Risky - Taking my Cabinet Doors Off

Happy Thursday morning! I am baby sitting one of the sweetest little boys today.  But while he naps, I thought I would show y'all my latest project!  

I was reading my Better Homes & Gardens magazine and I came across this kitchen makeover.

It's just so simple.  So I decided to take off my cabinet doors.  I've wanted to do this for a while, but didn't have the guts until I saw this.  Paint! Of course painting the inside is the cheapest/easiest way to get the job done.  

So I did it!

Here's the BEFORE:

Ok, so I got excited and had already taken off one of the doors.  Oh well.  

I did a little organizing to see if it would look good.  Then a few weeks later I went to town on painting the inside :)  Yeah, I got bored.

At this point I was thinking I think this might actually work.  But painting inside here was actually tough.  I couldn't sand down the cabinets because they are fake wood.  So with every stroke some paint would come back off.  Ugh.  

The other side.  

I started to realize that putting plates and such back and forth was going to scratch every single time.  That was not going to do.  I thought of putting contact paper down. Then MR.P took it one step further and thought of cork board!  We found this cork contact paper here.  I think it was a brilliant solution since it gives a bit.

And here's the AFTER:

Sorry the quality isn't great.  But I'm no professional photographer.

I think I like the outcome.  I'd like to make a roman shade for the kitchen window. I said I was going to do this years ago and I chickened out and made cafe drapes.  But now they take up too much visual space and my eyes couldn't handle it.  So I'll have to try the roman shade tutorials I've seen all over the internet.  And for the counter tops the plan is still to do butcher block. Can't wait!

Oh and a little update.  This past weekend we had some excitement.  Smith fell and bumped his head.  We had to rush to Urgent Care.  I knew it was coming since Smith is so active, but we were not prepared.  Matt had the car WITH the carseat and I can't drive his truck...one because it's a stick shift and two because it won't start at the moment.  So I stayed as calm as I could. Called my neighbor and she and her husband ran over as fast as possible.  Then called my friend and she brought over her extra carseat.  Oh and I had just taken a shower and my hair was wet with no make-up on.  Anyway, we were there in no time and then MR.P met us there.  By this time Smith was happy again and acting like it was no big deal.

Such a tough little man.

The snacks didn't hurt. 

And the after.  

Glad he wasn't hurt more. Not sure I could have handled that on our first trip to Urgent Care. And even though I know this isn't our last trip there I'll say it, I hope he doesn't have to get stitches again!

Seven Slings

So I got our sling in the mail and we love it!  We love the color because it's great for boys and girls...just in case our next child is a girl!

This was the first time I remembered to take a picture and it was possible:)  MR.P was with us so he snapped it for us. We were in the parking lot of our favorite antique place, Queen of Hearts. Such a great place.  Sometimes I just go for inspiration.  MR.P even enjoys this place!  Although, he is a rare guy that enjoys shopping.  

Anyway, I got it for free using a code.  See this post if you would like one too!

How to make a slipcover - Part 2

Alright, I'm back.  This next part was the most fun because I saw the vision coming into view!  I have never had a chair upholstered and this is the closest thing for me.  

Anyway, after we made sure all the pieces were perfect, we cut out our fabric.  Sorry, no pictures. I forgot.  A little secret my mom taught me is to put kitchen knives on top of your template fabric (which is on top of your nice fabric) to keep it in place while you cut. It worked like a charm.  She said my great grandmother used to do that. She passed away a few years ago at 108.  She was an incredible lady with a lot of artistic talent.  Way more than I could ever dream.  She quilted, made porcelain/lace dolls, painted, and much more!

We pinned the chosen fabric back on the chair.  Instead of pinning the entire thing back together, we started with the arms.  They were 3 pieces each.  We pinned those.  Made sure they were perfect, then started sewing.

The arms all pinned and ready to sew.  Do you see how it's 3 pieces?  The front of the arm, the actual arm, then under the arm?

Here's my mom's sewing machine.  She got it when she was 17!  Still works like a charm:)

My mom :)

Smith watching all the work go down.  He was thoroughly enjoying himself.  He loves his Gigi.

And another just for kicks.  He's just too cute.  

As we were sewing the arms, my mom discovered that if we basted the difficult parts before using the sewing machine then we were more successful.  So that's what we did.  

That way you can take the pins out before you sew and not worry about your placement.

The first arm down!  yay! Finally seeing it come together!

Smith enjoying the process.  I think he likes the chair better without the essence.  Friends reference...look it up :)

And both arms done!  And that's where we stopped that day.  It's much easier to do the chair in sections.  That way all the fabric isn't pinned together and you loose your spot or feel like you have too many pins poking you :)

Until next time!

How to make a slipcover - part 1

Ok, I can't tell you how excited I am that I get to share this project with you.  Everyone has that ugly chair that they just can't get rid of because they know it has great potential.  Enter our chair.

This chair was free people.  Free, so I couldn't pass it up.  MR.P's sister's roommate didn't want it.  She will once she see's the after!  It's been hidden in our bonus room for about 2 years.  We brought it down to Smith's playroom because it was a perfect reading chair.  After a few months I chose our fabric.  I brought my mom into the project and bam,  then we got started.  

Here's what you need:

* A little more than basic sewing knowledge.   If you don't have that then ask a friend and pay them in yummy snacks or diet coke in my case :)  My mom and I share a love of diet coke, so I made sure I was well stocked.

* Sewing machine

* Needle and thread

* A queen size bed sheet

* Sewing/fabric scissors

We started out by fitting the sheet to each section of the chair to get our template.  We didn't want to cut our nice fabric just in case we messed up.

Here are the sections we chose:

* back

* arms (3 pieces each - front, bottom, and full arm)

* bottom

* pillows

Then we labeled each piece so we knew how to put it back together.

Once we cut out each piece we started pinning everything together.  This was to make sure every piece was the perfect size.

My mom helping me out :)

(We used paper for the front of the the arms to get it perfect. We felt this would give the chair an upholstered look instead of looking like a slipcover)

Make sure you pin everything together inside-out:)

And here's where I'll leave you until next time!

Etsy Shop Update

Things are moving along with my Etsy Shop, which can only be a work from the Lord.  I think Etsy is quite difficult to sell from, but pillows are moving on out :)  I am very very thankful!  Anyway, adoption has really been on our hearts lately.  We have several friends who are adopting and we are praying for our own as well.  After talking with MR.P about it, we decided that 100% of the profits from my etsy shop will go to helping our friends adopt as well as our own.

We aren't necessarily starting our second adoption yet, but we are praying about it and seeking wisdom from friends and family around us.  And we definitely want to start saving for the second adoption.  

I did do a little something crazy/awesome to help us adopt.  Who knows if it will work.  Here's the scoop.  I emailed The Ellen Show and told her our story.  We know she has a lot of resources that are directed to helping others. So we asked her to help us adopt!  Who know's, God could use Ellen to help us adopt! I'm crazy enough to think that it might work.  If you read this, will you send her an email or letter on our behalf.  Or even tweet it (@theellenshow) or put it on her facebook page??  Hey, it wouldn't hurt, right?

Anyway, we're excited about the future and possibly seeing this little man as a big brother one day!

(at the pool today)

Oh and here are the latest things in my shop

3 flower magnets

These eclectic pillow covers

4 flower push pins

raw silk pillow covers

cream and red pillow covers

Mustard pillow covers 

Large Pink Flower pin

Green pillow cover