Friday 5+1 (5 Things I Love + 1 Thing I Don’t) 4.29.16

Hello!

It’s been another busy week here – wrapping up another kitchen and also finishing off the bookcases that I shared last week.  And I have kitchens lined up ahead of me, so I’ll have a lot more to share in the weeks ahead.  This post contains some affiliate links.

Finishing Client Kitchens

Putting kitchens back together is my favorite part of the whole process.  I always tell my clients that once the work is done, everything comes back together pretty quickly.  The only thing I’m waiting on now is hardware.  With that, I’m going to kick off this week’s Friday 5+1, with a peek at my latest kitchen job.

You can see there are lots of updates happening here – granite, beadboard on the peninsula, and I’m loving how it’s all coming together.  They’re still going to add a backsplash, but these are some big changes for this cute kitchen.  I’ll be sure to share the final ones when everything is complete.

Pretty and Unique Succulents

I spotted these at the grocery store and they were too cute not to share.  I can picture this on a console table or a coffee table, or even sitting on a kitchen counter.  So pretty!  And a great idea for a Mother’s Day gift, if you ask me.

This photo gives you a better shot of the container – it’s made to look like a little tree stump.  Too cute.

Short Handled Wax Brushes

I tend to gravitate towards paint brushes with shorter handles, but this Siff Brush is the first one that I’ve seen that is a waxing brush with a short handle.  I might wax furniture pieces more often if I had one of these…

Zinsser Brush Wash

I know that I’ve shared this before, but it’s so good that I feel compelled to share it again.  I had a brush with bristles that were hardened, and I used this to bring it back to life.  I use it to soak pieces from my spray equipment, clean brushes, and I even wrapped one of my paint cups from my spray gun in a paper towel soaked in it, to remove the dried paint.  It’s awesome!  So far, the only place I’ve seen it around me was at Menard’s.  Worth having in your toolbox for sure.  

These Purdy paint combs come in handy to use along with the brush wash – helps to comb out all of the paint and makes clean up a lot easier.

Adorable DIY Play Kitchen

Am I wrong to want to make one of these DIY play kitchens even though I no longer have kids that will play with it?  Maybe I’ll play with it…  Talk about crazy creative skills over at Bubblestitch Quilts!

My +1 for the week – all of the high school graduations for kids that are just one year older than my oldest son.  I’m living in the land of denial that this will be my son next year.  Did I mention that we’re going on a college visit tomorrow at the college I attended?  That is going to be a surreal experience I’m sure.  I just don’t know how I got here – I remember him going to kindergarten like it was yesterday.  I know it’s part of growing up, but boy, I don’t remember reading about this in the parenting brochures.  This article – “13 Signs Your Kid is Graduating from High School and You’re Totally Losing It” – seems to sum things up pretty well – I seem to be running ahead of schedule, as I am already experiencing some of the signs that she references.

Any words of wisdom from parents who have been there, done that?  I’m all ears (and tears).

Have a fantastic weekend.  I’ll be hosting an after-prom party for about 14 teenagers if you’re up late and want to chat on Saturday night…

Jenny