Liquidation Chairs [and new fabric for our tooshies]

I mentioned in yesterday's post that we did not leave Desert Liquidators sans goodies. We actually found EIGHT goodies. All after I was upset about Lowes not having those Parsons chairs, I found cooler looking chairs that need a good cleaning and make-over.

Yes, they aren't fresh and new. But they have CHARACTER. Maybe they are not as tall as the current chairs, but who cares? They are rough and tough and will get us through the next several years with the kiddos.

My current chairs?! Less than 2 years old from Mor? Already broken.

The metal is a cobalt blue. Cool, but not what I was looking for. So they are going to be spray painted (by the patient husband) oil-rubbed bronze (to match the extras in our house/kitchen, including our new pendant lamp above the sink).  And then we are going to cover the wood with foam and fabric.

What kind of fabric you ask?!

Well, as I mentioned yesterday, we went to a fabric store in Tempe and looked through their yards and yards of stuff. Most of it was pretty old (as in fashioned). And not pretty. However, in the $5/yard bin I found 2.75 yards (crossing my fingers it's enough) of a cool fabric. Not too modern or too bold. But not boring and brown. I think it's going to look loverly in the space.

There are so many colors - and I can go so many ways. Cool green, calm blues, sweet burnt orange or butter yellow. I can't wait to try my hand at covering up the seats of these chairs.

But first things first... I must clean (SCOUR) them. I see myself knee deep in rubber gloves and suds this week!

We Ran Away, Shopped 'til we Dropped & Guest Bath Update

I don't even know where to begin. I was too tired to post this last night. Lots of pictures and updates below. This is your warning! =)

First of all, I think it's important to let you know where we stand in the guest bath makeover.

Reality is - we haven't done anything since our last post. I've been sick - with SOMETHING. All I know is that the very strong antibiotics and steroids have not worked, and it looks like I will be going in for follow-up care. Regardless, I knew we needed to get SOMETHING done yesterday. So we went with the lesser of two evils and went out and shopped.

I got up, showered, did the whole make-up thing (my make-up drawer was missing me, I think) and took a shot in my makeshift mirror (this is NOT the final mirror, but I needed something in there since we were so mirror-removal-happy).

I was ready to go. Of course, by go, I mean travel the 50 miles to Desert Industrial Business Asset Liquidation company we found online. (say that 20 times fast)

We are looking for a new sink. A Vessel one to be exact. But before we got even 20 miles, I stopped (and instragramed this photo)

A lovely, warm and delish bagel from Einstein Bros. bagels in Tempe. We don't have any out in Queen Creek, so anytime I venture into town, I have to stop. Mmmm.

Anyway, we continue into Phoenix, looking for our destination.  I had no idea what to expect. I think I don't get out enough. This place was COOL.  But smelled not so good. They literally buy all the stuff from stores, restaurants, etc, if they go out of business. I mean even the salt shakers had salt still in them. (Do I hear Buy 1 Get 1?!)

They had chairs, benches, sinks, utensils, tables, fridges, tile, cabinets, etc. etc. etc.

Marcos and I have a fun time peeking into every corner of this place. The prices were reasonable, and they were willing to make deals. Want to know how I know?! Because I walked away with 8 of something. Too much to add to this post today. but I will whip up a post about these 8 lovies tomorrow.

After we loaded up the van, we decided to hit a few more places. Hey, we were sans kids. It was like a date.  We went back into Tempe and hit up our favorite fabric store (which also smelled. pee-youuu) and grabbed a few things. And then decided to get some lunch near ASU. We had a front row seat to a busy street near the campus and we just gawked. Oh to be young again.

Lunch was fab. As always. Even got some free bumper stickers.

Have you ever had Jimmy John's? Sooo good. I just get the #1 Pepe.

After lunch, we headed out to the Home Depot. Again. BUT! We were able to get some stuff we needed. Like light bulbs. We really needed those.

We also purchased all the stuff for tiling job we hope to accomplish this year, in the guest bath. Since we are changing out the sink and adding shelves above the toilet, we only needed about 3 feet of tile.

I always had the Subway tile in my mind and I love the glass tile as an accent. We will not be creating the traditional Subway pattern here, though, folks. Crazy, huh?! Instead, we will lay the tiles side by side (see pic below). The tile will mimic the paneling we put in on the other wall.

For $25, we got all of the tile we needed for this small job. I think it's a great learning opportunity for us. Eventually we want to add tile to the kitchen back splash.

From start to finish, Marcos and I ran away for 7 hours. We ended the afternoon at the grocery store, grabbing what we needed for dinner (Taco Night, a day late) and went home and cooked, ate, and then fell into our bed. It was exhausting.

I'd like to thank Alex and Isa for holding down the fort and for not allowing anything to happen to/with/for/at Nic so that emergency peeps did not have to make a visit to the house while the ball to my chain and I were knee deep in sour smelling goodies. Love those kids.

Don't forget to check back tomorrow to see what I scored at Desert Liquidators.

Mirror, Mirror off the Wall

This past weekend, among a dozen other small chores, the husband and I jumped the gun. It's funner (more fun?) that way. The floor in my formals are still bare, and furniture is askew, but I wanted to get some work done in the Guest Bath.

Generally how it occurs is that I bring a tool or two in from the garage. A screw driver here. A roll of Blue tape there. "Honey, do you think I taped this well enough?" Once "honey" gets up to look, I know I've piqued his interest. And down comes the HUGE builder-grade mirror. YAY!!!

Only Instagram shots of this people, I was too lazy to take out the camera!

Since we are replacing the old mirror with a smaller mirror (that we have yet to research or purchase) that will be centered only on the sink, new lighting is in order. Hey, I don't make the rules people.

I made a quick run to Home Depot and Lowes yesterday to see what our new lighting options are. I know we need oil-rubbed bronze since our bathroom fixtures are all oil-rubbed bronze, including the faucet. I want to keep the Guest Bath BRIGHT, casual, farmhouse and vintage, as we are putting bead board on the main wall (instead of the board & batten I originally had planned - more on that in a different post).

Here are a few options I found... Keep in the mind, the glass will actually be CLEAR (more vintage looking and capable of bringing out the best light).  To me, Lowes had the best options. You could pick your fixture, then pick the glass lamp/piece/thing that you wanted. Kind of custom.

The two sconces are from Home Depot, but Lowes had something similar. However, I think my heart is palpating faster each time I look at the 3-light bar. It just feels right for the space. While we opted to take out the medicine cabinet, too (oops, forgot to mention that, did I?), I think trying to put a sconce in that left corner along with a new mirror might be tight.

Okay, enough tiny Instagram photos for this post. I promise to charge my camera and have it handy for my next post. ;)  We are moving right along on the guest bathroom and I cannot wait to slap some paint on those walls and really start to see the small space take shape. Now if I can only decide on a paint color.

Dun Dun Dunnnnnnnn.

Simple Alcove Design - Like, Really Simple

I am a simple gal. By that, I mean I always try to find the simplest way to do things.

I am DYING for Marcos and I to begin work on our family room. I can only change out the pillows so many times, you know.

Here's a look at how it pretty much looks today:

Pretty much.
I did mention a few days back that that I moved bookcases into the TV alcove.

It is not the end all solution, but hopefully it will get our butts in gear to get some real work done.
Since I am simple and all, I decided to revert back to my old friend POWER POINT.
Have you met him?!
Nice dude.

Anyway, I spent a few minutes last night searching Pinterest for EXACTLY what I wanted.
Lo and behold exactly what I wanted wasn't there. <<GASP!!>>

This was the closest I could find:

Minus the fireplace, of course.

So, I set out to use PPT (that's how close we are) to create a picture of what I was hoping to sell to the husband.

Some of you out there might be laughing at my lack of professional tools. But, hey, I am not a professional. And I have mad, mad, power point skills. Really. Truly.

The built-ins are going to be over 4 feet tall. I hope. I want a mantel, so that's the basis for this plan.
Don't you love my TV? And Cupcake Wars? (photo via). Love that show. What's better than built ins and banana cupcakes?! Really?

So, that's the plan. Now I need to start purchasing the supplies and creating a REAL plan with the husband to work with.

Likey?!