New Entry Light

Okay, so when we first bought our home, our entry way looked like this. 

Lov-eh-ly, right?!?

Ahem, yeah, I didn't really think so either.

Over the last two years we've done a little here and there to improve it (new flooring, new open banister, frosted the big window above the doorway, etc.

But this whole time, we've still had that same old entry light hanging there ...and it really bugged me.  Like a lot.

So using my very meager "allowance" that my husband and I budget in for each other every month, I went down to my local Habitat for Humanity ReStore and found a nice used golden, brassy light fixture for a whopping $8.00. (I was so excited to find such a gem!)

I made the mistake of not taking a before picture.  Super sorry. 

But I'm sure you've all seen an old brassy light fixture at least once in your life, so just use your imagination.  It was nice and golden.

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The transformation from brassy to black: 

+ I lightly sanded all the metal parts of the fixture

+ Papered and taped up all of the glass

+ Sprayed the whole light with a couple of coats of primer ...and then the fun began.

I used a semi gloss black spray paint (the dollar kind) and watched the light begin to transform to something a little more modern.

In the picture above, you can see where I started to remove all the tape and paper I used to cover up the glass.  After cleaning up all of the glass with window cleaner and using a razor to chip away any little specks of paint that got on the glass, I was left with this:

Pretty.  So much better than what was there before.

(This is only an after shot of the light, not the whole entry way.  We have plans for all of these beams, arches, and metal railings too.  They just haven't quite worked their way into our budget quite yet.)

I'm so grateful to now have a new and improved entry light in this lovely split level fixer of ours.  And with $1.00 black spray paint and an $8.00 brassy light fixture, (and primer, painters tape and sandpaper already in hand), it only cost me $9.00!
What a stink'in good deal, right?


Have a lovely weekend friends.

Linked to:  The Shabby Nest

New Dinner Plates ...You'll Never Guess Where I Found Them!

A couple of months ago my in-laws traveled a few thousand miles to come visit us.

We hadn't seen them in a super long time so it was a really special visit.

While they were here,

I knew we'd be sharing a lot of nice home cooked meals around the dinning room table.

So to make the meals even nicer, I wanted to buy some new dinner plates.

My current ones were from our wedding, which by now,had tiny chips all over the sides of them.

{...not pretty.}

I hit the jackpot when I found these plates

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at the dollar tree!

{Nice!!!}



My two favorite things about these plates:

...the subtle bead pattern around the edges + the price!

Happy Monday Everyone!

This is the last week my kiddos are in school and I can't wait for summer vacation to start!

A Good Day At GoodWill

I love Goodwill, but I'm kind of an irregular shopper there.  

Some months I'll make it there 2-3 times and other months I don't go at all.

Sometimes I go to Goodwill with a list in my mind of things I'm definitely on the look out for,

and other times I just go to browse.

Yesterday was just a spur of the moment browsing day.

I was in the mood to shop, but not in the mood to spend a lot of money.

It was my lucky day.

Boy, oh boy, did I find a lot of treasures!

{I totally wanted to do a little happy jig right there in the store, but I kept it cool.}

Two Hurricanes :: $2.50 ea.

 Gray Pillow :: $3.50

{I wouldn't normally buy a pillow from a thrift store.  But since it's just a decorative one I think it will be okay after a light cycle in the washing machine.}

Silver Candle Holder :: $2.00

 Vase Filler :: $2.00

Grand Total:  $12.50

Blanket Pillow

I bought this blanket at Target's after Christmas sale for three dollars.

I loved how soft it was and thought it would be a great fabric to make pillows with.

But, life keeps marching on at it's very busy, yet wonderful pace, and it's taken me till March to finally get to this project.



This is the first pillow I made out of the blanket and I still have pieces cut out to make another one.

I think eventually I'll put them on both of my daughter's beds.

But for now it sits here on our couch.



Cutting all those circles out by hand for the center part of the pillow took A LOT of time.

{Although watching "Emma" made it not quite so boring.}

I'm so happy with how it turned out.

A year ago, I don't think I could have ever imagined turning a blanket into a pillow.

It's amazing how the blog world can inspire you.

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On a totally different note, I'm offering free shipping through March 9th on any of the newly listed

ribbon belts in my etsy shop.

Just use coupon code: KHSBELTS

~I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

linked to:  Shabby Nest, Tatertots and Jello

Goodwill - Show & Tell

Last weekend I had the pleasure of leaving the kiddos at home with their daddy so I could go

Goodwill-treasure-hunting with a wonderful friend.

Because I'd recently just worked so hard to get rid of 100 things in order to simplify life, I told myself before I went out shopping that I was only going to buy something if it had a purpose.

It had to either make my home more organized

or

replace something that I liked, for something that I loved.

Well, mission accomplished! 

The first thing I found at Goodwill was a glass container with a silver metal lid for $2.00.

I washed it out really well, filled it with fluffy white cotton balls, and it found a happy home in our main bathroom.

It's purpose:  It provides cute practical organization.

The second thing I found were these amazing wall file holders for $1.50 a piece.

{Similar to the ones found here and here.}

I was a little disappointed that there were only two of them, but no worries.

I've already started spray painting them and I have big plans to use them in our new playroom.

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more on that later :)

The last thing I bought on our little thrifty outing was actually found on a detour we took to a charming little antique store.

{I should have taken a picture of this place!  It was Uuuhh-mazing!}

I scored this old chair there for just seven dollars!!!

It's solid wood, sturdy, and actually quite comfortable!

It's going to be my new computer chair and will replace the small black traditional office looking one I'm currently sitting on right now. 

{I'm sure you know the kind I'm talking about.  It's functional but totally not cute.}

I wish the weather were a little warmer already, but I'm not going to let that stop me.

This chair has already been sanded and primed.

I can't wait to show you what it looks like when it's all done!

Overall, I was really thrilled with the purchases I made.

I was careful not to buy anything that I didn't have a specific use for right now and the best part was

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I only spent twelve dollars!!!

Have you found any amazing thrifty deals lately?

I'd love to know!