Little Boy's Nautical/Pirate Bedroom Reveal!!!

Ok guys, this is a long post, so grab a cup of coffee and settle in!

When Cooper saw the pirate sheets I bought at Marshall's he was over the moon excited for his new "Pirate Room!!" Now, to be clear, I hadn't planned on re-doing his room quite to the extent that I did, and I certainly didn't have the budget for it, but I was able to keep it pretty cheap, only spending around $150.

The name of the game lately for my house is, "Use What You've Got!" (I've even toyed with the idea of a linky party called just that...what do you think, would YOU link up??). In this room there is some major re-purposing going on! I'll try to explain a little after each photo.

Let's begin with the before:

I loved this room, but with one bed removed, it looked pretty lopsided.

Here's the room now:

I really didn't want to go all out with the whole pirate theme. I'm not much for "themed" rooms anyways, as kids tastes change so often. So I added a few little "pirate" touches here and there, and as far as Cooper's concerned this is his "Pirate Room!"

I started by painting the room a super light blue called "Little Dipper" from Behr. It took two coats of the paint with primer to cover the blue that had been there before. I still need to grab a sample size to touch up some spots near the ceiling.

Each of my kids has a book corner. For Cooper, I recovered his Pottery Barn Kids chair with the red cover I'd originally bought when he was a baby. I had almost sold it, and now I'm glad I didn't!

I wanted to use some old crates for bookshelves, but the nicer ones tend to be a little out of my budget. I remembered this post on Kristin's blog and ran to Michael's to pick up some of these crates for just $10 each, less my 40% off coupon. Here's a before (I forgot the before shot so I borrowed this one from Kristin's blog):

I stained them with Minwax Ebony stain, let them dry for a few days, then whitewashed and sanded them. Love how they came out! I overexposed the photo a bit to give you an idea of the actual look of the crates.

The tin on top came from Homegoods and was a splurge at $16.99. The Jolly Roger flag is Cooper's favorite part of the room and was $4.87 with free shipping on Amazon. The curtains were reused from the previous room design. They had been a surprise steal at JCPenney last year ($20 for four panels - 80% clearance!)

Now for the bed...

I love Cooper's PBK quilt, so I decided to make it work. The mast was half of a 9x12 dropcloth I had on hand. I just cut strips like in my master bedroom, knotted the ends and hung them on one of the curtain rods from the previous room design. Now here's where I had to get creative. I was pretty much at a loss at how to add the top piece, but I knew I wanted to use the other curtain rod. As I stared at it for two days, I finally decided maybe I'll just hang some rope and call it done. Since the rope is pretty thick, I used a very large nail. Looking at it again, I got an idea.

Perfect! I think, however, that my plan will be foiled soon, once they realize that it can easily come down.

Cooper spotted this pully at Homegoods for $6.99 and I thought it would be a perfect addition.

Next to the bed is the nightstand, and the treasure chest and lamp I talked about in this post. The wooden pirate ship was $4.99 at clearance at Michael's. If you look close you can see it's actually a birdhouse! The nightstand was a freebie that I painted.

I decided to paint the dresser bright white and keep the same hardware but and add some navy blue stripes on the top for a more nautical inspired feel. Would have painted the drawers too, but ran out of paint!

 The world map is another Amazon steal at $4.08 with free shipping. I just used some spray adhesive and secured it to a sheet of foam board and cut it to size using a razor and a straight edge. I still plan to hang it on the wall.

The art display is just a fishnet from Michael's and a few clothespins.

The oar I found at Michael's as well, painted the red and white stripes and whitewashed and distressed it. I added some old hooks that I found in my shed.

Cooper's happy with it! Oh, and in case you were wondering, his bear's name is "Arrrgh!"

Not a bad transformation for $150 bucks, huh??


Linking Up:  
The Shabby Nest 
Chic on a Shoestring

The DIY Show Off
Primp 
Under the Table and Dreaming 
Follow Me on Pinterest

I've Been Featured on The DIY Show Off!

Hey guess what!! My daughter's bedroom was featured on The DIY Show Off today!!!

Roeshel is so sweet and has written such an amazing post about the room. I may or may not have done a little "happy dance" in my chair when I saw it. I'm just sayin...

I would love it if you would check out her post here.

Thanks Roeshel!!!

Oh, and by the way, I'm FINISHED with my son's nautical/pirate bedroom and will be showing it to you tomorrow! AND I'll have a fantastic giveaway coming up next week!! Lots of exciting things coming to Simply Klassic!
Follow Me on Pinterest

Summer's Off to a Great Start!

I'm joining Stephanie Lynn today for Tuesday's Ten...Ten things that you want to share, but that wouldn't fill up a whole post...so here goes!

{ONE}
Cooper's been taking swimming lessons every summer since he was 18 months and Riley started a few weeks ago. I think that water safety is one of the most important things you can ever teach your children and I know that the younger they are the less their fear of the water so I made that a priority. They have never worn floaties either. I am blown away by how quickly they have learned. Cooper, at just three and a half, can already jump in and swim to the steps without help. At just two and a half, Riley, who had never been in a swimming pool up until several months ago, has had only four lessons and is already learning to kick and loves jumping in to me. She tries to swim on her own so we really have to watch her! I have a suspicion she will be my little daredevil! She's fearless, this one!

{TWO}
Summer preschool started this week! Cooper's already used to school, but it was Riley's first time in a real classroom setting. I think she missed me...I can't be sure because she ran in without even saying goodbye!!

{THREE}
I am almost finished with Cooper's nautical/pirate room. Here's a sneak peek. I just finished updating his lamp...what do you think?

{FOUR}
Speaking of Cooper's room, this little chest has been sitting in my office for about a year now. In it's previous life, it was a comments box that was quite the source of controversy, so the staff was pleased it was getting a new home. I was pleased that it was free!

There had been a lot of little wood rainbows and hearts and letters glued on so I took a butter knife and pried all of those off. It had been given a crackle finish, so I had to sand quite a bit to get most of that off, as well as all of the glue residue. For such a small piece it sure took a long time!

I didn't want to take the time to sand it all the way down to the wood, so I decided to paint it black. I used acrylic paints from my stash. I sat back and tried to figure out what to do next. Looking through my paints again, I pulled out the gold and brushed it on heavily and then wiped it off. It left just enough gold behind to make it sparkle.

Cooper loves his treasure chest but says it's not like Jake & the Neverland Pirates because "where's the money?"

{FIVE}
I just finished up a couple of new blog designs and since I haven't really been sharing them here, I thought I'd show you a few of my latest designs:

Thanks to the recent increase in business for Simply Klassic Design, I've been able to take Fridays off for the summer and only work four days a week. Last week was the first of my four day weeks, and I think I may keep my schedule this way forever! I am so grateful for the wonderful people in blogland who have put their trust in me to create a unique blog design that captures who they truly are.

Are you interested in a revamping your blog? I'm currently taking orders for August. Packages start at just $40. Send me an email and let's talk about your blog design!

{SIX}

Have I mention that I'm in total makeover mode? I am not even finished with Cooper's room makeover and last night I walked in the kitchen and started making mental notes of all the things I'm going to do in there. It's a sickness, really. Always learning, I've discovered that the best way to make my home "mine" is to work room by room from start to finish. When I try to just do small changes, it never seems to work out. Follow me on Pinterest to see what I'm itching to do to my kitchen!

{SEVEN}

I've been so busy working on my room makeovers in preparation for Riley's baptism & adoption party at the end of July, that I've simply put aside planning for the actual party! I need to get on that!

I've decided that my official flowers for the party are these:

Source: weheartit.com via QuaintlyAmusing on Pinterest

Thanks to my good friend, Adriana for "pinning" these!!

{EIGHT}

Since I recently was given a Canon 30D, I need to start really learning how to use it. I love taking pictures, both of my children and of inanimate objects, but I really need to start learning how to use the settings on the camera. I don't shoot in auto, but in program mode and I know how to set the ISO and a little about aperture, but there's much that I don't know. Any suggestions for a good tutorial or website?

{NINE} 

When you first open my blog, you may notice I've turned the music back on. The first song playing is one of my absolute favorite songs right now. I'm thinking about turning the music off though, and just letting you choose to play if you're interested in what I'm listening to. What are your thoughts? Is it annoying or do you like the music?

{TEN}
I had a hard time coming up with TEN things to share...maybe next time I'll just share what comes to mind, and not worry about the number!

I hope you enjoyed catching up on what's going on with the Simply Klassic family. I'm off to check out what else is happening over at Under the Table and Dreaming.

Follow Me on Pinterest

Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bar "Knock-Off" Recipe and a Guest Post

My kids invented a new snack this weekend! I had given them graham crackers with cream cheese (we are a nut free house) and they were gobbling it up. Riley had a bowl of dried cranberries left from an earlier snack, and put them on top of her graham crackers to make a sandwich.

She ate it up, and asked for more. As I was making another for her, and for her brother, I realized this combo is very similar to the Starbucks holiday favorite "Cranberry Bliss Bar." So I pulled out one more ingredient.

White chocolate chips and sprinkled just a couple on top.

Oh. My. Heavens.

Yum.

Such a good snack, and much better for you than the Starbucks version.

I may or may not have eaten this for lunch that day.

Next time I have to take a snack to a playdate, this is coming with me!

I think my daughter is a genius.
Follow Me on Pinterest

In My Daughter's Eyes

My sweet daughter came into my life by twist of fate and forever changed it.

Riley was nearly two years old when her little life was turned upside down. I am not going to share her story, because it is her story, and mine and my son's. There are a select few who are integral parts of her life who know, but it's up to her to share when she is old enough to understand. But just know that she has been through a lot.

She has not had a room of her own. Ever. There was a lot she didn't have, but a comfortable and beautiful place to call their own, is what every child deserves. It's something that many take for granted.

When our circumstances changed and I was able to give Riley her own room, I stayed up late, working many hours to put together a room that I knew she would love. I worked on the pieces many weeks prior to the actual reveal and on a Saturday morning, I put it all together. The last piece of the puzzle was moving her bed out of her brother's bedroom.

The kids had been playing in their playroom while I did this so they had no idea. When Riley walked into her room and saw her bed missing, she didn't know what to think. She just looked at me, confused, and pointed to where her bed used to be. I guided her into her new room, and tears filled my eyes as she smiled the biggest smile I've ever seen.

She looked at each piece of her room with great joy. She climbed into her bed and out, sat in the chair and looked at a book. When her brother came in, the two of them played in the room for an hour. No joke. And there aren't even any toys.

When friends or family come to visit, Riley is quick to grab their hand and "show Riley's room" no matter how many times they've seen it before. She is incredibly proud of her room, and my heart swells to see the joy in her eyes.

These lyrics by Martina McBride have come to have such a different meaning. This unexpected gift to our hearts has changed my life.


Follow Me on Pinterest

Pirate Bedroom Makeover: Treasure Map Nightstand

Well here it is almost midnight and once again I can't sleep because I've got to share a project I just completed that I love!

This little sidetable was given to me by a friend who knew I needed something for a nightstand in Coop's Pirate Bedroom in progress. So, I brought it home.

The before:

And after:

I gave it a light sanding and painted it white, then lightly rolled some creamy colored paint over just the top. (It's what I had on hand, and this makeover is all about small budget).

I heavily distressed the edges with the goal of making it look more like a map placed on top of the table. I  would have liked to distress it a little more, but my hands were aching!

I used acrylics for the actual map. I painted freehand with a watercolor brush, so don't judge! AND I had a very excited three year old leaning on the table. This would also be why I decided not to try and add any landmarks!

Love this project. This room is well on it's way...one project down, four to go!


Linking to:

Perfectly Imperfect
The Shabby Nest
Under the Table and Dreaming
Fingerprints on the Fridge
Tatertots and Jello
Follow Me on Pinterest

Blogging Tip: What's a URL and Where Do I Find it??

I had this question posed to me the other day, and thought it was time for another Blog Tip with Simply Klassic!

The URL is the web address that gets you where you need to go on the web. Look at the top of your browser. See the web address at the top? That's the URL of the page you are on right now.

Now, all you do to link to a specific blog or a post within a blog, is select and copy what's in your browser,

and paste it into a link within your blog post. To do this, you click on "link," and then in the box that pops up, enter your text (the blog or post title) where is says "Text to Display," and then paste the url you just copied into the box where it says "Web Address." (You can also link to an email address but selecting "Email."

The link will look like this: Big Girl Room Furniture

Make sure to check your link to be sure it works.

Click once on the link, and click on the address that shows up below it. You can also change or remove the link in this box if you need to.

That's it! You have now successfully linked to a post within a post in Blogger!

If you have trouble, please don't hesitate to shoot me a quick email. I'm always happy to help!

Now, would you like to know how to link to a photo? It works the same way...Just click on the photo, then click on link, and fill in the URL. No need to fill in "Text to display." Click ok and you have successfully linked your photo!

Have a blogging problem you'd like help with? Leave your question in the comments, or send me an email. I'll do my best to answer it, either by responding to you or in a post.

Thanks Missy, for your question!
Follow Me on Pinterest