Sunday Swatches ~ 7/26/09

Sunday Swatches
(I hope to have a button made for next week!)

Sorry this is late getting posted today...photos have been taking forever to load today! Very frustrating! I'll start earlier next week...

I ended up getting a few things knocked off of my to-do list for last week. You can see some of my finished projects HERE. My photos are loading awfully slow today, so I will post more pictures of things I've completed tomorrow.

Last week was all about Pillows and Painting...this week the theme is Framing! I have pictures galore that I would love to get up on my walls. Some I will need to purchase frames for, some frames will be re-purposed or re-positioned, and I have a neat idea for some herb prints that I hope will work out.

First, I'll tell you where some of the pictures will be coming from. My friend gave me two old art boxes that were her dad's. He was an artist in New York, known for his work with Steuben Glass, but he also dabbled in other areas, such as sculpting, painting, and architecture.

This box isn't in very good shape and had a bunch of old paints and trash inside:

But this box, on the other hand, held some real treasures!

Inside, I found several beautiful, simple watercolors:

There were some great paintbrushes and a complete pack of 25 sheets of watercolor block that were purchased by the artist in Europe.


I want to frame some of the watercolors of fruits and veggies and hang them in my kitchen. A couple others might go somewhere else in my house. My friend was just going to throw them away...can you believe that? I also have an idea for the boxes themselves, but I'll have to see if I have time to tackle that project this week.

I also have this book called A Sampler of Wayside Herbs. The book itself is good reading, but there are also some beautiful prints inside.

I was going to mat and frame some of the prints, but I think I have a better idea. I'll let you know next week if it worked!

These mermaid paintings were given to me by my mom when Addison was born. They are absolutely beautiful!

They are painted by an artist named Robert Kline (Warning, for those of you concerned with modesty: Some of his work is graphic and not in the least "modest"!) from St. Augustine, Florida. I have been wanting to frame them for more than 2 years, but just haven't gotten around to it. They've been propped up in my stairwell since we moved here and now I think it's time to finally give them the proper adornment!

That oughta keep me busy this week. I can't wait to see these on my walls!

How about you? What projects do you have planned? Leave a comment if you decide to join me this week!

Blessings!

Brandi

Show-N-Tell

Don't forget to join me for Sunday Swatches tomorrow!

Here are some of my finished projects from this week. I will be posting more on my Sunday Swatches post tomorrow:

I've been getting tired of all of the stained wood photo frames in my house, so I'll be gradually painting them, black or white depending on the room they'll be in. I decided to start with two from my bedroom:

These are cross-stitched pictures my mother-in-law made for us when our first son was born. We've had them hanging by our bed ever since. The finished frames on my bedroom wall:

They look really nice against the yellow paint, and notice my newly painted bedside table below this one:

Remember the cloth napkins I found at Home Goods? They became an ultra-cute pillow for Addy's bed:

One cloth was used to cut out the appliques and I love the fringe detail:

My mother-in-law gave us these stools a couple of years ago. I didn't really know what to do with them, but now that I've discovered matte black spray paint, it was an easy choice!

Total transformation:

They are now gracing my kitchen island and perfectly compliment the black appliances:

I must get everything from my mother-in-law, because she gave me these plants, too! I think she said they are Rose of Sharon. They came in these ugly plastic pots:

I used spray paint that is made specifically for plastics to makeover these pots I already had in the shed. I didn't take a before picture, but you can see from the inside that the original color was orange.

They turned out really nice and now they look real pretty sitting by the stained glass by my front door:

Lots of simple projects this week...with big impact!

And that's just the beginning...more to show you tomorrow!

Blessings!

Brandi

Sunday Swatches ~ First Edition!

I haven't been doing so well at keeping up with Silent Sundays. I figured out that the reason is because I like to write too much! It's hard for me to post pictures without words, and I've found it hard to draw inspiration for the weekly post, so I've decided to create a new weekly meme and officially retire Silent Sundays.

Usually, I spend my day on Sunday deciding what I would like to accomplish during the following week and organizing my thoughts, lists, and supplies. Often, I find myself wanting to blog about my plans, ideas and future projects...mostly to hold myself accountable to all of the projects I want to accomplish! Now this is something that really inspires me and I should have NO problem posting this each week!

I would love if you would join me in sharing your plans and projects that are planned for next week. I admit I'm not very creative by nature, so seeing your ideas really inspires me! And if I copy any of your ideas, I will certainly give you plenty of credit.

So, without further ado, welcome to the first weekly edition of...

Sunday Swatches

Pillows and Paint

I won't always have a theme for the week, but it just seemed to fit the projects I have planned.

I found this Ralph Lauren shower curtain on a great clearance sale at Home Goods yesterday. This would sell for $45.00 retail, but Home Goods originally had it listed for $24.99 and it was on clearance for only $12.00. Good find! The design is so pretty and it will look great against the slipcovers on my couches. Plus, since it's a shower curtain, it's a little more durable than regular fabric, which is important with little ones. I plan to make 2 large throw pillows and if I have any leftover, I will try to make a curtain for my kitchen.

I've had this old tablecloth in my stash of fabric for a couple of years. As you can see, it is stained and fraying on the edges. What you can't see in the photo is the delicate floral design that is part of the fabric. I plan to make a couple of small flanged pillows to compliment the floral pillows from above. I might even make an extra one for my bed if they turn out nice.

These cloth napkins were on clearance for less than $2 each at Pier 1 Imports yesterday. All I could see when I looked at them were totally fantastic pillows for my daughter's bed. I can't wait to see how they turn out!

I got these two ultra-soft bath towels at Home Goods for $3.99 each. I plan to turn them into floor pillows to put in the kids' reading area.

And last but not least, I have all sorts of plans for all this spray paint. Flower pots, kitchen stools, picture frames, and a headboard top the list.

So, what projects do you have planned for this week?

(I'll try to get a Mr. Linky up for next week, but you can just add a comment if you decide to participate this week. Thanks!)

Blessings!

Brandi