Beaux R'eves: May 2012

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Serendipity and My Bi-Polar Bedroom

ser·en·dip·i·ty

[ser-uhn-dip-i-tee] noun

1.an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident.

2.good fortune; luck.

Don't you just LOVE finding great things by accident?

That's what happened to me last week while I was out perusing an Estate Sale. I have slowly (very slowly) been working on the Master Bedroom for quite some time now. I think my bedroom is Bi-Polar. It can't decide what it wants to be when it grows up. Right now it's a little bit Romantic, a little bit French, a little bit Country but there were some elements left over from when it was a lot more Neo-Classical and darker. I wanted to replace the pictures on either side of the bed but couldn't find the right pieces. I was just about ready to tear up a Botanical book that I have had for years and frame them into sets. Well, what do I find when I walk into the Estate Sale? That's right! Four framed botanical prints! I snatched them up at $10.00 a piece.

The funny thing was that I had been to this Estate Sale twice before. It was a 3 part sale. The lady of the house had a LOT of stuff! It's the same place that I found the beautiful Battenburg Lace tablecloth and pillow shams.

I love the dusty silver ornate frames and the hint of gold around the edges.

Here is how the room looked Before. This is before I changed the bedding back to white.

This was inexpensive bedding that I purchased until I found what I really wanted. It's difficult because I have to have something washable because the dogs sleep in the bed. I cant send the comforter out to be cleaned once a week!

And with the new bedding... It's all white with pretty ruffles and lace. I found it on Joss and Main for a really great price and I can take off the duvet cover and wash it. I have a white Ralph Lauren matelese underneath that is also washable.

So, I hung up the pictures and it just didn't seem to scale. The ironstone plates seemed so high and it made the prints seem smaller. It would be great if I had four more prints but since that wasn't possible I had to find another solution.

That's better! I found two corbel shelves that I've had forever and placed them under the prints and raised them up to add height. I still am not in love with the room so I will wait to show it to you until I am finished.

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves,

XO Cindy

Sharing at:

Newbie Party at Debbie Doo’s Blogging & Blabbing
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Roeshel at DIY Showoff

Kristin at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia for Tuesday's Treasures
Linda at Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Faded Charm for White Wednesday
Kim at Savvy Southern Style for Wow Us Wednesdays
Judy at DIY by Design
Whatever Goes Wednesdays at Someday Crafts

The Brambleberry Cottage
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party on Thursdays

From My Front Porch To Yours for Treasure Hunt Thursday
Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday
Courtney at French Country Cottage for Feathered Nest Friday
Heather and Vanessa at At the Picket Fence for Inspiration Friday
Diann at The Thrifty Groove for Thrifty Things Friday
Debra at Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration Friday
Sherry at The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
Jen at Tatertots and Jello for the Weekend Wrap-up Party
Donna at Funky Junk Interiors for Saturday Nite Special
Five Days...5Ways

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Laundry Room Makeover

Hi Everyone!

I feel like it's been forever since

I've been blogging on a consistent basis.

A LOT has been going on around this house.

Our company has left us and moved into their new home!

I'm so excited for them and I will be helping them with a couple of

Remodeling projects.

FUN!!!

Having house guests made it a little difficult to blog

and get things done.

But I was recently able to finish a project that

I had on my To Do list for quite a while:

Refreshing my Laundry Room.

A while back I won this adorable Wall Decal from Judy at DIY by Design.

She had a giveaway for $25.00 towards a Vinyl Wall Decal at Madebytheresarenee

I thought a sign in the Laundry Room would be so cute.

Of course, I wanted to paint first and that's what took soooooo long! I already had the paint leftover from my ceilings in the Living and Dining room.

Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue.

I love that color!

I seriously thought that I had a "Before" picture that I had taken when I was painting the Chalkboard on my Pantry Door as seen in this picture. There is the Laundry Room to the right. It was the same color as the walls in the hallway, Benjamin Moore Monroe Bisque, and pretty much devoid of any decorating.

It was a sad little laundry room...

Here is the view as you walk in from the Garage. Laundry Room to the left and the back stairs. The first thing that I did was to remove the door to the room. We never closed the door and it was taking up space. My laundry Room is small and the door wasn't helping. The room measures 8'2" X 7'4". It's very tiny and I have plans for a remodel but for now just making some cosmetic changes has helped to lift it's spirits! (And mine)

Here is how it looks now. After taking off the door and painting I switched out the light fixture.

The old fixture was fluorescent and looked like this:

Not very stylish and don't you hate when it gets full of bugs!

How does that even happen?

Here is the new light that I bought at Lowe's.

I love it so much more!

It was pretty easy to switch it out.

The biggest factor was installing a new plate in the middle (which Mr. Beaux did). Then he patched up the holes and hung up the light. It actually has this really cool old fashioned light bulb that comes with it but it doesn't give out very much light so I had to settle for a regular bulb for practicality's sake.

I wanted some open storage so I took the doors off of one of the upper cabinets. I thought about painting the back of the cabinet but I also wanted to add some pattern to the room. I have been dying to use a graphic somewhere in the house and thought that this was the perfect place to do it.

Here is how it looked before. I was at Target looking for a tension rod when I came across this Shower Curtain.

The pattern and color was perfect AND it was on sale for $18.99. I was pretty sure that I could use the fabric as a skirt for the sink also. SOLD!

I looked for liquid starch but Target was out so I just used spray starch that I already had at home.

I measured and cut the fabric and sprayed the wall and the fabric with the

starch until it was really wet.

I pinned it up with push pins and let it dry.

What an easy and immediate results project!!!

The skirt was just as easy.

I took off the doors to the cabinets and threaded the Shower Curtain through the tension rod and Viola! Instant skirt! I didn't even hem it(yet). I had the shelves to the right built to store laundry baskets when we designed the house. I keep the dog food containers on the bottom. They were ugly and didn't match so I painted them black. Don't worry, I didn't paint the inside and I made sure that I let them sit open for a few days before I put the food back in them. I would NEVER endanger my Bubbies! New baskets for cleaning rags and dishtowels are in the upper shelf. And new pretty bowls for my babies.

I also painted the wooden box that my Pop-Pop made for me to hold plastic bags.

I plan to paint something on it but haven't yet.

I hung up some silver platters that I found at Estate Sales.

It may seem fancy for a Laundry Room but I consider it Storage. I really use them and now I can see where they are as they aren't hidden in a drawer.

And anyway, WHY NOT???

I attached a little wire basket to this magnetic towel bar to hold dryer sheets. I used to have a skinny rolling cart in the middle of the washer and dryer but I took it out. I could never use all of the counter space because the dryer was in the way... I actually use the sink and the counter a lot to do flower arrangements and wash the dogs with the sprayer.

These are Hydrangeas from my backyard. I was playing with PicMonkey and their new options. I'm liking it so far. What are you using?

I put cuphooks in the bottom of this shelf and Mr. Beaux hung it up for me. The little tin buckets from Target (a dollar apiece) hold clothespins and Magic Erasers.

Don't you love those?

OK, here is another look at the whole Laundry Room Facelift:

I'm pretty darn happy with the results and actually look forward to laundry now. OK, that is an out and out LIE! But, the new pretty color and the updates make it bearable!

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves,

XO Cindy

Sharing at...

Newbie Party at Debbie Doo’s Blogging & Blabbing
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Roeshel at DIY Showoff

The Brambleberry Cottage
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party on Thursdays

Monday, May 21, 2012

Easiest Angelfood Cake with Lemon Curd Filling

I don't usually blog about food that I make,

but this cake was my own creation

(out of necessity which I understand is the mother of invention right?) so I thought I would share it with you.

Here is the scenario: It was my girlfriends birthday

last Wednesday. We were going out to dinner

and you know how that is...

You end up eating too much

and then you aren't hungry for dessert.

Plus, they celebrated with a cake at lunch at her office.

I had been running around all day and didn't have time

to really "Bake" a cake.

I ran to the grocery store

and picked up an Angel food cake, some Lemon Curd in a jar, fresh Strawberries, and some Heavy Whipping Cream.

The other ingredients I had on hand.

I cut the cake in half and

tunneled out the inside for the filling.

I placed the mixing bowl for my KitchenAid Standing Mixer and the whisk attachment in the freezer for 15 minutes.

I put in two cups of Heavy Cream into the mixing bowl

with 1 tablespoon of Powdered Sugar and

1 tablespoon of Vanilla Extract.

Whisk it up until soft peaks form and then spoon in 1/2 a jar of the Lemon Curd into the whipped cream.

This is the best filling you will ever taste!!!

Very lemony and not too sweet.

Spoon it into your "tunnel" until it's overflowing and

place the top of the cake back on.

Now mix up another batch of Whipped Cream without the Lemon Curd and use that for the Frosting.

Take the stems out of the Strawberries and slice them in half. Arrange them around the cake and on the top.

And that's IT!!!

It took less than 20 minutes to make the cake and that includes the 15 minutes of chilling the bowl.

Keep it in the fridge until ready to serve.

It is really so yummy, light and fresh tasting.

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves,

XO Cindy

Sharing at:

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Roeshel at DIY Showoff

The Brambleberry Cottage
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party on Thursdays

So Many Projects, So Little Time...

I have TOO many things going on at once!!!

I have to start finishing them

before I start ANYTHING else!!!

At least that's what I keep telling myself...

This weekend Mr. Beaux and I were outside doing yard work and I noticed that the plants I bought earlier in the spring were getting rootbound and needed to be repotted.

Well, that sounds like an easy enough project right?

Not if you are me.

I found a couple or pots that I wasn't using and didn't like the way that they looked.

Too new and white.

I decided to paint them. I rummaged around and found ASCP in Grey and some random black paint and got to work. My friends daughter Missy C helped me dry brush and stipple the pot to make it look more like aged concrete.

Don't be afraid of the "During" pic!

Random Interruption:

This little baby bird was hiding in the corner

of the garage most of the day!

His parents kept coming in to check on him.

Awwwwwww

He finally found his way out and back to the nest!

OK, back to our post:

I still wasn't happy so more rummaging occurred.

I found some stain and diluted it with Thompson's Water Seal and aged it some more.

Now we are talking!!!

I dumpster dove into the recycling bin and found some plastic bottles to use for drainage in the bottom of the pot and threw them in before I put in the potting soil.

My plants look happier already in their new home!!!

I placed them on the Screened In Porch

where there is lots of shade.

Glad I can check this off of my to do list!

On to the next unfinished project...

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves,

XO Cindy

Sharing at:

Newbie Party at Debbie Doo’s Blogging & Blabbing
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Roeshel at DIY Showoff

The Brambleberry Cottage
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party on Thursdays

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Hello Mister (Landscaper that is)

I received the most wonderful gift for Mother's Day!

Mr. Beaux installed a Drip Irrigation system

for our outside pots on Saturday.

While I took Miss Beaux and a girlfriend shopping at the Plaza, he toiled over the installation.

Actually, he said that it was quite easy and he was so excited about how it came out that he wanted to do more in the backyard!

In this picture you can see the hose running down the side of the pot. We are going to try to secure it closer to the pot so that it doesn't show as much.

He used the Mister Landscaper System from Lowes and although he didn't buy a kit like the one shown above this isn't a bad way to go. The system hooks into your existing sprinklers (that's what we did) or you can hook it up to your outside faucet.

Mr. Beaux bought 100 ft of coil and that was enough to run lines to three pots and two planters on the windowsills.

He used 5 Adjustable Dripper Stakes

that came with three couplers.

See the little bubbler inside the pot?

It's attached to a stake that you push into the soil.

The spray is adjustable by turning the sprayer and ours comes on automatically each morning with our sprinklers. How great is that?

My worst fear is going on vacation and having all of our plants die!

Here is the pot next to my new bench. The line runs down and is buried under the dirt and mulch.

The funny thing was that during the process he found a few stones that had been buried by mulch and dirt.

OOpps!!

Guess we will have to get out the power washer and clean those off!!!

Hope you all had a wonderfully splendid Mother's Day!!!

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves,

XO Cindy

Newbie Party at Debbie Doo’s Blogging & Blabbing
Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphosis Monday
Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday

Roeshel at DIY Showoff

The Brambleberry Cottage
Gina at The Shabby Creek Cottage for Transformation Thursdays
Sherry at No Minimalist Here for the Open House Party on Thursdays

Friday, May 11, 2012

Flowers for Mother's Day

What Mom doesn't love flowers on Mother's Day?

I think every mother deserves flowers on her special day.

I also think that you shouldn't have to pay the Floral Shop prices when you can buy beautiful flowers at Costco.

I don't get paid to say this

(wish I did, or at least got paid in flowers)

but I just want to share some ideas that you

might be able to use.

It's not to late to whip these up...

How stunning would this be on a table or in the Entry Way?

I used a square vase and filled it with limes and used cut limes around the perimeter.

I bought one bunch of mixed flowers, one bunch of roses and one extra bunch of blue hydrangeas.

Total cost around $38.00.

This is actually HUGE!

The vase measures 12" tall and 6"X6" wide.

It's jam packed full of flowers and the great thing is that they stay put with the limes inside.

If Mom is not that flashy,

how about this simple arrangement?

Two dozen roses for $16.99!

I cut them short and stick them in some wet floral foam.

I placed some lemon leaves (they were left over from the big bunch of flowers) around and some Spanish Moss gets tucked into the edges to soften it up.

Happy Mother's Day!

Until Next Time,

Beaux R'eves

XO Cindy