Hunting for an Antique Bed

I loved reading about how you have decorated your tween's rooms. And I will heed your advice to create a room that will grow with my son.  As you'll see, the style of room I have in mind should probably suit him well into his 90s :)

My head is spinning with ideas that I want to incorporate in the room, and I'll be sharing those with you  in several posts.

Today I'll start with my son's first request for the room... a bed. Gosh. That kid is so demanding!

Source: lookbook.elledecor.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Interest

Although the room is small, I'd love to fit a full-size antique bed in there. We have 6 twin beds in the house, and I don't think I can stomach buying another one. Love the old brass.

Antique iron is cool, too.

Source: pin4fun0099.blogspot.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Interest

Or I could go with a 4 post wooden bed.

Source: houzz.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Pinterest

Source: katyelliott.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Pinterest

How cool are these spindle beds?

Source: katyelliott.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Pinterest

Obviously, this bedroom is a bit girlie, but the bed could work for anyone.

Source: georgianadesign.tumblr.com via Carolyn Loub {Sweet Chaos} on Pinterest

Hoping I can find an interesting antique bed to kick start the room. I've been checking ebay and craigslist, but haven't lucked out yet. I've found a few options, but they were either missing bed slats or wouldn't fit a full-size mattress or were too expensive. Or they were 800 miles away. You know, just slight issues like that.

Do you have an antique bed? Anything I need to look out for?? 

Have a great weekend :)

Tween Scene

We're playing a game of musical beds at our house. My oldest son is getting his own room since he starts middle school this year and will be getting up earlier than the other kids. He's taking over the "baby" room...

The "baby" and son #3 moved into the room previously occupied by sons 1 and 2, and son 2 moved into son 3's room. Got all that? Me neither.

So the boys and I spent 6 hours moving everyone's stuff from one room to another. Everybody better be happy in their new beds, because we're not doing this again for at least another 10 years.


Now that the hard work is over, I'm really excited about decorating my first "tween" room... the first kids' room without cars, dinosaurs or pirates.


I asked my son what he would like in his new room. He said, "a bed and a table next to the bed." Well, alrighty then. I can handle that.


As you can see in these photos, the room is oddly-shaped, so I need to carefully plan the furniture layout and edit anything that isn't necessary and useful.

I've been pinning inspiration photos like crazy, so I'll share those with you over the next few days.

Have you decorated a tween room? Any suggestions??

Birthday with My Boys

Yesterday was my birthday and my husband was out of town on business.  So I got myself 4 handsome, younger men and went out on a date.

(Took this picture on our recent vacation)

We saw the movie "Brave," and dined at Red Robin. I felt like I was turning 10 all over again :)

Just wanted to give my boys a shout out (they love seeing themselves on the blog!), and thank them for making this mama's day so special.


They brought me breakfast in bed and wrote me a poem. What more could a girl ask for?

Well, maybe that they hadn't set off the house alarm first thing in the morning, so that I woke with a jolt to the sound of wailing sirens. But, I soon realized they accidentally triggered the alarm because they were getting me coffee from our neighbor. God love them!

Thanks, boys! YOU are the best birthday present ever :)

Painting Oak Cabinets

Happy Monday! So excited to start off the week with a finished project to show you. Friday afternoon I posted on Facebook that I would be painting the guest bathroom vanity. Well, nothing like a little social media pressure to force me to finish something.

This is the oak cabinetry in need of a makeover...

My material list consisted of...

• screwdriver
• painter's tape
• 80 grit sanding sponge
• 220 grit sanding sponge
• tack cloth
• paint stick
• Purdy paintbrush
• foam paint roller
• paint pan with plastic liners
• Zinsser Cover Stain Oil-Base Primer

• quart of Benjamin Moore "Fieldstone Gray" in satin finish
• drop cloth
• protective eyewear and mask
• paper towels
• saw horses

I'm sure most of you are way more organized than I am. But, if you're anything like me, this list could prove to be helpful. If you gather all these materials ahead of time, you will not have to run up and down stairs a hundred times to retrieve the materials you didn't have in place. Let's just say my legs got quite the workout throughout the day :)

I'm usually in a hurry to get things started and just jump right in. However, a little prep work saves time and energy in the long run.

I began the project by removing the doors and drawers from the cabinets. I then used the 80 grit sanding sponge to take the sheen off the cabinets and rough them up a bit.

Safety first...

Using the foam roller and paint brush, I applied the primer. If you use the oil-based primer, you'll be glad to have a mask on and the windows open. That stuff is TOXIC... yuck!

When the primer dried, I used the 220 grit sanding sponge to smooth out any spots that needed it. Then, I got to the fun part... painting!

I followed the advice of others to use foam rollers, but I found that it left too many bubbles in the paint for my taste. (Maybe I was applying it wrong?) I just rolled on the paint and dragged my paintbrush through it, and I was happy with the result.

I lightly sanded after the first coat of paint and applied a second coat. I let it dry overnight before reattaching the doors.

Here's how it turned out...

Some new cabinet hardware and this bad boy's makeover will be complete.

Oh... and just in case I made it seem as if this project went off without a hitch, I'll share my oil primer/mineral spirits debacle with you next time :)

Have a great day!!

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Tuesday's Treasures

Wow Us Wednesdays

Dining Chair Contender: Louis XVI

I'm still hunting for the perfect chairs to complement my new dining room table. The first contender I featured was the Chinese Chippendale chair. You can read about those HERE.

Option #2 is the Louis XVI oval back dining chair...

via The Visual Vamp

Isn't it gorgeous? In linen...

via Belgian Pearls

With nailhead trim...

via Houzz.com

or a patterned fabric...

via Houzz.com

They're pretty in pink...

Country Home and Interiors

And warm colors...

via Houzz.com

in black and white stripes...

via decorpad

and in neutral shades...

via decorpad

via decorpad

via pinterest

I think my heart stopped when I saw these for the first time...

via Cote de Texas

They can be used in more contemporary settings as well...

via decorpad

via decorpad

via decorpad

These chairs with the leather seats and fabric backs would be ideal for our family. The leather is practical, yet I would still be able to use a pretty fabric, too...

via House of Turquoise

So, as you can tell I'm quite smitten with Louis. Do you share my crush?

All That Glitters is Champagne Bronze?

The guest bathroom makeover continues, and I've made a few more changes. (Unfortunately, none of those changes include the painting of the vanity.)

However, I did finally add the all-important bathroom accessories... toilet paper and towel holders.

The bathroom previously had oil-rubbed bronze accessories to match the faucets. But, I thought they'd look dull against the navy walls. I really had my heart set on something in the gold family.

I began researching every conceivable option. I tend to over-think things. Polished brass was too stark and shiny, and antique brass was too dull. What I really wanted was unlacquered brass, but it was difficult to find. What I did find was not budget-friendly. When I exhausted my online search, I went to a local showroom and told the saleswoman that I needed the look of unlacquered brass without the hefty price tag.

This is what I ended up with...

"Champagne Bronze"....

from the Delta Victorian series.

I'm sure you'll go crazy pinning this next image... ha!

I went digging for gold and came up with champagne bronze. But, I think my new accessories are worth their weight in gold :)


Partying at Make It Pretty Mondays