2012 in Review

Hello Friends!

After seeing a segment on Good Morning America recapping 2012, I thought it might be fun to do the same here.  It's been a year of transformation and discovering new *old* things.

January saw the installation of an antique mantel our living room, putting up our monogram in the foyer, and my term as a card designer for A Day For Daisies ended.  Lessons learned:  Craigslist rules, I love the character something old brings to bland beige rooms, and when one chapter ends, another begins.  (oh, and  Dan and I work great together as long as our tasks are different :)

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

February and March were busy, happy, and exciting months thanks to Rhonda's wedding.  We also added a new fur baby to our family, Sushi the cat.  Lessons learned:  Friends are a treasure and being asked to share in their life's events is truly a blessing and honor.  Two cats are just as much work as one.  

From left:  Rhonda, me, Savannah (Groom's granddaughter) & Allison (Rhonda's Niece)
Bride, Matron of Honor, Flower girl, Bridesmaid

Here's the spread!  Allison and Jenna (far right) are busy discussing the pros and cons of  whether or not to add the feta dip and by unanimous decision, YES, we added it :)   The banner just says "Congratulations".

The bride's mom (in the brown chair), sister-in-law, and family friend.  We are awaiting the arrival of the other guests.

Vanilla butter cream cake with handmade cherry blossoms (Thank you Sweet Edibles from Etsy! )

Such a beautiful ceremony!  From left - Allison, me, Rhonda, Steve, Peter (Rhonda's oldest brother and Steve's best friend) and Steven (Rhonda's youngest brother)

And last but not least, our new fur baby:

April and May were full of thrifting!  Lessons learned:  People discard some AWESOME stuff!  Richmond is full of great thrifts and milk glass soothes the disappointment of NOT winning Mega Millions (ha ha!).

Burberry cashmere scarf

Federal Glass Moon Glow dinnerware and paneled sherbets

lovely milky goodness

By June, I had begun coaxing Rhonda into thrifting and she totally had my back, just like a bff would, when she spied these for me:

I thrifted my first piece of antique glassware:

We painted and decorated the home office/study (= Stoffice?):

and darling Savannah turned 3!!:

Lessons learned:  Thrifting is fun and it's double the fun with your bff --as long as your tastes are different or it could get ugly - LOL!  Antique glass is the bee's knees.  Dan should pick more of the house paint colors because the color in the Stoffice is lovely (Glidden Dusty Miller) and nothing is better than seeing the face of a soon-to-be 3 yr. old light up at the sight of Minnie Mouse.

July, August and September led me to some awesome finds and DIYs for our Master Bedroom makeover.  There's nothing posted for September but that's the crazy busy month at work AND the month I got food poisoning.  Lessons learned:  DIYs are totally gratifying, vintage vinyl tufted chairs rock --umm, literally, mine rocks plus it's totally cool and TRUST NO ONE (well, except yourself or your mom) when it comes to preparing food.  I still have no idea where or from what I got sick but it was remarkably horrible.  By the grace of God I didn't end up in the hospital and for that I am grateful, and that which doesn't kill us, or even turn us inside out, makes us stronger...and uber-paranoid about eating stuff.  If I were to find another positive of being that sick it would be that I spent so much time in the bathroom that it gave me a new perspective of our master bathroom layout and thus, aided me in kicking off a much-needed makeover of that space as well!  *giggle*.  Let's hope that makeover will be something I can share with you in early 2013.

BEFORE

AFTER

October brought improved health (but I still came down with an upper respiratory infection 1 week after returning to work after the food poisoning episode - gahh!) so I was able to get pictures of the bedroom posted.  I made over another one of my thrifty finds and found another treasured piece of antique glass.  And last but not least, I found a Swedish Mora (repro) clock.  Lessons learned:  A chandelier in the bedroom is wayyy romantic, cool thrift finds make super-cool OOAK decorations, finding antique glass in the wild is a total rush and there's a time to thrift and a time to pay retail ;)

Bryce & Higbee teardrop pattern

I started a new job in November which was a blessing from God.  It was a very smooth transition from my former position.  It was a lateral move but it allows me to work directly with customers and help them to maneuver through required processes, etc.  It is a better fit for me and am looking forward to making the most of it.  November also marked a year that my daughter changed her life around.  She is sober, healthy, and back in college to finish her degree (which will take less than a year).  This is huge. Watching her step out in front of  that oncoming train and not listening to our warnings is one of the most frustrating and helpless experiences I have tried to endure.  I couldn't so I laid it down and asked God and He heard me.  He intervened.  This deserves a post all in its own.   For now, I want to acknowledge and testify to it.  I believe and it changes everything.  So, November was all about family.  Lessons learned:  God is in, and has, complete control over everything.  Amen.

Which brings me to December.  Dan spent a good portion of it in California with his parents as his dad had surgery (colon cancer); thank God the surgery was a success.  I stayed home (new job and all) and took care of things here.  Prior to Dan's trip, we did get a local thrift trip in and I found a prize (to me) piece of antique glass and enjoyed decorating the house for Christmas.   Lessons learned:  I still have a lot to learn.  

WHEW!  So that's 2012.  Thank you to all of you who've hung in there with me and to those of you who joined me this year.  Here's to the New Year and I wish you love, happiness, health and wealth --all in generous amounts!

Welcome 2013!

Home Office Reveal!

Dan and I have finished the home office!  Well, "finished" is a subjective term LOL!  There are a few things I'm still planning to add, a translucent acrylic desk chair, a few Expedit shelf accessories and wall art.  But those things will take some time; I'm hoping I will be able to thrift some of it :)  But, in the meantime, the room is looking pretty put together. 

I apologize - there are no "before" pictures except for this odd pic - which was actually a mistake - but at least it shows the colors it used to be:

and this one which was actually taken of the telephone table we thrifted a couple weeks ago:  It's now going to be relocated:

Please, come in and take a walk around the room with me :)

The glass door was one of the first things Dan and I installed when we moved in in October 2005.  Right inside the door is this picture:

I bought it from Target (this past March).  It reminded me of a used book store Dan and I used to frequent.  Once inside, and to the left, is the tufted love seat:

The love seat came from Overstock.  I have to say, it was a BEAST to assemble and at one point, we were ready to throw in the towel but I'm glad we hung in there.  The gorgeous pillows came from Etsy store LillieDDesigns --

These were the cornerstone of the color choices.  Oh they are beautiful and vibrant and it was specifically the peachy-melon colors that sealed the deal :)  The rug is from Ikea:

And the main focal point in the room came from Ikea too:

The Expedit shelves ---<3  Dan built a base out of 2 x 4s to raise it above the baseboard.  He then installed a wood strip at the top of the unit and installed these to the underside of the strip:

Once he secured the shelving unit to the wall; I began filling the cubbies :)  It's not exactly how it will be; a few Expedit accessories will be added to the bottom row of shelves.  The desk will hold a lap top and a printer:

A Lucite desk from CB2 was in the original plan but at $379, I went on search for a less expensive alternative.  These came from WalMart.  There were $50 each and shipped right to my door for FREE.  Next, the light.  I wanted a glitzy chandelier; Dan didn't.  This fixture bridged the gap:

Thank you Overstock!  I'm totally in love with it.

And last, but certainly not least, the paint colors.
  Glidden Dusty Miller and  Behr Natural Almond

So there it is!  We're on to the next (knuckle bump) LOL!  <3 Lisa