Using wood glue to get a chippy paint look

i’m back. good grief…i’ve neglected my blog. boooooo….. but…. my boys are all on a camping trip and man have i taken the opportunity to do a bunch of projects around the house. i decorated our living room for halloween. stay tuned for that post as i’ll detail how i painted the mantle to look weathered. […]

bright colored front doors :: my new obsession

i’ve always had a fascination with paint and color. when people ask for my opinion on colors, my instinct isn’t to be too matchy matchy. but i know that people don’t typically like this answer. so be forewarned…if you ask, i’m going to say “throw in some color!” life’s too short to have everything match perfectly. […]

farm house style bathroom

y’all! i’m soooo excited for this post as it’s been a loooong time coming. my pea brain has been swirling about this bathroom ever since we moved into our house last year. i originally bought this dresser on Craigslist to use as a vanity for the boys’ bathroom. but the cowboy carpenter we used for our initial […]

healthy spring side dishes

  i love making introductions…and this one was particularly awesome b/c i got to enjoy the results…yummy and healthy spring salads at an awesome party! my foodie friend Peilin Breller is a food stylist, and she did me solid by catering another friend’s party. when you’ve got mad skills to make food look good in commercials and […]

organizing legos

this. this is a terrible picture of our living room fireplace. it’s a terrible b/c my lens is terrible. and my eyes are getting worse by the day. and i can’t seem to tell when things are in or out of focus. and i’ve lost my glasses. and.. and… ….and those are all of my […]

spring flowers

remember that day last fall when i rode my bike around cutting hydrangea clippings from my neighbors? you don’t remember? it’s ok, neither do my neighbors….jk. they just all thought i was nuts. hydrangea are incredible. they’re hearty and do so well in the cooler beach climates here in newport beach. you can take a cutting, stick […]

weathered wood whale tails

  i came to the shop one day and saw these. my uber-creative carpenter partner in crime hand-cuts these cute things. mr. whale thinks these are perfect for a beach house.

Old Glory – wooden American flag

we’ve been testing ways to make big wood walls that aren’t as heavy as Noah’s arc. 🙂 so we built this prototype and i was inspired to paint Old Glory. this is a 4′ x 5′ piece that i hand-painted with a custom blue blend of Annie Sloan graphite + napoleonic and Gilbertson’s chalk paint […]

oversized rustic wood and metal console table

my friend showed me a photo of a console table she was about to buy. i took one look at the price and immediately knew that we could build the exact thing and save her money. and let’s admit it. who wants to pay retail?! so we go to work. i busted out my tools […]

gigantic weathered wood frames

well, it’s happening folks. my buddy and I found a workshop in an industrial part of town and we’re building custom furniture! it’s crazy….and crazy fun. we’ve been keeping busy with custom furniture builds, and this is one of my favorites. gigantic wood frames. our client has 40″ x 60″ canvas prints of photos they’ve taken […]

Grow Up

our school fundraiser is around the corner and I’m excited to be donating these Grow Up height charts to the cause. our classroom is putting together a Frozen-themed basket for auction. of course, my son said “Ew! Frozen.” but when i told him i’d be making one of these, he was less unenthusiastic. (how’s that for a […]

a gigantic shabby chic wall

well, this was interesting. we built a huge double-sided wood wall. and when i say huge, i mean HUGE. my buddy holding the wall on the right is 6’6″. this is a 12′ x 8′ wall made of planked wood on both sides. probably 350 lbs. yowza. and the fabrication all went down in my garage while […]

weathered wood bars

things have gotten really busy in my garage as my buddy and i’ve been building and painting up a storm. ok, fine. he’s been building. and i’ve been painting…and painting…and painting…. what you’re looking at here are a few rolling bars. perfect for any type of party. but as y’all know, while i love wood. i […]

stain a bar to look rustic & weathered

my buddy built this bar for a client. they requested redwood with a clear coat of varnish. then they decided it was too red and didn’t match the rustic look they really wanted. so i got to work. on a dreadfully cold and rainy day, i bussed in the Minwax Dark Walnut and some watery […]

painting Michael’s wood crates to look like Restoration Hardware

do you have a friend (or many) who inspires you to be healthier? i mean, like when you’re lounging in bed at 7 am, dreaming of  sidecar doughnuts while checking facebook and she’s already finished a marathon? right.  that friend. my friend Robyn is that to me.  she’s a smart, hard-charging, all-natural beauty, and is usually […]