Where are they now? HOME MAKEOVER

While I’m attend EVO 12 in Park City, I’ve twisted the arms of some of my Bloggy BFFs to write a guest post for TCB!  Gail is amazingly talented as you can see why I featured her way back when………. I hope to meet her IRL someday.

Decorating DIY Blogs

I am beyond thrilled to be here today!  I adore Kim, and her little corner of this big ole blogisphere!  I believe Today’s Creative Blog is one of the very first blogs I followed.  Way back when I barely knew what a blog was.

Oh, I suppose I should introduce myself.  I got so excited that I forgot my manners.  I’m gail from My Repurposed Life. This summer I will be celebrating  three years of blogging.  I started my blog on a whim after being inspired by great bloggers like Kim.  I literally woke up one day and decided to start journaling about my projects.   I taught pre-k for 19 years, I would still be teaching had the school where I taught not closed. I loved teaching, in fact I’m still teaching, targeting a  much larger audience that doesn’t need help with zippers and buttons.  All the projects on My Repurposed Life are full tutorials, telling you, the reader exactly what to do, and in some cases telling you what NOT to do.  I do all the trial and error helping you to not make the same mistakes I have.
I have made several changes in my home of 36 years over the last 3 years.  Because I am unemployed, and making it through life on my own, I work on a very tight budget.  So if you like to DIY on a shoestring, you will love My Repurposed Life.

This is my fireplace as it had been for 25+years.  I was tired of the stone (concrete) mantel and hearth.  I was wanting something fresher and brighter.
Don’t you think the “after” is so much better?   This was my first major project, and I achieved this bright new look on my own for less than $150.00.    It was two years ago, and my ugly fireplace makeover still makes me smile. 

The next big project I tackled was my kitchen.   I literally changed this room from top to bottom.

I started by painting my oak cabinets.  I also painted the vinyl floor. If you look closely you can see I painted my kitchen accessories with Stainless Steel spray paint.
I added a board and batten backsplash, then later painted my blue countertops with a faux granite paint.  Not shown, I also painted my ceiling fan.

Most recently, I built and installed some barn doors using hardware from Tractor Supply Co.  My kitchen island is more of a craft station, I built it from a repurposed desk.

When I’m not working on updating my home, I’m busy repurposing unwanted furniture items.

This repurposed dresser into a bench is one of the most searched items on my blog. It was one of my very first repurposes.

Buildingbenches from repurposed beds has kept me busy over the last few years.

Looking for something a little more simple? This shutter turned magazine holder with over 47k pins is by far the most pinned item from my blog.

I hope you’ve found something that inspires you to do it yourself, or think outside the box. If you’d like to know more about the woman behind all this work, check out my about me.  Maybe you’d like to see what others are saying about My Repurposed Life, or join the conversation on Facebook, and of course there’s always Pinterest and twitter.  Oh, I almost forgot, I have a great weekly link party, Catch as Catch Can.  For a really quick glance at my past projects, check out my galleries, 1, 2, 3.
I’m so happy I got to stop by  Today’s Creative Blog to share My Repurposed Life with you.  Those who know me in real life will tell ya, once I start talking blog, I just sort of ramble.

Thank you Kim!
gail