Fantastically Frightful Friday

..say that 10 times fast.

Halloween is almost upon us, and I feel this year our family has been able to really enjoy the ghoulish decor.  We've been to a couple parties, we decorated early and we are baking!

It's almost time to take the decorations down, but before I do...here are a few of my favorites....

 

    

I definitely have a thing for skulls.

Backyard Vignette

In between the bouts of rotten weather I have been trying to spruce up the backyard. The more I do, the more I find that still needs to be done! Our yard is small so I've tried to creates niches to use every ounce of space.  We entertain often so I want kids and grownups alike to relax and enjoy. I've been painting like crazy to add that pop of color and refresh the old.....

Here is a before of our seating spot by the firepit....pretty bland and boring

and the after so far...

the picture is terrible because I forgot to take it this morning and ran out in the worst light possible. The art on the wall I posted about here.

Do you recognize the fern pillows??? They are from here and the green ones in the back are placemats too! I swear I truly never will look at placemats the same way ever again!!!!

And the pots and plant stands I've had forever - I think I got them from a garage sale or thirift store. They looked terrible...oh and avert your eyes from the deck in need of staining and the ugly paint on the railing (like I said lots to do!)

this one is actually meant to hold a feed bag for a horse - I've always liked it as a plant stand. you can see it to the right of the after picture.

A few cans of my favorite Rust-oleum in aqua and keylime and black satin and ta-da color!

Look how big the puppy is getting and he appreicates the new motif - see how relaxed he is!



Here is the before and after again

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From Fifties to Fabulous

Ahhh the weekend and for me that means spending time with family in Santa Barbara.  I love it here and it's especially nice to be away from the dreary weather of NorCal...hello it's June why is it still raining????

The last time I was here I bought this lovely cabinet for $60 at a thrift store.  It reminded me so much of one that I've had my eye on in the Ballard Designs Catalog.  We were in need of a cabinet to hold the t.v. components and I knew this would be perfect!

I think this would also make a cute bar.

Just look at the detail.....love, love, love
When I showed my husband, he said "Call June Cleaver and tell her to take her cabinet back"....

I really like the diamond grate and as much as I hate taking the time to prep I knew there was no other way.

I've refinished all kinds of furniture, but this is the first time this has ever happened to me...eeeew cracks and bubbles. I sanded and primed and sanded and primed...I lost count of how many times.  And it was only in a few places.

I decided to wallpaper the back for that little something extra. I knew most people would never see it but I would know.  Kinda like wearing really pretty lingerie....

I fell in love with this Allen + Roth wallpaper from Lowe's. More of this wallpaper to come later...like I said I love it!

Measure twice...cut once

Don't you think it gives it that little something???

Away with the unbelievable mess of cords

Ta-Da!

I didn't notice the lid wasn't on the basket until just now and of course I can't fix it....my little OCD self with have to live with the not picture-perfect picture

From fifties to fabulous!

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Garden Art

Our neighborhood has the garages in the back of the houses - which is great for curb appeal, but can be a little challenging for the backyard view.  When we walk out onto our deck we see the back of the garage. I've been trying for years to soften the wall and I think I've finally found a simple way to add some pizazz.

Here is one side... please ignore the deck in need of staining - I'm hoping to put in flagstone this summer!

I primed and painted a 24 x 36 piece of MDF.

And my daughter and I stuck these beauts on..

Viola!  (because this will be outside I sealed with a matte non-yellowing sealer.)

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Placemat Palooza!

Well I've found yet another couple of uses for placemats other than dining.  I was shopping at HomeGoods last week and came across these vinyl placemats.  I thought they were adorable and reminded me of the Moroccan  lanterns and vases that I see everywhere these days.

By the time I drove home, I knew exactly what to do with them.  I had 3 glass cylinder vases and thought by adding the placemats I would get the look for less.

I simply cut the placemats to fit and hot glued at the seem. I might use the strips that are left over to cover votives.

This is a daily double....I've had this tray table for years! I got it at a garage sale and thought it was so cute, but just needed a little love.  This was saved during the last lose it or use it party.

I painted it and lined the tray with the last placemat.  I keep this tucked behind the chair and pull it out for company. It gives them a great place to set a drink and some munchies without having to lean forward to reach the ottoman.

Giving myself a use it or lose it date seems to be lighting a fire under my butt!

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I'm All Aglow

Not sure if you are noticing a trend with the whole 'light thing'....It's totally by accident.  Today I have been painting like crazy. I am working on about 10 projects at the same time. I also managed to clean out this side area of our yard. I didn't mean to. I was looking for something that I wanted to paint and of course it was buried under a ton of stuff on the potting table so I decided it was time to clean that whole area out. Bonus for me, because I came across several things I forgot that I had, such as wrought iron plant stands. Look for the redo on those in an upcoming post.

I've had these candle holders forever and just didn't have a place in the house for them anymore. During a recent visit my gf and I played a game of use it or lose it and these were in the pile for me to use...if only I could find a place for them in the next 3 months...well that was only about 2 months ago so I'm way ahead of schedule.  I'm thinking that the extra month will be like rollover minutes and I can apply it to another project!

They aren't bad...just dark and I'm not into dark right now. So a little Rust-oleum primer and some Rust-oleum gloss white and they were well on there way to a new life. I wanted to use them outside, but as it can be a bit breezy where we are I needed to find a way to make a hurricane shade for them.

I took a trip to my local Dollar Tree and found clear glass candle holders and these really pretty glass rocks.  I glued the glass onto the bases.  I already had the paint so total cost was about $5 for the glass holders and the rocks!

I can't wait to see how they will look at night with the candles lit!

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Thriftacular!

Saying I got a good deal at the thrift store just doesn't seem to convey my excitement. As anyone who thrifts knows, you just never know what you are going to find, and sometimes go home empty handed. Recently I was visiting my family in Santa Barbara and decided to hit the local thrift stores.  Wow! I will make it a point to do that every time I am in town...talk about some great stuff!  I have a few projects to post, but I think this one is one of the best deals.

I found these Pottery Barn Crown Molding Shelves under a pile of stuff.  I almost passed right by. I knew I had to have them, not because I needed them, but because the price was so fab. They were marked $14.99 but everything was 50% off. A Steal! They retail for $75 each at PB.

I must confess, I bought them even though I had no idea what I where I was going to put them. With all the purging I've been doing, I promised myself I wouldn't buy anything unless I had a specific need....

You can see in the photo that they were a little beaten up - nothing a can of Rust-oleum Heirloom White couldn't fix.

Soon after I got home I found a place for them, so technically I didn't break my rule. ;-)

I have a vaulted ceiling in my bedroom and this wall needed something! I staggered them for visual interest as well as practicality. The practical part is leaving a space for the lamp. I'm still working on the shelfscape - ideas welcome!

I'm headed to Santa Barbara next week - definitely going to hit the thrift stores there again!

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