Distressed Full Headboard and Colorful Child's Chair

Well, I was finally able to work on a couple of projects for my blog yesterday.  It's nice to know that I can still find time to paint and restore furniture with a newborn.

 

I completed the below headboard which is now for sale for $95 (check out the Craigslist post here).  I painted it with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint and distressed it in order to bring out the lovely details.  And I finished it off with a coat of clear wax.  Please email me if you live in the Denver area and are interested in the piece!

 

I also completed this adorable little kid's chair.  Below is the before photo.

 

 

And here is the "after" photo. 

 

 

I tried a new technique and am pretty happy with how it turned out.  I used a white base coat and wet rag in order to get the distressed finish.  I love how the white shows through the purple and turquoise paint. 

 

I have a few pieces around the house that I plan to work on today, including my grandmother's desk in the office and my great aunt's table in the sunroom.  Both have great bones but need to be refinished BADLY!  I'll be sure to post some photos soon! 

New Life with My Sweet Angel Baby

Well, our precious baby girl is finally here...and our lives will never be the same!  We are so in love with our little one and are having a blast figuring out this parenting thing.  The first four weeks after we brought here home were completely insane but we're finally getting the swing of things (and are catching up on some much needed rest).  We have never felt so blessed and are grateful that she is a really good (and healthy) little munchkin.

 

Below are a few photos of Billie Elizabeth, which I took in my "studio" - aka. her nursery. 

 

Getting ready for Christmas!

One month old!

Our little snow bunny

Just chillin'

Sweet Billie Elizabeth

I've had so much fun taking photos of our gorgeous little one.  I'm pretty sure being a newborn photographer would be my dream job (along with decorating and refinishing furniture), so please contact me at annebuchanan10@gmail.com if you're in the Denver area and are interested in some reasonably priced infant photos.  I actually plan to build another website for my photography once things settle down.  Baby steps. :) 

 

As for AnneTique Designs, I've actually been able to sell a few pieces since I've been on maternity leave, which is nice.  I sold my black chairs, floral painted console/table and my white end table with dark glaze (which was quite popular on Pinterest)!  Now I just need to go thrifting again!

 

Well, we're off to Aspen and Carbondale for a few days to visit friends and test out our ski legs.  Should be a fun and interesting weekend...hope our first road trip with the baby and two dogs isn't too stressful! 

 

More to come soon.... :)

 

Hand Painted Console and our Shadow Box





Apparently tomorrow is the big DUE DATE  (OMG)!  We've been waiting for this day for so long and I can't wait for little Billie to arrive.  She has been moving like CRAZY lately and I'm convinced that we have a wild one on our hands.  My belly is stretched to the limit and these last few days are definitely an emotional roller coaster.  I'm getting a little bit grumpier after each day passes and am afraid that she's going to continue to take her time in there and not come out for another week or so!!  Which just doesn't make any sense to me as I think she'll like us and life outside my cramped womb.  :)  I'm really hoping to have a natural birth and would be very upset if I had to get induced, so fingers crossed that something happens VERY SOON!

 

In the meantime, we're just trying to stay busy...and I think we've done a pretty good job of that.  I finished painting the top of this lovely console storage cabinet yesterday, which is now up for grabs in Denver (see my Etsy shop and Craigslist post for details). 

 



This is my favorite piece of furniture! I hate to give it up but we have to clear things out for the baby-on-the-way.

I painted the top turquoise and added an original branch and floral design in white. I antiqued the surface and gave it some clear protective wax.

There are eight small drawers and three cabinets...making it the perfect piece of furniture for an entry way or small dining room.



The bottom portion has a white-wash finish and is a beautiful gray color.

 

I wasn't the only one getting crafty yesterday.  My husband, Matt, has gotten on the crafty bandwagon himself.  I never in my life thought I'd see him modge podging while watching football and drinking beer on a Saturday...and I love it! 

 

Several months ago I purchased some antique looking golf clubs at Goodwill thinking they would look nice on our media room walls.  Of course, Matt has is own super creative ideas for the golf clubs and ran with them.  He created a beautiful shadow box in which the golf clubs are suspended. 

 

 

He stained the wood dark brown and added a nice trim to the outer rim.  He also added pages from Harvey Penick's Little Red Book (a famous golf read) to the background and trim using Modge Podge and we suspended the clubs with finishing line (which was a complete nightmare, but worth it).

 

I love how the track lighting hits the shadow box perfectly!

We decided to add the little red book to the center to add a pop of color and it looks perfect above our TV!

Well, that's all for today...we're off to distract ourselves from this waiting game.  Happy Sunday!

White End Table With Dark Glaze Reveal

I've finally finished one of the pieces of furniture that I purchased months ago.  It's given me quite the headache, but I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out.  It's definitely one of my "funkier" pieces to date with its bold black glaze and hardware that really make the details in the doors and trim pop!  Hopefully it will find an owner that appreciates the hours of painting and glazing that went into the piece and is proud to show it off!



 

The end table is extremely sturdy with two cabinet doors that swing open.

The black glaze really makes the details in the doors pop and the hardware matches the antique look perfectly. 

It's solid wood and both sides and the back are painted and glazed with the same technique.

Here's a shot of the inside of the cabinet, which would be perfect for storing DVDs or board games!

The piece is for sale on Craigslist for only $100.  Let me know if you're interested! 

Oh, and here is a the "before" photo...yikes!!

In the meantime, I'll just be sitting here waiting for this baby to arrive.  I have just about four days until my due date and I'm starting to think that I'll be one of the 70% of women who go past their due dates...arg. 

Thrift Store TV Tray Make Over

As I mentioned the other day, I finally finished my TV Tray make over project, which took much longer than expected (as usual).  There were several steps involved in completing each of the four tables though, including collecting enough beer and wine bottles for the collages!

 

 

I found these old school TV Trays at the ARC for 50% off and thought they'd come in handy for our media room / Man Cave (although my husband won't let me call it the man cave anymore as the baby toys and rockers continue to take over!!!).  

 

I painted each table burnt orange since my husband is obsessed with Texas football.  Then, I soaked off the labels of what seemed like hundreds of beer and wine bottles. Hint: If you soak the beer bottles in a sink filled with oxi-clean and water, they literally float right off - so easy!).

 

 

Once dried, I used Modge Podge to glue the labels to the tops of each of the TV trays.  This was my first experience with Modge Podge, but I found it quite easy to use.  The hardest part is just creating the "puzzle" with the labels and getting them to match up just the way you want them to.  It was quite tedious work (but right up this nerdy girl's alley)!

 

 But, I'm really happy with the way each of the tables turned out - and they add a lot of much needed color to the man cave play room.  I do think I need to seal them with something though, so if you have any ideas/experience, I'm open to suggestions.  I'm thinking that I'll do a coat or two of poly (after I have this baby)!

Speaking of baby, we're getting really close to my due date now, which is just 11 days away!  I'm not sure this belly can get any bigger!  Apparently, Billie is the size of a watermelon these days, which I just love thinking about before I go in to labor. :0 Whoever decided that was a good comparison was drunk (and male).

 

I did enjoy one perk of being pregnant last night when I went to meet some friends for happy hour at Max's in Wash Park.  I enjoyed two dollar tacos and some great company for over three hours - and my total bill was literally only $2.  I'm still in shock - as my usual happy hour bill would be around $30 or $40 bucks probably (and would be followed by a hangover)!  haha.

 

Until next time...

Weekend Recap

Well, I had a productive weekend around the house and was able to make some progress on some Annetique Designs projects.

I painted the new hand rails on the stairs white and just need to add a little bit of artwork to complete the area.  And I need to replace that nasty carpet. 

I'm going to paint my thrift store mirror turquoise (I think) and hang it on the wall that faces the top of the stairs.  I found it at the ARC for a few dollars and just noticed that there's still a $40 price tag on the back from World Market (not a bad find).

I also want to paint the wooden stairs to add a little character to the area.  Below is an inspiration photo that I grabbed off of Pinterest from Sunshine and Pearls.

And here are the stairs now...they could use some color IMO.

I also sold my white Drexel dresser on Craigslist - this one was extremely popular!  And my neighbor is actually going to take it for her nursery! 

I'll share some photos of my completed beer bottle TV stands ASAP...along with the red end table that I'm working on.  Overall it was a great weekend - just flew by a little too fast as usual.

The Completed Nursery

I am so excited that the nursery is about 99% complete! 

I just need to add some photos to the frames above the dresser but decided to wait until Billie is born so that we can have some cute pics of her w/ our family members who are planning to visit in October and November!

We actually refinished and painted the dresser/changing table ourselves.  We purchased the unfinished dresser at IKEA and stained it with Mini Wax gray stain.  Matt painted the knobs white - and we couldn't be happier with the way it turned out.

Only a couple of more weeks until I get to sit with my sweet baby girl in the rocker and read her stories.

I love the Billie goat that my mom sent me...and found it quite appropriate.  My crazy dog already chewed off its eye ball, but luckily I found it and glued it back on.  I guess that's just a glimpse of what the future holds once we start mixing baby toys and Yorkie-Poos...good times.

I finally found a bed skirt and some sheets that I like from Pottery Barn Kids.  The colors are subtle and neutral and match all of the décor in the room nicely.

I'd like to find a way to hide those ugly electric cords, but other than that, I'm loving the room! 

These last couple of weeks are pretty surreal.  It's very quite around the house and I'm getting extremely bored with the daily grind.  It feels like something (or someone) is missing since it's so quite and the nursery is completely empty.  The swing, pack-n-play and rocker are set up...just waiting for a little munchkin to try them out.  I've stocked up on essential oils, massagers and lavender scented everything to help me relax now and during labor.  We've met with our doulas and midwives and have toured not one, but two hospitals to prepare for the big day.  We've practiced CPR on plastic babies, practiced swaddling on a real baby and sat through a birthing class with 20 other preggo people at the hospital.  I've filled the closet and dresser with precious baby clothes, swaddles, sleep sacks, sleep pods and whatever other sleepy fleecy things I could find.  I've purchased nursing bras and comfy pajamas and have forced my family members to get stabbed with flu shot and T-Dap vaccines.  My belly is huge all of the sudden and Billie is squirming around non-stop.  Everyone I see asks me immediately, "when are you due?" and I feel like I should have 10/21 tattooed to my forehead.  But, it's been a wonderful journey and I've been blessed with an easy pregnancy...and I know the best is yet to come.  I'm sure I'll look back at this post and laugh about how prepared I thought I was...and wish that I could be "bored" again.  ;)  Until then, let's just hope I find some fun ways to pass the time and look at the bright side while we wait.

Happy October

Oh my - it's October! Our baby's birth month is FINALLY here!  I feel like I have been pregnant since the beginning of time.  I'm doing everything I can to prepare and am starting to understand why people say you'll never actually be ready.  We have (almost) everything sorted out on the home front, and with our doctors, and we've done our reading, and now I am just trying to plan my transition at the office. 

Have you ever had to plan three months of your day job ON TOP of your day job?  It's really not fun and is making my head spin.  Each day flies by faster than the previous and I just don't think there are enough hours in the day to get everything organized for the 13+ weeks that I'm gone! 

Now onto the fun part of my day - putting the finishing touches on the nursery.  I'll post better pictures later this week, but here is a collage that gives you a little glimpse of the room.  I decided to leave the frames empty for now - as I'd really like to fill them with photos of our friends family with Billie once she's here!

Tomorrow should be an eventful day as we're finalizing my car sale (we sold my Jeep on eBay) and I have my first appointment with the midwives at St. Joe's hospital.  I sure hope everything runs smoothly now that I've finalized the caregiver switch at 37 weeks (eek!).  I have a feeling everything will work out just fine though. 

Weekend Update

Another weekend just flew by - how does this keep happening?  I suppose time is going by so quickly because our baby is due in just three weeks - and we are sooooooooooo ready for her to get here!  My niece, Lee Ellen, was born in Austin this weekend and is doing great - I suppose we're next on the baby train.

I finally finished the curtains for Billie's nursery and found some sheets.  The only thing we have left to do in the nursery is fill her frames with photos! 

I was able to work on a few projects this weekend as well:

• I finally finished the beer/wine label covered TV trays which have been sitting around unfinished for months.  I bought the TV trays at Goodwill and have been salvaging beer bottle labels which I modge podged to the top of each tray.  Now I just need to paint the base and add a protective coat to the surface! 
• I added some contact paper to our laundry room shelf in an attempt to get the laundry area a bit more organized.  We have a LOT to do in this "room" but that will come after the office, I suppose.
• I started painting the floral settee!  Yes, I am painting fabric with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint.  Right now it looks terrible because I'm trying to paint off-white over a dark print, but I'm hoping it will look nice after a few coats.  I had originally planned to reupholster the piece, but thought I'd give this a shot first since it would be much more cost effective and hopefully easier. 
• Matt added a handrail to the staircase, which I just need to paint.  Hopefully, my dad finds it helpful when they come to visit next month to help with the baby.
• Matt also added some trim to our IKEA shelves in the mudroom to give it a more finished look!
• And we scheduled some one from Home Depot to come out and take measurements for our office blinds - it's time to cover that nastiness!  I'm just going to have them replicate the blinds that we installed in the media room.

Here are a few photos from our weekend projects! 

Next on the list:

• Order frames for Billie's room
• Paint hand rails
• Finish painting the settee
• Finish the TV trays
• Sell some completed furniture (red end table, black chairs, white chest of drawers)

The Office

It's hard to believe that we've lived in our house for 2 1/2 years and our office still looks like this!! 
 

We replaced the carpet and had the walls painted (a very boring color), but that's about it.  It hurts to look at these photos - I hate it so much!!

The closet comes in handy though since our "master closet" is about 3 feet wide and can only fit my in-season clothes!!  And I'm not sure what's going on on the right with the cheap built-in shelves, but that's obviously where we store our suit cases.

The windows make me want to vomit and the dry wall damage makes me want to cry - because we've already had the dry wall repaired once (and the recent flooding did us in again)!  And don't even get me started on the light fixture.

I do, however, love the desk and chair that I inherited from my grandmother (although I think it needs a little re-staining work).  And we FINALLY hung the wall organizer that my boss gave me, which will be great for organizing paperwork, envelopes and other office supplies.

Well, I'm finally determined to take on this nasty room now that we have just over 3 weeks of sitting around waiting for this baby to make an arrival!  Of course, I've been scouring Pinterest for months and months and have a few ideas that should at least help me get started.

I've been debating over what to hang on the walls for some time now and love this simple IKAT fabric "art work."  I ordered several swatches online today and can't wait for them to arrive. I'm not quite sure where we would have room for something like this but we shall see.

I'm also loving these painted/uphostered chairs from Miss Mustard Seed....

...and would love to do something similar with my little thrift store love seat that I purchased for $40 over a year ago in Idaho Springs.

Look at all of the beautiful details!

The only problem is, I don't know how to reupholster or sew.  Ruh roh.  But, I need to learn and I kind of want to give it a shot (with my mom's help).  Crazy, I know.  But, if it looks like poo 1) I'm not sure if I would care that much because no one ever goes in our basement 2) I can always have it professionally reupholstered.  I just don't feel like paying someone $700 (plus the price of materials) to have done when it could be a fun little experiment. 

I also have some unfinished, plane-Jane magazine file boxes that I plan to cover with a fun fabric (thanks to organizingmadefun.com for the tutorial).   

I'll keep ya posted as the plans come together.  Our first (not-so-fun) step is to replace the carpet pad that got ruined in the flood and probably add some base boards! 

Well, it's been a busy couple of weeks around the Buchanan household.  And, unfortunately, I haven't had much time to take on any new arts and crafts projects.  We've been trying to complete the nursery, which has involved many trips to Bed, Bath and Beyond, Target, IKEA, Pottery Barn Kids, the Container Store, etc.  I think I purchased nine different curtains and three different curtain rods before finding the right match.  And I'm still having a hard time finished them as I'm combining some sheer beige curtains with black out shades - and I don't know how to sew (definitely one thing I hope to learn in the new future).  Anyways, I think I'll have them finished tomorrow and will be sure to post some pictures.

We also had some water damage from all of the rain that we received in CO and I am trying to clean up that mess.  I am one of those people who can't focus on new projects until the house is in order, and it looked like a hurricane went through just about every room, which made taking on any new projects impossible.  There was a small leak in our new mudroom ceiling, which created a giant hole in the dry wall.  We also had some water damage in our basement (in the basement).  The dry wall was damaged and the carpet pad was destroyed.  We had to rip up the carpet to dry it out and remove all of the furniture - so it's a complete disaster.  But, it could have been worse, I suppose. 

Luckily, I have the day off today, so I'm going to take a load to Goodwill and get organized.  We also have to sell my car, get a ski rack on Matt's Four Runner and do some last minute baby prep.  We're going to try and be a one car family now that we are the proud owners of this bad boy. 

Everyone in my family hates my Jeep and complains about how unsafe it is and I'm tired of hearing them bitch, so I'm just letting Matt sell it.  I guess I don't need to be driving little Billie around in a car that vibrates downhill, has a broken passenger door lock and makes ridiculous noises when I drive over speed bumps.