Victoria Day Weekend

Hello!  Hope you all enjoyed your long weekend!  I am happy to report that our weekend was quite productive and fun.  We had many out of town visitors.  It's so nice to get together with family and friends and catch up on all of the details since the last visit.  Parker and Avery have definitely had their fair share of fun this weekend as well!  The pitter patter of little feet and the sounds of child play echoed throughout the neighborhood the past few days.  There are not many children in our neighborhood so when we have visitors it is super exciting.

It was nice to finally start to tackle some outdoor projects.  I began in the front yard, weeding, planting a few annuals and mulching.  Usually we plant some Canna Lily bulbs in the front beds, however I am searching for a more permanent option.  I am undecided on a shrub or Hydrangea.  I have to take into consideration the three windows in the front that give us all our light for the family room.  So, I need something that will fill a gap but not obstruct our windows, hmmmm.

I also split and transplanted some hosta's and sedum's that grow along side our walkway.  I love this part of our landscaping.  During the mid-summer months the walkway looks amazing when all of the perennials are at full potential.

We also started to set up our patio.  On Saturday we had a yard sale and managed to make enough money to purchase a replacement gazebo top and new patio cushions...sweet!  Before pulling any patio furniture out I re-stained the deck to freshen it up.  The cushions I purchased are from HomeSense and look great.  They are not the palette I was hoping for, but I am happy with this choice.  I also purchased an outdoor rug but have to return it as the quality is not that great (it split after 24 hours).  We still have plans to add outdoor panels to the gazebo, add a new rug, some plants, a lighting fixture and some more accessories.  But so far we are off to a good start.

Kathryn
xoxo

Blog Face Lift

I have playing with the idea of giving this blog a bit of a face lift and found a little time today to change things up.  I wanted to go with a lighter colour palette as the dark brown was a little too heavy.  I also wanted to add some type of photo or header to give the page a little style.  There are so many great sites out there that offer free backgrounds, headers and other miscellaneous tabs for your blog.  How great is that!?!  Anyway, I am quite pleased with the result, hope you enjoy!

Kathryn

$7 Gold Chalkboard

Hello!  Hope all of you wonderful Mothers had a fantastic Mother's Day weekend!  Our weekend was full of a little travel and a lot of fun. 

I was able to finish one quick project over the last couple of days and the best thing about it was that is only set me back about $7!  I am a fan of the chalkboard trend, and most recently the gold trimmed boards.  I just happened to notice an old picture frame in the garage this week that was looking for a make over.  The frame once held a print of a duck-(I know! don't even go there!)  The glass had been broken and the matte was a little soiled, however the frame was mint.  The backing was cardboard, clearly not the proper surface for a chalkboard.  I needed something thin enough into the back of the frame.  I decided on some MDF and it turned out great.

This frame was navy blue prior to spray painting it gold.  

piece of MDF to insert in back of frame

three coats of Rustoleum Chalkboard paint

 some light antiquing with Valspar Antiquing Glaze

and....Voila!  A finished product!

Vanity Makeover

A few months back we were given a small oak vanity from a good family friend.  I could already picture my baby girl in front of it brushing her locks.  It was in fantastic condition, the one minor issue was that it was honey oak.  No biggie!  Nothing a little sanding and paint won't fix.  

I have actually been working on this for a couple of weeks now, but finally finished it today.  After some sanding, two coats of Krylon Ivory (Satin finish), some more light sanding and some new fabric....voila a new vanity that compliments Avery's room.

before:

after:

I picked up this soft pink linen from Fabricland.  Was about $35 per metre.  I only needed about a third of a metre and it was on sale for 40% off.  I paid about seven bucks in the end for the fabric..not bad :).  The buttons were covered by one of the staff members at Fabricland for a whopping $1 a piece. 

A great success!  Most importantly, it received Avery's stamp of approval!

Linking up with

Random Bits

It's been a few weeks since we've shared some random tidbits, so what better time to catch up.  It's been another busy week here in our household.  So many little projects started and too many to patiently waiting their turn!  I hope to share with you some of my new creations soon. 

4 weeks of training until I tackle my next half marathon.  Training began in January and I am I feeling pretty confident and pleased with my results so far.  I crossed the 18km hurdle this weekend in a great time (even though I should be running slow).  I like to challenge myself every chance I get.  I actually ran from one town to another!  Sounds like kilometers away (18 in fact), but quite proud of my accomplishment.  Looking forward to beating my PB on race day.

For the last month or so I have been desperately trying to find some nice slipcovers for our family room furniture.  Finally, after three orders (from Sears) later, I give up.  Nothing seems to fits properly.  The lipstick red sofa set will have to stay until it's in the budget to replace.  However, I did happen to come across some really pretty area rugs at Home Depot this week.  I found this really nice "botanical like" print rug with red hues that I think will compliment the furniture while still being able to incorporate ivory, blue and green into my palette.  I will have to wait for a sale as they run up to $499 ...eek!

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Congrats to Avery for completing another successful session of gymnastics!  Our little angel has been involved with this club since she was two years old (record scratch.....where on earth has this time gone!)  I am so proud of her and the great progress she has made!  We look forward to conquering level four in the fall.

Today my hubby and I had a shopping date!  We crossed over to the other side of the pond to look for some deals. While it was nice to get away, we came home with less bags than I anticipated :(  I was hoping for some big deals, but maybe next time.  One purchase that I am excited about was my new paint gun.  We found a really great deal on a starter gun and I can't wait to paint my first project.  

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Enjoy your weekend!

xoxo

Kathryn