Decor – Page 16 – Grocery Shrink

Easy Cord Covers

By Angela on August 14, 2010

Cord covers give a finishing touch to lighting. It hides the industrial feeling and makes everything soft.

They aren’t hard to make with a basic sewing machine and some ribbon. I used Organza ribbon because it was cheap (10 yard for $2.) I found the wider the ribbon, the easier it is to do.

Start by cutting 2 lengths of ribbon twice the length of your cord. Then sew them together along one side with an 1/8 inch seam allowance.

Wrap the ribbon around the cord and push the cord against the first seam. Stitch the other side of the ribbon with a 1/8 inch seam allowance, encasing the cord inside. Be careful not to sew into the cord and make sure your lamp is unplugged :).

If you get tired of the look, you can take the stitches out or just cut off the cord cover to remove it.

The Girls Get Closet Curtains

By Angela on August 10, 2010

I’d like to interrupt this post to announce that the CSN.com surprise has arrived! I will reveal the big secret tomorrow, so you have until then to get your contest entries and guesses in. There are several correct guesses in there, but there is a twist to this one that only adds to the surprise. You don’ t have to be correct to win since the winner will be chosen by randon number generator. There will be special recognition for all correct guessers and also for the most unique guess.

Closet Before Curtains After removing doors, painting and organizing

It’s been a long time in the dreaming since I last wrote this post, but I finally made the closet curtains! I used the same $1 electrical pipe conduit and $5 ring clips that I put on the laundry room curtain. I discovered I like curtains that are nice and full and sweep the floor–no high waters here.

The ring clips made this a 20 minute sewing project. I cut tore 4 lengths of white muslin 92 inches long. And sewed 2 together on the long side for 2 extra wide curtians. Then I hemmed the top and the bottom. I left the selvage edges on the sides since there was no printing and no fringe on the selvages. I added lace trim from stash and folded down the top 6 inches for a little ruffle/flap and clipped to the ring.

I had originally planned to sew tiny ruffles to the bottom 18 inches it like these

From Target

and then considered a rhumba ruffle sections 18 inches from the floor and down–like these:

Click the picture to go to the etsy store with this curtain

But for now, with all the projects we have left to do, we decided it was perfect just plain and simple. We can always add more later.

Tie backs make it easy to pick out clothes

We put in tie backs to help the girls keep the curtains back when they are organizing or picking out their clothes. It is such an improvement over the sliding doors that only allowed access to half the closet at once. We love it!

Heidi and Heather Get a New Floor

By Angela on August 5, 2010

It’s move in day for the girls! They’ve waited several months for me to figure out what to do with their particle board floor and then 2 weeks while I found little chunks of time here and there to work on it and a week for it to cure. I’m so glad they’re sweet, patient little things. I finally decided on a canvas floor and polyurethaned it so I could mop it. I love how it turned out!

Here are some before and after pictures for you. I had to dig to find some before pictures which were some Daddy snapped for fun while we were organizing one day. We updated the room by hanging bead board wall paper and painting the trim white before redoing the floor.

Before

After

Before

After

We still need to build some beds and desks and hang the wall decorations on the other long wall. I can’t wait to have real after pictures to show you. But for now the girls are happy to sleep in their room again.

You can watch the video to see how we redid the floor with a $30 canvas drop cloth.

Towel Storage Problem–Solved!

By Angela on August 4, 2010

I mentioned in a previous post that I have a lot of towels (for a lot of people) and no linen closet. I’ve been wondering about what to do for awhile. I used to have a wicker laundry basket beside the tub with towels in it. But it blocked the heater/air conditining vent and didn’t hold enough towels. Then I saw these cute wall cubes at Martha Stewart and though, “I can do that!” But mine ended up with nails sticking out all over.

And then I saw this Lettered Cottage Post where they found a shabby wooden window box and brought it indoors for towel storage. It was super cute and fit in nicely with our new master bedroom theme which we plan to redo around our favorite vacation spot (The Bahamas.) Only wooden window boxes aren’t easily found around here. Then I thought I would build one out of the parts of our deck that are falling off. But the last time I built something from wood… Anyway, it was very demotivating.

Then one day I was at Big Lots with my 2 girls just wasting time. And we found some wire window boxes for just $10 each. I’d been around the internet looking a window boxes enough to know that it was a steal, so I grabbed 2. I used some thingies from the plumbing department at Home Depot with some sheet rock screws to hang them. And Voila!

I think I may paint them white. And I need to wash some towels now that I have a place to put them. I can store 10 towels off the floor and in perfect reach of the tub. And the best part is since the window boxes were made to use outdoors a little moisture won’t bother them.

I also have the peat moss liners left over. I almost threw them away, but Heidi stopped me. I’m so glad she did. I’ve got a project in mind for now….maybe for my front door? It is front porch zone week over at Fly Lady. :).

The lace is here

By Angela on June 29, 2010

I was so happy to receive a soft little package yesterday in the mail from www.lace-mart.com I stitched it up in the quiet of the evening and now have this:

I like the look of the skirt on the washer. It just makes me happy and feels right to have my maidservant all dressed up, but the elastic in the casing isn’t working out. It stretches and sags down. Any ideas to attach it better?

Laundry Room Door Curtain

By Angela on June 19, 2010

Isn’t it fun when frugal, functional, and beautiful all align?

Before

Our laundry closet used to have a bi-fold door on it. It was dated looking and dangerously easy to pull out of it’s track. When the door was open, I couldn’t get to my cupboards. And it was a pain to open and close every time I wanted to switch my laundry. We talked about custom making some glassed French doors to fit the opening, but it was going to be expensive and time consuming.

During

Finding inspiration in Home and Harmony’s sink curtain I bought a 6 foot by 9 foot painting drop cloth at Home Depot for $10. Later at Lowe’s, I grabbed a set of 14–1/2 inch diameter ring clips for $5, a 1/2 inch diamter metal conduit pipe for $1.32, and 2 screw in hooks for $1.18 each.

Although I can sew, I decided not too. I just folded over the top of the tarp until the curtain was the length I wanted. Then cheered DH on while he screwed in the hooks, and snapped it all together. The screws are super deep–3 inches into the studs, and the conduit is really strong. I think the kids could do chin ups on the bar and not pull it down. The best part is how easy it slides!

I’d like to put some lace trim on the flap. It’s just pinned on right now. I have perfect gorgeous, dripping, Valencia lace in my scrap bag, but it’s too short a piece.

I could copy the look affordably with Irish Crochet. But I would have to design my own pattern and then stitch it myself and I’m wondering if it’s worth it? I also have this piece of lace in my scrap bag, that is long enough.

I was really hoping for some serious dripping lace, but this is already made and ready to go. What do you think? Custom Irish crochet? Or already made but not as awesome?

It only matters when the light is on behind the curtain. The ready made lace isn’t heavy enough to combat the back lighting.

But how often will I keep the room backlit when I’m not in there?

I love how the curtain color harmonizes with my new light fixture.

If you were to use the ready made lace, would you trim off the web background or leave it on for character?

Refashioning: The Zebra Skirt

By Angela Coffman on May 13, 2010

My friend, Jamie from California, saw this skirt in a thrift store and knew it would be perfect for her friend. . .as a pillow. The fabric has a beautiful touch to it and the lining is high quality and very silky and soft. She packaged it all up to me with handwritten instructions. In a few days I mailed back this:

The lining is now a coordinating ruffle, and Jamie even had the great idea to use the tags for decoration on the front, to remind the pillow what it had been.

For those of you wondering if I do custom work, I used to. I'm focusing my time right now on my kitchen remodel, my kiddoes, and new patterns to publish. Jamie is very special. She's the kind of girl that sends you $100 when your husband loses his job and I would do anything for her that was possible. I didn't consider this a custom project, just a gift from one friend to another.

Illustrated Guide to Faux Leather Floors

By Angela Coffman on May 1, 2010

Update: Click here to see how the floor wears and why not to put it over vinyl.

I posted last year about putting in a faux leather floor in my guest bath. I love it so much I put the same floor in the children’s bathroom. This time I took lots of photos to show you more clearly how easy it is. We plan to put the same floor in our living room and hallway as soon as our kitchen remodel is finished.

The good things about the floor: It looks great! It is durable and wet moppable. You can do about 800 square feet for only $65! Since it is a thin layer on the subfloor you can lay a new floor right on top when you are ready for a change. It’s easy to patch if the floor gets damaged. It’s easy to customize the look and color with different wood stains or paints.

The downside to the floor: It takes 3-7 days to complete plus 7 days to cure. The polyurethane doesn’t smell very nice while it’s drying.

You will need:

1 gallon or less of Elmer’s Glue ($10)

1 roll of brown paper (found in the painting section at Lowe’s, Home Depot, or Walmart) $10

A pair of rubber gloves (or several pairs)

An empty bucket and paint stick (An old ice cream pail works great.)

A small can of wood stain, ($5) I used Minwax oil based in Mahogany

A gallon of floor grade polyurethane ($40) I used clear gloss from Minwax

1-2″ wide sponge brush

3 3-4″ wide sponge brushes

There is enough paper, glue, and poly in this supply list to do about 800 square feet for $65.

1. If you want to do any painting on walls or trim, do that first. We removed old vinyl stickers from the formerly blue walls, sanded and painted the worn wood trim and vanity white, and painted the walls a light tan.

2. Remove old flooring as much as possible. I was able to get down to a paper backing that was fairly smooth and started there.

3. Vacuum the area really well, then use a wet rag to pick up any fragments of dust. If you have had mold or other yucky stuff in there, bleach the area well, let it dry and prime with Kilz.

4. Tear the factory edges off your brown paper. Keep them in a separate bag for edging the room. Tear the inside paper into 8-12 inch squares. Wad the torn paper into balls and keep them in bags. Kids are great help here.

5. Before you start make sure the room is well ventilated. There are no windows in this room, so I turned on the exhaust fan.

Mix one part of elmer’s glue with 3 parts of water in your empty bucket. (For example, 1 cup of glue to 3 cups of water .) Stir well.

6. Start with the edge pieces and dip a crumpled ball into the glue mixture. Squeeze it tight to accentuate the wrinkles and remove excess glue. Carefully open it flat and place it along the edge of the room. Use your gloved fingers to smooth it flat. It’s important to take time here to get a good smooth adherance to the floor. Work from the middle towards the edge to force out large air bubbles.

7. Continue in like manner overlapping each piece so there are no gaps. Work only as far as you can reach and then stop. Lots of glue is not a problem. It will dry clear, absorb into the paper and seem to disappear when dry. A lot of glue is better than some sections not adhered completely.

8. If you have a lot of glue on the floor, it’s a good time to take a break and let it dry a few minutes. If you were good at squeezing out the glue, you can start with the stain. Dip your 2″ foam brush in the stain and paint it on the floor. Since the stain is oil based and the glue is water based, the stain will be easy to move around to the areas you want it. Blotting with a paper towel will absorb and remove stain if necessary. A nice blotchy appearance is great. Keep in mind as the floor dries it appears lighter in color.

9. Continue by laying another glue and paper section as far as your arm can reach, then stop and stain it. I used scissors to cut a clean edge around the floor vent. The nice thing about using elmers is it washes out of clothes and off the scissors even after it dries. My pants were stiff with glue by the time I finished, but they washed out great.

10. Finish the floor in this manner and then turn a box fan on it from the other room if possible to help it dry. It will need to dry overnight (mine took 2 nights since it was very humid and I used a LOT of glue.)

11. When the floor is dry enough to walk on, use a 3 or 4″ sponge brush to apply a thin coat of polyurethane. I did this barefoot to keep from tracking lint onto the floor. I found it handy to have a wet paper towel in my hand to wipe any oops poly off the wood work. Check for dryness after 4 hours. If it is dry enough to walk on, add another coat. Repeat until you have 5-7 layers of poly on the floor. My brush held out for 2 coats. I put it in a zip lock baggie to keep it from drying out between coats. When the brush fell apart I tossed it and grabbed a new one.

You can walk on it and use the bathroom 24 hours after the final coat. Don’t place rugs or furniture on the floor for 7 days to allow it to cure. We were able to reset the toilet after 3 days.

Click here for another paper bag floor tutorial, including working with a concrete sub floor and adding shimmer.

New floor Pictures

By Angela Coffman on December 7, 2009

I've put 5 coats of polyurethane on my "leather" floor and it looks great. I think I will do a few more coats for good measure. It only takes 5 mintues for me to put on a coat since the bathroom is so small. Here are a couple of better pictures.

Here are the steps I used to lay the floor.

1. First prepare the floor (remove old coverings, bleach if mold or odor, fill large holes with floor leveler and prime.)

2. Pre-tear brown builder's paper (in 12" to 18" squares), placing the factory edges in a separate bag. Crumple each piece before placing it in a bag.

3. Use an old ice cream bucket and mix 1 part elmer's glue and 3 parts water into it, stir well. For the bathroom, I used 3 school size bottles of glue.

4. Dip the paper in the glue mixture until it is completely saturated, squeeze into a ball to accentuate the crumpling. Carefully open up the paper and use two fingers to squeege off the excess glue.

5. Starting in the far corner of the room, lay pthe aper on the floor using a wallpaper roller to make sure it is completely adhered to the floor.

6. Overlap the torn edges of the paper and use the factory edges to go around the perimeter of the room. Work only as far as you can reach with your arm.

7. Then stop and use a sponge brush or old rag to rub wood stain into the paper while it is still wet. Rub gently as the paper is fragile when wet, but be sure to move the stain around where you want it. Work the floor in sections in this manner. If you need smaller pieces as you go, tear the paper before you dip it in the glue.

8. Let the floor dry for several hours or overnight. It may lighten as it dries and you can add more stain then. It won't spread as easy on dry paper and will go on a lot darker so use a light hand.

9. If your floor dries leaving air pockets under the paper you can use a craft knife to slit the paper, force glue into the bubble. The paper will be stiff at this point and resist adhering to the floor. I solved this by laying a piece of wax paper over the repair, covering with a heavy book and setting a full paint can (or other heavy object) on top. After drying overnight, the wax paper will peel off and leave the floor adhered.

9. When the floor is dry and looks the way you want it, paint a coat of floor grade polyurethane on it. Wait about 4 hours between coats and apply a total of 5-7 coats. After 4 hours it will be dry enough to stand on in order to put a subsequent coat on. The can suggests sanding between coats if you have to wait a long time between coats. I had to wait 24 hours but I didn't sand. My floor may not be as smooth as it could be, but I still love it. 7 days after the final coat you can move furniture on it and rugs. It is dry enough for light traffic after 24 hours. Once it is cured, you can wet mop the floor to clean it.

I made an IQ lamp!

By Angela Coffman on December 7, 2009

If you have purchased my ebook and are on the exclusive Grocery Shrink email group, you heard me talking about making a curly IQ lamp months and months ago. I finally did it and have pictures!

It all started when I was looking for hanging lamps on ebay and found pictures of IQ lamps in a wedding banquet hall. I thought it was gorgeous and wanted to replicate the look at home, but didn't like the price. I did a little search and found this site: http://0pointer.de/blog/iqlamp-stencil.html and used their stencil. I did a lot of experimenting with materials and although 110 lb cardstock was handy and I could print the stencil right on it for cutting out, it was just to stiff to put together without tearing. 110 lb vellum had enough flexibility to do the job and was translucent for a better light effect. I bought large 110 lb vellum sheets ($3.50 each) from Hobby Lobby in their drafting materials department. It took 2 sheets to make 1 lamp (15 pieces out of each sheet.) I used a pencil to the stencil on the sheets just so to be able to fit 15 pieces on one sheet, and cut them out with scissors. A small hole punch made the perfect corner. This picture shows the exact layout of the sheets, but it is hard to see since it is a pencil tracing. If you try hard you can make it out. The most important thing is that both "shoudlers" of the piece are lined up with the left side of the vellum.

I bought the light cord kit from Ikea to complete the lamp and was able to insert it before hooking the last piece in place and avoid cutting a hole in one of the pieces.

This lamp was super tricky to put together, and Youtube videos were really helpful. This one was my favorite even though my Spanish isn't very good: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-HZbigZtoQ It shows the lamp with 2 different colors so you can really see how the pieces fit together. I also liked the instructions from the original IQ lamp site: http://www.sadiethepilot.com/iqweb/iqhowto.htm The biggest difficulty I had was the vellum was a little slick and it wanted to fall apart on me. I used glue dots (found in scrapbooking departments) to hold ornery pieces together. They worked great because they were easy to remove if I accidentally put one in a bad spot and were hardly noticeable in the finished product, unlike tape.

I plan to make 2 more lamps for my living room and we are dreaming of other places in the house they would look fabulous. It will be awhile though. Cutting out 30 pieces is a little overwhelming and putting it together is worse–grin. If I would just do them all at once, I'm sure I could get in a groove and it wouldn't be so bad.