Night Stand Makeover for a Good Cause

Who's ready for a three-day weekend?!?  Before we part ways for the Labor Day Holiday, I wanted to share a little furniture makeover I just finished up.  

A few weeks ago I got a call from Cynthia at  the Home Builders Association of Greater Chattanooga  (HBAC).  The HBAC is putting on a remodeling show in September and she contacted me because they are including a charity auction to benefit Special Spaces Chattanooga.  What is Special Spaces?  They're a non-profit organization that helps children facing terminal illnesses by creating and implementing beautiful bedrooms for them. For such a worthy cause, I jumped at the chance to participate.  They even provided the furniture for me to re-create, which will be auctioned off for Special Spaces.  

Now this is where I hang my head in embarrassment a little.  I forgot to take the expected "before" photo.  Problem is, when I decide to tackle a new project it's usually while I have 3 other things going on at the time - like dinner, laundry, social media maintenance, and - oh yeah- I need to start that night stand project.

Here's the point at which I remembered to take a photo.

You guys are visual people, so I know you can imagine this piece in its original golden brown glory.

I honestly didn't know what I was going to do.  Just painting in a pretty color didn't seem like enough, and even though this piece is for charity, I wanted to do something with it that reflected my aesthetic, which is a little more embellished.

I started with a coat of gray paint (Benjamin Moore Gray Wisp) and taped off a big stripe down the middle.  I also painted the polished nickel hardware with gold leaf paint.

Better, but I'm a "more is more" kind of person.  Inspiration hit me in the aisle of Big Lots when I spotted these

Of course!  I was going to incorporate the sunburst design that's in my logo.  

More Gold Leaf paint was used.  I painted up a bunch of those bamboo skewers, set aside my fears and started gluing.  (Elmer's Wood Glue, if you're taking notes)

And here's the finished piece...

A big thank you to Cynthia and the Home Builders Association of Greater Chattanooga and also to Special Spaces Chattanooga for giving me the opportunity to participate.

If you'd like to learn more about the HBAGC Home & Remodeling Expo Sept 14-15, click here.  I'll also have a booth at the Home & Remodeling Expo that weekend, so bring me those paint and fabric swatches you've been obsessing over for months.

Have a relaxing, happy Labor day weekend!

The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN.  If you'd like to experience the joy of living in a well designed home, contact Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Celadon

I'm a lifelong fan of the color green - in all of its variations. I've used green in all of my homes from waaaay back hunter green in the early 90's to apple, moss, olive, lime, chartreuse - and now emerald and mint.  One shade of green that is beautiful and timeless is celadon.  The name comes from the pottery and glazes that were produced in Asia well over a thousand years ago.

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Although celadon is a shade of green, it's a grayed-down version that is quite neutral.

"Blenheim Celadon" fabric by James Dunlop

It's such a pretty backdrop for pinks and lavenders.

But wait - you can use celadon as an accent color too. I love it with the warm beiges in this living room designed by Michelle Nussbaumer.

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And it looks fantastic with black and gold in this Michelle Nussbaumer entry.

Celadon is also perfect for outdoor use, since it's a color so readily found in nature.

It's also a great color choice for painted furniture. Amazing with the gold details, isn't it?

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So what do you think?  Do you like this neutral version of green or do you prefer something more vibrant?

The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services in to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN.  If you'd like to discover the joy of living in a well designed home, contact Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors.com

Mirror Makeover

So in case you've been wondering what in the world I've been up to, I'll just tell you it's a lot of different stuff.  And I will be sharing more of it with you in the near future.

One of the little project-ettes I've completed is a mirror makeover for a client's nursery. If you follow The Green Room Interiors on Facebook, you may have already seen the inspiration board.

As you can see, our plan calls for a round mirror that will be placed on the wallpaper just above the crib.

Enter this little number I spotted at a local Antique Mall.  Nice, but I thought we could do better. So, after the sanding and priming, it got a coat of fresh white paint.

Better, but I still wanted to do more to bring out the stud detail of the mirror, which I think is its most interesting feature.

Familiar with Liquid Leaf?  It claims it's a one-step gold leaf finish in a bottle. And, it's only about $5 at Walmart.

I'm pretty happy with the results.  The gold is warm and soft, and I love it against the white paint. I used one of Shelby's small artists brushes to apply the paint to the studs.

This mirror is a surprise/gift that I plan to deliver to my client Friday afternoon.  I  hope she likes it! 

How is your to-do list coming?

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The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN.  If you'd like to discover the joy of living in a well-designed home, contact Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

New Shop Items and Finds

Good Thursday!  I hope you're having a good and productive week so far.  Today I want to share some new things I'm adding to my booth at Merchants On Main, and a few things I might be keeping here at Project Dollhouse.  Ready?

I'm kind of proud of myself for getting this one done.  I had only a yard & a half of fabric and the first cut I made was for the back of the chair and I cut the fabric a little too small.  Since the pattern has such a big repeat I had a hard time finding another part of the pattern that would fill the space properly. Luckily, the upholstery gods were smiling on me and it all worked out (after bullets were sweated).

I really lucked  out finding this Mid-Century white and gold china set. I'd love to keep it, but I just don't have the need or the space at home.  The set is by "Fascination" and has 38 pieces - including hard-to-find serving pieces like a gravy boat, platter, sugar and creamer.

This is the best rainy day garage photo I could come up with today.  I just finished up this gorgeous 5-drawer chest. Don't you love the pulls?  This piece is Mid-Century, made by Dixie and is solid oak under the new oil-based high gloss white finish.  Who doesn't need glamorous storage?

This one may take up permanent residence at the Dollhouse.  It's hand-painted silk and completely gorgeous.

Finally, I've loaded in this Mad Men-esque Mid-Century green pleather chair.  It has great details - can you see the brass caps on the legs?  It also has big brass nailheads on the side, but I neglected to get a picture of that.  It's in as-found but good vintage condition.

Wait, one more thing.  If you follow The Green Room Interiors on Facebook, you'll get to be the first to see new arrivals in my booth, so "like" us!

Who's ready for the weekend?

The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN.  If you'd like to find out how a well-designed home can improve your life, contact Kim at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

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ORC Week 6 - New Sofa, Chair and Lamp Makeovers

Where has the time gone?  I can't believe I set out on this mission 6 weeks ago! 

The One Room Challenge was conceived by the very talented and capable Linda at My Crafty Home Life.  Basically, she assembled a group of 20 bloggers to redecorate a room from start to finish in 6 weeks. Time has really flown by and I can't believe the reveal is next week.  If you'd like to get caught up on everything One Room Challenge that has transpired since the beginning, click here.

Now, how about a little progress report? I've been busy trying to finish up all of the little projects I've been putting off.   Isn't it funny how when you think you're just about finished, the real work begins?

Anyway, I did manage to make over a pair of Chinese Chippendale armchairs to go next to my library table.  

I interviewed many candidates for the job.  Here are the mockups

Anyway, I'm happy with the paint color/fabric combo. I love the yellow velvet next to the Lemon Tree fabric!

What else can I share with you?  I also did a mini-makeover on a thrift store lamp.  Nothing cutting edge, just your basic sand, paint, and add trim to a new shade.  Here's the before.  I loved the shape of this lamp but the finish was in bad shape.

And finally, I got my new sofa in place.  

Happy!!! Next Wednesday is the big reveal.  You've got to come back and see it all finished up!

Make sure you visit the other participants and see what kind of magic they've created this week.

Chinoiserie Chic 

Classic Casual Home 

the Cottage Mix 

Cottage & Vine 

Design Indulgence 

Design Manifest 

Everything LEB 

Hodge Podge 

Kim Macumber Interiors 

Little Black Door 

Matters of Style 

My Crafty Home Life 

Nicole Scott Designs 

Pacific Family Homes 

Pawleys Island Posh 

the Peak of Tres Chic 

the Pink Pagoda 

Powell Brower Home 

Simple Details 

The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN. Call Kim and find out how a well designed home can improve the quality of your life!  423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

ORC Ming Coffee Table Makeover and a New Rug

If you're visiting my blog for the first time today, welcome!  You picked a good day because I have an update on the family room I'm redecorating for the One Room Challenge.

Today I'm thrilled to share with you my Ming coffee table makeover.  I bought this coffee table  a few weeks ago during a little shopping sojourn in Atlanta with my Mom, who passed along her decorating/shopping/deal-finding gene to me.  It's been useful.  

Here's where it all started.  Poor little Ming was under a pile of craptastic junque - and that makes discovering her even more rewarding. Do you find this to be true?  Apparently Ming had a difficult few years and she was wearing the battle scars to prove it.  

The damage was pretty deep and I had to break out the electric sander to prepare the surface for paint.  There are few things in life I hate more than sanding but I knew it would be worth the extra effort.

Then I primed, but you don't need to see pictures of that. 

I lightly brushed on this "Ivy Green" color acrylic paint.  Have you painted anything with this? I love this stuff because it lays down really well and doesn't show many brush marks, although by this photo you would not think so.

I decided to get creative and mixed up some acrylic paint from the craft section of Wal-Mart.  I squirted a little of both colors in an empty mac & cheese tub and mixed with a spoon until I got a color I was happy with.  We're not very formal around here. 

I very lightly dry-brushed the teal on over the green, let it dry, then dry-brushed on a little more green.  After this dried, I dry-brushed on some black - to give it some depth.

And this is Ming all finished up.  What do you think?  I'm kind of ecstatic about it.  The layering on of color has been great because in the daytime the color is more green and at night it's more teal.  How fun!

And yes, that is a new rug!  Super thrilled with it, too.  It's a high falutin' HomeGoods score. The rug is a printed maze and is heavy enough that it doesn't "creep" on the carpet.  And look, it has a fancy designer label on it.

Next Wednesday it's lights and curtains and whatever else I manage to get done between now and then. You'll come back to see, right?

Now check these out:

Chinoiserie Chic 

Classic Casual Home 

the Cottage Mix 

Cottage & Vine 

Design Indulgence 

Design Manifest 

Everything LEB 

Hodge Podge 

Kim Macumber Interiors 

Little Black Door 

Matters of Style 

My Crafty Home Life 

Nicole Scott Designs 

Pacific Family Homes 

Pawleys Island Posh 

the Peak of Tres Chic 

the Pink Pagoda 

Powell Brower Home 

Simple Details 

The Green Room Interiors provides Interior Decorating and Design Services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN.. If you would like to experience the joy of living in a well-designed home, call Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Like us on Facebook!

Annie Sloan 911

Hey, does anyone out there know why this is happening to a piece of pine furniture I'm painting?
I'm using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and I did sand it slightly before I started painting  but for some reason there are pink streaks throughout the paint. 

This photo was taken after 4 coats of chalk paint.  Really Annie Sloan?  $35 per quart and this is what I get after 4 coats?

Any advice? Leave me a comment or email me at thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Have a great weekend - I'm headed out of town for a little family time. 

New at my Booth

I'm adding a few new pieces to my space at Merchants on Main and thought you might like to see what I've been up to!

I just added this Basset dresser a few days ago.  It was a typical 70's drab brown and I painted it in Rustoleum's Smoke Gray - which is at the top of my favorite furniture paint colors list now.  It's a little darker than this picture shows, and it has the slightest blue undertone.  

This cute mid-century dresser sold the day after it arrived.

I have a pair of these vintage canary yellow pleather channel back chairs.  They have lovely carved legs and brass nail heads.

And as always, a few vintage lamps.  Hard to tell from the photo, but this one is beefy, crackled and the most amazing shade of jade green.

I love the shape of this lamp and the unusual burnt orange/ blue & white color combination.

If you're in the Chattanooga area, stop by and have a look!

Hope you have a beautiful weekend!

The Green Room Interiors provides interior decorating and design services to happy homeowners in Chattanooga, TN. Call Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com

Mid Century Cane Chairs Makeover

Today I have a chair(s) makeover to share with you.  I won't bore you with the details of the process,  because its tedious and not very exciting to document in pictures. I say we just take a look at where it all started.

I found a pair of these Mid-Century cane armchairs at an Estate sale.  They were leftovers from a previous estate sale, probably because that gold velvet upholstery was in very sad shape.  Even though the wood frame was in perfect condition, I ultimately painted them because I thought they would look better with the green & white ikat fabric I had chosen.

Fast forward through the stripping, painting, cutting, stapling, gluing and cussing, and this is what I ended up with.

And wouldn't you know just the day before I finished these up I came across the perfect vintage lamp to coordinate with them.

Do you remember my dresser makeover a few weeks ago?

It occurred to me that with just a few accessories and pillows, you could literally build an entire room around these pieces.

Look for the chairs and lamp to mingle with the dresser at my booth at Merchants on Main this week.

Don't you love it when things come together so unexpectedly?

Need some help pulling your style together?  The Green Room Interiors can make your home a beautiful place to be!  Call Kim Lemmon at 423.653.3186 or email thegreenroominteriors@gmail.com.

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