So Long, Sweet Summer

Well, summer is officially over and guess what? I never posted a picture of my balcony transformation! It gets worse: I never took an "after" pic! Wups!

We were able to get several candles, chairs, planters, and other outdoor items on the cheap {or for FREE}, so the project ended up costing even less than we anticipated. The hubs and I have enjoyed several meals and late-night card games on our pretty new balcony. Thanks for all of your suggestions and encouragement throughout the project!

Here is a picture of the deck in the middle of the transformation:

Notice the GIANT bird?! One day, while I was finishing up some Grad work in our Guest Room/Office, Ben suddenly shouted my name and told me I had to get out there, quick! I ran out to the Living Room to find him staring out the window at the HUGE/amazing/scary creature. Is it a hawk? Whatever it is, it is MASSIVE, and we caught it lounging on our deck railing about 5 different times throughout the summer.

At least he seemed to appreciate our deck transformation. :)

Mirror Re-vamp

I bought this mirror 2 years ago at Goodwill for $7.

I instantly fell in love with the little scrollies {sure, that's a word}, but the color was less than desirable. However, due to lack of time {and sheer laziness}, I left it alone.

{Here is is, reflecting our Christmas Tree in 2008}

When the husband and I relocated to West Chester this past December, I decided that I'd had enough with this mirror and its homage to the 70's. So, I grabbed some paint and went to work.

Two hours {painting all of those nooks and crannies took FOR-E-VER} and half a bottle of black craft paint later, I had a brand new mirror:

{Ta Da! Old mirror made new again with Black Paint}

{A close-up view of the details}

I am SO GLAD I finally painted it! This project has been hanging over my head for too long, and its culmination has actually motivated me to get to work on my other 135 projects {In case you haven't noticed, I tend to exaggerate}. But seriously, do you see my "To-Do/Buy" list in the right-hand column? It's not getting any shorter!

So, are there any projects you've been dreading? If so, get to work! I promise you'll be glad you did. :)