10/15: Kel at Home Newsletter
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This Weeks Newsletter on Kel at Home
I’ve been brainstorming and rearranging the heck out of my garage creative studio! I want so many things for the space. I want to be able to enter the shop, turn on the music, and get lost in projects. I’m focusing on layout and prioritizing things I do often, like furniture, vs things I’m breaking into, like leatherwork. So far this rug is my design staple. I saw this had some bad reviews as far as quailty, but $60 for a 5×7 sounded like a good deal to me for a garage rug. Also, you can SWEEP IT CLEAN?? Seriously, like a charm. I was mindblown.
On top of the garage updates, I’ve been working to curate some practical but pretty trays to style on my kitchen countertop. Tray styling is a great go-to when it comes to rental properties. It’s nice to be able to switch tray décor out seasonally and add a bit of your own style without using paint, or any customizations to the rental itself. You can see what I did with my kitchen counters with this tray styling guide.
Furniture Projects This Week
This week I finally accomplished getting polycrylic on my set of 2 end tables.
These little buddies have been floating around the garage for so long. I had initially tried to mix a green and a purple together to create a mauve-y situation – major fail! It turned completely brown.
I probably should have seen it coming but since the lighting in my garage isn’t what it should be, I was constantly thinking “well I’ll check again when it dries,” or “once I take it outside in the light you’ll see the purple shine through.” Guess what? It was an ugly brown. Sad. So I ended up using this elephant slate gray/blue color that was a mis-tint from Sherwin Williams. I used the same color as I had used for my refurbished porcelain plant table, and it works!
As I was doing 4 thousand rounds of paint touch-ups on those tables this week, I decided that I definitely needed to invest in some dolly’s so that I’m not painting into the floor to get full coverage. I found them at Walmart for $15 each! That seems to be the standard price for the type I bought.
It seemed so silly once I made the purchase that I was resisting buying them for so long. Like I didn’t deserve them because my shop is so small? But those little purchases that make life easier make a world of a difference, and help me to make even better quality furniture flips.
Apartment Design Updates
This week I put a huge focus on completing the dining room shelves. It did not go as planned. I noticed that the shelves needed some touch ups and another coat. That meant going back to the store to get more paint. AH. Sometimes DIY can be that way. The dining room shelves have turned into the project that causes me anxiety. I’ve just hyped it up so much in my mind that I feel like it’s going to be harder and take longer than I originally anticipated. But that’s probably not the case. But. What if it is?
I want it to be complete so that I can finally style that wall! Plus the baskets full of décor that I need to load the shelves up with, and I’d really like to get them out of my kitchen. I really expected this one to go quickly and I can’t seem to pull it together. Time will tell.
Books I'm Reading
I’m still reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. I’m finally in a place where I can get deep into the book for hours. The short chapters help. I have Untamed as my backup book but have yet to start it. So far Seven Husbands is totally different from what I was expecting but I’m excited to see how it unfolds.
Fashion Finds This Week
My very favorite fashion finds this week include all of my bf’s hand me downs. With the chilly temps this month its been amazing hoody season. If there is something my bf has tons of, it’s hoody’s. Here’s a round up of some of my favorites if I didn’t have access to his closet.
Recipe of the Week
Chili, chili, and more chili! We’ve been having chili probably two nights a week this month, we can’t get enough! It hits the spot every time between the chili smells in the house from the crockpot and the smoky flavor with a FAT dollop of sour cream and some crackers all mixed together in the hot meal… I’m drooling.
Adding this recipe to my list of ones to share ASAP! You’re going to want it.
TV This Week
This week I watched less movies and more TV. A notable binge worthy show this week is Homegrown on Discovery +. I am absolutely obsessed. The show follows a woman as she visits families in Atlanta who want a small-scale “farm” in their backyards. I have a farm in quotes because I would finger quote it if I was talking to your face. They are very small-scale farms, and I’d even maybe say homestead instead? Either way.
She reaches each family to grow vegetables, fruits, herbs, and some décor plants that all flow together with chickens, bees, or whatever the ecosystem needs to flourish. Seeing how it all works together and these families get to live a more sustainable life taking care of their farm together making so many memories…. can you tell I get emotionally invested!? So good.
Music I'm Loving
I’m on the podcast train. My “music” this week has been 2 bears 1 cave. Help. Need I say more?
3 Grateful Things
- My wonderful cuddly dogs.
- Being aware of toxic energy and avoiding it.
- The roof over my head and everyone in it.