Guest Post: The Country Chic Cottage

What kind of BFF would I be if I didn't let one of my partners in crime stop by?

Hi y'all!  I am Angie from The Country Chic Cottage.  Oh my goodness....I can't believe I am on The Shabby Chic Cottage!  Let me tell ya...I am ecstatic to be here!  Gina and I are friends in real life....plus I am a huge fan of her blog!   

Lately, I have been transforming my front porch....

So far so good right?  My house is white and I have green shutters -- yep BORING.  So my thoughts were to add a punch of color via the porch.  I looked around for some "outdoor" elements and found...

Step 1:  Inspiration -- Yep those are plastic placemats (gasp).  But look at those colors...  I fell in love with that color combination and thought it would look good with my plain Jane house.  So the inspiration was born... 

Step 2:  Paint -- I painted the furniture green with the exception of that lonely white wicker you see on the left.  (Someone that owns this blog is supposed to bring me some spray paint....hmmm...wonder who that could be...)  

Step 3:  Accessorize -- In addition to faking blue ball jars,  I turned one of those placemats into a pillow...

Just rip a small hole in the seam and stuff.  Sew the hole back up.  The plastic is difficult to work with...if you try this at home -- be very careful not to rip it or get it caught in your sewing machine (yes that is the voice of experience) .  Thrifty and waterproof -- my kind of outdoor decor!  I also found a plastic table cloth that coordinated well.  It became a pillow too...

This time cut two squares out of the table cloth.  Sew it up right sides together on 3 sides.  Turn right side out and stuff in a pillow form or a thrift store cast off.  Sew up the bottom.  Again be careful with the plastic material -- your sewing machine parts can cause tears.  Another piece of that table cloth covers a wicker table.

That wicker table has seen better days -- trust me you don't wanna look under that skirt.  But it is nothing a table cloth won't cover up.  I will have another tutorial up Monday on some of those accessories on the table.  Hope to see you at the cottage for it!

  Slowly my inspiration is turning into reality.  Don't ya just love seeing the finished project take shape? 

Before I say goodbye -- I do have an exciting announcement!  Do you love windows?  Then please think up your best window project and come by on June 14 for a Window Party!  Don't have a project?  Come to the cottage to see what everyone else links up!  

Hope to see you there! 

Many thanks to Gina for letting me take over her blog today -- I had a blast!

~Angie~ 

Thanks, Angie!

Ummm... I think I'd better go find that spray paint :)

Remember, the Flirty Aprons giveaway is up through tonight - I'll announce the winner Saturday morning.

If you'd like to submit a guest post - email me at theshabbychiccottage@rocketmail.com.