DIY Campaign Dresser

When I started planning my woMan Cave and creating my mood board I knew I wanted it to include a campaign dresser.  I had seen a lot of painted campaign dressers online (just google it) and thought it would be a great addition to my space.  Not only would it serve as storage for my clothes (and free up the dresser in our bedroom for my husband's clothes), but it would also serve as a media stand for my TV.

 

I searched high and low (yard sales, Craigslist, etc.) for a campaign dresser. Several of the bloggers I follow find these great pieces of furniture (at great prices) all the time. So, I thought I would just be able to have my pick. Wrong! In all of my weeks of searching, I only found one piece of campaign style furniture.  My husband and I even went to look at it, but I thought it was too short to put my TV on and a little pricey.  Had it been cheaper I might have been able to overlook its short stature.

 

Anyways, I continued searching until I ran across this tutorial online for a DIY version and decided to make my own. 

 



 

I started with 2 Rast Chests from Ikea and turned this......

 

into this.....





 

A little primer, Urban Bronze paint by Sherwin Williams (like my handrail), brass corners, and some campaign hardware (similar here) later I had this......

 



 

I lined the drawers with fabric from Hobby Lobby for a little something extra :)

 

 

It looks great in my woMan Cave and is serving its dual purpose quite well!



 

The moral of this story is that if you can't find the right piece or the right price then just do-it-yourself!

 

Lisa

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DIY Lined Curtains

When the cat is away, the mice will play. Or in my case, when my husband is away, I DIY!  My husband was out of town last weekend so I decided to tackle making curtains for my woMan Cave. 

You may remember the fabric from my woMan Cave mood board.  I fell in love with it after seeing Jennifer use it on her dining room chairs.  It was the kickstart I needed to tackle this space.

 

Jennifer was also kind enough to point me in the direction of this fabulous tutorial for professionally lined curtains.  It seemed easy enough that I was willing to try.

 

Now, for those of you wondering, I don't sew.  My only sewing experience is a button and patch in 7th grade home economics and those probably weren't very good.  Although I would like to learn how to sew, I am not ready to make that investment on a machine I don't know how to use.  That is a project for another day.

 

So when the best bloggers in all of blogland used heat bond sewing tape for their daughter's bedroom curtains I was sold.  If it is good enough for them it is definitely good enough for me.  Best of all, if I had not shared this little secret with you, you would never even be able to tell.  Even my husband said "Who's machine did you use?"

 

These are real deal curtains people!  They are even lined (with twin flat sheets from Walmart)!

 

Most importantly, they were easy to make and I think they are awesome!  They really do look great and totally pop against the emerald green accent wall.  The woMan Cave is progressing and I hope to show you more of it in the coming weeks.

 

Now I am thinking I can just make curtains for every room in my house. :)

 

Lisa

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In a Mood

I have been painting all weekend and it's really got me in a mood!  I hope your first weekend of the New Year was awesome because mine went something like this:

Trip to the paint store.

Eat.

Prime and let dry.

Watch football. 
 

(By the way, Johhny Football is AMAZING!!  It is the first time I have really gotten to see him play and now I understand why he won the Heisman.  My husband told me not to fall in love because if he had played football he would have won the Heisman too.  I told him not to worry, Johnny Football still has acne.)

 

Eat.

First coat and let dry.

Watch football.
 

(By the way again, tough loss for the Bengals.  It has been hard to watch my Cincinnati teams come so far this year only to have it end too soon.  Oh well, baseball starts again in 84 days and I have a basketball team to root for.)
 

Eat.

Second coat and let dry.

Watch football.

Paint fingernails.
(Essie's Don't Sweater It for those who care.)
 

Now do you see why I am in a mood?  Don't worry though, it's not a bad mood.  Remember the other day when I told you about wanting to (start and) finish my office and create myself a woMan Cave?  If not, you can read about it here.  Well, that is what I have been working on this weekend.  So, I thought I would put together a couple of mood boards to give you a sneak peak.
 

These are just my initial ideas.  I know as I get deeper into each room some things may change.  Leave me a comment and let me know what you think. I hope it makes you want to come back for more. In the meantime, follow me on Pinterest or subscribe to On Manor Drive to receive all of my latest posts by email.
 

Lisa

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New Year. New Blog.

Happy New Year!!

It seems to be blog tradition to begin the New Year with a recap of last year's posts. It is a time to reflect on a job well done or total failure and then start fresh with new goals/resolutions. You can’t go back and look at any posts, but take my word for it when I say I failed miserably. You see, I am the absolute worst with New Year’s resolutions. Some years I haven’t even bothered making any because I know they won’t last through January. So, I only made two small resolutions last year: 1. Keep my fingernails painted. 2. Send cards. Well, let’s just say that I didn't make the grade and will be repeating (20)12th grade!

Since I can’t even make the grade in the simplest of subjects, I figured this year I will either go BIG or go home. New Year. New Blog. New Goals/Resolutions. Of course 1 and 2 remain at the top of the list, but I’m adding 13 home projects to the list for 2013.

3. Paint the staircase. It is the same color as the day we bought the house. I can’t even describe it, but probably the original from 1955.

4. Redo the master bedroom. We painted and got new bedding 4 years ago when we moved in, but now I hate it. I cannot even begin to tell you how much bedding I have bought over the years only to loathe it later.

5. (Start and ) Finish my office. Need I say more?

6. Window treatments for the guest bedroom. MIA for 4 years.

7. Window treatments for the kitchen. MIA for 4 years.

8. Cut off all the blinds. I’ve always been too scared to try it for fear of ruining the blinds! YouTube here I come.

9. New color scheme and couch for the living room. I want to lighten it up a little and add more color. Is that contradictory?

10. Create a space for me. My husband has a man cave. I want a WOman cave.

11. Clean out the closets. They accumulate SO MUCH STUFF!

12. Touch up the trim. Some normal wear, some new trim and some probably never even got painted in the first place.

13. Install the rest of the kitchen hardware. While the cabinet doors seem to have all of their parts, the drawers never got theirs. Worst cabinet installers ever! Cheaper is not always better.

14. Heating/air upgrade for the upstairs. To make it just right like baby bear.

15. Permanently fix the outside pots and topiaries. I am tired of “fixing” them only to have them blow over with the next wind gust. Plus, I look like the neighborhood misfit.

Whew! That looks like a long list, but some projects are small and simple. I’ve recently found myself with a little more time on my hands. That means more time for these small and simple projects that I have been putting off (only for the last 4 years since we moved in our house!! Don’t judge!) I am going to use this blog to keep you update along the way, but to also help keep me accountable. I’ll let you be the judge at the end of the year. Don’t worry, this won’t all be about house projects but also about fashion, food, books, and everything else that happens On Manor Drive…..where life and love meet.

Lisa

P.S. I am no photographer.  Maybe that can be my extra credit project?

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