Before and After: Holly's Colorblocked Curio Cabinet

Holly is a huge fan of ponies, so this year at Christmas my parents bought her the fuzzy pony set by Melissa and Doug. It came in this barn shaped wooden packaging that was kind of neat, but Holly in her panic to get the ponies out, ripped out some of the paper scenery.

I thought the shape of the packaging was pretty cool, and the fact that it was wood made it hard to throw out, it seemed like such a waste! So yesterday afternoon I got out some old paint colors from previous projects and worked away at it. What resulted was a cute little display case to place some of those funny little trinkets toddlers like to collect...

My intention is to hang it on the wall for her to rearrange her trinkets herself but I haven't quite figured out where. It was looking great against the walls of my dining room and is making me wish I could re-paint Holly's room! What do you think?

I Think I'm a Little Obsessed Now...

I can't help myself. I know I'm not the only one who thinks matte black is one of the sexiest colours of all time. So when I kept looking at this one dollar garage sale bowl which has been acting as a space filler on my sideboard (I really can't stand the finish of it), my mind was battling between sending it on the next Goodwill trip and painting it.

Thanks to some leftover chalkboard paint, painting won...

That is one sexy bowl. You'll have to excuse me now as I go look for other stuff to cover with chalkboard paint.....

A Cheery Switch-a-roo

Sometimes all it takes to see your house from a new perspective is a little furniture re-arranging. When I was little I used to enjoy switching around my parent's house; every time my parents went on a date I would recruit my little sister to help me haul couches across the room and clean and polish floors (the poor girl); I don't know what it was about that act that made the house seem so brand new to me!
While I have not attempted any furniture moving as of late, Henry's old rug needed a new home as it could no longer stay in his room (his stuva system could not open on top of it). Best place for it to go? The playroom!

Remember the old rug? it seemed a little out of place in there....
I still like that rug though, it is doing a nice job cozying up the living room for the cooler weather! I feel like the new rug adds even more cheer to an already cheerful room:

Which do you prefer?

Turning a table into a chair

Ever since I saw Manhattan Nest's "Tabletop swap" my mind has been a-whirlin' (Sorry for the lack of a clever post title, "chairtop swap" did not seem to work for me). Look at this beauty! Total cost, $45...

You see, I have had these "Saarinen" reproduction chairs and table for over a year now in my kitchen. While I love the table, I have tried numerous times to sell the chairs to an owner that could give them the fix up they need (my husband bought me some Herman Miller chairs for Christmas last year to replace them). They are quite awful to sit on because the base (from a previous fix) has been attached with a piece of plywood, and my kids are always knocking them over and trying to stand on them so I'm afraid they will get hurt...

 

I know I could breathe new life into those bases but how? side tables? children's tables? And what sort of top? I don't know if I have the luck or the patience to stumble across an abandoned "small" tabletop like Daniel did (have you seen the deals he has "happened upon"? who gets a Bertoia chair for $60????). However I could make one inexpensively because of the size. Marble? plexiglass? reclaimed wood? the options are limitless. What do you guys think? Are they worth the effort?