Guest Bedroom: Lots of Updates!

This room was really dark and dated before:After lots of work, it is now bright and cheery! We hung crisp white ceiling to floor drapery to give it some additional height. We also stuck with white for the bedding. I made some throw pillows to add some additional colors to the space and we went from there.

These were the original milk glass lamps in the space, they just needed a good cleaning and new shades! The headboard was spray painted which you can see HERE. The new mattresses are much taller than the old ones, so it is harder to see!

I used wooden frames from goodwill and painted them all the same white to make a grouping above the bed. I included some old pics of Oma and Opa as well as some of her sheet music. This was a great way to pay tribute to her many years playing piano both for the church and for her many piano students!

These are old magazines from the 30's that Oma had saved...we didn't know why but thought they must have been special and wanted to keep them. And why put them in a box somewhere when they have such perfect graphics for the room! I just used simple document frames for these.

Here is the re-finished dresser after some accessorizing with old books and pictures.

The other side of the room still has some boxes to go through, but it's looking much better.

These items on the vanity are just some old books and a metal box along with some old family pics and Oma's metronome.

Living Room Couch: New Pillows!

Here is the couch where it sat for years. It looks pretty dated in this pic, but we knew this couch had already lasted forever, and is a quality piece. And since boldly upholstered couches are making a comeback, we figured we would work with what we had!

It already looks MUCH better with new paint and floors!

I worked on some pillows with fabric that I had/that we bought to update the look with coordinating colors.

The back is pretty firm so these will help soften it up a bit.

Living Room: Updating the Secretary

This secretary previously sat in the den, and has been in the family for quite some time. It is really dark inside the shelves, but we didn't want to alter it permanently.

So I went through my fabric stash and found a print that would work in this room. Then I used an old cardboard box and cut it to size. I used painters tape to attach the fabric to the cardboard...kind of like reupholstering with no staples.

I then removed the shelves and stuck the cardboard against the back. Then I put the shelves back in place. It became the perfect place for all of Oma's crystal!

It's hard to get a good picture without a reflection...I'll try again when it's not sunny (if that ever happens). The glass needs repairing, but other than that it looks great!

Living Room: Creative Side Chair Pillows

The side chairs needed some back support, and we were on a budget. So I decided to use these travel pillows from Wal-Mart as a pillow form. They were the perfect size and are pretty firm. And the pricetag of a couple of dollars was nice too!

They were a perfect fit!

LOTS of Fabric.

We have been buying lots of fabric for new pillows throughout the house! It has been fun to pair different prints and colors. This is a little peek of what I've been working on/what I have left to work on...the unfinished pile is way higher than the "finished"!

 Yikes! Lots of sewing left to do.

Some pillows that are ready to go!