My House Smells Like a Giant Pickle

So, I've been building this farmhouse table for my mom for her birthday...are you tired of hearing about this yet? She wanted me to use 100 year old wood. Seriously. Do you know how hard it is to find old wood in good condition? I was starting to stress when I found Tiffany from Hello. Howdy. How are you.  She made a farmhouse table and had found (and tried) and great technique for making new wood old. She also built a kick butt farmhouse table you can check out here.

The technique is as follows:

1. put fine (0000) steel wool pads in a mason jar
2. fill jar with white vinegar (I used distilled)
3. throw in a few rusty nails and washers
3. let jar sit overnight (mine sat 20 hours)
4. shake jar and apply vinegar to wood

Here's my jar. Sitting for 20 hours. After a few hours I opened it just to see what was going on inside. It semi exploded, vinegar went everywhere and my house smelled like a giant pickle. So...I closed it back up and waited. 20 hours. I hope this works...

Rachel :)

DIY...Farmhouse Table Top

My mom wants her farmhouse table top to be 54" x 36" with a 6 inch overhang on all four sides. Easy, right? Wrong. I built the frame first...42" x 24". The top was going to be made using 1x8 planks. All I had to do was cut the right length and screw them into the frame...well...not exactly. A true 8" wide plank actually measures about 7 1/4 inches. No problem...5 boards would make the table 36" across. I forgot about the overhang though. With a 6 inch overhang, only an inch strip of the side boards would actually be attached to the frame. hmmmmm...probably not a good idea. I can picture my brother mooning my sister, running and laughing hysterically to get away, crashing into the table, and having the side planks fall off. OK. Bad idea. Back to the drawing board.

Trying to keep it simple, I made an executive decision to remove a board, making the table only 30" in width. Still enough room for 6 people, two on each side and one at each end. I cut the boards to 54", sanded until they were nice and smooth and rounded the corners and edges. Placing them on top of the frame, the table started to come together...

Yes...I know. By now, I had broken rules number 1, 2, and 3... The top was now going to be 54" x 30". The decrease in top size and the base already built would mean that the long sides would only have a 3 inch overhang stead of the 6 my mom wanted. Then there was the issue of old wood. I had used freshly planked, off the rack pine from my local hardware store. I had a plan to make this new wood old...and I was running out of time...

Rachel :)

DIY...Farmhouse Table Frame

If you read this post, then you already know I'm making my mom a farmhouse table for her birthday. It's not a surprise...she's pretty picky, which is why she currently doesn't have a dining table in her beach house. Her instructions were:

1. 54" x 36" table top

2. a 6 inch overhang on all four sides

3. a top from old wood

4. she wanted the edges sanded and rounded

5. and, she's not a huge fan of dark wood...

The first thing I did was build the frame. Simple, right? I took her dimensions, subtracted the inches for the overhang, and built a frame. I already had antique table legs which I used and built an apron to surround them. I used 1" x 2" strips for the apron and made mitered cuts for the corners. I used this same wood to cut two support beams to go in the center of the frame. I cut 5" x 5" pine squares for the tops of the legs. Mr. T screwed from the top of the square into the leg to secure it. The apron was then attached around...

laying out the frame

tops of legs

the apron...Mr. T sunk the screws so I could patch and paint over

mitered corner

I decided to go with a mitered corner rather than a box corner. It took a little more measuring and work, but looks great and was worth it! A few years ago Mr. T gave me a miter saw for Christmas. Best gift ever!!! Every housewife and stay at home mom needs their own miter saw. Seriously.

He also gave me safety goggles which I always never wear! (just kidding Mom:)) Come back tomorrow for the Farmhouse Table Top...you know, the one made from 100 year old wood. That I planked. By myself. Not really...

Rachel :)

I love shaving my legs!

Yes, you read the title of this post correctly!  No longer is it a chore to be dreaded in the Summer and avoided until I look like a yeti in the Winter!  I have discovered Eos (it stands for Evolution of Smooth-how cute is that?) shave cream.  This is the best shave cream I have ever used.  You can use it wet or DRY!  I shaved my legs in the middle of my bathroom floor this morning and my legs are silky smooth with no red bumps (I took a shower last night before bed and was too lazy to do it then. While I was getting dressed this morning I realized it was a necessity not an option).  I never thought I would be moved to write about something as mundane as shave cream, but this product is amazing.  It feels like lotion.  I could go on and on about how much I love it, but just do yourself a favor and go buy some.  I am probably about to go buy every product they make.

Also, I guess I should note that Eos did not pay me to write this blog or endorse their product.  Although we appreciate each and every one of you who reads our blog and comments, I don't think we have enough followers to get free stuff, yet!  Eos, I WOULD welcome anything you care to send me, though.

Xoxo,
Marlene

Saturday Feature

It's Saturday!! Time to be lazy, hang out at the house, and spend time with the family. Kuddos to my Brainy Smurf who finished his first Triathlon today! He rocked it in 27 minutes with a 100 meter swim, 3 mile bike ride, and 1 mile run! Go Brainy!!

Many thanks go out to A Lived in Home who gave us a shout out today in her Weekend Feature. Go check her out! Have a great weekend!!

Rachel :)

Almost, but not quite...

I found this picture on Pinterest.  It is so sweet that I would ALMOST have another baby just to be able to stage this photo.  Good reason to have a child, no?  I just made this exact ring for a client who got married a month ago.  As soon as I saw this picture, I sent it to her and asked if she would go ahead and have a kid so we could take this photo.  Her answer was something along the lines of an elaborate, slightly rude "NO"!!!  At any rate, I thought I would share it because not only do I love the ring design, I just loooovvveee those newborn baby feet!

xoxo,

Marlene

Watch Out!

After going to sewing camp all week (yes, there really is such a thing), she's got the fever...and she could become the next Smurfette Chanel...

Maybe she'll take the world by storm!

Rachel :)

Working on the Farm

No, we haven't gone crazy and moved to the country...I've started working on my Mom's birthday present...a farmhouse dining table for her cute place at the beach. You know, the place I've never been to...I'll admit, I haven't gotten very far, but here is a sneak peak:

That's the wood that's going to become the top of the table. In the back of my minivan. While I do know that minivans rate about a -247 on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being super cool, one...not so much) they are super practical and super great at hauling all of my and the Smurfs stuff around town. I'm so cool, this is actually my second minivan. What can I say...I heart them.

And these are a 10 on the "stuff that is cool" scale. They are antique table legs that I purchased at Scotts Antique Market in Atlanta a couple of years ago. Yes, there are four there and I'm going to try really hard to not build a three legged table. They've been hanging out since I bought them, collecting a little dust, and waiting on me to decide how to use them...here it is!

Rachel :)

Say Cheese!

Photobooths are all the rage and these days you can find them everywhere from weddings and class reunions to formal and casual events...even backyard birthday parties. They come in all shapes, sizes, and price ranges. Working on a budget we decided to have a DIY photobooth. I was lucky enough to have an old white shower curtain we were not using. I started by taking a wooden dowel and weaved it through the grommets. I then tied string to the ends of the dowel rod and hung the "backdrop" on the side of our carport using finishing nails.  I cut out stars from a cardboard box, gave them a coat of spray paint and glitter, and our photobooth was born. Mr. T set up a tripod with an old digital camera zoomed in perfectly so the girls could take their own pictures. Beside the photobooth we set up a container with dress up items and other accessories to make the picture taking a little more fun...

It was a HIT! Give a group of 8 year old girls a camera and some props and they will keep you laughing all night!

Rachel :)

Movie Night

Smurfettes 8th birthday was last week and we had a great time celebrating Friday night with a High School Musical movie night. We woke up Friday morning to sunny skies which turned dark and rainy by 4pm...ugh! We braved the elements, and by 7pm (party time) the rain cleared and the girls had a GREAT times. Here are a few shots...

DIY Tissue Paper Pom-Poms and Dollar Tree Lanterns

Burlap table cover, wrapping paper runner, and DIY cake stands



Make your own Popcorn Cupcakes



outdoor movie provided by FunFlicks



DIY Outdoor Chalkboard

Smurfette's PlayHouse...a great Craigslist find

popcorn kernels + mason jars = Party Favors

I love having the Smurfs birthday parties at home with lots of fun activities to do. The girls watched a great movie and had tons of fun with chalk, bubbles, and playing in the backyard. Tomorrow I'll fill you in on one of the best parts of the party...

Rachel :)

Today...

Last night we had Smurfettes 8th birthday...wow!!! Where have the years gone? I'm freaking out because she is halfway to being able to DRIVE! Argh! I'll be back next week with lots of birthday pictures, but today we are recovering and doing nothing...



Have a great weekend!

Rachel :)

Organizing your Accessories

I am merging with Marlene today and posting some pictures with some great creative ways to organize your accessories. Enjoy!

A Full Measure of Happiness

Where Beauty Meets Function



33 Shades of Green



Amazon

Better Homes and Gardens

Cupcakes and Cashmere

One Womens Haven

Positively Splendid

My Closet

Rachel :)