Couch Ouches.

Well, we've decided what we want to do with the bonus room. We're going to move the sectional up there and get a TV (eventually) so it's a comfortable hang out area. So, in the living room were going to get a new couch and side chairs. I think a lighter colored couch can still be comfortable but more fancy/stylish looking. I'm looking at the linen/oatmeal/tweed type fabric and color and I'm excited about how I think it will look.

When we bought the sectional we paid around $700 for it and while we still like it, we can tell that we got what we paid for. The bottom cushions slide out all the time and the back cushions have already started sagging. So, we know that getting a quality sofa is a priority if we don't want to keep buying them.

However, we're under a bit of sticker shock looking at what a quality couch really costs. There is a Bassett/Selden's/Thomasville in our town, so we hit it up just to get some ideas. Bassett makes custom couches and we liked that we could get exactly what we wanted without compromise.

This is what we like:

But not the price tag.

So, we'll see what we decide. I don't think we're in a hurry to do anything until we figure it out for sure.

and a month later...

My mid-century dresser-turned-tv-stand is finally complete. I definitely put off the final coats of polycrylic because I hate sanding. But, when I got off my butt and finally did it, it wasn't that bad. I just used Fine "finishing" sand paper and did 3 coats total. I used a sponge brush on the first coat but wasn't satisfied with how it was going on. The biggest mistake I make with protective finishes is definitely over-brushing. You are supposed to get less brush marks if you put it on thick and let it settle on its own. I didn't do a good job with that, and it shows with the High Gloss finish.

There are a few imperfections, but overall I'm happy. It's never going to get bright, bright light that will highlight its flaws, so it should be fine.

 

You can see better here that the finish is pretty glossy. And, that I chose not to paint the five legs.

Here's the little surprise I saved, though. If you haven't noticed, our Blu-Ray player is missing. I'm not sure where I got the idea from, but I thought it would be awesome if we could hide the player in a drawer. But, it couldn't pick up the remote signal if it was just housed in a drawer. So, I thought about how cool it would be to create a false drawer, where the drawer front actually drops down rather than pulling out to reveal the player. Well, easier said than done. Because the drawer "pulls" are below, it is difficult to grab the front and pull it down, so that was an issue. You could hinge it on the top and flip it up, but then you'd need a mechanism that held it up. So, I was stumped.

I enlisted the help of my dad, who is infamous for being a great "tinkerer." He can usually execute anything I ask him, from trimming my hair to building a cardboard truck for a class project. He took the drawer and returned it shortly after, completely redesigned.

Before I show you pictures, there was one snag that we're still working on. The blu-ray player is about 1/4" too wide for the drawer. Ugh. We cut down the sides of the drawer and are going to make a second level with a piece of thin wood, and set the player on that. Stay tuned... We're close!

 

You have to pull out the drawer slightly, so that the front has room to flip down.

 

Surprise! The drawer was a fake!

 My dad's handiwork. He had the hinge already, which is great!

 Front view. You can see on the right where the drawer has a cutout. We couldn't cut it all the way down because the drawer front wouldn't be supported. Soon enough..

 

Overall view. I think it's FANTASTIC. My nerdy side couldn't be happier; who doesn't love a secret compartment?

More pictures in daylight to come. What do you think? Was it a success or did I ruin a piece of antique furniture?

Hope I didn't make a mistake...

I happened to run across this blog post on a site I read, and she re-did my exact dresser (with the five legs and everything!). The dark finish she did looks so great that I hope I didn't mess mine up with paint. I'm excited for a different look with the turquoise, but always have to contend with self-doubt.

I will just keep telling myself that the top was formica and I had no choice. :)

Formica-Me-Crazy

So, I think the top and possibly sides of my dresser-turned-tv-stand are actually formica, which rules out the possibility of re-staining. I could paint those and stain the drawers, but.... I'm not sure how that would turn out.

If I'm just going to paint the whole thing, I could either go subtle and predictable or punched up and fun. I don't want to do black because that would bring down the whole room, but I'm not sure if the mid-century style would lend itself to white... I'm not sure if it could pull off adding some fun knobs/handles either, since it has indented pulls on the bottom of the drawer.

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If I went the more "fun" route, I was thinking of doing a dark, dark turquoise. I would possibly have the paint samples I got darkened even more... Similar to the color of our curtains. And similar to the color Young House Love painted the back of their built-in shelves, here:

Here's the color of our room.

I like the color that it is, but there's too many scratches and stuff that need filled to just leave it as is... Thoughts?? The great thing is that I can always paint it again...

White? Half-Stained? Turquoise? A totally different color because I'm on the wrong track? Let me know!

Dresser-ed to the Nines

Well, after many posts about credenzas and tv stands, it was time to strike. After months of perusing craigslist for the perfectly priced, sized, and styled tv stand, we started making offers and kept getting shut out. Tonight was our lucky night, though. I used "Craigslist Checker" (thanks Zeb!) to keep my eye on things, then found my diamond in the rough.

It's a very simple mid-century 9-drawer dresser. It's solid wood, and needs refinished. The lines are very smooth and all the sides are flat except for the grooves under the drawers, so I think I will do okay refinishing it. I'm hoping that I can get it sanded and perhaps pre-conditioned this weekend. Maybe even more if I'm feeling extra ambitious.

Remember this guy I turned from honey-colored with gold triangle pulls? Well, probably not because I did it before I started blogging. He was a beast to sand and I ended up cheating with some blank paint on the tough parts, but I'm happy with him. Especially for my first project - I think I've gotten a lot handier since then. So, I have high hopes for the new member of the family.

Anyway, without further ado, here is my most recent conquest:

Our new flat screen will sit a bit higher, which I think we'll like. It will also help to fill out that side of the room and feel more to scale with our sectional.

I will have to start looking at stains, I'm not sure if I want to go very dark, but I also don't want it to look outdated. What do you think? Check out these options.


Enough excitement for a Wednesday night. off to bed I go!

Welcome to the 21st Century!

First, here are the curtains I hemmed with no-stitch hem tape. It worked out great, and I'm so glad I decided on 6 yards of fabric because I love the length. The curtain rod is one we had, and it has a second bar, so I could add sheers behind it... Anyway, here they are! It's slowly coming together - too bad the rug I ordered is on back order and the bench is upholstered to your order... Can't wait!

Our curtains are up!

Closer up.. Slightly pooling at the floor.

Floor to ceiling.

Looking from the hallway.

Exactly as wide as our current tv stand. We're hunting for another one, but have been beat out on craigslist a few times already.... darn it!

Whoa! Where'd it go?? So slim.

The TV was a bit of a splurge from some $ we've run across recently. It's not the fanciest or biggest, but it's such an upgrade from our 27x27x27 box of a TV from college. We feel so fancy! It also has the internet, which is cool because we can play Pandora and watch Netflix and Youtube on it. Pretty cool!

Now I'm just waiting on our dining room rug, bench, and chairs to come in. And to find the perfect dresser/credenza from Craigslist.

Happy Monday!

End of January!

Well, another week has flown by and now it's nearly February. I didn't accomplish much this week as far as the house is concerned, but I've been pondering things, so that's somewhat productive. What have I been pondering?

1. Fabric to make dining room curtains. I love the fabric Joi uses in her dining room at Nuestra Vida Dulce for her no-sew curtains.

She got this Amy Butler fabric at www.fabric.com so I checked the site out. Since I want to get the Andalusia Rug from West Elm (or something similar, which I can't really find for any cheaper), I thought this fabric was too green. But I don't want yellow curtains and a yellow rug. What do you think about this combo?

  

So that's one thing I'm pondering.

2. Another thing I've been thinking about is the living room. I've got the "ok" from John to buy a credenza, order ceiling medallions for the walls, and order pillows. I am completely overwhelmed by Etsy's pillow collection, but would like to try to go out of my comfort zone and buy less matchy-matchy pillows. I would also like to cut out the sizes of the medallions to test them out on the walls before ordering - so that'll take a little time. As far as a credenza, craigslist is hit or miss. It looks like to get the mid-century Danish modern style I'd like to get, it'll run around $400. Which really isn't bad for an entertainment center made of solid wood. I don't want to paint it, so I'm in the market for a certain color, too. I'll keep you posted - this has been a long time coming!

3. And finally, I've been thinking about my mom's house. She's been trying to find a paint color forever, and nothing seems to look like the swatch when they bring it home. It's very odd. I've even sent her home with some of my neutral-colored tester bottles, to no avail. The Glidden "olivewood" that my house is almost entirely painted looks nothing in her house like it does in mine. They're going to be re-doing the kitchen soon, but they also want to update the house as a whole. They have beautiful dark-stained 6-panel doors, but they also have a dated wood baseboard throughout. So, we've been toying with the idea of going white. However, she doesn't want to paint the doors white. What do you think of the mixed finish look? According to the D&R nest board, opinions are mixed. Here are a few photos I snagged as examples:

A very clean look here, especially with the very subtle wall color. Makes the wood door pop.

Another great example of how it can work, especially with the right paint color.

First of all I love this door. But the look seems to blend really well.

This door is probably most similar to my parents' house. I would stay away from the darker wall color if they're trying to brighten it up.

As a teacher, I know that non-examples are really helpful. I am not a fan of the opposite - wood trim with white doors.

What are your thoughts on this look?

So we'll see where they go with their house. I would love to play Clean Sweep and get rid of some of the knick-knacks that they've accumulated over the years, but we'll see if I can twist mom's arm enough. :)

Anyway, I'm off to the Home Show at the T-Dome. Hopefully I can get some work done today and tomorrow around the house -- I've been working on my toilet paper roll art a la White Waxflower, so stay tuned!

Get me off of this thing!

I'm not much of a fashionista, but boy is it fun to make little "sets" on Polyvore! And there's all these fun little accessories to add - you could almost just make cool artwork (I'm sure that's what people do I'm just not hip to it yet). It reminds me of this tracing thing my sister and I had where you could mix and match outfits and sets and stuff.. but better!

Winter Blush by Lindsay featuring vintage belts

Living room by Lindsay on Polyvore.com <-- from Nuestra Vida Dulce - Ceiling Medallion!