Finally finished my footboard project!

Remember way back in June I said “give me a few days” and I would have this top-secret project all done? Well, it is finally done! Oh…and tomorrow is September 1st.

I never do anything fast around here. I guess “give me a few days” really translates into “give me a few months!”  I haven’t done much of anything but study, read Twilight, watch Twilight, and um…read and watch Twilight again.

So here is my footboard that I got out of the headboard/footboard set from Goodwill for only $13. Yes, you read that right, $13.

Want to see what I did with it?

Sure Misti, show us the nitty gritty details…

Okay…here it goes. This is the before picture:

Before shot of the great details on the bed:

You know there has to be some spray paint action somewhere, right? This is supposedly a decorating blog (but you wouldn’t know it from my lack of posts lately).

Shield your eyes from the ugly paint sheet!

First, it got a light sanding then two coats of black satin spray paint. I love my black spray paint. Seems that everyone else paints everything white or cream, but not me…black, red, or green are my staples.

Then, I lightly sanded the edges to distress it a bit.

After the paint dried, I brought out my trusty Mona Lisa to lend some inspiration…

A quick little swoosh of the brush and I had a sweet little design going on…

Now—any idea of what I did with it yet?

Take a wild guess.

Any ideas yet?

Oh come on…think out of the box!

Misti doesn’t do anything too predictable.

READY TO SEE?

Okay—you twisted my arm long enough.

It took two of these…

And one of these…

To get this:

A view from the bridge…

To get this up there, I found the studs in the wall, then measured the distance between them, then I screwed in these D-rings at the measured distance onto the back of the footboard. We added the heavy-duty screws into the studs and voila!

And that’s all to it! It was a very simple project, so don’t ask why it took me so long.  I debated and debated about cutting off the legs, but I just couldn’t. It would have looked more like it was meant to be a door topper, but I love them! 

This is a twin size and I would LOVE to find a full or queen size to put over my bathroom vanity. I need something big!

Thanks for checking it out! I think I’ll put this on A soft place to land on Thursday’s DIY DAY, now if I can just be one of the first ten!

EDITED  9/22/09: Go on over to A picture is worth 1,000 words to check out 2nd Time around Tuesday!

EDITED 10/17/09: I am adding this to Funky Junk’s Saturday Night Special Link Party. Go on over and see what everyone else is transforming! (This post is really making the rounds!)

Thanks for stopping by. I love all of your comments, and I would love to know what you think of this. Is it too weird?

Is it what you were expecting?

 

Leave me a comment and let me know.

~Misti

I confess my love of… Craft Rooms.

Every Thursday (well, when I can remember) I share with you some of my favorite things.

Today I wanted to show you a quick peek into my bloggy friend, Jerri Ann’s craft room. Some people have a nice little closet set up all organized for wrapping presents, or have their nifty little craft boxes stored all lined up and cute, ready for some creativity. When I saw this on her blog, I knew I had to share it.

Jerri has the “mack daddy” of all rooms to spread out and enjoy.

Look at this enormous craft room! I’m mean SERIOUSLY!

Is this not the craft room of all craft rooms? 

 

Jerri says there is more craft room here than “crafter.” 

My gosh the things I could do in this room! I told her I was going to have to make a road trip just to come hang out and make something.

GOOSEBUMPS people, I HAVE GOOSEBUMPS.

Can’t you just think of so many things you could come up with in here? My wheels start turning every time I look at these pictures, with the under mount lighting and all of the shelves to organize. Ahhh…..

Not just one, but TWO giant tables in the middle of the room, excellent lighting, wall-to-wall shelving, storage, and countertops just calling my name!

Jerri has very recently welcomed in her newest grandbaby and she is in la la land! What a beautiful family she has.  She  also has THE BEST music on her blog! I pull up her blog and listen to her music while I study. Go and visit Jerri at:

“Salty” Sister from Salt Creek Ranch.

Tell her that I sent you, and tell her to get ready, we are all coming to invade her space very soon!

So there you go. My Thursday post

I confess my love of….

craft rooms.

What is your obsession confession this week?

~Misti

One more thing…my buddy Shauna (whom I have know FOREVER) gave me this great award yesterday.

The Splash award! The Splash Award is given to alluring, amusing, bewitching, impressive, and inspiring blogs.

Thanks Shauna—I’ll have to figure out how to add it to my new set up! You’re the best! Shauna’s blog is so awesome, she cooks some of the best looking food around. Visit her at: (LOVE THE NAME)

They Call me Lucy

 

Thanks for visiting me today!

~Misti

Tamara finally has a blog!

Today marks the day my new friend Tamara starts her blog! I can’t wait for you all to get to know her. She is insanely funny, and so much fun to hang out with.

Tamara and her husband Tony have already transformed one very old home in Nova Scotia, and now they are embarking on their newest venture: The Ocean House.

I have bothered her to no end to create a blog, so that she can teach us all a few things about saving money, saving sanity, and little bit about this crazy thing we call life.

Tamara will no doubt have you rolling with laughter at every visit.

Remember her home? Ahhhhh…still love it.

So take some time to visit and introduce yourself. Promise you will love her! She moves into her ocean house in three short days; so get ready for what I know will be an incredible journey.

Her blog name is Transformed by the Sea. Perfect! BTW- She is Freyja’s jewels…

Love ya Tam!

~Misti

Got Nothin’

What is WRONG with me? As much as I love blogging and visiting, I just am not finding it in me to write a new post, or even read other’s! Stop the madness, already!

I apologize for being such a slacker lately. Still chugging away at my studies, hoping and praying to be done very, very, soon. That is where every ounce of energy is going these days.

I do have a really cool craft room to show you soon. As soon as I get up the energy to pull together a great post worthy of this awesome craft room. No—It’s not mine, but a friend I met in blogland.

OH—and I finally painted that footboard that I bought at Goodwill. Just have to get that project finished so that I can put it out for Kimba’s DIY day this week! Wish me luck on that too.

Just a side note for those that know of my addiction…I finally finished the Twilight series two weeks ago!

I miss reading them! But I found these flair buttons on Facebook, and they make me laugh every time I see them…

~Misti

What would you do with $5000?

In today’s economy so many people are just trying to keep their heads above water. Sometimes fantasies and day dreaming can help us cope with the realities of every day life.

So today, I want to forget about having to pay bills and buying groceries for just a few minutes. I want to add a bit of fun to your life!

So my question to you is this:

If someone handed you $5,000 and said you may use this for decorating and ONLY decorating; what would you do?

I would tackle my living room and my master bedroom!

Of course, I am pretty frugal—I could really stretch that much money a very long way, but I would start with this:

Ballard Designs-I’ve had my eyes on these for a while!

We really need a new sofa. One that is big enough to seat three growing boys. I would love to have a slip-covered sofa this time around.

Love, love, love these new pillows from Pottery Barn! I’m thinking I could paint something like this and put it in my Etsy shop-what do you think?

Still pining over this funky coffee table. Maybe one day…

So, that’s where I would start. My bedroom would be next, considering it is right off of the living room. You can’t help but see it when you come in the front door. It needs help!

What would you do with a guilt-free $5,000?

~Misti

Uppercase Living Winner!

Thank you all so much for taking the time to get to know Gloria, my friend from Uppercase Living, and my bud in real life!

We do have a winner of the “Welcome” sign.

Step right up: Joanna of This Southern Girl’s Nest!

I added up all of the entries from my comments and from Gloria’s, skipped over my comment, and Joanna was the winner according to Random.org.

Congrats girl! I have already given your contact info to Gloria. Please post a picture for us when you get your sign up!

Please visit Gloria again soon to place your orders. They make the best birthday, teacher, and holiday gifts! Don’t forget her button will be on my blog for a while. Click on her button to go straight to her website full of great ideas and inspiration.

I will need some for my “girl” gift exchanges at Christmastime!

Thanks again to all who entered!

~Misti & Gloria

Hooked on Uppercase Living products!

Recently, I ran across one of my old friends from high school. Not that we are old, or that she is old…well shoot--you know what I mean….

My friend Gloria Fox is an independent distributor for Uppercase Living. UL offers vinyl embellishments to decorate everything under the sun!

She sent me the coolest gift and I couldn’t wait to put it up! It took less than 10 minutes to apply. So Easy!

Here’s a closer look…

Isn’t it the sweetest? It brings a smile to my face every time I see it.! YOU KNOW YOU WANT ONE…

There are several “Welcome” styles to choose from, and guess what? We are giving one away to a lucky winner! First, let me show you some of the other designs and all of the possibilities:

These embellishments are not just for walls (and doors).

You can bling up your laptop!

 After painting the background you can make your own canvas or wood wall art.

Love this idea with the stool - OR you could add a name to the back of each family member’s chair at the dinner table! Ohhh…impressed myself with that idea.

On the walls is always my favorite…

This is a fabulous gift idea! 

Check this out! This is a set of small CHALKBOARD embellishments.

I can see these on canisters or on mason jars filled with cookie mix.

This is the Fall/Winter Idea Catalog and it is loaded with ideas!

Check out Gloria’s website to order your catalog and embellishments. On her site you will find lots of great ideas for using Uppercase Living items.

Go over and play with the “MyDesign Suite” under the Products tab to design your own ideas! Click and drag away!!!

Click on the catalog photo to go to her website.

The “Crown” picture depicts Gloria’s button on my blog, you can find her in the future on my blog in the sponsor section.

Gloria also has a blog with even more ideas and new products as they come in.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT HER BLOG.

Now—to enter the giveaway.

You will receive an entry for EACH of the following but, be sure to leave separate comments!

Contest ends Sunday, August 16th at noon!

1. Leave me a sweet comment on THIS post for one entry.
2. Become a follower if you aren’t already. Leave a separate comment letting me know if you became a follower or if you already are. (thank you!)
3. Leave Gloria a sweet comment on her blog. (Those count too.) Let her know you came from my place.
4. Become a follower at Gloria’s blog and leave another comment for that at her place or mine. Either way it’s another entry for you!
5. Tweet or Facebook about this giveaway and let me know about it, and that’s another entry for ya!

So there you go! Several ways to be entered to win.

Tell all your friends to come on by!

~Misti

I’ll be posting this over at Julia’s place for Hooked on Fridays!

Go check out her place and see what everyone else is hooked on, but first ENTER THE DRAWING!

I Confess my love of… Orange.

Thank you for checking out my weekly series. Every week I give you a look into my head. At what’s swirling around in there.

When it comes to the pretty things in life, I tend to have a lot of favorites. Do you?

This week I confess my love of… 

the color orange.

When it comes to home decor, I am drawn to deeper shades.

Flowers of orange are also a big favorite of mine.

When I found this crazy spirograph  shower curtain, (seriously dating myself here, talking about spirograph) I knew it was going to be perfect for my boys’ bathroom. I mean really--how do you decorate a bathroom for such a big difference in age?

It has so many different shades of orange, and I LOVE it with the skateboard prints that I found online. To top it all off the wheels on the skateboards are the exact colors from the curtain!

Okay—So that’s my confession for this week!

What’s your obsession confession?

~Misti

What’s for dinner?

My buddy Joanna of This Southern Girl’s Nest is having her weekly link party on Thursday. Get over there tomorrow and post your dinner to share with all of us who are trying to find something new!

Want to know what I made? Okay, here we go…it’s nothing major. Quite easy in fact!

Misti’s Mojo-Marinated Chicken

Pronounced “mo ho”

Not impressed? My plating skills were limited due to my rush job, but it was so goooood.

{Did you notice my plates? That is from Lisa Porter’s Octavia Hill collection. LOVE HER.}

I thought I would show the plated version first, because chicken really never looks pretty while cooking, unless it’s slathered in colorful peppers!

See? Not pretty.

I totally cheated a bit on this recipe because I was in a hurry, but I will give you the correct directions.

Super easy!

• Chicken breasts
• Sliced onions (I like Vidalia)
• Fresh or jarred garlic
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice
• Salt
• Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Salt and pepper both sides of chicken,

3. Toss on the sliced onions,

4. Pour olive oil over chicken, I use about 3 tablespoons—no, actually I just pour and let it lightly coat the chicken.

5. Pour in lemon juice, I like lots of lemon juice!

6. Cover the bottom of the pan with water to keep the chicken moist, and place in the oven for about 35-40 minutes! Cook till lightly browned on top. It’s divine!

Now--in order to make this fabulous, you MUST spoon the juices over the chicken at least 3 or 4 times while it’s cooking. If you don’t plan on basting, then don’t bother cooking it!

You can marinate this for only 30 minutes or overnight. The longer the better.

How did I cheat, you ask? I used onion powder and garlic powder instead of the real deal. It’s much, much, better with the right ingredients and looks much more impressive with rings of onions all over the plate.

So like I said…get a great dinner post together and go link up at Joanna’s place on Thursday!

Joanna loves to cook! She has another new series too. Every Tuesday she will introduce us to another cookie recipe. How cool is that?

Click on the button to see her first recipe in the series: Black and White Cookies. Yum!

I’ve already heard about her next {cookie} addition and I’m in Heaven just thinking about it! Sorry, no hints from me.

I’m on a roll this week with blog posts! Yay me, one for each day!!!

Thank you all for visiting and for being patient with my summer schedule.

Come back soon for these upcoming posts:

Thursday is my ‘I confess my love of…’ series. 

Friday I have a great product review for your home and a giveaway!

See you then!

~Misti

 

A Summer of ‘Firsts’

I don’t know about yours, but our summer vacation flew by! The kids have already had their first week of school!

I thought it was quite boring, but when I really started to think long and hard about it, I realized we had a lot of firsts!

1. I made my first road trip without the hubster… Drove 6 1/2 hours with three kids and the dog. And lived to tell about it.

2. I made it through my first summer of cutting grass. Now that one deserves a medal! Oh, and next year-we WILL have a new mower. Although I still thank the current mower every time it cranks. I have sewn the bag, my husband has restrung the starter cable thingy, and it’s on it’s last wheel.

If you care for a laugh, you can read that old lawn post here.

And by the way….didn’t lose the 10 pounds. Grrrrrrrrrr!

3. First summer that I spent more time studying than at the pool. Lots of staring at the computer here.

{Insert pics here! You don’t really want to see me studying do you?}

4. Got my first Sknob order from overseas! That was so cool. Haven’t finished them yet, had a change of plans on the colors.

5. First summer that I BEAT my grocery budget every month!  That’s a BIG FIRST with three boys that eat all day long until they close their eyes at night.

{Sorry, no picture}

6. I set a personal record of reading the entire Twilight series in just a month’s time. That’s a LOT of reading!

Can’t wait until New Moon comes to my theater in November! I’m so there!

7. It was the first time my oldest son drove us around. I bet in all of his driving dreams that he never imagined himself behind the wheel of a mini-van.

{Sorry, again no picture-He wasn’t going for it.}

8. First time I have ever dressed as a cow for free food. Free food is free food, people! We got four free meals, MEALS not a sandwich, but meals! I will dress however you want me to, I would do it again. Yes I would!

9. I set another personal record of staying up way too late and getting up way too early to start studying. UGH! That came from not being able to put down the Twilight books. Those of you who have read them will understand the lack of sleep.

I have been trying and trying to think of a tenth “first” but just can’t come up with one. I’m sure I’ll think of it well after this is published. Murphy’s Law, right?

Did you have any ‘firsts’ this summer? I would love to hear all about them. Just when I thought ours was so boring, we kept it simple but I enjoyed every minute of it!

~Misti