The Cheapest Mirror of Them All

Before I dive into the details of this mirror on the wall, Deme is featuring the girls’ nursery today over at her blog, Fresh Coat of Paint!  There’s some never-before-seen shots of their room and a few updates that we spent last weekend completing!  You should go check it out…but make sure you’ve got some time on your hands when you do because you’ll get sucked in to the all of the beautiful details of her home and all the diy that goes on over there just like I do!  My favorites are the curtains she made from a duvet cover, her stenciled and painted interior door, and her polka dot closet.  Needless to say, she’s making me seriously consider switching out our plain curtains for some bold black and white’s, every door in our house is yearning for some tape and paint, and you might venture over to see the girl’s closet dotted with gold one of these days.  :)

.           .           .

Remember the $8 mirror I found at a thrift store while on an excursion to visit my sis? 

Well, it lost the dull and took up the glam in a whirlwind diy project that took me much, much longer than I anticipated…or that I wanted.
  
Big change, huh?  The hours of naptimes and bedtimes spent working on this thing paid off!

To get it to where it is now, I first had to rip off all the tape holding it together and rip out the staples that someone thought would maybe hold the back on…they obviously didn’t hence all that tape. 

Then I gave the frame a good scrub down and the two of us took it outside where it got a coat of primer (Rustoleum)…

…followed by a few thin coats of white spray paint (Valspar   cZ VJ UMMMMMMMMMMMMM—>thank you Seraphia—in a satin finish).

Then I got my inner King Midas on and gave the recessed area of the frame a few coats of gold.

All thanks goes to Deme, who introduced me to this maaahvalous paint from Home Depot:

(Speaking of gold, Anthony once told me, during a conversation about investing in a house, that “You can build a house out of solid gold but that doesn’t mean you’re going to get every penny you put into it back out when you sell.  It all depends on the neighborhood.”  Well, we’ll see about that mister.  You might come home to a gold house courtesy of Martha Stewart and her metallic paint one of these days.)

Anyway, there’s more gold in the imminent future so keep reading. 

Next up was hatching a skewer-to-mirror plan.  I wanted to do something unique to the recessed area, something on top of just painting it gold so, I went to the local grocery aisle #8 and picked up some 12 inch skewers.  Of course I couldn’t do anything with a whole twelve inches of bamboo so I cut them into four inch pieces.  Using one, cut skewer as a guide, I laid out a bunch of full-sized ones in a row with the rounded ends against a picture frame, laid a ruler over the top of them, and penciled a line along them.  It went a little somethin’ like this:    

Then I painstakingly cut along the penciled mark on each skewer (and cursed myself for having and executing this idea in the first place) until I had over 300 four inch pieces of round bamboo. 
(Side note:  Take a hint from this smarty pants here and, if you ever decide to use short pieces of wood to adorn anything, go buy yourself some toothpicks on Amazon…they come in lots of sizes!  Until you do, I’ll be shaking my head at my impatient and desire to do it the hard way.)

After I had all of my skewers cut (and a case of pre-arthritis setting in), I did a dry fit onto my mirror frame to make sure my idea would actually work and look decent (translation:  Anthony was skeptical and made me question myself).  For a little flare, I laid each skewer at an angle so that each end was touching the edge of both sides of the recess, like so:

So, hour 53094 into this crazy project and here I was, needing to paint the skewer pieces.  Are you surprised?  You didn’t think I was going to leave them did you?  I debated staining them a deep, dark brown but, oh no, I love that gold paint to no end.  However, it’s the littlest bit opaque when it goes on and so, to save me the insanity that would’ve been brushing 3+ coats of it onto hundreds of small bamboo rounds, I first coated them with a layer of gold spray paint followed by Martha’s tub ‘o goodness.  Tony the Tiger helped with this step.  I used his box to tape three strips of masking tape upside-down to which I stuck the skewer pieces to hold them in place while painting.  It worked GREEEEAAATTT!!  (Cheesy?  Yes, that’s me.)  

Last and late last Friday night, I used regular old Elmer and his glue to attach my gold sticks to the mirror frame.  I made sure to only place the glue close to the inner edge of the recess, where the sticks were closer together, lest it be seen through the spaces towards the outer edge.
My initial thought on using Elmer’s glue was that it’s washable so, in case the desire strikes to ditch the skewer pieces someday and go with something else, I can simply pluck them off and wash off the dried glue residue.  However, after seeing the finished product, I don’t think those skewers will ever be coming off.  :)

So, after attaching every last stick and letting the glue dry overnight, Anthony attached the mirror to the frame with some caulk (we would’ve used glue but the mirror is relatively light and I like the idea of having it semi-removable in case I have the urge to re-paint the frame someday…) and then attached the frame backing with three screws drilled into the back of the frame.  We hung it centered over the girls’ cribs, where there wasn’t a stud (grrr…) so we made sure to use a heavy duty drywall anchor.  Luckily, the entire frame + mirror weighs around 15 lbs. so the super-anchor is a little overkill but it’s better to be safe than sorry when you’re dealing with cute, little chicklets?  Am I right or am I right?

What do you think?  The pictures don’t do the glorious shine of the gold any justice but I absolutely love it!  I swore to myself over and over and over that I’d never do something like this ever again in-process but after seeing the show-stopping result, I’ve changed my mind and just might be crazy enough to take another stab at it someday.

And, as the title alludes to, here’s the jar-full of change it put us back:
Mirror:  $8
Skewers:  $4 (two packs and we still have half a pack left for summer shish kabobs…yum)
Gold Paint:  $6 (not even sure this counts since I used like 1/20th of the jar)
Spray Primer:  free (already had)
Spray Paint:  $4.50 (still have over half the can)
Grand Total:  $22.50 (or $14 if you subtract my actual usage of material)

I think “The Cheapest Mirror of Them All” about covers it, huh?

 

Anyone else tackled a mirror revamp lately?  How about using skewers as decor?  Fallen in love with gold metallic paint?  Crazy mom of two or more hopelessly addicted to decorating and doing?  Anyone…?  Anyone………….?

.           .           .

P.S.  It’s party time!!  I’m pulling this one out of the archives and linking up with East Coast Creative’s Upcycle link-up! 

Score One For the Teeth

I have no finished project ready to go for the reg Saturday post because I got my butt kicked by three (possibly four) tiny teeth this week.  Want to know what’s worse than teething with one kid?  Easy.  Teething with two.  Running against the bulls might be a good comparison.  However, I took the treasured time after bed last night (bed meaning the couple of hours of alone time Anthony and I had before Seraphia woke up for the first of four times) to work on the mirror I’ve been working on for the past two weeks and another little frame project.  I stole Anthony’s phone while he snoozed last night so check out our Instagram feed in the sidebar or follow us at beaninlove to see a sneak peak.  Until then, I’ll leave you with reassurance (that really only I need right now) that our little sprouts really are happy little mice most of the time and that teething is only temporary.  By the way, if I ever complain about the woes any future, singleton baby brings with it, please reach your hand through the web and slap me. 

 For lots more adorable, comical, and cute, check out our Vimeo page by clicking the link in the sidebar.

Have a great weekend!

P.S.  A few of you sweetly mentioned you’d like to hear more “twin prophecies”.  That’s a post I’ve been wanting to write but it’s a story that’s going to take a LOT of words.  I will write them though and hopefully soon so keep in touch!  :)

Liebster Awards

A few weeks ago, Liz and Mary nominated little Bean and her blog here for a Liebster Award.  Liebster is German for endearing, valued, and/or lovely so I was quite honored and humbled to be thought of.  :)  A Liebster Award is presented by a blogger to other bloggers, recognizing them for doing a great job entertaining the rest of the web with their blog.  So sweet! 

To accept the award one must:
1.  Post 11 random facts about oneself
2.  Answer the questions your “nominator” has asked of you and then create 11 new questions to pass on to…
3.  Bloggers (with less than 200 followers) you’d like to nominate for a Liebster who…
4.  You should notify of their nomination via a comment on their webpage and a link on yours
5.  And you shall not tag back

So, if you didn’t already know, you now know that:
1 – I can count on both hands the number of times I’ve gotten my hair cut in a salon.  Growing up, my mom wielded scissors on it, my sister cut it in college, and when I’m not visiting Farrah, I do it myself these days.
2 – I also cut Anthony’s hair and I never mess up…and even if I did, you’d never notice because he’s got this great curly hair that hides everything. 3 – I was super-super-skinny growing up and I hated it.  I used to drink Wrestlers’ Weight Gainer in powder form to pack on pounds…but my metabolism always won and I stayed skinny.  Never in the whole wide world was there a girl more happier to welcome that freshman fifteen in college, let me tell ya.
4 – I’ve never broken a bone…tap on a tree.
5 – I have an inch and half wide scar across the front of my neck caused from the surgical removal of a Thyro-Glossal-Duct-Cyst when I was a teen.  However, I usually tell people I was once an attempted murder victim…it makes for a much more interesting me.
6 – I had braces twice growing up for a cumulative time of four years as a metal mouth all because…
7 – I was born without an adult tooth therefore I’ve got a fake.  (When the baby tooth was pulled because it just wasn’t coming out, I didn’t have a tooth to replace it.  It’s the small one to my left of my front tooth.)
8 – If my mom put her left foot next to my right and vice-versa, they’d look like they were a pair.  :)
9 – My siblings names are Farrah, Raquel, Preston, and Parker…also known as Peach, Rock, Booguy, and Oink. 10 – After Anthony I got hitched, my grandma would pray and pray we’d one day have twins (she’d tell me and I’d just laugh it off) and lo and behold…twins.
11 – The day I was going into my ob/gyn’s office to take the “let’s make sure you’re pregnant” test, I came thisclose to running into a statue of Jesus holding up his two fingers in peace, except I remember seeing them as I contorted my body around the statue, barely missing it, and thinking not “peace” but “two”…coincidence?  I think not.  But that’s a whole ‘nother story for another day.  :)

Since two people nominated me, I’m going to pull the fair card and answer the first five questions from one and the first six from the other, and then I’m gonna pull the lazy efficient card and pass the leftovers on to my nominees.  :)

From Liz:
What magazines, if any, do you subscribe to?
Better Home and Gardens because I got it for el cheapo last year.  I was gifted a Real Simple subscription that I LOVE and I’m super tempted to snatch up a year of HGTV’s glossy so I don’t have to stalk my friend Lauren’s.
What made you decide to start a blog?
Lots of time and thought chaos in the brain.  While Anthony was studying for his Masters’ (still is) way back when, blogging was a great way for me to get my ideas and thoughts out and fight boredom.
When you aren't blogging, what's your favorite thing to do?
Oh that’s easy, chill with my hoodlums.  When they’re passed out, it’s painting/creating/getting my hands dirty all the way.
What's your favorite room in your home?
Hmmm…I guess I’ll have to say the nursery because it’s the closest to being “finished” and it’s just so darn happy.

 Where is the one place you'd love to travel?
Europe, again.  I don’t think you can ever get enough of that continent.

From Mary:
What is your least favorite book?
Not sure but if I have to guess, it’d probably be one of the college education variety.
What is your perfect day?
Allow me to be cliche…any day with my loves.  :)
Who is your greatest inspiration?
Mama Mary all the way.
What is your favorite song?
Oh gosh, I have too many “favorites”.  Right this minute it’s “10,000 Reasons” by Matt Redman.
What is your go to dinner?
Enchiladas with cream cheese on top, yum.
Can you name a current event that has changed the way you think?
Besides the snazzy, new item which is Sean and Catherine totally renewing my faith in the whole Bachelor/Bachelorette crazy thing on the tube, I’d have to say the impending election of our new Pope.  I’m waiting for that smoke in high suspense…so exciting!

”And the nominees are”…(drumroll please):
Lauren – I love your stories, especially when you write about Emma’s outfits-of-choice.
Ana - Your girls crack me up!
Farrah - I know you’re on a blogging hiatus, but I love your blog even still and I wish you’d put those fingers back on those keys!
Allyson – You inspire me like no one has and your writing makes me holier.
Bridget – I’ve always thought if we knew each other in person we’d make great friends.  And your instagram posts are theeee best!
Gabby – The Pinterest Queen!
Jess – The blogger with phenom post pictures…must be those cute kids…and the great photographer!  :)
Lizzie – Laughter is the best medicine so pretty please get to typing, okay?  And while you’re wrangling those soon-to-be-three kiddos, get some more projects done, will ya?
Maureen – The first blog I ever read and in one word, hilarious.  You are such a good writer!
Natalie – Would you please move down here and be my personal stylist?  Did I mention that the name of your blog is one of my faves?

I know it takes a little bit of time to accept this highly prestigious award so don’t feel bad if you can’t spill out a hundred web words to do so…you’re still a fab blogger in my blogging book.  :)  I also will understand if you just answer these questions and then pass them on to make life more simple like me! 

So, ladies…
1.  What blog inspires you the most?
2.  When you go shopping for yourself, what's the first thing you buy?
3.  What's your favorite t.v. show?
4.  If/when you go to Target, what area of the store do you spend the most time?
5.  What is the best book you have read?
6.  What is one food you could eat every day?
7.  Name the funniest movie ever, of all time.
8.  Coffee or tea?
9.  What is most misunderstood about you?
10.  Which city in America do you like best?
11.  What do you appreciate most about your life?

Happy Liebstering!

What I Wore Sunday: Newly Minted

Here I sit – the husband is out youth ministering, the babes are sawing twigs, there are cloth diapers that need to be washed, and toys, clothes, dishes, and Lord knows what else that needs to be put away – but first, I must blog.  Empty my noggin to you unsuspecting, sweet folks. 

I’m trying to think of some sort of deep reflection I can type out, something that struck me in Mass but I’m coming up short.  The only thing on my mind tonight is how busy Anthony is.  I’ve gotten used to mornings, noons, and lots of nights with just me and my girls and as much as I love that time, I miss ‘just me, my girls, and my man’.  I love when he’s home.  Everything just runs so much more smoothly and is so much calmer.  He doesn’t even have to be doing anything; both girls could be screaming at the tippity-top of their little lungs and the peace that hangs around while he’s here is intoxicating.  I love it.  He brings it in with him the moment he walks in our side door and out it goes when he does.  I feel like the Prodigal Son’s father so often…I get so excited the minute my love returns; the minute I hear his key enter the lock before he comes in.  I don’t always rush to meet him (and maybe I should…or maybe it’d freak him out) but it’s there the minute he is – the absolute joy and audible “Thank God”. 

And so here I sit – waiting for that key in that lock, the quick pick-up of my heart beats, the opening and shutting of that door, his face, that peace.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

But, until then, what’s a Sunday post without an outfit, huh?  Let’s pick up the mood.  Here’s what I wore to meet my other love:
 
Mustard, mint, and tan:  Target
Scarf:  gift from my madre  :)
Shoes:  Gabes (sniff, sniff…miss you Gabriel Bros.)

I looove pleats so when my friend Callie texted me a picture of the above pleated, mint top on the clearance rack at Target (online too, but not on clearance) a couple of weeks ago, I dropped the girls in their car seats and out we went to obtain one.  They didn’t have one in my size so I grabbed the next size up and got to sewing.  The fit wasn’t all that bad but the armholes were just a tad too big.  So, I took in the top of the shirt and let the bottom be.
 
You can barely tell the difference, I know.  I should’ve taken a side pic.

And because I have way too much time on my hands after bedtime, here’s a little diddy I whipped up in photoshop to show where I stitched:

(Pretend that the arm seams on the right side are lined up too.)  One straight stitch along the yellow line, a zig-zag next to it, and pinking shears to cut off the excess fabric and I’ve got me a new, cheap top.

I hope you had a great Sunday!  I’m off to wash diapers and put those toys, clothes, and dishes away before Anthony gets home and thinks all I’ve done all night is mess around in photoshop (well, technically pixlr.com) and blog.  ;)

Oh, one more thing…linking up with Fine Linen and Purple.  You should too (ahem)!

Not Mythology, or Salad, or Big, Fat Weddings

Nope, even though I love me a good greek salad, this post has nothing to do with those and everything to do with the window seat in the girls’ room.  I’ve had it on my to-do list to paint it white for awhile now, an easy project that just got pushed aside. 

Then that “easy project” picked up a little more time and effort as I threw around stencil options and whatever else my brain could conjure up.  I finally settled on taping off a greek key design to add a little more pattern and punch to their room.

Per the usual, here’s the what and how:

First, I drew a big’ ole box close to the perimeter of the front of the window seat using our level to make sure my lines were on the straight and narrow.

Then, using 3/4 inch wide masking tape, I taped along the outside of my newly penciled box.

Next, I taped off the pattern as follows:1 – place one strip of tape horizontally and parallel to the edge of the big rectangle
2 – place another strip of tape parallel to tape strip 1
3 – place four strips of tape across strips 1 and 2
4 – mark the areas of tape that will need to be removed and cut them off using an exacto knife (the photosh0pped lines show where I cut)
5 – done!

And, in case you’re wondering, here are the measurements I used:

They’re the same on both the upper and lower half and on each side.  I might also mention that after I was done taping, I wasn’t happy with the spacing in the middle, so I ripped off the bottom half of my taped design and moved it down an inch or two.  The above measurements stayed the same.

Pardon the interruption, but while I was taping I had the girls in the room playing and I looked over to see Seraphia clapping for the first time ever.  So, I snatched the opportunity:

Sooo, all clapping aside, here’s what the entire design looked like sans taping, cutting, moving down, and taping and cutting again:

Last, I rolled on one coat of white primer followed by one coat of white paint leftover from painting the stripes, took off the tape right after painting, and… …greek key everyone…and a free one at that.  I used things I already had on hand…love those kinds of projects!   

You might’ve also noticed we moved/squeezed in the second crib which means that the girls have officially taken up residence in their own room!  As a matter of fact, I snapped these pics right after laying them down for a nap that day.  Little angels I tell ya!  :) 

Well, the only thing left to do for the window seat is to make a cushion and that’s it.  I’m still hunting for some cheap fabric for that so it’s on to another project involving a mirror, some pretty paint, and some sticks.  Stay tuned!

.           .           .

Anyone else used tape in creating recently?  How about painting a greek key pattern somewhere?  Speaking of greek key, how cool would it be to turn it up a notch and greek key an entire wall, the front/top of a dresser or desk, or a box of some sort, or the bottom of a tray, or around a mirror…the possibilities are endless!