remember this?

remember these pictures from back in the day?

the thrift store find…$20 chair for my living room??

fabric choices for the reupholstery?? (looking back on some of these….yikes, what was i thinking?!)

and the final decision:

the time finally came for me to either buy the fabric and hire someone to reupholster for me. OR, attempt a diy.

i got some quotes for a couple local businesses to reupholster. they wanted over $150 just to do this chair! i couldn’t believe it.

so guess what i did….. the diy option!

i went back to joann fabrics to get the fabric cut (does every joann’s have a ridiculously long line to get fabric cut?! it almost makes me not want to go back.) i couldn’t find the fabric anywhere. i as devastated. i asked for help. she didn’t know. she asked me if i had the numbers. nope, all i had was the little 2″x2″ fabric sample and this picture. awesome.

i went home empty handed. so so sad. after looking online at some other websites for a new fabric, it dawned on me that maybe joann’s has it online. i was in LUCK. i found it and ordered a yard immediately. if it wasn’t in the store anymore i wanted to be sure i got some before it was discontinued.

this process was painful. i’m not going to lie. i took the chair apart and painted. layers and layers of paint. all the detail in the chair required extra attention.

but i have to admit, between the primer and paint that i use, it covers so well and leaves an awesome hard finish when done. so i know taking the time to finish that part right was important.

i had a vision when i was looking for fabric. i wasn’t sure if my vision would actually come through after i started. even with my design background i was not able to visualize what it was going to look like.

but i couldn’t be more happy with the perfectly imperfect chair i finished all on my own!!!

enough with the suspense already?!

and finally a side by side before and after. in LOVE with the transformation :)

this was a very intimidating project. and i am very, very proud of the outcome. i hope you enjoy look at that beauty as much as i do :)

Have you ever tackled a DIY project you felt was way out of your league???

happy dad day

much love going out to my daddy-o today. he’s the best.

yesterday i had my first kind of freak out moment with my house. i lost all hot water.

growing up with my parents owning a hardware store i had a feeling i knew what was wrong. but lets be honest. i didn’t.

so what did i do?

called dad.

it’s only a two year old water heater so i was really hoping it wasn’t anything serious. luckily it was what i expected…the pilot went out.

i’ve had the windows open to let the awesome breeze we’ve had come through the house. and i think along the way it blew out the pilot.

after sending some pictures and talking on the phone twice, i (we) got it figured out. praise the lord!

and next time i won’t have to make that phone call because i am now a pro at lighting the pilot (thanks to the directions right on the water heater ha).

so here’s to you dad!

love you!

summer // a welcomed arrival

I am so happy that summer is finally here. I love everything about it.

The warmth.
The sun.
The big white puffy clouds.
The smells.
The blooming flowers and trees.
The happy people.
Dreaming.
Riding my bike.
Driving with the windows down.
The smell of freshly cut grass.
Grilling every single meal.
Fresh fruits and veggies from the farmer’s market.
Gardening.

Should I keep going? We all love those things. I love everything there is to love about summer.

Just this week I splurged on another favorite of mine.

Fresh flowers.

I can’t believe how much of a difference fresh flowers makes in the house. Absolutely in love with the smell (despite my allergies!) and color.

I have collected the bottles for a while now. Vintage ink wells, medicine bottles, etc. They are lined on the window sill in my kitchen above the sink. The yellow adds so much jazz to the room. Love. Love. Love.