Hello lovely readers.  It has been over a year since I have shared any projects on my blog, and I actually considered closing it down because writing consistently has proven to be extremely difficult.  BUT, I love sharing our home projects and my thrifting escapades with you, so here I am trying to make a go of it once again.  Let’s see what has been going on in my life, shall we?

My last post was Spring/March of last year.  We just wrapped up the kids play room, and I started furnishing my office. Since then, I repainted my hallway and bathroom, we finished our pantry, and just recently poured our concrete counter tops and dining table.

This is a chair my husband rescued for me.  It needed some major repairs, but it now sits in my office with a new seat and a fresh coat of black paint.  I promise to share a finished pic later!

I bought this small bench at Goodwill.  It was under $5.00, nice and sturdy, and I did NOT paint it.

I recovered it with a thrifted skirt and it turned out just perfect.

Do you remember this painting?  I found it on trash day, ripped and waterlogged.

I gave it a bit of a makeover.  Wait until you see it finished, it’s my best work.

This painting was a Salvation Army purchase, and it was $4.00.

I painted over that one too.  They both now hang in my hallway, which I repainted and installed new lighting.  My husband showed me how to switch out light fixtures, and since then I have installed new lighting in our bathroom and pantry.

Speaking of the pantry, we finished this project up a few days before Thanksgiving.  This is just a work in progress shot.  We had enough flooring left over from the kitchen to install it here also.  I need to purchase a rug and have some thresholds installed and it will be completely DONE!

I refinished this dresser for the pantry.  It is called the Green Monster and my husband hated it.  I purchased it at the Local Mission over 5 years ago, just waiting for the perfect place for it.

It isn’t a monster anymore!  It was a TON of work, and every time I refinish a piece of furniture, I swear I will never do it ever again.  It’s new home is now in my pantry, holding my baking supplies.

I purchased this salvage piece in Pittsburgh to hang in the great room.  It used to hang in a hardware store and is made from old crates. 

It weighed a ton and all of the kids jumped in to help install it.

I use it as a wine rack!  We plan to install a library ladder of sorts that will go from beam to beam so I can reach the bottles at the top.  We have also decided to give wine making a try, and already purchased some supplies. So exciting!

And our most recent project, our dining room table and counter tops.  Since the beginning of our home building journey it was always a goal of mine to have concrete counter tops and a large concrete dining room table.  With the great room being so spacious, it can handle a table this large.

My husband did the brain work and construction of the table base. He did a fantastic job. We poured the table and counter tops in February, and it was a huge success.

I have already purchased the tile and shelving for the rest of the kitchen, and plan to stain the cabinets soon.

We opened a Pizza shop in the spring, which also added to the absence from my blog. We had to close it months later due to poor sales.  It was a huge learning experience for me, I was able to do all of the branding, including the logo, menu and signage.  The best part was designing the interior of the shop.  Even though the business side didn’t work, I am very pleased with my contribution and wouldn’t hesitate to participate in something like that again.

In addition to all of that, I have recently added a new hobby to my life.  Jujitsu!

It is a style of martial arts, like a form wresting/ground fighting, using different moves to control your opponent or attacker.  If you are familiar with any UFC type fighting, you have heard and seen Jujitsu at work.  My husband and son have been taking it for a while now, and I was encouraged to try it out as a way to defend myself.  I have been participating for almost 9 months and compete in a tournament every so often.  I have competed in sports before and always try to stay active and this sport challenges me both physically and mentally.  It is by far one of the hardest activities I have participated in and I absolutely love it. I have started an Instagram account the.happy.grappler in case you are curious, look me up!

 

So there you go, a reader’s digest version of what has been happening while I have been away from my blog.  I hope to write once a week, maybe open an Etsy shop, or sell some of my finds on Ebay.  We plan to put a porch on the front of the house this summer, I will be sure to keep you updated.  So, I guess this means I am staying, as long as you are still reading!

Until next time!