Kitchen Make-over

Our kitchen was move in ready with new appliances and cabinets, but not my taste or color in flooring and wallpaper. We always spend one week of vacation updating something in the home. The kitchen was put off for years because it was functional, but after several years, I had had enough. The bulk of the re-do was in one week, but total completion was over two with those little things you find to do.

I didn't take any good photos of the pre-re-do, but found this one of the hubby and I fooling around with a hand massage thingy. As you can see, yucky wall paper. Pink and green is not my idea of kitchen colors

The next few photos are of the demo..taking out the old doors, down with the wall paper and out with the pink ans green Formica counters...

..and sanding of the shiplap.

I went with Behr Caramelized Orange for the walls. Much nicer in person than the photos show.

New doors with lots of windows. Was not finished painting them black when this picture was taken, but you get the drift.

Pups show off the Pergo flooring in Virginia Oak.

Ahhh the ceiling. It was in rough shape so we papered it with paint-able textured wallpaper. The paint was metal based and was $60 per quart. The hanging of the paper was the challenging part. Good thing husband and son are 6'3"+! Wallpaper was hung then painted.

Then Crown molding was added.

Counter top...

sink.

Finished...almost. Hubby and I have not agreed on tile back-splash yet.

Decorating walls with old B&W of family and other interesting pictures

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14196072/kitchen-make-over site

Rose garden w/ 2 new Playboy rose trees added & few matching tulips!

Rose garden finally done! My purple one last yr didn't make it!

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/1415008/rose-garden-w-2-new-playboy-rose-trees-added-amp-few-matching-tulips site

Upcycled Old Metal T.V. Trays

I have had these trays for many years and never really knew what to do with them. I had used them for decoration on my patio, but I really wanted to be able to use them for something else. They had also gotten pretty rusty. I finally decided to paint them and put the word 'Garden' on one of them. I used chipboard letters and placed them where I wanted them and light glued them on. Then I spray painted the whole tray white. After a couple of coats of paint, I removed the letters and then sanded a little. After I was happy with the look, I sprayed a sealer over the top since I would be using it outdoors. I also added handles on the edges so it could be used as a tray. I can hardly wait for it to be nice enough to use it!

The finished tray. All ready to go!

I placed the letters I wanted on the tray and lightly glued them on so they wouldn't move during the painting. I added a couple of coats of white spray paint, removed the letters, sanded and sealed.

What to do with this tray? I finally decided to make it a tray for out patio.

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14204926/upcycled-old-metal-t-v-trays site

DIY Tobacco Basket

Tobacco baskets make beautiful decor statements but are pricey and hard to find. But what if I told you the materials to make one can be found at your local hardware store.

I love the idea of using your creativity to create something that is either hard to acquire or costs a little too much. I've had this idea in my mind for a while now, but it wasn't until recently that I decided to give it a try.
The materials I used are of course not the wood splints found with a real tobacco basket, but I do love the way it turned out and I hope you do too.





In order to make your very own tobacco basket you will need the following materials:Wood Veneer (I purchased mine at Home Depot or you can find similar online HERE)
Stapler
Utility Knife
Wood Stain of choice (I used special walnut and dark walnut)
Scissors
Ruler
Heavy item to hold in place (I used books and jars)





1. Unroll wood veneer and stain both sides as desired. I used a mixture of special walnut and dark walnut by Minwax, but a steel wool and vinegar solution would also work really well to give it that grayish, aged looked.
2. Allow stain to penetrate for about 5-10 minutes. As the stain makes the veneer more pliable, you will want to work before the stain completely dries (I advise wearing rubber gloves).
3. Measure and mark the thickness of each of the strips of your basket (mine measured 2 wide).
4. Using a ruler and utility knife, cut the desired number of strips along the grain of the wood. My basket had 5 long strips measuring 41 in length and 7 short strips measuring 21
NOTE: Cut several extra long strips for the edge of the basket (I used 5).





5. Lay your long splints on the ground or flat surface and place a heavy item at the ends (I used books and cans).
6. Weave short splints in an over/under manner through the long splints.
7. Remove weight and rearrange splints if needed, making sure that all the holes are even (I'm not very good at making things even as you can see).
8. Staple ends in place.9. Place one of the extra long splints outside weave and start to staple the ends of the splints onto it.
10. Continue to wrap and staple around weave.







Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14124461/diy-tobacco-basket site

Add Some Bling To Your Table - Upcycled CD Placemats

I wish I had thought of this project before the Holiday's. It turned out so sparkly and shiny that it makes me think of New Years Eve.

It is a simple project but it does takes some time and a few CD's. The result is very shiny and pretty. Before I made this project I didn't realize how many different colors there are.

Step one - use a template to cut triangle shapes from the CD's with different holographic colored films.

Step two - Lay out your design.

Step three - Use E6000 glue to attach the design to a piece of fabric and finish edges with E6000 glue.

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14354027/add-some-bling-to-your-table-upcycled-cd-placemats site

the first day of spring is March 20th but some plants are ahead of schedule,

Veronica 'Georgia Blue' looks good with Euphorbia wulfenii

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/142593/the-first-day-of-spring-is-march-20th-but-some-plants-are-ahead-of-schedule site

Garbage Find Turned Into a Vanity for My Daughter

Every once in a while you get lucky and find something gorgeous on the curb. This jacobean style vanity is one of those finds!

It looks much better in the picture than it actually was...it had veneer issues, the top was a mess, problems with a few of the drawers, etc. Not a problem because it's going to be painted anyway. If you don't like painted furniture then maybe now would be a good time to find another post to read.

We happened to have an old shelf with a towel bar to hang in the bathroom, I decided to turn it on its side, add a mirror, and add shelves in the small cubby on the top...which is now the right side. Thankfully my hubby is handy and does all of that for me! :) We also had a vintage vanity chair in our stash and that goes perfectly with this! All it needs is a cushion.

Although it looks white, it's a very pale blue with some white dry brushed on the accents. Of course I had to distress it, it adds so much character! Hubby sprayed the handles in an oil rubbed bronze finish...my favorite color for hardware.

Totally love the chair!

Ok, so this is the finished product. The mirror is added, we added a bunch of knobs and rods on the side to hang hair accessories, bracelets, any kind of girl stuff my daughter wants to hang. :) The seat cushion was added and the same material lines the drawer.

For more pictures and other makeovers, visit us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RonisRescuedRelics/

Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14348190/garbage-find-turned-into-a-vanity-for-my-daughter site