I Used Chalk Paint for the First Time!

Hello everyone!

 

I know it's hard to believe that someone hasn't already tried chalk paint by now, but I am one of them.  Well, WAS one of them.  I can officially say that I've tried it and am now the proud owner of a grey dining room table!

 

 

I have a lot of grey and white in my house.  So, my natural choice was, of course, French Linen.  I had already been using a shade of grey on some of my other furniture pieces VERY close to French Linen already.  So, I figured this would fit right in.

 

This is my table before.

 

And this is my table during the painting process.

 

You can see that the paint is still wet in the above picture.  After it dried, I just sealed it with a clear wax.  I'm not sure if I want to really do anything else to the table or not.  I will live with it like this for now until I decide.  I've never painted a dining table before.  Let me just say, it was work!  It took me several hours to complete this.

 

Here is the after!

 





 

I'm loving the new look!  I like my cream slipcovers on the chairs against the grey.  It keeps it fresh, I think. 

 



 

 

 

Well, now you want my opinion of this paint don't you?  I can tell you that I've used a lot of latex paint in my time but I do think this was a little easier because it didn't show brush strokes and didn't require any sanding before painting.  It dries A LOT quicker (which I love) too.  It costs more though, but I was able to pick it up locally, so I didn't have to order it and pay shipping. I like the matte finish too.  I would probably like it more if I tried distressing it, because latex doesn't distress easily. And I've heard this distresses nicely.  I may do

 that on the legs of the table.  I've got to get some sandpaper first! 

 

For now, I'm just glad that I finally made it to the chalk paint party!!

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~

 

 



New Additions to my Home

Hello everyone!

 

I'm finally able to snap pics around my home again, since I got my camera back today.  Yay!  As I mentioned in my last post, I went shopping with my sister and mom the other day.  I found a few goodies. 

 

This lantern caught my eye at Tuesday Morning.  Are you familiar with that store?  If not, you should be!  They have wonderful things at discounted prices. 

 

 

I placed it on my hearth in the family room. 

 

I also found this cute candle snuffer.  I had been wanting one, so this one came home with me.

 

I ordered this union jack pillow from Antique Farmhouse.  It came in and is now jazzing up my black bergere chair in the family room.

 

I went shopping in my basement too!  Yes, I have a whole store down there.  ha!  I brought this bottle up, that I bought plain, but then added a label and black cork to it.

 

My secretary got a touch of Fall by adding this twig wreath to it.  This was in my basement too!

 

 



 



  

Do you buy vintage books?  I know I do.  I love them.  However, I rarely look inside them except to see the copyright date or the language of the book.  But, one book that I had was worth looking at further.  It was an old encyclopedia (I think).  It's in a foreign language, so I can't read it.  I found these old maps in it!  So, out they came and on display they went.  Pretty neat huh?

 

Next time you buy an old book, look through the pages carefully.  You may be surprised to find something interesting in there.

 

 

Well that about wraps up some new additions to my home at the moment.  Hope that all of you are having a good week so far!

 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~



 

 

 

  

Looks I Love

Hello everyone!

 

Yesterday, I spent the day with my sister celebrating her birthday.  We had a lot of fun.  We went out to lunch and did some shopping.  I would love to show you what I bought, but.........I left my camera at her house and never even used it!  Guess, I shouldn't have bothered bringing it.  Oh well.  I'll get it back tomorrow.  Since I can't locate the cord to my other camera to download pics, I'm just going to share some inspirations pics with you of looks that I love.

 

They're a little bit farmhouse, a little bit industrial and a lot of scrumptious (in my humble opinion).  Hope you enjoy them! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 





 

 

 



 

 

 

 

Sources:

  Pics 1 -7 Pinterest 

Pics 8 - 9 Dana Wolter Interiors

 

 Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~

 

 

 

 

 



Happy Birthday Kim!!!!

Hello everyone!

 

I have a special announcement to make today.........

 

 

 

Today, is my sister's birthday!  She's trying to keep it a secret, but that just can't happen.  Go over there and wish her a wonderful birthday and it will be a big surprise!

 

I love you, Kim, and look forward to having a fun day together today!

 

Happy Birthday!

 

 

~ Kelly ~

Vintage Style Vignettes

Hello everyone!

 

Hope your weekend is off to a great start.  We are finally getting some wind that is going to bring us cooler temps.  I can't wait!

 

I wanted to share a few vignettes around my home that are vintage inspired.  After a trip to the antique/flea market close to my house, I came up with this new vignette on my dresser in the family room.

 

 

I found those old scissors and twine. 

 

 

I have a lot of old book pages and vintage post cards, so I decided to put them on display here.

 

I also found an old set of antlers that fit perfectly on this wall.

 

 

Speaking of vintage, have you seen Barb's new online shop from The Everyday Home?  It's called Details.  I bought this cute London postmarked pillow from her and set it on my sofa.  I really love it!  And best of all, my sister is having a giveaway on her blog for a $50 gift certificate to her shop too.  You can get this pillow for free!  Go sign-up today if you're interested.

 

 

On my mantel, I added this unusual arrangement of a cotton branch and burlap flower.  I love the soft color and texture it brings.  Have you noticed cotton branches becoming popular to decorate with lately?  How fun!

 

 

On my hearth, I added a wire basket with a driftwood bundle in it. I love to use nature in my decorating.

 



 

And last but not least, I took some things to a consignment store to sell and found this.  I love it!  It goes with the other dog pictures I have already and looks to be vintage.  It is signed in pencil too.

 



  

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 



Musical Chairs

Hello everyone!

 

This week has been so dark and rainy that it has been hard to get good pictures.  So, if my pictures look a little grainy, it's because I had to lighten them so you could see them!  Ha! 

 

I moved a few chairs around recently.  With my effort to move some black in to my family room and sitting room, some chairs ended up in different rooms.

 

This black bergere style chair that my mom gave me is now in my family room.

 

 

I love the pop of black it gives this room (especially for the cooler months coming). 

 

 

More than that, I love the added seating it provides next to the fireplace that will one day be lit!

 

 

The chair that used to be in here is much smaller and fit in the sitting room just fine.

 

I have really been enjoying my rooms flowing together as one.  It sure does make changes easier! 

 

 

The large finial on the white dresser was brought in to bring a pop of black in this room.  It was in a bronze color and I painted it black. 

 

One other item that moved was this bench.  It used to be at the kitchen table, but I decided to move it in the dining room instead.  I'll share with you what moved in it's place at another time. 

 

See?  It feels like musical chairs around here! 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~  

 



 



 



Smoking BBQ Ribs

Hello everyone!

 

I hope everyone had a nice Labor Day weekend.  My husband cooked some delicious BBQ ribs on the grill today.  So, I thought I'd share the recipe with you. 

 

He used St. Louis style pork ribs for this recipe.  We also used our Weber charcoal grill.  We've been married 25 yrs and this is only our 2nd grill ever.......our 2nd Weber grill that is.  We highly recommend this grill if you're looking for a great one at an affordable price! 

 

First, you wash the ribs and remove the fat film from the back.  Pat dry and apply Stubbs Rib Rub (found in the seasoning aisle). Let the ribs sit out for several hours to reach room temperature.

 

Heat your coals in the grill and push to the side.  Add a pan of water to the other side. 

 

 

 

 

Place the grill rack back on top and then add your rib rack.

 

 

Set your rack of ribs in the rack.

 

Then add wet hickory wood chips on top of the hot coals.

 

 



 

Put the cover back on the grill.

 

The thermometer on the grill should read a constant 250 degrees.

 

 

(Oops!  Took my picture too soon. But trust me it got up to 250.)

 

Smoke for about 3 hours.  Then cover in foil and smoke one more hour. 

 

Remove ribs from grill and brush with extra BBQ sauce.

 

 

Yum!!!

 

Eat and enjoy!

 

Hope you'll give these a try.  They have a lot of meat on them and were so delicious.  You should've smelled it smoking all day! 

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

~ Kelly ~