Yesterday I talked about how the other night I made one simple change in the kitchen and it cascaded into a mini-makeover that extended into the next day.
Here are some more of the changes I made (sorry I don’t have before pics – I always forget to do it and half the time I don’t realize I’m creating blog material until after the fact!):
I changed out our utensil caddy, which was previously a mission-style (if that exists in accessories?) metal container. Not bad by any means, but no longer a fit for the theme I was aiming for, so in the donation pile it goes.
It then occurred to me that I had a tall, metallic container that I found at the thrift store a couple months ago for a dollar or two. It was a pretty, galvanized-steel-looking container perfect for flowers…or a utensil caddy! So I painted it, distressed it, added a fun, french label to it and voila!
I then addressed our overflowing, catch-all shelf at the kitchen window and minimized big time. I placed one small, rustic birdhouse in the corner with a chippy paint spigot handle…
And on the other side, I took apart a tightly wrapped up bundle of lavender I picked up fresh from a street vendor in Santa Fe a while back and lo and behold, the colors and scent were still vibrant!
And I kept one live plant on the shelf (compared to the three we once had up there) and over the stubborn UPC bar code that was hard to remove, I placed a vintage stamp. It serves to cover up the label and also adds a neat visual touch to the mug, I think!
And if you’ve been following my blog for a while, you may recall when I found this soap dispenser at the thrift store for under a dollar. I decoupaged the faux wood finish (see here), but decided to paint over it yet again and add another french label to it. Talk about reusing! 
With an old metal colander I also picked up at the thrift store months ago (which I was planning on using to creatively merchandise some goods at a craft fair, which I still have yet to summons the courage and gumption for) I decided to use it for fruit/veggies on my island, if only I painted and distressed it as well as the sharp copper finish on the outside contrasted too much!
And finally I removed the faux pine garland from the tops of the cabinets and replaced with more previously-loved goods, including my giant milk can I found on my very first trip to an antique store!
See I told you it would still be a simplistic look and probably cost me about $25 total. Sometimes change is good!
