Pretty Room Update #3

I finally got the pom-pom trim I ordered in the mail and went to town with it!  It's cute and a bit kitschy.  I love it!

I added the pink trim and some interfacing to my valence.  If I had been thinking, I would have interfaced it to begin with.  Without the interfacing, the light would show right through it!

The pink is a bit brighter than the pink on the fabric, but it matches the lampshade and the spray painted cork board frame and thread rack.

The white trim on the lamp really ups the cute factor!

I'm seriously in love with the pom-pom trim and keep finding myself wondering what else in my house needs some!

The next item I think I want to tackle for the room are some fun pillow shams.  I just need to figure out what I want to put on them.  Any ideas?

Craft Room Fix-up #2

As I've been working in my new Pretty Room, I've discovered that my closet was once again sub-par.  Funny how your needs and preferences change over time.  I found myself wanting more baskets to sort my fabric scraps better and more shelf space to just be more organized in general.

The baskets were easy enough, just a quick trip to Wal-Mart to take care of that.  The shelves looked a bit more complex.  Then it hit me:  I had extra shelves stashed in the back of Rowan's closet!  Not long after we moved into our house, my parents came out and helped us finish out the closets in the craft room and Rowan's room (both closets where completely bare).  We bought two Rubbermaid kits, but ended up having a few shelves left over.  I knew they'd come in handy down the road!

So one evening while Rowan was tricycling in the garage while Walt was working on some electrical work out there, I holed myself up the Pretty Room and ripped in to the closet.

Here's the before pic:

Note the old, yucky yellow paint above the closet.  Bleh!  

Here's the after pics:

I ditched that bottom bar and added more shelves which really opened things up.  I also just rearranged things in general.  Now I don't cringe when I open the doors!

I also made one other slight change.

I switched the order of the two boxes on the left and added the white frilly frame around the top one.  It's from IKEA and I had been using it in my living room, but since I redid the main wall in there, a whole bunch of frames opened up!  Not a big change, but adds a fun little pop!

Next up for the room, added the pom fringe to the valance and the lamp!

Give Me a Can of Spray Paint

If you've been following me here or on Facebook, you'll know that I've been revamping my craft room.  My husband and rightly dubbed it "The Pretty Room".  The major parts are done (furniture, counter, walls painted) and now I'm just done to tweaking the little things.

Over the last week I've been plotting some of these little details.  The plotting resulted in a trip to the hardware store for spray paint and to Jo-Anne's for some fabric.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to the fabric part over the weekend, but I did do a bunch of painting!  First, the before pics:

The new thread rack I purchased.  Boring!

An old lamp (the plain white shade has been removed).

Generic cork board.

I forgot to get a clear picture, but the record albums on the wall have black frames.

Before we bought our house, I had never spray painted anything.  Now I'm just looking for excuses to spray paint anything I can get my hands my!  It's so amazing what a color change can do.

The thread rack, the lamp, and frames were all pretty straight forward.  The cork board, however, was a little tricky.  I had originally planned to remove the frame, paint it, cover the board in fabric and put it all back together.  Upon closer inspection, I discovered there was no way of taking it apart in a manner that left it in a state to get it back together.  So on to plan B!  My solution to the painting part was to place paper over the cork board and tape it down.

I have a plan for the fabric part, but as I said, I didn't make it that far this weekend.  While Rowan played in the sandbox, I took to the back yard with spray paint in hand.  The thread rack and cork board frame turned pink, the lamp silver, and the frames white.

God bless tarps.

After everything dried, I excitedly brought it all in to put back into place.  The thread rack and lamp I instantly loved.

Thread rack up close

Thread rack a little further away

silver lamp with new PINK shade

I adore the pink shade I got for the lamp and plan to put some white pom trim on the bottom of it.  I'll try to take some pictures at a different time of day to get the colors to look better.  The pink really pops against the blue wall.

The cork board frame looks a little blah against the brown of the cork board, but I think once I cover it with my pretty fabric it will look pretty stellar.

What I'm not sold on are the frames.  I painted them white because I didn't the pink would look right with all 3 of the album covers they surround.  Once I got them on the wall, though, they just don't pop enough.  

I'm considering painting the two on the ends the same teal as the cabinets and the middle one pink.  What do you think?  My second thought would be to make them silver, but I don't think that would be much better than the white.  On the up side, the white is way better than the black!

Here's a little peek at the fabric I'm planning on using for the curtains and the cork board:

It's so perfect!  A white background with lots of pink and just a smidge of blue to match the walls.  I can't wait to see it all done.  That's my goal for the next week!  What's yours?

Craft Room Fix-Up

When my in-laws came to visit over the holidays they rather unexpectedly decided to help us give my craft room / guest room a make-over. Here's a couple of before pictures:

Note the futon from college, the old, tiny desk, my mom's old sewing table, and a spare TV stand complete with tube TV.  Oh, and the hideous beige paint.  When we first moved in, that paint is all over the house and I'm on a mission to irradiate it.

My in-laws decided to help us buy a double bed and install a counter along one wall.  So out with all the hodgepodge furniture!  

Funny side story, we put all the furniture in the triangle, a.k.a the curb, a mysterious place where things magically disappear!  & yes, it did all disappear!

After the in-laws headed home and the holidays died down, I also went in and painted the entire room.

The old light had to go as well.  It's amazing what a difference a new light makes!

I am sooooo in love with this blue color!  It's Silent Breeze by Behr Ultra.  I want to paint those LP frames white.  The wall behind the counter needs something on it and I have a few ideas rolling around in my head.

Here's my little crafty corner with lots of storage!

My fabric is stored in mini bolts in that book case.

There's not only a lot more work space, but the whole room is bright and happy now :)  I have a bunch of little projects I'd like to work on to finish off the room  Stay tuned for more updates!

Also, check out my Facebook page to see more before pics and to stay up to date with my room make over!