Budget Wise Home — Decorating on a Budget
April 4, 2012

Old Chairs and New Chair

Here is a look at my mom’s kitchen chairs I posted about a few weeks ago.  I finished them off with 2 coats of spray polyurethane in a satin finish.  As I stated in Monday’s video, Wipe-On Poly is awesome for flat surfaces, but for chairs, the spray is the only way to go.  It was SO fast!

 

All the taping my sister and I did paid off.  I love the contrast with the wood.

I can’t wait to show you the whole kitchen.  I just have to make a roman shade and then I can shoot some pics.

I also have a little sneak peek at another chair I’m revealing tomorrow.  This old thrift store find got a major facelift.

Come back tomorrow to see what it looks like now.

Posted at: 10:00 am by |Filed Under: Heidi's Projects | 1 Comment
April 3, 2012

Favorite Things

Today’s favorite things come from Restyle Prints.  This shop sells retro posters, art prints, and typography prints.  I have such a weakness for anything vintage or mid-century modern, so I’m excited to share some of my favorite prints with you.  I would love to have any of these hanging in my home.

I’m loving these eye chart typography prints.  You can choose from a rainbow of colors to customize your print.

I would LOVE to hang this print in my nursery.

You gotta love the Eames rocker.  It’s such a classic.

Head over to Restyle prints to check out more fantastic retro prints.  Everything is very reasonably priced and you can also use coupon code “ILOVERESTYLE” to get 15% off your order.  Yay!

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April 2, 2012

How to Protect Your Paint Job

The most important part of painting any furniture piece is sealing it.  After you’ve spent all the time painting, the last thing you want is your beautiful paint job ruined with scratches and chips.  A few quick coats of poly is all you need to protect it.  Enjoy!

Posted at: 4:22 am by |Filed Under: How-To Videos | 2 Comments
March 30, 2012

DIY Look For Less

Easy Breezy Blue and White Dining Room

I came across this lovely dining room in my latest issue of Traditional Home magazine.  It instantly caught my eye because of the crisp blue and white color scheme.  I love that is has a casual, beachy feeling.  The variety of textures, and fabrics gives it such a cozy look.

 

 

At first glace, this room may not look overly expensive, but it is.  Let’s start with the Windsor dining chairs.  These are NOT cheap because they are made so well.  You can see how the seat is curved in certain places and gives some contouring.  I did some searching and these exact chairs with those cool spindles in the back are over $400.00 each (Ouch!). The space gets more expensive with the custom drum pendant, high end fabric window treatments, and Bloomingdale’s place mats.  One of my favorite parts of the space in the settee bench.  I LOVE using a settee or banquette in any kind of dining area because it’s so comfy and invites people to linger.  This one was a custom upholstered piece.

But not to worry.  I found some great stand ins for all of these items that will have you on your way to creating a lovely casual dining nook.

 

Here is the Look For Less:

I was able to find some very affordable Windsor chairs that look great. They don’t have all the detail and comfort of the original, but the style is the same.  Just grab a few cans of navy blue spray paint, and you’ve got the same look for less.

Sources:

Placemat

Napkins

Drum Pendant

Blue Dinnerware

Stripe Window Fabric #1

Stripe Window Fabric #2

Galvanized Metal Bucket

Windsor Chairs

Settee

Pillows #1

Pillow #2

Posted at: 7:39 am by |Filed Under: Look For Less | Leave a Comment
March 29, 2012

A Healthy Social Network

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of CafeWell. All opinions are 100% mine.

I’ve mentioned before that I’m also a fitness instructor, so living a healthy lifestyle is important to me and my family.  It’s not about looking good, it’s about being healthy and feeling good.  When you feel good, you are able to give more to those around you and accomplish the things you want to do. 

If you feel like you’re in a slump or need a little motivation to get healthy, then this post is for you.  I’ve just been introduced to CafeWell, a social network for getting and staying healthy.  It’s like a healthy version of Facebook with a ton of cool features to help you stay motivated.  CaféWell is a dedicated healthcare community which is safe, secure and anonymous.  It’s also free to join. 

Here are just a few of the great features CafeWell offers:

  • Explore and join discussion groups to share experiences and get support
  • Connect with other community members with common health interests
  • Invite family and friends to join your own personal health network
  • Join or create a challenge that motivates you. 
  • Participate with others who have common goals and interests.
  • Ask questions and get advice from diet and nutrition experts.

 

I have to say that my favorite part about CafeWell is the challenges you can join.  There is such a variety to choose from.  You can even join intellectual challenges such as “Read 24 books in one year” and connect with others who are participating.  A few others that caught my eye were “Kick the Can”, “Work out After Work”, “Giving Back to Others”, and “Ban the Box.”  I always seem to stick to my health goals when there is a challenge or if I have to report back to someone.  This is such a great feature to keep you motivated.

Here is a testimonial form one CafeWell member:

“I never thought that I was competitive before.  Now I am counting steps and enjoying seeing them add up.  My husband was actually teasing me a little and telling me that I was competitive after all… It has been fun to encourage each other to get more steps in each day.  It is also fun to see the medals add up.  I don’t know whose idea it was to get this program started, but it was a great one.  I sure hope everyone else is enjoying this health competition to get healthy!”

CafeWell has also partnered up with larger health plans like Altius to provide members with great health programs.  Reach for the Peaks is one of these programs where members participate on CaféWell in a wireless pedometer program that focuses on helping members become and stay more active.  Reach for the Peaks encourages activity and includes regular prizes and social acknowledgements to insured members.

If you’re not insured by Altius, you can still join CafeWell for free and enjoy everything this social network has to offer.  Now that spring is here, there’s no better time to recommit to getting and staying healthy.

Visit Sponsor's Site

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March 29, 2012

DIY Monogram Art

I love monograms!  They add a personal touch to a space and always look great.  I wanted a large monogram on the wall above each of my boys beds.  I thought about just buying a decal on Etsy and placing it directly on the wall.  But then I decided I wanted something a bit chunkier with more impact.  I also didn’t want to spend a lot of money, so I made the monograms myself.

 

I started out with 2 square canvases that I purchased at Michaels with a half off coupon.  I sprayed them with 2 coats of orange spray paint.

I printed out the monograms on my computer and then took them to FedEx Office (I wish it was still called Kinkos) to have them enlarged.  We used this proportion scale to figure out how big to copy them.

I then used an exacto knife to carefully cut out each circle and letter.  This took patience, but was not terribly difficult.

 

For some reason, I stopped taking pictures at this point.  So I will proceed to explain the rest.

Once everything was cut, I traced the monograms onto white contact paper.  I then cut them out of the contact paper using my exacto knife.  This took a while, but it was totally worth it.  Then I peeled the backing off the contact paper and applied the monogram to the canvas.  It was a little tricky to get it centered, but luckily the canvas and paper were very forgiving.  I peeled the paper off a few times to readjust and it continued to stick just fine.

I am thrilled with how these turned out.  The canvases were $15.00 each and the roll of contact paper was $3.00.  I already had the paint.  So the total cost for both pieces was just $33.00.  Not to shabby for some good looking diy art.  I hung them up while my boys were at school and they were so excited when they saw them for the first time.  They felt so special that their own letter was on the wall.

Posted at: 5:22 am by |Filed Under: DIY Artwork | Heidi's Projects | , Leave a Comment
March 28, 2012

A Beautiful Tufted Chair

For the longest time, I’ve wanted to replace our old glider/rocker in the nursery with something more comfy and cozy.  I wanted a big upholstered chair that I could be very comfortable in while rocking/feeding the baby late at night.  The kind of brand new chair I wanted was just not in the budget (over $1000), so I kept my eyes open for a long time at the thrift stores for something I could get reupholstered.  And then a few months ago I spotted “the one.”  I knew it had to be mine.  It had potential written all over it.

My favorite part by far is all the tufting!  Oh how I LOVE tufting.  The most important thing is that it’s actually very comfortable (even with the old foam cushion)–perfect for the wee hours of the night.

 

I’m always up for a DIY project, but this kind of upholstery job is beyond my capabilities.  I know my limits.  So I had it professionally done and I am thrilled with the results.  I literally gasped the first time I saw it complete.

 

 

My husband thought I was crazy to choose white, but I had a vision.  It’s a very durable, heavy twill that (so far) has stood up quite well.  I thought I could get away with it since the chair is not in a high traffic room.  I figure I’ll just have it professionally cleaned every year or two and hope for the best.

I love the contrast with the black piping and all those button tufts.  The upholsterer also put in new foam so the back and seat cushion are extra comfy.

I will admit, this was not a cheap purchase.  The chair itself only cost me $20.00, but the fabric and labor are where the money went. Even though it was a little expensive, I highly recommend reupholstering over buying something new.  Here are a few reasons why:

  1. I got exactly what I wanted and was able to customize the chair to my liking.
  2. Reusing= less waste.
  3. I would have paid more than double the price for something this custom, comfortable, and new.

I love this chair so much!  Since my baby is now 18 months and not waking up during the night, this chair mostly gets used for story time.  It swivels and rocks, so my boys especially love to spin around on it.  Good times for everyone!

 

 

Posted at: 3:51 pm by |Filed Under: Heidi's Projects | 5 Comments
March 27, 2012

Time to Revive Your Lawn

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Scotts®. All opinions are 100% mine.

I have never been one of those people with the perfect lawn.  My husband and I try to take good care of our lawn, but we never seem to achieve the lawn of our dreams. Last year we tried out a lawn service where someone came out to spray every 5 weeks.  I had high expectations but was disappointed with the results.  So this year we are going to try something different.  It’s called the Scotts® Snap® Spreader System.  Neither of us really has a “green thumb” so we need something that is easy and doable for our busy lives.  I think this product might just fit the bill. 

Here are some of the best features about the system:

  • It has a no mess, no guess spreader system.
  • The Snap Pac connects directly to the Snap Spreader–aka: easy to use.
  • No cutting, no opening, no pouring from heavy bags–I LOVE this feature.
  • No spilling or waste
  • It auto-sets the proper flow rate.
  • The EdgeGuard feature minimizes over spray so it stays on the lawn and off your driveway.  It keeps the product right where you want it.
  • When you’re finished, the Snap Pac self-seals upon removal making it easy to store.  No more half empty bags sitting on your garage floor. 

Head over and like Snap perks on Facebook for a chance to win some cool prizes.

I am excited to try out this system.  It seems easy to use which is exactly what I need.   Hopefully, I’ll be able to enjoy a healthy beautiful lawn with my family this summer.

What are you doing to keep your lawn looking great?

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Posted at: 7:00 pm by |Filed Under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
March 27, 2012

Favorite Things

Fabric Covered Switch Plates

Today’s favorite things comes from Modern Switch.  This shop is full of switch plates and outlet covers in a rainbow of colors and patterns.  They are so much fun and best of all, an affordable way to add some personality to a space.  I’m not recommending you put these in every room in your home, but I think switching things up in one room could be fun.

I’m partial to the modern designs. Of course, the chevron patterns top my list.  I just can’t get enough of this pattern.

These florals would look so sweet in a girl’s room.

You’ve got to love a funky pink zebra stripe.

I also love this geometric trellis pattern.

Head on over to Modern Switch to check out more designs.

One more side note.  If you’ve had trouble leaving a comment on any posts lately, the issue has been resolved.  I LOVE comments and read every one, so don’t be shy.  Thanks!

Posted at: 5:27 am by |Filed Under: Favorite Things | 3 Comments
March 26, 2012

How to Use a Drywall Anchor

Here is a quick tutorial on the proper way to hang pictures.  If you want to hang anything large or heavy, you must use a drywall anchor.  I thought most people knew this until my older and not very handy brother called and asked how to do it.  So it got me to thinking…hmm…maybe some of you haven’t used one of these either.  Enjoy!

 

Posted at: 4:30 am by |Filed Under: How-To Videos | Leave a Comment
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