Slow and Steady...& Random Ramblings...

I feel like we take forever to finish things. I guess as long as we finish them, that's all that counts...right?

Our dining room is slowly, very slowly, coming along. My sideboard just needs a good coat of blue paint and dark wax.

In October...ignore the adorable hooligans in the picture

 Changed out my wine chiller for the new coffee maker...(No idea why we chose to live without a Keurig before!)...Notice the awesome plates that sat there for MONTHS.

I added some drapes, actually put something in that blank frame, hung those lonely stacked plates, added a tray that I got from the cement factory (I'm moving away from silver so I intend to paint it gold) and yay for new placemats and table decor...brought to you by good old Crate and Barrel.

After much fuss about a table, we are deciding to redo the one we have since I just can't get what I want here. If you know me well, you know that I've been slightly obsessed with Ana White since Pinterest introduced me to her site, over a year ago. Right before we moved and right before the movers came she posted a table....

http://ana-white.com/2013/05/plans/husky-farmhouse-table
....and I want it. Unfortunately in Japan there are not many options as far as building it, and I knew that coming here so I didn't even try for that exact table and a bench to match. I've gone back and forth between others but I don't want skinny turned legs nor do I want straight legs. We found a table at the furniture store here with turned legs that we could've salvaged just the legs off of (it was cheap), but they were too skinny for what I was going for. I've cried out of frustration...yes, I am pathetic and I do not have a life. Without the options to really go at it and build the table and bench that I want, I will be waiting until we return to the states...sad face. In the meantime, we get to redo what we have and we'll be adding a little extra seating, which I will put together as soon as I sand, stain and paint and fix my very well used table :)

I'm hoping to get this room done in the next few weeks! My first session of classes are almost over for the semester so I can find more time to work on fun stuff!

My projects for the week include:

Redoing this vase...I had been eyeing this guy for a few Cement Factory trips. He sat in the back corner and stared at me, every single time I walked into the "expensive antique room". I don't have another name for that room, so that's what I go with. My plans are to go with white, blue or cream Annie Sloan paint, complete with dark wax...shocking that I would choose those colors, I know. At $20, I thought it was a steal! Better yet, my husband convinced me to go for it...love him and it's original label was $30....score!

I was so excited with my second find, which may seem menial to the average person, but clamps! Woohoo! I had been searching for these little guys....looking in all the wrong places and stores. Now I can finally make my little mason jar lovely. They had smaller ones that I will probably go back for to hang wine bottles with.

Ian's project for the week/weekend?

Again, where else would I have found this other than Ana White? I had my heart set on another coffee table, but I just couldn't picture it in a "coastal cottage/farmhouse" home. I saw this one and it was perfect! I have this thing for turned legs and candlesticks. Ian insists that he is going to learn how to turn wood...because he apparently needs one more awesome skill under his belt. Knowing that we wouldn't be able to find chunky turned legs like that in Japan, we headed to the Cement Factory (same trip as the vase) and picked up some slightly thinner and slightly less turned table legs that we will use for our coffee table. We're working with what we have available. If the table legs don't work, we will have to figure something else out. I cannot wait to see what Ian comes up with.

A random bit that I have been working on and improving....me! I joined Weight Watchers a bit ago and have been losing weight ever so slowly, yay. I figure that I better get on a program so I'm not losing too quickly, since I'm not fantastic at pacing myself. It's working and I'm happy about it :) Slowly, but surely, everything is coming together!