TURQUOISE

When I saw this picture over at desire to inspire last week,  I couldn't help but stare at that table!

Yes, I know.  It is the pantone color of the year and is probably overused. I don't care though because I've always loved turquoise.

And then I saw this over at  House of Turquoise

Don't you just love that kitchen island?  And the touches of yellow?!  I love, love this kitchen.   Jen of The Little Things did a fantastic job!

I am seriously considering painting(instead of staining) my dining room table, yes you guessed it,  TURQUOISE!  I haven't told my husband yet, but hey, it's only a $40 table so I don't think I can go wrong.

Pardon the bad "paint it" job but you get the picture!   I can bring up my parson chairs to downplay the color a little bit and of course remove those pillows.  

   I am waiting for the weather to warm up so I still have time to decide.  Today,  I am leaning towards painting it. 

Do you think it's too bold?  Trendy?

CRUISER

Yesterday,  I got my new bike!

Isn't she a beauty?!   It is very comfortable too!

Don't you just love the butterscotch color and the purple trim?  The cup holder and the basket are nice additions.  Thanks to Jade of Pretty Pieces who blogged about this bike(over a month ago).  I love it!  If you are  looking for a pretty and affordable cruiser, check this out!

SPRING INSPIRATION: OUTDOOR LANTERNS

 coastal living

coastal living

restoration hardware

real simple

lonny

crate and barrel

You can get this one for $7.  Here.

Relax and enjoy your weekend everyone!

DINING ROOM

Sorry for posting this a day late but here it is

BEFORE:

AFTER painting the walls:

You can't really tell here but the upper half of the room is a light grayish blue(BM iced cube silver), the lower half and the trim white(BM atrium white)

The black and white photos are mostly pictures of all the apartments that we lived in as a couple in NY (where my husband is from ) and Wisconsin. Others are photos that are meaningful to us (Yankee Stadium, Wedding Reception and Church in Sonoma, Miller Park, etc)  

I love this vintage chandelier but thought  it was too small for the space 

So, I (acutally, my brother in law) moved it to the Master Bedroom and replaced it with this

  

I like to add  touches to a room that  remind me of where I grew up.  The capiz chandelier is from my native country, the Philippines.  The curtains(which came with the house) remind me of the Barong Tagalog... 

which is common formal attire (like a tuxedo) for Filipino men

It looked like this for several months. 

The oak wood gets no love from me so I painted the outside of the hutch gray(RL medium gray satin) and the inside white(atrium white).  I changed the knobs and pulls too.

I put a coat of wipe-on polyurethane to finish it up

I bought the pepsi crate for $4 at a flea market.  Saw a similar one at Pottery Barn for $24.

AND here is our dining room now:

 

I still want to stain the dining room table darker.  Any advice?  Otherwise,  I am happy with the outcome.

What do you think?

DIY #1: BEFORE AND AFTER CANE CHAIRS

This is actually an old DIY project done several months ago.

I bought a dining room table and 4 chairs from a thrift store for $40! Since we entertain a lot, I needed a table with extra leaves.  This one came with 3.  I also saw alot of potential in the chairs.

I removed the cushions and recovered them with Amy Butler fabric

Instead of sanding, I started the project using liquid de-glosser.  Then, I put one coat of Kiltz oil based primer.  Finally, I used 3 (or 4) coats of leftover paint from the "White Kitchen" project.

(BM atrium white semi gloss)

I love the caning so I knew I wanted to highlight them.  I painted them yellow (BM lightening bug 

semi gloss).  I followed the same steps as the frame and used an artist brush to avoid drips.

The result:

And here they are in my dining room

Not bad for a $70 project!

More pictures of my dining room tomorrow.

WHAT THE?!

Yesterday was sunny and 60F

Today, this.  Welcome Spring! Not!

INSPIRATION: CANE CHAIRS

decor pad

decor pad

apartment therapy

decor pad

The Find

My first DIY, before and after pictures...Monday.

Have a Happy Weekend!

"GREEN"

The antique table, tripod lamp, coffee table and vintage painting all from my best friend Craig(Craigslist!)

Mirror and driftwood lamp from a thrift store.

Happy St. Patrick's day!

MATEO

My precious little boy...

Is not so little anymore

today, he turns 3!

Happy Birthday, Matt!  We love you!

LIVING ROOM AND MORE OAK

I have mentioned it before and I will mention it again(and probably in the future) that our house is filled with oak wood.  Don't get me wrong,  I have nothing against oak but my problem is the color... 80's yellow oak!  It is so glaring and it outdates the house significantly.  So the question is paint or stain?  I chose paint only because I like the clean look of white.  After having the kitchen cabinets painted,  I hired the same painter(Bob) to do my living, dining and family rooms.  Today, I am sharing some picutes of our living room.

before shots:

During:

(I removed the living room chair rail)

And after Bob left:

(taken in July)

Here it is now:

(I painted the stair spindles and will probably paint the rest except for the treads and handrail )

What do you think?