Christmas Decorations= Kryptonite. »

I don’t often decorate for the holidays because I don’t enjoy clutter around the house, and I don’t have much storage. But when Christmas rolls around, I just can’t help it. It is tradition for me to buy cart-loads of decorations on the day after Christmas, then store them away. The following Christmas becomes an exploration and rediscovery of all the things I purchased and forgot about.

This year I decided to work the orange into the holiday decorating as well. I think orange looks GREAT with the tree. I also snagged some feather angel wings from Pier1, and I LOVE how they look on the tree. I’ll definitely buy more when they go on sale after Christmas.

My husband and I like to go to the same Christmas lot every year and go to the discount section. There we find a funny-looking, kinda scrawny, really short, and loveable tree. We love having a reject tree fulfill it’s Christmas Wish in our home.

I also got some tree branches with little flecks of fake snow on them, and tied them to our new chandelier using orange vintage-looking ribbon. I’m going to so sad when it’s time to take this off!

Next year’s additons that I’ll be looking for after Christmas this year: tinsel, mercury glass pinecones, and a pointed tree-skirt.

Condo Chronicles: Picture Wall »

My hallway was looking pretty boring (as most hallways do) and my friend Shannon pointed out that we didn’t have any pictures of us hanging in the house. (Anybody else not like pictures of yourself?) So I decided to make a picture wall at the end of our itty bitty hall.

I took frames that I already had, (you know it’s not like me to spend money on something like this when I’ve got scraps that can be repurposed), and spray-painted a couple to help with the color palette. The frames are all different in size and color, don’t match up symmetrically, and have no rhyme or reason. Thrown together, free, and perfect.

Thanks for the instigating Shannon!

Condo Chronicles: The Guest Bedroom »

My extremely talented mother made me some gorgeous curtains for my much-neglected guest bedroom. This teeny-tiny room is home to a queen-sized bed, an adorable re-vamped vintage dresser, and every other posession I own that I’m not quite sure what to do with. Well, her beautiful drapes have left me with no option: I must do them justice and finish the room. I’m calling it my flea-market bedroom, because the pieces in the room are rare, well-loved and unique!

Also, see the pillows my mom whipped up with some scrap fabric I had, and a burlap pillow I made to compliment them.

Now, I need to pick a paint color and a finish. I, of course, cannot just paint a solid wall color because, well, it’s just not how I work. I like too many colors, too many patterns, and to paint a solid color would put me to sleep. I was a smart and coservative homeowner with my cremes and beiges in the other rooms, but with a guest bedroom, it’s time to have a little fun. Below are some swatch ideas, and I’ll be looking for pattern ideas. Hint: I think a painted headboard is in store.

Notice my colors aren’t too vibrant - I’ll be stuffing that room chock full of colors and patterns, and I don’t need the walls competing.

Images from Benjamin Moore’s Virtual Fan Deck

Bedside Reminders »

Just in case we forget what side of the bed we sleep on…

Condo Chronicle: Living Room Makeover »

Still in dire need of small decorative items, but the transformation is nearly complete. Here are the before and after pictures of the living room in our new condo.

Highlights:

• Walls painted a warm beige color (Lady Finger) by Benjamin Moore. Ceiling painted slightly darker for a cozy feeling
• New dark chocolate hardwood floors
• New ceiling fan with dark blades to match the flooring, brushed metal finish on the lights
• Brushed metal star lanterns hung from the ceiling
• New sofa from Basset Furniture
• Refinished vintage dresser with drawers removed as TV bench
• Mounted TV
• Velour drapes from Ikea
• Inner drapes: Coverlets from Target on curtain rings
• Moorish Tile rug from Pottery Barn
• Frames from Aaron Brother’s Penny Sale, with patterned scrapbook paper

Teaching an Old Dresser New Tricks »

The Scoop:

• bought this dresser at a garage sale for $30 (thanks Clare!)
• sanded down all of the paint
• the wood was a little too dry and spotty to stain, so I colorwashed the piece with latex paint and water.
• sealed the paint, and protected the wood with varnish
• removed the drawers
• had MDF cut at home depot ($7 total) into two shelves for the cable box, dvd player, etc.
• covered the MDF with calico fabric from JoAnn’s
• Cut holes in the back of the dresser to feed the cables to the electrical outlet
• Voila! Our new TV Bench

before

after

Organized, At LAST! »

My friend and neighbor Carson dreamed up an uber-organized Master bedroom closet. When I saw his, I had to have it. So, together we created this beautifully organized, less stress in the morning, fully functional master bedroom closet. See the before and afters below.

My problem with closets has always been shoes. In one house, all of our shoes were under the bed(disorganized disaster). In another house, the shoes were in shoe and sweater organizers in the hall closet (which left no room for jackets and sports equipment). FINALLY, my shoes lie showcased, undisturbed, and in perfect condition in the closet. Thank you Carson!!

Before

  

After

 

Highlights:

• All Materials were purchased at Lowe’s for under $300, shelves were cut to desired measurement at the store, so no sawing was invovled
• Install took only 2 hours
• My shoes don’t lose shape from being piled on top of each other
• Potential homebuyers won’t see a “small” walk-in closet, but a “highly organized and efficient” closet
• I can breathe easier with that area of my life ORGANIZED!

Condo Chronicle: Keep it Relevant »

A hand-me-down and a birthday present from my friend Shannon inspired this little burst of color in the master bathroom. It’s hard to find the right thing to accent a bathroom, but if you keep it relevant, it will make sense and look great. This black tray was a hand-me-down from a friend. It would look great in the bathroom holding candles or jewelry, but what you really need in the bathroom near the sink is handtowels. The little dish to the left was the lid to this gorgeous vase, and I use it to store my wedding ring and watch while I’m getting ready for the day (or painting, always painting…). This relevant addition to the room has form AND function - brings color into the room and holds what you need most near the kitchen sink.

For a house on the market, this would be a great way to stage the bathroom. Show a potential buyer that it would be comfortable and easy to be organized and efficient in this room.

Find this adorable black and white vase at pottery barn.

Condo Chronicle: Walls »

A long two weeks away from the computer- I have moved into the new condo and have had minimal internet. But, without the temptation of internet, I was able to get a few things done. I painted my bedroom in with big green panels, as you can see below. I measured 4″ away from all corners to create these even and modern wall panels. My sister Shannon is a painter and had gotten this green color as a mistake from Benjamin Moore. So she gave it to me, and it cost me nothing to paint this room. Pretty convenient recycling!

After telling my Shannon about how I painted these panels, she was laughing and told me she had done the exact same thing in her studio. This is definitely not the first time we have been in sync like this. The brown colored walls with the bulletin board above are the pictures from her studio.