Growth Chart

After all the building that I have been doing I have amassed quite a pile of scrap wood in my garage. Since we rent I decided to use a piece to make a growth chart for the Princesses. I had a scrap of 1/4" plywood that was 1'x6'. The perfect size! I sanded it and painted it white (the same white I used in my bedroom makeover. Use what you have, right?)

Once it was dry I got out the craft paint and painted a green vine and leaves with a 1" foam brush.

Next, I used my Silhouette to cut the flowers out of scrap book paper the Princesses picked out. I glued them on using Mod Podge. I didn't, however, seal it with Mod Podge because I didn't know how easy it would be to write on it with a pen.

Then, I painted some round wood pieces that I had in colors to match the flowers. Once they were dry I used a hot glue gun to attach them. I also painted some wooden butterflies and hot glued them on too. Then, I used a small paintbrush to draw the swirls on under the flowers.

The final touch was measuring lines. They don't really show up in this picture but I used a rose pink paint pen and a tape measure. I made the inch lines one inch long and the feet lines two inches long. I also wrote the numbers just to the left of the feet lines with the paint marker.

Now I can't wait to decorate the rest of their room with this flower and butterfly theme!

Finished Quilt

Some of you may remember the post Q is for Quilt. Well, I have finally finished sewing it! I had the front/top all sewn and pinned together for quilting about two weeks after that first post. However, it sat in my sewing room while I tried to decide how to quilt it. This past weekend I finally decided to use stitch in the ditch so that the squares would really stand out. After all the princesses really worked hard on them!

Here it is in all its glory! I'm thinking that Princess Little is going to be my sewer. She was in the sewing room with me through the entire process. You never know, though, Princess Big may surprise me :)

Duvet

The finishing touch for my bedroom makeover was a duvet cover. It was really easy! I used these instructions from Design Sponge. I love it! Now I need to make one for the Princesses.

If you are wondering why you never get a photo of the entire room at once it is because of the icky color on the walls. I'm sure you are thinking "just paint them" but we rent and that is not an option right now. However, if we ever move someplace where the wall color "goes" I'll be sure to show you :)

Dresser Change

After the end of bed bench I repainted the tall dresser that we had in our room. I also made new drawer pulls for it and here's how it turned out.

End of Bed Bench

I know it has been forever since I last posted anything but I haven't been idle! Here is one of the projects that I have been working on.

It's my end of bed bench! You're probably thinking that the construction might be a little faulty with a sag in the middle, but I assure you it is just that I didn't pull the fabric evenly when I was stapling it to the top. I used the same plans from Ana White that I used for my fabric storage. The measurements are the same, I just added one more cubbie. After this picture was taken and King Daddy sat on it I decided it needed one more leg in the middle so I cut a piece of 1"x4" the same width as the bench, painted it and screwed it in through the inside of the 3rd cubbie.

Even with the fabric problem, which is an easy fix when I have the time, I like the way it turned out.

Drawer Pulls

The next piece of furniture to get a makeover was my bedside table. I started by sanding, priming and painting it white.

This is the original drawer pull. I knew I wanted something different that matched my new blue and white color scheme. After looking at many pulls online I couldn't find one that had a 2" screw placement that I liked and could afford (I have another dresser to do and I want them all to match). I decided I could make my own.

I bought some balsa wood strips from the craft store. I used a 3/16"x3/8" piece that I cut to 3" for the base. For the sides I used a 1/16"x1/4" piece. I cut two small pieces for the ends and then two pieces for the sides. I attached them together with wood glue and let them dry.

Next, I used a 3/8' dowel and using a 1/8" drill bit (this is the size bit to make a pilot hole for a #8 wood screw), made a hole in the center. Then, I cut two pieces 1/2" long. To get the placing correct for gluing them on I screwed them into the drawer, added a little glue and let them dry.

After all the glue was dry I painted it with metallic silver acrylic craft paint and let it dry. Next came the bling. I poured some glass seed beads into the tray and then covered them with some Mod-Podge Dimensional Magic and let it dry.

Once dry I screwed it into place. After that I gave it a try and the pull came off the dowel pieces. Maybe I didn't use enough wood glue. No big deal, I pulled out some super glue and it hasn't come off again! For the price of two pulls I loved online (~$20) I can make 15 pulls!

Dresser Cover

The first piece of furniture to get a makeover was the dresser.

It was the one King Daddy grew up with and his parents had it refinished. Needless to say it holds sentimental memories for King Daddy and he didn't want me to touch it with any paint. In fact he asked me to make a cover for it so it doesn't get scratched. 

The first thing I did was measure the top and cut a piece of fusible fleece. You can find it in the fabric store with all the fusible interfacing and such. Then I measured the top from underneath the overhang across the top and underneath the other overhang (and front to back). To that measurement I added two inches on both the length and width. 

After cutting the fabric I ironed a 1/4" fold then a 3/4" fold and pinned it. Then, by hand, I sewed the corners down. Once that was done, I sewed around the inside edge, leaving a few inches open, to form a casing for the 1/2" elastic.

After sewing the casing I centered the fleece inside it and ironed it to the wrong side of the fabric per the instructions that came with the fleece. 

Once the fleece was on I measured around the dresser and used about 1.5' to 2' less elastic than the measurement. The elastic I had was very stretchy and I wanted the cover to be snug so the drawers wouldn't get caught in it. I pinned a safety pin to the end and pushed it through the casing all the way around. Then, I overlapped the ends about an inch and sewed it together. 

Once I got the elastic all spread out evenly I sewed the opening closed and slipped it on the dresser. It turned out much better than I thought it would. It fits the top perfectly and the drawers don't get caught at all. They also close all the way without getting any cover closed in them. I couldn't be happier and King Daddy thinks it's perfect!