Happy Friday! (And Another Friday Giveaway)

♫♪ Happy Friday to you, happy Friday to you! ♫♪

Oh, I'm so excited that the weekend is here. The weather is gorgeous (gotta love Texas during this time of year!), and I'm so ready to turn my attention from work stuff to my own projects.

This weekend, I will....WILL....get that pet station finished. And I WILL show you the finished project on Monday. I'm quite determined. I have borrowed a working jigsaw to finish cutting the holes, I have four coats of red paint on the thing, which looks like it might be sufficient (although I might add one more), and I have everything I need for the cushion except for the fabric.

Oh, I hope I can find some fabric locally! If I have to order something, that'll throw a wrench in my plan. I did find one that is perfect. I mean...perfect. But it would have to be ordered, which means it would be yet another week before I can wrap up this project.


I love that fabric! Hopefully I can find something locally that is comparable--that can be purchased immediately. Anyway, moving on...

I have another Friday Giveaway for you!

Are you ready to see what I've pulled out of the DIY closet this week? I promised you it would be a good one, and hopefully I didn't oversell it.


It's a gumball machine fish bowl! Here's what one looks like with water and a fish in it:


Now in the interest of full disclosure, you'll notice that the one I'm giving away has a slight flaw--the little twisty handle came off of the front. That means that I can no longer sell it for the $175.00 price, but even with this little flaw, it's still pretty darn cute!

So again, to enter the drawing for the gumball machine fish bowl, just leave a comment on this post. I'll use ramdom.org to select a winner, and I'll announce the winner on Monday.

And don't forget...Monday is another Progress Report Monday. This is your opportunity to share your progress on whatever home-related project you're working on at the moment. Even if it's not finished, I want to see your progress!

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An Ode to Red

Oh, Red, I love you so! I've loved you with unending devotion. Why are you so cruel? Many times over, I've given you a place of prominence--a place where others could see you and admire your beauty. Yet, you mock me. You laugh at me. While the other colors are content just to be selected, you insist that I spend extra money on you, and if I refuse, you punish me by keeping yourself just out of reach. Yes, you are cruel. Very cruel indeed.

Yes, I'm painting the pet station a gorgeous shade of red called Frosted Pomegranate by Behr. It's red with a slight pink tint to it. (Okay, so it's gorgeous to me.)

I've painted with red soooo many times, and I know...I KNOW...that it's absolutely imperative to use a dark primer first--either dark gray, or a primer tinted to match the red. And yet, while I know this information, and have had plenty of experience with red, I decided that on this project, for some reason it would be different. I would be able to use the gallon of white primer that I already had, rather than spending more money on more primer that I probably wouldn't use again.

Why? Why? I know better. I really do.

And now, four coats later, I'm paying for my decision. Oh...I'm having flashbacks...HORRIBLE flashbacks to my very first experience with red paint in our first house, in which we painted the ceiling red in my office, without using the proper primer, and seven coats later it was still streaked. Yes, red truly is a cold-hearted witch.

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I ♥ Bright Colorful Rooms

Over the last couple of months, I've been suffering from (yet another) style identity crisis. Oh, this is nothing new for me. I've been afflicted with this off and on for the past three years. This latest episode was brought on when I came across a blog that made me question my entire plan for my tiny little condo. I was seriously thinking I wanted to scrap the whole thing and start over, using a more neutral palette, natural elements, etc.

Why am I so wishy-washy with my own home!? It's exhausting!!

But I'm slowly learning, and becoming increasingly convinced, that while I LOVE neutral color palettes and warm, earthy, natural elements in a room, those things just aren't me. At least they're not me right now, at this particular stage in my life. I'm energized by bright, colorful rooms. I get giddy when I see a room filled with aqua, pink, orange, and apple green. Yes, this is who I am, and I need to stop questioning it, and just press onward.

A vignette in Anna Spiro's gorgeous, color-filled store Black + Spiro, located in Australia. Those lamps bring a smile to my face!

Another view of Black + Spiro. It may be a store, but I'm pretty sure I could just move right in and be perfectly comfortable.

One of my all-time favorites from designer Amanda Nisbet.

It has probably been Erin of House of Turquoise who has single-handedly influenced my love for bright, colorful rooms the most. And, of course, her blog was the single influence in my decision to paint my cabinets turquoise. She finds some of the most vibrant, exhilerating, and gorgeous color-filled rooms from the most talented designers around. I remember one night several months ago, I spent hours pouring over every one of her posts, looking at and studying every detail of every room. Here are some of my favorites from her blog:

From BHG

One of my favorite living rooms EVER, by designer Judith Balis of Nest Instinctual Interiors.

Dining room by Jonathan Ader.

Yep, I'm definitely a bright color kind of girl. Maybe in my next home, when I grow up, I'll pefer more neutrals and a softer palette.

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A White Coat of Paint (and Its Magical, Superhero Powers)

If there's one thing I've learned as a DIYer, it's the simple fact that a white coat of paint on virtually any piece of furniture magically transforms it from junk to masterpiece. But even though I know this information in my head, I still find myself sitting at my desk with my jaw hanging open in disbelief everytime I come across one of these incredible transformations.

Here are my favorites that I've seen lately. First up is the absolutely amazing china cabinet transformation from Enchantresses Three. She took a Craigslist china cabinet, which was quite dull indeed, and turned it into a spectacular showpiece...all with a coat (or two) of white paint.





Unbelievable, right?! To see more photos of this transformation, click here.

Next up is Debra from Bungalow who gave new life to a rather worn and drab secretary.



I'm mean, that piece looks like something out of a high-end boutique, doesn't it? Wow! Click here to see more of Debra's new secretary.

And the last one comes from Kevin and Layla over at The Lettered Cottage. Layla found this linen press at a flea market, and while the original finish wasn't terrible, it again just looked a bit drab. With a coat of white paint, they transformed it into a fresh new piece, which beautifully complements their cottage home.



STUNNING! See more of this before and after by clicking here.

So there you have it. The proof is in the pudding...errr...the paint. Have you had experience with giving new life to a piece of furniture with a coat of white paint? I'd love to hear about it...and I'd love even more to see it!

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Progress Report Monday:: Pet Station & Rag Tag Tassels

Good morning, all! Happy Monday to you. I hope you had a fantastic weekend, and are rested up for a brand new week.

I have the latest progress on a couple of projects to share with you. But first things first: the winner of the Vintage-Inpsired Hostess Apron! *drum roll please*

And the winner is:

Jenny or sometimes Bozo!!
Congratulations, Jenny! Just send me an e-mail to addicted2decorating@live.com and I'll send your apron on its way. I've got more projects to pull out of the DIY closet, so stay tuned this week for another giveaway. It'll be a good one, I promise!

Now on to my Progress Report.

Friday evening I decided that I didn't want to work on any condo stuff. Instead, I decided to play around with a small crafty project that I've been anxious to try out: rag tag tassels (at least, that's what I call them).

Have you seen these? Over the last week or two, I've seen these tasssels everywhere online! They're so adorable, and they seemed pretty easy to make, so I decided to give it a try using my own technique. I remembered seeing candle cups in the unfinished wood section of JoAnn Fabrics, so I decided to use that as the "base" for my tassel. Then using torn strips of cotton fabric, burlap, jute twine, and ribbon, I ended up with this:



I really love the casual look of it, and I decided lately that just about any project using burlap is fantastic in my book. Also, when I was at JoAnn Fabrics, I saw this cute little snowman ornament (nnoooooooo!! It can't be that time of year already!!), so I decided to turn him into a tassel also.


So using the same idea, but a somewhat different technique, I turned him into this:



(I'm linking this project to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, and DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land.)

These are so easy to make, and the possibilities are absolutely endless. If your taste is a little more fancy and refined, then you can use really pretty fabrics (that are cut, rather than torn), upholstery trim, strings of beads, etc. I think they would also make great gifts! The funny thing is, I spent an hour or so making these, and they don't even go in my little condo. The colors are all wrong! Oh well, they were fun to make.

Now on to my big project: the pet station.

Have you ever worked on a project, and nothing seems to go right? That's exactly what happened to me. I couldn't find a couple of the tools that I needed, so I wasted time searching and searching. Then when I finally got started, I had the hardest time getting some of the support pieces out of the bottom because they were glued in (and wood glue is STRONG!). Then as I was cutting the holes for for the food and water bowls, the blade in my jigsaw kept popping out. I would cut about one inch, and it would come out!! Finally, the jigsaw broke completely. So frustrating!!

Sooooo...I wasn't able to finish cutting out one of the holes in the bottom, and I didn't even get to start cutting out the hole in the top for the cat food bowl. But even with all of the problems, I got quite a bit accomplished. Here's where the project stands as of today:




The drawer really does close, but I had just put a coat of primer on, and it was still wet. I've also made a modification to the plan. I decided to leave the front off of the top portion, and just leave it open. I really love the look of it, especially with the beadboard in the back, and I think the open top gives the whole piece much less of a bulky look (it takes up less visual space), which will work better in my tiny little condo. I'm still going to make a cushion for Powder and Peeve to lay on, so now I'll have to be more selective with my fabric, since it will be "on display".

So that's it for my projects this week. Hopefully I can finish up and share the completed project with you next Monday.

Now let's see the progress on your projects!

It doesn't matter if you're working on a sewing project, a craft project that you've always wanted to try, a kitchen remodel, an organization project, a bedroom makeover, or anything else.

If it's home-related, I want to see!

And the best part...it doesn't have to be finished! I just want to see your progress, and offer a place for accountability and encouragement. An of course, if you've finished your project, I'll celebrate with you!!

So here's what you need to do:

1. Add a permalink to your specific post, not the main URL of your blog.


2. Include your name/blog name,and a short description of your project.


3. Link back to this Progress Report Monday post from your post so others can join in.


4. Make sure your link works and goes to the right post on your blog so it doesn’t get deleted! If you come back and see your link is gone, try again.

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