This Lil' Birdie Is Resourceful

So yesterday I showed you my little desk fixer-upper rearranging.  And I told you I would show you my bulletin board project.  And here's the step-by-step!

What I used:

- Bulletin board
- Open-back frame
- Glue gun
- Scissors
- Screw driver
- Shower curtain (trust me on this one)

I bought this open-back frame at Hobby Lobby for half off $25.99.  Pricey for my budget?  Yes, but I couldn't find anything else I liked as much, so I just went with it.

It's a 16"x20" frame, and you'd be amazed how hard it is to find a cork board to fit.

So I found this guy at Target for $6.99, and decided to cut it to size.

Easier said than done.

I started by ripping off the border.  Again, easier said than done.  This is where the screw driver comes in.  For leverage.

It took oh about an hour.

But that wasn't the end of this project.  The bulletin board was still too big for the frame.

So I measured twice and cut sixty-two times until I finally had something that remotely resembled a 16x20" rectangle.  The edges were all sorts of jagged because my scissors weren't sharp enough and I ended up using the screwdriver to cut the bulletin board down to size.  Don't judge me.

Here's where the shower curtain comes in.  A few weeks back when I visited my lovely sister for a girls' day, we found this shower curtain at Target.

Home Feminine Shower Curtain, Target

At the time, my plan was to make basic elastic-wasted skirts for the two of us (because really, that's a LOT of fabric for 20 bucks!).  Then I decided to take a little square and cover a bulletin board.

So I ironed it (*gasp* yes, I do own an iron) and cut it to fit the cork.

Then because I'm the absolute laziest do-it-yourself-er EVER, I took my handy dandy hot glue gun and glued it to the board.

For the corners, I just lopped off one side (see above)...

Fold the other corner down....

And then fold that corner up and glue.  Ta da! Corner are done (they don't have to be perfect 'cause they're going in the frame).

Then wiggle and worm it into the frame and you've got an adorable sweet little bulletin board!

Sorry for the lighting change.  Had to go outside on that beautiful day!

And this guy is perfect over my desk...

Sweet big flower brooch,  picture of me & the boyfriend, and an on-going list of paint colors I love... Inspiration!

This Lil' Birdie is Rearranging Things

I have a confession.  I love to re-arrange things.  Furniture, artwork, pictures, clothes.  Pretty much anything I can pick up, I will move.  The boyfriend doesn't particularly support this little habit of mine.  He likes things to stay the same.  I like to change things up so then it's like getting new things without the extra money!

I'm planning on starting a little home-based business soon.  I'll let everyone know when I get things up and running, but until then, let's talk about how I'm preparing.

First, I realized I definitely need a desk.  All through college I used my mother's hand-me-down vanity as a desk or just camped out on the couch.  Now, two years out of college, I've had no need for a desk.  All of my work is done, well, at work.  The extent of my computer usage is internet and photos.  But now, I need a desk.

There was this little corner of my apartment that seemed like it would be perfect.

I was standing in front of the tv to take this picture, and you can see the curtains for the french doors to the patio.  So it's a small space in an awkward corner that collected magazines and puppy hair.

I inherited this antique sewing table from my mom and it fit just perfect...

Yes, it's a little off-center here but that's just because I ended up opening the top to use both sides.  The sewing machine has been removed and there's just a lovely hole in it's place.

So I had my "desk" and from there it was just decorating (aka: pulling things from around the house to make it pretty).

I decided a lamp would be good, so I got one out of storage (there's no shortage of lamps around here, that's for sure).  And I brought that sweet little trinket box I showed you the other day out of the bedroom.  He no longer holds bobby pins and wayward jewelry.  Now he holds bobby pins and paper clips.  

Every desk has to have a calendar, and mine is vintage Barbie prints that will be cut and framed at the end of the year. 

That tin on the left-hand side of the picture?  That's full of Sharpies and pencils.  I needed something to hold my colored pens (I like to color coordinate things).  And my coffee mug from Anthropologie was perfect.

A little of this, a little of that, a small little project for the bulletin board (which I'll detail tomorrow), and this is the end result....

Clean, simple, organized.  Exactly what I need.  And my laptop fits perfectly over the hole from the sewing machine!

In my old college cottage, I had a do-it-yourself closet organizer system, and the pieces have traveled with me from home to home over the years.  With fabric bins and some boxes, this one is perfect for stashing paper, stationery, and all other random things out of the way.  It also makes good use out of that awkward corner beside the tv.

Add the chair back, and voila!  Perfect little desk space for my new business venture!

And now that I see it in pictures, I think it's time to start bringing another color into the house.  It's getting a little TOO blue...

This Lil' Birdie Is Obsessed: Milk Glass

Set of Milk Glass Vases from Etsy.com

Is this not a lovely little collection of milk glass vases?

I truly love milk glass.  Last summer I visited the {tiny} town of Vernon, Alabama, to help my boyfriend's parents pack up his childhood home for a move to the big {little{ city of Tuscaloosa.  Vernon is a virtual treasure trove for small town junkies like me.  They have a cute little downtown and everyone knows everything about everyone.  But my favorite part of this small town?

The Falkner Antique Mall.  My boyfriend's great-grandfather started a mercantile store in this building.  It was the heart of the city.  They sold everything from candy to farming equipment and was even the first funeral home for Vernon!  You can read the story at the Antique Mall's website.  But really you absolutely must go by if you're ever in rural west Alabama.

Miss April and I took a break from packing for a visit to the Antique Mall, and now I have the itch to go back.  They have a plethora of true antiques and just good ol' junk to choose from!  Of couse, I found some things I just couldn't live without...

...A shabby chic window pane with peeling paint the exact same color as my Halcyon Green accents.  It hangs over my hall bench (seen in the Christmas post)

...A vintage map of Canada (all in French, no less).  I painted and distress the frame.  This is in the dining room.

...A sweet little black set of shelves for my storage-less bathroom.  Great for towels and the odd basket full of hair appliances...

But two of my favorite finds were... milk glass!

This vase is much bigger than the standard milk glass bud vase.  P.s. those pictures in the background?  My dad's parents -- my Grandmother and Granddaddy.

And this sweet little trinket box at one time had some pretty gold accents, but that has long since worn off.  It was a perfect addition to my bedside table menagerie...

Is your nightstand "user-friendly" or pretty?  Mine's a combination of both.  The trinket boxes hold jewelry and the odd bobby pin that finds its way into the bed, and the drawers underneath hold everything else!

I'm thinking another trip to the Falkner Antique Mall will be in the works soon.  Next time I'll be sure to take pictures before I get my lovelies home!

This Lil' Birdie Loves: Pink!

There was a girl I went to church with years and years and years ago.  I'll always remember her because my sister and I always discussed (in church, no less!) that she had on pink EVERY. TIME. WE. SAW. HER.  Huh?!  Not head-to-toe.  But a definite pink theme.

Now, after so many years, I'm beginning to see the genius and the flaw in her wardrobe.  I don't think I could live with an entirely pink wardrobe.  But if I did, it'd look a little like this...

Bobeau Stripe Bow Front Tank, Nordstrom

Black and pink?  Where do I buy?

Girls' Layer Cake Tank, J. Crew

Ruffles and more ruffles and oh, my... I'm in love...  Currently wishing I could still wear little girls clothes...

Ballet Flats, Old Navy

But the problem is that for as much as I love pink, I would rather accessorize with pink...

Case in point:

Kate Spade New York "idiom" Medium Enamel Bracelet, Nordstrom

Hello, darling.  Your bow has won me over.

My birthday is in about a month.  I will accept any of these items as gifts and promise to not even be tempted to exchange them :)