June 21, 2016

The Bug Prints

Hey y'all!

I hope your week is going well. I wanted to share another project that happened in my blog hiatus this winter!

My mom gave me some loose insect prints a while back, and I've been hoarding them in a drawer since moving into the apartment. This past winter, I finally round up the extra cash to get a few of my favorites framed! I picked my four favorites and headed off to Michael's to pick out frames.

A picture of all four!

I've only gotten two pictures framed in my life - my diploma and a fish print, so I was a little lost in where to go with the colors. I ended up modeling the mats and frames around a set of monkey prints my mom also gave me (thanks, Mom)! Michael's didn't have the exact matching frame, but I really liked the antique look of the frames I chose. The mat is just smooth and off-white - nothing too fancy here!

A close up of one of my favorites!

I LOVE how they turned out. The lady at Michael's was super helpful in making sure they all looked uniform, as some of the prints were slightly different sizes and needed different sized mats. She also helped make sure that I got these done for as good of a deal as possible! ;)

Here they are hanging, where I initially put them after pickup!


I actually have these hanging on either side of the fireplace now. I hope to have a post up soon with details of how the house is currently looking!

Until next time!
Emmi


May 29, 2016

More Rattan Chairs

Hey y'all!

I wanted to share these rattan chairs with you! This is one of the projects I've done since last September ;) so I apologize for the lack of pictures!

Dalton spotted these rattan chairs in Goodwill when I was out of town one weekend, and sent me a picture as he was leaving the store. I told him to go back and get them, and he claimed that they had been bought when he came back for them. When I returned home on Sunday, these beauties were waiting for me. :)

Maybe my favorite surprise ever.

There are only three of them, but that works for me! They sat in this spot for a few weeks, until I finally got around to recovering them. I wiped them down to remove the dirt and cobwebs, and I thought they looked good enough to leave unpainted! Here's the finished product.

Of course the third one was recovered, as well. :)

They are currently scattered around the house- one in Dalton's room as a desk chair (goodbye tacky rolling chair!), one is at the head of the dining room table, and one is an accent chair. 

Recently I've been in a "keep the natural stain of the wood" funk, so for now I'm enjoying them sans paint! What do you think?

Until next time!
Emmi

April 17, 2016

Where I've Been!

HELLOOO Blog friends!!

SUPER LONG time, no see. Boy, do I have a lot to catch you up on! 

One of the main reasons I've been absent is because my old laptop finally puffed its last breath. Thankfully, I got a new laptop for Christmas (thanks mom)! And here we are in April, but "A" for effort, right? I'm going to try to start blogging again, as I miss sharing what's going on in my life with the world!

Secondly, I've moved!! That's right... I said goodbye to my sweet little apartment and moved into a... (drumroll) HOUSE! Actually, it's just a rental ;) and I've been here since the beginning of November. Ellie and I moved in with my boyfriend, Dalton, and his dog, Winston. I can't wait to share some pictures of how things look around here!

For now, let me update you on what's happened in the past 9 months. 

I got a new car!

Ellie was a sushi roll for Halloween...

And I was Ellie... (no surprise here)

I moved out of 110...

And into the house, just in time for Christmas decorating! ;)

I've been decorating the house... (more to come on this!!)

We had a big snow!

Dalton set up the cutest Valentine's surprise dinner...

Complete with a three course meal for the dogs!

I found an awesome spool bed for Dalton's room...

And made some gigantic pillows for the bed!

But most importantly, Ellie is L-O-V-I-N-G living here, with her best friend (Winston) and her own personal fence! Just look at the expression on her sweet little face! :)

I'm going to try my best to be back soon, with updates on recent projects! 
Happy Spring, friends!

Until next time,
Emmi


August 31, 2015

My Apartment Update

Happy Monday!

After lots of thinking-about-it-but-never-getting-around-to-it, I'm finally posting on how my apartment looks now! My apartment has changed so much since last May (and last August, and last month, really!) and I'm so excited to share some pictures. I'm really proud of how things are starting to look, and while this post is mostly for my family to see my updates, I hope readers that I don't know can enjoy it as well. 

You're definitely going to see a few eyesores here and there, but I'm tired of not posting because of the random pieces that don't have a home. So, I'm telling myself its a work in progress and sharing away! :)


This is the view from my couch, which shows what I did with the Henredon chest that I found a few weeks ago at Salvation Army. The chairs are from Target (but I found them at Goodwill- score!), the coffee table is also from Goodwill (you can see it's transformation here), and the framed monkey/armadillo prints were my mom's! 

I can't forget about the gigantic seagrass rug, which my aunt gave to me. I LOVE it!

I am very aware of the (HUGE BUNDLE) of wires in the corner, and that's one work-in-progress. I'm currently in the market for a dark brown wicker basket to stash them in!


I had to take a close-up of the coffee table to include sweet little Ellie. I gave her a cow hoof to occupy her while I typed this... am I a bad dog mom?

The books in the tray I've mostly collected as gifts! I think they add some much-needed color. The foo dog is from Christmas!


Here's the view to the right of the couch. You may recognize the pie safe from this post. Its been moved again! Now I use it as pillow/blanket storage- when Ellie and I watch TV, snuggling is a must! 

Also shown is the Dixie Campaigner side table I found on Craigslist. I can't remember if I ever posted on this piece, but it's now serving as my bar table. I wish I could say I mixed drinks from it all the time, but (un)fortunately it's mainly for decor. :)

(Please note my diploma... Go Tigers!)


A little close-up! (Lamp is from Goodwill!)


This is the table beside my couch. The little collection of pictures covers up the (nail holes in the) wall. My grandma painted the bottom one, which is a landscape from Bluffton, SC.


So you can see a little better... My mom gave me the lamp and foo dogs, and everything else is from random thrift shops!


The view to the left of the couch. I've gotten so many compliments about this impostor Draper chest, and as you can guess it's one of my favorite things. I found this in an antique shop in Anderson, South Carolina. The squiggles were gray and it had black pulls, but I painted it gold and added the rings!

My grandma also painted this blue and white watercolor (thanks Dee!), which matches my old monogrammed pink pillow pretty well. The mirror I found at Goodwill! It was actually white when I found it, and I'm currently debating on what color to paint it... 


A close-up. (Hey Dad!) The candle is from my aunt's gift shop (thanks Mimi!), and is Votivo. They are made in South Carolina and last forever! This fragrance is "Pink Mimosa."


My couch!! This may not be everyone's style, but I went through two other couches before finding this one. It was also found at Salvation Army, and for a steal. I can literally list all the things I love about it. 

(1) Its worn leather, so it doesn't get dirty and smelly like cloth. 
(2) It has nailhead on the arms! 
(3) It sits too low to the ground for a tennis ball to roll under (honestly, this was it's most appealing quality when I bought it!) 
(4) It is long enough to sleep on, and the arms don't hurt when you lay your head on them! 
(5) It is down stuffed, so it's super comfy. 
(6) The cushions are deep and don't slide out when you sit on them. 

Okay, I'm going to stop myself because I seriously could go on and on. Most all pillows in my apartment, I made myself. This picture shows a really good view of the other half of my apartment. 


The table that my TV used to sit on now acts as a catch-all.


Surprisingly, I have been keeping this table pretty clutter-free. I think that's because I like how it turned out so much here, that I don't want junk piled on top of it! 

Bonus: this fab picture of me! Please ignore my face!


The fish platter came from Goodwill, the bookends from Christmas, and the lamps from my aunt's store! (I may have mentioned in a previous post, but the palm trees were candle stick that I converted into lamps! I love them!)


Lastly, my little breakfast nook. This corner cupboard has migrated its way back to the kitchen, where it's now giving height to this little room. As I mentioned before, my rattan chairs are now black!

What do you think of my apartment? I had every intention to write this post weeks ago, but let's get real... The only reason I did it today was because I cleaned up yesterday! ;) Be on the lookout for the long-promised post on my bathroom update!

Until next time,
Emmi and Ellie

August 12, 2015

The Green Medicine Cabinet

Hey y'all!

I want to share with you how I'm going to start sprucing up my bathroom. Honestly, this space in my apartment is ugly. Pretty much everyone who sees my living room will eventually see my bathroom, so why have it looking like a wreck? I can do much better!

The first thing I've done to make the bathroom a happier place is painting my little green medicine cabinet. It's actually not mine, it's my aunt's (thank you, Mimi!). This little cabinet was one of the pieces she let me take when I moved up here. 

When I first moved in, I hung it on the only free wall in my bathroom. Since haphazardly hanging it, I've never regretted the decision! It's been a great place to fold up bath cloths for easy access from the shower, and also can hold a full pack of toilet paper like a champ. :) 

Here it is in it's former green glory...


And so you can see the shower curtain...

It clashes pretty bad, right?

And now for the paint job! The new color? Black, of course.



I'm loving the new paint job. What do you think? Be on the lookout for a post on my bathroom re-do, as well as an update on what I did with my "new" Henredon campaign chest from last weekend! :)

Until next time!
Emmi 

August 7, 2015

Friday Find!

Happy Friday!!

I'm posting from my phone for the first time ever to share this awesome find I JUST stumbled across...

Say "hello" to my newest addition- this Henredon Campaign Chest!


Yes, this picture is straight out of the SALVATION ARMY that I found it in! I can't believe it!

This bad boy has a "SOLD" sign on it now, and is waiting for me to pick it up tomorrow! 

Be on the lookout to see what I do with it! Plus better pictures. :) 

Until next time!
Emmi

July 21, 2015

July Update

Hi Everyone!

My apologies for my recent absence! I've had lots going on, and just haven't had time to blog. I guess that's a good thing though, right? Let this post serve as an update to what's been going on in my life...

The most blog-relevant thing that has happened since my last post is this campaign dresser!


I found this Dixie Campaigner (and it's matching side table) at a junk store in Statesville, NC. I scored both for just $40! As soon as I got it home, I knew it would look great with liquor bottles on it! (Yes, this means my poor little pie safe has been stripped of it's bar duties. But don't worry, I've found an even better use for it!) I LOVE this set up so much, and I'm also loving that this dresser isn't in perfect condition. (Un)fortunately the laminate is chipping in some places, but sometimes I like when furniture looks "well-loved!" Don't you think it looks nice here? You know I do. :) 

I currently have no use for it's matching side table (shorter, with two drawers) and have posted it on Craigslist. Anyone interested? ;) hehe

Other happenings in the past few weeks...

...My friends and I threw a 4th of July party! We kind of match, right?

...We joined my family in Santa Rosa Beach, FL for a couple days of beach vacation! How pretty is this water?

...I got to see both of my brothers!

...Dalton and I visited the Georgia Botanical Gardens in Athens, GA on the way back to NC.

...I got to experience a little UGA night life.

...And after a week of traveling, I was so happy to be in my little apartment snuggling with these puppies!

Hope you didn't miss me too much! I'll be back in the near future with some project updates.

Until next time!
Emmi and Ellie






June 9, 2015

Summer Wreath

Happy Tuesday!

I haven't fallen off the face of the planet, I promise. I've been working on (too) many things all at once this past weekend. This was one of the best weekends I've had in a long time, and I have a feeling it's because of all the projects I have on my plate. :) Be looking for future posts with the details! 

But to hold you over... I added magnolias to my "Spring Wreath" in honor of it essentially being summer here in North Carolina. 


What do you think? Too out-there? Flashy? Loud? (Spoiler: I love it.)

And a little close up...

Until next time!
Emmi

May 22, 2015

The Pie Safe

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

As promised, a post on the pie safe!

For as long as I've known the pie safe, it has been in my aunt's gift shop. However, my grandma told me that she bought it at an auction years ago, and then it was used by my mom until she put it in storage. Some time later my aunt starting using it, and now finally it's mine! I've always liked the pie safe for its details and it's rustic look. When it was in the store it was never the easiest to decorate (Mimi, you know what I mean!), but I've still always thought it was cool.

After toting it back from Pinehurst weekend before last, it sat in my car for a week. I've never claimed to not be lazy, right? Once I got it inside, (since I'm embarrassingly out of room in this apartment) it instantly got priority over the little green dresser I was using as a bar cart (its sooo much cooler and matches my neutral colors).

Here are a few pictures I had snapped of the green dresser when it was a bar cart. I got too excited to take pictures of the "before" when I brought the pie safe in!

The little green dresser acting as my bar cart, before.

Eek.

I put the little dresser in my closet for clothes storage, and moved the pie safe to it's place. I knew I needed to incorporate liquor into it somehow, and at first thought it would all go on top. After moving things around, I came up with this.

Ta-da! 

My wooden fish. I found the gigantic red fish in the Hilton Head Goodwill. The white was a Christmas present!

I think the little lamp brightens it up and makes it look home-y. And how perfect is the bottom shelf for my extra books?

Detail of the liquor! Yes, I know some of these bottles aren't actual liquor...

A Goodwill lamp!

No, I have never read any of these books... I found most of them at Goodwill/other thrift shops, and bought them solely for display purposes. (We all have our flaws!) I like to pick funny titles... You might see a few in there.

 My ice bucket and bar utensils!

And how it looks closed up!

What do you think? I like that I can keep the safe opened or closed. There's also something special about having to open the doors to the alcohol out! 

I hope your Memorial Day weekend is a relaxing one!

Until next time!
Emmi