Thursday, August 23, 2012

A SUMMER WEDDING

I've been gone again and I'm sure you think I've forgotten about all of you.  It's been such a crazy busy summer here at the Parsonage. My husband received a phone call recently to come and preach in the church where he had his first charge/job.  So in just a small amount of time we had our bags packed and were on our way for a 1700 mile trip to Minnesota.  It was exciting for us to reunite with  friends from the church and family who live nearby.  The timing of the trip was wonderful, as it was my father-in-laws 80th birthday and my mom and step-dad's 27th anniversary.  We very rarely get to attend such events because of the great distance we have to travel.  It was such a joy to be able to attend the parties.

I had plans to take many photos to share, but while we were there my camera died.  I was disappointed to only get a few photos.  Now I'm on the hunt for a new camera.  Do any of you have a good suggestion for a camera? 

I do however have some very exciting news to share with you.   Our son got engaged on August 7th.  He and his fiance will be getting married sometime next summer.

 Of course I have to share a few photos of the happy couple.




This will give me another wedding to share on Wedding Wednesday .  Yay!






Thursday, August 16, 2012

BATHROOM MAKEOVER & PAINTING PLASTIC WALLS

Back in April of 2010, when I first started this blog. I shared my bathroom makeover for under $500. I actually think it was done for quite a bit less, but we did the makeover shortly before I started this blog. I didn't write down the exact amounts we spent on finishing the room.



Rita from Harbour Breeze Home recently asked me a question regarding this makeover.  She is planning a bathroom makeover also.  As you can see in the photo below, her bathroom is same floor plan as ours.  Even the retro light fixture is the same fixture we had before our makeover.


 While looking back at the post I realized I hadn't shown you somethings I did in this room.

 
See the area directly above the shower stall. It used to be a solid wall of beige plastic with a seam about 18 inches from the ceiling.   I came up with a thrifty fast solution to get rid of the wall of beige plastic.

PAINT

Here's what  I did ~

First I scrubbed the wall very well. I then  ruffed the surface a bit using sandpaper.  The next thing to do was add a coat of primer.  After the primer was completely dry, I just painted it with latex paint.  My husband then added crown molding that he made using salvaged lumber.

We use the shower in this bathroom and I wondered how it would hold up.  It's been on the wall for four years and still looks like the day I painted it.


At the time of the remodel we also added a curved curtain rod.  It's a little trick you can do to add more space to a small shower area.  My thrifty finds ~ 99 cent Goodwill rings and a 50 cent garage sale shower curtain help hide the remainder of the ugly beige shower surround. 


Have a great day!

Friday, August 10, 2012

GOODWILL HUNTING - A LAMP MAKEOVER

We recently were on a camping vacation, enjoying sunsets on the beach in Cannon Beach Oregon.



 We've been doing a few updates in our tent trailer to make it a little more our style and to feel more like home. The lighting in the trailer can be a bit poor and we thought it would be helpful to add a small lamp.   We decided to stop at Goodwill and see what we could find.  My husband and I wanted something that would go well with the interior of the trailer.  It has blue's and brown's in the decor, as you can see in the background of the photos.

Here's what we found for $1.99 and $3.99.




Our original intentions were to remove the electrical parts of the lamp and place them in the lantern.  That would be cheaper than buying a new lamp kit.



Which my husband did.....
                                     ... but sometimes things don't work out like you envisioned.  When we placed it in the lantern and added the lamp shade, it lacked color and was very bland!  Soooo.... my husband reinstalled the electrical fixture back into the original lamp.  After all that, it was time to move onto the fun part of the project.

Decorating the new lamp shade.


We collected our supplies which consisted of sand dollars, starfish, shells and rope.


I began by gluing the rope to the shade, adding clothes pins to hold it in place until the glue had set. I then added the sand dollars and starfish.  We decided not to add the shells because it looked a little busy with to many items on the shade.

Here's the finish lamp. 
 (Sorry about the poor photos - remember the lighting is poor in a tent trailer.)


We can now enjoy better lighting while camping in our tent trailer.
Our home away from home.




Tuesday, August 7, 2012

SUMMER TRENDS

Hi everyone, I'm happy to be back after a very restful week of vacation.   Vacation and summer go together like hand and glove.  I recently read that a few of the trends for 2012 summer are - bright colors and beachcomber decor.  Today I thought I'd share a few of these trends that I observed while on vacation last week.


Brightly colored adirondack chairs.


Along with brightly colored umbrellas,


and boards.


The beach decor has been described as 
elegant, coastal, vintage, vibrant, and nautical.


Here's a window display that would be described as nautical/coastal.


You can purchase coastal themed items like this apron or even lighting,


or a beach sign.


Even this wedding cake that we saw in the bakery had the nautical / beach theme.

Have you seen any of these trends this summer?

Thursday, July 19, 2012

IT'S GARAGE SALE SEASON

Can you believe that the summer is half over already, and garage sale season is in full swing?  As I told you in my previous post, my summer has been crazy busy.  I've not only traveled half way across the country to see family and friends, but I've also been gone camping with a church group.  The week I was packing for camping, I also was getting ready to have a garage sale with my daughter.  Crazy I know, but it was at her house and it was the only date that worked.  I had plans to take photos of the event, but forgot my camera at home.  However, this past Saturday I did get the chance to hit a few garage sales myself.   I thought I'd share just a few of my thrifty finds with you.


I found this Eddie Bauer highchair for $20 for our daughter.  She has been looking for some time on Craigslist and Ebay where the prices started at $89 to $159.   It came with a 4 position tray with convenient holders for cups and baby food.  It also has a second clipped  tray that's removable and dishwasher safe.  The pad is removable for laundry purposes.  It's even in the dark wood finish that she wanted.  I think my little granddaughter will look so cute sitting in it.



 This $2 chair will come in handy when the grand daughters are at our home.

 

I also found a few things for my self.  This picture/wall art was brand new, still in it's original packing for only $3.  It was the perfect find for my coffee themed kitchen/dinning area.



One can never have too many baskets, right?  Who could pass this one up for a mere 25 cents.


Have you found any great deals at garage sales this summer?

Monday, July 9, 2012

VINTAGE LADDER USED FOR HOME DECOR

Hi everyone!  Wow what a busy summer it's been at the Parsonage.   It may not slow down for a few more weeks.   We returned recently from a vacation to Iowa and Minnesota.  We had such a great time visiting family and friends.  It was while visiting my sister in Iowa I saw another great use for a vintage ladder.  I love using interesting and vintage items to decorate my own home.  I thought it would be fun to share a few unique ways to use ladders while decorating your home. 

A night stand in our master bedroom.



Used as decor over a kitchen island in my sisters kitchen.

Here are a few I found while on Pinterest.
A pot wrack (A Beach Cottage)



A display area in the living room.
(Crafts by Amanda)



A Ladder Christmas Tree
(Eclectically Vintage)


Check out my Pinterest page for more creative decorating ideas.

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