Stay the night, I'll make pancakes in the morning.

Guest room update!

The end is nigh on the guest room. I'm hoping. It seems like every time I think I'm almost done with this room, something else pops up.

Anyway, the bed is finished. So now we could actually let people sleep in the room, which is kind of the point, right? We started with an iron bed frame that was free from my Mom. She had all antique iron beds in her house, we all had one (me, my parents, my brothers) and Mom always said we'd each get to take one when we moved out. This was not the bed I slept in, this was my brother, Josh's bed.

Lets see the before.

Red, with brass detail. I could have kept it this color, but I decided white was just prettier. So, with a trusty can of Krylon Spray Paint in Almond, away we go! That's why this photo was out on the lawn, up on bricks with newspaper over them. No spray painting inside! First I had to tape, because my Mom asked that I not paint the brass. 

Then, cover all the brass with plastic, and tape it in place, so it didn't catch any drifting over-spray in the breeze. I just used an old  plastic drop cloth from the dollar store that I had around. It was more than enough to cover both ends of the brass.

Then, many coats of spray paint. It took about 3 and a half cans (which I know, because after can number 2, I had to go to Lowe's and get more...). It's always better, with spray paint, to use many thin coats rather than a few thick ones. Helps avoid drippage.

Huzzah! All that was left was to disassemble, carry inside, reassemble, add a mattress and dress! Here's the bed now.

I'm glad I kept the brass.

I started this red & aqua color scheme because I had this red comforter, as well as a bunch of red linens from when our bedroom was red and gold. So, they're all kind old. But if your curious...

Red quilt - Target - birthday gift from a friend
Red pillow shams - Ikea, part of a duvet set.
Red throw pillow - Tuesday morning
Aqua flannel sheets - Ollie's Bargain Outlet, $20
Aqua throw pillows - Big Lots, $8 each over a year ago, used to be on our couch

The dust ruffle is another story. Because of the height of this bed, finding dust ruffles is always hard. It requires an 18" drop (or as my Mom says, "18 inch flounce") which can be a little difficult to find. My Mother always had a king size dust ruffle UNDER a regular full size to make it work without having to buy "special" sizes. So I actually sewed this dust ruffle using 2 twin size bed sheets from Target ($8 each). I would have made a tutorial, but to be honest with you, it was not easy and I was kind of figuring it out as I went along...and I definitely messed up in places. If you have rudimentary sewing skills you could probably figure it out on your own. If you don't have such skills, I would recommend buying a dust ruffle, not making one.

Did you notice the lovely art piece above the bed?

Mourning Walk by Katherine Fahey

It was a gift from my sister-in-law, Christy. She bought it at a local craft show put on by the Charm City Craft Mafia. Their shows are the best. Katherine Fahey is a local artist, in Baltimore. It's always nice to buy from locals. Thanks Christy!

Also accomplished this week in the guest room: dresser! This is another hand-me-down from my parents, to my brother, and then to me.

This was my Dad's dresser. Then my brother and his wife took it for...something. They never said what. But their plans for it are another 4 years off, apparently (I'm thinking it had something to do with a 2nd child?). So, it's taking up residency at our house until they want it back. This is a system my family has developed called "permanent loan".

I was considering refinishing it in a darker color (cherry-ish?) but now that it's in the room, I kind of like it. What do you think? Keep it as is or refinish? I'm torn.

Oh, and look at my adorable tray on top.

I got the metal tray at an estate sale for $10, it was black with flowers painted in the bottom. I sprayed it white and covered the inside with some scrap booking paper sealed with Modge Podge...adorable much? And the bird bowl? That's my little souvenir from the Johnathan Adler store in Boston. She arrived safely and with a lovely little note from whichever employee shipped her.  I'm only slightly in love with her.

So, what's left? I know I do this every time, but I like lists.

1. Frame and hang pictures
2. Make and hang towel hooks
3. Hang and accesorize shelves
4. Recover rocking chair seat
5. Find a throw rug, the floor needs something
6. Make some valances or cornices for the windows
7. Add ribbon detail to roman shades
8. Add ribbon detail to towels

Beetle Mania

A couple of weeks ago I drove to York, PA with my Mom to go to an antique/home & garden show. While we were there I saw some beautiful framed silhouettes. One in particular caught my eye. It was a long thin frame with 4 beetle silhouettes.

I LOVE beetles. They're one of only a few bugs that don't scare me. And design wise they have that great science-y feel I love. One of my favorite things in our house is a beetle statue. See him in the back there?

But while I loved the beetle silhouette art, it was $60 and I didn't even like the frame. It wasn't worth it for me. I would have taken pictures, but it would have been really rude in that I-am-going-to-make-this-myself-and-not-buy-yours kind of way.

So, what does a DIY savvy girl like myself do? I make my own!

First things first, make beetle silhouettes. I used the gallery at Living Jewels to pick out a few beetles that had great shapes. If you haven't gotten me a birthday present yet, this book would be a winner.

I copied and pasted about 7 beetles onto a Powerpoint slide (that way I can alter the size and fit several on one printable page) and printed them out. I did 7, intent on using only 4, figuring I would give myself some options. Then, I used rubber cement to glue that page onto a sheet of black paper. I then proceeded to cut out the beetles with an X-Acto knife. Cutting tip: go slow, and do all the little legs and antennae first, THEN cut the body.

When you're finished cutting, gently pull the printed picture and the black shape apart and rub the rubber cement off (use a pencil eraser to do the small areas). 

And again, I'm a bad blogger, who didn't take pictures because I did most of the cutting during my lunch at work and couldn't really take pictures. But I think you get the idea.

I had my beetles, and on my way home from work I picked up a frame at Target for $25. I could probably have found a cheaper one elsewhere, but I wasn't in the mood to drive all over town, and I pass Target on my drive home (Note: This is trouble...I stop at Target a little TOO often). I didn't know what I was going to do for a background, but I figured I'd find something around the house.

A peek around the house showed me the giant roll of open weave fabric I've been using to make roman shades for the living room (and when I say I've been "using" it, I mean I started making them, got about 2 almost done and then got distracted by less laborious house projects). There was my background.

So I had all my materials. 4 beetles, 1 frame, 1 scrap piece of open weave fabric.

Step one:
Disassemble the frame. Toss that mat, it doesn't work for this project. Oh look, the piece of paper with pictures of scenery that comes with the frame is white on the opposite side...that will go behind my open weave fabric. Nice.


Step Two:
Glue open weave fabric to white paper that came with the frame. I suggest keeping the fabric a little to big on all sides at this point, it's easier to cut down after it's glued down than to try to get it exactly the right size from the start.

I of course don't have any appropriate glue. What do I have?

That's right, Elmer's disapearring purple school glue. But I really only need something to hold the fabric in place, so the key was to use TOO MUCH glue so that it would squish through the open weave of the fabric and hold it in place. Glue away!

Step 3:
Cut away the excess fabric. Easy peasy. Don't worry about being TOO exact, the frame will cover up any fraying edges.

Step 4:
Flip over your backing piece and place the beetles. Figure out the spacing you want before gluing. Once you know what order you want your beetles, how far apart, etc, glue them down. Again, use a little TOO much glue, glob it up...unless you have more appropriate glue. Use what you have on hand.

Step 5:
Allow everything to dry, and pop it in your frame. Then, up on the wall it goes!

Here's the thing, I've made this and I have NO IDEA where to put it. I just wanted to make it, it doesn't have a home yet. It's propped up on a chair right now. Someday I'll figure out where I want it, but for now, I'm just going to love it as is.

Remember, my inspiration piece was $60 and it was about half the size of this. My costs?

Beetle pictures: Free (thanks internet!)
Black paper: free (paper I had on hand)
Rubber Cement, Elmer's glue, X-acto knife: Free (All stuff I had around)
Open weave fabric: free (leftovers from another project)
Black frame: $25

Total cost: $25
And had I the energy to try a few other stores I am convinced I could have found a cheaper frame.