Back To Reality

Now that the Holiday Weekend is over it's back to reality... but I woke up this morning wishing I was back here

Thank you to all our troops who have or are currently serving!

Infuse Personality

Have you ever stared down your hallway and thought, "There must be something better I can do with this space"? Well turns out there is... a great way to infuse some personality into a blank hallway is to add some personal touches.  Black and white photos!!

Guests will love seeing a glimpse into the most memorable moments of your family's life and it's easy and affordable.  You don't have to have enough photos to do your entire wall ~ start small and as photos touch a place in your heart add them to your wall.  One of my favorite photos is a picture of my mom and my two aunts when there were little girls sitting with my grandmother. 

I prefer to use black frames with white or off white matte.  However, a way to infuse some excitement is to change the frame color... maybe Red??  I would keep the color of the frame consistent so the hallway has unity.  However, this is a place where asymmetry ROCKS!! Don't hang everything in perfect rows and columns ~ use different sizes of frames and hang them so they are becoming to the eye but not like they were meant for a straight jacket!! I also suggest laying the photos out on the floor to make sure you like the arrangement.  It beats putting several "accidental" holes in your wall... 
Also a black and white sketch or piece of art is always nice too.

 

See some shots of my hallway

 (I am hoping to capture some new photos this weekend to add to it!)

I want to eventually do floor to ceiling... I need to start snapping away!

SCARVES

Scarves, Scarves, and More Scarves....  I think I have an addiction.  These bad boys are not just for winter.  Everywhere you go you see scarves and what better way to jazz up an otherwise boring outfit???

Here are some scarves I'm crushing on for summer...

image via http://www.bananarepublic.com/

images via http://www.zappos.com/

And here are some ideas on how to wear them via
http://www.love-handbag.com/

And as always... Keep your eyes open while thrifting.  You'll be amazed at what deals you can find on items such as vintage scarves.

 Make sure to check out http://eviesindependentliving.blogspot.com/ 
She just had a giveaway for a Maggy Rouff Scarf

Facebook

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Hope everyone has a wonderful Monday!

Office Makeover

Ever since I was a little girl I have been decorating.  My parents would come home from work and I would have completely rearranged my room.  I seriously think we painted it once every two years... pink to yellow back to pink and then finally when I got my "Big Girl Room" pale green walls and a sky blue ceiling.  I LOVED THAT ROOM!! Fun and Cheery!

The reason I am mentioning all this now is that last night after work I had an idea...  One that I'm sure my husband was thrilled to hear (yeah right!)  My idea was to merge our offices to one room and devote the second bedroom to a true guest room.  I know you are thinking, duh, why didn't you do that in the first place.  But I'm telling you, moving in with someone and trying to merge your two lives together takes a while.  It's all about give and take.

So last night we moved furniture!! A chair into the guest room and my desk into the office.  It's not as easy as that.  Of course now I get to come up with a design scheme for the office that is a mix between feminine and masculine.  And I think I've got it!

First, I'm going to paint the walls a high gloss white.  The ceiling will be the same color as our guest bath right across the hall... Gobi Desert. 

image via http://www.housebeautiful.com/

I also found this amazing fabric that I'm going to use and make a cornice board (we have curtains in every other room in the house... I need to jazz something up!) 

image via Mary Mac

I bought a vintage chandelier last year to hang in the master... It didn't work there so I'm thinking of slapping some high gloss white paint on it and using it in the new office.

For a floor covering we are going to use the cowhide that is currently in the office.  Going to lay it out at an angle to give the room a little pizazz...

image via http://www.westelm.com/

The artwork is going to be tricky... Our current office also serves as my husband's "Man Cave."  Yes, I said Man Cave.  Every man deserves one room that is his and free from our decorating style. While I'm joining this cave I don't want to take it over. That means I'm stuck with battlefield prints, fraternity photos, and a mounted deer head.   I can handle the photos and I have to admit I really like Henry (the deer).  He adds character and goes along with the color scheme, so why not?

Summer Read

With the long weekend on the horizon I wanted to mention the best book I just finished reading.

Quick, easy, and interesting...

Definitely check it out!

image via Amazon



Lucite Candles

Anyone remember my Ebay post a few weeks ago when I featured the lucite candles with gold flecks???

Got 'Em!! They are AMAZING in this gold candlestick.... Too FUN!!

They are for decoration only... do not actually burn. 

Yes... someone actually tried to light them and that person is going to remain unnamed...  You know who you are.  ;)

DIY MAKEOVER

Our fixer upper 50's era house has a lot of charm but when we purchased the home you had to look super hard past the state of the home to see that charm.  The floors weren't caving in by any means but the house was in desperate need of a makeover.  You've seen the before and after of the kitchen (a major undertaking) so today I wanted to share a makeover that can be done in a weekend... a bookshelf.  

This particular bookshelf is at the end of our hallway so it better look amazing because we are going to be looking at it about a hundred times a day.  Originally it was stained brown and to begin you have to prime the stained wood before you can paint.  If you do not prime the wood, the paint will not adhere properly and in time will begin to peel off. My bookshelf was adjustable to I took out all of the shelves and started priming... I even primed the adjustable hooks so they would blend in.  Once you have primed you can paint the shelves and case any color you dream of.  I debated on whether to paint the back of the case a contrasting color but I decided not to since I wanted my collection of Murano glass to POP!!  Another idea would be to install a fabric on the back of the case... Maybe burlap or linen.  I even considered putting mirror on the back but let's be realistic... who wants to clean that?!?!?

Check out the before and after....

(OK, Ellie loves the camera! I swear I didn't set this up... she noticed me taking pictures and sat right down and gave me that look.  She was born to be a star ~ or at least she thinks so!)

Ebay Finds

Last week I purchased matching Vintage earrings and necklace off Ebay.  I wore the earrings to work yesterday and got TONS of compliments.  To tell you the truth I was a little worried the set looked like something a three year old would have made with pasta.  But turns out the buy was a success!

This is a picture of the set I purchased:

Vintage Jewelry currently on Ebay

Check it out!

Rhinestone Brooch

Bidding starting at $5.99

Yellow Enamel Clip-on Earrings

Bidding starts at $4.99

Dogwood Earrings (brooch included)

Bidding starts at $39.99

Orange and Peach Earbobs (Love that word... Reminds me of my grandmother.  She always used that word!)

Bidding starts at $14.99

Green and Clear Rhinestone Earrings

Bidding starts at $7.99

Hope everyone has a great weekend!! I'm off to shop for fabric!  See ya~

images via ebay

Mantels

All my life I have thought that symmetry and mantels go hand in hand... that is until a few years ago when my tastes began to evolve and I found that asymmetry on a mantle can be killer!  Now, don't get me wrong, I love symmetry in certain places.  For instance I like a pair of lamps on either side of a sofa or bed.  The end tables can be different but I want those lamps to match.  (You can always throw a fun lamp in somewhere else in the room for a little drama... ex. one FUN lamp on a console or chest.)

But back to mantels... always start with a killer piece of art or a mirror as a focal point (see below) and build your mantle around that.

This is a piece by a local artist, Kim Covington.  My husband and I both LOVE it! And that is important... always start with something you love when designing.

Next are accessories...

Love these mod vases and they will give the mantel height to balance out the painting

Dried grapevine... cool for texture and I love organic pieces

Hand thrown pot with fishscale flowers... I'll need this for height on the right side.

Put it all together and Wah Lah! A funky mantle!

(When we moved in to our house we painted the inside of the fireplace black to hide the soot marks.  Great idea to keep in mind. You need a certain type of paint to do this and we had the guys who cleaned our chimmney do it.)

Afternoon Delight

We were finishing up our flower pots for the deck last night and out of the corner of my eye I saw something move.... Two little lizards on a sunny day, not a care in the world.

We thought the boy lizard had kicked the bucket... turns out he was just taking a little siesta!

images via Penn

Cocoa & Hearts

Made by Girl is a blog that I love to check out and while browsing over the weekend I saw that she has started selling her art online... AMAZING pieces! Love her pretty pastel colors.

Check out more pieces at Cocoa & Hearts website:  http://www.cocoaandhearts.com/

images via Cocoa & Hearts

Happy Belated Cinco de Mayo

Family, Fajitas, Margaritas, and Corona... all you need for a little celebration!