Studio B Tranformations Bathroom

The bathroom was transformed, it took some work but check out the process:  Everything was vintage 1975! There were various colors of green in this bathroom, from the avocado tub, to the multicolored floor, to the moss green counter top… and then the gold walls.  I gave it a big face lift!

After:

I love the great shower curtain from Marimekko.
And all the gold paint had to go! I chose a shade of green that would tie the other greens together and give an updated look.
I picked out a new faucet and hardware for the vanity. (Can you tell I have a thing for fleur de lis?!) I painted the vanity and all the trim in a lovely clean ultra white. I removed the hinges and rattle canned them white. My STBX installed GFI outlets and changed the switches and recepts to white with white plates.
He also removed the old lighting and put in track lighting, with two pendants lights and some spots. I love how the glass shades echo the black lines in the shower curtain and I love the flexibility of track lighting spots.
I loved the new TP holder, just another nice detail. This room has it's own thermostat and intercom terminal.  I could listen to my ipod in any room of the house. The "towel rack" for towels, the lighting for artwork...I'm wishing I had photos of the large bathroom closet but I don't.  It is huge!


It looks nice when dressed up with some artwork and pretty white towels.  The track lighting really works to great advantage in this room.

The new bracket-less shelves lend themselves to a great collections of pretty things.

This was one of my favorite transformations in Studio B.  Now it's time for someone else to make their mark on this great house.  If you or someone you know might be interested in more info on purchasing this house, please let me know.

Happy Creating,
-Carmen Rose

The Airstream Art Dream

I have a crush

On an American Dream...

Of getting in my Airstream...

And living free

untethered - unplugged

completely off the grid.

I want to start with an old one

and restore it with some personality.

Make it fit me, a little bit dignified, a little bit playful, a little bit fierce

Living space, studio space...

Free as a bird

Completely alone in a aluminum cocoon
(Well... perhaps with the company of a good dog!)

where anything is possible

owning little beyond the travel trailer and the truck that hauls it.

but living a rich full life.

A life that is full of laughter and wonder.

I wanna live that life where I can put aside their expectations...
and reach for something deeper, more honest, more real.

I just can't wait to get on the road again!
Happy Trails,
-Carmen Rose

Updating the Kitchen

I played catch up at my house today. I don’t have much to show for my day but I was SO busy yesterday that I welcomed a little peace and quiet today.  Plus I have some physical things happening right now that seem to be sapping my strength.  Just catching up on email took some doin and I still have a few I haven't worked through yet. I did get a little nap though, which was lovely. And… I have a few kitchen details to share. I really should save this little detail for last, but it’s my very fav, so here goes.

Ages ago when I reworked the bathrooms, I had floating shelves made. In the small bathroom I painted them brown, and in the larger bathroom I painted them black.  And I ended up with two extra floating shelves that hadn’t found homes in the house yet. So when I took a look at one of the problem areas of my kitchen, I decided to try putting a shelf there.

This is what it looked like when I met my kitchen for the first time. It was a little messy but I didn't care, they were preparing to auction the place off. Now see how the cabinets end on the left by the doors instead of going all the way to the wall? That always puzzled me, why did they do that? We keep those french doors closed because the dogs don't have run of the house, and because we don't heat the whole thing. So... that left a very odd looking configuration of cabinets. We ended up keeping one of the dog crates there, but that didn't answer the question of what to do in that wierd corner. So this is what I did:

It works, right?  At least for now.  It needs a light, that's on the list.

The framed piece is a photograph I took 3-5 years ago.  Those beautiful trees in the foreground were bulldozed to make way for an overlook on Warm Springs Mountain in Virginia.  It was sad to see them go but the overlook is a beautiful place to stop and consider the beauty of the valley spread out below and the rippling mountains in the distance.  I love that place and places like that in the mountains.  I call that photograph "Last Stand" because those trees were sacrificed for "progress."  The vases are both ones I painted.

The cookbook shown there is my recent Christmas present to myself, it's by Ina Garten.  It is the first of... six I think?  Yeah, those cookbooks are such a work of art that I wanted to display it as if it was a small framed painting.  "Hey, why not?!"  (She says that on her show a lot!)  That reminds me, I need to get my birthday present to myself ordered, I think I'd like another Ina Garten cookbook!  =)

Drop me a comment and let me know what you think!

Happy Creating,

-Carmen Rose

It Shines!

The tile is done, it has a lovely shine and we're pleased with it!  Now if we can just get past the dainty stepping stage and get on with the rest of the work...  Monday  morning we start painting kitchen cabinets!  Hubby is going to be thrilled to get back to work, this "vacation" is turning out to be just plain hard work!  However, these projects are not without perks.  The kitchen already looks SO MUCH better!

Happy Transformations,

Let your creative juices flow! 

Office turned Pantry

I cleaned all of the stuff out of the pantry I was using as a home office.

We added a few shelves to be able to spread out a little more. The pantry is three feet deep, so the side shelves were a better use of space. And you can see that the tiling of the floor has started.

I finished up the tiling this evening and gave the shelves a coat of primer and paint.

After the painted dried, I loaded in some of the pantry stuff. I've moved the microwave into the pantry also, we don't use it much and this will free up counter space.  Ever notice how there is no such thing as a pretty microwave? 

Progress is good.  I have a bunch of freshly dyed fabric that is ready to iron and photograph, can't wait to show you all some of that, some fun pieces in there!  Can't wait to get my hands on it but this kitchen face lift project looks like it will take up my time for a while.  I do love seeing the transformation!  More photos coming.  Stay tuned!

Here's to a fresh coat of paint, nothing is quite like it!  Happy creating!