Hey Y’all!
Well since this is the first summer in SEVEN years that I have not taken a class, taught a class, had to attend a seminar, conference, adopted a puppy, etc, I have taken advantage of this time off! And, my house has been my main focus! In the past month I have redone my half bath downstairs with paint and wallpaper, redone my kitchen with new wallpaper, changed around my upstairs guest room and CLEANED OUT MY ENTIRE GARAGE. What. Did y’all think I appeared in a viral video, got famous and went to the spa? Hee, hee!
It was time for some changes around here and I finally had the time to get things done. I have been wanting to make my house have a more “coastal” theme and trust me, we are there. Besides redoing rooms I have also been making all of the “artwork” to go in these rooms. I am on a TIGHT budget these days, so any way I could do something myself was the way I chose to go. And. Pinterest is slightly addicting. And, I have been doing some thrifting to help out with the new décor too. But that is another post for another day. Y’all want pictures! Let me apologize if you follow me on instagram or watch my feed on the blog. Some of these pics are repeats.
It all started over the first weekend in June when I found a sea turtle wallpaper I just LOVED. But it was almost $40 a roll and I knew I could not make that happen. Then I started toying with changing the wallpaper in the kitchen too. Mom is an expert in all wallpaper.. so I consulted with her. We knew she was coming for a visit over the July 4th weekend, so we had a block of time. I ended up going to see Mom on June 19th so we could go to the Jimmy Buffett Concert at the Drive Inn. (So MUCH FUN!) After that I found a place that carried wallpaper in Hilton Head. After a short drive from Beaufort we found ourselves in an awesome wallpaper store. When I inquired how much each border roll was, I nearly fell on the floor when I was told that they were $10 a piece. I was bound and determined to find what I needed in that store! See my smile below? That is the “I HAVE FOUND A BARGAIN SMILE!”
For the downstairs half bath I found a Lilly Pulitzer-ish paper. Which of course resulting in us painting the bathroom during Hurricane Arthur!
For the kitchen I found a great crab and lobster boil paper that is so cute. You want to know something not so cute? Guess who is allergic to wallpaper paste? Of course me. I was covered in hives after I had to take all of the old wallpaper off from both rooms. I thought my mom was going to kill me because she had to do the kitchen by herself!
During the same trip we found the wallpaper, we found a great sailboat quilt to go in the upstairs guest room. The bathroom upstairs already had a flip flop theme, so the sailboats fit right in. I went on Pinterest and found a great way to make your own canvas art. So I went to AC Moore armed with coupons, bought some canvases and made ART! I also did some for my bedroom too. I planning a future blog post giving y’all my “artsy” tips!
Here are two of the finished pics for the upstairs. I made a whale one too (below) and I have one more to finish. It is a captain’s wheel.
I also made some for my bedroom. I actually just finished these yesterday!
I love the “Keep Calm and Mermaid On!” and “Seas the Day.” Love, love, love it!
We also couldn’t leave out the living room. We found a great new rug that Pitty Pat just adores. In the middle of the July 4th redo weekend Pitty Pat got his summer do! He is such a HAM!
To go with the new rug and coastal theme, I decided to switch up the artwork in the living room too. I found a great print for $12 at the same store we found the rug (Old Time Pottery… I love ya!). But I still felt that something was missing. Mainly a sea turtle element. Because let’s face it, I am a turtle lady now! So. I went to my addiction.. Pinterest and found a way to make canvas photos from some of the sea turtle nest inventories I have been too. Oh yes. I DID! I’m telling you. I had a TON of AC Moore coupons. Plus, my teacher discount!
In between all of this redecorating, organizing, and cleaning out, one of our second grade teachers got married and I attended the best wedding I have been to in a long time. We had a ball! Here’s a pic of me and my friend Wendy using the photo props!
I am also still walking for SCUTE (South Carolina Sea Turtle Enthusiasts) every Tuesday and Sunday. We FINALLY got our first nest, a green sea turtle nest 10 days ago. But, it was not found in my section, but it was moved to my section. The mama green has been back twice this week and hopefully she will nest tomorrow. My best friend came the week of the fourth, and Marie and her family got to walk with me on a Tuesday. Their beach rental was right on my route!
So as you can see, I have been quite busy. This has been one of the best summers I have had in a really long time. I have been busy doing some awesome things. I can’t believe it is the middle of July. I am really not ready to think about school yet. If you check out “Reads from the Beach Chair” on the right hand side of the blog, I have updated my recent reads. Last night I stayed up to 1 a.m. (that’s a first for this summer!) reading Elin Hilderbrand’s The Matchmaker. Lawdy I cried over that book. But it was a good book cry. I have also gotten several of Archie Carr’s sea turtle books on an inter-library loan that I can’t wait to sit down a devour. Finally I am getting a chance to sit down and read!
I think Pitty Pat is ready for me to have some lazy days with him! Hopefully I will pop back on tomorrow and share all of my thrifty finds that I have found over the past few weeks. It involves some artwork and dishes… my new thing!
Y’all have a great night! Tootles!
JKP
