Dresser Rehab: Finally Finished

I FINALLY finished the rehab project on my Craigslist dresser.

It was hard work.

But it only took me 3 months :)

Here's a reminder of how it looked when I bought it...

It was in such sad shape: peeling paint, missing knobs, red stains from an unknown substance, and drawers that didn't work. 

But it had great bones. 

So I scraped

and scraped

and scraped.

Then I sanded

and sanded

and sanded.

  

Then I painted two coats of primer and three coats of semi-gloss white paint on it.

I managed to fix almost all of the drawers glides by using a screw driver to some WD-40.

I only had to replace one of the glides because it was beyond repair. 

Thank goodness because they run about $5.00/each for new glides!

After scrubbing the heck out of the insides of the drawers to get them clean, 

I added some contact paper {from Target} to the bottoms to make them look super crisp and clean.

I picked out and ordered some classic oil rubbed bronze knobs and handles off of Ebay 

{Ebay has GREAT deals on cabinet hardware if you are ever in the market for some!}.

I chose hardware that looks really simple and classic since there are a lot of details on the dresser itself.

And after ALL of that hard work, here is how the dresser turned out...

Here is a before and after for comparison...

Oh and here's my old piece-o-junk that it replaced...

 

Much better, don't ya think??

{Hopefully I can get someone to buy that old thing!}

I am so in love with how it turned out.

Thank goodness I didn't toss in the towel half way through the project.

In the future, however, if I see a piece of furniture that needs massive rehab like this one did, 

I probably will run the other direction!


Here's the cost breakdown:
Dresser: $20
Stripping Supplies: $36
Paint Supplies: $37
Knobs/Pulls: $20 {included shipping}
Contact Paper: $5
Drawer Glide: $5

TOTAL: $123

My new dresser kinda reminds me of the one of been drooling over at Pottery Barn... 

 Except that one is priced at $1,199.

I think I like mine better anyways.

Linking up to:
Fingerprints on the Fridge Features Yourself Friday
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday 
Transformation Thursday at the Shabby Chic Cottage 
Hookin' up with HoH #18 
The DIY Project Parade
Thrifty Tickle: Vintage Suitcase Friday 

Fall Wreath Choices...

This is the fall wreath that adorns our front door every year...

and while I love it, it is getting pretty tattered. 

You can't really see it in the picture, but all of the little berry balls have split open, revealing their styrofoam innards.

I'm thinking it may be time for a replacement, 

so I am contemplating making one of these beauties...

Martha Stewart gives a TUTORIAL on her website on how to make this corn husk wreath.

 

I like the look of this non-traditional wreath. It is made using a Styrofoam wreath form with wine corks and dried flowers attached using a glue gun.

This classic dried flower vine wreath is made by doing three groupings of dried hydrangea, grasses, berries, and blossoms that are attached with wire or hot glue to a grapevine wreath base.

This wreath can be constructed on a flat cardboard form using a glue gun. Simply layer on objects from back to front, starting with the artificial (or preserved) fall leaves.

This one could be made for very cheap...all you would need is a wreath form and some artificial sunflowers. The leaves are free because they are real leaves that have been preserved (click here to find out how to preserve leaves)!

How easy would it be to make this wreath by using a simple vine wreath and attaching faux berry branches to it?

The wheat bundle wreath wouldn't take much skill to make. Just attach some sunflowers and ribbon to a bundle of wheat.

Not sure I would hang this one one my front door...wouldn't want birds all over my front porch, but it would look cute on a fence or hanging in a garden.

A horseshoe shaped wheat grass wreath can be made using this TUTORIAL from BHG.

This wreath could be re-created by attaching miniature pumpkins to a circular vine wreath.

(images from the 9 wreaths above came from bhg.com)

An expensive Pottery Barn fall wreath that I'm sure could be replicated for about 1/10th the price!

This looks like a simple wreath made out of preserved or artificial leaves, but if you look closely, it is actually made out of scrapbook paper that was cut into leaf shapes using a Cricut. See this YouTube video on how to make a wreath using your Cricut.

And I love the unique design of this wreath (found at D. Reyne's) made out of pages from an old book.

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Choices, choices, choices.

I think I'm leaning towards a wreath made out of book pages.

What's your favorite??

Craigslist Treasures

How lucky are we that our world has Craigslist in it!?

Where would we be without it?

Would we have to search the newspaper classifieds to find the junk we were looking for?

Would we have to park the items we wanted to sell on the side of the road with a FOR SALE sign on them?

Would we drive around aimlessly looking for yard sales?

I can't even imagine a life without it.

I'm joking, of course, but Craigslist sure does make buying and selling used 'stuff' a whole heck of a lot easier.

This weekend, I scored a bunch of cool stuff, thanks to my friend Craig.

I bought the coffee table for 5 bucks!! 

Sure, it's a little beat up and needs some TLC, but I've got big plans for it.

The main reason I got it was because I loved its legs.

So even if I scrap the whole thing and only use the legs, it was still a bargain at $5.

Everything else I found at a yard sale that was listed on Craigslist.

It actually turned out to be an antique sale that a woman was holding  in her barn.

After digging through her barn that was filled with treasures, I found this little stool.

I had originally purchased it thinking I would paint it, but it is so full of character that I might just keep it like it is. 

I love how the top of it is all wavy from years of use.

I have the perfect spot for it (I'll show you later!).

I have been keeping my eyes peeled for old wooden sodas crates for a long time, but have not been willing to pay the hefty price tag that usually accompanies them. I've seen them at tons of antique stores, but they usually run around $25-$30. 

Pottery Barn also carries them for $24. 

So I was thrilled when I found a whole pile of them in the barn for $5 a piece!

And of course, I never can pass up aqua mason jars when I see them...

 (don't mind the sleeping beagle on her throne in the background)

I had never seen one as big as the one on the right, so I had to have it.

I'm super excited about all of my purchases.

Can't wait to show you what I have in store for them!

 Linking up to:
Southern Hospitality's Thrifty Treasures

Scented Pine Cones

 Since the weather around these parts has turned rather gray and cold,
I have been itching to put some touches of fall around the house.
I love the rugged look of pine cones (and the fact that you can find them for FREE!) so I thought it would be fun to make my own scented pine cones and use them as fall decorations.

So the kids and I gathered up some buckets and headed out to the park to do some pine cone collecting.

Turns out they weren't too interested in collecting pine cones. 

Chasing geese was far more fun.

So as they played, I ended up collecting a ton of pine cones by myself.

Once we got home and I put the kids down for their nap (thank you, God, for naps!), I got to work on my pine cone scenting project.

First, I washed them off in the sink. 

I was afraid I woke the kids up when I shouted "EEWWWW!" as bugs came crawling out of the wet pine cones, but thankfully they managed the sleep through my shrieking :)

Then I laid them out on a foil-lined pan and baked them at 200 degrees.

This ensures all of the bugs die and melts the sap. 

I baked them until they opened up, which took about 45 minutes.

They looked like this once they were done. See how it opened up?

Then I placed the pine cones in a  plastic bag, added several drops of cinnamon essential oil, sealed it up and shook it to distribute the oil. 

I read that you should keep it sealed for 2-7 days. 

Since I am impatient, I waited the minimum amount and opened it after 2 days.

If you don't have any essential oil at home, you can try this method after baking them:

Spread your pine cones out on layers of newspaper. 

Use a foam brush to apply glue. 

Mix cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg in baggie.

Add pinecones in spice mix. 

Shake to cover. 

Allow to dry overnight.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They smell absolutely delightful.
There's something about the scent of cinnamon that makes me feel 
so cozy and happy to be home.

I put some in a wire basket (I couldn't resist throwing in a starfish!) in the entryway so that all who enter are given a fragrant cinnamon greeting.

And I put the rest in a hurricane jar that sits atop the mantle.

I saw a small bag of cinnamon scented pine cones at the craft store yesterday for $5.00.
They looked and smelled just like the ones I had just made!
And I did it for FREE!!!
WU HOO - I LOVE THAT!

Linking up to:

The DIY Show Off: Fall Festival

Moving the Paddle

Thanks to everyone who commented on my last post and offered advice about whether I should center the paddle above the office doors or center it on the wall.

Originally I had hung it centered on the wall.

I took a picture looking upwards so that you could see the massiveness of the wall that I hung it on...

Everyone who commented and the dear hubby thought it should be centered above the double doors to the office.

So I took everyone's advice and moved it today.

And I have to admit that everyone else was right. 

It does look better centered above the door.

I know, Jacob, I should have listened to you in the first place :)

Someone had asked how I hung the paddle on the wall...

I just put two short little screws into the back (one on each end) and wrapped some wire around the screws to form a loop, like this...

Then I put two screws in the wall and hung the wire loops onto the wall screws.

Another commenter asked about the paint pens I used to write on the paddle...

They can usually be found in the art section at most craft stores.

 These are the ones I used...

They are SO much easier to use than a little paint brush and paint!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So do you agree? 

Does it look better centered above the doors??

Linking up to:

Boat Rentals Sign

I picked up an old, rustic oar at the Northwest's Largest Garage Sale at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds a few months ago for only 5 bucks.

(I highly doubt it was the Northwest's Largest Garage Sale, though. It was kinda puny.)

I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the oar, but I knew I had to have it 

considering how hard it was for me to find the oars we used in our bedroom.

And so it sat in the corner of the living room for a few months.

I'm sure Jacob was thoroughly pleased about that.

He's always complaining about the junk I bring home.

"But honey, I swear I have a vision for it!"

Anyways, I finally got to making it pretty and giving it a home this weekend.

Using transfer paper, I copied an arrow and "BOAT RENTALS" onto the oar (I actually think it's a paddle though) and then filled in the letters with my black and white paint pens.

It was as easy as that.

 

Then I hung it centered on the huge wall in our entryway, 

above the office and powder room doors.

Jacob thinks it should be centered above the double doors to the office,

but I think it should be centered on the big wall.

What do you think??

 Linking up to:
The Lettered Cottage's Favorite Yard Sale Scores
The DIY Showoff Project Parade