Giving New Life To An Old Rocking Chair

Adam was lucky enough to inherit this sweet, child-size rocking chair from his Grandma.  When she moved from her house, one of Adam's uncles insisted he take it before it got thrown away.  The seat was broken and it was mighty dirty, but I'm glad Adam could see the potential.  It sat in our basement for a long time.  But I remembered about it the other day and decided it was time to bring it back to life before Archer and Lyla get too big to use it!

The frame was still sturdy, but the seat needed some love.  After doing a bit of research, I found out it is called a rush-style seat.  I decided I could try my hand at replacing it. 

Before I could tackle the seat, I needed to clean it up a bit.  I cut out what was left of the seat and boy was there a lot of dirt and dust in there!  Then I used a bit of water and Murphy's Oil to wipe down the frame.  Adam saw that I was working on fixing this up and suggested he restain the frame.  The wood was dried out, so a fresh coat of stain was the perfect idea.  Adam used some stain he already had on hand to give the frame some new life.  It sure gussied up the chair and left the finish smoother.  

Next, I turned my attention to figuring out how to weave a rush-style seat.  This article and this video were super helpful in figuring out what to do.  I tried to find some fiber rush at a craft store, but didn't have much luck.  I ended up ordering some off Amazon, so I had to wait a bit until it arrived.  Don't worry, I wasn't bored while I was waiting for it to arrive.  I tackled some Roman shades for the kitchen while I was waiting.  But once the fiber rush came, I got to work.  

The trickiest part was getting started.  I didn't have all the tools that were recommended, but I didn't want to go buy them since I don't plan to start a chair restoration business.  So I had to work with what we had.  It was recommended to use a special staple gun to get the first strands attached to the chair.  I used a regular staple gun and it didn't work out.  So then I tried to use some carpet tacks which were recommended as an alternative.  Adam had some in the garage, but they ended up being too big for the small chair.  After a trip to Home Depot, I found some smaller carpet tacks (#6 carpet tacks to be exact) and those did the trick.  

After I got the first strands attached, it wasn't too difficult.  It went pretty quickly and I was able to finish it in an evening after Lyla and Archer went to bed.  They must have been tired since they slept through me hammering carpet tacks into the chair!  

It's certainly not perfect.  The man from the video I used as a guide would probably be horrified at all the gaps in the seat.  But at least it's functional now.  Archer and Lyla seem to enjoy it and find it worthy of fighting over.  

It's pretty special we have this rocking chair from Adam's grandma.  And even more special that we have two sweet kids to sit in it.          

While I definitely don't like hoarding lots of kid stuff, I do appreciate the items that have sentimental meaning like this rocking chair.  Who knows?  Maybe Archer or Lyla will get to see their kids sitting in it some day.    

DIY Roman Shades

I am very happy to say I can check the last item off our kitchen renovation to do list!  The lingering item was to replace the window treatments in the kitchen and eat-in kitchen area.  Instead of a bunch of wonky blinds, we now have pretty Roman shades. 

The new Roman shades really help finish off the space without interfering with the bolder parts of the design, like the countertops and backsplash.  It took a little while to settle on the idea of Roman shades.  We wanted window treatments that didn't stand out too much and allowed for maximum light to shine through during the daylight hours while also offering privacy during the nighttime hours.  We also didn't want anything that Archer and Lyla could mess with.  Aside from the previous blinds being old, Archer and Lyla did their fair share of adding to their wonkiness.  It was also a pain to have to put the dangling cords out of reach each morning. 

So I researched lots of different options.  We like the look of the bamboo shade we put in our half bathroom.  But it is basically see-through at night.  Plus we had some non-standard size windows to deal with.  I couldn't really find any off the shelf bamboo shades that would fit our windows.  Then I looked into cellular shades, but wasn't sold with the look of them.  I even thought about using curtains, like we did in our family room.  But there just wasn't space for curtain rods and it wouldn't have looked right.  So I finally settled on the idea of Roman shades.  I liked that the fabric would add some warmth and texture, but fit within the footprint of the window frames.

I then started looking online for Roman shades.  I ran into the same issue I did with the bamboo shades.  I couldn't find what I was looking for in the sizes I needed.  So if I wanted Roman shades, I would need to go the custom route.  I called one place with "budget" in its name to get a quote.  For one Roman shade for one standard size window I was quoted  $450!  I was shocked!  That was definitely not in our budget.  So then I decided to look into making them myself. 

I am not a skilled sewer, by any means.  I've made pillows, table runners, and simple curtains, but that's about it.  I looked at several tutorials for making them and got a bit daunted by all the steps that were involved.  But then I came across this tutorial and started to get a bit more hopeful.  The tutorial was simple to follow and seemed doable. 

So I decided to just go for it.  I went to Hobby Lobby to look for fabric.  I wanted a neutral gray color that would just sort of blend in with the kitchen.  I had one picked out, but happened to come across the clearance fabric before I made it to the cutting counter.  I ended up finding one that was a neutral gray, while also being considered blackout and insulating.  And the best part was that it was only $7 per yard instead of $20 like the other fabric.  I was sold! 

I got the other supplies I could from the store and ordered what I couldn't find from Amazon.  I ended up spending somewhere between $80 and $100 for all the materials.  It was a good chunk of money in my book, but a far cry from the $1800+ we would have had to spend if we'd ordered custom Roman shades. 

Getting the supplies was the easy part.  Finding the time to make them was a bit more challenging.  I took advantage of nap time and the evening hours after Archer and Lyla went to bed.  Adam also took care of the kids during a weekend so I could focus on making the shades.  I attempted to work on them while Lyla and Archer were around, but that didn't work out so well.  They did, along with Jazzy, seem to approve of my work.  They also added their own touch with some graham cracker crumbs and dog hair.   

The tutorial was excellent and I got better with each shade I made.  I started with the shade over the sink since it was all by its lonesome.  I wanted the other three to look as close to identical as I could since they would be right next to each other.  It was a good thing too!  The first one turned out much like the first pancake turns out.  But I tweaked a few things on the tutorial to make it easier on myself and the last three looked much better. 

They are nowhere near perfect, but I'm pretty proud of how they turned out.  I won't mind admitting I made them if someone asks where I got them.  I like that our kitchen renovation is a mix of both professional work and DIY.  The fact that I can look at the cabinets knowing Adam added all the trim work, look at the light fixture knowing Adam and I installed it together, and look at the Roman shades knowing I made them makes me love our kitchen even more.   

Take A Look At My Kitchen Now!

Dare I say the kitchen is now my favorite room in my whole house?  And that's saying something coming from someone who hates to cook.  Just look at it!

Paint has completely transformed this space since that last time I showed it to you all.  Since then, Adam and I painted the walls in Sherwin-William's Eider White.  It's essentially white with just the faintest hint of gray.  Deciding on the wall color was tricky and took many paint samples.  I knew I wanted a cooler color, but it had to look good in both the kitchen and family room.  Several samples we tried would look good in the kitchen, but not in the family room.  But eventually, I settled on the very neutral Eider White.

We typically use Behr paint from Home Depot because it's more budget-friendly, yet still good quality.  We couldn't find a color that was similar enough to Eider White, so we went with Sherwin-Williams.  I know you can get paint color-matched, but the bases aren't the same so the colors always seem a bit off when I've tried to have things color-matched.  Since we had gone through so many samples and struggled to find a color that worked, we just sprang for the pricier Sherwin-Williams Cashmere paint.  But to be honest, both Adam and I weren't thrilled with the paint itself.  We still had to put two coats on the wall and the consistency wasn't our favorite.  Basically, the only thing it had going for itself was the color.   

The new color really does help mellow out the space and let some of the other elements shine.  I was a little nervous that we, color-lovers, were basically painting our walls white.  But everything has come together so beautifully and it definitely proved to be the right color choice.

The more exciting paint update is what went on our cabinets!

Adam and I threw around the idea of painting the cabinets ourselves using chalk paint.  But after visiting a shop that sells chalk paint and chatting with some of the gals there, we quickly realized there were far too many steps involved for us at this point in our lives.  There's no way Archer and Lyla wouldn't have gotten into the paint or the freshly painted cabinets.  We wouldn't have had the time we would have needed to execute the job in a way that would yield the outcome we were after.  So we ended up having my friend Kristen of Made New paint them for us.  I took Lyla, Archer, and Jazzy to my parents for the week so we would be out of the way and allow Kristen to work her magic. 

Kristen did such a beautiful job!  I know we weren't the easiest clients since we are quite particular, but she put up with us and delivered!  She was also kind enough to meet with us twice before she even started painting to help us work out some details and pick the paint color for the cabinets.  I almost chose a lighter gray, but Kristen encouraged me to follow my vision and pick a darker color.  I am so happy she did because I am in love with the color!  (It's Magnolia Home by Joanna Gaines Trim & Cabinetry Paint in Cozy Up.)

We ended up not going the chalk paint route.  We wanted something that would hold up well over time and would require little maintenance.  Kristen recommended the Magnolia Home paint and we are very happy with the results.  It has a very pretty semi-gloss finish, with just the perfect amount of sheen.  Kristen also suggested painting the window frame above the sink in a glossy white to tie the window to the white tile and paneled ceiling Adam added.  It turned out to be the right decision and looks beautiful!

The pretty cabinet color also allows all the trim work Adam added to our existing cabinets to shine.  I love the frames he added on the ends of all the cabinets.  They add a nice, subtle detail.

He also reworked the area above the sink and it looks so much more modern and updated!  I love how the corbels he added help tie both sides of the kitchen together.  The trim he added around the bottom of the upper cabinets really adds a nice finished look.  I must admit, I didn't really think all the trim work would make much of an impact, but I was wrong!  It makes our previously-boring 80's cabinets special, with just the right amount of detail.

Another change that helped take our cabinets out of the 80's was switching out the pulls and hinges.  We chose matte black knobs for all the doors and pulls for all the drawers.  Adam suggested using larger pulls on our larger drawers and the pantry and it was a great choice!  It's pretty amazing how switching up the hardware can make such a difference!   

We made other swaps, too.  We swapped out the large swagged chandelier in the eat-in kitchen for a more modern fixture.  Adam and I had a hard time finding something we both liked.  We ended up visiting Rensen House of Lights and found the perfect fixture that we could both agree upon.  That store was huge!  When we walked in, Adam said if we couldn't find something at that store, then we were just too picky!

Finally, I added in some finishing touches that really helped pull the space together.  I talked Adam into ordering this rug.  It's definitely bold, but it works perfectly in our kitchen.  Some of the greenish-blues match the backsplash tile.  It's busy enough that it will (and does) hide crumbs and food stains.  My mom called me a Grandma for covering up our hardwood floors in the kitchen.  I know a rug doesn't always make the most sense in a kitchen, but it works for us.  It helps protect the hardwood flooring from the water splashes that happen when we are reaching for the hand towel on the stove or loading up the dishwasher.  It also gives Archer, Lyla, and Jazzy a place to hang out and annoy me while I'm trying to cook dinner.

I tried to keep the decor and items on the countertops to a minimum.  I don't like a lot of clutter, plus I didn't want to detract from all of the other beautiful things going on in our kitchen.  I added a wood tray to the right of the stove with utensils, a candle, cooking oils, salt, and pepper.  The corner by the stove is my baking area, which houses my mixer, flour, and sugar.

There's a small tray next to the sink that houses the dish and hand soap.  Above the sink on the windowsill I have an aloe plant that I've managed to keep alive for over a year now and a couple of sentimental mementos.

The other side of the kitchen features Adam's little coffee station and the bread box.  I think he likes having his Keurig machine out instead of having to stow it away every morning like he used to.  I think we've managed to create a pretty functional kitchen in a pretty small footprint.

I decided to put in new shelf liner before we put all of the stuff back into our cabinets after we had removed it all before painting.  I forgot how time-consuming it was to measure and cut out the contact paper for each cabinet and drawer!  But with Adam wrangling the kids, I managed to get it finished.  I love the fun little pop of flowers each time I open up a door or drawer now.

We only have one item left on our to-do list.  I plan to try my hand at making some Roman shades for the window above our sink and the two other windows and door in our eat-in kitchen.  I don't have the best sewing skills, but I will try!  It will certainly be a lot less expensive than buying custom window treatments to fit our odd-sized windows.  I will keep you all posted on that adventure.  I'm looking forward to being able to cross off the last item on our to do list!

1. Get new countertops.
2. Have a new backsplash installed.
3. Paint the cabinets gray.
4. Make some minor modifications to the existing cabinets.
5. Paint the walls a lighter, cooler color.
6. Find a new light fixture for our eat-in kitchen.
7. Replace the cabinet handles and hinges.
8. Replace the window treatments in the kitchen and eat-in kitchen.
9. Replace the sink and faucet.

Here's a few before and after shots to really drive home how far our kitchen has come over the past few months:

 

I am so in love with our gorgeous new kitchen!  I literally smile every time I walk in there now.  I even think cooking in such a pretty space makes me a better chef.  I haven't screwed up any meals in our newly renovated kitchen...yet.  ;)