Baby Nursery {Part III- My Artsy Changing Table Redo}

As I was planning my nursery, I shopped around for various pieces for my nursery that fit my taste AND my budget. That's tough to do because I have expensive taste yet I'm super frugal.
I was SO excited to find this changing table on my local online yard sale site for a steal of a deal- $20!!! Most of you probably would've liked it just the way it was, as it really wasn't too bad. However, I wanted something unique, with character that was fun, artsy and colorful. I bought a $15 quart of Sherwin William's paint (on sale) and for a total cost of $35 (plus my brother's time) -I now have a changing table that was totally what I envisioned! My bro did such a great job, he made the ordinary into extraordinary!! I LOVE how this piece turned out!!

Now, I'm gonna blame it on the prego brain, but I failed to take a good "Before" picture. :-P Forgive me!! Please use your imagination and pretend like the drawers are still in place.



My brother removed all the drawers and hardware and did some light sanding to it, but because of the awesome primer we used (see pic below), it really required no sanding (my favorite kind of project!)



The key to good priming is to have a lot of fun.... oh and to cover all areas that you'll be painting. :-)


Once primed, we let it dry and then began to apply the 1st coat of paint - in my accent color, Sherwin William's Refresh - once that dried, we (meaning my brother) applied a 2nd coat.



As you can see, it's looking good but doesn't have any real dimension to it yet. Some people MIGHT be ok with this as it is, but not me! ;-)



My brother then proceeded with the "fun" part. He used several tools to distress it. When doing this - try to think of places that would naturally be distressed. Don't forget the drawers! It's the details that really gives a piece that extra "wow factor".




Afterwards, we went down to the basement and found some dark wood stain in my collection of paints. Using a rag, he dipped part of it into the stain rubbed it in the cracks and edges of the piece, wiping off the excess. This is where your creative, artistic side comes into play. You can apply however much you'd like, but the goal is for it to look natural and not overdone. Rubbing the stain into the grain of the wood and cracks really gives it that distressed look. Be careful not to apply too much! You must wipe the excess off!


Once we were satisfied with how much "distressing" had been done, he put the hardware back on and drawers back into place. Thankfully I liked the original hardware and didn't have to do a thing to it!


Here is Baby Shaffer's super artsy and one of a kind changing table, refinished with love by his Uncle Caleb.





I hope this inspires you to look past the outward appearance of a piece of furniture, and envision creating it into something you love. Don't be afraid to take a piece and transform it to your liking, it really isn't that hard (especially when your brother does it for you! haha) With a little bit of effort, you can transform "junk" into something AMAZING!

~Lauren

Baby Nursery {Part II- the Transformation & Book Page Wall}

No, I haven't forgotten about my Baby Nursery blogging - however, I have been super busy finishing up this darling room for our little boy. Now that I just have the finishing touches left to do, I feel much more comfortable in taking the time to catch everyone up on the progress made so far. :-)

In case you missed my first post, you can go here to view "my inspiration" for the color palette and overall feel of the space.

I chose these three paint colors based on my inspiration fabric seen in my first post. I used Sherwin Williams Embellished Blue for the walls, Refresh as the accent color used to transform my changing table (stay tuned!) and Alabaster for the trim and doors.

Here is the Nursery - BEFORE we even began the transformation. Notice the light pink walls (eek!).
And here it is getting it's beautiful coat of Embellished Blue by my beautiful decorating crew!


We live in a charming 1920's home, I really do love it - however, the walls are a bit different in our upstairs bedrooms (as you can see from the above pic)- making it kinda difficult for any type of creative paint job, mural, etc. That's ok though, because I was feeling lazy and totally unmotivated to do anything too extreme. :-P

Instead, I decided to do an infamous "Book Page Wall". Many of you have probably seen this idea on countless blogs, and I'm telling you - it is SO fun and SO easy!

Sean & I both loved to read as kids (still do!) and hope our little guy will enjoy it just as much. Yes, we were those naughty kids that stayed up reading with a flashlight underneath our covers well after our parents told us lights out (because the book was THAT good). So....that's part of what led me to create this "Book Page Wall". I knew it would be artsy, fun, totally unique, and reflect our love of reading.

I used these classic storybooks to give it a vintage vibe. I purchased them for 50 cents each at a thrift store and since the binding wasn't in the greatest shape, I didn't feel so bad tearing out all the pages.


Once torn out, I simply had my lovely crew apply a *strong* spray adhesive to the back of the pages and randomly place them on the wall. We learned the hard way that it must NOT be a flexible hold, but a strong hold (best purchased at a craft store vs a hardware store). That's why this is considered** Decoupage (or découpage) is the art of decorating an object by gluing colored paper cutouts onto it in combination with special paint effects, gold leaf and so on.**

With true decoupage you apply a sealer on top, but I didn't want to make my pages THAT permanent. As it is, these pages are perfectly adhered to the wall and if one or two pages should try to escape, I still have my spray adhesive and can easily reattach - so far so good! Definitely make sure you use a strong adhesive spray, found at most craft stores - my fav being, Hobby Lobby. :-)

As you can see, these randomly placed book pages create a lovely accent wall that is truly artistic, unique, vintage inspired and an incredible point of interest, as seen here in my nursery. It turned out soooo perfectly!



**A special thanks to my sister, Heidi, friend, Morgan, brother, Caleb, and last but not least - my hubby, Sean for all the hard work you put into this wonderful nursery!! I couldn't have done it without you!!

Stay tuned for the final stages of the nursery transformation and the Grand Reveal coming SOON!!

~Lauren

Baby Nursery {Part I- The Inspiration}

Baby Nursery Part I :- The Inspiration


Ahh yes, I'm going on 32 weeks pregnant and have been brainstorming about our baby boy's nursery since day 1! I'm SUPER excited that my "painting crew" aka friends and family will be beginning the nursery transformation the 1st wknd of June! Yay! I will be sure to take pictures and share with all of you.

As I began thinking about what kind of nursery I wanted for our little guy, several adjectives came to mind - artsy, eclectic, vintage, unique, light and airy, fresh, and still baby appropriate. I have very expensive taste, but just like many of you - I had no intention of spending tons of $$ on this decorating excursion. In fact, I find GREAT satisfaction in finding exactly what I want for a steal of a deal or making it myself. I guess that's the treasure hunter in me, maybe I'm part pirate? Argghhh, matey. Ok, lame....anyway....I am thrilled to report that I've found exactly what I envisioned at the exact cost I envisioned. I'll be blogging about these various stages of the nursery decorating and hope you enjoy the transformation.

This is a "Crafty Creations" post because my inspiration fabric just happens to be a tablecloth! Yes, you heard right! How cool is that? It's just the right material, fits precisely with my color scheme, and exactly what I could NOT find in the fabric stores. This tablecloth is the inspiration fabric that the rest of the nursery will be designed around. Enjoy this sneak peek and stay tuned for "Crafty Creation" posts of the work in progress. I guarantee there will be lots of creativity going into this space. Turning a tablecloth into crib bedding is just ONE of the many ideas.

Be inspired by what you see around you and don't hesitate to turn the ordinary into extraordinary!

Stay tuned for more Baby Nursery posts in the coming weeks!!

~Lauren

Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

**Picture above is a baby at 13wks in the womb.

Psalm 139: 13-14 "For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well."

Our baby is 13 wks and yesterday my husband and I had the privilege of listening to his tiny heartbeat. What a special moment it was for us both! I couldn't help but think about how this tiny precious life was formed by God himself, and we were listening to the heartbeat of our little miracle.We even were able to record it!!! Click below to listen to our sweet baby's heartbeat!!

Jeremiah 1:5a "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; "

People try to say that a baby in the womb is simply a "fetus" but the Bible is clear that life in the womb begins at conception. As I experience all the joys of pregnancy, I realize all the more how from very early on, our baby is cognitive of things around him. At 13 weeks, our baby already has fingerprints, can curl his toes, make sucking movements, and if I push on my belly, he can even squirm in response (though I can't feel it yet). The verses above prove that each one of us are fearfully and wonderfully made by God. What an amazing thought!

This "Thankful Thursday" I'm praising the Lord for how He cares enough about each one of us to form us in His image. He didn't just carelessly form us, but rather fearfully and wonderfully He designed us. I'm also praising Him for this little one I'm carrying, and so thankful to have heard our baby's heartbeat. I don't take that for granted.

~Lauren

A Christmas like no other....

Yes, I know that most people have completely moved on from the Christmas season. However, I must admit that our Christmas decor is STILL up, and yes I have it up on purpose. ;-)

Partly, it's due to the fact that I haven't really had time to take it down, but also I find that the ambiance of Christmas decor helps the Winter seem more enjoyable. Here in ND, you do everything you can to make Winter more enjoyable - hence why the tree is still up. :-)

This isn't your typical "Thankful Thursday", but I think you'll understand a little more toward the end of this post.....

I LOVE ornaments, I guess you could say I somewhat collect them. Here are a few favorites from our tree....

Our lil guy Thaddeus (we still need to get one for Lola). Everyone has a good laugh when they see this one...


One from Paris, because it's such a lovely city, and one I hope to go back to....

And, because I play piano, you can't forget the "baby grand"....

And my adorable husband when he was little, holding his baby brother....SO cute!!


One of our Christmas traditions is purchasing an ornament that reflects something special & unique about that year.

Our 1st Christmas married....awww! 2006


The year we bought our first house...2007


The year we had our first garden.....2008


Ok, not to be skipping 2009 on purpose, but I think you get the idea, and without further ado, I'm going to introduce our very special ornament for 2010.......drum roll please......

We are excited to announce that "Baby Shaffer" will be arriving in July!! We couldn't be more thrilled!! We're looking forward to all that 2011 will hold for us, welcoming a precious new life into our family. This "Thankful Thursday", I'm praising God for the little blessing that I'm carrying in my womb. Such a tiny life, formed by God himself, given to my husband and I to raise for Him! What a huge responsibility and an overwhelming gift this little one already is to us. By God's grace, may we raise this child for our Lord and Saviour!

Psalms 127:3 "Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward."

Have a thankful week, everyone!!

~Lauren