Simply Sassy Designs

I took the plunge and started getting my creative juices flowing this spring. I don't know if it was moving into a new home and wanting to be able to re-create our style on the new pallet, or what, but one thing led to another, and Simply Sassy Designs has been resurrected.

I've had some success with it already...buying furniture at yard sales and off Craigslist and "re-loving" the pieces with fresh paint and hardware. I even have had one new bride who was the recipient of some hand-me-downs and has had me redo a few of those pieces for her and her new husband's home. It's definitely been a fun little adventure that has also been beneficial to our budget in this season of our lives!

Here is the link to my Simply Sassy Designs blog, for those interested in seeing more transformations.

Pinterest

I have an interest in Pinterest.

What's that, you don't know what Pinterest is yet?

Well, just think about this... (cue the Wayne & Garth's dream world sequence: doodley doo, doodley doo, doodley doo...)

You are just getting a chance to sit down on the couch and prop your feet up after a hard day of __________________ (work, parenting, LIFE...whatever). You have a tall glass of _______________ (tea, wine, lemonade, Diet Coke...again, whatever) next to you and you reach for your favorite magazine or catalog.

"Oh, this is a cool recipe...I should try it sometime". Riiiiiiiippppppppp! Out comes the page.

"What a beautiful kitchen! One day when I build my dream house..." Riiiiiiiippppppppp! Out comes the page.

"I love the way she has her hair done. I bet I could do that..." Riiiiiiiippppppppp! Out comes the page.

"Cute shoes..." Riiiiiiiippppppppp! Out comes the page.

"Dude, the guy from 300 is BEAST! What? Here's his workout regiment...I'm totally gonna look like him next month!" Riiiiiiiippppppppp! Out comes the page. (Had to throw in a guy scenario for all my dude readers.)

And the next thing you know your relaxing time on the couch has turned into this...

What to do with all your great new ideas, recipes, workout regiments? How do you keep them organized, accessible, and relevant?

Well, ladies and gents...that is where Pinterest comes in.

Pinterest is an online board for you to 'pin' anything your heart fancies that you discover on the internet...PG rated, of course. And you have access to it from your computer, smartphone, ipad, whatever! You can also share your pins with friends and see what they are into as well.

Gone are the days of piles of magazine pages littering your living room. Gone are the searches for that recipe you tore out three months ago that you are just now getting around to trying.

I have gotten so many cool ideas off this site. And, just being on it stirs up my creative juices. Yesterday alone, I made this:

this:

and this:

At your fingertips...ideas, creations, wisdom. Pinterest rocks my face off. Hallelujer.

I recently have become slightly obsessed with a design blog I stumbled upon called Young House Love. And since stumbling upon it, I have been inspired to declutter, clean, organize, repaint, refinish, design, etc. My house is slowly but surely getting whipped into shape.

I recently took a took on a little project which turned my husband’s skepticism around and made him a true believer that the DIYer part of us is still alive despite our busy lives as parents and professionals.

I was looking for some file storage for our office, and came across this vintage file cabinet at a garage sale for $5.

As you can see, it needed A LOT of work...

First, I took off all of the hardware and sanded the entire things down multiple times. (When I took the drawers out, I found an original Time Magazine Special Edition from 1969, “To The Moon and Back”. On Amazon, it sells for $5-$25 + shipping, so maybe that will get me my money back!

Back to the project...So, after getting everything as rust-free as possible, I spray painted the cabinet and the hardware a semi-glossy black with Rustoleum spray paint. After it was thoroughly dried, I chose four pieces of coordinating scrapbook paper and cut them to fit on the front of the drawers. (sorry, I was way more excited about the project than documenting the project and forgot to shoot some of the steps.)

I then taped off the drawers where the paper would go and sprayed adhesive in the center. Then I put the paper on.

After it was dry, I reattached the hardware, and viola! A new, improved, super chic file cabinet.

Soon I will get some good pictures that do it justice in its new home, my bonus room/scrapbook room/office. It looks awesome!