just great Gerry

This is not going to be a post about interior design or a new project we are working on. Those will resume shortly. Instead, we are going to briefly celebrate someone that usually prefers to stand back and let everyone else shine. It's now his time to shine in the spotlight and so today and this weekend we are celebrating my great dad, Gerry Pankow.

It is my personal opinion that I have a fabulous family and I think most would agree. We have a blast when we are together and share a closeness although we all live in different cities. I am the only one that still lives in the same city as my parents. Being the youngest I have always been very close to my parents and love seeing them on a regular basis. For as long as I can remember my dad has been one of my favorite people in my life - he is on a pedestal to me that not many people can touch. His integrity and character are to be admired and respected. He is without a doubt a wonderful father and husband and we are all so proud of him. Tomorrow he is turning 70 and in honor of his birthday I asked each of my siblings (his children) and our mom to just send over a quick thought or memory that stands out as their favorite about him. I hope these snippets give you a small glimpse into the man we all so adore and love.

• I love Dads sense of humor and his dry jokes. I have also always admired his unconditional love and commitment to Pat and the way he talks about her and their life together. His faith and strong belief in the Lord has been instrumental in why I have a relationship with Christ today. Finally, I love the joy and happiness Dad gets from being with his family, as do we!! I am very proud of our Dad!! (Heather)
  
• Having dad walk me down the aisle was an extremely special moment for us. I would do it over and over again if I could. Father daughter dance to "Isn't She Lovely" was a very close second. (Susan)
• When he came to Nashville for three weeks and lived with us in our apartment and worked from morning to night. (Rich)
• He tell me he loves me every time we talk on the phone or see each other – even if its multiple times a day. His honest and humble way he carries himself. That no matter what I do or have done he always lets me know that I am loved and he has a way of always making me feel like everything will be all right. (Kack)
• I love the fact that a guy who has a very impressive resume is willing to tote oriental carpets around, hang up very heavy pictures way up high, ride around in a KIA with bulky canvases hovering over his head and not complain. Gerry Pankow is a very good man and I am so proud to be his wife. (Pat)

Dad/Gerry - Thank you for being who you are. You are so loved and we are all so proud of you. We hope you have the most amazing birthday and we are honored to celebrate YOU!

The whole Pankow gang

Sherri with Dad at one of her many events

Dad & I this past Fathers Day at AMI

Heather and Dad at the creek


Susan and Dad at her wedding dancing to Isn't She Lovely

Rich (and William) with Dad "fishing" in the backyard

Mom and Dad this past Christmas in Cashiers, NC

Dad and Mom two Christmas' ago in Montreal

Last month at Rawlings baptism

Dad with his girls

just great reveal

It's finally done! It only took two weeks (or three?) and I may be covered in yellow oil based paint for the next year but it's finished and I love it! For my first true project that I did on my own I am impressed. I kind of want to keep it for myself since I am liking it so much! So, since I know each of you (seriously - can I get some more official followers other than family???) have been waiting anxiously for this project to be unveiled - wait no longer. I took TONS of pictures so you could see each step of the process. Forgive the graininess - I used my iphone for all the pictures instead of the camera...which, is probably a good idea since I now have a very cool yellow and black phone.

Here is the picture of the chair how we got it...boring!

After removing the cushion I sprayed the chair with some Kilz Primer

which was later sanded down to make the paint go on smooth as buttah.

As you can see I was multitasking with spray painting the wicker table. After the chair was primed and sanded I started on the yellow painting. I started with a small roller and quickly realized I hated the roller and changed to a small paint brush. The roller splattered paint back on me with each roll. Plus, using the brush allowed me to use my techniques I learned from the movie Money Pit "Up and Down, Up and Down. Strong Strokes! Paint. Don't tickle".

(Can you see why I used my phone to capture the pictures instead of the new camera...and, why The Manager gave me extra drop cloths?)

I let the chair dry for about a week. Enough time for it to dry completely, get the paint off me (before the second coat), heal from all the mosquito bites (I hate those pesks!) and I also just got busy (real reason). After it was completely dry I rubbed it with a steel wool thingie that I swear was a brillo pad but was told it wasn't. I was informed I was smoothing it out even more. Sorry, I didn't capture that moment on camera. It took all of two seconds to do. After the paint was complete I went to work on recovering the cushion. We had an extra piece of this great white fabric with black velvet detail that was the perfect size! Hooray! I essentially wrapped the chair like a gift. Making sure it was pulled extra tight. Was also told not to skimp on the staples...I do as I am told as evidenced below.

All wrapped up and ready to put back on the chair! Almost done!!!

And, now what it looks like all complete back at the showroom.

I would love to see this chair paired with a fabulous white lacquered desk or glass table. We have a great glass and silver architects table at the showroom that I may put it with to snap a picture for Facebook. After seeing how much I love the yellow I am considering painting my dining room chairs the same color...Don't worry though - not everything is going to be these bright colors. We are going to tone down some of the pieces as well. I do have to say though - just as I was all finished with this project I saw on one of my favorite new blogs (new to me, since I am new to the blogging world!) a post on painted furniture. (http://demystifyingdesign.com/at-home-project-painted-furniture/ - if you want to check it out) I asked The Boss last night if I could stencil on one of the tables...still waiting on that response.

Hope you like the chair! And, if you like it so much you want to buy it let us know! :) You may have to wrestle it out of my grip first....

just great Lilly????

I'll be honest with you here - I've never really been that huge of a Lilly Pulitzer fan...for myself, that is. I think it looks adorable on little girls or if you live year round in Palm Beach. Sometimes I find something that I like and, lately, I have really been liking some of their new designs. Imagine my surprise while flipping through my Horchow magazine recently (love their monogrammed Ralph Lauren towels on sale!) that they had an entire spread on Lilly Pulitzer FURNITURE?! And, its fabulous! Great lines and the colors, oh, the colors! I snapped a quick picture and sent a text of it to The Boss since I was so impressed "Lots of color!".

If you have a keen eye you may recognize the blue chandelier in the bottom right corner - its the same as the purple one we have in the showroom. Thats how I kept envisioning ours - in a dressing room....my own dressing room - and I'll take that ottoman too - it doubles as a shoe container!

Oh, Lilly! We may have a connection after all!

But back to the actual furniture! Since I was so enthralled with the colors and style - especially that pink chair at the desk - I wanted to do a bit more research. I found out the line is launching this summer and it debuted last fall at High Point. I found some pictures I just loved on various blogs that I have copied below. Mainly I am posting the following three pictures because they remind me of my current project I am working on. I just finished painting the first coat on a chair we have in bright yellow. Like school bus yellow. I was afraid it would be too much but after seeing these pictures I am soo excited about it!

Oh! How I want to find a coffee table to paint pink now!! But first, I must finish my yellow chair...

Just a Splash of Coral

Last Friday was the debut of Kathryn's Extreme Makeover Furniture Edition. I am still working on one piece but do have the other complete. Below is the BEFORE picture of a wicker end table we had in the showroom. Its a fun little table but lacking a bit of pizzazz.

Enter Pizzazz (in the form of a great Coral spray paint):

Behold the finished product:

Back at the showroom:

It's so fun to see what a difference a little pop of color will do for something! Or, in the case of my next project - a major BLAST of color. It's a little more involved then just spraying it with some color but as soon as I am done I will upload the pictures. Lastly, remember how I said maybe I was doing this to beat the summer heat? Well, as you may of noticed I was painting outside in those pictures. Didn't really think that one through...but, on the bright side (unintentional pun, but I'll take it!) I did lose about 4 lbs of water weight so I will take it! :)

Just Great {DIY} Things

I've decided to get crafty! Maybe its the need to keep myself even more occupied then I already am now, the need for a fun project or just another excuse to stay out of this horrible Summer heat - no matter what the excuse, I am inspired to get my creative juices flowing and make something! I started small - last weekend I made two friendship bracelets. Baby steps, people, baby steps. Not knocking those bracelets - I may even start selling them in the showroom...probably not (I already asked and was given a resounding NO!). Regardless, the rush I got from going to the supply store (Micheals), picking out my materials (string) and creating a piece of fine jewelry (2nd grade level friendship bracelet) was enough to make me yearn for more. Starting low really gives you the sense that the sky truly is the limit! So, I retired my string - sorry, friends, it was a short but sweet time - and aimed for bigger and better. After a little convincing to The Boss (aka Mom) I was granted permission to "update" some current pieces we currently have in the showroom. We also recently found some treasures that I have been given the go aheadto "rejuvenate". So, off I went to Home Depot tonight with my Manager (aka Dad) to pick up the supplies. Manager needed to come along to oversee that I got what I needed and nothing more. Had I been left alone I would have come home with 1 bottle of water (remember, its hot out!); 5 new magazines on {DIY} projects, lawn care, home additions and slow cooker Summer recipes; 1 new Weber grill and an entire patio set and finally 1 can of spray paint. Obviously, I get a little carried away at times and need a little guidance/management. We got all the basics: Kilz primer, paint rollers and brushes, paint pans, a couple spray paint bottles and a gallon of paint (and no water - I am still pretty parched as I type). We are set! I go to work on my first two masterpieces in the morning! I'll be sureto take pictures and document the entire process for you since I know you are just dying to hear about the next just great thing we'll be bringing into the showroom. In the meantime here's just a little teaser to tide you over till my next post...

...Get Excited!! kp (aka Kathryn; just great assistant; youngest daughter extraordinaire)