From Pallet to China Cabinet

I've been wanting a China Cabinet for a long time now but if you have ever seen my house, you know there is NO room! So I saw something on Pinterest that sparked my imagination and from it came this........



I know......I'm in love! Its just a pallet! We have several places around here that just throw pallets away, so I asked Tyler to pick up a few on his way home from work. Total cost of this project was about $7 dollars. If you'll notice, that's the same $2 paint I used in my previous post, Pinned That...Made This. The pallet was free, so all I needed after that was some sand paper, nails, and screws....and a big strong man of course because, that pallet weighs in at 60 lbs.

It started like this. Tyler and I sanded it down and got all the dirt and grime off of it.


After we painted it white and sanded it to look "vintage," I painted diamonds on the front surface using a stencil printed off the internet and cut out.


Each time we moved the stencil, Tyler carefully measured out where we should place the next one so the diamonds would be all in line and even. He's so sweet.


More diamond painting.......


I was a tad bit worried once we finished the diamonds because they were SUPER purple and it looked a bit "loud". So......what did we do? Sanded it. You can usually fix everything with a little sand paper.

See how excited he is about more sanding?? hehe.

Looked MUCH better after that last bit of sanding.......

and VIOLA!!


Its quite thin.


Details.
It is a perfect "lead in" from my purple and green kitchen!

I loved it so much, I've made my Mama one too! We'll let her show you.....eventually.

Pinned that.....Made This

DIY found on Pinterest

I've had the same knife block since my Sophomore year at Clemson. The knives are not very sharp, however the paint sample at Lowe's was only $2 and of course I already had the rhinestones so after seeing the post on Pinterest, I had to try it!

Before....

During......

After......

From Broken to Beautiful

Here is my latest project. It was a thrift store purchase to be used as a display for my jewelry, then I fell in love with the mirror and wanted to do the "Anthro Acid Mirror" as you have probably seen on TV. Weellll, as I was scrapping the paint off the back of the mirror, it shattered. So, from beginning to end -- here it is, disaster turned useful.

As you can see, just getting the black tar paint off the wooden frame was a huge improvement

We painted the base-coat this grey color. After it dried, we put a special "crackle" stain over it. The top coat was painted white, as it dried over the crackle stain, it cracked. Turned out pretty cool.


This was my unexpected turn for the worst. Sad face.



I was still in love with the frame and had a piece of mirror remaining so I sanded the sharp edges and continued on my course....I lined the back of the cardboard with scrap pieces of wall paper (thanks Mom for the "sample" book).




Close up of the "acid" technique. My next mirror will not shatter....hopefully.

Finished product. In the end I got an "acid mirror" and a place to hang my earrings. Not to shabby! (if you click on the picture, it makes it bigger so you can see detail.)

It's Only The Two Year Anniversary

I've heard a bunch of people say it....and to be honest I've said it several times in the two years we have been together. It was kind of a joke between Tyler and I. He would say something cheesy like, "I'm so glad we are together, I can't wait until our next anniversary". I would respond with, "I love you but no one else cares about the two year anniversary." He would roll his eyes, shake his head, and laugh it off....much like everything else I say that is ridiculous.

If you don't know, for our two year anniversary, I was home in SC working an externship and Tyler was working in MS. We weren't even together. I thought that alone proved that no one cares about your two year anniversary. The 1st is important, then all the rest fade to the background until you hit 25 years! Tyler was scheduled to come home the weekend after our two year anniversary to attend an annual "get together" we have every year. We both said that's when we will also celebrate our two year anniversary. No biggie right??


For my gift, I had scheduled a trip to the Greenville Drive Baseball game and a two nights stay at Magnolia Inn in Traveler's Rest. I wanted him to have a break from work and and a place where we could just relax and chill out. Here are a few pictures from our stay....

Late night supper after the game.

Relaxing by the pool.


We took a bike ride.There was a yummy restaurant along the bike trail.

Now....on to Tyler's Part. He took me to PF Chang's for supper. Everything was sweet and perfect. Once we got there, Tyler suggested a "dinner for two" package on the menu. He kept saying, "I can't believe this is our two year anniversary." The entire night he was emphasizing how special I was.....which is not out of the normal...he's always "cheesy." Lol. The entire night he had a card and a bag on the table....he wouldn't let me touch the bag. I only could look at it. When the waiter brought out the desserts, Tyler finally let me open the gift......after the card of course.



The card had two hearts on the front and in the inside. Noticing a trend here?

I finally got to open the gift, in it I found a diamond band. It matches my set and we had talked about adding it for our 25 year anniversary!! I was shocked. Tyler doesn't usually get to surprise me because I can figure him out. This was a wonderful surprise!! He went on to tell me how special I was, and so on and so forth, how special EVERY anniversary is, and how he appreciates everything I do. Now I get to look at the "complete" ring set 23 years early and feel more special now than he could have possibly made it then!! Awwwwwwww. I know, real mushy.


So, the point of this mushy post is not about the ring (although that is a HUGE bonus). Its about the fact that my husband, has successfully conveyed to me how important our relationship is to him, how special not only every anniversary is but every day is to him, and how important I am in his life. That is the best anniversary gift a gal could ask for.


To top it all off, the fortune cookie said, "a small gift can bring joy to the whole family."
Joy, and Love, and Hope, and Excitement, and Meaning. He's simply the best.
Click For More Anniversary Pictures

DIY Project

If you know me at all you know I love all things cottage, chic, and sparkly. I also LOVE "do it yourself" projects. On the parents' recent visit with us, Mom and I found this ugly (but with potential) breadbox at the goodwill store. I couldn't leave it behind. I think I paid $5 bucks for it, which is important to know on projects such as this. Anyway, I was particularly proud of the result and had to share. Plus....I haven't blogged in forever. Enjoy!


Before

Ugly


In Process



Taaadaa! Love it!



The knob is my favorite part!



Thanks for tuning in. I'd like to say I'll keep up with this blog but since I'm on ICU (intensive care unit) and CPC (senior presentation) prep.....I'll probably be missing for a bit.

Senior Portraits

We had our Senior Portraits made on Thursday. It was surreal to say the least. Here are a few shots from my cell phone.


My pal, Juliana. She fixed me and I fixed her to be sure our pictures came out perfect.


They gave us a "drape" to put on. This picture is funny because we still had our scrub bottoms on. Ha.


This one is blurry but here's the Veterinary School Photographer. I think his name is Mr. Thompson.



I finished my Anesthesia rotation on Friday. When I got home, there were flowers waiting on me. :) Tyler and I went to a movie to relax and enjoy life before my 6 week "Small Animal Surgery" Rotation starts on Monday.