Kitchen Chairs From Brown to White!

No clever title necessary.  Can you tell how absolutely thrilled I am that this project is done and in the books?  Especially after the trouble this one gave me. Sheesh o' pete. 

You know -- and I mean you know -- how much those brown chairs have bothered me.  It is like I am on a crusade against brown wood everywhere, and for whatever reason, those chairs were atop my list o'hate. Want a reminder?  Here they are in their before state.

They looked so weird and heavy with the cool grey and black rug and pretty Comfort Grey painted table.  And I knew when I painted the walls grey and added a window treatment that it would make me even angrier that the chairs were brown.  So I took about an hour on a stunningly beautiful Fall day and got out my spray paint and spray paint trigger and got to work.  

I have four chairs and I am a chronic underestimator with spray paint and how much I need.  I figured to be safe, I would need three cans of primer and ten cans of spray paint.  I got three cans of grey Krylon Primer (the chairs have a lot of red in them and I was going light, so a tinted primer was a must).

I wanted Dover White by Krylon for the chairs.  It's very similar to my beloved Sherwin Williams Dover White -- it's not a stark bright white but it's not as yellow as an ivory or cream.  The only place I have found Dover White spray paint is Michael's.  I went to two stores and bought out their supply, ending up with eight cans of spray paint. This made me incredibly nervous: would eight be enough?  And would the people at Michael's think I have a huffing problem?

I used all three cans of primer and the chairs were looking good. Already preferable to their former brown blah state.

I used all eight cans of Dover White and hoped it was just enough.  As I painted, I would have been happier if I had one or two more cans, but I crossed my fingers that it would be fine.  Here they are in the yard ...

I put them in the garage and swiped on a coat of clear Poly.  When it was time to bring them back in the house, I was ready for the big reveal only to find NO!!!!!  The finish was streaky and splotchy and grey and absolutely positively awful.  I guess I did need those extra cans of spray paint after all.  Bummer.  So, rather than waste more time and more money tracking down extra cans of Dover White spray (with a very real possibility that it wouldn't fix the issue), I grabbed my trusty gallon of Sherwin Williams Pro Classic in Dover White and brushed on two coats and then another two coats of Poly.  Now they are ready for the reveal.  Don't they look great?

Oh, so much better right?  I no longer cringe when I see them and better yet, the rug and table take center stage, as they should.  I will say: spray painting chairs may be easy for some, but for me after this experience, it is not the way to go.  Maybe I needed more spray paint.  Maybe I should have used a white primer.  Maybe I should have tried Rustoleum instead of Krylon.  Whatever the reason, I'm a little gun shy about trying again.  In any event, the chairs are done and look fabu.    

What do you think?  And do you have any idea what could have gone wrong with my spraypainting?  I want to love it - I do!

See you swoon,

Curtains, floors and blinds oh my!

Why stop at asking for advice?  Since asking for your advice seems to be my theme this week why stop at curtains and floors?  I have been stalking every website known to man for the perfect roman blinds that are perfectly priced of course.  Much harder than you would think, I mean roman blinds right, how hard can it be?  Hard, it is very, very hard.

OK well really the hardest part is shopping online (gasp).  It is tough to get a feel for what the true color is and the pattern in the blind itself.  I am looking for a medium tone with a very see-through look that will give a little privacy but still let in tons of light.

This was my room on Monday, I took your advice and the white panels went, it just wasn't working:

So now we are back to this with the white roman standing all alone:

I do like the white shades but I feel like I need a warmer feel in this room and the wood toned roman shades should give off that feeling that I am longing for.  So the question is, which blinds to you like best, we will play multiple choice!

A) Home Depot Designview Bamboo Sedona Roman Shade (mouthful geez) $ 30.97 each.  I like how you can see through these, they seem to let the light in but may be a little too light or slightly yellowish.

B) Overstock Tuscan Roman Blind $31.79, really like these.

C) Walmart Kenney cordfree nassau bamboo roman shade, pecan $39.00.  Love these but do NOT want to pay almost $40 a piece, do you think $40 is too much?

I have come to terms with the fact that I will not find roman blinds like Young House Love did for $25 at Walmart, I seem to miss those lucky opportunities somehow, however these are all very similar in price so what I am most concerned with is color and what you think would fit well into the front sitting room.

Happy Friday everyone, see you next week!

See you swoon,

Would you DIY your kitchen floor?

I have a big project underway, one that involves a little dough so it may be slower going than I would like but the project is underway nonetheless.  You may have guessed from the title but the kitchen is the next big thing on my to do list.  This room is in pretty good shape but I need to of course make it my own and bring it up to date. 

This was my kitchen:

I cannot show you a progress picture because I promised I wouldn't do before and afters until they are truly after pictures, you will not have to wait long so stay tuned for that.

This is my dream kitchen:

 I keep referring back to this inspiration picture because it has the wood floor I want (I am going a little lighter), the beautiful shiny white subway tiles, and the tan/sand colored counters.  I have yet to figure out what material the coiunters are but this kitchen will be mine.

So this is where you come in.  Shanna and I are toying with the idea of laying the new kitchen floor by ourselves.  I have no idea what I am doing and neither does she but we are both excited to learn and wanted to get some opinions and advice from all of you.

Here is the floor now, this is the dining room floor that meets the kitchen floor.  I would like to extend the same color wood into the kitchen:

And here is a shot of the floor next to my jute rug, just so you can have the full picture:

First off, has anyone out there installed their own wood floor?  I have compared real hardwood to engineered hardwood and am leaning towards the engineered wood for affordability and better durability.  I know laminate is out for me, although this is a great option for many people I have decided to eliminate this choice, it doesn't quite match up to my current wood floor as closely as I would have liked.  Which wood would you choose and why?  Also any tips on laying a floor for the kitchen is much appreciated!

Secondly, when it comes to countertops and backsplashes, do the people who install the counters also install the backsplash?  I love DIY and trying new things but I have never remodeled a kitchen so I need all the advice I can get.

I also promise that when this is done I will take pictures of Shanna rubbing the countertops, she has already warned me that this is going to happen and since you are on this journey with me I feel it is only right to see the happy ending with Shanna loving the new space :) 

Happy Hump Day!

See you swoon,



Fireplace Wall - check!

I am channeling my inner Balki Bartokomous and doing the dance of joy!  My fireplace and built-ins have gone from dark and depressing to crisp and gorgeous!  I'm like a kid on Christmas right now, so here is the big reveal right here!

And here is what I started with:

I know some people would urge me to keep the warm wood on the built-ins and mantle and to leave the brown and grey fieldstone as is on the fireplace. I actually don't think they're that bad as is. If I had a really neutral palette in the den, it may have worked.  But the colors along that wall mixed with the really beautiful and strong colors I have in the den (i.e., navy, grey, white, yellow and pops of turquoise and red) was like a visual cacophony: way too much.   So to tone it all down, I knew painting the stone and wood all white would give me the exact look and feel that I wanted.  And once I got the fireplace wall taken care of, I could turn to the wall color, which will be some tone of grey (the color of which I cannot decide until I have the white fireplace finished).  

So first thing's first: prepping. I did what I always do when tackling a new-to-me project: I talked to my friends at Sherwin Williams and got their advice on how to paint the stone.   First, I used Krud Kutter (which the guys at Sherwin just gave to me - nice!) to clean the stone.  I could not believe the grossness that came off of those fieldstones. Look.  bleh.

For the mantle and bookshelves, I followed the same steps I'd do if painting wood furniture. First I sanded the wood and then cleaned it off so that there was no dust or debris.  Once my surfaces were prepped, the priming could begin!  I used Zinsser oil based primer on the wood and Sherwin Williams Loxon Concrete & Masonry primer on the stone (this latex primer was specifically recommended by the guys at Sherwin).  For the primer step on the wood, I used a throw away brush (I don't bother saving brushes used in oil paints) and for the stone, I used another cheap brush and a really thick mini roller - the thickest nap possible.

When the primer dried, I used Sherwin Williams Pro Classic paint (latex) in semi-gloss and tinted Dover White on both the wood and stone.  The guys at Sherwin suggested I use that paint in both places.  I really love the Pro Classic formula because it is self-leveling.  I've had great luck with that paint on all of my painted furniture and trim.  It's expensive but worth it.  And if you can find it during one of their 30% or 40% off sales, all the better!   Here's the space after a coat of primer:

For the top coats, I used the same technique as the primer: a mix of brushes and rollers.  I broke out my good Wooster brush for the wood (as with the paint, it makes a difference) and used a dense foam mini roller.  For the stone, I used the brushes and the thick nap mini roller.  I really had to jam the roller and brush into the stone to get good coverage. .  I painted on three coats of the Dover White on the wood and just two coats on the stone.  I finished up the project by swiping on two coats of satin Polycrylic on the wood and a ton (like maybe 5 or 6) of very very thin coats of satin Polycrylic on the stone (the first coat went on too thick and yellowed - I sanded it off and started over).  I'm hoping that the Poly on the stone will help keep the color and preserve the finish, since our kids love to play with their toys on and around the hearth (when the fire is not roaring of course!).  I'll have to report back with how the paint holds up when we use the fireplace.  My eventual plan is to frame out the stone with gorgeous millwork, but that's way down the line.

Here are a bunch more before and after pictures -- yay!

before

after

before

after

before

after

And now the fun begins!  I get to style the mantle area and paint the walls in the den (and kitchen, hallway, and entryway).  Stay tuned for the paint swatches debate.  I'm sure I'll need your help choosing the perfect grey.  What do you think of my fireplace wall? Have you ever painted stone or brick and lived to tell the tale?  Share!

See you swoon,

Is there ever too much fabric?

I am going to make you work this morning.  I know, rough for a Monday but I may as well get your brain going to start off the week.

I am strangely obsessed with my front sitting room...that no one sits in.  This is really just the first room that everyone passes through to get to the rest of the house, and the room I stare into as I blog every day so I do want it to look pretty, you know for nice first impressions and to stimulate my mind so I can be the best blogger I can be :)

Anyway, Shanna and I though it would be nice to add some height and softness to the room with some skinny curtain panels and then switching out the white roman blinds for bamboo blinds to add some depth and texture.  When I show you the picture you can ignore the white roman still hanging and turn your attention to the white panels and silver rod.

I need to know what you think about this set up?  Do you like it?  Too much fabric?  Shanna and I are having some trouble LOVING it so I wanted to get your thoughts.

Front room before:

And after (try and picture it with bamboo blinds):

You may be asking why I even decided to switch up the romans and pull them all the way up.  This room actually gets quite a bit of light and what I did not realize is that the white shades hide quite a bit of it so I need another plan, and maybe some added color other than white everywhere (as much as I love it).

Cannot wait to hear from you all today.  Have a great week!

See you swoon,