WE LOVE YOU FIDO, BUT NOT YOUR UGLY BAGS OF KIBBLE

Okay, I was being a little overly optimistic about finishing my bathroom over the weekend. Right now it's a little like a half baked cake...you really don't want to see it yet because it's all runny and gooey, or something like that. I promise I'll have some great stuff to show you soon.


So, in the meantime, I thought I'd chat about a fun little container I made for the kitchen. I hated the big ugly yellow dog food bag and I really wanted something like these from Ballard Designs, but without the $49 price tag.



I looked high and low and found this canister online at The Honest Kitchen. It was the perfect size and only $18...very doable.

I gave it a little shot of this spray paint.


And then added a "K" for Kingsley (my little pooch's name) that was custom made for me by Vinyl Vineyard on Etsy.


And voila! A pretty dog food container for a pretty little price!
(Note to self: Next time take the extra 5 minutes to prime before painting in order to avoid the little nicks in the lid. Ah well, live and learn.)

KITCHEN PART DEUX

Thanks for everyone that stopped by yesterday. Some of you had a few questions that I thought I'd take a second to answer.

1. WHAT'S THE PAINT COLOR?

The wall color in the kitchen is Restoration Hardware Cappuccino. I LOVE this color. In fact I'm actually using it in my master bathroom that's in the works. It's a warm, gray, beige with slightly green undertones...um, got all that? It's also dark enough to give some contrast, but not so dark that the room feels like a cave.

It's $32 a gallon at Restoration Hardware, but you can pick up their sample cards free and have it color matched at Home Depot or Lowes.

P.S. For those who have asked, I found the table on Craigslist for $35! I've seen many other similar tables on there since, so definitely check it out. I bought the chairs last spring at JC Penney Home. They were intended to be outdoor bistro chairs, but I used them inside (duh...obviously). They were a little splurge in my mind at $15 each ($60 total). I hate to spend $60 at a time for anything, but I love them so much I can't regret the purchase.

2. I REALLY WANT WHITE CABINETS....

I feel you. I love white cabinets too. In fact I love them so much that I painted the 80's oak cabinets in my old house. Here's a link to a tutorial I did recently.


3. YOU HAVE SUCH UNIQUE ACCESSORIES....

Here's a link that talks about my "secret". I found most of the accesories for the kitchen at a flea-tique store. I love Target as much as the next girl, but I'm telling you it's worth it to get out of the "box" (get it...like, "big box"...ok, I'm cracking myself up here, sorry) every once in a while and check out places like flea markets, thrift stores, antique stores, yard sales, estate sales, etc. You'll not only get unique pieces, but you'll usually spend A LOT less.

4. WHAT'S THE STORY WITH YOUR WINDOW TREATMENTS?

I edited this post to add this one. I told the story of the toile valance in yesterday's post, but in case you missed it it's a euro sham I just draped over a rod....rocket science I know :).

As far as the curtains go (brace yourself for a super complicated fancy explanation) I bought 1/2 a yard of ticking stripe fabric (I think it was about $8) and in true Nester style I clipped it over white Ikea curtains I already owned. That's it. Although, I think the Nester might have at least bothered to glue gun something to make it a tad more finished...but I just left it as is. I might hem the edges with iron on tape at some point but haven't done it yet. Again, I think Mensa or Martha Stewart will be calling soon :).

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I hope everyone has a great weekend! I'm hoping to get enough done this weekend to give you a peak at my master bath update on Monday. Let's keep our fingers crossed :).

NESTING PLACE CHALLENGE - THE KITCHEN

The Nester has been doing a great series over the past few weeks called "Ten Minutes to a Room You'll Love". That woman is such an inspiration. I want to invite her over for tea, have her wander through my house sharing her magical suggestions for each room, and then sit for a spell on the porch and share hair care secrets (have you noticed how great her hair is?).

Well, I don't think we'll be discussing hair secrets over tea any time soon, but her series does provide some magical suggestions for the main rooms in your home. I chose to use her suggestions to focus on the kitchen...at least for now - I still have big plans for the master bath and bedroom. You can click on the button below for more info on The Nester's magical secrets....to decorating (I thought I should add that last part).

The kitchen is my favorite room in our house. I updated it last summer and I love how it turned out....and when I say "updated" I mean paint, a new light fixture and new cabinet knobs...I'm not talking anything fancy here.

The Nester inspired me to (well...clean up a bit, and) analyze what I like so much about this room.

These are the elements I came up with that have made a big difference in my kitchen.

1) PICK A COLOR PALETTE YOU LOVE

I'm talking about colors you're drawn to over and over again, colors that you find soothing or energizing (whichever you feel you need in there), colors that compliment each other.

This is what the kitchen looked looked like before, with the previous owner's stuff...not terrible by any means, but not me at all.

Instead really wanted soothing, muted, light colors that felt more like me.

After a few small changes I got the room I wanted.

If you can't paint your walls, don't stress. Use fabrics, dish towels, plates, and other accessories to bring color into the room.

2) THROW IN SOME FABRICS YOU LOVE

Again, I said "love". I love ticking stripe. It has such a simple but slightly european feel to it. I dig that - It just makes me happy...go figure.

I also fell in love with this toile. Believe it or not it's a euro sham I found at my favorite flea-tique store. I bought it for a steal (I think $5) and draped it over a rod. So, yes, I essentially have a glorified pillow case hanging over my window...but I love it so much I lose no sleep over it.

Also only use dish towels you love. Why keep using that tattered old dish towel with the rooster pattern you loved in 1992. You can buy a package a beautiful new dish towels at TJ Maxx for $5!

3) DON'T BE AFRAID OF FAUX GREENERY...the good stuff, not the cheap looking, plasticky, florescent looking stuff

I wish I could A) afford real topiaries and fresh hydrangeas, and B) keep them alive. Since I am totally incapable of either of these things I go faux. However, I only use stuff that looks like it could be real.

4) INCLUDE SOME MEANINGFUL ART AND PHOTOGRAPHS

I think this one applies to almost every room in the house.

I bought this art print at an arts festival in Park City, Utah when I was "home" last summer. It's a painting of nothern Utah and it reminds me of home every time I look at it.

This is a photo of my son and I at a football game that I had printed in black/white and just tacked on a cork board.

This reminds me of the time I took my son to Disneyland when he was 5 years old. It was our first trip alone together and it was a big deal to me to save up and pay for it myself.

And these....I just liked.

And I know we're not supposed to have stuff junking up the outside of the fridge, but living so far away from family I really like having a few photos and cards on the fridge of friends and family members. That's just how I roll.

5) USE PRETTY CONTAINERS

Seriously, why skimp on the pretty?

I keep dish soap in a cute glass soda bottle.

I contain clutter with a nice little basket.

Coffee and Splenda go in pretty containers on a fun vintage pedestal (which also holds my aerolatte...if you don't have one you're totally missing out!).

6) INCLUDE A SMALL SIDE TABLE

I didn't think I had room in the kitchen for a side table, but I really wanted something to place the mail on when I came in the house. I found this beauty at my favorite flea-tique store (are you seeing why it's my favorite yet?) for $35!

If you really don't have room for a side table, try a ledge or shelf you can just hang on the wall.

7) YOU MUST HAVE MUSIC!

I have to have music in my kitchen. It's so much more fun to cook when you're dancing along with Justin Timberlake.

Oh, and just for the sake of keeping it real, this is what my kitchen table looked like the other day. Thank you Nester for the kick in the pants to get things under control again :).

A NEW KITCHEN FOR AROUND $100

I received an email tonight from someone who heard from a friend of mine that I painted the cabinets in my old kitchen and she wanted to know how I did it....so I figured, why not respond in a blog post and hopefully help some of you too?

So here’s the lowdown on the big kitchen redo.

Here’s the before picture. Some people enjoy oak, some people can make it work…I found it completely suffocating. I dreamed of clean, crisp, ivory cabinets, and I finally thought “Hey, what’s holding me back here?!”. So I finally just did it, and I'm sooo glad I did.

Step 1:
I removed the doors, numbering each of them and making a map so it would be a piece of cake to reinstall them. See those numbers on the blue tape? I made sure they were next to their door at all times.

Step 2:
I cleaned and lightly sanded the doors and cabinet frames and then applied Gripper brand primer. I let the primer dry 24 hours before applying the first coat of paint. I know it’s tempting to paint sooner, but don’t!...go to a movie, have a hot bath, take the kids to McDonalds, but don’t touch those cabinets before 24 hours are up.

Step 3…4…5 (honestly, this step feels like it will never end, but hang in there!)
I applied 3 coats of satin latex paint (I used Ralph Lauren Architectural Cream) to the cabinet frames and doors, allowing at least 4 hours between each coat - even more is better. However, I’ve since heard that oil based paint is much more durable, and if I needed to paint cabinets again I think I’d go that route – but if you go with latex you’ll still be in good shape.

Step 6:
I applied one coat of clear, non-yellowing polyacrylic topcoat to make the finish more durable. I know…you don’t want to paint one more stroke at this point, but believe me, it’s worth it.

Step 7:
Reinstall cabinets and be so thrilled with yourself that you numbered and mapped out the cabinet placement…oh yeah, you’re a rockstar!

Step 8:
Install some fabulous cabinet hardware. I bought mine for a steal on eBay. I think it was $1-$2 per knob or pull! It’s worth it to do some searching for the right hardware for the right price.

Step 9:
Then enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

This whole process took me about 2 weeks of evenings and weekends, and I thought I was going to die at moments, but IT WAS WORTH IT! I honestly think it helped our house sell. Seriously, our house sold in 1 week, in THIS market!

I hope this helps!