tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9262070952866653892024-03-18T05:15:19.770-04:00Heart Maine HomeFinding fun and thrifty ways to turn a Maine house into our first homeMindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.comBlogger143125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-62015095192673836732013-09-16T08:33:00.000-04:002013-09-16T08:33:00.216-04:00A lighter, brighter bedroomHi everyone! Can you believe it's September already? Is it just me or did the summer go by way too fast? (I always say that!) Here in Maine the summer feels so short, so it's always a little sad when it's over -- although I think fall may be my favorite season!<br />
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So I have been a little MIA recently but it's only because I've been busy busy busy working on some things around this house of mine. For a little while it felt like I didn't even come up for air! But now things are finished (ish) and I can show you what I've been working on.<br />
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In my last post I gave you a <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/08/summer-is-flying-by.html">sneak peek of my bedroom painting project.</a> As I said then, we painted our bedroom right when we moved in, but the color was too dark and we just didn't like it. But we have a big bedroom, and we didn't really want to repaint it. But we got the opportunity, strangely enough, when our poor pup <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/04/yarn-and-twine-eggs-for-spring-diy.html">Colby had to have knee surgery.</a> Because he couldn't do stairs -- and because he's spoiled that he sleeps in our bedroom with us -- we moved our bed to the office on the first floor while he was recovering.<br />
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While we were camping out on the first floor, I convinced the hubby that it was the perfect time to take a paint brush to our bedroom yet again We knew we wanted something neutral and light, so I grabbed a bazillion paint swatches and stuck them up on the wall. Um, there are a million light neutrals out there!<br />
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The color we finally chose was Gull by Martha Stewart. It's a creamy, off-white neutral with a hint of warmth. Since so much of our house is painted in cooler tones (which I love!), I wanted something a bit warmer for our bedroom.<br />
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It took me a little while to get this whole room painted, because I also had to paint the ceiling (we found some leftover paint in the basement from the old owners for the ceiling, but when I used it to patch a couple spots it was definitely not the same color, so I had to take care of that situation).<br />
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I felt a tiny bit silly painting a room we had painted less than three years ago, but I am SO happy with out it turned out! It is soooo much lighter and brighter in this room now!<br />
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It doesn't feel like a cave anymore, and that makes me really, really happy. I need a light and bright space to cheer me up when I'm doing things like putting the laundry away. :) <br />
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I've seen some bloggers describe this color as a light gray, but it definitely skews a bit yellow in our room. I don't mind it, though -- again, it's warm and cozy, which I think is just right for a bedroom.<br />
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This is all the bedding, curtains, etc. we already had, but I'd love to get something different. I'm over the green curtains and sheets! I'll keep you posted on what I end up with.<br />
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While we were improving this room, we also decided to install a ceiling fan in here. We have one in our office, where we'd been sleeping for the last few months, and we really liked how it helped keep us cool. We also had a desire to update the lighting in our bedroom since the existing ceiling light in there was definitely inadequate for lighting that big space. Here's a look at the light that was in there (with the old paint color):<br />
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We ended up buying this <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_43676-82939-40091_0__?productId=4164637&Ntt=harbor+breeze+crosswinds&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dharbor%2Bbreeze%2Bcrosswinds&facetInfo=">Harbor Breeze fan</a> from Lowe's, mostly because of its low profile. Our ceilings are 7.5 feet tall, and the hubs is over 6 feet tall, so we needed something with a profile of less than 16 inches, or else the hubs would be bonking his head! This fan did the trick with a profile of about 14.5 inches, and it was quite affordable as well.<br />
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It was no picnic installing this fan. The hubs had to spend some time in the attic installing the proper ceiling supports. But now that it's up there, we're quite happy with it. It's not as quiet as the Hunter fan we have in our office, but it's just as cute (and that's what matters, right?)<br />
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We also installed this cool switch that allows us to control the light and the fan speed, and it also came with a remote, which is super sweet because we can turn the light off or change the fan speed from bed.<br />
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And as we've done in the other rooms we've painted, we switched out all the beige outlets for crisp white ones. The hubs even put in these fancy USB outlets on each side of the bed, so we can charge our phones with ease.<br />
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It's always incredible what some paint can do to change a room (oh, and some white bedding never hurts either!). The before:<br />
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And the airy after!<br />
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So do you think I'm ridiculous for painting my bedroom again, not even three years later? Or would you have done the same thing?<br />
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<i>Sources:</i><br />
<i>Wall color: Martha Stewart Gull, matched to Behr Premium Plus Ultra paint</i><br />
<i>Quilt, bedskirt, white pillowcases and throw: Target</i><br />
<i>Green sheets and pillowcases: Bed Bath and Beyond</i><br />
<i>Green pillow: DIY with fabric from Joann </i><br />
<i>Lamps, green frames and green curtains: Target: </i><br />
<i>Bamboo blinds: Home Depot</i><br />
<i>Ceiling fan: Harbor Breeze Crosswinds from Lowe's</i><br />
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<br />Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-2962616322996863792013-08-12T08:00:00.000-04:002013-08-12T08:00:08.979-04:00Summer is flying byHi, everyone! Sorry for the radio silence over the last couple of weeks. I don't know what happened to the rest of July...all the sudden it's practically two weeks into August! Crazy how that happens.<br />
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So I'm here today just to give you a quick update on what I've been up to the last couple of weeks. In no particular order...<br />
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We drove up to the top of Mt. Washington...<br />
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We enjoyed some Maine summer favorites -- beach, lobster and camping...<br />
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We visited some friends and got up close and personal with some sea life in Boston...<br />
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We bought a new dishwasher. Our old dishwasher broke for the third time in less than three years, so instead of fixing it, we decided to replace it. We bought <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_362071-46-WDT710PAYM_4294857925%2B4294965476%2B4294964267__?productId=3546992&Ns=p_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar|1&facetInfo=Whirlpool|Whirlpool%20Gold">this Whirlpool Gold</a> on sale at Lowe's. We're pretty happy with it so far! It cleans well, is relatively quiet and holds lots of dishes.<br />
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I did a little thrifting...<br />
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And I started painting our bedroom. Our bedroom was pistachio green when we bought our house, so we immediately painted it a Behr color called Mushroom Bisque. But it didn't take long for us to dislike the color. We rushed picking a color so we could paint before we moved in our furniture, and we didn't examine it in all lights. Our bedroom doesn't get a lot of light, and the color was just too dark. We were craving something light and bright...and we're on our way to getting it! I'll post more about it soon when I'm finished.<br />
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So that's what I've been up to! What about you?<br />
<br />Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-9595195777576429112013-07-16T20:45:00.000-04:002013-07-16T20:57:05.934-04:00Anniversary date photo frame {DIY}Hiya everyone! I hope you're doing well! Thanks for all your feedback on <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/06/a-tale-of-two-rugs.html">my two rugs</a> both here on the blog and on my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HeartMaineHome">Facebook page.</a> I just can't part with either one, so they're both sticking around for now, although I'm still not 100% sure how they'll be used. Stay tuned as I play musical rug around my house. :)<br />
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I'm here today to show you some DIY art I made to celebrate my three-year anniversary to the hubs, which was back in June. As I wrote about before, I like finding ways to <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2011/03/wedding-in-box.html">display wedding mementos</a> and <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2011/05/were-so-vain-displaying-wedding-photos.html">photos</a> without being too mushy. And I'm a true believer that what you put in your home should be meaningful above all else.<br />
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This is our anniversary date! I didn't come up with this idea -- you'll see it around Pinterest and the web, and there are places where you can buy the numbers you need. But I wanted to find a cheap way to make this art, and I also enjoyed taking the photos myself.<br />
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I actually started on this way back on our <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2011/06/our-quebec-excursion-recap.html">first anniversary trip to Quebec</a>. I love taking photos of interesting doors and when I came home I saw I had two of the three numbers I'd need for our anniversary date. So I explored my hometown's downtown and had a lot of fun snapping photos of numbers on buildings and businesses, including the last number I needed.<br />
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I did just a little editing in Picasa to crop them and make them black-and-white.<br />
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Then I printed them through mpix.com. I bought the frame for 40% off at Michaels.<br />
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I'm not sure where this will live permanently, but for now it's hanging out on the console table in our dining room. I think it looks really cool! I love the variation of the types of numbers. Plus it means we have no excuse for ever forgetting our anniversary :)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9_yEcyparsREXg3Lack34CGYDoITwBA3AKDV6LkeSA1VA6Fx6ur_Ms_LCOah2NQ1_KJsPwO591DjwIlndXbi0y3eD4opr-E_8FxxzLzLtdAVOWWM_WwiYPA95-4OCedX_QA0Pna3haI/s1600/Anniversary+number+photo+frame+%252810%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9_yEcyparsREXg3Lack34CGYDoITwBA3AKDV6LkeSA1VA6Fx6ur_Ms_LCOah2NQ1_KJsPwO591DjwIlndXbi0y3eD4opr-E_8FxxzLzLtdAVOWWM_WwiYPA95-4OCedX_QA0Pna3haI/s640/Anniversary+number+photo+frame+%252810%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a> <br />
I also thought it was a great gift idea for a good friend of mine who recently got married, using a frame I found at Kohl's. I hope it finds a nice place in her new home with her new hubby!<br />
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Linking up!<br />
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Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-41337321653962185492013-06-27T08:00:00.000-04:002013-06-27T08:00:01.274-04:00A tale of two rugsHi all! Hope your summers are going well so far! Mine has been crazy busy. Seriously, every weekend we've been booked...the summer is flying by!<br />
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Anyways, I'm popping in to ask for your advice on a rug. While I was shopping around for a rug for the entryway (more on that another day!), I decided I wanted a new rug to go in front of our door that leads to the deck. Don't you love how one project or purchase always leads to another? :)<br />
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This door gets a lot of use, because we use it to get to the backyard to take the dog out. So we're always tracking in grass and dirt, and we have at least a couple pairs of shoes there too.<br />
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Last year I bought this mat from Target, and it worked pretty good. It was easy to clean and stayed in place with a rug pad. But it was nothing thrilling to look at, and it was just too small. There wasn't enough room to keep shoes, so we were always tripping over them, and when the shoes got pushed off the mat they'd leave dirt and puddles on the floor.<br />
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So I was on the search for something bigger and something that was also durable and would hold up to dirt and lots of use. <br />
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While at HomeGoods, I stumbled upon this cute little printed jute rug for just $17. I was drawn to the Moroccan pattern and the natural fibers.<br />
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But...I wasn't sold on it. This front room is pretty lacking in color, with the wood floors, dark leather chairs and black-and-white art. This rug left me craving a pop of color, but I kept it anyways until I made up my mind.<br />
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Then, I happened to walk by this rug on sale on Target. It was a bit more money at $27, but is more substantial with a thicker weave.<br />
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It's an indoor/outdoor rug that you can rinse clean, according to the label. It's marked "neon yellow," but it's actually more of a yellow-green, and still just the pop of color I was looking for. And another geometric pattern -- yes! (They sell larger versions of this rug <a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-indoor-outdoor-area-rug-neon-yellow/-/A-14560358">online</a>, but for some reason don't have this size on their website.)<br />
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But...I'm not sure about it either. I'm not convinced the color works with the seafoam green of the walls, and the color feels very summery, so it leaves me questioning whether I'll like it in the middle of winter.<br />
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So, what do you think? Do you have a favorite? I'm leaning towards the Target rug because of the color and because it seems like it'll last longer, but I'm pondering keeping the other rug and using it in the winter months. I'd love to hear your thoughts!<br />
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No matter which rug I go with, it'll definitely be an improvement over what's there now. Although Colby seems satisfied with it. He's so easy to please!<br />
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<br />Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-74761386248497216042013-05-28T08:00:00.000-04:002013-05-28T08:00:09.174-04:00Entryway updateHi all! I hope you had a great Memorial Day weekend! It finally stopped raining here and the sun came out yesterday, which was really nice. We got to see the parade and spend time outside with my family eating burgers and drinking margaritas...that's my kind of Monday!<br />
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I've been a little quiet lately, so I apologize. I've been spending my time working on the entryway. We kind of lost our motivation for a couple months, so I'm trying to get this project back on track -- and get it done so we can move onto other things!<br />
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So, the last time you saw this space, it looked like this:<br />
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What we had to do next was trim out the gaps between the cabinets and paint the face frames.<br />
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The hubs cut and installed the trim, which made such a big difference in giving the cabinets a finished look. He also filled the cracks between the cabinets.<br />
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Then I was up for painting. I used a foam brush to apply two coats of Zinser BIN primer, and sanded between the coats. Then I used my Purdy angled cub brush to apply several coats of Behr semi-gloss enamel paint in Ultra Pure White. I used some Floetrol to help extend the drying time to reduce brush strokes. Try as I might, I cannot get a completely smooth surface, so you can still see some brush strokes, but I think it looks pretty good, so I'm satisfied.<br />
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We also had to reinstall some of the trim from around the doors, which the hubs nailed into place. He filled the nail holes with wood filler, and then I painted all the trim (so it would all match) with high-gloss Behr interior/exterior enamel, also in Ultra Pure White.<br />
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The hubs cut new baseboard, which I painted the same as the other trim, then he installed it and filled the nail holes.<br />
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I gave the baseboards one coat of paint to cover the nail
holes, but I'll need to do another coat to hide all of the wood filler.
I'm hoping to get that done tomorrow, and then we can put the coat rack
back up.<br />
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It doesn't look like this was a lot of work, but it sure did take a lot of time -- mostly the time to wait while paint dried. Isn't that fun?<br />
<br />It's starting to look like a real room now! Trim makes such a big difference. And now that the cabinets are all painted we can start using them. I'm really itching to start organizing these cabinets, and am super excited for all the new storage space. <br />
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But we're not done yet. We still need to make doors for the cabinets (I'm going to use them even without doors, so we'll be rocking the open-storage thing), and the hubs has plans to make a couple drawers too. And I'm working on a coat hook thing to go over the bench, as well as some other things to help keep us organized. And we need to install a shoe rack. Then it's just accessories -- wall decor and some new cute rugs. My favorite part!<br />
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I'm hoping we don't lose steam on this again...although I'm guessing it'll be a long time before the cabinet doors are done. But I'm okay if those take some time to get done, since we've never made them before, so it's a big learning curve. I don't mind taking the time to get them done right.<br />
Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-50999618465944240622013-05-16T08:00:00.000-04:002013-05-25T12:29:26.809-04:00Turning cloth napkins into pillows {DIY}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi all! Sorry it's been a little while since I've posted...y'know how life can get sometimes. :)<br />
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Today I'm sharing my latest pillows. I'm seriously obsessed with making pillows. I just <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/03/curtain-turned-into-pillows-diy.html">made these ones out of a curtain.</a> It's probably because it's one of the few things I can manage to sew (kind of)!<br />
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My newest pillows are made from cloth napkins I found on sale at Target (where else?). I just loved the floral pattern and the blues, greens and yellows of this pattern. I had eyed these napkins for a while but since I didn't really need
them, I made myself walk away...until I saw the orange clearance
sticker. The sticker said $6.98, but the receipt said $2.98! What a
deal! I bought them with the intention of using them as napkins.<br />
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Then at Jo-Ann I saw this turquoise remnant fabric that was half off the marked price, and I snatched that up too, again not sure what I'd do with it but loving the color and thinking it reminded me of the colors already in my living room.<br />
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Then it hit me -- make some more pillows!<br />
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I simply cut the turquoise fabric for the back and didn't even do anything to the napkin -- I just sewed the pieces together. I sewed as close to the napkin seam as I could. The napkins aren't quite square, so I tried to compensate for that, which I dd only somewhat effectively. So if you look close you can tell my pillows aren't square either, or even the same size. But they're good enough for me! <br />
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I already had the pillow forms, so these two pillows cost me about $7 <b>total.</b> The pillows like this that Target sells? 24 bucks. What a deal!<br />
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As you can see by my pillow collection, I'm slowly becoming more comfortable mixing patterns in my living room.<br />
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I'm sticking to blues, greens, yellows and neutrals to keep things cohesive, but I'm mixing geometric patterns and floral patterns with solids, and I've got an embroidered pillow and a couple linen ones that lend some texture. My new floral ones feel like a breath of fresh spring air.<br />
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But my favorite couch accessory? This guy.<br />
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<i>What a face!</i></div>
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I'm happy to report Colby is healing well from his knee surgery seven weeks ago. After six weeks of restricted activity, his bones have healed and the vet has cleared him to resume some activity. Yay! He's very happy to be taking walks and joining us on the couch again. He should be able to resume his normal puppy activity in about four weeks, just in time to enjoy the summer.<br />
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But back to the pillows. I still have two napkins left in my four-pack. What do you think I should do with them? I think I'm maxed out on pillows for now. Maybe I'll actually use them for their intended purpose...what an idea. :)<br />
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Linking up!<br />
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Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-23597641844137169252013-04-30T07:17:00.001-04:002013-04-30T07:17:18.278-04:00A new (old) coffee table {thrifty find}Hi all! Hope you had a fantastic weekend! We are having some nice, sunny spring days, and I'm totally loving it.<br />
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I've got a couple random things to share today, and I'm super excited about the first one. Our living room has been really evolving over the last year and a half, beginning with our <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/01/new-couch-finally.html">purchase of our sectional coach</a> and more recently with our <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/05/new-blue-living-room-before-and-after.html">decision to repaint our living room blue.</a> I'm really <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/02/living-room-update.html">loving where the space is at now,</a> except for one problem: a too-big-for-the-space oak coffee table.<br />
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This table is solid wood and has held up very well over the years. But style-wise, it doesn't have <strike>much</strike> anything going for it. And it makes the space in front of the couch feel crowded and we're always pushing it out of the way.<br />
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I've been itching to replace it with something smaller and round, to help break up the boxy lines of the sectional. If you <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/">follow me on Pinterest,</a> you can probably tell I've been eyeing something gold and glass. Well, after a lot of searching around, I wasn't able to find a table like this in the size and price I wanted.<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955966554396/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="500" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/550x/e4/16/b1/e416b148109eb80b63a11c7fcc17adb7.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.decorpad.com/photo.htm?photoId=20994" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">decorpad.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Plan B was to find a wood coffee table, but let me tell you, it's been pretty hard to find a round coffee table that's only 30 inches in diameter, is made of real wood (no veneer) and is in my price range. We use our coffee table a lot, so I knew I needed something sturdy, which means anything veneered is out. I tried Craigslist a few times but couldn't find anything that fit my criteria.<br />
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I kind of gave up for a while, hoping the right thing would come to me. And it did!<br />
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This lovely little thing was on Craigslist for just $15! I had to drive over an hour to get it (which the hubs thought was crazy) but I'm glad I did. It's just 30 inches around and made of real wood except for some decorative veneer strips around the edge that are broken and peeling, so I might have to pull them off.<br />
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It's been badly refinished at least once, including this nice black matte paint job on the top.<br />
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It's definitely seen better days but I think I can fix it up and make it purdy again. I feel like it has a similar feeling as the glass tables I was looking at with its simple lines and its midcentury modern feel. <br />
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I'm not 100% sure what I want to do to it. I feel like our living room has a lot of dark furniture, including two wood-toned end tables and a black TV stand and media cabinet. So I think I'll stay away from more wood tones and black. I'd like to do something fun with it, like maybe even stencil the top. I'm thinking something kind of tone-on-tone, to keep it subtle.<br />
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Source: <a href="http://vintagemellie.blogspot.com/2012/07/stenciled-table.html?m=1" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">vintagemellie.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.thebungalowblog.com/2012/05/a-stenciled-chalk-painted-table-and-royal-designs-studio-giveaway.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">thebungalowblog.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://becolorful.typepad.com/becolorful/2011/11/index.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">becolorful.typepad.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://twelveoeight.blogspot.com/2013/02/chevron-painted-kitchen-stool.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">twelveoeight.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://christinasadventures.com/2011/06/medallion-table.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">christinasadventures.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Or maybe I want to paint it a fun color...<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928554/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="451" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/550x/64/03/82/640382c791942a1e51c0ceceb3149474.jpg" width="541" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.bhg.com/blogs/centsational-style/2012/05/02/secrets-to-stylish-white-spaces/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">bhg.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928759/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="398" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/550x/28/76/9d/28769dd172e646eb9d07e2bef8834924.jpg" width="600" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://art-actually.blogspot.com/search/label/painted%20furniture" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">art-actually.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928744/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="439" src="http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/550x/f0/c9/db/f0c9dba60ebd936392aecd03f313cd2f.jpg" width="450" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.nicegirlnotes.com/living-room-redo/living-room-picture" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">nicegirlnotes.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I also like the two-toned look, whether both the top and legs are painting, or when one half is stained.<br />
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Source: <a href="http://www.thenester.com/best-of-the-nest-2" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">thenester.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.prettyhandygirl.com/2010/09/trashy-coffee-table-finds-her-beautiful.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">prettyhandygirl.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928730/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="277" src="http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com/550x/c9/d3/55/c9d355bf3b4cf0f4b6f7b7b5e1a5263f.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://leis-leisureliving.blogspot.com/2012/09/two-toned-coffee-table.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">leis-leisureliving.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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And how cute are these casters?!<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928711/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="233" src="http://media-cache-ec3.pinimg.com/550x/44/66/b3/4466b3e548c97bd656d71f2d0d7731f4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.hickorywhite.com/catalog_detail.php?id=1062&model=863-10" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">hickorywhite.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I'm also really digging the dipped paint trend. I worry it might be too trendy, but I keep envisioning those slim little legs dipped in gold.<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928826/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://media-cache-ec3.pinimg.com/550x/c0/52/e1/c052e1ff357f61d6a59391550e9f2995.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.thesweetbeastblog.com/2012/03/14/svalbo-hack/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">thesweetbeastblog.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968928778/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/550x/5b/5f/96/5b5f96c3fca1d4afe094921d47a810d5.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://primitiveandproper.blogspot.com/2011/09/piece-of-work-wednesday-furniture-link_27.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">primitiveandproper.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Okay, obviously I can't do all of this, so which style do you vote for -- subtle stencil, bright color, two-toned or dipped legs?Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-87799037037850781532013-04-24T08:00:00.000-04:002013-04-24T08:00:07.139-04:00 Latest design crush: Bee decorHiya everyone! Hope your week is going well!<br />
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Today I'm sharing the design trend that's totally got my eye these days, and that's bees. Yes, bees. I feel like the bee is going to be the next owl and just popping up everywhere.<br />
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It seems like I'm spying bee-related decor everywhere. I spotted these cute ceramic containers at Target. I just love that little bee on top! I couldn't find them online though.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7eOTMdXznTl7gqf100o4yWAKB2XXpkeQy8tkAMwdMXZNNuLjQ-E7_B9IcqynT0AKpTEEUS885UNkvK59l7VXBuZ-tpU8fLMxzfpyuSh2FaYDqxPRrn_9lxyDA8crnQVIcWhad4PkZtAk/s1600/Bee+things+%252811%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7eOTMdXznTl7gqf100o4yWAKB2XXpkeQy8tkAMwdMXZNNuLjQ-E7_B9IcqynT0AKpTEEUS885UNkvK59l7VXBuZ-tpU8fLMxzfpyuSh2FaYDqxPRrn_9lxyDA8crnQVIcWhad4PkZtAk/s640/Bee+things+%252811%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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These <a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-153-honeycomb-vase-white/-/A-14493630">honeycomb vases</a> are to die for too.<br />
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-153-honeycomb-vase-white/-/A-14493630"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD7DIdKZlYPceZySNpRRRWNSysTQjIRc3bLaJMi25zn_68bSK44RAilLnYWIdq1UlrpnZf96dWc4eIWXcqUgLuF0op8L-tqw2BcrjrlHvOddfcnGTvl0HjA7cSOhwLLPv6m9uLmG7KJm8/s640/Bee+things+%252812%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="530" /></a></div>
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These <a href="http://www.westelm.com/products/hive-vases-c046/">hive vases from West Elm</a> are great too (and on sale right now!).<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968899367/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="485" src="http://media-cache-ak1.pinimg.com/550x/bc/d2/d9/bcd2d973490f6bb7869e47bedc82a25b.jpg" width="485" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.westelm.com/products/hive-vases-c046/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">westelm.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I totally want some of these bee glasses.<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968899199/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-ak1.pinimg.com/550x/d4/f4/48/d4f448fecb2a1d5315ab7b11fd6ffccf.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.target.com/p/la-rochere-glass-bee-water-glasses-set-of-6/-/A-10734921#prodSlot=medium_1_2&term=bee" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">target.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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This <a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-ceramic-lamp-base-honeycomb-with-cfl-white/-/A-14332250#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=threshold+honecomb">honeycomb lamp</a> is also from Target.<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968899190/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="410" src="http://media-cache-ec3.pinimg.com/550x/b6/c6/bc/b6c6bc277a719ba5c1c40530c6fa11e9.jpg" width="410" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-ceramic-lamp-base-honeycomb-with-cfl-white/-/A-14332250#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=threshold+honecomb" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">target.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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And I seriously, seriously love this <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002T6OAO/ref=as_li_ss_til?tag=hollannephot-20&camp=0&creative=0&linkCode=as4&creativeASIN=B0002T6OAO&adid=02KSZ2ENPM2GYM950TW2">honeybee door knocker.</a> It's pricey but oh-so-cute!<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968899177/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="500" src="http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com/550x/73/78/d8/7378d8e2782e4263b3d23bd0476b02c4.jpg" width="461" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://firsthome.tumblr.com/post/30246373840/adorable-honey-bee-brass-door-knocker-available" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">firsthome.tumblr.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I stopped into HomeGoods a few weeks ago and came home with two bee-related items.<br />
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This honeycomb vase was on clearance for $14, and I knew it would be the perfect umbrella stand for our entryway. I just love the cutout on the top. Who cares if I only have one umbrella and don't really need a stand??<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPiVsS5oDApIehUcw6rZ58SiAeHnjbd-WsXRJwLtd9dEjAsnqn0dlX1lE1f9HQcMCxZgDC8xcj8MEeV0skeTkdtakNcgGdwZPI48ZU6rTwnoYoxUBvSuCdVszbD-PgJ75Ry4U8DywjgFE/s1600/Bee+things+%25284%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPiVsS5oDApIehUcw6rZ58SiAeHnjbd-WsXRJwLtd9dEjAsnqn0dlX1lE1f9HQcMCxZgDC8xcj8MEeV0skeTkdtakNcgGdwZPI48ZU6rTwnoYoxUBvSuCdVszbD-PgJ75Ry4U8DywjgFE/s640/Bee+things+%25284%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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I also fell in love with this zippered storage box to use to store the photos and other items I rotate through in my gallery wall. This bee is obviously the queen, as she has a crown.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEiXaeKtoEbNIjmyCj30Wut4afVBa22A2RS5sbHEyc6d89pz60-b9siZLZsXDQbsFIEdouJSgCK0qF4cn2E-Osi-G96qfScNWpm1iO3SaawyOzBo7nwq1TJhMT5M4bx_cWfoM1kLYE08/s1600/Bee+things+%252824%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEiXaeKtoEbNIjmyCj30Wut4afVBa22A2RS5sbHEyc6d89pz60-b9siZLZsXDQbsFIEdouJSgCK0qF4cn2E-Osi-G96qfScNWpm1iO3SaawyOzBo7nwq1TJhMT5M4bx_cWfoM1kLYE08/s640/Bee+things+%252824%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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As I was seeing all this bee decor, I realized I already had my first bee item. For a year now my gallery wall in the kitchen has included this free printable I downloaded from a blog that I can't remember. But it's probably just as well as I got a computer virus when I downloaded it! But it's so cute it was worth it (don't tell the hubs I said that). <br />
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And perhaps my favorite bee item is something I got for free. I found this little nest in the backyard, and now it's hanging out on the console table as part of my <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/04/spring-decor-with-natural-elements-and.html">spring decor.</a><br />
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So what do you think -- will bees and honeycomb designs be everywhere in just a few short months? Or have they already been around and I'm just late to the trend as usual? :)Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-28865654087388194212013-04-21T08:25:00.001-04:002013-04-21T08:25:41.391-04:00Spring decor with natural elements and texturesHappy Sunday, everyone! I hope your weekend has been good to you so far. It's been sunny here in Maine and finally starting to feel like spring -- I love it!<br />
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So, it's the perfect weekend to show you my spring decorating. I didn't go crazy this year and I mostly used things I already had on hand. My focus this year was on natural elements and textures, with glossy white accents as contrast. Take a look!<br />
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This is the dining room, which is back to being a dining room after we flirted with it becoming a sitting room. On the table is a simple centerpiece in my Pottery Barn lantern that I <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2011/08/pottery-barn-lantern-thrifty-find.html">got for a steal</a> a couple years ago. Inside, you might recognize the <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/04/yarn-and-twine-eggs-for-spring-diy.html">jute twine eggs I made</a> over Easter weekend, and my <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/05/rope-planter-diy.html">DIY rope-wrapped pot.</a><br />
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The plant inside is an Arabica plant that I picked up a couple weeks ago. I wasn't sure how it'd like being inside the lantern, but it seems to be growing and thriving! The lantern is sitting on a charger from Target. <br />
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The white vase and white bird are Michaels finds from a couple years ago. I love the glossy white with the textures of the jute and the greenery. And the colorful bamboo placemats are from Bed Bath and Beyond. They make me happy :)<br />
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I spent a few minutes last weekend poking around our backyard to find some sticks and branches, then let them dry out for a few days in the garage. They're quick, fast and cheap fillers for vases. I'd love to have fresh flowers all the time, but they're more a splurge for me than a regular purchase. To add some soft spring textures, I made a little flower out of tissue paper by simply cutting two layers of paper into an irregular circle, poking some floral wire through the middle, and gently folding the tissue paper into a petal shape. I secured with a little hot glue and a little green ribbon around the base.<br />
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Recognize this console table? It used to hang out in the living room until I decided to <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/02/living-room-update.html">put the media cabinet in its place.</a> I like it in the dining room. It holds our cookbooks and makes a great spot for drinks or appetizers when we're entertaining. But right now it's a great spot for more spring decor!<br />
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Let's start at the bottom with the runner -- a past DIY project using some fabric from the remnants bin at Joann. I'm a total sucker for that remnants bin. The bottles are simply old beer bottles wrapped in jute twine. Since there's no art on this wall (yet), I wanted to create some height with this display, so I used more branches and tissue paper flowers. These are some tissue paper pomanders I made (and never used!) for our wedding (I used <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/265163/pom-poms-and-luminarias-how-to">Martha Stewart's directions,</a> but you can find how-tos everywhere). And yes, I've kept them! I've felt kind of silly hanging onto a box full of tissue paper pomanders, but let me tell you, they've come in quite handy over the years. They just need a little fluffing to look good as new.<br />
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My <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-springtime-terrarium.html">new terrarium</a> is hanging out here too -- I'm happy to report it's still alive! The bird is big brother to the little one on the table.<br />
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This bird print, bought for me by my mom from HomeGoods, adds some fun color to the whole display. This used to hang in our living room but it was a little small for the wall so now I'm trying to find a different home for it. For now, I like it here, especially as it echoes the birds-and-branches thing I've got going on.<br />
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This white bowl from Target has the rest of my jute eggs and the yarn ones I made too.<br />
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And if you <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HeartMaineHome">like me on Facebook,</a> you'll recognize this glass bottle, my latest flea market find for just 10 bucks. I'm addicted to glass bottles. I particularly like this one with some curvy branches and tissue paper flowers. It looks so romantic!<br />
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A couple more photos, because I can't resist... <br />
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In short, I bought nothing new for this spring setting -- just the way I like it! :) <br />
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Have you decorated for spring yet? <br />
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Before I sign off, I just have to take a minute to say my heart goes out to everyone affected by the tragedy in Boston. As I said on my Facebook page, this one hits close to home for me -- Boston is really the heart of New England, and I have so many happy memories of time spent there, from going to the Science Museum on school field trips, to Red Sox games with my husband, to visiting good friends who live there. I'm happy all my friends were safe, but my heart breaks for those whose loved ones were not as lucky. And while they may have apprehended the people responsible, the ordeal is not over for those who have to continue healing and grieving.<br />
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I can't do much to help, but I can donate blood, and I did last week. My proximity to Boston means my donation might actually be transported there if they have a shortage and need it. I'm a big advocate of blood donation, so wherever you are, I urge you to consider taking the time to donate blood. One pint of donated blood can save up to three lives! It feels so good to know you're making that kind of impact.<br />
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<br />Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-67954512976208947692013-04-14T17:49:00.001-04:002013-04-14T17:49:52.078-04:00Creative ways to use birch branches in home decorHi all! I hope you're having a good weekend!<br />
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Do you remember this lovely birch arbor in our backyard?<br />
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The hubs, his dad and his friend built it in 2010 to be used in our wedding. It's one of my favorite details of the wedding and I loved having it in our backyard as a reminder of that day.<br />
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So I was really sad when the hubs told me it had started to rot. When he went to take it apart to keep it from blowing over before a hurricane, it just totally fell apart. :( I guess we should have sealed it or something so it would last. <br />
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I'm hoping there are at least parts of it that aren't rotted and could be reused for something. I just love birch and the white and dark contrast of the bark. It adds some natural texture to any decor.<br />
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I'd love to reuse these birch branches in some home decor. There are lots of cute ways to use birch branches to hold candles:<br />
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Source: <a href="http://thepinkdoormat.blogspot.com/2013/01/upcycled-pine-tree-branch-candle-holder.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">thepinkdoormat.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://justimagine-ddoc.com/crafts/creative-and-awesome-do-it-yourself-project-ideas/?pid=8160" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">justimagine-ddoc.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.houzz.com/photos/1694666/Fallen-Birch-Branch-Votive-Set-contemporary-candles-and-candle-holders" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">houzz.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Or birch can make for some unique furniture and fixtures:<br />
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Source: <a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-build-a-birch-log-table-87818" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">apartmenttherapy.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://designawards.wordpress.com/2010/05/27/shiro-shelf/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">designawards.wordpress.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a><br />
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Source: <a href="http://www.casasugar.com/Nice-New-West-Elm-Art-Glass-Lanterns-801917" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">casasugar.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Birch ups the natural look for plantings and flower arrangements.<br />
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Source: <a href="http://m.afloral.com/Folded-Birch-Planter-6-x-4-x-6" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">m.afloral.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://carolynshomework.blogspot.com/2013/01/etceteras-birch-branches-and-boxwood.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">carolynshomework.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I love when birch is used in an understated way to just let its texture and color speak for itself.<br />
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Source: <a href="http://www.cottageelements.com/2011_12_01_archive.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">cottageelements.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.countryliving.com/homes/shopping/white-knitted-home-decorations?src=nl&mag=clg&list=nl_ccr_dot_non_011112_white-knit-decor&kw=ist#slide-5" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">countryliving.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://5thandstate.blogspot.com/2012/12/a-birch-wood-christmas.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">5thandstate.blogspot.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.centsationalgirl.com/2011/09/autumn-accents/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">centsationalgirl.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I love, love, love this abstract art with wood rounds. I think I might have to make one of these.<br />
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Do you have a favorite way to use birch or branches in your decor? I'd love to hear about it!<br />
Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-43484506273345630652013-04-11T08:00:00.000-04:002013-04-11T08:00:10.508-04:00Organizing the bathroom closetOver the weekend, I was all prepared to get my spring decorating on and hopefully lure the warm weather to arrive with my springy vignettes. I opened the closet door in our downstairs bathroom, where I keep most of my decorating stuff. And I...was...afraid.<br />
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dun...<br />
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dun...<br />
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DUN! (that's scary music)<br />
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It's not like it doesn't usually look like this -- I'd like to say it doesn't, but it does. But for some reason these days I've had such an urge to get things organized, and as I stared into that closet, I realized I couldn't just grab my spring candles and birds and shut the door. I had to get this closet whipped into shape. <br />
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First, a bit about this closet. We have two full bathrooms in our house, including this one on the first floor with the disaster closet. Since it's just the two of us, the upstairs bathroom closet is really home to all our regular necessities -- towels, toiletries, medications, etc. That leaves a lot of space in this downstairs bathroom closet, space that I apparently filled with tchotchkes. It's also home to most of our cleaning supplies, and one big bag of dog food.</div>
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I started by pulling everything out of the closet (and getting the hubs' sneakers out of the way).</div>
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What really needed sorting were all my decorating stuff -- lots of candles and candle holders, some vases, little animal figures, etc. I weeded through it all and got rid of the stuff I didn't want anymore.</div>
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I decided to organize my candles by season. Is that a little type A? I used an incredibly high-tech and adorable organizing method ... the Ziploc bag and the Sharpie marker. We spent a good chunk of money on our puppy's surgery, so I did not want to spend any extra money on cute organizing supplies when a plastic baggie could do the trick.</div>
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I also used this super-awesome organizing trick called "empty your coffee into canisters and reuse the plastic containers to hold your rock supply." I seriously have lots of rocks. That's kinda weird, isn't it? They make great vase filler!</div>
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I scrounged up a couple empty plastic bins that were hanging out in the basement for my candles, rocks, and acorn and pinecone collection. These are going upstairs into the craft room, where they really belong.</div>
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Once all this stuff was organized and out of the way, it didn't take long to get the rest of the closet tidy and organized. Ready to see it?</div>
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Oooh, so pretty.</div>
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Peeking from behind the dog food is this little shelf I was storing in the garage that I put to work to make some extra space. Those baskets hold little odds and ends -- I'm hoping to make some cute labels for them.</div>
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A couple spare bins and baskets lying around made for handy-dandy cleaning supply and toilet paper storage.</div>
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Other baskets hold dish towels, dish cloths, tablecloths and light bulbs.</div>
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The big basket with the green-and-white liner is a hamper for towels and other laundry that needed to get tossed somewhere. This keeps it out of sight and off the floor.</div>
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There's still lots of room for the dog food, the mop and bucket and the vacuum, which isn't pictured here but definitely fits. </div>
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Seeing all this order when I open the closet helps me breathe a little easier. It's nice not trying to jam stuff in and stack things on top of each other when I go to feed the dog or get the vacuum -- or go in search of my sea foam scented candles to bring some spring into my living room.</div>
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A little before and after action... </div>
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So, my spring decorating still isn't finished, but that's okay, because they're predicting snow on Friday. I guess I have time!</div>
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Before I sign off, a little update on Colby, who had surgery on his knee, if you recall. He had his two-week follow-up and the vet said he's healing nicely and looking great. Unfortunately, he's not enjoying being cooped up with no activity and has started taking it out on his crate when we leave him during the day.</div>
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Yep, he bent the bars with his mouth! So now he's on doggie sedatives so he doesn't break his teeth. Poor little guy. </div>
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I can't wait until he can run and play again!</div>
Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-13975342017834005202013-04-08T08:00:00.000-04:002013-04-08T08:32:04.006-04:00A springtime terrarium centerpiece<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A couple weeks ago, a friend asked me if I was interested in going to a class at a <a href="http://www.skillins.com/">local greenhouse</a> on how to make a terrarium. I didn't know a lot about terrariums, but I was intrigued, so I said yes! <br />
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The class included all the supplies we needed -- a glass container, rocks, charcoal, soil, moss and plants -- plus a handy-dandy handout on how to care for them. I seriously, <b>totally</b> kept all the little tags on my plants so I could tell you all what I planted in here...and I <i>lost</i> them.<br />
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So, I wish I could tell you what I've got growing in here, but I can't, except that I remember the low-growing green one is called baby tears. I remember that because it kind of bummed me out, but the plant was pretty so I used it.<br />
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The instructor said to keep the terrarium in medium light. It makes a lovely spring centerpiece on the dining room table.<br />
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Every few days I give it a mist with a mister. I'm really nervous about keeping it alive, since I'm got a pretty black thumb. So far, so good.<br />
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I'd love to find a tiny, adorable little animal figurine to put in here. I'm on the hunt for just the right addition.<br />
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Have you ever made a terrarium? Any tips for keeping it alive -- I think I'll need them!Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-62365182404173040362013-04-01T08:00:00.000-04:002013-04-01T08:00:15.968-04:00Yarn and twine eggs for spring {DIY}Hi all! I hope you had a great Easter. We had a low-key day because we've got a recuperating pup on our hands. Our poor little guy had surgery on his knee last week. He's been limping on and off for months and other treatments weren't working.<br />
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Finally the vet said surgery was the only way to keep him from completely tearing his ligament and losing the ability to use the leg at all. Now he's got a bionic leg with a metal plate and six screws! (If you're curious, the surgery he had is called a TPLO surgery.)<br />
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<i>I do not like the cone of shame</i></div>
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He's got six weeks of being cooped up, and then another six weeks of getting his full mobility back. It's going to be a loooong April. But in the end he'll be able to run and play like a normal dog without any more limping or threat of tearing his knee ligament. I can't wait for that day!<br />
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Since he's still recovering from the surgery and is in pain and getting used to staying in the pen (and to the cone of shame), we decided to stay home this weekend and keep an eye on him.<br />
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So, I took the opportunity of a weekend at home to do some crafts. I have to admit, I hadn't done any Easter or spring crafts -- in Maine, it doesn't feel much like spring in March, and in fact we still have some snow piles that need to melt. So I wasn't really feeling inspired.<br />
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But then I found in my craft stash some plastic eggs I bought last year from Target and never did anything with.<br />
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I whipped out the hot glue gun, some jute twine and some yarn and got to work. I simply started at the top and worked my way down, gluing as needed.<br />
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I did the twine eggs first, and then decided to try yarn. I kind of wish I had done them all in yarn -- I love the pops of color! I'm feeling the need for color these days.<br />
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I would say the yarn was harder to use than the jute. The jute was more forgiving if I didn't quite line things up or got a little too much glue under there. The yarn was pretty thin, so there are a couple itty bitty gaps where the egg color peeks through, especially on the bottom. But I'm not going to stare that closely at them.<br />
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Greens, blues and neutrals are like my favorite combo.<br />
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And while Easter is now over, I think these eggs make great spring decor and can last through April and May.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYCSBhl4i-VdoMFtXGxRyxtjanQnRpD6YHB9PMsy47EZNOyxsW9Yg5tmFfLzjnNYQrXfUPKjngrhWe7NZtLXSJfy1M8Gtd-6LhmijyMK7awr3K8GQ2Wg613TCrNLPxGbXDwwhFdO1MDS0/s1600/Yarn+and+twine+eggs+%25284%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYCSBhl4i-VdoMFtXGxRyxtjanQnRpD6YHB9PMsy47EZNOyxsW9Yg5tmFfLzjnNYQrXfUPKjngrhWe7NZtLXSJfy1M8Gtd-6LhmijyMK7awr3K8GQ2Wg613TCrNLPxGbXDwwhFdO1MDS0/s640/Yarn+and+twine+eggs+%25284%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I've got some other spring touches in the works, so stay tuned!<br />
Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-32093992304068118862013-03-16T18:42:00.001-04:002013-03-16T18:46:57.882-04:00How to make a penny-top table {DIY}Hi all! Hope you're having a great St. Patrick's Day weekend! :)<br />
<br />
Today I'm sharing a Pinterest-inspired project by my lovely sister, Lacey. That's her on the right. Isn't she cute?<br />
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Lacey had an old side table she wanted to revive...and she also wanted to replace her boyfriend's hand-me-down bedside table with something a little more fun. This project accomplished both! I'm going to let her take it away.<br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I bought this side table from a local discount retailer,
in my college days and loved the size of it. It worked perfectly next
to a sofa, sitting in front of a window, or even as a bedside table.
So you can imagine my distress when the finish started to flake right
off the table! I didn’t want to get rid of it, but couldn’t leave
it the way it was. Enter Pinterest and the various pins I’d seen on
penny tables. Why not give it a try on my already ruined table? Plus,
if it was successful, I had a perfect excuse to get rid of my
boyfriend’s ugly bedside table (furniture even his grandmother
didn’t want) and use this instead!</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>How to make a penny-top table</b></div>
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Step 1: Painting the table</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
First things first, sand down all of
the flaking finish already on the table. Usually, sanding is a pain
in the butt; however, when the surface of the table is already
flaking off in your hands, it isn’t too difficult. After sanding, I
painted the entire table black (just your basic black paint in
eggshell, I believe).</div>
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Step 2: Adding a railing around the top
of the table
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
After reading many tutorials on penny
tables, I chose to add a thin railing around the table top. This acts
as a stopper for the glaze. Other tutorials recommend wrapping
packing tape or aluminum foil around the table to give it an edge.
While it had worked for them, I was afraid that the tape or foil
wouldn’t hold up against the spreading glaze and opted to add a
permanent edge. Besides, you can get 8-foot long pieces of this thin
molding for just a few dollars at Home Depot. </div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
My father helped me
measure and cut 45 degree angles into these pieces, so that they
would fit perfectly around the edge of the table. Because the pieces
are fairly narrow, we were concerned that nailing them in place might
cause the piece to split. Instead, we used some gorilla glue to
attach them to the table, and then stacked heavy books on top to act
as clamps (if you have actual clamps, that may work better, but alas,
I did not, so I put my old college textbooks to use). After they were
attached, I painted them black as well.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Step 3: Shining the pennies</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We wanted an array of colors of
pennies — some shiny and new looking, others duller, and some that
almost the black color of a penny that’s been around a long time. I
diligently separated out the various colors and decided to shine some
up for the first category. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I’d read in other tutorials that Tarn X
is the perfect way to do this. You simply pour some Tarn X into a
bowl with your pennies, swish, rinse and dry. Piece of cake, right? I
found out otherwise. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Two important things to note: 1. Make sure you
rinse these thoroughly. Think you’ve been thorough? Give it another
rinse. 2. Make sure to dry the pennies thoroughly too. I recommend laying
them out on an old towel for a while. If you put the pennies into a
plastic bag together and they’re not fully rinsed or dry, you’ll
ruin a bunch of pennies, like I did (completely stripped off their
copper color).</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Step 4: Laying out the pennies</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
On our first attempt, my boyfriend and I started laying out
the pennies and working our way in towards the center. Do NOT do it
this way. Sadly, your table will not be a perfect size to fit the
pennies exactly. I recommend working from one side of the table to
the other. Luckily, we had not begun the gluing process yet, so we could start over. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<i>What NOT to do</i></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
As I mentioned, your table won’t be a
perfect size to fit your pennies, so you’ll probably end up with
some awkward spacing like I did — there was a strip of unused space
down one side of the table. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We considered centering the pennies in
the table to create equal empty space on all sides, but were
concerned that we wouldn’t be able to get it perfect. Derek suggested
cutting pennies in half to fill these spaces. However, it still took some
finagling to get the pennies to be the exact size we needed. In the
end, cutting pennies may have been more trouble than it was truly
worth, but it came out looking pretty great!</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Step 5: Gluing the pennies</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
After we decided how we wanted the
pennies to be laid out (we chose to alternate face up and face down,
and a mixing of penny colors), we started gluing. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
We glued some
pennies with super glue and some with Gorilla Glue. If I were to do
it all over again, I would NOT use Gorilla Glue. The key thing with Gorilla Glue is that is expands as it dries, so I ended up with glue
expanding between the pennies that I later tried to cut away with
razor blades, and even colored some black with a sharpie to try and
hide it. It ended up not being very noticeable after the glaze was
applied, but it still bothered me that it happened at all.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Step 6: Applying the glaze</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
After doing some research, I used Parks
Super Glaze Ultra Gloss Epoxy (purchased from Home Depot for about
$40). Some reviews of this product complain about it not
self-leveling as well as it should, or the formation of bubbles. One
person actually used a blowtorch to remove the bubbles during the
drying process. Needless to say, I was quite worried about this step!
</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGnHS5FBfs3hT9S3DqSkTz8xDME7L9Jhnd-olpXEZgd77eQDs3Oj1Tan62Ul9sA-gHhyyL8SuBQquf4a_qUQ0xhSvMC2OTQFWXVnoogmTWEBHXHFqenJ-Plw-6evtECzHj3Du2TSspTvU/s1600/Step+6+photo2+superglaze+supplies+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGnHS5FBfs3hT9S3DqSkTz8xDME7L9Jhnd-olpXEZgd77eQDs3Oj1Tan62Ul9sA-gHhyyL8SuBQquf4a_qUQ0xhSvMC2OTQFWXVnoogmTWEBHXHFqenJ-Plw-6evtECzHj3Du2TSspTvU/s640/Step+6+photo2+superglaze+supplies+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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But it actually went very well.
(Note: for this step, you need a room available that is well
ventilated, and where the table can be left for a day or two to fully
dry.) We followed the directions in the Super Glaze booklet
carefully, and were very careful. One addition to the supply list
they give you is to have a small foam paint brush handy. It helps to
get the glaze into the corners of the table. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgQ8wQyOCBimLwwdG10gMIVCoCtE7yAYXgTsBZiBdWKoAanh0rN4tWxWaIaLoad2er1yK3vsajjq327Sy0dmKjTwpINRYHi5wgU8TDg1Ze0FrbHbkgOP8s03JMbTEad4XOZe3yh2jvDCs/s1600/Step+6+photo4+bubbles+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgQ8wQyOCBimLwwdG10gMIVCoCtE7yAYXgTsBZiBdWKoAanh0rN4tWxWaIaLoad2er1yK3vsajjq327Sy0dmKjTwpINRYHi5wgU8TDg1Ze0FrbHbkgOP8s03JMbTEad4XOZe3yh2jvDCs/s320/Step+6+photo4+bubbles+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Some small bubbles did
form, but we were able to pop them by blowing on them. No blowtorch
needed! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5m17X0e-spmSJyqnDf_K63cz9Lfy05HkY-Xq7QU29i3Uv96N02H94NxVg9cM_W54J9zDBMtvvGbhYgj10G02iMskU0xAskAnHBvKkOKlyxzQ3wlbeUVNYaJrxMo9R2lIkCqyMAlEv5o/s1600/Step+6+photo3+blowing+on+bubbles+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5m17X0e-spmSJyqnDf_K63cz9Lfy05HkY-Xq7QU29i3Uv96N02H94NxVg9cM_W54J9zDBMtvvGbhYgj10G02iMskU0xAskAnHBvKkOKlyxzQ3wlbeUVNYaJrxMo9R2lIkCqyMAlEv5o/s640/Step+6+photo3+blowing+on+bubbles+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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It’s not professional grade. If you want a professional
product, they have glazes that cost around $100 to give you a
smoother, bubble free surface. But I have no complaint over how it turned out! I
couldn’t be happier :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ck3Ibi80waPmgTwXnDG3-L17lJVpR1QqHLdnjcRefcUBJmzPMuNoFoOEB0ACNlIzZzW-UKHvWHvv8LwP6X5r3XNsxeYzpPd2h13fWooqOlcMPADMyFqrjA0o9aMs2WzCDsvp6CWnALI/s1600/Step+6+photo5+drying+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Ck3Ibi80waPmgTwXnDG3-L17lJVpR1QqHLdnjcRefcUBJmzPMuNoFoOEB0ACNlIzZzW-UKHvWHvv8LwP6X5r3XNsxeYzpPd2h13fWooqOlcMPADMyFqrjA0o9aMs2WzCDsvp6CWnALI/s640/Step+6+photo5+drying+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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In the end, everything went extremely
well. The finished product now sits next to my boyfriend’s side of
the bed and is a vast improvement over what was there before. </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjidRSTUskIilTyYbuCQVMnibNIhb3tAk49aj5JpTcSxLXMRsLoiBjnfit27T2ThKOOoKrWzp8TffwHmWVjxubJ8ZV88uI6SuCo2ObJdIibbDMFHtkX0COmrQTYC1Q4_8rMecyjPoTQ_kA/s1600/Finished+product+close+up+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjidRSTUskIilTyYbuCQVMnibNIhb3tAk49aj5JpTcSxLXMRsLoiBjnfit27T2ThKOOoKrWzp8TffwHmWVjxubJ8ZV88uI6SuCo2ObJdIibbDMFHtkX0COmrQTYC1Q4_8rMecyjPoTQ_kA/s640/Finished+product+close+up+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPnsHQF8teAkBiqzI-Mpmy5tQBBBwMthxezXbh9ZSoGWqY-NmGBoBLtDzS9Cwb7Ts-DO352ASq_jdx-Te3tOvcAGEAFT-mvF_C2BdJgiTbw93UgbdYaBC49JSWfyrOcfIoD_M_Q_wpnk/s1600/Finished+product+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPnsHQF8teAkBiqzI-Mpmy5tQBBBwMthxezXbh9ZSoGWqY-NmGBoBLtDzS9Cwb7Ts-DO352ASq_jdx-Te3tOvcAGEAFT-mvF_C2BdJgiTbw93UgbdYaBC49JSWfyrOcfIoD_M_Q_wpnk/s640/Finished+product+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Even the kitty likes it!</i></div>
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<br />
Isn't this table so adorable! I just love it. I'd like to pay her to make one for me :)<br />
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Are you itching to cover something with pennies, or have you already given it a try? I'd love to hear about it!
<script type="text/javascript" src="//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js"></script>Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-19548230382831936432013-03-11T07:08:00.007-04:002013-03-11T07:09:16.390-04:00New chairs for the front room<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OED45mDQ13FIOR37UGUGSEHOB8VK55okGB4TL3eGrNguMvCRlMsFACyUSIwgfc2-w2lWWUaHP0GNCHiregO8CDCqoHQR2xHTBYOb0WgHMbnVKKAP9hqpB3rltZozTJc8ew0HPRSyIEg/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+(11).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OED45mDQ13FIOR37UGUGSEHOB8VK55okGB4TL3eGrNguMvCRlMsFACyUSIwgfc2-w2lWWUaHP0GNCHiregO8CDCqoHQR2xHTBYOb0WgHMbnVKKAP9hqpB3rltZozTJc8ew0HPRSyIEg/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2811%29.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OED45mDQ13FIOR37UGUGSEHOB8VK55okGB4TL3eGrNguMvCRlMsFACyUSIwgfc2-w2lWWUaHP0GNCHiregO8CDCqoHQR2xHTBYOb0WgHMbnVKKAP9hqpB3rltZozTJc8ew0HPRSyIEg/s640/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2811%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Hey everyone! Hope you had a great weekend. It was beautiful here in Maine -- sunny and mid-40s. It made me ready for spring, but sadly spring is still a month off for us here in the Northeast.<br />
<br />
Sorry I was MIA this past week. The hubs and I are two weeks into a 6-week weight loss challenge, and let me tell you, it has been quite time-consuming! Not only have I been walking/running/working out every day, but we've also spent lots of time planning out our meals to a level we've never done before. I swear all I do is sleep, eat, work, and work out. Phew! But it's getting us great results so I'm definitely sticking with it. <br />
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I'm popping in today to share a furniture addition. So, like months ago I shared a plan we had to <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/04/furniture-switcheroo-and-some-new-plans.html">turn our dining room into a sitting room,</a> and move the table into this awkward spot next to the kitchen.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jhw_umC03RkWnV2KXRTd-fnfvBf3LKB8Ocb7J4NWRV9U2SLqsQisWWqAHL_3ihM6Ex1ld1yZtfT6L4ztV0kDtaIRarS_761USs7pRMWP9jNsy9BLhT4VOKpdXxMQoEJ8W22nMZRZQIk/s1600/february+2011+210+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9jhw_umC03RkWnV2KXRTd-fnfvBf3LKB8Ocb7J4NWRV9U2SLqsQisWWqAHL_3ihM6Ex1ld1yZtfT6L4ztV0kDtaIRarS_761USs7pRMWP9jNsy9BLhT4VOKpdXxMQoEJ8W22nMZRZQIk/s640/february+2011+210+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's what it looked like with the dining room table.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilvwmngkywFzZuGGG4f6eO4_6_RHFgSgkKLAKO3QXgYo6DhF9uIArfLMrRGqqLcoUwpjSghxPT_jvtkSOxOWmHfBXX_WjuFsakn94oRDo31-DV93s_E3qdWmmgjTmA2OH5pzNjkipSG2g/s1600/new+dining+room+037+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilvwmngkywFzZuGGG4f6eO4_6_RHFgSgkKLAKO3QXgYo6DhF9uIArfLMrRGqqLcoUwpjSghxPT_jvtkSOxOWmHfBXX_WjuFsakn94oRDo31-DV93s_E3qdWmmgjTmA2OH5pzNjkipSG2g/s640/new+dining+room+037+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Well, we lived with this change for a few months, but we just decided it didn't work out for us. It's funny -- it was the hubs' idea to pull the switcheroo in the first place, and finally I agreed after weeks of hesitation. And then, it was the hubs who said, "I don't know if I like it this way." I guess we just really missed having a formal dining room, even though it's not often used. Is anyone else as indecisive as us? This is why it's good to live with things for a little while before fully committing.<br />
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So, a few weeks ago we moved the table back, and again were left with this weird half-room kind of space next to the kitchen. Since we've got a table and four stools at our counter, we don't need any more seating for eating. We decided to use this space as the sitting room. I think maybe I've seen spaces like this called a front room? I'm not sure if that's what I have, but sitting room sounds like a place for old ladies and tea, and since it's the first room in our house, I think it makes sense to call it a front room instead.<br />
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I've always pictured a lovely, long window seat here, something like this:<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968650891/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-ec5.pinterest.com/550x/ac/a4/b0/aca4b000f6e77ba8ab34f94d0c22c7d9.jpg" width="323" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://vi.sualize.us/view/f1c60e99619867195ba6dc6ec6af586f/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">vi.sualize.us</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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<br />
But that looks like a lot of work to build. And, to be honest, I had a window seat in my bedroom as a kid and I never used it. It was cute to look at, but it wasn't very comfortable to sit on. And I favor functionality over fashion, so the window seat plan was out.<br />
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Besides the window seat, I've also eyed these <a href="http://www.target.com/p/nolan-bonded-leather-living-room-club-accent-chair-espresso/-/A-13291162">Nolan bonded leather chairs from Target.</a> They have one in my local store, and I've sat in it a few times, and it's pretty comfy. <br />
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I'm usually hesitant to buy major furniture from a lower-priced retailer, because I do feel you get what you pay for. But the front room furniture will not be used frequently, so wear and tear will be much less -- and that also means I want to spend much less on it.<br />
<br />
So, when a two-pack of these chairs went on sale for just $300 (they're usually $200 each), I pulled the trigger. (Guess what? They're on sale right now for $150 each!)<br />
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Luckily they had two in stock at my local store so I didn't have to pay online shipping -- sweet!<br />
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The hubs picked them up for me in his SUV and had them put together by the time I got home. I love when I don't have to do that part (I'm terrible at it).<br />
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The bonded leather is a dark espresso color, and the look is a departure from the rest of our furniture, which I like -- keeps things interesting. I'm hoping it's durable to puppy claws and easy to clean.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNtI5CJTUBG-zdLnyHvnCWExPwLo0tkXQs7LwdO6PjyBywmr-Uz4ArnbfgBv0BEYRIbgoh5-lTm00WzNkJi5uAm4oS_fQ2BhhQms6eFmB6Wez8r1uIltG6XyiDIc-TQU1c6Os46iHo8g/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%282%29.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNtI5CJTUBG-zdLnyHvnCWExPwLo0tkXQs7LwdO6PjyBywmr-Uz4ArnbfgBv0BEYRIbgoh5-lTm00WzNkJi5uAm4oS_fQ2BhhQms6eFmB6Wez8r1uIltG6XyiDIc-TQU1c6Os46iHo8g/s640/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%282%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I think these chairs look more expensive than they are (just humor me if you don't agree!). They're not too big and don't take up much space, but they're big enough that my 6'2" husband finds them comfortable as well. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kbwMUOK3TwlUA17hVrfw0Z3CdPjcd0ervRWND86LmFf9rr1EnmpD8bV3w6aX0hLjuMrNWKmaBAOge25VkcflebqkQCeY2Qw5aWuG2H0odanj8m22RB1yCWQalgVkDmrhBjl1fywJU-8/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2814%29.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-kbwMUOK3TwlUA17hVrfw0Z3CdPjcd0ervRWND86LmFf9rr1EnmpD8bV3w6aX0hLjuMrNWKmaBAOge25VkcflebqkQCeY2Qw5aWuG2H0odanj8m22RB1yCWQalgVkDmrhBjl1fywJU-8/s640/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2814%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I staged the area with a little table I had on hand and some vases. I also had super-cute pillows picked out on Etsy, but the hubs lamented having to push a pillow out of the way to sit down. See, shortie me finds the pillow the perfect way to get comfortable on that chair, but for him, it's just in the way. So I promised him HIS chair wouldn't get a pillow, but that didn't stop me from getting a pillow for me!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OED45mDQ13FIOR37UGUGSEHOB8VK55okGB4TL3eGrNguMvCRlMsFACyUSIwgfc2-w2lWWUaHP0GNCHiregO8CDCqoHQR2xHTBYOb0WgHMbnVKKAP9hqpB3rltZozTJc8ew0HPRSyIEg/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2811%29.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_OED45mDQ13FIOR37UGUGSEHOB8VK55okGB4TL3eGrNguMvCRlMsFACyUSIwgfc2-w2lWWUaHP0GNCHiregO8CDCqoHQR2xHTBYOb0WgHMbnVKKAP9hqpB3rltZozTJc8ew0HPRSyIEg/s640/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%2811%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I made this pillow from a fabric scrap I bought for a few dollars at a local fabric store and an old pillow form. (Full disclosure: I didn't even finish sewing it for this photo!) I staged the hubs' chair with a cream throw from -- where else? -- Target.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZXt5hTln1jLmxky51KATisp2jVqRLwHv7g95O1uMGp1KHhM9_hrrC3ai4AcdjGKVJ5HEkVbzGuG93ntuqpKs6yLMqE0Oa-RiklIYroyWRdrbqAYmCuMJMv-cjrJ2-_mDv5Juuv9QgPTs/s1600/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%289%29.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZXt5hTln1jLmxky51KATisp2jVqRLwHv7g95O1uMGp1KHhM9_hrrC3ai4AcdjGKVJ5HEkVbzGuG93ntuqpKs6yLMqE0Oa-RiklIYroyWRdrbqAYmCuMJMv-cjrJ2-_mDv5Juuv9QgPTs/s640/Target+Nolan+bonded+leather+club+chair+espresso+%289%29.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I'm hoping this space will be a nice, sunny, cozy spot for drinking coffee and chatting with friends.<br />
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As for what else I want to do here, I totally want a cowhide rug.<br />
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And I'd love to make a tree stump table or two for this space.<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955966744218/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com/550x/38/d9/e5/38d9e51d633cc3e755d52f3e12b835a8.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://blairpeter.typepad.com/weblog/2011/05/stump-table-success.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">blairpeter.typepad.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
</div>
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Now if only the snow would melt and I could find myself a stump! :)Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-4629074673443035082013-03-05T08:05:00.000-05:002013-03-05T13:58:53.956-05:00Curtain turned into pillows {DIY}Hi everyone! Hope you had a good Monday.<br />
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Today I'm sharing some pillows I made for our living room. Did we need pillows? No, we did not. :) But I just love changing out my pillows, especially if I can do it on the cheap by making my own.<br />
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I searched high and low for a geometric fabric I liked in the colors I wanted but came up empty-handed. Then I spotted the <a href="http://www.target.com/p/threshold-farrah-fretwork-window-panel/-/A-14263746#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=farrah+curtain">Farrah Fretwork curtain at Target:</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik76RxniMnAPv2qlqbJeV6kTYRJ0nzDMpxWTQ6f4QdHfdqH9XsRjXDeHSirkvvpNNYKD4p0KXSpSgg3fSObeaeahYY-dfmRiHTD_CeEm4hei3y-pumE0Z6EXL7o6UZrLtUOfA2X7oDwTc/s1600/Target++Threshold+Farrah+Fretwork+Window+Panel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik76RxniMnAPv2qlqbJeV6kTYRJ0nzDMpxWTQ6f4QdHfdqH9XsRjXDeHSirkvvpNNYKD4p0KXSpSgg3fSObeaeahYY-dfmRiHTD_CeEm4hei3y-pumE0Z6EXL7o6UZrLtUOfA2X7oDwTc/s400/Target++Threshold+Farrah+Fretwork+Window+Panel.jpg" width="288" /></a></div>
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So cute, right? And it was just $20 for one.<br />
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Lucky for me, I had pillows at home I wasn't using (remember, I love pillows!) and their covers were removable.<br />
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As you might recall, I'm not great at sewing, but I can usually manage pillows. My favorite kind of pillow cover to make is an envelope pillow, because it's removable and I don't have to handstitch it closed -- and because I'm too scared to try a zipper!<br />
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When I spread the curtain out and saw the hem, I realized it was perfect for making the envelope part. Don't know what I mean? You'll see soon.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoxZvnMVXt5bYrV0lyYzfTscmiTvCEpCsNzHihQZ4yFXZSWh4v51oZyIRFWcHsgnAOWHPX-OMUbstjcoPHtThrS8Uz85BWhwq4pyQ7_cVRcCW8k2Qtow-2a-7QvrMW-9N47PY8mH_ZtUM/s1600/Pillows+made+from+curtain+(3).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoxZvnMVXt5bYrV0lyYzfTscmiTvCEpCsNzHihQZ4yFXZSWh4v51oZyIRFWcHsgnAOWHPX-OMUbstjcoPHtThrS8Uz85BWhwq4pyQ7_cVRcCW8k2Qtow-2a-7QvrMW-9N47PY8mH_ZtUM/s640/Pillows+made+from+curtain+(3).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The pillow forms were 20 inches x 20 inches, so I cut my fabric at 21 inches square, leaving a half-inch for a seam. For the envelope part, I cut the two pieces 21 x 15 inches and 21 by 11 inches, with half-inch seams on all sides, making the final dimensions 20 x 14 and 20 x 10. The bigger piece is on the inside, and the smaller piece goes on the outside.<br />
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With just a little cutting and sewing, I got two new pillows for just $10 each!<br />
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Here's the envelope back. See what I mean about the hem? That's the finished edge you see here. It saved me some time from having to finish the edges myself.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh22dUBbzYSYsl5DiJIkS5Lb2C9W__wpCv5Wqr3U44_CXow7UufrZ_AMEJqAVQJ8t5q0vJoxMXwP1Dwa4lKu0lYZQ8ls7rJRPbs4dGtKlOmGYkrRG5XevqdOhOc3_VpMP7c8H9jCNOZr7Q/s1600/Pillows+made+from+curtain+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="560" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh22dUBbzYSYsl5DiJIkS5Lb2C9W__wpCv5Wqr3U44_CXow7UufrZ_AMEJqAVQJ8t5q0vJoxMXwP1Dwa4lKu0lYZQ8ls7rJRPbs4dGtKlOmGYkrRG5XevqdOhOc3_VpMP7c8H9jCNOZr7Q/s640/Pillows+made+from+curtain+%25284%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I was worried they'd be blue overload with our blue walls, but I don't think so.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmmj-xrnPImk9ETgnPK8te81equn547Dk6CzytFTN8u26PMe-vw_HQsIAeAGKTn3ihgjoMLTBHY6CchAmmD0bGnbtRH3aJSdurDEqHLmKBeR5hhvcKsgaJOR6NB9xaEn0yGm4JfFsirjw/s1600/Pillows+made+from+curtain.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmmj-xrnPImk9ETgnPK8te81equn547Dk6CzytFTN8u26PMe-vw_HQsIAeAGKTn3ihgjoMLTBHY6CchAmmD0bGnbtRH3aJSdurDEqHLmKBeR5hhvcKsgaJOR6NB9xaEn0yGm4JfFsirjw/s640/Pillows+made+from+curtain.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And I even have some fabric left over to make something else! <br />
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Have you ever used a curtain to make pillows? Shopping the curtain or sheet aisle can sometimes score you some great fabrics and patterns for a cheaper price than shopping the fabric store.Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-47500013463630628722013-02-20T12:36:00.001-05:002013-02-20T12:36:56.791-05:00A review of SnapStone floating tile floorHey, hey everyone! Hope you all are doing well. The hubs and I spent the weekend in Quebec City for winter carnival. It was so fun...and so cold! We went to Quebec City for our first anniversary and we loved it. It was so fun to see it in the wintertime.<br />
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Anyways, I'm here today as promised to share my thoughts on the SnapStone tile product that we used in our entryway. As I mentioned in my entryway update, we decided to use this porcelain
tile floating floor system because it was supposed to be quick and easy
to install. We found it at Lowe's. They had about four colors available
in the store, but others available to order on their website. We picked
the <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_318909-11062-11-003-02-01_4294856525__?productId=3275863&Ns=p_product_avg_rating%7C1&pl=1&currentURL=%3Fpage%3D2%26Ns%3Dp_product_avg_rating%7C1&facetInfo=">color Camel</a> (which appears unavailable.)<br />
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On the bottom of the tile is an interlocking tray with a rubber base.
The tiles click together without the use of thinset or mortar, so you
can install it over an existing floor.<br />
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For the most part, it was easy to install. We've never installed other tile, so we don't have a frame of reference if it's easier than traditional tile. But it seemed relatively easy to install once we got the hang of it. We followed the written instructions and watched the instructional videos on the <a href="http://www.snapstone.com/">SnapStone website. </a><br />
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To click the tiles together, you are supposed to line them up and then tap the edges with a rubber mallet to lock the tiles into place. After they're locked together, you finish the job with a flexible grout. <br />
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Some things I've gotta mention about this tile:<br />
<ul>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The guy in the <a href="http://www.snapstone.com/installationvideos.html">installation videos</a>
made it look super easy to click the tiles together with one whap of
the rubber mallet. I did not find it that easy. I had to hit those
tiles a good few times to get them to click together, especially
once I finished the first row and I had to attach the tiles on two
sides.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Once the tiles were clicked
together, they held pretty well -- but they were still able to
slide. So adding a new tile to a row would ultimately end up
shifting all the previous tiles a little bit. So I had to keep
rechecking to make sure they were all aligned. We actually got
through about three rows before we realized the top row had shifted,
and we had to take them apart and start over.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
This was made more difficult by
the fact that, because it's a floating floor, you have to leave a
1/4" expansion gap around the edges. Hammering on one tile
would ultimately shift the row all the way against the wall, so we
had to put some luan scraps in between the end tile and the wall to
keep them from shifting over too far.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
For the tiles that went around the
walls, you had to break off the tabs on that side. They were pretty
easy to twist off with some pliers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSNzgXnEdnwa4oU0-Ff6bJnd6HL08xtuVwPUY_mb5tovkygc2uw3Eql-3FiawVJmVsV4ZRZNrdfmNhP3R0xuX-TjMq_tNZfYHxAEjZm5LJzqQvW2-aO4domfxWFo2ypqURjOLrrtgWyM/s1600/entryway+snapstone+tile.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSNzgXnEdnwa4oU0-Ff6bJnd6HL08xtuVwPUY_mb5tovkygc2uw3Eql-3FiawVJmVsV4ZRZNrdfmNhP3R0xuX-TjMq_tNZfYHxAEjZm5LJzqQvW2-aO4domfxWFo2ypqURjOLrrtgWyM/s640/entryway+snapstone+tile.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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</li>
<li>Cutting the tile was the same as any porcelain tile. We used
both a tile cutter and a tile saw. Using the tile cutter, you had to
then take a razor blade to cut through the rubber grid on the
bottom. Not too hard to do, but we did burn through a few razor
blades.<br />
</li>
</ul>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
It took us about a day to lay the tile. It would have taken less time if we
realized from the beginning that the tiles were shifting, and we put
the luan in the expansion gap, so we didn't have to start over. It
probably took longer too because the tile has a pretty variable
pattern, and I spent some time picking just the right tiles to make
sure they matched up.<br />
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It's been in about a couple months and we've had no troubles with it. It's kind of interesting -- you have to keep rubber-backed mats or rugs off the floor for a whole month, which was kind of obnoxious. So that meant we had wet and dirty shoes on the floor, and I was worried it'd cause problems with the grout -- but nothing that I noticed.<br />
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I was worried the floating floor would have a weird sound when you walked on it -- like a hollow sound, or maybe a gritty sound of dirt between the floor and the underlayment. But we haven't noticed anything like that (we made sure to vacuum well before we laid the tile to ensure there was no dirt or grit underneath the tile).<br />
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All in all, I'd definitely use these SnapStone tiles again! Would you give it a try?</div>
Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-16366311379689735342013-02-14T06:54:00.000-05:002013-02-19T20:21:23.239-05:00White-and-aqua striped curtains {DIY}<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-A3iUo7NhrkmrwSRGMDvj8WG2FreoMLfFetclvbk5M7GZB7JnpsutVuoBOdex-hu-DnFN2JC1sm3iCknkAxjKnWO26VBGQbIiKkZOzD0Fo7OJ4FFrgdR0vryMJXpNCdZGlI_P56a89OU/s1600/striped+curtains+124+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-A3iUo7NhrkmrwSRGMDvj8WG2FreoMLfFetclvbk5M7GZB7JnpsutVuoBOdex-hu-DnFN2JC1sm3iCknkAxjKnWO26VBGQbIiKkZOzD0Fo7OJ4FFrgdR0vryMJXpNCdZGlI_P56a89OU/s640/striped+curtains+124+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="426" /></a></div>
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Hey all! Hope you're doing well! We finally dug ourselves out of the blizzard. Now we get to deal with slush. :)<br />
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Today I'm sharing a project that has been on my radar for a while, and took me a loooong time to finish. I think nearly every blog-reader out there has fallen in love with <a href="http://www.thenester.com/window-mistreatments/my-striped-drapes#">the Nester's striped curtains:</a><br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968484542/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinterest.com/550x/99/02/38/990238fcaa16b1d68b22588da7e83765.jpg" width="305" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.thenester.com/window-mistreatments/my-striped-drapes" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">thenester.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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Gorgeous, am I right? I totally wanted striped curtains for my office. But try as I might, I couldn't find striped fabric like this. What's a blogger to do? DIY, of course!<br />
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There are a lot of tutorials out there for striped curtains using fabric or even paint. I read a bunch and used them all to tackle my own striped curtains. And I'm sharing how I did it with all of you so you can make your own too!<br />
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<b>*Big, giant, gynormous disclaimer </b>-- my sewing skills are <i>very</i> amateur. There will probably be lots in here that will make people with real sewing talent cringe. I'm hoping there are lots of beginners out there who will find this helpful, and for you pros -- humor me :)<br />
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Even though I'm not great at sewing, I decided to go the fabric route instead of paint because I wasn't sure how paint would look and how it would hold up. I also decided that the easiest thing for me would be to buy curtain panels and add fabric stripes.<br />
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I bought four of these <a href="http://www.target.com/p/target-home-grayson-grommet-window-panel-pair/-/A-13647263#prodSlot=medium_1_6">Grayson white curtains</a> from Target in the 95" length.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaSu9rQh8Z_eIr4rdDRQRB2asAeh0U_rObOfVgtfu-nZ8DLd0X8uR8VlDi69dDPfdknCwY3K6C8D_U1dZzMAvuY4ljPJsWoJsZ62834WS701Rf2VeYXpZBfzfgyXe3i3oOGE4RdA1fCaQ/s1600/target+grayson+curtain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaSu9rQh8Z_eIr4rdDRQRB2asAeh0U_rObOfVgtfu-nZ8DLd0X8uR8VlDi69dDPfdknCwY3K6C8D_U1dZzMAvuY4ljPJsWoJsZ62834WS701Rf2VeYXpZBfzfgyXe3i3oOGE4RdA1fCaQ/s400/target+grayson+curtain.jpg" width="302" /></a></div>
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They have a grommet top that I didn't want to include in my measurements for the stripes, so I measured the length of the curtain from the bottom of the grommet section to the bottom of the curtain. There was a little variation in the length of the curtains, but they were about 90 inches.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpp_E7sKG9eIC59E3GwA5fvrqO2msHURldaKwsnSMrr5s6TGqSBlHvzNnexgChRQyB2fDV8K0odzovIN1ESeeUYTHrKVuNZRASzr0QDdzzEwzxY9t5VeOSOfYlFFEpVD-vFhjSdgKzFw/s1600/DIY+striped+curtains+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpp_E7sKG9eIC59E3GwA5fvrqO2msHURldaKwsnSMrr5s6TGqSBlHvzNnexgChRQyB2fDV8K0odzovIN1ESeeUYTHrKVuNZRASzr0QDdzzEwzxY9t5VeOSOfYlFFEpVD-vFhjSdgKzFw/s640/DIY+striped+curtains+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Next, I had to figure out how many stripes I wanted and how big I wanted them to be. I needed to come up with something easily divisible, so all the stripes would be easy. Luckily, I was working with an easy number.<br />
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I sketched out a couple options....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIkw26yXvFJ1F3NzPyXMdPw6lsJWVxZysdHUbNrLfbavt5PG6fY3D62lkghw7TocQdOwjxgiVwml9cVU5tpAGcguw0hnq5v6FAe9Hntrk-yr1iLn7Sng9UfGOHGrWBP58KUrv_URAUJg/s1600/new+dining+room+112+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIkw26yXvFJ1F3NzPyXMdPw6lsJWVxZysdHUbNrLfbavt5PG6fY3D62lkghw7TocQdOwjxgiVwml9cVU5tpAGcguw0hnq5v6FAe9Hntrk-yr1iLn7Sng9UfGOHGrWBP58KUrv_URAUJg/s640/new+dining+room+112+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Fifteen-inch-wide stripes only gave me three colored stripes, which didn't seem like enough. So I landed on 10" stripes, which gave me five colored stripes and four white stripes, for a total of nine. With four curtains, that was a total of 20 colored stripes. I allowed for an inch of hem for each stripe, so 11" of fabric for each stripe -- equaling 220 inches of fabric needed, or a little more than 6 yards.<br />
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Then I ventured off to Jo-Ann to find some fabric. I wanted something not too expensive, something in a material similar to the curtain material, and something a light-aqua color to coordinate with <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/03/tale-of-two-lamps.html">this lamp</a> I have in the office:<br />
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I ended up with this Symphony Broadcloth. Luckily it was 45" wide, perfect for me 41"-wide curtains!<br />
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I started by measuring out my 10" stripes on my curtains and marking them with a light pencil mark on the back. Like I said earlier, the curtains weren't all exactly 90" long. I started my measuring from the top, so that if my bottom stripe ended up a little bigger than 10" it would be less noticeable.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP8je72wHbrBqrhjbelXx5erTlyMpmry_tVGO5Mb0GDBAn-J_D1aom7mC1p1NFQcjnKXqzX3p8seMAbN_xi38bszv3_Wl1HqjgkHOqUc4cuV7yoUG1VJnx66c7hIFerCCcSOgsvyRtu7E/s1600/DIY+striped+curtains+%25287%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP8je72wHbrBqrhjbelXx5erTlyMpmry_tVGO5Mb0GDBAn-J_D1aom7mC1p1NFQcjnKXqzX3p8seMAbN_xi38bszv3_Wl1HqjgkHOqUc4cuV7yoUG1VJnx66c7hIFerCCcSOgsvyRtu7E/s640/DIY+striped+curtains+%25287%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Then, I measured my colored stripes. I measured 11" so I'd have plenty of room for <strike>error</strike> hemming.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8aPp55YRvKkmVKZUWRb6SAKaNcXFrErnOQJKhH1hQqMwrTvkM5TMrOmLlZ_B2KWxOyokardsuLj0jTJJJRTfgFbB2snt5yuosn_5wwZHpDla0vI3vSmzIRtbLawVh55a7bIBdFYBLyHQ/s1600/DIY+striped+curtains+%25289%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8aPp55YRvKkmVKZUWRb6SAKaNcXFrErnOQJKhH1hQqMwrTvkM5TMrOmLlZ_B2KWxOyokardsuLj0jTJJJRTfgFbB2snt5yuosn_5wwZHpDla0vI3vSmzIRtbLawVh55a7bIBdFYBLyHQ/s640/DIY+striped+curtains+%25289%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Next, I got out my rotary cutter and my quilting grid and got to work cutting my stripes!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjtQn83i2nMogINNVEKlh9UDMoknRbKK4-pO9QVMsXE_4A3Ybfkgaf5spKRPsU11XyE8qC-VrPpOuU0h3Y2FNyX3E9eMAIbJHcoOwaj8HQn2tlcZ50oK0zS5bo8Wx0CVjf0gw-ajU9yZ8/s1600/DIY+striped+curtains+%252810%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjtQn83i2nMogINNVEKlh9UDMoknRbKK4-pO9QVMsXE_4A3Ybfkgaf5spKRPsU11XyE8qC-VrPpOuU0h3Y2FNyX3E9eMAIbJHcoOwaj8HQn2tlcZ50oK0zS5bo8Wx0CVjf0gw-ajU9yZ8/s640/DIY+striped+curtains+%252810%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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After they were cut, I measured the half-inch hems, pinned them and ironed them so they'd lay flat.<br />
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Then, I pinned the stripes to my curtains. This seriously took the longest amount of time. I had to make sure each stripe was straight, evenly spaced and smooth, and every little movement of the fabric meant things were shifting around. I used nearly every pin I had to keep these things together!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBXcvcUGfPGLOJWY5KN2sdI8E-eK1mCIsn-jFkxJUMLTplkAsBqHU4tAuzA9QfwCupJelorFcWaPCAvECzzCRJiyon1Oy5jkQzsbSv2Jg_yt8zU5c28-9lwZMDW3f_jfOKek3ohuHh8E/s1600/DIY+striped+curtains+%252813%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmBXcvcUGfPGLOJWY5KN2sdI8E-eK1mCIsn-jFkxJUMLTplkAsBqHU4tAuzA9QfwCupJelorFcWaPCAvECzzCRJiyon1Oy5jkQzsbSv2Jg_yt8zU5c28-9lwZMDW3f_jfOKek3ohuHh8E/s640/DIY+striped+curtains+%252813%2529+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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At this point, I seriously considered skipping the sewing and using iron-on adhesive to sew everything together. But I decided to whip out the sewing machine. Why? Well, I figured if I made a mistake sewing, I could rip out the stitches and try again. But if I messed up with adhesive, well, I'd be out of luck.<br />
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So, time to sew! Okay, maybe <i>this</i> part took the longest. I sewed about two-and-a-half curtains before I lost my momentum and took a break for a few <strike>weeks</strike> months.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY31fqvSpwQbEtQdDtd0lGn7jNy0_jkEfQY6h5kQxJxeNPvPcMZSqNJg1lBL4LdG-lCTWM0rf7rmWgkVEAZAYMZThR7FK70rPFTkJUniWmRxeTL9yseIkKXy9hU0rTlNnKkeNDao-CSM4/s1600/sewing+striped+curtains+015+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY31fqvSpwQbEtQdDtd0lGn7jNy0_jkEfQY6h5kQxJxeNPvPcMZSqNJg1lBL4LdG-lCTWM0rf7rmWgkVEAZAYMZThR7FK70rPFTkJUniWmRxeTL9yseIkKXy9hU0rTlNnKkeNDao-CSM4/s640/sewing+striped+curtains+015+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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At some point I got sick of my naked windows and the pile of fabric taking up space, I regained my momentum and finally finished sewing on the panels. I used white thread for a little contrast to give the curtains a casual look.<br />
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On the bottoms, I wrapped the aqua fabric around the hem of the curtain and folded the corners.<br />
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I did pull out the Heat & Bond to finish the edges of the stripes and keep them lying flat on the back of the curtains.<br />
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Finally, it was time to hang them -- on curtain rods that we hung high and (a little) wide.<br />
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Here's the finished product!<br />
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With the light behind them, you can see that my sewing isn't always straight -- but only if you look closely. It's definitely not bothering me, but if it starts to, I can always line them.<br />
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I<b> love</b> those code flag posters! They were the initial inspiration for our office redo. They're from etsy seller <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/Empressionista?section_id=7729781">Empressionista</a>.<br />
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My sewing isn't perfect, but I'm totally loving these curtains! They have the nautical look that I was going for and add some color to our gray walls.<br />
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<br />
There are lots of striped curtains out there, but I'm so happy I jumped on the bandwagon! Even Colby likes them.<br />
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What do you think -- are you nuts for striped curtains too? Have you made any? I'd love to see what you did!<br />
<br />
Links to other great DIY striped curtains!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.athoughtfulplaceblog.com/2011/02/do-it-yourself-striped-drapes-tutorial.html">A Thoughtful Place</a><br />
<a href="http://www.tealandlime.com/2012/01/no-sew-shower-curtain-curtains-tutorial/">Teal & Lime</a><br />
<a href="http://thethriftyabode.blogspot.com/2011/05/no-sew-striped-curtains.html">The Thrifty Abode</a><br />
<a href="http://www.theyellowcapecod.com/2011/01/bold-striped-diy-drapes.html">The Yellow Cape Cod</a><br />
<a href="http://aspottedpony.com/diy/make-striped-curtains-from-a-bedsheet-and-an-old-bedskirt/628/">A Spotted Pony</a><br />
<a href="http://www.markovadesign.com/2011/05/how-to-make-striped-drapes-using-ikea.html">Hodge Podge</a><br />
<a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/renters-skills-roundup-of-diy-instructions-for-making-your-own-custom-sized-curtains-167498">A round-up by Apartment Therapy</a><br />
<br />
Linking up!<br />
<br />
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<script src="//assets.pinterest.com/js/pinit.js" type="text/javascript"></script>Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-64319002250932841662013-02-09T13:55:00.002-05:002013-02-09T13:55:30.347-05:00Entryway evolution, part twoHi all! Any of you in the middle of this crazy blizzard like we are? It's still snowing, and we've already gotten more than two feet! It's by far the most snow I've ever seen in my life...totally crazy.<br />
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Colby is loving it, though!<br />
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<br />
I'm back with part two of our entryway redo. We left off here:<br />
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I forgot to mention in my last post that I also had to paint the ceiling, since we took down walls and had to patch drywall. We also got a new light fixture from Lowe's. This semi-flush mount was only about $100. I love it! <br />
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This is the only picture I have of the old light, from back before we even bought our house. The new one is big improvement!<br />
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So now we had a nice big, open space in dire need of some storage.
Obviously, we wanted a place to hang coats and store shoes, but we also
had an opportunity for some additional storage in this space. I was
picturing some open storage with cute baskets, like this:<br />
<br />
<div style="line-height: 0px; padding-bottom: 2px; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955966144005/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinterest.com/550/c9/82/20/c982208d88c19be9addf47360579c51f.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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<div style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px;">
Source: <a href="http://www.bhg.com/home-improvement/storage/friendly-and-functional-entries/?rb=Y#page=11" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">bhg.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
</div>
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<br />
But
the hubs was envisioning some cabinets for closed storage. In the end,
he won me over, and we came up with a plan for a floor-to-ceiling pantry
and a row of cabinets along the ceiling, with coat and shoe storage
underneath -- similar to this:<br />
<br />
<div style="line-height: 0px; padding-bottom: 2px; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955968414784/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="733" src="http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com/550/a5/0c/01/a50c0166e776bf0c51bdd1cbfbf22bd8.jpg" width="550" /></a></div>
<div style="float: left; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">
<div style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px;">
Source: <a href="http://www.bhg.com/rooms/rooms/entryway/entryway-storage/#page=17" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">bhg.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
</div>
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<br />
We
were hoping to find some off-the-shelf cabinets that we could make work
for our plan, but our space is odd-shaped, so that was out. We needed
to do something custom, but the price of custom cabinets was out of our budget.
Handy hubs to the rescue again!<br />
<br />
With his dad's help, he
designed and built custom cabinets to fit our space. He made them out
of birch plywood, with face frames made out of maple.<br />
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To make them safe
and secure, he installed them onto strips of wood screwed into the wall
studs.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHNJg0JoH4g0G7h3aRzOhJFCGvD2wTTZwlXdRzVYWq_tX_N9Sbq7jLT-orehPXQC4yrPm4RIG_nJP7nfCFrq6_WiOLxMqG79M-YYHkGjZJ3vA9_acwLPI5rtwpBqqIb-MnSm-pmsq9KLk/s1600/entryway+custom+cabinets+%288%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHNJg0JoH4g0G7h3aRzOhJFCGvD2wTTZwlXdRzVYWq_tX_N9Sbq7jLT-orehPXQC4yrPm4RIG_nJP7nfCFrq6_WiOLxMqG79M-YYHkGjZJ3vA9_acwLPI5rtwpBqqIb-MnSm-pmsq9KLk/s640/entryway+custom+cabinets+%288%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a> </div>
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Once the cabinets were installed, I was up
again, paint brush in hand. I primed them with some Zinsser B-I-N and
painted them with semi-gloss white latex paint by Behr. It took a few
coats to cover them. To get a smooth finish, I used some Floetrol to
extend the drying time.<br />
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<br />
I painted the cabinets before
they were installed, and I didn't paint the face frames, because we
wanted to fill the cracks to make them look like one piece.<br />
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A simple wooden rod installed under the cabinets serves as a coat rack.<br />
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<br />
With the cabinets in place, it was time to tackle the floor. As I mentioned, we had to tear out the old floor because we removed
walls, leaving gaps in the tile, and we could find anything to match it.
I was kind of sad to tear out the old tile -- it wasn't my favorite,
but it was slate, so it felt kind of wrong. While some of it broke when
we were taking it out, we were able to save a good amount, so hopefully
we can reuse it somewhere else.<br />
<br />
Not only did we have
to tear up the tile, but then we had to rip up the plywood the tile was
stuck to, since it was all covered in old thinset and super uneven.
(Sorry I didn't get any photos of this process -- it was ugly and I
just wanted it over!) There was a second layer of plywood under the
first, leaving us with what you see above.<br />
<br />
We
decided to go with tile again in this space instead of hardwood since it
would get exposed to a lot of moisture. But we had never done any kind
of tile and were a little nervous about it. We also were looking for
something we could do fast, since we were trying to get it done before
winter came and we were trudging in with wet boots.<br />
<br />
While perusing tile at Lowe's, I stumbled onto this:<br />
<br />
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<br />
Have
you heard of it? It's called <a href="http://www.snapstone.com/index.html">SnapStone,</a> and it's porcelain tile with a
rubber grid and plastic tabs attached to the bottom. You don't need to
use thinset -- the tabs click together and hold the floor in place. It's
essentially a floating tile floor.<br />
<br />
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<br />
We did some
research on it and decided to go with it. It sounded easy to use and
fast to install. It's a little more expensive than the cheaper regular
tile, but we didn't need to do a very big space, so it wasn't too bad.
We picked a 12-inch tile in a <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_318909-11062-11-003-02-01_4294856525__?productId=3275863&Ns=p_product_avg_rating|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3Fpage%3D2%26Ns%3Dp_product_avg_rating|1&facetInfo=">color called Camel</a> (it looks like it's no
longer available). They come in boxes of five for $30, and we had to
special order it through Lowe's. We bought a total of 13 boxes to make
sure we had enough in case we broke some or made mistakes (and we did!), and we had one box left to spare when it was all over.<br />
<br />
Before
the tile went down, the hubs installed some luan -- a thin type of
plywood that was just the right thickness to get the tile even with the
hardwood in the kitchen. Then, we plotted out how we wanted to lay the
floor. I swear this took longer than the actual labor. We wanted to make
sure the design looked right and that we ended up with as few little
pieces on the edges as possible. We ultimately decided to go with an
offset pattern running from the front door into the kitchen...does that
make sense? Maybe this photo will help:<br />
<br />
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<br />
I installed the tile while the hubs did the cutting on the end pieces.
I'll have another post on the details of installing the tile, so for
now I'll just say that it wasn't as easy as the installation videos made
it look, but overall it was fairly simple and I'd definitely use it
again.<br />
<br />
We finished the installation in a day -- and next time we use them it would take even less time, since we know how it goes.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Now
it was time to grout. Because it's a floating floor that will expand
and contract, you have to use a flexible grout that they make
specifically for SnapStone. There are a few color choices -- we chose <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_318987-11062-11-201-02-01_0__?productId=3266745&Ntt=snapstone+grout+mushroom&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3Dsnapstone%2Bgrout%2Bmushroom&facetInfo=">Mushroom.</a> We picked up
two buckets at Lowe's but only needed one in the end.<br />
<br />
The grouting went very fast -- I did it in a couple hours.<br />
<br />
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<br />
You
aren't supposed to grout around the wall -- you're supposed to leave it
open, or use a silicon caulk if you have a high-moisture area (like a
bathroom). We left it open around the walls, since the baseboards will
cover the gap.<br />
<br />
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<br />
We used caulk between the tiles and the two doors, since
there's no trim to cover the space -- they make a caulk that matches the
SnapStone grout. The silicon cracked when it dried, so we need to add
another layer on top.<br />
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<br />
I was sad to tear out the slate, but now I'm not missing it at all -- I love this floor! I love the variation in the colors and the warm hue.<br />
<br />
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<br />
After the floor was finished, we added shelving to the cabinets. Since our cabinets are a custom width, that also meant custom
shelves. The hubs made these out of birch plywood and trimmed the fronts
with pine trim. I primed and painted them like I did the cabinets.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Meanwhile, I was also busy planning out what to do in the corner where the small closet was. I really, really love entryways with benches. They're a place to sit to put on your shoes, to toss your purse when you get home -- and they're also totally cute, right?<br />
<br />
We decided not to go the custom route this time -- luckily I found lots of benches that would fit nearly perfectly on this wall. I picked up <a href="http://www.target.com/p/closetmaid-3-cube-bench-white/-/A-13217123#prodSlot=medium_1_10&term=bench">this one from Target:</a><br />
<br />
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<br />
I was happy to get my open storage and baskets! I totally have a thing for baskets -- they're like everywhere in my house. The hubs thinks it's weird... :)<br />
<br />
To give this bench a custom look and jazz it up a bit, I decided to recover the cushion in some fabric I had on hand. I'd bought it because I loved it but wasn't sure what to do with it. The colors went great in the entryway!<br />
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<br />
I am not a good sewer, and I kind of made up making a new cover. It's definitely not pretty -- don't look too closely or you'll see all my mistakes! On the bench, though, you can't tell. I didn't make the cover removable -- I just used no-sew fabric tape to seal the back edge together.<br />
<br />
The Target cover came with Velcro pads on the bottom that stick to ones on the bench. I used a seam ripper to get them off the original cover and then handstitched them to my new cover. So cute!<br />
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<br />
So, here's where we are now!<br />
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<br />
In case you can't tell, I did not stage these cabinets -- this is really what they look like, full of tools and supplies to finish the job, plus some random baskets of mittens and scarves. <br />
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<br />
There's still lots to do in here. We need to install a permanent shoe rack -- it'll probably just be a shelf along the bottom with space for shoes above and below. The hubs is adding drawers to the bottom of the pantry cabinet, and he needs to make some doors.<br />
<br />
I also need to paint the face frames and the doors, once they're made. We also need to trim out the gaps underneath the cabinets, and the base of the cabinet. The trim has been cut and primed, so now it needs to be installed, and then I'll paint it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj907HsC_PiddKHXlTqh2fSN82LYlNpX2rkVQCGUUCHUxnVlkzh8In9jIKa-_onpx1P_FJVAvBsaK6vIV_AQvZ75OKOEJ3Ab4tYef6H2zbp1xGSh14Mg3pRvd9_0LqKvLRITKO_baJ91s4/s1600/entryway+in+progress+%252827%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj907HsC_PiddKHXlTqh2fSN82LYlNpX2rkVQCGUUCHUxnVlkzh8In9jIKa-_onpx1P_FJVAvBsaK6vIV_AQvZ75OKOEJ3Ab4tYef6H2zbp1xGSh14Mg3pRvd9_0LqKvLRITKO_baJ91s4/s640/entryway+in+progress+%252827%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The trim around the doors and the baseboards need to get reinstalled and given a fresh coat of paint. And the outlet and light-switch covers need to go back on. And over the bench I have plans to make a cute shelf with hooks underneath. Something like this:<br />
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<div style="line-height: 0px; padding-bottom: 2px; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955967717915/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinterest.com/550/7b/4d/7a/7b4d7af6c62cc92247b4ef9544d5bbe7.jpg" width="387" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://gthegentleman.tumblr.com/post/19509638103" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">gthegentleman.tumblr.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
</div>
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Lastly, we need some hooks near the door for keys, and I'd like to add a place to put mail too. I'm working on those details!<br />
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Let's put this all in a list, shall we?<br />
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<i><b>Left to do:</b></i><br />
<ul>
<li><i>Install a shoe rack</i></li>
<li><i>Build and install drawers</i></li>
<li><i>Install and paint trim around cabinets</i></li>
<li><i>Build and paint cabinet doors</i></li>
<li><i>Replace trim around doors and baseboards, and paint</i></li>
<li><i>Replace outlet covers</i></li>
<li><i>Make shelf and install hooks over bench</i></li>
<li><i>Make a key-and-mail holder</i></li>
</ul>
We're so close -- I can't wait to get this done! Even though it's not finished, I think I can finally call this a mudroom instead of an entryway -- it feels like a real room now.Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-19374844760271584192013-02-05T06:51:00.002-05:002013-02-05T06:51:30.131-05:00Entryway evolution, part oneHey all! Hope you're doing well!<br />
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Today I'm going to share with you the progress we've made on our entryway. As I mentioned last week, we've been working on it over the last few months, triggered by our decision to <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/02/laundry-room-in-works.html">move our washer and dryer </a>out of the mudroom and down to the basement.<br />
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Moving the washer and dryer left us with a big ol' closet that really wasn't designed for coats and shoes. We made do for a while, though.<br />
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And we also had a small coat closet in that space, which was totally redundant (door on the right).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr-TbLCwD77yC755k5T1Oo9NV1ioD36wvUwGDhsLWmlcFFR5yiyc4131taeL76IG4ca3M4jr8HYOSbEXjHz7yFody_bFmeooN8E32luETD_ivCILzKeqSDMmtdufi-NqftAMvsVhCpw2Q/s1600/entryway+finished+075+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr-TbLCwD77yC755k5T1Oo9NV1ioD36wvUwGDhsLWmlcFFR5yiyc4131taeL76IG4ca3M4jr8HYOSbEXjHz7yFody_bFmeooN8E32luETD_ivCILzKeqSDMmtdufi-NqftAMvsVhCpw2Q/s640/entryway+finished+075+%255B1600x1200%255D.JPG" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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Here's a super-rudimentary mock-up of our entryway. It's not to scale at all, but it'll help you get the gist of the layout.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiigYCiu7E_vLFOIMOxEvd99Xc_xDe29m6QKbQXykuXaQV2DBm4u97CYVWLh6mgS-NY6_lsZSl3S0ira01HjtGTY1od-ZpNp7fLwR2v-cdRBluRCnCDKmoN1Ne3OuL5LIateWUaYyCjuGo/s1600/entryway+mockup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiigYCiu7E_vLFOIMOxEvd99Xc_xDe29m6QKbQXykuXaQV2DBm4u97CYVWLh6mgS-NY6_lsZSl3S0ira01HjtGTY1od-ZpNp7fLwR2v-cdRBluRCnCDKmoN1Ne3OuL5LIateWUaYyCjuGo/s400/entryway+mockup.jpg" height="400" width="388" /></a></div>
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After a lot of talking and pondering, we decided what we really wanted to do was tear out both the small closet and big closet to make the entryway one open room. Tearing out the small closet was an easy decision. It made the space tight, especially for us coming into the house from the garage. The small closet was on the left when we came in, which not only felt crowded, but also made it tough to open the closet door, since we were literally standing in the way of the door.<br />
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Tearing out this closet meant a few things:<br />
<ul>
<li>Deciding what to do with the baseboard heat on that wall</li>
<li>Relocating light switches and getting rid of an outlet</li>
<li>Leaving gaps in the tile floor where the closet walls used to be</li>
</ul>
Lucky for me, I have a handy hubs who was able to take care of both the electrical work and the plumbing to cap the baseboard heater (with the help of a friend). The entryway is only 11 ft. by 6 ft,, but had three separate baseboards. So we decided that eliminating one wouldn't cause any trouble.<br />
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The tougher decision was to take down the doors of the big closet and open up the space. We could have left the doors and simply installed some closet hardware to make the space useful. But, we decided that instead of a closet with doors, we wanted open storage for coats and shoes. We really pondered this, because without doors, it meant that coats and shoes would be visible to all -- no way to hide a mess!<br />
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But, the honest truth was that we <b>never</b> closed those closet doors unless we had people coming over and we needed to hide clutter. 98% of the time the doors were open so we could grab our jackets and go. Was it really worth keeping a closet with doors that would only be closed like 2% of the time? Plus, the space was tight, so when the doors were open they nearly blocked the front door and the doorway into the kitchen. If your shoe happened to be in the way of the closet door, and you needed to open the front door, well, you had to do some shuffling. In other words -- the doors were a pain.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoKxQs3dOoEdB-jw2pW9AE-9g4ZpKPp7g6Pysujq4An6JxKHBXeZvyfy3t7TMoHhfTBH6xdgxArzATctBFi76qdoNYko-Qi-fpH5AtwykksvuzGLpTscj3IrkayarrUy81trQLzDuOYGU/s1600/closet+doors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoKxQs3dOoEdB-jw2pW9AE-9g4ZpKPp7g6Pysujq4An6JxKHBXeZvyfy3t7TMoHhfTBH6xdgxArzATctBFi76qdoNYko-Qi-fpH5AtwykksvuzGLpTscj3IrkayarrUy81trQLzDuOYGU/s640/closet+doors.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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<i>These doors had to go!</i></div>
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So, even though we were nervous that no doors meant we'd have to keep our shoes and coats looking tidy 24-7, we decided to lose them. Not only that, but we decided to lose the door frame and wall that surrounded the closet doors. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqu4DYjaV1efEwhJESFrPhvZ1lJPfBoJ7GrX3qa7S768TGJPSC0gn67KmDLg2LsFFewk5TD38U3QZheNbBUkGgPNJx6BXVtr8ERTx4tpOv1udiiFEf5MX-ttd-wBZRme4O59ZbbSsueo/s1600/closet+door+wall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrqu4DYjaV1efEwhJESFrPhvZ1lJPfBoJ7GrX3qa7S768TGJPSC0gn67KmDLg2LsFFewk5TD38U3QZheNbBUkGgPNJx6BXVtr8ERTx4tpOv1udiiFEf5MX-ttd-wBZRme4O59ZbbSsueo/s640/closet+door+wall.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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The hubs wasn't excited about demoing this wall, since it meant more drywall repair, but I was really adamant that it was necessary to give the room a finished look. So, that wall was going too!<br />
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We started demo back in September. Buh-bye, little closet!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pwN9Zu5GZh1SnR9KNrlCzQbEaxgnffuw9A4JH4uQDeZ8KubuzzDJXEl2zT_E-yHw0wgVaQqDldLpi7ENs1hRnqBkV0emAsiHp4WQAwgqixvleavPYakL2VjOhmrBwcZ8iNH9DFiWSaQ/s1600/entryway+demo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1pwN9Zu5GZh1SnR9KNrlCzQbEaxgnffuw9A4JH4uQDeZ8KubuzzDJXEl2zT_E-yHw0wgVaQqDldLpi7ENs1hRnqBkV0emAsiHp4WQAwgqixvleavPYakL2VjOhmrBwcZ8iNH9DFiWSaQ/s640/entryway+demo.jpg" height="640" width="478" /></a></div>
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Once the wall demo was done, and the electrical and plumbing taken care
of, we were left with holes in our tile floor -- since the closet was
originally put in, and then the floor tiled around it. We were hoping we
could find the same tile and just fill in the gaps, but no luck there
-- which meant we had to tear the whole floor out and redo it. <br />
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And goodbye big closet and floor!<br />
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I'll just pause here and say this whole project has evolved like this -- one thing leads to another, bigger change. The flooring was one (we weren't planning on having to redo the floor), and drywall was another. Tearing out the big closet door wall proved tougher than expected since we discovered it was tied to the main wall by steel plates. He had to do some extra cutting to get everything flush.<br />
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The hubs handled the drywall work. He'd never done it before, so was verrry nervous about it -- but it turned out great! And Colby was happy to supervise.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs9dgZbvOTQSJwmcHKBbEuvNDvfvV2CxO73nNR-jvus4S0-7EI1R8mvlL9PzOrp0ZP9NyfyYBhjp8MghcVAL_jUEQVIR9XLQrhCYn7Na-kKCrM-BYSySgQveCFEHs57cQvAXPbOGNCp0Y/s1600/IMG_0894.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs9dgZbvOTQSJwmcHKBbEuvNDvfvV2CxO73nNR-jvus4S0-7EI1R8mvlL9PzOrp0ZP9NyfyYBhjp8MghcVAL_jUEQVIR9XLQrhCYn7Na-kKCrM-BYSySgQveCFEHs57cQvAXPbOGNCp0Y/s640/IMG_0894.JPG" height="640" width="478" /></a></div>
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Here's the drywall work done. Even in this state, it was such an amazing difference! This corner is where the small closet used to be.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-bXlTpKH5Sa7XSMEGNQEwUSJQBqSlMYjp8HcG7w7SMnhEYjl0SvjagTdM76ChzPgKXuN9yNBH9lJP3WBd7K8IcOaFpMnujTwFaOn6RI3JZ4eMGICay5szAS4MVFdf8CYVGFKSEozk1I/s1600/IMG_1028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-bXlTpKH5Sa7XSMEGNQEwUSJQBqSlMYjp8HcG7w7SMnhEYjl0SvjagTdM76ChzPgKXuN9yNBH9lJP3WBd7K8IcOaFpMnujTwFaOn6RI3JZ4eMGICay5szAS4MVFdf8CYVGFKSEozk1I/s640/IMG_1028.JPG" height="640" width="478" /></a></div>
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And the big closet...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiraQaTFExQquT_bd4G2Ripg8CYbUBzWNLyPtRULT0WwWaCKcewZLhORr2HGltq6ZQEDO2oBtsP2a9CLtLxdU0gD_VOVANP0VFo80BKAvCeHQc-r_WSG_qjhDnhRKbAPPGyl88rRzhxEKU/s1600/IMG_1025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiraQaTFExQquT_bd4G2Ripg8CYbUBzWNLyPtRULT0WwWaCKcewZLhORr2HGltq6ZQEDO2oBtsP2a9CLtLxdU0gD_VOVANP0VFo80BKAvCeHQc-r_WSG_qjhDnhRKbAPPGyl88rRzhxEKU/s640/IMG_1025.JPG" height="640" width="478" /></a></div>
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Once the drywall was finished, I took over painting the room. The entrway had been painted the same color as the kitchen, but I wanted to do something a little different. I picked a Valspar color called Luna, which looked like a shade lighter than the kitchen.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4jxtRIrJ8tIju55yua_xyXg5jIxefGW1eaAOaEG3kYYszTaX5ByUlT669il6e-SaNRmESs1DBv2n_DzvePiPVS5tBDlp6tHjFYB3N9kcNWEdu1G0jTFI3jD2fAVu6SCnmX5DXpraTky8/s1600/valspar+luna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4jxtRIrJ8tIju55yua_xyXg5jIxefGW1eaAOaEG3kYYszTaX5ByUlT669il6e-SaNRmESs1DBv2n_DzvePiPVS5tBDlp6tHjFYB3N9kcNWEdu1G0jTFI3jD2fAVu6SCnmX5DXpraTky8/s1600/valspar+luna.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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When it went on the walls, though, it looked pretty similar to the kitchen. That's okay -- it's a nice color!<br />
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This is where I'll leave off for now...lots more to share on this room next time!Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-78337396972527973402013-02-01T08:25:00.004-05:002013-02-01T08:26:03.716-05:00Living room updateNearly a year ago, I decided I wanted to repaint my neutral living room. We painted it a light beige when we moved in, when we had a dark brown couch. But our big, beige sectional made me itching for some color on the walls. I got lots of advice about this -- and a good number of people suggested I leave the walls neutral and bring in color with accessories. I just knew this wasn't going to work for me, so I followed my gut and <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/05/new-blue-living-room-before-and-after.html">got out the paint brush.</a> <br />
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I'm not going to lie, I was pretty nervous about it. I have not regretted it one bit -- I simply love our blue-gray walls! The color is Misty Morn by Behr.<br />
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After I repainted, though, I spent a while trying to figure out what to put on the walls. I decided not to rush things and just wait for inspiration to strike. Fast forward like eight months, and I finally put some holes in the wall.<br />
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The last time you saw the living room, it looked like this:<br />
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And here's what it looks like now with some stuff on the walls.<br />
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My inspiration for my living room came mainly from this photo:<br />
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<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/78601955966554539/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="450" src="http://media-cache-ec7.pinterest.com/550/9c/e2/b2/9ce2b2c3aecc9c718375b99c6e7a501f.jpg" width="600" /></a></div>
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Source: <a href="http://www.hgtv.com/decorating/25-colorful-rooms-we-love-from-rate-my-space/pictures/index.html" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;">hgtv.com</a> via <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/" style="color: #76838b; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mindy</a> on <a href="http://pinterest.com/" style="color: #76838b; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Pinterest</a></div>
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I love the blues and greens with a hint of gold accents. I wanted a living room that has a casual feel with a little homage to the beach -- something with a mix of neutrals, coastal colors, warm wood tones and some hints of gold and black to ground it all and give it a collected-over-time feel.<br />
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I also used this <a href="http://7thhouseontheleft.com/2012/04/mood-board-cool-coastal/">mood board by 7th House on the Left</a> as inspiration. <br />
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This convex mirror is from Home Depot, and I absolutely adore it. <br />
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I picked up this mahogany table at my local antique store for $75. The
size is perfect, and I love that it has both a shelf and a drawer for
storage. The top is made of leather with a gold design around the edge. <br />
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On the other end of that wall is a printing press type tray I found at an antique store for just $30. It already had hooks on the back to hang on the wall -- lucky! I don't think putting shells in a type tray is original, but I love the look.<br />
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This corner used to hold our media cabinet...<br />
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...but as I was pondering art, I decided to make a furniture switcheroo. I moved it to the opposite wall, where we used to have a console table. The table was kind of useless -- it was decorative, but didn't hold much and just ended up being wasted space. I'm in this total kick of making everything purposeful -- trying to get away from space fillers. So, the console table left and the media cabinet took its place. I'm really liking the change!<br />
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I got this gold-and-glass fixture at a flea market for just 8 bucks -- I'm smitten!<br />
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This change also allows us to have a lamp in this corner, which is handy because we have no overhead lighting in this room.<br />
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I still don't know what to do with the big TV wall. We'd like to mount the TV, but I can't decide if I want to put anything else on the wall or not.<br />
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I couldn't bring myself to move the puppy out of his sunny spot!<br />
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And that coffee table is on its way out. I've been dying to get rid of it, but I just can't find something I love to replace it with. It has to be small so it doesn't take up too much space, and I'm hoping for something round and airy so it doesn't add to the weight of the room, since that sectional makes the room pretty heavy. Maybe something glass...we'll see (check out my <a href="http://pinterest.com/heartmainehome/living-room-style/">Pinterest board</a> for my latest ideas).<br />
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It may have taken a little time, but this room is finally coming along! It's my favorite room of the house. I love the colors and that it has a mix of both antique/vintage and modern pieces. We spend so much time here, and I feel like it really reflects our personality, especially now with some art on the wall -- and a sleepy puppy. :)<br />
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Here's a living room progression since we bought our house a little over two years ago.<br />
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What a change!Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-27226261515512794732013-01-28T07:01:00.003-05:002013-01-28T07:01:51.955-05:00Status updateI've been gone for a while. I didn't mean to be, but life got crazy and I didn't have a lot of time for DIYing, or decorating, or doing anything blog-worthy, really. <br />
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But I've missed doing all of this, and I've missed all of you. So I'd like to be back for good. If you're still around and still reading, I thank you!<br />
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So, what have I been up to over the last six months? I changed jobs, and I focused on training that little pup of ours. The <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/06/what-ive-been-up-to.html">last time I posted,</a> Colby was just four months old and about 20 pounds. Now he's nearly a year old and is topping out at 60 pounds!<br />
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He's been a handful, but I can't imagine life without him. He also likes to DIY. He recently decided that our guest room needed some redoing...<br />
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Oy. (But look at that face!)<br />
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Like I said, I didn't do much DIY or decor-related over the summer and fall. But in the last couple months, the hubs and I have made some big progress on our entryway. This has been an evolving project. Some background: When we bought our house, the washer and dryer were in the entryway. It didn't take us long to realize this <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2011/09/our-next-project-building-laundry-room.html">wasn't going to work out for us,</a> so we moved them to the basement. We have <a href="http://heartmainehome.blogspot.com/2012/02/laundry-room-in-works.html">plans to make a laundry room</a> down there someday, but first we wanted to tackle the entryway.<br />
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The moving of the appliances left us with a big empty closet, along with a little coat closet already in the space. After taking stock of the space and doing a lot of planning, we decided to tear out both closets and make one big room.<br />
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This project so far has entailed demolition, drywall, electrical, plumbing (removing a baseboard heater), flooring, cabinetry, painting... in short, a lot of work! Months later, we're still working on this project, so no finished results yet. I'll have more to share on its evolution so far another day.<br />
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After a few months' break and the New Year, I'm feeling quite antsy to make progress on other areas of the house too. I'll have more to share on that progress another time.<br />
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Again, I'm sorry for my hiatus and hope I still have some readers out there :) Let me know what you've been up to!<br />
<br />Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-78021702969424412932012-06-19T08:25:00.003-04:002012-06-19T08:25:49.620-04:00What I've been up toSo, so, so sorry I've been MIA! Has it really been three weeks since my last post? Eek! I hope you can all forgive me. Life has gotten a little busy lately. Want to see what I've been up to?<br />
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Well, when we last left off, I was headed for a camping trip over Memorial Day weekend. The weather was lovely and we had a ton of fun!<br />
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Our campsite...<br />
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We did some hiking and some kayaking with great friends. It was so fun and relaxing! I love being outside.<br />
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The next weekend, we went to my college five-year reunion. I was worried it would be awkward, but it was a blast! I got to hang out with my two college roommates and other great friends. It was almost like old times -- except I realized I'm too old to stay up dancing the night away. :)<br />
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The weather was pretty terrible -- it was rainy and overcast all weekend -- but I still liked walking around campus. Maybe I'm biased, but isn't it pretty?<br />
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And here's the big reason I haven't been around much:<br />
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Meet Colby, the newest member of the Heart Maine Home family! He's named after my alma mater pictured above -- that's why he's got a leash with his name on it. We bought the leash at the campus bookstore at reunion weekend before we even got him, since we were planning on getting a dog later this summer. But we found this little guy at petfinder.com and just fell in love with him, so we had to bring him home. He's a rescue pup who was born a stray, so we're happy to give him a nice home.<br />
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He's a boxer/hound/who-knows-what mix and is four months old. He's super duper lovable -- he loves to sit on your lap and cuddle with just about anyone who will let him. And he's really mellow and easygoing too, and <b>loves</b> to be outside. He's just a sweet, happy, lovable little guy!<br />
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We took this photo on the hubs' and my two-year anniversary. It only took <strike>20</strike> 8 tries to get Colby looking at the camera and not licking our faces.<br />
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So, we've been busy playing with him, training him and just all around spending time with him. I knew having a puppy would be a lot of work, but phew, does he keep me running around! I haven't touched a craft project in three weeks! I'm definitely missing it, and hope to get back to it really soon, once I know I can trust this little guy to hang out in the house without chewing on the furniture or having an accident. :) For now, I feel like I have to keep a steady eye on him.<br />
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What have you all been up to? I'm so sorry for checking out for a bit! Hope you all understand and can't wait to see what you've been working on. :)Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-23853372730487675222012-05-25T07:52:00.001-04:002012-05-25T07:52:22.377-04:00Enjoy your Memorial Day!Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't been around much lately...things have just been crazy busy! I hope you all forgive me. I hope to be back and posting like normal really soon!<br />
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But for now, I'm off to a weekend in the woods -- yep, we're going camping! No phone, no electricity, no running water...but we get to see views like this:<br />
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I'll take it!<br />
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Hope you all have a great weekend!Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926207095286665389.post-3377558429087676452012-05-21T08:57:00.001-04:002012-05-21T08:57:12.359-04:00Privet House for Shops at Target<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Hello all! Happy Monday. I hope you enjoyed your weekend. I got outside, spent some time near the ocean and some time in a kayak -- it couldn't have been better!</div>
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If you've been reading this blog for a while, you probably already know that I love Target. Like, <b>love </b>love it. Like, if they had a support group for Target loving, I would probably go <strike>because my husband would make me. </strike></div>
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So, of course when they unveiled their Shops at Target collections, I had to take a look. Apparently, they're selling the goods of local shops from around the country. The shop they're featuring in the home section is called Privet House, and the stuff is really cute! </div>
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Of course I had to sneak a few peeks at their collection -- and take some photos so I could share it with you all! I included links to Target's website when I could find the item online (though a lot of stuff is sold out online) -- click the photos to get there.</div>
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I love these chevron outdoor rugs, especially the white one.</div>
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Outdoor-Rug-White/-/A-13980428" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLsFjEkaRbpvC89BnSuzAxJeUPULPJpeUzgXgsfK86MTEJhU_iP7bhAjELel0R7kvt7azqLASoW5r4SkUv4ujsolOClfRvdz0detCqWCGUaT0g1sMT-OtYo-9nAV5Q5CKtE17iF4OmloE/s640/privet+house+for+target+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Outdoor-Rug-Green/-/A-13981006" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4lXXQA1byVuLsbuJBD97GEPutKzlqup7NTMIla4A4XlCGq1GpJKuR3yTyfL0IPKNDSbjy7wmKPAkoBAGHLlg88vLXwyQMkbf7KQkA3MmvTlQWy3xQJX5MKnWl4gJn_ODQ3EZaRlBTWk4/s640/privet+house+for+target+%289%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This basket has a whitewashed look that gives it an antique feel. </div>
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-White-Round-Basket-Large/-/A-13981002" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlXcpeu4GJ1P42fg9Cwveb9HEd5MlKPgXwGPtVvwsqnWcUGKkssxU6Zs5VIBcKUTvaOGNVBHu-2hsaaz1LjLZpN7cn33BvSjjagYQmB3kqlOihBQMPAr2esXamCYGkofKv5FFZXnt4F-4/s640/privet+house+for+target+%285%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLsFjEkaRbpvC89BnSuzAxJeUPULPJpeUzgXgsfK86MTEJhU_iP7bhAjELel0R7kvt7azqLASoW5r4SkUv4ujsolOClfRvdz0detCqWCGUaT0g1sMT-OtYo-9nAV5Q5CKtE17iF4OmloE/s1600/privet+house+for+target+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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I love the industrial look of this lantern! I think I'd put it on my deck for hanging out after-hours on warm summer nights.</div>
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Hurricane-Candle-Holder-Small/-/A-13981031" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg42Ibiku_2HfhP4b2bRts82olD6gfyPG94HYXahnWMlSp0ISO4BIss4QK0T3ZPrpklrFGAOkB3VJn54fB36ClXnHShZLVqzCToZOY7iVvyba8zzES2Q0kUakt4eE2N8m01KpxidHroKXg/s640/privet+house+for+target+%288%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Not gonna lie -- I wasn't really sure what this wire house was for. The tag says it's a centerpiece "perfect for candles and plants." Wouldn't a little ivy plant climbing up to the roof look so cute?<br />
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Wire-House/-/A-13981092"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi7MzMQCa6dDpq_8Y20PGdeLfeL6qE28UhcoWVzw8pBYFx_LkyY1LZZAZdKPc4H0QnEeN7IC4UtWMBcbuBtwDE4tfS5k4VdLAlKEohwESoaTqq3HFVPSTOgENtMwd8XjqcZ4ySYFUVgIo/s640/privet+house+for+target+%2815%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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They had lots of decor items in such fun patterns, like these votives and pillars...<br />
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And these napkins...<br />
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Damask-Napkins-Set-of-4/-/A-14015894"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOkyNXwaP50lhWYLDbxt-ATIgGSnakh24QtnRmIiMaN470tk5EOm3ztZvw94ZUdjiT_hRxJPInXzhZhYqkLDz5G88KyqduvbsvZVX3T5vURAmXmhzHkGQcRAJz554BIVdraF8RgS6tU5Y/s640/privet+house+for+target+%282%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And these plates and bowls...<br />
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Coral-Salad-Plate-Set-of-4/-/A-14014696"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt7SEoEo5s2m8kWBKwJgw4nVDNXQJ0GpWFjH4ih7wzz31BF3hShucn2lFEVrgtTIAF0NXnx7RlBk0LxfolaQnbxS6DJ-SzYxlTyd1qEp_O9c5m7zNy03MAMjQl1w5v4WTXXvjpuFomqWU/s640/privet+house+for+target+%283%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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And this serving tray...<br />
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Wild-Green-Serving-Tray/-/A-14013208"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikDtZJitbFzsepfMdl2raYgnlgSLKkOmjp5km1XkPSb96qdOZj1KRASNr4C14J15p53HJmCy0ak6oU7pzS7G-1468ScKeqYEfJSFhQM_gz4X0GBb4aqCVz-2TNN-pI4mdpQQmI8Ph7agA/s640/privet+house+for+target+%284%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And, last, these glasses. I think these are my favorite!</div>
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<a href="http://www.target.com/p/Privet-House-at-Target-Green-Woven-Double-Old-Fashioned-Set-of-4/-/A-14013984"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9VfIke4YwUBVIEz266Rei4RowvRIwPp68aIT5Iw4JQf4kPYpJ11vYirkL4wFNJ93QGY9Gv8mnNHtemEa66Fdp-UZAzlGto7YPKQ1CodE699Xj56eexL-jZt0T2C-rselkFz9FohVwNq4/s640/privet+house+for+target+%286%29+%5B1600x1200%5D.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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You can check out the rest of the collection <a href="http://www.target.com/c/The-Shops-at-Target-Privet-House/-/N-56f4v#?lnk=sr_rd_shops_privet_house">here.</a><br />
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What's your favorite? I totally want two of those glasses!<br />
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<i>P.S. Target in no way endorsed or compelled me to write this post. These are just my own personal opinions as a self-confessed Targetophile.</i>Mindy @ Heart Maine Homehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00323480490741167213noreply@blogger.com0