A Scandalous Past

Jun4

Well, it’s happened. An uprising has formed amongst the Simply Turquoise readers. A grassroots movement to Save the F-Table.

The F-Table, before rehab.

I am happy to report that the F-Table is recovering nicely. It had a short stay in rehab and is now presentable. Its scandalous past is buried under layers of…. maps and Mod Podge.

Mod Podge Map Table, Finished.

In the comments section of my last post, the idea was presented by Prima, in that tone of voice that is issued upon turning 13. After some consideration, I realized it was actual genius, in 13-year-old disguise. She had suggested collage.

New Worlds, Maps from the Age of Discovery.

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I recently came across this book, and picked it up to frame a very interesting old map called, “Map of Matrimony,” as a wedding gift. The maps were gorgeous and interesting. They were full of art & history, colorful depictions of Rulers, Dictators and ships. A perfect source for collage material.

Mod Podge.

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I read up on homemade glues versus store bought, and decided to use Mod Podge. It has an excellent reputation and should outlast the table itself. The homemade versions apparently do not hold up and it is worth the extra expense.

Choosing the maps.

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Mod Podge is a glue that contains a varnish that dries clear. I brushed the backside of each map with the Mod Podge, then brushed the glue over the top to seal it. I used a flat wooden spatula to push out any air bubbles and gradually worked and layered the maps until the whole surface was covered.

During the project.

I trimmed the edges with scissors and painted them with black paint. I used an acrylic sealer, pictured above, and applied 3 coats to the finished tabletop after the Mod Podge was dry.

View through the kitchen door.

My dear readers, the table is now fit for outdoor use, waterproofed and practical. Like the maps, the table itself contains a story, a scandalous one, and it is a keeper. Even I am feeling slightly guilty about how close it came to being callously discarded. But in the meantime, reserve your “Save the F-Table” t-shirt, and don’t hesitate to bask in the glory of a recycled treasure brought about by you. I can’t thank you enough!

Back to the Drawing Board

May25

Here is a picture of my chairs. Glorious finds from the trash, only to end up back on the curb. I ordered fabric to cover the seats, bought a nearly-reportable amount of spray paint, and sadly, they are right back where they came from.

The chairs that were not meant to be.

I was sanding chair #2 when the front leg snapped off. I have invested emotionally in these trash chairs and find that I want to go spend a ridiculous amount of money on new chairs to recover from this loss. Does BlueCross BlueShield cover retail therapy?

The new outdoor fabric.

The table, another trash find, is another sad story. I was in such a state of euphoria when I saw it by the dumpster, that I failed to notice the text that was carefully etched into the top.

Prima, my surprisingly observant daughter, was the first to notice the script. “Mom? I think there is a problem with your table. Um, it says FU** on it.”

Look closely at the table.

“SH**!” I said, “I mean, ‘NO WAY!’ Who would do such a thing?” and then I apologized for exposing my children to more profanity, intentionally or otherwise.

You know how you worry about what your kids will be exposed to at a friend’s house on the Internet? Well at my house, it’s the graffiti you have to worry about.

Trying to fix it with wood putty.

One afternoon, I received a glorious text message from Stuart: “I sanded the FU** out of your table.”

Sanded!

And we were once again fit for polite company.

But alas, it has been sanded too much, and I am going to put it back on the curb. It is a sad day indeed. Now, I have a porch that needs paint, a new light fixture, AND furniture. But the rug looks nice! However, I am back to the drawing board. Good thing there is an awesome barrel in the basement, just waiting to be the base of my new table.

Spray-Paint Graffiti-Sniffing Moms Anonymous Club

May17

Recently, I was shocked to discover that you need ID to buy spray paint. Naturally, after purchasing the illicit spray paint, I started to think what else (besides my planned project) could I do with it? What actions would justify needing to show ID to buy spray paint? The temptation to casually spray paint a plant as I was leaving Home Depot was great. Fortunately, I remembered in the knick of time, that I had just flashed them my ID and refrained.

Now the wheels were turning and I decided to spruce up a rusty old birdbath that was hanging out in the Fig Tree garden.

Rusty old birdbath.

I sanded and wiped out the inside of the bowl and thoroughly dried it. I removed the little bird on the edge, so it did not get painted and would remain the rusty-brown color of the base.

Removing the little rusty bird.

Then I sprayed the bowl with turquoise colored spray paint called Lagoon for wood, plastic or metal finishes. I did this while wearing the best graffiti-artist look I could muster.

Spray-painted birdbath.

The new color reminds me of the bottom of a fountain. It will keep the water looking nice, instead of the rusty, dirty-brown color the water was before.

Back in the Fig-Tree garden.

This was a fun and easy way to add a pop of color to the garden. Now the birds can bathe after they feast on the figs from my tree.

A Pop of Color.

Of course, I can’t stop thinking about spray paint either. This could be dangerous, and may lead to some sort of Spray-Paint Graffiti-Sniffing Moms Anonymous Club, coming soon to a location near you.

Portrait of a Sheepskin

May6

The Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival is magical. For a mere three hours this past weekend, I attended the 40^th annual Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. Once again, I was struck by the beauty of my surroundings. My senses were assaulted with the smells of lamb and funnel cake. The natural fibers and brightly colored dyes mix together in seeming harmony, and the craftsmanship is brilliant.

A menu board.

This year we were on a mission to buy a spinning wheel. We did buy it, and I fully expect to be fined by OSHA, for opening some sort of sweatshop here under my roof. Prima will beg Stuart to put together her new wheel and spin until there is nothing left to spin. Once again, I am amazed at this child, who seems to have been born into the wrong era.

“Can we keep her mom?”

I did indulge in one … little … extravagance… in addition to the new spinning wheel. I am in love. A sheepskin so white and soft, so thick and creamy, I could not let it stay behind. It needed a home and my sofa was it.

Portrait of a sheepskin.

My tired, ten-year-old sofas got a little face-lift. This fleece is so soft, I can’t help but pet it. My dog is going to be jealous, or maybe even my husband.

A Sheepskin.

I love to connect the things I own to an experience, a person, a place, or a moment in time. This sheepskin will be tied to the memory of a beautiful day, spent with my children, at the 40^th annual Sheep & Wool Festival. Consider putting this Festival on your bucket list. You will not regret it.

Sheep Art.

The Evolution of a Living Room

Apr26

After only eight months, the living room is now in its fourth configuration. The most recent arrangement looks so natural and feels just right, that I cannot believe it took so long to get it this way.

Living Room: Before.

The floors were sanded and redone and a fresh coat of paint spruced up the bricks, ceiling and walls.

In configuration #1, the sofas were placed across from one another, adding to the symmetry of the room. The glass coffee table felt spacious and open, but was quickly replaced, to reduce the risk of concussion to the baby’s head. It also hides away a ton of toys, doing double-duty.

Configuration #1

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Then, I threw in the blue found chairs.

Configuration #2.

Found chairs.

Configuration #3.

As winter settled in, I wanted to draw up to the fireplace, so I changed the arrangement again. The sofas were in an L-shape, with the blue chairs under the windows. This felt cozy and friendly for fires and conversation. However, it cut off the room and made it feel small.

A quick rearrange of the furniture.

Let there be light!

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Our living room is a “working room.” There is no family room nearby that gets all of the actual use. We use this living room for conversation, fires, fort-building, wine-drinking, reading and games. It gets a hard work-out.

Configuration #4.

In configuration #4, I have put the sofas back across from one another. Still keeping them close to the fireplace, I have placed the blue chairs directly across from it. This arrangement opens up the room, keeps the conversation area intact, and allows extra space for the traffic to flow easily through the room. The ottoman, which seemed overly large before, now fits perfectly, and is turned 90 degrees. It still holds a ton of toys.

Configuration #4.

A simple change like this can freshen a room. My room now feels summery and new; not just because I had to face-down all of the dog hair that was gathering life under the sofa. Rearranging the furniture is a quick pick-me-up for a tired room.

Better traffic flow.

Give it a try! Push the sofas around, hang some art, and then send me pictures! Or better yet, invite me for coffee or wine, to admire the changes in person. Or, just let me know what you did in the comments section of this post. You will be surprised with the results, and you will not have to spend a dime.

An Easy Spring Garden Wreath

Apr17

I love wreaths. However, we have a sordid past and I am a little scarred as a result. It involves Martha Stewart + cranberries + 1 foam wreath form. I am a glutton for punishment, as I have attempted the Martha Stewart cranberry wreath 3 times, in my sordid wreath past. The first time was a gift for my mother-in-law and I came away, six hours later, with bloody fingers and cranberry stained hands. I did give her a gorgeous wreath that year, but all I could think was, “Damn that Martha Stewart!”

http://www.marthastewart.com/924286/how-make-cranberry-wreath

The second time I made two smaller cranberry wreaths. I stood back to admire my handiwork, as the wreath hanging on the left side of the twin doors I was decorating, came crashing down. The foam broke into a million pieces, scattering cranberries all over the porch. I cried and vowed to end my wreath-making career then and there.

A Square, Spring Garden Wreath.

So, wreaths and I are not on such great terms. But, I do love them so!

This wreath is easy. And Spring-like! It only took about an hour to make. I used fresh greenery, so it will not last forever. I love the square shape. Who says wreaths have to be round or oval?

A big bunch of greenery.

You can use floral wire.

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I cut greenery, from a completely overgrown bush in my backyard that had a small leaf that resembled boxwood.

Then, I wired together the stems, maintaining the square shape as I went along. I used enough stems to create a sturdy structure that would hold the square shape and used a stick across the top to keep it straight.

Wreath in process.

I cut a strip of leftover fabric that has a burlap-esque look to it, to hang it with. I did not have any burlap, which would have been ideal for the ribbon.

I love this piece of leftover fabric.

After a four-year hiatus from wreaths, I have decided to conquer this simple and elegant square-shaped wreath, and will enjoy it on my front door until it wilts, which will probably be tomorrow.

A Fresh Garden Wreath.

Until then, Happy Spring!

The Floor…. Reveal!

Apr11

Never question the motives of a (mad) genius.

Not to say that I am a genius, or even a mad genius. However, if I had paused along the way to reflect and answer the question of why I was painting the floor, I would not be able to show you the following results.

The floor is glorious!

The Porch Floor, After.

The Scary Porch, Before.

The truth is, I do not know why I was painting the floor. Perhaps just to see it done. Perhaps just to gain experience. Perhaps just so I could blog about it. Perhaps just because.

The Porch, After.

I am trying to remember how long that room has been torn up, how long my house has been in disarray, and I can’t. I am blinded by the beauty of the floor, and even dare to whisper out loud, “it was worth it.”

My $20 Thrift Store Chair.

These are the specifics:

I used two colors of paint, Benjamin Moore’s Puritan Gray (HC-164) and Kendall Charcoal (HC-166), for the darker gray. I first applied two coats of the lighter gray as my base coat, marked and drew the lines in pencil, and then painted the darker gray on top.

The diamonds each measure 24 inches and the grid pattern is 6 inches around each diamond. I marked the grid first, and then marked each diamond inside, measuring from the center of each side. I drew the pattern to scale with paper to see how it would look.

Map of the floor.

It took approximately 12 hours total painting time to paint the pattern. You are probably shocked at this fact since I have been seemingly working on this for weeks.

The view into the dining room.

The wall color is Benjamin Moore’s Skydive from the Color Stories collection, and the trim color is Benjamin Moore’s Steam. This is my go-to color for trim. The trim still needs one more coat of paint, and the windows need to be washed, but those are just details at this point. The painted floor adds drama to this space, and I am delighted with the results.

Simply Turquoise

interiors for real life

A Scandalous Past

Back to the Drawing Board

Spray-Paint Graffiti-Sniffing Moms Anonymous Club

Portrait of a Sheepskin

The Evolution of a Living Room

An Easy Spring Garden Wreath

The Floor…. Reveal!

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