Hello everyone! I haven't done a blogpost in FOREVER!! I pretty much had given up because I am having such a difficult time figuring it out! Dumb, right?! I just know there is an easier method than the way I am doing it, so I'm on a mission to figure it out. I wanted to start up again to showcase some of the projects I have done this winter. I am terrible at taking before pictures, and I really didn't document how I did things either. That is also something for me to work on!



My most recent project was a doing a mini redo of my kitchen eating area. I did take a couple of before pics:




And another:




And here is the after:

There are several things going on here. I painted the french doors black and recovered the dining chairs in a black and grey damask. I hung silver dupioni silk curtain panels on the door and replaced the can lights with chandeliers.

The chandeliers are definately my favorite part of this project! They came from a home remodeling thrift store kind of place and looked pretty hideous when I got them. One was a brown color with horrible glass sconce things on them. The other wasn't too bad, but they both got a fresh coat of oil rubbed bronze spraypaint. The crystal part was actually two candle holders that I bought years ago and used to have hanging in the corner. I just removed a couple of the pieces so that they would fit over the top and voila! I just love chandeliers...I want them in every room, including the laundry room, but my hubs was less than thrilled with the installation portion!

I just love how they turned out!

One more before:

And after:

I promise in the future I will take better before and during pics of my projects. Thanks for stopping by!

~Amy

Beer Cheese Soup!

After several requests, I have finally decided to post this recipe. It is a fall favorite at our house, perfect for football season. I have taken several recipes over the years and modified and added things and come up with this concoction. I have no idea how many it serves, I just know it makes a lot!! It is not for the faint of heart, nor is it health conscious, but c'mon, everyone needs a break once in awhile! Here it is~

~Beer Cheese Soup~

Ingredients:

1 package shredded cheddar (sharp preffered)

1 package raw bratwurst

1 pound bacon

1 onion minced

3 carrots chopped fine

2 ribs celery chopped fine

2 TBLS minced garlic

1 quart low sodium chicken broth

3 pounds white potatoes diced large

2-3 cups milk

1 pound velveeta cheese

3 12oz Guiness extra stout beers

1/2 bunch fresh parsely chopped

1/2 stick butter

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Boil brats in two of the beers. After bringing to a boil continue to simmer for approxiamately one hour. Set aside. Chop bacon and place in a 6qt. stock pot. Fry until golden brown. Meanwhile, chop onion, carrots and celery and add to browned bacon. Add minced garlic. Saute until onions are transluscent. Remove brats from beer and discard beer. Chop brats into small pieces. Add potatoes and broth and bring to a boil until potatoes are barely soft. Reduce heat to simmer and add milk. Grind in some black pepper. Heat until milk is hot but not boiling. Stir in velveeta and cheddar cheeses and stir until melted. Add last Guiness. Add butter one tablespoon at a time. Toss in fresh parsely.

Be careful not to scauld! This burns very easily. My husband is such a carnivore, that I have been known to even double the meat on this. I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!

Amy

My Fabulous Kitchen Makeover!

Hello everyone! I will start this post by saying that not only am I new to the blogging world, I'm terrible at it. I can't seem to figure out what I'm doing! If blogging came as easy for me as the decorating part, I'd be set! I am always open for any advice or suggestions for prettying up my blog if anyone is interested! So back to my kitchen transformation, this winter my hubs and I took on several projects. We had our house built 9&1/2 years ago, and it was starting to be in need of some updates. Since moving is out of the question considering the current housing market, we decided to change up some things to get a few more years of enjoyment out of our home. The first project we tackled was painting our kitchen cabinets black. Here are some before pictures~

And another, showing the ugly "fake oak" peninsula island. I absolutely hated that thing, and the sconce thingamajiggers were there to hide an ugly blemish.



And so here are my beautiful new BLACK cabinets! Drumroll please~













I had some better pictures, but back to my blogging inexperience, I couldn't figure out how to get them turned from sideways to right side up.



Here is our peninsula island that we put beadboard and molding on. I LOVE this part of the kitchen now!









Here is just some of the decorating I've done on top of my countertops. I was hoping this picture would show a little more of the beautiful brownstone (I think that's what they're called) hardware.









So here they are, and I am soooooo happy with them! Quite a few people thought I was off my rocker going black, but I am so glad I did! Thanks so much for checking them out! I am going to attempt to link up to metamorphasis monday and make your monday, that is, if I can figure out this link thing!



~ Amy~

Decorating with Cowhide

What do you think of decorating with cowhide? Some people love it, animal activists hate it. I happen to LOVE it! Cowhide seems to be popping up everywhere in the home decorating world. I don't yet have anything in cowhide. I have looked at buying them several times but couldn't ever get past the price. I would love to find a small piece that I could use to cover a footstool or ottoman, or even the seat of a chair. I think it adds a touch of rustic elegance and I think it is sooooo fun when done right!

I would hardly call my decorating style Western. It is actually more Traditional, but I love a touch of flair, whimsy, and just plain unexpected, yet elegant at the same time. I once stayed at a hotel/resort in Texas called the Texas Gaylord, and it had cowhide covered bar stools in one of the bars with dark slate floors. That may have been when my love affair with cowhide started. I'm curious to know what you think about decorating with cowhide. And if any of you know where I can find it at a great price, by all means let me know!!

Upcoming project~Black kitchen cabinets!

Hello everyone! I am new to the decorating blog world and this is my very first post. I recently started my own business "The Savvy Stager" and decided I wanted to blog about my decorating projects and my journey through business ownership. I have been very inspired by so many fellow bloggers I have met and followed over the last several months. I have a passion for decorating and just hope I can figure out the computer side of things!

I am constantly dreaming up projects for me and my friends and relatives to do around our homes and I've been quite pleased with how most have turned out. I plan on blogging about my new decorating adventures as my husband and I do some renovations around our house as well as some other fun and inexpensive home projects. I would LOVE it if you would follow me on this journey!

The first project Hubs and I are tackling is painting our existing bland "builders quality" oak cabinets Black! Yes, I said BLACK!!! We are going to be adding crown molding, beadboard and nickel hardware, to completely tranform our existing kitchen. I can't hardly wait!!! (Hubs isn't quite so excited) We are set to begin in approxiamately one week, so stay tuned for before, during, and after shots! Thanks for your support!