The Geese Have Left the Building

Our half bath was painted 1980's country blue. You know what color I mean—the color of geese that you bought at a local craft fair and then would have sitting around the house because everyone else was. (Sorry, Mom.) But anyway. That was the color of this bathroom. But no more! It now matches the foyer. And even better, I painted vertical stripes in this room. Katie gave me the great idea of painting the half bath to match the foyer. And then Stephanie suggested accenting with red towels and chandelier shades to pull it together with the other rooms, and then Kate Nicholson suggested that I paint stripes. It certainly takes a village to help me decorate. So I got a quart of high gloss in the same color as the main color of the bathroom. I measured off 6-inch (mostly) stripes with a laser level. It took some time to get a good rhythm going, and even though I almost quit twice, I'm glad I stuck it out. The results are very subtle and almost look like wallpaper. Would I do this again? It would have to be a small room. It's a LOT of work.

Stay tuned for the chandelier shades. Heinz has to rewire the sconces so they fit.

Before, stuck in a time warp


After, finally in the 21st century

New Bed

We got our new bed yesterday. It is ginormous! I was going to put wallpaper just directly above the bed, but I think that would be too choppy-looking. So I'm going to have the whole wall done instead.

Homemade Artwork

Now that the downstairs is completely painted (YEA!), I can start thinking about accessorizing. For the first time in my life, I have walls in the kitchen for artwork and accessories. Besides a clock, message center, and calendar, this is my first kitchen art. It's like a framed scrapbook page. I photocopied recipes from my great-grandmother's cookbook (in her handwriting) and a picture of me (I don't know if you can tell, but I'm sporting some awesome bell bottoms). I used some red-patterned scrapbook paper that looks like an old-fashioned kitchen tablecloth. At some point I'd like to paint the frame red to really make it pop. And the best recipe that I included: Homemade Soap. My grandma Sherron says she still remembers having to stir it on the stove.

My next project is to hang some shiny copper cookie cutters on the wall, but I'm not sure where yet.

Piano Stool Cushion

I have an old 1917 upright piano with a stool that swivels up and down. I plan on painting the piano but not the stool. Stephanie had a great suggestion of putting a cushion on it to match the living room furniture. So I matched up this turquoise fabric and had someone make it for me. Stephanie suggested her friend's aunt Kathy, who made some beautiful cushions for her dining room chairs. Kathy actually borrowed the seat of the stool and made the cushion fit around it so it won't come off. It's bulkier than I thought it would be but it fits beautifully. And her welting work is lovely! She charged me $35. So if you need someone to make custom cushions for you, let me or Steph know and we'll give you her number.

An Afternoon Project

Yesterday Katie pointed out that the back of the bookcase in the hallway was the same color as the half bath that I really want to change. For a long time this bookcase was completely full of books. Now that the back is more noticeable, I had to do something about it. I used leftover library paint so that it would fit in better.

BEFORE:


AFTER: