mr. main's makeover reveal! {bwob 5}

This summer I've been on a journey of Blogging without Borders.  And it's been a good thing.  Without this challenge, I know I would not have gotten much done around the house this summer.  I wouldn't have had as many laughs with my bwob buddies.  I wouldn't have been as inspired.  And I would have drunk less wine.

Well, here it is - the final installment and big reveal of Mr. Main's makeover.  And remember, with the exception of the new sinks and faucets that my hubby bought for the project, no money was spent on this redo.  I only used items that I had on hand!  (Charles says that as a disclaimer I must mention that I also got new sink hardware by returning some unused things I had accumulated from other recent projects, but we all took a vote last time and decided that I was still within the parameters of the zero budget rule.)

The BEFORE photos...

And,  drum roll please, the AFTER...

I'm especially fond of the new chevron floor mat.  I used a sandwich of canvas drop cloth which I spray painted with a chevron design, a thick layer of cotton batting, and some PUL fabric leftover from my cloth diaper making phase.  It's got a good weight and thickness to it, and I'm imagining it will prevent a slippery wet floor while also being easy to launder.  I think I'll make another smaller one to go in front of the shower.  But considering I threw this together yesterday to get ready for the reveal, I didn't have time to get the other one done.

Aahhhhh, the shower curtain.  I'm a little too smitten with this.  I use this bathroom now just to look at the shower curtain.  I just hope my sister doesn't see this and decide she wants that fabric back.

And whatever you do, do not attempt to make these window treatments unless you are a highly skilled drapery professional!  Seriously, can you see raw fabric edges and the pins holding these together?  My sewing machine has been locked up for several weeks, and I've just been forgetting to run it out to the repair shop.  So I've been using a little machine that I got for my daughter a couple of years ago, and as I sat down to work on the window treatments, it conked out too.  So, I had this sheer fabric, and here you go.  I'll get to the real window treatments next summer (another challenge, ladies?).

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with my bathroom reveal, except that this is how my 3-year-old kept busy while I was working.  She definitely has more of a fashion sense than her mother!

Please visit my friends who are blogging without borders & see their big reveals today:

Amy @ Buffalo Roam, Cassie @Primitive & Proper, Dana @ Crafted Niche, 

Debbie @ ReFresh ReStyle, Heidi @ Décor & More, Holly @ Life as a Thrifter, 

Jaime @ Crafty Scrappy Happy, Jessica @ Stay At Home-ista, 

Karah @ the space between, Kelly @ View Along the Way, Kirby @ Kirb Appeal, 

Laura @Top This Top That, Shannon @ Fox Hollow Cottage

for marty - burlap panels

My sister mentioned months ago that she was interested in burlap panels for her dining room.  A good sister with a home decorating business and serious sewing skills would be making her some gorgeous custom panels.  I, on the other hand, am going to write a post about it - show her a few pictures, provide a few links, and then call it a day.

Last year, I made some burlap panels for my living room and dining room.  Inspired by The Nester's striped curtains, I pieced together two shades of inexpensive burlap to make my panels.

Inspiration from The Nester:

Source: thenester.com via Tisha on Pinterest

My version:

Source: delectablehome.blogspot.com via Tisha on Pinterest

Being the discontent fickle decorator that I am, I have never loved these like I wanted to.  Maybe because shortly after I finished them, I spotted these smocked burlap panels over at KariAnne's place.

Source: thistlewoodfarms.com via Tisha on Pinterest

And just a last month I saw another pair of similar smocked drapes in our local symphony Show Home.
KariAnne's source no longer has the smocked jute panels in stock, but they do have NON-smocked jute panels:

Source: softsurroundings.com via Tisha on Pinterest

And NON-jute smocked panels:

Source: softsurroundings.com via Tisha on Pinterest

Here's what else I've drummed up...

Selections from Ballard Designs:
(A) Essential Panel; (B) Fringed Panel
You can click on the photos see buying info.



Jute smocked panel:
(Warning: this is not for the faint of heart at $225 per panel!  But oh so pretty!)



Luxe linen panel:

And an etsy option:

I used the $3.99 a yard economy burlap (plus a half off coupon!) from JoAnn to make my panels, which is not the same stuff used for most of the commercial drapes.  Theirs usually have a tighter weave and a lighter weight.  When looking for burlap fabrics or doing an internet search, "jute" or "linen" may also yield good results.  Just promise me you will not buy 84" curtain panels!  I am proposing a consumer revolt against this standard manufactured length.  These are just TOO SHORT!  I would go at least 90" for 8-foot ceilings, and even 96" or 108", especially if your ceilings are 9' or higher.  They will look so much better hung high and sitting lightly on the floor or even puddled at the bottom.

If you buy yourself some new burlap panels, especially a smocked version, I'd love to hear about it, since I'm going to tolerate enjoy my striped burlap panels a while longer.

NOTE: I have not seen, touched, or bought any of these curtains in person and therefore am not offering an endorsement of any particular product or company.  These are just inspirations and ideas for your own research.  Post includes affiliate links.

turquoise bathroom sink

Welcome to my fourth installment of Blogging without Borders.  Each member of the group is working on a project that should stretch her limits and include some things that she has never done before.  For my challenge, I have chosen to redecorate Mr. Main Bathroom with a zero dollar budget (with the exception of the replacement sinks and faucets that my husband bought for the project).  All of my supplies are being pulled together from my DIY hoard.  So hopefully I'm getting a two-fer - redoing the bathroom and cleaning out the craft room & garage! 

This week I am so excited to show our new old sink!

The sink cabinet in here has been disgusting.  I couldn't store anything inside because it smelled really musty and old-lady-ish.  And it was plain white with dirty, chipped paint and rusty hinges.

Before:

But despite the grossness of the cabinet, the first order of business was to change out the sinks.  I really loved those high back ones we had, but the only replacement faucets for those are special order and rather expensive.  As you may notice from the before photo, the faucets we had were two different styles, and several things were not working correctly on them, so they really needed to be replaced.  Charles decided just to buy some new sinks and cheaper faucets instead of trying to get the special faucets for these.

Here is my hero installing the new sinks.  He did not want me to take a picture of him and asked if he was going to get a cool disguise like D.  How do you like it, dear?

While he worked on this, I was busy painting the cabinet.  I decided to try to reclaim the storage space by removing the doors and center supports, then painting and sealing to trap in the musty smell.  The paint color is a hodge-podge of paint leftovers from the garage - mostly a minty green-gray from our living room & dining room mixed with a bright turquoisey blue from a toy chest.  I put a coat of paint on the bottom of a galvanized vase I had stored away, too.

I even painted the insides of the drawers (ooh, aah).  Not trying to be fancy, just trying to cover the old toothpaste stains.

You'll notice I got new hardware.  I had rounded up a few supplies and receipts that we had not used for previous projects, so I took those back to Lowe's and used the credit for these handles.  Charles said this was cheating on the challenge.  What?  But I didn't buy anything!
"No," he said.  "The challenge was not to buy anything."  Hmmm.  This communication in marriage thing is pretty tough.  But they are already installed, so we're keeping them.
I moved the baskets from the nursery and stuffed them with toilet paper, bath toys, hand towels, and unmatched socks (I don't know).

LOVE!

Please visit my friends who are blogging without borders today:

Amy @ Buffalo Roam, Cassie @Primitive & Proper, Dana @ Crafted Niche, 

Debbie @ ReFresh ReStyle, Heidi @ Décor & More, Holly @ Life as a Thrifter, 

Jaime @ Crafty Scrappy Happy, Jessica @ Stay At Home-ista, 

Karah @ the space between, Kelly @ View Along the Way, Kirby @ Kirb Appeal, 

Laura @Top This Top That, Shannon @ Fox Hollow Cottage

On August 27, I'll show you the whole room with my summer-full of changes.   The shower curtain is ready, and I'm working on some fun accessories for the big reveal!

{Linking up to a few fabulous parties:}

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