DIY Beverage Cart --- or How to invite a Changing Table to a Party.

Forecast calls for Cool Breezes with a Good Chance for Cocktails by the Fire!

With a beverage cart your 'party' can go anywhere! 

If you want your guest to congregate on the patio, or perhaps by the fire . . . 

just roll your beverage cart out and fill it up with every thing a well-stocked party needs!

Our beverage cart wasn't always such a party girl.   I found my stable, reliable friend in a garage sale. 

She was once a hard-working Jenny Lind changing table; 

that is until she got her invitation to PARTY!

I gave her a pair of party shoes {a.k.a. casters} and

dressed her from head to toe in Annie Sloan's Duck Egg Blue. 

Accented her with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint in Versailles 

. . . simply by dry brushing and adding a swirly graphic on her top.  

Gave her a wax and a buff (kind of like a trip to the spa ;)

Now, she was feeling pretty, but also needed a little BLiNG . . . it IS a Party after all!

A little touch of Gilding Wax in King . . . 

. . . was all she needed to feel like a QUEEN!

I applied the gilding wax using a tiny paint brush, and boy does that stuff shine!  

Gorgeous!

Now she was dressed for the Party . . .

. . . so it was time to Accessorize with all our Cocktail Party Essentials.

I love how our martini glasses mimic her spindles. 

She was once sequestered to the nursery . . . now she is dressed and ready to join the party!

Thank you for joining me for her debutante party!  

This beauty is available at my 'shop' in the Vineyards Antique Mall and is ready to Party with You!

What's that?  Okay . . . one last curtain call ;)

Here is where Me and my Party Cart are Partying this week! :::

Miss Mustard Seed                                               Funky Junk Interior's Saturday Night Special

Elizabeth & Co.                                                    Savvy Southern Style
Under the Table & Dreaming                                 I Heart Naptime
Nifty Thrifty Sunday                                              Cowgirl Up
French Country Cottage                                        The Shabby Nest
My Romantic Home                                              Mod Vintage Life
Between Naps on the Porch                                  Homemaker on a Dime
Not Just a Housewife                                            The DIY Dreamer
Southern Lovely                                                    Fine Craft Guild
Uncommon Slice of Suburia                                   Home Stories from AtoZ
From My Front Porch to Yours                             Stone Gable
Jennifer Rizzo                                                        Common Ground
Redoux Interiors                                                    The Charm of Home                                             
Say Not Sweet Anne                                             Fox Hollow Cottage
Too Much Time on My Hands                               Tater Tots & Jello  
Pieced Pastimes                                                     Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds                                              The Tablescaper
The Rustic Pig                                                        Alderberry Hill
Uncommon Designs                                               Shades of Amber
Married Filing Jointly                                              Salt Tree Social
If it ain't Baroque                                                    Homemaker on a Dime
A Stroll through Life                                               Lil' Luna
X0X0Rebecca                                                       Blue Egg Brown Nest
House of Hepworths

DIY Faux Fireplace

One of my favorite projects we completed recently is the faux fireplace I added to my shop (booth space).  

After years of helping homeowners decorate their mantels for every holiday and season -- I knew that I not only had car-loads of mantel decor, but I also might be able to share some decorating tips through my displays.  Plus I thought it would add a cozy touch to my space :)

I was struck with the idea after I saw Sophia's shared on Apartment Therapy . . .

Source:  Apartment Therapy

Sophia was fortunate enough to have a really nice, oversized mantel available to use -- SWOON!  All the flea-market mantels I came across were WAY out of my price range -- so I decided to enlist the help of my hubby and bro-in-law to help me make one.

Here is what I used, in all the cost was less than $50 :::

• wall mount floating shelf 48" wide (similar to this); our shelf was 10" deep that we had on display at our old house and never found a good spot for it in our new one.  I honestly do not remember where we bought it.
• 48x48" plywood, we used 1/4" sheet as a base for the firebox surround, the shelf was mounted on top of the 48" sheet.
• 1/8" plywood cut for firebox surround (fastened to the top of the 48" sheet)
• Classic Pilasters from Lowe's
• Set of 2 Corbels also from Lowe's (just used the ones I liked best with the Pilasters)
• Nail Gun, Wood Glue, Caulk, Paint, chalk-marker and chalk.  Roller, brush etc.

I also used 2 sets of Damask Wall Accents from Southern Living at Home, that I had on hand.  This added a bit of fanciness to the fireplace surround.

Here is where you are going to have to use a bit of your imagination.  I asked my son to remove a game he installed on my phone . . . he wiped my phone, clearing my camera roll.  SO . . . I don't have all the pictures of the firebox surround coming together taken on my phone (Sorry about that).

After all the elements were attached and the mantel & firebox surround were one solid piece, 

I caulked around many of the seams.  

I also played around with the Damask Wall Accents to determine if their placement . . . 

and then I painted . . . 

. . .  and painted away.

I used Old White & Graphite Annie Sloan Chalk Paint because it was what I had on hand -- 

and it covers SO VERY WELL!

I used a piece of white kraft paper and added the measurements of my firebox, to give me an idea of how big to draw my roaring fire.  I then referred back to Sophia's fireplace and used a ruler and a sharpie to sketch out the firebox -- 

the ruler helped with the angles and bricks.

Once I was happy with how it looked I covered the back of the sketch paper with chalk 

and tapped it to my dark painted firebox. 

Using a colored pencil I traced over my sketch to transfer the image to my firebox.

I followed that up by drawing the roaring fire with a white chalk pen, 

and white chalk for shading and highlights.

I was pretty tickled with the results!

I distressed the painted damask accents a bit for character and glued them down with industrial glue.

After they were stuck in place, the fireplace was ready to install. 

We anchored it to the wall and I touched up the paint a bit -- and vacuumed the floor of course. :)

I lost of lot of the pictures I took of the fireplace all decorated in my shop when my camera phone 

was wiped clean . . . but this may give you a little idea . . . 

. . . and another.

Many other projects to share . . . so I hope you come back soon!

Thank you so much!

I am linking up with these fabulous blogs :::                                  •  Miss Mustard Seed

•  Practically Functional                                                              •  Coastal Charm

•  Savvy Southern Style                                                              •  Home Stories from AtoZ

•  It's Overflowing                                                                      •  Sumo's Sweet Stuff    

•  Nifty Thrifty Things                                                                 •  The DIY Dreamer

•  Not Just a Housewife                                                             •  Ivy & Elephants

•  DIY by Design                                                                       •  Southern Lovely

•  Fine Craft Guild                                                                     •  Cedar Hill Ranch

•  Uncommon Slice of Suburia                                                   •  From My Front Porch to Yours  

•  Stone Gable                                                                           •  Fox Hollow Cottage - Power of Pins 

•  Imparting Grace                                                                     •  Feathered Nest Friday

•  The Thrifty Groove                                                                 •  Common Ground

•  Redoux Interiors                                                                     • The Charm of Home

•  Jennifer Rizzo                                                                         • Chic on a Shoestring

•  The Shabby Nest                                                                   • Fox Hollow Cottage

•  Too Much Time on My Hands                                               • Tater Tots & Jello    

•  Pieced Pastimes                                                                     • Finding Silver Pennies  

•  Three Mango Seeds                                                               • Between Naps on the Porch

•  If it's not Baroque Design                                                        • Shades of Amber

Easy Easter Tree Centerpiece

I picked up some mercury glass mini Easter eggs from Pottery Barn on clearance a while back 

and just ran across them (again) the other day . . .tucked away {I have a habit of tucking things 

away and forgetting about them -- you too?}

Realizing I didn't have a way of displaying them I decided to create a little Easter tree centerpiece.

I literally snagged a branch from the backyard and gave it a quick sanding, followed by a quick coat 

of Old White Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (I didn't have any spray paint on hand, but

that would of worked too).

I added the branch to a terra-cotta planter that I previously painted in Old White, as shown here, 

using some floral foam and a bit of hot glue.

I decided to cover the floral foam with left-over artificial grass I bought at Hobby Lobby.  

I had used some of the grass previously in my Sister's Brunch Centerpiece.

It was easy to cover the foam with this grass.  I just pulled it off the plastic frame and added a 

large dollop of hot glue to the flat base and held it on the foam for a few seconds . . . 

working around the branch until all the foam was covered.

To add a bit of Spring to my bare white branch, I pulled a few buds & blooms off 

a silk cherry blossom branch that had seen better days. 

{why yes, I do have a closet full of faux florals . . . why do you ask?}

I used hot glue to add these blooms to my new Easter tree.

The mini eggs look dazzling on their new tree.

The Egg Hunt sign, is a mini-chalkboard on a stick I recently bought from Pick Your Plum.

I gave it a quick swipe with Old White Chalk Paint and used a chalk marker to write on it.

I am pretty happy with my little Easter tree -- 

so much so that I made two and added one to my booth space.

Thank you for stopping in! I would love to hear from you, and will be sharing more soon!

6 Days of Spring Linky Party!

• Say Not Sweet Anne                                                                      • Sumo's Sweet Stuff                                                              

• Homemaker on a Dime                                                                   • Under the Table & Dreaming

• Practically Functional                                                                      • Coastal Charm
• Savvy Southern Style                                                                      • Home Stories from AtoZ
• DIY Showoff                                                                                  • It's Overflowing
• Nifty Thrifty Things                                                                         • The DIY Dreamer
• Not Just a Housewife                                                                      • Ivy & Elephants
• DIY by Design                                                                                • Southern Lovely

• We Are That Family                                                                        • Fine Craft Guild
• Cedar Hill Ranch                                                                             • Uncommon Slice of Suburia
• Design Decor Tuesday                                                                    • From My Front Porch to Yours
• Stone Gable                                                                                    • Mom on Time-out
• Imparting Grace                                                                              • The Thrifty Groove
• Common Ground                                                                            • Redoux Interiors
• The Charm of Home                                                                       • Jennifer Rizzo
• Chic on a Shoestring                                                                       • Between Naps on the Porch
• The Shabby Nest                                                                            • Fox Hollow Cottage
• Too Much Time on My Hands                                                        • Tater Tots & Jello   
• The Tablescaper                                                                             • Pieced Pastimes                                                               
• Finding Silver Pennies                                                                      • Three Mango Seeds
• At the Picket Fence

Welcome Summer with a Seaside Garden Centerpiece {Tutorial}

Though inland far we be,

Our souls have sight of that immortal sea

Which brought us hither.

~William Wordsworth, Intimations of Immortality

Side Note ::: My father enjoyed reading Wordsworth's poetry.  I now have what I always thought was 'his copy' of Wordsworth Complete Poems :/ turns out he was borrowing the book while he was dating my mom, because it has 'property of _________ University' stamped on the inside.  I guess he was trying to impress mom with 'his' poetry!    

Let's gather in the garden and imagine the salty air and ocean breeze, with the sound of seagulls in the distance.  Tonight I will share with you an easy to recreate Seaside Garden Centerpiece.  Soon I will share the table we will be dining at.

I envision our dinner on the patio of a garden home set in The Hamptons.  Table is a large, rustic farmhouse table, with benches and cozy chairs (to linger in as the sun disappears) . . . I don't ask for much do I? 

I am using my imaginaaaaaaation of what the setting for our dinner will be like.

Won't you join me?  You'll also have to use your . . . Imaginaaaaaaation (a la Spongebob Squarepants Idiot Box Episode -- most moms & grandmas know this episode).

Source

I typically imagine the centerpiece for a table before I even plan what I'm going to cook (yes, I am the sister who likes to set a cute table).  

After all, the centerpiece is the crown of your table.  

And this table's CROWN will be a repurposed iron planter.

So let's gather our materials to make our latest crown . . . 

1.  Variety Pack of Moss ($5.99 at Hobby Lobby, use 40% coupon)
2.  [Coronado] Stone Planter and plants (keep reading for choosing plants)
3.  Assortment of shells in a variety of colors (if possible, otherwise -- use what you have)
About 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sand.
4.  Candles a must on ever table I set -- because everyone looks better by candlelight.
Please please use unscented when choosing candles for a table.
5.  Small ornaments (I keep some non-Christmas-y ornaments unpacked to use throughout the year)
6.  [Stiletto] Glass Pedestals -- to raise the candles up & away from the plant & moss.
and the most important piece to pull it all together . . .
an iron garden [Charles Street] Planter

Now, before I potted my plants, I wanted to make sure the stone planter I envisioned fit inside the iron planter . . . and it did, perfectly.

I imagined airy or wispy plants, or even tropical plants, will be appropriate to mix and mingle with shells.  

I approach my container gardens just as I do my door buckets -- I'm looking for a little Spiller (to tumble out the sides), the height of Thriller (to catch the wind and gather attention), and a bit of Filler (to fill in the gaps in between).  

1.  Filler = Palace Purple Coral Bells (love the hint of purple with the green & gray)
2.  Thriller = Autumn Fern
3.  Spiller = Goldilocks Creeping Jenny

Before you add your soil.  Line the stone planter with a coffee filter to stop soil from falling through the drainage hole.

Source ::: This Old House

It works like a dream!

Next, come the seaside details . . . play around with it until your happy.  I don't want our guests to look up from their takeout dinner amazing meal and see dirt . . . so I am adding some sea shells.

A large starfish, assorted shells and PB Mini Glass Buoys

Next we get mossy -- softening the hard surfaces of the stone, metal and glass.

First place your glass pedestals.  You want them to be on a solid surface.  

Second, rip open your variety bag of moss, and simply start placing it on top of the metal and the base of the glass.  I used about 1/2 of the bag and I probably used too much.  The purpose of the moss is not to cover the base, just soften it.

Almost done . . . 

Grab a couple of cups of sand -- and add a little to each of the two Glass Pedestals . . . 

. . .  add your candles (the pillar candle is from Michael's and it came with the twine 'bow'.), add a few small shells, starfish or ornaments if you have them handy.   Add larger, more ornate shells to the base.

Ta Da!  A new CROWN for  your table! 

I move the 'crown' to the server, while I set the table :)

The lighting is better here on this overcast day . . . so I think you can see the detail a bit better.

Of course . . . we all look better by candlelight . . . and I must admit . . . I love the textures of the moss and the sand paired with the metal and the glass.

I hope this tutorial inspires or encourages you to seek out an unusual centerpiece CROWN for your table as we welcome summer.

A few additional notes about the items used . . . 

The Charles Street Planter can serve many purposes.  I use one to house my kitchen canisters during many months of the year . . . 

Charles Street Planter with Belle Meade Canisters

. . . the Charles Street Planter also flips over to be used as a riser for a buffet during entertaining . . . 

Charles Street Planter, Riverstone Tapas Server, Tuscan Goblets & Gramercy Beverage Server.

. . . just pop out the removable tray and place on top of the flipped planter.  Of course you can dress-up and personalize the removable tray with a piece of linen or fun party napkins . . . and many other uses (besides being your table's CROWN or your patio's planter).

The Gramercy Beverage Server is also versatile.  This ceramic server can be used for both hot or cold beverages and comes with a cast iron stand as I used here . . . 

From Four Sisters Brunch with a Pig

. . . When not used for entertaining, it becomes an adorable cookie jar . . . 

. . . just by turning it around.  You can even write on it with a Sharpie or dry erase marker.  I prefer to use a sharpie -- and all you need is a squirt of Windex to remove it!

And these beautiful pieces are both on sale this month, along with many many many others.  Including the Stiletto Glass Pedestals I used within the Iron Planter.  

So to avoid being selfish, I wanted to be sure to share these deals and amazing sale with you!  If an item sells out, that you had your heart set on, please contact me -- I might just be able to track it down for you!

A HUGE Thank You for Stopping In and following along -- or skipping to the end (I understand you're busy ;).  Hope you have a wonderful day -- and don't forget to stop back in to see how the Seaside Garden Table turns out!

  

Linking Up With :::

•  Style Sisters Centerpiece Wednesday

•  Uncommon Designs Uncommonly Yours

•  Homemaker on a Dime Market your Biz

•  Mom on Timeout's Taking Timeout Thursday

•  Lil' Luna Link Party

•  Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special

•  Between Naps on the Porch's Tablescape Thursday

•  Happy Hour Friday at Happy Hour Projects

•  Romantic Home Show & Tell Friday

•  Six Sisters Strut Your Stuff Saturday

•  At the Picket Fence's Inspiration Friday

•  I Gotta Create's Wildly Original Roundup

•  Sundae Scoop at I Heart Naptime

•  Dare to Share at Pam's Party Planning

•  A Vision to Remember Check me Out Saturday

•  Be Different Act Normal's Show and Tell Saturday

•  Summer Fun Party at Alderberry Hill

•  Rustic Crafts Link Party

•  Tatortots & Jello Weekend Wrap Party

•  Polka Dot Pretties Craft Create & Inspire

•  Restyled Sundays at Stylish Once Again

•  Positively Splendid Saturday Seven Party

•  Nifty Thrifty Sunday at Nifty Thrifty Things

•  Cherished Treasures Sunday Blog Love

•  Get Schooled Saturday at Too Much Time on My Hands

•  Serenity You's Serenity Saturday

•  Tickled Pink at 504Main

•  Sunday's Best at My 1929 Charmer

•  Homemaker on a Dime Creative Party Hop

•  Alderberry Hill's Make the Scene Monday

•  Sweet Anne Designs Sweet Sharing Monday

•  Debbie Doo's Newbie Party

•  Southern Lovely Show & Share

•  Inspired by Charm Random Link Up Party :)