Saturday Spotlight: Life Behind the Blogger




 Saturday Spotlight: Life Behind the Blogger is a feature done each Saturday that introduces you to a blogger you may already know or a new blogger for you to get to know. This feature gives you a peak into the personal life of the blogger.  Getting to know the special person behind the beautiful blog.

There is so much talent and inspiration in blogland so enjoy getting to know these talented bloggers each Saturday.


Mary from Orphans With Makeup





 Happy Saturday.  Love the week ends and Love that it is Saturday and time for  Spotlight.  This week I have Mary from Orphans With Makeup to feature.  Mary is one of our Northern neighbors and lives right outside Montreal.   Mary has a wonderful talented way with furniture reloves.   
So I am excited for you to meet and get to know Mary today.  Enjoy.








Hello new friends,

I’m so thrilled to be guest posting today.  Thank you so much Kris.

My name is Mary Vitullo.   I am a blogger at Orphans With Makeup in Saint-Hubert, Québec, a suburb of Montréal.  As the name implies, my furniture and thrifted finds are my little “Orphans” and my paint is the “Makeup”.  I have always been passionate about home decor and can never seem to quench my thirst for it.  My blog is mainly about repurposing vintage and antique furniture and styling the finished pieces to show them in their best light.


So, a little of where I live….. Saint-Hubert is a 25 minute drive from our beautiful City of Montréal.



Et oui!!  As you may or may not know, French is the official language here in Québec.  So if you were to come visit, French is the main language you would hear.  All of our public signs are in the French language.  Some parts of Montréal, like our Old Montreal, with its cobblestone streets, feels and looks like Old Europe.
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Downtown Montréal comes alive in the summer months with our numerous outdoor festivals.


Our famous Montreal International Jazz Festival



About me……..  I am a wife and mother to three (almost adult) boys.  

This family picture was actually taken about four years ago, so my boys are a little bit older.  It is so hard to schedule a family portrait!


I left my job as a Legal Assistant about 8 years ago to be a stay-at-home mom.  A few years ago i had an odd piece of furniture to sell.  I thought the only way I was ever going to sell that piece of furniture was to style it in the prettiest setting and take beautiful images of it.  That seemed to work and that odd piece sold on the first day of listing it.  That slowly started me thinking of re-purposing furniture and selling them.  At the same time, I wanted to share my passion for decorating on a budget with like-mind people and that’s how Orphans With MakeUp came to be.

One of my first scores was this Ikea sideboard I picked up for $60.00.  I was amazed at what just a little elbow grease and some paint could do.


Some more of my favorite furniture projects.


Pretty in Pink



Re-purposed media cabinet into an armoire.



Robin’s Egg Blue Dresser


Chippy vanity.



Restoration Hardware cane-back chairs.  This was my first commissioned contract.  My client had ordered 4 of these chairs and had them shipped to my home to have them painted White.  At that time, Restoration Hardware did not carry these famous Louis XVI chairs in White.  I like to think that they saw my White version and then decided to now carry them in their line.  Ha Ha Ha!


Creating a stain with vinegar and steel wool.


(A refreshed tea-cart.)


(An elegant grey sideboard.)


(Sometimes you have to get creative when it comes to photographing a plain white table, so why not in the SNOW!)


(My driftwood-look dresser.)


(A dresser now elegant in Black.)



…….and some DIY projects.


(Up-cycled rubber mat to look like antique scrollwork.  I am always inspired by Pinterest.)


(Thrifted serving trays into plate chargers.)

So that is a little glimpse of what I do.

Hope you will come by and visit my blog  Orphans With Makeup.  You can also find me on FacebookPinterest and Google+

________________________________


Thank you Mary for sharing a little about yourself with us.  Please take a few minutes and hop over to check out Mary's blog and Facebook page.  Have a wonderful rest of the week end.
Kris
:)





24 comments

  1. I'm so disappointed that I cannot see one photo in this post! Is it just me, I hope? I love Mary's blogs and features.
    Rita

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    1. Rita they are there on my blog so not sure why you cannot see them. I hate when stuff like this happens.
      Not sure why you cannot see them.
      Kris

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    2. @ Rita - My farm Internet is slow and I chronically have problems viewing Junk Chic Cottage pages both as an email subscriber in my Hotmail and when I go directly to the blog via Internet Explorer. The pictures either don't load or only partially load. The more pictures the more problems I have. I don’t blog so no idea why this happens maybe the pictures are posted at a higher resolution? I don’t have this problem with other pages except Funky Junk Interiors and she has hers fixed now. I love this page and all the pictures so much so my work around is to go to the blog and hit refresh on the page several times with more pictures showing on each refresh. That usually gets all the pictures to show - try that - JCC is always worth it! Kari

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    3. I came back this evening and they're now all there - beautiful pics and picks! I wanted to see which ones Mary would choose as her favorites to showcase, she has so many! Just a blip (or maybe I hadn't finished my coffee, idk). Thank, girls!

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  2. I can't see the pretty pics either. :( It was neat to read Mary's story though. I always thought she was refinishing pieces forever, it's funny how life takes you down unexpected roads!

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  3. Thanks Kris! Just visited Mary's blog and it's amazing! I'm a new subscriber to her awesome blog.

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  4. I love reading Mary's blog and seeing her transformations! Thanks for sharing!

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  5. Hello Mary! Fantastic feature, Kris! I'm headed over to enjoy more beauty. :)

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  6. Kris, It seems Mary is very good at redoing furniture pieces. Love the finishes. Her family is cute too. I'll drop over her blog and check it out. Blessings for a great weekend, xoxo,Susie

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  7. Thanks Kris for featuring Mary, today you've introduced me to a blogger I wasn't familiar with. Mary I've visited Montréal twice in my life and I fell in love with Montréal. Heading over to your blog to enjoy more of the beauty you create and surround you and your family with. Have a wonderful weekend.
    xx,
    Vera

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  8. Thank you Kris. I loved looking at Mary's creations.

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  9. Kris I am so glad that you spot lighted Mary She is very inspiring! Beautiful work. :) Jo

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  10. What a great feature Kris...I loved all of Mary's pretty makeovers! Have a great weekend!

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  11. WOW! I am so impressed! Love all that furniture!. I need to get busy and paint some of mine. Just lovely.
    Blessings~

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  12. That's such a perfect name and so intriguing. I love the way you have photographed everything, your work is lovely, and fresh, and makes me dream of warm spring days.

    Jen

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  13. Beautiful work. Although I haven't been there in many years Montreal is one of my favorite cities. xo Laura

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  14. Mary is very talented indeed!! I love her painted projects...not only are they gorgeous, but she styles them to perfection!
    Mary Alice

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  15. How lovely to meet Mary today - she is so talented in what she does with those old pieces - as you are dear Kris!
    I'm totally in love with the pink dressing table and mirror - I would love to do something like that for my 3 granddaughters!
    I hope you're enjoying your weekend Kris.
    Hugs
    Shane

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  16. Oh so stunning, absolutely marvelous! The change that white paint does to any piece instantly gives that Swedish beauty to it! I am painting some furniture on my spring break next week!

    And I want to go to Montréal.....what a fabulous French Canadian family here....I always wondered what it would be like to be the mother of sons....just charming!

    And Kris my dear, thank you so much for coming to visit my surprise post. It sure felt good to post again after two months! I am excited about my book and yes, I am pretty bold when it comes to dreaming....I dream big but why not? This little life is too short, so grab the stars and shine. LOVE!

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  17. Hey Mary - my neighbor !!!
    So nice to see you here !
    xoxo

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  18. I always love seeing Mary's posts...she does some wonderfully inspiring work! Thank you for sharing with us!

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  19. I am a huge fan of Mary's works. She is amazingly talented!

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  20. Thnak you Kris for featuring this wonderful blogger, she's very talented.
    Kisses
    Alessandra

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  21. Mary is new to me. LOVE her work. Heading over to follow along. Thank you Kris for another great feature!!!

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