Rome wasn't built in a day...

and neither was this kitchen remodel!

Dreams of this kitchen remodel began back in November. My clients had plans of purchasing new appliances and needed help "making them fit." We put our heads together, discussed the options and began planning.

Initially, the plan was only to bring in new appliances and reconfigure the cabinets a bit. But, with further discussion of their options, we moved from a few updates to a complete remodel!

Oops...their new rug made it's debut a little too early. Forget you saw it!

 Six months later, the work begins...

Down with the cabinets, down with the wallpaper, out with the floor, etc., etc.

What's in store? I'm so glad you asked.

Let's break it down...
custom cabinets
new counter tops
subway tile backsplash
new appliances
new shades/drapes
under cabinet lighting
upper cabinet lighting
pendant lights over the island
gorgeous fixture over the dining table
apron front sink
new flooring

They're going to feel like they're living in a new house when all is said and done! I hope you'll follow along with the progress. It'll definitely be worth the trip, friends.

Transparent Tuesday

Transparent topic: Cherishing those you love

I guess the timing of this post is a little late, but if it's applicable to you, it may be worth storing away for next year!

I'm not an overly sentimental or gushy type person, but I started a tradition years back that has turned out to be something cherished...Daddy books. Each year I snap pictures of the kids doing things they love to do with John. Then, the week before Father's day, we print the pictures, head to store to buy paper and stickers and come home to put together their Daddy books. 

Each kid has their own book. I did the work the first couple of years then as their abilities have increased and improved, they've taken the reigns and now do it themselves!

A portion of Reed's pages are dedicated to a blue dress shirt. Each year Reed poses in John's shirt. It's fun to see him grow into it. The sleeves are rolled less and less as the years pass. I'm sure he'll fit right into it one of these days (way too soon).

Reed's Daddy Book Snippets:

This was the first year Reed was old enough to "draw" a picture for John.

I love capturing his spirit in these pictures. I stay out of it and simply instruct him to do what he thinks daddy would like.

 Sometimes instead of drawing, they pick out stickers that represent things they like to do with John.

 The last several years have looked very similar to each other...hunting, hunting and more hunting!

Reed's picture idea for this year...grillin' up something good!

Bryn's Daddy Book Snippets:

Fishing and worms, 2 of Bryn's favorite things to do with John when she was little. John misses these days!

Going to get sprinkle donuts was a common daddy/daughter date night when Krispy Kreme was close. 

 When they were too little to write letters to John, I would "interview" them and write their answers. A few of Bryn's quotes: "I like to make crafts with him!" and "He teached me how to do a brand new prayer!"

Picking out the background paper is something the kid's look forward to each year. Reed's is always camo and Bryn's typically has cupcakes involved.

It's great watching their handwriting mature, along with the sentiments. 

These books are a two-fold blessing. The kids have a chance to 'speak' to John from their heart and John has a treasure of notes and memories reminding him how much he's impacting their lives. Our family says 'I love you' all the time, but when you take the time to write the reasons...it drives the point home a little deeper!

It wouldn't be a typically Transparent Tuesday if there weren't a little prayer involved, friends! My intentions through this post are to encourage you to cherish those you love, in whatever form that may be. Prayers don't always have to be for sad things or struggles. Let's celebrate today with prayers of gratitude and thanksgiving for God's blessing of the special people in our lives.

Got a special prayer request? Leave a comment or send me an email: dfrieling1@gmail.com.

Amazing Austin Designer

I've had a few ideas rattling around in my head concerning the decor of our guest bedroom. This room is the one where all our "leftover" furniture now resides and the bedding is literally 14 years old. It hasn't been high on my priority list to decorate since the majority of our family lives local and guests are few and far between. But, John keeps asking me when I'm going to "do something with it." He tells me, "It just doesn't go with the rest of the house."

Well, in my search for inspiration I ran across a local designer and absolutely fell in love with her house! Her name is Kimberly Renner and her company is The Renner Project. Simply put...I'm ready to move in. Look at her amazing designs...

 Postcard lighting installation...amazing!

 Kimberly's solution to low ceilings...shiplap and glossy enamel paint. Beautiful!

 Kimberly and her husband were smart enough to raid a local Air Force base when it was closing and bought many items that now live in their own home.

 I can't get enough of these stairs and the postcards...so impressive!

Her sons' bathroom. Is this cute or what?

So it's official, Kimberly Renner, I NEED to work for you. I want to soak in your creativity and learn how your brain operates! 

These pictures are only a fraction of the Renner's beautiful home. Helen Thompson wrote a great article giving you all the details with lots more gorgeous pictures. Get your pinterest button ready, friends. Click here to see more!

Now, back to reality and my guest room. What I'm kicking around...black, white, cream, honey, mint, Swedish, minimalist and a heart. Laughing as I type this and realize it almost sounds more like a recipe than a room design. Maybe I should name it my Swedish Cream Honey Mint room! Sound yummy or gross?! 

More to come...

Blogging made me do it! Featuring Elizabeth from The Mustard Ceiling

Today's guest definitely wears many hats. Do you know Elizabeth from The Mustard Ceiling?! She's not only gifted at decorating, but she's an amazing graphic designer and as of recent, you can go ahead and attached awesome photographer to her list of talents. When Elizabeth puts her mind to something, you better get out of the way! She's clearly going to do it with 110% of her being. Isn't that an amazing attribute?!

Here's what blogging has made Elizabeth do...

Sometimes I look around the house, or sit down at the computer to work on a new blog design and cannot believe the way my life has changed since I started blogging in January, 2011. Blogging has taught me a lot over the past year and a half and I cannot imagine it not being a part of my daily routine. Blogging has helped me learn to open up and take greater risks in my design choices and in the DIY projects. After working so hard to accomplish the projects around our home, I feel that if I really put my mind to it, I can accomplish it. For example, our Laundry room. Before blogging I would not have tackled a laundry room makeover. For 1) I never could have imaged how fun it would be to have a cute laundry room and 2)after a few days of stenciling I would have probably stopped the stenciling madness. I started the laundry room project because I won a stencil from Olive Leaf Stencils in a giveaway and had no idea where to use it. I thought, the laundry room is small, it won't take long to stencil and so the makeover began...this project took three weeks of stenciling! To date the laundry room stenciling has one of my most challenging projects to finish, but I LOVE it! It is not the most difficult project we have tackled, but the stenciling was really tedious and took a long time. Blogging has made me learn to sew (well, sort of). I am not an expert, but I can successfully sew a pair of drapes or pillows. Two of my goals for 2011 were 1) to start a blog and not give up on it and 2) to learn to sew. I started small with pillow covers and finally in May I worked up the courage to tackle burlap drapes for the dining room. I struggled through the process, but in the end, I think it is just what we needed in there.

Before

After

Not only has blogging made me more confident in my design choices and abilities, but it has helped me find and follow two new passions that I am sure I would never have found without blogging. One of my New Year's Resolution's this year was to learn how to shoot in manual mode on my DSLR camera. When I set out to meet this goal in January I had no idea how much I would grow to love photography. I started out hoping to improve my DIY project photos and fell into a new hobby. Photography really opens your eyes to the world around you, giving you the opportunity to view the world in a whole new light, to pay attention to details you wouldn't have noticed without a camera in hand. It has open up a whole new avenue of creativity for me and I hope to continue to grow my skills.

Self-Portrait downtown Clovis, NM

I have been trying to widen my range of skills, photographing everything from Downtown Signs to bucking cowboys at the rodeo we attended last weekend.

Finally, blogging has led me down a completely new and unexpected career path, which I absolutely love. When I started my blog a year and a half ago, I was computer illiterate. I knew how to turn it on, check email and shop online..that was it. In the first days of blogging, I became obsessed with learning how to create a design for my blog. I would sit glued to my computer for hours teaching myself photoshop. Then, I learned how to install a header on Blogger and finally managed to choke out a full design for my blog. As I sat for hours at the computer I realized I had no idea how many hours had passed, I would get lost in photoshop, loving every minute of it. That is when I knew I was onto something... I have taken blog design classes, photoshop classes, coding classes and have taught myself how to design on wordpress and I have been enchanted by every step of process. I still get giddy when it is time to start a new design, or install a design. My husband teases me about becoming a computer nerd. Never in a million years would I have chosen web design and graphic design as my career path, but I feel it is right where I belong. I recently celebrated my one year anniversary of opening my blog design business, TMC Designs. In some ways I can't believe it has been in a year, in other's I feel like I have been doing it my whole life. Without blogging I would have missed out on something great... Thank you Dana for having me today! I had so much fun thinking and writing about all of ways blogging has opened up new paths in my life. Looking back over the past year and a half, I am truly amazed at where blogging has taken me and am excited to see where the path leads.

I'm so glad Elizabeth shared with us today. If you're even halfway thinking of giving your blog a facelift, make sure you contact her. She's responsible for my design and truly was amazing to work with!

Random Act of Kindness Challenge #38

I hope you're in the mood for something fun today, friends! Today's RAK challenge is a good one...

I'm a little curious if anyone can identify this establishment before I reveal it? Want to take a guess? Here's a hint...they have happy hour that doesn't involve adult beverages.

RAK challenge #38: Visit Sonic and leave a RAK card + gift card attached to the menu.

Wouldn't it be so fun to pull into your spot and find this great little treat?! Admit it, you know you'd be looking around to see if anyone was watching, then snag that gift card like nobody's business. And rightly so, because that's exactly what you're supposed to do!

Make sure you plan ahead before heading to Sonic. You'll need to print a RAK card and bring along some tape.

Such an easy way to put a smile on someone's face today. It's your turn now and you know the drill...go out and be kind!

Blogging Made Me Do It! Featuring Diane from In My Own Style

There's absolutely no way you can walk away from today's post without learning something new! In fact, I don't think it's possible to visit today's guest's blog without learning something new and valuable every single time you visit. 

Diane, from In My Own Style, is the queen of DIY tutorials. I just deemed her that title, but I'm sure you'll agree! I am constantly amazed at the creativity that oozes out of her pores and her ability to walk you through a project, step by step, is simply over the top.

I'm thrilled that she's sharing her time with us today. Ready to see what blogging has made Diane do?...

Blogging… I have been at it now for 2 ½ years so far. I wanted to start a blog about 5 years ago, but when I opened an account with Blogger I was just lost. I had no computer tech skills at all and the learning curve was just too steep for me at the time.  Fast forward to August 2009 and my desire to be a blogger was just too intense, so I focused and for the next 3 months I learned as much as I could about blogging.  My first post went out in early November 2009.   

I am bringing this up because Dana had asked me to take part in her “Blogging Made Me Do It” series.  If I wasn’t a blogger I would be computer clueless right now. Blogging made me learn…  Now I can honestly say that I am pretty computer savvy – not quite a ninja, but I am amazed at all I have learned about the technical side of the internet.  I can read “HTML” now and can edit a photo in Photoshop, make a blog header, button and post graphics.  Blogging made me do it… it made me focus and use my brain in a way I never thought I could.    

I write a DIY Decorating and Crafts blog with a lot of tutorials and photos.  I try to post 3 times a week, but sometimes it just isn’t possible to get a project made, photographed, and then write about all the steps on how to do it.  I had to come up with a way to make the process go smoother.  I needed a space to work in that would allow me to create and make things, a place to photograph them, as well as a place to write about them. I am lucky that I had an office already in my home, but that was designed for the way I used to work before I ever knew what a blog was.  Blogging made me sit back and really think how I could turn that home office into a studioffice to make all the steps required to put out a DIY tutorial blog post go smoother.  Hence I created the “Creative Wall”.  It is a wall that I have hung all the things I need to make the projects that I post, plus a place to take a clear photo of them, along with a desk to sit and write about it. If I wasn’t a DIY blogger, I would have never created this wall.

Creative Wall post:  

{Tutorial: Craft Wall}

Blogging has also made me do a few projects that didn’t come out quite as planned, but I posted about them anyway – you have heard of them- the “craft fails”. Where bloggers show what didn’t work to keep it real. 

I had made over a chandelier in my dining room and it came out wonderfully. Having completed that successfully gave me the confidence to do another brass chandelier that was hanging in my foyer, but using a different method.  It came out OK, I wasn’t super happy with how it looked, but I posted it anyway.  It got mixed reviews, and I totally understood why.  The funny thing - an editor at Apartment Therapy liked it and it was featured on Apartment Therapy.  If I hadn’t posted it, I would have never had a huge increase in blog traffic and new readers coming to my site from Apt Therapy.  Blogging made me do it… it made me take a leap past the fear of thinking everything has to be perfect that I post about.  Putting what I didn’t think was great out there for all to see was scary, but I learned that we all like different things.  It is the idea that may spark someone’s imagination or inspire them – not the actual project itself.    Since then the chandelier has had a few tweaks.  

1^st Chandelier Makeover: 

BEFORE

AFTER

{Complete tutorial available here}

2^nd Chandelier Makeover: 

BEFORE

AFTER

{Complete tutorial available here}

Tweak on the 2^nd Chandelier: 

{DIY chandelier shade cover tutorial}

And on a more recent note – just last week I was doing a post as part of a Walmart/Plaid promotion where a group of craft bloggers were given a $25 gift card to buy something at Walmart to then add our own style to with Plaid paints and Mod Podge. I bought a rug and started painting it, until it turned into a big mess late one night a few days before the post was scheduled to be published.  If I wasn’t a blogger I would have just went to bed at 11:00 PM. But since I had to have a project completed in two days and knew Walmart was open 24/7, I got out of my painting clothes and into something presentable and I drove 30 minutes to Walmart to get something new to paint on.  It was a nice trip - no traffic at all at that time of night.  I got home around midnight and started on the piece the next day.  It is a saddle stool - it came out great and I made my deadline just in time. 

Painted Monogram Stool:  

{Tutorial: How to paint a Monogram on a stool}

 Wow! Right? Make sure you take the time to click on the links below Diane's pictures. Each link takes you to one of her detailed tutorials. There are loads more pictures to enjoy and learn from. My favorite is her brilliant picture taking spot on her creative wall. Jump back up and check out the secret roller shade in the top right corner that she pulls down to give herself the perfect backdrop for post pics. She's a smart one, I tell ya!

Transparent Tuesday

Today's transparent topic: Frugal Decorating

In light of being completely transparent, I have to admit that my house isn't really decorated the way I'd like it to be and the reason for this...I'm too cheap to buy what I really want!

Honestly, I can't remember the last time I paid full price for anything. When I walk into a store, it's like I'm a magnet to the clearance section. I buy what I'm drawn to then figure out a way to make it work. My friend recently told me I should have called my blog, "Make it work," instead of "Make Them Wonder." She claims this is my motto! I hadn't realized how often that phrase escapes my lips until she called it to my attention.

Sometimes, this way of doing things is fun because it's a challenge and pushes my creativity, but other times it leaves me wishing I weren't such a penny-pincher and didn't have guilt attached to buying nice things.

Okay, so where is this headed? Well, since I'm no stranger to the clearance section, I found myself there yesterday while at Lowe's and found a steal that must be passed on!

This exact same mirror....

For only $38.00 (or $39 if you want to get technical)...

It's not the sturdiest of mirrors, but not once has anyone ever noticed this is a plastic knock-off of the expensive original wood version. Well, maybe they have but they've been kind enough not to call it to my attention, who knows?!

Black not the color you're looking for? That's okay, grab a can of spray paint while you're in the store and make it whatever color you'd like. I've seen it in all different colors...white, gold, navy, etc. What a super easy DIY project and an incredible price at that!