The Big Reveal!

This is it. The big trailer reveal. It's done. Sort of. Mostly. Let's face it, it will never be done, done. There are still windows to be replaced. The outside is not fully polished. I've got lots more decorating to do. We want to build a deck around it. But, it's workable. It's cute. I've even done a couple of projects in there!

So, a whole bunch of before and after pictures for your viewing pleasure. And, as a side note, it took pretty much one year to get to this point.

So, there it is! I can't believe it is mine. I really can't. The other day I was standing in there, cutting the fabric for my curtains and I thought to myself, "This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." Truly.

This is happening!

On New Year's Day, we spent the afternoon in the trailer cleaning and working on details. After all the sanding Roger had to do on the table, that end of the trailer was covered in a not so thin layer of sawdust. I vacuumed, wiped and wiped again. I even got down on the floor to clean up all the dirt and marks from the construction phase. (And we promptly messed it up again by tracking in snow.)

We added these gorgeous brackets to the doorway of the reading nook. These lovelies were in a box of miscellaneous brackets that I bought at an estate sale. Roger spray painted them red, and I love the little bit of color they add to the doorway.

The reading nook is all cleaned out, and the mattress is in place. In fact, the kids spent some time in there yesterday watching a movie.

Roger did some touch up painting. He even touched up the inside of the closet. That's the difference between us. I would have left the closet as is. Who's going to see it anyway?

We added these chrome handles to the closet doors.

After all the cleaning and touch up was done, I couldn't resist moving in some of the bigger items. We brought in the sewing machine, filing cabinet, rolling cart, chair, stool and typewriter stand.

Did I mention it was snowing when we did this? The kind of snow that blows straight in your face, like tiny pieces of glass. But, it's happening! I'm starting to move stuff in! The only "construction" related project that needs to be finished is putting doors on the reading nook storage area. And those doors are built, primed and partially painted. Roger said he'll be able to install them tomorrow. Granted, there are still windows to be replaced, but that's nothing that will keep me from moving in and using my craft space.

Tonight, I took my yarn stash out to the closet. I love, love, love the way this looks. I used four hanging shoe organizers, and they fit perfectly in the closet. At first, I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to fit more than one skein in each slot. But, then I realized that yarn is smooshy! I can cram at least two full standard sized skeins in each one. I think I'm going to try something similar with my fabric stash.

I Can See the Finish Line!

This craft trailer is so close to being complete that it's making me a giddy. Here are the latest pictures.

 

The sanded, finished, completed work table. I cannot wait to start working on that great expanse!

 

 

The closet doors are reattached, primed, and...

 

painted! Just need to add the handles. We're still discussing which handles to use.

 

 

All of these drawers had to be decoupaged. 

 

I got about six done before Christmas.

 

I finished the rest of them last night, and Roger installed them today. The handles and pulls are all from Ikea. Unfortunately, we didn't buy enough when we were there in October, so we are three handles short. And, Ikea doesn't sell them online. And, the Kansas Ikea doesn't open until sometime next year. I'm looking into other sources, but if anyone has three extra red Ikea Satta handles that they'd like to sell, let me know!

 

 

There are four doors that go along the very bottom of my cabinets. I found these awesome animal pictures in a Child Craft book from the 70s. I decided they'd make a nice pop of color. These are my doors in various stages of drying. This is how I've spent my New Year's Eve. Yeah, I'm pretty hardcore...

 

Tomorrow, I am going to start sorting and packing my craft supplies. It's hard to believe that I am finally to that stage! There is still some touch up painting to do in the trailer, a couple of doors for Roger to build and install, and the broken windows still need replaced, but it is ready for me to dust, sweep and start moving in! So, you know how I'll be starting 2014!

 

Happy New Year!

Looking like the real deal!

We had beautiful weather in Kansas today. Roger took the opportunity to do more work in the craft trailer. I can't believe how incredible it is looking. And the major components are all falling into place!

Check out these cabinets! The ones at the far end will be drawers. The white ones will be open and the bottom of the nearer cabinet will be doors.

We've collected old refrigerator drawers to fill the top spot in the white cupboards. This end is also intended to be used as a fabric cutting area. (I'm sure I'll manage to cover it with all kinds of stuff when I'm not cutting fabric!)

This yellow section will have drawers. The plan is to decoupage the fronts of the drawers so they match the reading nook area. Decoupage is my area of expertise, so I need to get to work on those!

My table is finally up. This is so exciting, because, let's face it, this is where I will be working the most. The table top is pine and will be finished with some kind of varnish or whatever. The drawers on the side were purchased at Michael's. Roger had to cut the table top to fit the curved end of the trailer. (That weird looking leg in the middle is not permanent.)

So, a fair amount of the work still to be done needs to be done by me! Decoupaging all those drawers and doors will take some time. Roger does still need to hang the closet doors and make doors for the storage area under the reading nook.

Wouldn't it be amazing if it were done by Christmas? I'm not holding my breath, but it's a nice thought.

Unique Antique Market

Roger and I spent Sunday in our booth at the Unique Antique Market in Wichita. So many gorgeous booths and lots of great stuff! Since it was an indoor show, I finally got to wear my vintage-style red dress.

We sold stuff, but I'm most excited about what we bought! Our neighbor had some awesome stuff. Roger bought this Royal Crown sign.

 

I countered by buying this adorable shooting target toy. I love those little crows and their hats!

 



We added these two beauties to our collection. Both have gorgeous frames and curved glass.

 

These Scotch tape tins will be perfect for storing bits and bobs in my craft studio.

This fabulous red suitcase was in Olive and Mickey's booth. And, I had a blue suitcase in my booth that I knew Teresa (goodness, I hope I'm remembering her name right!!) had been admiring. So, we swapped!!

My most favorite purchase was this gorgeous handmade pin cushion by Lori Casey. The detail and workmanship is divine. I'm so happy to add this to my collection.

 

And, I didn't buy this, but I snapped a picture because it's the best creepy cool thing I've seen in a while! And, it's that time of year!

 



Happy Halloween!


Find more great stuff at Thriftasaurus!

Working on the fun stuff!

Things really are starting to come together. Even I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Roger and I both took last week off from work, and Roger spent a fair amount of time out in the trailer. We also took a trip to Menards and found the perfect material for the counter tops.

Last night I went looking for the perfect fabric for the curtains. I came across this one on my local quilt shop's website. My thought was that I would go browse the store today, measure tonight and buy tomorrow, but when I got to the store today, I found out that this fabric had already been sent out to their discounted fabric store on the other side of town. I took the fact that it was discounted as a sign that this was definitely the perfect fabric. So, I hightailed it out to the outlet mall and bought all they had - 12 3/4 yards from a 13 yard bolt.

I bought this, too. Because who the heck goes to the fabric store and only buys one thing??

The picture doesn't do justice to how bright and vivid these prints are. I'll probably use them for a pillow. Something that really shows off those cute little dollies.

Anyway, we also went down to San Antonio last weekend for a short vacation to SeaWorld. On the way there, we passed an IKEA. Just think! I could pick out my IKEA stuff in person and we wouldn't have to pay shipping. We could just haul it home with us! So, on our way home, we stopped by and had a great time buzzing though the store and picking up just what I wanted. (Our kids hated it. Our son has ranked it number four on his list of most hated stores. Right after Dillons (grocery store), Lowe's and Menard's.)

Being there in person with my contractor (Roger) made it much easier to figure out exactly what we needed in terms of IKEA's hanging rail system. You buy some cute rails like this:

Then you buy little things to hang from them to hold stuff. Like this:

Or these:

And, I've been needing a chair. This one is quite comfy. Granted, it doesn't have wheels, but since I question how level my trailer will actually remain, that might be a benefit.

Finally, the piece that I have wanted since the moment I laid eyes on it! This gorgeous rolling kitchen cart!

It's just as beautiful as I imagined. I can't wait to fill it full of stuff!

Yes, there has been more progress made on the trailer, but I haven't taken photos in a while. I promise to do it soon!

More Red!

Because I think all doors should be red, Roger painted the inside of my main door red to match the closets. He also did fixed the handle to make things easier to close and lock/unlock.

The little "back door" is now red, too. And check out that super cute book shelf! I love the little beadboard detail at the base. (It's actually covering the ugly wheel well that sticks out of the closet.) It's all about the details, right?

And, here is the back end of the trailer all nicely trimmed and painted. The underneath storage still needs doors, the majority of the painting is now done.

I found this delightfully chippy ceramic cat at the Kansas Barn Sale this past weekend. She'll be taking up residence next to the fireplace when all is said and done. Just another detail!