Mobile Home Master Bedroom Makeover!

Extreme Makeover: Mobile Home Edition continues - now with photos from the master bedroom...

This 1982 mobile home had 2 kinds of walls - wood paneling and printed vinyl-coated wallboard. The master bedroom had the dubious distinction of being the one room in the house that was all vinyl wallboard...yuk. I told you already that throughout this process, Kilz brand latex primer and I became great friends, and this was nowhere more true than in the master...

It took a full 3 coats of Kilz...4 in some spots...to cover it all. My original plan was to paint this room a soft robin egg blue (like I wrote about here when I wanted to do that in my former home), but time got the better of me, and really, because it is a small room, the white ended up being just fine...

(sorry for the photo quality...it was a rainy day and I had to use the overhead light because I hate using a flash...click any photo to enlarge)

It was particularly satisfying to get this room decorated...there's just something about your personal nest space being as cozy and sweet as possible. The quilt on the bed was a particularly great garage sale score at just $2.00!

Here's a close up of the lovely vinyl wallboard pattern, and the rather icky "mobile-homely" window...

I was thrilled to find the PERFECT window toppers at a junk store half-buried in a pile of linens. I first spotted the sweet morning glory print (I heart morning glories a LOT)...and I thought it looked like Waverly fabric...I pulled it out and puzzled over it for a second. The I realized that it was a handmade valance, sporting the cute morning glory print and a precious coordinating yellow and blue stripe. I had never seen one quite like it, and after a bit of turning and twisting, I finally figured out how it would hang...oh how cute...and how perfect for the bedroom...if only there were two...wait...look...there's another one just like it...and they were only $5.00 for the pair!! I never once questioned whether they would fit - I KNEW they were meant for our bedroom...and sure enough...

I LOVE how they look with the garage sale blue china plates I found last year...I got 8 plates, with plate hangers, for $5.00! I had been saving them for just the right spot...and now they're there...

I found this oval morning glory plate at a flea market several years ago in Colorado, and it too has been waiting for just the right spot to settle in...and it's happy hanging right above the door to the master bath...

I have my jewelry box sitting atop our thrifted dresser...a tiny white-on-white embroidered linen table scarf with a pair of sweet ceramic birdies top the box, and the cutest little handmade butterfly tag (part of a wonderful giveaway I won from Diane...I will finally share about that soon) complete that tiny vignette. I am still planning what will go on the wall above the dresser. Once I figure that one out, I'll be sure and share...

One of my favorites in the room is this cute yellow dresser and hutch. (garage sale find...$10.00!) I wanted to pull in a touch of yellow with all the blue and white and this worked out just right. This piece had been in storage since I closed down our booth at the antique store last fall, and I couldn't be happier to invite it home to provide some much needed storage and a bit of childlike whimsy...it is, I'm quite sure, from a little girl's room somewhere...

I topped it off with a garage sale freebie - the little hydrangea garland, and a big creamy white pitcher (garage sale - $2.00) that I filled with silk blue hydrangeas that my Mom was getting rid of. I wish they were real hydrangeas, but these will do just fine and will last for as long as I need them...

I'm thinking that my calendar design from May 2008 would work well as a framed print in the room...you reckon?

Yep - "JOY" pretty much sums up the feeling I get in the master bedroom now!
______________________________

Thanks for tagging along for that little tour. This week I am tackling the no-sew project I mentioned here...I hope to have it finished very soon! I'll also be sharing about the garage sale I had this weekend, my birthday activities, and the cool stuff I raided from my own storage building...I hope you'll stop by for a peek!

Way Back When-sday: Birthdays and Celebrations!

I want to welcome you all back to Way Back When-sday! This week we are focusing on Birthdays and Celebrations...cuz this week (Friday to be exact) is my 48th Birthday. Wow...how did THAT happen? Saying that time flies is an understatement...more like time travels at warp speed. Oh well...

The following are photos from some birthdays of mine that stand out in my memory...all except for this first one...I don't actually remember this, but this is circa my 1st birthday in 1962... My mom had to tape bows in my hair back then because my hair was so fine...practically non-existent...

You'd think the following bunny cake photo was from my childhood, but nope, it was from one of my all time favorite birthday parties...in 2005. I was 44. That year my birthday fell on Easter Sunday (very cool), so my sweet bunny friends got together at my place on Saturday for a way-fun Bunny Party! We had lots of wonderful, yummy goodies and worked on crafts together...it was so very special...

Just look at all the goodies...what a decadent spread!

I even decorated Double-Stuff Oreos and little round Brownie Bites...gracious...

Here are the Bunny Girls all gathered round in my kitchen in Colorado (in front of the very same hutch I featured in my most recent post). I took my voluminous bunny collection and let my pals pick their favorite bunny to be their companion for the party (I did say I was 44, right?) That's me with the short blond hair on the right...

Probably my favorite part of the party was the craft time. We made little greeting cards and the most fun...homemade soaps! I had never made soap before...it was SO much fun. Each friend got to take home their soap creations...it was a blast!

______________________________

I have a 2 more photos to share from a couple more stand out birthdays in my memory. This one is from the very first surprise party I ever had...it was 1983...two months before my first wedding. I was 22...half my age from the bunny party. I was truly surprised...had no idea this had been planned...it was great!! To my right is my lifelong friend Connie, whom I have had the great pleasure of reconnecting with since moving back to Texas - when I saw her at the Mr. Gatti's Pizza Parlour that night, I knew something was up...she lived clear across town at that time and I hadn't seen her much since High School. It was great to have here there!! Would you look at that perm of mine...and the prairie-style shirt....gosh, I LOVED that shirt!

Fast forward 10 years to 1993...when I had my second ever surprise Birthday party...my 32nd year. In 1993 I was in the final couple of years of working at The Gift Solution where I was the lead t-shirt designer/Art Director. Almost all of my clothes were hand-painted in those days. Those are some mighty big sunflowers...note the sunflower earrings too!! :o) Oh yeah...my cake was in the shape of a sunflower too! My wearing a sunflower shirt that day was just a happy coincidence...everyone knew that sunflowers were my favorite, so it was easy to come up with cake concept that I would love... Oh, and BTW my sweet friend Connie and her husband Buddy were also at this party...and it had been about 10 years since I had seen them. Another great surprise!

______________________________

Finally, I thought I would throw in an illustration I did way back in 2005 for Illustration Friday - the theme that week was "Aging". In my 48 years, I can definitely say that there is sweetness and beauty in every season of our lives...if we will simply choose to see it...

(click on the image to see more detail)

"To every thing there is a season..."
Ephesians 3:1

______________________________

Please check out Lallee's blog as she will be posting a Way Back When-sday post today as well. We hope you will join us in this weekly feature...we would love to see and read about your favorite birthdays and celebrations from way back in the day. If you want to play along this week or in future weeks simply leave a comment with a link to your blog and I'll add them to this or future posts... It'll be fun!!!

Love y'all!!

Salvage Chic: Decorating for Almost Nothing

The ongoing transformation of our mobile home from trailer trashy to cottage cozy is one of the most difficult, but incredibly fun and satisfying tasks I have ever undertaken. And doing it on the tightest of budgets has only made the challenge even more fun. When we made the move here, I made an important decorating decision - I will try not to use anything new/store-bought/off-the-shelf for decorating - only things salvaged from garage sales and thrift stores, or repurposed discount store or Craigslist finds, or junk plucked from the roadside, or things I've crafted/painted/handmade or that others have crafted/painted/handmade. So far, this has yielded a much cozier, relaxed, lived-in, "me" look, which is just what I had hoped for.

The following photos are from the kitchen where my old Ethan Allen junk store china hutch takes center stage. The first photo is a before shot of the wall where the hutch stands now, and the following photos are of the hutch filled with vintage and vintage-style goodies...everything here was something I already had...just rearranged cottage-style...

On top of the hutch I used the plywood "watermelon" sign I painted for our country hoedown of a wedding. This provided the basic palette of green and shades of red/pink that inspired the whole kitchen.

I bought the chippy set of Franciscan "Ivy" china ages ago at a City Wide Garage Sale in Austin, TX, and I still love them. I have them paired with a set of pink rose dishes that I got from my grandmother...

Love the little birdie salt and pepper shakers - bought for a dollar at some junk store somewhere. The mosaic birdhouse is a piece I "grandfathered" in to my nothing new decorating rule...I already bought that a couple of years ago at Marshall's and it's too perfect to not use...

The sweet yellow chintz teapot was a birthday gift years ago from my brother and sister-in-law...it's a long-time favorite...

I have always cherished the pink depression glass collection my Mom gave me - they were her Aunt's...

Some cookbooks thrown in for texture and interest...heaven knows I rarely use them for anything else :o) I just realized I need some Easter M&M's or chocolate eggs in my little bunny serving bowl...

My typical decorating approach in the past (because I couldn't stand plain walls and I was very impatient), was to buy nice framed art from Hobby Lobby or Bed, Bath & Beyond and hang it in all the major rooms as focal points. I always told myself that I would eventually replace them with art I painted myself, but I never did. So although framed art is lovely, I never really had anything on the walls that was a real reflection of me, as an artist/craftsperson. So, with the new decorating approach, I hope to create a colorful cozy atmosphere that is just that... It has been a real journey of discovery so far...and I am loving every minute of it! (PS - I have the most wonderful sweet hubby who is genuinely happy to let me do whatever I want decorating-wise...I'm a very blessed girl!)

______________________________

I hope you'll stay tuned as I am almost ready to post the before and after photos from the master bedroom - it is turning out so cute!!

Oh, and you won't want to miss the super budget friendly no-sew projects I am going to make for the living room with this $19.00 discount store king sized quilt...

...that is if I can wrestle it away from Miss Maddie...

______________________________

Another PS - I will be re-launching "Way Back When-sday" tomorrow - the theme will be "Birthdays" as mine is this week. Many thanks to Lallee at Lallee's Cottage who has been keeping the When-sday tradition alive as I have been swamped under with moving and remodeling. We hope to have many more of you participate with us weekly for a bit of fun reminiscing...see you tomorrow!!

Introducing Linda - The Birthday Girl! (and Nancy too!)

Please allow me to introduce my BFF from my days in Colorado (and forever more) - Linda! Today, sweet Linda is celebrating one of those milestone birthdays (you know the ones), and I wanted to take just a moment ask you to join me in wishing her a very happy, healthy, and joy-filled birthday! Linda is one of the most caring, nurturing, smart, talented, sweet, beautiful souls that I have ever had the privilege to know. We were instant chums when we met...kindred spirits to be sure...and I will be forever blessed to have her as a part of my heart.

This occasion also gives me the perfect opportunity to introduce you to a VERY special ministry that the Lord has given Linda that ALL of you can easily access and benefit from. It's called "Daily Prayer for You" , and it is a Scripture-based prayer, written and prayed by Linda daily, and delivered every morning right to your email inbox. Here's how the DPFY website describes it:

"Daily Prayer for You is a ministry dedicated to helping you pray the promises of God, and to praying those promises for you! God's Word is the inspiration and source for each prayer devotion sent daily to e-mail subscribers around the world. Each prayer is written by the author and prayed over subscribers every day. "

You can read how this awesome ministry began, read a couple of sample prayers, and read these incredible, powerful testimonies of how God has mightily used DPFY to impact lives for His Glory. I hope you'll hop over there and check it out, and while you're there, sign up to receive these wonderful prayers daily - I promise you will be blessed...

BTW, Linda does not have a blog yet, but I believe there is one on the horizon...I will definitely let you know. Meanwhile you can read Linda's bio here on her women's/girl's ministry website called Girls of Glory. She's a real sweetie...I'm so proud to call her friend!
______________________________

(photo courtesy of Nancy at "The Heart of a Daddy's Girl")

On a related note, I would like to introduce you to yet another of my fabulous BFFs from Colorado, Nancy! Nancy has just started a blog called "The Heart of a Daddy's Girl." You will just love Nancy for her awesome insights, sharp wit, beautiful photography, and hilarious stories. She is the real deal and has a true heart after God. I've added her link to my Amazing Grace blogroll - I hope you will stop by and say hello - I know she would love to hear from you!

______________________________

Thanks to all my online friends for the opportunity to share some of my personal "real-life" friends with you. I just know you will love them too! More progress to share soon on the mobile home makeover...please stay tuned!! Love you guys!!!

Progress, Inspiration, and a Confession

Extreme Makeover: Mobile Home Edition is still in progress, but we are miles and miles further along than we were when we began in January. We are all moved in, I finally have my computer set up in the office, and all the major systems of the house are online and functioning. But we are still living out of boxes....moving one pile of stuff here to make room for another pile of stuff there...you know the drill. Therefore, I don't have all the "after" photos yet for a full before and after tour, but I did want to share a couple of photos of the messy process in between to give you a sense of what has kept us so non-stop busy for the last two months...

The above photo is the living room about a week before the new carpet was to arrive.

Below is a shot of the hall stripped down to its skivvies and primed. We did this in every room...no flooring was salvageable. Oh, and Kilz and me...we're best pals!

I do have one teensy before and after to share...the living room ceiling. In the interest of thrift and prudence, we tried to keep anything that was functional and somehow make it work, but the living room ceiling fan was just too far gone (although I did rescue the glass light covers for a future repurpose project)

We were continually amazed at the huge difference a bit of paint makes (OK, a whole lot of paint). It was by far the best makeover material for the money. The "new" ceiling fan was simply rescued from the master bedroom, cleaned up a LOT, and hung by my sweet handy hubby the electrician.


Finally for this post I want to confess something to you. I've been obsessed with finding a couch for our living room. I've been stalking Craigslist for a couch for months (actually not just "a" couch, but "the" couch...you know what I'm talking about). Mind you, we have a perfectly good couch in great shape...but it just wasn't the right look for the new cottage....plus, it is so soft and squishy (which I loved at first) that it eats you and your guests alive and is very hard to get up out of.


SO, I obsessively looked online in the wee hours of the morning or whenever I could, just knowing it was out there, and knowing I would know it when I saw it.... I got sidetracked by a seductive price ($30!!) for a cute vintage couch that we lugged to the newly erected storage shed on the property, only to discover that once the carpet was put in and we lugged it into the house, it really didn't match the room at all. Rats...how could I, the queen of color, the artist, make such a gaff? :o) (that vintage couch, by the way, is really cute and will be a feature in my future studio...I'll share photos of it somewhere down the line...)

That episode should have taught me to be sensible, appreciate what I already have, and be content. But alas, I was still obsessed - even more so. I had to get it right...had to redeem my poor judgement...so I continued to stalk Craigslist....and this past Saturday night I found her..."the" couch. My perfect cottage couch - just the right color, fabric, condition, style, and price...sort of. I paid a bit more for her than I would have liked, but it was still a used couch...not new, and I saved a bundle over what she would have cost new. By Sunday morning I paid for her and then my very sweet, long-suffering hubby (who was perfectly content with the old couch), picked her up on the way home from work, and we lugged her into the house...

And yep, she is all that....just perfect...

She sets the tone for the house....she's the inspiration piece that helps drive the cottage color scheme...she's just right for us....she's home. (and hubby loves her too BTW).

So, anybody out there in need of a perfectly good used soft squishy couch?

March - are you kidding me?

Welcome March...and the Promise of Spring!

Hi y'all! I know I've been really busy and all, but seriously, has 1/6th of 2009 already gone by...? Wow! Well, I guess it's Happy March to all of you!!

I just wanted to post a really quick update on our renovation and move...

We are ALMOST all moved in - tomorrow we have a moving company coming in to pack and move our garage. We would have done it ourselves as we have the rest of the move, but we are just completely out of steam...oh so tired...

The renovations to the mobile home have turned out SO GREAT!! (though they are not all complete...it is still amazingly changed). I can't WAIT to share photos (what a transformation!!!!)...but that is going to take some time I'm afraid...thanks in advance for your patience. I am just buried under boxes - moving from app. 1500 sq. ft. (with TONS of closets and built in storage) into app. 1000 sq. ft. (with precious few closets and no built in storage) may not seem like a big change, but believe me, it is! But there is something very satisfying about downsizing, de-cluttering, and re-organizing as I unpack, and I am enjoying the work...but it will definitely take some time...

I am certainly enjoying not having to work at a job during all this, but the full effect of leaving my former career hasn't really sunk in yet. I'm sure it will soon. I can say that I KNOW it was the right decision and I am just brimming with hope and anticipation for what the Lord has planned for us in this new chapter!!

SO, as sure as the promise of Spring will indeed be rewarded with its glorious arrival, so will the promise of our new future be rewarded in due season with its glorious arrival! The time is coming "to sing..."

May the Lord richly bless you in this season of promise!!

"Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Hebrews 11:1