Becolorful

One Week and Counting

We are Women.

We are artists.

We laugh.

We create.

We inspire.

We are The Traveling Door

One week from today is The Traveling Door sale and I have so much yet to do.

What is The Traveling Door you ask?

It is a group of five of my closest friends ...

you know, the ones you could call on in the middle of the night kind of friends.

The best part is they are all filled with boundless creativity.

How lucky am I?

We get together every Thursday for what we call Therapy Thursday.

Our hubs know to not schedule anything other than exotic trips on Thursdays.

Thursdays are our time.

Sometimes we get together and work on individual projects.

Sometimes it is a group project.

Sometimes it is just a vent and a tad bit of gossip.

For the record I don't think that the gossip part is strictly a female thing. :)

Twice a year we put on a sale to share with our friends and community neighbors our creative endeavors.

Because we don't have a permanent venue we painted an old door purple and decorated it in a crazy pop art fashion.

The door travels with us when we do our sales notifying the public of where we are.

Thus the name The Traveling Door.

 

Today I hit the one week mark and although panic is too strong of a word, anxious isn't quite strong enough. 

Six days to prepare and so much yet to do.

This stupid red chest is kicking my creative butt.

More on that later.

Hopefully that will be tomorrow's post.

Today is Thursday so I will be getting together with my girls but I also hope to work on these babies.

 

 

 

There are two of them and they were a freebie gift from Dean and Annie. Thanks and a big shout out to the two of you.

The tables are structurally in great shape and they have good clean classic lines so I was uber excited to get them.

I was thinking of doing a beachy feel. Like a sandy white with words for a summer type feel which seems appropriate for a summer show but then I second guessed myself. 

I'll do that on something else.

Sometimes that is a good thing.

Sometimes I wish I had gone with my first inclination.

Oh well.

I have painted them black for now.

I'm feeling a bit wild.

Animal print perhaps.

I hope you will check back tomorrow and see where these little pretties have taken me .

For now I need to push myself away from the computer and get to painting.

If you are in the area, the ladies and I would love to see you next Thursday.

If you have an extra few please stop by The Traveling Door blog by clicking here and check out some more of my decorative tassels. I have had way too much fun with those. 

 

XO,

P
  
 _{LINKING UP TODAY WITH SHABBY CHIC COTTAGE'S TRANSFORMATION THURSDAY.}

_{PLEASE JOIN ME THERE}
 
  
 

What To Do With All Of Those Scrap Book Supplies

Life is hectic and when scrap booking became more of a chore than a creative outlet, I decided to just let it go for awhile... maybe forever, who knows. The thing is I am a conflicted woman with too many creative distractions. Never the less, I still have a boat load of scrapbook supplies. If you are, or were a scrapper you know what I'm talking about. I do use some of my supplies in altered art projects, in tassels, and in cards. Eventually I will do another post on this topic but for today I am getting ready for an art sale and time is at a premium. So, when I saw this delightful idea on Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss I knew it would make a fun and easy post for me

Prepare to be amazed.

She was inspired by her daughter's bedding. 

 

You can already tell this is going to be cool. Very French.

She bought some cheapo frames and spray painted them.

Grabbed her scrapbook supplies

and

Voila!

Told you it would be Tres Chic.

So perfect for a young girl's bedroom.

It has me thinking of other things that could be done along this vein.

I'm really not doing it justice though.

Be sure and visit Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss by clicking here and getting the whole story. 

If you have time, check out The Traveling Door too. Our sale is only eight days and counting.

XO,

P

Inspired by Ballard Designs

 

This seriously motivational catalog came my way about a month ago and I was immediately intrigued by the cover. I am a huge fan of the black and white. Add a little green to that and I'm in my happy place.

This sassy color trio inspired one of our bedrooms, a purse purchase and the elements in my hutch.

 

This picture is about a year old and there are more tchotchkies in this case now. I only say that because it looks a little minimalist here, but you get the idea.

So when one of my favorite catalogs put one of my favorite combos and all of those delightful patterns on their cover I knew I would have to pay them homage with my interpretation of their Summer Fun look. 

I started with a little black side table and took it from this -

 

 

to this.

 

 

It was missing the green so I added it here. I like an element of surprise.

 

This BD inspired table will be going to The Traveling Door with my next Thursday  For this and other designs by the ladies of The Traveling Door click here.

 

X0

P.

 
 Linking up with the ladies at Domestically Speaking Power of Paint Wednesday,Trendy Tree House Marketing Monday, and Beyond The Picket Fence and another one of my favorite linky parties Between Naps on the Front Porch Metamorphosis Monday I hope you will follow over there too.
 

 
 

 

A Bargain Tray, Scrapbook Paper, and Shellac = Another Project Finished

This is one of those rare images that looks better larger. So double click on it to see the real deal.

I decided to take a break from the red chest I have been working on.

Sometimes I have to do that.

I really hate it when things just aren't turning out like they were in my head.

Sometimes that happens and it is a good thing.

Not so this time.

So I will revisit that piece again soon.

For now, though, I decided to pull together this springtime tray.

It was an easy project really.

I bought the tray at Hobby Lobby.

It is kind of a metallic fuschia.

I liked this flower that I had painted on a credenza

so I cut those same kinds of petal shapes out of various pieces of scrapbook paper.

I just arranged them in the tray and added a shellac coating.

I wouldn't do it that way again.

Next time I would definitely secure the pieces first.

That's me, though, always trying to shortcut it.

Have a great weekend.

P

Linking up with Fingerprints on the Fridge Feature Yourself Friday
 
 

Pillow of the Week #13 Nursery Flair

While looking for different pillow resources this week I found this oh-so-sweet graphic designed pillow cover. I don't have a nursery at my house these days but if I did I could design the whole room around this earthy pink mix of vintage and modern. It measures ten inches square and sells for $35. You can buy it here.

Coming Up Next - My Take On Red

 

I was heading out to the painting garage today with my roller and paint tray in my good arm 

I was trying to hold on to them and sort of balance them against my bum arm in the sling

and open the door at the same time.

 I had to laugh at myself. 

Could I be any more awkward?

I've heard the phrase busier than a one armed paper hanger 

but then I thought I'm a one armed painter!

 Sometimes I just think strange thoughts. :)

With less than three weeks to go until our Traveling Door sale

there are things to be done.

I finished this aqua chest last week.

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I don't know if you noticed but when I posted the before picture there were actually two of them. 

 

Well I could have painted them to match 

but where is the creativity in that?

Nope,

I am a conflicted woman

that loves many styles

many looks

and above all

lots of colors.

So I decided to try an all red piece.

I don't know what color it is.

It was a coral red that I used in my office.

But it was too coral.

So I added some fuschia.

Then some dark red.

Now it is my own paint color.

I may add more pink.

It won't stay just plain red though.

That just wouldn't be my style.

So even with one arm in a sling 

I will be back tomorrow.

Hopefully I will have some stripes

and some hydrangeas 

embellishing my take on red.

Til then,

XO,

P

 
 
 

Decorative Tassels and a Broken Arm

I have less than three weeks until The Traveling Door sale.

This event happens twice a year.

I am never prepared for it.

I am a master procrastinator.

I usually don't start really gearing up for these events until about a month before they happen.

During those four weeks my family just knows to walk around me. 

I become a manic painter.

I wear the same two pair of yoga pants and handful of paint shirts for four weeks.

My hair is in a perpetual ponytail

and I survive on Zone Bars.

This time I was determined it would be different.

I would give myself six weeks 

and I would be easier to live with.

I was doing pretty well.

I got the primer and two base coats on two end tables and another chest on Saturday.

It was my sweetie's birthday

so we went to Galena to celebrate.

I was doing so well.

He wanted to work in the yard.

I concentrated on making these fun decorative tassels.

 

 

 

 

 

I was on schedule. 

I was organized.

For once in my life I was feeling in control.

Then it happened.

A misstep 

a fall

and now I have a broken arm.

Yet, the show must go on.

Thank Heaven it is my left arm.

 I'm right handed.

It is annoying.

It is inconvenient

but

it won't beat me.

I will just have to figure out my plan B.

XO,

P

 
 
 Linking up with Just A Girl Show and Share Day
 Trendy Treehouse Creative Share Wednesdays

and It's So Very Cheri

Ohhhh. Just heard about a Tassel Party at Nester. Join me there for more inspiration.
 

Pillow of the Week #12 Volumes

A week or so ago I saw this image of Ideal Bookshelves on Design Sponge and I loved it.

Books can complete a room but sometimes we don't have the shelves or the space for them. So we get creative with canvases like these or a pillow like this.

  

Yes, a pillow like this could  make the bibliophile in you smile and you can buy it here.
 

Dialing Back The Crazy or My Take On An Aqua Chest

 

I typically work with brighter colors and with multiple patterns on the same piece.

This time I decided for a calmer more sedate look.

Sometimes you need just a whisper of whimsy.

Not my usual full out shout.

This is my take on dialed back.

  

This  chest was white when I started.

 

I am painting it for The Traveling Door sale.

I have one stall in the garage that is set up just for painting my bigger pieces.

Then I move them out on the driveway to take my photos.

I like being able to see my work in the sunlight.

The sun is unforgiving. 

My mistakes,

which are many,

become glaringly obvious. 

I found a run today.

I have already sanded it down and repainted it.

Better to find it now than later.

I added the stripes to the front  of the drawers for interest

and a few more to the sides.

I think I would rather see glass hardware here.

More of a vintage feel.

So I will probably change that out.

 

I thought about doing the top in a floral 

of pinks and greens and yellows.

That is what I usually would do.

Not this time, though, I was striving for a more neutral look.

I thought of adding a white harlequin pattern on the top.

I love harlequin.

No, I thought better of it.

Too many straight lines.

So I finally opted for an all white floral.

I think it works.

I couldn't forgo mixed patterns all together.

I don't want to lose my style

for the sake of acceptance.

If I were going to keep this piece I might use it in a bathroom.

I would fill the shelves with towels.

I can see it in a bedroom

I would add a couple of baskets to hide clutter.

I think it would look great in a woman's office.

It could be a printer stand with storage to boot.

I hope it finds a happy home.

I enjoyed working on it.

It was a good for me to change it up.

Now I know I can.

Thanks for stopping by and having a look see.

XO,

P

I am linking up this post with The Power of Paint at Domestically Speaking.

A Soft Place to Land DIY
 The Single Nester's Turquoise Tuesday

Transformation Thursday @ Shabby Chic Cottage

Beyond the Picket Fence

Check Me Out Saturday at A Vision To Remember

Gearing Up Again

It's that time again.

Twice a year I participate in an art sale.

 I am one of five women that put this event together.

We call ourselves The Traveling Door.

We don't have a permanent venue.

So we painted an old door purple,

 

and added some eye catching flair.

 
It is our notification to our followers

of where they can find us.

My daughter Liz converted it into a logo.

 

Didn't she do an amazing job?

(shameless plug)

She does blog banners and buttons too.

Check her out here.

What do I contribute?

Painted furniture and functional art.

I saw that one creative blogger described herself as a decorative artist.

I liked that term.

I guess that is what I do.

I take something ordinary,

paint it,

embellish it,

and put my own controversial spin on it.

Today I started with this piece.

 

I tend to use dark colors a lot 

so I decided to challenge myself

and do something in the light aqua family.

This is as far as i got today.

 

I am undecided where I will go next.

I'm torn.

The sides are wide stripes of the blue and white.

But what to do on top?

Do I play it safe and do a white argyle on top

or dial it up and limit my buyers with a floral design?

I am kind of leaning toward calmer on this piece.

Maybe I am getting that vibe from the color.

Not everything went as planned today.

I also took an old cake plate.

I opted for blue here too.

What is happening to me?

When did I start liking blue?

It was looking very pretty.

I thought an area needed to be touched up.

I went to add a bit more paint

and it went all crinkle on me.

 

So I am sanding it down.

and starting over.

Thanks for visiting.

I hope to have something done everyday

between now and May 6th.

I say that so I am accountable now.

It keeps me on task.

To find out more about The Traveling Door

you can go here.

to my Traveling Door blog

and see what my fabulousness my creative friends are up to.

XOXO,

P

 

 

Pillow of the Week # 11

Sometimes we don't want a lot of pattern but could use a bold pop of color. What could be more life infusing than this wonderfully textured red beauty and for only $13.00. Now you have to love that. You can buy it here. 

An Afternoon With My Mom

People say we look alike

my mom and I.

I consider that a compliment.

We can talk for hours

and after we go our separate ways

I can still think of more to tell her.

She knows all of my faults

but loves me anyway.

I can't say that about very many people

except my family.

She knows when I'm not telling her the whole truth.

She has that mom radar.

I have it too

with my babies.

This past weekend my mom and I spent the afternoon together.

We went to the cemetery 

which sounds like a creepy way to spend our time.

It wasn't creepy at all though.

I wish had thought to take my camera.

Now maybe THAT would be creepy.

I don't know.

We had a few special spots we wanted to visit.

To remember.

To know that although the pain is still there

we are not letting it conquer us.

She is a survivor

my mom

and she is surviving with Grace.

We walked up and down 

reading rows of names

unknown to us.

There are so many stories to be told in a cemetery.

Most of them I will never hear.

So I make up my own to go with some of the old tombstones.

After letting our imaginations run amok

 

we stopped at a garden exhibit.

I remembered to take my camera here.

I am a certifiable flower killer.

I love them

but they do not love me.

The kindest thing I can do is to leave them at the nursery

and be happy just taking their pictures.

 

 The Tulips

 

 

and Hyacinth

 

are my absolute favorites.

I think it is their shapes and the brilliant color that I am drawn to. 

For years I would plant annuals by the carload around my yard.

But by the 4th of July I was tired of taking care of them.

I would forget to water them.

Then, to make up for neglecting them,

I would unintentionally drown them.

I know ... flower killer.

My mom doesn't do well with flowers either.

Maybe it's a genetic thing.

So we will both just plant a few simple pots this spring

 
 

of Impatience

petunias

geraniums...

the stuff that is more resilient to torture.

 

and be content to see exotic beauty at the flower exhibits.

 

Less time gardening will give us more time  for what we really love

Just spending an afternoon together.

XO,

P
 
 

 

Ooh La La Green Dinnerware

I opened up my email today and found this gorgeous gem.

 
I know I just did a post featuring my all white dishes but the beauty of white dishes is that you can mix in fun colorful elements like this. It is like a Kate Spade handbag for my table but at a much more reasonable cost. They are from Noble Excellence and can be purchased at Dillards. Love them.

XOXO

P 

This Old Dining Room Has Stories to Tell

Welcome to my dining room.

 
Last week I finally finished hand painting a sideboard for this room.

 I needed a piece to store my overflow of table linens and seasonal tchotchkies.

This functional element does that job well,

while also adding a touch of whimsy to this overly formal room. 

 

We live in an older home. 

It was built in 1916

and has a rather interesting history 

with stories to tell.

I have already written about our living room and sunroom. 

So after completing this sideboard and posting my painting progress along the way,

it just made sense that this would be the next room I would feature in my Life In An Old House series.

If you came over for a visit today, this is what you would see.

 

The kitchen is just beyond that door you see over to the right with the WC on it.

 

 \

Funny thing is, this wasn't even the dining room until about five years ago. 

The dining room was on the other side of the kitchen. 

I was able to talk to the daughter of the builder and original owner of this house a few years ago.

She told me her parents were "quite the partiers". Back in the 1910's.

I like to think of all those flapper girls and men in linen suits. 

She remembers them having a number of large social events in this space.

Once they had a party and had an entire roasted pig with the apple in its mouth in this room. 

Another one of the previous owners told me that when the house was originally built this area was a porch. 

Sometime during the early 1950's two more garage stalls were added. 

A new sun porch was added above those garage stalls and behind this room.

This older porch was enclosed and used as a den. 

When she lived here, during the 60's, this wall where the buffet is was a wall of windows.

They looked out onto the new screened in porch.

 . 

She told me that because the kitchen was small they ate some of their meals here on TV trays where they could still see into the back yard. 

This is a horrible picture but you get the idea and you can still see the windows here.

 

Sometime during the late 60's the windows were removed. 

Then they made the room REALLY pretty by adding dark wood paneling.

Design gone bad.

circa 1980.

 '

As  if that wasn't bad enough,

they did one wall in skinny white brick. 

Design gone DOA.

 

I know. It was bad.

Apparently the next owner thought so too.

They went to work removing all of that paneling and brick.

I will be forever grateful that they tackled this mess so that we didn't have to.

When we bought the house almost seventeen years later

there was a billiards table right where the dining table is now. 

This was the room that really didn't have a purpose. 

When I interviewed previous owners some called this space the game room, 

others referred to as the den or family room. 

Nobody knew what to do with it.

When we moved in, we painted it red 

and for lack of a better name we just called it the red room.

 

Wow. This is the equivalent of showing you pictures of me in my acid washed long denim skirt and work boots.

Fashion gone wrong and plaid overload.

It wasn't long before we lost the plaid furniture that was a nod to my country phase.

We quickly replaced it with leather pieces. 

The problem was we had a living room,

 a media room,

 and what amounted to two family rooms.  

This was redundant and a poor use of space.

So when we finally remodeled the kitchen five years ago

we decided to enlarge the kitchen footprint into the old dining room.

Then we recreated this space.

It was reborn as a dining room. 

It was easy really. 

Because this area is just steps away from the kitchen 

it made perfect sense. 

Having it so close to the family room makes it flow better when we are entertaining.

 Really all we had to do was move in the furniture and the chandelier.

 

Voila! We had a new dining room.

Looking forward I still like the red 

but I'm beginning to visualize something new. 

I know neutrals are all the rage but I like a dining room with drama.

I always consider what it will look like over the holidays since that is when we use this room the most. 

I've thought of gold or maybe a lighter brighter version of red. 

Perhaps something in a coral or copper family. 

 

( I saved this image a while back and now can't figure out where I found it... sorry)

or maybe a raspberry like this from Savvy Southern Style.

 

I wish I had seen this when we were picking out lighting. I love the double chandeliers.

 

( again, I can't remember where I first saw this... note to self, document images for future reference) It wasn't that long ago that I found this. Does anyone recognize it? Please let me know if it is yours.
 
 
 

I am really thinking I would like to see a leopard print rug in this room. 

I'm just ready for some excitement here.

Nothing terribly drastic.

Still, 

I think an animal print element like that would give this room that added dash of moxie.

To my mind a home is never "finished" 

it is always evolving.

This room will be no exception. 

Change can be good. 

If not for change this room might still be covered in dark wood and faux brick.

hugs,

P

LInking this post up with Blue Cricket Designs 
The Power of Paint @ Domestically Speaking

Transformation Thursdays @ Shabby Chic Cottage

Remodelaholic
 
Metamorphosis Mondays @ Between Naps on the Front Porch

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

 

 

Shop The House Sunday

I am linking up today with Kendall at Finesse Your Nest and her Shop the House event. 

 

The goal here is to change something up and freshen your look without spending any moolah. 

I forgot to take a before picture.

So you kind of have to look at the bookcase behind this handsome guy.

 

See it back there?

 It is filled with dishes, books vases, votives etc.

Here is another photo taken last week.

 

Again it is hard to see but I had switched it up a bit with some different plates and glassware.

There wasn't much of a cohesive feel here.

For my shop the house challenge I decided to shop my kitchen cupboards and go with an all white look like I have seen on so many blogs.

 

I like how it looks. 

At least for now. 

This is one of those places in my home that is fun to dress up for the different seasons. 

So I am sure I will be revisiting it again in the future

but for now I think it looks fresh, simple and clean and it didn't cost a thing.
 
 
 

Pillow of the Week - A Two For One Special and a Little Sunshine

Thank you to Kelli at WhimsiKel for passing along this wonderful Sunshine Award on to me. I so enjoyed visiting the other recipients on her list. I feel very fortunate to be in such talented company. 

I will be passing this award on to  these twelve blostresses extraordinaire. 

Fingerprints on the Frig

Melissa's Heart and Home

Shanty to Chic

White House Black Shutters

Becca's Adventures in Decorating

Better After

Brabourne Farm

Jesse Kate Designs

Kitchen Table Products

No Minimalist Here

Savvy Southern Style

The Magic Brush

I subscribe to each of these blogs for various reasons. They never fail to inspire me with their writing, inspirational images or creativity. 

And now, on to my pillow of the week. Real life took precidence over blog life last week and I missed my pillow of the week post so I thought I would show you two of my faves today.

Pillow of the week # 10

 

This beautiful aqua triptych embroidered pillow by designer Trina Turk measures 20 x 20 and can be purchased here.

and these popular french linen pillow covers work so well with the neutral or white rooms that are ubiquitous here in blogland.

 

They are sale priced at $28 - $32.00 and you can find them here.

Have a great weekend and a Happy Easter

xoxo

P
 
 

TA DA! It's Done? or I Just Can't Leave Well Enough Alone

 

"I admit it's tempting to wish for the perfect boss - the perfect parent - or the perfect outfit. But maybe the best any of us can do is not quit, play the hand we've been dealt, and accessorize what we've got".

                      ~Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

I am wishing for the perfect sideboard. 

I need to realize that this piece may never be perfect for me.

I have a very high satisfaction threshold.

I should let it go and move on.

I began working on my sideboard about ten days ago.

This is how it looked then.

Pretty, but not much moxie.

Three days in and it looked like this.

 
  

I "finished" it on Tuesday. 

I took some photos that morning but I didn't look at them on my computer until that evening.

 Problem number one, I didn't like any of my pictures.

Problem number two, it was late when I made that discovery and night time pictures against a window are hideous. 

So that set me back another day. 

Problem number three, I think too much.

The longer I look at that middle drawer the less I like it. 

I try and convince myself that it's fine but I know I will ultimately change it.

 I just can't seem to leave well enough alone.

I think I have commitment issues.

Enough said.

I'm feeling the need to build up the suspense with some teaser shots. :)

So here goes nothing.

I do like the mixed hardware. 

And animal print was a necessity.

 

My signature black and white.

 

Hmmmm. Blurry photo alert. Sorry but it was the only close up shot of the door.

 

 Those pesky drawers.
 

 

I love hydrangeas and they are easy to paint.

So I use them a lot on bigger pieces.

 

The sides.

 

The feet. Those stripes were a bear.

 

And how it looks all pulled together.

 

Here is a close up view.

 

Our dining room is quite formal. 

I sometimes wish it was less so.

Still, it fits this old house.

 

 

I'm really trying to listen to Ms. Bradshaw and accessorize what I've got. :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe I should switch out the chairs.

 

 I usually put a quote on my pieces. 

Maybe that is what this is lacking.

I'm thinking of putting this one on that middle drawer.

"Let the beauty we love be what we do." 

                                                   ~ Jelaluddin Rumi

Or maybe inside one of the drawers.

Just food for thought.

 
 Linking up with Lit and Laundry
 Frugal Friday @ Extreme Personal Measures
 Feature Yourself Friday @ Fingerprints on the Frig
 Remodelaholic
Weekend Wrap Up @ 
Tatertots and Jello's Weekend Wrap Up