Monday, June 15, 2009

Fireplace Makeover

I've mentioned before that I've been doing some major tweaking. One of the areas I've been working on is my fireplace. I've had it decorated this same way for about two years! Can you believe it? I really liked the look of the window frame and I loved the wreath, but the wreath was hard to keep clean. It had some pip berries in it, so I had to watch getting it wet or the berries would split open and lightly batting it with a dust rag caused some of the other berry thingys to break off. So I decided it was time to take it down. And you know how it goes - one little change snowballs into a major makeover!

This is the before picture:


And this is the after:

There's the tavern sign I gave a tutorial on in a previous post. I also made a new game board. The red one with the star was made couple of years ago. The mantle clock was made with a clock I bought at WalMart for $3.97. It was so easy!! I'll share the tutorial in my next post. I still need to find something to put on the left of the clock. I'm thinking something round to soften the hard edges of the boards and mantle clock. I was thinking a couple of the tall canister-shaped stacking boxes but not sure if it would be too many because of the ones on my t.v. (I know, I know.. look at that ancient t.v.! For 20 years old, it still has a great picture, so I can't convince hubby to replace it with a flat screen.)

The chair on the left side of the hearth was Golden Brown and I painted it Territorial Beige. On the right side of the hearth I replaced the small bench with a larger one and placed the crock with twigs that was on the mantle on the bench. I also added a bowl with rag balls. You can see a close up in my header picture. The rag balls were made from suit jackets that I bought at Goodwill. Regular price was $6.00 each, but I went on customer appreciation day and got them for $3.90. I made 3 balls out of two sleeves. I saw some rag balls at one of my favorite prim shops selling for $5.00 a piece!!

I also changed the fireplace screen with the one we had in our family room. I liked the style of the other one, but it didn't fit right, which drove me nuts! I still don't know what I'm going to do with the actual fireplace. We don't build fires in it anymore since we got new carpet a couple of years ago and I didn't want to take the chance of making a mess from hauling in wood and cleaning out the ashes. So, for now, I guess I'll just leave it empty.

Well, that's it for now. I'm still tweaking other areas and will post pics when I get them done.

25 comments:

  1. Kris,

    It looks great!! Your room is just beautiful and I love your sign on your mantle. Don't you love tweaking!?! It is so much fun and it looks primtastic!

    Hugs,
    Lisa

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  2. Hi Kris,
    What a difference your tweaking made...love it, you gave me some great ideas for when I do mine! I need a clock for my mantel so I'll be waiting for the tutorial on it:)
    Have a great day!
    Rondell

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  3. As always, amazing job!. Love every post that you made. This change is one of the best that I see in the blogland.

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  4. Kris~I always love ready your posts. You give me such great inspiration!
    I love the rag balls made from the coats! Did you wrap the fabric around something? Like a styrofoam ball?
    I would give my left arm to have a room like yours...simply prim and perfect!

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  5. HI Kris,Your makeover looks great.I definately like the new screen alot better.Those rag balls are awesome.Have a great day!Sherri

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  6. I love what you did, before and after. I could use you over here. I have a place in need that could use some major tweaking. :)

    Take Care,
    Debbie

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  7. I love how your tavern sign pops against the dark paneling. It makes a world of difference as did painting the chair. It just shows up so much better. It looks wonderful Kris - I love all the things up there now!! I just uploaded some pics of our family room fireplace for a post later this week. Now I think I ned to go back and tweak again!!

    hugs, Linda

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  8. Kris,
    It looks wonderful ~ I love your sign & the chair is perfect. What a deal on the wool for the rag balls. Love your blog & your tutorials and great ideas. Have a wonderful day.
    Pam

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  9. Love the new tweaking Kris! I always enjoy your posts. The new color on the chair is awesome, and the mantle is so primtastic! Looking forward to seeing what other changes you are making!

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  10. It looks great Kris!....your home just looks so warm and inviting, I love it!....I know what you mean about an old tv, believe me!....at the first of this year we finally replaced our oldie with a widescreen and subscribed to High Definition service and let me tell ya, it is definately worth it!....I had never seen HD before and used to think, oh how good could it look, well the HD makes everything look so good I can't believe it!....I am keeping the old tv though just in case this one give out! Janet

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  11. I love the new look, your tavern sign really shows up well on the dark wall, and the game board is very complimentary with it. Love your wonderful lamp. Isn't it nice to change things up.

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  12. Hi Kris,
    I love the new look...it's so wonderfully prim!! Love how the tavern sign shows up and the game-board. Also love the new color on the chair!! Isn't it so much fun to tweak a room!
    Cindy

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  13. Love the redo and the tavern sign looks perfect on the mantle.

    Debbie

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  14. Kris, your livingroom is fantastic!!!! So prim, clean and inviting! You do everything in such a nice way. I love to tweak...the other day ..I was on and off all day tweaking the kitchen table! But, it is fun and there is satcifaction when we are done.
    I have enjoyed your blog right from the beginning. Thank you so much.

    Friends,
    Susannah

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  15. Love your home Kris! How about a tutorial on making gameboards sometime?

    Thanks
    Sarah

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  16. Love your livingroom. The gameboard and Tavern sign look great up there.
    Cindy

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  17. LOL....When you commented on my blog about your fireplace I kept getting the previous post...I kept thinking "Where's the fireplace???"...It didn't show up til the next morning!!..HA!...It looks wonderful!!!...I love visiting your blog!!...hugs,Jen

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  18. Your fireplace mantle looks great! I love the tavern sign and gameboard. Like Linda said, I love how the light sign really stands out against the dark! The mantle clock looks great there too! Tweaking makes everything seem new and fresh, doesn't it?

    Have a great day!
    Tammy

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  19. It looks great!! Love that Tavern sign. Everything LOOKS like it belongs together.

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  20. Me again!!

    I book marked her site. I will hve to look for her book when it comes out. Lucky you to get to read her on Sunday!!

    hugs, Linda

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  21. It looks WONDERFUL, Kris! I love everything about it.
    Love your sign...like I said, I love it all! :)
    Ya asked about those cherries, I just used regular old acrylic paints...sometimes the light hits things just right and put a sheen on it!

    Have a wonderful weekend.
    I really enjoy your blog :)

    hugs-Kath

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  22. What a wonderful makeover! It's fun to tweak, isn't it?! :)

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  23. The tweaking is a hit! I love the gameboards! I have a fireplace that I don't use either, so I have candles in it and it gives a warm glow. I didn't want to worry about the dirt either so I light the tea lights and it's just enough...

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  24. love it kris its just beautiful i wish i had half the talent you have and all your energy , your home its right up there on my list as one of the best i have ever seen kathy

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  25. Looks great! But, I liked it before, too. Either way is beautiful!

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