Brick Transformed, My Way:)

   Hi Everyone..
 I love my brick home but its the normal reddish with blue sorta brick and while thats great for outdoors, it wasnt suiting me in the family room.. You see one of the walls used to be an exterior wall and it was the reddish brick, like this..

 My family room is painted relaxed khaki, with soft white trim and soft white below the chair rail. This red brick just wasnt working for me...
 this photo shows me doing the faux treatment on it..

This isnt the easiest room to photograph..

   On the side of the room, you can see into the kitchen , the paint colors are the same and now the brick mimics the backsplash..

 The tutorial below takes you step by step so if you'd like to you can also change your brick:) 
 if you have any questions, email me and I'll try to help you...
 Thanks so much for visiting me and peeking at my brick transformation...
Sonny
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TUTORIAL
step 1
I painted my entire wall my trim color- which was soft white/satin finish by SW.. the WHOLE wall brick and grout.. this requires a deep nap roller cover and keep a brush handy to push the paint into any of the stubborn crevices of the brick.. I did 2 coats waiting 3 hours in between for dry time..
you all know what plain white brick looks like so, no need for me to show you that...
allow 12 full hours for drying time because in some of those brick crevices it can stay wet a lot long than the surface paint indicates...


step 2...
you need a pack of stencil brushes from large to small.. I got mine at walmart for 5.99

3 plastic sour cream containers~~they have great snap lids you'll be closing them and resting, believe me and you dont want your mixed paint to dry out ..

My wall color is relaxed khaki by sw...
in container no. 1 the straight paint goes in about 1/2 full is enough-- it goes along way..

using country brown craft paint , I tinted the next container of relaxed khaki with 1/3 of the craft paint to darken it..

container 3 is relaxed khaki and 2 oz. of water. stir well..



step 3...
cover the floor
using your smallest tip stencil brush in about a 5x5 space and randomly "squiggle" some of container number 2::the tinted darker color:: onto the brick in places-- NOT all over.
~!!!! the stencil TIP is all that will have paint on it-- do NOT dip the brush into the paint.. Just the tip gets color..
continue in 5x5ft. spaces until that step is completed..
PS: this is gonna look scary cause when you step back it'll look like worms on your fresh white wall-- but your fine thats how its supposed to look.

step 4...
now using container 3 ::: the watered down wall color using the medium size stencil brush in your pack-- start again with the 5x5 space you started with in step 1.. several hours should have passed between steps so its dry... dip the tips of your brush and tamp it on the brick ONLY ,, if this runs it will get on your beautiful new grout.. keep some q tips handy just in case to get that off- but seriously-- try not to let it drip..
continue working those 5 by 5 ft. spaces as in step one.
heres a pic of that process ...I wait to do the bottom till I can scoot across the floor cause once I get down there I'm not getting up till I'm done lol
step 5...
now container 3 has the straight paint color in it and what you want to do is dip only the tips of your brush and pounce all over the brick-randomly- dont redip. No worry//when it dries it wont look like dots lol. this really will help each brick be a bit different, just as they are in nature..
total supplies even with NONE on hand would only be about 50.00 -thats paint//brushes and plastic drop cloth. Sometimes there are sales on regular white paint- doesnt have to be any fancy brand. Once its on brick it isnt coming off
  Time.. just taking a ballpark guess I'd say 7 full hours... that doesnt include drying time in between the initial coat of paint..
a fireplace would take maybe 2 1/2 hours.

Table Top Darkened and Decorated for Fall

Hi Folks..
  I hope this post finds everyone healthy , happy and enjoying early fall.. We here in NC are still having to pretend its fall because the days are in the 90's and the nights in the 70's.. My knock out roses are blooming and growing and I go out on the patio and look at them each morning in absolute amazement..  I just shake my head and try to remember how good this weather must feel to those who are homeless and have to be outside with very little shelter.. Theres always a silver lining to things and I'm trying to remember that..
I posted about buying a farm style table for my dining room and feeling the top needed to be darker as the natural tone simply didnt work for me or the rest of my decor..
I'm partying with Susan at ::thanks so much for hosting this for us Susan.
http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/
heres the photo to remind you of the natural tone top.. did I mention I got this for 25.00 on craigslist.. I had found one online for 299.00 and 2 days later this one popped up on CL.. needless to say I took the bargain:)

So out to the garage it went and the sanding began. First with 80 grit , as it had a heavy poly coat on it, then with 120 grit to smooth it.. Then 2 coats of pecan stain and 3 coats of poly and 4 days to dry..
  I decided to do this tablle in traditional fall tones which I have to admit arent easy for me .. I tend to prefer the muted greens , creams and deep beiges..  I did my best with the fall items I had in my container..

I think it looks much better with the darker top, dont you??
 Placemats and napkins are from homegoods- sale price 9.99

I also added traditional tones to my tiny side table.. I'd love a corner hutch there but as yet havent come across one.
If you look back 2 weeks you'll also see that I changed out the wall decor from the white mirror and summer plates to a fall scene and pinecone wreath.. I only have the one wall in the breakfast area so I have to make the most of it :)

Now to quote Paul Harvey , here's " The Rest of the Story"   .. After looking at this for several days, I'm just not happy with it.  I'm so glad I made a $25.00 mistake, versus a 300.00 mistake and even better than that.. Another silver lining:)  My neighbor loves all the fall tones and I boxed them up today for her to use on her own dining table..  Her neice has always wanted a farm style table but she's newly married and their budget is tight so, I'm giving her this table as a gift.. I've been walking on air since I made the decision to do this. For me giving is so much more joyful than recieving.. Not that I dont like the occasional gift but the look on her face when she found out it was her's was worth a million bucks.. Way more than I could have sold it for on CL lol..
 My beloved lil round table will be coming back into it spot on friday and everyone happy.... I hope this story add's a little joy to you day too..

All's well that ends well and I have a feeling this isnt the end of this story because I did make her promice to take photos when she does her own scapes:) 

Thank you so much for all the kind comments you left on my last post and for your support .. Bloggers are such sweet people and I appreciate you all very much.. As I have told you I spend alot of my time at home working and of course living so I dont get out alot.. Visits from you are just as good as those I get in real life.
 I always love seeing your smiling faces...
Happy Fall to YOU and YOURS..
ps~ only 21 days till I go on my first hayride in 23 years , woooooooooohoooooooooo...

Fall Colors for My Tea Cart

Hi Folks...
   I found a new tea pot~ cream n sugar and 4 cups for only $3.75 in the perfect shade for Fall..
 I have to admit I just don't do traditional fall colors as well as cool colors.. But I've seen ya'lls and I wanted to give it a try.. I plan to give this whole scape to my neighbor for her entryway as her husband's birthday party is saturday.. This will help her since all she has to do is, sit it in place.. You know how it is when you have a party in your home.. There are always more to do than you thought there would be  ..

I'm participating in several parties.. Please click on the links below to see all the amazing posts their participants have made...
Thank you Ladies for Hosting these lovely parties for us..
http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/2010/09/31st-table-top-tuesday-new-treasures.html

 I have to tell the truth about this scape.. I did'nt do it alone. I had a partner who scrutinized every move I made.. We have come to the conclusion that when the toile pillow comes out of its storage container and gets tossed on the love seat,there is no way we can get her off of there..   She is so good about listening to what she's told~ unless Pit Boss is on and then  "she will not be moved" lol

see what I mean :) She's supervising and letting me know if each floral is put in the correct position.. What a slave driver ....

By standing on my tip toes I managed to get a few shots without her in them.. This didnt go over too well.
  I think several folks asked if I was using Birdseed in my candle holders and YES I am.. I figured it made good filler for several of the scapes I planned to do and when I'm done the birds will be able to Feast..

In this shot her favorite pup on Pit Boss is on the screen, so that has her attention for a few minutes..

 Oh yes he must be on as in the next shot the tv has her full and undivided attention..
I just got lucky that her fur happens to be the right color for this scape.... oh my goodness- is this how my brain works..  lol

  I want to thank each of you for visiting me.. As I expressed to another blogger today, its crossed my mind that perhaps I should close my blog as I dont feel I have the time to do everything I should.. I would love to visit and respond to each of you and yet the time to do so just doesnt exist in my real life.
  I do try to visit as many of those who leave comments as I can as well as those blogs who have supported me from the beginning.. Yet , there are only so many hours in a day and Family and Work also deserves my time..
  I hope you all know I do care about you and that you are very appreciated..
Happy Fall
Sonny