Mama’s Happy in the city

well, the good news is that we may actually get a white christmas as the snow and cold have found its way back to MN. the less good news is that it’s cold. but, i really didn’t want a brown christmas, so i’m rooting for you Minnesota and mother nature. also, did you know that there are only 9 sleeps until christmas? if you thought to yourself… aw snaps i need to get my life together, then we’re speaking the same language. it’s not that i’ve been bad at christmas shopping; it’s been that i’ve been bad at christmas shopping… for not me. i blame all the fabulous sales. i’ve had a case of the ‘i want, i need, i buy’ syndrome as of late. oopsies.

i’m overly obsessed with my top 3 recent purchases though. they are practical, fancy and of course, sassy. i recently upgraded from my iPhone 5 to iPhone 6. and yes, i do love it. i sadly had to say goodbye to my beloved case from the everygirl (dear everygirl; please make your cases for 6’s soon, pretty please xo) and so the search began for a new case. i have recently found a lovely site called ban.do and saw a pretty mint colored sassy gem of a case that i couldn’t say no to. i think we make a great pair.

next came my sudden desire for a paper planner. i used to be a die hard franklin covey customer. i wrote everything and i mean everything down. but the times, they were a changing… so i become digital obsessed. i’m all about the google calendars, the wunderlists, the evernotes, etc. but with our wedding coming up in 270 days; i have had a certain urge for a paper planner to write things down. literally. there is something to be said about the written word. unfortunately i drug my feet for too long on katespade.com and missed out on the one i wanted; however – thanks to some google magic i found a lovely place called lulu & georgia and alas, my new 2015 planner. it is lovely and beautiful and if you look carefully, it says emma on the cover.

last on my list, but not at all least is my travel coffee mug also from ban.do. l-o-v-e love it. love everything. i mean, the mug says it all. i can’t say anything more.

yesterday i got an early christmas present for me that wasn’t from me! [b] got me this adorably perfect vanity from my new favorite local shop, mama’s happy… in the city. we got our entry buffet table there a month or so ago and i’m quite certain that we visit the shop every weekend. i’ve had my eyes on this beauty for a while now and thanks to my wonderful fiance she now will live in our home. #starksthepup was quite excited as well because he likes to hide under things like a fort. so it’s really a present for the both of us. (please disregard the horrendous knotty pine walls of our bedroom. renovation coming q1 2015).

to buy:

‘i am very busy’ iPhone 6 phone case (ban.do)

‘bookshelf’ 2015 planner (kate spade via lulu and georgia)

‘but first, coffee’ mug (ban.do)

vintage restored vanity (mama’s happy in the city)

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building our home // how to use annie sloan chalk paint

moving is the worst. i mean it’s also fantastic; i love our house. but a lot of the baggage and tasks that come along with it are the worst. like unpacking. and decorating. our house was in pretty great shape; no “immediate” fixes to be made; but definitely work to be done to make it our own. i’m not an interior decorator by the wildest stretch of the imagination. i’m a planner. an organizer. and a Pinterest poser. i could spend hours pinning different home decor/design ideas. [as well as recipe ideas, fitness ideas, wedding ideas, fashion ideas, etc. etc. etc.] however if i had to say how many of the things i’ve pinned i’ve actually done… i might not even need 2 hands. but, i really want to make this house our home. not just a house that has our stuff in it.

but dang, decorating a home is expensive and super overwhelming. we have some pieces of furniture, but nothing fancy. a lot of my stuff was purchased at target circa 2005 when we redid my childhood room. after moving it to several locations through the years it’s actually in quite good shape, but it really doesn’t match the style of our little 1950’s house. i figured we’d just have to get rid of them and get new things, added to the list of new things we need like a new bed, couch, rugs, curtains, closet, and a whole bathroom remodel. but thanks to my fabulous momma i now know how to give these “old” pieces a facelift an extended life. enter Annie Sloan Chalk Paint ®.

a friend of my moms had went to a class where they used Chalk Paint and she told my mom how easy and fun it was. so my mom used some google magic to see where one could purchase this stuff. enter Mama’s Happy… in the city. sidenote, Mama’s Happy has 3 locations in the Twin Cities area and if you are looking for upcycled, refurbished, refreshed and unique home decor at legit great prices you NEED to check out Mama’s Happy. we just purchased our first “official” piece of furniture for the house, an entry buffet as we’re lovingly calling it. and i LOVE it – picture below. so we checked out Mama’s Happy [2 of the 3 locations], purchased a plethora of Chalk Paint and ventured back home to get started on our first project, a sofa table.

a woman at the store explained to us how it works and it almost seemed too simple. so simple i might even be able to do it. and it is. it is fantastic and wonderful and i now want to chalk paint all the things. i’ve so far done the sofa table and a nightstand and couldn’t be more pleased with how easy it was to do and how great they look. here’s the skinny on how to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Decorative Paint to refresh your sad looking furniture.

prepare a work area. use a flat surface (not carpet) and lay down an old sheet or fabric. i used ripped pieces of cardboard to place under the bottom of the table so that it didn’t get stuck to the sheet. it has no smell at all so there is no worry about doing it inside.
wash the piece with soapy water and dry. if there are rough areas you can lightly sand but otherwise no prep. no priming.
i put on some cheap rubber gloves to paint because i’m a little messy, but the paint is water based so it will wash right off your hands.
use a brush that won’t lose its bristles and get to work! a little paint goes a LONG way so don’t get to crazy. one coat at a time. and by the time you finish the first coat, the part you started with will already be dry enough to start the second. i like the give the second coat some time to dry and then examine with fresh eyes any areas that may need some touch ups.

to wax or not to wax. you could potentially be done after step 4. for serious. it will have a very chalkboard-esk look and if that’s what you are going for – that’s great! if not, please continue.

take a little bit of wax, dab your brush in it and apply a thin coat, then buff off with a lint free tee-shirt or rag. i’ve been using the dark wax to get a more “weathered” look so i have slightly diluted the wax with mineral spirits to better control the darkness.
let sit for a day or so and if you desire a shinier look, buff some more. if you would like a more vintage look, you could sand away some paint. the options are endless.
enjoy your “new” piece of furniture!

i can’t wait to get experimenting with more colors and styles and perfecting my technique. who knows, maybe i will make a good susie homemaker?