Before and Afters...

With every move, I have a renewed interest in decorating our house (this isn't our "home" yet... but maybe in time it will be).  It's exciting to buy new furniture and rearrange our existing furniture.  Fortunately for me, Chris and I both agreed that our old dining room set had to GO.  It was nasty.  I mean, really... with kids... what isn't?  So, I sold it to some poor soul for $75 on Craigslist and I found and bought another new set we both love.  When I went to remove my Craigslist post, I happened upon a buffet for $75 that I loved and considered it a "sign" since it was an even exchange!  It took me about a week to prime, paint, and finish the piece but I loved every minute of it.  Here are the "before" and "after" pictures: 

So, now that I have one "successful" project under my belt, I'm exited to tackle the next project!  I actually started it today.  Our family room needs a pop of color and I'm hoping this (along with a sunburst mirror I'm hoping to "win" on Craigslist as I type this post!) will do the trick.  (Okay... and a few other things but there's no sense in overwhelming Chris, right!?)  Fortunately for me, Megan is a fantastic photographer and didn't mind me "stealing" her work.  This was my inspiration and what I'd love to recreate:  http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2012/02/inexpensive-way-to-hang-big-art.html

Here is the photo Megan took that I am going to use:

As luck would have it, Vistaprint is currently offering 50% off posters so for a huge 24"X36" print, I only paid $20.  Total!  Jenny, the creator of The Little Green Notebook blog, offered printing websites that charged over $500 for similar sized prints when I checked!  Once I receive the print, my next stop is Home Depot to get it mounted on plywood as she suggests.  I'll post pictures once I receive the print, mount and hang it so you can see the final project.  Even if it's a bust, I figure I'm only out 20 bucks.

Okay... I am PUMPED to start another project.  Any good (easy!) ideas?  Send them over!  I'm ready.