Find Inspiration & Encouragement
Welcome to the Miss Mustard Seed’s blog, where creativity, vintage charm, and farmhouse elegance come to life. Explore inspiring DIY projects, furniture makeovers, and curated vintage finds that infuse warmth and personality into your home. Discover budget-friendly ideas, painting techniques, and creative inspiration that will elevate your living spaces with love and creativity. Welcome to a haven of creative possibilities where you can create a home that tells your unique story.
to customize your house to feel like home
to nurture your creativity & artistic growth
to find new favorites & never stop growing
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Miss Mustard Seed’s
Most Recent Posts
favorite things | antique transferware plates
I have loved antique transferware plates for years, decades even. I think they were one of my earliest yard sale purchases as a newlywed. I remember reading a magazine article that showcased...
kitchen eating nook changes | the open wall shelves
If you're thinking, "Didn't I already read this post about the wall shelves in your kitchen?" You are partially right. You read my first draft of this post and, because of a technical glitch on my...
the story of the bryozoan-encrusted shell
I bet you didn't see this post coming! I have loved beach combing since I was a child but now I'm getting more into researching what I find, especially unique pieces. While my focus has primarily...
kitchen eating nook changes | shelf styling
I've been sharing some tweaks and changes I've made to our kitchen eating area in my last two blog posts and I'm continuing that short series. Today, I'm going to share a bit more details about the...
kitchen eating nook changes | the new chairs
Yesterday, we took a look at the new chandelier in the kitchen eating area and today, I'm going to share all about the new/antique chairs I found recently on Facebook Marketplace. As a reminder,...
kitchen eating nook changes | new chandelier
Over the past couple of months, I have made a few changes to the kitchen eating area, so I thought I would share those changes in a small blog series. There are three main components I changed and...
Feels Like Home
Marian’s new book on customizing your home is
now available!
Miss Mustard Seed’s YouTube
This channel shows a progression of my business from my early years of painting and refinishing furniture and dealing antiques to my current passions of art, painting, and design. I just love all things creative and I love encouraging and inspiring other to discover and use their creative gifts.
Free Art Classes
While most of the world was under stay-at-home orders in the Spring of 2020, I connected with my online community by offering live art classes every Friday for a few weeks. It was such a pick-me-up for me each week! I received wonderful feedback from the class participants who joined me live or have taken the classes since, so I decided to put them into an online course format and offer them for free. Sign up and learn to paint with oils in nine classes that cover everything from making a color chart to painting a grazing cow…
Recipes, projects, and decorating ideas for Spring
As spring blooms and nature bursts into life, we invite you to immerse yourself in the vibrant world of seasonal renewal. Marian’s spring blog posts offer a delightful array of inspiration, where we celebrate the joys of this rejuvenating time of year. Join us as we embrace the spirit of spring and revel in the wonders of nature’s awakening.
Marian’s Home Tours
Maryland Home
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Marian shares her journey of transforming her new 1970s Maryland home into a modern marvel. Discover inspiring renovations that marry vintage elegance with contemporary flair. Explore her latest blog posts, featuring DIY projects, interior design ideas, and budget-friendly tips that breathe new life into this charming abode. Delight in the art of renovation and witness the magic of infusing every corner with personality and timeless allure. Join Marian on this exciting chapter of her Maryland home transformation and uncover a treasure trove of creativity and inspiration.
Latest Posts by Topic
All Things Home
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why you should have a pair of gardening overalls
I've been working in the yard and garden beds most days over the past two or three weeks. It's that time of year when the longer days and not-too-hot spring weather draws me outside and I get excited about cleaning things up, weeding, and working on more landscaping...
Artistic Endeavors
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crochet vs. knitting – updated
Over three years ago, I wrote a post sharing my thoughts on crochet vs. knitting. You can find that original post HERE. I had just learned how to knit, so it was perhaps a little premature to make the comparison, but I wanted to share how I initially felt about the...
Creative Business
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Rufus Porter Style Mural & My First Paintings
A part of organizing this month has been scanning old documents and photos (I'll share more on that in another post) and uploading old photos that were saved to a disc to an external hard drive. At first, I didn't even know if I had a way to scan a disc onto the...
Furniture Makeovers
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slipcovered living room ottoman
As I've been sharing about the soft furnishings in our living/family room this week, several people have asked about the coexistence of our cats with upholstered and slipcovered pieces. Having lived with cats most of my life, I know they can be destructive and it was...
Slice of Life
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never stop having firsts
I just turned 46 years old last week and, on Sunday afternoon, I mowed a lawn for the first time in my life. I come from a long line of lawn-mowing women. Well, I suppose two women isn't exactly a long line, but there is a family history. Whenever my mom would talk...
Tutorials
I love learning and sharing what I’ve learned with others. Since 2009, I’ve been writing and filming tutorials on everything from furniture refinishing and slipcovers to woodworking and crochet. What would you like to learn to do today?
Try Something New
Refinishing Furniture
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Fine Art
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Upholstery
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Knitting & Crochet
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Sewing
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