If you have been stopping by The 2 Seasons for a while now, you know that I love pantries and that I have  one that is also my office (here, here, here, here, and here).

When we did the four-month gut job/remodel project before moving it, I had the solid wood door on the pantry switched out for one made mostly of frosted glass.  I knew that would be a good way to let sun from the kitchen’s adjacent sunroom (and  here) to into the windowless area.

I could have selected one that had the word Pantry etched into the glass, but at the time with so many decisions being made, I opted to go with a plain frosted glass.  Later I regretted that I didn’t get the fancier door.

I mentioned to Jordan that I had spoken to a sign maker about making a large applique that I could just press onto the door, and she said nonchalantly that she could make one for me.  I was shocked/thrilled/giddy.

She explained that the Silhouette machine she received for Christmas could do things like pantry signs, and she made one for me in just a few minutes.  I carried it home after our last visit.  All I had to do to apply it was first clean the door with vinegar and water and let it dry.  Then I just pressed it on smoothly and used a credit card edge to make sure there were no air bubbles.

Jordan will definitely be my go-to person for the next sign I have in mind.  I love the way this one looks!!!

Take care.

Linking to  

Mom and I decided that a perfect way to celebrate Valentine’s Day on our blog is to feature our spin on one or two projects each day that John and Sherry Petersik developed for their book Young House Love (available here) .  Afterall, it’s all about the love, right?  And we’re here to spread it around.  So welcome to “The 2 Seasons Celebrate Young House Love Week.”

Many of you might remember this buffet  that we found at the thrift store last year, redesigned and painted with chalk paint that we made.  I’m sure you will be glad to know that since then we have changed the hardware to give it a more youthful look.  This buffet which has been a great addition to our dining room seemed like the perfect place to do Sherry and John’s Project Number 001.

I decided that this open area could use some enhancement with the addition of a background.

Like Sherry, I used foam board, but in my case, two pieces were needed.  I cut them to size and then gave the two paper possiblities a test drive.  I bought two different paper styles to use as the backdrop.  One was bold, and one was subtle.  I gave them both a test drive and went with the softer/lighter choice.  It can play a supporting role and let the buffet be the star.  But remember, the foam boards can easily be removed, and I can switch out the paper on a whim.

Here’s the first shelf after Mom and I accessorized it with some of my girlie books and a pair of ancient bar bells that were in our 1928 bungalow when we bought it.  I figured they could offset the feminine vibe the books added.

See how the paper-covered foam board just kind of does its thing in the background?

Here’s the second shelf with some colorful balls I had on hand along with a container of corks, a unpolished silver julep cup, and a horse shoe from our wedding.  The green in the balls really enhance the green in the paper backing.

Here it is all put together.  I love the way it looks.  We have a touch of that green in every room on our first floor, and it’s a great way to pull all of the rooms together.

I added a Valentine thought to our chalkboard platter and a red and white hand towel.  Here you can get a good look at the new hardware.  It’s so much better.

There’s some more of that green.

We’re thrilled with the way the new foam board background upgraded our buffet.  Thanks, John and Sherry for the idea.

*****

Cheers!

Linking to 

Even though I didn’t switch time zones when I visited Jordan, I am feeling a little lagged today.  We had a great time together, and the two of us crammed a lot of projects into not a lot of time.

One of the things we did was to replace this lonely little table in Jordan’s living room with an upgrade.  However, her guest bedroom needed a night stand, so I decided to give this table its own upgrade with decoupage.

Jordan’s friend Amanda (here and here) gave her this book of botanicals after she used some of the prints for framing.

I browsed through it and found a colorful floral.

Then I painstakingly cut it out…….

 …..and then I placed it on the table to get it centered correctly.  I liked the contrast of the colors against the black background.

Then I applied four coats of decoupage being sure to let them dry completely in between.

As I was about to walk out the door to catch my flight home, (honestly), I took this quick shot to show the finished product with the crooked lampshade in tact.  There was no time to take another photo.  We think it is really cute, and are grateful to Amanda for sharing her book with us.

Take care.

Linking to 

A few months ago I wrote about how I changed the look of this table by adding a piece of decorative paper under the glass.  The piece of paper was actually scrapbook paper, and I selected it because it contained items, like a passport, postcard, Eiffel Tower “fauxto”, etc.  It fit in with our interests.  When the Young House Love book came out, and doing this was one of their many projects, I knew I was on the right track.

I was getting a little tired of that particular look, so recently when I was at the craft store, I picked up another sheet of scrapbook paper.  I think this one cost me all of 59 cents.  I picked it because it looks like teeny mosaic tiles.  I know it’s fake, but I think faux sounds more expensive better, don’t you? It makes it sound as if it at least cost $1.00.

All I had to do was cut the paper down to size, remove some nails from the table, replace the existing paper with a new sheet, and put it back together.  BAM!

Ta-dah!!!!!  Doesn’t it look great???  I have to laugh to myself, because the difference is amazing.

Doesn’t it look like real mosaic?  And the thing is, since it is under glass, you can’t feel it.  So, I think people will just assume it’s mosaic and textured.

This sweet little table once belonged to Mr. Autumn’s aunt.  It was one in a set of stacking tables.  It works perfectly in our great room, and is a nice place to set a drink.  I made sure of that because when I inserted the last sheet of paper last spring, I only put three little tacks in it to hold it together, and you know what happened.  Right.  It fell out once.  Well, have a good day.  I’m going to get a cup of tea and give our new faux mosaic table a test-drive.

*****

Take care.

Linking to www.savvysouthernstyle. and miss mustard seed

Another one of our favorite projects from 2012 was one that we did together during Mom’s visit to Syracuse.  This is a perfect example of how a little paint and some elbow grease can transform a space.  We spent under $100, and the final product was just what our 1928 bungalow needed.

*****

This is a good one.  It’s why I love to DIY.  This project reminds me of the Grimm’s fairy tale about kissing a frog, and it turns into a prince.

This is the frog in question.  It is our back porch, and it had a lot of warts.

It had warts and more warts.

The previous owner left a table and chairs on it when he moved, and we just piled it high with junk belongings.

It was wasted space that we only used as a pass-thru to get to and from our revamped backyard and new patio.  There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, though ’cause this fairy tale has a happy ending.

When my blog partner/mom was here last week, we decided to kiss that frog and make it the most handsome prince we could.  That became our number one priority.  First, we decluttered and then primed the entire space.  Then I applied a light blue to the ceiling while she tackled the walls.  Since the room is right off of our kitchen, I chose the same blue that is on the kitchen walls to make a good transition.

We painted the walls the same gray as the exterior of our house.  Here it is after the first coat.  When we were all finished, we started adding pops of color.

First, we brought in the light blue bistro set that had been in our guest bedroom.  The blue in the table matches the blue in the ceiling perfectly.  Under it, we added a jute rug trimmed in green.

Then we hung a paper lantern over the table.  It even has a little battery-operated light so that it is useful at night.

We used the colors in the lantern for our inspiration.  We hung a big yellow pail that we used to hold dancing shoes at our wedding, on a wall.

I painted a used bookcase the same bright red as our front door.  It will come in handy for holding our shoes this winter.  The top is a great place for Gracie’s supplies.  (I’ll tell you about the recycle bin you see on the right in another post).

We painted an existing shelf white and then just put some colorful items from around the house on top of it.  I plan to put hooks in it for hanging some extra coats this winter.  The mounted art poster on the right had all of the colors in it we needed.

It was in the vacation condo my parents owned in Toronto, Ontario a few years back.

I’m thinking this prince is pretty good looking.  How about you?

Since I was able to use some things we already had, the total makeover, including paint, the book shelf, rug, plant stand, and lantern came in under $100.

I think it is now the perfect place for the prince in my life and me to enjoy our morning coffee.

*****

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Cheers!