Fall is in the air

Since September is in FULL swing, it's about that time to pull out the fall decor!
These are some of my FAVORITE Fall things...
CANDLES! Autumn Wreath and Spiced Pumpkin by Yankee Candle. These are the most amazing, best smelling candles ever. They make your whole house smell like fall.   

PUMPKINS--of course! This year I am planning on re-creating one of the below ideas.

LOVE this idea from Good Housekeeping.  So stinkin' simple.

 Super cute pumpkins with house numbers from Sunset.

CANDY CORN!  This stuff makes me SO sick but it's SO addictive!

FALL FOODS!  Especially Cobblers, Pot Roast, and Cider!

   

MY ANNIVERSARY (year 3 is coming up in October!!) and CRISP AIR!  Really no picture of this... but I LOVE it! 

So.. random thought...I tried on and almost bought my first pair of "skinny" jeans today but I am not sure if I can do it or not.  No worries-- I have all week to make up my mind and go back for them.  I guess the BIG question is- is 30 too old for trends?  Is this really a trend or just good style? 

Carolyn

the fine art of painting

I confirmed something about myself this past week.  Its not a huge revelation but simply a confirmation of what I was already pretty sure of.  I. HATE. TO. PAINT!  No joke. Painting to me is right up there with getting a cavity filled or taking my two dogs to the vet (sounds like a fun-filled event but Quentin poops and pees on me without fail every single time), not a fun event.


This is the thing.  I hate to paint.  I know I hate to paint.  Why is it then that I subject myself to this misery? It's not even that I hate it-- that I could get over.  The biggest problem is that I am not good at it.  It doesn't matter if I follow every rule in the book I ALWAYS end up with streaks on the wall or paint on the molding.  After three (and in some spots) 4 coats of paint this past weekend I can still see some streaks... so what is a girl to do?  Wait for it to dry- put everything back and hope and pray that no one notices:) 


So after a VERY long weekend of non-stop painting my living room and dining room is finally done(ish)!  OH!  I bet you are wondering what color I chose from my post a few weeks back... the truth is none of them.  I was planning on going with the grey color that some of you liked but it was an "oops" paint and they didn't have the color name on the sample.  Went I went to Lowe's I had the best intentions of taking the sample and getting it color matched..but I forgot it.  I know, I know.. most normal people would go back home and try again..not this girl.  I spent some time and found a color I thought was a basic grey.  As you can see from the pictures its definitely a blue-grey- but luckily, I am a fan.


Here are some before and after pics!


Living Room Before (Well kind of before... I couldn't find any recent shots)

Living Room After! P.S. I PROMISE my painting is not splotchy like the picture makes it look!  

 

Dining Room Before (For some reason I only have pictures of the left side of the room)

Dining Room AFTER!

                                       

What do you think?  Worth the painful weekend covered in paint OR time to retire the paint brush?

Carolyn

passing on my love for folding fabric...

I already showed you how to fashion a table runner out of fabric (I know, I know-- this is amateur stuff... but it's all I know...so that's what your gonna get:))


Any-who-  the table runner was for the dining room and since the living room and dining room are smack-dab next to each other I decided it was only fair for the living room to have a few stripes as well.  


Enter left over fabric and thrift store side table.


The side table isn't awful, but I really hate to use the phrase "isn't awful" to describe something... so I fancied it up a bit.




This is the before pic.  The side table was a $5.00 thrift store find--not my favorite but it will work for the time being.  It was super dirty when I got it--so it underwent a MAJOR primer and spray paint makeover.  This is what my table looked like a few days ago.

Here are some after pics.  All I did was take a scrap piece of fabric, fold in the sides so it fit the top of the table, and ironed it down so it laid flat.  B-I-G Improvements...am I right? 

It makes me so happy to see this table now :)  OH!  P.S. don't you LOVE the picture in the frame?  My BF got it for me for my b-day! I know what you are thinking... "it's great, but what is it?" (how did I know?  Cause that is exactly what I said!), anyways its a "T" for my last name!  Ah!  Now you see it!  I LOVE it!  Come to think of it- she also got me the cute little plate on the table too....


Now run off and start folding random scraps of fabric and start covering your tables... you feel REALLY silly but It's addictive, I promise!


Carolyn

plate wall!

You know what I am ALL about right now?  Plates on a wall!  I think it's one of the best ways to add something fun and colorful to a dining room.


Here are some of my favorites!


The first is from Sunset, the second is from Design Sponge, and the last is my FAVORITE from Nuestra Vida Dulce!

Are you a fan?  I am ALL about it and have already started my plate collection!

Happy Tuesday!  (WHY is my left align not working!! Hmpfh!)

Carolyn

I got me some stripes!

Remember when I mentioned that I would LOVE a striped rug?  Well, that's not gonna happen anytime soon so I went for the next best thing, a striped table runner!

I visited IKEA and used a gift card to purchase 3 yards of black and white striped fabric.

I wanted my table runner to have LOTS of stripes going all the way down the table instead of a few stripes spanning the length of the table (we will pretend that made sense and you are following me:)) So in order to make that happen I had to whip out my trusty sewing machine and get to work. 

I cut two pieces of fabric.  Imagine EXACTLY two pieces just like the one above in the sample photo. I pinned them together so that I would have enough fabric to make it across the table. 

I ran it through the sewing machine with my rather large looking hand ...

Perfect--or at least, good enough:)  This is what it looked like once I finished sewing.  You cant even see the seem! 

I laid the fabric on my dining room table and decided how long and how thick I wanted the runner to be.  Once I had the length right, I cut the extra fabric off.  Then I folded the fabric in so that I got the right width.  I would sew it- but I change up my fabric runners so often that I might want to use this fabric for something else...so folding it is. 

Only problem with folding is that the edges can be a little "thick" like this...

Trusty iron to the rescue.  

See... much flatter!

Here she is!  All finished!

All dolled up... Just need some white candles for my jars...they are lookin' a little bare at the moment. 

There you go!  Fashioning some fabric into a make-shift table runner.  I am in LOVE with my stripes!

Carolyn

eye spy with my little eye...

Notice anything different with our front door?  Look closely!

That's right!  We got a peep hole!  Gone are the days of peering out the dining room blinds to see who is at our door...getting caught and being forced to listen to a twenty minute shpeal on why we need a sprinkler system in our yard.  Now we can screen door to door sales people and visitors like normal people:)

So how did we do it?  Well I didn't do anything besides stand on my tip toes and tell the husband how high it could go.  Then he took his drill and a 9/16th drill bit...dug a little hold and just popped this bad boy in there.  Easy peasy!

Here is a closer look...

We need to get some white paint to clean up the edge but besides that we are done.  This was probably the fastest home project we have ever done.  5 minutes tops!  


I know this is pretty darn exciting, but, putting a peep hole in isn't the only home project we have been up to... stay tuned for details!!!




Carolyn

favorite frugal finds

 Wanna know the best feeling ever?  Lets paint you a picture... You are out shopping, minding your own business, and you stumble upon the most amazing item ever.  For some it could be fantastic shoes, or a great top, for others it could be the most amazing lamp or pillows you have ever seen (for me its always about the home decor... dressing myself is not my strong point).  You fall instantly in love and start searching frantically for the price tag hoping and praying that it is within range.  You find the price tag and immediately notice the orangeish-red sticker on it (can you tell I shop at Target a lot?)...and you realize that you have hit the jackpot... your most favorite-have-to-have item is on CLEARANCE!    That my friends, is what I call happiness.

Here are some of my favorite finds that I have collected on DEEP clearance over the past few years.  Some of these things may look familiar from other posts!

The lamps that started my LOVE of navy blue.  These beauties were on sale for $13.00 at one Target and $11.00 at the other.  I found one and HAD to drive to find another.  I. Love. Them. 

    

My old man chair.  Isn't he handsome? He was only $2.50...just like the matching chairs that I re-did! 

   




My Craigslist Coffee table- kind of girly huh? 

This was a GREAT find if I do say so myself.  I got this large kitchen table from the Crate and Barrel Outlet store for $100.00.  In know what you are thinking...$100.00 isn't that cheap and you are right.  BUT for a solid wood table that will live with me as a kitchen table or craft table for the kids I don't have, it's well worth the relatively small cost. P.S. Here we go again with the yellowish pictures. Humph!

I love this cute little silver tray table.  He was left all by himself on a shelf at target and I couldn't leave him.  Plus for $14.00 on clearance he was a steal!

  

I feel the need to exclaim my love for Homegoods!  I fall in love with a mirror every time I walk into that store.  This mirror was $40.00--  and it is HUGE (and beyond cheap in comparison to others).  

Of course I have a million other random chochski's in the house that were bargains... but my camera just died so  I must leave you in suspense for another day.  Anyone find any BIG bargains lately?


Carolyn

i want!

Im in love. with a rug.  maybe two of them.  They are kindof expensive so the likelyhood that they will be mine is really slim to none. Regardless, a girl can dream right?

Take a look at this bad boy... I LOVE it... kindof a mix between beachy and modern-ish.  But for $890.00 its a no-go.

I also love this room that was designed by the HGTV Next Design Star winner, Emily Henderson.  Do you see the fantastic black and white striped rug peeking out?  I'm in LOVE! This one could potentially happen if I bought these FLOR carpet tiles and finegled them in a different pattern.

I feel like my kitchen table is in need of a striped rug...or maybe my family room.  Is it weird to have a area rug over a carpet?  I'm kindof on the fense with that one.. what do you think?  Is it a big"no-no" like wearing white after labor day (which p.s. I do not think is a rule anymore.. I say wear whatever color you want whenever you want:)) OR completely appropriate since there are no rules when it comes to design anymore?

Decisions decisions.

Carolyn