When I say this post has been a long time in the making that is an understatement. The type of understatement that would be along the lines of saying that Thin Mints are just a good cookie.
I have to say that I am pretty much the luckiest girl in the world when it comes to my in-laws. This blog would literally not be in existence without the encouragement and listening ear of my wonderful Mother In Law (you have met her briefly in this staging video). She has got fantastic taste and loves all things thrifted as much as I do. Its sort of like having a best friend that you trade clothes and makeup with, except we trade furniture.
Every summer when school is out, Court is enlisted in a big summer project. After years of talking about all of the things that we wanted to do to her kitchen/living room it finally came to fruition last July.
This is what her living room looked like before (I seem to have lost some of my pictures in the great computer crash of 2012, so you will have to work with what I got.)
This is a shot looking at the kitchen (its on the other side of that pass through window)
And here is a shot looking into the living room from the kitchen
And this is what it looks like now…
…from the same point of view.
Yes my friends we took out a wall, and I cant wait to show you the kitchen tomorrow!! But lets chat all things living room today.
While my MIL is thriftier than most she doesn’t take it to the same extreme that I do.
The first thing they did after taking out the wall was put in engineered hardwood. Isn’t it so beautiful?
The walls got coat of paint (the dark color is Iron Ore by Sherwin Williams and the same color that I used in the $150 room makeover)
The couch, rug, chandelier, and chairs are from Homegoods (love me a good Homegoods score!)
The shelves are from World Market and staged with awesome thrift store scores.
This brass and wood table is to this day one of our favorite consignment store scores, if I remember correctly it was $25.
If you are a VR super fan you may remember this dresser I blogged about a year ago. I scored it at the DI for $50 and 10 minutes at my house and a quick Google search later, I found out that this Drexel Parallel chest of drawers was selling on eBay for $895.00. The best part? A few months later I found the mate for $60.00!
This is the part where I stop talking and show the eye candy.
So do you love it as much as we do? Have any questions? Leave them in the comments!! xo
So I sort of have this running joke with my friends. It goes a little something like this:
Them: “Wow Mands, your walls are so clean! What do you use on them?”
Me: “New paint.”
Its no secret that I did not turn out like the wall scrubbing ninja that my mother tried to make me, and lets be honest, I usually repaint before masses of grubby handprints accumulate. But that is neither here nor there. Sorry Mom!!
So what do you do when your walls are looking less than stellar and need a new paint job OR you are like me and have a copycat artist in the house and need a new paint job (I mean can you blame her? After all she sees me drawing on the wall with markers too…)
As decor obsessed as I am, I am a little in love that Miss Dylan feels the need for large canvases. But that means that when its time to repaint there is necessary damage control that needs to happen. Today I am going to share my secrets for getting your walls paint ready (because who wants to spend all that time and money and have it not turn out?!)
Tip #1 Wipe Wipe Wipe. My #1 go to for all things wall wipe down is a Magic Eraser. All of the dirt, grime, frosting (…? its one of the 5 food groups in our house) and crayon comes off with a few swipes. I am pretty sure that there is no better name on earth for what this actually does. It would be like naming a bag of Lindor Truffles Instant Guilt. I always scrub with the Magic Eraser and then wipe the loosened dirt with a damp washcloth.
If you have marker on the wall (especially washable) don’t try and paint over it without washing it off first. It will literally take 10 coats to cover because it will seep through the wet paint. So your options are to scrub or prime.
Sometimes markings need a bit of extra attention, like pen. Pen is lame. Unless you use my secret weapon… Hand sanitizer. I swear it takes pen right off!
Tip #2 Dust Be Gone. Just like paint isn’t only for walls, Swiffer Sweepers aren’t only for floors. In St. George very few houses have basements, most are built on concrete slabs which means that all of the vents are in the ceilings. Unfortunately this means that the dust literally falls from the ceiling. Before you start painting take a Swiffer to your walls, because no one wants gobs of dust mucking up your brand new paint job.
Tip #3 Start In The Right Place. If you are painting walls, ceiling, and trim go in the order of the drippage. Paint the areas that are most likely to get dripped on last. Start with your ceiling (and get your husband to do it if you can!!) then do your walls, and then move on to your trim.
Tip #4 Hold Your Horses. One key to having a quick and easy paint job is to be patient. I know that sometimes waiting for paint to dry, is like well, waiting for paint to dry. Waiting between coats is not only important for your finish but it saves you time. Have you ever rolled a coat on and then tried to second coat it only to find out that your first coat wasn’t dry enough and rolling over it is removing your first coat? It happens with every paint line and finish that I have tried. (what can I say, patience is not my greatest virtue.) You have to wait. Trust.
Now for a fun giveaway. I have partnered with The Home Depot and P&G to giveaway a DIY painting #ReadyDoneClean prize package!! One lucky person will win my favorite cleaning prep products, a Magic Erasers and a Swiffer Sweeper and $25 Home Depot gift card to help you start your next painting project!!
To enter leave a comment below with YOUR favorite painting tip (because we can never have enough of those!!) Winner will be chosen on Thursday 3/14
I have partnered with the Home Depot and P&G for this post. The best part? I really use these products before I start painting! All opinions are 100% mine folks.
Wednesday I got another one of THOSE emails. You know the kind that asks how I manage to renovate my house single handedly, feed my family 3 square meals a day, serve in my church, have a spotless house, AND shower.
Right at this moment I am in full on Project Mode which basically means that getting this project finished becomes the priority and as long as the house is standing and the children are not starving we are good and everything else falls by the wayside. (p.s. that is one sentence for a reason. Say it all in one breath and you will understand the exhaustion.)
So do you guys want to see what its really like at my house right now??
Mac and Cheese from last night still on the counter.
A nutritious breakfast of Capitan Crunch whilst watching Max and Ruby for breakfast (yes she is in her underwear)
The project leftovers…
The remote by my computer so I can change the channel before Dylan has a complete meltdown.
Kitchen tables are NOT for eating, they are for mixing paint.
Camera lens, hammer, paint, Magic Erasers, homework and other loose papers, and check out those fingerprints. (Now picture this on EVERY flat surface.)
Do you know what a good friend is? A good friend is one that senses the desperation in your voice when you tell her ALL you want in this world is a treat, and because you haven’t been to the store in a few days you are getting your sugar fix on (wait for it.) Fiber One Bars. And after laughing at the repercussions of that choice brings you a yummy piece of cake. All while not judging and completely understanding why your 4 yr old answered the door in her underwear. Thanks Brooke!! Here is a message in the sawdust for you.
This is just about the only hard hitting piece of investigative journaling that you will see from me this year. And by investigative I mean, I hit up a thrift store in Salt Lake while I was there last weekend.
So its bound to be fantastic.
Lets start this discussion the way that I feel most comfortable.
Hi, My name is Mandi and I am an addict.
(Hi Mandi!)
I am addicted to thrifting. There is something just so exciting about the thrill of the hunt and not knowing what treasures you may (or may not) find. Like this brass and glass table I swiped up last week for $15.00.
I frequently instagram/FB/blog (when I get around to it) my thrift store scores. And without fail, someone always says something along the lines of “MANDI. That is IT, I am moving to St. George. Your DI has THE BEST STUFF!!” I dont want you guys to get the impression that the DI in St. George is this treasure trove of amazing furniture and just quirky enough to get your hipster juices flowing figurines.
I am actually here to let you in on a little secret. I believe (for the most part) that thrift stores are created equal. Now, I am sure that this is not true everywhere, but if we are looking at the broad scope of things, like my fellow investigative journalists do, for the most part I think this is pretty accurate.
I know what you are thinking. “ Dude, she is such a liar, she just doesn’t want everyone stealing all the good crap before she gets to it.” And while this may be true, I have a secret to tell you…
I go to the DI almost every day. Now, before you schedule an intervention, you should know that it is LITERALLY right up the street from my house. And I pass it every time I go anywhere. So to stop is not a huge deal. I have a route. I can be in and out in under 5 minutes. Hmmm. maybe I do need an intervention…but back to the point.
8.5 out of 10 times I am there I find nothing.
When I do find something most often its a small tchotcky, every once in a while I find something a little better (like my awesome industrial lamp) and every once in a blue moon I find a piece of furniture that I lick to stake my claim on. Just kidding, I don’t do that…(as far as you know.)
Rarely when you are thrifting do you find something that you instantly love. Most often the first thought I have (or words I say if I am with someone) is “Well, I don’t hate it.” Then like a beautiful friendship that morphs into a lifelong love, this thing that I initially didn’t hate turns into something that I have to have.
So just for fun, and to show you that the DI is no better than your Goodwill, I brought my camera along for the ride with me today.
Please enjoy.
This is the indoor furniture section. Lots and lots of particle board.
Your thrift store has over priced semi wooden dressers? Mine does too.
Oooh oooh!! How about sofas that would NEVER work in this decade? (please note that the light blue one would look pretty fab with a navy velvet on it but that is the only piece that could be resurrected.)
How about a bad lamp or 13?
This is the point of my route that we head through the swinging double doors you see on your left. This area is known as The Yard.
This is where most of the tables, chairs, art, doors, bikes, luggage, etc. are.
After I walk past the chairs I check out the art. There was an ESPECIALLY special piece in there today that I just had to share with you.
Now its time to head back inside, to the housewares.
A quick glance in the small pictures/frames and we spot these lovely beauties. (side note: When I was younger I ALWAYS wanted a picture like this. I mean, the artist captured her nose shine just so.)
Today it was full of green dragons. I literally don’t know how ANYONE could part with a collection like this. It must have been harder than giving birth.
The one item that I didn’t hate (but didn’t love enough to buy) was this little bird statue.
Then its on to the wood.
Unfortunately today there were no wooden bowls, only horrifying tole painted elfin creatures wearing lederhosen and a polar bear (or is it Frosty?) riding a burro.. YEEEE HAW! LOVE that bandana Frosty!! Please note the outhouse wind chime that is thankfully still in its package.
Actually I lied. There was this little fellow that would be great a bright solid color…
You know how they say things were built better in days gone by? I can attest to the fact that furniture was indeed stronger back in the vintage. Oh and don’t forget about cars. But what about pantyhose? Don’t you let that worry you for one more second. You can compare the run test between today’s new fangled control tops to the wonderful firm-hold of yesteryear.
Now in all seriousness I actually really did love these books, I just might head back over there tomorrow and get them. Wouldn’t they be so perfect in my house?! The Handyman Do It Yourself Encyclopedia series. I am sure that there is a thing or two I could learn in there.
Can you believe that with all of those treasures I left empty handed? Shocking.
Do I find great crap at my local thrift store? You bet I do. Do I find awesome crap at other peoples thrift stores? Yep. In fact over the weekend I stopped by the DI in West Jordan UT and found these brass deer statues.
I am constantly in awe over Jilly’s thrift store scores, but when we were in her stomping ground doing Kelsey’s room makeover we found next to nothing at the numerous Goodwill’s that we stopped at.
So if you are feeling like you never find anything good at your thrift store, there is a good chance you aren’t as big of an addict as I am.
And that may just be a blessing and a curse.
Oh and because I love you, here are a few posts I have written on HOW I shop at a thrift store:
Hey guys!! Did you have a chance to catch Studio 5 last week? In case you missed it, here is the link to the video…the good (the room reveal), the bad (the process it took to get there x3), and the ugly (where I talk about a stripper.)
If you’ve watched it then you know just how easy this project is.
We started with our antique Mantle. First things first we gave it a good scrub (because paint doesn’t stick very well to dust…)
One thing that you MUST remember when you are working with old old pieces is that there is pretty much a 100% chance that at least 1 of the 67 layers of paint on it is lead based. You need to lock that into the piece by painting or sealing it. Now I know what you are thinking…but even if you love the chippy worn out finish you need to protect yourself and your family by putting a polycrylic sealer over the top of it (if you use polycrylic it wont yellow, if you use polyurethane it can!!) In the case of Sierra’s mantle we primed and repainted. (a few times…but that’s another post for another day.)
Once the final design was hatched it was simple.
Head to your fave local hardware store and buy a piece of 1/8” underlayment. It is a type of plywood that is thin and lightweight but has a good wood grain on it. (it will cost you $12.00 for a 4×8 sheet.) And while you are there have them cut it down to size (its free!!) I put a quick coat of Golden Oak Restore a Finish on it to bring the wood to life. (Its my go to sort of stain!!)
Because of the shape of Sierra’s mantle I had to build up a few spots so that the sheet of ply was flat on its surface. See in the picture below how surrounding the hole for the fireplace the trim is about an inch lower than the spot that has the cubes? That is where it needed to be built up.
Luckily for me the difference was EXACTLY 1” so I just used scrap wood from my garage, LOVE it when that happens! If the bed wasn’t so high on the mantle I would have used a sheet of 1” wood to cover the entire space. (also don’t mind the awful picture quality, I had to screenshot a video to get it!)
Then attach your ply with finishing nails. There are really about a million awesome things you could to do this, I mean, how cool would it look if you used upholstery nail heads all along the edges?!
As you can see in the pic above I used painters tape to mark where the support piece that I nailed on ended. That way I didn’t get to nail gun happy, which is something that TOTALLY happens. Don’t act like you haven’t shot a few extra nails off for effect. I nailed all along the edges every 4” or so (just push on the wood, if it moves then nail it down.)
Now comes the fun part. The arrows!!
When I free hand things I tend to start pretty straight and then everything takes a giant curve to the north. A handwriting analysis told me its because I am optimistic. And as fun as that is, I wanted these arrows to be straight and evenly spaced.
I used painters tape to mark each home so that I had a clear guide to not screw it up.
I loved this image that I found on Pinterest from Pocket Tiger (she has an AMAZING etsy shop!!) I used it as inspiration for my arrows. I love how they are all different, and hand drawn and imperfect.
Fun Fact: Did you know that I am a southpaw? Well now you do! Drawing with markers always ends up with giant smears unless I do it strategically. I know you other lefties TOTALLY know what I am going through!
I used my favorite new tool Sharpie Paint Pens (remember I did an entire wall in my living room with them?!) And I just started drawing.
Are they perfect? Heck no. Do they look awesome anyway? Absolutely. Channel your inner doodler and go to town.
As I have been chatting about the last week or so, I have been working on a really fun segment for Studio 5 called “What Would Mandi Do?” where viewers submitted pieces that have them stumped. I needed a local girl who was ready and willing to let me do what needed to be done to make her piece of furniture out of this world amazing.
Sierra sent me an email that explained that she found an old fireplace mantle at an antique store and was IMMEDIATLEY in love with it. After talking to the shop owner about it and then relaying the info to her Grandpa she found out that the mantle came from an old house in Washington UT that was midwife headquarters. And it gets better. It was the house that her Grandpa himself was born in 80 years ago. How cool is that?! Rarely do we actually know the full story behind a great find.
So she bought it. And it sat in her garage. For 2 years. (don’t judge her, you know you can relate!) The problem? She had no idea what to do with it.
Because it was such a special piece, it needed more than just an update. It needed an entire room designed around it. I decided that we were going to turn it into a headboard for her beige box guest room.
First things first the beige just HAD to go. Sierra’s house is very neutral, and if I am going to push someone I am going to PUSH them.
(ps. This is what pushing looks like)
(This picture is coat 1 while it was still wet so its a little lighter and splotchier than the final coat.)
The color that I used was a custom mix called Modified Envy. Here is the mixture formula:
Originally when I ordered my paint at my local Sherwin Williams store the color I ordered was Envy. Its a really bright true Kelly green. When I stopped in to pick it up, though I LOVED the vibrancy of it, it needed to be a little bit deeper. As I was explaining what I wanted to the guys they were doing what can only be described as color math. And let me tell you, they are GENIUSES at color math. They magically deepened it without losing the vibrancy that I was so in love with. THAT is why I shop there, those guys are freaking experts. I was also feeling a little concerned about painting in Sierra’s house because she is currently with child. Instead of using my fave Super Paint, I used their new line called Emerald (fitting right?!) Emerald is THE BEST technology paint has to offer. It is a Zero VOC formula (even after the colorants are added) which basically means that the airborne toxins that can be found in paint are gone. Hooray for Sierra’s fetus! The washability is FANTASTIC and it has a lifetime warranty. Totally worth it.
Working on this project I immediately came up with a few ideas for the mantle (a few of which I tried and then changed my mind about, but that is another post for next week.) After working though the ideas I realized that what I was missing out on was a main element that was wood. Everything was just feeling so painted.
I love that this room has all of my favorite things. Color, brass, wood, faux bois, a quirky animal, a hand drawn element, old books, and killer art.
Isn’t it so exciting?!
The mantle is totally updated, the green is so vibrant, and all of the thrift store elements make my heart sing!!
The mirror above the bed is from Target (I am dying over their new Threshold collection, its SO good) All of the decorative books and junk are from my local thrift store. The faux bois pillow and lamp are from Homegoods (naturally). The mustardy chartreuse pillows are simple envelope pillows with fabric from Joann’s.
The vintage inspired plumes print ties all of the colors from the room together in one pretty package. Instead of putting it in a frame, I hung it poster style with command strips. I found it at a local store called Urban Renewal for $9.00.
I love that the headboard is so happily highlighted in this room with the green wall and accent colors.
Doesn’t every room need a coral Pomeranian?
Not too shabby for a couple days of work eh?
What is your favorite element?
ps. The tutorial for the headboard is coming on Monday, so stay tuned!!
Planking walls is nothing new to the DIY world. In fact there are a bunch of great tutorials out there on how to do it with a million different materials, techniques, and results. Sometimes all of the chatter around the blogosphere can make so much noise that you don’t know what the best way to do something actually is.
That’s what I am here for my friends, I will be the guinea to your pig, I will be the trial to your error, I will be the crash to your dummy, (ok you get where I am going with this….)
I think that everyone. EVERYONE. has their own inner design voice (whether its Vern Yip or Emily Henderson or Honey Boo Boo’s mama) and you need to take the things that inspire you and make them your own. That is what I did with this project.
I started with the black and white striped hallway (if you are loving it you can see how to perfectly paint stripes here) which I still loved a lot. The problem I was facing was that when I painted it I used an off white (it was the color we painted all the doors and baseboard in the entire house…shoot me now) and I wanted WHITE (my favorite is Sherwin Williams Pure White Base) I wasn’t married to it enough to paint over the off white stripes and keep the black. And we all know the fastest way to get rid of something is to hide it, just ask my 8 year old self (thats how I cleaned my room.)
When it comes to the actual planking you have a handful of options. At your local hardware store you can find individual tongue and groove planks in packs (like Amy used on her ceiling) you can use sheets of paneling (like you would find in a basement in a house built in 1971), you can have sheets of ply cut down like Sausha did.
I did none of those. The thriftiest option was to use 1/8” Masonite. It is that dark particle board that is rough on one side and shiny smooth on the other that you usually see on the back side of dressers. You with me still? It is something like $8.00 for an 4×8 sheet. Have it rip cut at Lowes or Home Depot into the width that you want your planks to be. (They have a giant saw that they will do this on and its really fast.)
Decide what angle and direction you want your planking to go. Mine are at 45 degrees because its simple to remember and awesome!
Everywhere an end of your board hits (on a corner, door frame, floor etc.) you will need a 45 degree angle. Get a few pieces measured and cut. (For those that dont know, you can cut a precise angle by rotating the base on your miter saw to 45 degrees).
It is crucial to have a nail gun to do a project like this. It will save you so much time and give you a professional finish.
Nail a few boards up, step back and make sure that you are in love. (notice that were the pieces meet end to end they are not 45 degree angles, don’t do that, it will look stupid. Also notice that mine don’t perfectly touch end to end. I wanted it to look more rustic and imperfect so I did that on purpose.
I used a few of the triangles that I had left over from cutting the end of the boards so I brought them inside and used them to space each row. Sometimes you gotta rock what you got.
Once you get going it is extremely simple. Measure, cut, space, nail, over and over and over.
Just remember that everywhere a plank ends it needs to be at a 45 degree angle.
I wasn’t sure the best way to go about painting when I started, to paint the wall and the edges and then install and paint the fronts? Paint everything before hand and then go back and touch up the nail holes?
I decided to paint nothing, fill the nail holes, and then do it all in one fail swoop. It was sort of crappy having to paint in the cracks, but I don’t know if it was any more time consuming than if I would have done it the other way. I am planning on doing it a few other places in my house, so I will let you know!
All in all I love it. Cant wait to show you the other places it is going to live!!
I am heading to Salt Lake as we speak for Studio 5, we are doing a really fun segment called “What Would Mandi Do?” with viewer submitted furniture dilemmas. I am super excited about it so if you are Utah local make sure you tune in, and if you are not I will share the link on FB after it airs!! And because you guys are wonderful and have put up with my sporadic posting this week, here is a sneak peek of the room I overhauled this weekend for one lucky viewer….(the full reveal will be tomorrow!!)
