September Blog Update

Sorry, I've been so absent from this blog. However, I do have some posts and projects coming up soon:

• Some of this will be going on this weekend. I swear! I've definitely written about it enough, haven't I?
  
• An update on this building. They were working on it yesterday but I didn't have my camera at the time. Let's just say it involved huge panels of shiny silver corrugated metal. Yeah, let that sink in...
  
• I know it's been a long time, but I also have a new SHELTER study coming up for you. Again, I swear it will appear!

To Do List

First Priority:

• Paint armoire green FINALLY = have paint
  
• Paint wooden medicine cabinet*
  
• Create fabric divider curtain for kitchen = have hardware and fabric
  
• Install shelves around the French doors = have wood, brackets, and nails
  
• Finish installing pictures on other side of the living room wall = have pictures, nails, and anchors, if needed.
  

Not As Immediate:

• Reorganize front hall closet
• Buy or construct new slipcover for loveseat
• Paint TV-tray tables (purple or orange?)
• Create Anthropologie-style duvet cover from this fabric OR sell fabric
• Paint bedroom dresser (major sanding is needed first)
  

* at least prime it at the same time when I prime the armoire

Painted Armoire Inspiration

Yummm...

Images: Creative Home and Victoria (2) magazine

Getting closer...

Hmmm, I do still have two pieces of furniture to paint, don't I?

Can you believe, I FINALLY picked out my green paint for the living room sewing armoire/cabinet? It will be Olympic's Grassy Meadow B67-5 courtesy of my Lowe's holiday gift card! At the same time, I will also pick up my Kindness of Stranger's blue paint mix for my bedroom dresser.

I just checked the Lowe's website thinking maybe they have a good sale on paint right now. Well, I found that they will make you an 8 ounce sample of any of their Valspar or Olympic paint colors for only $3.98. This also includes any color-matching shades that you bring in. How cheap am I that I am actually wondering whether 8 ounces could be enough for either project.?

Yeah, pretty cheap.

The Kindness of Strangers

Agnes Bourne Design
I saw these pictures from interior designer Agnes Bourne on Desire to Inspire and I was struck by the green woodgrain on the cabinets. Yum! This would be a great way to update old wood or melamine* kitchen cabinet doors.

Luckily, the cool couple behind Something's Hiding in Here just revealed their easy technique for faux woodgrain paneling to ReadyMade magazine. They used it to give their bathroom an enviable new look. Someone could use this very easy technique with a little bit of sanding and primer to make a formally blah kitchen into something cooler, especially if you take this route and do it in a "not seen in nature" color.

I discovered this couple's apartment a few years ago on Flickr. I couldn't help noticing that they had painted their wood furniture much like I have mine, even their coffee table has the same lines as my bright yellow one.


Recently, I was struck by the color of their bedroom furniture, so I inquired what it was and it seems I wasn't the only person to ask. So guess what sweet thing they did? They shared the custom paint recipe for the color on their blog. I can now take this "recipe" to Lowe's and get this exact color for my bedroom dresser. Yes, the same one that I couldn't pick a color for. I knew I wanted a blue to coordinate with the bedside table but just couldn't find the right one but I think this is it. Now I just need to get myself to the store with this formula, get it mixed up, pick up the green paint for the living room armoire...and I'm in business!

Thank you Stephen and Shauna!

*I know there are specific primers that work on melamine to make this possible but I don't know which ones.

An About-Face

For years I had planned on painting my armoire/sewing cabinet a nice solid spring green color. In fact, I've used the fact of not finding the perfect green as the excuse that it still hasn't been done. However, now I'm starting to think differently.

Why or why have I been scared to do this for so long? Scared of making a mistake? Yes, even though other DIY-ers have painted pieces over and over again in the same amount of time that my piece has been the same with only an addition of a clear poly coat. I do know that I will never feel that my apartment is 'ready for prime-time' until I get this last piece of furniture painted or otherwise "finished."

Years ago, I had decided that although the majority of the piece would be solid green I wanted some sort of design on it to make it different.

a) I had been thinking of an image taken from a greeting card to go on the boards inside the doors

b) or perhaps a design from a friend/graphic designer*/new mom to place in those same places.

Well, a month (or so) ago I saw this piece by Lucas Rise on the design*sponge blog, fell in love, and became increasingly intrigued with the thought of not just one color that would go with my living room but perhaps a myriad of different colors that would work with everything in my apartment, now and into the future?

One look and I was in love with the illustrated and painted furniture of Argentinean artist Lucas Rise.

Flower park, Circus

Nigeria

Even his site design is incredible, right?I

Potala Palace $500

After seeing his work I then came across this Pier 1 wine cabinet in person and became even more convinced that pattern was the way to go.

So the plan now is to buy the green paint that I've liked the best (no more deliberations) and paint the cabinet. Now it will at least be respectable. Then I can take some time (not too much!) to decide on the design. I am just going to start sketching more, something I don't do much of anymore. Wish me luck!

* She is currently designing a new header for this blog!

2007: The Year-long Cure

I pulled up a post I wrote this spring during the Apartment Therapy Cure about what I wanted to accomplish then. Well, that list was barely touched in that 8 week span. However, if I turn it into a 2007 year plan, then I'm doing pretty good. So, I'm going with that option. Duh.
Goals:

• Test Himalayan Mist pale blue sample from Behr and paint bedroom
  Completed April 2007
  
• Assemble white IKEA Vika Amon/Vika Artur desk
  Completed May 2007
  
• Mount empty brightly colored picture frames from to emulate this image from Wary Meyers
  Completed July 2007
  
• Hang Inside a Black Apples' Mysterious Genevieve print
  Completed July 2007
  
• Paint and patinate (yes, I looked it up) my gold mirror using pale yellow and blue paint
  Completed March 2007
  
• Paint dining/craft table a very pale blue to contrast with the red chairs (probably use the leftover samples from Behr or extra Benjamin Moore sample pots)
  Completed October 2007

• Special order a quart of the American Accents Leafy Green paint from Lowe's or Home Depot for the armoire (**Could only find in oil base spray paint, have to find a new color.) in Benjamin Moore Clover Green in satin.
  Completed June 2021!

• Take another try at tailoring the loveseat slip cover
  Completed June 2007
  
• Make the bolster pillows for the loveseat
  Completed May 2007
  
• Mount artwork on the walls, including my heavy Swingers poster and my Leia Bell prints
  Completed May 2007 and October 2007
  
• Hang curtain dividing the kitchen from the living/dining area.
  Awaiting completion

I also want to mount a series of shelves next to the French doors in my living room. However, because I did not add them to this list they do not need to be finished this year. So hurray for that!

Things to get done during or after the Cure

Goals:

• Test Glacial Tint and Himalayan Mist! pale blue samples from Behr and paint bedroom with the chosen color (Done 4/07)
• Assemble white IKEA Vika Amon/Vika Artur desk (Done 5/07)
• Mount empty brightly colored picture frames from to emulate this image from Wary Meyers (Done 7/07)
• Hang Inside a Black Apples' Mysterious Genevieve print (Done 7/07)
• Paint and patinate (yes, I looked it up) my gold mirror using pale yellow and blue paint (Done 3/07)
• Paint dining/craft table a very pale blue to contrast with the red chairs (probably use the leftover samples from Behr or extra Benjamin Moore sample pots) (Done 10/07)
• Special order a quart of the American Accents Leafy Green paint from Lowe's or Home Depot for the armoire (**I found out that Rust-Oleum no longer makes this color available in a brush-on latex paint, I would have to use the oil-based spray, which I don't want to use. Hmmm...)
• Take another try at tailoring the loveseat slip cover (still too loose) (Done 6/07)
• Make the bolster pillows (came up with new idea for the shape) (Done 5/07)
• Mount artwork on the walls, including my heavy Swingers poster and my Leia Bell prints (Done 5/07 & 10/07)
• Hang curtain dividing the kitchen from the living/dining area. The fabric I wanted was discontinued so I had to start again and I am now thinking about one of these below. They are from the same collection as the one I originally wanted.

Update: I bought over four yards of the green, yellow, and blue print.*
Bolded = Done
* = In progress