This Old Colonial Home

April 14, 2015
by This Old Colonial Home 2 Comments

Fan-tastic DIY

We have a few ceiling fans in our house and man are they ugly! They scream ’80s with their fake wood finish, brass fixtures and dated frosted glass light shades.

The one in the master bedroom bothers me the most since it literally stares me in the face every time I go to sleep.Instead of spending a hundred plus dollars on a completely new fixture, we decided to give it the ole DIY try.

We started by disassembling all of the fan’s pieces. (Don’t forget to cut the power!) Each piece then got a good cleaning. Talk about dusty! Gross.

Now it was time to spray paint. We decided to do the whole thing white using Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch.Jamie laid out all of the pieces on a drop cloth in the garage, including the screws, and gave them two coats of paint.Meanwhile, I went in search of some new glass light shades to replace the old ones. I came across these at Lowe’s. They’re definitely a nice upgrade and a decent price!We let the fan pieces dry overnight and by the next day they were ready to be hung back up.

Here’s what it looks like all put back together. What an improvement, right?! Such a quick DIY and it cost less than $20. Can’t beat that!

April 2, 2015
by This Old Colonial Home 1 Comment

Kitchen Chalkboard Wall

Well it’s official. The entire first floor of our house is finally all repainted. The last piece of the pie was the kitchen. (Mmm … pie.) Jamie wiped the white walls goodbye with some Mint Frost by Valspar. It’s the same color we used in our dining room. I think it makes the two rooms flow nicely together.One of the walls we left white … well only temporarily. On this wall we decided to use chalkboard paint!Before painting, Jamie sanded down the wall to make it as smooth as possible. We let the paint cure for a few days before doing anything else to it. And really it sat bare for longer than it needed to because I couldn’t figured out what I wanted to do with it 😛I finally came up with what I wanted to display. But before doing that, I took a piece of chalk and went over the entire wall.I then wiped it clean with a little soap and water. It took a few wipe downs to get all the streaks out. I also had some residue from the rag I used, so I just took a vacuum brush to the wall once it was dry. Now I was good to go!

I found some cute kitchen pun printables on Pinterest. Since I stink at drawing and can’t really do fancy handwriting, I used a method similar to Lauren’s over at Bless’er House. I printed each pun then traced over the letters and design on the back side with chalk. Then I taped the sheets of paper to the wall and went over each letter and design on the front with a pencil. This pressed the chalk onto the wall, transferring the image.I could then easily color in or trace any areas that needed it. This is what it looked like after I did all four.It still needed something though. So I added a little border around it, included another saying (that one I did freehand, woah!), and hung a cute little bucket to hold chalk.But I still really wanted something along the top. I had been thinking about an EAT sign. And it must’ve been fate because I found this beauty at Michael’s!Here’s the final product. I love how it turned out! It think it’s the perfect dose of industrial decor.What cool projects have you made with chalkboard paint?

March 11, 2015
by This Old Colonial Home 1 Comment

Bucket List

I don’t know about you, but I love a good galvanized bucket. Whether it’s new or old, rustic or freshly painted — they can serve so many purposes. You may recall that I blogged about a rusty bucket that I turned into a planter last Fall.Before I really knew what I wanted to do with it, I had turned to Hometalk for opinions. So many great ideas were tossed around — like filling it up with rolled towels for the bathroom, or holding wood by the fireplace, or even serving as an umbrella stand. So when Hometalk recently approached me about curating a board on upcycled buckets, I knew I couldn’t say no. I mean look at all the possibilities!There’s everything from a centerpiece, to lamps, to an Advent calendar, to even a bathroom sink!

Turning them into planters tends to be the most common. But I love how Jeanette from Snazzy Little Things took it one step further and used small buckets filled with succulents as wedding favors. What a great idea!Marie, who can often be found at Flea Market Gardening, took gardening with buckets to a whole new level. She crafted this tipsy solar fountain! How cool is that?!Buckets are also a fun way to keep things organized. Melody over at My Passion for Decor cleverly created a caddy for kids’ crafts. (Say that 3 times fast!)If I was forced to choose a favorite (which is really hard), I think it might just have to be this creation from Laura at Finding Home. Who would even think to create a Christmas “tree” using different sized buckets?! I love that!For more inspiration and to see the rest of these fantastic ideas, head over to my Hometalk board.

What have you created using buckets?

February 2, 2015
by This Old Colonial Home 2 Comments

Fun with Curtains

I’m happy to report that we’re making some progress in the master bedroom! If you follow me on Instagram (@oldcolonialhome) then you know that I recently scored this awesome accent chair at Marshalls.I was supposed to be shopping for a mirror at the time, but when I came across this lovely piece with its nailhead trim, I knew I couldn’t pass it up (especially when I had passed up on one similar last summer).

I did eventually find a big, round mirror that I was looking for to fill up the huge wall above my dresser. This rustic, wooden beauty is a HomeGoods find.But the main thing I want to share with you is our new curtains.I love how they turned out, but man what a process it ended up being!

One of the issues we had was that each of the 3 windows in our room either butts up against the roof line or a wall or both.This makes curtain rod placement tricky, especially since I usually like to go high and wide. That wasn’t going to be an option here. I considered doing roman shades, but I didn’t like the idea of a third of our windows always being covered, blocking natural light.

So I came up with the idea of using one panel on each window and hanging it using a rod made with black steel pipes. But instead of having two ends, we just have one.Making the rod was super easy and cost less than $20 each. Here’s what I used:3/4″ Floor Flange

3/4″ x 2″ Nipple

3/4″ 90 degree Elbow

3/4″ x 24″ Threaded Pipe

3/4″ Cap

After wiping down the pipes, I assembled the pieces in that order.

Another issue we encountered was the length from the top of the window to the floor. Since the windows are at the roof line, they’re lower than normal. So the standard curtain sizes wouldn’t work — 63″ was too short and 84″ was too long. But you know what’s the perfect length at 72″? Shower curtains! Did you even notice?!They were another HomeGoods happy find, and only cost $14.99 each!

So I had my curtain rod and I had my curtains, but there was one other issue — attaching the two. The pipe obviously wouldn’t fit through the holes in the shower curtain, and most standard shower curtain hooks wouldn’t fit over the pipe, and regular curtain hooks only come 7 to 10 in a pack and shower curtains have 12 slits. Oy! I was getting ready to throw in the towel. But finally I found something and ended up getting these affordable curtain rings from Ikea.Who knew such a small project would turn into such a big headache? But at least the end result turned out great and that’s all that matters!We still have a few things left to do in here (like paint the ’80s ceiling fan, build nightstands, and replace the lamps), but our bedroom is finally starting to feel a lot more cozy!

January 19, 2015
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New Year, New Projects

So far the new year is off to a slow start in our house. I keep reading about other bloggers’ projects and re-organization tactics. And while inspired (and somewhat jealous), I’m having a hard time getting myself motivated after the holidays. We only just took down all of our Christmas decorations a week and a half ago!

But that doesn’t mean we don’t have some plans lined up.

One of my goals for the new year is to finally finish decorating the master bedroom.Our furniture is all mix matched, but not in a good way. We don’t have window treatments other than blinds and there’s still nothing hung on the walls yet. It’s time.

So far we have managed to get two new dressers.I think just about everyone has these Hemnes pieces from Ikea, but they’re so affordable and look great! I think they have definitely helped improve the room.

On the to-do list is replacing the headboard. Even though I like our current one, I think with the new dressers and the wood floors and trim in the room it’s too many different stain colors. I’m hoping to switch it up with a tufted headboard. I think having fabric will help break up all the wood. I love this one!

From Amazon

We also hope to eventually make two nightstands. I love our yellow one, but I think we plan to move that into another room. Once we have the nightstands, then I can add new lamps and artwork. I’m also working on styling the long dresser and the big blank wall behind it.

The other major goal for the new year is having our upstairs bathroom completely renovated. We’re talking a gut job!But why you may be asking. Because it’s an incredibly small bathroom that has had (original 1937) plumbing issues, surface mold, and peeling paint in the tub. So we figured let’s start fresh — give it a new layout, take a little space from a bedroom closet and hopefully incorporate a pocket door to give us more elbow room and to make it more functional. This is a job for the professionals. We’ve already got our contractor and will hopefully see work begin in the next few weeks. Think classic subway tile and black and white floors. Something like this perhaps.

From Houzz

We are super excited about this! Aside from having our hardwood floors redone and our driveway widened, this is the first major renovation we’re undertaking. I can’t wait to share the progress and end results with all of you!

Here’s to improvements in the new year!

December 18, 2014
by This Old Colonial Home 4 Comments

Christmas Crafts

As if this time of year isn’t busy enough with all the decorating, shopping, wrapping, baking … I decided to throw a few Christmas crafts into the mix as well. I just can’t help myself!

It kind of all started when I saw this cute sign at Marshalls.I love its rustic vibe, but I didn’t love its $25 price tag. So I figured maybe I can make something similar.

I ended up using this framed mirror that I had lying around.I didn’t want to keep the hooks, so I took them off and filled the holes with spackle. Wood filler would also do the job.While I waited for that to dry, I covered the mirror in a brown paper bag and then some burlap. Once the spackle was set, I lightly sanded the entire frame. Then it was time to spray paint!It only took 2 or 3 quick coats. After it was dry, I reinserted the now burlap backing.Then I simply used a snowflake stencil that I picked up at Party City for 99 cents. I used white paint I already had on hand and bought a foam pouncer from Michaels for around $2.50. Now granted my sign is a lot smaller than the one at Marshalls, but for less than $5 I’m pretty happy with it!

Eventually I would like to add some wording along the bottom, like ‘Let it Snow,’ but for now it still brings some holiday cheer to our living room.In addition to the sign, I also made some fun, Origami stars using festive scrapbook paper.I’ve only done Origami a few times and the last time was probably when I was in 6th grade! But this video tutorial I found through Pinterest was really easy to follow! If I can do it, so can you!

And last, but not least — I couldn’t resist making some more no sew throw pillows! I followed the same method as my placemat pillows, but this time I used kitchen towels. The red one was actually plain, but I stenciled on a big snowflake!It’s another easy and inexpensive way to add some more Christmas cheer around the house!

If you want to keep up with more of my Christmas decor, please be sure to follow me on Instagram at @oldcolonialhome and check out the hashtag #oldcolonialhomechristmas 🙂

Merry Christmas, my friends!

December 9, 2014
by This Old Colonial Home 2 Comments

Colonial Home Christmas

Last Christmas I gave you my heart and the very next day you gave it away … wait, that’s a Christmas song stuck in my head. 🙂 What I meant to type was … last Christmas, I scored some pretty awesome discounted decorations at Hobby Lobby, and I have been waiting a whole year to use them!If you’ve been following this little blog for awhile then you may recall that I managed to get 5 plain wreaths, bows, and ribbon for less than $25! I was super excited! What am I going to do with all of those wreaths you ask? Well, we have a traditional center-hall colonial house — so it’s only fitting that we put them in each of the front windows! Like this:

Inspiration from Pinterest

I absolutely love this look. It’s so classic. Plus, the house looks festive throughout the day, not just at night when the lights come on.

Luckily this decoration task turned out to be easier than I thought it would. All I had to do was attach the bows to the wreaths using the twist ties they come with.Then I just looped ribbon through the wreath and put each one out the top portion of our windows. I simply closed the window on the ribbon and tied a knot on the inside. The hardest part was making all the wreaths even, but all it took was a few little tweaks here and there. And that’s it!

Now we have (in my biased opinion) a stunning, Christmas card-esque house. I just want to stand outside and stare at it!As for the rest of the decorations, the wreath on the front door is also from Hobby Lobby. What I love about it is that it’s not just Christmasy and it can stay out all winter long!We also added our antique sled that I picked from someone’s curbside trash last year. And I repurposed my metal bucket again, this time to hold some wood, tree branches, and pine cones.New this year is the little gold tree on our front steps. This was also a trash pick. (I think I have a problem!) I added the red ribbon to tie it in better with the rest of the décor.Along with some lights and candles in the window, that’s all it took to make the outside of our home ready for the holidays. And here’s how it looks all lit up at night.The camera never quite does it justice. Christmas lights are so magical don’t you think? What are some of your favorite outdoor decorations?

November 20, 2014
by This Old Colonial Home 10 Comments

Improvised Thanksgiving

In just one week, we will gather with family and friends to give thanks for the blessings in our lives and sit down to what is — in my opinion — the best meal of the year!

Even though we aren’t hosting Thanksgiving, I wanted to create a tablescape nonetheless because it simply makes my heart happy 🙂I decided to create and share a sort of “makeshift” Thanksgiving table. Some of us might not have the ideal setup — maybe you don’t have a formal dining room, maybe your table isn’t big enough to fit everyone, maybe you don’t have fine china. That doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice a welcoming place to eat.

All it takes is a little improvising.

Jamie and I have a formal dining room, but not a big, formal dining room table. So I chose to set up a folding table in our living room where we could have more seating and better ambiance. I moved the coffee table out of the room in order to have enough space.Since we don’t have a big table that means we also don’t have a big tablecloth. But not to worry — I just used a full-sized flat sheet. To give the table some more texture and color I added a plaid throw (which by the way I found at an estate sale for $4!)I then assembled each place setting. We don’t have charger plates or fancy china, so I just used our everyday plates (the ones that aren’t chipped) and our Oneida flatware that we also use daily.I love the pattern on our salad plates. The brown goes nicely with the dinner plate and the blue pairs well with the throw. I then simply put a folded linen napkin on top of the plates and added a pine cone to each setting.I love bringing in a little bit of nature. It adds such a sense of warmth, don’t you think? Plus it’s free!!

As for the centerpiece I used a wooden box that we had, filled it with a faux leaf garland (though you could certainly use real leaves if you like), and inserted brass candlesticks of varying heights.I used our dining room chairs for seating and incorporated our living room accent chair for the head of the table. I also used my new, no sew placemat pillow. I like how they both add to the color palette and even tie in nicely with our plates!The only other thing I did was add a few pieces to the mantel and hearth. I brought in a pumpkin and mums from our front steps to make it feel more rustic. And of course I lit the fire. Now we have a cozy and inviting Thanksgiving table!I love creating a special place to eat, but what’s really important is not the table, but those gathered around it.

I hope your Thanksgiving is filled … er stuffed with blessings!

November 14, 2014
by This Old Colonial Home 4 Comments

No Sew Placemat Pillow

When it comes to sewing, my skills are pretty limited. I can reattach buttons and … nope, that’s it. I hope to change this one day and actually learn how to use a sewing machine. But until that day comes I’ll be using no sew methods that I come across. Exhibit A:You guys, I actually made this little pillow! (Patting myself on the back.) Can you believe these are actually placemats from the dollar store? This was such an easy and inexpensive project.

Let me start at the beginning.

I had originally bought this placemat at our local dollar store thinking it would look cute in a frame for Thanksgiving.Then I came across this lovely pillow that Collette over at Through the Front Door had made from a kitchen towel. Light bulb! I figured I could do something similar using the placemat and without using a needle and thread (because like I said I’m not that talented … yet). I just needed to pick up another mat for the back. But, of course, by the time I got around to it there weren’t any left. So I just picked up two new placements that were autumn-y.I chose to use two different ones that way the pillow can be displayed on either side. (In reality it was because I couldn’t decide which one I liked better. Haha!)

The only other supplies I needed were stitch witchery and pillow filler, which I picked up at Michaels.

To make the pillow, I started by laying the placemat face down and cutting strips of the stitch witchery for along the edges.I then lined up the other placemat laying it face up.To get the tape to adhere to the placemats you cover the fabric with a damp press cloth and use a steam iron on the wool setting and press for about 10 seconds on each side. I didn’t have a press cloth so I just used an old kitchen towel, which worked fine.I went around three sides and let it cool before adding the pillow filler. Once my filler was in place, I tried ironing the last seam, but had a little difficulty getting it to stick. So I pinned it down just above the stitch witchery to help keep it in place.That definitely worked better. And after just a few more presses, my pillow was complete!I probably could have stuffed it a little more, but hey, not bad for my first try I’d say. I have a lot left over, so I’ll definitely be making more of these. Maybe as Christmas gifts? Hmm.

As for the original placemat … I ended up making it into a banner for our mantel.All I did was cut out the squares and attach it to twine with some clothes pins – items I already had on hand. Easy peasy!

What do you think? What no sew items have you made?

Linking up with Home Remedies | DIY on the Cheap | Bless’er House

November 10, 2014
by This Old Colonial Home 2 Comments

Office Paint Job

This isn’t the most glamorous room, but it’s kinda the only DIY project that we’ve done as of late. So let’s just get real life for a moment.

Before

I’ve never shown our home office before because, well, it looked like this. Please excuse the drabness. I mean it is an office after all filled with papers and bills and mail. Ideally, I would want it to look more like this:But c’mon people, is anyone’s home office legitimately that organized and clutter-free all the time? If so, then I’m seriously ~~jealous~~ intrigued.

Eventually we hope to improve the décor in here, but for now we decided to at least give it a new color. Jamie painted it Silver Blueberry by Olympic.

After

Even though they say you shouldn’t paint small rooms dark colors, I like it! It definitely feels more office-y. Maybe now I’ll be more efficient. (Probably not.)

As you can see we each have our own desks and separate computers. Jamie doesn’t want to share with me. 😛 The plan is to one day build a desk in the back corner, possibly similar to the one in the above Houzz picture.

I also really want to make some pipe shelves. I think these are so awesome! Like this one. But, man, piping is pricey!We also desperately need organizers of some sort and maybe a bulletin board. Piece by piece it will eventually get there. But remember, this is real life. We have a whole entire house that we’re painting, improving, decorating, etc. It takes time and we can’t do it all at once. But it’s fun to dream up ideas and future DIYs. Am I right?