Christmas Decor 2014

It's interesting how every year around Thanksgiving, I think about all the time I have before Christmas. Then I take a nap after Thanksgiving dinner, and when I wake up, it's suddenly December 19th. I swear this happens to me every year. And I'm left scrambling for last-minute gifts, last-minute holiday party prep, and (hopefully) last-minute cookie baking. I need more time!

I'm a holiday addict though. So naturally, I'm making it impossible to not feel Christmas-y at every moment this month. The halls are decked, my house smells like a pine forest, and there's more Christmas music jamming in this place than a department store on Black Friday. We're hosting this year (my parents and grandparents are trekking down from Indiana next week), and this will be the first year for us to share our festiveness (is that a word?) with everyone on Christmas morning.

So for everyone not rolling into town next week, here's a look at our holiday-laden double shotgun. 'Tis the season for an obligatory Christmas home tour, after all. Hope you're gettin' your eggnog on (or milk punch) and enjoying the holidays as much as I am!

How It's Looking- A living/dining room update

Did everyone have a fabulous fourth of July?!  I still can't believe it's mid-year already.  We spent our day biking (at the crack of dawn when it's still possible to breathe outside), "swimming" (AKA bobbing around in a pool without actually exerting any energy), eating/drinking with pals, and enjoying fireworks and the extended hours of Crescent City Park on the Mississippi.  Don't worry, I won't be sharing photos of various fireworks.  But I will share this:

Aaaanyway, it's time for another house update.  I think the last time I photographed the main part of the house was at Christmas.  Also, we've been sliding small updates in, not mentioning them, and pretending like no one will notice.

For instance, we painted the dining room and kitchen, as well as all the trim near the crown molding.  Did anyone notice the walls suddenly weren't yellow anymore in this post?  I think it helps tone down the "everything around me is yellow" factor.  The cream cabinets, yellow ceiling, yellow walls, and yellow trimming between the molding was making me pine for something blue-toned in my life.

Yes, the ceiling is still yellow.  Uggggghhhhhhhhh.  Sorry.  Every time I think about painting a ceiling it makes me groan for extended periods and feel like I might vomit.  It may be a while before we tackle that beast.

We've got a few new pieces of art hanging out in the living room these days.  The two larger pieces are mixed watercolor and ink by Geza Brunow- his stuff is awesome.  Check out his "Kings" pieces.  They make me smile so much!

Then we balanced out the fancy schmancy art with some pieces that are more tolerable to the Arvin budget.  The top piece we acquired for $2 (!!!) from a guy who lives nearby and doodles little pen on paper pieces like this all the time.  The bottom right is a postcard-style advertisement for the Tennessee Williams Festival we picked up at a performance of Night of the Iguana at a warehouse in the Marigny.

Here's the 2-buck doodle a little closer:

Remember when I mentioned how bright the 60W bulb seemed in this fixture I pieced together?  I switched it out for a 40W.  It was a good move.  I also love the shape.  Ooh lala!

I've gotten into the habit of picking up flowers every week, and it's fantastic.  Flowers make me happy.  So do ice cream, chocolate, and cake.  Keep that in mind, friends.  My birthday is nearing.

You may have noticed (above) the little cabinet to the left of the window.  It was a Craigslist find we snagged for $50 a few weeks ago.  Plans are to paint it.  More on that soon.

So what have you been up to?  Any home-updates on the to do list?

Because We Don't Like Eating on the Floor

Fear not, friends and neighbors!  The days of standing around the kitchen bar are over.  We finally have a central gathering spot for game nights, snacking, and swooning.  Okay, I'm probably the only one doing the swooning.  But can you blame me?  I've been pining for a reclaimed wood table for quite a while, and here it is in the flesh!

I mentioned here that I sold our previous Craigslist table.  On Craigslist.  So when Upcycle rolled up with this beaut, I was practically lying on it as they carried it in.  I had no idea how much I would miss having a table for 4 weeks.  Sure it's great for eating dinner on, but where else would I put piles of mail and knick-knacks to gather for weeks in a huge chaotic mess?

You may also notice the bright yellow chair in your face.  We grabbed that on Craigslist for $20.  And the stool on the other side was another Craigslist find for just 5 bucks.  I like having it as an extra seat, in case we have more than 8 around the table.

The rusty metal base was originally part of an old work bench, we think.  

Then came these guys.  Two of these transparent chairs were listed on... you guessed it... Craigslist, for $25 each.  Since I was planning on selling 2 of the 4 woven IKEA chairs for $25 each, it was basically an even trade.  

Here's the full set, jiving happily together around the new dining table.  I plan to toss a couple faux sheepskins over the transparent chairs when I get a chance to order them.  You may recall that we had one on the living room rug.  After one delightful Jackie GI explosion, the crisp white fuzzy piece was history.  You're welcome for that great image I just created in your head.  So for now, the purple scrap fur has it.

I've been a little scarce here lately, but hoping to make a greater appearance this summer.  Life is busy.  Have you noticed?  So come back soon.  And in the meantime, go outside.  Spring is here!

A Budget-Friendly Display

We've been fortunate to host some of our friends and family since our move south, many of which are able to stay longer than just a weekend.  Because they're usually looking for something to do while we're at work, we've been wanting a way to display our suggestions.  We've collected a hefty stack of brochures for tours and activities, but let's be honest, it's mostly about the food, drinks, and socializing here.

I thought about painting a list of our recommendations onto canvas, but there are constantly new restaurants and bars popping up.  And our favorites change quicker than it takes Kirb to run from bed to dish at dinnertime.  He's hefty, but can really move when it's time to feed.  So we decided on something less permanent.

We started by searching thrift shops and Craigslist for a large, chunky frame.  Turns out it's hard to find one on the cheap.  Anything I spotted that fit my liking was over $100.  Right.  So I figured it was time to think outside the box.  With some loot from Lowe's and my own stash at home, I took a less traditional route to get this 2-foot by 3-foot chalkboard creation for less than $35!  Woop woop!

Here's the end product:

I guarantee Pinterest is already teeming with this idea, but here's the how-to for my version.

I bought two 10-foot foam trim pieces from Lowe's for about $15 each.  They had several styles, but I chose a wider version for a sturdier look.  I think it's about 3" wide.  Wood trim would've worked well too, but I liked the idea of the foam being so lightweight.  Our paint situation is looking pretty ridiculous (we're talking big grocery sacks full of paint samples I've collected over the years), so I already had chalkboard paint and a sample tub of red satin paint that happened to be from the front door.  I also busted out some Frog Tape, Liquid Nails, mini foam roller, paint brush, tape measure, ruler, and miter box and handsaw- all of which I had on hand.

You can probably tell by the lighting that I took this after dark.
It was daylight savings time, people.

The first thing I did was tape off the area on the wall where I wanted the chalkboard.  I decided on 2' x 3' for the inside dimensions of the frame, so I taped off an area just slightly larger to make sure I had some leeway with frame placement.

Then I rolled on my chalkboard paint.  It ended up taking 3 coats to get a nice, solid black.

Next, I used my handsaw to cut two 2-foot pieces and two 3-foot pieces of trim.  These would be the top/bottom and sides of my frame.  I used a little sandpaper to smooth out the edges.

After wiping them down (sawing the foam gets a little messy), I layered on the red satin paint with a brush.  I added the first two coats, then used Liquid Nails to connect the pieces end-to-end to form a frame.  I ended up slathering on one last coat once the frame was together, just to make sure all the nooks and crannies were covered.

Once everything was dry, I attached the frame to the wall with Command Strips, cut in half lengthwise.  The advantage of making a frame that weighs no more than a pound!

Boom!  So easy and inexpensive!  

Here's the completed version with our latest restaurant/bar/music recommendations.  You can see we've already made some changes- every time we turn around there's a new place to add to the list!

A New (Door) Face

I won't waste any time building up to this announcement... The front door is complete!  It shouldn't be big news, but this project was moving at tortoise-speed due to all the Mardi Gras festivities.  It's been over 2 months since I first asked for opinions on plans for this guy, so I got my act together to show you what we decided.

Let's rewind to what we started with.  Here's the original plum colored door.

I did some stripping, as you know.  The paint kind.  Then after several weeks with the rustic looking half-red-half-bare door, I took the plunge.  I bought some red paint.  Yep.  The door got a little rouge.  Before I got to painting, it looked like this:

I started by taping off the glass.

Then I added a layer of Kilz primer.

After drying for 24 hours, I painted on the first coat of red.  I let each layer dry overnight, and all-in-all it took 3 coats.  I'm loving the look!

The trim is pale green, but when it's time to repaint it, we plan to use a different color.  Something a little brighter.  Maybe periwinkle?  Wouldn't that be pretty next to a bright red door?!

This is what it looks like from the inside now (with the nice weather, we nearly always have the door open when we're at home).

Did you happen to notice the front light switcharoo?  The original lights were pretty tiny, so we replaced them with some larger, more prominent lights.

Check out the before and after:

Not bad, huh?!  So what do you guys think?  Was red the right choice?