Rugs: A story of a kick ass deal!

I have been lusting after this rug for like eva!

Sometimes, I click on the link and stare at it.  Then last night, I am stalking the rug...it was 65% off for memorial day and I bought the 5x7 for $91.70!!!  Plus, I got this rug for $38.85, it's 5'3 x 7'9!!  That one's for the girls' room!

They are still on sale for the 65% off, plus they have a ton of other fabulous rugs for that discount!!

xoxo

thrift store score: giant lantern

sometimes when you go to a thrift store or the g-dub (goodwill) you find nothing.  other times you score big, like when i scored these chairs.

this is a score story.  i sold some crap off craigslist and was meeting the lady to deliver it and also had 6 trash bags of donate.  yes, i said 6 and no that isn't even half of what needed to go....that's all i had room for in the car.  anywho, the g-dub i usually go to was way across town so i stopped by a salvation army and dumped my stuff there.  i wasn't going to go in, but audrey and oliver were being good, so in we went.  i was walking around, got some random goodies.  i always go through the toys, baby clothes, picture frames and household stuff.

i walk by the furniture, some decent, nothing saying "kari take me home, stick me in your garage and pretend you have the time to redo me!"  then i saw it over by the lamps....a huge freaking lantern.

it's 30 inches tall and 17 inches wide!!  i swear it weighs like 15 pounds!
it's going to be red and hang over my kitchen island.  i hope to have it done in a week or so!

now some inspiring lantern pictures.....

images via pinterest

xoxo

Black Laundry Room/ Pantry Reveal

Do you ever have a space that you can't find exactly what to do with it?  This was that space.  It's just the laundry room/pantry, but I see it all day sometimes.  You can see it as soon as you walk in the house and the pantry doors are always open, unless we are entertaining and they start out closed and end up open for the trash and recycle bins.  It needed to be a calm lovely space.

I looked at a billion pictures, I swear.  I pinned and searched and couldn't decide what to do.  Two and a half years later...still nasty.  Until, I came across this post by Dana at House Tweaking. She painted her laundry room/ dining area Besalt by Ace Hardware.  It is stunning....seriously if you haven't clicked that link, go now.  I'll wait................................ fan-freaking-tastic, right?!?!?  Her whole house is stunning and we have very similar taste.  Like I might want to attempt to copy her house, er I mean draw inspiration from her!

Okay, I'll get to the pictures now.

real life people....maybe I should have picked up a little, but whatevs.

Last before pic I swear...I'm getting to the goods.
Gaggy vinyl floor and old yellowed paint.

New floor is the same flooring that is in the newly redone entryway...which has been changed since I blogged it last week.  The kids kept smashing their fingers in the cedar chest to get out their shoes.  Later on that.

The white washer and dryer don't even bother me anymore.  I do want new one's but these do the job and when presented with the opportunity to buy new one's I would rather use the money for other projects!

I painted over the electrical box because it was a giant eye sore and you hardly notice it now!!:)

what's that above the red frame...why it's a gold fish! :)

irony the opposite of wrinkly...haha laundry humor

Color: Besalt by Ace Hardware

Trim: Glidden Marshmallow White

White lidded containers are from Wal-Mart
Red Dust Pan is from Crate and Barrel's new clean slate line.

xoxo

SUNDAY: The DIY Showoff 

 MONDAY: Thrifty Decor Chick, Dittle Dattle,Between Naps On the Porch, Homemaker on a Dime
TUESDAY: Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, Strictly Homemade
WEDNESDAY: Not Just A Housewife Sugar and Dots The Mommy Club  
THURSDAY:My Repurposed Life. House of Hepworths, Beyond The Picket Fence, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Somewhat Simple 
FRIDAY: Fingerprints on the Fridge, Miss Mustard Seed, Remodelaholic, Chic on a Shoestring,  Shabby Nest
SATURDAY: Funky Junk Interiors, Tatertots and Jello 

Two-Tone Kitchen Cabinet Inspiration

I am planning to paint our kitchen cabinets this summer and here are some of my cabinet color choices:

Gray:

Black:

Navy:

Olive Green:

kitchen images via

Ordered a new faucet, this one doesn't come with a bunch of crappy reviews!!  

xoxo

Painted Bathroom Vanity and a new Kitchen Faucet

This is a post on lessons learned.

So, our vanity in the front bath was a cheap piece of shit.  No kidding.  Next time I redo a room, I will keep looking for a quality product and design I like.  I had never redone a room before the front bathroom redo.

Whilst it looked nice, twas a cheap piece of shit.

After a few months the finish quickly started to chip and wear away.  Crap, I tell you!  Great for a cheap ass rental or a show room, bad for a family of 6 and in a kids bathroom none the less.  Mr. TSL warned me that it was crap...I insisted he put it in anyway.  He did.  Now he's going to rebuild it to look similar, so we can still use the sink.  I like the sink.  

It looked like this a few weeks ago:

Every time I went in there to pee, it pissed me off!  So, I sanded that beast down and painted it!

Plus, if you notice in the crappy before pic there was an arch by the kick plate....lots of crap got lost under there.  Bath toys, little girl panties, dust bunnies, and dog hair.  I just cleaned under there and liquid nailed some 1x3's I cut to size and voila...no more black hole for bathroom crap.

Now another lesson....yes I have to learn a lot.  Some times I buy things because they are pretty and I'm like jojo the idiot circus monkey when I see shiny things.

My new kitchen faucet:

Doesn't it give you a lady boner....it does for me.  Mr. TSL installed it...it freaking leaks and has shitty water pressure.  So, I go back to look at the reviews for it (which I usually read when I buy anything online.)  I must have not read them, because I would have totally passed on it.  See the bar thing that holds the faucet in place?  It leaks on the back part like can't fix it leaks!  

I read the reviews for it, after the fact and all the positive one's are all like "It's so pretty!"  The negative one's are like "Hey dummy this leaks don't buy it!"  But Jojo the idiot circus monkey goes "Oooo, me likey, 10% off coupon...done!"  

Buying a kitchen faucet is like buying a bra.  Sure the sexy one's are better looking, but do you want to wear it all the time if it's not functional and makes your back hurt?! No.  I wish it were like buying those red high heels that you know are going to make your legs look amazing and you will deal with the blister after you take them off. But, alas it is not functional to have a sexy faucet that works like shit.  So, back to overstock it goes and a still lovely, but more functional one will be put in it's place.  

Good bye you sexy, sexy faucet.  I will miss your looks, but not your personality.

xoxo

Entry Way Makeover and some Laundry Room pics

I deleted my first post over all this because alas, I am a dumb ass.

Let's pretend that it was filled with my usual razor sharp wit and you were dying at how clever I was.  

Now back to reality-ville.

I am just posting pics and sources. Stupid undo button. Damn it.

sources:

flooring: Tranquility 1.5mm North Perry Pine Resilient Vinyl Flooring found here. $0.79.sf

rug:  Olin Rug 30x50 from Crate and Barrel found here. $24.95 on clearance (I think.)

frames:   Dollar General with added ribbon.

sign: made it from a 1 x 3 and some stencils

hooks:  I got these a billion years ago off ebay and the wood is a 1x12 that was in our garage when we moved in.

clock: Was my mom's and she thought it didn't work anymore, so she bought a new one and I swiped it.  Works just fine for me!!  Thanks mom!

art: Was an old piece of art with an italian poster for wine.  Painted over it and made the "What I love most about my home is who I share it with."

Now, a peek at my laundry room/pantry:

before:

after:

Yep, it's black and sexy as hell!!  I freaking can't wait to show you all the pics, but I still need to put up a shelf and some art in there...and now I'll have to re-clean it because it's got folded laundry piled high on the dryer.  

Do you do that?  You know, pile laundry up, do you leave it in baskets?  Do you restart the dryer so you don't have to fold it or to unwrinkle (dewrinkle?) it? Don't tell me you actually wash, dry, fold, and put it away.  Braggin' ass.  Or do you also iron it?  Freak.  

Right now I would pay upwards of $1000 for a decent nights sleep. 

xoxo,

Kari

SUNDAY: The DIY Showoff 

 MONDAY: Thrifty Decor Chick, Dittle Dattle,Between Naps On the Porch, Homemaker on a Dime
TUESDAY: Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, Strictly Homemade
WEDNESDAY: Not Just A Housewife Sugar and Dots The Mommy Club  THURSDAY:My Repurposed Life. House of Hepworths, Beyond The Picket Fence, The Shabby Chic Cottage, Somewhat Simple 
FRIDAY: Fingerprints on the Fridge, Miss Mustard Seed, Remodelaholic, Chic on a Shoestring,  Shabby Nest
SATURDAY: Funky Junk Interiors, Tatertots and Jello