Let's Visit the Kitchen

A year ago, I decided to paint my oak kitchen cabinets black.  I did it during the middle of the night because my husband kept saying no, no, no!!!  He thinks it's CRAZY to paint perfectly good wood, brick, etc., but he is married to a loony woman who will paint the kids if they sit still too long.  LOL!!

This all started because of a picture I found at Kirkland's the other night.  It was soooo gorgeous.  I just couldn't leave it behind.  As I mentioned the other day, I'm not some big wine drinker.  BUT....I do love this picture, and I love how wine bottles look.  I could stare at the labels all day long.  So, it started the whole kitchen redo this weekend.  Paired with Mr. Rooster (from Kirkland's YEARS ago!), and a new winebottle holder from Kirkland's, I love how this looks!!

Here's a closer look at Mr. Rooster strutting his stuff and my super gorgeous picture from my favorite store, Kirkland's...



I love the way this cabinet and picture flow with the countertop vignette I did the other night...

Moving to the left toward the eating area....You can tell how MUCH I LOVE black!!!  My furniture was already oak and black before I painted the cabinets. 



This china hutch is one of my FAVORITE pieces.  I already had the table and chairs, and I bought this hutch and the buffet when we bought this house.  Dishes just aren't enough for me in china cabinets or hutches, so I am always adding a little extra to them!

Here's a closeup of the vignette on the bottom shelf. I shared this animal print fleur de lis tray from Hobby Lobby the other night.  I have one on my countertop by the stove.  I LOVED it so much, I went back and bought another one!!  I LOVE animal print, and I LOVE anything with a fleur de lis on it.  I could NOT resist this!!!!  Yeah, I know...who puts animal print all over their kitchen?  ME!!

Moving around the room, here's another thing that peaked my itnerest at Hobby Lobby that same night, something else I am in LOVE with and have been forever...topiaries!!  I spied these two pics and HAD to have them.  I knew they'd be perfect on each side of my doors.  LOVE how they match my curtains!

I also spied these hydrangeas, and I knew I had to have them to go on the buffet.  I also got the wine picture at Kirkland's the other night.  I already had the zebra topiary and the books.  LOVE my Mercury glass buffet lamps (also from Kirkland's!).  I have several sets of these all over the house....

Here's a better look at the entire kitchen...

The wine and rooster theme also contines on the other side of the kitchen.  Here's Mr. Rooster topiary that I have had for years.  I can't bear to part with him!!  I got these decorative bottles the other night at the antique store.  The gigantic one was only three dollars!! The other two were a dollar each!!  I couldn't leave them!

Notice my rooster pictures over there on the wall?  They're from Family Dollar.  Five bucks each!!  I couldn't leave them behind either.

Check out this GORGEOUS wine bottle I found at the grocery store for $4.95!!  Like I said, I'm no big wine drinker. I just LOVE the bottles!!  I had to get this one.  It's so pretty!

Here's a view of both sides of the kitchen....

One last shot of Mr. Rooster as he says "Goodnight" to you!!  LOVE how he looks in the lamplight.  Hope you enjoyed our tour of the kitchen!!

I'm partying this week over at Debbie Doo's Newbie Party, Metamorphisis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Coastal Charm's Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays,  A Stroll Thru Life's Tabletop Tuesday, Wow us Wednesdays over at Savvy Southern Style, and with Miss Sherry over at Open House Thursdays on her blog No Minimalist Here!!!  Friday, I'm linking up with At the Picket Fence for Inspiration Friday and French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday!  I'm just a par-tay-ing girl this week!!

AND..this is how quickly things can change at my house!!  Went to Ross today and spied this Mr. Rooster....couldn't leave without him, of course!!  He was less than $10!!!  What do you think?  Like him better here on the hutch or like the water pitcher better?  HMMM....confusing!!

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OOPS, I Changed it Again!

I can't stop myself!!!  I keep changing my house, and I don't know what's wrong with me.  I didn't really set out to change my kitchen BUT....I saw this picture at Kirkland's....and that's all it took.

I really like this even though I'm no big wine drinker.  I just like the Tuscan look of wine bottles, and I think they add such an elegant, old world feel.  So, on a whim, I am tweaking my kitchen a little and adding more of the wine theme.  Here are a few sneak previews...I'm going to work more on it over the long weekend.

Here's the top of the refrigerator.  I HAVE to have something up there.  It just looks "naked" without it!  The fleur de lis bowl is from Kirkland's, and I filled it with faux pears I got at Old Time Pottery awhile back.  The wine bottle picture is from Beall's Outlet.  It was only $12.99!!  LOVE the pear on it and the colors are perfect for my kitchen....



A couple of glimpses of the countertops...Another wine picture from Beall's Outlet (also $12.99).  I bought the wine at the grocery store for $3.99 just because I like the bottle!!  It has a gorgeous crane on it.  I think it looks great with this picture!

That leopard print fleur de lis tray is from Hobby Lobby.  I COULD NOT live without it.  My two favorite things are on there --- animal print AND a fleur de lis!!  It's like winning the lotto!!  I HAD to have it.  I really think that I NEED another one!!!!!
Here's  a sneak peek of the other counter...I have had the canisters (also from Kirkland's) for awhile and also the gold charger (K's, too).  My favorite cookbook has to be on the counter because I use it quite often.  My son told me I needed something "green" over there and brought me the pears on this tray.  I think that was a great suggestion, so I added them and also the black urn with a boxwood greenery ball to top it off.  I really like the way this turned out!

I still haven't hung up the large wine picture yet, but I will get there over the weekend.  It's just been a busy, crazy week!  I will be soooo glad when things settle down a bit. 

See you soon with more from the kitchen!

Cupcake Cutie

I was not planning to have a cupcake tea party this weekend, but I was in DG (as in Dollar General, not Dolche &  Gabana, that is) this weekend and saw the most ADORABLE, the absolute CUTEST tablecloth, plates, potholders, etc. with a cupcake them on the endcap.

I could NOT leave the store without these, they were so stinking adorable!!  The colors are gorgeous, and the price....well, can you say a  DOLLAR???  YES, MOST WERE A DOLLAR!!  The plates were a dollar, the tablecloth $3.50, the placecard holders were $1, the potholder $1, the cupcake holders $1.  The cupcake plates were $1.50.  They even had recipe cards!!  I can't believe how adorable these items are for the price.  I don't like vinyl tablecloths, but I can see this one used a LOT in the future at the school and here at home with my little ones.  It was perfect for being able to easily clean up spills from sprinkles, icing, and such, PLUS, the colors are YUMMY!  I can't believe how adorable this table turned out with just items from the Dollar General!!!

I used my Kirkland's candleholders in the middle of the table as the centerpiece and filled them with cupcake sprinkles and then topped them off with a tealight in each one.  I took leftover Christmas bows from my daughter's Christmas tree (it was a cupcake theme, too) and tied them around the napkin ring holders just to give them a little more color. 

I almost forgot to add that I used one of the Kirkland's mason jar candleholders to place our silverware in!  SOOOO cute!

We had a great time making our cupcakes.  You had to make the recipe you sat in front of!  We made red velvet, chocolate, coconut, and carrot cake.  YUMMY!!!  I'm taking them to work tomorrow to share.  :)

I love how a few dollar items from the dollar store enabled me to help create some very special memories with my daugther this afternoon.  After having four sons, I am kinda getting used to doing the girly thing!

I'm working on changing some things in the kitchen, and I am DEFINITELY looking forward to the looooong weekend next week to get a few projects around the inside of the house taken care of.

Have a great week!



I'm partying this week at Debbie's Newbie Party, Linda at Coastal Charm, Marty at a Stroll Through Life, and Susan at Between Naps on the Porch! 

Let's Visit the Dining Room

 Today we are visiting the dining room.  This is the most "formal" eating area in our home.  Our great room has a weird shape, and this section is on the very front of the house.  When we moved here, I had this gorgeous table and china cabinet.  I love the cabinet so much, I couldn't bear to part with it.  I started to make it a library, but...you know how that goes.  Money, money, money, yada, yada, yada.  So, the table and cabinet fond a home there. 

This house has a huge kitchen with room for an 8 foot table which is perfect for my family.  Most of our time is spent in the kitchen, so it's only natural that we primarily eat in there.  However, I love the way this more formal dining space flows with my great room. 

Most of the decor in this space is from Kirkland's.  I made the orchid centerpiece a couple of years ago, and it has moved all over the house.  I like it best here, I believe, because it goes perfectly with the chairs and the Kirkland's art between the windows.  Here's a closer look at the centerpiece...

The dishes and glasses are from Beall's.  Beall's is a Florida deparatment store for those of you that don't have one near you.  I love these white shell dishes - got them for HALF off, making the plates and bowls about $3 each!  The napkin rings are Pottery Barn, and so is the flatware.  I am in love with this flatware, by the way, but I can't afford it.  LOL!!  So, I have created my very own Pottery Barn Layaway Plan.  Every time I go in the store, I buy a set.  This way my husband doesn't I don't notice the cost of it as much, and before I know it, I will have the 12 place settings I need.  Pretty clever, huh?



My curtains are "no sew"...Remember, I don't sew?  LOL!!  They are just long panels of material ($6 a yard!!) folded and clipped with curtaian rings.  Doesn't matter that they're not store bought formal draperies, they do the trick and match my couch to a "T".  I tried lighter colors on the windows, but with all the light in this room, they just faded into oblivion.  I think these tie the entire room together perfectly.

See why I couldn't bear to sell the china cabinet?? I think it is one of my favorite pieces of furniture.  The metalwork on the doors is totally fabulous!



And, finally, here's a view looking back from the great room living area. 

Linking up to Debbie's Newbie Party!





And also par-tay-ing over with Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Table Top Tuesday, Linda at Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays, and on Thursday with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch!!

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