Let Your Fingers Do The Pushing

I recently had the opportunity to help a sweet woman redesign the look of her living room. When we first met we discussed her concerns and desires. One concern was the room arrangement. I told her that I had some ideas and that it would be best if we measured everything first and then I would get back to her. We carefully measured the room as well as each of the larger pieces of furniture.
At home I took out my trusty graph paper and measured one square for each six inches of furniture and room footage. After cutting out the diagrams of the major pieces of furniture I began to arrange the room. It was fun---like playing house! It was much more fun moving items on paper than it would have been to move large furniture pieces in a small room.There are several computer sites that offer room arranging programs too but I find it very rewarding doing it the old fashion way. I came up with four different room designs. When we met again she picked the design she liked best and we were able to quickly move the furniture into an arrangement she had never tried in the several years she had lived there. She was thrilled with the new look and I was happy that I had let my fingers do the pushing instead of my back.

***Don't forget to enter for the Belvedere Design giveaway on the previous post.

Breaking In

Okay, I really intended to post this a bit earlier, but we had a little emergency trip to the doctor for xrays. My youngest has "a bit" of a broken arm. Luckily it's not too serious (he didn't even want to go to the doctor) and will only need 3 weeks to heal.

Now onto another kind of break.

When deciding to go with a bold color in a room, like I did with the aqua headboard, sometimes you need to do it in steps---break yourself into the idea. Bring in a few pops of the color with pillows and other accessories. Try painting something small first. I painted this frame and then lived with it in the room to make sure that I loved the color enough. Once I'd done those baby steps it wasn't hard to take the giant leap. And now I'm so glad I did. The bold color was just was what this guest room needed!

***Don't Forget***
You have until midnight(MST) tonight to enter the giveaway!

Frayed At The Ends

Since burlap has become one of my favorite designer fabrics of late, I've bought several yards, several times, cut by several fabric store ladies. But recently one fabric worker performed

burlap magic

right before my eyes and I just had to share!
If you want a perfectly straight edge on your burlap, you start by snipping the end with scissors. Then you take one thread and begin to pull. The burlap will begin to gather. Keep pulling the string with one hand and push the gathered section with your other hand until the pulled string has reached the opposite end of the fabric. Straighten out the gathers and you'll notice a perfect line which is now a guide for cutting the burlap. Once cut, if you want a perfectly frayed edge, just continue to pull threads until you achieve the frayed length you desire. That's how I made my wide burlap table runner for my outdoor table. I added some cute tablecloth weights so the table will always stay perfectly dressed.

The Power of Paint

One of the first steps into turning a house or a newly rented apartment into a home is to paint, paint, paint (if your landlord permits). I am constantly amazed at the transforming power of paint.
Subtle changes in color are nice. Painting over baby blue walls with a grayish green can make the room feel much more sophisticated. When choosing paint colors I like to choose colors that are a bit "muddy" meaning that they have a few drops of black to tone down the color and make it appear to be a combination of a couple of colors instead of one saturated color.
Even taking a room that already has a color and painting it a crisp bright white can make it feel so clean and fresh.
Bright white is always a good paint choice, much better than builder beige that can appear dull and dirty.I'm often asked which paint finishes I use. I prefer a satin finish for walls, a flat finish for ceilings, and a semi-gloss for trim.
The best painting advice I can give is to invest a little money into a good paint brush. I prefer the small handles because they fit so nicely in my hand. I also choose an angled tip. With a good brush and a steady hand you can do a great job painting a clean, crisp ceiling line as well as "cutting in" all the other areas (Cutting in is the process of painting the edges of walls and ceilings, around baseboards and door & window trim. The large wall areas not cut-in are then painted with a roller or paint brush) and you won't need to use much of the blue painters tape.
If you want color without a big commitment, consider painting just one or two accent walls. This is a great way to go with a bold color without saturating the room and making it feel dark and overwhelming.
FYI---I recognize that everyone is really busy during the summer months, so I'll be posting only on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for a while, with occasional bonus posts. I know you've got better summer activities to do than reading my blog. Now go, enjoy the sun!

Cheap Trick

I had so much fun last week helping my daughter and son-in-law set up their new home. We worked really hard, cleaning, painting, moving, decorating and repurposing, but the results were definitely worth all the hard work.
Here's a quick repurposing item. They had two of these functional carts. As you can see, they didn't match. I gave them a quick and easy upgrade. All that was required was an extra set of curtains, a supply of upholstery tacks, a hammer, and the willing and helpful hands of my son-in-law.
We simply placed the carts side by side. Then I folded the curtains to the desired length and held them in place while my son-in-law hammered in the tacks to secure the curtains. Topped with a beautiful tray and some decorations, those functional carts become

a pretty buffet table

with plenty of storage that's now hidden from view.

Knob Snob

I've been searching through my stash of knobs. I like to buy interesting knobs when I find them at thrift stores, and when they're on sale or clearance at craft and hardware stores. Knobs can be pricey, that's why I'm always on the lookout for good deals.
Changing knobs, and other hardware, is the easiest way to update a piece of furniture or the cabinets in your home. I always advise people to change out their knobs and pulls to give their home a more up-to-date look. Even if you can't afford to buy new hardware, you can afford a can of spray paint. All you need to do is take off your old hardware and give it a really good cleaning. Apply a coat of good primer. When it's dry, apply a couple of coats of one of the metallic finish spray paints. You'll be amazed at how different your cabinets look with updated hardware.
I like to change the hardware on my furniture too, to give it a bit more character.
I've changed the knobs on my antique sideboard.I put an over-sized knob on my entry table.I changed the hardware on the armoire in my bedroom from this:(Seriously, how can you pull open a big ol' door using that little thing)
To this:Today I changed out the knobs on a dresser in the guest room that belonged to my grandmother. Doesn't it look pretty sitting in front of those gray walls. Am I going to paint it? Not on your life! As much as I love painted furniture, I want this piece to look close to what it did when my grandmother used it. Years ago, when this dresser was in our master bedroom, I loved the look of the white porcelain knobs. My decor, at the time, was a little bit country. Now I want to give the dresser knobs that are more classic and traditional.

Lucky for me, I found a bag of antique glass knobs.
These are the real deal, not reproductions. A little bit of work and few minutes later,
and grandma's dresser looks so much better! Ahh, for the love of knobs!

Small Room, Small Touches

I love a linen closet full of pretty, white towels! It makes me smile every time I open the closet door. However, I don't really enjoy having white towels adorning my towel rods. Because my bathroom colors are very neutral, I like to bring in an accent color using towels. I change the towel color depending on the season, month, or my mood. For January I had an aqua towel with a brown towels along with a little aqua colored snowflake in the windowsill. I use those same brown towels during the fall months with along with deep red towels. The red towels work for Christmas and Valentine's day too. I don't need a bunch of different colored towels, just a few basic colors that can be mixed together for different combination's of color.
If you don't want to change your towels, then change the accessory that sits on the counter or shelf. Try tying a pretty seasonal ribbon around a towel or accessory. Look! I even hung a few Valentine's hearts on the shower curtain using fancy paper clips. At Christmas time I do this same thing with jingle bells.
You may think this is a bit odd, but I think that the bathroom is the one room where you have to sit for a while during your busy day, so why not change the decorations in it, the way you do the more public places in your home? Go ahead! Freshen things up, make your bathroom a pretty place, and have fun decorating it just as you do other rooms in your home.

Candlelight and Romance

Nothing creates the feel of romance more than candlelight. Candles are an easy way to decorate for Valentine's day.
But I am here to admit that I rarely light my candles. (GASP!!!)Sure, if I know I'm going to stay in the same room as the burning candles, I light them up. And we have a tradition of having lit candles every Sunday on our dinner table. But on a normal day, or evening, the only candle you'll find burning in my house is the scented one on the kitchen stove.That's why electric candles make me so happy. In the morning I can flip the switch on, and enjoy the "candle light" without the fear of my home catching on fire.I know there are designers and candle purists out there who would say that the glow looks fake and it's not the same as the real thing. Hey! Since when do we have to listen to the "experts" when decorating our home?!!?
I say if fake candles, fake plants, fake bricks, fake eyelashes, fake whatever, makes you happy, then

ENJOY it! EMBRACE it! CELEBRATE it!

Being happy with your home depends on YOU,
not on any so called "expert".Now, I will get off my soapbox
and sit and enjoy the glow of my fake candlelight.

You've Been Framed!

I love my foyer table and mirror. I'm so proud of the way I was able to transform them. I'm happy that they look so good together. But, there has always been one little thing that has bothered me. The mirror is just not the right dimension for the table. The balance between the two is off, large table, small mirror.I've managed to create balance by placing large objects like plants and candles on each side of the mirror. Yet, it still seemed like it needed a bit more.
The other day as I sat contemplating my design dilemma, it occurred to me that the solution was right in front of my face.A little tweaking and I had my solution. I love the layers and balance, as well as the repetition of design from across the room. I even like the look of the hanging wire. It helps to tie the two frames together.

Could there be a solution to your design dilemma
right in front of you?