Statues, Stars, and Stripes

So my latest project is one that I didn't even come up with myself. My friend Deanna had a yard sale find that she was sure needed to go in my house. Enter a huge, creepy Beethoven bust:

I admit when she first texted me his picture I was a little freaked out...I mean look at those eyes! He was just a little too life-like for me. But the more I started thinking about how I could change him, the more interested I was in getting started. I'm sure you can all guess my plan of attack: spray paint. :) 

I started with a coat of primer, just to make sure he would be well-covered. I had to use a new brand of spray paint this time (Rustoleum did not offer the color I wanted), so Valspar was the the winner. 

After the coat of primer, already an improvement:

Although it is a bit unorthodox, I wanted him to pop and serve as an accent in the music room. Since our accent color is turquoise, "Sea Mist" fit the bill. Here is his blue debut:

I am aware that this will not be everyone's cup of tea, but I really like him! He adds an interest factor in my somewhat boring, predictable decor. And I really like how his color bounces off of the other turquoise accents in the room. I think even Jason is beginning to like him. :) 

The other big project on my to-do list was painting the shutters and I am SO happy to say that I have finished them! That means every item on my "finish before the beach trip" is done (YAY!!!).  The only downside is that they will not be hung up again until after we get back from the beach trip (which means our family coming in will have to see our windows bare). We purchased a groupon for a pressure-washing company and they are coming while we are away at the beach. We figured it made more sense to leave the shutters off while they cleaned the house. But let me tell you, Jason held one up in place to see if it would look good with the fresh coat of black paint (coming from a gray-blue color) and it is gonna look GREAT! I can't wait to have them up again. I think the black shutters against the white siding and gray brick will look nice with our red door and other new addition this week:

A flag! I have been wanting one for a while and while at Lowes this weekend I found one on sale (take note of the naked windows in this shot, poor little DIRTY things...). Of course, our flag is not just for our country but for my brother, Joe - we are so proud of him! He is in the army and we are happy to show our support for him and the other troops. 

In other news, all of the holes that needed it have been spackled and re-painted so we are moving along just fine! When we get back from the beach, the painting starts again - this time will hopefully bring it to an end. The next to-do list will be up after our week of relaxation. :)