Connecting the Dots

So maybe I'm a few seasons behind on this one, but you know my motto of "better late than never" will always hold true!

Remember the Pinterest Challenge that was hosted by Young House Love and Bower Power back in March?  Yeah, that's right...the winter edition.  Well, guess who's finally getting around to posting about the project they made for that challenge.  Hmmm, could it be me?

In my defense, this project has been mostly done for quite some time now.  In fact, you've seen pictures of this piece in my I'm a Wrapper post, and even in the Tour My House section of the blog. You just didn't know it...because I'm sneaky like that!

I know, I know...it doesn't make up for anything...so I'll stop running this post around in circles and just get down to it.

You know that I love me a good knock-off.  My $75 version of a $300 West Elm chandelier made me a believer in the do-it-yourself attitude.  But, one thing I love even more than a good knock-off is a good knock-off of a high-end design shop!  You know...those fancy-schmancy studios that cater to celebrities and millionaires, and think it's okay to charge $200 for a garden stool when I can buy the same exact one at Ross for $50 (see this post).  

You know the ones I'm talking about.

Don't get me wrong...I can drool over their shops all day long...all while humming the tune...I wanna be a billionaire so freakin baaad.  But in my world, that's as close as I can get to these brands, which leaves me with no other choice than to knock-off their style.

I give you exhibit A (and B if you want to get technical):

Image Source

The Twister art prints from the Mitchell Gold & Bob Williams designer studio, which are priced at...cough, cough, gag...$775 each. 

When I stumbled across these prints online I was super-excited...but then I was super-bummed when I found out what they actually cost.  Nothing to do but pin them to the Maybe I Could Make This board on Pinterest (here and here).

Then one day, on a quick trip to the ReStore, I stumbled across these old restaurant tabletops that were priced at $1.00 each.  Score!  I knew that I wanted to make artwork out of them, but honestly at that time I hadn't connected the dots (pun intended, lol!) that they could be perfect for my Twister knock-offs.  

It wasn't until the Pinterest Challenge rolled around that I finally put two-and-two together.  Minus the rounded corners, I knew I could create a splitting image of the Twister prints I loved so dearly...and so I got to work!

I started by prepping the tabletops for paint...

...light sanding...

...filling in gaps and scratches...

...and primer...

...lots, and lots of primer!

Then, I used my projector to project the image onto the surface to give me a better idea of the scale.

...you really don't need to do this, but I'm weird like that sometimes.  When I started the piece I wanted to create as close of a match as possible.  But as the project wore on I found that it was actually very forgiving of freestyling, and it didn't need to be perfect.

Eventually, I realized how rediculous I was being and I just started to cut out circles and eye-ball their placement on the surfaces of the tabletops...

Much easier!

After I had found the placement I liked it was time for some glossy coats of spray-paint...which apparently I forgot to photograph...boo.  Oh well, nothing much to see with that process anyway.  If you've seen one spray-painting project you've seen them all, right?

But, in case you are wondering why I went with the whole vinyl stickers process rather than just painting the dots right on the surface, let me explain.  

There are a few reasons actually. One, I wanted to paint the dots on a primed surface.  Since my top coat of spray paint was going to be glossy, I was afraid the painted dots would not adhere well and would easily scrape off.  And two, I learned from my Penny Lane project that when you paint a few coats of top coat over vinyl it leaves a bit of a lip when the vinyl is removed.  Basically a boundary, if you will...and this boundary comes in handy when you are trying to keep your placement of things on track.

Once my top coats were dry, I peeled off the vinyl and got ready to paint the dots.  I started by making a little legend of the color placement on the original pieces.  Probably would have been easier to just print out the pictures, but again, I'm weird like that.  

As for the paint, I pretty much had everything on hand.  For the yellow tones I used a combination of acrylic craft paints from my stock, and for all of the grays and blues I used the leftover sample paints I had from when I was testing out colors for my guest room.  Seriously, I never throw out paint because you never know when it might come in handy down the road!

As for the hanging, well Mark took care of that part for me.  He used the table saw to cut some angled strips of wood that would go together like puzzle pieces.

But, if you don't have a saw that can cut these types of angles, I also had found some hangers at Ace Hardware that essentially do the same thing...except they're metal, and the only tool they require is a screw-driver.

Now, I mentioned that these art pieces have been mostly done for quite some time...and what I mean by that is that they were done...and then they were in need of minor repair.

You see, as Mark screwed in the first hanger strip he didn't realize that the screws were just a smidge too long.  And so, they poked their little heads through the front of my artwork...

Oh well, it could have been much worse!  There were many other things that I imagined had happened when Mark came to find me saying, "I think I just ruined them."  Seriously, picture me with a blank stare and a dropped jaw, imagining the story about my devastating loss that I'd wind up posting on the blog.

Whew!  Luckily it was just a quick fix!

A little hammer tap to push the little bulges back down, a new coat of paint on all of the tan and light gray dots, and a hanging placement switcheroo (because who's going to notice those minor flaws when they're way above eye-level?).

So finally, I've finished the winter challenge!  Then again, it's never really winter around here.  Maybe that's why I've been so behind-the-times.  My internal clock is all thwarted with this Arizona heat!

To give you an idea of the room transformation, here's the before...

...and the after...

And to give you a side-by-side comparison...here's theirs, and mine.

Sure, there are a few differences.  I changed up some of the colors to fit better with my decor, and of course those rounded edges...but overall, I got the same style for much less than $775!  In fact, let's do a cost comparison and a cost break-down, shall we?

COST COMPARISON:

Mitchell Gold & Bob Williams single Twister print: $775___My knock-off (single):  $16.75

Mitchell Gold & Bob Williams pair of Twister prints: $1550___My knock-off (pair):  $33.50

COST BREAKDOWN:

Two tabletops from Habitat from Humanity ReStore:  $1 each

6 cans of primer (I told you it took lots and lots of primer):  $3.50 each

3 cans of glossy-white spray paint (two coats each tabletop):  $3.50 each

Various paints for dots:  Supplies I had on hand

So there you have it.  Man, saving money really feels good!  You could probably even make this piece for much less if you don't use green tabletops that require 6 cans of primer to cover!  Even still, I think the price comparison was definitely worth it, but what do you think?

Well, I've got some fun things coming up on the blog pretty soon.  I'm doing some behind-the-scenes coding of a brand new page with some content that might be a bit atypical for a home decor-themed blog.  But, I hope you'll like it anyway!  I promise I won't be straying away from my roots...I'll just be adding details on some of the other adventures I'm planning to take on shortly, so stay tuned!

Ps...did you catch the ...  article I posted on Facebook/Twitter?  ...blurb...  Be sure to follow/like for the latest updates!

Picture Perfect

Sorry folks!

I meant to have this post up yesterday, but time just slipped away from me.  I'll start by wishing you all a happy Memorial Day weekend!  I've spent most of Day One-of-Three (three-day weekend for me) writing, writing, writing!  I had a Sheknows.com rush assignment due today, and when that happens everything else gets put on hold.  

The good news is these articles were super fun!  I can't wait for them to go live on the site so I can share them with you all!

I did manage to slip in some time today for a little project I'm calling "picture perfect."  It took practically ten minutes to complete, yet it's something that's been on the to-do list for quite some time.

Perhaps you remember last August when found oodles and oodles of items at Savers on a 50% off day. Well, if you just clicked over to that link-up, then you just saw a photo of what all of my finds looked like on the day that I bought them...stacked like merchandise on my $7.50 bookcase...displayed there only so I could take photos to show you the items here on the blog.

Yeah...

I'm embarrassed to say that the photo you just saw is exactly how the bookcase has looked since last August.  That is, until I finally hung the two ledge-shelves in the master bath...but still, not much to brag about.

Well, today I decided enough-is-enough.  I'm better than that!  And I don't mean that in a conceded way, I mean that more like, "how the heck did I let it go this long?" kind of way.  I mean, I won't be too hard on myself because I have been quite busy...but still...no excuses!

So here's where I started...

This cork-board was one of my super finds that day at Savers ($2.00! Woot! Woot!), and other than a few missing corks it was in pretty good shape!

Even though it was a great deal, I'm not going to lie...I actually only bought it because I wasn't sure what size of picture frame would work best for the top portion of my chandelier project.  I thought if it was the right size I could remove all of the corks, drill some holes, and viola!

Well, it turned out that the other frame I bought that day worked perfectly for my chandy project...so there I was...stuck with this cork-board...wondering what the heck to do with it.

The good news is there are definitely worse things to be stuck with than a cork-board!  I mean, at least cork-boards come with an obvious set of rules, right?  But I was trying to break the mold...be unique...and think of something outside of the box.  I thought, do something people will want to pin, something they'll want to hold onto, something they'll want to replicate!

I thought...and I thought...and I thought...............and there it sat...and it sat...and it sat!

It made me realize, that sometimes the most simple solution is actually the best solution.  And so, I resorted to putting the cork-board to use as a...

...wait for it...

...wait for it...

...wait for it...

...as a cork-board, of course!

At first I pinned a few of Mark and I's engagement photos to the board...

...but that was too boring.  It was missing something.  But what?

I felt like it needed something white.  Something to tie in with the other accents that I was going to place with it on the shelf.  And then I had an idea...since I was using my engagement photos, I thought it might be cool to also pin a copy of our wedding invitation.  I knew that I had a few copies stashed away, hidden in a box with other photos, cards, and trinkets.

And then, I had another idea!  Remember my Nana's skeleton keys?  Well, I had a few of them left, so I figured I would see if I could tie them in somehow.

I'll let the photos say the rest...

So at the end of the day, the bookcase that had been a fossil since last August, had finally received a much needed style-makeover!  Plus, my cork-board-without-purpose was finally given the treatment it deserves!

The styling is not 100% done.  I still need to change out the photos on the upper shelf, and someday...yes someday, I may actually get around to finally refinishing the bookcase itself.

Baby steps, Kelli...baby steps!

I'm curious to know what you guys think.  Is it too simple?  Should I have gone for something that was a bit more out-of-the-box?  I guess the great thing is that I can always change it up down the road if I want to, but for now I think I kinda love it!

Would You Bee Mine?

Happy Friday!

I can't bee-lieve how long I've been holding on to this post!  If you follow me on Facebook you probably saw the post go up back in April about the bee-u-tee-ful beehive vase I bought from One Kings Lane.  

Before I proceed with the details of this post, I'll pause to give anyone who hasn't yet "liked" me on Facebook the opportunity to jump on over and get their liking-action groove on...

Groovin...groovin...groovin...

Okay, now that that's done, let me show you a few photos of the new vases that I'm absolutely in love with... 

I think I've already used enough bee puns in this post, so to keep from getting too corny I'll just ask...isn't she lovely?  I'm in love with the honeycomb design, and the adorable bee at the top of the vase.

...and the best news???  I bought this vase for $11 and it still makes me giddy to think about it!

This was my very first purchase from One Kings Lane, and I thought it was really interesting how they manage your shopping experience.  If you haven't shopped there before, One Kings Lane is a daily-deals type shop.  You have to register with them, and then they send you emails each day with the various specials they are running.

I've been signed up with them for a while now and I find that it's hit-or-miss.  Frequently, the items are still priced way out of my budget. That's mostly because they are offering high-end designer items at a discounted price...and let's face it...hundreds of dollars, marked down 20% is still hundreds of dollars.

But, $11 is a number I can wrap my brain around!

Anyway, back to the shopping experience at One Kings Lane.  If you're anything like me, you're probably used to Amazon.com type shopping on the web.  I'll torment over an item for days, sometimes months...leaving the poor thing sitting in my virtual shopping cart until I can finally decide if I'm going to take the plunge.

Well, before you head on over to One Kings Lane be sure to put your shopping game-face on.  They're hard-core!  Since they only offer a few of each item, once you add the item to your shopping cart they'll only reserve it for you for five-minutes.  Yep, five!

Talk about pressure!  There's no time for debating...no time for twiddling your thumbs...if you love it, buy it...or run the risk of losing it.  Such a mean game for people like me, but in the end I made the purchase, and I've never had buyers remorse since!

That could partially be because I also found this set of honeycomb vases for just $25...

So the grand total of my purchase was just $36!  Well, plus tax and a few dollars in shipping...

Now, I'm constantly checking the daily deals from One Kings Lane to see if I can stumble across more great finds.  And no, they didn't pay me to write this post about them...it's just me sharing some of my thoughts on one of my newest retailer addictions.

Speaking of which...I think I'm long overdue for a window shopping post.  Perhaps it's time for me to head on down to some of my favorite shops and see what they have in stock.  Oh, and by the way...do you remember this window shopping adventure that resulted in my sweet table find?  Well, yesterday I was watching the Batchelorette (yes, it's true...I don't know why I get caught up in those silly shows, but I totally do), and right there in the courtyard of the new mansion was my hip little table!  Does that make me famous?  Not quite?

Well, that's alright.  I don't need to be famous.  I just need to fill my life with the simple things that make me happy.  Beehive vases included!

What about you?  Whare are the simple things in your life that make you happy?  Is it your pet? Perhaps your five-year-old's scribble drawing on the fridge?  Or maybe it's the fact that your husband did the dishes without even being asked.  

I hope it's not just one thing.  I hope it's a list that it too long to count!

Ps...did you catch the gift idea link-up I posted on Facebook/Twitter?  There are some great ideas for those "I feel stumped moments."  Be sure to follow/like for the latest updates!

Lost and Found

Yesterday, Mark made my day.

He probably doesn't know it, but he did.  You see, he found something that had been lost.  Something that could have never been replaced, and something that I thought I would never see again.  He found one of my jump-drives!  

Not just any jump drive...the jump drive I used all through college and that held copies of every project I completed along the way.  I thought that my work had been lost forever, but I'm starting to think that kharma is on my side once again.  

Oops...I hope I didn't just jinx myself!

Something else that I found on this long-lost jump drive were photos of the baby shower I threw for my friend Jana when she was pregant with her little girl.  Considering the fact that you've already seen me post about baby-Brin's first birthday, that should give you an idea of how long this jump-drive has been missing!

Well, you know me...I consider it a sign that these cupcakes are ready for their internet debut...and here they are...in all of their pink and brown glory...

...and here are some photos that I borrowed from Jana's Facebook page (thanks Jana!) that show the table set-up...

All of this was for the office baby shower, so I couldn't go as full-blown as you know I would have if the party were thrown at my own house.  Yeah, there probably would have been streamers, and a back-drop, and cute little party favors...but I only had a breakroom to work with.  Plus, there was only a small window of time available for me and my helpers to set up the room before the party started, so I had to scale things back as much as I could.

...and if you know me, you know that scaling back is not something I can do easily!  Ha!

I thought for a breakroom baby shower, everything turned out pretty good.  For the menu I made the cupcakes, brownies, strawberry-banana muffins, banana-nut bread, rice-krispie treats (on sticks and some dipped in chocolate), and I even had some strawberries with cream cheese and chocolate dips.

To make everything, I actually took a vacation day right before the shower.  But you know that's what I'd rather be doing with my vacation time anyway!

Another thing I was happy to find on this jump drive were photos of some of the test cupcakes that didn't make the baby shower menu.  As pretty and cute as they were, they were just too time consuming to make the cut.

To make them, you have to cut miniature marshmallows in half (diagonally), then dip them in some colored surgar (add a few drops of food coloring to the sugar then shake it around until colored) before arranging them around the frosted cupcake to form the flower.

Granted, they are super adorable, and incredibly delicious.  I mean, adding marshmallows to cupcakes is pretty brilliant, if you ask me.  I only wish I would have thought of the idea, but I acutally just stumbled across a You-Tube video that walked me through it.  It's been too long for me to remember which video it was, but you'll probably find it with a quick search.

Well, I'm super happy to know that these good memories are back...and even more excited to be able to share them with you.  Perhaps sometime down the road I'll even share some of my school projects. Most of them are commercial design projects, but I think they are still fun to look back at.

Tell me about the projects you still enjoy remeniscing about.  What's your favorite?  Do you still get giddy inside when you look at photos?  I know I sure do!

Ps...did you catch the DIY lace crown tutorial link I posted on Facebook/Twitter?  If you'got a little girl, make her feel like a princess with this simple DIY. Be sure to follow/like for the latest updates!

Total Eclipse of the Heart

It's not every day you get to see the sun and the moon aligning...so when a chance like this rolls around, you know I've just got to throw some pics up on the blog to document the occasion.

Honestly, I wouldn't have even known about the eclipse, but Mark likes to follow stuff like this.  Any time there's a meteor shower, eclipse, or galactic event of any type, he'll set up the lawn chairs in the best viewing position our tiny lot has to offer.  It's always a surprise to me, but I enjoy it every time because I feel like I'm getting a rare chance to see something that the universe only offers once in a lifetime.

You might be wondering why the photos are so orangy.  Well, it's because I used a strip of old camera film to cover the lens of my digital camera.  Without the film, the light from the sun was too over-powering to catch the eclipse.  But, I did get some cool shots that allowed a little bit more light.  For these shots, the eclipse is more visible in the reflections than the sun itself.

This is Mark finding the best position in our backyard to view the eclipse.  Oh, and don't worry.  We had special eclipse viewing eyewear, so we didn't burn holes through our brains.  Ha!

Then we played with shadows.  Sounds corny and silly, trust me, I know.  But he showed me that the eclipse makes little crescent moons around your shadows...especially through round objects.  In this photo, Mark is holding up a CD and you can see the eclipse in the center of the CD's shadow.  

Oh, and look at Mark's armpit...eclipse pit!  Haha! 

So this evening, I had a total eclipse of the heart.  Literally.

I got to see something truly amazing, and once again I was happy to spend time with my science-loving husband who would never miss an opportunity like this.  So when I close my eyes tonight, this is what I'll see...

What is the most memorable thing you've ever seen?  Was it the landscape of somewhere you traveled?  Or perhaps a shooting star?  Was there anyone special who shared that moment with you?  I think sometimes it's the people we're with that make the event so memorable.

Well, I hope you had an enjoyable weekend!