Deep Aubergine

Ok, so the bedroom is quite a mess. The color is dated and the furniture is from a long time past. I think the only things we are keeping in this room are the dresser and the Chippendale mirror. The rest is either going to be sold for extra decorating money, repainted or moved somewhere else in the house. 

 I do work from our room also. At least that is what I tell myself. I am trying to eliminate the work area from there by creating a work space where the dining area is now.

 In the future, when our debts are paid off, we are putting in a master bath. The door to the bath will be where the window is above the desk.

 This is my very favorite piece of furniture we own, aside from the mirror. I love the look and the warm color. It's a keeper.

 Ahhh, the closet doors. dated and a brassy gold color. I am so happy that we can powder coat them to match our color scheme. Since I am going to move the Chippendale and use it as a focal point above the bed I need to come up with a way to either reglaze the existing with 1/4 inch tempered sandblasted glass or create a decal to go over the mirror or have the mirror etched and sandblasted with my design. I am so thankful my husband is a glazier.

 Now the armoire is just a storage spot for all my misc. craft things and sewing machine. I bought it with the intention of painting it shabby but have since lost interest in that style. So there it sits waiting to be refinished. I did pin something about an armoire someone used to hold all of her jewelry and makeup and accessories. I might do that and give it to daughter when she gets her own room.
I have an idea to replace the armoire and desk with a few ladder shelves, a wall sconce and a cozy chair for my reading nook.

There it sits. My Chippendale. Husband and I found it in the water heater closet of his mom's house 12 years ago. The gold leaf was completely gone and the bells were no where to be found. So we painted it black and put in a beveled mirror.
This thing is huge, about as tall as me 5' and heavy. It makes a bold statement and now I want it as a focal point when you walk in the room. We are keeping it black.
Black will be my accent color in this room. A light blue with white trim and black accent pieces. I think I can make that work.
We shall move on the the hallway tomorrow, nothing too exciting just a regular dark 1950's style hallway.
How would you decorate this space? What color scheme would you use?
I would love to hear your thoughts!
Until next time!

Decorating Challenge

Lately I have been bored, REALLY bored. I have accomplished most of my goals and have been feeling blah about what to challenge myself with. I love creating a home for my family and an inviting environment for friends, so I decided I am going to challenge myself to decorate the entire main living area, master bedroom, hallway and bathroom for $1000.

I have to re-purpose, recycle, reuse, repaint, reupholster, refinish existing furniture. All supplies have to be purchased on sale, or from HFH The Re-Store or off craigslist. All extra furnishings and accessories are going to be purchased on sale, from thrift shops, garage sales, flea markets or hand me downs from family. I also have the challenge of purchasing a new sofa that is reasonably priced.

We do have a few items that we will not buy used - like the sofa and the master bedroom mattress and bedding.

These pictures are of the first area to tackle. The living and dining room combined. You see a mixture of furnishings husband and I have received as hand me downs or IKEA furniture from our younger years. Nothing is new except the fireplace insert and the TV. The hardwood is also original to the house.

As far as decorating style, I am still working on that. I have a family of 4 that needs to live comfortably for the next 20 years. And each of us has a different style.

I would love to make it beachy with white and aqua and a splash of yellow.

Hubby would probably leave it as is (most men don not like change).

Daughter would have it pink and black and sparkly with a disco ball on the ceiling.

Son would have cars, toys and books everywhere (he's only 2).

First thing I know is that it needs paint and lots of it. 12 years is too long for that grey blue color of the walls. Oh, but wait till you see the master bedroom.

If you think the living room color needs updating wait till you see the master bedroom! I will give you a hint Deep Aubergine!

Until Next Time!

In Progress

Last weekend I took a trip with the kids to see the progress of my future work space. Working out of my house is very tight when you deal with large pieces of furniture.

 Here we are on the outside of the workshop. The interior is broken down into sections for all of us who use the space. Scott gets the far roll up door (small one) for the auto shop, Gloria has an interior dance studio (under construction) and I have the large roll up door area.

 This is the interior, so far. Scott is standing in the soon to be dance studio. Across the hall is an office and bathroom.

 Behind the stairs is the office. Up the stairs is the storage for all of the stuff in the picture below. Minus the truck and the furniture hidden in that pile of boxes. I am embarrassed to say that we have collected so much stuff that no longer fits in the house, but we have and we are in the process of organizing, boxing and tagging all that is out there.

Hope this gives you an idea of what Azzurro Cancello will become in the near future. For now I will work on the few small pieces of furniture I have and the cards and jewelry that I will be adding to the sight very soon. I had a closet renovation to finished before I had a picture studio to photograph in. Now that that is done I have pictures of my latest line of greeting cards and gift envelopes.
Please stop by soon and check those out.

No Internet

I am putting myself to a test.
I am giving myself a break from the internet for 1 week. I will check email once a day, and post any new products on Etsy, but other than that I am staying away.

I have been clouded by all the things I am obsessing. I need to get back on track and find myself. Come up with my own ideas and be creative in my own way...not like everyone else.

I might actually get some things done around here for a change.

This thing still needs to be painted. Maybe that will be #1 on my list, we shall see.

Making Cards and Other Stuff

I have found a new addiction Pinterest. Fun and awesome all at the same time. I would be on there all the time if I didn't have family or an artsy crafty hobby to tend to.

Anyway I have been busy in the garden since my green house blew over and I had to start my seedlings all over. It was worth the wait. I have so many chilies and tomatoes I will have to sell them so they don't get thrown into the compost.

Extra money never hurt a hobby!

I started dabbling in card making. I was inspired by Helen (Scott's aunt) who makes wedding invitations. They are so beautiful.
I am no way going to do wedding invites but basic card making I can do...I love glue and glitter and gluing little things together. And drawing. When I have more me time I might actually get back into drawing, I am pretty good.
I make basic blank cards for Thank You notes, love letters, break up threats...you can actually write whatever you desire because they are blank and well, I just decorate them for you. I sell them in sets of 7 cards with envelopes and each set has a theme. Allison (above) is photographing the theme pack "Thank God I'm a Country Girl.
You can get the cowgirl boot custom glittered in your favorite color!!!

Check out my Etsy shop to browse. I have many more things coming soon. Baby items, because I sew too. So maybe patch work baby quilts, pillowcase dresses...

My mind in over run with craft ideas (thank Microsoft for the post it notes on the desktop), just wish I had more time in the day, but then again, don't we all.

Is It Summer Yet?

While I was finishing up the post from earlier, my oldest woke up and snuggled next to me. "is it gonna be nice today?" she asked.
"Yes...almost 80."
"It's cold?"
"No, it's hot."
"Good."
7:30 this morning she comes into the room wearing her bathing suit. I think she is ready for the warm weather.

Making Extra Money While Staying at Home

Right now I am sitting in bed watching the sun come up through the window. These quiet moments are few and far between. Soon the kids will be awake and I will be throwing laundry in the machine, making breakfast, and getting ready to work in the garden. I am fortunate to be able to stay home and raise my kids and play around with some of my hobbies. I am hoping to make a bit of extra cash so Scott could take a day or two off without it hurting our budget. My favorite idea so far is the micro farm produce stand. I really enjoy getting my hands dirty and growing something from seed. I enjoy feeding people and talking about the food I grow. The kids love being outside playing in the dirt, helping plant the seeds, learning about bugs and how things grow.

If all goes well, this will be my favorite job, aside from being a mom, that I ever had.

While this one is not a "money maker" unless you have time to market and advertise, I find making soap to be just as fun as gardening. I do have a few customers that come back time after time, which is nice. I like to know that I am providing all natural, good for your skin soap. And it also makes wonderful gifts, I call this one more of a hobby than a true money maker.

Lastly, I love sewing. I make a lot of the home decor things like throw pillows, pillow cases, seat covers and the likes. I have just started making pillowcase dresses. I know everyone and there mother makes them too, but if I find a few of the non sewers that are not Etsy customers then I will have some customers. Now if I make a few different sizes and sell them at the roadside market then I will probably make a bit more cash.

Turning a hobby into a money maker is not as easy as everyone makes it out to be. If you get a few loyal customers and make great products, eventually you be known by word of mouth and break even on your endeavors. If you have the time and money to market you could probably start making money, but in the mean time I am still considering them my hobbies and enjoying what I do.