Trash Day Finds!

People can be so wasteful. Some of the best furniture I have found has been on the side of the road. Chairs, bookshelves, tables and chest of drawers. I found this (see below) one rainy afternoon. I ended up dropping it getting the thing into the element. Finally its all back together and clean. I'm always looking for that new project :) 

* one step closer to a great coffee table *

before

  

almost there (needs ~sweet! legs)

Art for less?

Large Modern art can run a few more dollars than you want to spend. So why not make you own!  It is so fun and easy. All you need is paint, canvas and your kids. Kids have a great time with this project and the end result is stunning on a blank wall. 

An afternoon with my 2 year old 

After he painted the canvas we sprayed it down with the water hose and added the white paint 

 I painted the circle but the boys help paint the background. This circle is a symbol of family and love (Ha Ha lion king) 

This is a large 5 X 7 ft  canvas. And the boys had a blast throwing paint. 

All the canvas are recycled and all the paint was old house paint or older project paint. 

All this art was FREE! 

pretty red chairs

                                        All the hard work payed off on these pretty chairs! 

Get back on that Post

Gosh.. Has it really been a month since my last post. I played graphic designer for a few weeks last month. Now back to freelance and happy homes 24/7. I really did miss flea markets. Simple seems to be my nature.

This chair was found at a flea market. After looking it over and seeing it was a vintage ethan allan (i had to have it and re-upholstery it.) So many fabrics to pick.....

 A new spray paint has been calling my name. what to do... what to do.. maybe a trip to ikea will cure my no job blues.

Neglect (Hey life happens)

Yes I have neglected "happy Home" for a few weeks now. But its time to roll up my pant legs and get back to work! Life happens but I still have ideas and lots of projects locked in my brain. Because as of last Monday I am a full time employee as a "graphic artist".  So go ahead, put your hand on your computer screen.... Did you feel it... I just gave you a high five from this end. HA! I love the new job. And don't worry Happy Home will still have me. 


GREAT NEWS
The Chairs are DONE! Man, those Cherry Reds got topped with 5 inches of foam. Really great for the bum-bum.

FOAM

          Old Chair Meets New Chair     

So eight chairs that really needed to get "junked" all got a new make over. It took 10 months from start to finish. I cant even go on to tell you how bad these suckers looked. Think of black tar, gum and o yes fire damage.  4 I saved for us. Meme has two (they still need to be stained) and two I sold. 

  Two cute chairs but look at those BOYS! 

Make sure you take note of the 55 inch tv- thats how you can tell there is a man around

to build!

Found this on http://ana-white.com/
 Going to build it soon!

Benchright Table!

ooo chairs!

Love Love Love how the chairs are coming! 5 Inches of foam to top these red cherries!  Maybe all in time for Thanksgiving.

Boys train table

I love turning old furniture into new pieces with new life! A thrift store coffee table (only $4.99) seemed to be tall enough for the Boys Train Table! Man was it a joke fitting this LONNNNG table into my element with both boys in the back strapped into their car seats! I'm a nut to the people at that thrift store. I always seem to buy the largest thing  I can and insist on No help with it to the car! Jack giggled all the way home because he could put up his feet. HA!  When we got it home. The boys and I gave it a nice sand and out came Ivy Green spray paint. After the paint dried I nailed down the train tracks. ( I do believe in open/creative play but my boys like, love, to throw EVERYTHING)

Endless hours of Fun!

ikea ... i love it

I love ikea! anyone with a brain does. http://www.ikeahackers.net/ is great and will get your ideas going on how to hack your own ikea projects..

Here are my own ikea hacks.

I used two of these to make this....

 Large chest of drawers.  

Next - Kids pillows.. Two yards of ikea fabric and a hot summer afternoon

in Sarah's sewing room.

Thanks Sarah!

What to do with all that old paint!

You know i have it! a Lot of spray paint! I have a project for you!

-old table
-old spray paint
-painter tape
-time ( like 15mins)

I'm thinking of turning it into a coffee table !

Bird Art for $2.00

As you all know, I have two boys. Their ages are 3 and 1 year. When it comes to the design of a kid(s) room you have to think of the aesthetics of a kid. Adventure, Color Identification, Simple shapes.

The walls in my kids room have nothing on them but paint. For $2.00 of felt fabric and some time. I made some graphic organic art for their walls.  You can do this too. All you need is

-a stick from your yard.
-an outline of a bird (copy it from the Internet)
-whatever color felt you want
-pillow stuffing ( or old socks)
-fishing line
-Cup hooks (for hanging the stick on the wall)

Trace the bird outline on to the felt. Sew the two pieces together. Leaving a little space for you to stuff the socks (pillow stuffing) in. Sew the rest up. Hang with fishing line and tie around your stick! TA DA! Graphic and Organic all at the same time!

Style Vs. Longevity

Pottery Barn design is beautiful but I believe you Can design your Dream Home for less. You have to think long term. What is popular now might not be so hot in 5 years. This is were style Vs. longevity comes to play. Pick a sofa or large scale furniture that is neutral in color and (or) traditional in design. You can not go wrong with traditional furniture. You can always accent with the newest colors and styles of the season. Ikea and American Signature Furniture are great places to buy large scale furniture for low prices. This way you can buy those pricey pillow covers from Pottery Barn. If your a smart shopping some of these those pieces will last years. Now all you have to worry about is leather Vs. fabric?

 Happy Shopping.

I will be the first to tell you that I'm addicted to chairs! That's right chairs! Not just any chair but chairs that are way pasted their due date! I love how they have seen so many people (butts) in their time. A great place for chairs is your local thrift store. In this case I bought 8 chairs for $50 dollars on eBay. The lines on these chairs are perfect for the dinning room! They are really ruffed up but with some good elbow grease, paint and do i dare say (time). They will look great! Two of the chairs are already Cherry red! Love love love it! what do you think?

WELCOME!

Welcome to Happy Home! I love interior design. This blog will make your home happy! Have you ever walked into a a home and felt happy? This blog with hopefully jump start your ideas behind that pottery barn magazine! You will get the look you want in your home for less. I'm talking pennies off a dollars, roll up your sleeves and put your kid in their baby backpack.Good DIY fun!