Bike in Style

"I thought of that while riding my bike."

-Albert Einstein, on the theory of relativity

Photo Credit: LA Cycle Chic

Etsy Finds

1. Circus Billboard Party Invitation: B. Nute Productions

2. My Beautiful Balloon Necklace: Mama's Little Babies

3. Carnival Photography Print: Photography by Bomobob

4. Whimsical Hippopotamus Pull Toy: Doll Threads and Clay

Flour Vintage

Simple
Beautiful

Stylish

Timeless

Flour, a local Etsy shop, collects vintage apparal, dresses, even childrens clothes.  Flour recently featured a giveaway on I Heart Mesa (my hometown).  With a little luck, maybe she'll feature a giveaway for us too. Click here to see her beautiful collection.

I couldn't resist. I bought the yellow dress.

Blog Crush

Van over at Thrift Core finds the greatest thrift stores with the most beautiful, interesting finds. Check out these awesome picks.

Wouldn't you love to get lost in this store....I would. 

Van also has some excellent tips for finding great thrift stores, as well as tax advice for those of you who sell online.

The Speckled Dog

I can't stand this style of table.
It's circa 1993 rounded corners and blonde wood make me wanna puke. Blah.

  I don't think Dax likes this table either. 
Who's Dax?  She's inspiration behind The Speckled Dog.

Now check out the fabulous makeover our friend Kristi from The Speckled Dog did!

The harlequin design is an unexpected detail that I really really dig.

I'm sure Dax loves it too.

Click here to check the details of this makeover.

Thanks for the inspiration Kristi!

Bike in Style

These two have some serious style.

Don't you love it?

Photo credit Cycle Chic

Rock n' Roll 3

Do you remember our Rockin' Rocker redo?

Check out Megan's version of our rocker from Crazy Domestic. 

Pretty sweet, right?

Her fabric choice is beautiful!

Bang! Redo

from Gun Cabinet to Pantry
I found this gun cabinet on craigslist for 30 bucks, right away I saw it's potential the only problem standing in my way was sticker laminate. You know the kind, it peels off like a sticker with fake wood grain printed on it. Luckily I figured out how to paint over that stuff using Zinsser B-I-N shellac based primer. For my full product review go here.


Before:

A sad little excuse for a gun cabinet, minus the tacky glass doors etched with deer. (photo coming soon)

After: A beautiful pantry!

A little shelving, a few coats of paint, antiquing, fabric panels and presto! A place any can good would be proud to call home.

Check back later for the full tutorial.

Link Parties

Cottage Instincts Between Naps on the Porch The Girl Creative It’s so Very Cheri Keeping it Simple The Persimmon Perch Sumo’s Sweet Stuff Skip to My Lou Making the World Cuter A Soft Place to Land Tip Junkie Between Silly Little Sparrow Today’s Creative Blog Cottage Dreamers My Frugal Family Reinvented The Thrifty Home My Backyard Eden We Are THAT Family The Trendy Treehouse Women Who Do it All Blue Cricket Design Someday Crafts Just a Girl Beyond the Picket Fence Somewhat Simple Tales from Blogaritaville Life as Lori The Shabby Chic Cottage The Shabby Nest My Romantic Home It’s Fun to Craft Fingerprints on the Fridge Just a Girl Beyond the Picket Fence Somewhat Simple Tales from Blogaritaville Kojo Designs Remodelaholic Finding Fabulous

Happy Father's Day!

"By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong." 

-- Charles Wadsworth

I would like to thank my amazing Dad for all his help. He has helped me with every one of my Peppertowne projects and I couldn't have done them without his genius, expertise, and downright mad skills. Thanks Dad!

Glamping!

Have a good weekend and Happy Father's Day to all you great Dads out there!

We're out for a weekend of Glamping....

oooh la la! 

The Glamping Society

Photo credit: I Need Pretty Things

Photo credit: I Need Pretty Things

Although, I don't think our camping will be quite so glamorous.

Tree Swing DIY

Part One:

How To Prepare Your Chair To Become An Outdoor Swing

Look for Part Two: How To Hang Your Swing early next week

Step One:

Find your chair or bench

This is an example of what NOT to do.

(I wish I had more pictures. I didn't prepare for a DIY tutorial when we were making the swing.)

When searching for the perfect chair or bench to turn into a swing you want to look for solid wood construction with little or no upholstery.  We choose this chair because of it's shape, construction and because it was in the 'trash' bin at our local thrift shop!  $8!!

I love chairs and I've collected too many.  This chair needed a new function.

Step Two:

Prep your wood and weatherproof your upholstery

Prep your wood for painting by cleaning and lightly sanding it.  Repair any problem areas and make sure all nails and screws are tight.

Weatherproofing this upholstered seat was easy.  I removed the seat from the chair by unfastening the screws that held it in place.  Then began removing the layers of upholstery.  The second layer I found was this lovely vintage checker pattern in practically perfect condition.  I wanted to keep it. 

In order to protect it from water damage, melted popsicles and other messes, I simply placed a layer of plastic between the cushion and the fabric.  To do this, I removed the original upholstery from the cushion and then stapled it back in place with the layer of heavy duty plastic underneath it.  Simple!

By wrapping the cushion in a layer of plastic before the upholstery you accomplish two things.

1. Rain and water wont seep into the cushion and create a breeding ground for mildew and mold.

2. You make your cushion washable. My kids love this swing and have already spilled on it. I can simply hose the cushion off, let it sit in the sun for a hour and then put it back on the swing.

 

To complete the weatherproofing, we used a waterproofing spray.  You can use a scotch guard or similar product but on this particular chair we used some left over Nikwax Waterproofing spray which is usually used for outdoor camping gear like tents and jackets.  You can find Scotch Guard at any home goods store and Nikwax at most sporting goods stores.  I prefer Nikwax over most other products because it's heavy duty and also protects from the sun.  In Arizona it's not the rain we have to worry about, it's the damage from the sun.

Step Three:

Paint the chair and weatherproof the wood.

Since this swing was intended to be outside among the elements we used an exterior paint with a self primer.  We applied 3 fairly thin layers of paint making sure to cover all the seams and especially around the caning on the chair.  The chair dried thoroughly before we applied 2 polyurethane coats to protect it from the sun and rain.  This is the product we used.

 

Tip: When using products that layer on each other like paint and polyurethane always use water-based paint with water-based polyurethane and oil-based paint with oil-based polyurethane.

Step Three: 

Drill your holes and tie your knots

When you hang your swing you want it to tilt backwards slightly to create a comfortable place to sit.  Think about this concept when you drill the holes for you rope.  We drilled 6 holes.  Two in the front and four in the back.

The holes in the front look like this:

The holes drilled on the backside of the chair look like this:

On the backside of your chair or bench you will want to drill two holes on each side.  This will help stabilize your swing so it doesn't tip back all the way and dump you out on the grass!  Notice how we drilled the holes so when we put the rope through it's on a diagonal.  This adds extra support and strength.

Once you've drilled your holes, string your rope through the holes.  If you haven't gone to Harbor Freight yet, you should.  We bought about 75 feet of braided poly rope for less than $5.  It's perfect. It's heavy duty, mildew and rot resistant, will stretch a little and hold a capacity of about 250lbs. 

Next, it's time to tie your knots.  I'm not exactly sure what this knot is called (maybe a half-hitch) but I like it for two reasons.

1.  It's the kind of knot that when you put pressure and weight on it, it tightens it's grip.  So it will never come undone and risk dumping you out of your swing.

2.  It looks like a pretty braid when your finished.

Step 1: String your rope through your holes leaving 1-2 feet of rope to work with.

Step 2: Wrap the loose end of the rope around the back of the rope that will be hanging from your tree or porch.  Then pull the end underneath itself.  See step 3 for more details on this.

Step 3:  # 1 Pull the rope up. #2 Pull the rope behind the other piece. #3 Pull the end underneath itself.

This action is also known as "the rabbit (the end piece of your rope) goes around the tree (#2) and then into the hole (#3)"

Step 4: Pull tightly and you will create your first knot.

Step 5:  Do it again.  The rabbit goes around the tree (#2) and through the hole (#3).

Step 6: Then pull tightly.

Take the rabbit around the tree and through the hole as many times as you like.  When your finished, burn the end of your rope to keep it from fraying.

And that's it!  Complete the other sides of your chair and soon you'll be ready to hang up your swing.

I hope you didn't cut the legs of your chair off yet!  They'll be helpful in hanging your swing. 

Hanging the swing in your tree can be tricky.  Tune in next week for Part 2: How To Hang Your Tree Swing.  We found a method that is simple and works well.  Your swing will hang evenly and it also allows for you to easily remove your swing from the tree.  This is especially helpful for winter storage or if you live in the Southwest like me, storage from monsoon season! 

So that's Part One! 

As always if you have any specific questions please email me here.

its raining its pouring...

-photo credit-

Rain

 

I opened my eyes
And looked up at the rain,
And it dripped in my head
And flowed into my brain,
And all that I hear as I lie in my bed
Is the slishity-slosh of the rain in my head.

I step very softly,
I walk very slow,
I can't do a handstand--
I might overflow,
So pardon the wild crazy thing I just said--
I'm just not the same since there's rain in my head.

                                             -Shel Silverstein

Jean Diapers!

Have any of you seen this commercial? I just had to post it, Jen I can totally see my little nephew running around in these. "I poo in blue"..hilarious!

The Controversy

Did you read the controversy about our trash chair turned tree swing

that was featured on the popular online magazine

Apartment Therapy?
Click the Apartment Therapy and read the comments.

Well, all your questions will be answered tomorrow in a complete DIY

including how to tie the knots and weatherproof outdoor furniture!

Hello Peppertowne!

After more than a week of house guests, I'm back!! 

I've missed Peppertowne and all of you.  And we have so many new friends!  Welcome.

While I've been away, Amy has found some pretty rad things! 

First of all, Isn't the shelf giveaway from Old New Again is especially crave-worthy? 

And don't you adore her 'eat' sign.  If you haven't already, sign up to win.  I really wish I could win our own giveaway...sigh.

And Taraduff's Beard Beanie!!!  I'm dying...this is fantastic!

I can think of so many uses...

can't wait for Halloween and snowboard season!

Ok, and isn't there something just oh-so-sexy about a man wearing a beard beanie?

And, did you see Jennifer Young's I Art You?

Tons and tons of intriguing photos to thumb through.  As well as her Friday vignette's...very cool.

Awesome finds Amy!  She's always had a knack for finding the coolest stuff.