Paisley and Upholstery...

So if that isn't the most eclectic sounding title, we don't know what is.....we wanted to post what we have been up to project-wise and get in a little bit about our first country concert experience. We'll start with our home projects.

So, this is going to sound extremely lame (and it is), but mostly the only TV I ever watch is home renovation type shows. In other words, a lot of TLC and HGTV and that sort. Anyhow, one thing you see people do over and over again to freshen up a room is reupholster furniture...and they make it look ridiculously easy. So easy, in fact, that I thought maybe I could do it myself. And guess what? It really is ridiculously easy.

So here is our furniture in question--our dining room chairs. These chairs were hand-me-downs from Brendt's brother, who got them from their folks, who got them from their folks, I think. Ryn, correct me if I am wrong. For the chairs having been around the block so many times, they are in pretty good shape, minus the stained and ratty seat cushions. So you can see how noticing an upholstery sale at Hancock's fabric could get me all sorts of excited.

Voila!

Our dining seating set consists of four armless chairs like in the first picture and one with arms, the captain's chair directly above. We decided it might be fun to use different fabric to set it apart a little.

I'm so proud the stripes didn't end up askew!

Next, we seriously need to work on the walls in our dining room. Yes, those are tiny apples on the wallpaper, and no, I don't know why apple wallpaper even exists or why anyone would decorate their house with it....

This coat rack was a birthday present from Bob and Ryn! It came unassembled, so literally, it was a confusing pile of screws and wood planks that had to be sanded, stained, drilled, and screwed together. It felt a little like if you had to sand, stain, and notch your Lincoln Logs before you could build a cabin with them.

So our next project is still a work in progress...in fact we just started on it last night. Our plan is to tackle it a little at a time instead of all of it at once, so it could be awhile before we are done.
Warning: For anyone who thought the apple wallpaper was bad, you may want to look away because these pictures are even more gruesome....
Yep, that's our basement. Currently it is where style goes to die. Even Rufus looks sick and disheveled, like he is about to toss his kibble. Ok, ok, so he always looks like that.

Ok, for everyone who was incredulous about the apple wallpaper, feast your eyes on the hippy horror that is wood paneling border overlapping more wood paneling.

We ripped down a few sheets to see what we were dealing with. Normally, when you frame a room, the studs go about 16" apart. I think. I guess this guy didn't get the memo (he is the same guy who put up apple wallpaper and wood paneling border, after all) and our studs are 2 ft. apart. That means we have to cut all our drywall to fit the frame, which really, really stinks. We are putting the drywall up sideways to help alleviate all the cutting we will have to do. Before we do that, we need to put some insulation at the top of the wall, where the outside isn't protected by dirt.

Now, I didn't know this, but you can use styrofoam to insulate your house. Who knew? I guess it makes sense when you consider that you trust it to protect your frosty, refreshing beverages. Also, I am kind of dorked out by the thought of living in a huge ice chest!

Don't let the expression fool you. Brendt is really excited to use that gun.

What beautifully cut styrofoam! Except for that last piece...but I'm sure that is the fault of whoever measured.

That's as far as we got so far on drywalling the basement, but I'm sure we will have some wall up before the weekend is done. Now, before you start thinking we are all work and no play, we have a few pictures to prove otherwise. Last weekend, we attended our first country concert and saw Brad Paisley, Dierks Bently, and Darius Rucker perform at the Qwest Center. Anyone who knows me and Brendt, knows we aren't country fans, but Bob and Ryn got us tickets, courtesy of Paisley's folks. I spent all week prepping so I would know some of the songs and the concert actually ended up being a blast. Not that I am switching to country anytime soon.

Aww, they are too cute!

Too bad I can't say the same for the rest of us.

Of course, I had to put a few shots of Paisley up--I had to show off what excellent seats we had. Had I really wanted to, I could have lunged from my chair and touched his boot before security hauled me away.

Oh, Brad. If only you would search me for ticks. =P