Spac-tacular

There are two reasons why I rarely show you pictures of my home, one being it's usually a mess, seriously, a mess, and two, because it's an ongoing project. We just had our carpets and stairs cleaned thanks to a groupon, and I guess that inspired me to tackle this room upstairs, which in turn made me say "what the heck, let's show 'em the room". The "em" in that sentence is you. Just in case you missed that.

Here it is as Tony's man cave. This is how we initially used it, since my brother occupied the room downstairs. Now that he moved out, we moved Tony's office downstairs, and I 'm preparing this room for when T no longer needs a crib.  

So here's the beginning of project toddler room. T's nursery is so small I don't believe it'll hold an actual bed at the same time as a dresser. Here's an old picture from way before she was born. I don't know why I don't have a finished picture of her nursery, but it's a little bit more put together than this. I just wanted to give you an idea of the space, it's actually like a 5'x12' space, with a cute little nook in which her crib fits perfectly.

Back to my plans for the new room. I'm a huge picker, I love to pick off loose paint, wallpaper, my daughter's boogers, you name it and I'll pick it. When we moved into this house, I immediately started getting this 70's grass wallpaper off, only to find this beauty standing strong underneath. 

 

 

 My husband went out and bought me all the tools to get it off, but as I started to peel it, pieces of plaster decided to come off as well. So instead of scoring it and bringing the entire wall down, I've decided to plaster in the cracks and just wallpaper over it. I know, probably not the best way to go, but really, who wants to re-plaster an entire wall? I used this handy, dandy premixed plaster-patcher and went to town. See all those white marks on the wall and down by the floor molding? Those are where actual holes existed in the wall from me pulling away wall paper.

My next step will be sanding all the little groves out, and then once I repaint all the molding and wood paneling with my "Dove Tail" white paint/primer, I'm going to wallpaper with this beauty:

I'm slightly having second thoughts about having such a monochromatic color scheme in my daughter's room, but I figured I'll accent with some bold colors. I'm thinking about painting her wood frame bed in a turquoise, and definitely throwing in some bright yellows in the pillows or bedding. I'll be sure to update you with the progress. Whenever that might be...

In reference to the store, we just got a beautiful matching buffet and server in. The wood grain on this piece is pretty spectacular, if I do say so myself.

Back To Tuesdays

 Is it just me or do you feel like we skipped winter this year? Either way, March is here, and that means we're open again on Tuesday. So come on by and see what's new. I'll probably be sitting outside on our new Cypress Tree Outdoor furniture enjoying the sun with the babe. Here are some pictures highlighting the newbies.

Wicker Seat or Floor Cushions
$15 each or 3 for $38

Where's Busy Bee?

I've been kind of a busy bee lately, which happens to be T's favorite animal noise currently. That'll probably change in a week.
Anyways, I've started painting pieces in the shop, instead of at home so the back room is currently serving as my "work" space. This has kinda been perfect seeing as I'm here like 30 hours every week. When I'm home I usually chicken out of refinishing furniture since I have to do it outside in the cold. Except these past couple days I've been working on this piece in my kitchen. Yeah, you read that right, my kitchen. A bit ridiculous, but it worked. And I only managed to drip paint on our rug three times (a major accomplishment)!  I did sand it outside though...so without further ado I present the Lions head cabinet. 

This was a fairly old mahogany cabinet, I'm guessing at least from the 40's since is has brass feet. It had seen better days, as I imagine it was probably sitting in some grandma's basement for a while forgotten. Until one day I came along and gladly scooped it up. I whipped out a sander, some paint, and polished it up a bit. I was kind of inspired by this piece.

from the Little Green Notebook

But I settled with a color I already had that was close. 

I'm kind of obsessed with the lions head hardware. Aren't they cool? 

And since I can't resist a coat with pretty lining, I figured why would a cabinet be any different? 

It's like an apple green surprise when you open it up. Yum. 

Here are some other newbies I've been working on. 

And I'm also currently painting a old Diebold steel filing cabinet. Perfect for storing tools or crafts in the basement, but pretty enough to have in an office. Pictures to come shortly. Have a great rest of the week. 

There's a Wocket in my Pocket!

walnut bookcase $130/ creme dresser $215/ glass dining table & chairs $350

rowe sofa $425/ pair of cane back chairs $150/ pair of retro lamps $40

Yes, I'm a bit ridiculous, but I couldn't help BUT think of furniture as I was reading this beloved Dr. Sues book to T. She's finally at the stage where she wants to be read to verses just eating the pages. I mean, let's be honest, she still eats anything paper, but at least she's interested in the story now. And who wouldn't be interested in bofas on sofas, and ninks in sinks and (my husband's favorite) the nooth grush on your tooth brush.
Just a little update on the building we're purchasing, we should be closing at the end of February, but it's going to take a bit of time to get it up and running. In the meantime, I resigned the lease for the store in Squirrel Hill and I'm super excited for the new salon to go in next to us.
Have a fabulous weekend. I'm flying down to my hometown (Jacksonville, Florida) so my folks can spend some time with their grand baby and so I can soak up a little bit of that Florida sunshine I miss so much! 

ReDesigNation: Phase 2

Sorry I've been so quiet on the blogging lately. There's actually been quite a bit going on. My little baby turned one, my church has started a new church plant in East Liberty, lots of refinishing furniture, and we bought a church. Yeah, you read that right, a church. I've been grappling with telling you, but I think it's time. We put an offer in last week, and as long as nothing major creeps up during inspections, Redesignation is going into phase 2 come August.
My husband and I have been looking for a building for some time now that fits both our needs. He runs a landscaping business and needs some land to park his trucks and service his equipment, and well, you know what I need...space. This church is about 1600 sq. ft, which is a little roomier than what I'm dealing with in Squirrel Hill. We had a couple specialist come by because there is a problem with water in the basement (anyone know how to deal with sump pumps?), and we're having a plumber come by on Monday. There seems to be some major plumbing work started, but we're not sure if it was ever finished and we need it assessed by a professional in order to know what we're getting into. If it's not too major, then we'll proceed with a closing date.
If we close on this deal, I'll end my lease in August here in Squirrel Hill and move out to Wilkinsburg. I'll probably scale it down a bit, focusing more on pieces I refinish, and operate (at least initially) by appointment only. I probably won't take on consignments, at least not in the beginning due to not knowing how being located in Wilkinsburg will affect my business.  I'm really excited at the thought of bringing life into an area that's a little run-down. I think that's what ReDesigNation's all about at its core-- taking something a little rough, and polishing it up. There's a couple more storefronts on the street if any of you other entrepreneurs out there are interested! So you tell me...will you follow me there? Do you think location matters as much? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
In the meantime, we're carrying on like normal. I'll keep you updated though. Here are some pictures of the building. Isn't it cute?

Downton Abbey

The curse of running a furniture business is that I can't help but notice other people's furniture. I don't judge, I swear, I just "notice". And slightly obsess. We don't have cable in the Deane household, but we do have Netflix, and our newest obsession is Downton Abbey. 

If you haven't seen it yet, you must! I love time period pieces, and this is one of my favorite series I've ever seen. The accents. The clothes. The mannerisms. I love it all, but one thing that highly peeks my interest is obviously the furniture. It's so interesting to me the dichotomy between the upper class and the servants. It's displayed in every way right down to the dresser they store their clothes in. The funny thing is that the furniture in the servants' quarters is what has been coined the ever-so-popular "shabby chic". Where as, the lavish furniture in the rest of the house is stuff we find more "dated". Interesting how times and trends change, isn't it? My mom used to have this long brown velour sofa and two accent chairs in the living room covered in this beige and orange floral 70's polyester-type fabric. The only photo I can seem to dig up to prove the ridiculousness of these chairs happen to be extremely incriminating of a certain 13 yr old someone.   I wonder what my daughter will look back on of mine only to think, "what the heck were you thinking?"

Only time will tell... 

Happy 20,012!

No, I didn't misspell 2012! I've been waiting to do a "Happy 20,000" blog views post for a while. It's pure coincidence that the amount of blog views lines up with the New Year... how apres peau! So in celebration of the New Year and finally hitting that mile marker I've created for myself, I'm giving 15% off anything non-consigned starting today (Saturday: we're open till 3 today) all the way through next Saturday(11-5) for those of you who mention this blog post. How's that for a good start to the new year?
So come on in, and this little girl will greet you with a BIG smile. Have a wonderful New Year.