Antique Wardrobe Turned into Sewing Room

I took an antique wardrobe I recently brought home and created a sewing room.  I have never had a place to create or store any of my sewing gear.  I always just pulled it out, had it in the way, and then put it away hoping the kids didn't destroy it. 

I tried to use only vintage or antique items to store everything in.  This side holds the hanging fabric that is ready to be made into something.  I have a cutting board folded up on the side and a serger in the bottom.  Above the fabric on the shelf, I have a vintage office basket holding my shipping envelopes and a antique punch bowl holding ribbon.

I really thought hard about what to do with the ribbon.  There are many cute ways to store ribbon.  This punch bowl is huge and it was perfect to do the job.  It also gives ma a great way to store the punch bowl and when it is party time I can still pull it out and use it.

Knowing how many beautiful work spaces there are in blogland I had to try to make this small sewing room a little bit fun.  So I created a mini doily bunting and a hand lettered burlap banner to give a little inspiration to the space.

This wardrobe is really huge.  When a whole sewing machine fits on a shelf, it gives you a feel for how much storage space there was to work with.

For a lot of things I create I really never use a pattern, but I had a few patterns I placed in this vintage hanging basket.  The only new thing in the wardrobe is the bulletin board, which I can use for inspiration pictures, fabric, or trim swatches.

The rest of the punch bowl set came in handy too.  The under plate is holding the twelve cups which make a nice place to store lace.  I am always throwing a pin or single button into the cabinet that holds my sewing equipment and I thought the under plate will be a great thing to use in this way as a catch all.

I thought this was a perfect place to show off a few treasures from some important sewers in my life.  This is a vintage Holly Hobby doll hand made by my Grandmother for me. 

Another treasure, on the left, is a china doll handmade for me by my mother.  A piece of art pottery holds some rope and a vintage Ball canning jar holds all of the scissors.

A zinc cloche holds a stack of thread, making it easy to see which color you need.

This shelf has vintage tins and canisters full of lavender to make sachets.  There is also a vintage sewing kit made out of a jelly jar, a white picket planter holding white lace and rick rack, and an antique toy Singer sewing machine.

And, here on the final shelf is the sewing machine, a vintage card file box, and a "Butts" pail.  The "Butts" pail still has the Woolworth's sticker on it and I found it for nothing at a yard sale.  It was a perfect place to store a bunch of buttons on cards.

Here the wardrobe is closed.  I keep a table right by this which will be the perfect work surface and possibly not too disturbed by my kids if I pull something out to work on it.  Possibly... I will get more made for my Etsy shop now!?  

  Sherry 

  I will join:

Sunday's Best Party  at My 1929 Charmer

Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper

Sunny Simple Sundays  at Sunny Simple Life

Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick
Cottage Style Link Party  at Lavender Garden Cottage

Say G'Day Saturday  at Natasha in Oz

Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Transformation Thursday at Shabby Creek Cottage
Furniture Feature Friday  at Miss Mustard Seeed
Summer Cloche Party  at A Stroll Thru Life

Stenciling on Furniture and Some DIY

A little remodeling is taking place at our house this week.  We had some of the furniture backed up to one another and pushed out of the way and I walked by this secretary and did a double take.

 There is an original stencil marking this piece on the back.  I didn't know it was there.  I suppose this was a manufactured piece and this was just a way to mark it.  It probably dates from the 1900's. Did anyone know that they marked American furniture in this way?  I don't know much about it but, thought it was neat, since these stencils are showing up  every where.  

So, I have some wonderful new furniture that is "new" to me and all I wanted in my old living room (which is now my dining room) was a new floor, BUT Hubs, who is a weekend warrior (which now, in our older age, is more like a week long warrior on "staycation") has my dining room looking like this..... 

.....I went and got some new Swiffer dusters.....and Swiffer wet mopy things.......I hope it helps.

Sherry

Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage 

Furniture Feature Friday  at Miss Mustard Seed

Glow in the Garden

Our crabapple has bloomed and it is a rare year that it feels more like May than April. With the spring transformation going on in the garden, I took full advantage of that by having a little table set up. (This is a re-post from 2010.)

The sun will set soon but it is a beautiful night. Come and sit a while and let's enjoy the view.

Romantic is the mood that is set. 

I don't care for perfection. I like even my flowers to be losing petals and a little shabby.

You can never have too many flowers....

shells...

or candles.

If you can invite some cherubs from the sea...all the better.

Our sherbet is filled with strawberries and kiwi with a dessert wine sauce. Garnished with a mint leaf and a violet.

The white porcelain dinner plates are from Walmart, the salad plates from the thrift store, and the sherbets also from the thrift store.

The goblets are Longchamp by Cristal D'Arques from Macy's.

The silver is English Gadroon by Gorham. 

Walking to the table I picked a hyacinth and a few sprigs of rosemary for the lovely smell.

The sun is about to set.

Here comes the glow.

Clear the dishes....

and enjoy.  You can view this tablescape in my movie format also.

I will join the Summer Blog Party with this.  This entry goes to:
Summer Entertaining at No Minimalist Here. 

Seasonal Change

With Labor Day fast approaching, the kids back in school, and our first home football game (which they won!) it can only mean the seasonal change is right around the corner.  The days are getting shorter and the nights are crisp and cool so my decor has got to change.  I have had this wreath on the door all summer.

But, as much as I love the beach, I wanted to give the front door a little more of a harvest feel.  

This wreath was super easy to make.  I just took two different colored sunflower picks and took a sunflower off of the grouping of sunflowers with pliers.  I took the two different colored sunflowers and wove them into the top of a 12-inch grapevine wreath.  It looked a little bare so, I had picked up two sunflower picks at Joann Fabrics (these picks had leaves, berries, and wheat on them) and I stuck one of those on each side of the sunflowers and that gave it the look I wanted.  I was trying to go for simplicity with a touch of color. I love the seasonal changes and will always have a lot of that in this blog.

I will remind you of my CSN $45 gift certificate giveaway.  Click here to enter. 

 I will also remind you to enter any giveaways you might be hosting to Atticmag's giveaway link up for their Giveaway Friday. Click here to enter.  They are also hosting a backsplash giveaway if you need a new backsplash!

 I will link to these parties:

Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch 

Just Something I Whipped Up at The Girl Creative

Making the World Cuter at making the World Cuter

Market Yourself Monday at Sumo's Sweet Stuff

Show Off Your Cottage Monday at The House in the Roses

Make It For Monday at Cottage Instincts

Toot Your Horn Tuesday at Silly Little Sparrow

Get Your Craft on Tuesdays  at Today's Creative Blog

Show and Tell Wednesday at Blue Cricket Design

Whatever Goes Wednesday at Someday Crafts

Transformation Thursday  at The Shabby Chic Cottage

Slipcovering the Chairs

Sometimes the hardest space to decorate is your own.  Then, factor in the lack of a budget and your space becomes a very challenging project.  When we remodeled two years ago we added so much space I got my long awaited for dining room.  It used to be our living room.  But, after that large a remodel there were no dollars for anything to go into that new dining room.  I had some luck in getting a few pieces of furniture from family.  Now the challenge becomes making it your own and not a mixed up grouping of furniture.  I have been working hard on making the pieces of furniture all fit together and one of the easiest ways to restyle a chair is to slipcover it.  This table came to me with four chairs.  They go with the table but I never have liked the pattern on the back of the chair.  So, I left them alone for awhile and tried to decide what to do with them.  

After much debate, I finally decided on osnaburg (Honest  berg) fabric.  It looks like a grain sack but they sell it by the bolt at Walmart.  I believe it was right at $4 a yard.  This fabric is used in primitive crafts.  Pictured here is the fitting of the slipcover.

Half of the fun of slip covering is that you have a blank slate and you can do just about anything.  I wanted a flirty fun twist so I laced up the back of my slip cover with a black grosgrain ribbon.  

 

I first created this slip cover for an Irish pub table I did in March.  For that slip cover I painted No. 3 Dublin on the front.   This is what I mean about being able to design them any way you want.  

Here are the finished slip covers.  I can't do anything about the floor yet, but I do have some other things in the dining room I will show off soon.

Price to slip cover 4 chairs under $50.

 I will link to :

100 Ideas for Under $100 at Beyond the Picket Fence

Penny Pinching Party  at The Thrifty Home

Whatever Goes Wednesday at Someday Crafts

Fabric  Fun Thursday at Cheap Chic Home

Transformation Thursday at the Shabby Chic Cottage

Strut Your Stuff at Somewhat Simple

A Taste of Fall

Now I know some of you are not ready to hear this, but fall is around the corner.  Yikes! I know.  I register the kids for school in less than a week.  The days are already getting shorter and the apple trees are getting some color.   So, for some of us who get excited by fall (that's me), I just couldn't help myself.  I had to do a fall colored table.  The catalogs are coming too, with all the fall tablescapes!  Can you tell this is my favorite season and the only one I have yet to blog about.  So, enough talk, here is my taste of fall.

The star of this table is my new lantern I reviewed for CSN Stores. Click here to read that review.  

It is a double candle lantern.  With plenty of room to decorate around the candles.  

 Just look at the curved glass sides!!  Oh, okay I'm moving on.  I kinda like this lantern can you tell?

 Lantern provided by CSN Stores.  Click link to view all of their great online stores for your fall needs. 

Goblets by Icon Glassware pattern Capri.

Dinner and salad plates by Hotel Balfour.

Flatware vintage.

Napkins vintage.

Table runner vintage.

Wine jug vintage. 
I will join Style Sisters for Centerpiece Wednesday at the blog The Style Sisters.

I will join Susan for Tablescape Thursday at her site Between Naps on the Porch.

I will join Gina for Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Chic Cottage.

I will also join Cindy for Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.
And, Inspired by Fridays at The Inspired Room.

Please go over and check out all of the lovely things going on.