Office Chair Remodel

So here is my latest project: recover an old office chair.  Since Chris and I moved into our apartment we've been using one of our 4 dining chairs when sitting in the office.  It was a pain for me to have to drag it around every day depending on what we needed.  Thankfully my grandparents had an old office chair they didn't need anymore however, the material was kind of scratchy and the color just wasn't right for our office.

So off to Hobby Lobby I went to find the perfect fabric to recover this chair!  I love the grey and yellow pattern I picked out!

Then I unscrewed the cushions and laid them out on the floor so I could cut the fabric to the correct size.

This is what the chair looked like with no cushions.

Then, I got to work with my staple gun.  I pulled the fabric tight on all sides and stapled it into place. This is the bottom cushion so the it didn't really matter what the underside looked like. 

Then I just screwed the cushion back on through the fabric so it would stay tight. 

 Next it was the back cushion. Same thing, pull each side of the fabric tight and staple into place.

All finished!

Here are a few pictures of the final product.

I actually like these colors so much it has inspired me to redo the color scheme in my office to match! Now I must find a new rug and curtains to match! I'll post pictures when my make over is complete! :)

I hope this inspires you to take an old piece of furniture and upgrade it! The whole project cost me about $10 dollars and took about 30 minutes.  So get on out there and get craftin'!

Cheers,
Courtney

Canvas Art Project

Looking for a cheap and easy art project to spruce up a boring wall?  Well I found one! Chris and I have now been in our apartment for 4 months and I have finally found the time to do some updates to our decor.  These plain white canvasses have been hanging above my bed for years in a different capacity and they just didn't match my new bedroom so something had to be done! Last week I stumbled across a cute idea on Pinterest to use a doilie as a stencil.

This project was super cheap (less than $10) because all I had to buy was the spray paint and doilies.  However, even if you had to but the canvas Hobby Lobby usually has them packaged 2 for $10.

First step: Lay out the canvas and doilies.  I tried to attach the doilies with scotch tape however as soon as I started spray painting they moved.  I would suggest either attaching them with spray adhesive or hot glue.  They will still come off the canvas easily when done so don't worry! I promise this will make your life much easier and your end product will be better as well.

Second step: Paint.

Third step: Remove doilies and make sure paint dries completely!

I am really happy with the way my project came out and I think it complements my room decor nicely! I am even planning on doing this again on a wooden "S" I bought to hang with my wedding picture  wall collage. (Pictures to come when complete!) I hope this has inspired you to create your own art. Remember, if I can do it anyone can!

Cheers,

Courtney 

Game of Thrones Watching Party

Sunday was the season finale of the HBO series Game of Thrones.  Every week a few of our friends come over on Sunday evening to watch with us.  Since this would be the last episode for about a year we decided to turn this weekly occasion into a themed dinner party!  All of the food that we served was inspired by the food that the characters eat on the show (which is roughly like medieval inspired fare).  On a side note - please ignore the terrible picture of me above, we had been out by the pool all day for my mother-in-laws birthday!

On the menu:

• Nosh plate: spicy capacola, hard salami, grapes, gorgonzola, 3 pepper colby, assorted crackers, and pecans
• Sausage with spicy garlic pepper sauce - I used beer soaked kielbasa and sriracha as the dipping sauce
• "Mutton" stew in cornbread cups - the stew was made in my crock-pot (super easy!) I used corn, green beans, and potatoes, stew meat, water, and "stew seasoning" packet from my grocery store. Cook on low 6-8 hours.
• Cherry stuffed chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing
• Cinnamon apple cupcakes with cinnamon buttercream icing - recipe to come!

I got my inspiration for the menu from the Fantasy Filter blog which lists all the food the characters eat in the book series. Also, a big thanks to Cecily for all the help making the watching party a success her cupcakes are the best for sure! I'm happy to report that by the time the episode was over we had demolished the food and are now eagerly anticipating the return of the series next spring!

Welcome home Thor!

Welcome home the newest member of the Stevens Family... Thor!  We picked him up last Thursday from the Hurst Animal Shelter.  He is a black lab that is about one.  He loves loves loves to play with Zoe and they are getting along great so far!

It is so nice to be able to stay home during the day right now to help get him housebroken and make sure the transition is as smooth as possible. The first few days were interesting as we soon found out he was terrified of the stairs, which when living on the second floor is a big problem!  Thank goodness he quickly warmed up to them.

I will keep you updated as things progress with our family! Now that things have finally slowed down in my life look forward to a few more recipe posts this week and maybe a craft or two!
Cheers,
Courtney