2012: New Opportunities!

So the end of 2011 has been an incredibly busy and stressful few months for me.  On top of all of the holiday planning and such, two amazing opportunities came at me basically at the same time.  And they are both the type of opportunities that I just can not pass up.  So I said yes please to both and buh-bye to my sanity for a few weeks.  Firstly, as part of my end of the year goal to sell some of the stuff that I can't stop making, I walked myself into the cutest little kids consignment shop right nearby and requested to work as a vendor for the shop.  The owner loved my work and signed me up right away.  So on January 2nd, my 'line' (yes, I'm using that word to sound fancier) of children's items will debut to the general public at Trendy Tots on the corner of Baker and Union St.  If you are local and you haven't been there yet, you are missing out.  Natalie has some of the cutest clothes around and her prices are fantastic!  Also, I will expect you to be going to check out my stuff!  Which includes items like these:

So after sewing over 40 T shirts, 20 ties, 4 dresses, 3 skirt outfits and 37 crayon rolls in just a few weeks, I'm a bit tired.  But hopefully it will be all worth it.

Now don't forget, I said TWO amazing opportunities.  A few days after I signed myself up for sewing my life away, I received an email from Ana White.  Ana is my idol.  And I mean that seriously.  If you have a few hours to spare, check out her website: http://www.ana-white.com/.  Ana is a DIY guru and will teach you to build anything that you have ever dreamed of building.  She is currently building a house.  From the ground up.  But the website gives free furniture plans and the most basic instructions so that anyone can follow them.  I found her years ago when her blog was very young, but she currently has one of the largest DIY blogs out there and if you are someone like me, she is your Oprah.  

When the email first appeared in my inbox, I did a double take.  My return email actually used the phrase, "is this for real??".  Ana had emailed me to request that I be a contributor to her website.  She has grown so large that she can not keep up with the demands of building all of the pieces that she makes plans for.  So she started a group of contributors who will take her plans and turn them into reality so they can be posted on her blog.  And Ana pays for all of the supplies.  So essentially I am donating my time and work, but in turn I am getting free furniture that I get to keep, built by me to my specs (within reason).  How can I complain?  I will also be getting credit as the builder and contributor on her site.  First up for me was a cabinet for my craft room.  It is almost done and I will let you all know when it posts on Ana-white.com.  

SO... my craft room is torn apart like a tornado came through.  Jay has been picking up threads, fabric scraps, and sawdust out of our laundry and kids' hair for several weeks.  I have bags under my eyes that resemble an 89 year old's.  And I might be slightly crazy right now.  But I'm sooooo in my element.  And who doesn't love a bit of crazy?    

Selling Out...

.... hopefully.  I have finally decided that this year I actually have enough time and gumption to attempt to sell some of the things that I can't seem to stop making.  Basically, as I say around here, I need to support my habit. There just isn't enough space in my basement to keep all of the pieces that I keep rescuing and there isn't money to buy all of the pretty new fabrics that I can't resist unless I sell some of this stuff first.  So here's where I need your help, my loyal fan base of several millions.  If you know of anyone who is looking for a special piece of furniture, perhaps I could make it...  If you have an awesome dresser that just needs a face lift, perhaps I could lift its face for you.  If you have a wall that needs stenciling...  if you are in need of new throw pillows to spruce up the look of your living room... I can sew them - those mama-jamas are super expensive in stores!  As some of you all aware, I have set up a facebook page for 'Into the Chrysalis' in order to hawk some of my wares.  Pleeeeeaasse 'like' me.  Pretty pleeease.  And tell all of your friends.  There is some sort of recommend button on there.  Feel free to use it.  Right now.  OK?  Thanks.

Happy Bathday Mom!

For my mother's upcoming birthday (her 49th, of course), I thought that perhaps she would like an update on her half-bath downstairs. The teeny bathroom has been the same since the house was built save for one small scroll of stencil that I put over the top of the towel bar back when vine stencils were cool.  The entire bathroom revolved around a certain shade of green that can't even be named but resides somewhere between lime and pea.  The toilet was this color, the sink was this color, and the floor was an even worse version of this color.

The medicine cabinet in this bathroom was a ginormous mirrored box that was partially held together by rubber bands.  I do not joke.   So I called the siblings to get the backing of pitched in funds that I would need.  And with my Dad's (reluctant) approval, I began the work on the half-bath last week. The only promises that I had to make were that the medicine cabinet HAD to go (my Dad's request) and that the putrid green toilet HAD to stay (my mom's).  Once upon a time a plumber once told her that she should never get rid of that toilet.  Apparently it was the Mac Daddy of all porcelain thrones.  Note that I did use the word "was".  That, my good folks, is what we call foreshadowing.

Now you should know that my mother's favorite color is royal blue.  And by favorite, I mean the only color she will ever wear or use in any decorating scheme.  So I set out to intricately work together royal blue and the putrid lime/pea green.  And look what I found:

I also set out to buy a new vanity to replace the old weird laminate counter top that was streaked with putrid green veins.  But my Dad didn't like that idea.  Because the vanity would've been 4 inches shy of the wall on either side and, "stuff would be falling down in there".  (his words, not mine)  So my plan B became tiling OVER the weird laminate counter top and installing a new white sink.  I picked out a basic white tile for the counter and used the pretty glass tiles (read: expensive) as a back splash.

Then it came time to do the floor.  So I enlisted my Dad to help me remove the toilet.  Except that the Daddy Mac had been there for so long that he had no intentions of moving.

To make a very long story short(er), in my frustrations with the toilet, I smashed right through the porcelain with a screwdriver.  But let's be candid here, I wasn't too disappointed with having to replace the putrid green toilet.  Back to Home Depot we went, and back with a new white toilet we came.  The floor went in very easily and my Dad replaced the toilet the next day.

The new medicine cabinet was easy to hang, but installing the new lighting fixture presented a slight wire relocating situation.

All in all, I think the bathroom turned out really lovely.  even if it did take no less than 12 trips to Home Depot/Lowes.

So there Ikea.

Don't get me wrong now.   I could spend HOURS in Ikea and I would be loving every minute of it.  But when my sister-in-law requested a new shoe cabinet, I just knew that I could build one better than Ikea's laminate version.

The problem area is this space at the front door of their house where everyone comes in and deposits their shoes... and bags... and coloring books:

And since my sister-in-law has a 3 year old and a one month old new baby, it hasn't been getting any better recently.  So she asked me to fix it.  Actually, she pleaded with me to fix it.  And gave me almost 100% of the creative control.  Basically she said, "do what you need to do and give us a big reveal when it's done".  Now, you know that those words are like liquid gold to a DIYer like myself, right?

So I went home and got to work.  I used plans from Ana White (like I usually do) and modified them to fit the actual space.  And soon enough I had this:

We quickly realized that there was no way it was going to make the trip to Princeton in one piece, so it actually ended up looking a bit like this:

I also noticed that my sister-in-law and my brother both sit at the tiny little chairs of their three year old's table in order to put their shoes on.  Obviously that situation had to be rectified.  So I was off to Sal's in search of a chair.  I managed to wrangle home this lovely item after sweet talking it down to $6.  (Yes, I did talk the price of a chair down at the Salvation Army.)

But I knew that my sister-in-law wanted a lighter colored wood and that the pattern on that fabric is just about as butt-ugly as you can get.  So after lots of sanding, staining, stapling and sewing, the chair was looking like this instead:

The next step was just getting it all into their house.  I made my second trip down to Princeton this past weekend, and put the shoe cabinet back together in the entryway.  I had also made a shelf for hanging all sorts of bags and such which proved to be the most aggravating part of the whole sha-bang.  Let's just say that there may be just a few holes in the wall under that shelf.  Hey - I wanted it to be sturdy. And it's not my fault that the builders of this house refused to put the studs where they belong.  But all worth it, I say.  Let me remind you of the before:

And now....

Mission completed.

Our Busy Summer

Obviously I've been a terrible blogger this summer.  But there is a reason.  This summer I made the switch from average stay-at-home mom, to12 hr a day contractor/construction worker.  But you all know that I'm in my element and loving every minute of it, so please don't take that as a complaint.  

Here's the quick back story:  old dilapidated garage, never had a door,  big chunk cut out of its front, might fall on us at any moment.  Also totally obscuring the beautiful view of our property which was the main reason that we bought this house in the first place.  Observe:

So we figured that by moving the garage location to the other side of the driveway (ours is a horseshoe driveway), we could clear this eyesore and have a much better view out of our window and from our deck.  So we ordered a lot of materials and one day it was all delivered to our driveway.  Several pallets of stuff that looked like this:

And then the building began.  And so did the heatwave of 2011.  But we had to carry on.  Let's just say that I spent most of the time building in a bathing suit and repeatedly dumping buckets of water over my head.  First the framing:

Then the sheathing (yeah, that's right, I learned a lot of building terminology this summer.)

Did I mention that it was 104 degrees?  No joke.  No exaggeration.

We brought in a special crew:

And a decorating committee:

And a professional photographer.

We are now super-awesome at installing shingles and vinyl siding.  (although, there might be a smidge of white caulk involved in the aluminum fascia covers and the soffit.)

I even built a window box to complete the new look.  And we are pretty sure that the overhead door is secure and will not come crashing down on anyone's head.

With the new construction complete, we turned back to the source of the problem.  Here is the stunning view that we used to enjoy from our deck:

No one was happier to begin this part of the process than I was.

Immediate improvement in the scenery (even with the piles of rubble).

Let the clean up begin!

Next up (next year.... being that our bodies and our bank accounts are now exhausted) - Building a second, lower level to our deck to make it more useful for our family and friends! 

Congrats Tom and Jillian

My brother is getting married in less than 2 weeks.  So awhile ago I decided to ask them what they really needed for their house.  And they wanted an entry way bench.  So that they could get rid of this lovely piece of "furniture":

I looked up lots of plans.  I took lots of measurements and drew some building diagrams.  And I came up with my very own, perfectly sized for their space,  built from scratch entry way bench.  I sewed a cushion cover (removable for washing, of course) and some pillows to make it cozy.  And I added a special little detail that no one will ever see, but they will know that it's there and it means something.

 Much better, don't you think?  (p.s. - I can't be blamed for the upside down pillow in these final pictures.  I sent my husband and my Dad to deliver it and set it up.)

Happy Wedding Tom and Jillian!!

Bigger Kids... Bigger Schedule

One of the things about being a (self-diagnosed) OCD'er is that I always have to have lists.  Lots of lists.  And calendars - multiple calendars.  With lists on them.  Basically, if it is not written down, it does not exist to me.  One of the ways that I have managed to stay on top of our increasingly more demanding schedule is to have a weekly dry erase calendar that I update every Sunday night so that I will be aware of how the week will unfold and the family can easily see it while eating or passing through the kitchen.  Up 'til now, this little organizational tool looked like this:

Recently, I decided that I could improve upon this situation.  The dry erase calendar above was starting to get a bit small for weeks that were filled up with little boy things to do.  And I had this old frame with broken glass which once held a painting that was above our bed that I still loved.  And I had this old piece of plexi-glass sitting in our basement left over from the days when we used it to cover the railing area at the top of the stairs so Shane would stop trying to stick his ginormous baby head through the slats.  And so the light bulb went off.   I found 'a guy' who cut the plexi for me to fit in the frame (after, of course, I tried several times to do it myself and failed in each and every way).   I painted the days of the week backwards on the underside of the plexi so they will not wipe off with my dry erase marks.  And I found a piece of white fabric and some ribbon in my continuously growing stash.  And so this was born:

also I cleaned up a bit...  :)

A Place For Me

When we moved to this house over 6 years ago, I was excited that there was a work area down in the basement. In our previous house, we hadn't even had a basement.  But I was also pregnant and working and tired at all times.  I did manage to slap a coat of some leftover pinkish paint on the work area, but after that update, I pretty much called it a day.  Since then, I have found that I have actually been working around my workbench.  First of all, the lighting was horrible.  Secondly, the area that would have been the workbench has this ridiculous cabinet taking up the left side of it and also sported a 30 degree slope from the front to the back wall.  How am I supposed to build anything on a slopey work table?  On top of that, with two young children running around, I barely had any time to put away any tools that I took out, so they mostly just got throw in a heap on the remaining work surface.  I have been building furniture for the last few years on my back deck or on a crib base that I placed over an old rolling kitchen cart in the middle of the basement.  Suffice it to say that my "work area" was a hot mess.  Observe:

tool area mess

"workbench" disaster area

Recently I decided that in order to be a more productive and creative me, this situation HAD to change.  I roped my Dad into helping me fix several lighting situations.  (thanks dad!)  I sold the old rolling kitchen cart on craigslist to clear out some space.  And then the demolition began.  I ripped out the weird cabinet and the funny step type thing in the back of the workbench.  I built some new legs on the right side where it was sort of droopy.  I covered up that horrible brick basement wall with a whiteboard.   I painted with some oops paint that I got at Lowes for $3.  I covered up the paint can area with a curtain to keep the sawdust out.  And best of all, I leveled the top!

Now that I have my work area all straightened out (literally)....  does anyone need anything built????  I have the itch again....