Hanging It Up

 

Besides a dirty white door, the other problem with our back hallway (that I blogged about yesterday)  was that it became a dumping ground for backpacks, jackets, shoes, etc.  It made me a little crazy and I knew hooks were the solution.  For less than $30, we were able to bring some organization to this spot. 

 

 

We bought this pre-cut piece from Lowe’s, and I gave it a couple of coats of trim paint that we already had.  Then, I bought several packs of my favorite hooks from IKEA (2 for $9.99).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of my projects for this summer (you know, in all my free time with a baby in each arm!) is to hopefully frame some of the kids’ latest and greatest art pieces to fill the wall like I did in our last house.  I’m thinking of using all white frames this time (aka painting the ones I have) to keep things bright.

 

 

 

And, just this week, I put all of their coats and jackets away, leaving lots of space for just their school bags.  Is it just me, or does anybody else get a thrill out of saying goodbye to coats and socks for the summer?!

 

 

 

So far, I’ve managed to keep the other thorn in my side (the shoe situation!) somewhat under control by giving each kid their own dollar basket from Target to keep in the laundry room.  It’s not perfect, but it’s working okay for now.

 

 

 

Any other tips for keeping the busiest doorway in your house from becoming chaotic?

 

Our Yellow Door (And Annie Sloan Chalk Paint)

 

This door by far gets the most in-and-out traffic in our house.  And for that reason, it’s usually covered with dirty handprints and who knows what else. . . .   Since it’s a pretty dark little hallway, I decided that adding a color to the door would help to brighten things up and hopefully disguise some of the dirt.

 

 

 

I’ve also been wanting to try Annie Sloan chalk paint, especially the color “Arles.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s next to impossible to get a good photograph with the lighting in this spot, but once the color was on the door, I would describe it as a shade somewhere between cheddar cheese and a school bus. 

 

 

 

 

How’s that for descriptive?

 

 

I’m not sure if it was the surface of the door or the texture of the chalk paint itself, but it ended up taking three coats for good coverage.

 

After one coat. . .

 

 

 

 

After three coats. . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also have the Annie Sloan soft wax, but confess I still haven’t gotten around to it after painting my door a couple of months ago.  Any thoughts on if I really need to do this?

 

 

 

 

By the way, if you’re interested in ordering chalk paint, I got mine from Jenny at the Back Porch Mercantile.

 

Have you used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint?  What did you think?