Monday, June 4, 2012

Work with what you GOT-Painted Kitchen Floors

FLOOR UPDATE:  (4/15/2015)
I know you have all asked for update pictures and I have FINALLY gotten around to snapping some iPhone pictures to share.  The floors are now 3 years old and while they are dirty in these pictures (sorry), they are still holding up really really well.  I am very pleased with their duration of numerous gatherings and 3 toddlers constantly running, playing and dragging toys along them all day long.  I would still recommend this method and am pleased with them each time I look down.  


We have an update in the ever evolving kitchen.  I recently painted the linoleum kitchen floors (another Pinterest inspiration) with regular old house paint.  It was a fun process and not one that I was sure was going to "stick" but it did and I am so happy.  Before I go into detail about the "how to" here are some kitchen evolution shots...

Picture 1:  How the kitchen looked when we moved in

 Picture 2:  How the kitchen looked after we painted the kitchen cabinets white and installed new Ikea counter tops, added a white subway tile backsplash, and painted the walls.

  Picture 3:  How it looks now, after the painted floor project
I am so in love it with it.

So now for the HOW TO...

Let me start with saying that painting linoleum is not for all linoleum.  Peel and stick or slick linoleum will not work for this process.  We had old, worn linoleum that was installed in one big sheet.  My sister-in-law tried to paint her peel and stick bathroom linoleum and the paint is just peeling right off.

Here is the process:
Step 1:  clean floors really well and let them completely dry (I used a degreaser and mopped the floors)
Step 2:  Paint the floors with the Base/Bottom color.  I used Behr Paint and Primer In One-FLAT.  Here is a picture of the paint cans. 

Step 3:  Stencil the design.  I bought a Martha Stewart stencil from Michaels and used the same Behr paint in a different color. I used a small foam roller to keep the paint even, make sure you don't load the roller with too much paint or it will bleed under the stencil and make a mess.  As far as the placement goes, the old linoleum had squares in it so I just used them as a guide and did every other square.
Step 4:  Let paint dry and then apply poly urethane.  I used a water based poly and followed the instructions on application.  I applied 4 coats of poly just to be safe.
Let dry for 2 days to be absolutely sure its cured and DONE!!!  We have had these floors painted for about 2 months and they still look absolutely gorgeous.  

In case you are wondering about paint colors, the colors are:
Base:  Glidden GLN40-Wood Smoke, I had it color matched so that I could use the Behr prime/paint
Stencil:  GLC13-Crisp Linen White, also color matched to Behr Prime/Paint 
Color Codes:

Here are a couple more shots of the floor taken just this morning.


Please email me or leave a comment if you have any questions about technique or process.  And leave a link if you did this yourself, I would love to see others work.

:)

Thursday, May 31, 2012

7 month old Big Boy...Yes he is technically 8 months

I am a little behind on sharing Eli's monthly pictures but it is better to be documented late than not at all.  He is getting so big crawling all over and pulling him self up on everything he can find.




He is getting so mobile and has so much personality it is crazy to think that just months ago he was a tiny baby.

Love Him!!!

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Birds and Bees Baby shower

This past weekend I threw my twin sisters baby shower for her "Baby to Bee".  She doesn't know what she is having so we went with a Birds and BEE theme of yellows, grays and whites.  It turned out perfect!

I made some fun crafts that doubled as shower and nursery decor, of course the ideas came from Pinterest...
 I made some cute chalk board signs to be used as fun decor, again they were fun Pinterest projects...
The food was delicious...
And the canopy my dear sweet husband built turned out perfect, thanks again Pinterest for the idea...
And we had the most delicious and adorable cookies made by The Messy Baker/my best friend Rachel...
And of course we enjoyed time with family and friends and celebrating my new niece or nephew to BEE...
 
 It was a beautiful shower for a BEE-utiful Mama to BEE!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Don't give up on me!

I'm still here.  House projects, wedding season, shower planning, and an adorable 7 month old are keeping me away from the computer but I am still here.  I haven't had a chance to take final shots of the kitchen floor yet because I can't seem to find time to mop it :).  I will do that soon though I promise.

Wedding season is in full swing with some awesome weddings already completed.  I got a lovely review from a MOB today that made me feel good but at the same time I got an email from a bride who wants to discuss the quality of her peonies when she gets back from her honeymoon.  You can't win them all and unfortunately I can't control Mother Nature and some things (like quality of flowers) are out of my control.  I made it work in the end and think that the wedding turned out beautiful.  Enough on that...

My sisters adorable Birds and BEE themed shower is coming right along.  I made these adorable invites and the RSVP's are rolling in.  I can't wait to share all the details when it is all over.  Lots of projects and details to share.  Click HERE for a blank .pdf printable so you can use it for a shower or party you are throwing, all you have to do is add a text box.
And then there is my little Eli...more adorable everyday and more and more active as well.  He is crawling all over and we have yet to baby proof the house.  Need to seriously get on that!  We had some rough nights last week which is very unusual but then he found his stomach and all is well at night again, fingers crossed.
It's been really hectic around these parts and doesn't seem like it will slow down so I will try to keep up on my blogging as best I can.  There is so much to share but it seems like I can never find the time.

Friday, April 13, 2012

Kitchen Floor sneak peak

This is what I have been up to for the last 3 days...more details to follow soon.


Monday, April 9, 2012

Easter Fun

After we went to church on Sunday, we headed to my parents house for a relaxing and festive Easter Sunday.  It was filled with a little Easter Egg hunt which was Eli vs. Uncle Jeremy...Uncle Jeremy won!  Poor Eli ;)
Here he is finding a blue egg with Daddy, can you see Unle Jeremy in the background with his basket :).
Me and my little Easter Boym we had bunny ears for him but forgot them at home :(
He was still very successful in his hunt.



My preggo sister who saw this picture and said "I look pregnant!"  Well yeah sister, thats what happens :)
Nani and Poppy with Eli
Papa and Eli after dinner
Mommy and Eli
Silly Daddy and Eli
And our beautiful Easter cake from Sweet Sisters Bakery.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Half a year flys by...

...faster than you can imagine.  My little baby boy is already 1/2 a year and I fear that before I know it he'll be 5.  It is amazing how fast your world can change with a baby and how fast you forget any kind of life without him.  Everyday is full of smile and giggles and I just hope that when I am old, I remember every giggle and every excited smile because they are pure joy.  I just love him so much!