November 18, 2010

Address Front and Center

I've always thought that a little front door re-do is one of the easiest ways to highlight your home. After a previous post on this subject, a friend asked me to help her with her front door/entry.

Before:


After:

Her house numbers were hidden most months of the year by a beautiful maple. The front door is the front and center focal point of her porch. Thus we ordered vinyl lettering from Etsy shop:  Allie000 . Best $10 transformation I have seen.

 



Also, the door mat was so small considering the space on the porch. Most of the area is covered by an overhang so it made sense so purchase an all weather rug from Frontgate.com that filled the area. 

One thing we considered while looking for an outdoor rug was how it would look with the existing flooring inside the home.  I love how this rug feels like an extension of the tiles inside the home.

Thanks for visiting and be sure to let me know if you have any questions. I had taken a ton of step by step photos detailing the application of the vinyl numbers. Unfortunately, something terrible happened in the uploading process and all of my images disappeared! Yes, they are gone!

November 9, 2010

Chalkboard Before/After

$30 Restaurant Chalkboard from 2ndUse

                         $12.98 Tintable Chalkboard Paint Home Depot      
                         
6 Coats of Paint

Random Notes

For months, I had my eye on a large restaurant chalkboard catalogued in 2nd Uses' online inventory.   I finally made it to their warehouse and finding it in stock. A bit of negotiating and cramming into my car and my new purchase was home with me.

This project couldn't be easier, especially considering the varieties of chalkboard paint available today. There are many colors you can select with the tintable chalkboard paint. I went with a dark charcoal gray. I ended up painting 6 coats to ensure coverage.  For optimal outcome, allow 24 hours between coats.

I delayed posting about this chalkboard project because I envisioned having a beautiful drawing or some great inspiring quote on the board before photographing. And here you have it... a Mom list left by college boy, a note from our neighbor, cross country meet score and my attempts at an inspiring quote along with a stick figure drawing. This dining room chalkboard will never be perfectly "coiffed" but it will always perfectly depict life at home.