bargains in buckhead

i want to give a big thanks to anna, author of the blog bargains in buckhead, for featuring my review of the dump on their website.  you can check out the post here.

if you are from atlanta and haven't checked out the bargains in buckhead blog make sure that you check it out.  anna does a great job at posting about all kinds of bargains and deals in and around the buckhead area.  she's even just recently expanded her bargain hunting to include other atlanta-metro areas.  check her blog out here.

our guest room (the details)

on friday i showed you what all i’ve done with our guest room so far.  now i’m going to give you the run down on how i did everything and where i got it all.

the paint colors

walls – sherwin williams comfort gray (SW 6205)

trim – benjamin moore calm (OC-22)

the bedding

i love my bedding.  and it’s all from target.  i actually initially wanted the pin-tuck duvet from west elm but then i found this smocked duvet from target and quickly changed my mind.  i also found a perfect channel-stitch linen quilt and this pillow.

the accessories

all from homegoods

the non-built in built-ins 

my inspiration for the window wall came from john and sherry over at young house love.  like us, they too live in an older home with little storage space.  i bought two wardrobe units from ikea to fit beside our window.  i ended up getting them while ikea was having a sale so they were only $35 a piece.  they didn’t have any of the white left so i had to get birch and paint them white myself.  i anchored them to the wall so we wouldn’t have to worry about them falling over.  to give them a more finished look i installed a header just in front of the units.  this also helps to hide the drapery hardware. 

the no sew drop cloth window treatments

to save money i used drop cloths from lowe’s instead of a more expensive fabric.  they work so well.  2 packs of the extra large drop cloths was all that i needed.  i used stich-witchery to hem the edges.  the most important step in any window treatment is one that most people skip…training the window treatments.  in case you aren’t familiar with this term then let show you what it looks like when you are training them.  please disregard the clutter in the closets.  they’ve been stuffed full every since we got them.

basically to train window treatments you have to fold them while they are pushed back.  then you tie them in about three places(top, middle and bottom).  keep them tied for about 2-3 days.  this helps them lay correctly and fold in the correct places once they are untied.

the mullions

one thing that made a huge difference in our room was the mullion paint.  the mullions on our window were originally aluminum.  they really were an eye-sore.

i primed them with zinsser oil-based primer then painted over the primer with our latex trim paint.  i didn’t tape off the windows i just used a razor to scrape the paint off of the windows once everything was painted.  it really gave the room a quick and easy update.  the window looks brand new now.

 

and last but not least…

the crown moulding

since this post is already quite long.  i’ll bring the crown moulding to you tomorrow.

LiveJournal Tags: our house,my guest bedroom,paint,target,lowe's,sherwin williams,benjamin moore,bedding,my design,homegoods,ikea hack

our guest room (lots more progress)

instead of my regular friday “loving…” post i thought i would do a post on our guest room.  i still have a few more projects to finish in there, but it’s come such a long way from where it started.  i am seriously embarrassed to show you the before picture.  i’m going to do it anyway though because it makes the after look that much better.  {please don’t judge my designing abilities by the before picture.  this room was like the stepchild that i seriously neglected for a LONG time}

here is a picture after i painted my furniture and did some accessorizing.  it still needed a lot of work though.

and here is what it looks like now.  i love it!  i still need to get some small nightstands and art and fix our headboard/frame (you can read about that here) but it’s so much better than before and the extra closet space is seriously a lifesaver.

  i thought the before and after pictures would be good for this post.  next week i’ll do a couple of tutorials to let you know how i diy’d it all.

i’m so ready for the weekend.  we have friends coming into town and a wedding to go to.  oh yeah, we are also going to a st. patty’s day festival on saturday and celebrating billy’s birthday one day early on sunday.  needless to say we will be very busy but it will be a fun weekend! 

LiveJournal Tags: our house,guest bedroom,my design

Easiest Appetizer EVER - Cream Cheese & Olive Crescents

This recipe is so easy, it's almost embarrassing........I don't even know if I should call it a recipe.

Yesterday I wanted to make something super yummy for my daughter and I for lunch (my 2-year old loves olives).  I was kind of in a comfort food sort of mood (what's new, right?) and this is what I came up with and boy was it good!!

Cream Cheese & Olive Crescents

Ingredients:

1/2 brick cream cheese

Marinated olives, chopped - I used an olive muffaleta spread, but olive tapenade would work well

1 package crescent rolls

Directions:

Cottage Mama's Note:  What do you think of my little tutorial?  Like the text on the pictures?

Pretty Dish Soap Storage

So, I don't know about you, but being the Mom of two little ones (both of which use the high-chair), I am constantly hand-washing their high-chair tray about 4-6 times per day.  I don't care to have things out on my kitchen counter that are not esthetically pleasing, but what a pain to have to get out the dish soap a gazillion times a day.

So I store my dish soap on my kitchen counter in a pretty olive oil bottle.  This way it is always out when I need it, but it still looks pretty.  The soap easily dispenses out of the bottle just by tipping it over and shaking it slightly.  My Mom was the one who originally gave me this idea.......she is such a smart lady!!

Anyway, I just thought I would pass along this idea to you all in case you wanted to "prettify" (I don't know if that's a word) your kitchen counter! 

The Cottage Mama's Favorite Mac & Cheese Recipe

You know the saying "If it's not broke, don't fix it"?  Well, I should have listened to this several nights ago when I tried to change up my homemade Mac & Cheese recipe.  Yes, I can admit it........my new recipe........not so good.  I think from now on I will just stick to the one I know I can count on.

So here is my GOOD mac & cheese recipe - the one you can count on to be perfect every time.  This is from Ina Garten, the "Barefoot Contessa", and it is the creamiest, dreamiest mac & cheese recipe you will ever have!

The Cottage Mama's Favorite Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

nocouponsKosher salt

Vegetable oil

1 pound elbow macaroni or cavatappi

1 quart milk

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

12 ounces Gruyere, grated (4 cups)

8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (2 cups)

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 pound fresh tomatoes (4 small)

1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs (5 slices, crusts removed)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Drizzle oil into a large pot of boiling salted water. Add the macaroni and cook according to the directions on the package, 6 to 8 minutes. Drain well.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a small saucepan, but don't boil it. Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in a large (4-quart) pot and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. While whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more, until thickened and smooth. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and stir well. Pour into a 3-quart baking dish.

Slice the tomatoes and arrange on top. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the fresh bread crumbs, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

Cottage Mama's Note:  Feel free to add shredded chicken or cubed ham to add some protein to this dish.  I live with a meat and potatoes lover so he is always looking for the meat!!

how to: DIY no sew entry table

if you’re interested in learning how to make a no sew skirt like i did with my entry table, here are the directions.  all-in-all it takes about 8 hours or a few weeknights and a little bit of your weekend. 

items you’ll need:

table that you don’t mind messing up with staples, fabric drop cloth, 1” wide fabric tape or ribbon, heavy duty stich-witchery, fabric glue, right angle ruler, pencil, staple gun & staples

instructions:

{you may want to iron your drop cloth before starting to make sure that your fabric lays flat.}

1. measure your table (width & length of each side and top).  if you are using a three-sided table then you should have the measurements of both ends of the table, the front and the top.

2. using a right angle ruler(so that your corners are square) draw out lines on your fabric.  make sure you draw out 4 side panels instead of only two because you’ll be using two of them to fold around the corners.  using sharp fabric scissors cut out the pieces that you have drawn leaving about a 1” border around the lines of the front and sides and a 2” border around the lines of the top.  you’ll be folding this border down later.

2.  once you’ve cut out your fabric then iron down the edges at the pencil lines so that you have nice folds and a guide for the stich-witchery.  (only do this to the edges of the side panels and not the top panel)

3.  insert the stich-witchery into the folds of your side panels and iron them in.  (do not insert stich-witchery into the top of the panels.  just leave them empty because you will be stapling them later.)  i personally prefer to iron the front side and the back side.  i feel like it makes the stich-witchery hold better.

5.  once you have your side and front panels hemmed with stich-witchery then take your fabric tape and create your design. on the front side of each of them.  you can do a design like mine or you could also just do an outline instead of adding the triangles.

6.  when you have your perfect pattern laid out carefully life the fabric tape one section at a time and insert pieces of stich-witchery.  iron over the top of the tape and on the back side of the fabric to fasten the tape.  you’ll have to hold the iron on the tape a little longer than usual because it’s so thick. {sorry guys.  don’t have a picture of this step}

6.  attach the top panel to the back side of the top of your table only using your staple gun.  DO NOT ATTACH TO ALL SIDES YET.  {don’t have a picture of this step either}

7.  once you’ve attached your top.  attach both side panels to the corners of the front and side using your staple gun.  this step helps hide your table legs and also give the table a tailored, pleated look.

7.  next attach your other side and front panels in the same fashion.

once you have all of your sides attached then it’s time to attach your top piece.

8.  pull the top piece down over the table top and trim the edges so that there is just enough of the edge to staple it down to your front and sides.

9.  pull the front tight and staple it to the table.  repeat for each side continuing to pull tight.

can you believe it…you’re almost finished.

8.  for the final step.  measure out the amount of fabric tape you will need to wrap around the edges of your top so that all the ugly staples are covered.  then attach the tape with fabric glue.

when you finish that step you’ll have something that looks an awful lot like this…minus the dog and the accessories.

GOOD LUCK finishing your own DIY no sew table.  send me pictures of them when you get them completed.

LiveJournal Tags: our house,no sew side table,diy