Our kitchen makeover

Our kitchen was in need of an update.  The house we are living in was Justin's great-grandpa's house, and I think it is safe to say that no redecorating has happened in this house for about 30 years.

Now we did have a limited budget, so there a few things we didn't mess with.  Mostly, the cabinets.  They were nice cabinets when gramps installed them and are still in pretty good condition. Also, I didn't want anything to do with painting cabinets.  We did remove the metal pane from the upper cabinets in the lower picture, so they are just glass doors now.
Basically, we painted the walls, the tile backsplash, updated the light fixture/fan, and tiled the floor.  We also removed the door in the lower picture (it leads to the laundry room/pantry, which used to be a porch, and has to be left open in the winter anyway because there are no vents in that room).

These pictures were taken right before we started painting, so they show the room as it was "lived in"

The walls were a melamine (sp?) paneling that had a very slick finish.  We wanted minimal mess while in the process, so we had to find a way to get paint to stick to it without sanding.  We went with a Zinsser brand oil-based primer.  Two coats and it was ready for color (horray!)  Now, oil-based has a LOT of fumes, so make sure your area is well-vented.  We did this in the summer when it was un-seasonally cool so I was able to have the windows open.

I originally wanted to put something over this tile, but we decided to try painting it white first and see how we liked it.  I used two coats of the Zinsser primer on it and two coats of dutch boy high gloss white.

So we started painting.  Again, I used two coats of the primer, since there was a lot of color and pattern that needed to be covered.  Then the wall color is "melon wedge" by Dutch Boy, and we went with a semi-gloss (recommended for kitchens and bathrooms because it cleans up well).  The fabric for the curtains is all from JoAnn Fabrics, and the panels above the sink have clip rings on them so that they are easy to open up for light during the day. 

I am very pleased with how well the tile backsplash turned out.  Who knew that a few coats of primer and white paint could make it look new(ish)?  

The chairs got a facelift as well!  Remy is a fan of the new seat covers. (this was done with a screwdriver and a staple gun.  Very simple!) 

This pictures shows more of the room at a time.  You can see the new floor (I even helped with the grouting!).  I also repainted the cover for the dishwasher.  The panel slides out and was ivory, so I pulled it out and used a couple coats of the Zinsser on it (I really am thankful we found that stuff!).  

So a quick before/after.  The floor was the most expensive part of the updating, but overall we spent about $500 on the whole project.  I have a couple more things to add to it eventually (I'm looking for a little white board with a tray that we can hang over that old phone jack), but for now I am LOVING the new look.  

Cleaning our Micro suede couch

It was time.  We got our couch a couple of months before we got married, so it has been in our household for right around five (!) years now.  We have never cleaned it or had it cleaned.  It hasn't been through any major spills or bad stains, so I guess it never felt like it needed it.  Well this morning when I looked at the couch, I realized that it needed it.  The winter has been especially rough because Remy's paws are impossible to get clean and dry after he has been outside.  Lots of wet paws have left sediment and dirt and whoknowswhatelse all over the couch.  So I did some asking around (and browsing on pinterest, of course) to see how I could go about cleaning the microsuede.  

This blog post caught my eye because it used supplies I could get at our dollar store here in town.  

I have to admit, I was pretty impressed with the results!  

Here are some before pictures (please don't judge me!)

(I don't even know what that stain is!)

dirty doodle paw prints...

(the dark spot is still wet from a stain that needed immediate attention)

this one makes me not want to take my naps on the couch anymore

supplies  (the original blog post said to use white sponges and bristle brush so that there would be no color transfer, but since our couch is brown I wasn't concerned with using the yellow)

So I went to work.  And I will be doing this MUCH more often.  The three sponges on the top are the ones I used, the bottom sponge is new.  eww

And here are the after pictures!  There are still some dark spots from the rubbing alcohol not being all the way dry, and you can tell that I didn't bristle brush the same direction all over, but you can also see that the stains are gone!  :)

He looks so innocent, doesn't he?  

Charlyn’s Tea Party Bridal Shower

My cousin recently got married, and I am so happy for her! I was also honored to be her maitron of honor, so a few months ago I started planning her bridal shower. I decided to go with a tea party theme, mostly because we used to always have tea parties as little girls when we would visit our grandma. We were able to use a lot of the old hats that belonged to our great-grandmother, which was a lot of fun. Charlyn actually wore my mother’s hat from her wedding (because it had a veil on it-how appropriate!), and we used teacups from my mom’s collection (although no-one was interested in hot tea in the middle of August! we put lemonade and iced tea in them). It was a beautiful day, and I was so pleased with how everything came together. My other cousins (the brides sisters) helped out so much, and even other guests that got there early helped carry and set up! Thank you everyone for coming and for helping me make this day special for Charlyn!

The invitations I made (all materials purchased from Michaels for around $10-made 12 invitations): scrapbook paper, pink vellum that I printed the wording on, pink ribbon attached with double-sided tape, and a pink flower with pearls. Details were printed on plain white paper and taped on the inside of the invitations. The front read:

A beautiful bride and a nice cup of tea,

All we need now is your company!

Dust off your pearls

and a big fancy hat,

If you haven’t got one,

don’t worry about that.

Charlyn is getting married,

and to help her prepare,

a personal shower is in order,

hope you can be there!

The food table: Menu was Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Cucumber Sandwiches, Carrots and Dip, Lemon Cakes, Pineapple-Upside-Down cakes, Thumbprint cookies, and cupcakes. We served Lemonade and Peach Iced Tea.

Lemon Cakes are a recipe from Pampered Chef: www.pamperedchef.com

Loving Spring

Seems like winter gets longer every year. For months I have been dreaming of green grass, birds singing, and tulips :) They are finally here!

Earlier this week I drove down to St. Louis to see my friend's graduate flute recital. She played wonderfully, and I stayed overnight there so that we could spend the next day together. Tuesday was sunny, windy, and a high of 80, so we decided to go to the Missouri Botanical Gardens! All the spring flowers were blooming, the flowering trees were beautiful, and it was a perfect day for being outdoors.

You can see all of the pictures from our adventures here :)