Entirely Smitten

Where did ya go?

Sorry for going MIA!  It has taken me far longer than I expected to transition into our fall schedule.  Life got a little hairy for a while, but I'm back now, so you can stop moping about it.

 

Some News Updates:

1. My Family is now free from the prison that is TV.  It took a lot of psyching ourselves up before we finally did it, but we're happier now.  The kids actually play.  It's kind of bizarro.
2. I'm on Pinterest like crazy.  If you don't know what Pinterest is, click the widget on my left sidebar and peruse my boards.  It's an amazingly easy way to organize my ideas for future projects, gather pictures of things that make me happy, and store useful information and awesome recipes.  You can request an invite through Pinterest or leave a comment here and I can give you a personal invite.  (I don't have a lot, so it's first come, first serve!)
3. My etsy store is in the works.  I'm working on building up my supply before I open it.  A friend asked me why it has taken so long for me to join etsy.  Well here's the deal, folks... I love making stuff and I can make pretty much anything, but the minute someone orders something, I'm not making it because I'm in the mood to make it and I'm feeling inspired- I'm making it because I have to.  My brain no likey things like that.  So my store will be just that- a store.  There will be items on the "shelf" and when an item is purchased it is no longer available.  There will be mostly one-of-a-kind items for purchase.  If you are looking for something specific or you like a style but need a different size I might be happy to accommodate you or I might flat out tell you no.  Please don't be insulted.  It's going to ensure that you always get the best quality goods and that I'm always going to love my job.  
4. My YouTube channel is in the works, but it may be a bust.  Between figuring out how to make a quality video without an extra set of hands, editing the videos, and recording voice-overs it's been very time-consuming.  I'm still attempting it, none the less.
5. A while back I gave hubs the green light to skateboard as much as he needs to- yes, it is a need, trust me.  We figured out the days and times that work best.  It was a LOT of time, but again- he needs it.  A few weeks later he registered for school.  Because I couldn't go back on the time I gave him for skating, that meant even more time away from home.  (Which is totally fine since he pampered me for a year letting me sleep in every morning while he got the kids off to school.)  So that means that I pretty much do everything around here and when I'm not doing everything around here, I'm working.  That means I haven't been able to update here because given the choice, I'm going to be crafting instead of blogging about crafting.  I am definitely getting back on track and you can expect updates at least a few times a week :)
6. I'm leaving Facebook.  It's a tremendous waste of my time at the moment.  Part of me is sad about it, but a bigger part of me is excited to rid myself of another addiction.  If you find yourself missing blurbs about the kids or the gems they come up with follow my personal twitter (@JillianPimental)  If you're going to miss alerts about blog updates you have options: subscribe to my blog, "like" it on Facebook, or follow it on Twitter (@entirelysmitten) note: I only post alerts about new blog posts, I do not tweet 100 times a day!

 

So that's about it then...

Creative Bookshelf Ideas {Round Up}

If you're a book fiend like my friend Jac, you've been stocking up at Borders since the day they announced that they're going out of business.  Books are one of those things that most people have a collection of but are hardly ever displayed.  They're set on a bookshelf and that's it.  Aside from the design of the bookshelf itself and the titles of the books within the shelf, the collector's personality isn't able to show through.  Here are a few creative ways to store and display books that exude personality!

 

Right out of the gate a beautiful masterpiece by designer Shawn Soh.  Gorgeous!

 

These invisible bookshelves were featured on life hacker.  Aren't they awesome?!  I have seen these before, but normally the bottom book gets ruined so I'm always turned off.  Not this one!!!  Psst... click the link, it's a tutorial!!!

 

Sweet mother of Pearl, I'm in love.  I normally don't do this style, but it has been done so well that I can't not like it!   Studio Mama you are a genius!

 

Take a close look... those bookshelves are RAIN GUTTERS!  Amazing!  I love that the shelves can be installed nice and low so that they are in reach of little hands, but my favorite part is that the colorful books become part of the decor.  So cute, Sweet Cheeks Tasty Treats!

Another version I found over at Diane's Notes to Self :)   Love it!

 

An easy way to make a huge collection of books instantly more appealing is to arrange them by color!  Using this type of arrangement will draw in your guests.  Instead of your collection being an eye sore it will become a focal point!  And just when you thought it couldn't get more lovely...

The underside of the shelves have been adorned with whimsical wallpaper scraps.  Ahhhhhh... LOVE!  See more here at Apartment Therapy!

 

Sorting books by color means that even when you're using regular old shelves, like the simple industrial shelves pictured above, it still looks exciting!  Your blog name is so appropriate, Making Life Sweeter one project at a time!

 

How beautiful are these old wine crates re-purposed as bookshelves?!  Bailey's Home and Garden nails it!

 

Another great wine crate idea!  Those of you who find an uncluttered house to appear empty and unloved, this one's for you!  Apartment Therapy, I love you!

 

This one is a little pricey, but it could certainly be an easy DIY!  Two coffee tables sawn in half and stacked... obviously there are other steps to make sure it's stable, but that's about it.  Umbra Furniture

 

This tutorial (originally from one of my favorite blogs ever... Design*Sponge) was a feature on Curbly (another one of my favorite blogs ever!!! 

 

This one is quite possibly my favorite ever!  I found this one Flikr  I'm not sure which I love more: the shelf or the herringbone floors!  I also found a tutorial to make this baby at Ana White

 

There are so many more awesome ways to store books.  No more excuses for my ugly, haphazard collection!

Awesome Thrift Store Finds {Round Up}

I fully admit that I have an amazing vision for turning pieces that seem hopelessly fated to carry out the remainder of their sad life in a trash heap into beautiful, one-of-a-kind gems.  When I drive by an old dresser on the side of the road my brain immediately starts to justify the need for having it.  Fortunately for my family I have incredible self control!  Something that helps me maintain this self control is taking a picture.  I know it seems silly, but it really works.  Although I love the process of hacking and updating old furniture and seeing my vision come to life, it is nearly as satisfying to snap the photo and revisit my design whenever I like.  (Hey, I never said I was sane...)  I decided I would share with you some of my favorite finds and what I loved so much about them.

 

Words cannot express how much I love this dresser.  The shape is gorgeous and the detail around the frame is stunning.  This dresser stood about chest level and was on small wheels.  The price tag?  $14.99 - it was hard to walk away from that!

I envisioned this one going one of two ways: using a white milkwash all over and using a dark glaze to bring out the dotted detail around the dresser and using either black or oil rubbed bronze hardware OR painting the entire frame of the dresser black and painting the drawers and the dotted detail a VERY soft cream (almost white) and using black hardware.  Certainly bolder, but fun!

 

These lamps are practically a dime a dozen at thrift stores!  Hit it a couple of times with a can of spray paint, top it with a new shade and you have yourself a super cheap, instantly awesome lamp!  I love these and since they're usually $2.99- they are very hard to walk away from!

 

I know this picture will instantly skeeve some people out, but I love it!!!  These chairs are so funky!  My vision for these was fun outdoor furniture!   I'd reupholster the seat cushions and the seat back with outdoor fabric, paint the bases white and seal them to make sure they would stand up to the elements.  I'd definitely replace the weird back pillows that mimic the shape of the seat back and replace them with low rectangular accent pillows :)

Wouldn't that be so cute in the backyard?!!!

 

I know I've already made one, but my original thought when I saw this was "That would make a super cute kid's cooking set!"  It's kind of mini sized, but it would be AWESOME!  I would probably build a little hutch type thingy behind it for shelving/ pots & pans and such.  I'd also remove the doors below and replace them with a retro style curtain.  I was thinking a retro red or robin's egg blue! 

 

Speaking of red... It's not just furniture that I get dreamy about.  I saw this beautiful red leather suitcase and ran over to ogle at it.  The buckle is what really caught my eye.  When I went over to check it out I fell in love.

Inside of it was another drool worthy suitcase!  And wouldn't you know, inside that was another which was in the same perfect red, but was more of a satchel-type bag meant to be used as a carry-on.  I closed my eyes, blocked my ears, and ran away as fast as my legs could carry me.  Still kicking myself!

 

 

This buffet/ sideboard was calling to me.  From the picture you can't really tell, but this thing is a Behemoth!  I'd guess it was about 7 feet long!  I really wanted this one in my dining room, but there's no way it would fit!  After accepting that it wouldn't work for our house I let my mind wander to what its imaginary next life would be if I had my way with it.  It immediately screamed "Bathroom vanity!"  The style I was feeling for it was country, so the finish was fine as is, but I could also see it in a distressed white (or even red if it was carefully thought out) with vintage hardware.  I pictured double sinks - one centered on each of the stack of drawers leaving lots of space in between for handsaop, mason jar candles, etc.  I would also cut out the center of the two doors in the middle, leaving just the frame.  I'd replace it with chicken wire and use it to store rolled up body and hand towels.

 

{In case you haven't noticed, I have a major crush on dressers}  Even though I don't love blue, it seemed perfect for this dresser.  I pictured it a soft, powder blue (NOT baby blue) with the square trim detail on all the drawers (three on the top, one over the two bottom drawers) painted white.  I would have also spray painted the drawer pulls white.  I may have even painted the top surface white as well.

 

 

For some reason, this chair was drawing me in.  I don't know if it was the ornately carved detail or the interesting spindles on the chair back.  I didn't really have any plans for this one (except maybe painting it black) but I wanted it.

 

So there you have it.  My house will remain clutter free now.  My hard drive?  Not so much!  If you find something drool worthy while you're out and about, snap a photo and share it so we can drool together :)