Although we loved the white ceramic sink that our kitchen came with, we never loved the old white faucet. The colour wasn’t the issue, but the look and funcionality left much to be desired. So, when Kevin accidentally broke the sprayer with an April fools joke gone bad (or good?), we decided that it was time for an upgrade.
dining room, easter, entryway, Family Room, Home & Garden, kitchen, Living Room, Seasonal & Holiday, spring
Hoppin’ to it! Spring décor.
I can’t believe Spring is just around the corner! It seems like I was just putting away the Christmas decorations yesterday (don’t worry, I wasn’t). But, here we are anyway.
So, to celebrate the upcoming season and arrival of Peter Cottontail, I did a little Spring decorating. Nothing major, but enough to brighten up our place and add a little ‘spring’ to my step (groan, did I really just go there?) Of course I did.
In the kitchen I added some cheer behind the sink in the form of this awesome free printable and a little Spring cyclamen.
Come on, you know you are singing it now… #sugarhillgang
Look at my little cyclamen bud about to open up. So cute.
And no, I did not match my counter spray and dish soap to my Spring décor… but how awesome is it that they match!? It’s the little things people.
In the family room (off the kitchen) the fireplace mantel is teeny tiny (ahem, non existent). BUT, I still added a bit of Easter to it.
I displayed a little ceramic bunny and grabbed a light pink candle from my stash. To Easterfy it further I added some pom pom fringe that I had left over from my Christmas Craft Night candle holder craft. Don’t they look like little fluffy bunny tails?
Beside those is a picture of my sister Tanya. She passed away a few years ago so I always like to have her out and smiling at me.
Next to the photo I have another great free Easter printable.
I love these picture frames with the clips. I got them at Real Canadian Superstore a few years ago. The front slides out and I can easily swap out the art inside. I used them in Chace’s room at our last house but I’ve yet to give his room any real personality (Mom guilt – it’s on “the list”) so for now they are up for grabs and have come in handy on my thin mantels.
Beside the bunny print I have a ‘sister’ candle that Tanya gave me.
And, looking up I have some more pom pom trim which I strung up as a whimsical banner. Little bunny tails everywhere!
In the living room we have another fireplace. This one has a larger mantel so I have a bit more flexibility here.
I went pretty simple here too and just used what I had.
On the left I used some white ‘bark’ vases and paired them with a pretty green glass vase/pot.
I framed yet another printable (I’m a sucker for free art).
A pretty (looking and smelling) candle sits beside this print. And I love the lid that came with. Adorable!
Last but not least is another pot/bowl. I love the subtle honey comb detailing on this one.
Another area that got a bit of Easter love is one of the end tables in the living room. I simply added some faux eggs to a glass vase and put them beside my gold tree bark lamp. Because every tree bark lamp needs a vase of fake eggs (obvs).
Back in January I shared how I decorate in the “off season” using our entry as an example. The entry table got a little bowl/platter of these eggs too!
Hippity Hoppin’, Easter’s on its way! Anyone else infused a little Spring or Easter at their place?
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I’m sure most of us can sympathize recognize this…
The inevitable stack-o-papers-on-the-counter that comes with school, kids, running a household etc. The papers seem to come in faster then they go out (5, 10, 15 a day!) yet some just have to stick around for reference, information or sentimental reasons.
But.
I. hate. clutter.
a.
lot.
So, I organized. Awhhh yeah! My favourite word (oh wait, there is “wine” and “coffee” in the dictionary too). Okay, so maybe my third favourite word. Anyway, now the pile-o-clutter looks like this.
Serenity.
To achieve this calmness, I first separated the stack-o-chaos into piles. The point of this was to see what categories I could lump them into.
I came up with:
1) “Reference” (for things like recycling schedules, Chace’s school notices etc)
2) “For Review” (notices about programs I may want to check out, forms I have to read still etc)
3) “Action Required” (forms I need to fill out such as book order forms, field trip forms etc) and
4) “Projects” (ALL the paperwork that comes home from Chace’s day – spelling, art, poems etc.).
A note about the “projects” folder: when that folder gets full I take the paperwork up to our office where it gets placed in a larger box. Once a year I go through the box and save the best pieces or my/Chace’s favourites. I recycle the rest (will he miss a piece of paper with an orange crayon line across it when he’s 20?). In the end I am left with one large manilla envelope for each year filled with all of the papers I’ve kept for that period.
Then, I bought the Ikea Kvissle magazine rack to corral my piles. This unit was perfect because it was a) sturdy since it’s metal, b) customizable – you can use only one or all five (I used four as mentioned), c) inexpensive – who doesn’t love that? And d) white – clean and pretty – my fave. Also, since it’s metal you can attach things to it using magnets too if desired.
The file compartments attach together easily by simply sliding in and latching together in the back.
I used these Martha Stewart adhesive metal bookplates to label my files, but from what I’ve heard they are hard to get now or discontinued. I don’t know why though because they are awesome! To print the words, I used my label maker (aka my third arm).
To attach the file system to the tile backsplash I simply propped it up and used a few 3M Command picture hanging strips to keep it in place.
Tucked in beside the fridge, I now have a tidy, clutter free system that helps keep me organized.
Do you have any tips and tricks for keeping clutter at bay? I’ve been using this system for awhile now and LOVE it.
Stay in touch and follow along…
bathrooms, bedrooms, dining room, entryway, Family Room, Garden, guest room, Home & Garden, kitchen, Living Room, office, playroom, rec room
Settling in
bathrooms, bedrooms, dining room, entryway, Family Room, Garden, guest room, Home & Garden, kitchen, Living Room, office, playroom, rec room
So this happened
We bought a house. Specifically, this one.
Backing up a bit, we really enjoyed our townhome but it was time for a change. More space, more privacy and NO strata. We wanted to move before Chace got older as we didn’t want to change his little world mid-grade three (he just finished Kindergarten). So, we made the leap and listed our townhome.
The good news is that it sold in a day – with three offers which created a bidding war. The bad news, we didn’t have anywhere to move to! The market in our area dictated this plan of attack as places for sale were going into multiplle offers and if you had “subject to sale of our place” in your offer, you might as well not even bother.
Long story short after a few panic attacks from me and some serious market stalking, we purchased the above home which met most things on our wish list. We did have to compromise on a few things but we ended up with a few bonus things that more than made up for it.
We take possession this Saturday! I couldn’t wait to share with you all though so here are the photos from the listing (as we saw it). I also put together a little floor plan of each level. They won’t be completely accurate as I was going off memory and the specs on the listing sheet, but you will get the idea I’m sure!
Main level:
entry
living room
dining/living room
dining room
kitchen – what will Chef Kev dream up here?
kitchen/family room
family room
(future) playroom!
powder room
laundry
Here is the main floor layout to give you an idea of where these spaces are in relation to one another…
top level:
looking down towards the front entry
master bedroom
master bathroom
the other two bedrooms (Chace’s and a spare – TBD which is which!). We’re going to let Chace choose on moving day.
“Bonus room” – future craft room/office area
top floor bathroom
top floor floorplan…
basement/lower level
Down here is where we encountered one of the ‘compromises’ as mentioned above. Part of the basement is a suite which we were not looking for. However, we decided since we have more than enough space at the moment, we will leave it ‘as is’ for now and renovate in the future to make it our dream recreation room space – complete with wet bar and a bedroom/bathroom on that level. The income from the suite will allow us to do some of the updates a little sooner than we otherwise would have been able to.
First up, the current recreation room (on our side)…
And here is the suite which consists of a living space, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom (I don’t have a photo of the kitchen though).
Here is the baseement floor plan to help you visualize how it all works together…
Last but not least, our backyard. This was another area where we had to compromise. We had dreams of a large backyard but reality told us that the house we wanted, with a big yard, was not in our budget. The fact that this particular house had been nicely updated, was in a great neighbourhood, backed onto a greenbelt and (total bonus) was only a few houses away from the elementary school that Chace will attend made us decide this was the one.
Oh, and did I mentinon that the school is adjacent to a huge park which has an awesome playground and walking trails. We figured our ‘yard’ was steps away so we were covered.
We have big plans for this small space. For the whole house actually. But, we will save and tackle each project as our budget permits and I will happily post about the journey here if you’d like to follow along 🙂
the backyard…
Our kitchen chairs needed a serious upgrade. The fabric was SO dingy, dirty and stained. Ugh. I have no idea why I don’t have a close up photo of them as I am positive I took one, but you can sort of see what I mean here.
Chace eats his breakfast at this table every morning and the spills and stains that come from a toddler to child have taken their toll on these little chairs. Time for a refresh!
The main thing I wanted here was a fabric that looked like an indoor fabric, but was really an outdoor one. I wanted something that could stand up to the dirt and spills that are inevitable with a five-year-old.
The winner? This amazing outdoor fabric called “Secret Gate – Pewter” from Tonic Living. It’s an awesome gray/cream lattice pattern – now the title makes sense right? I only needed one yard so at $15.95/yd this was an inexpensive upgrade. My favourite kind!
Now, the chairs look like this…
I had never reupholstered anything before but my friend Natalie had, so she came up to help me. It’s not an overly hard process but with the stapling and pulling the fabric taught that is involved, it’s great to have a second set of hands. Natalie’s help was invaluable! She’s got a really good eye too for keeping things straight and uniform.
First, we unscrewed the seats from the chairs. The screws were easily accessible on the bottom.
Then, we draped the fabric to see what layout we liked the best.
After we had decided on one, we used a few T-pins to hold the fabric in place. These will come out later.
Flipping the cushions over, we started with the corners, making sure they were pulled good and tight.
We used a staple gun to secure the fabric to the chair cushion base.
Then we continued around the cushion, pulling the fabric taught and securing it in place with staples.
When we were done, it looked pretty much like this. Not the prettiest ‘finish’ but since no one looks under a chair, I think it’s okay. I may try to finish it off a bit cleaner but to be honest, it’s been this way for a few months now and isn’t bothering me too much.
We removed the T-pins, and then draped the next cushion to match.
T-pinning that in place, we repeated the whole process.
We screwed the finished cushions back on to the chair frames and..
DONE!
I love how the chairs now look updated. The fabric is modern, fresh and fun. And stain resistant!
You would never know it’s an outdoor fabric by looking at it would you?
And it looks great when looking down on it through the glass table top too.
Overall I’m so pleased with how they turned out.
It’s amazing how a simple and inexpensive upgrade can yield such a high-end look. Talk about ‘bang for your buck’!
Have you ever tackled any reupholstering before? How did you finish the bottom of the chair if so? Any experience bringing an outdoor fabric inside?
Hello
I'm Elaine. A graphic designer, mommy, wife and blogger. I have trouble sitting still and am always looking for a project. Follow along as I post about life – in a pretty and creative way of course.