It was only a matter of time before I had to bring my blue and white obsession into my Christmas Decor! So a red, white, and blue Christmas was born!

I’m going to let the pictures do the talking but this wasn’t a complete overhaul of Christmas decor.  I simply added in a few more blue accents, like the blue and white ribbon on the tree and then adding the blue wrapping paper instantly brought it more into the spotlight! And can we talk about this wrapping paper from Emily McCarthy?! It felt as if bells were ringing when I saw it! It is more expensive but I just bought a few sheets of it and then accented it with the plaids.

I kept the other items in the living room simple and let the tree be the star, but of course the mantel got in on the fun! You may notice that Momma got a new mirror for Christmas and I’m fairly obsessed with it just like the wrapping paper.

These wood prayer beads from Sugarboo and Co. were the only major decor I added this year and the best part is that they aren’t just Christmas decor, they will be out year round and can be moved around.  So these were worth every penny and I can see them in my home forever!

And of course the Dining Room had to have some Christmas cheer after it’s big make-over this last year that you can see here (sources included).  This room is ready for a feast and lets face it… a cocktail!

I got these cocktail shakers as an early Christmas present and I love how they look like hob nob but aren’t… and hello? Blue!  I will share how I styled them on my bar cart next week!

I hope you enjoyed the Christmas tour and now you can hope over to these other fabulous ladies for even more inspiration!

Christmas Tour Participants:

At Home with The Barkers | Windgate Lane | Cottage In The Oaks

Petticoat Junktion | Restoration Redoux | Girl in the Garage

The Robins Nest Design’s | Paper Daisy Design

Happy Holidays to you all!

xoxo

B

The post Red, White, and Blue Christmas appeared first on Windgate Lane.

This piano sits in the entryway of the home and her style is very classic but with pops of greens and blues and blacks.  It seemed like an easy solution to go black but leave some wood accents to pull in the gorgeous wood floors that lead into the family room.

This project took longer than I had hoped because this sucker sucked up paint like nobody has ever seen! But when you have a fun friend to chat with while working it makes it go fast

I began by taping off the areas that would remain unpainted- and instead of taping on the keys, I used a trusty costco paper plate to slide along while I painted in front of them.

I gave everywhere a quick coat of Annie Sloan’s Graphite.  I would describe it as a very dark grey.  I always do a quick coat first because I just use that as a base coat.  I then did two more coats (remember it liked to eat paint) and then the next day came back to do a coat of dark walnut stain over it.  I wanted it to look slightly imperfect because it is clearly an older piece, but this also gave it a glossier black look.

Another day and another coat of stain- and then she got a nice coat of poly! Such a pretty lady, and looks just beautiful in their entry way!

I hope y’all are having a wonderful day!

xoxo

B

The post Painted Piano appeared first on Windgate Lane.

I recently saw this painted lamp by Jana Bek and fell completely in LOVE! It’s so simple, yet a show stopper in my eyes!  New Lamp + Painting = YES.

The price however left a single tear running down my cheek… $400.

But imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, yes?  So I have kept an eye out for something in a similar shape for quite awhile but only recently saw one that I decided to try it out on!  A smaller version for my little guy who loves anything and everything art related:)

There was an incident awhile ago that caused the lamp in his room to be ‘retired’ so I could even classify this project as a need!  Can you hear the justifications just running through my mind?

I found this lamp at Hobby Lobby (on sale of course) for $12.  Nice shape and not to bulky for his dresser.  Wrong color, but that’s what paint is for!

I painted it with Annie Sloan Pure White about three times.  I kept trying to decide if I should just spray paint it, but was afraid I wouldn’t get the brushstroke look with the navy to look right over it.  Don’t forget… it always looks worse before it gets better!:)

After it was fully coated, I sanded it down just a little and wiped it off- then nervously took a paint brush and just went to town painting haphazard swirls in Annie Sloan Aubusson Blue! I didn’t want to many because it is a smaller version and I wanted the pattern to stay simple.  I then put on a coat of Mod Podge Dimensional Top Coat (affiliate link) – this stuff is awesome and gives a really pretty, glossy top coat- I also used it on my Faux Agate Bookends.

So are you ready? yes, of course you are… you have probably already scrolled past my babbling… Here it is!

Clearly it isn’t in my 5yr old’s room in these photos but there are few more things I wanted to finish in there before I showed it all off:)  But now that I am seeing it here… I want them everywhere!!

I really do love finding such lovely inspiration and am now a huge fan of Bek Designs! Mine may not be the real deal, but I do love it and so does my boy, so win win:)

And who doesn’t love a good before and after?!

Hope you are having a wonderful day!

xoxo

B

Linking too:

Think and Make Thursdays

Pretty Preppy Party

The post Brushstroke Painted Lamp Make-Over appeared first on Windgate Lane.

If you are popping over from Jen at The Chronicles of Home, welcome!

I was the lucky recipient of her thrifting find in this fun
blog swap!

A couple of my fabulous blogging friends came up with a fun idea to pass our thriftiness around and challenge each other!
So we were all given a medium (wood, metal, or glass) and we had to find something thrifted and under $15 to send to the next person in our order.

Jen sent me something that I loved so much I hated to do too much to it! This awesome metal tray arrived and my brain went in about 20 different directions on what to do with it! At first I was going to hang it on the wall and make magnets to clip up notes on it-  I thought about making it a clock too.

My inspiration finally struck though because of a summer party and the tray’s original purpose:)  I wanted to make it versatile though- so I found some different fabrics I had and settled on the black and white I was given by the Online Fabric Store last year at the Haven conference (you can read about that here).

I love it and and want to incorporate more black and white in our home so it was perfect.

Tutorial:
I traced around the tray on the fabric and then cut out the circle.  I then covered the front with Mod Podge and after it dried, I did the same on the back.  I wanted it to hold its shape and then be able to spray it with a water proof sealant so that it would be fine if it got wet.  What I love is that I can change it out whenever I want to go with whatever party theme we are having! And it made my little unused plant table into a tray table/ bar cart.
I also taped off the legs and painted them a fun English Yellow by Annie Sloan and then taped off a square pattern for interest on the bottom shelf using a gorgeous mint green (Cosmopolitan) by Velvet Finishes.

Happy Summer!! Hop on over to Jess at Gourley Girl and Guy to see what fun surprises she got from me!

And here is the whole list of lovely ladies participating- so make sure you check them all out!

• Jessica at Gourley Girl and Guy
• Charlotte at Ciburbanity
• Christina at Homemade Ocean
• Bee at Windgate Lane
• Dena at Hearts and Sharts
• Danielle at Two Little Superheroes
• Jen at Chronicles of Home
• Melody at My Passion For Décor
• Lindsay at The White Buffalo Styling Co.
• Jessica at Decor Adventures

xoxo
B

The post Thrift Store Make-Overs appeared first on Windgate Lane.

One of my closest friends was in love with the Pottery Barn American Flag art… with good reason, so pretty!
But as a lot of us can sympathize… not in love with the price!
She is one of the most giving people that I know- a truly selfless person- and has done so much for our family- so I wanted to give back to her.  This may be a random way- but it’s something I could surprise her with because she rarely asks for anything in return!
So off to Lowes I (we) went. (The boys and I may or may not have been banned from the plumbing section… don’t ask).  I searched the molding isle and even considered using fence planks- but she wanted it above her mantel and I wanted the look without the weight.  At that point, I remembered that I had some scrap wood at home that was fairly thin and could probably do the job.  I just bought some smaller pieces to attach it all together for support.
So… behold my version! Below you will find the tutorial:)

3.  Once those are dry- attach all sections together- once the glue is tacky (it might still come apart but just rest them together) lay the two cross boards across the back with liquid nails on them and place heavy books or soup cans on the top to apply pressure until dry.

9.  Then on another paper plate (see!) I mixed some Annie Sloan Napoleonic Blue with a bit of water, and did fast brushes over that whole section.  Once that was on- I immediately started pulling up the paper stars- which left a rugged star! yay!

10.  I then watered down both the Annie Sloan Pure White and the Emperors Silk Red and did very quick coverage over the stripes- because I wanted it to look weathered and be able to see the wood stain through.

11.  Attach hangers to the back and you are done!

Have you done any summer decorating? I am working on another staining project that will include a giveaway so stay tuned for that!
xoxo
B

Linking up to:
Twirl and Take a Bow

The post Scrap Wood American Flag appeared first on Windgate Lane.

Because I didn’t want everything to be matchy in his room- I really just tried some things out on these and finally settled on a warm stain on the drawer fronts and Annie Sloan Pure White on the sides and base.  The top is where I had a little fun! I am going to shock you all and let you in on a little secret… I don’t really like chevron… are you done gasping? I said it.  It’s just not my fave pattern- but I wanted something simple and fun for the top of these and decided an arrow pattern might work.  Now this time I did actually do a little measuring- I started by placing a line at the center and then taping back from there.

Once again, I painted over the tape lines with the white paint so that the blue would then not bleed through.  I still had some Annie Sloan Napolianic Blue left, so I used that.  After two coats, I pulled off the tape and then gave them all a good coat of Minwax Poly.

And if you are confused- yes- I did two of these for each side of his bed- You can see the whole room reveal Here and Here!
Some of you caught a sneak peak of me working on this on Instagram- if you want more sneak peaks of up coming projects- follow along here @WindgateLane .
Hope you are having a great day!!
xoxo
B

Linking to:
Twirl and Take a Bow
The Dedicated House

The post Ikea Rast Hack appeared first on Windgate Lane.

And here is a fun little girl’s desk!  They are going to pick out the hardware once she is all set up:)

The post Roll Top Revived appeared first on Windgate Lane.

Yes, I know an Ikea Hack is getting to be an everyday occurrence but it is nice to pay a very decent amount and then get to personalize a piece of furniture that may or may not last very long… remember the hide and seek incident?
I picked up the Tarva Dresser- larger than his last one which is nice- and ready for whatever I wanted to do to it!
Ikea Tarva:

I was not planning on having to buy new furniture, so I wanted to be very frugal with this project and that meant paint I already had would have to work. I had some Annie Sloan Paris Grey and some Country Grey- so I mixed them together and then painted the body of it.  (oh and clearly this was after I assembled the whole thing;)

I decided I wanted some white accents- so I got to work painting the legs and base Annie Sloan Pure White and as usual couldn’t leave well enough alone- so I decided to paint stripes down the center.  I used my 3M tape (affiliate) and very un-scientifically taped it out! (meaning I hate measuring and really just eyeballed it) I used my taping stripes trick and after I got the tape in place, I first lightly painted over the tape lines with the grey color so that the white would not bleed through- works every time!

After my stripes were done I went on a hardware hunt! I didn’t care for the wood knobs that came with it and was going for a preppy collegiate kind of look so I wanted to find some gold pulls.  Home Depot and Martha Stewart always pull through (see what I did there?).
I chose these:

they look a lot more brassy in this pic than they are.  I used two on each drawer and to make life easier I used the holes already there as the outer hole of each pull- make sense? I then used my 3M tape to make a mock up of the hole placement! This makes it so much easier because then you can just put the tape on the spot (making sure it is level) and color in the holes and then drill!

I’m pretty happy with how this puppy turned out and more importantly, my boy is happy! No more squishing clothes in his smaller dresser and strategically, I bought one that would not offer any options of hiding in it… hopefully.
You are also about to see two other of my Ikea finds- a gorgeous lamp (obsessed) and also a $40 chair to give my guy a place to hang out:) Can’t beat that price!

Hope you all have a great week!
xoxo
B

Linking to:
The Dedicated House

The post Preppy Classic Ikea Dresser appeared first on Windgate Lane.

This may be my favorite Ikea Hack that I have ever done- my Faux Card Catalog! I had watched, dreamed, hoped, and prayed to find an old library card catalog for about 8 gabillion years.

You see, I had a stint as a middle school librarian and fell in love with all things books.  We can revisit my librarian career at a later time as you are probably now picturing me with a bun, glasses, and hunch back.

Anyhoo… the only card catalogs I have found have been super duper expensive and y’all know my CFO is not having that.  So what is a girl to do? Duh! Make my own!  Now if you want to get all technical, it is not a working card catalog- but it has at least stopped my shakes for having my very own.

We have owned this Ikea Hemnes Shoe holder for about 5 years now and it was a bit beat down as we mainly used it for diapers and baby gear and such in our front hall.  I love it because it is so slim and doesn’t take up too much space- but it definitely needed a make-over so it was the perfect piece to give this idea of mine a try.

And because I love peppering in the old with new- I threw in this Target rug to have a fun contrast!

Tutorial:

The tutorial is fairly simple-

Remove drawers and gave them a light sanding.

Buy 4  12×12 thin wood scraps from Hobby Lobby ($12) and cut into 4 6×6’s.

Use liquid nails to glue them to each drawer front.

Two quick coats of paint- I did a mixture of Annie Sloan Chalk Paints- primarily Paris Grey, with a bit of French Linen and Louis Blue.

A coat of Poly (My favorite Poly Used here on a Two Toned Side Table and here on a French Provincial Hutch).  I used it instead of wax for time reasons and because it gets a lot of traffic and I wanted to be able to wipe it down easily.

The hardware is where my cost became challenging.  I needed 16 pulls so I got creative after doing  some research.  I found some small ones similar to These from Amazon.  I did Gold Rub n Buff on them to make them look a bit more antiqued.
End Scene.

I am just gonna say it… I love it.

Hope you are all having an amazing day!
xoxo
B

Original photos taken:

Linking To:

East Coast Creative- Creating With the Stars!
DIY Showoff

The post Faux Card Catalog appeared first on Windgate Lane.

I won’t relive it again today but feel free to click back.  I loved the Annie Sloan paint that I put on it but used some fabric I just had on hand at the time because I wasn’t entirely sure where I wanted the chair- but now she has a home and she was given a shocking make- over! Big surprise…. I used Buffalo Check fabric!! ok, ok… not a big surprise… I am obsessed… but it looks really nice and doesn’t take away from the great detail in the chair.  I got this fabric after about 10 trips to my Ikea to see if it was back in stock- cause when it says its in stock- it’s not necessarily in stock… take my word for it!

But for $7 a yard, it was worth the wait! Can’t wait to show you the whole room soon. One project at a time is painful for me- I usually want to do everything the instant I think of it! Do you work slow and steady or fast and furious?

And because I have vowed to tell truth in my DIY adventures- I have to disclose that I had all of the fabric laid out and ready to staple around the chair pad and was thwarted by not one, but two different staplers that wouldn’t work… not nice words were mumbled but after a trip to Home Depot, I was back in business… two days later… cause I have kids… I’m not bitter…

xoxo
B

The post Chippendale Chair: Take 2. appeared first on Windgate Lane.