The Dressing Room Is Complete! Before and Afters, Clothes, Shoes, Decor, and More!

I finally have a dressing room!  Kick up those Heels!!!  I'm just loving the new space!

Let's take a few closer looks and take a trip down memory lane...

Here is that antique crate I talked about in my last post now looking a bit more fabulous with some high heels!

Can you believe this thing holds 17 pairs of shoes?!?

It is so cute and serves a very big purpose for shoe storage!  Love it!

I love the way the crate also compliments the DIY vintage inspired crate shelving Alex and I made (sitting just to the left behind the Ikea mirror).

Here is a close up of the faux sheepskin rugs I picked up at Ikea.  My toes sure love them in the morning when the floors are a bit chilly!  Thankfully Sadie is finally leaving them alone too!

I think the addition of the Stave mirror from Ikea has proven to be way worth the purchase!  I love using the stool and mirror when I am getting ready in the morning. 

My antique dressform still amazes me! Best way to store/display my necklaces and belts!  Swoon!

Vintage feel with fashion and shoes... Sigh, I am so in love!


Now, let's take a trip down memory lane
Remember back in November (holy moly, can you believe we first started this process in November?!?) we asked what the heck we should do with this room? This is what the room was looking like back then, icky carpet and NO personality!

The majority of the comments we got said we should be turning the space into a closet, sitting room, or divide the space.  We obviously decided on all the above to suit our needs.  Check out the original plan and inspiration here!

Alex got to work ripping out the carpet since we knew that ugly stuff had to go!

He then installed some laminate wood flooring, sooooo much better! This part was the most expensive of our redo of course, you can check out that post for all the steps.

After adding some window treatments, a huge failure, finding the right garment rack, lots of spray painting, hanging a vintage window, making some DIY vintage crates,  shopping for accessories, a DIY sign, and a DIY crate shelving unit here we are!!!  Phew!

Thank goodness I don't have to deal with this anymore!  Alex happily took over both closets in our master. 

This is a lot more fun to hang around in, not to mention things are way easier to find!

What's next?!?!

If you remember from the beginning, this room is going to be divided into 2 spaces. Thus why we hung the vintage window...

We still have the other half to deal with. Remember, this room is right off our master bedroom.  The dressing room/ sitting area is the perfect idea to sort of create a Master Suite.

Our plan is to make a TV sitting room on the other end.  If all turns out right, I just may never leave this space!  A dressing room and TV!?!?  Talk about the perfect place for a gal to go relax in! 

We'll be posting about this half soon! 

For the all the posts on this space check out the Upstairs Spare Room Redo label.

***We just joined the DIY Showoff's Project Parade!  Link Up and join in!***

Vintage, Handmade, and Ikea Accessories for My Dressing Room

I finally made some headway in the ol' Spare Room Project this weekend!  I was on a mission to get all the accessories and decor I needed to get my Dressing Room finished up.  Thankfully, I was successful!  There is quite the eclectic mix of decor in my soon to be dressing room!  Just the way I like it!

So here's what I got....

I went on a little antique-ing trip to Stillwater and picked up this awesome vintage crate for only $8.50 at Midtown Antiques.

I dont' have the exact measurements, but it was a really generous sized crate!  I love the handpainted 'Vine Ripened' label on the side. I am planning to use as decor/ storage.

In my inspiration post I showed this image from Arianna Belle, I love that she used an old crate to display shoes.  I am thinking I will do the same with this crate.

Now to my Ikea accessories! 

Last week in Houzz's Ideabook, I read a post about "Warming Up With a Sheepskin Throw".  I thought a Sheepskin rug would be a perfect accessory to warm up the space and give it a little feminine glamour.  I picked up 2 faux sheepskin rugs ($12.99 each), the real deal gave me the creeps since I didn't know if a sheep had to die to make a rug. The faux ones looked just fine.

The only problem with the rugs...Sadie was convinced that these were a toy for her (I guess I should have expected that, they are a little weird).  It took a lot of tries setting them on the floor and making sure she didn't run away with them.  She spent a lot of time 'inspecting' them.

I also picked up this AWESOME mirror name Stave from Ikea for $49.99.  I am soooo happy with this mirror, I love the way it leans on the wall and it is a pretty big size measuring 27.5"W x 63"L.  It really completes my room and gives it a glamorous feel!

The last item I picked up at Ikea was this Dalfred stool for $39.99.  I knew I wanted some kind of chair in the space that would be easy to move around and use.  I thought this stool was perfect and matched the style of the garment rack and antique dressform.

On to the handmade item! 

Here is the vintage inspired sign I made to hang above my garment rack.  It reads "La Vie Dans Le Talons" translating French to English "Life in High Heels".  I thought that was the perfect little saying for my Dressing Room. 

I have to add, the whole time I was painting the sign I kept doing my Nepoleon Dynamite impression and saying "Do the chickens have large talons?" Alex just loved that (JK), but I couldn't help it since le talons is French for high heels, such a weird word!

So here are some pictures making the sign. Before I got started, I just grabbed an extra piece of wood we had laying around in the basement and spray painted it black.

 Once it was dry I got ready to add the text.  I didn't have a stencil for the letters so I used a larger print out as a guide and freehand penciled in the writing.

Then I painted in the letters

Almost finished!

The cursive letters were a bit tougher to freehand.

Once I was done, Alex added some frame hangers to the back and hung it up behind my garment rack.  I love the fun personalized touch it adds to my space.

As you can tell I am almost done with this space!  I'm really happy with the way it is shaping up, I just have to get it a little more organized before I can post the afters, but that is next!  I can't wait to show you the room this week, eeeeek!

Head Over Heels: Vintage Windows... Weddings and More!

First Head Over Heels post?!?  Pop some confetti! Here we go!

I am totally Head Over Heels for antique/ vintage windows (as if you didn't already know)!  You can do so much with them...like the Chalkboard we made from the original windows from our house and the Room Divider we made for the Spare Room.

Well wouldn't ya know it, they even make for fabulous wedding decor?!?! Here is why I started looking for them to begin with (since I am not currently planning any wedding)...

A couple weeks ago I had a comment from bride to be and fellow Minnesotan Lauren.  She had asked if I had any ideas on how to incorporate vintage windows into a wedding/ wedding decor.  Well of course!  I found so many beautiful images, I had to write a Head Over Heels post about it!  All the images made me wish I could plan our wedding all over again (sigh).  

So let's go 'oooo' and 'awe' over these charming ideas for vintage windows at a wedding!  Or any party really! There are a couple that could work for everyday in home decor too!

Style Me Pretty: a Barn Wedding with Vintage Charm. All the images in the link are totally beautiful in this link!

Sweet Lydia's: Adding twine or wire is all you need to clip on escort cards

 Green Wedding Shoes: vintage windows are hung around a table to create a cozier outdoor atmosphere

Love and Lavendar: a vintage window is hung to create the perfect altar



My Sweet and Saucy: A vintage window somehow makes these desserts look even more delicious.



Southern Belles Charm: again, dessert AND a great vintage window? Yes please!



Milk and Honey Design: A vintage window can even be used to display your favorite engagement or wedding portrait. Or have your guests sign (graffiti) the wood frame

Blue Lily: Let guests know what goodies are ahead for the reception (just like the one in our kitchen)

Well now you know what I have been gawking at all week!  Hope you enjoyed a new look for antique windows for weddings... and I hope you got a couple new ideas Lauren!

Hope you  liked the first edition of Head Over Heels!  The next one will most likely stray a bit from my usual likes, stay tuned for next week's!  Oh- I'll be decorating the Spare Room this weekend and doing some more DIY decor, can't wait to share!

'Head Over Heels' Series and Versatile Blogger!

Ready to find out what I'm Head Over Heels for?  Okay, maybe you're not (but here's to hoping there's a little interest!).  I've been thinking about this for a while and finally decided to just do it and see how it goes.  I write mostly about what projects we are doing in our home, which includes a lot of work and inspiration.  In between all the work I end up finding so many things that make me feel inspired or excited!  I'd love to have a way to share them (without having a whole separate blog, that sounds like too much work)!

So, I have decided in true Hammers and High Heels spirit to write a weekly post about what I am Head Over Heels for at that point in time.  Sound okay?!?!  Oh, and I had a blast making this little logo!

I will be writing my first post in the series tomorrow, after that you are free to tell me if it is a horrible idea and I should just stick to the house stuff. Sound fair? 

As I said before, I get inspired by just about anything, so my weekly obsession might range from some sort of antique (standard to my usual) or fashion, events, people, places, humor, etc.  I promise to keep it intesting and inspiring.  I think this month might be sort of my test phase and we will see how it goes.

Find out tomorrow what I am Head Over Heels for this week!

PS- Holly over at Chic and Lovely included our blog in the Versatile Blogger Award! 

I graciously accept and am ready to spread the blog love back into the blog-o-sphere!

Here are the award guidelines for the next group of lovely bloggers I am going to link up! Warning: it is a lot of working doing all the linking, but you have to love the fun spirit of the blog world!

1. Thank the person who awarded you and link back to them in your post

2. Tell 7 random facts about yourself

3. Pass the award on to 15 new found bloggers

4. Contact each blogger you want to pass the award on to and let them know you’ve done so, and let the giver of your award know you accept it.

So.... here are 7 random facts about ME!

1. My first car was a Geo Metro (so was my second car), thanks Mom :) No really, at least I had a car

2. I was a competitive gymnast when I was in elementary school and middle school

3. I keep around 10 pairs of high heels in storage bins at my desk at work

4. My high school cheer team photo is on a wall at an Applebee's in Grandville, MI (now there's a claim to fame!)

5. I love all kinds and types of food, the only things I can't eat are mussels, they totally gross me out 

6. I lived in the Harvey Hall dorms at Western Michigan University my freshman year of college

7. Lastly, (ready for this one) I worked at Cedar Point Amusement Park for 1 month after my first year of college... yep, I was sort of a "carnie" for a while, haha!!!!

That last one always cracks up my friends!  It is soooooo not me, and if you are curious, the operated the "Power Tower" ride.

Here are 15 blogs I LOVE and you should check them out!

Big Food Little Mamas  |  Nook and Burrow  |  Modern Country Style  |  At Home Alterations  |  33 Shades of Green  |  Restoration House  |  My Sweet and Saucey  |  Kyle Hepp Photography  |  This Fresh Fossil  |  Marley and Lockyer  |  Pine Tree Home  |  Our Big Fat Farm Wedding  |  Domestic Jenny  |  Dreams on 34th Street |  Grand Design

All Things Home  |

 

Pheww!  See you tomorrow!

DIY Vintage Crate Shelving Unit and "C2T39"

About a month ago, I wrote a post about our Vintage Styled Storage Solution for my Closet Room.  Again, here are a couple of my favorite images for the look I was going for...

 And I love the wheels on this little guy...

Since I finally finished the 5 remaining DIY Vintage Crates it was time to make a shelving unit out of all 6 crates! 

First, lets take a look at what we are going to make first.  This is what the base for the shelving unit will look like (after cutting).  We used left over wood that was in our basement from other projects and I picked up 4 wheel casters from Home Depot for about $5 each.

So to back up, Alex measured the length of the crates and did measurements on where to cut the wood.

Then used his saw to cut each piece.

Here is what the cut pieces of wood looked like when he lined them up as the base for the unit.

He used screws in each corner for a stronger hold.

Then hammered finishing nails into the mid sections where the crates sat next to each other.

Action shot: securing those smaller wood pieces that will act as the base for the caster wheels.

To attach the casters, Alex used liquid nails since we couldn't find any screws that would work with the casters (all of our spare screws were way too long or had tiny heads).

Then he stuck those suckers on!

Once dry, you flip it over, add crates to the top and this is what you end up with!  I plan to stain the rest of the base that we attached so it will look more uniform (just got to eager to see how it looked!).

Here's another look.  I did them lengthwise to increase the storage room. 

And here's a closer look at the 2nd DIY Vintage Inspired Crate (the top one) that I painted letters and numbers on. (click here to see the DIY steps to make your own!).

In case you are curious about this letter/ number combination and its sentimental meaning here is a crazy story about "C2T39". 
Back in 2005 I met Alex one day at work, 5 days later I found out he had gotten in a serious accident on his dirt bike. He had broken his neck, back, shoulder, shoulder blade, collarbone, sternum, a bunch of ribs, an elbow, and really, almost lost his life. He was out jumping sand dunes at Lake Michigan and hit a truck head on. C2, T3, T9 are the vertibrae that he broke. After he laid in a hospital bed for about 2 months, the next time I saw him he was in a halo brace and working on recovering from all the pain his body went through. He also had a brand new perspective on life. I spent a lot of time after that listening to his stories of what the whole experience was like, and overall we grew a lot closer. Hope you liked that crazy story!  Alex really is amazing!

Awkward segway back to the project...

I hope to get the rest of my Closet Room decorated this weekend, then I hope I can finally share afters! What do you think of the shelving unit?

*** We just linked up to the Lettered Cottage's How To's Day Linky Party!***