A Bright and Beautiful Entrance

I certainly don't mind having April flowers instead of showers, as long we don't have to make up for it in May or June. I have been loving the great weather we've been having, and all the fun activities that come along with it. It's so nice to add a nice long walk/ bike ride back into our nightly rotation, we all sleep better, and a little exercise never hurt anyone. One of my favorite parts of our walks other than watching my adorable little girl has been seeing all the beautiful flowers blooming EVERYWHERE!
I seriously think I have some crazy version of spring fever, all I want is fresh flowers all around, all the time. Thankfully I don't have to drive all the way to town for them now. I just have to walk outside. I snipped these beauties off of the tree in our cul-de-sac, and I am totally loving them. I was tempted to cut enough for the whole house, but I don't know how my neighbours would feel about that. We'll see, I'm still considering it.

also, notice my little girls handiwork, she got these little white ceramic animals and paint in her Easter basket, and went to town on them. What mother doesn't adore their child's art, I love incorporating it into our decor.

I bought some pots a few weeks ago at our local discount store, (Ollie's for the locals) and I have been patiently waiting to get some flowers to plant in them. Well, today was my lucky day. I decided to bite the bullet, and buy some blooms. I went to my usual flower place, Home Depot, I love their "insurance" if they die within one year, you can bring them back. For a black thumb like me that's enough to have me SOLD!

I bought a bunch, and tried to buy them in colors that would go well with the house, and our fun new zig-zaggy doormat which is orange, red and blue.

I got some ranunculus,

some gerbera daisies,

and a bunch more that were colorful, and liked a lot of sun.

The front of our house has gone through some pretty big changes in the past few weeks. The landscapers cut down a tree, and pulled out the two bushes that flank our front steps.

before: with the tree and bushes

after: no tree, less bushes, more flowers

It really made a huge difference. Our whole house looks brighter!

I love how the entry looks now with our freshly painted door and our newly potted flowers.

YAY! They look great with our new mat, and really brighten up our front door. 

I just need to find or make a wreath, and I'll be done, at least for now.

What have you been doing to bring some spring to your house?



Linked Up To:

We are now entering the Black HOLE!

So, after finishing up the chevron stripes, and the demilune table in our entry area I knew that I wanted to do something fun and original with the door on that wall. I started hopping around pinterest, and some other favorite web haunts, when I started to notice that black doors were really doing it for me. I showed my sweetie-pie some pictures, and (fingers crossed) asked him what he thought. 

He liked it! (sigh of relief)

So, I pulled out my Sherwin Williams fan deck, and decided that Tricorn Black (SW6258) was going to be our best bet. After a little more inspiration hunting we realized just how much we were loving the black doors, and decided to paint all of our interior doors the same shade.
Since Mike's knee is still pretty swollen, and he's not very mobile, it took  a lot longer than normal, but he got it done regardless, and he did an amazing job!

These are some of the photos that inspired us. Click on the image to be taken to the original source.

We stopped at Sherwin Williams after Mike's physical therapy appointment, and they had the gallon ready for us. We decided to go with ProMar 200- Zero VOC Interior Latex (Ultradeep Base)

I am beyond pleased with this product. I know Mike is always a little bit skeptical when it comes to low or no VOC paints, but he was impressed too. It went up like butta'! No problems at all. 

We didn't take any photos of the process. I know for Mike if he's just doing something like a single door, he uses a brush for the whole thing. He always tell me he has to keep moving to get done before it starts tacking up. This helps to prevent any drag marks. He did two thin and even coats, and we called it a day.

After all, there's only so much you can do while sitting in a chair with your knee elevated. 

I am ecstatic with the finished look, and can't wait to see the rest of the doors done. Sometimes I wish he wasn't such a great painter so I could get in on the black beauty action. I really can't complain though, I mean look at how great it turned out!

The mirror frame and lampshade really tie it all together quite nicely.

I am in door Heaven! It's like it was meant to be this way forever, 

patiently waiting for someone to come along with a brush and a can of black paint.

Here's a before and after for you to show just how dramatic the difference really is.

We are just thrilled with the outcome! I love how it makes the blue stripes pop even more. Before we painted the door it was hard to tell if the stripes were blue or black, now with the black right next to it, the blue becomes brighter.

Now the question is wreath, or no wreath? What do you think?

linked up to: involving color 

Entry Progress and a bit of a Challenge!

If you don't remember this post from way back when, I was beyond inspired when I found this on pinterest. It was a home tour from apartment therapy, and WOW! Did she hit the nail on the head or what when she decided to add these stripes to her "entry." Like us her entryway was really just a wall that greets you when you walk in the door. I immediately knew that I wanted something similar in our home.  

This is what our entry looked like from the time we moved in (mid-December) until the middle of February. Nothing about it was overly offensive or awful (except that doorbell chime cover. ick!), but it sure didn't say "Hi! We're the Barkanic Family, and we're so glad you are here!" 

 So we decided to add some stripes of our own. The demilune table that was there before went down to the basement because the veneer top was all busted up and yucko, and it needed a makeover. We brought this pedestal table in as a stand in, until I could figure out what in the world to do with that beautiful but neglected demilune.

that's when I saw that Katie Bower and Sherry Petersik were doing a Pinterest Challenge, and oh boy did I want to play along! I have so many projects on Pinterest that I want to tackle, this was the perfect time to go for it!

So I finished up our "entry" by finally biting the bullet, and finishing that table that I love so much! It took a lot of sanding and a WHOLE LOT of wood filler, but here she is!! I made my own chalk paint using 2/3 cup of  Promar 400 (Sherwin Williams) color matched to Behr's Coastal Plain, and 1/3 cup of plaster of paris, which I mixed with about a 1/4 water before adding the paint. I LOVE IT!!!

It isn't identical to the inspiration room, and I really don't want it to be. It's also not 100% done. I'm not sure what it needs, but I'm sure I'll figure it out soon. We have been contemplating painting the basement door a fun/ bright color. Hmmm, only time will tell!

 I am really happy with how far we've come in the past 3 or so months of being homeowners, and every time we finish a project, and love how it turned out it is a great inspiration to get started on the next thing. So be sure to stop back and see what we're up to soon!

Linked Up to:

   

Cords Gone Wild!

Yes, I am fully aware of the tackiness of that title, but I truly can't stand our lack of cord organization I don't always notice the craziness, but the second I upload a picture they are the first and only thing I see, and once that happens I can't walk by without thinking about them. AHHHH! I hate cords!

Anyway, this morning I was walking by our entry wall, and I had an epiphany!

I can tuck the cord into the lamp base!

HELLO!

Why didn't I think of this sooner? 

Here's how I did it. The pictures are pretty self explanatory, but I like to type so I'll add a bit of commentary-

To get started I flipped my lamp over to see what was holding it's guts in, some cardboard and sticky, papery, black felt. Look how long that cord is! I only need it to be about 1 foot, not 4!

I pulled back the edge, and it did rip a little, but that's ok, because it's the bottom and no one ever sees it.

This is what was under the bottom cover-

I gently pulled some of the cord in threw the hole. Jackpot! It works, and there's plenty of room inside for extra cord, no rewiring necessary today!

I wrapped the extra wire around what appears to be a concrete base inside the actual lamp base.

I ended up wrapping it around 3 times while trying to keep it as secure as possible. I wanted to tuck a little bit more in, but not enough to wrap it again, so I just put that little extra bit in the channel that comes out from the center of the lamp.

I put a very little bit of elmer's around the metal rim of the base and flipped the cover back into place. YAY! I am loving my short little cord! Now it's the perfect length to just make it to the socket.

Here it is in action. This is so much better than having cords hanging down everywhere just waiting to be tripped over, and looking all sloppy!

We have lots of fun projects going on around our house this week, so check back in soon to see what we're working on. If your cords are crazy too give my method a try, and let me know if you have any questions!

Our Chevron Stripe Reveal and Tutorial

We have Stripes! Finally! I love them SO much! They really make a statement when you walk in our front door. They took a lot of hard work, but it was beyond worth it. Every time I walk by them I smile. 

this is my own little slice of happiness! 

The process was a bit daunting, and there were a few "hiccups" along the way, but now that it's all finished I am thrilled to the gills that we took the time to figure it out, get it done and do it right. 

Fortunately if you are looking to achieve a similar look we've already been through the trial and error part, and hopefully you can learn from our mistakes. If you want some stripes of your own, or just want to know how the heck we did it, read on for the step by step instructions

First, you'll want to gather all of your supplies. I've done my best to provide links for all the products I used in case you aren't familiar with them or don't have access to them locally.

Base Paint Color- Muralo Ultra Semi Gloss Enamel in the basic white
Blue Stripes- Sherwin Williams Rainstorm (SW6230) All Surface Enamel Latex Base in High Gloss - Ultra Deep Base.
Tape- 1-7/8" Green Frog Tape (if you want to use the formula I have worked out you need tape that is 1-7/8" thick for it to work. I am not being compensated by any of these companies, so use whatever brand you like best, but to avoid lots of trial and error and math use tape that is this thick!)

Roller- WHIZZ 4" Roller w/ 1/2" nap
Paint Brush- Purdy 2-Inch Nylon Dale Angle Paint Brush
Chalk Line Reel and Chalk- Stanley 47-681 100 Chalk Line Reel & Chalk Set
Paint Tray- a basic paint tray that you can pick up pretty much anywhere
Ruler & Old Reliable (a #2 Pencil)-

I know, I know I might have gone a little overboard with the ruler and pencil links, but I am a true believer that it is better to be safe than sorry! 

OK! Once you have all of your supplies gathered you will start by painting your base color. We used a basic white semi-gloss which is often used on trim and doors

you will want to let this dry and cure for at least 3 days before you move on.

When your paint is cured it is time to move on and mark your wall for the chalk lines.

This is where it got tricky for us, and all that math and trial and error came into play. If you want to be able to paint over 95% of your pencil marks and have your tape fit conveniently in between them, the dimensions for your horizontal chalk lines will be 2-3/4" apart and your vertical lines will be 5-1/2" apart. I drew lines on my ruler so that I wouldn't have to move it over for every line. 

 

Mark both the top and bottom of the wall as well as the left and right side.

*Something to consider if you want your stripes to have a point that reaches the top of your wall then you can just start marking at 2-3/4". It will look something like this

Or if you want them to look like they were just put there randomly measure down to a random increment and start there, say 1-1/2 or 2" which will look something like this*

we  have points at the top of our wall, but nowhere else. we measured in 1/4" on the right side of the wall when we started to measure, and the stripes stop at a random spot. 

It doesn't matter which way you do it, but looking back I wish I wouldn't have had the points at the top of the wall. It's your choice, if you are very confused about all this then just skip it and move on.

When you have your pencil marks every 2-3/4" on the edges and top and bottom of your wall you will want to make your chalk lines. It doesn't matter where you start, but you will need two people since you have to make it span the length and width of your wall. Your wall should look like this

Next, you want to take your ruler and make the diagonal lines. 

You start on every horizontal line, but you cross over two boxes in the process.

you may need to add in a few 2-3/4" marks in spots where you don't quite reach a 5-1/2" width. 

I needed to do this on the side of my door, it makes it much easier to get the correct angle.

Once you have all of your lines drawn you will tape them off. I put red lines to show you where your pencil lines should be. Using these measurements and tape width makes it very easy to just tape in between the pencil marks and paint over them with your stripe color. 

 your wall should be starting to look like this

when your all finished taping your stripes you'll want to tape around the trim, door or window frames, and the edges of the walls. I don't have a picture of this before we painted, but this one shows what I mean.

When you have all your stripes, trim and edges taped off you can seal the tape, the company says that brushing a little bit of water on the edge will form a seal and you wont have any bleeding, but we decided to play it safe and did another coat of white on top of the tape. After all that work you don't want to be doing touch ups for hours after your supposed to be done.

Roll the paint on everywhere you can fit the whizz roller, and then fill in any spots you couldn't reach with your brush.

Let the white dry for a few hours and then get started on your first coat of your stripe color!

Once again you can do the majority of the work with your whizz and just cut in everywhere else with the brush.

let your first coat dry to the touch, and then add a second coat.

Because we were doing such a dark color on a white wall we needed to do three coats. Again, you want to let the paint dry to the touch in between coats. 

When you are happy with your coverage you can start to peel off the tape. we let ours dry just a little before we started, but this is a matter of personal preference. I think we waited about a half hour to 45 minutes. 

When you do start taking it off peel slowly and peel it at a 90 degree angle. 

as you can see we had one row with a LOT of boo-boo's, this was due partially to me using a razor blade on the wall to cut the tape (I also cut through the white paint. OOPS!) and partially from Mike peeling it off at lightning speed. I can not emphasize how important it is to PEEL THE TAPE SLOWLY! 

If it looks like the stripes are lifting off of the wall just hold them down with the side of your hand/ finger while you peel off the tape. The paint will be somewhat pliable if you peel the tape off before it's completely dry.

When we were finished we just went back in with the white to touch up the peeled spots, and now it looks FAB!

I am really SO happy with the results. I love how the high-gloss blue looks on top of the semi-gloss white. The lines came out so crisp and perfect.

If you have any questions or need help making your own stripes please let me know!

I was dying to spread the Chevron Love, so I linked up this post at: 

classy clutter, the shabby nest, Simply Designing, House of Hepworths, finding fabulous, addicted 2 decorating, one project closer, It's Overflowing, involving color, tatertots &jello

If you end up adding some chevron stripes to your home please share them with us. You can email me pictures at: lauren@acommonerscastle.com