Sunday, March 28, 2010

No Need to Adjust Your Television Set

Yep, that's right! You're not seeing things and you're not hallucinating. I am actually updating my blog! Trust me, I'm as surprised as you are! I have a million things I could blog about right now, but many of you have let me know that you are ready to see pix of the overhauled kitchen I began tackling last August. Well, today is not exactly your lucky day as this is not the reveal post for that. Sorry, I know that must have been anticlimatic. But, there is a decent picture of part of the "after" kitchen that should satisfy you for now. Really, I just wanted to show you this quick and easy makeover I did on an old sisal rug that has found its new home in aforementioned new kitchen. Here's the "before" rug, an old rug I already owned that had seen better (and cleaner) days:


I pulled off the old fabric border and cut it down to a 2' by 3' size, perfect for in front of the kitchen sink. Then I primed it with a thick coat of my trusty Kilz white primer, let it dry, and sketched a zebra print I had seen in my West Elm catalog. (It was a tough decision between Chevron and zebra, but my horse-loving daughter insisted zebra was the way to go.) Then I added the cool black contrasting stripes with some black paint I had lying around. To seal it and stop stains from soaking in, I sprayed on 3 coats of Minwax Polycrylic. By the next day, it was ready for its debut:


Ahhh! Don't you just love the contrast of black and white? It's really fun to see as you walk into the kitchen. A little pick-me-up especially after this long, dark winter. And here's what it looks like on my floor in the kitchen you have been waiting so patiently to see:


It's just a little piece of all the hard work I was doing last semester. It still needs crown molding and I have to put in all the filler pieces between the walls and cabinets, but this should give you a general idea of my little Ikea kitchen. I will try to post the before and more afters of the entire kitchen remodel in the very near future, but until then, this is all I've got. Don't you just love that cool zebra rug?

10 comments:

Abbigail said...

Love, love, love it. What a great idea. It has me wishing I had an old sisal rug around. Looks like the perfect accessory for the new kitchen. Which is lovely btw since I got to see it in person. I miss you and your horse loving little lady terribly. Here's to a sunny spring!

Janie said...

I love it, everything, the rug, the kitchen. You are one hard working, talented lady! I still can't believe you did the whole kitchen by yourself! You are awesome!

Christina said...

Wow, that looks straight out of a magazine! I don't know how it looked beforehand but I'm sure it was nothing like that. Great job!

RicAnn said...

Yay!!!! I am so glad to see that you have updated your blog. I absolutely love your kitchen, it's AMAZING! The rug completes it. Oh Becky I miss your face!!!! LOVES xoxo

You coming to Utah anytime soon?

Naomi said...

Yay! Bex is back! I knew if I waited long enough, I would be rewarded. Love the rug, you are so clever, and I cannot wait to see all the kitchen details. I cannot believe you seriously did that by yourself. I wonder if I could do mine. I need to post pictures of it so the whole blogging world can see the monstrosity I am dealing with over here and then everyone would understand why I am intimidated by the prospect. Thanks for the post!

Trish said...

Beck, it's GORGEOUS!! Will you come over and design/remodel mine?? Heaven knows we need a remodel! lol! Way to go!

Elizabeth said...

That rug is awesome, and so is your kitchen! So, when are you hosting book club? I want to see the whole thing in person.

Joi said...

This is fantastic!!!!

Freckles Chick said...

I ADORE your kitchen. It's what my kitchen would like to be when it grows up & gets new cabinets, LOL!

The rug is AMAZING. I'm linking to it on my blog sidebar under "Links I Love". Love it.

I must say, though we have the same countertops....yours looks much more chic. Again, yours is the A-list celeb & mine is, I don't know, Tara Reid? HA!

Leah McChesney said...

Your kitchen looks awesome btw and I have to make this rug, it's so awesome!