Merry Christmas!

December 24, 2013 Sherri Rice

It's December 24th, family from Canada has arrived, boys are sleeping in their beds, gifts are wrapped, Overnight French Toast is made (thanks, Mom!), Christmas music is playing, and I wanted to share a few Christmas images from our house this season. The theme this year was "simple." Enjoy...

(Alphabet printables available here)

I love this picture so much I had it made into a canvas :)

I love simple! And I love Christmas...

"For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people." Hebrews 2:17

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." Luke 2:10-11

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Sherri

Snow Days and New Office Space

December 7, 2013 Sherri Rice

I trust this finds you warm and dry this December day. We are currently enjoying Day 2 of what will be 3, and possibly 4, days of staying home due to icy conditions in our area. It looks like snow, but it really is ice - you can walk on it without breaking through to the grass.

And this ice is everywhere! Some have lost power - thankfully we have not, and our heating system is still working :)

We have been filling our days with a variety of activities. The boys have been going for walks and playing in the backyard. The Professor and I decided to start a mini kitchen renovation yesterday (see a sneak peak on Facebook). And today I made Monster cookies (similar to these) and made one of these for Maggie, the beagle (I used corduroy and flannel from my fabric stash). All activities have been cancelled for tomorrow, so maybe I'll start that slipcover project that has been waiting...

So, I also wanted to share the update of my new office space before I get into Christmas stuff :)

The front room of our house (the room you see and walk through when you come in the front door) is supposed to be the dining room. But, we have never used it as such - we just never needed that kind of space. So, it has served a variety of uses. A few years ago it looked like this...

... kind of a library/piano room.

Then, when I decided to start August Blues, it seemed like the best place to set up my sewing space. And it looked like this...

And obviously, this was taken before I really started working ;) Mostly, it looked like this...

... which was usually, mostly functional. But, I got tired of seeing this when I came into the house each day and it was difficult to accommodate large pieces of furniture. One day, a client brought a chair-and-a-half and it's matching ottoman. The Professor and I were visiting with the client and her husband in this room (I tidied up first!), with her pieces in there, too. And I realized it just felt TOO crowded! So, I began to re-think how my workspace was situated in the house.

First, I moved my sewing space upstairs to what had been our playroom (you can see more about that here). That freed up this front room space for more of an office space, like this...

Much better! The front door is just to the right of this window wall. And I think I would like to see a wing chair in place of the smaller chair ;)

The "new" blue buffet in it's place...

You can see how the space leads into the family room beyond...

And from the stairs...

I love working in this "new" space! And I have left room for larger furniture pieces to stay here while I work on them (small pieces can be moved to my upstairs workroom). And it's much more pleasant to walk into the house and see this :)

So, stay warm this evening, friends!

Sherri

A Little Bit of Everything :)

November 25, 2013 Sherri Rice

Thanksgiving break is here and I have a little break between projects, so I thought it might be a good day to check in here, 'cause it's been awhile (and I know I still owe you an office reveal post)! It's been a busy few weeks since I last wrote. So here is a little update...

1. These cushions are finally finished!

It was a great opportunity to put my new machine to the test and to work with Sunbrella Canvas. Machine works great; the fabric is a little tricky since it doesn't have much "give." But, it does feel better than just printed polyester versions of outdoor fabric.

Yep, they are for a boat :)

2. We have continued working on the playroom - a trip to IKEA yielded these shelves, which fit perfectly (you can see the rest of the room here).

The toys have been sorted, so I am just waiting to get the bins that will go on the shelves. I'm thinking of these.

3. If you have been following on Facebook you may have seen a few updates on this project...

These are 4 dining room chair covers that I did long distance - the chairs are in Alabama! Hopefully I'll be able to share pictures of them in place when my client gets them.

4. Speaking of projects, I am now booked into March of 2014!!! Looking forward to some great projects :)

5. The boys are off for Thanksgiving this week, so I am looking forward to this down time, before my next project comes in. Maybe I'll even take a little time to get some of my own projects done (I have my eye on a Craigslist wing chair...)

So, in case I don't make it back here before then, Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

And a challenge: if you need a book to read while you travel or hang out with your family, read One Thousand Gifts. Ann writes:

"...in this counting gifts, to one thousand, more, I discover that slapping a sloppy brush of thanksgiving over everything in my life leaves me deeply thankful for very few things in my life... life-changing gratitude does not fasten to a life unless unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time."

Consider starting your own list of specific gifts - can you make it to 1000 before next Thanksgiving?

With thanks,

Sherri

Buffet Make-Over

November 1, 2013 Sherri Rice

Happy day-after-Halloween Friday! I wanted to give you a quick peak at what I have been up to this week (besides single-parenting - the Professor has been out of town at a conference).

Mostly I have been working on this...

... a pile of cushions for a boat. 8 cushions, to be exact, all different! This picture doesn't really look like progress, but, trust me, it is! This project was the push I needed to get my new machine and I think we have finally worked out some kinks and (knock on wood!) it's working well :) I'm not quite dreaming in "Pacific Blue" yet, but if I don't wrap up this project soon, I will be ;)

And this is what I have been working on in between...

Before, and now after...

Remember this? That was practice for this project. The color is Screen Door from Vintage Farmhouse Paints. And this is an old IKEA buffet that we got in the As-Is room YEARS ago (yes, it too, has lived in all of our houses). So, it was a fun piece to try this look out on.

A little distressing and a finishing coat of MMS Furniture Wax and some bling. The knobs are from Hobby Lobby - I love that they are a little bit sparkly, but still substantial, with just a little bit of patina.

It's not styled yet (and I was working with a different camera, so I couldn't quite capture what I wanted to), but it's part of my new office space that, hopefully, I can show you next week.

So, what have you been up to this week?

Sherri

Friday Five (with a Slipcover!)

October 25, 2013 Sherri Rice

Good Morning and Happy Friday! 1. I have a new slipcover project to quickly share. Remember this chair?

Well, my friend has a couple of rocking chairs from her home county of Honduras that she wanted seat covers for.

She wanted them in a similar style, so we had just enough fabric to do two of these...

Look at the beautiful hand-carving on that chair! And, of course there had to be pleats :)

And I should have gotten a better picture, but here you can see some of the beautiful art from her home country that graces this room...

And the best part of this kind of delivery? The chance to visit over a cup of delicious coffee :)

2. Another client sent me this picture of her chair in its home...

Perfect in that spot!

3. Another project follow-up... These cushions have found their home in a church nursery :)

4. Did you know how you can revive tired foam cushions? With steam! Just run a steamer over the foam and it will pop right back into shape (well, close).

See the part on the right that is bigger/puffier? Yep, the steam did that (y'all probably knew this trick, but this was my first real opportunity to try it). My current project required a lot of steam!

5. And my new sewing machine and I have had our differences this week. We are working things out, and will try again next week. Today is fabric cutting day - hopefully the scissors and I get along :)

Have a wonderful weekend!

Sherri

Easy Wall Art

October 21, 2013 Sherri Rice

Happy Monday! I hope you had a good weekend. Ours was a little busy, but we are enjoying great fall weather :)

I just (oops - have you read this? I'm trying to be more thoughtful about my choice of words :) ) wanted to share a quick idea if you need to fill some wall space.

The side effect of all the rearranging that resulted in this was a blank wall above our couch in the family room. I'm all for not filling all the spaces, ie leaving breathing space in your decor, but this space is one of the first things you see when you walk into our front door. It needed something!

I was trying to come up with something that would use what we already had, if possible. Then I remembered that I had a few extra wooden pant hangers. And I remembered that we had saved some calendars that had pictures that we liked...

Our intention was to frame some of the pictures, but the sizes are odd and would require custom framing, ie. $$, so it hadn't happened yet. Can you see where this is going?

Tada!!

Ok, almost there, but they were hanging a little cock-eyed. Hmmm... I grabbed a level and used small bits of sticky tack stuff to hold the hangers level.

August Blues - Calendar pictures with pant hangers

Much better :) Not an entirely original idea, but this version works for us for now...

And now the space is filled with art that is meaningful to us, it cost me nothing, and we can change the pictures out when the mood strikes. My kind of project :)

Do you like to change your wall art?

Sherri

Workroom Reveal

October 16, 2013 Sherri Rice

Finally done (mostly :) ) - my new workroom! Remember the "before"?

This upstairs room has been the boys' playroom. It has undergone a bit of a transformation and here it is now...

It needs a few finishing touches, but it's functional and working here is definitely a pleasure :) Let me show you around (I'm in the middle of a project, but I tidied up just for you)...

This table is actually the Norden dining table from IKEA. We purchased it for our last house which had a large dining room. Until we have another dining space that is suitable, it makes a great cutting table! The skirt is just stapled to the bottom of the table top. It makes for great (hidden!) storage underneath.

These are the two machines I have had for years, since August Blues 1.0 with my mom. And the bench works really well for moving between them (the table and bench were both Craigslist finds). I think the pegboard needs a little something...

See the trees out the window? Almost like working in a tree house :) These curtains have found a home in all of the houses we have owned - first they covered closets in our bedroom, then they curtained the front window in our front porch. I was so excited when I remembered I still had them - they are perfect for this space!

On the other side of the window I created this little storage area. We have had the shelf forever, but the bins are new (from Lowes). They hold fabrics. The hat boxes and clock are also from IKEA. The curtain to the right conceals a yet-to-be-organized storage area for my personal fabric and craft supplies.

Here she is - I'm still getting used to her, but she is a hard worker :) The table on the right is where homework happens in the evenings. It will be replaced with a smaller, rectangular table that fits the space a little better. And just for a dose of reality...

Yes, this is the sad state of the rest of the room. I did take over half of the boys' playroom - my youngest watched me measure the space out and then reported to Grandma that he now only had 9' of space to play in! Never fear, I have a plan for this space, too, and it does include the toys and space to play ;) I will share it as soon as we get it finished (and you can hold me to that!). I think the boys will be quite excited when they rediscover their toys :)

One last view...

MANY thanks to the boys for agreeing to share their space with me and to the Professor for all the help and heavy lifting he provided (do you know how much that Juki weighs?)! And now I need to top up my coffee and get back to work (I am now booking projects for January)!

Have you made a workspace just for you?

Sherri

P.S. I linked up here :) Check out all the other great projects!

There's Something About a White Slipcover...

October 9, 2013 Sherri Rice

White slipcovers. There is just something so clean and refreshing and comfortable about a white slipcover. If you check out my Pinterest boards, you will quickly see that they are a favorite of mine :) We have a couple at our house, and while MANY proclaim the virtues of white slipcovers, they are just aren't a great fit for our household. It just comes down to what works for you :)

So, all that to say, when I get a chance to make a white slipcover for someone else, it's very enjoyable!

This chair and ottoman are well-loved by my client; they just needed a new look. My client requested a simple cover with pleats. So that's what I did...

The fabric is white cotton denim from Hobby Lobby (don't forget to use your 40% off coupon if you go, or watch their sales for 50% off deals!); it had a soft, comfortable feel and was nice to work with (and it was pre-washed, of course).

The cushion got a new layer of Dacron to fluff it up. And because the fabric was white and the fabric underneath was noticeably darker, I made muslin undercovers for both the chair and the ottoman (it helps the white slipcover look more white). You can see the undercover on the ottoman here...

Also, to keep the ottoman slipcover in place, I added a piece underneath that is velcroed to the underside (see the "whiter" piece?)

I love me some pleats :)

So, do you (or would you) have white slipcovers in your house?

Sherri

Welcome to August Blues - I'm so glad
you're here! August Blues Slipcover Studio strives to enable your home to better serve its purpose, by providing you with quality custom slipcovers that enhance the appearance and functionality of your furniture pieces. Established in 2011 and located in Denton, TX...Read More

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