Crystal Author
I’m a lover of white rooms, or mostly white rooms. I love the different shades and nuances of white. I love the serenity a white room offers. I love that an all white room can be changed just by adding a couple of colorful pillows or throws. For anyone who feels white is too hard to live with, Sunbrella offers wonderfully soft fabrics for use in interior rooms, and of course offers white. Slip covers make white sofas easy peasy to live with if you have kids or dogs or both. Bemz has many slip cover options in a multitude of designs and colors to fit Ikea furniture, including a hard wearing white cotton blend and a gorgeous white linen.
I love the fact that white rooms aren’t boring. Adding different sheens and texture makes an all white room come to life. Soft and hard. Shiny and dull. Rough and smooth. Adding opposites makes an all white room feel dynamic, not static. Adding a few pieces of natural wood or some accents of black takes it to another level.
I say all this even though I have dark leather in the family room and brown velvet in the living room. If white is so easy and I love it so much, why don’t I have it?? Good question……. When we moved here 19 years ago I invested in a Restoration Hardware sofa in a beautiful chocolate brown. It’s soft, warm and cozy. It brought back memories of my favorite sofa of all time, a chocolate brown velvet of indeterminate brand that I had for years. The years of life with a young boy and many dogs, rescues and fosters, plus assorted cats, kittens, gerbils, hamsters and a couple of birds. That sofa held up so well. I cleaned all manner of gunk from that sofa over its lifetime. There was nothing wrong with it when I got rid of it, I just wanted a new look. I was never happy with another sofa. It was musical sofas for a few years and my son complained that he left for school in the morning and came home to a different sofa at night.
I found another brown velvet sofa at Goodwill for $80.00! Of course I bought it and the merry-go-round of sofas stopped for a time. It was wide and deep and perfect for snuggling and watching movies or taking a nap. I marveled at my luck. It was in perfect condition. I was in love. Then I went shopping with my bestie and she bought new living room furniture. It was the height of the preppy Hunter Green, Burgandy and Navy craze and I walked out of that store with a receipt for guess what? A Hunter Green, Burgandy and Navy sofa and loveseat. annnd, it was plaid. PLAID! UGH. What was I thinking??? That was one of the most uncomfortable sofas ever. Scratchy fabric and after just a few months the cushions sagged. Plus it was ugly. Really, really ugly.
When we moved into this house I knew that furniture.was.not.coming.with.us. I was shopping for odds and ends with my daughter-in-law and of course we had to check out Resto and Pottery Barn. I have an on-going love affair with both stores. I think I squealed when we walked in to Resto. There was a chocolate brown velvet sofa. I sat on it. I fell in love. I left with a receipt and a delivery date. I didn’t measure it, never considered that it might be too large for our tiny living sitting room. Consequently we removed the two columns that separated the entry from the afore mentioned sitting room to make space for it. I will never give it up. It’s soft, it’s cushy, it’s lovely. White grainsack pillows look marvelous on it and give it a farmhouse look. I.got.my.velvet.back. The end.
Of course that story doesn’t explain why I have brown leather, and to make this post even longer, the reason why I have leather in the family room is….. I live with Pig Pen, otherwise known as Mr B. He is the love of my life, complete with twigs and grass clippings on his clothes and in his hair, bark and mud and dirt on his shoes. I vacuum, he brings leaves and dirt in. I vacuum again. He brings leaves and dirt in. Again. It’s never ending. I also have two dogs…..but they don’t bring in leaves and twigs or debris. (That may be a lie, but this is my story and I’m sticking to it.)
The biggest reason I don’t have white sofas???? It isn’t about Pig Pen, or my fur babies. Nope. It’s because I’m lazy physically challenged. Since I injured my spine I can no longer do the whole remove, wash and replace slip covers. OK…..I’m also lazy. So we have leather. Very dark leather. It’s great. Wipe and go. It’s comfy. It doesn’t give me my desired all white room, but I also don’t have to fight slip covers. So I bring in as much white as I can. It’s all about compromise and making my home work for me…….and Pig Pen.
If you don’t mind wrestling slipcovers, I highly recommend getting a white sofa for your farmhouse home. Even if you live in a fake farmhouse. Or a wannabe farmhouse. I love all white rooms and I cannot lie. White is for every season. White is beautiful. Go for it and let me live vicariously through you. Send me photos of your white rooms and I’ll show them off in future blog posts. Send them to mysuburbansanctury@gmail.com Below is a link to 75 beautiful rooms done in my favorite color scheme.
Click HERE for photos of beautiful rooms and get ideas to incorporate white in your home which was the point of this post……. but I got ambushed by memories, so now it’s mostly about white. With some brown. sigh
Create your sanctuary, no matter where you live. Create the home you see in your heart.
Alrighty then. I’m done with the 30 day challenge and…..wait for it……It was….not much of a challenge. Maybe I should really challenge myself, to perhaps 6 months of no shopping…..or something actually challenging. Eek….that might be a bit much…… I’m not sure I could go 6 months without hitting an antique store. But then again, isn’t that what a challenge is all about? To do something difficult? Sigh… this is a question best left to the wisdom of……. someone.
It’s been fun to see what I could do around the house without adding anything new or shopping for new junk decor. And believe it or not, I’m still giving things away. What?? How can I have so much stuff when I am perpetually purging? This is a sign my friends. A sign that perhaps I have too much. Don’t tell Mr B I said that. He’s been telling me that forever . I would secretly roll my eyes thinking, “how can anyone have too much?” Except for those hoarder people. They clearly have too much stuff. But not great stuff like me. I have really great stuff. But not too much……er……???
One of the areas I DO have a problem is…. throw pillows, so named because men everywhere throw them off countless sofas and beds to make room to sit or sleep on said sofas and beds. My son made fun of me for years, because as soon as he got up to leave, I would rearrange my pillows. At night, I’m in charge of getting the bed ready because Mr B has no patience with folding throws, quilts and a plethora of pillows just to get in the bed.
I am constantly buying pillows. I have no idea why. How many pillows do I truly need? And shouldn’t my sofas be welcoming and actually have space for friends to sit?? Or room for me and Mr B? Without the constant playing games of musical pillows…… moving pillows from the chairs to the sofa and back again any time we want to…..sit? So the great pillow purge is on. I have bags…. BAGS of pillows in the attic. It’s ridiculous.
I am hereby declaring a moratorium on any new pillows! Now THAT’S a challenge. But I’m going to do it try to do it. I will finish making a couple of grain sack pillows that have been waiting to be finished for a year, but I already have the grainsack so it doesn’t count. See how clever I am at getting around moratoriums??
Did I accomplish all I set out to do during the last 30 days? Nope. My goals were a bit much to accomplish in 30 days in retrospect. But I’m OK with that. I’m on track. And I will continue to do those things that were part of the challenge, um….except for the no shopping part. However, I will shop more purposefully, with a list and a vision instead of just buying anything that appeals to me.
Lily is walking a tad bit better on the leash and I’ll continue working with her. She’s smart and eager to please. But she’s also a 6 year old rescue and a bit nutso. This will be a long term gig.
I added Audra Day, The Chainsmokers and Kendrick Lamar to my regular music rotation. And I’ve been listening to some artists I never appreciated before. So that’s a win. I didn’t get all the CD’s ripped and burned to share with the Grands, that’s an on-going project, I have hundreds of CD’s, some they actually like. Updating my on-line music files is a bonus and I might get rid of some CD’s to clear up space. I also worked on my family tree a bit, that is also an on-going project but at least my files are neat and tidy so I can find things.
I painted two shelves in the dining room and some frames. And I played with creating more chippy paint on some odds and ends before I try the technique on anything important. In my defense, the weather has been so rainy and/or humid I couldn’t paint as much as I wanted. Plus I spent most of my time with my Granddaughter and frankly, painting and projects could wait. The time with her is precious and since she’s older I might not get the opportunity as often. My oldest Grand has already curtailed her visits due to college and a job. It won’t be long until the younger one does the same. So when either one of them is here, time just sort of revolves around them. And that’s as it should be. Time spent with two of my loves is time well spent.
The shelves were a quick, one day project. There wasn’t anything wrong with them, I was just tired of the stain and wanted a different look. (There’s a big surprise.) I like them better white. And I completed a small shutter that had been lying around. That’s about it since my last update. I’m content with the projects I completed. And totally OK without shopping. I may do it again. Just to clear my head and keep my priorities straight. I also cut back on social media to avoid temptation. Another plus that allowed the time to catch up on reading. I’ll list the books in a future post.
I made a master list, room by room, of all the major and minor projects I would like to complete by the end of this year. (When I say I…..picture Mr B). This requires some cooperation and coordination with Mr B and his schedule is jam packed with trips, his singing gigs and of course, golf. Projects must be scheduled around all that. We’re going to be completing projects in the kitchen and the guest room that have been in the works for awhile. I’m so excited! And the search is on for a console in preparation for a new TV and upgraded sound system. Oh yes! I love me some big TV and we desperately need I want a sound system that wasn’t designed in the 90’s. It’s past time for an upgrade. More on that front later.
So that’s it. My 30 day challenge is over. Let the shopping begin! Just kidding. But I do have plans to rearrange some furniture and who knows where that will lead?? Thanks for coming along on my our journey to update our home. I’m creating my our sanctuary one room at a time. I’m creating the home I see in my heart. Mr B says my heart needs new glasses, but I like my vision just fine.
Love where you live. Create your sanctuary. One room at a time.
I’m three weeks in my 30 day self imposed no shopping challenge and it’s going well. I’m really surprised at how easy it has been. If you know me at all, you know that I LOVE to go to junk stores, antique malls or roadside pop-ups loaded with vintage stuff. It cheers me up when I’m down, lifts my spirits and inspires me to try new things in my own home. Not doing any of that should have left me down in the dumps. Strangely enough, it’s had the opposite effect.
I walk through my rooms now and look to see what can be removed, changed or gadzooks! I might even like what I see. I don’t look to see what I can add, I don’t walk around thinking….”If I only had ……, or I should get……., or I wish I had one of those………. Nope, I’m enjoying the process of changing things up by using what I have.
My attic is a crawl space and it’s about 200 degrees up there right now. So any forays into that hellish space must be thought out and planned like a Special Ops raid. Like right after a storm in the evening. Crawling up in there ain’t for the faint of heart. I usually ask Mr B to do that for me, but I just can’t bring myself to do that right now. I like my husband, I want to keep him around. Heat exhaustion is not an option.
The result of not getting into the attic means that all those items I’m hiding saving for future use, are in boxes in the garage. This has resulted in some remarks from Mr Grumbly Pants, aka the a fore mentioned love of my life. I asked for another project to be completed and the look I received in return withered my eyebrows. (Almost…. I have some pretty wiry brows and not even the wrath of Mr B can scorch those completely.) Normally his stink eye renders me silent…..but I’m on a mission. And no amount of stink eye will stop me. “I can’t do any more projects until I get my garage back,” said Mr Crabby Appleton. “But it’s sooo hot in the attic.” I whined….. “It’s too hot to go up there.” He stood firm and stink eyed.
So yesterday I lost 22 pounds of water weight sweating in the attic, moving bags of pillows. BAGS of pillows. Um, who needs that many pillows??? My responsible Self said… “just donate those.” My normal Self said, commented, screamed, “What if the world suddenly has a pillow shortage and my attic stash saves women everywhere from dying from the loss of pillows for sofas and beds??” I cannot be responsible for that. So I’ll keep those bags of pillows. Just in case.
I still have boxes to move, but now I’m too weak from yesterday’s heat, weight loss and the thought of no more pillows. I’m guessing Mr B will begin project completion for me in November when the attic temp comes down to a reasonable 95. In the meantime I’m using what I have in the house or hidden stored in the garage.
I recently became enamored of seltzer bottles. Again. Especially the ones with faceted glass. They look so pretty in social media photos. I HAD to have one. Completely forgetting I already have three that I never use. “But they aren’t faceted,” my must-have-everything-Self said. “I already have those others,” my I’m-trying-to-purge-Self remarked. The internal arguments between these two are draining. If you see me wandering around, wide eyed and mumbling, just give me space. Don’t make any sudden moves, speak quietly, lest my brain implodes.
A few days ago in the midst of a mumbling fit I happened to be looking up at those seltzer bottles when I had a Holy Cats! moment. On the top shelf in the laundry room, snuggled up next to the seltzer bottles I don’t use and really have no good spot for were my vintage lemonade bottles. I totally spazzed. I was so excited I grabbed the ladder and brought them down immediately. I can’t believe I’d forgotten these gems.
I went to an elderly widow’s home in the 80’s to look at a Singer treadle sewing machine. While we were chatting my son became infatuated with some bottles and asked about them. The woman’s late husband had invested in a company that wanted to offer a soda that would compete with 7Up and/or Sprite. She said the plan died because, in her words, “no one wanted to buy anything German.”
She had cases of bottles left and offered them for $1.00 each. We left her house with the treadle sewing machine and 6 “Limonade” bottles. The labels on the these bottles have been loosely translated…. The drink was to be a carbonated Lemonade with Citrus and Orange extract, sweetened with sugar, by Peter Wiertz and bottled by the Aachener Buger Brau company. They have porcelain stoppers! They still seal. I had a brainstorm. Where the elderly woman saw failure, I saw possibilities. 
I sterilized them in a water bath. You can Google sterilizing methods, there are several, but I just did the simple, stick em in a pan of water and boil them until everything in them, or on them is dead. After they were cool I used them to hold…..wait for it…..Lemonade! I decided to decant my lemonade into them and use them to serve friends and family. I love those stoppers and the bottles offer a neat way to pour and serve any beverage this summer.
If you have vintage bottles that are just collecting dust, think about ways they can be used. Decanters for laundry supplies? Bath oils? Dish detergent? With the lemon craze that has hit Blogland this summer, I’m doing my part, except I won’t be adding lemons as decor on my table. I want to sit outside where I can enjoy the humidity and buzzing of insects, while I sweat buckets but look oh-so-cool serving lemonade from these old bottles. Fresh squeezed lemonade, I might add. Yeah…..I’m all about the fresh.
Look around your home, are there things “hiding in plain sight?” Have you grown so used to your displays that you no longer see what is there?” Move things around. Look at them with new eyes. Don’t store things in a drawer. Or keep them in a cabinet. Find ways to add them to your daily life. After years in a box, I now use my Grandmother’s silver. It make me feel connected to her, brings back memories of childhood Sunday dinners, and using that silver makes my heart smile. I’ve added some vintage transferware to my every day dishes. Those dishes also make me smile. Isn’t that what a sanctuary should be? A place for smiling hearts.
Create your own sanctuary no matter where you live. One room at a time. Create the home you see in your heart.
Sooo, I’m in the middle of my 30 day challenge and am here to report, I’ve not done a lot of anything! What???? Where’s all that get up and go? All those little projects waiting to be completed? Photos to be filed? Furbaby to be trained? Books to be read? My get up and go…..went somewhere. It left me curiously un-inspired this last week. Each morning I get up and greet the day with…….”geez, I’m still tired.” “Think I’ll take a nap.” I did finish a couple of small projects, but truth be told, I’ve spent the majority of my time just hanging out with my Granddaughter, watching senseless TV, reading, listening to music, eating junk food and being lazy. It’s been pretty darn good, my friends. I treasure these last few days with her, she’ll be returning to Ohio soon. Projects can wait. I needed to recharge my creative brain cells.
There is no sanctuary for me without family, friends, and critters.
I’m not all twitchy to go shopping, in fact I don’t miss it! OH! my stars! I can’t believe I just said that….in print…..on-line…..where it will live forever.
I have been reading quite a bit. I’ve finished 4 books and am working on a fifth. I read every night before turning out the lights and almost every day poolside. I can feel the fat collecting on my body as I write. I see lots of walking in my future and maybe cutting back on the Barqs. Catching up on my reading was on my list and as I write this, I realize I’ve accomplished at least one of my 30 day goals.
I did finish a project and played with paint as I hinted in my last update. I tried Amy Howard One Step paint for the first time and followed her tutorial for getting an authentic looking crackle finish.
It seems a bit strange to be doing a faux finish that needs to look authentic…….but who wants their fauxs to look fake? Right???
So here’s my opinion on Amy Howard’s paint. I’m unsure. Ha! How’s that for a ringing endorsement? The paint itself is smooth and creamy but it isn’t a one step, or one coat product. I’ll have to try it on another piece of furniture and I’ll know more.
Crackle finish is almost instant gratification. I took a throw-away-clock I’ve had forever and didn’t much care for and gave it a makeover. All I did for prep was to clean it with my trusty 50/50 water and vinegar solution and remove twenty years worth of dust. It was hanging high on a wall and I don’t climb ladders to dust, I’m almost ashamed to admit that if something in my house is hung high on a wall or placed on top of a cabinet, it probably doesn’t get touched more than once a year, when I clean to add Christmas decor. Truth is harsh. I’m suspicious of folks who climb to clean. It’s unnatural. That clock was pretty grimy. Um…..Maybe I should take another look at my cleaning habits. I taped off around the glass after it dried and it was good to go.
I slapped a coat of paint on it with an old chip brush, (don’t use a good brush for this project), and let it dry, then I applied a layer of crackle medium. I used some old Lowes crackle medium that I had on hand. When it was dry to the touch, ( about 15 minutes) I applied another coat of paint, using smooth strokes. Don’t go over your second layer in a back and forth motion, it will remove the crackle. Lay the paint on in one direction, it doesn’t have to be precise.
The magic appears within a few minutes. For best results use flat or chalk type paint. You want to make a paint and crackle medium “sandwich.” A base of flat/chalk paint, followed by crackle medium, followed by another coat of flat/chalk paint. When the second coat of paint is about half dry, use your fingers, or a brush and push your paint here and there to lift it and cause it to lump.
This causes those bumpy, lumpy spots that appear on old finishes where paint dripped or wasn’t applied smoothly and was painted over with new paint over time. Repeat your layers as often as you wish to replicate years of paint. Use contrasting colors for a dramatic look or various shades of the same color for a more subtle finish. When your project is almost dry, use a scraper to remove some paint from the edges, but don’t go along an entire edge. Think about how old pieces get dinged and bumped and scratched over the years. That’s what you are aiming for. I used 3 different colors of paint, besides the Amy Howard, I used Waverly Chalky Paint from Walmart as the final layer.
When you are satisfied with the amount of crackling and the number of layers and the amount of distressing, let the project dry completely. Top coat with matte sealer or wax if desired and buff to a soft luster. You can highlight with dark wax to bring out the crackled areas or leave it plain. I opted to leave mine without a top coat for a more tired, old look and kept it to the white and ivory paints, I didn’t want a lot of contrast. I finished this update by using a single edge razor blade to remove some of the painted gold accent from the glass to make it look worn. And I aged the clock face with some burnt umber acrylic craft paint. I dabbed some paint around the edge of the face, then immediately wiped most of it off with a damp rag. The final steps were to remove the tape, clean the glass and reinstall the knob. A project completed! I might keep this clock now…. Or not…. What do you think?
It’s a fun and easy project and gives a much older crazed look than the crackling kits of the 80’s and 90’s.
Supplies I used:
Amy Howard One Step Paint in Bauhaus and Linen
Waverly Chalk paint in Cashew
Burnt Umber acrylic craft paint (optional)
Lowes Crackle medium
Chip brushes
Old paint scraper for distressing the edges
Damp rag
Painters Tape
Single Edge Razor Blade
Have fun with paint and don’t be afraid to experiment.
As always, I recommend that you watch on-line tutorials, read blog posts and use scrap wood or “throw-away” pieces until you are sure you have mastered a technique. And always read the directions for your product. Different brands of paint, crackle medium and waxes all have different drying and working times. Follow the directions for your chosen brand.
Create the home you see in your heart. Create your sanctuary no matter where you live.
Hey y’all! Over a week into my self imposed 30 day challenge and I’m surprised and happy to say things are going well. Surprisingly, (especially to Mr B) I have not shopped. at all. Except for school clothes for the Grands, but that kind of shopping was exempt…. and only happens once a year. Maybe twice…. or for special events….or holidays…. and birthdays. OK, I spoil my Grands, what can I say?
But once I made the decision to stay away from my favorite haunts, it was as if a weight I didn’t even know I carried had been lifted. I felt, and still do feel, a certain amount of peace. I’m no longer in a fever to buy new things, add to my collections or show off the latest “great buy.” Projects are being completed, albeit slowly since Mr B is leaving for a week. But small projects are getting done. I’m no longer a power tool kind of woman, nor can I lift much over about 15 pounds so I need Mr B. Physical limitations aside, I’ve been able to enjoy this summer in a way I haven’t for a couple of years.
I’ve focused on my Granddaughter without the hurry, hurry, let’s go somewhere attitude. Sleeping late, pool, and sun time and watching movies and The 100 together in the evenings have been the routine. Eating dinner together each evening without electronic devices. Reading. I’ve finished several books, even discovered a new author to add to my rotation. And of course, listening to music, she is exposing me to new artists, just like her father did while he was growing up
I’ve taken the time to add some information to one branch of my family tree and did some searching for a long lost Grandfather who hailed from Scotland. That’s becoming a slog. John Ross was a very common name. I tracked him back to Plum Township in Pennsylvania in the 1700’s, but can find no information on his parents, nor do any of his children, or grandchildren have any. It’s maddening. I know his parents were more than likely the emigres from Scotland and that John was born in Pennsylvania but their are no records to be found except a Ross line that isn’t mine. GAH! The search continues!
Projects completed were simple but impactful. The new light was installed in my “office.” I’ve had it for over a year and now I’m not even sure I like it anymore! That’s a major bummer. And with the help of Shayla, my middle Granddaughter I was able to finish updating my cheap bookcases. I’d been saving an old gardening book with pen and ink drawings, as well as an old dictionary just for this purpose. We’d planned on doing this project last summer but never got around to it. So, I’m really happy to have that checked off the list.
It was a simple update to add interest to the backs of the bookcases. I didn’t want to do my usual beadboard or beadboard wallpaper. So I removed the pages in the book, took the dictionary apart and we simply applied the pages to the back of the bookcases with wallpaper paste. Easy peasy. You know by now that I’m not into the whole measure and make sure everything’s level process, so this was a very forgiving project. Just eyeball the pages as you apply them to get some semblance of level. Smooth air bubbles out with a damp sponge as you go, rinsing it often and overlap your pages a bit. That’s it. This is a simple beginner project, no experience necessary. I’m really happy with the outcome. The finishing touch was adding some tiny enameled number plates on the face of the shelves. I found them in the scrapbooking section at Joannes. Mr B pre-drilled the holes for me and the plates were just tacked on with tiny nails.
Last but probably the most fun was making a mess “learning” a new paint technique for getting that chippy look we all love. I tried Amy Howard’s paint for the first time and will post my thoughts in a future post. I had a cheap 1980’s clock. You know how I feel about 80’s oak and I am systematically getting rid of any of that horrendous oak finish in my home. If you love it, please accept my apologies. To each her own. For me, it’s outdated and ugly. It.must.go. So I decided to experiment with the paint and crackle to see if I could get the chippy worn look.
I’ve used crackle finish in the past but was never really happy with it, it looked like a “faux” finish and not authentic. I would like my “fauxs” to look authentic. I’ll let you decide if I accomplished an authentic chippy finish. The clock is still ugly. I may not keep it. But I’m pretty pleased with my first attempt at the chippy.
That’s the update, my friends. I’ll post more in the weeks to come. For now, I’ll leave you with my usual advice. Love where you live, no matter where that is. Create a sanctuary, one room at a time, one project at a time. Create the home you see in your heart.
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