It's Prime-tastic!

We had another decent day, so I dragged some more of the thrifted pieces out and set them up on my 'work tables'. 

At the moment, I don't have a dedicated space to do the dirty work - sanding and lots of priming/painting. That may never happen and I'm ok with that because I'm the queen of making do. Sawhorses and a board? Instant table. Old shower liner? Leakproof drop cloth. This solution adjusts to my needs, and is portable to boot. You can go crazy buying something that's specifically designed for a problem, but gadgets are endless. Figure out if you have something that will work just as well and spend the bucks on something truly worthy. Like cupcakes good tools ;) 

I read a great post from Donna at Funky Junk Interiors about doing 'Look and Learn' posts instead of just 'Show and Tell'. I'm going to try to do more tips and tutorials, along with the show and tells. You'll have to let me know what you're looking for and maybe I'll pick one and do it in the future.

I may have promised to finish something soon…well, nothing's done but a few pieces are well on their way! 

Remember how I said I loved this curvy piece? I loved it right up until it couldn't be sanded down with my palm sander. The entire piece needed to be hand-sanded…not my idea of fun. Oh well, it'll be worth it.

This little tote needs a little surgery - don't be afraid to make changes to something you see! I saw this and immediately saw it's potential…as long as the stars and heart were gone. Think something can't be changed? Well, if it was only 50 cents to begin with, what's the harm in trying?

After an experimental try with a scraper, I went all in with a screwdriver and hammer. Easy-peasy! No harm done and it's looking better already.

This little box was 80's-tastic. For all of you too young to remember the colors of the 80's - spongepainted peach was HOT as a home decor color (!) Fast forward to 2011 and it's a little unfortunate. This one required a little surgery also. One whack with a hammer and no more strange lid handle. More to come on her makeover. Think glamorous.

Progress - I was a priming fool!

See? First coat of priming is done and then it got too cold to do another (42 degrees). I like to use a stain-blocking latex primer and am using those little throw away foam brush/pad things. The final coats will be brushed on, and I'm debating whether or not to spray some things. As long as they're nicely done and subtle, I like brush strokes to a point…what about you? 

That's the progress so far. If the weather warms up again, I'll be able to do some more painting. After the painting, I'll take each piece and show you how to pretty-it-up. Hopefully, you'll see something that inspires a creative thrifting project of your own!

PS: Did you notice the painted piece in all that white? Here's another look (sorry, I was losing the light) - next up is a tutorial on how to decorate it.

Function First!

Today, I dived into a project that’s been bugging me for awhile. I took a few days off and went to our vacation home. I like getting away...as any self-respecting vagabond does *wink*. We redid this little cottage a year or so after we bought it, mostly because the wiring was from 1923 and the bathroom was from the ‘40’s – yikes and yuk.

In our re-do, I messed up big time when it came to the kitchen. I don't cook (much), therefore no cooking = no need for a lot of storage = no upper cabinets. This gave me the option of putting a row of cute little casement windows in their place. So, you see where my mind was when deciding how big the refrigerator needed to be. I decided a little undercounter fridge would be just fine. Rrrriiiiiiight.

(pay no attention to the insulation in the cracked window)

Fast forward three summers spent with an undercounter fridge without a freezer, and the fridge/freezer that we needed after all (because the ice cream truck only comes sporadically) was in the back room. The function was all wrong with this set-up, and I moved the fridge to the only place in the kitchen where it fit. Right in front of the storage unit stove. I only use the stovetop to heat up my tea in the morning. Need a stove, but not a proper fridge? Major brain-fart!

Why no, I don't use the oven...

This wasn’t going to be a permanent arrangement, but I couldn't justify buying a new fridge. The good news is that the old fridge fits EXACTLY in the space where the stove was originally. Since realistically the stove isn't functioning for us and we need the space, the stove will be craigslisted. A toaster oven takes care of small baking jobs. The grill and microwave take care of most everything else. If they don’t, we go out to eat.

Much better! The undercounter fridge will now just be a beverage fridge - now that's function!

Moral of the story is to be realistic about how your family functions. If a stove is there only to hold pans that you don’t use anyway, maybe it’s not a necessity. If you have a pantry, but no light in the kitchen, maybe windows would function better than upper cabinets.  Just because a stove and upper cabinets are expected in a kitchen, it doesn’t mean they’re necessary for your family. If you’re planning on staying awhile, make it YOUR home and do what works for you.

What are you hanging onto because it's the 'norm'?

What is Art?

Over the weekend, I was challenged on my concept of art. Over the years, I’ve done many different types of DIY and crafty projects, but only just started putting paint on canvas in a traditional sense. An offhand remark was made that what I was creating was more ‘crafts’ than ‘art’. Although it was meant as helpful feedback, I have to tell you that conversation deflated me…for about a second. I might not be classically trained in anything (unless you count a college degree and 10 years as a networking goddess), but I feel like an artist when I take materials, put them together, and create something.

My Roses and Lilacs acrylic painting



A gift for my sister



How do you define art; is it defined in the narrow sense of the word and can only be produced by classically trained artists? Oil paintings or marble sculptures are the only things that count? If art is something of beauty and if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, art can be anything. Art is a child’s painted handprint on notebook paper, it’s shells hot-glued onto a framed picture of a beach wedding, it’s anything embellished, painted, or sewn. As long as it’s beautiful to you, it’s art.

Take a look at these crate stairs from Funky Junk Interiors…

Miss Mustard Seed creates beautiful pieces…

And who said art can’t be adorable? Check out this from Remodelaholic…

These might not be your style, but it’s art in my book. It inspires me.

I’m not comparing my work to what anyone else is producing. However I hope by making the attempt to follow my long-delayed dreams, I can inspire another person who’s been holding back, for whatever reason, to make that first step.

Lazy Saturday?

More bloggy goings-on, and a lot of new projects bubbling up.

About the blog:

It didn’t seem like it was going to happen, but I can state with almost 67% certainty that the blog design and inner workings are done. The uncertainty comes from not knowing what I don’t know. I think it’s set up ok, but there may be problems I’m not aware of yet. If anyone sees a problem when viewing it in your browser, let me know and I’ll attempt a fix.

Oh, and before everyone says “your font sizes are wonky” (…wonky is such a fabulous word…) let me say I know about the font sizes. Writing in a text editor and pasting it into the blog doesn’t work nicely. Or I just haven’t figured it out. And I’m too lazy to retype it.  If there’s anything else that you notice, drop me a line, or what the heck? put it in the comments. I like comments, even corrections. It means someone cares. 

And the projects:

The photography skills are coming along. Still figuring out the best way to capture some things, the right lighting, props or no props, but it’s coming along. After seeing the sunshine and being lulled into thinking it was warm-ish outside, I dragged some things outside and started setting up shots. After about 5 minutes, my fingers were frozen. I might have rushed a few shots. Probably.

There might be something about photo composition while in one’s own dead-from-winter-didn’t-prune backyard that I should take into account when looking through that viewfinder. Looking into a lightbox setup - thanks Anne for the professional tip! See her work here.

These babies are getting the decoupage treatment, maybe some embellishments





This can be made pretty again, just wait and see





I LOVE this curvy piece!



I have a couple of these little crates to play with. Hmmm...



That's my lazy Saturday - hope you're having a fun weekend!

I am now a Blogger!

I know, I know, I was a blogger as soon as the first post was written and published. It feels different now though - more like there's a rhyme and a reason to the blog. It feels good!

So after a week of blogging, I have a few thoughts on the subject: it's tons of fun, but boy howdy! is it a lot of work. Yep, I just said boy howdy - I'm bringin' it back. Anyway, there seems to be a never-ending list of bloggy things to read about, learn how to do, change, move around, add, delete...you get the idea.

I have a newfound respect for all the blogs I've been reading over the last few months. Shout outs to Funky Junk Interiors, DecorChick, Young House Love, *Remodelaholic*, Miss Mustard Seed and others. These folks produce quality content and do it consistently, all while finishing amazing projects! How in the world do they get it all done? Does it get any easier?? (Please someone say 'yes'!)

Most of the information I've needed is out there, but it does take time to find it, read it thoroughly, and apply it. So far, it seems that all my time is taken up learning about the blogosphere. And unlike my normal m.o., I'm creating it as I'm learning. Things change on an almost hourly basis as the tweaks keep coming. No more planning it all out to the nth degree before putting something out there. Proof positive I can change :)

Are there any other new bloggers or wannabe bloggers out there? I'd love to hear from you!




PS: Here are some teases of what I'm doing and what might be coming soon!

My Gator will understand

First coats of many

Best Laid Plans...

I tried, I really did. The plan was to get the office painted while my husband was out of town. There was going to be this great 'Before and After' moment and oh, the sense of accomplishment! Unfortunately, the Office Make Over turned into the office clean up. First rule of project management is to under-promise and over-deliver. Second rule is never forget first rule. 

What happened? Opportunity knocked, but Reality got to the door first. 

Seriously, I get distracted easily. Multi-tasking is an art form I am constantly striving to master. Getting an office painted doesn't seem all that hard, but there was a blog to configure, a Facebook page to set up, writing posts for said blog, editing photos, eating, sleeping…the list was endless. Did you read the kidding between those lines? I have it pretty easy, but I need a little perspective on this whole undertaking. 

So, here are the pictures of my office as it looks today. 


Update: I realized 'before' shots would be helpful instead of having to find the original pics in this post . Bear with me while I figure this out!

Office from doorway-before. Piles everywhere!

Desks and floor decluttered

Corner clutter

Look! There was a heat register behind all that!

My art supplies corner...and pegboard stand and paint can storage

Art supplies arranged

Wine crates make great display shelves, if you have enough of them

Wine crate shelving stocked (added 5 new crates)

Filing to be done, painting projects stacked up, tools, books, stuff not put away

Filing whittled down and projects nicely organized

Maybe getting distracted is all part of the process and I'm being a little impatient. This clean up is progress and having all my 'junk' visible makes it easier to see what's there to work with.


Maybe it won't take until my husband leaves town again to slap some paint on those crazy orange and blue walls! What I can promise you is that when that happens, I'll be posting those 'After' pics right away. 


Until then, 

Office Makeover - Part Deux

Here's what I was up to today as it relates to the Office Makeover. 

First up was to get rid of the big plastic storage bin. It was sitting in the corner, waiting to be sorted and then put in the basement. It was put in the most convenient basement location…which isn't its permanent location. But that's another project for another post. 

Plastic bin and tools to be put away (or at least out of the office)

Second project was to put my tools away (maybe I should say out of sight). Boy was I on a roll.

Only project for the day: hang up my pegboard. It was precariously perched and wasn't very practical in that location. I knew it needed to go on the wall next to the desk, but I was holding off on taking down my husband's 'I Love Me' wall. He had lovingly framed and hung some of the magazines in which he had written articles. That wall was needed for my own uses, but still I hated to take them down so only a few frames came down. The rest will stay for awhile.

The pegboard and framed magazine covers 

What about that paint job, you ask? Again, this was my husband's office. He got his MBA from the University of Florida in Gainesville, and these are Gator colors. He was sooooo proud of that paint job. It's going away, but not yet. Goodness, orange and blue - can you say serious prime job? 

So, back to the 'easy' job of hanging my pegboard.  I framed out a piece of pegboard last year when I learned how to use my table saw. (Sorry no pictures; that was before the birth of Junky Vagabond.) This was also before I got a real office and it was going to go into my converted closet-to-craft-area. It didn't need to look good, and I put the screws through the face of the moulding, through the pegboard, right into the paneled walls. Wasn't painted or anything. Functional only.

If it was going in my office, it needed to look nicer. And function better too. If you've ever made or hung a pegboard, you soon realize there needs to be space behind it in order to put the pegs in. It can't sit flush to the wall. 

Hmmm...spacers. Since I am a packrat tend to keep stuff that might be useful, I took a look through my useful stuff pile and found wood that holds the bottles apart inside wine crates. With a little trim, they were perfect as spacers on the back of the pegboard. Gluing seemed to be the easiest way to attach them. And it was, but a little weight and time was needed for drying. Off to make some lunch.

Spacers out of wine bottle holder thingees

Vintage books make great weights

Stomach full and glue dried, it was time to put the pegboard up on the wall. Since the screws went through the wood already, I held it up on the wall, leveled it, and pounded on the front of the frame so the screws made a small hole in the wall. After checking to make sure the holes really were level (double and triple checking is always a good idea), the anchors were installed and the pegboard hung. Not too bad as a project. 

Functional and hanging pegboard, but not pretty yet

Now to make it look pretty. When I first made this frame, I had countersunk the screws a little to make them sit at or below the frame level. Since they were sunken, I spackled the screw holes and joints with lightweight spackle so they didn't stand out so much. This stuff is easy to use, no tools needed, and it smooths down with a damp rag. 

My go-to hole filler/patcher

No tools necessary in JunkyVagabond world!

Dries in minutes too! Love it! Within a few minutes, it was primed and painted with some trim paint that was leftover from some other project. Doesn't  it look good now? And it's within arm's reach too and off the floor. Success!

All primed and painted

The finished pegboard with some of my tools

There's still a lot to be done in the office to make it my happy and productive place, but there are other projects to do; art to be created, thrift shops to be shopped, and an Etsy shop to be filled.

Oh, and check out this signature! Many thanks to Donna at FunkyJunk Interiors for the tutorial and for other great blogging tips!