Saturday, June 4, 2011

Never too cool for stool!

I am ashamed to look back on the date of my last post.  I apologize for my absence, but it has luckily not been due to lack of projects.  Ok, maybe the first couple weeks were.  Rain everyday for 2 weeks straight does not appeal to my motivation.  Luckily, the sun has chosen to show its face a bit since then and I have a few things to share with you.  In this post I'm going to start with how my fantastic find in dollars and cents came to be a fantastic find in the visual world.


A couple weeks ago, Ben's family came to visit.  They haven't seen our place since it was just Ben living here before we were married, and it was so fun to share how our living arrangements and lives have changed since our last visit including meeting the newest, cutest and favorite addition to the family.  (Insert opportunity to brag on my cute puppy)


{I mean, who can resist that face?!  Side note:  One of my favorite things that he does, because I think it's just too funny, is trying to hide his biting habit.  He knows he's not allowed to bite people or our stuff (specifically my wedding shoes, may they rest in peace), but when he forgets, as puppies do, and is biting on me, or something else he shouldn't be biting, as soon as I tell him "no" in my big gruff mean scary voice, he starts licking whatever it is he chose to use as a chew toy, pretending that he wasn't really doing anything wrong.  Sneaky little bugger.} 


Ok, enough rambling about my baby, back to the subject.  One of Ben's and my favorite things to do is frequent antique shops.  Most of the apartment is decorated in finds from our favorite store down the street and we really wanted to show it off to my in-laws.  It's usually hard for me not to buy something, however on this particular trip, we found something amazing.  Two stools for four dollars.  Some people call that a steal.  We've been looking for stools for our counter since the wedding, but they tend to be at least 40 bucks a pop.  The only catch about these is that they were hideous.  Take a look for yourself.  Hid-e-ous:



Needless to say, I couldn't take these sitting in my dining area for long without some tender loving care, so I pulled out some paint I bought back on the first warm sunny day in spring.

{mmmm orange sherbet, or creamsicle, whichever you prefer.  Perhaps both?  Nothing wrong with 2 deserts!}

Because of the dark colored areas the previous "artist" chose,  I decided to prime the stools before painting.




Then for the fun part, and let's be honest, colors that remind you of a frozen treat, are good colors.


Gus Gus helped too.

{Sorry, I had to put in another picture of my boy.  I accept that I am an annoying mom}


After the paint dried, I distressed the stools a bit with a sandpaper block rubbing it on areas that would become worn with time.  I can't help it, I like things old, and making them look old if they don't already. But I'm so happy to have these delectable pieces of furniture grace the edge of my countertops.  The perfect spot for my morning bowl of oatmeal.


Stay tuned for my next post of actual food as opposed to food colored furniture.  A yummy tomato basil pasta bake.  Mmmm Mmmm good!