A Simple Little Before and After...

Ok, I'll show the "After" first, because no one would ever read my blog again if what they saw was a thumbnail of the "Before"

and let me just say, that this is an example where the "Before" is so bad

that pretty much ANYTHING would look better! 

The Suspect... Daughter, 22 years old, Sleeps on mattress on floor, with dog, and unidentifiable objects in the bed, some of which may include food particles, stinky tennis shoes,  a lone flip flop, doggie toys and some nail polish

struggling through the break up from boyfriend of several years and dysfunctional relationship

and wanting a fresh start 

blurry photo of daughter (right) and friend after gorging on Thanksgiving dinner, and telling me all the things they did that i didn't know about when they were 15

 I'm soooooooooooo glad i didn't know at the time

ok, and here is the before!!! GAAAAAHHHH!

i don't think she actually sleeps with the broom and dustpan, i think she was trying to clean up before i got there

 

After!

the wrinkles need to fall out of the dust ruffle a little

and the table needs another coat of paint but we ran out of time until next weekend

I mean, it's nothing earth shattering... we need a headboard

Until then i was thinking of painting a big white monogram over her bed 

or even painting a faux headboard!

love this monogram  

 

anyway, it's much cleaner, her mattress is off the floor and she is delighted!  

She worked hard painting the walls herself, now i think she has a greater appreciation for all those times i painted rooms in our old house... all by myself!

and i doubt she remembers that i painted a whole bedroom, and hated the color and painted it another color the very next day !

I bet some of you guys have done that ... smile

 

So the next goal is headboard or monogram on the wall, and finish painting the tables and the trim

and wouldn't it be cute to add a big furry cream colored rug at the foot of the bed!

soooo

the dust ruffle $3.00 thrift shop ( and it's a good thick one too!)

lamps TJ Maxx $34.99 each

comforter and shams and brown and white striped pillow Marshalls 79.99

tables free, i had those

faux hydrangeas, i already had em

sheets TJ Maxx $29.99

paint - Sherwin Williams color matched Benjamin Moore Wythe Blue $38.00

(we did have to by a used sanitized mattress and boxsprings and frame, but i'm not gonna count that since most people have decent mattresses that aren't on the floor!)

it cost a little, but it was soooo worth it

and i love those brown and white striped pillows! 

...the end... 

 

Kooboo chairs and a Really Big Cow!

You know how sometimes a part of your house just isn't right, and it bothers you and distracts you from everything else until you get it right, 

and you keep looking for something... a piece of furniture or the just right thing to fix it... and you can't get on with your life until it's resolved!!???  

 it feels like your whole life is in chaos because of that one thing... 

and... well ... Basically you're are being totally OCD... and out of your mind?

You know... that thing? 

Well that's the thing going on with this little little room i paint in. 

I have these 4 frenchy chairs, two of them are comfortable, but not as cute, and two are really cute with little roses carved on top, 

but basically the bottom is falling out...

I had spray glued some fabric on parts of both style frenchy chairs, and attempted to make a kinda seat cover for their bottoms, 

and i had one of each in this room and nothing matched and the fabric was falling off of both of them, 

and even though both chairs have great potential, they were a mess  and mismatched

and the whole room and my entire life felt disorganized because of it!

here is the frenchy chair with the pretty shape

unfortunately you can't sit in it without worrying you might end up with a spring up your... well, you know

 Soooo,  to get them right and usable...

 

• First I have to decide which two i'm going to use, the cuter chair that needs more work, or the similar less cute in shape, but more comfortable chair 
•  If i use the two cuter ones, the bottoms have to be totally reworked, springs, cushions and everything,  plus my son broke the arm off of one of them and threw it away, because i guess he thought if he threw it away i wouldn't notice that the arm was missing, really???

• then i have to find fabric i like, and apparently i cannot make a decision about fabric, not ever in a million years because it's a commitment, and i can't commit to anything, because it might be the wrong decision - (mental illness runs in the family)

• then once i decide between a taupe buffalo check or linen or grain sack fabric  -  i have to find it!

• then i have to have them repaired, and slipcovered or reupholstered

• not to mention i have to pay for all of that!

So finally after this bothering me and not being able to make a decision for 6 months,

i said screw it! 

I am going to find two chairs that match and are in one piece!

 

I remembered Joni from Cote de Texas had talked about Kooboo chairs, being really great, and a good price, and she had put some in her dining room, and they were adorable... so i went online and looked for them

 this is her dining nook off her kitchen i believe, 

they're kinda cute aren't they?

 

 

so dang if i didn't find some at World Market on sale for $112.00 each with a coupon

If they are good enough for Joni at Cote de Texas, they are darn well good enough for me...

She is amazing and knows everything about decorating

check out her dining room and it's evolution here, 

one of my all time favorites 

she talks about kooboos some here 

in this kitchen redo

Just look at the gingham, i'm a sucker for big gingham checks!

Sooo anyway... 

I'm gonna put some of this faded toile on the little cushions of the kooboos

this is just a little piece of of the toile i laid on the chair to see if i liked it

   

 and cover that little bench with this gingham fabric....

I love their curved backs, very feminine

I have to tell you, these little kooboo chairs are really incredibly comfortable, 

and the color of the wicker is great!

I placed one at my dining room table and it looked good there too

They're kind of charming... 

peeking from behind the table...

I still like my little frenchy chairs the best... 

they will be so adorable when they're done

but now that there is some order in this room, i feel grounded enough to go through the steps to get that done!

And these Kooboos will be great out on my patio after the other frenchy chairs are finally done

so all is right with the world, for 30 seconds anyway

Ok, so driving down a country road, i spotted this insanely incredible cow

  

he was in a pasture with ponies and other black cows and this other brown cow with horns too

and he was BIG

like really really big!

his horns must  have spanned 5-6 feet 

what the heck kinda cow is that?

 i've never seen a cow like this in North Carolina! 

so i made Mr. Fractured pull off the road and started snapping pictures, thinking this could be a great cow to paint!

and i was talking to the cows and telling them how cute they were, and making a big fuss

so they all started walking towards me

   

So, i was like awwwww, cute little cows and ponies,

and sweet talking them and all

and then they got closer and closer,

and i was like

uhhhh... they are really really really big

and that one guy has ginormous horns

and 

i'm pretty sure they are nice

but think they might kill me

i can't run very fast

and the fence seemed kinda small and not very sturdy 

have you ever had a whole bunch of humongous cows walk towards you?

It's a teeny bit unnerving

but i bravely held my ground and got some photos

(oh brave one) 

look at that sweet face, and those eyelashes...

i think this was a baby cow

i love painting long eyelashes on my animal portraits

this little guy wasn't so big and scary 

     

 anyway, i was wishing i had a treat for them, 

and they didn't stampede and gore me or kill me...

they pretty much thought i was a real dud because i didn't have any treats...

i felt like such a big wuss city girl, being nervous around cows

but i did hang in there and get some photos!

  

I am also linking up today with  
Debra at Common Ground and her Marketplace 
where us bloggers sell our wares !

 

...the end... 

 

    

Let's Talk Candles... !

Mr. Fracturedfairytale always asks what is it about women and candles!  In fact I've heard other guys comment about women and candles and marvel at how we like them so much.  

Well... we just do! 

Do you have a favorite candle,... one you like to have around when you want to make  your house smell sweet?

   

My favorite all time candle is one they used to sell at Bath and Body Works.  They are Henri Bendel candles... and if you light one, within 10 minutes your whole house will smell heavenly

   They are insanely fragrant.  

So since they were my all time favorite candle, you can imagine what happened.....

they were discontinued!!! 

Doesn't it drive you insane when you find an amazing product and it gets discontinued!!!??? 

Especially lipstick, oh my god, the favorite lipstick being discontinued is the worst... 

I have another favorite candle right now made by the cutest woman you ever saw who lives right near me...

her name is Erin and her adorable home was featured in the Romantic Prairie Cookbook

She also has a blog

Carolina Country Living

and an Etsy shop where she sells her wonderful candles

my favorite right now is Mulled Cider 

I also know her candles are safe and won't give you brain damage and toxic poisoning from burning them

alot of candles you buy are made out of 

sludge and all kinds of really really nasty stuff!

Anyway, I went to the places where i usually buy Erin's candles and they were sold out... 

So i went online looking for Henri Bendel candles and found them!

I bought one

and it was here in 2 days!

they even sent it with a cute little black and white striped bag...

 

cute little box too 

i draped my pink leather gloves over the bag... they're pretty beat up, but i love em...

(anyone know an easy way to clean pink leather gloves?)  

 So if anyone ever calls and says they're going to be dropping by in 10 or 15 minutes... 

and your house smells like dirty tennis shoes, and burnt sausage and something evil you can't quite define but you're pretty sure it involves your dogs...

you can light your Henri Bendel or one of Erin's yummy candles, 

 and you will trick your friends into thinking you have the most wonderful smelling home ever! 

to finish this post off, i wanted to share a photo of a little brown basket with some dried hydrangeas from my yard...  

just look at those pretty fall colors

 ...the end..