The Evolution of Giant Tumbling Blocks!

So, no surprise here but my sister was so amazing with helping my mom plan and execute my bridal and baby showers over the past few years, that I wanted to return the favor. She decided to go with a bbq/summer picnic theme and the day couldn't have been nicer.  

  

My mother-in-law works for a linen company and her and her employer were extremely generous in allowing us to use these beautiful red and white gingham table cloths that fit right in theme. We incorporated a little DIY and spray painted a variety of glass bottles then filled them with wild flowers. It really helped tie the entire look together.

My father created a horse shoe pit in the backyard since it is a huge pastime in my brother-in-law to be's family. There was also lots of basketball, some fun chalk drawing competitions and a few beer pong games and keg stands at the end of the night.

I wanted my gift to represent the day. Something special. Something that was both practical and fun. It needed to have thought behind it and I felt the need to custom make whatever I decided on. Pinterest was extremely resourceful when it came to selecting the right gift.

I settled on a life size (giant) set of Tumbling Blocks.....

To understand why Tumbling Blocks was the right gift, you need to understand Kelli and Pat. They are fun and outgoing. They work hard and play hard. They are selfless and caring, and we love them both.

We decided to go with the 72 piece (4 foot) version.  Keith began by cutting 8 2x4's into 72 10 1/2 pieces.  I then sanded them down using a 220 grit paper (if you do this, make sure you where a dust mask) to make sure the surface is smooth. Nobody likes splinters and it makes the blocks slide better!

As opposed to the traditional signing board or book, Kelli and Pat's guests signed the blocks with their well wishes.

Happy Engagement and best of luck to the guests of honor!

Thanks to Studio Three Photo for all of the great pictures!

Your own Giant Tumbling Blocks set can be purchased here.

Enter Logo

We wanted to give a big "Howdy Ho" to Keith's brother Scott, for creating a perfect logo for our new venture! You can see how much baby Avery loves it below.

Originally from Long Island, Scott moved to Baltimore to attend Towson University.  Before entering a world in the arts, Scott began his collegiate career as a Mortuary Science major.  His family was finally able to talk him out of that choice and go for a more "warm blooded" selection.  Scott now works for a design agency in the Beltway region.  He is a very handsome young man who enjoys a delicious slice of pizza as much as he enjoys a new t-shirt.  In recent years, he has taken a vital interest in the color blue.   Go Figure.  Oh and ladies, he's 100% Bar Mitzvah'd.  

While a designer by day, Scott heads the Baltimore based Vinny Vegas by night.  A five piece ensemble who are regularly traveling the country East of the Mississippi while spreading their sound via LP's, EP's, radio, and most recently, their first ever vinyl release.  Be sure to give them a listen and check their Facebook  page for upcoming shows and news.

Here's to Scott.....well done sir.  Well done.

Transformation Tuesday: Coffee Table

I found this coffee table at a church tag sale in our town covered by a huge pile of hand-me-down clothes they had on sale.  Protruding from underneath the garment heap were those beautiful wooden legs (insert Pirate joke here).  This sale turned into a gold mine as I scooped up a side table for my living room and a dresser for the guest room as well.

My original idea was to paint the table all black for a chic, clean look.  I wiped the table with a cloth and got down to it. I used Paint Minerals and mixed in some black paint I had left over from our front door project (more on that at another time). It was really easy to mix - All that was needed was to  add the ingredients to a mason jar and shake it for a few minutes until it exhibited a smooth consistency.

After all that paint and a little bit of distressing, this is what the table looked like. Not at all what I had envisioned. It was neither sleek or distressed enough and I wasn't feeling the black, but hey, that's what refurb and DIY is all about right?  Trial and error.

Back to drawing board I went. Since there was a layer of paint on top of a thick layer of poly, I used the lowest grit sandpaper I had in my garage. 60 worked well and within an hour and a half, the top was clean and back to it's beautiful raw state.

This table had beautiful grain and knots that needed to be shown off. I already had Minwax Walnut stain sitting in the garage which was leftover from out dining room table.  I loved how it made the grain pop.  After the stain dried overnight, I lightly sanded down the legs with 220 grit to give it a distressed look.

 A little wax to seal it all and voila! 

This guy is up on the Etsy page for sale!

Transformation Tuesday: The Blue Dresser

I picked up this sad little guy at the same church sale as the coffee table. I was immediately drawn to the vintage detail - the shape of the top, the brass key slots and the little brass casters. I wanted to do something special with this piece so I turned to Miss Mustard Seed to help with inspiration and to pick a dynamic color.

My first step was to sand the thick coat of poly off the top. It was a little tricky due to the ridges on the edges but I was eventually able to clean everything off. I stained the top with Minwax Walnut and sealed with soft wax. For the paint, I used an old blender to mix but still found that it was challenging to get the consistency I wanted. Once I accomplished a non-chunky, non-watery consistency, I painted the frame and drawers with the first coat. The color I used is called Flow Blue.

After the first coat there were still a lot of spots that didn't have enough coverage, in my opinion, so I went over it with another coat. I am so glad I did because I love how the color deepened when I added the second coat. 

Once everything dried, I used a putty knife to scrape off the the cracked paint then 220 grit sandpaper to smooth and distress. I finished sanding when I felt the piece was distressed enough and then finished with  Miss Mustard Seed's soft wax. I was amazed at how smooth it felt!

I can't wait to add these beauties and some new casters to the bottom!

What do you think?

The Beginning

Wow.  First blog post.  Lots of pressure.  This is the one you look back at when you're millionaires, relaxing on your private island off the coast of Italy because you were going to go to your mansion in the Alps but it was snowed in, right?

I guess the best place to start would be to introduce ourselves.  We are just a hard working couple with big ambitions. We are the "we would rather spend a sunny Sunday at home in the backyard watching our almost two year old son instigate our dog while he became limp from laughter" kind of people.  We are New Yorkers, Yankee fans, and love Kevin Spacey.

We always had the need for an outlet.  For Jacki, it was gymnastics.  For me, music and baseball. Those days are far in the past at this point.  We have full time jobs, a house, a dog, and a very energetic little boy who keeps us quite busy.  I think every parent will comply with the fact that when the majority of your time is spent being a Mom or Dad, when the baby goes down for the night, you need "your" time.

We both agreed that we needed a new outlet and we always wanted to try some sort of entrepreneurial expedition together.  Moving into our first house has inspired a creative hunger to make something that we could really enjoy out of our newly acquired real estate.

We've always enjoyed the classics when it came to decorating our home.  Pieces that are understated, yet make a statement within the room.  Clean and neat colors with accents that provide the adequate amount of pop to give the room character and personality.  When it came to our furniture, we really enjoyed the whole DIY concept.  Whether it was refurbishing a piece that had seen better days, or putting together a custom piece that we could create from scratch, we've attempted to remain consistent in that area.  So why not document our hobby?

Meet the family: Avery Knox.  The picture on the left was taken just about 2 years ago as we were getting ready to leave the hospital and the picture on the right is more recent.  One of the most incredible things about being a first time parent is that you have absolutely zero idea of what is about to happen to you.   I never knew what true pride really was until he arrived and that feeling only grew as he grew.

Enter Winston (or as Avery refers to him, Dodo).  We had moved from one apartment to another a few years back (before we had our house), and one of the reasons we picked our next apartment was due to the reality that we could have a dog.  It was my first and I can't see my life without one now...but more specifically him.

Please continue to check back as we provide updates on our progress.