A Wee Bit of Color in the Studio

This is just to give you a preview of what may come of my studio's interior space. Of course, this is not set in stone...

Here are some of the fabrics that I'm using...

 These will be used for Roman Shades, Valances, Pillows and re-upholstering my wonderful Settee. Remember her?

I want to paint the piece that I bought for storage.

Maybe something along these lines.

I'm playing with the idea of the harlequin design on the doors only.  I'd use colors that compliment the colors and fabrics I'm planning on using.  Did I mention that this is my creative space?  I'm motivated by things and colors I enjoy looking at and using. There's more, I'm hoping you'll be patient while I pull it all together!

ann marie

My Fabulous Studio!!

The idea of a studio to give me the space to create came about quite suddenly.  My husband and I were discussing how big the shed we were going to build needed to be.  What I thought was sufficient, and what he thought was sufficient were two different things.  I was thinking somewhere along the lines of an 8x12 shed.  Nope, he says-way too small.  More discussion.  Then he says-"Let's make it big enough so you can have a studio. Someplace where you can actually work-you do remember how to do that, don't you?"  I'd spent the last year or so working on this house and getting ready to sell our other house, and oh, did I mention we had two daughters get married 6 months apart?!?  So, I do remember how to work, I just hadn't done much of it lately.  So it was decided that my studio/storage area would be 16x24.  The studio is 16x16 and the storage side is 8x16, and everyone is happy-very happy.  My husband and I actually built it from the ground up.  This is the back corner of the yard we decided it would occupy.

We did a little at a time.

Weekends mostly.  Had a bit of a work stoppage due to our not getting a building permit. Oops!

Our building inspector was very gracious, however, work could not continue until we had that little piece of paper in hand, um, in the window.

The weather was warming up, at this point in the game it was the end of April,2009.  We had to man-handle the 4x8 sheets of Smart Siding.  Not having fun.

We made all the walls, installed the windows and doors, put the smart siding up...then he tore his MCL.  We were at the point of figuring out how to do the roof.  I was not sure we were capable, so his injury made the decision for us; we couldn't do it.  We hired a framer that did alot more work for us after this project, and he finished it up for us.

What a relief!  I was having nightmares of the inspector coming in and telling us we had to tear it down and do it all over! We insulated it, had our electrical stuff installed and had it sheetrocked.  I put down a VCT (vinyl composite tile)   floor from Lowe's-around 70 cents a square foot.

  Our electrician installed 4 recessed lights, a ceiling fan/light and outdoor lights. Oh yeah, lots of outlets for all my machines, lamps, radio, dry vac, drill, sander...air conditioning will keep me cool when it heats up, which we all know will happen way too soon.  I am in Texas after all!  I haven't figured out window treatments yet. My settee is a work in progress, and I'll be painting the cabinet I picked up for storage.

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The wall color is cookie crumb-I think. It's pretty much a non color, at least for me.  I'm afraid if I paint it a "color", it'll affect the light in there.  I think I'll have to keep you in suspense about the interior pictures at the moment.  There's still work/decorating I need to complete before I share.

Grand Total?
After all of our blood, sweat, tears, torn MCL, sore muscles, outsourcing some of the labor and a few choice words....
right around $4,500.
Not too shabby!

Slipcover Chic!

I have so many projects in the works, I don't know where to begin. I did, however, cross one off the list this weekend! This was chosen first because of neccessity. It was neccessary for me to make room in my studio for my other projects! Go figure. This is going to daughter #2's home. It's their first home, and like many of us, there's a budget. It also doesn't help that she's my daughter and really loves a bargain. This story begins at Goodwill. Here's what followed us home.

Sorry, I'd already removed the seat cushion, but you get the idea. Another well built chair, but it had the ugly duckling syndrome. When I found this hiding under her skirt, the skirt had to go.

Please don't mind the stuff on the floor, I'm always making a mess-it's how I roll.

After a few hours and not really knowing what I was doing, this is the final project. Not perfect, but looking a little bit nicer.

ann marie

Petite Fleur de Lis Pillow

I had to share this with you. I just made a Petite Fleur de Lis Pillow that is so darn cute! I figured an 8" pillow qualifies as petite.  I really like layering fabrics and prints. I was in the process of completing a custom linens order, and, well, I became distracted. Those of you who know me are probably not surprised-at all. Anyway, one thing led to another and this is the result. I'm thinking it may end up as a listing in my Etsy shop, LaFortune Linens.

This is the back , a tiny toile scene.

ann marie

Channel Back Chair-Anthropologie Style!

Just one more reason why walking is good for you. My husband was out walking the neighborhood Saturday Morning and came across a yard sale with this little treasure.

He told me about her as soon as he got home. "There's a yardsale and they're selling a chair kind of like the one we have in the family room." We run on over and I'm thinking Wing Back Chair. We're looking for a comfy chair for our youngest daughter's first apartment. These are some of the pieces she's found so far

here. When I saw this petite Channel Back chair, I couldn't get out of the truck fast enough! I knew she'd love it, and if she didn't, I did. Win-win situation. The fabric is in great shape. I just have to figure out how to clean the arms,. They're a little dirty, but nothing that can't be taken care of. We love the feel of it. I say vintage, she says Antropologie. We'll leave her as is, she's thinking about painting the legs, not quite sure yet. Here are a few more looks.

The channel back is really a nice detail.

This chair is deceivingly heavy for it's size. When my husband went to taske it out of the bed of the truck to carry it to my studio, I volunteered to carry the seat cushion. It's the most dense and heavy cusion I've ever carried. There's no zipper, so for right now the inside will remain a mystery.

She has lovely, curvaceous legs. They're rather wide too. I think her legs will get a coat of paint, and I'm also thinking along the lines of a slipcover. Time may be the deciding factor, but don't you think a sassy little skirt would just girly this chair up a bit?
 Oh, the best part?

$20.00

ann marie

How Does My Garden Grow?

This year I thought I'd try my hand at a veggie garden. I've had them in the past and really like having fresh produce to eat and cook with. This is what it looked like a few weeks ago, the 9th of March actually.

I added a few plants, but most have been grown from seed. Here's what's growing in my garden today-

Onions,red

Lettuce, 2 varieties

Spinach

Carrots

Peas

Wax Beans

Tomato-cherry and yellow

Corn

Eggplant

Yellow Bell Pepper

Cucumber

Zucchini

Summer Squash

Broccoli

Cauliflower

Strawberries.

Not bad for a 4'x10' space!

Here's what it's looking like this morning!

I also have an herb garden

I also planted Raspberry, Blackberry and Blueberry shrubs.

I guess we'll see how my garden grows!

ann marie

Yardsale Settee!!

Well, I still haven't figured out what type of settee this is, or the age, but I can show you more of her construction.

She is very solid. Underneath, there are pieces of wood running from front to back at the legs, and also metal bracing that supports the springs. All of this doesn't look "old". The back is also made of metal springs and the buttons for tufting are like brads. Pretty nifty.

The wood carving seems to be somewhat rough. Not very precise or sharp. So. I'm not sure if this is poor mass production quality, or hand carved.  It's not very symmetrical.

I did find one picture of a similar settee. Sorry about the picture quality.

So, I guess my dilemna is this. I wouldn't mind painting the wood if it's not a valuable piece, which I don't think it is-I'm just not sure. I was thinking along the lines of a creamy white paint and a yellow ticking that I found here-

http://www.fashionfabricsclub.com/catalog_itemdetail.aspx?ItmID=HD149

I really liked the idea of a linen, but this will reside in my studio and I need a little color!
Any informatiion on this piece of furniture will be greatly appreciated!
thanks
ann marie






I think I hit the jackpot!  We were out and about doing the yardsale thing Saturday morning. We were on our way home from breakfast and saw a yardsale at a cute little Victorian cottage in our neighborhood. There were some Adirondack chairs that the gentleman had made that caught my eye, so I went inside to find my husband. He was in the front room, and this little house was jam packed with all kinds of stuff. He was standing in front of this settee.

I fell head over heels! I had no idea where she was going to fit in, but I knew she was coming home with us.  The girl who sold it to us was a sophomore in HS, and this was given to her by her grandmother. She brought it here from England. I guess it took up too much space and her mom told her to find a new home for it. She was asking $80 for it, but took $70. This is a very solid , well built piece of furniture. The lovely blue 80's fabric is going to be a thing of the past soon. I'm going to recover her, just not sure what I'll use for fabric. I'm also undecided about painting the frame. I looked through about 50 pages of Google images of settees, and didn't find one that looked like this. I thought it might be french, or maybe italian, but I honestly have no idea. Here are a few more shots to enjoy.

Sorry about my messy studio, but I had to take pictures of her to show all of you. I'll have to clean it up and post about it. This is one great space to create in. Her new home will be in my studio. I'll take the wicker daybed out to make room. So, if any of you have ideas about her makeover, please send them over.

ann marie