ORC Week 5: Craigslist Kitchen Details

The final week of the One Room Challenge is here! Everything needs to be finished by next week's reveal. I'm going to try to have it completed on time.

With too many things going on at the home front, not much was accomplished this past week. So I have very little to report.

But I did finish the pulley light!

I started the hood enhancement ...

and the coffee station. But neither are finished.

The messes are getting cleaned up and that alone is making the new kitchen feel fabulous. Until everything is completed, the stress level is getting higher. 

Now the pressure's really on! Three more tasks to complete. Maybe four! 

The Plan:

Paint walls  Well, still a bit to do in the ceiling areas

Paint wainscotting

Paint cabinets

Make a coffee/tea/hot chocolate station

Change the layout of the island and eat-in area

Remove the lighted hanging pots and pans rack

Add  Install new lighting to replace the rack

Change out decor and overall style

Eliminate clutter and organize

Make a farmhouse style pulley light fixture for the table area

Cover the exposed side of the refrigerator with chalkboard and beadboard

Make a small windowsill herb garden.

"Range hood" enhancement: Corbels and shelf.

MAYBE: Crown moulding. If ladder assistance becomes available. (fingers crossed)

Thanks for following along again this week and don’t forget to check out what all my fellow linking participants are catching up with here. 


Another huge thank you goes to Linda at Calling It Home for organizing the One Room Challenge! 

See you here next Thursday for the big day!! Have an awesome week~

DIY Pulley Light Fixture

I always wanted a pulley light fixture since the first time I saw one. They look amazing in industrial and farm style designed rooms. But, they are a little pricey to buy. I swore when I got a pulley that I would make one.

Well, the time has come! I scored a pulley from a yard sale. While I'm in the middle of redoing the kitchen, the timing couldn't be better!

It was a little dirty and rough.

So I cleaned it up and sanded it down to smooth it out.

Then rubbed coconut oil into it.

Since the pulley was ready, I grabbed my electrical light fixture stash for parts to put this whole pulley lighting together.

I had a flush mount canopy and a mounting bracket that was do-able. Worried about weight, I bought some toggle bolts for mounting them.

Then I needed two identical corded sockets and didn't have any on hand. So after looking around I ended up buying 2 mason jar cord kits. Perfect, because the lids are vented for heat. I also bought 2 Edison Style light bulbs.

As for shades, I was cutting bottles and jars with hopes to use milk bottles. After cutting several to get a couple of them with smooth cuts, the jar was too narrow for my hands to screw in the bulbs.

Ugh. I ended up with mason jars which was fine because it was my second choice.

It's important to use open bottles and jars due to fire hazards. Those jars just screwed onto fixtures without venting scares the BeJeebers out of me.

Once I had all of the parts prepared, it was time to assemble the whole fixture.

I mounted the bracket with 4 toggle bolts into the ceiling. According to the manufacturer, each can hold up to 50 pounds, I just wanted to make real sure that nothing was going to come falling down on anyone. Once the bracket was secure, I mounted the canopy. ( It came from another ceiling fixture in my junk stash.)

Before hanging the pulley from the canopy, I fed the corded sockets through. Then added some linked chain to weave the cords through. The chain was another security measure. The links were easy to open and close back with two pairs of pliers as I attached it to the canopy.

At this point, I was able to hang the pulley from the mounted canopy and run the cords to the wall where the outlet is located.

Then the exciting moment... adding the shades and the bulbs!

Ha!!! I did it!

It is so pretty that it makes a great accent light in the room.

Little accomplishments bring such joy, don't they?

Little things that make life fun are worth the time.

I'm so excited to finally have this little dream come true.

Have you wanted to make one of these or similar?

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Pier 1 Wicker and Rattan Chair Makeover

So I have this Pier 1 Imports wicker and rattan chair. It's huge! It's actually comfortable too. But ...

I could say, a big wild bear came down from the Adirondacks and attacked it. There weren't any more blueberries on the hilltops and it was soooo hungry... it smelled the remnants of a cheeseburger on the arms of the chair! Ravenging from starvation, it literally tore the wicker strips apart for every crumb!

But I won't say that. It's actually evidence of neglect.
Weather and wear.
Now that wicker and rattan have come back strong, it's a good time to bring this throne back to life. Because of the damage... maybe a whole new look for this big boy? I'll cover up the ruins because I don't wicker anything. I lack that knowledge.

So, I was planning on Western or Adirondack style. They are so similar, I can get away with either title.

First, to rid of loose paint.
I pressure washed all of it off.  Then hand sanded the wicker and rattan to smooth off any rough areas. Leaving some remnants of the original paint, that didn't come off easily (for distressing purposes...) it would have some dark areas while I freshly stained the others.

The fresh stain brought warmth to the chair. It was originally a solid dark brown paint. (Notice my attempt to do a half and half  "done and not done" photo? I always wanted to try that!)

Anyway. After the stain dried, the chair was ready for it's makeover. I had previously cut down all of the gnarled wicker that looked attacked by a bear. I decided to upholster the arms with repurposed leather. A vintage, soft,  and very distressed leather jacket. I cut off the arms of the jacket to use. (An arm for an arm! Sounds pretty "Even-Steven" to me!)

I stapled foam padding onto the front and over the arms. Securing the upholstery into the rattan frame under the wicker weaving. Then stapled on the leather. After cutting off the excess, I used a few leather belts to finish trimming with upholstery nails. (Tack nails; is what I call them.)

Check out those belts. They're not just for people, ya know!

I thought that weaved belt in the front of the arms was  quite fitting. 

Then, of course, the chair needed a cushion for design purposes and a wee bit of comfort. Using leftover fabric from another chair redo, I covered the original cushion we had.

It goes well with the chair and that red-stained leather belt accenting the sides. 

So now I'm wondering if that whole western thing was a good title for the chair. It looks very vintage Adirondack. I think I should have used the deer antlers for the photos.

I guess it will be a matter of personal opinion.

I do know it  looks much better than the state it was in.

It sure is rustic.

It looks like it belongs in a camp up north.

Ha! Where there are plenty of bears! 

From painted to stained,
It's refreshed!

Speaking of refreshed! I've joined in with a group of DIY Furniture Refreshing Gals and it's so exciting to see what each of us are making over this month!

Left to right: Katie The Homespun Hydrangea | Megan C’mon Get Crafty |  Sue A Purdy Little House

Top to bottom: Michele Shelstring Blog | Maria amotherworld | Michelle Our Crafty Mom  |and "Moi"!

Be sure to stop over and check out the renewed furniture by all of these talented ladies! These "before" photos has me all giddy to see the "after"! 

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