*Holly Paint*

A client contacted me and asked if I could find and paint a buffet for her kitchen. She sent me a few inspiration pictures including the one below.  Luckily she was in no hurry because it over a month to find one in this style.

After searching Craigslist everyday I happen to go to one of my favorite thrift stores and this was sitting there.  So perfect!!  So I had my husband stop and pick it up after work that day. 

It had some spots that needed some attention so I got to work on it right away.  The client wanted the color to be turquoise, bright and happy but shabby and aged.  I did a custom mix of 2 different turquoise paints to get the turquoise color.  I painted one coat and when it dried I took my sandpaper to the whole piece and shabbied it up.  I then aged it with stain and sealed with wax. 

I did change out the original handles. They were too small for the piece and I had these in my stash.

The inside needed to be freshened up so I painted it with a few coats of white.  I hope I can find some more buffets like this...though I might have to keep the next one for myself!!

*Holly Bake*

Here's a yummy one for you....

White cake with Lemon Curd & Lemon Mascarpone Frosting! 

I made this for my husbands birthday.  He is always requesting Lemon Cake so that's what he got!

But I gotta love that he doesn't care what it looks like so I was able to make it all cute and stuff.  Plus I got to use my new cake stand that I picked up at the Sacramento Antique Fair on Sunday.  It was boring stained wood until I painted a Jade color...not bad for 3 bucks!!

I made the little Happy Birthday bunting with bakers twine, stamps and some washi tape.  Definitely saving this to use for another birthday.

For the white cake I used my favorite white cupcake recipe from Will Cook For Smiles.  

I just doubled the recipe to fill three 8" cake pans.

The Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Frostings came from There Goes the Cupcake. 

I'm not a big Lemon Cake fan BUT this cake may change that I actually ate a whole piece and might go back for more!

Happy Baking!!

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Holly Do. is Now on Etsy!

I'm excited to say that I have finally set-up Holly Do. on Etsy!  I have been wanting to do this for awhile now but I just kept on putting it off.   I found these Halloween trick or treat bags in my stash the other day so I took some pictures and put them for sale in my store.

I made my first trick or treat bag for my son when he was 2. 

 He is now 8 and still uses it every Halloween. 

 These bags are made with felt and lined with a cotton print.  Perfect to hold lots of candy and treats.  The bag folds up nicely to store after the candy is all gone!!

If you are interested purchasing a bag just click here.

*Holly Paint*

So I know my last post was promising a makeover of my son's room. Well, remember when I wrote that my husband was making a bunk bed because we are in the foster/adopt program so we wanted to be prepared when we had a placement? Well...we are excited to say that a little boy has come to live with us which means it is taking me a little longer to finish the room! This means I'm now working on painting a crib, a bigger dresser and a few other ideas. 

 I will post pictures as soon as I'm done. 

 In the mean time here are a few pictures of some before and afters that I finished a few weeks ago.

 This nightstand was sitting on the curb waiting for the garbage truck to pick it up.  I liked the columns on the side so I knew with some paint and updated it knobs it had some potential.

I picked up this small dresser at a garage sale.  I liked the size because it can be used as a dresser or a nightstand.  I painted it light turquoise and lightly distressed.  I found some clear acrylic flower knobs that added a little fun to the piece. 

 I picked up this sad looking dresser at a local thrift store.  I can never pass up a solid wood dresser and it has keyholes too. 

 If only it had the key!!

I  It was painted antique white and the top was stained dark walnut.

This cute little cabinet was given to me from a client...

Thanks Charlotte!! 

I haven't painted anything pink for awhile but I just felt like it needed a "girly" makeover.  I painted it a light pink, distressed lightly and sprayed the knob white.  

I'm going to be looking for more pieces like this one!

*Holly's Life*

If you follow me on Pinterest you would notice that I have been pinning a lot of ideas for my son's room.  He is now 8 years old and is ready for a more grown-up room.  

We (or I should say I persuaded him) decided on gray, orange and navy for the colors.  My inspiration came from this room from It All Started with Paint.  I am using navy instead of black. 

He is dying to have a bunk bed so he can sleep on a top bunk.  We have decided to make a loft bed in the style of this one.  This will allow for a dresser to go underneath and he can still have his top bunk.  As some of you may know we are hoping to adopt a child/ren so my husband is going to make the bed so that, if needed, we can add a bed underneath to make a L-shape bunk bed.   

My son's room has a boring white ceiling fan so I am hoping to do something like this with gray chevron stripes.

Source:  Design Sponge

And finally, I have been eyeing these shelves made from pipe and plank wood... so I definitely will be putting these in his room too.  

The room has already been painted now it is time to get to  work on the fun part...decorating!!

Source:  Brick House

*Holly Paint*

I've been having fun painting a lot of different pieces these past few weeks. Here is a few more completed pieces....

 This Waterfall style nightstand was on the side of the road ready for a trip to the dump when my husband stopped and picked it up for me!  Better than flowers any day...he knows me well!

I painted it antique off-white, distressed and sealed with wax.  The handle is from Anthropologie.

This chair has been stored in my garage for awhile now and I finally pulled it out and gave it a coat of black paint.  I distressed it lightly and sealed with polyacrylic.  

I then rummaged through my fabric stash and came up with the

 Ruffle Pillow for the chair.

I found these matching End Tables at a garage sale this summer.  Once again a coat of black paint and poly acrylic for protection.  

I had a client ask me to keep my eyes open for a headboard and dresser for her bedroom.  

She wanted something that would be painted white and shabby.

When I came across this headboard on Craiglist I was so excited because it had amazing potential.  It also was a part of a whole set: Armoire, Dresser and 2 Nightstands.  

I was hoping the dresser would work for my client but it is too big...but I'm going to use it in my bedroom (So Excited!!).  

Here it is all painted white and distressed. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the carving detail.  Can't wait to get my hands on the dresser...I'm thinking I might go turquoise!!

I just love old furniture!  I think the lady who was selling this set thought I was crazy to like this old bedroom set...if only she could see it now!

*Holly Paint*

I've been working on a few smaller pieces of furniture these past couple of weeks. 

I found this table awhile ago and knew I wanted to add some character to it.  So I went with turquoise and a chevron stripe.  

This nightstand was so ugly when I found it a thrift store.  I painted it a light turquoise and added the pink flowered paper on the back. 

This set of french provincial nightstands are a rare find!  They are painted a pearl white and lightly distressed.  This set is going home with client who bought the matching dresser awhile back.

This cabinet is going to make a great new nightstand for a young client who is going away to college.

She wanted something modern and fun.  

So I kept the outside simple, classic white...

but added "fun" with a pop of color inside the cabinet and drawer. 

Now, I'm off for a full day of painting!  

On my to-do list:

Black matching end tables

Black chair 

Shabby Chic Headboard

and who knows what else I will pull out to paint!