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January 20, 2015

Plaster Painted Vintage Dresser Makeover

I noticed the other day that I shared one of my furniture pieces as a contributor at another site in October, but because of the craziness in my life, I never shared it with my readers. You see, Fall is a bit of a whirlwind around here as I start decorating for Halloween, flow into Thanksgiving, and settle into Christmas (with get-togethers, parties, and functions peppered all throughout).

Toward the end of the summer, I came across a giant beast of a brown dresser at a yard sale for next to nothing.

I’m pretty sure it was so cheap because the owners just wanted this albatross out of their home. It was super nasty when we bought it, but I saw some great potential there.

Topher did not. He thought it was heinous and could not be saved.

He of little faith.

…

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January 15, 2015

How We Save $749 a Year By Cutting Out Cable and Still Get to Watch the Shows We Love

Stepping out into the new year, Topher and I decided we needed to go on a diet — a debt diet that is.

Like so many other people, we finished up the year with some credit card debt. You know what I’m talking about — that emergency card that you had to use when something big popped-up, like a large car repair or a pet surgery. Then you maybe added an emergency pair or shoes that you had to have to go with your dress for that certain party, and when you absolutely needed a weekend away to recharge your marriage?

Those kinds of things ended-up totaling more than you thought once that January credit card statement rolled in.

So we decided to pay it off as soon as possible because who wants to pay any extra money on interest? So for the next few weeks, I will be sharing with you some ways we are cutting back our spending so we can get that card paid-off ASAP.

The first way is on cable. Can you believe how high it is now?

We sat down with our cable bill and realized we were paying $85 a month for cable service and a DVR from our cable company.

We decided things had to change, so we came up with some solutions….

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January 12, 2015

Super Easy Ruffle Trim Valentine’s Day Trees

Happy Monday everyone!!!

Sadly strep throat and I still haven’t broken up. It’s one of those relationships where I want to move on, but he just won’t let me go. My throat itself is better, but that has been replaced with congestion, horrible body aches, and a fun cough — just to to top things off.

Along with this nastiness lingering, so has my christmas decor. This weekend, come hell or high water, it had to go. It definitely isn’t as fun taking it down as it is putting it up. So after all the yuletide joy got boxed up and put away, my house was looking a little sad and naked.

Having very little energy, I decided to do a super easy Valentine’s Day craft to give my bare little table a new pop of color.

All you will need is:…

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January 9, 2015

IKEA Rast Hack

Happy Friday everyone!!!

Sorry I’ve been MIA this week, strep and this almost 40-year-old body were at war the entire time. I’m still not well, but I’m better than I was a week ago.

I’ve got a fun makeover for you today! A while back I was contacted by Hickory Hardware and asked to take part in an IKEA Rast Challenge. They would send me the IKEA dresser, and I would make it over.

I thought it sounded fun so I told them to send it my way!

Now I have never been to IKEA before (I know … Gasp)! One just opened 3 hours from me, and I hope to remedy this soon. A lot of their furniture pieces are very simple and plain and come unassembled.

While I was sick, Topher put it together for me to help me see what I was working with….

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January 5, 2015

Wheezing In The New Year

If you’ve come here today looking for a fun new project and an upbeat attitude to start off the new year, you are in the wrong place my friends.

I have the plague.

We are talking the I’ve-been-wearing-the-same-pajamas-for–three-days, hair-in-a-matted-bun, haven’t-brushed-my-teeth-cuz-the-bathroom-feels-light-years-away, I’m-covered-in-used-tissues kind of plague.

Do you remember one of the worst viruses you have ever had? I know you do. The my-head-feels-like-it’s-going-to-blow-up, my-throat-is-covered-in-white-bumps, and every-inch-of-my-body-aches-including-my-fingernails sickness.

Well, this is how I am kicking off the new year.

I have a thousand projects I need to be working on, but I can’t because I have taken so much NyQuil I’m hallucinating. All these drugs are giving me crazy dreams that I’m back in high school, I can’t get my locker open, and I’m going to miss my finals. The only people happy that I’m sick are the dogs because with my fever, I’m radiating so much heat that they are keeping warm while it snows outside.

Topher is bringing me things when I need them, but basically he just throws them to me from across the room for fear of getting this crap. I swear he almost took out my eye when he threw the last Kleenex box at me.

Yesterday’s original plan was to take the tree down, but since I was pretty sure I was going to die, I thought I would like to have my pretty tree be one of the last things I saw.

So when you drive by my house and still see the sparkling lights through the window, do not judge and think what white trash I am, just know that on my death bed I am seeing 4 trees with my double vision.

P.S. If anyone knows of a sore throat remedy that keeps your throat from feeling like razor blades are dicing your tonsils every time you swallow, please let me know.

January 2, 2015

Restoration Redoux’s Top 15 Posts of All Time

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a fun one!

Topher had to work late, the unnamed child had plans, and I was sick … so I just hung out watching movies all by my lonesome. Pretty exciting stuff. I watched The Other Woman and Maleficent — both were pretty good.

I was hoping to finish up on some new projects yesterday, but I pretty much just stayed in a NyQuil induced coma instead. Pretty sure those are going to be my plans for today too.

The other day I posted my Top 10 Posts of 2014. I started getting a lot of questions coming in asking what my top posts of all time were, so I decided I would share with you the Top 15 Posts of All Time with you today….

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