Dining Room of Past

This is the old paint that used to be under the chair railing.  This was before I moved in.  I am not a fan of sponge painting, but have done it before... God bless.

Then there was the cocoa color that was under the chair rail, when I was in my African phase.

Then there was the touch of red from my old record cabinet makeover.  It was still my African decor phase.

I am liking my current phase best, but I guess you always think what is current is best.  

Bye-ski!

Cowhide Rug in Dining Room

I have some new pics with the cowhide rug in the dining room.  I took quite a few so bare with me.

 

I just added that ghost chair by the door so I would have a place to put my diaper bag and purse when I come in.  I used to put the stuff on the floor, and thought this would be a better alternative.

Love my Bean Boots!

Well I told you there were quite a few pics. 

Stairway Renovation

We finally addressed the dark stairway that goes to our fully finished basement.  I did not like the dark wood, and made many feeble attempts at trying to make it look good. We decided it was time for a change.  We painted the pine wood white.  It took two coats of primer and one coat of paint. I was nervous when we did it, because it was such a big change and wasn't sure if I liked it.  I had thought about white washing the pine, but thought it would be to messy of a project. Tom finished building and putting up a picture ledge two days ago, along with putting up some new lighting.  The result is pure awesomeness.  I really like the modern look and feel that this gives off.

  I painted that red cross art today.  Tom hasn't seen it yet, hope he likes.

Here is the before picture.

Here it is with a coat of primer

Here are my attempts at trying to make it work.

It wasn't happening.  This new look is so bright and cheery.  The lighting really makes it even more spectacular.  So happy with it!  It even makes the hall of fame look better too.  I am not sure if I hung the clock too low.  Any opinions on that?  I could sure use some.  I keep going back and forth on the placement.

Cowhide Rug

Here is an exclusive sneak peek at my new area rug in the dining room.  We are in the midst of a pretty big change around here, and there are tools, paints, ladders, and measuring tapes scattered about.  Here she is! Love, love, love.............

I can't wait to show more of whats going on around here.

Hallway Chair Rail

It seems as though the New Year has given me a burst of energy.  I can't say how long this will last, but I am going to take advantage of it.  I had painted my living room white this past summer, but never finished the painting into the hallway. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and also didn't want to deal with painting the Hall of Fame.  The thought of taking all those pictures down and rehanging them seemed insurmountable   I knew it had to be done though so I did it.  Here are the results, and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Before

 It was a cocoa brown wall color.

With the kids finger prints all over the wall, and the paint being nearly four years old it was time for a change.

We decided to add a chair rail, and paint the lower half gray like the dining room.  It all seems to flow so much better, and the wall looks more like a gallery now.  

After

It looks so much better now!  We are off to our next project. I will reveal that hopefully in a couple weeks.  It is going to be a huge change for us, and can't wait to show it.  I am loving this burst of energy we are  having right now.  Did you get a New Years burst of energy?

Stendig Calendar

We finally got the Christmas stuff packed away, and I couldn't have been happier because I wanted to put up my new calendar.  I got the Stendig calendar.  I love it!!! I hung it over the mantel, because to be honest it was too big to go anywhere else.  It is really an art piece, and from what I have read it is the only calendar to be in the Museum of Modern Art.  It switches from a white background to a black background every other month.  When you are done with the month you can use the paper for gift wrapping.  Love it!  Here are some pics.

I also put an area rug we had in our bedroom in the living room, it really warms the space up.  I got that black and white striped throw at Ikea when I went in November so glad I did because it is AWESOME!

We really want to get new furniture, because these couches suck.  I am not a fan of the way they look, but more then that  they are ruining our backs.

I got a cowhide rug from Tom for Christmas that will be going in the dining room.  The glass table is so heavy that we need to have one of Toms friends to help.  Ughhh trying to be patient.  In other news it's our 3 year anniversary today, and we are going out! Yea!!!!!!!!!!!!