This week's linky parties...

Almost every day of the week I link up my newest decorating projects, junking steals, trash to treasure transformations, room makeovers, or seasonal vignettes at these gal's blog parties. They are a fab.u.lous. way to pick up inspiration from all over the freaking place. There are soooo many talented women out there! It's also a fairly easy way to find those with similar decorating styles and budgets and subscribe to them in a reader or follow them each day. Totally addicting past-time, gotta warn ya *wink* (I'll activate the links on the appropriate day)

Sherri's The Shades of Pink on Sunday evenings:

DIY Show Off on Mondays:



Cheri's It's So Very Cheri on Mondays:

Kim's Twice Remembered on Mondays (last one for awhile):

Susan's Between Naps on the Porch on Mondays:

Rhoda's Southern Hospitality on Mondays:

Kimba's A Soft Place to Land on Tuesdays:

Kimm's Reinvented Trash to Treasure Tuesdays:

Kristen's We are THAT family on Wednesdays:

Surprise party at DIY!

Gina's The Shabby Chic Cottage on Thursdays:

Melissa's The Inspired Room for Beautiful Life Fridays:


Along the way with K + J on Saturdays:

Well, this week I'm showing off my Salavation Army $11 coffee table makeover (and a few others below). Picked 'er up last week after I heard her quietly sniffling in between an orange velour couch from the 70's and a beat up metal file cabinet that looked to have been a contestant on 'kick it to the curb'.

Here she is in all her glittery nail polished, heart-stickered, scratched, and broken-legged glory:

She was begging me to make her into a happily ever after story....

I obliged :o) The Mister fixed the broken leg (center leg across the middle on the bottom was cracked in half and hanging by a thread). I pried off the sparkly stickers, sanded down her top and used dark walnut gel stain and some wipe on poly. Then I re-spray painted her shapely legs in heirloom white. Can't you hear her screaming "thank you thank you thank you!!!"

By the way, there's the couch I mentioned in this post that my folks helped us buy. And I mentioned as well that I'm actually letting my little peoples sit on it. I'm a nice mommy that way sometimes. This is our reading/computer room. I'm still working on it, though, and I'll post a 'big reveal' sometime in the next month or so. Or not. Depends on how those Home Depot painting drop cloth drapes work out. You know.

And since these sit in the same room, here are the IKEA bookshelves I posted the tutorial about. I HATE arranging bookshelves, so they sat empty for like a month. I'm still not content with them,

but I'm getting close.

All you homeschooling mamas out there can drool over my father-in-law's collection of original Landmark history books. I took the covers off to reveal the charming colors you see here. And my Dr. Suess collection, my husband's childhood storybook collection, and a few odds and ends that also came from his dad are snuggled up to them as well. I'd love to work my way thru the Landmarks, reading to my boys each night thru the winter. They are truly classic stories, written by some of the last century's most celebrated novelists. A GREAT way to teach your kids about our nation's history in story form.

And lastly, I found this wooden magazine rack at a consignment store, painted her and originally thought I'd use it like this.....but I thought it would be cool to set it near my aqua couch and display my magazines for each month (October right now). That way I can see all the seasonal ideas in one lump of inspiration each month. And get overwhelmed. And end up vegging on the 'puter. And for all of us who got gyped into Family Circle when our beloved Country Home went under, I'd just like to say:

NOT EVEN CLOSE.

*sigh*

So...what say you? Did my coffee table transform to your liking? How 'bout those bookshelves? Does displaying magazines seasonally seem too much like a tacky doctor's office?

Lots more inspiration at Sheri's, Kim's, Kimm's, Susan's, Kimba's, Kristen's, Gina's, and K+J's this week....Go Dog Go!