a little love affair...

JUNK Hippy!!!!

2012-06-28T21:54:00.000-05:00

So there's this girl... she's sorta a big deal and a REALLY good ~~friend~~ JUNK SISTER!

and

There's this event... it's going to be OUTTA site and a REALLY big deal!!

One of my most favorite, sassiest, sweet tea lovin' junk sisters is hosting her very own FIRST traveling roadshow THIS SATURDAY, June 30th @ The OKC Fairgrounds!!!!

I can NOT explain how H.U.G.E. this show is going to be... DON'T miss out!!!!

You can find all the info you need at the link above (click on Junk Hippy Roadshow) or below.... send some love over to facebook and "like" the JUNK Hippy page!! Tell her 'A Little Love Affair' sent you <3

Get Your Kicks On Route 66...

2012-06-08T23:07:00.001-05:00

Our family decided to go for a drive today. We had a destination in mind and decided to go about it in a little different way this time. The destination of choice?? River City Trading Post in Jenks, Oklahoma!!

River City is one of my, if not my VERY, favorite places to go... like EVER!! It is filled with only the BEST junk, antique, vintage yumminess on EARTH!!! Ok, maybe not on EARTH, but very, very close... ya probably on earth!!! Jenks is outside Tulsa. A smaller, cute little town, filled to the brim with antique stores and nice people. Totally a my-kinda-place to go.

Since we live in Guthrie, we usually take the Turnpike there, but today we decided to take old route 66 and stop in some of the towns along the way. So we loaded up the kids and headed out! We fell in LOVE with a few places and met some really cool people!

The first town we drove through was Arcadia, Oklahoma. Although we didn't stop, there are a couple really neat places worth blogging about! First up is Pop's. It is not only a landmark, but also a restaurant, soda ranch, shake shop, and a gas station! They have a bazillion different kinds of soda, including one soda sculpture that stands over 66 feet high and lights up in the front! This is a MUST stop if you ever drive through. (we've been before:) Next up would be the Old Round Barn. This place is incredible! Beautiful inside and out!! Built in 1898 and restored in 1992. Although I have never actually been inside (sad, I know), I believe it is now a museum with the option to rent out "the loft" for special occasions. Tons of history and pictures on their website!! (just click on the name to be taken directly to it!!)

We then headed to the quaint town of Chandler, Oklahoma. We found a little antique store right off 66. Located inside an old homestead sits Fine Things Antique and Glass. This place isn't short on anything! They are loaded with only the finest and best from years past! We had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Pam, and she was kind enough to let me take some pictures for all my blog readers to enjoy! Here is just a little of the amazingness you can find in her store...

To sum it up..... PURE AMAZING!!!! You MUST go!!!! You can also "like" them on facebook HERE.

While in Chandler, we stopped at a yard sale (thanks for the tip Pam!!) and SCORED big time on some great antiques and things!!! (sorry no pics, but they will be for sale after I give them a little love)

Our next stop was Stroud, Oklahoma. Cute Oklahoma town with the famous Rock Cafe. Not to be confused with the Hard Rock Cafe, this little restaurant has so much character, not even a fire can hold it back! They have been serving food since the late thirty's and let me tell you, the food is A-MAZ-ING!!! They have been featured on Diner's, Drive-In's and Dives and have served many stars! The total inside was involved in a fire, but the rock exterior remained standing. The owners rebuilt the inside and were able to salvage a few items to use as decor. My daughter and I shared the chicken fried pork steak (yes pork steak) and it was GREAT!!! The pic below is of a HALF sized portion!!! Needless to say, we all left stuffed!! If you decide to stop in for a bite, be sure to make a pit stop to the restroom! Way neat-o, as you can sign the walls... or the ceiling!!! We had to leave our mark as well!! What a fun place!!

After stuffing our faces, we passed Depew, Oklahoma! Route 66 actually curves around the town, but I managed to snap this pic of a train :)

The route then took us through Sapulpa, where we stopped in a thrift/furniture store. No luck there... everything was way high priced, but the sales guys were nice. We jumped onto the turn pike for about 5 minutes and landed in Jenks, Oklahoma!!!!! My heart was already in flutters as we turned down the street that led us to the ultimate mother-load of all goodness..... River City Trading Post!!!

Don't let the outside of this building fool you, folks! This store is jam packed with anything you could think of!! I was too excited to snap photos inside (and I'm really not sure what their policy would be on this), but you can check out their facebook photo albums!! They update on a regular basis and are very quick to respond to questions regarding prices and measurements. The staff is aWeSoMe and they will help you anyway they can. By the time we checked out, our truck was STUFFED full of wonderful finds from the day. It was time to head home.....

I hope you ~~are still awake~~ enjoyed this looonnnggggg blog post of our awesome family adventure on the old route 66!!!

Pinterest inspired bookcase....

2012-05-29T11:37:00.001-05:00

Hello fellow bloggers/blog readers...

It's been awhile since I have blogged, but this is totally blog worthy! I go through spurts of the famous "pinning addiction" and here lately I have been finding GREAT things everyday!

Since we are changing things up a bit in our living room {went from a sofa to a sectional, HUGE recliner to a cute sitting chair with lamp and removed the TV buffet and mounted it above the mantel}, I needed to figure out what to put in the corner when the TV used to sit. I found several custom pieces that were TO DIE FOR but I would be the one dying if I spent that much money on them!!

I turned to Pinterest to find an alternative idea and found this...

Needless to say... I fell in instant LOVE with the idea and knew that's exactly what I wanted!!

So I read all about how to do it here.

I went to Joann's Fabric & Crafts and picked up 10 crates (that is the amount I needed for the size of my area) in the raw, unfinished wood. They looked like this:

They were $11.99 each, but I used one coupon for 40% off one item and one 20% off coupon for my entire order (you can get one too for signing up for their email/text list!!). My total with tax was just a little over $100 for all of them!!

I started staining when I got home!! {was way to excited to wait for this project!!}

My all time FAV stain color & brand!!!

Old nasty brush and rag for allllll those cracks and creases....

It took awhile, but this is the finished product:

What do y'all think??? Now I need to find some FAB junk to fill 'em up!!

Turquoise... I love you!

2012-02-10T21:21:00.002-06:00

I go through phases of "color love" at times and right now the lucky winner is Turquoise. Seriously, I want to paint EVERYTHING this color!! This may be a problem....

I ran into a super funky little accent table at one of my fav stores... Goodwill {of course}!! I loved everything about it the minute I saw it, however, I am starting to get really, really cheap and so I passed this up!!

Yes, I felt so sick to my stomach over it and thought about it the entire time, so the next day I went back and guess what... STILL.THERE!!! Yesssssssssssssssss..... it was mine!!!

Just stunning and overflowing with details!! The top actually has a piece of glass [score] and the base is solid and heavy! I just love love love all the details this piece has!!

Of course I reached for the turquoise paint FIRST thing!!! (after giving it a MaJoR cleaning!!!)

This pic is after only 1 coat.... already it's starting to look just as I thought it would!

added some glaze... lots of glaze...

And..... Here is the final product.....

I Loooooooove it!! What do y'all think?

If you are local to me, this super cute, super detailed, super turquoise accent/end/side table is for sale!! Find out all the info HERE. While you are there, "like" me on Facebook :)

Linking: Home Stories A to Z

Falling in love....

2012-01-27T23:25:00.000-06:00

In my recent adventures with this new business I've created, I have ran across many, many things that get my mind to racing! Racing for ideas and items ~~needed~~ wanted to complete all the ideas that keep floating in my head!!

I am in LOVE with bunting banners lately! I mean seriously... can they be any more vintage??

I thought it was only appropriate to include a bazillion pics from the most AwEsOmE place on earth.. no not Disney World... Why Pinterest of course!!

OK... enough with the bunting OVERload!! I want to make every.single.one. Seriously, I think I need therapy :)

To find all these wonderful ideas and much more, Please feel free to check out my "Bunting LOVE" Pinterest board HERE!

Busy as a bee

2012-01-15T19:22:00.000-06:00

I haven't had much time to blog lately, or even visit bloggy land for that matter, as I have been working my little fingers to the bone! That is EXCELLENT news for someone that is trying to get a business off and running!

If you are new here, let me fill you in a bit...

About a month ago I decided {with the help and awesome advice of my amazing husband} to make something out of my craftiness and set up shop. "Shop" at the moment takes place in our garage, but I have ~~hope~~ big plans for something better, real soon!

In the meantime, I have started a business facebook page that you can find here.

{I would be forever grateful if you showed some love and "liked" me}

I also did all the business-prep steps one takes when creating such a thing, for example:

a business checking account
ordering cute little business cards
purchasing supplies, working into the wee hours of the nights and....
marketing, Marketing, MARKETING!!!

Things are going wonderful and better than I expected this quickly. I think 2012 is going to be a GREAT year for ~ a little love affair ~

Here are some items I have sold in the past two weeks:

You can find all the goodies I have for sale here.

I have some new items coming this week!!

{oh and I can invoice through Paypal, however, I do not ship at this time}

French Provincial Love

2012-01-05T22:48:00.002-06:00

My new love affair is with the french provincial style furniture. My head turns in a flash when I see it... anywhere & everywhere!! Here are a few pics of recent project pieces I have purchased.

I actually went to purchase the pink desk set and the seller had these gems up for grabs also :)

They needed a little TLC and that's just what they got! Check out their after shots:

{I loved the BRIGHT pink color so much, I decided to revamp her in a bright frosted berry and add a dark glaze. I thought with the girly style & color, the hooty owl fabric went perfectly}

Check out those legs!

Original hardware with a color face lift.. I just love when I can use original hardware :)

Hoo wouldn't think this is cute? I know, I'm a hoot!

I loved the vanilla color I painted this beauty, however, my glaze was not so pretty on the top! I think it dried too fast or something?? Either way, there was no way I could live with it!! Yuck!

These details turned out really nice! I only wish all the drawers had them.

Another great leg shot :)

A little close-up of what I did to the not-so-great-glaze-job top

And here she is with paint, glaze and new hardware {the original was broken}

I found THE COOLEST replica book of prints from years past in the lone star state, AKA Texas, from the 1800's. I thought it would look cool to do a little Mod Podge top and then line the drawers.

.... and that's just what I did :)

I am still trying to find the time to work on the chairs. I have picked out a great fabric for them though, so I am counting that as a start.

*** Both desks are up FOR SALE! Check out my Facebook page and "like" it (all the cool kids are doing it). I add great vintage/junkin'/refinished items all the time. Wouldn't want you to miss out :)

linking: craft-o-maniac, Sisters of the Wild West

New Year.. New Review

2012-01-01T19:25:00.002-06:00

"Happy New Year" fellow bloggers!!

There are so many new ideas I have for the year to come. I will start this year with a personal review on a "new & improved" product I have recently tried:

Valspar brand spray paint

My review ~ I am and always have been a Krylon brand gal. I happen to be at my local home improvement store and needed to pick up some primer. I strolled down the spray paint isle and noticed the Valspar cans have changed drastically! I think they are trying to mock my fav brand, Krylon, in hopes to win over buyers. I pay around $3.50/can for Krylon, so the Valspar at $4.50/can was a little hard for me to purchase, but thought it would be a great trial product. The nozzle is designed with a 'twist on' motion. The spray button is larger and more flat, in return, easier on the trigger finger. However, I did find that the paint has a "spit" to it, no matter the amount of shaking time. I also had one can where the paint 'ran' out from under the nozzle while in spray motion, running down the can and into my hand. Not exactly my idea of a great product. I think I will use the remaining product I have on hand and quickly return to my old faithful friend, Krylon :)

I hope each and every one of you have a blessed New Year!

linking: Thrifty Decor Chick, Home Stories A to Z

Tech savvy?

2011-12-28T22:10:00.000-06:00

I am not exactly what you would call "tech savvy", however, this evening I felt pretty awesome! I couldn't, for the life of me, figure out why my facebook page (personal & business) didn't have a URL link that worked. Can you say frustrating!!

I did a little investigation work and figured it out :) That's right, I did it all by myself!! Woohoo!!

So, if you haven't already, head on over to facebook and "like" my business page. All the cool kids are doing it :)

Chalkboard anyone?

2011-12-27T21:12:00.002-06:00

A few months ago, I ran across a really cute vanity set on Craigslist for my daughter. We brought it home and then realized it was going to be too large for her space. I contacted a lady, I had originally found through Craigslist and then starting following on Facebook, that is a true junker at heart. She too refinishes furniture and sells little what-not's and everything in between. She was interested in the vanity, so we finally got the chance to meet in person! She made the vanity set look amazing and I think she had it sold before she got it home :)

Long story short, she and I have been in contact ever since. She recently moved and had a dynamite sale! I got to shop a bit early and snagged some great finds! One of the pieces I bought was this:

I am a sucker for frames I tell ya!! I didn't know what exactly I was going to do with this, but I knew I loved it enough to bring it home.

Then one evening it just hit me.... Chalkboard!!!!! I thought it would make a great addition to my -------- {Oops.. almost let the cat out of the bag}. Well, I thought it would just be great!!

I dusted it off and took it apart. I rolled chalkboard paint onto the actual print and let it dry. I normally wouldn't have done this, however it was not a paper type print and the paint didn't lift the paper.

Then I primed it, using Kilz spray primer:

And painted it:

{I normally use Krylon paint, but I was at Lowe's and thought I would give the Valspar "new and improved" nozzle a try. Plus the hubs picked out this awesome color!}

The color is called "New Avocado" in a satin sheen.

Here are the after pics.... primed, painted, glazed & transformed!!

** If you would like to see some really great 'junk' and maybe even purchase a few new pieces, follow my 'new' friend Gypsy Green on Facebook!! Show some love and tell her "Carla @ A Little Love Affair" sent you :)

linking: It's Overflowing, Thrifty Decor Chick

Fun new finds!

2011-12-24T09:55:00.000-06:00

While I can't yet disclose the 'Big News', I can show off a few pieces I have stumbled upon this past week!!

This dresser/buffet/whatever-you-want-it-to-be piece was sitting outside looking oh so lonely. I just happen to drive by and it caught my eye. I just had to go back and inquire!! To my surprise, she was up for the taking!!! I quickly paid for her {before the owner changed their mind} and brought her home :)

{before pic}

I just L.O.V.E. the french style!! I can NOT wait to refinish and reveal the results! (by the way, she is already SOLD!!! :)

Moving on to the next find of the week...

My awesome hubs and I were on our way to pick up a table, when his cousin sent a text to me with a pic of this:

{before pic}

She was at Goodwill and thought I might like it. Um, Helllllloooooo!!!! YES!!! We quickly met her there and snatched it right up!!! I know exactly what I want to do with her. She will be up for grabs in a week or so... stay tuned!!

Taking a leap of faith...

2011-12-18T21:32:00.001-06:00

“When it comes to the future, there are three kinds of people: those who let it happen, those who make it happen, and those who wonder what happened.” - John M. Richardson, Jr.

I love this quote. It brings a lot of inspiration to me actually.

I have been going back and forth for the last year on the idea of either renting a booth space or opening my very own retail space and sharing my passion with the world (for a profit).

Let me start by saying that I'm very blessed to get to be a stay at home mom and wife. My hubs is a very hard worker and a wonderful provider! However, there are times that I get bored and wish I had my own thing going.. I need my identity back :) {and some extra money would be a bonus}

So.... I have decided to take the plunge and just do it!

I'm super excited, nervous and everything in between. I'm not sure how it will all work out, but I do know that I will never find out if I don't try :)

Drum Roll Please..............

Starting January 2012, 'A Little Love Affair', will be going retail :):):):)

So with all the new fun that's going to be happening around here, I thought it was only proper to have a new "logo" and order some business cards...

front

back

How cute are those! I mean, really, who doesn't like a little hot pink with a fancy-smancy chandelier!!

I will reveal location details soon, but until then, you can follow me on facebook and here on my blog. I will, of course, be talking about and posting pics of projects like crazy! After all, what's a retail space without merchandise??

Wish me luck :)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2011-12-13T22:26:00.003-06:00

With a chill in the air, Christmas is near.

We bought a new tree this year {for our new home} and I just love it! It's a 9' slim Norfolk pine. I thought it was only proper, with our move to "the country", to decorate a little more rustic this year. I had one thing in mind... Burlap!

I love anything and everything burlap!! It's really more of a sick obsession.. I may need therapy :)

Here are a few pics of our home shining bright for the holiday season...

These are flowers from our wedding with a little silver glitter added and some ribbon from my bouquet :)

Merry Christmas from our house to yours...
linking: It's Overflowing, Thrifty Decor Chick

Pallet Project

2011-12-13T18:26:00.002-06:00

If you're a crafter, a wanna be crafter or just a blog follower of crafts, I'm sure you have seen many pallet projects. I have pinned several on my Pinterest boards. Until now, I have yet to actually see one in person!!

My daughter {beautiful, SMART & talented} is in FCCLA in High School. She took part in a National Star Event Contest. The topic she choose was "Recycle & Redesign". The requirements were to take an everyday household or post consumer product and redesign it into something new. She also had to give a 10 minute speech in front of the judges panel. She choose to make a coffee table from recycled pallets!

She did 98% of the work by herself! There was a lot of lifting, pulling out nails, sanding, staining, drilling etc. involved, not to mention the preparation of her speech.

(these pictures were taken inside my garage and not on the correct setting, so please ignore the poor quality of the photos)

I think it turned out GREAT!!!

And I am PROUD to announce.... SHE WON 1ST PLACE IN HER DISTRICT!!!!!

Next to conquer will be Regionals in February :) I will keep you posted...

linking: {Primp}, Primitive & Proper

I'm Baaaaack!!!!

2011-12-13T00:37:00.000-06:00

Woah!!!! Where have you been woman?! Well, long story short, our plans have not exactly gone as planned the past few months. I would need to write a ton of blog posts to get you caught up on all the deets, however, who really gives, right?! I will summarize the best I can...

The house we were building, our "dream" house, the one we devoted all our time, energy, money and every evening to for the past 9 months to, didn't happen!! There are many, many things I don't understand in this earthly world of ours, but this one really caught me off guard! God has a way of looking out for us, even though we sometimes question His timing, but He has never EVER steered us in the wrong direction.. Thanks Man!!

We were one week from closing, when the call came in... our final appraisal had came in short... $6,000 short!! Before I panicked, I looked over the appraisal report. The must have been a mistake on one of the comps. It was the model home that we copied ours after. We agreed to purchase our home for $1,000 less than the price of the model home, because it was on a larger lot. Per the report, it sold for $8,000 less than what we were told! There must have been some mistake in paperwork on the appraiser's end, right? Wrong! The mistake was on the builders end. When we confronted him about this and the fact that the appraisal came in short, he was not willing to work with us. It was either come up with the extra cash or walk away. Now let me just say that before all of this happened, we had the most pleasant building experience like ever! He answered calls/texts the same day, was always willing to make adjustments within hours and let us make add-ons where normally they weren't made. It was all going so smoothly.. or so we thought. I'm not saying he willing knew all along that he was over charging us on this home and was upset with us for not using him in house lending department from the start, but, well... um ya.

So, long story short, we got our earnest money back and walked away from the home we watched come together from the tree filled lot up to the finishing touches in the painted trim in the laundry room. No, I'm not bitter about it at all ;)

After a small panic attack, we called our realtor and got him on the ball!! Financing was not a problem on our end, so nothing had changed there. We just needed to find a house.. and in a hurry! We had already turned our lease in and our house was in boxes (remember, we were ONE week from moving!!).

We jumped in the car and went house hunting!! We ended up in a neighborhood we had looked at a year or so before hand. At the time, we didn't think it was affordable for us, but at this point, we thought anything is worth looking at!! We viewed two homes. The first one was beautiful, but just didn't WOW me. The second home just had it all!! From the minute we walked through the door, it just felt like home. It had everything we were building.. and MORE!! It had all the upgrades we were putting in our other house.. and MORE that we were either going to just wait on or do without because of budget. It was still a wooded lot (which is what we wanted). It still had granite in the kitchen (which is what I wanted {and have been waiting years for}). It had so many of the same features that we have always loved, it was scary! {example: the lighting fixtures on the front and back porch were the EXACT ones we custom ordered!}

At this point, we knew we would be putting in an offer on this home!! After a couple back and forth numbers, we signed a contract!! (all within 48 hours of THE ~~dreaded~~ phone call) We rented a very large storage unit for 30 days and moved our entire house into it and stayed with my husband parents for a couple of weeks. GOD BLESS THEM!!! I couldn't ask for better in-laws.. Really!!

Our lender was AMAZING and pushed the paperwork through lighting fast!! We closed within 3 weeks!! And the best part.... We locked our interest rate this time around into something even better than before (which was awesome) and even though we paid more for this home than the one we were building, our payments are LOWER!! High five to the big man upstairs!! TRUST is something I will always have from here on out :)

So, now that a few months of complete craziness has gone by, I will be blogging again!! Woohoo!!

When I look back on everything that has happened, there is no doubt in my mind, I know it was never in God's plan for us to ever live in that house. For whatever reason, it was His plan and His timing for us to experience the home building process (which was a blast, for the most part), the transition process and the adjusting process. Through all of this, we have never asked "Why us", but we have held our heads high and looked forward.

It was worth it.

Stayed tuned for a home tour....

Holy Lego! Wyatt's turning 7!!!

2011-12-12T23:57:00.001-06:00

It's happening... my "baby" is turning 7!! He is lover of a lot of things and Lego's are near the top of his list, so naturally, I planned a Lego themed birthday party this year :)

His actual birthday is December 21st, so since it's so close to Christmas, he has never really had a great turnout. {poor kid only had 2 friends come last year} This year I was determined for him to have a good party!! So I decided to have it a week and a half early :) This plan = SUCCESS!!!

First I need to say how I'm a L.O.V.E.R. of Pinterest and I owe 100% credit to all of the amazing ideas and bloggers I found there!! You can follow my boards and see just how easy-peezy this party was to put together.

I won't go into super detail on how I made everything, you can get that from Pinterest. However, I will break it down for ya :)

Decorations:
I bought a pinnate flag from The Dollar Tree in primary colors and a ton of streamers and hung them on the drapes. (which I still need to blog about how and just exactly WHAT my drapes are made from!) I printed Lego men and cute them out and then used my tape runner to attach them to the flags.

I also draped the streamers in the kitchen above the party table, had balloons all over the floor and had the mailbox decorated so the house was party ready!

Games:
We played 3 games. I printed a list of the games so we could keep track of each players score. I gave prizes for 1st place and runner-up. 1st place prize consisted of a gumball machine filled with gumballs and a small Lego package. Runner-up prizes were just the small Lego packages alone.

Game #1: Lego Toss

This was a crowd favorite!! Super easy.. all you need is poster board in 4 colors. Cut into strips and taped together to make a ring. Each player gets 5 Lego's to "toss" and you add up their points. We had them stand behind a line so it wasn't too easy.

Game #2: Guess How Many Lego's Are In The Jar

There were some pretty funny guesses on this! Anywhere from 3 Lego's to over 1,000 Lego's :) The correct guess would have been 177 Lego's, but the 1st place winner guessed 170!! VERY close!!

Game #3: Pin The Face On The Minifigure

A small twist to the classic game "pin the tail on the donkey", this game was fun and so cute! Kudos's to my daughter for free handing the cutouts for the Lego figures body and arms! She is Excellent in art!! Thanks Abby!!
For this game, each child was blindfolded, spinned and headed in the right direction to place their minifig face on the body. I had precut head shapes and let each child make a face of their choice along with their name on the back. Then just used a little tape. Closest to correct placement wins!

Thanks again to Abby for saving the day and letting us use her scarf, since I forgot to pick up a blindfold!! The final result was a hoot!!

Congrats to Addison for coming in 1st place on this game!!

After games, we opened presents..

Lots and Lots of presents!!! Wyatt is so blessed to have such great friends!!

I saved the sugar for the end of the party (then sent them home to run off the extra energy they gained at the party) super awesome, I know!!

Here is a pic of the party table:

I think cupcakes are so much easier than cake for youngsters, not to mention I can make them and save on the cost of ordering a cute cake!!

For the cupcakes:

I started by buying a Lego brick silicone mold from Ebay. (I got it in a lot auction with a minifig mold which I made crayons for the goodie bags.) I bought the melt able colored chocolate tabs from Hobby Lobby and just melted them down into the mold and made the Lego yummies! I used the "FunFettie" cake mix and baked them in red, blue and yellow papers I also found at Hobby Lobby, which I used a 40% coupon on and scored them for less than $2!! A little white icing and a roll in some colored sprinkles.. top with a Lego brick chocolate and there you have it! So cute and YUM!

I served the premade ice cream cups, so we had to have spoons! I made the napkin rings from a Lego logo {say that 3 times fast!} I found on google. Added a strip of crepe paper and there ya have it!

For the drinks:

I am big on no sugar added "juice" so I always have a stocked pantry of REAL 100% juice Capri Sun. I found this great printable from Pinterest. It will take you to a wonderful blog!! They are actually for the juice boxes, but it worked just fine for the pouches too!! I then printed and cut out little Lego man heads and taped them onto the straws. You can find that printable here.

All of the kids, and even the adults, loved the party table!! I kept hearing "Did you know we can EAT these too!!" So much fun!

"Happy Birthday to YOU" was sang and everyone dug in to the goodies.... (by the way.. the "green Lego board" under the cake stand is actually popping shipping stuff painted green with spray paint! Another awesome tip from pinterest!!)

Goodie Bags:

These were so much fun to make! I bought them in a set from the wonderful HL (using a 40% coupon of course) and just used my circle cutter and scrapbook paper for the rounds. I attached them using 3-D dots so they stuck out a little. I didn't get a pic of the contents of the bags (I know, I know, SHAME on me!!) but they were filled with the following contents:

Printable Coloring Book
Lego Minifig Crayons made with the silicone mold I purchased on Ebay
Lego stickers
Silly straw
Lego brick candy from the candy store in the mall

All in all, it was a GREAT party!!

Happy Birthday Wyatt Ryan Maker!!!

We LOVE you so much!!!!!

*** I owe a HUGE thanks to my amazing hubby for all his help with the party!! He was game score keeper, picture taker, and clean up man for the day!! Thanks babe!!

linking to: Home Stories A2Z

Proud to Announce...

2011-07-21T10:52:00.001-05:00

Our new (to us) dining room table & chairs (and bar stools)!!!!! I'm not sure why, but I have been so afraid of the electric sander and staining bare wood!! Weird right?! Well, not anymore!!

I bought this lovely gem off Craigslist for only $75! It came with the table, a leaf, 4 matching chairs and 2 non-matching chairs.

It needed some love and a little cobweb removal. I loved the fact that the table top was round and the base was pedestal. I was also loving the little curves her feet had ;) I had BIG plans for this one!!

I stared by cleaning her and removing all the nasty away (and the gum that had been stuck underneath the table top.. Really??). Then I prepped my area and got started.

Love my paint can's for propping things up like this!!

Primer!!!!

All primed and ready for paint!!!

I have been wanting some color for our new home, and what a better way to bring it in than in the kitchen!! So, after a loooooong thought process, I went with this!! It's "Harbor Blue" by Rustoleum (spray paint in gloss of course).

I wanted to glaze it to tone done the BRIGHTness of the blue and so all the creases could soak it up and really POP out at ya!!

I LOVE glaze!! It's a super easy and fun way to transform anything (and everything!!).

Chair details after glazed and dry!! Look at that detail!!!!

I so wish I would have gotten a pic of the top during the sanding and staining process. I was so nervous about doing it (this was my first time to use an electric sander and stain!!) I totally forgot! However, let me start by saying I am no longer a scaredy cat and it was so so easy!! The dining room of this rental is just awful and so is the lighting, so these pics do no justice! (one day I will figure out how to use my camera the right way and all my pics will look fab!)

I love how everything turned out (shown here without the leaf. It is going to need some more work, but we probably will never use it anyhow, so I am waiting to do finish it this fall when it's not over 100*). The top is stained a dark walnut (hard to tell here :(

I also picked up a pair of bar stools from a friend that was moving out of state. We will need a set so I thought I could paint them to add even more color to the kitchen!

Once again, loving my old paint cans!!

I used Krylon's tented primer for these and I just love this rusty color! Wish they had a paint in this color!!

Krylon's Cherry Red Gloss is a very BRIGHT red, but when you add some glaze to it, it looks like this..

And once again, it is a little darker than in the picture. (darn flash!!) Oh, did I mention the bar stools swivel too!!! Yea!!

Now my kitchen will have some color, but it's starting to look like a red, white and blue theme, which I am not against, but not going for either, so I will be adding touches of other colors (yellow, a little orange and maybe something else) after we move!!

Stay tuned for a house tour....

Sneak Peek...

2011-07-14T12:43:00.000-05:00

I have been so busy lately with ~~packing, kids, laundry, etc.~~ life, that I haven't blogged much :(

But.. I have a wonderful surprise............. I have been working away {in my spare time, HA!} on something super fabulous!

Here is a itsy-bitsy, teeny weeny peek......

Wish List: In Pictures...

2011-07-08T16:56:00.003-05:00

I have a TON of ideas that keep swarming my brain for the new house. If you have no idea what "new house" I am talking about, you can find out here. (by the way, I need to update on a major scale of the process of the house!! Our builder is aMaZiNg and FAST!!)

My brain is in overdrive, as we will be moving in less than two months (YES!! LESS THAN 2 MONTHS!!) With me wanting to do so many things (or find the things on my brain's "list" of wanted treasures), I thought it might be a good idea to blog about it. I can update the list as I find (or add) items/ideas.

So, I think the best way to do this of course would be to do it in PICTURES!!!! (I heart picture posts!!)

Here is my brain (in pictures):

I have been in L.O.V.E. with this shower curtain from the moment I laid eyes on it! Only problem is it costs about $70! Yikes! It is from Urban Outfitters. I have seen a few blogs that have recreated this look, but nothing I have seen yet is quite as wonderful. It will be a splurge one day!!

Love the cute iron baskets that are so "in" right now for decorating! Love the idea of using them for toilet paper rolls (preferably under the cabinet, hidden away).

Would love to find an old school desk just like this one for my son! It would be the perfect size for the corner of his new room and the cubby would hold his books and crayons nicely.

I need to get around to making some "M" coasters for the living room. Our last name is Maker, so I shouldn't have issues in "making" them.. LOL (bad, bad joke)

Love these big clear glass canisters for the kitchen! Add a little vinyl lettering and there ya go!

You may remember my previous post about burlap and how I am head over heals for anything and everything like it right now!! I have the perfect spot for a couple of these beauties in our living room! Only problem is I need to decide what I want to put on them and then how to actually recreate the look!

Future project for a little love affair!! I found this table via the wonderful Craigslist! She came with 4 chairs that look like the one in the picture, 2 other mismatched chairs and 1 leaf. I'm not loving the chairs, but I think they will be fine with a little paint and maybe some glaze. This will be our "new" dining room table! Now just to decide what color/colors!!! Not sure if I want to go all white, white base with a dark stained top, bright colors or what?! The best part... It was all only $75!!!

I still need to paint my bed!! Thought I wanted to paint it black, but now I am thinking maybe a nice steel blue color? I don't want a black and white bedroom, so I'm thinking a little color in the bed and then adding something else to blend all the other colors in, like with some throw pillows, will be nice.

Speaking of throw pillows.. these look super fun!!

Our new master bedroom will also have a window seat in it!! (so excited for that!!) So, I want to make some cushions for the box seat to match the throw pillows for the bed? Or maybe I want to have the curtains match the throw pillows and go with a solid color for the box seat cushions? Who knows what I will end up doing, but I will need to do something in there!!

I have been desperately searching for a wicker love seat for our back patio for months!! Think I would like to paint it and add a fun fabric cushion. The hunt is still on...

I WANT ONE!!! Not sure where to put it, but I really, really want one!! I found one at an antique store a few months ago and loved it. It was only $24, but I was too cheap that day to pay the price. Went back not to long ago, and guess what.. yep, GONE!! Bummer!

I have a HUGE canvas that this cute vintage airplane will be painted on.. ~~one of these days~~ very soon! It will look super cute hanging on the wall of my sons room :)

My daughter, now 14, has decided to have a more grown-up, elegant bedroom. Wanting to stencil something to this effect on her walls. Oh how I wish I had my very own vinyl machine!!!

I love how cute & vintage this laundry room looks!! Mine will be MUCH smaller, but I will have a small area for a folding/ironing (yuck) table. Might have to dress it up a bit too!!

Stay tuned to updates on the house and my "brain list" of ideas....

Habitat For Humanity Renovation Station Introduction...

2011-07-02T10:59:00.000-05:00

I have been reading a LOT about the Renovation Station by the Habitat for Humanity on several blogs and all about how they score great deals and find awesome ideas there. So, last week I decided to check out my local H4H store. When I say "local" I mean 35 minutes away! I didn't even know we had one in Oklahoma :)

My first impression? L.O.V.E. at first sight!!! Well, maybe not first sight of the building, or even the area where it is located {why do they always have to be in the bad parts of town?}, but when I got in the door, I was blown away!! Blown away not only by the prices, but the variety of the items they carry!! Not to mention the mass quantities of certain deals!!! I was overwhelmed to say the least.

I spent a good hour in there, just wondering around looking at everything and racking up all the crafty ideas my brain is wanting to do in the very near future. I think I was asked about 10 times if I needed any help. The employee's are way friendly!! And I'm sure I looked a little out of place, next to the "normal" customer. I saw several contractor type men in there with their measuring tapes attached to their belts. But guess what... I have a measuring tape too!! {NOT attached to my belt :)}

Here is a quick picture of the items I bought that day:

Yes, that is it!! I'm telling you, I was so overwhelmed, I didn't know what to get!! Haha...

But I can tell you this, I only spent $5 for everything you see!!

I will be going back really soon to stock up of some items that I have in mind. If you have never been, and you have one near you {or even 35 minutes away, because YES, the drive IS worth it}, you ~~need~~ have to go!!!

So readers, I want to hear all about your trips to the good 'ole H4H... What do you buy from there and why?

Coffee Table Reveal...

2011-06-26T21:00:00.004-05:00

Woohoo!! I am super excited to show everyone how the coffee table turned out!! Remember this post on the unique coffee table I found on Craigslist? Well, I was so excited to get busy on it, I finished it in one day!!! I painted it to match the other two pieces I have recently refinished, that will go in our living room when we move into our new home. You can check out the other two pieces here and here.

Without further ado, here she is:

I love the old caster wheels!!!

So glad I could keep the original hardware too!!

I also lined the drawers in the same vintage paper that I used on the buffet shown here.

Love the built in magazine rack!!! I left out the dividers and plan to find a basket that will fit nicely down inside.

Painted, Glazed and Distressed = Perfect!!

Can't wait to get this gal in her place!!

This post is linked to Vanilla Bean, Craft-O-Maniac, The Tattered Tag & The Stories of A2Z

Barn Wood Frame...

2011-06-25T23:19:00.001-05:00

Well it was Friday, so naturally, I wanted to hit a few Garage Sales!! After I woke the kids up {at the crack of 10am} we threw some clothes on and headed out. We don't live in a huge town, so it's always hit or miss, and today, it was a miss :(

After stopping at the only two sales we saw, I decided to check out the two {yes, so sad} thrift stores we have in town. I found nothing at one, but then found this at the other:

LOL... Yes, that is a puzzle that has been framed with broken glass!! I just can't imagine why it hasn't sold! Well, I bought it... for the frame only!! Cost me $3 and a splinter, but I had big plans for it :)

Remember the post where I made my daughter a wire & clip photo board? If not, you can find it here. I wanted to do the same thing for my laundry room for the new house, but in a more rustic way of course!!

To do this, these are the tools you will need:

Tape Measure
Hammer {I love my small hammer!! It has hidden screw drivers inside it!!}
Pencil
Jute or some sort of rope/line
Something to secure the jute with. I used wood staples, but you can really use just about anything!!

Next, you need to find your center and make sure the spaces where you will put your jute is evenly spaced from each other.

After marking where the staples will go, hammer those girls in!!

Then attach the rope and tie it around each staple in a double knot. Pulling it as tight as you can across the other side, tie it to the other staple and secure with another double knot.

I don't have any clips for it just yet {I'm on the look out for some small antique clothes pins}, But when I find them, I will hang cute black and white photos from it!!

Total cost: $4.99

My inspiration? You can find it here on one of my Pinterest boards. Feel free to look around while you are there!!

Looking for a fun Linky Party? This post is connected to Vanilla Bean!!!

Unique Coffee Table Find...

2011-06-25T11:24:00.001-05:00

I have been searching and searching for THE perfect coffee table for weeks!! I wanted something unique. Something unusual. A conversation piece. I fell head over heals in love with this:

You can see how Suzanne of Pieced Pastimes made this here. Yes, she MADE it!! {I will still grab anything like this if I ever see it!!! Not sure why, but I think it is so cool!!}

I also really liked the idea of used pallets. Wooden pallets are BIG business right now!! Not to mention they are probably the closest thing to a free project you will ever get. People love to give you their used pallets!! I found this coffee table made from pallets and thought it was a very cute idea:

To see how this was made, check out Joanne from Waiting For Two here. I loved how she used the open slats to hold magazines!!

So since I had all these ~~great~~ WONDERFUL ideas, I dug and dug and finally found something via the awesome Craigslist!!! I had to drive about 45 min. to pick her up, but so worth it!!

{$40}

Check out all the details on this!! There are 2 drawers on one end of it..

{I love the original hardware!!}

And there is a built-in magazine rack in the other end..

{Check out those antique casters!!!}

All it needs is a little TLC and she will look great!! Very unique and functionable all at the same time!! I am all about a piece of furniture that has hidden storage!!

As a bonus, I also talked the guy into selling me this:

{$10}

Stay tuned for the finished coffee table results.....

Sending out an S.O.S.

2011-06-22T22:03:00.002-05:00

Hurry.. someone dial 911!!! I am starting to have anxiety trying to decide what color to paint my bed!! Seriously, this shouldn't be that big of a deal, right?

I am S.C.A.R.E.D. to death that I might mess it up somehow. I ~~really, really like~~ LOVE my bed (not to mention the absolute steal I got it for) and would just DIE if it turned out to look like nasty crap!!

Here is what it looks like now. I apologize for the lighting differences in the pictures.. I really need to figure out how to work my camera!!!

The photo above is more of the true color!!

I just love the details!! And I just bought all new WHITE bedding (crazy I know)!!

The new master bedroom walls will be painted {thankfully not by me} a light sandish, tan color {called Sand Dollar by Sherwin Williams} with white trim and crown moldings {and a super awesome window seat that I am so excited about}. We did decide to put carpet in the bedrooms, so that will look a little something like this:

So here is what I'm thinking...

~ Paint the bed black to match the night stands.

~ Paint the lamp bases gray and either get new white shades or make some like in this awesome blog post or in this one.

~ Accent with a gray throw at the foot of the bed and gray and black pillows

What do you think???

I have also considered accenting with turquoise and/or red, but I really want a more light and airy feel for the room. A little french country meets elegant chic if you will.

So.......... I need YOUR opinions!!!!

Cabinet Door Sign...

2011-06-21T17:15:00.002-05:00

I have had a few old cabinet doors just laying around in my garage for awhile. I knew I would do something with them, just didn't know exactly what... until today. I got "bit" by the craft bug and just had to do something.

I started with this:

The thing I love about these doors is that both ends are curved towards the inside and the middle of them have the look of barn wood planks. {I heart barn wood}

I painted the door with Krylon Blue Ocean Breeze (gloss) spray paint.

I like to use "gloss" sheen when I am going to add a glaze, because it will still look a tad shiny, but not overly glossy. If you were to use a flat paint, it would look more dull.

My all time favorite glaze is Valspar Antiquing Glaze in the color Asphaltum. It is not a black glaze, but more of a bronze brownish black in color. (yes, I made up that color :)

You can see just how bright the door was just after painting.

I put my glaze on in the direction of the wood grain. It looks better than if you were to use a circular motion.

After the glaze was dry, I distressed it just a little bit.

Oh how I wish I had a Silhouette machine!! IF I did, I would have made some vinyl lettering for this, but since I do not, I stenciled the word "Faith" and hand painted the letters on. I just used some black craft paint I had on hand.

After the lettering dried, I distressed the letters a little.

Here it is all finished...

I think it looks pretty good for a Tuesday afternoon project!!