All Dressed Up

4 Piece Bedroom Set

{$380}

This is a 4 piece set (I've included the mirror, bench, vanity desk and dresser) which I have had waiting for a makeover for a while now. It was so pretty, and I wanted to do something special with it. I had to post this picture because you can see Lucy perfectly in the mirror, sitting on top of the couch doing neighbourhood watch.....

One of my most "pinned" on Pinterest items is a dresser I did last year in a coral colour. As coral is super on-trend this year, I thought I would give this pretty set a trendy makeover with coral, navy and bronze.

The vanity desk is really adorable and has such nice deco lines. There is a ton of storage with 4 deep drawers plus the desk top area. The matching bench is the icing on the cake.

The dresser is a great size ~ especially if you want to use this in a young girl's room. It is not too tall, but with 4 drawers, it provides a good amount of storage with easy access.

The wooden knobs have been sprayed using a Benjamin Moore spray bomb in Deep Secret (CSP-625) and the original detail with the bronze lines has been duplicated.

I used a pretty fabric with coral, pinks, yellow and turquoise so it would work well with other colours in your decor.

The coral I used is Benjamin Moore's Coral Spice ~ a slightly more sophisticated coral tone ~ a bit less saturated than some.

This is a very sweet set and priced to go fast. I have it displayed at Airdrie Paint and Decor and it can be viewed or purchased from the friendly staff there.

The sizes are as follows:

DRESSER

26 inches wide

16 inches deep

43 inches high

VANITY

36 inches wide

16 inches deep 

30.5 inches high (not including mirror)

Creating a Pre-Teen Bedroom

My daughter is starting gr 4 tomorrow and she is nine years old. She has been slowly moving out of the "pink and pretty" type of decor for a little while now, but is still very much a young nine. I had hoped to fend off her requests for a room makeover, but I had worked on her brother's room last winter and she was anxious to have a fresh start in her room as well.

I couldn't really blame her. We had taken possession of this house and moved in all in around 2 weeks which left very little time for decorating. It wasn't a bedroom which echoed her personality and as she and her friends hang out there more, I wanted it to feel like a fun spot. 

I did not want this to cost very much as I have a feeling that her tastes may change as she gets older, but I think that there is a lot in this room that will be able to change with her. I started to keep my eye out for things on my treasure hunts.... I knew she needed bookshelf space. I knew she needed more drawer space. I knew she needed a new bed frame. Aside from these things, I really didn't have a vision..... Then, along came Pinterest. S I G H.

I was SOOOOO inspired by this room. If you are on Pinterest at all, you have probably seen it somewhere as it is a pretty popular pin. Take a look ~ it is so pretty and really spoke to my girl's personality as well. She was adamant about wanting to stay away from pink, but she thought she would be okay with coral (YAY!). I wanted to use bright and energetic colours and chose to paint the walls a bright turquoise.

I also wanted to paint the closet wall with chalkboard paint so that she and her friends would have a place to doodle and have some fun. It would also be sort of a unique feature. To bring the black into the room, I thought it would be nice to have a black and white wallpaper along the long wall. I did a brave thing here ~ I took her with me to Lowe's. They have a really awesome wallpaper aisle and they have a great selection of black and white papers in stock for under $40 a roll. I told her she could choose from any of the black and white they had. I really tried to let this be her choice ~ the one she settled on would not have been my choice, but she loved it and I do love the way it turned out! 

I had found the 2 little matching dressers at a thrift store in spring. I had to buy them because it is hard to find 2 matching dressers that size! Initially I was planning to use them in the master bedroom makeover I am planning, but as I thought it over, they seemed like a great fit for this project! They would give her lots of storage space, but would not overwhelm the room. She is still sort of small, so she can easily reach all of the drawers and they are shallow so they can be kept reasonable neat. (Fingers crossed on this one!).

The bed is a Hemnes model from Ikea. I found it on Kijiji without any of the hardware needed to reassemble it. I decided to paint it black and distress it a little to add the needed character. I went to Ikea (ON THE SATURDAY OF A LONG WEEKEND!) and waited in line at customer service to see if they could find the correct hardware. The models can change from year to year slightly and this exact design (brown stain with round spindles) has been discontinued. They were very helpful and since I only needed about 8 pieces, they did not charge me at all.

The bookcase is another thriftstore find. I thought it was great to have the closed lower storage and lots of room for books and her endless odds and ends. I loved the yellow in the inspiration room, so I decided to take the plunge with more colour. I really love the way it turned out! I added some black and white wallpaper along the back (it is not the same print as the paper on the wall ~ just extra I had left over from other projects). As you can see in the above picture, this wall across from the bed is a bit tough. That door goes to the Jack and Jill bathroom that the kids share. It is a great feature, but the drawback is that it adds another door to each bedroom, reducing furniture arrangement options. I still need to find some art or a mirror to add to this space....

I added the wire frame in yellow on the opposite side of the window from the bookcase to just add a little more yellow to balance that wall out a bit. I am still on the lookout for some pretty curtains to hang (that is why the frame is slightly off-centre). The bedding is from HomeSense and made by Cynthia Rowley. I love it SOOOO much. It is perfect in there!

This room is not finished yet, but the spirit of it is. I want to find some art and fill in a few spaces and have some fun with the details. I just wanted to share some of the projects I have been working of for my home too!

I had a decorative dress form that I added and she went crazy! If I had known how much she would love it in her room, I would have given it to her earlier. As you can see, she has it dressed in her outfit she chose for her first day of gr 4. So cute!

I tried to add up the total cost of the room makeover including paint and wallpaper and it came in under $300! This was pretty dramatic and just took a little extra time and patience (and work!), but I think it was worth it. She loves her new space and I do too!

I apologize for the darkness in the pictures. I tried with the blind open and with it shut and this seemed to look better, but it is tricky to get the lighting right in this small room!

Now I just need to get inspired for my own room!

Rosebud Mercantile Delivery Day!

How many Timbits can a person eat in an hour while driving? The answer is that you DO NOT WANT TO KNOW. Just know that it is probably far, far too many.... ugh.


The hour25 selection was a bit light at Rosebud so it was time to take another trip out east to re-stock. It was a beautiful morning today and nice to drive while it was still cool. I just wanted to share a few of the pieces that I added with you...

This is a great dresser that I painted the popular turquoise. I did the drawers in a patchy style with some pretty scraps which I think turned out quite nicely.

The leaner ladder is new and I did up a few more BookPage Wreaths.

Lemony Snicket BookPage Wallflower

This is a more traditional wreath using sacred choral music and a little leftover (non-pasted) wallpaper.

I used the bookcover for the base of these "Wallflowers" and stacked the "petals" to cover it so it ends up looking a little like a flower. This one is pretty large ~ I used a vintage book called Yearbook of Agriculture 1949. There are a few cool illustrations peeking through that I like.

This is an old window frame which had glass in very nice condition. I added chalkboard paint to the centre so that the background would still show through. It is large and will make an interesting statement in a kitchen or entryway. I love this piece!

I did up a few little side tables and some small wooden bowls and some small chalkboards too. The midcentury style table is painted the same coral colour as the dresser I sold this week. It is really pretty! I am looking for another piece to use it on!


I like the little 6-sided table with the caning on the bottom too. The legs are very pretty and interesting with all the details distressed.

I made up a few more wire frames and added little clothespins with vintage bookpages on them to fancy them up a bit. I will definitely do more of those ~ they are so charming and cute!

Speaking of charming and cute, my daughter came along today and I paid her in Timbits (the ones I didn't eat...). She is very helpful with setting things out and holding doors. 


I am excited to have these pieces installed and ready for purchase! Let me know what you think if you are in the area ~ I love feedback!

Monday ~ For Sale

Retro Coral Dresser
{*SOLD*}


I have been seeing a version of this coral colour in a lot of stores this spring/summer and I think it is so pretty! I decided to try a shabby version of it on this 4-drawer dresser.

This dresser has very cute details on the top 2 drawers with that classic midcentury feel. I love the freshness of the coral paired with the white on the hardware.

After distressing it a little, I noticed that the paint has a slightly darker patina where it has been sanded a little more. It gives the piece a little more interest. It is fun when these details happen without pre-planning.... It adds to the character it a good way!

I tried something a little different inside the drawers. I have a lot of odds and ends leftover wallpaper so I thought it would add to the shabby feel of this dresser to use it up in a fun way.

Each drawer has its own "patchwork" of wallpaper lining in greys, white and black. They all still coordinate and look pretty together too!

41" tall
34" wide
17.5" deep


If you are interested in this beachy beauty on this steamy day, let me know by email (lisabaron70@gmail.com) or by text (402.700.0877) and we can arrange a pick up time.


Other than the odd week off during the summer, I hope to continue to offer items early every week. It might be a slightly lighter offering as my kids are home and I am trying to have a bit of fun with them as well, but I think it will all work out! 


I hope that you are all enjoying this amazing weather! It is fantastic!

Monday ~ For Sale!

Bold Dresser
{*sold*}


I have been wanting to do a dresser in this colour for a long time! When I scored this one a few weeks ago, I knew I had found my candidate.

It is so solid and a perfect size. It has a few nice little details too...

The legs are very sweet and I really like the inset lower drawers. It is a subtle thing, but adds a special something. The hardware was perfect ~ I just updated it a little bit. The dresser painted up so beautifully, I only distressed the edges very lightly.

I did add some of my favourite glam-y wallpaper to line each drawer. It is available at Lowe's. It is not on their website, but it comes in a tube and it is in-stock in the wallpaper aisle.

It is a very pretty feather motif.


39" high
36" wide
17.75" deep

Super Shabby Oval Coffee Table
{*sold*}

I know that the super shabby look is not for everyone, but I love this look with white. The pretty carving shows through and the legs still look a bit glamorous. The top is a lovely shape and could be the perfect touch in the right space.

It is very sturdy and will be the bit of character you are looking for!

15.25" high
28" wide
48.5" long


If you are interested in either of these pieces, just email me at lisabaron70@gmail.com or text me at 403.700.0877


Pick up is in Airdrie, Alberta.


Thanks for all the feedback ~ I love hearing from you all!

May 2, 2012

{Making it Pretty}


When Christine contacted me a few weeks ago, she had a couple of little projects for me to do for her. One of them was a free bookcase she had found online.

I was a little hesitant with this piece as the surface is a laminate. It can be a bit tricky to paint, but I am willing to try anything (and Christine was totally game!) so I went for it!


I repaired the edging and the broken leg and gave it a really thorough sanding to rough up the finish to help the paint adhere better. For something like this, it is really important to use a high quality primer first. I really LOVE  Stix Primer, it is far superior to anything else I have tried. It is more expensive, but worth it for a project where you want a beautiful finish.


I think that this turned out beautifully!

I painted it black, and added some pretty wallpaper along the back to make it pop a little more.

I very lightly distressed the edges and gave the whole piece a polish with Minwax Furniture Paste. This was truly a diamond in the rough! I love it!


The other piece Christine had brought to me was an old dresser. I think she may have found this on good old Kijiji as well. It has great lines and was absolutely solid, it was just a bit beat up and needed some extra tlc to make it shine.

This was intended for her young daughter's room so she wanted it pretty, but fairly neutral so that it could grow with her.

I painted it Decorator's White from Ben Moore and distressed the edges and some of the more "lived-in" areas.

I have some really pretty and bold wallpaper that I lined each drawer with. I like to be surprised with a little extra pretty on the inside too.

I found some inexpensive drawer pulls at Michael's of all places. They are just acrylic, but actually look very pretty and have a little sparkle too.

We mixed some clear and pink knobs on the drawers as we couldn't round up enough of either to finish the dresser with one colour... Sometimes you just have to work with what you have!


When Christine came to pick these up, she brought me an old lamp. I hope that I will be able to do something fabulous with it! It is my favourite kind of project. Really ugly and she has trusted me to do whatever I want....  Hmmmmm.