Studio B Transformations Bedroom 2

When I met this little bedroom I wasn't a big fan of the peach walls. 

I painted everything white with one accent wall in that rich earthy color and added some lovely layered curtains.

This room is 11x10'7" and has it's own thermostat and intercom terminal.

Stay tuned for more before and after photos from Studio B.
And let me know if you or someone you know would like more information on purchasing this house.

Happy Creating!

-Carmen Rose

Studio B Transformations Master Bath

One of my favorite updates to Studio B was the work we did on the Master Bath.  It had a bad case of the uglies!

Vintage 1975 blue shower, blue vinyl floor with glitter in it. Can't believe anyone ever manufactured that stuff.
The light and mirror get the award for the worst things in the room. And the sink... well... it is what it is.
So I went shopping and when I got home it was time for the real work. First, that med cabinet was out of there, it had been installed way too high on the wall and I wanted it lower. Which wasn't as simple as it seemed like it should be. Never is.
Some fancy drywall patching, a coat of paint and the new light fixture installed and it's already looking like a different room.   I put down a new floor, vinyl tiles go down fast and are pretty easy to cut if you have the right cutters. The baseboard went back down and that finished up the floor.
On the window I used a piece of vintage textile from my collection and it fits beautifully on the window. I hung it from a tension rod on clips and the hand work on it is a nice detail and a touch of color in the room. A new white shower curtain, and a nice new extra long towel holder. (curtain rod)
I painted the vanity "Italian Leather" and was surprised with how much I liked how it turned out. Removing the old hardware and patching the holes and some new hardware from the Restore and it's a big difference. A new GFI outlet and white switches and plates were more nice details.
A few matching bracketless shelves made a nice update and it didn't take me long to fill those shelves after the paint dried.  Each detail easily added personality and charm to the room.

  I am pleased with how this cute little bathroom turned out! 

From this:

 To this:

Studio B is for sale, if you know of someone who might like a great home like this, please check out the MLS listing.

Happy Creating,

-Carmen Rose

The Last Tile is in Place

The last piece of tile is finally in place, it took a long time but I'm pleased with how it looks now. Finally that horrible green and gold vinyl is ancient history!

And right at this very moment the first layer of polish is being applied by hubby.

New floor, new shine... this is a gooooooood thing!

Monday we'll start painting cabinets, can't wait to see how it all comes together!

Patience is a virtue, alas, not one I possess.

Happy Day after Christmas!

Beginning the Kitchen Tile Install

The work has started!  We've taken up the old flooring, what do you think?  Good choice?  Yeah, it was pretty horrible and there was SO MUCH of it!  (But not anymore!)

The hubby carefully took up the old stuff, it took some doin but it came up.

Then I started in laying a row right down the length of the room. 

Tile in both pantries and more to go...

Lay out a few rows worth of adhesive until it's dry enough, lay the tile... (and repeat.)

Almost all the whole tiles are down, now I'm working on the tiles that fit in around the edges.  Believe it or not they cut relatively easily when heated, which was good news to me!  I've laid plenty of tile, vinyl, ceramic and even some marble over the years but never a room this size and I don't remember ever working with VCT before.

And every time I found the process annoying, I just pictured my kitchen with the new floor complete and I knew it would be worth it!  And a few of my friends are coming Monday to help me paint the cabinets.  Slowly but surely we are saying "Bye Bye" to the old kitchen!  =)  I can hardly wait to see how it all turns out!

Have a project at your house you've been putting off?  Don't be afraid to try something new!  Give it a try and see what happens!  Happy transformations!

The Bathroom Gallery at Studio B.

This bathroom got a face lift back in July... I still can't believe the transformation! And I've been dressing it with artwork, little by little, ever since. I finally added a few details to it today and decided I was ready to share photos. So here's the grand tour of one vintage 1975 bathroom with an updated look and some cool art & accessories.

Welcome, come on in! As you turn into the bath from the hallway, this is what you'll see:
I made this quilt. Here are some of the stages that this quilt went through: Mid & Finished. It's all hand dyed cotton except for the unbleached muslin.
Turn a little to the left and check out the floating shelves we made. We bought a sheet of MDF and made them, they are available at Ikea as well but they don't ship them and the closest Ikea is too far away for casual visits. So instead of planing a pilgrimage, we made our own.
There is no window in this room, so the track lighting and the lights above the vanity are it. See the transformation post for photos of the new lighting.
It amazes me now beautifully this small painting works with the quilt. This is a piece by Melody Johnson and it's one of my favorite things in the whole wide world! (Her post about this painting is in her archives here, a ways down the page.) A friend of mine saw it and exclaimed that she wondered how Melody put a piece of my soul on her canvas.
These candle holders came out of my wood pile. After a quick visit with the chop saw downstairs, I had three. And I love it that one has a little branch sticking out. FYI, if you'd like to try this, make sure you use really well cured wood with no sap or bugs. Sap molds, and spiders spin webs and the combined result is rather unpleasant! =)
I collect fleur de lis, so when I saw this clock with the fleur de lis on the hour hand, I knew it needed to live at my house plus it is shaped like a clock I remember my father winding every night before bed. The poppy photograph is one I took ages ago by the side of the road when I took the scenic way home one day. I saw a cool old barn with all these poppys and slammed on my breaks. It was beautiful!
The little paintings are a series I did ages ago using fleur de lis as the focal point and working in all kinds of layered visual textures. And the rubber ducky is there because rooms shouldn't be too serious!
And of course there will be a piece of my hand painted art glass in the room - somewhere!
Turn more to the left and you'll find more work. The flash played tricks with the mirror reflections which is kind of cool because that way you can actually see the light fixtures! I just picked them out, I didn't create them.
These tiny little quilt has found a home here in the bathroom, I only very recently finished and framed it. Details here and here.
On the thermostat is this lovely little cardinal created using the limoges style of enamel work by my friend Judy Ligon. This little birdy is really something special in person, that's for sure!
And here is Vincent keeping my earrings and ring ready for me, what a doll! More of my hand painted art glass and a bar of soap I made.
That spot between the closet and the tub just needed something. And in keeping with my fleur de lis addiction, I pulled out this silver and copper piece I created some time ago. It's a bit big and bulky to wear, even for me. So I think it's new home will be on the wall rather than on my skin.
I'm very pleased with how it all the artwork works together and how the room turned out. Both bathrooms look good now, see photos of the facelift in the other bathroom.

Now for the rest of the house. =) Time to get crackin!

Transformation

The view from back deck of Studio B has been changing dramatically over the last two months. Each of the photos represented in these stitched shots has been taken between March 2nd and today, April 30th of this year. I put them in an order that looked right and then realized later that they are not at all in order by date. The second and forth images are two times of the same day, we woke up to a light dusting of snow which quickly vanished as the sun came out.
We’ve had all kinds of weather from cold and snow, fog, to a few days this week that were downright hot! At the beginning of March we could see blue mountains in the distance and now the leaves started popping out on the trees closing us in little by little. First the cherry (?) tree started to bloom, and now we are enjoying the three small dogwood trees. (dogwoods - lower left of first image.)

What an amazing transformation. I’m grateful to live in this place. I really am.