cheers!

For a quick little weekend project, I helped my aunt update her antique dry sink in the kitchen. The beautiful piece used to be lost under piles of picture frames, a plant, a lamp, car keys and other miscellaneous items, until we cleared it and started from scratch. After a little thrifty shopping at a local antique mall, we gathered a great selection of items to mix with some of her existing glassware. New additions include the Beefeater man, the beer-ale tray, the vintage decanter, and the spritzer. Next on the list - a mirror to replace the clock. Until then, cheers!

a personal note

I think I have a slight obsession with all things stationary and letterpress, but I do not like the hefty price tags that accompany. Stamps are a great and inexpensive alternative to letterpress, and although stamps do not have any texture like letterpress, you can create very similar looks (and the variety of stamps available are endless!). When I have an "excuse" to create my own stationary, I love to explore different ways to make mine unique. So, for my mom's birthday I used the sea horse and botanical paper (both came as standard size scrapbooking paper) in three different styles, and to add another layer of interest I stamped my mom's initials on one of the sets. In addition to those, I stamped the sand dollar and crab on plain white stationary. The last few photos demonstrate how I gift-wrapped the stationary.

dining al fresco

This green outdoor furniture set of a dining table, four chairs, and side table had definitely seen its fair share of the sun and rain before I refinished it. A lot of sanding, a durable exterior paint, and a heavy coat of protective polyurethane gives the set a fresh look and ready to endure the outdoor elements.

do the watermelon crawl

Three of my very dear friends just recently moved into a place of their own, and one of the roommates purchased this great sofa from Craig's List for a really good deal. However, the original pillows were a little frumpy and just didn't stand out at all on the sofa, so she hired me to make some new ones. We found both of these great fabrics at the local discount fabric store, and only had to buy one pillow insert. I used the existing pillow inserts for the two large ones and stuffed them with extra batting to give them more shape.

nautical knobs

This small night stand was in really poor condition when we purchased it; but after a fresh coat of charcoal gray, a little distressing, and the addition of these great knobs the piece looks up-t0-date and fit for a masculine room.

The four rope knobs were selected by the client from Anthropologie. The brass hardware came with the original piece.

chic comme Paris

Finally, my aunt's scrap-booking/gift-wrapping room is becoming more complete! My cousin and I found a great bench at a local antique mall and I made two large euro pillows and a small accent pillow to set on top of the bench. I was so excited to find the burlap fabric with the "parisian" print at my favorite discount fabric store - it was exactly what I had envisioned for the room. The bench rests in the hallway between the master bed room and my aunt's craft room, which makes it a great place to put shopping bags, gifts, etc.

perfectly imperfect

This was such a fun dresser to paint. My client loves bright, beach-y colors and this was the perfect piece to use this bright, coral-dark salmon color paint. The original piece was painted in a faded yellow with knobs that made the dresser look like it belonged in a child's room. The client's mother got it for a steal at a local art fair for $30! With an updated paint color, a touch of my magic, and some great hardware, the dresser looks like a completely new and different piece of furniture.

The hardware was selected by the client from Anthropologie.

gone fishin'

In honor of the Big Rock Marlin Competition's record holding catch of a 883-pound marlin.

One of my very good friends commissioned me to paint a marlin for her dad, an avid fisher, for a birthday present. Instead of painting a typical acrylic on canvas, I opted to paint on an old pine floor board for a more rustic and "beach-y" style.

summer is officially here!

Ah, my most favorite time of the year - summer. And for me, the best way to celebrate is spending time down at the beach. Ever since I can remember, I just love to be down by the ocean with the salty air cooling off the hot sun and digging my toes through the sand. This love for the beach has translated a great deal into my design aesthetic, and continues to be a great inspiration for future projects.

This room was in my apartment, senior year of college. What made the room so fun was the challenge to create a comfortable space in such a small room and on a very low budget.

Thrifty things I did to save money and add style:
- hand painted the rug with painter's tape and household paint (used to be a plain sisal rug with large stains)
- found a barrel shade for $5 at a thrift store, added the embellishments for a touch of sparkle, took down the existing ceiling sconce, and attached my new glam light fixture
- my headboard used to be an ordinary large cork board; instead of throwing it out I upholstered it with this beautiful coral fabric for a headboard
- the collage of sea life artwork came from a $10 picture book
- my dresser used to be white with out-dated hardware and belonged to a family friend; they gave it to me for free and I painted it a high gloss black with simple hardware
- the poster of starfish and coral is actually a piece of wrapping paper

all shades of white

Here are some more recent pieces of furniture that I have painted. Enjoy!