachy blue/green with some glass knobs!

How cute is this toy chest? I love that it has a back and could be a storage bench too. It has so many uses! You could easily paint it and make a cushion for the seat and use it in an entryway, or of course in a child's room! And the best part? It's only $25!

How cute is this little end/side table? I love these Queen Anne styles when they're refinished. I think I'd go with pale gray or white for this one. And of course a new pull on it! This one could be yours for just $10!

I've been looking for a wood mantel just like this one ever since seeing this one from PB. You could easily paint and distress this one for the same look at just a fraction of the price. This solid wood one is listed for only $100!

I just love this vintage wingback chair! It's in great shape, just needs to be recovered or even slipcovered. And it's only $100!

I love finding furniture in places like Hilton Head because they're frequently only lightly used. People are always redecorating their vacation homes and the furniture is practically new! I can't wait to head down to HHI and see what I can find myself later this summer. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

a shabby little bookcase

Last week I picked up this little bookcase from a family friend. It was in desperate need of a makeover. I have to admit I almost passed on it just because I knew it would be a lot of work to get the old paint off. But I do love the lines and shape of it, so I was up for the challenge. Here it is, in all its finger painted glory...

I started out by giving the whole thing a good coat of Kilz spray primer. The oil base will keep anything from bleeding through. I stripped both sides of the bookcase because the stripes were raised and they would show through.

Ahh so much better....

wordless wednesday: bunks

 

guest cottage

A few weeks back I saw this charming sign on My Sweet Savannah. I knew it was just what I needed for my guest bedroom. We have this blank space over the window area that was lacking something.. So I decided to try to make my own "guest cottage" sign.

I started out with a large (about 36") piece of wood I had in my garage. I had intended to make some shelves with it but changed my mind. So it was already painted in flat black paint. I then did two coats of light gray I had leftover followed by a quick coat of white paint.

I gave it a good sanding to give it that vintage look. And so the other paint colors would show through. I printed out the words on my computer and shaded in the backs of them with a pencil. Next, I taped the letters on the piece of wood so I could trace them.

After the outlines were on ready I filled them in with some black craft paint. I believe I did 3 coats to get the perfect color. After it was dry I gave the whole thing another thorough sanding. Lastly, I went over the edges with a little stain to make the bare wood stand out a bit more... Here it is! I can't wait to hang it in our guest bedroom!

after much debate..

I've decided to paint my kitchen island. I know some of you will think I'm crazy for painting perfectly nice cabinets but they are just not "me".  I would love to actually paint all of them but think I'll start with this and see how it goes. My entire house is full of cherry cabinets, 3 bathrooms and the kitchen. I just feel like it's very overwhelming.

So the plan is to paint the island in black to contrast the cherry and install beadboard on one side. I think it will look really nice with the damask roman shade. Here is the kitchen now..

Here are some ideas of the look I'm going for...