White and Wood Nightstands

After the luck I had at our local Salvation Army with the dresser, I thought I'd go looking for some nightstands.  I couldn't fail.  After all, I had my furniture thrifting good luck charm, Andi, with me!  She knows a lot more about furniture than I do and she just has a good eye for this stuff.

Here's what we found for $25 a piece

I really wasn't sure they'd work, but I'm so glad I took a chance!  I really wanted something that would tie the dresser I just refinished

together with our white headboard

that's the headboard in our old house, but you get the idea.

It was super quick and easy to fix the nightstands up.  Just a little cleaning on/in the drawers and then some white spray paint on the perimeter of them.

I love how they turned out!

I can't wait to reveal more of the bedroom.  Only a couple short weeks ago, it was a sad, depressing place to go.  Now it is feeling like a calming haven for us.

What do you think of the white with the wood?  Weird?  Wacky?  Wonderful?  Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Jamie

This post is linked here:  Today's Creative Blog Blue Cricket Design Kurtz Corner Mommy by Day Crafter by Night Cherished Bliss Lines Across My Face Southern Lovely Bear Rabbit Bear French Country Cottage Craft Junkie Too DIY Home Sweet Home Saved by Love Domestically Speaking Funky Junk Interiors Homemaker on a Dime Eisy Morgan The Answer is Chocolate Making the World Cuter Craft-O-Maniac lolly jane 504 Main I Heart Naptime Singing Three Little Birds mad in crafts House of Hepworths Somewhat Simple Chic on a Shoestring Keeping it Simple Be Different Act Normal Sew Can Do Sew Chatty Pinkapotamus The Girl Creative Flamingo Toes Tatertots and Jello Sisters of the Wild West Reasons to Skip the Housework Giggles Glitz and Glam Tip JunkieThe Trendy Treehouse Ladybug Blessings Night Owl Crafting Tea Rose Home My Girlish Whims Allie Makes Gluesticks Thrifty 101 Momnivores Dilemma A Little Knick Knack Miss Mustard Seed Freckled Laundry kojo designs A vision to remember Primitive and Proper 733 Rook no 17 Home Stories A to Z Naptime Crafters Whipperberry delightful order blissful and domestic elizabeth and co diy by design gingersnap crafts>my repurposed life

Letting Go of the Goat Shirts...

I find that I am seriously stressed out most of the time.  I feel like I am always forgetting something.  Letting someone down.  Not sticking to my commitments.  Not being a good friend, wife, mom, sister, daughter-in-law.  The list goes on and on.  The truth is this:  I bet most of those things are goat shirts.

photo courtesy of Andi from Jane of All Crafts

Confused?  Let me explain.  I got together with my friend Andi last week and she mentioned that she feels overwhelmed right now.  I know she has a ton on her plate so I feel like I have no right to complain about my overwhelmedness.

We were talking about how lately life feels like a series of balls that we have dropped.  And then she said, "And I never made you that goat shirt."

Yes, I did mention that I would love one of her shirts that she makes that says, "I love goats".  The truth is, if I was that concerned about it, I should put an order in at her etsy shop so it became an official order for her.  I find I have the same problem when orders come in from local friends rather than being in my etsy queue.

Anyway, this shirt wasn't even on my radar!  I had completely forgotten that I had even mentioned I would like one.  And here it was one of the many things that is sitting there in the back of her head, nagging her all the time.

So, my question is this:  How many things that I'm worrying about are just goat shirts to someone else?

This is a small fraction of the crazy things that run through my mind regularly

I haven't called that person back

I never been able to help that person find a rug for her living room

I haven't talked to my best friend in weeks... is she OK?

I never finished the sample boards for that client

How am I going to find a sitter for when I have to work?

I completely let the people in the children's ministry at church down

Was one of my kids supposed to be snack helper today?

Is today a color day at school?

Is there field trip money overdue?

I never got back to that client

I'm late shipping that order

I promised my pastor I'd paint for him and haven't scheduled it

I never got a painting bid to the woman at the preschool

Am I reading enough with my kids?

Do I let them watch too much TV?

Did I forget to return some library books?

Whose birthday is this week?

I haven't been out for a girls night with the preschool moms in ages... are they judging me?

I haven't finished the design for that client

I don't cook often enough for my family

I'm not making sure the kids are eating organic stuff

When's the last time the kids had a bath?

Do my kids know they're loved?

I shouldn't have yelled at them like that

Did I leave a burner/flat iron/oven on at home?

What else am I forgetting?

So these are just SOME of the things that have gone through my head TODAY!  And it is only 9:30am as I type this.  And yes, I did leave a burner on at home.  When I look at the list of things running through my head, it's a wonder that I didn't leave all the burners on!

So I basically need to go through that list and figure out which items are goat shirts.  I'm not just talking about prioritizing, though that helps.  I'm talking about truly letting go of the guilt about the things I can't get to right now.

We don't have any family that lives in town, so finding available and affordable help with the kids can be difficult and I hate asking friends for help.  My kids are only young once and they need my attention when I am here with them.  Even the best marriages (especially the best marriages) need regular maintenance.  My good friends will understand when I don't call them back right away.  I tell myself these things, but I don't always believe them.

I just need to extend the same grace to myself that I try to extend to others when it comes to my shortcomings. It feels cathartic just writing this, but it also helps to share it with others.

Do you have any goat shirts in your life you need to let go of?

Blessings,

Jamie

Halloween House Tour!

Here are a few snippets from our house this October.

The drop-down spider made an appearance in the new house.  Mr. Creative Imperative came up with the great idea of using a tack in the top part of the front door.  So much better than using tape and then waiting for the tape to give out!

Here is the rest of the front entryway

...looks like some little hands got into the candy corn!

Some bats

A raven

And here's our fireplace

I love how the spiderwebs stick to the stone.  It made it so easy to decorate.

Those mercury glass pumpkins on the mantel... they light up and flicker!  I didn't even realize it until I got them home from the store.  Bonus!

I made the "EEK"/"BOO" sign out of some blocks I found at Marshalls.  

$0.30 for three blocks???  Yes please!  Have you seen how much blocks cost at craft stores?  It's crazy.

I cut the letters out of Contact paper on my Silhouette... it's metallic!

I know it's hard to see in the photo, but I love the way the metallic letters look.

And I just received this beautiful, gigantic acorn ornament from my in-laws for my birthday.

I love it!  It's one of those great decor items that you can put out in September and leave out through December.

And last, but not least, we have the pumpkin under glass.  It's a painted pumpkin from the dollar store.

Hope you're having a great fall!

Blessings,

Jamie

This post is linked here:  Today's Creative Blog Blue Cricket Design Kurtz Corner Mommy by Day Crafter by Night Cherished Bliss Lines Across My Face Southern Lovely Bear Rabbit Bear French Country Cottage Craft Junkie Too DIY Home Sweet Home Saved by Love Domestically Speaking Funky Junk Interiors Homemaker on a Dime Eisy Morgan The Answer is Chocolate Making the World Cuter Craft-O-Maniac lolly jane 504 Main I Heart Naptime Singing Three Little Birds mad in crafts House of Hepworths Somewhat Simple Chic on a Shoestring Keeping it Simple Be Different Act Normal Sew Can Do Sew Chatty Pinkapotamus The Girl Creative Flamingo Toes Tatertots and Jello Sisters of the Wild West Reasons to Skip the Housework Giggles Glitz and Glam Tip JunkieThe Trendy Treehouse Ladybug Blessings Night Owl Crafting Tea Rose Home My Girlish Whims Allie Makes Gluesticks Thrifty 101 Momnivores Dilemma A Little Knick Knack Miss Mustard Seed Freckled Laundry kojo designs A vision to remember Primitive and Proper 733 Rook no 17 Home Stories A to Z Naptime Crafters Whipperberry delightful order blissful and domestic elizabeth and co diy by design gingersnap crafts>my repurposed life

Refinished Mid Century Modern Dresser/Credenza

I have no idea what this piece of furniture is called... I've heard so many different names.  A dresser?  A credenza?  A sideboard?  I think sideboards have cabinets so it's probably not that.  I'm using it in my bedroom so we'll call it a dresser.  Whatever it is, I'm in love with it.

Here is how I found it 

$50 at the Salvation Army store.  Not bad, right?  Well, the finish is bad.  It's in pretty rough shape.  Not to mention the color reminds me a little of Snooki.

I decided I would restain and poly it rather than painting it.  I had done a little research on MCM furniture and decided all the collectors might be onto something with maintaining the natural wood finish.  This is after I painted an $18 Broyhill Brasilia headboard I had found.  Turns out they're worth some money if they're in good condition.  Live and learn.  I do love that headboard in white, though.

I used Citristrip to take the finish off.

One word:  messy!!!  A few more words:  a lot of hard work!!!  A neighbor saw me working and said, "it will be worth it though".  I wasn't so sure.  Here are the drawers after being stripped

Then I sanded it.  Oh my gosh, the wood.  I don't know if you can tell just how beautiful it is in this picture after being sanded.

I just kind of rolled my eyes about the MCM furniture purists, but after seeing the quality of wood and craftsmanship that went into this piece, I'm a believer!

I used a dark walnut stain, trying to keep it close to the original finish (just a tad darker and a tad less Snooki).

I was really nervous doing this and thought for sure I was going to end up destroying the piece.  It turns out I'm really happy with the final results!

And then I sealed it with this

I really liked the product.  It cleaned up with water and I think the finish is beautiful.  I can't believe I didn't mess it up!!!

So here is the dresser in our bedroom.

up close

and from the top

I'm so proud of myself.  I'm allowed to say that, right?  Well, it's my birthday today so maybe just today I can say that.  I just didn't think I'd ever be capable of something like this.

Here's the process I used, in case you're curious
wash the dresser down
apply Citristrip
wait overnight then scrape with plastic scrapers
wash off remaining stripper
have husband get into crevices of dresser to remove stuff I'm too lazy to get to

sand with 100 grit
wipe down
sand with 220 grit
wipe down
let dry overnight
wipe down with tack cloth
brush on stain
after 15 minutes wipe off stain with cloth
wait overnight
3 coats poly, sanding with 400 grit and wiping down in between coats

Thanks so much for stopping by!

How do you feel about painted furniture vs stained furniture?  Do you say paint it all no matter the history of the piece?  Do you like all painted wood in a room or a mix?  Is it a sin I painted that headboard in my room?  Let me know what you think in the comments!

Blessings,

Jamie

This post is linked here:  Today's Creative Blog Blue Cricket Design Kurtz Corner Mommy by Day Crafter by Night Cherished Bliss Lines Across My Face Southern Lovely Bear Rabbit Bear French Country Cottage Craft Junkie Too DIY Home Sweet Home Saved by Love Domestically Speaking Funky Junk Interiors Homemaker on a Dime Eisy Morgan The Answer is Chocolate Making the World Cuter Craft-O-Maniac lolly jane 504 Main I Heart Naptime Singing Three Little Birds mad in crafts House of Hepworths Somewhat Simple Chic on a Shoestring Keeping it Simple Be Different Act Normal Sew Can Do Sew Chatty Pinkapotamus The Girl Creative Flamingo Toes Tatertots and Jello Sisters of the Wild West Reasons to Skip the Housework Giggles Glitz and Glam Tip JunkieThe Trendy Treehouse Ladybug Blessings Night Owl Crafting Tea Rose Home My Girlish Whims Allie Makes Gluesticks Thrifty 101 Momnivores Dilemma A Little Knick Knack Miss Mustard Seed Freckled Laundry kojo designs A vision to remember Primitive and Proper 733 Rook no 17 Home Stories A to Z Naptime Crafters Whipperberry delightful order blissful and domestic elizabeth and co diy by design gingersnap crafts>my repurposed life

Lego Party in the Hooooouuuuuse!

One of my favorite things about the new house:  Having enough space to throw a party here!  The kids' birthdays are only a day apart so they get lumped together into one big party.  The theme this year was "Legos"

 Here are a few details from the party

The Lego Ninjago cake

and here are a couple shots from while I was building the cake

I used the 6" pan on the bottom to prop the cake up a little higher

I layered the marshmallow fondant to make the "fabric".

Here is my daughter's cake

It doesn't look like anything Lego-related, you say?  It was supposed to be a Lego Friends cake but she changed her mind the week of the party!  So this princess crashed the Lego party.  I made the bottom with the Pampered Chef batter bowl and stuck one of those doll tops from the baking section of Hobby Lobby on top of it.

Here are the favor bags

and the gift tags for the bags

The girls received heart necklaces made out of two Lego bricks snapped together

and the boys got key chains

I found the bricks with the hole in them in a Lego grab bag I bought from the Lego store

Each kid received a bar of Lego soap too!

 I found the mold online.  The big tag is meant to deter kids from thinking it was an edible treat!

I also made a banner for the party

I downloaded the Legothick font online.  It took a little doctoring, but I was able to make it look like the Lego logo by outlining the letters in yellow and filling the insides with white in Photoshop

Each of the letters were adhered to a square of red cardstock.  The squares were sewn together across the top to hold the banner together.

I built a utensil holder out of megablocks... we didn't have enough Legos to make one.  Not to mention, it would have taken much longer had I made it out of little Legos!

We only ended up playing one game at the party... "guess the number of Legos in the jar".  I had other games planned but the kids were having fun just running around and playing with the toys we had out.  I wasn't going to mess with that!

And here are some of the boys doing what they love to do!

 You can see the shirt I made for my son in this shot too.  I made one for my daughter in pink that said "three" in the Lego font.

So, I might have gone a little over the top, but I was excited about our first big house party!  Let me know what you think in the comments... Thanks so much for stopping by!

Blessings,

Jamie

This post is linked here:  Today's Creative Blog Blue Cricket Design Kurtz Corner Mommy by Day Crafter by Night Cherished Bliss Lines Across My Face Southern Lovely Bear Rabbit Bear French Country Cottage Craft Junkie Too DIY Home Sweet Home Saved by Love Domestically Speaking Funky Junk Interiors Homemaker on a Dime Eisy Morgan The Answer is Chocolate Making the World Cuter Craft-O-Maniac lolly jane 504 Main I Heart Naptime Singing Three Little Birds mad in crafts House of Hepworths Somewhat Simple Chic on a Shoestring Keeping it Simple Be Different Act Normal Sew Can Do Sew Chatty Pinkapotamus The Girl Creative Flamingo Toes Tatertots and Jello Sisters of the Wild West Reasons to Skip the Housework Giggles Glitz and Glam Tip JunkieThe Trendy Treehouse Ladybug Blessings Night Owl Crafting Tea Rose Home My Girlish Whims Allie Makes Gluesticks Thrifty 101 Momnivores Dilemma A Little Knick Knack Miss Mustard Seed Freckled Laundry kojo designs A vision to remember Primitive and Proper 733 Rook no 17 Home Stories A to Z Naptime Crafters Whipperberry delightful order blissful and domestic elizabeth and co diy by design gingersnap crafts>my repurposed life