skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Alrighty then, here we go...
First let me say type, these samples are just a sample of what I'm waiting on. So let's call this the "first batch."
L to R top row: Formica 180fx Calacatta Marble/etchings finish, Wilsonart HD Deepstar Slate/mirage finish, Formica Laminate Argento Romano/etchings finish.
L to R bottom row: Formica 180fx Jet Sequoia/etchings finish, Formica 180fx Soapstone Sequoia/honed finish.
I really loved the Jet Sequoia. It looks like black soapstone. Perfect for this old farmhouse.
That was until I saw the dreaded fingerprints and smudges!! See the spots?
ACK!!!!
Heck, my fingers weren't greasy and yet they left marks!!
See more?
Double ACK!!!
I really didn't want to. But I had to 86 it.
My second choice was the very pretty Deepstar Slate.
That was until I read everyones complaints online with dark, shiny laminates and how it shows fingerprints, smudges, scratches, dust... more so than a lighter laminate with a matte finish. Jeepers, you would think after living with this black, shiny Rustoleum transformations countertop I would know that by now. Hey, I was in denial.
I can't believe how difficult it is to choose a basic laminate countertop. I am torn! I love the contrast of the light cabinets with a dark countertop. But I strongly dislike trying to keep it clean, shiny and smudge free. Man, I can't imagine trying to pick out a pricy stone countertop. My head would explode.
So that was round one. I'm waiting on two more batches of samples so I've got two more rounds to go. Hopefully in the end, I'll end up with a knockout!
**ding**ding**ding**
:> )
Well, it's been three and a half years since I "transformed" my kitchen countertop.
How has it held up??
Not bad. Not bad at all. Mind you, it's just my sweet hubs and I so not a whole heck of a lot of wear and tear going on.
I will say I never cut directly on the countertop and always used a cutting board and trivets. But my sweet hubs did cut directly on it once and when he did, he made a small slice in it. But after all this time the texture has lifted off slightly. Again, not bad at all. Especially for the price of the product.
There are some spots where it chipped off.
Some spots wore off along the seams.
I was considering doing it again. But I'm also thinking about getting a new countertop instead. Like I've mentioned in the past it was a lot of hard work to transform the countertop and quite frankly I'm too old and too tired to do it again.
Granite, quartz and marble are the hot trends for countertops. But as lovely as they are, I'm not sure about them. Besides the obvious high price, I'm not a fan of shiny, glossy countertops. Yes they are gorgeous but our home is very much lived in. It would be covered in fingerprints and hand smears and that's not so gorgeous. ((giggle))
I love the look of a wood countertop. But I know I would spend my time worrying about any drop of water or liquid sitting on it. (I do that now with my free standing butcher block.)
I have seen some wonderful laminate countertops in Formica 180fx and Wilsonart HD. They've come a long way from our 80's laminate countertop. Truth be told, as dated and unattractive as our white countertop was, there were no chips or cracks in it.
Here's a blast from the past...
I ordered and received some laminate countertop samples and will share with you in my next post.
In the meantime, if anyone wants to put in their 2 cents about their countertops (pros and cons-laminate to quartz) please feel free to chime in. I'd truly appreciate your comments.
:> )
:> )
When I found a vintage dry sink on Craigslist a few year back, I struggled with wanting to paint it.
Not because I loved the groovy, dark stained pine. But because I've (kind of) had a change of heart about painting vintage/antique furniture even if I really dislike the finish. I guess it's about preserving history. Yeah, I know. Who wants to preserve some of the 70's era furniture?? Like those gigantic, bulky, dark pine waterbeds where you could park a small vehicle on the headboard shelf right next to the center mirror? Okay. Maybe there are some who would. But personally, I've never been a waterbed fan. After about 5 minutes, I need a Dramamine.
Anyway, I decided to go for it!! I also decided to paint it red. Gee, who would have thought??!! ((giggle))
I used Olde Century Colors in "Country Red." Seemed appropriate.
I had an extremely old bottle of Valspar Vintage Antiquing Deep Toner. I have no idea where it came from. But I found it in our basement. I needed something to antique the dry sink with and when I opened it, it wasn't all crusty and dried up. Works for me! Although the fumes almost rendered me unconscious, the color was perfect. If I wake up tomorrow with an arm growing out of my forehead, I'll know why.
I finished it off with a light coat of wax.
Ta-dah!!
Man, I love the look of this antiquing toner! I must admit it is worth using the stuff and possibly growing another body part. I'll take the risk.
Happy Monday.
:> )
I was looking to buy some Olde Century Colors paint. I found out the closest dealer was only 11 miles away! YaY!!
So I drove over to the cutest, little prim shop, I had no idea existed!!
When I walked in, my eye was immediately drawn to a particular sign. I knew it had to hang on our powder room door.
Now it does...
(((giggle)))
Have a terrific weekend, all.
:> )
Happy Tuesday.
♥
Let me just start out by saying this past week has been one heck of a week!!! I won't go into details. But I will say I was going on week two without a washing machine. Ack!!
I don't know about you, but when I get stressed I paint. No. Not pictures. I paint entire rooms. ((giggle))
I decided to use (the leftover) Behr Antique White again. This time in my "dining room." I type "dining room" in quotes because we really don't use it. It just looks nice and quite frankly my sweet hubs is not fond of the antique table and chairs. Folks were a lot smaller and lighter back in the day. ((hee hee))
I'm very pleased with the color. It is a tiny room so the darker color walls made it feel even tinier. The Antique White paint color brightens it up nicely.
Here's a photo of the previous color. It's was cozy. But a little gloomy.
So now it's time to kick back and reflect on this past week from h*ll and learn from it. Heck, we may even sit in the dining room and eat dinner. Hmmm... What are the odds of talking my sweet hubs into that?!
Happy Sunday, all.
:> )
When I saw the price of a custom spare tire cover,
I decided to make my own.
It came out exactly as I had envisioned.
Happy Friday! Enjoy your weekend!
:> )
Told you so.
(I never tire of this one.)
:> )
I swear, my dogs are going to be the death of me. I worry more about their health than my own.
On Sunday, after my hubs and I took Stella for a ride, I noticed she looked to be having a mild, focal seizure as she lay on the settee. Of course I went into panic mode. As many of you remember we had to put down our first Boston Terrier because of massive cluster seizures due to liver failure. It was horrific to watch and I swore I would never have another Boston Terrier. But all that went out the window after I held my sweet Stella. ♥
I called our vet first thing yesterday and she was seen in the afternoon. She was examined and I had some blood work done to check her liver enzymes. I had her enzymes checked in January and her ALT was slightly elevated. But was told no need for concern.
I mentioned to our vet she has terrible seasonal allergies. As soon as the warm weather arrives and it starts to green up outside, she's itching, digging and scratching at herself like crazy. He came to the conclusion she has bad allergies (Ummm, yeah I knew that), a slight temperature and ear infection/fluid in her ears. So she got an injection, ear drops and an antibiotic. I got a peace of mind and a much lighter pocketbook.
The vet called this morning with her liver enzyme result. It is still slightly elevated but lower than January's results.
I'm thinking it's diet related. I have researched and tried so many high end commercial dog foods that my eyes are crossed. What I thought was a top notch food might not be. Salmon and chickpea are high in copper. Too much copper is bad for the liver.
So I will temporarily try Dr. Dodd's "Liver Cleansing Diet" then have blood work done again. If the number goes down I'll know for sure. This diet gave me an additional month with our Darla. I will do everything in my power to make sure Stella never has to go through what our sweet Darla had to.
Too bad I don't drink or do legal/illegal drugs. I could have really used them on Sunday.
;> )
Has a nice ring to it.
I think she could win too.
((giggle))
:> )
