{ Upcycling after Hurricane Sandy }

As I sit in my house waiting for Hurricane Sandy to visit us I'm thinking of all the things that are bound to go wrong with our house.

We never got our gutters cleaned this Fall, let alone added gutter guards to keep them clean. Trouble.
Our bedroom ceiling has sprung a leak. And overgrown trees in our yard are swaying like hammocks.

But, in the gloom and doom of what will/might happen to our house I can't help but think of upcycling projects I'd like to do in the aftermath and clean-up of Sandy.

So, in the thoughts that there might be some of you who are sick of watching weather forecasts, here are some clever projects I found while searching the internet.
With any luck, everyone will stay safe and there will be lot's of discarded items up for grabs for clever folks like us.

Happy Sandy Upcycling!

My first thought, gutters - if your in need of replacements, don't let the old ones go to waste.
Plant a wall garden instead.

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When you replace your old gutters, why not get a little crafty with the project - 

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If the gutters are still functional, donate them to your local nursery school for some water play.

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After your trees fall (hopefully in the right direction) try one of these projects with your scraps - 

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and if you're hosting Thanksgiving, you have just hit the jackpot!

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And, my all time fav...

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If we don't loose a tree in this storm, I will drive around looking for tree guys and beg them to cut me these slices.

Once the shock of our bedroom ceiling leaking sunk in, I won't lie. I started to think of what the possibilities could be for our "new" bedroom.  After the ceiling caves in.

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Yes, I would really do this to my bedroom ceiling.

Speaking of ceilings. I think I'll paint my dining room ceiling while stuck at home.

The winning color is Silver Marlin, by Ben Moore.

I'll also be adding some grasscloth wall paper to the walls above the board and batten.

If you're new here, you can see what my dining room currently looks like now here.

I hope I succeeded in keeping your mind off the storm for a little while.

If you're on the east coast I hope you are safe!

*added - if a tree must hit my house, I am crossing my fingers that it only takes out a bathroom , or two. With no people in it.  And, if you're wondering what I'd do to that bathroom - check here

MYCOLOR™ INSPIRED BY PANTONE® PAINTING PARTY! - Winner

photo credit – AHL

Thanks to all of you for the comments on the MYCOLOR™ INSPIRED BY PANTONE® PAINTING PARTY!  I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of the ideas that you guys have for painting projects. 

The winner of the MyColor by Pantone paint is Rae from Through the Haze – Reads.  Congrats Rae! 

I hope that everyone in Sandy’s path stays safe.  Take care if you are on the East coast.  For the rest of you have a great Monday!

LiveJournal Tags: MyColor™ inspired by Pantone®,AHL

{ How to Use the Colors from Maps }

Okay, so I've showed you the best room in the house.
Now, onto the most difficult room in the house. The man cave.
We've been in this house almost 2 1/2 years, and I just can not get this room together.
(besides the fact that Danny doesn't want me to touch it,
which makes it a little difficult to decorate. snort.)

But, I think I've cracked the code. Map colors.
I've never been a fan of primary colors. But I am a fan of maps and globes. So, I figured that if I used colors from maps and globes around the room, maybe I'd like it more and it would start to look pulled together.

It all started with this table I found at an auction. I slapped a coat of yellow on it, and the room started to come to life.

I realized that if I added some colors, like the ones in the globes and the maps that are around the room, the room would not feel as dreary.

So, slowly but surely the room is feeling a little more zippy!

And here's a little sneak peek at my new love, the coffee table! And yes, it's the same blue as the blue in the maps! yippee!

Don't forget to enter for your chance to be Philly's next Design Star!

Linking to

{ The best room in the house }

I sound like a total weirdo, but the favorite room in our house is the powder room.

There's so many things in it that I love!

Even though I think it's kinda' large for a powder room, I still couldn't squeeze in tight enough get full photos of the room. So, check out these little bits and pieces and image the whole room in your mind.

There's enough room for a dresser that I found in the trash and filled it with vintage suitcases.
I used it in my room at the Philadelphia Home Show last year and it was the most talked about piece in my room.

Above the dresser is a collection of miss-matched dishes.
And, mid-way up the walls are pine boards I lined up vertically and painted white

Across from the dresser I hung a mirror I recently purchased at Circa Dee.

I strung burlap bunting across it for a little whimsy.

I used a suitcase fastened to the wall to store extra rolls of toilet paper.

And, above the window I used an apron as a valance.

Can you see why I love this room so much?

Here's your chance to be Philadelphia's next Design Star

Linking to 

House in a Water Tower

This post is for my husband who just LOVES re-invented industrial buildings.

By Dutch architects Zecc, this water tower in Soest, Netherlands, is a nine floor folly of phallic proportions!
 Favourite design ideas:
1: Colours: the monochrome palette echos the industrial heritage.
2: The black stairs in the all-white stair walls
3: The glass insert on the lower floors that illuminates the stairwell.

MyColor™ inspired by Pantone® Painting Party! + A Giveaway

Today is a fun day here on the blog. Starting at Noon EST I’m participating in the MyColor™ inspired by Pantone^® Painting Party along with 5 other fab bloggers. We’ll all be sharing projects with you and giving you the DIY scoop.  There’s also a great chance for you to win a sample of MyColor™ paint yourself.

Here are the other bloggers that will be joining me for the party…

1. Sarah @ Alderberry Hill, 2. ME!!  3. Sara @ House Bella, 4. Jerusalem @ Jolly Goode Gal, 5. Katie @ Craptastic & 6. Ann Marie @ Twice Lovely

I haven’t really shared too much on my blog but I have some exciting news.  I’ll be opening a booth at Queen of Hearts Antiques & Interiors in about a week.  So, needless to say, I was so pumped when MyColor contacted me and wanted me to participate.  It was a great opportunity for me to finish some of the pieces that I’ve been meaning to finish for my booth.  The colors that I selected were Trekking Green, Lunar Rock and Blue Haze, and let me tell you I was so pleased with the colors.

I have been purchasing baskets for the booth but they are plain Jane.

After a little help from MyColor™ they are perfect!

This project was super-easy.  Since MyColor™ is self-priming I didn’t even have to prime the baskets first.  This saved me tons of time.  For the baskets with lines I used tape to give me a straight line.

I also used a craft brush for each of the baskets.  A craft brush gave me much more control then a large paint brush.  I painted a couple of coats of paint and then removed the tape. 

One of my baskets was woven in a herringbone pattern so I took full advantage and painted a zigzag.  This was by far the hardest one to paint because it was really hard to follow the pattern of the herringbone and stay straight.  Eventually I opted to use tape at the top and bottom edges so that I made sure my zigzags stayed the same length.

I was so happy with how my feathered basket came out.  I laid on the paint really heavily at the bottom of the basket.  Then once I had a good base at the bottom, I started feathering my paint upward (oops, sorry guys, but I didn’t take a pic of this).  I did it until I thought it looked even.  There really was no plan for it.  Once all of that paint dried, I flipped it upside down and painted the bottom with a thick layer of paint so that it really looked dipped.

I really couldn’t be happier with how the baskets turned out.  I can’t wait to put them in the shop next week. 

Now, for the part that you are really excited about…THE GIVEAWAY!  You have 3 chances to enter to win a sample of MyColor™ inspired by Pantone^® paint . 

1.  Leave a comment telling me how you would use MyColor™ inspired by Pantone^® paint for your own project.

2.  Tweet your project idea to @MyColorPaints with the hashtag #PassItOn, then come back and comment on this blog post for a second entry.

3.  Like the My Color Inspired by Pantone facebook page, post your painting project on the Facebook page, and leave me a comment saying you did so.

In all of your comments please be sure to leave me your email address so that I can notify you if you are the winner.  I’ll announce the winner on my blog on this coming Monday. You can post comments up to Sunday night at midnight.  Good luck and get inspired at the next party over at Sara’s blog House Bella.     

Happy Painting to Ya!

 

LiveJournal Tags: MyColor™ inspired by Pantone®,Queen of Hearts Antiques and Interiors