I was kind of stumped until I happened to walk through a thrift store and spotted this amazing piece of furniture hiding in a corner.

It is an antique secretary.  I love it.  It has two shelves in the top, behind the glass doors, and three drawers in the bottom.  Inside the desk part it has an antique divider for mail, bills, stamps, and other desk stuff.

I have a lot of office stuff.  Staples, pens, pencils, stamps, envelopes, camera stuff, thank you notes, cables, and more.  The drawers will really come in handy.  We will likely have a really large home when we move but I have learned over the last year that I really have to be in the same room with Willow at all times.  While having a separate room for an office is nice, I really like to be near the family…and the television .  So,  this will go in our new family room.

You can see that this piece is pretty beat up.  Lots of scratches on the surface, but beyond that, the drawers need to be repaired and  the totally rad stickers need to be removed.

And, the mold needs to be addressed…with lots of bleach.

It will be a lot of work but it is worth it.  I have never seen an antique secretary for sale for less than $500.00…in used condition, and not in great shape.

I picked this guy up for $125.00 after some negotiation.  While to me that is a ton of money, it is SUPER cheap for this piece of furniture.  Luckily, I have been selling things in preparation for the move and was able to use the money that I have to buy it.

Whoop, Whoop!!!!

What are my plans for this piece?

Look in the first photo, that should give you a clue

I have no idea what our new house will look like, we won’t be able to house hunt until we arrive in a couple of months.  But of course you know that I have been stalking down houses on the internet…at all hours of the day and night.

We just found out some things…

Things like…we are moving.

Um..yes..sad and exciting all at the same time.

Where are we moving?

The Middle East.

Don’t worry, we will be okay where we are going and it will be an amazing adventure for our crazy family.  The preparations for this kind of move are rigorous which is why I have been missing.  Right now, we have less than 90 days and our house will be packed up in less than 60 days.

Remember that garage…OMG.

So anyways, I will continue to blog my heart out and I will really be counting on the friendships that I have developed through this blog to get me through the move.

What is awesome about where we are moving?

We will have a huge McMansion villa for me to decorate, household staff, a private pool, and tons of fun activities and friends for Willow.  We will have more of an opportunity to travel abroad to place like Ireland, Croatia, Istanbul, and so much more.

I am really looking forward to sharing all of these things.

I may have been missing but I have still been decorating and figuring out this new style I love.

Let’s look!

I returned the red pillows to their home in the master bedroom and found these sunny yellow pillows at TJMaxx.  I love them.  Notice anything else that’s different?

The Chevron drapes maybe?

I found them at Hobby Lobby…for…wait for it…

$15.00 each!  They are burlap-ish but you can wash them.  I washed one panel (the panel on the left) and it shrunk a good amount.  They are 96″ drapes (which is a real steal for $15.00).  The panel shrunk a good 4 inches though…yikes.

So what do you think?  I have a lot more to show you include an antique secretary that I am painting yellow and teal…whoop, whoop!!!!

I am sure that you all know by now that I make prints and sell them in my Etsy Shop  and my online store at  Magic And Light.

This time I really wanted to make something cool and modern that would make a big impact slash be a conversation piece.

Here is what I came up with.

Really…I can’t stop looking at them.  I designed them to be 12″ x 12″ and fit in a standard scrapbooking frame.  I chose to put them in shadow-box style scrapbooking frames from Hobby Lobby.

(I l-o-v-e Hobby Lobby too)

They have that vintage but modern cottage look that I am loving right now with just the right pop of red.

Let’s look closer.

Each letters appears on white washed barn wood in a soft red.  The letter itself has a crinkled paper look.

So cottage-y (ish), whatever, you know what I mean.

The same kind of letters sell at places like Ballard Designs for $70.00 – $80.00 per framed image!  My don’t come framed but if you catch the 50% sale at Hobby Lobby every other week, these prints come in at a fraction of the price!

I don’t know about you, but I am all about fractions of prices.

If you are interested, go check them out in my Etsy Shop or at  Magic And Light..

I am going to go admire them some more in the family room.

Whoop, whoop!

I have this Easter printable for sale in my Etsy Shop, but since I love you all so much I thought I would offer it to you…

For FREE!

I was so inspired by my friend Jessica at The Rustic Cottage and her fabulous projects that I thought I would diy my own little easter sign.  We are a little limited on space here and so storing wood pallet art is a challenge.  Storing printables though, is not a challenge.

This is a high quality 300dpi .pdf file and is sized to 8″ x 10″.  I would print it at Staples or Office Max to get the best color results.  I am sure it will only cost a couple bucks.

Please be nice and subscribe and/or like us on Facebook before you download.

Please note:  *All artwork is subject to copyright by the artist Amy Stanley. Images that you receive via digital download may not be disseminated or reproduced for anything other than limited personal use. Images may not be given as a “free printable” or for any other distribution.

We have had this cherry wood console for last 7 or 8 years. I bought it from my mom for $10.00 that long ago. I always feel so nervous changing wood items. I feel like I am going to ruin them or something.

There is nothing wrong with it per say, but it is a little transitional and I have really wanted modern cottage chic.

Not to mention, there are a lot of nicks and dings going on all over.

So, last week I decided to go for it.  I just went ahead and painted it.  I used a pure white spray paint in a satin finish.

A few weeks ago I also discovered the knob aisle at Hobby Lobby.

Oh helllllloooooo Knobby Lobby.

I grabbed a couple for this project.

Ready….

I found the teal chevron at Hobby Lobby too.  I used a tension rod and did a basic hem and rod pocket to make the skirt.

I found a couple of cool accessories lying around (in the guest bedroom).  I love that I don’t feel limited on colors now.

Check out the knobs!  They add just to right punch of red.

Let’s look at some before’s and after’s:

I finally feel like I am figuring out our style now.

All of the color makes me so happy.

Yay.

For a sneak peek of what is in my next post look in the sidebar at the L-O-V-E  ad.  :-)

Teal Chevron

Red graphic prints

Mustard florals

and so much more…I can’t wait to show you!

But first, I have to tell you a little sumpin’ about Magic And Light Collection.

Did you all know that I develop professional resources for photographers?

Well…I do.

My company is called Magic And Light Collection and is a resource for photographers both hobbyist or professional…and for mamarazzi’s like me.

Right now I am offering three collections:

Gypsy, Sweet Skies, and Atmospheria

What are they?

They are dynamic color overlays that will transform your images in just a couple clicks in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements!  Let’s take a look at some before and after images!

I love this one…the clouds from mySweet Skies Collection make such a huge impact!  I also processed this image using a couple of overlays from Gypsy.

Check out those greens under the pier and how much the structure stands out.  It looks like a painting!

This is another favorite processed with the Gypsy Collection.  Check out how the tree bokeh in the background is transformed!

I love the rich color in this one.

These overlays are SO easy to use.  They are compatible with Photoshop and Photoshop Elements.  There are no actions to install and use…it is as easy as putting a picture on top of a picture!

Visit the Magic And Light Collection website for tons of before and after images, pricing (which is pretty low), video tutorials, and much more information.

But guess what, that’s not all!

It’s Magic March!

Use the coupon code MARCH20 to get 20% off any of my collections.

BUT THAT’S NOT ALL!

I have two Freebies on the site that you can grab if you become a fan of Magic And Light Collection on Facebook!

CLICK HERE FOR SOME FREEBIES!

If you use the overlays, please post your images on the Magic And Light Collection Facebook page!  I love seeing the transformations!

Here are my two favorite bunnies in the largest size that I offer, 20″x30″ posters.  The frame is 24″x36″ and both posters together make a dramatic impact in the room.

I used custom mattes from Hobby Lobby.  Let me just tell you something about custom mattes…

I went to Michaels and found the two silver poster frames on sale for $14.99 each.  Umm…WHOOP, WHOOOOP!   I needed mattes and headed over to the framing desk.

I knew better.

But I went anyways.  I asked about pricing the size I needed, 24″x36″ matted to 20″x30″.

The girl at the desk typed away for a few minutes and then told me…

That will be $60.00 each.

No thank you and buh bye.

Then I discovered Hobby Lobby.  They have a custom framing desk.  I dared to ask again and at the end the nicest guy told me…wait for it…

$14.00 each.

Wha, wha, what?????

He cut them while I was waiting.

These prints are available for everyone to buy along with a few more.  The watermark does not appear on the final image.   They are great for kids rooms and add a lot of whimsical character.  I can see us making up some adventurous stories about Willows bunnies in the years to come.

 Click HERE to find the ordering page.

Every time Willow wakes up in the morning, or from a nap, she looks at us briefly and then waves at her bunnies and says” hi”.  I know they will be a special part of her room and her life for a long time.

If you like them,  any Pinning would be greatly appreciated .

On the upside, I love what I do, so it was super fun.

Check out this sweet foster dog I had the pleasure of working with.

Also, last week my blog buddy Jessica created this FANTASTIC Olioboard for my family room.

That blue medallion fabric is amazing and I love the black and white pillow on the chair!

Love the bird prints…Jessica knows how much I love birds.  I love the smaller scale end tables.  I really need one of those next to the loveseat!

How nice of her!  This gives me some great ideas and a jumping off point for the family room.

What is Olioboard?

Olioboard.com is a website where you can create 2D or 3D rooms and try out different stuff.  How fun is that!?!

While I was browsing the site, I found a couple other boards that I loved.

I love the soft blues and teals in this coastal board.  I Really love the blue coral prints and the texture of the chairs!

This one has some gorgeous colors.  I love how all the colors are able to be different but the space feels really pulled together.  I have to find one of those Ampersand signs somewhere.  I need it in my life.

Go and check out Olioboard.  You can share your creations on the Grown From Scratch Facebook page.  I would L-O-V-E seeing them!

My idea for this space is really comfortable, casual, all american cottage style.  I want to go with more colors so that I can feel less constrained by a single “color scheme”.

I feel like I keep getting tangled up in one scheme or another.  I really just want things to flow but be interesting at the same time.

Let’s check out the changes.

I found these amazing end tables at Home Goods, I showed them to you in a grainy iPhone picture on Facebook last week.  I love, love, love the color.  It’s like an antique glazed teal.  I also found the gray/ teal ikat pillows on the same trip.  The rusty-red pillows are actually stolen from the Master Bedroom…they will need to be returned as soon as I find a replacement.  I am just wanting to test the waters with my color idea.

I also found a new 8′ x 10′ rug…it’s super great quality, and really soft.  #rugofmydreams

The wall color (Cliveden Gray Morning) is on its way out, in favor of a new light beige that will be a more neutral backdrop and compliment the rest of the colors.

Look at that sweet Spaniel sleeping on the couch.

I really want to build out the fireplace a little more too.  Something like this.

source

If you all have any ideas for products PLEASE let me know.  Looking for pillows for the couches asap and I can’t find anything that catches my eye.  I am totally up for suggestions.

Also, I have been meaning to mention…

Apparently when you all send me messages, they are sent to my gmail account.  I thought that account was forwarded to another email address.  I finally checked gmail the other day and was shocked at the number of messages from you all…dang.

If I didn’t respond to you…so sorry.

 I get notifications of comments on the blog as soon as they are posted and mostly get back to you all on a daily basis.

One of you, who is no longer subscribed and shall not be named…also emailed Bagger letting him know that he deserves better parents because we “neglect” him.  I wasn’t going to address it on the blog, but it is borderline hilarious and reminds me that there are crazies out there.

I just have one thing to say to you lady…

To everyone else…thanks for all the nice emails and comments .  It makes me so happy when I hear from you whether it is on Facebook, comments in the blog, or emails in my inbox.

I have been searching for some Grayspiration all over the internet for the last couple months in an attempt to really get it all together before I made any decisions.  I have pictures of the family room for you, which is off to a really great start, but today I thought we would look at my inspiration. *Don’t quote me on the pillows, I am still figuring that out.

Gray Blue, Red, Black, Mustard.  Love it.

I love the combination of these colors because it gives me the ability to switch things up and still be within my color scheme.  For the last year the family room has been in a green and white phase and I have really been wanting more color.

Speaking of color…

Here is a little sneak peek of one my Home Goods finds last week.  You all are going to LOVE this.  Facebook users got a sneak peek last week…if you aren’t a fan of GFS on Facebook please scroll up in the sidebar and click “like”.

{Thank you iPhone for this grainy low light picture}

I still have to figure out the kitchen and the dining room.  It all has to flow together since they are all open to one another.  I will have to use the same colors in all rooms so I am hard at work figuring it all out.

I love this kitchen island though.  I may or may not already have the paint…waiting for a free moment

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Please come back tomorrow for actual pictures of the family room!  I feel like I never get to share whole rooms with you all.

I can’t wait.