Don't let the difficulties of the present moments overshadow the reality of God's promises. God's promises still stand. And God's promises are stronger than our failures.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Finished by Friday - Not My Usual


Since I didn't get much sewing done this week I thought you might like to see what I've done while I was visiting my sister. She wanted a little "redo" on one of her downstairs bedrooms and the bath. Her downstairs is a finished basement which includes mother-in-law quarters plus two bedrooms with a bath between. As is usual in basements with few windows, it's dark in those rooms and our main goal was to lighten things up. We found some Shabby Chic curtain panels on sale at Target and because roses are her absolute favorite flowers we grabbed two of those. I made one a shower curtain and cut the other off to make a curtain for the window. That window is a deep set one so I put the curtain at the back and put pictures in front. I used a lot of stuff I found while wandering through other rooms but some things we bought at the junk/antique shop. The picture and the lamp in the top picture were two of those finds. I had some fabric left from the curtain so I have it wrapped around a cushion on the chair. She will cover a cushion with it later. Right, Sherry?


The vase with roses in it was in her sunroom and so was the vintage picture of our grandfather.














This towel hanger that I put behind the door was stuck in a cabinet with the tag still on it. It was another sale item, this time from Hobby Lobby.














I think this little butterfly may be something her youngest daughter left at home after she moved out - I found it in a drawer with a few of her things and thought it would be perfect up above the cabinets.











This picture is almost a repeat but I wanted you to see the little shoes that I hung on the cabinet. We found them at the antique shop - they have tiny ribbon roses on them.
This stencil is from Hobby Lobby and was so easy! It's a peel and stick - I've never seen those before but it was perfect here.
This picture of roses was another find at the antique store. The lamp is reflecting in it so it's difficult to see but it's perfect for this space.

At K Mart we found this bath mat as well as a rug that is in front of the sink and a toothbrush holder and lotion dispenser. One of them says Sing As If No One Is Listening and one says Dance As If No One Is Watching. The mat and the rug both have a variety of inspirational words on them. And the colors worked well in here. That's about all I had time to do in here so I moved to "my" bedroom.
The first thing I did was slant this bed in the corner and move a couple of other pieces. The rose picture was another antique shop find and the quilt is one our Mother made, but this is the back side of it.
The balloon shades on these windows came from Target and are part of the Shabby Chic line like the bathroom curtains. The lamp my sister had and the frame came from Hobby Lobby. As did the greenery which I just stuck in a glass vase that was in the room.





This lamp was in the room already but I took a crocheted collar mother had made and slipped it down over the shade. I love it! The saucer was an antique shop find and is very unusual - it has a handle on the top. Not sure what that was for originally.
Besides getting the cushion covered my sister still needs to put some pictures in the new frames, find something else to put on the dresser, maybe add a rug in the bedroom and also some rose sachet. But I'm calling my part done!




19 comments:

Salem Stitcher said...

The bedroom and bath look so cozy and inviting! You did a wonderful job.

molly said...

The queen of decorating strikes again! Can you come to my house next? I love that shabby chic line Target has. You did a great job. Do it! Come to my house next. I'm a great cook. I'll pamper you, I'll feed you gourmet meals, I'll sew on your bindings for you...whatever it takes! I'll be waiting in the driveway for you!

Adrienne said...

You did a great job! What a wonderful sister. Would you be my sister? I could use your help. ~Adrienne~

Unknown said...

It must be nice having a decorator in the family. Everything looks really nice. The lamp shade/ crochet collar idea was brilliant!

Joyful said...

WOW - can you come to my house?!?!

That picture with the little girl holding the envelope - I LOVE that picture. I had it on some greeting cards I purchased - so sweet.

I wish we had those same stores in Canada - I'd be rushing out tomorrow!

Everything looks lovely,
Joy

Anonymous said...

Nice job! Love what you achieved. I really love the pretty white bedding with the walls in that color in the bedroom. Very elegant yet cozy!

Mary L. Briggs said...

It all looks so pretty! All those roses really add a light, garden-y look to the basement. The collar over the lamp shade is such a clever idea and looks perfect.

I've never heard of the peel and stick stencils, either, but I'm going to check them out next time I'm at Hobby Lobby!

Great job, Marlene!

R~Mary

Tricia said...

The collar on the lamp shade is my favorite little thing. Good Job

Val said...

You have been very busy too. You did a great job. Could you come to my house?? Thanks for the comment on my blog. It means a lot!

Calamity Jane's Cottage, Bonnie said...

Hi Marlene, you brightened up the room and they look so good. I guess we'll be seeing you in the next decor magazine. I know you and your sister had a great time and I hope you didn't come back to a lot of water, with the rain. That was quite a bit for finished by Friday...
Hugs,
Bonnie

Osage Bluff Quilter said...

You can come to my bathroom anytime!
Osagebluffquilter

Mama said...

You ARE talented, Woman! Come over and help me!

I think that lampshade is my favorite, but I'm lovin' the Target curtains, too.

Gets me thinkin'.

Teresa said...

You did a great job pulling those rooms together so prettily. I think its always fun to decorate with items you already have and then add a few new ones to refresh it a little. Great job!

Raquel said...

I think you earned your keep! Looks great! Muchc love, Raquel XO

Kentucky Bound said...

Y'all did a wonderful job of shopping and redecorating! Glad you had such a wonderful trip - tractor lot and all!

It's so wonderful to see a home with real furniture and decor and pictures on the wall! That's what I want for my house when it grows up! Wanna come help me unpack all my boxes and sift through the goodies when I'm ready? If, that is, I'm not too old to be able to bend over and dig through the boxes by then!

Blessings from The Creek!
Liz

Anonymous said...

Everything looks great!! I have a guest room for you-so when can you come?

Yarni Gras! said...

I love DIY....you did a great job. :-)

Anonymous said...

That's a beautiful redo -- good job, Marlene and sister! :)

Blessings.

Angie said...

Marlene, please will you pop over here to England. I already have one Wonderful Sister but if you two put your heads together you'd be dynamite!

I don't have the vision to be a decorator. I'm always one who says "Now why didn't I think of that?"
love, Angie, xx