Lamp Re-Do

I've had this lamp in my house for about 2 years now.  

I've always loved the lamp, but recently I noticed something.... it is literally the exact same color as my walls.  Ever since I noticed this, I can't stop noticing it.  If I squint and look at it, it just blends right into the wall and disappears.... I needed to do something about it to calm my OCD.

I decided to paint it.  I went through a ton of Pinterest ideas looking for a design to paint and nothing was really working for me.  Finally I decided to just pick something and go with it.  I went with stripes.  

To make the stripes, I measured out on the top and bottom of the lamp.  I went with 2 different size stripes, 1"and 1/2" rotating.

Once I had everything marked out, I started connecting the mark on the top of the lamp to the mark on the bottom to make straight lines.  Then I realized my lines were not straight.  So, I went through and made the marks again to see where I was off and thought I had it all figured out.  Then I made the lines again and guess what... they weren't straight either... The lamp ended up looking like this...

And I ended up looking like this... (incredibly flattering picture)

    

I was just about ready to give up and then Chris told me to make a template to go off of.  So, I made a 1" strip and 1/2" of cardboard.  I made my first stripe using the seam of the lamp as my guide and then went off of each previous stripe until I went all the way around. 

By the way, if you have a pool table that you never use, it makes a great work table.  If you don't have a pool table, don't get one... you won't use it.

Finally it was time to paint.  Here is the cast of characters I chose.  And yes, I realize 3 of these are outdoor paints.  I didn't want to buy more paint, so I used the ones I already had.

A few stripes down...

And done!

I like the brushstrokes in it that make it imperfect.

And it's actually pretty cool when the light is on.  The paint strokes really show through.

And now for the before and after.

So what's the verdict?  I'm really not sure yet.  I like it, but I don't love it.  I'm going to live with it for a while and see if it grows on me, but right now, I'm just happy that it isn't blending into the wall anymore.

Oh, and Mom.... I'm coming to your house to do this to all of your lamps...  :)  Just kidding, I just wanted to cause you to panic a little :) :)

-Brooke

Spin that Color Wheel

I've been stuck.  I have this problem when it comes to my house and decorating.  I always tend to start a room out on a good foot but when it comes to the details that make it feel finished, I'm lost.  I want my rooms to pop, but they end up blander than brown rice.  Seriously, I HATE brown rice... I want flavor! (in my food and my rooms)

I can't seem to get my rooms to flow the way I want them to.  So, I decided to put together a color palette for my house.  I've actually been trying to do this for a while, but I get hung up on what everyone else thinks.  A long time ago, I read an article or a blog (I don't remember) that said in order to keep your house cohesive, you should stick with no more than 3 colors.  Taking the colors I like and picking only 3 was impossible.  When I would put rooms together with only 3 colors, it felt unfinished.  I like the way a lot of colors work together in the right balance.

I've struggled with this whole 3 color business ever since we moved in 4 years ago.  But then I had a revelation....WHO CARES???  Why should I care if the magazines say to stick with 3 colors?  I like more than 3 colors and I'm the one who has to live here!  So, I threw caution to the wind and started picking my colors.  (yeah, I'm pretty much a daredevil)

Voila!

I'm actually pretty satisfied with the colors I have on the walls right now.  So, I really just needed to define what my accent colors were going to be.  I've been stuck in this cream and red kick and I needed to add some variety.

We have Sherwin Williams Grassland on the walls of the front living room.  This picture is really out of date (actually most of these pictures are out of date) I'm in the middle of painting all of the trim, so things have gotten crazy round these parts.  I'll start taking some updates.

I have Chopsticks in the master bedroom, kitchen, hallway and family room.

And I have a dark red accent wall in the family room.  This paint color isn't Sherwin Williams Red Bay, but I couldn't remember what it was and that was the closest I could find.

Wow... I'm realizing how horrible out of date these pictures are.  There aren't even any toys lying around or any stains on the carpet from a certain toddler I know.  Maybe I'll put together an update post soon.

Now that I have the color palette out in front of me, I think I'll have better luck at infusing more color into my house and making it feel like one cohesive space instead of separate rooms.  

Here's a quick breakdown of what I plan to do with all the colors.

We'll see how it goes!

-Brooke

New Year- New Opportunities

As each new year rolls around, I really try to take a hard look at myself and see where I want to go and who I want to become.  Yeah... I'm one of those people.  I come up with about 20 resolutions each year and end up accomplishing maybe 2.  Well, I've done it again.  I try not to tell people most of my resolutions because they're mainly things that I want to accomplish in my personal life.  But, 1 of my resolutions this year is actually to fulfill a dream I have had forever.  I want to be a photographer.  

Last year, I spent the year taking photos for free for friends, family and friends of family to gain experience.  I've been working really hard to get to a point that I'm comfortable charging for my services and I have finally reached that point.  So, on January 11th, I officially launched Jelly Bean Photography.  

How do I feel about this?  I'm terrified.  I have this horrible fear of failure.  I was almost physically ill all day when I launched the business.  There really is no risk involved financially- I still have my full time job and don't plan to leave it.  This is a side business that takes up my evening and weekends.  I keep telling myself, if it fails, it fails.  Even if it is a slow start, that doesn't mean it's a failure.  What am I losing from a slow start? Nothing.  I'm still terrified, but I'm working on it.  I did a lot of research and set my prices below the norm.  I want people to be able to have high quality photos of their families without breaking the bank.  When I looked at most of the local photographers, I had sticker shock.  I could NOT afford to have them take my family portraits.  I set my prices as low as I could to still make a profit.

I'm also starting an Etsy store.  There are only a few things up right now, but more will be added as I make them.  Check it out!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/LifeOnAGravelRoad

In other news, Chris has also started a business.  He is a Master Electrician and an Electrical Contractor.  So, he has teamed up with a business partner who is a General Contractor.  Together they can conquer the world!  Or at least do everything except HVAC.  :)  His business is doing very well.  I'm so proud of him.

With all this new-ness, I'm really nervous but I'm also super excited.  We're both chasing our dreams of being entrepreneurs.  What could be better than that?

Here is my photography website- give me look :)

www.jellybeanphoto.blogspot.com 

Good luck on any 2014 dream chasing you do!  

-Brooke

Khloe's County Fair Birthday Party- The Favors and Games

Since life while working 40 hours a week, taking care of the house, starting a business (I'll explain later), having a husband who is also starting a separate business, and having a 1 year old is maybe just a little bit hectic... I'm going to skip over the fact that I haven't been on here since October and still haven't finished posting the details of Khloe's b-day party.  I'm also going to skip over the fact that that was an enormous run-on sentence. 

So back to the birthday party...

I didn't want Khloe's party to be one that everyone showed up, ate and sat around.  I wanted it to be fun.... I wanted to HAVE fun!  So, I planned some games to liven things up.  I also wanted to keep with the county-fair, old fashioned theme.

Here's the line-up:

• Sack races
• Hit the can
• Prop photos

The sack races were so much fun!  By the way, if you need to buy some of these, they can be a nightmare to find.  I finally found them on Oriental Trading.  

My dad joined in the fun and Chris took Khloe so she could join in too.

Hit the can was okay... I think the kids had fun, but with all those kids standing in a line waiting to throw, it took forever!  I just peeled the labels off of empty food cans for this game.

Now the prop photos were a blast.  Again- this was a Pinterest idea.  Just search for photo props on Pinterest and you'll find 'em.  The kids loved them and even the adults joined in and had to get some pictures taken.

 

The favors-

One thing I learned while planning- favors can get expensive real fast.  I needed something on the cheap.  So I made a coloring page out of Khloe's photo.  I just followed a tutorial I found on Pinterest.

I rolled it up and put a lollipop on the outside of each one.  (Lollipops were from Oriental Trading)

The birthday party took a LOT of planning and I know Khloe won't even remember it.  But, I have a lot of great pictures to show her when she gets older.  Maybe we'll even re-create this party sometime.  It was a blast!

-Brooke