Loving My Favorite Chair -- A Makeover Story

There once lived a girl who was oblivious to the world of thrift stores.  She had grown up with mostly hand-me-downs (there's no real choice what you get there), with some new stuff bought at the big-box stores, or sometimes "name brand" stores, but the concept of "one man's trash is another man's treasure" held no value to her.

Until one day, after she and her mom had moved to their new home in a new town, did she venture into a shop boasting thrifty finds.

And her life would never be the same.

Well, I might as well admit.  That girl was me.  hehe  

And it is a true story.  I would know.  (:

I honestly don't remember how I happened upon that little shop.  For years, it was across the street from another shop my mom and I would frequent, so I probably subconsciously remembered it was there.  When my mom and I moved to our new place, we were trying to outfit it very cheaply, and I was hoping to get some new goodies for my very own bedroom.  A first for me.

And if I remember correctly, I drug my brother along with me to this little shop.  I didn't really go in with a purpose or looking for a specific piece, but when I spotted this chair -- and sat in it -- and saw the $15 dollar price tag -- I knew I had to have it.  

Isn't it hideous and awesome at the same time?!  (I wish I had a true true before pic but that was way before the idea of a blog ever entered my mind.)

Strawberry Shortcake Birthday Invites

I have been chomping at the bit to share these invites!  

Since jumping into the graphic design world, the majority of my customers have been of the boy variety.  Not that I have anything against boys, but not being able to do sugar and spice and everything nice has had me itching for some time to have a girl client.

My very dear friend made my wish came true when she welcomed her sweet little daughter to the world.  I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was when she asked if I could do her first birthday invites.

And then how even more excited I was when she told me the party theme was Strawberry Shortcake.

Too cute!  

I loved the color scheme, which was something we had done before when she was born.  Her mom had asked me to make towels for the sweet baby, as well as name art for her room, which was all in the Strawberry Shortcake color arena.

I couldn't resist making a little strawberry onesie, too!

Ninja Turtles Birthday Invites

Ok, I'm way late sharing these.  Time flies when you're having fun, right?!

I have this super awesome friend who has supported me from the very beginning.  Every year she has had me design her son's birthday invites, and now she has a beautiful daughter who is turning 1 and I got to do those invites too.  (Which I CANNOT wait to share!  They are so cute!)  So, to my friend, thank you so much for taking a chance with me and supporting me and allowing me to have a part in your celebrations!

My New Coffee Table

My poor husband.  I'm so glad he gets me and just lets me do me.  I doubt there'd be anyone else who would put up with someone spending hours refinishing -- or rather, definishing -- a coffee table and hunting for months for castors the perfect size for these coffee table legs, only to decide it needs to be replaced just a little over year later.

Because that's what I did.

And he let me.  (:  Lucky girl I am!

It all started with these legs.

Aren't they some sexy legs?!  I found them one day in my landlord's stash of junk he keeps and he let me have them.  For what purpose, I had no clue.  But they were so mid-century mod, so sleek, so non-traditional, that I had to have them.

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Times, they are a'changin'.

Or, maybe just I am.

Which is an odd thing for me to confess because I've never really been a big fan of change.  But yet, when I think about it, I am always changing things up, always wanting to mix up my routine, always varying my interests.

With all this talk of change, I bring you a post all about change!  Betcha didn't see that coming, did ya, haha!

First things first, the blog itself.  I am finding myself leaning more and more towards modern design:  in my pins, in my home and now in my blog look.  I've gone through several modifications (even an entire name change!) to get to this point, but I hope (really hope) this is it.  For a while.  A long while.  (:  And I hope it speaks more to what I hope this blog will be about:  me doing whatever makes me happy and sharing it with you guys, whether it is a DIY project, a graphic design project or a design trend or space that I'm in love with.  

The blog's new design has been up for a bit, but I thought I'd formally introduce you.

The Best Peach Cobbler Known To Man!

Yes, I know, that statement is a bit ballsy, but hey, I can't help what's true, haha!  I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks their cobbler recipe is the best, but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

I debated sharing this recipe for a while.  It was one of my mom's.  I've shared another of her cake recipes here before, but this cobbler recipe has memories.  Of summers long ago.  In this house, actually.  So it's a little precious to me.  Ok, a lot more than a little precious.

{Trending} Lucite + Rustic

I love a good contrast, and what contrasts better than crystal clear Lucite with rustic textures??

Lucite is coming back -- did it ever go away? -- but a new trend has it being paired with rustic, earthy woods, giving a warmth to this starkly clean, modern material.

image found here

Lucite has been around for a long while, and I would say it was mostly seen in residential design with this chair:

Louis Ghost Chair by Philippe Starck

Other designers jumped on that bandwagon and created other "ghost" chairs, and from there tables and accessories followed suit.

Enjoying a Piece of Humble Pie

Funny how epiphanies reveal themselves at perfect moments.

Especially life-related epiphanies.

Especially life-related epiphanies that have you choking on humble pie.  Well, ok, not really choking...maybe more like the "trying-real-hard-to-swallow-that-huge-lump-in-your-throat" piece of humble pie.

via be made designs

Somewhere along the line in my life, I developed a personality trait that can be a good thing, but also a really bad thing.  I strive for perfection.  And I don't mean I just try my very best at everything I do (even though I do), but I try my very best to be perfect at everything I do.  And when I'm not, I feel like a complete and total failure.

Organizing Household Tools: Easy Catch-All

Y'all.  

My husband is a genius!

An incredible out-of-the-box thinker.

The other half of my creative soul.

Ok, ok....I could keep going, you know, haha!

I guess I'll start at the beginning so you know why I am boasting about his genius.

Inspired by Audrey

One of the first classic movies I was introduced to was "Breakfast at Tiffany's."  I think I must have been very young because I can remember not really knowing what Tiffany's was.  Crazy, right?!  And for the most part, I didn't really understand what the movie was about, I was just in awe of Holly Golightly.  She was silly, she was classy, she was beautiful.  And with that, Audrey Hepburn became my favorite actress.

love this!  via

I then tried to watch every Audrey Hepburn movie I could, TCM becoming a staple in my life.  There are still a few I haven't seen, but I pretty much love them all.

When I saw the Summer Style Soiree challenge come up with Audrey Hepburn as the first star, I decided to play along and create a design board based on one of her movies.  First instinct was "Breakfast at Tiffany's" but I realized that's too easy.

So I picked a different movie that is another favorite, even though I'm a "happily ever after" kinda girl.
"Roman Holiday" is so much fun and you want so bad for the princess to run away with the reporter and have her life of freedom, but you know, in reality, a princess can never run away.  She has a duty, but at least she was able to know love.  

It's been some time since I've seen the movie all the way through, but I decided to design a living room for a girl who took her design cues from the movie. 

I started with this movie poster:

via

I love the colors, I love how chic & fun it is, and I love how it looks a little modern.  And that's where I got my inspiration!

A Roman Holiday by designer-jen

Since she had tons of fun exploring Rome, how could I not make the room feel a little whimsical, right?  I took it a little modern but still classic, and gave it a girly edge, along with just a touch of "frilly" to make the princess feel a little more at home.  And the touches of dark add the much needed contrast, but also give that edge of masculinity, a reminder of her first (and only?) love.  Yep, I'm a romantic.  (:

Well, personally, I think we could all use a little Audrey in our lives, haha, so do yourself a favor, and go enjoy one of her movies. Soon.  (:  I recommend Roman Holiday (obviously) or The Children's Hour or Funny Face.  O, heck, here's a whole list you can pick from, haha!

Enjoy your day!

TTfN!

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We Took a Trip

I went to the mountains, y'all!

I haven't traveled out of Texas much in my life.  Not nearly as much as I'd have liked to.  For one, I'm afraid to fly.  {I know, I know...}  So that kind of limits things.  But I'm working on it.  Secondly, time and money are always an issue.  But I have been lucky enough to visit a few places I'd always wanted.

Like the mountains.  Didn't really matter which.  Living in South Texas for nearly all my life, I've only ever really experienced flat, sand-based land, with the occasional rolling hill.  Living in the Hill Country for a few years exposed me to hills that seemed like mountains compared to my almost-sea-level "homeland."  But I've never really seen true mountains.

Until my 30th birthday.

Well, actually, a couple of days before, but you get the idea, haha.

By my hubby's sheer determination, we made the 2-day trek to Denver a few days before my birthday.  We decided to not do a straight drive and stopped over in Amarillo for the night on the first day.

And I'm super glad we did because on our way on Day 2, we spotted the Capulin Volcano in New Mexico, and I had. to. stop!

By the time we reached the volcano, we were looking at a snow shower blowing in, but we didn't care.   Well, maybe a little.  I think secretly both of these South Texans were a little worried about driving in the snow, haha!

But the volcano was amazing.  Not just because it was a volcano that I was on top of (!!!) but also because that's probably the highest I have been up until that point in my life, and it was so scary and exhilarating at the same time!  Words cannot even describe the view, and pictures certainly don't capture it, although I tried.

Deliciously Dark Bedrooms

Sorry I went all Negative Nancy on you guys with my last post.  Just had some things on my mind I needed to lay out there, and I gotta say, I do feel better.  My outlook is much more positive, and the words of encouragement I received just reinforced all that positiveness.  So thanks!

***

The hubs and I are planning a trip to Colorado -- Denver, more specifically -- and we have been searching for hotels.  In all our trips, we try to find unique hotels to stay at, so our search in Denver has been fun.

One hotel we looked at, or maybe B&B is a better term, was the Patterson Inn.  While very traditional looking on the exterior, each of their nine rooms have very unique, sometimes very modern looks.  Quite a contrast.  But two of their rooms really caught my eye, and I became consciously aware of a trend that my subconscious has been drawn to lately:  Dark Bedrooms.

DIY Jones' Update: The State of Me

I've written this post maybe 5 times.  The last time, I was ready to hit the publish button.  But one final proof-read had me hesitating.  I was trying to keep myself in check after posting this about nine months ago, and probably vent a little, too, but it seemed in the end I just sounded like a whiny brat!  I was trying to be honest with myself, and you guys, but somehow that honesty came off as juvenile.  So, I'm gonna try again...

via

{Functional Art} Broaches in the Bathroom

Here's a little "me" trivia:  I don't wear much jewelry.  I love jewelry, I own probably more pieces than I'll ever wear, and I like to buy pieces that I may never wear {go figure!}.

But I usually just stick to the basics:  wedding ring, college ring, watch, "What Cancer Cannot Do" cuff (for my mom), my diamond studs and a necklace {usually a simple pendant}.

I do love the occasional "dress-up" event, when I can really lay on the jewels, and I have some really pretty pieces for those times, but most days, I just keep it simple.

Somewhere along the line, however, I became a broach gal.  I just LOVE broaches, especially vintage, sometimes quirky ones, and I try to work one into most my outfits.

{Trending} Crushing on Blush

Design is my first love.  I mean, I love to make things, but ultimately it is design that inspires those things I make.  I want to focus a little more on my love of design on my blog as part of me refocusing myself and being true to who I am and not someone else.  (:

The beginning of a new year usually brings on a plethora of trend predictions for that year, as does nearly each season.  I keep seeing articles on designers' predictions and several have caught my eye.  Generally, I don't do many trends in my own house, but that doesn't mean they don't inspire me, or that I can't drool over some amazing rooms that are "on trend!"

So I'm sharing the trends that are really speaking to me.  

First up, {blush}
Perfect start considering a certain holiday coming up!

I am not a pink girl.  Or at least, I didn't used to be.  Never in my wardrobe.  Never in my house.  And I always swore if we ever had a little girl, she wouldn't have a pink nursery.  Too cliche and I don't do pink.   But lately I've been drawn to it and I keep seeing it pop up in my closet, on my pin boards, even in a project of my own!  Usually its the brighter shades I'm drawn to -- like fuchsia -- but I'm noticing blush taking center stage in interiors and I gotta say, I like it. 

via

And just like blush for your beautiful cheeks, blush in interiors comes in many shades.  It is so subtle, yet it makes a big statement when used right.  And it is a great color when paired with bold jewel tones, like navy or emerald or purple.  I like it with grey or black also -- made obvious by some of my inspirations below.  And of course, it's great with polished copper, since copper -- in my opinion -- already has a rosy shade.

Love-ly {Valentines} Printables

As I previously mentioned, I have the flu.  Ugh.  And I have discovered I do not do well just laying in bed with nothing to do except blow my nose.  And cough.  And drink water.  Such fun.

And although my body doesn't have the energy to do what normally entails my day, my brain apparently does.  I've had my no-more-drugs-I'm-too-foggy moments where I can barely grasp a coherent thought, but otherwise my brain has had those hundreds of tabs open.  So I sit here in bed with my laptop making stuff.

I actually haven't done any graphics just because lately-- only for clients -- so to keep my mind occupied and to keep me from going crazy with boredom, I designed a couple of little printables for you.

When Life Gives You Too Many Lemons...Freeze Them...Practically

Well, my house has been hit with the flu.  Yay.  I suppose it was inevitable but I really had thought there for a while we were going to be one of the lucky ones.

In doing what we can to keep ourselves going and feeling as good as one can when they are dying, I have a little tip that has really come in handy for us.

But first, let's rewind a few weeks...

There's a lemon tree at my hubby's work.  It is currently producing some of the largest lemons I've ever seen.  And he keeps bringing them home.

I have a couple of dinner recipes that call for lemon juice, but mainly sweets recipes.  And the last thing my husband and I need in our house is tons of lemon sweets {which he's not a big fan of anyhoo}.  

So I had a bowlful of big, beautiful lemons that I didn't know what to do with, and that I didn't want to waste.  Wasting free is almost worse than wasting money, know what I mean?

My first thought was to freeze them, which was instilled in my by my mom.  She froze everything.  But unlike other fruits and veggies, the only thing you mainly use from a lemon is the juice.  

Ok, so, freeze the juice.  Duh.

But then what do I do with frozen juice from several lemons?  I mean, we're looking at at least a cup of juice.  That's a chunk of frozen liquid.  And most recipes only call for a couple of tablespoons of juice.  Definitely not a cup.  Unless you're baking in bulk.  Which I probably won't be.

So freezing by the tablespoon made MUCH more sense.  But how?

Light bulb:  Ice cube trays!!

My Top 13 of 13

I know traditionally this is done at the end of the year, or the very beginning of the new year, but I've debated about doing a post like this for a while.  In the end, I swayed myself to do it.  I love a good reminiscing.  (:

So, here's what ya'll were loving in 2013 from {be made designs}:

Happy 2014 & a Sweet Little Desk Makeover

Happy New Year!!

I hope you guys had a great holiday!  Mine was actually pretty swell, save for a small case of the flu infiltrating a portion of my family, but all in all, I had a really nice holiday.  And I gotta say, not being overwhelmed by Christmas projects was such a relief.  That feeling has inspired me for 2014 and how I want to "run my life."  I have no resolution for this year.  While my past resolution {to try new things} has served me well, I feel like it has become enough of a habit, or second nature to me, that I can let it go as a standing resolution.

And I didn't want to give myself anymore pressure with a new resolution, continuing that relaxed feeling I had during Christmas and New Years.  I am going to keep that feeling by not creating a goal list for myself and my business for this year.  Not that I don't have goals or things I'd like to accomplish this year.  Because I do.  More than I'd like to admit to, ha ha!  But if they get done, they get done.  If they don't, they don't.  I'm just going to go with the flow and see how it goes, and while that goes against EVERYTHING in my personality, I'm excited to try to break away from that planning restriction.  Although, I am still going to make my lists so I can cross off what I do {such a feeling of satisfaction there!} and because it seems to be the best way I can organize my mind.

Know what I mean?! / via

Ok, enough of that!  I've got a couple of fun things to share with you to start off this new, carefree year!

If you follow me on Instagram {which, if you don't, you should.  It's the best way to get to know me and my quirkiness}, you probably saw a few fun things from this last month:

{1}  My hubby informed me he had NEVER seen "White Christmas!"  At the time I thought he had to be from another planet or something because that was a holiday staple in my house -- and everyone elses, too, right?! -- but I quickly learned there are countless others who have never seen it!  Crazy!  I'm thinking a social intervention is called for.  Community-wide "White Christmas" festivals.  Or something.  Who's with me?!

{2}  I watched both my nephews (18 mos & 4 yrs) Christmas Eve Eve, and upon arrival at my house, Matthew (the 4 yr old) asked me if we were going to make cookies for Santa like last year.  Uh, yeah, sure.  We took a quick trip to the grocery store to get sugar cookie supplies, which were next to none the day before Christmas Eve.  Lucky for me, Pillsbury heard my pleas for help and provided me with instructions on how to make cookies from a cake mix right on the box.  Santa cookies saved!  They are pretty yummy, btw.

{3}  I have seen the entries and winners for Design Within Reach's cork chair competition for years and have always wanted to try my hand at creating a mini chair just using the cork, wire and foil from the New Year's champagne bottle.  After years of saying "I wanna," I did.  I'm not going to submit them but it was fun trying to imagine what I could do with those small parts and what I could create with them.  And that cork is harder to carve than you'd think!  

I also got back to designing our Christmas cards after a hiatus last year.  It took me a little bit to find inspiration but eventually it found me, via the hubby.  He found this cute little graphic of Santa and his reindeer that had been heavily pixilated on purpose -- like the classic video games.  I've also been drawn to the winter sweater pattern {you know, the snowflakes & deer one} that seem to be everywhere now, so I thought to combine the two.  I was quite pleased with how they turned out.

There was a project I completed just before Thanksgiving but with the Christmas posts and my blog on hold until the new year, I haven't shared it yet {unless, of course, you saw on Instagram}.

I love color.  Like, all colors.  I hate being asked what my favorite color is because I don't know!  But as much as I love color, I have always stayed away from it in my interior designs, especially my own home.  You can see this in all my makeover posts.  Mostly whites and browns with hints of color here and there, but nothing bold.  Nothing that really says, "Look at me!"

I did have a brush with boldness when I redid this little metal student desk.  That green was just perfect.

And this little desk inspired me to step out of my comfort zone and do something bold again.

But this new redo may be my favorite makeover to date.  Well, maybe second, but just barely.  That metal student desk still holds my heart.

A tiny bit of history before the before and afters.

I had this chair forever.  We had bought it several years ago at a garage sale with the intention of making it over.  But some major life events pushed that project to the back-40 burner and we just used it as a chair here and there.

Great little back detail!

I really wish I could have gotten a true before pic of the chair so you could get the whole effect.  The seat was upholstered in this creamy satin stuff that would have been all that in the early 90's, but obviously over the years it got dingy.  Plus, the seat base was made of particle board and time had taken its toll, and it had begun to disintegrate, until one day I sat on it....and fell through.  Ugh.  Yeah, that's a boost of confidence, lemme tell ya.

So we replaced it -- der! -- with plywood so it's super sturdy now.

Then one day the hubby came home with a desk in the back of his truck from our landlord, saying he was just going to throw it out but wanted to see if I wanted it first.  Heck yeah!

I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it -- makeover-wise -- but I knew I would be painting it because it did have a bit of water damage at the bottom.  Plus, I knew we wouldn't be keeping it because we just had no use for another desk, so maybe that's another reason I was ok with doing something different.  I wouldn't have to live with it, ha ha!

But since I was going to try and sell it, I knew it needed a chair, and that's when I remembered that poor lonely garage sale chair.

From there, I found my fabric I wanted to redo the chair in -- something fun -- then picked a color from the flowers to paint the desk.

Initially, I was going to go with the lighter blue for the desk.

However, when we got to the paint swatches, the blues just weren't doing it for me.

But the pinks were!

So I picked the perfectly Pantone "Raspberry Wine" pink, shaking in my boots the whole time.  Was I nuts to paint a desk this bold of a color?  This bright of a pink?

Hubby said no, and I trust his judgement when I doubt mine, so I went with it.

And I love it!!

He does too, believe it or not.  In fact, he said if it didn't sell, it looked good where I had it for photographs and we would just keep it there.  Wow!  I was shocked!  But that made me feel good when this Army-green-&-neutral-lovin' dude was diggin' my bright, bold pink desk!

Ok, ok, without further ado.....

{Before}

{After}

{Before}

{After}

I thought it would make a perfect desk and vanity, so I styled it as such for the sale photos.

Kitty photo bomb!  She couldn't resist trying out the new chair.

Isn't she lovely?!  I just loved how it turned out, and so did everyone else.  After I nervously posted her for sale, I had all kinds of interest, and she sold rather quickly.  Now I am earnestly looking for my next redo to sell and spread the beauty!  Exciting!

Wow, that was a lot for my first post of 2014, but I'm thinking its a great way to start!  I'm hoping to share some other new stuff -- including an Etsy shop announcement that's been way too long in the making -- but I'm in no rush.  I know non-regular posts are a turn-off to readers, but, selfishly, I'm looking forward to the go-with-the-flow plan and only bringing you guys posts I feel are valuable and not time wasters.  Because that annoys the heck out me!

So here's to a low-stress, carefree 2014!!  Hooah!!

TTfN!

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