A Custom Touch

When we moved in we had the builders add bookshelves flanking our fireplace. Well... they were definitely builder basic. I thought they could use a little something something. And after we added beadboard to our kitchen wall. I decided our bookshelves would look nice with beadbaord to tie the rooms together nicely, plus I has extra beadboard. Saa-weet.

Before- builder's basic:

After:
A little something goes a long way. It ties my kitchen into our family room perfectly. With an open floor plan this was key.

Now for decorating these bookshelves. Oh how I struggled with this. I think I have changed them around every week for the past year we have lived here. :) We are always in this room and I "study" it far too much!

Anyways I remembered a "Design Article of Faith" that I learned in college and it applied here.
It is called repetition with variation.

• It is when you use something and repeat it though out the design while varying it slightly.
  
• It creates interest and unifies the design.
  
• For instance I used black frames in different shapes and formats and repeated them throughout.

(Sorry the TVs on. I didn't have it in me to turn off the home movies my girls were watching

• 
• I also repeated yet varied books, ceramics and antiques using black white red yellow and blue.

I am much more pleased with how it looks with using this design principle or "Design article of Faith" as my professor called it. The past year I had cute stuff in it but it didn't feel unified at all. Now I can have a peace of mind when I look at it. :)
And of course this was all done on the cheap!! This is Savvy Chic Home you know.

• The frames were $3 at Wal-mart.
• Antiques were mostly presents or Goodwill.
• The books I already had.
• And if you are a regular reader you know that I got the mirror on CL for $10.

Everything on these bookshelves I got for about $60 or already had. Even better, beat that Pottery Barn.
The official first day of fall is Wed Sept 22nd (it started on the 11th here ;). So the next post is all about fall decor and how to make these fabulous pumpkins, cause you know fall just can't wait.

P.S. Don't you love my little brownie box camera ?

Kitchen Chairs!

So I have had my kitchen chairs painted now for about a month, but they wore me out so bad I am just now feel like posting about them. :) So here is my table and chairs, finally done.
I borrowed my friends paint sprayer thinking it would be fairly easy, like a can of spray paint right?...well it wasn't easy. A paint sprayer is much heavier and finicky than a can of spray paint. But it produces beautiful results, very nice and even, in the exact color you want, and is cheaper than buying a zillion cans of paint. And I can't even imagine trying to paint all those spindles using a brush!
I followed the basic steps- 1-2 coats of primer, 2 coats of paint, distressing, glaze, and polyurethane. Ah it makes me tired even typing out all those steps. I posted step by step instructions on the table transformation found here.
A few tips on using a paint sprayer:
-you have to thin the paint A LOT!!!!!!
-because the paint is thinner, it applies thin coats- so be patient.
-it dries a little faster because it is thinner :)
-your forearm will get tired- because the sprayer is heavy.-nice workout
-cover everything!!- my garage floor is a little splotchy now :)

More creamy goodness.
And on another note... I got some vinyl for my picture gallery/ kiddie table wall. Only $8 after I used my Kohl's $10 giftcard I got in the mail.
Finally complete... until I change my mind. :)

Sweet Pineapple Trick

We had the missionaries over for dinner tonight and it was great as usual. After we ate the roast and I asked if anyone knew how to cut a pineapple and Elder "T" said he did. I though he might since he is Samoan. And boy does was I right!
So, let me fill you in on a secret that he learned from a Science teacher. It makes the pineapple so sweet and less acidic.
1. Cut off the top
2. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of salt on the top of the pineapple.
3. Then use the cut off top to scrub the salt around and around. It will start to foam and that means it is working. The salt is taking the acid out of the pineapple.
4. Repeat 3 times.
5. Rinse off salt.
6. Slice and enjoy!

MMM. I just love fresh pineapple. Now go get a pineapple and try it out.

So sad I didn't get Elder T's Picture. To learn more about LDS missionaries and why they gladly serve 2 years visit mormon.org

Do you coupon? Or want to?

Well I was kinda hesitant at first because I thought it would take too much time to figure out the deals, but by following some blogs they do all the work for me. They tell me what coupons to use, give me links to them, where to use at etc. I just print off some coupons, make a list and go. I have actually saved quite a bit of money. For the past 2 weeks I saved about 40% at the grocery store. I just started this but I think I can save $ by couponing without it taking forever.

My favorite coupon blogs are
thekrazycouponlady.com
and
moneysavingmom.com

The krazy coupon lady has a great page of ALL the online coupons with links to them
http://printablecoupondatabase.com/
She has some great posts called "10 days to become a crazy coupon lady" which is very helpful.

Here are some of Krazy Coupon Lady's examples.
Here is an Example of my List (these are my stock up prices):
Cheese $3.99/2lb
Ground Beef $1.75/lb
Chicken $1.67/lb
Milk $1.89/gallon (whole)- I freeze my milk if it’s lower than this and I want to really stock up
Cleaning Supplies (lysol wipes, bathroom and kitchen cleaners, ect) $.50 or less
Toothpaste/brushes FREE
Cereal $.75 per box or less
Brownie and Cookie Mixes Less than $.50 or less
Dish Soap $.25
Cheap Toilet Paper FREE
Charmin Toilet Paper for my picky husband $6 for the Double Roll 9 packs
Kotex Pads FREE
Johnson Buddies FREE
Granola Bars $.50
Chinet Paper Plates $.50
Bisquick $.90
Fruit Snacks $.50 or less
Good Deodorant $.5o
Cheap Deodorant FREE
Men’s Body Wash $.50 or less

The Heart of Our Home

So here it is- our Kitchen. I am not completely done but I like it so far. :) It's a little romantic/shabby/country, a bit traditional, with a touch of fun and quirky.

I started decorating with the things I already had, which was white ceramics. I also love a kitchen with lots of white, it is "so fresh and so clean clean."

I added the chair pads to the chairs to tie the lighter color over in this area and soften the look and the bum :). I normally have a white bowl full of green apples here when I don't have fresh flowers. I will make a fun little table runner for here too.

Curtains, Ahh. I can't count the number of times I changed them in this room, so important but so hard. I decided on these because it ties the brown of the cabinets around the room and they went with the red ones in our family room, which are right next to these. Our family room is completely open to our kitchen. Light colored ones looked nice but were out of place next to our family room. Plus these ones were thermal and only $15 a panel.

The wall color I chose is Home Depot Cypress Grass. Yes this wall needs work. Thinking of putting vinyl above pictures or making a gallery wall with lots of pictures. I also plan on painting the kiddy table. I love that my kitchen has room for this, it is so easy to feed my girls snacks and breakfast here.

Keepin it real with all the art still on the fridge. Chandlier $40 from Craigslist.

The Little Things

Love my Scentsy & it's ribbon wrap, the cute little calendar blocks my MIL made me, and the white and blue tile. It came from Germany from my baroness grandmother's estate. Love having meaningful stuff like this in every room. I made the table runner. It's a great pop of color, especially for Spring.

I made this little flower wrap and to match the table runner on our island. Continues the punch of color around the room. I plan on making and covering a cookbook in this material. You know cuz every thing has to be in 3's or 5 or just more than 2. :)

I got his birdcage about 6 years ago on clearance at Tar'gae. It used to be black but I painted it white to give it some contrast against the cabinets and sanded it down to give it that antique look. MMMM LURVE IT.


My grandmother gave me these bar stools. It took me 3 tries but I finally got these right. First black, then brown,(cuz that what I had on hand) finally the beautiful antique white that they are. I used Ace hardware's spray paint. So easy and pretty fast. I had to do multiple coats, but each chair only took about 1 can or $3.50. I think they look great with the bead board. They kinda have a fresh beachy feel now. Oh and one more bar stool is on it's way.

Got to have a little vinyl somewhere right? I got this plate stand for $5 and turned it into my fruit/onion :) holder. cuteness.

I just love my new little pot scrubber. It makes doing dishes kinda fun! really. $5 at TJ Maxxers.

So if you read all of this thanks. I found some time and did it all. What do you think? Any suggestions for the kiddie table/ wall?

I heart Craigslist- Finding Deals 101

Since everyone was so impressed with my $50 dining room set I thought I would post some of the other things I have found on Craigslist and share some savvy skills I use when finding my deals. Hold on to your britches and be prepared to be blown away. :)

1. A tip to finding any good deal is being at the right place at the right time. Search for your item(s) as often as you can. I search for my items at least once a day. It only takes a few minutes to type in my items look though the new postings and go on my way.

The first thing I ever bought off of Craiglist was my daughter's little playhouse for $20. I bought it in October knowing that they would be scarce in December. It was Santa's big present. She loved it of course, and our neighbors gave us the little rocking horse for free. Perfect for Kentucky don't ya think?

2 . Be Patient! OH so important. I waited 6 years for a king bed and when we got into our first home we finally had the space for it. Yes! And since my husband had a bad habit of elbowing me in the head far too often it was the first thing I purchased for our new home. But I didn't go get one from the store or one of the first one's listed on Craigslist. You usually have to wait for a deal. I searched everyday for 2 months to find this brand new in the box cherry wood headboard and foot board for $50.

3. Be prepared to Act. When you find your treasure act right away. Call or email asap. I usually say something like I can pick it up at your earliest convenience and give phone #. (P.S. I looked for about 4 months before we even got in our house for my dining set)

4. Be kinda picky I found our Sealy king sized mattress and box springs for $125. I was pretty picky about that one- I made sure it was from a nice neighborhood near me. And that it had no stains. It is very comfortable and I sleep much better with no elbows in my face. Yes it is hard to find exactly what you want for the right price, but if you can live by #2 and be patient I bet you can find what you want in reasonable time. (PLEASE excuse my lack of pillows and window mistreatments. I am currently working on them.)

5. Be prepared to say no if you go see an item and it won't work in your home. This goes along with #4, be picky. If it won't work in your home don't feel obliged to buy it even if it is a good deal. It is a bummer driving away with nothing, but it is better than being stuck with something you don't really like.

I got both of these beautiful chandeliers for $100. Trust me they are much better than the cheapo builder's standard ones that were there before. Do you know how much these would have cost me new? eek.

6. Bargain. Most everyone is willing to go down on their price so just ask. They expect it.

6. Tell your friends to keep an eye out for you. I saved the best for last. This antique dresser and mirror were free!! My grandma actually found them for me on the side off the road. Who in their right mind would put this on the street? AHH I'll take it!!!! Thank you to whoever passed it on, because I love it. So any Kentucky peeps know where I can get a china cabinet for cheap? ;)

Did I miss any Craigslist Savvy Skills? What have you found lately that was a steal of a deal?

Warm Windows & Ebates

With everyone getting so much snow lately, I thought I'd do a post on thermal curtains. Yep have you heard of those? They are lined with "foam backing" and help to cut energy costs. They claim to reduce heating and cooling costs by 30%. They are also light blocking.

Well our house was curtainless in January and our two story family room and kitchen were getting quite cold. I thought I give thermal curtains a try. We got them up and man can I tell a difference. I don't know if our energy bill has gone down at all, but I can tell that the room is WARMER!! Yes, a good investment. And it is supposed to help in the summer too.

I found my 95 inch curtains online at JCPenny.com for only $15 a panel and free shipping, they are normally $50 or more. Let me also say that it is impossible to find 6- 95 inch curtians in any store. No I am not getting paid for any of this, but I thought it might be helpful for some of you peeps who are freezing your little buns off now and want to save some money. What are some other energy saving ways you have kept your house warm?

Another good tip I have discovered recently is ebates. It is an online site where you get cash back for doing your regular online shopping. On average you get about 5% cash back. Almost every store that is online you can use through ebates. Macy's is 6%, Target is 4%, Jcpenny 3%. You also get $5- just for signing up. Hope this helps someone out there. Has anyone else used ebates?

My Dining Room- Tips Tricks and Plans

So here is the antique walnut dining room table and chairs that I got for $50 off of Craigslist. I did redo the chairs, see my other post for that. But what a deal! It even extends to 102 inches. I just love those pedestals.

I believe every room should have meaningful as well as beautiful pieces. The white candlestick, which the topiary is on, was from our wedding centerpieces, and the glasses were wedding presents from my hubbies grandma.
I made this table runner. I fell in love with this beautiful fabric with the bold print and all of the bright colors. I think it's a bit traditional and a bit oriental.
I found these duponi silk curtains off of eBay. I added my fabric to the bottom. They were only 84 inches and I needed 95 inches for my 9 foot ceilings. Plus it ties the beautiful fabric and color around the room and gives it a custom look. Love it. Sorry for the bad picture.
The chandelier, not in love with it, :( came with the house. I'm not ready to spend a lot of money on a new one. I dressed it up with some lime green silk shades from eBay for $16. I like the bright color and that it is complimentary to the red drapes. A little fun and funky. I plan on making a fun scrunchy cover for the chain/cord.

The table top was not in the best condition. It had a big (5 in diameter) white heat mark on it when I got it! AHHH. But I knew I could get it out. Sorry I don't have a before picture but that was before the blog. It was pretty simple actually. I simply ironed on the top of a t shirt on a low heat setting. Keep moving it around and it disappears before your eyes! This was where the spot was, you can't see a thing. I also applied Old English with scratch cover to shine it up. Umm beautiful.

Now for my decorating plans in this room, the walls. It needs paint! Any suggestions? I was thinking about RL sterling- a gray with a metallic finish. I am also going to hang some collectible Norman Rockwell plates on the wall. Love him and they were a special gift. I will also add a white silvery bust I made of Venus di Milo. Got to have the personal touches.

For the furniture I am planning to make a long bench like this one at Z Galleries.

I also want to paint a china cabinet blue! Ahh yes a little crazy but it will look divine, trust me. I am envisioning an antique piece with a distressed, shabby look and a cerulean blue finish. Right now we have our old armoire in there. Totally traditional, a bit boring for me, and not functional. Right now my hubbies rockband set is in there, ha ha. I imagine the finish something like this.

So there you have it everyone my dining room now and some of my plans. Hopefully after all is said and done I will have spent less than $400. For everything, the whole kit and kaboodle! Wow!

I have been working on my photography skills. A little better right? Still trying to figure out how to photograph my window with a point and shoot. If I get an SLR for my upcoming birthday, mothers day and anniversary I'm sure they will look more professional. ;) .....right.

Clearance Sticker Gunk Removal

Why do Stores always use a cheapy clearance sticker to stick on glass? Well the WD-40 pen is a favorite tool of mine to remove sticker residue. It's so little and you can be so precise with it with no spray mess. I also heard orange peel and Goof Off work great too.
Tonight I tested the orange peel method, and guess what it works beautifully. Look at these before and afters.
1. Peel off what you can. Remove the rest of the paper with a little water on your finger.
2. Now you have the sticker gunk.
4. Rub your orange peel around. Switch around on the orange peel, when the peel starts getting sticky.
5. And viola gunk free. The juicier the orange peel the better.
What else works for sticker gunk removal?

Room Planner

I found a great website that will let you plan your room with out having your hubby move your furniture around all day, even though that's fun too. This would also be a great tool for anyone moving to a new house. You can put in your room and furniture dimensions then move your funiture around with the click of a button.

It's called planyourroom.com I found it on the Smith's Furniture website. When you are done with your plan you can just email it to yourself. You don't even have to sign up for anything.