Category Archives: Budget Decorating

Ways I Kept Myself Busy in 2014

2014 CoopCrafts Projects

Looking forward to a creative and productive 2015!

sarahsigres

Painting an Ikea Laminate Table

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This weekend I visited my sister in law in South Carolina and helped her paint her Ikea coffee table.  Visiting was even more fun with a project to work on together!  Unfortunately, I forgot to get a true “Before” picture, so here’s her table after we finished the first coat of paint:

NC/SC Map Table

Since it’s a a laminate table, we used my leftover Rustoleum Cabinet Tranformations paint.  Most paints will peel off laminate after drying, but you can use a primer like Zinsser or a specialty countertop paint.  After two coats of paint, we used a design we created and resized/printed using Block Posters with white carbon paper to trace the design on the table.

NC/SC Map TableThen we painted along the lines with some leftover tester pot paint.  (You don’t need special laminate paint once you’ve painted the table, since regular paint will stick to the painted surface.)  You can see more of this painting method here.

NC/SC Map Table After letting the design dry, we painted on a dark glaze, then wiped away the excess.  This darkened the design and left an impression of wood grain, and also cleared away the little smudges left by the white carbon paper.  With the glaze applied, it almost looked like the design was carved into a wood table rather than painted onto laminate.  The final step was a sealer.

NC/SC Map TableThis picture was taken from the side to avoid glare, and then we were on our way home so I didn’t get more photos.  The coastline was so much fun to paint that I wish I needed a coffee table topped with Norway’s fjords.  I’ll save that idea for another day.

sarahsigres

WIP: Treadle Sewing Machine Table Makeover

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Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint

Transferring a Design from The Graphics Fairy with Carbon Paper

Tracing Graphics Fairy Design

WIP: Treadle Sewing Machine Table Makeover

WIP: Letting the Paint Cure

It’s still a work in progress, but I love it already!  I’m waiting for the paint to cure so that I can seal it and begin getting to know the treadle sewing machine.  (I’ve named her Mildred Nell, after my Grandma who used a treadle machine.)

The paint color is Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint in Eulalie’s Sky.  As you can see, in different lighting the color can look like a pale blue or more of a mint green.  It’s a lovely vintage shade that looks right at home with the spools of green and blue thread found in one of the drawers.  Don’t hate me for painting an antique!  For much of it’s life, this table wasn’t stored in ideal conditions.  It was a perfect candidate for paint.

The graphics are from The Graphics Fairy.  Check out her section on Transfer Methods for tips on resizing and getting your design on your surface.

I’ll share more photos once it’s done!

sarahsigres

WIP: New Quilted Cover for the Patchwork Bench

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WIP Patchwork Bench

Our kitchen makeover is almost done.  One of the few remaining projects is recovering our patchwork bench so that it fits the updated room a little better.  The bench sits in our kitchen beside the door to the garage and functions as a mini mud room, with shoes thrown underneath and lunch bags and backpacks on top.  During the day when it’s cleared off, it’s a good napping space for cats.

I’m sewing blocks using colors pulled from the kitchen, black from the appliances, dark brown from the newly painted cabinets, gray from the new concrete counters and red from the accents.  I’m hoping for an “optical illusion” sort of finished pattern, but I’ll settle for less yellow/more modern.   The fabrics are peppered cottons that are especially soft.  I’m worried they may not hold up well against the cats.  But you know — one of the blessings cats bring to our lives is the gift of learning not to get too attached to “stuff”, right?

sarahsigres

Budget Kitchen Makeover, During

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Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations in Espresso

As I was finishing with the Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations on our kitchen island, our dishwasher went all rogue and SOAKED the floor.  I called a plumber who replaced the disposal and told me all was well.  He didn’t remove a cap inside the disposal, so when I ran the dishwasher it had nowhere to drain but the floor.  I called him back.  He removed the cap and said the way to drain a dishwasher is by running it again, and he pushed the button.  My floor just got wetter and wetter.

I became more depressed.  Finally another plumber diagnosed the real problem, a new dishwasher was installed and I had to call in the professionals to deal with the wet floor.  Here’s the Servpro machines in action.

Serv-Pro at Work in my Kitchen

It’s not pretty, and it’s REALLY, REALLY LOUD, but they really get the job done.  And the guys we dealt with were all the nicest people.  My floor felt better, my kitchen felt better, and I felt better, too. If you ever have a water disaster like this, call Servpro.  For real, they are wonderful.

It’s still pretty ugly in there, but we’re making progress.  The floor gets measured in a couple days for new vinyl flooring and my “budget makeover” has extended way beyond what I’d imagined.

I tell myself that in six months or a year, the new disposal/dishwasher/floor will be really nice to have.  For now, UGH.

Somewhere in the midst of all this, I got a new rug for the little eating area.

New Rug

(It’s from Amazon, if you need one for yourself.)  In the photo above, I’d just done the first layer of sealer on the concrete counter.  I chose Buddy Rhodes sealers because they’re food safe.  In my online studies of Ardex concrete counters, I found a lot of people using sealers that weren’t food safe.  This was kind of a sticking point for me, and so far I’m really happy with the system.  It was easy to use and I really like the finish.  Here’s a couple pictures of the island fully sealed.

Ardex Feather Finish Counter

Ardex Feather Finish Concrete Countertops

This weekend I may be able to get back to painting.  I’m happy with the Rustoluem Cabinet Transformations kit, although that top coat is pretty tricky.  Eventually I’ll take better pictures, but phone pics will have to do for now.

Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations Before and After

This makes a good before and after picture, with the cabinets in the back still in their “before” state.

This is taking weeks longer (and lots more money) than expected, but we’re getting there.

sarahsigres