Thought I’d share a little project I just finished up for a pre-teen client. She’s moving into what used to be a guest bedroom and needed a few fun pieces to make it her own. She picked the blue suzani fabric to be the inspiration.
I must say, I’m pretty pleased with how it all came together. I hope she loves the pillows and bulletin board in her new room!
I’m back at the sewing machine these days – there are tons of stitches in my future. I’m still plugging away at my list, and after finishing the porch swing, I’m on to curtains for the dining room and curtains and pillows for the living room.
I love the fabric for the dining room curtains, but I’m particularly excited about my plans for the living room. You may remember from last fall that I’m working on a blue scheme using our existing blue chairs as a starting point. Now that we have a fabulous painting, new couch and a little extra floor space, it’s time to start to add the finishing touches. Here’s my updated plan:
I just love the fabric scheme:
Hopefully in a few weeks we’ll have curtains, pillows and a reupholstered ottoman… The lighting will have to wait until our wallet has recovered.
It’s been a long time without a post for us! Sorry for the break, but we’ve slowed things down a bit, and for now, I’m planning to only post when I’ve completed a project around our house. On that note, I’m happy to report that I’ve finally finished the pillows for our front porch swing! I’m so glad to have them in place while there is still some summer left to enjoy them – here they are:
I went with different fabrics on the front and back of the pillows so that I have 2 schemes to choose from, depending on my mood. Both options have a the same red floral fabric and a stripe (all the fabrics are from Williams and Sherrill, by the way). In the first option I pieced the stripe fabric for a pinwheel effect. I finished the pillows off today, so I plan to head to the swing after the kids’ bedtime tonight for a little relaxing. I hope you are finding time to relax this summer, too!
Coming up with a new look for a room is really my favorite part of the decorating process. I could spend all day fiddling around with different ideas for the rooms in our house. I’ve been doing a lot of projects lately, so I decided to take a little break and have some fun with a new look for our family room. It all really started when Nathan broke the only lamp in the room, and before I replace it, I need to decide where I’m going with the room. So here’s my new vision:
This is our existing couch, and I made faux roman shades for the windows out of this Schumacher fabric a couple of years ago.
The grasscloth wallpaper, lighting, and basket coffee table would be new. I’m also toying with a darker color for the wallcovering – maybe a deep brown as an accent behind the couch:
Either way, I think I’ve nailed down the lighting, and if it’s attached to the wall and ceiling it will be harder to break, right?
Last week I showed you our painted built-in bookshelves in our new house. Phase II of the built-in transformation was to set up the small back shelves with our bar ware. Phase I was painting them Indigo Batik.
We were eager to figure out a way to replicate our bar closet from our old house that we loved so much. The open shelves and built-in cabinet below offer the perfect arrangement for pretty glasses on display and functional pieces stashed away.
We added individual lights beneath each of the wooden shelves to get the same dramatic effect we had from the overhead lights that poured through the glass shelving in the old house. And, obviously this time we went with paint instead of wall paper.
Have a safe and happy holiday weekend to those of you in the U.S. celebrating Memorial Day. Cheers!
Two cushions down! After I finished the cushion for the new window bench in the guest room, I moved right on to the cushion for the front porch swing.
Oh, and the new outdoor rug is in place! I love the navy cushion against the taupe rug and stucco.
Now I just need to get motivated to whip up the pillows, but I’m a little sewn-out at the moment… I’ll get to it soon!
Just a quick post since things are still a bit crazy around the new house. We tackled the den this weekend, which is where we’ll likely spend most of our evenings. The main feature is the painted built-in bookshelves.
The backs were painted a rich red. This isn’t really a fair before and after, since the photo below was taken before we bought the house. I completely forgot to snap a shot of the space either empty or with our own furniture.
Once I decided I wanted a dark blue for the bookshelves, I simply snagged Rachel’s “Indigo Batik” by Sherwin Williams that she used in Nathan’s nursery and ran with it. I’m super-excited about the results!
Next week, I’ll show you the back wall where we built our bar!
The second coat of stain went on our floors this morning and boy does it smell terrible in here! At least the view from our family room looks great (minus a few little finger prints on the french door).
I’m hoping we can move back into the living and dining rooms tomorrow, because right now our family room is also the storage room. We’re a little cramped.
It’s a small price to pay for shiny new floors and radiator free rooms. Time to head back outside for more fresh air!
I love the Montauk Nest Chair* by West Elm. I have two in mind for our new living room, though my co-designer/husband says, “No way!” I think he’s hung up on the fact that they are outdoor chairs; I might agree after seeing them in person. But until he, or they, prove me wrong I say, “What’s wrong with bringing an outdoor chair indoors?” If the shoe fits…
What do you think? Have you seen these up close? Am I crazy? I really like the washed grey color and I would put more of an “indoor” upholstered cushion on the seats. They look so lounge-y without being heavy or stuffy.
I’m not giving up…
*it appears the chair isn’t available on the website; I originally saw it in the catalog
One of the reasons we decided to go ahead with our impromptu office project is that we really need a proper guest bedroom. Today when we have guests, Violet sleeps on an air mattress in our room and our guests use her bedroom. It works, but it’s not ideal, and it doesn’t allow for our whole family to visit at the same time. So, the plan is to turn the office into a guest bedroom with all of the office and sewing supplies stashed neatly away when guests are in town. The cabinetry is a huge first step, but we still need a few other things, like a bed and some window coverings. Here’s my master plan for the room:
I’ll add a few other finishing touches along the way, I’m sure, but this is the plan for now!
I’m back home after a quick visit to my parents’ house. Despite my minor injury, I managed to get a few things done. I’ve been working on a project that wasn’t planned for this year but came up as part of our plan to remove the radiators. Here’s what I’ve been up to:
I made a cushion and pillow for our new window bench in the office. Instead of repairing the floors under the old radiator, we decided to cover them up with some much needed storage. Here’s what our office used to look like (see the radiator under the window):
Here’s what it looks like now:
A friend of ours is a carpenter, and he built these custom cabinets for us. The drawers under the bench are file cabinets for all of our papers, and the closets are a combination of shelves and hanging space.
I still have a few more projects planned for the space. I’d like to make 2 more pillows for the bench and an inverted box pleat valence for the window. These will have to wait until I’ve finished sewing cushions for the front porch swing and curtains for the dining room, especially since I already have the fabric for both of these projects.
This week I’m on a little working vacation. Violet has a break from preschool for Easter, so I hit the road with the kids to visit my parents and brought a few sewing projects with me. The plan is to take advantage of some help with the kids and get a few things done. I made good progress early in our visit – here’s a peek of what I’ve been workin on:
Then yesterday I ran into a little snag. Actually, I ran into my finger with the rotary cutter I was using to cut fabric. I spent a good part of the afternoon at the emergency care center here having my finger repaired – not part of the plan. The good news was that the doctor thought the cut was the perfect candidate for glue, so I avoided stitches (phew!). Now I’m pretty much back to normal, just need to get motivated to start cutting again… With any luck I will have a fully completed project to share in a few days!
It’s been a little while since I’ve talked about my “list“… Remember the list I shared in January? The idea was to complete my top 25 home projects before 2012, and I hoped by putting it out here on our blog that it would increase my chances of following through. So, in the interest of holding myself accountable, I thought I’d give a little update. Here’s my list:
Hmm, a quarter of the year has gone by… At first glance, I’m not looking too great. The good news – in a couple of weeks I can check off a big project, #4.
The radiators in the living room and dining room are gone, and taking them out made a huge difference. The rooms seem much bigger and less cluttered. The walls are repaired and repainted, and I picked a local company to repair and refinish the floors after getting a couple of quotes. I’ve also started on a few other projects (like #18) and should be crossing more things off my list in the next month. The truth is, I’ve been distracted by a project that came up when we took out the radiators. It’s a fairly big project that wasn’t on the list, but I’m excited to share the details after I wrap up a few loose ends. So, check back for the reveal of my unlisted project, and I promise to keep working on the list!
I have always loved the artwork of Jill Bliss. It’s light, whimsical, and dreamy and is so detailed you can find so many hidden treasures in each piece. I recently realized, in addition to her paper goods and small prints, that she has created some larger paintings and it got me thinking that this might be a fun direction for my guest room.
{ images from jillbliss.com }
It could bring in a lot of great colors to my otherwise monochromatic room, which is something I’ve been looking for. What do you all think of her style?
These are some other inspiring images from her web site. I’m in love with those birds, the attention to detail, and colors. I just need to pull the trigger and finally get something up on my walls!
{ all images from jillbliss.com }
Thanks to everyone who chimed in on my front porch ideas! I made a decision and pulled the trigger yesterday – the rugs are on their way, and I have several yards of fabric to keep me busy for a while. I didn’t go with any of the three options I was thinking about. I came up with a fourth with my (and your) favorites from each of the other schemes:
I couldn’t give up the graphic navy fabric in option 1 or the pop of red from option 2, and I agreed with everyone that the diamond rug was the way to go. So, stayed tuned for front porch progress and thanks again for the input!
Last fall our front porch got a little makeover. Thanks to a rickety railing, our porch went from this:
to this:
We replaced the deteriorating iron railing with white painted wood, and while we were at it, we changed the door from bright green to a soft blue.
Now I just need to take down the winter wreath and get our porch ready for spring! I’d like to add 2 outdoor rugs, one under the table and chairs on the left and one under the porch swing on the right. I’m also planning to make a new cushion and pillows for the swing to freshen it up a little bit.
I’ve come up with three rug and fabric combinations that I really like, but I’m having trouble pulling the trigger on one of them.
I’m leaning towards option 2 paired with white impatiens and red geraniums… What would you choose?
I’ve shared most of Nathan’s room with you already, but I’ve never shown my favorite pieces in the nursery – the ones that family and friends have made for the little guy. Right now, these special pieces are on the comfortable if not stylish rocking chair, but I can just picture Nathan snuggling with both of these in his bed when he’s a little bigger.
My mom designed and made the quilt that pulls the whole color scheme for the room together. It is so soft and cozy – I’ve used it myself on some long nights spent in the nursery. I know Nathan will love his comfy quilt someday soon!
Juliet made the little grey pillow, including stamping a cool design using vintage letterpress blocks. The colors are perfect – I just love it! Nathan’s lucky to have treasures from these talented ladies in his room!
I have been sewing like crazy for the past couple of weekends and all this week during nap time, and I’ve finally crossed the next item off my list!
All seven pillows (is that overkill?) on the day bed in Nathan’s room are complete. Three of the pillows have different fabrics on the front and back, so I can change the look when the mood strikes. Right now the day bed looks like this:
But it can also look like this:
or this:
or this:
Which look would you choose? I better get a move on with my list, or I will not be done by the end of the year! On to a rug…
I’m not quite ready to give up on wool and cashmere for the year, despite the fact that it’s approaching 70-something today in Virginia. It’s still February and I’m holding my ground.
So I thought I’d share these wool and cashmere feathers I’ve had my eye on — it started with the soft feathery cashmere wreaths at least a year ago. I’m equally enamored with these gussied-up ducks!
Kirsten Schueler designs these beautifully “green” creations using felted wool and cashmere sweaters. I recently chose a striped elephant, like the one above, for a friend with a baby on the way.
You can see more of Kirsten’s delightful work at Hershey Is My Baby on Etsy.
Since we changed rooms around in our house a year ago, before James was born, the guest room has been lacking some much needed art. We have absolutely nothing on the walls and it’s feeling quite bare! My first priority is to find something to go above the bed.
It’s hard to tell in this photo, but the walls are a pale yellow, the bedding is a golden yellow and tan, and most of the furniture is black – so I could definitely use a pop of color in here. Any suggestions?? This is the bathroom off to the left of the bed. The walls are a deep eggplant and white. I tend to go too matchy-matchy, so I’d like a bold choice for this space.
I’d love your suggestions of artists to check out or color themes you think would work well. I’m even open to creating the piece myself if I find some inspiration that is out of budget. The possibilities are endless right now…so send in your much appreciated advice!
