DIY Padded Coffee Table

The family room area has lacked a coffee table ever since my oldest was born. It worked well the last 6+ years but now that my youngest is over 3 I've been thinking about adding one back. We've definitely missed having somewhere to rest our feet when watching TV. I was inspired after reading this tutorial using inexpensive IKEA rugs to try something myself.

I already had this metal and glass table not being used. The aged brass finish is perfect but we needed something softer and more kid friendly for the top.

It has a matching larger round table which I love as much as someone can love a table. Here is an older fuzzy picture of it in my living room.

The glass top was replaced with small piece of 11/32 thick plywood from Home Depot for $7. Mike cut it to size back home and it easily rested in the metal frame.

Instead of spending $14 on foam I chose to pad the top with layers of heavy polar fleece found at Goodwill new for $5. Most of the layers of polar fleece were cute to match the plywood. The last piece was left larger to staple onto the wood.

Next I hand sewed two small cotton floor rugs together using regular thread close in color to the rug. I knew the stitches would be visible which was part of the charm of this project. These rugs were only $3 each which felt like a huge bargain for such a sturdy material with lots of texture. I didn't take pictures of the them but at IKEA there was a huge bin filled to the top with these pinkish red and beige striped rugs.

After stapling the rugs I now have this in my family room area.

I am super pleased with how it turned out. I added a plexi tray recently purchased at Target to contain magazines and provide a hard surface for drinks. I couldn't help but pull out my favorite cup/saucer and sit back to enjoy this new addition. For only $18 we now have a padded coffee table and a place to finally rest our feet!

Jonathan Adler Pillows and Accessories

The master bed pillow situation has always looked a little off to me with no wow factor.

After reading this blog post about pillow covers made from napkins I thought they would be a great solution. The napkins were purchased from my local JCPenney, a store I hadn't been to in years. The 2 pack set ended up costing only $8.50 and I already had pillow inserts and extra white duck cloth for the back.

I was familiar with JCPenney's Jonathan Adler Happy Chic line which is more affordable than his premium line. It was still out of my price range when I viewed it online in the past. Well that has changed! I found some good deals while poking around the Happy Chic shop. There were lots of markdowns, some less than online prices. Plus I used a 15% coupon downloaded from the website to my phone. I could not pass up this pink faux agate box. Seriously, this baby was only $9.

And look at these black pillows. They have removable zippered covers with included inserts for only $8 each. I'm not sure where they will live but for now they are hanging with some friends including the black and white spotted pillow on the living room couch.

After all of these JA additions I finally bought his book "Jonathan Adler on Happy Chic Colors" from ebay to make it legit.

I am seriously loving everything I came home with. Plus with killer prices I'd say I'm ..Happy Cheap:)

Pink and Brass Bamboo Nightstand

I found this nightstand on Craigslist for $15 this spring. It sat in my basement waiting for spray paint weather to arrive.

I didn't really have a need for it but loved the bamboo details and brass campaign style brackets. Since it was going to stay in the basement as additional toy storage I thought it would fun to paint it bright pink to pick up on a few pink accents in the artwork and girls toys scattered around the room.

It's not easy to see in pictures but this was probably the most junky piece of furniture I've ever purchased. Nail polish globs and stickers sprinkled all over plus the top slightly bubbled up with chipped particle board on the bottom. Polish remover came to the rescue and a quick pass over with the sander helped mostly level the top. No way was I going to spend a lot of time or energy on this piece. Spray primer and spray paint were the quickest way to cover the yellow speckled finish. I just taped the drawers a bit and left them in to keep things moving.

I used 2 coats of Zinnser Bulls Eye 1-2-3 Spray Primer and 3 coats of Krylon Watermelon Gloss. Be warned, this color is intense. The picture without the drawers is the most accurate color representation.

The best thing about this nightstand is the bamboo hardware. First I cleaned it with ketchup than scrubbed it with Brasso and an old toothbrush.

The color looks so crazy here but wanted to give an idea what it will look like with my rattan chairs back in the basement.

To tone down the pink I placed one of my daughter's art creations on top under the tray. I'm tempted to paint the bamboo detail a lighter color along with a large framed rectangle on top because it is so bright. When I was taking these pictures she just happened to have on a matching pink outfit!

Gold Duck Tape Striped Bed

The girls bunk beds have been in a state of limbo for a few months now. I got around to a couple of quick updates to polish it up a bit this past week. The last we saw their beds it looked like this.

After completing a few projects for the room like painting the lilac campaign dressers, a glossy lamp makeover and creating a Les Touches inspired cork board, I took a few months off from working on the room. One area that had been bugging me was the plain plywood that supported to upper bunk. I did not enjoy looking at it while reading stories to my girls on the lower bunk but wasn't sure what to do with it.

First I decided to simply whitewash the plywood to cover up the orange undertones while still letting the wood grain show.

Using leftover wall paint, I mixed 1 part paint with 2 parts water in a medium bowl. After removing the bedding and mattress the mixture was painted on with the plywood still in place on the upper bunk. I wanted this to be a quick update and didn't want to break out the power drill or deal with moving the heavy plywood to the ground. After 2 back to back coats the deed was done and all was good.

But it was a little boring. So boring I forgot to take a picture.

It needed a little something extra so I headed over to Hobby Lobby for gold Duck Tape to add some stripes. At this point it became necessary to remove the plywood to have straight lines and clean edges. Two and a half roles were needed which resulted in an additional trip and an extra day for the project. Tabs of blue painters tape were used as spacers. The stripes took a little longer than anticipated to tape on but it was super easy and turned out great.

Here is an up close shot of the stripes. They are reflective but not too shiny.

I also sewed two fabric panels for under the bed to create a faux bed skirt. The fabric was a Nate Berkus sheet that was used for piping on the slipcovered bench next to the bed. Plastic storage boxes no longer take center stage in the room - yay! Now I do have a little secret, they are only taped on at the moment. I plan on adding velcro but for now a little Duck Tape is doing a pretty good job at holding it up :)

Greek Key Frame and Foo Dog Update

I love Greek Key and have wanted to incorporate it in my home forever. I stumbled across this frame while thrifting for $7. At first I put it back on the shelf but kept thinking about it and decided it was worth it.

It sat in my house for a month while I tried to decide what to do. Paint it? Maybe one color for the raised Greek Key and another for the rest? Swap out the art for something more colorful or modern? I had no idea and then decided to simply highlight the key detail with my favorite Antique Gold Rub n Buff leaving the rest of the frame in its original condition. The red art had to go and I left the frame empty. As a temporary experiment I also taped some grosgrain ribbon to the back so a little would peek through for contrast.

I propped the frame behind a new Foo Dog found on Craigslist for $5. It was a cement lawn decoration in not great shape so it received 2 coats of Rustoleum Night Tide Enamel. This spray paint was leftover from painting a campaign chest that sits in front of the Greek Key stair railing seen in this post.

Along with my newly made over 70's lamps I am finally happy with the bar area. An update on the lamps - I really wanted barrel shades but was having no luck until I stumbled upon some cheap RE base/shade combos at Target. They were on sale for buy one get an additional one for 1/2 off. Even though I only needed the shades it was still a great deal. Plus they were missing a base so I walked out the store with 2 shades and one base for $14! I also nixed the gold/ivory trim because it was weird.

With the exception of paint and the blue glass twig object that was my husband's grandmothers, everything on this bar came in at $36 -lamps, shades, tray, brass vase, foo dog and frame. I love it!.

Sharing this at HomeFor4SweetHome.

70's Lamps Spray Paint Makeover

For a while I've been on the hunt for two matching lamps for the bar in the living room. It only had one lamp so that area was dark plus it looked a little off balance. This was during the holidays and not much changed except removing the mini gold tinsel trees.

I would have loved to find the matching Nate Berkus lamp but wasn't having any luck. Finally this week I stumbled upon these harvest gold and brown beauties while thrifting.

I loved the chunky bases and size. They are 12" tall from base to light socket so just right for a bar table. They were only $3 each and to find a pair of thrift lamps is not always easy. Immediately I primed and painted them Heirloom White.

After taping off the socket and cord I sprayed 3 light coats of primer followed up with 3 light coats of paint 40 minutes later.

Finally a glossy clear coat was added with a heavy hand the next day. It amped up the glam factor and added an extra layer of protection. This was similar to the method used for freshen up the girls glossy double gourd lamp.

Here is a freshly painted lamp in its new home.

Last minute I decided to add a bit of ivory and gold trim to the top of the lamp. It's binder clipped in the back while I decide if it works. Ooh, glossy...

A few other changes were made to accessories so the full shot of both lamps plus updates will be soon!

Upholstered Velvet Nailhead Headboard

My son Robert switched rooms in December to what use to be the nursery. This room has looked mostly the same for the last 7 years. Same paint, same curtains, same dresser. The only thing that changed was the 3 three babies swapping in and out as needed. Now that the space is officially his I was ready to start tweaking the space for him. A new headboard was first on the to do list. Headboards are really very simple to make. All that was needed was:

5/8 Underlayment Particle Board ($20 but enough for 2 headboards)
Egg Crate Foam ($12)
Batting ($6)
Fabric 1.5 yds (velvet $17 per yard so $26)
Staple Gun, Staples
Yardstick, Hammer, Nail
Nailheads ($7)
Total if purchasing all materials except gun and staples $62 - Not Bad!

Most supplies were already on hand from previous projects like the kid friendly gray Sunbrella velvet leftover from recovering a sofa. The only purchases were $6 for batting and $7 for nailheads. First Mike cut the particle board to my measurements of 30" x 41".

Egg crate foam was cut to 39" x 29" to leave a 1" foam free edge along the sides and top.

The batting was laid smooth on the ground, then the foam followed with the particle board. I took some extra time to make sure the foam was lined up correctly with the board. The batting was stapled all around paying close attention to the corners ensuring a smooth fit.

Next the fabric was placed wrong side up on the floor followed with my newly "batted" board. The fabric was then cut leaving a 3" border all the way around.

Using the staple gun again, I attached the fabric with 3 staples in the center portion of each side. Then I kept on stapling, alternating opposite sides. The key for this step was ensuring a tight fit, flipping the board over frequently to check my work.

That was the easy part. I really wanted nailhead trim thinking it would no problem. Well it is pretty easy...if you like crooked lines and lots of bent nails that need to be discarded. I thought I could just measure the holes and tap my upholstery nails in. The particle board was so hard that many of the nails went in totally crooked. So I did what any normal person would do - stopped the project and felt guilty for the next three months while the headboard sat unfinished.

Finally this week I bit the bullet and completed it yeah! All I needed to do was hammer in a regular nail a bit into the board then remove it so the decorative nailhead would sink properly into the headboard. Using a yardstick I marked a small dot every 3/4" and proceeded with adding the nailheads.

Finally it is behind my son's bed. A few nailheads are missing on the side because I ran out from throwing away so many in the beginning. The next trip to the store will remedy that problem. Currently he's digging Star Wars but I think this headboard would complement whatever phase he's into next.

Since we're in his room here are a few other shots of the space.

The large painting was my husband's as a young boy and Mike's mom painted the top picture. I love seeing them hanging in my son's room. The wood ceiling circles are original to the house and the large corkboard was only $2 at a thrift store. The camouflage pillow was sewed per special request from my son. He doesn't ask for much when it comes to his room so if he wants a camo pillow, a camo pillow is what he'll get! Eventually the glider will be replaced with a desk but for now it works.

Painted Bathroom Nook

You know when you just can't take something the way it's always been in your house for..one..more..second..? That was how how I felt towards a little nook in the first floor bathroom.

While perusing Pinterest suddenly I had the urge to to paint it right that moment. It would have been cool to introduce a print or bolder color but the only thing on hand that would work was a gray paint sample from Sherwin Williams, Mindful Gray. So off I went to scrounge up supplies from the basement. Two coats and one hour later I was looking at this.

Look at that transformation! What a huge difference! What...you don't see it? In person the gray paint stands out more than these pictures. Unfortunately this small bathroom has no natural light and iphones can only take, well iphone pictures.

When placing items back on the shelves I switched a few things up. Out went the distressed metal planter from Anthropolgie replaced with various milk glass vases. Also a few books were placed between the alabaster horse bookends.

Since we're taking a peek into this bathroom for the first time here are highlights of other items in the space. After purchasing the house we replaced the grey pedestal sink with a white wash basin and polished nickel faucet from RH. I've always loved this style of sink and thought it would go well with the existing marble floor and 100 year old house.

I totally fell for this nickel light fixture on clearance from William Sonoma Home and calendar prints hang in frames from IKEA..

The walls are still SW Cottage White along with the majority of most rooms in the house. I finally feel good about this little space!

Dn..Dn..Dn.., Another Lamp Bites the Dust

It's been quiet around the Steffes house with projects and such. Life has been crazy the last few weeks but it's time to get back in the swing of things.

Sadly one of my most prized possessions no longer functions. This metal leaf lamp was purchased from an vintage design shop years ago for an embarrassing amount of money. I loved it and always appreciated it's unique beauty. It most recently lived on a white accent table in the living room.

At some point someone welded together the metal base with the main rod of the body that use to be threaded. Over time it started to come undone and now looks like this.

I looked for an inexpensive placeholder to make do until it's repaired. Once again Goodwill pulled through and I scored this double gourd Threshhold lamp for $4.50 that I had previously admired at Target.

For the lampshade I stole a small black lampshade from another lamp in the house and used some Rub N Buff to change the silver lining to gold.

Surpisingly I really love it in the space. I see it eventually moving into my son's room down the road and now the stolen lampshade needs to be replaced.

Finding lampshades is kind of difficult if you're on a tiny budget like mine. It was impossible to find a large affordable drum shade for this vintage bamboo lamp. Eventually I came across a clearance lamp with the exact shade envisioned at Homegoods. Even though the base wasn't needed, for only $25 it was cheaper than buying just the shade at most places. With a little added black ribbon trim, the shade now tops the bamboo lamp in front entrance area of the living room.

As for the Homegoods lamp base it ended up in the guest bed area of the basement. But of course it now needs a lampshade....