The DIY Diaries

2011 Year in Cities

2012-01-05T14:31:00.001-06:00

Hi kids!

Hope everyone had a great set of holidays. Ours were quite lovely – low key and relaxing. I have done this ‘Year In Cities’ post for a few years now- you can see 2010 here and 2007 here. Not quite sure what happened to ‘08 or ‘09, but those were fun years too! Hee.

This was a pretty tough year for travel due to everything that happened with my accident in February. We had to put a few things on hold, like our trip to Costa Rica in May. Major bummer, but we still managed to squeeze quite a few trips in!

So from top to bottom, here is where I trotted in 2011:

January: Baton Rouge and New Orleans

February: Orlando, Florida and Steamboat, Colorado – home of the broken knee!

May: Chicago

July: Sarasota, FL

September: Dallas, Chicago

October: New York City

November: Nashville, New York City, St. Louis

December: Philadelphia, Atlanta

2012 has some very exciting things in store. Parts of January and February will be spent in Mexico, Florida and California. No complaints from me! Happy 2012 all.

Succulents, Then and Now

2011-10-05T10:38:00.001-05:00

Back in May, I purchased a pot of succulents from Kaw Valley Growers. With a sign like this, I couldn’t possibly say no.

Here is how said succulent looked back in May.

Here is how said succulent looks now, in October, nearly 5 months later.

I have barely watered him. Maybe three times throughout the whole season… plus rain.

I am hoping he’ll come inside and stay the winter with us.

What’s For Dinner?

2011-10-04T11:25:00.001-05:00

Hello dear readers! It’s been busy busy around these parts lately, with both husband and I traveling quite a bit for work. That doesn’t leave much time for the ways of DIY, but we’re managing to keep up with basic maintenance and yardwork at this point. What an accomplishment! ;-) As for me, I am mostly back on two legs after my second surgery, which makes it easier for me to do things around the homestead. I am beyond thankful for my recovery every day. I am keeping up with my physical therapy to get my leg stronger so I can be 100% back to normal in the near future.

One thing that we’ve been pretty steadfast about around here is cooking. Though this blog is not a cooking blog, cooking is one of my loves and I like to talk about it from time to time. It’s pretty amazing how therapeutic the kitchen can be. After as little as 30 minutes worth of work, you can have a masterpiece. I’m a pretty big planner, so I like to devote some time to meal planning each week. I get my inspiration from all over the internet, but my recipes mainly come from Pinterest, Relish (more on that later) and various websites. I will add that I am not a recipe follower by any sense of the word. I’ll read recipes until I find something that inspires me, and then I’ll usually modify or add ingredients based on what we have in the house. I try to make 1 grocery trip every 10 days or so, and we usually hit Costco once a month for some other essentials, especially high quality proteins.

That said, I am going to start posting weekly menus on here as often as I remember :) Without further ado, here is the first. Oh and I’ll also add that we are eating lower carb here, so you won’t see a lot of pasta/potatoes/rice etc in the plans.

Week of 10/3/11:

Sunday: Grilled lamb sirloin chops with rosemary and thyme, blue cheese chopped salad, roasted mushrooms

Monday: Braised short ribs (Costco ready made, very good), sauteed spinach and red cabbage, sauteed mushrooms

Tuesday: Herb rubbed chicken thighs with julienned zucchini (adapted from Annie’s Eats)

Wednesday: Grilled fish with kalamata olive butter, some kind of grilled vegetable

Thursday: no cooking, social commitments – meaning snackies for me

Friday: Pork chops with creamy green chili sauce, sauteed vegetables

The Great Wall Of Karrer

2011-09-06T16:32:00.001-05:00

Sewwwww, a few weeks ago at Costco, the Mister and I spied a deal on some pretty sweet wall stones. Similar boxes of stones at Lowe’s were selling for $75-$100 per box, and Costco had their stones for only $24.97 per box! We’d been wanting to zhuzh up a wall in our living room for awhile and the price was right for these stones. Hence, a project was born. Our friend Chris named it the Great Wall of Karrer! (That’s our last name… pronounced Karr.)

This project took about 15 hours, when all was said and done. I have no one else to thank but Mason for knocking this project out… he was a rockstar. I am still recovering from my surgery a few weeks ago, so I am not the best helper right now. :-/

Here’s how it all went down, in picture form!

The Before: (I think Denny took this pic, which explains the slight blurr…)

The After:

The During:

Step 1: Cover unused areas with rosin paper. Put up your moisture barrier. We used MDF. MDF is over 50% glue, so mold cannot grow on it. Cut the boards to size for your wall. Apply construction adhesive to the back and secure to the wall. Drill in to the studs for extra security. Make sure to measure and cut holes for any outlets.

Step 2: Apply a scratch coat of mortar to the wall. This will ensure that your stone veneers have something to grab on to when you put it up on the wall. Let the mortar dry overnight.

Closeup of mortar:

Step 3: Lay out all of your tiles or stones so that you know where everything will go. Vary the sizes so you don’t have 2 seams that line up.

Step 4: You’ll need to make some cuts to ensure everything fits on the wall. Snap a chalk line so you know where to cut each tile. Number each of your rows, and the last tile in the row. That way when you make your cuts, you’ll know where that tile belongs.

Step 6: Make your cuts.

Step 7: Mix up some mortar, and butter the back of each stone or tile. I love that phrase, butter the tile. Makes it sound so good. Secure each stone to the wall, starting at the bottom. Make sure that you’re applying your stones against a level surface, using a ledger board if needed. Our floor is a bit sloped, so we had to use the board.

All done!

Garage Sales for A Cause – Please Read!

2011-09-06T11:18:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday peeps! Feels like a Monday, but won’t that be great when Friday rolls along so quickly :) I love that about a holiday weekend, you get a long weekend and a short work week! Bonus.

Today I’m giving a quick PSA for one of my favorite causes in KC, Chain of Hope. Chain of Hope is an AWESOME organization that helps care for abused and neglected dogs in the urban core of KC. They provide food, shelter, and other essentials for dogs and other animals that are often left on chains with no way to access these basic necessities. I know… breaks my heart. Often times Chain of Hope will assume ownership of the dog if the owner allows it. If not, they try to educate the owners on the basic needs of their pets so they are properly cared for. Will you just look at this poor baby that needs someone to love him? Left out on a heavy chain in the freezing cold winter! What is with some people? Ugh I can’t deal.

There are two fantastic events coming up where you can help support COH!

Chain of Hope Garage Sale, September 23-24

Corporate Woods Employee Garage Sale, First Week of October

If you have stuff sitting around waiting to go to Goodwill, please consider donating it to Chain of Hope. Your donated stuff will go into the September sale and proceeds will help keep needy animals warm and fed this winter. Come on, you know you want to help a poor puppy in need!

Chain of Hope Garage Sale Drop Off Info: All donations can be dropped off to 8716 E. 79th Terr. Raytown, MO 64138. Drop off times are Monday September 12th from 4:30-8pm and Monday September 19th from 4:30-8pm. If needed, you can email garage sale coordinator Britney to coordinate, britneykaye11@yahoo.com.

Secondly, the employees of Corporate Woods hold a garage sale the first week in October. This year, they chose to give their proceeds to Chain of Hope… yippee! Visit Corporate Woods during the first week of October to scout for deals and support COH.

For more info on Chain of Hope, please visit their Facebook page or their website.

Dealing with Daily Deals

2011-09-02T10:37:00.001-05:00

A few days ago, I read a really good article on Mashable about the Daily Deals phenomenon. From a marketing perspective, daily deals seem to have completely overhauled the local advertising landscape. But is the market simply overcrowded? Are deals going away because there’s too much competition? I love me a good Groupon, Living Social deal or other, but sometimes they can get a tad, um, overwhelming.

I have had to start a running list to keep track of all of the deals I’ve bought. I may have a problem that requires a support group.

As consumers, we can choose from Deal Bug, Eversave, Muncharoo, PetSimply for our furry friends, Pick your Plum for craft supplies, and WeddingChannel/WeddingWire deals for wedding services, and literally hundreds more. Even Facebook wanted in on the Deals trend for awhile. According to the article I mentioned, they quietly sunsetted that program earlier this week, likely due to too much competition. For the most part, nearly any service you want from house cleaning to window washing can be purchased on a deal, if you wait long enough. Truth is, there are just a ton of deals to be had out there these days.

In a tough economy, is that so bad?

My main issue with all of these deals is that every single company wants to send you a daily email advertising what steals they have that day. Receiving that many emails is annoying. If you’re anything like me, you wake up and check your iPhone first thing, scrolling through emails for anything that catches your eye. This can be fun to an extent, but it gets pretty tired after awhile.

Enter a solution!

Instead of getting 1,204 emails every day with deals, I have simply bookmarked Deal Radar. This is a site that aggregates several of the top deal sites in the area. Currently, they monitor Groupon, Living Social, Eversave, Muncharoo, Blissmo, CouponMob, CrowdSavings, Everybody Buys, and PetSimply in Kansas City. They may work with even more sites in your area. All you have to do is go to their site, pick your city, and here’s what you see:

Pretty handy! Am I right or am I right!

Now, Deal Radar is not encompassing by all means. The deal sites have to pay to aggregate on Deal Radar, and some of them don’t want to do that. They’re missing a few that I’d like to see on there, such as the KC Star DealSaver. However, for the time being, it saves me from getting at least 7 emails a day from the deal sites themselves. And lucky for me, I’m a fan of a neat and tidy inbox.

All that said, there is one deal site that I’m happy to get emails from every morning, and that’s WUSLU. WUSLU is a newer deal service site that has a one-a-day décor deal. I found out about it through Thrifty Décor Chick and I am hooked. Their décor deals are really reasonably priced and shipping is always $5. They have everything ranging from light fixtures to baskets to frames to pillows. I just bought this super cute stand with cloche today:

I know, cute right?? I am thinking this will be so perfect for fall, I can see a little gourd having a cozy little home under there.

Happy Labor Day Weekend! We are cookin’ up a mighty fine project over here that I hope to share with you early next week!

Blog 2.0

2011-08-30T17:01:00.001-05:00

Hey-oh! I’m quite excited to post today since I have an upgraded and much improved bliggity blog! I’ve been thinking about a redesign for awhile, and finally pulled the trigger. I am so happy with how it turned out… it incorporates many of the colors I use in our home and it has a nice touch of modernism.

If you’re reading from a reader or feed, click here to come on over and take a look.

Thanks to Erin at Designer Blogs for all the help. Designer Blogs is a fantastic service if you’re looking for a blog makeover!

The Nest Magazine Goes Digital and Free!

2011-08-19T10:09:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite home mags has gone digital! (Yes, I may have been privy to this factoid before it went public ;-) Check out the new, free issue of The Nest Magazine here!

How To Tell If You’ve Been Pinned

2011-08-16T09:39:00.001-05:00

Pinterest is quickly becoming my new favorite site, if it’s not already. As a blogger, it’s fun to see if anyone has pinned photos from your blog to Pinterest as inspiration! Here’s how to find out:

1. Type the following link into your browser: http://pinterest.com/source/your-blog-name.com/

2. Change the highlighted text to the name of your blog, omitting any http or www.

3. Hit go! For example, mine is http://pinterest.com/source/diy-diaries.blogspot.com/

Then you can see what pins have been sourced from your blog!

The Beginnings of The Dining Room Transformation

2011-08-08T11:38:00.001-05:00

Hi folks! Hope everyone is doing great and having a fun summer. We have been ~~hard~~ kinda sorta at work on some projects around our abode, mainly the dining room. We still have some work left to go, but I wanted to show you some photos of our progress so far!

Let’s begin with the before photos. UGH is all I have to say. Though we love it so, our house is burdened with lots and lots of oak trim and cabinetry. All of this oak was definitely a candidate for a coat of paint to bring it from 1996 to 2011. I am happy to say that this was pretty much the LAST of the honey oak in our house… sayonara suckas!

Befores: (sorry for the old pics, I was pretty excited to get started on the transformation here so I didn’t take any fresh ‘before’ images.)

After… but still a ways to go with accessorizing, rugs etc…

I am a big fan of colors from the spice family, so we wanted to stay with that palette. The walls were painted in Midsummer Night by Benjamin Moore which is a beeeee-u-teee-ful brown black with a slight hint of grey. I was a little nervous about going so dark on the walls, but I am so glad we took the plunge. I am in luff with it. The woodwork was done in Aristocrat Ivory by Behr, which matches the woodwork in the rest of our house. We had the ivory color matched to Benjamin Moore’s Satin Impervo which is an oil based enamel. The finish is super smooth and has virtually no brushstrokes. The Impervo is a little spendy at about $70 per gallon, but the oil base is perfect for trimwork and cabinetry. The results are totally worth the cost.

Next up was the window. I adore the Suzani prints that are out there these days. The first fabric I found was from Calico Corners for (gulp) $85 a yard. Ouchie. I kept looking, and ended up finding something from Premier Prints that I liked even more than the ridiculously overpriced one from Calico for only $14 a yard. The window before:

And after:

Closeup of the fabric:

I had a seamstress make these panels for $15 each including a liner. The fabric was $14/yard and we needed 5 yards. Total on these panels was $114.

A view from the other side of the room, coming off the kitchen and living room.

From the entryway:

More to come when I get some other things on the shelves, a centerpiece, a rug, etc… the work is never done!

Peach Galette

2011-07-31T14:52:00.001-05:00

Hi folks! Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. It’s been scorching here in the Midwest, but we’ve managed to keep ourselves cool in one way or another. Even though turning on the oven in such heat is a cardinal sin, I decided to make a peach galette today as I had some peaches and a frozen pie crust that needed to be used up. Gotta love the inspiration that can be found on Pinterest these days… I saw this recipe for an easy blackberry pie and couldn’t take my eyes off of it. See what I mean?

{source}

This slab pie, or galette, can really be accomplished using any fruit you want. Well, any fruit that would normally be used in a pie.

The steps are pretty simple:

Step 1: Acknowledge your fear of baking and moreover your fear of making the perfect pie crust and purchase a store bought pie crust. Preheat your oven to 400.

Step 2: Tear off a piece of parchment paper. Put your dough on it. Use a rolling pin to roll out your crust to a rough 12” circle. In the event that your fear of baking is extreme and there is no rolling pin to be found, a wine/liquor bottle may be used.

Step 3: Throw a handful of almonds into your mini-cuisinart and give them a rough chop. Put them in the middle of your dough circle. This will absorb any wayward juice from your fruit and will add a subtle crunch to your galette.

Step 4: Mix your fruit of choice with a 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 heaping teaspoon of cornstarch.

Step 5: Put the fruit into the middle of your dough circle on top of the almonds, leaving about 3” of dough on all sides.

Step 6: Fold up the dough, pinching to secure. Beat one egg with a tablespoon of water and brush the egg mixture on the crust.

Step 7: Sprinkle crust with granulated or turbinado sugar.

You should have something resembling this:

Slide her into the oven (on a baking sheet) for 35 minutes. Keep an eye on the crust so it doesn’t get too brown. After 35 minutes:

I’m off to the store to get some vanilla ice cream.

4th of July Wreath

2011-06-20T09:22:00.001-05:00

I wanted to make a patriotic wreath for our front door after seeing a few inspiration photos on Pinterest:

Source

I had planned to make a version of the first wreath pictured with the chipboard stars, but Hobby Lobby didn’t have the supplies I needed. So, I improvised…

First I came across a set of die-cut paper to make pinwheels. The rest was easy… I picked up a wreath form and some yarn I think I had all that was needed.

I wrapped the wreath in the yarn thanks to inspiration found here.

Then I made the pinwheels, and used super glue to hold them together. The pinwheels came with little tacks to secure them, so I just poked the pins into the styrofoam wreath form, and secured with a bit more superglue. The pins could easily be embellished with some cute buttons too. :)

A piece of burgundy satin ribbon around the top completed the project.

Voila!

Oh and I may have made these for Father’s day too. They were entirely too much fun.

The Legend Of The Bedazzled Cane

2011-06-10T12:40:00.001-05:00

This is the story of how a plain jane cane became a grand dame.

***

This past winter, I donned some skis.

I took a bad spill and broke my knee.

A few months later, I tried to walk.

Much to my chagrin, I did not rock.

“A cane is needed!” proclaimed my doc.

To CVS I go, to peruse their stock.

Most of what I found was quite ho-hum.

The selection they had was neither sparkly nor fun.

What’s a girl to do with a non-sassy cane?

It must be bedazzled, if it’s gonna have game.

I gathered my pennies and hopped in my ride…

I knew some glitz would improve my stride.

With 9 bags of gems and adhesive in my grip -

I knew that this cane was about to get hip.

I toiled and glued, and glued some more,

There were a few times I had to return to the store.

3 hours later, with a great sense of pride,

The sparkle of this cane could not be denied!

The moral of the story, just happens to be

When life hands you lemons, make lemonade with glee!

Before:

After:

In Bloom

2011-06-05T16:55:00.001-05:00

There’s lots of color in our yard right now so I thought I’d share some pictures. I loooooooooove having flowers in bloom, it makes things so cheerful and happy! It’s the simple things, right?

Starting on the south side of the house, we have two large rose bushes. They’re single knockouts. I wish I had doubles but they came with the house so I can’t complain :) I cut these way back last year, which was a pure joy, let me tell you! Have I ever mentioned that cutting bushes with lots of thorns is just my favorite pastime?? At least the hard work paid off because this year they are absolutely full of blooms.

In the front, I have several potted plants with a variety of different flowers. My favorites this year are the rich blue lobelia. The clouds of flowers trail over the sides of the pots and make everything look cottagey and inviting.

In the back, I have a geranium that’s been with us for almost 5 years. I just take him inside in the winter and he has life year ‘round. He has tons of blooms right now…

…and several that are just about to pop.

I have a hard time picking my favorite thing, but the petunias I planted in the planter boxes on our deck steal my heart nearly every day. They are wave petunias and I am completely sold on them. I planted these about 3 weeks ago and they’ve more than tripled in size and there are too many blooms to count. I can’t wait for them to spill over the side of the planter boxes. We’re getting close. :)

I am pretty darn pumped about the two hydrangea plants in our backyard. Over the last few years, they haven’t produced many blooms at all. This is just one photo, but both plants are chocked full of buds that should bloom in the next few weeks! YIPPEE! This one is just starting to show her face to the world. I wonder if it will stay white or go pink. We shall see!

This purple plant comes back year after year in our backyard. It’s not lavender, but it looks like it. Not sure what it is but I like it. :)

And last but not least, this dianthus surprised me this year. It’s known to be a perennial in warmer climates, but I didn’t expect it to come back after the harsh winter we had. Luckily we have several little mounds of it in one of the beds in our backyard. I think I’ll plant more next year because I just adore the vibrant color.

What’s blooming in your world?

Westport Cafe & Bar

2011-06-05T11:07:00.005-05:00

Ok, ok, I know this is not a food blog. But sometimes you love a place so much that you just want to chit chat about it a bit, yes?

Westport Café & Bar has become one of my favorite restaurants in KC over the past several months. I first saw it on Urbanspoon, and then one night we found ourselves in the Westport neighborhood so we stopped in. It’s quaint, charming, and very French. The décor smacks slightly of yesteryear, which adds to the ambiance. We’ve been in several times since that first trip, and every time it’s been a winner.

Here are a few highlights from our last visit.

I started off with a summery cocktail, the Strawberry Hill (named after the Kansas City, Kansas neighborhood.) I can’t find the ingredients on the restaurant’s site, but a few of the key ingredients were gin and St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur, the latter of which I am a huge fan.

Next we treated ourselves to a cheese plate which included Maytag blue, goat, fromage blanc drizzled with truffled honey, and gruyere. The truffled honey was a superb addition and was great with all of the cheeses.

For my entrée I went with the classically French steak frites. It came with a side of bernaise, but was also topped with their house chive butter. If you go to WCB for anything, go for the french fries. They are sublime.

Another favorite dish for which I don’t have a photo is the bar hamburger. This is what I usually get… it’s my favorite thing on their menu. It’s served with melted gruyere, burger sauce and sauteed onions. It is easily my favorite hamburger in the city, juicy and divine! A few other favorite items include the mussels with bleu cheese & bacon as well as the Pasta au Poivre – papardelle pasta with sage, pepper, parmesan and a fried egg. Yum!

Weekend Wrap Up

2011-05-31T11:13:00.002-05:00

Long weekends, oh how I love you. I think I woke up a thousand times more refreshed today than I have on any other Monday for quite some time. What a difference that extra day makes! I think I will run for president with permanent 3-day weekends as my platform. I will most likely win. :)
The Mister and I didn’t have much on the docket this weekend, so we busied ourselves by doing little projects here and there and making lots of pretty and yummy things.
What I made this weekend:

Bacon Jam
Finished an additional moss wreath for a friend
Honey Chipotle Glazed Chicken… quite tasty if you like a sweet and spicy sauce
Made summer’s first round of roasted red peppers on the grill… love having these around for salads and wraps
Whipped up a recipe of Chipotle Barbacoa for some nachos later this week
Made my favorite summer salad for the first time this year – Corn Salad. I like to add avocado or fresh mozzarella for an additional layer of tastiness
Begun work on bedazzling my cane that I am temporarily carrying due to my bum leg:

Oh yes, I know you’re jealous. Basically, walking around with a cane sucks, so I am on a mission to make it more fun. More on this little whipper snapper later this week! Enjoy the short week everyone!

Moss Wreath, Take Two

2011-05-29T13:32:00.001-05:00

I loved making the moss wreath I have on our front door.

This weekend I made another one for a friend. I can’t wait to give it to her!

Sorry for the garish light, I was too lazy to take out my real camera so this was taken on my phone. Again. :)

I love the way this one turned out!

Bacon Jam: Do It

2011-05-29T11:35:00.001-05:00

Fried Eggs Over Toast With Bacon Jam.

A few months ago, my Bacon Issue of Everyday Food showed up in the mail. Need I say more? BACON ISSUE. One of the recipes was for bacon jam. Upon reading the recipe title, I knew that making this recipe was going to happen, somehow, someway, someday. Fast forward 5 months and my friend Leslie and I started talking about it again. This stuff is available for purchase online through Skillet Street Food at $14 a pop plus $8.75 in shipping to the KC area. A little spendy, right? Hmmm. Me thinks the recipe sounds like a better deal.

Here is the recipe I followed. I added some of my own spices which are in italics. I have read that Skillet's recipe uses balsamic vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar, which I think I just might try next time around.

Can you imagine all the uses of this splendid stuff? Burgers, steaks, grilled cheese sandwiches, on crackers with cream cheese, over baked potatoes, in vanilla ice cream... ;-)

Slow-Cooker Bacon Jam (adapted from Martha Stewart)

1 1/2 pounds of bacon, sliced crosswise into 1" pieces (I used Wright)
2 medium yellow onions, fine dice
3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1/2 c cider vinegar
1/2 c packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 c brewed coffee
My adds:
1 bay leaf
1/2 t. cinnamon
pinch fresh ground nutmeg
1 1/2 t. smoked paprika

Slice the bacon and put into a cold skillet. Cook on medium, rendering down until the bacon is lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Remove bacon from pan and drain off all fat from the pan except for 1 T. to fry your onions and garlic. Fry onions and garlic until translucent, about 6 minutes. Add sugar, syrup, vinegar, coffee and spices (if you wish) and stir to combine. Transfer to a slow cooker set on high. Cook for 3 1/2 - 4 hours on high uncovered, until the mixture is syrupy. Transfer to a food processor; pulse until coarsely chopped. Let cool and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator.

Weekend Beautification

2011-05-15T18:10:00.002-05:00

I’m not one to start off a post with a complaint, but have I mentioned how tired I am of this cold, dreary spring weather? It hasn’t been very warm in Kansas City this spring, but things are green and growing nonetheless. Thank you Lord Baby Jesus for that! However, I am ready for some consistent warmth already. In the spirit of coaxing Mother Nature out of her hibernation, it was time to do some outdoor beautification this weekend.
I made this wreath about 6 weeks ago, but am just now getting around to posting it. Moss seemed to be ever-so-popular in decor this spring, so I wanted to do something using the bright green color that I love. I adore the mossy letters that were flying around the internet… still want to make one of those… but ended up with this creation instead. I used a $5 grapevine wreath and about 1.5 packages of reindeer moss. I hot glued the moss to the wreath, and kind of weaved it around the vines to help secure it. Then I added a few butterfly embellishments. I like the way it looks against our dark blue door. Very easy!

I wanted to create a bit of a cottagey look for our front porch this summer. Playing along with our little red adirondack vignette from last year, I added some pots to the front for some extra color. Sorry for the slanted picture… iPhone photography at its best :)

Let it be known that while I really like some gardening stuff, I am SO not beyond buying those premade planter fillers from Lowe’s and other garden centers. They make quick and easy work of potting plants and they look good all summer long. This year I purchased my plants from Lowe’s and the local Kaw Valley Greenhouses. If you can find Kaw Valley plants in your area, go for them… they are gorgeous!

Succulents are all the rage these days, so I couldn’t resist this sturdy looking fellow for our patio table centerpiece. They don’t need much water and I think the whole thing has a cool architectural look to it.

I loved this sign I saw while buying some flowers. It made me haz a chuckle.

CAN YOU SAY SUCCULENT??? Why yes, yes I can.
Some other little projects included planting some petunias in the little planter boxes on our deck, and also potting some herbs. I did pot some herbs for the outdoors (basil, greek oregano and rosemary) – but I also wanted some for the indoors as well. I have read all sorts of good things about having plants and fresh flowers in the home, plus I am always wanting for fresh herbs when I’m cooking. And who wouldn’t want a little herb garden on their windowsill? I bought several of these pots on our last trip to Ikea. I love the little designs on them, especially the thyme design in the middle. I use basil, thyme and parsley most frequently, so that’s what I planted indoors. I can’t say I’ve had tons of luck with indoor plants in the past, so we’ll see how these dudes do in my kitchen. So far I am loving the extra color and freshness they bring to the room.

Have a great week!

Pretty Pantry

2011-05-03T20:03:00.002-05:00

Now that I have joined the rest of blogland on Pinterest (love!), I’ve found myself looking at lots of beautifully organized pantries and closets.

5minutesjustforme.blogspot.com

flickr

fairlightday.tumblr.com

the famous shot from House of Smiths

google.ca

Whatever Canadian has this pantry above is a lucky duck! Or, a lucky Canuck should I say. Har.

I got to a breaking point this week with our pantry, so I grabbed my stack of Bed Bath and Beyond coupons and ~~marched~~ shuffled my arse to the organization aisle. Have you ever seen the Oxo Pop Containers? Organization xanadu, friends. Secure, airtight, clear and stackable… we have a winner. You just push the button on top to open and close the container. When you push it closed, that makes the airtight seal. Perfect for keeping your ingredients freshie-fresh. We have a couple of these handy jobbers around for a few dry ingredients already, so they were a must have for further pantry tidying.

Behold, the OXO Pop Container:

Let me warn you, these things are addicting. I bought a set and then went back several hours later to buy a few more. There is something I really enjoy about the concept of the clear container. For me, seeing the ingredients makes them look more appetizing. We have some of the stainless canisters for flour, sugar and the like… you’ve probably seen them around here and there… and they are okay. But seeing an ingredient like brown sugar, pistachios, elbow macaroni or a pile or walnuts in a clear container makes it look so much purdier!

So, I suck and I don’t have a before picture of the pantry. I think I always get too excited to start on projects so I forget to snap before pictures. I’ll try to be better about that. Let me just tell you, the pantry was a mess of plastic bags and cardboard boxes full of all sorts of stuff – almonds, dry pasta, chips, cereal, you name it.

But now look how pretty!

Not bad, eh?

This pantry has a second side that houses all of our spices, oil, vinegars, and some other random stuff. I haven’t even touched that side yet. One step at a time, my people.

A Sunday Drive with Camera Plus

2011-05-02T09:23:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, the mister and I found ourselves in downtown Kansas City with some time to burn. For those of you who are reading from afar, KC has gone through a little bit of a renaissance over the last few years. Buildings have been razed, neighborhoods have blossomed and the downtown community has really begun to thrive again. It’s such a welcome change for everyone who lives in the metro.
Sundays tend to be a little quiet downtown, as it’s still heavily populated by commuters during the week. Many businesses are closed on Sundays. The lack of traffic gave us the freedom to drive around and ~~stalk~~ ~~gawk~~ slowly pass by some of the places we were interested in without getting honked at by drivers in a rush to get somewhere else. We ended up in the Westside neighborhood of KC and had a little lunch at the Westside Local. Before we walked in, we spied a darling little snow cone food truck across the street. Even though it was a little chilly (in the 50’s) we decided we’d make a stop after lunch.
All I can say was I am sooooo glad we did! One trip and I’m hooked. We’re about 35 minutes from downtown, but these snow cones are so worth the drive. The owner, Lindsey, makes all of the syrups from scratch and they are all natural. (Yes, look at these colors. All from nature, nothing artificial! Mother Nature, you a good lady.)
Clockwise from top: mango ginger, blackberry lavender, pineapple serrano chile, lemon prickly pear.

I only had my iPhone with me yesterday, but I tried to snap a few photos. I used Camera+ to edit these while we were driving to our next stop. If you haven’t checked out this app yet… do. It’s 99 cents and probably one of the best apps I’ve ever purchased. Not bad for iPhone pictures… I think?
Lindsey’s super cute business cards and promo placards. She was also featured in a new food truck book.

Fresher Than Fresh’s Menu:

A charming little spot to enjoy your treat.

Fresher Than Fresh serves snow cones every Sunday at 17th and Summit from May 1 – Octoberish. Lucky us we got to see her on opening day! She also serves in front of her other business, Hammerpress, on First Fridays.

Current Obsession

2011-04-12T09:59:00.001-05:00

The Daily Frenchie

Springtime Patio Mood Board

2011-03-29T19:16:00.001-05:00

With springtime knocking at our door, I worked on a little patio mood board for my friend Leslie today. She and her husband have been known to spend quite a bit of time on their deck in the warmer months. Love the color palette in this one… the greens and oranges make me want corn on the cob, grilled meat and cold beer! For those visiting from Centsational Girl, thanks for stopping by. Sorry I don’t have a “real” project to share just yet… read why here.

The great thing about this mood board is that pretty much everything can be found at JC Penney. I was really impressed by the quality of their outdoor stuff last year – so much that we bought our patio chairs there. Hopefully their 2011 stuff is of equal quality.

Source List:

chair cushions, rug, flowered pillows, oil candles, candle lantern and plant stand all from JC Penney.
Wrought iron wall art from Crate & Barrel, but me thinks you could find equally cute substitutes at Hobby Lobby for a better price.
Green and white herb planter from Crate & Barrel as well.
Chairs in board from Macy’s… these are a fairly easy to find design, probably less expensive at Lowe’s or Home Depot.
Flowers… from your favorite flower market. Personally, I am in utter LURVE with the pre planted buckets from Lowe’s.

Happy Spring… my favorite time of year!

Office Design #2

2011-03-27T18:30:00.001-05:00

Ok I’m having too much fun now.

Here’s the second office design… liking this one as it seems a bit more polished to me, maybe a tad more adult than the first one.

The inspiration was the fabric. I’d love to have a chair covered in this. Gray desk, white chair, mixing and matching patterns in the light fixture and the window coverings. Gallery wall with white frames. Expedit bookshelf, white magazine files and boxes with silver trim and a polished silver lamp. I think the walls would look great in a silver sage color.

More to come!

Office Design #1

2011-03-27T16:59:00.001-05:00

What better to do on a chilly Sunday than work on some designs for my office?

I started with the bird picture and drew in colors and inspiration from there. I already have the white chair and some of the magazine holders. I’m seeing the walls painted in a pale green, with pops of red-orange, lime green and blue throughout. I think some soft curtains in a pretty white and grey might look nice. I need lots of storage in my office for magazines and the like, so I think an Expedit bookcase from Ikea could fit the bill nicely. The desk will be an L-shape, made of hollow core doors and painted a light grey, maybe Sharkey Grey by Martha.

I spend SO much time in this room (way more than 40 hours a week) so I really want it to be a room I love.

Ready to Rumble

2011-03-25T14:22:00.001-05:00

Hola readers! Surprise! It’s a POST!

I know I’ve been MIA. I think that’s how it goes with house projects sometimes… you go through phases of super-motivation, and then you lag for awhile. And then you get motivated again. I totally own up to the fact that I am not consistent with this blog. So what, I say! :) It’s here for me when I want it. I’m such a user. ;)

Sooo… about 5 weeks ago, I got myself into a nasty skiing accident. We were in Steamboat, CO. Pwetty…

After 2 hours of skiing on our first day out, I got going a little too fast on a run, lost my center of gravity, and did a few somersaults down the side of the mountain. NOT. COMFORTABLE. I ended up breaking my leg in several places… the exact term is “tibial plateau fracture,” if you want to get all orthopedic surgeon on me. You know how your bones get wider at the ends? Well the top of my tibia (that’s the lower bone in the leg) broke into several pieces when I did my gymnastics trick in the snow. It kinda looks like this, except mine is broken in more places.

Apparently these kinds of breaks are quite popular for those who enjoy high velocity accidents from things like skiing, horseback riding, and driving too fast. Do I know how to party or WHAT!

So, I was therefore sentenced to 8 weeks on my boo-tay. It’s my right leg, so no driving. (Word to the wise: if you ever get a choice of which leg you’d like broken, choose the left.) No walking either. No weight bearing activity. Lots and lots of sitting. And laying down. And sitting some more. Lots of time to peruse the internet and get motivated to do some fun house projects when walking is again a part of daily life.

Here’s my list of things that are on deck for when I’m back in one piece again. I’m not making any promises, but I’ve definitely got the itch and I’m ready to get going on this house again. Here’s what I’m thinking:

1. MAJA update to my office. It’s currently looking like a Syrian war zone in there, and I’m ready to spruce her up. Love this inspiration from Tart House:

2. I ordered some samples of this product in toasted marshmallow, smores and spanish villa. Kitchen backsplash? Fireplace surround? We’ll see.

3. I am head over heels in love with this dining room. So in love that I called my husband the instant I saw it online and asked him to see if his boss would give him a raise so we could emulate it right away. Yes, we already have that rug in our living room, but it’s not about that… it’s more about the colors and the feel. Soooooo deeply in love. The table! The ghost chairs! The mirror! The fabric! The CHANDY! My cup runeth over.

Sarah from The Mom Jeans Memoir… you are a true talent.

4. Our master bedroom needs some interest. Like this kind of subtle interest that the ever-amazing Kate executed on her MBR wall, or Courtney did in his living room. Do you hear my heart going bump bump bump?

5. Oh, there are some other boring things that need done around here too, like painting trim, cleaning, mudjacking our driveway (zzzzzzzzzzz) and other non-exciting things. So I suppose I’ll add those to the list too. Begrudgingly.

So there you have it folks! I make no promises… heck I’m not even sure how long I’ll be able to stand once they let me weight bear again. But a girl can dream, right?

Happy Friday!

Some photos from our latest trip to New Orleans

2011-01-27T13:33:00.002-06:00

We recently:
a. got a new DSLR camera
b. took a trip to New Orleans.
I do not claim to be a photographer by any stretch of the imagination, but here are a few sights from our latest trip.
Musician in Jackson Square

The husbanator. Next time I’ll get a better one with no shadows, but hopefully this one isn’t too bad for a beginner.

Roast Beef Po-Boy from Parkway Tavern

I’m trying out Picnik for editing. I have a lot to learn… but it’s a start.
Dragon prop at Mardi Gras World.

Kissing a camel. I’m weird.
All hail the King!

Stack of oysters at Felix’s

Mason after slurping an oyster with a good dollop of horseradish. I’m sure he’ll love me for posting this!

St. Louis Cathedral in winter.

My 2010 Year in Cities

2011-01-03T10:35:00.002-06:00

I saw this type of post on a blog a few years ago, and ever since, I always think back upon what kind of travel I did in the previous year. I’m lucky to get to travel a bit for my job so I had a good year of seeing some new cities I hadn’t been to before.
Looking forward to some really fantastic travel in 2011 – vacation, weddings and more!
Leslie’s 2010 Year in Cities (with a few pictures)
January: First trip to New Orleans – I traveled there frequently for work. While I was there, I snapped this shot. It’s a favorite. 2010 was the year of New Orleans… I totally fell in love with the city. I was there 4 times.

February: Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Oklahoma City, Orlando.
April: New Orleans again, for work. While I was there, I went on this bike tour. It’s a must if you’re visiting the Big Easy!
May: Baton Rouge, LA and Destin, FL. Surprisingly, the beaches in Destin were free of oil and truly gorgeous with very white, soft sand. Destin is a great beach destination if you are looking to stay in the US.

July: Door County, WI (pictured); Oklahoma City; New Orleans; Omaha

August: Little Rock, AR; Birmingham, AL; Tulsa, OK
September: St. Louis for a dear friend’s baby shower
October: Austin, MN for my grandparent’s 70th wedding anniversary and Durango, CO for the baptism of my new nephew Lukas.
December: One last trip to New Orleans.

To You and Yours

2010-12-24T10:16:00.002-06:00

Special thanks to the beautiful and talented Sarah Maxey from Sarah Maxey Photography for shooting our Christmas photos this year!

Remodelaholic Feature

2010-12-14T09:29:00.000-06:00

My powder room is featured on Remodelaholic today! Hello to any new visitors and welcome back to any second, third, fourth timers. Thanks for visiting!

Silver and Gold . . . Silver and Gold

2010-12-08T22:50:00.002-06:00

Come on, sing it with me!
And now for the final color coded post of the week. We’ve seen the green and silver mantle as well as the festive red mantle. As we talked about earlier, it’s easy to hit a Christmas home run when you group items together of similar color. It’s paint by number Christmas y’all!
Last but not least I want to show you the entry table vignette. I went with a silver & gold theme for the table this year, with the goal of not spending one red cent. I am really happy with the results!
I don’t think the pictures do this little arrangement justice, but truth be told I’m slammed with work so they’ll have to do!

Tinsel tree acquired last year on clearance from Home Decorators, $5. Ornaments from TJ Maxx, $3. Mercury glass bird on clearance in 2009 from Penney’s, 2 birds for $5 or something like that… it was eons ago.

I had a sleeve of gold ornaments from Home Depot along with some gold pinecones from Target. Both of these items were clearance from 2009. I arranged them in one of my silver Ikea bowls with my other little birdie and called it good. The gray apple and pear are from Hobby Lobby and were $1 each around Easter. I keep them around and just randomly throw them into arrangements from time to time…

Last but not least I stuck 2 gold star ornaments in a gold mercury glass candlestick that I had. I like how it looks so whimsy.

And there you have it!

I promised Mason a real tree this year so tomorrow we head out to the Christmas Tree farm to cut ‘er down. Mason tried to convince me he needed a new saw for the job, I said no as they provide saws at the farm. Cheap way to try to get a new tool!

Red & Silver Christmas Mantle

2010-12-06T10:30:00.001-06:00

Welcome to day 2 of my own personal mantle party on the DIY Diaries :)

I am lucky to have two fireplace mantles in my house to decorate, and for the second, I wanted to have a more playful, fun look vs. the first one which is more classic. The goal for this mantle was not to buy a single thing, so for this one I used things I had around the house.

I wrapped up some empty boxes and pieces of scrap wood to make presents. I also curled a few scraps of paper to scatter around the mantle.

The white bulbous thing is something I picked up at Goodwill eons ago. It was previously brass, but I sprayed it Blossom White by Rustoleum and then did a clear coat on the top for a glossy finish. The silver candleholders were a wedding gift. I just popped a few ornaments on top of everything.

On the far side, I spray painted a spare manzanita branch with a brushed nickel spray paint and hung a few red ornaments.

I covered the painting that normally hangs over the fireplace with some red damask wrapping paper, and hung a festive red and green ornament wreath in the middle. Finally, some red beads were strewn around to finish the look.

Total cost: $0.

Happy Festivus!

Lime Green & Silver Christmas Mantle

2010-12-04T23:10:00.002-06:00

Hidey ho! Dustin’ off the ol keyboard and getting back to a bit of blogging around here. It’s been a nice break but there are definitely some things I want to share with the interwebs. My next few posts will be about different little mantles and vignettes I have around the house for the holidays.

When it comes to holiday decorating, I find the easiest and most beautiful results usually come from using one to two colors in an area. Keeps it nice and simple and focused.

I have little slivers of green in my living room so I knew I wanted to amp that up a bit for the holidays. The end result: green and silver mantle for the living room.

I wandered into Wal-Mart for some Christmas lights today and totally got sucked in by the deals they had. They had a good selection of cute ornaments, bead swags, random sparkly picks that magically found their way into my cart. Most items are between $1-$3 each so of course that made it harder to say no. Damn you House of Wal! I got 2 strands of beads, 4 specialty ornaments and about 30 round shatterproof ornaments at Wally for about $15. I had the greenery, glassware and ceramic vases on hand. The small candlesticks were a Goodwill purchase about 9 months ago for $1. I spray painted those puppies white.

Love the simplicity of ornaments in an apothecary jar.

This is one of the specialty ornaments, a little green glittery gift for $1.

Love this green pinecone because it’s a bit camoflauged.

I love the pearlescent shatterproof ornaments. I think they’re one of my favorite finishes. Shatterproof is definitely a must in this house, I’ve broken an ornament or two in my day :-/

Diggin’ this key.

I didn’t have lights on the mantle at first, but added them last minute for some sparkle.

I need to add our stockings, but once we do that we’ll be all set!

The Party!

2010-10-20T21:23:00.001-05:00

Hi all :)

I apologize that it’s been awhile since I’ve written. After the big fiesta we had here a few weeks ago, I’ve been taking a bit of a hiatus. I gotta be honest… I love me some party planning but it wears me plum out! After a party I tend to take a step back from the home improvement, DIY and crafty stuff because it’s so much work leading up to the event that I need a break afterwards.

This is just a sampling of some things that were going on around here. I wish I could have snapped more shots but to tell the truth I was busy hostessing and having a few libations myself. ;)

This was a combo 30th birthday/baby shower for a very beloved friend. We had a big crowd of around 40 people, so we hired a bartender. This is hands down, the BEST decision I have ever made regarding hosting an event. She kept everything neat, clean and organized and made sure our guests glasses were never dry. Totally worth every dime.

Entryway and Front Walk:

White craft pumpkins, carved with various hole saws:

Going for a warm welcoming feel…

Buffet:

The orange branchy things in the back are from Hob Lob. It’s a $5 piece from the floral section, stuck in a trumpet shaped champagne flute filled with split peas for color.

Menu: heavy hors d’oeuvres

Pulled Pork Sliders with choice of Raspberry Chipotle Sauce or Traditional Barbecue Sauce

Hot Artichoke Jalapeno Dip

Hummus

Fresh Mozzarella Skewers with Tomato and Salami

Asparagus in Phyllo

Savory Palmiers

Cocktail Meatballs

Goat Cheese with Paprika and Fresh Dill

Menu Cards. Holders are two wine corks trimmed flat and super-glued together. We have shared many a tasty bottle of wine with the expectant couple, so the corks we used are some of the favorite wines we’ve had together.

We donned the fireplace with some homemade onesies that pay homage to our couple o’ honor. I shamelessly stole this idea from Nems and Jules – they hosted a lovely baby shower this summer that I had the pleasure of attending. Thanks for the ideas ladies!!

Quite the savory picture of daddio here -

A nod to Mommy’s favorite.

And finally, no shower/30th birthday would be complete without some cake and cupcakes:

Birthday cake: butter cake with chocolate ganache, iced in buttercream with coarse sugar.

Cupcakes: Chocolate with vanilla, butter cake with ganache, and pumpkin spice with cream cheese frosting.

Cupcake toppers: modeled after the party invite.

Cheers!

Favorite Party Ideas

2010-09-23T12:53:00.002-05:00

In prepping for the upcoming birthday party baby shower duo, I’ve come across some of the CUTEST ideas on the internet. Had to share!
Love, love absolutely LOVVVVVVVVVE this idea for the front walk. If I didn’t have my front walk plan together already, I’d be doing this.

It’s so simple… cut letters out of bags, line with a second white paper bag, insert sand and candle and voila. Darling!
Check out these adorable drilled sugar pumpkins from Design Star contestant Eddie Ross. I have similar pumpkins that will be lining our front walk, but I love the look of these on the stairs.

For those hosting an upcoming shower or party, be sure to check out the Hostess with the Mostess Blog. Her free printables (in varying themes) are divine and give instant style and pulled-togetherness to any soiree. Here are some favorites. All images courtesy HWTM.
Festival and Cirque du Bebe have a Frenchie feel:

For more printable deliciousness, don’t miss TomKat Design Studio – see their blog here and Etsy store here. These designs make my heart go pitter patter… and those cupcake toppers are EASY to make! I bought a punch this past weekend and made several for the upcoming party.
Red and aqua yummy…

Love this for a pizza party:

Hope everyone’s having a good week!

Rue La La Rug Love

2010-09-20T11:41:00.001-05:00

In the past, I’ve talked about Rue La La, which is a fabulous site for deals on designer duds, home accessories, vino and more. It’s a members only type of site, so if you'’d like an invite, simply leave me a comment with your email address and I’ll send one your way. Today they’re featuring The Rug Market, and I love some of the designs they’re offering. Here’s a sampling of what’s available.

Gotta love a great geometric:

A new take on giraffe in black and white:

Hollywood Glam in black and grey:

Reminds me of that design from Ikea textiles a few years back.

Bright colors, be still my heart:

Would love this silvery gray one for our master bedroom.

A funky twist on neutral:

Faux Bois deliciousness:

Can’t get enough of the cheery kelly green stripes in this one.

I like the optical illusion look here.

Gorgeous colors, I can see this in an office or guest bedroom.

My Fall Wreath

2010-09-16T14:06:00.001-05:00

The flurry of fall decorating continues! Most fall decoration requires a wreath of some sort, right? I will admit, the fall wreath I have from years past looks a little cheap-ish, I’m not ashamed to say. Pretty sure I bought it one year at CVS in a moment of pure weakness. I kid you not. Hey at least I own up to it…

So this year (which marks nearly 1 year since we moved back to KC… last fall was chaos), it was definitely time for something new and refreshed, preferably not from a drugstore. A lot of wreaths are a bit too traditional for me, so I wanted something simple, colorful and easy. Inspired by this post and this post a few days later by some of my favorite bloggers, Centsational Girl and Thrifty Decor Chick, this wreath-o-color was born.

I love the look of CG’s magnolia wreath, but with no magnolia tree (or leaves that are anything but green right now), I popped into Michael’s to see what they had. I picked up a few packages of these reddish orange oak leaves and a paperboard craft ring. I really liked these leaves because they look so real.

They come kind of crumpled up in the package, so they need to be flattened out just a bit. But, not overly flattened so they don’t look natural. Just a bit of smoothing should do the trick.

Just peel them right off the stem, and flatten a tad.

Begin hot gluing on to the craft ring/wreath and covering, covering, covering. Layer for a natural effect. In several minutes, you have this:

Easy peasy! I am loving the way the oranges looks against our dark blue door.

Fall Entryway and a New Rug

2010-09-14T12:56:00.002-05:00

The best thing about prepping for a party is that it’s a great catalyst for getting things done around the house. It’s been busy busy around here with tons of little improvements and mini-projects in the works. Lots of fun posts coming up!
So, I will admit, I have been bitten HARD by the fall bug this year, peeps. Normally I’m not much of a seasonal decorator, but I’m so happy to welcome the autumn season this year. The party is going to have a fallish theme to it, so here are a few little things I’ve completed lately to give the house that autumnal feel.
First, a new rug for the entryway.
Before -- you can kind of see the rug in the bottom left corner:

After:

I have been eyeing West Elm’s Andalusia rug for awhile and the entryway is the perfect spot for it. It feels so much more cohesive now leading into the living room with our palette of browns, creams and oranges. Love!
Though I don’t consider myself much of a seasonal decorator, when I do decorate seasonally, it’s usually in the entryway. I think it’s easy and it gives that welcoming feel when you walk into the house. On the table, I added a few of these white ceramic pumpkins. Totally obsessed with white pumpkins this year.

I made a filler for this striped wooden bowl with some vase filler from Target (picked up on clearance last year for $1.00), a bit of wheat, and some oven dried orange slices.

Last but not least, I finished the table by stacking some gourds in my candle lantern. I had the gourds and American moss on hand in my fall stash. Love that American moss for nesting, it looks perfect everywhere. To stack your gourds, just pop the stems off (save them if you want to glue them back on later) and secure with a few toothpicks. You could easily do this with real gourds as well.

And there you have it!

Major Prize!

2010-09-10T12:59:00.001-05:00

Woo Hoo…My first blog prize! I am so excited to receive my pepper jelly (on crackers with cream cheese, yes please) and bracelet from Michael at Inspired by Charm.

If you’ve never stopped by Michael’s blog, do so right this minute! He is living his dream in the most scrumptious little B&B in central Pennsylvania. I get tons of ideas from him and love reading about all the projects he’s working on.

Thanks Michael!

It’s On

2010-09-09T16:05:00.001-05:00

Big party coming up over here!

How cute are these invites!! Thanks to Ashley at Decorating Obsessed for coming up with such a fun idea to incorporate both a 30th birthday cocktail party and baby shower in one. If you ever need any graphic design work done, Ashley is amazing. :)

It’s going to be improvement-palooza over here for the next few weeks as we get ready for the big event. Lots of projects in the works, including:

painting dining room trim, bookshelves and French doors white
adding some window treatments to the master bedroom
swapping out all of our brass handles to oil rubbed bronze on the cheap (maybe this will get done. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.)
finishing up the entryway

I’m super excited about the party decor, it’s going to be very fall-ish with lots of browns and oranges and tonnnnnnns of white pumpkins. I am obsessed with white pumpkins this year.

Stay tuned for updates!

The Front Porch, Finally!

2010-09-05T10:54:00.001-05:00

Word of warning to begin… this is kind of a long post. But it has pictures, lots of them!

Remember a few weeks ago when I shared my $36 Front Porch Plan?

Well, you know how it goes when you start a project – you get going and then there’s always something else to add to the list. What started as just a little spray paint project turned into a couple of spray paint projects, cutting down a tree, etc… you know how it goes. So here’s a synopsis in pictures.

First, my friend Leslie gave me some hunter green adirondack chairs she was no longer wanting. This project has been going on so long, that feels like eons ago now. I sprayed those with a few coats of Rustoleum Universal spray paint in crimson red gloss. Love this product – sticks to plastic, metal, wood, concrete… just about anything, and the nozzle is really comfortable in the hand. I also had an old wrought iron, glass top table that needed a little spritzing up, so I sprayed that with a few coats of Rustoleum Universal in hammered bronze. Another reason to love Rustoleum… you can just spray right over rust (hence the name) and not only does the paint stick, but it covers that junky old rust in a jiffy.

To round out the package, I ordered this rug from Overstock:

…And two pillow covers from This Little Home on Etsy. Yes, I will totally admit, I copped out on the DIY on the pillow covers. I had every intention of sewing them myself… until Fabric.com was out of the fabric I wanted. So, Etsy to the rescue. This Little Home is a super cute shop, be sure to check it out! This fabric is ‘Hip Floral Sorbet’ by P. Kauffman.

After that all started coming together, we happened to have our tree trimming guys around earlier this week. For awhile now, we’d been thinking of cutting down this gnarly weeping mulberry that sits out front. Now don’t get me wrong, I love trees and the environment, but this thing was NARSTY. That’s nastier than nasty. NARSTY. I just hated it. It was ugly, required constant trimming, the vines would get all wrapped up in our gutters, just UGH. I don’t have a great before picture, but I’ll try to show you:

Now don’t get all up in arms, I know it looks all sweet and innocent here. But trust me, this tree is nothing of the sort. This pic was also taken about 4-5 years ago, so it’s grown significantly since then. I will admit, I felt a pang of guilt about chopping down a tree, but I am so much happier with it gone!

To bring the whole whipper snapper together, I was inspired by the ever-creative Ashley at Decorating Obsessed to paint my narsty (there’s that word again) brass front door handle. Ashley sprayed her front door hardware a few weeks ago, so I decided to give it a go myself. 2010 is the year of saying GOODBYE to as much brass as I can in this house. Here’s my front door after I repainted it just a few months ago, with that brass handle sticking out like a sore thumb.

So, my friends, here is the final product. A little photo essay for you, if you will.

Our new & improved front walk, sans tree:

Front porch sitting area with spruced up chairs, table, and a few accessories. The perfect place to sip a tall glass of lemonade.

Makin’ it cozy with an outdoor rug from Overstock:

A punchy fabric on the pillows ties all the colors in together:

The reverse side, which I kind of like more than the front!

And finally, the front door all pulled together!

For the handle, I sanded, primed with an oil based spray primer, and then did 3 thin coats of Krylon Brushed Metallic paint in Satin Nickel, and then finished with two coats of Krylon Crystal Clear.

Ta da!

Family Room Va Va Voom?

2010-08-18T10:40:00.001-05:00

Everyone knows about my obsession with wall vinyls. I’ve used them on my front door and in my powder room. I usually order mine from Nouwall, because I like their designs and they can customize any shape or size you want. They also have a killer new feature that allows you to send in a pic of your room, and they’ll show you what the vinyl will look like on the wall. I kid you not! Isn’t that so awesome?

So a few months back I was thinking maybe the wall behind the TV needed a little sump’n sump’n. I sent in the photo of my room and thoughts on what I wanted, and here’s what they came back with!

To tell you the truth kids, I haven’t taken the plunge yet. I’m not sure if I want to put something behind there or not. I guess the great thing about vinyls is you can always take them down when you get tired of them. What do you think? Should I put them up or leave the wall as is?

Family Room Updates

2010-08-16T10:17:00.001-05:00

I think I’ve mentioned before that mantles are one of my biggest challenges. They’re just this big long space with endless possibilities. Aside from that, I have decided I’m kind of one of those people who gets tired of decor after a couple of months, especially accessories. So, I have to change things up from time to time to keep it fresh, y’all.

I am still kind of tweaking the family room that I put together just in time for the baby shower we hosted for my sister in law. Here’s what it looked like in March, not bad.

I never quite fell in love with the throw pillows I chose. I like the blue textured one, but not sure it fits in the space. I’m on the hunt for new ones (or a fabric that inspires) as we speak.

Meanwhile, the mantle needed some updating. I dug around in the basement for a bit and found a old things to pop on there, as well as a few new finds too. The result:

The candlesticks were a Hobby Lobby find from a few months ago – I think they were $3.47 each. They are a goldish mercury glass.

The orange bottle was a find from my last trip to New Orleans in July – I really liked the color as well as the fleur de lis. The manzanita branch was a little something I spied recently at HomeGoods… I loved that this branch had both light and dark wood.

Hope everyone has a great week!

New Living Room Light Fixture

2010-08-14T14:57:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago I blogged about the new living room light fixture we picked out! We replaced the ceiling fan that had brass all around (of course it did, no surprises there). It was time for that thing to GO! I’m really happy with the drum pendant we chose from Uttermost, ordered from Lighting Direct.

$36 Front Porch Plan

2010-08-10T13:02:00.001-05:00

A few months ago my friend Leslie gave me a pair of adirondack chairs that she no longer wanted. They were your typical hunter green chairs, and I thought they would look great on our front porch. The chairs have been painted (go Rustoleum!) and I’m just waiting on a few more things to complete the look. Here’s the plan:

Adirondack Chairs – free
Round, wrought iron side table – had in garage, spray painted with Rustoleum hammered bronze – free
Outdoor Pillow covers – P. Kaufmann Hip Floral Sorbet fabric - $10/yard
Outdoor Rug, Overstock, $26
Candle Lantern, on hand

Pics to come when everything is completed!

Entryway Revised

2010-08-09T11:44:00.001-05:00

I recently repainted the demilune table in our entryway, but I wasn’t really loving the shape of the table overall. I wanted something larger and more sturdy, preferably with shelves. It was just kind of one of those things that I wanted to get done, but it wasn’t a priority… I figured it would happen when it happened. I wasn’t really on the hunt, so to speak.

Well wouldn’t cha know I was taking a leisurely stroll through TJ Maxx (no surprise, I freaking love that place) and happened upon a cream colored beaut that fit the bill to a tee.

Entryway before:

Entryway after:

I wanted to incorporate some greens into this area. I found this wooden bowl with some woven spheres, pears etc. at Michaels on clearance for $3.99. I’m not sure if it’s perfect but for $3.99 it was a great deal… if even for just the bowl itself! I’ll probably find something else to stick in the bowl eventually. I also put some reindeer moss in my favorite lantern and stuck Mr. Starfish back in there for a bit of additional color. The apple & pear were on hand, purchased at Hobby Lobby for about $1 each a few months ago.

I think I’ll probably change out the rug to West Elm’s brown Andalusia rug at some point before we host a big party in October. I think the mirror works for the time being… that’s probably something I’ll swap out eventually too… but I’m happy for now!

House Tour: Door County, Wisconsin

2010-08-07T12:53:00.001-05:00

July was a super busy travel month for us – 4 trips in all. That’s kind of why this blog has taken a bit of a hiatus… we haven’t been doing much around the home front these days! Our first trip at the beginning of July was to Door County, Wisconsin. If you’re not from the Midwest, chances are you haven’t heard of Door County. It sits on that little tip of Wisconsin that juts out into Lake Michigan:

It’s about a 4 hour drive from Chicago (my hometown) and is gorgeously picturesque. With Green Bay to the West, Lake Michigan to the East, and a million cute dairy and cherry farms in between, lots of folks refer to it as the Cape Cod of the Midwest.

My Aunt Liz & Uncle Scott own an absolutely scrumptious lake house on the Green Bay side where we stayed with my family for 5 days. It sits on Sturgeon Bay, which is a little inlet from Green Bay. Lizzie is the most talented decorator, so I had to show you just how perfect this 100-year old cottage is. They have put tons of work into it over the years and it is so very apparent. One step in and you’re instantly relaxed. Allow me to take you on a little tour!

The front of the house is beautifully landscaped with perennials, lavender and red geraniums. A refurbished bell found in the boathouse greets all the guests.

The screen door stays open all day. Thyme and basil grow under the windows.

Once you walk in, the open living room gives way to a fabulous lake view.

Welcome!

I love the soft blues with pops of red.

A huge dining room with lake views and seating for 8 is perfect for loud family dinners.

Maps of Door County and Sturgeon Bay adorn the creamy colored walls.

The kitchen is the perfect place to hang out and snack.

The master bedroom has plenty of space to relax and kick off your flip flops.

A lofted sleeping room is bright and cheery.

The bunkhouse just off the master bedroom is a nice quiet spot.

Shabby Chic is the name of the game in here.

The perfect vacation spot!

Living Room Lighting

2010-07-18T11:12:00.001-05:00

I just bit the bullet on this bad boy:

Which will be hanging in my favorite room, the living room:

The cord in the picture above is a bit longer than we’ll have it in the room itself. Can’t wait to see the final product! Fixture from Uttermost.

Office on the fly (and on the cheap)

2010-06-29T22:08:00.001-05:00

For awhile now, we have been considering a flip-flop of my office and our guest bedroom on the second floor of our house. While the guest bedroom was cozy, we needed a little more space between the bed and the dresser to avoid the ol’ damn-I-just-busted-my-shin-on-the-footboard-again syndrome. So, today was the big day to do the move! (I know my mom is jumping for joy right now as she reads this, because her shin has been busted many a time. Cheers Mom!)

Now’s the part where you want to see pics of the new perfect guest bedroom, right?

Hrm. Well, I’m afraid I might disappoint a bit. While the space in the new guest bedroom is perfect for any visitors we might have, it’s just not ready for primetime television yet.

But………… I wouldn’t just leave you hanging like that! No way, no siree, not me.

See, this whole redo involves 2 rooms… the guest bedroom and the office. As it pertains to the office, it was time for my old desk to go. She was a great desk, sturdy and resistant.

Please ignore the cords. And the lack of stuff on the walls. Haven’t paid too much attention to the office yet.

So, because it was time for this desk to go, enter stage left a new desk. I saw this post on Tart House a few weeks ago via YHL and just fell in love with what the talented Miss Erica had done in her office with so few beans. Plus, the basic layout of forming an ‘L’ was going to work quite well for my new space.

Being that I work from home, I can’t go very long without having some sort of an office set up. Thanks to Erica’s inspiration and $22 bones spent at Home Depot on a hollow core wooden door, we now have this:

We happened to have a few of these sawhorse style desk legs on hand that we’d purchased from Ikea before moving back to KC from ATL. Popped those puppies under the desk and voila! A perfectly suitable workspace. It’s pretty cool that they’re adjustable too, just by moving those little wood pegs. Oh and you can tilt them as well, if you wanted a drawing desk of sorts.

The long term plan is to use two doors to make an L-shape, and the desk will be white. I’ll also be purchasing a solid wood door for the main part of the desk where I’ll be typing for a bit more heft. But for the time being, my setup ain’t half bad. Actually, I kind of like it. :)

Sewing project delayed

2010-06-23T10:53:00.001-05:00

I was all pumped to start my first sewing project when I ordered this fabric a few weeks ago. Well now it is 3 weeks later and my fabric hasn’t arrived. Boo! (If you’re curious where I ordered from, click here… and don’t order from them. Their customer service sucks.)

So now I’ll be waiting for fabric.com to stock it and I’ll start then.

Adios, Sayonara, Bon Voyage!

2010-06-15T10:59:00.001-05:00

Yo peeps. I am flying the coop for a few days for work and a few days for play! When I get back, please look forward to the following:

My friend Leslie’s bathroom is complete! Can’t wait to show you the after pics. This has been my main project lately and I love the way it looks! I think she does too :)
There has been a mass deposit of black mulch in our yard. Might snap a few pics of that for your viewing enjoyment.
The basement office is coming along. It’s sheetrocked, taped/mudded, and painted! The custom bookshelves are 2/3 of the way done and almost ready to be installed.
Still waiting on the fabric I ordered last week. Not really happy with the place I ordered from, they have been completely unresponsive.

For my few days of play, I am hoping to see this:

And not so much of this:

A friend and I decided to go to Destin, FL last minute. I have been to Florida a million times, but have never seen Destin. I have always heard marvelous things about their white sand beaches & turquoise waters - can’t wait to see them for myself. From everything I have read, the oil has not reached that area of the Panhandle yet. Unfortunately, coastal Alabama (Orange Beach, Gulf Shores) and the Pensacola area are just starting to see some oil now. We are hoping that the currents and the winds keep the oil away from the Destin area (well… and all areas really). I am happy to be going there to support their economy, since many business owners have reported a 40% decrease in business from last summer.

For those of you keeping up on the crisis response and relief efforts, I have found that Google’s Crisis Response – Gulf Oil Spill site has had some great information and maps.

Cute and cheap! Need I say more?

2010-06-10T19:30:00.001-05:00

How adorable are these wall plaques?

A set of two is EIGHT DOLLARS. Say it with me people! Eight dollars! Doesn’t that feel good?

They look a bit like these plaques at Crate and Barrel. Except, they are about 84% cheaper. I think they would look so cute hung outside.

Community Supported Agriculture

2010-06-09T11:15:00.001-05:00

I just got back from the Farmer’s Market where I picked up our share from our CSA this week. I just had to post a photo. I am in love with all these gorgeous, organic vegetables!

This week we received tomatoes, cauliflower, sugar snap peas, cucumber, strawberries, mint, and the most gorgeous head of cabbage I have ever seen. We also had potatoes, but since we are eating low carb, I donated our share to a local needy family. This is our fourth week of the CSA and it runs through October.

Our farmer is located about 7 miles from our house. They are so friendly and I adore their commitment to herbicide, pesticide and fertilizer free farming. They also have free range chickens, eggs and pork.

First sewing project since making a lightbulb pillow in 6th grade

2010-06-07T17:19:00.001-05:00

I have been eyeing this fabric for awhile, and also spied it on my friend Michael’s blog as well. Wish me luck as this lady is not so versed in things that deal with needle and thread. I can’t wait to reveal where it’s going to go!

Sheetrocks and Shenanigans

2010-05-28T11:31:00.001-05:00

I promised you the basement office was coming right along. We now have sheetrock… actual walls and a ceiling… it’s a miracle!

Before:

During:

After!

It’s starting to feel like a real room. I am so proud of Mason for doing all of this work himself from the ground up. Next step: mud/tape/sand… paint… figure out flooring… move in furniture and voila! New office complete. Sure sounds pretty easy just to type that all out, I have a feeling it might not be quite that simple. ;-)

Backyard Reveal!

2010-05-28T10:53:00.001-05:00

Just in time for Memorial Day weekend, our deck is set for premium outdoor enjoyment. We’ve been piecing this baby together over the last few months – bought a grill this winter, patio furniture a few months ago, and now she is stained and ready for some good old fashioned backyard fun. Now let’s get to the pictures already!

Before (aka Desperately Seeking Stain):

And After!

I will confess right off the bat - the stain was only about 1/2 DIY. We hired someone to help us with it, which worked out really nicely. Mason was still out there sweatin’ to the oldies, but it was so worth it to have an extra pair of hands on the project while I worked away on my regular job! We used Olympic Maximum oil based stain (just say no to acrylic) in Dark Mahogany.

Patio Table and Chairs (and my boy Denny)! Table is a tile top table that we purchased on Craigslist for $100. Love that we can change out the tiles to freshen up the color whenever we want! Chairs are from JCPenney.

Found these great little oil lanterns at Costco for $19. Love the design. Three to a box.

Flowers flowers everywhere make for a very happy Leslie! Love how lush these look on my plant stand.

The look of flowers spilling over the top of a planter gets me every time. Snagged this urn at Lowe’s on clearance for $19. They also sell these great drop in baskets that you just switch out year after year in your planters. I think the basket was $12 bucks.

Here is my herb garden and all of its herbaceousness. This year we have basil, Italian parsley, rosemary, thyme and oregano.

Planter boxes filled with dianthus. I love these plants – long flowering and very hardy. In some climates they can be perennials if the winter is fairly mild. Several years ago at my first house, these lasted through the winter no problem.

Not quite sure what we’ll be doing with this space yet. I’d like to grow a wisteria vine around the pergola. Maybe a set of cherry red Adirondack chairs here with some fun patterned outdoor pillows will fit the bill.

Primed for dining on lots of fresh veggies and herbs this summer!

Home sweet home.

Ashly’s Living Room

2010-05-26T18:18:00.001-05:00

When my sweet co-worker Miss Ashly asked me to come up with a plan for her living room, I was delighted! Ashly and her husband Orri live in Omaha, NE where he is stationed for the military. They live in military housing so the paint color has to stay as is, but we have a lot to work with!

Here’s Ashly’s note:

Here are those pictures I promised you of my VERY boring and plain living room. Just curious if there is a DIY touch you might be able to suggest.

We cannot paint the walls or change the carpet since it is military housing. Please ignore the dog crate/toys/and game chair. We’re getting a new puppy this weekend and both the crates will be moved into a puppy room in the house. We just are REALLY unsure what to do in that space back there once we move them.

The couch is a sectional but we disconnected it so that we could get around that weird corner/wall.

Let me know if you have any questions. And no rush-I just appreciate ya takin a look at it!

Current Living Room:

Mood Board:

Suggested Furniture Layout (not to scale!)

And here’s my email back to her!

Hey there lady!

Here is your living room plan! I hope you like my suggestions. I created a new room layout for you and also a mood board which shows all the furniture/accessories/rug and how they work together. I have a list below for you of what to do and where you can buy any suggested items. I think that rearranging the furniture layout will help a bunch in just making the space feel more open and cohesive.

Let me know what you think!

· The color palette for the room will keep the tans and browns you currently have, but we’ll infuse some poppy reds and oranges because I know you love those colors!

· This super cute boxer dog silhouette is a must for your living room as a homage to your puppies! It would look great on the wall between the sliding door and the window, or on the weird corner wall opposite the sliding door.

· These natural woven bamboo shades are a great way to add some natural texture to the room and update the window coverings.

· This punchy yet serene still life print will look great on the wall where the dog kennels used to be – in back of maybe a new little dining set perhaps!

· A nice potted fern will look so good against all the other squarish elements in the room. I love the shape of the one in the link… just kind of all over the place, very pretty!

· Throw pillows! A few of these orange ones and these brown/orange/white ones will have your room looking stylish in a flash!

· This rug in a 5x8 size will infuse some amazing color into the room when placed under the coffee table, but it will still look neutral. The pattern is awesome too.

· Replacing your coffee table with this bronze and glass one isn’t only easy on the budget, but the light and airy feeling will lighten up the room immensely.

· You were wondering what to do with the space where the kennels were. By opening up the layout, you’ll have plenty of room for a little dining room table there. I love this one which is at Amazon, Sears, and probably Nebraska Furniture Mart too!

· We don’t necessarily want to match the dining room chairs to the table… it’s another opportunity to infuse some texture. I love these chairs from Target.

· This paprika colored vase from Crate and Barrel will be a super cute accessory in your new living room/dining room combo! Place it on the dining room table with some white tulips, dahlias or another summer flower and it will look so crisp.

· 4 or 5 different sized ceiling medallions (found online and at home improvement stores) will look super cute when spray painted with super-shiny lacquer spray paint in either red or black and then hung on the long wall where the TV is now.

:-) Leslie

Pretty Peonies and some news

2010-05-24T11:11:00.001-05:00

I am so blessed to have very kind and generous neighbors. Yesterday morning, my next door neighbor cut about 15 peony stems for me. Aren’t they GORGEOUS!

I am seriously freaking out over them. I posted a pic on Facebook. They’re on my kitchen table and I just die every time I see them.

Sorry it’s been a little quiet around here these days. We are going through some pretty big changes right now. Mason’s job was recently outsourced to another company. He had worked for his company for 19 years (since graduating high school in 1991) so it’s been a transition to say the least! This change is actually a very good thing and we are happy. I’m really excited about what’s next for him… but in the meantime, he has been home working on lots of projects around the house that I’m excited to share. The deck is being stained as we speak (before and after pics later this week, and I’ll show off my new patio furniture too!), and his basement office should be done very soon. Since he’s been home, he has been insulating, wiring, insulating some more, getting the duct work all set, and building his own custom bookshelves for the room. I’m very proud of him for building this room from scratch, even if it has taken oh… 5 months. :)

Onward and upward! Have a great week.

Free Garage Sale Marketing

2010-05-13T14:30:00.001-05:00

::taps microphone::

Hello?

Is this thing on?

Is anybody still out there?

Whew! Blowin’ some dust off the ol’ Windows Live Writer today to post something on my blog! Shocker, I know!

We’ve been busy bees around here lately prepping for our big garage sale. I have to pat myself on the back a bit because I think I did a pretty good job of going through closets this winter…one by one – an hour here or an hour there – pricing things to get ready for this sale! Moving and garage sales always make me say, “how on EARTH did we accumulate this much crap.” Luckily there are people out there who want to buy it.

Sooo… my day job has a lot to do with marketing. Garage sales are great, but there’s a ice cube’s chance in hell that you’ll sell anything unless people know about your sale! Our house is in a cul-de-sac, set kind of far off the street. For a passerby at the end of the road, they’d have no idea that we were even having a sale unless it was advertised. So, here’s my five point plan for marketing a successful garage sale, for free. We opened our doors last night and nearly 70% of our crap is gone already! Scorage!

Contact your neighborhood association and see if there is an annual or semi-annual neighborhood garage sale. If there isn’t see if you can get one on the calendar. Homeowners are much more likely to participate if the whole neighborhood’s doing it. You’ll get better traffic, too.
Place an ad on Craigslist. Obviously, this is the mecca for people who are looking for good stuff cheap. And it works. It’s also the mecca for people who like to completely overprice Aunt Trudy’s 20 year old formica dining set. You make me laugh, delirious people.
Contact your local paper and see if they will allow you to place a yard sale ad for free. Many local papers will let you do this, especially if you’re ok with advertising the sale online only. Sure, there are some folks who only read the physical paper and don’t go online, but if it’s free, why not place an ad?
Get your sale listed on Garage Sales Tracker. This is a great website that allows you to search for sales within a certain zip code radius. There’s also a handy dandy iPhone app that will allow the user to find sales as well. Again…FREE. FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!! Do it! Don’t cut into your profits with advertising when there’s free marketing out there!
Focus on signage. It might sound simple, but if there’s no sign at the end of your street, folks won’t know to make that turn. If you live on a a cul-de-sac like we do, one sign will do it. If you’re on a standard block, do one at each end of your street, and at your neighborhood entrance too. Get creative! Make the signs funny! Ours says “Big Honkin’ Sale.” We’ve had several people who have said they’ve stopped in based on the sign alone.

Last but not least (and this is totally embarrassing) – why not turn your Christmas lights on?! Make it the Vegas of garage sales! Attract attention! Look at me, look at me! Yes, it’s May 13 and we still have our lights up. Oops. In our defense, they’re clear with white cords, so they’re pretty hard to see. But when the sale is on, people notice! :)

Cuteness All Around

2010-04-28T09:59:00.001-05:00

Lots of activity going on around here these days! Check out these cutie jewelry trays I whipped up after I got the idea from The Speckled Dog. These were so simple to make! I picked up two brass candlesticks at Goodwill for $2 total… sprayed them with two coats of Rustoleum Blossom White and a coat of clear gloss. Then I used superglue to secure the plates to each end. Melamine plates are from Target.

And speaking of cuteness……check out this new little man who is now a part of our family!

This is Denny:

He is a 5 year old French Bulldog and he joins his sister Sunnie for all sorts of wrasslin’, treats, snorts and general mayhem around here.

Blissliving Home

2010-04-26T11:06:00.001-05:00

I came across this vendor this morning on Rue La La and loved some of the patterns and colors.

If anyone needs a Rue La La invite, just email me.

Now look at these pretties:

Have a great week!

Just Paint It Challenge

2010-04-18T18:33:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, my good friend and fellow KC decor blogger Ashley at Decorating Obsessed announced her ‘Just Paint It’ Challenge. This challenge was all about mustering your courage to paint that thing that you just weren’t sure should be painted in the first place. For Ashley, it was her fireplace. For me… well, I knew I wanted to paint my front door. I wasn’t scared of painting it at all, my challenge was all about finding the time to get it done.

Case in point: I bought the paint for the front door six weeks ago. I swear to all that is holy.

Our front door has been this lovely shade of 90s-esque forest green since we bought the house in ‘06. It wasn’t too bad, but it was time for an update.

If I had my way, we’d take that storm door off altogether. But, since we have a dog and soon to be dogs (plural), it’s best to keep that on for a couple different reasons.

A closer shot of the original color:

Yes, that’s brass hardware. Siiiigh. Someday we’ll be getting rid of that.

I decided on ‘Wrought Iron’ from the new Martha Stewart color collection at Home Depot. It’s a gorgeous midnight blue… actually I need to give some props to Mason here since he picked it out. (Sidenote – if you haven’t seen Martha’s new collection yet, go check it out immediately! I love all the colors.) Since I’m fiercely loyal to Behr Ultra Paint + Primer, I had it color matched so I could use the best paint in the history of man. Two coats is usually all it takes. Oh, we used an exterior paint in a semi-gloss finish. Exterior paints help the color stand up to sun damage, heat, all that good stuff.

Here’s the after with the storm door open so you can see the color!

Not bad eh? Let’s just say this was step one in an ongoing front-of-house upgrade.

Oh!! And because I am obsessed with vinyl decals, I had to add these cute house numbers. They are silver. I got them specifically so they’d clash with my loverly brass hardware.

Cute cute! I ordered these from Etsy seller Popwall for a grand total of $8. Mason isn’t sure if he loves them yet, but I like them for now. The nice thing about vinyls is that the very second I decide I’m done with them, I can peel them right off. Presto chango!

Now can someone please come over and hang a porch swing and get some abundant and lush potted plants going on my front stoop? Oh, my Bradford Pear out front could use a trim while you’re at it. K thanks!

Thrifty Finds

2010-04-16T11:10:00.001-05:00

I have been meaning to stop by the local Salvation Army store and a few days ago I finally had the time to do it. I’m so glad I did, because this place was a jackpot of cheap goodies! Tons of finds in there. I only wish I’d had more time to peruse. Anyway, ever since I saw this post on The Speckled Dog, I knew I had to get some old brass candlesticks and a few fun patterned melamine plates so I could have my own darling little jewelry tray! How freaking cute is this:

*image courtesy of The Speckled Dog

Yup, I know. MUST. HAVE. ONE! So, I picked up a few brass candlesticks at Salvation Army for less than three bucks. Beware, oh candlesticks, you will soon be enveloped in the warmth of a fresh coat o’ spray paint. More to come!

fail

2010-04-15T16:17:00.001-05:00

We Have Arrival

2010-04-14T19:13:00.001-05:00

Look what showed up on my doorstep today:

And look who is on page 91!

The Nest Magazine is by subscription only right now, but should be available on newsstands in June. The current issue {the one you need to buy, wink} should be available through early July.

See the full breakdown on our living room here.

Featured!

2010-04-12T09:01:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Bird Crafts for featuring me on her blog today as part of her link party to show off, well, parties!

To see the original post about my tangerine and aqua baby shower, click here.

The Mantle Revisited

2010-04-11T17:22:00.001-05:00

Ahh, the mantle: one of the great decorating challenges. Mantles can be so tough to decorate… so much space, varying depths, how to layer items properly…what to do with it all? And, like Layla said, there aren’t tons of great inspiration pictures on the internet. I have to admit, mantles are scary to me. Mantles and window treatments. They can be toughies.

But alas, it must be done. Last fall I found some super cute hardcover books at Goodwill and popped those on my mantel with a few other accessories. It was okay, but I was never totally thrilled with the look. And eek! Looks like I didn’t snap a very good photo of it way back when either!

We were expecting a house guest today. As I was tidying up, I moved the candles on the left to our dining room table. Well that started a whole mantle re-accessorization {yes, that’s a very official word}. Half an hour later, here’s what I ended up with:

The changes were minor, but I feel like they made a big difference. And, I like it better!

First, I took the candle lantern from another room in the house and added some American moss to the bottom for some natural texture. I had this on hand but you can buy a big bag of it at Hobby Lobby for $1.99. {Sidenote – I also love reindeer moss… that’s the bright green spongy stuff you can find at Hobby Lobby too. The color is phenomenal. Love!} Then I hung three small, round decorative mirrors on the left for some height and balance. I bought the decorative mirrors years ago from Target. When I paid a visit to my decor stash, there they were, just begging to see the light of day!

On the left, I added a sprig of orange berries to the white vase for just the tiniest pop of color.

So there you have it folks! A redecorated mantle for a whopping total of zero dolla and zero cent! God I love those free improvements!

Linking up with The Nesting Place mantle party, The DIY Showoff Project Parade and The Girl Creative Just Something I Whipped Up Monday.

$500 Living Room Makeover

2010-04-06T23:15:00.001-05:00

Mason’s cousin Jenny came to me for some help on her living room and I was happy to oblige! Here’s her note:

Hi Leslie! I am going to take you up on your offer to help me with my decor! We have 2 large windows in front that I'm not sure what to do with....Would like privacy yet coverings that would still allow sun in to heat the rooms. Please ignore all of the "Junk". I sell items for clients on eBay! We are not able to make any large purchases at the moment---so furniture would have to stay, and we can’t change the paint color. Maybe a new TV stand though with storage. I am so excited to see how the room will turn out!

Jenny and her husband Jason have two kids – Lydia, 6, and Waylon, 6 months. There’s lots of activity in the house and the layout of the living room needs to be a great place for the whole family to hang out, play and get a little rowdy if necessary (read: no overflow of glass accessories that could easily tip over!) We have a budget of about $500 to work with for the room. We’re starting with some great neutral bones:

The mood board:

Because of the tight budget, we’ll work with some colors already in place. Moving a few pieces of key furniture will give this room a better flow. We’ll move the TV out of the corner and on to the new console. The console will be placed on the wall where the large painting currently resides. The multi-colored chair will have a new home in the corner where the TV is, and we’ll pull the 3-cushion sofa away from the window by about 8-12” to make the room feel larger. Lastly, a few coats of black semi-gloss on the side table between the sofa and chair will make it fit right in.

Moving from left to right on the mood board, some additional accessories and window treatments will warm up the room immensely!

First we’ll begin with this super-handy mirror with hooks from Target. Placed between the front door and the window, this will be a great drop zone for jackets and the perfect place to slick on some lip gloss before jetting out the door.

Hanging this gold and gray painting to the right of the tv will add a touch of glamour to the space.

New rich wood window coverings in this gorgeous mocha color will add depth to the room, as well as provide for privacy. They’ll also let light in during the day.

A series of three white reed diffusers or small vases placed on the top floating shelf conveys a sense of clean modernism but still feels homey.

Throw pillows will add some additional color to the room. Place one in a solid deep crimson on the patterned chair. Then an additional solid on the couch, as well as this striped pillow and this patterned one.

A soft, cream-colored woven blanket will look dynamite folded and draped over the back of the big chair.

This media console from Target will provide storage for CDs, DVDs and the occasional toy.

A small ficus plant from Lowe’s or Home Depot placed on one of the media console shelves will add a nice natural textural element to the space.

A variety of black picture frames filled with pics of kiddos and placed on one of the floating shelves and leaned against the wall makes this house a home.

Personalizing the space with this vinyl lettered monogram over the front door will unify the wall between the living room and the dining room on the other side.

A few woven baskets provide additional storage underneath the console or on the shelves.

Cost breakdown:

Mirror with hooks, Target, $80

Media Console, Target, $140

Artwork, Bed Bath & Beyond, (less 20% coupon) $80

Window Coverings, price varies, figuring around $40 each

Reed Diffusers, found at most discount stores or TJ Maxx, $6 each

2 Crimson Throw Pillows, Bed Bath & Beyond, (less 20% coupon) $32

Striped Throw Pillow, Target, $15

Circles Throw Pillow, Target, $20

Blanket, IKEA, $10

Floating Shelves, Target, $20 for 2

“B” Monogram, etsy, $8

Woven Baskets, set of 4, Target, $40

Total: $543

So folks, there you have it! A living room makeover for just about $500 bones.

My Favorite Time of Year

2010-04-05T15:27:00.001-05:00

Beyond all doubt, springtime is my favorite time of year. I love the green grass, the blooming tulips and daffodils, temps in the 70s and just how everything looks new again. I wouldn’t mind if it was spring time all year long.

This weekend was lawn and garden central at our household! I found a tile top patio table on Craigslist a few weeks ago that I snapped up for $100. Love the tile top table, it’s so easy to keep clean and you can switch up your colors whenever you get bored! So, new table means new chairs. We found some great ones at Penney’s, on sale and no tax! We are also the proud new owners of a Honda mower, purchased from the fine folks at Lawn & Leisure of Lee’s Summit. We thought about buying our mower at Lowe’s or Home Depot, but for a bigger purchase we wanted to have a knowledgeable salesperson and plenty of time to ask questions, so we went with the local guy on this one. It was a great experience, I’d recommend Lawn & Leisure to anyone!

Enough with the blabbering, on to some fun photos. We have a large shrub in our backyard that blooms with gorgeous coral flowers each spring. I couldn’t resist snipping a few branches for some inside spring-timey cheer!

I bought this pitcher at Goodwill a few months ago for $2. It was bright pink – I sprayed it with a few coats of American Accents Blossom White.

Love these coral colored blooms.

Tons of them just ready to pop!

A more architectural arrangement for the kitchen table. I love the height. (oh and look out the window to get a peek at our new chairs!) :)

Linking up with The DIY Showoff, A Soft Place To Land & The Girl Creative!

Time To Stage

2010-03-29T17:59:00.001-05:00

Hi folks! Hope everyone is doing well. It’s been non-stop around here lately. I’ve taken a break from doing some of my own home decor stuff to do a few other things these days! Mainly, I’ve been working {the standard response, but oh so true} and also cleaning out every closet, nook and cranny in preparation for our neighborhood garage sale in May. I still have a few more things to clean out but I’d say I’m almost ready to make the big bucks on folks looking for bargains.

I’ve also been working with my friend Leslie on some fun updates for her bathroom. We’ve picked out some beautiful finishes and I think we’ll be starting work the weekend after Easter. Click here for our plan and mood board inspiration!

After I helped Mason’s cousin Jenny with her window treatments, she wanted to look a few options to update the room overall. So in my off hours {which are few and far between} I’ve been working on a bit of that too.

Lastly, I have my first official staging client! I’ll be staging a house in old Leawood {for non-Kansas Citians, it’s a beautiful neighborhood on the Kansas side of KC with some gorgeous, eclectic homes.} This home is a pretty contemporary, light-filled bachelor pad, so we’re going to work on a few key rooms like the living room, kitchen, and master bedroom to soften up the edges and make it a bit more lady-friendly.

Here are some before pictures…

Living Room/Entryway/Kitchen:

Kitchen:

Living Room:

Bedroom:

Dining Room:

My head is swimming with ideas! We’re on a tight budget (who isn’t?) but this one is going to be fun!

Leslie’s Bathroom Makeover: First Draft

2010-03-21T20:13:00.002-05:00

Time to start work on my friend Leslie’s bathroom! I went over to her house today and we talked about what she wanted and took some measurements. We’re going for a calming, spa feel for the room overall. We want to incorporate some great natural textures and a pop of color here and there. Here’s the initial mood board to get our vision going for the space.

We’re working on tight budget so we’ll be scouring for some deals! The main projects in the room are going to include:

demo of a bit of tile surrounding the floor and replace with trim
upgrade flooring to a wood-look vinyl
replace vanity top
improve lighting

Quick source list for items above:

Fixture from Lamps Plus
Wall art and square mirror from World Market
Shell ball from Z Gallerie
Shower curtain from Amazon.com
Towels from Bed Bath & Beyond

More to come!

Ode To Symmetry

2010-03-18T12:01:00.001-05:00

Can I just say how much I love, love LOVE all the symmetrical patterns that are out there in the design world these days? I adore looking at all of them. They give me a sense of calm, which is why I like to incorporate them into my home as much as I can. Here are a few current favorites:

Accent pictures from Crate and Barrel:

Quatrefoil sheets from Ethan Allen:

Hmm, that pattern sure looks a lot like the pillows I have on my living room couch!

Speaking of pillows, how about this gorgeous black and white trellis from favorite Etsy seller NenaVon?

Don’t forget about either one of these rugs from Home Decorators Collection…

This Sorrento Area Rug would make a lovely addition underneath an outdoor patio table.

These gray and yellow magazine boxes would be so cute on an office desk!

Get it on the walls with Graham and Brown wallpaper!

Or in plum:

Or stencil a side table with this quatrefoil stencil from Designer Stencils.

Wouldn’t someone be lucky to receive a gift wrapped in this gorgeous paper…

What do you think? Any favorite symmetrical patterns out there? Post links to your favorites!!

The Family Room Revealed!

2010-03-16T15:51:00.001-05:00

For the last month or so, I’ve been posting about our sitting room – the small space that’s right off of our kitchen that’s appropriate for, well, sitting. I went through lots and lots of ideas, and eventually even ended up buying some new furniture. In the past this room has been quite the hodge podge, and having my sister in law’s baby shower gave me the perfect excuse to get my act together. We’ve now decided to call this room the family room, since we’ve been spending quite a bit of time in here. It sounds much less formal than the sitting room, and we’re all about being non-formal.

So without further ado, some pictures already!

The before:

Random furniture, no cohesion whatsoever!

The color inspiration for this room came from two main sources:

First, the living room- because the spaces are so close to one another.

Second – this painting, which is now hung above the fireplace:

And now for the mostly finished after!

I have become quite fond of this armchair. It’s perfect for curling up. The side tables were purchased on Craigslist and painted a light dove grey. Their main purpose is function – a place for a book, remote control, or {my personal favorite} glass of vino. The chair will probably need a pillow at some point.

Here’s a close shot of the fabric. It’s a brown and cream nubby.

The sofa is home to a few new throw pillows: one in orange silk, and the second is what I like to call the peacock pillow. It has all these silky feathery leaves that make the texture to die for! I like to shake it just so I can see the feathers all move together in sync. Yes, I’m weird. But, I own my weirdness!

I wanted a glass coffee table that wouldn’t take up too much visual space. I’m happy with what we ended up with!

A few accessories give it some weight. First, this natural woven basket is the perfect place to throw a wayward magazine or a few loose paint chips.

A stack of books in bluish and green hues hang out on the other end.

The new wooly cream rug makes the space cozy and inviting.

We’re lucky to have the second side of our fireplace in this room! The hearth is a perfect place for Mason’s match collection {originally started by his grandparents back in the 1950’s.}

Some of the matches in this collection were cracking me up. Take, for example, this book of matches promoting a local hospital! {Yes sir, we hope your lung cancer gets better. Here’s some matches so you don’t forget who to call in case it doesn’t.}

There are some some really interesting ones from hotels all over the world, like the Istanbul Hilton and Aspen for instance!

How about some vegetable soup with your cigarette? Ahh, those were the days… when canned goods were promoted on matchbooks. It’s all so Betty Draper.

Did you know that Perkins used to be called Perkins Cake & Steak?

There are many, many more matchbooks… we could probably fill up another container full. But two will do for now.

Still working on accessorizing the mantle, but again the colors in the painting were my main inspiration for the room.

There are still a few things left to do in here – I’m considering some scrollwork decals for the wall behind the TV, still chipping away on the mantle decor, might change out the window coverings and tile around the fireplace, and not quite sure yet about those side tables. But she’s coming along!

Room breakdown:

Sofa and chair by Alan White at Nebraska Furniture Mart $1200 including tax, fabric protection and delivery
Wooly cream rug, 5’ x 7’ Shaw Carpet at Lowe’s $150
Glass Mendocino Coffee Table, Walmart $100
Side tables, Craigslist $25
“Warmth” by Volk painting, Target $70
Candle Lanterns + Candles, Homegoods $40
Match containers, TJ Maxx & Hobby Lobby $30
Small Lamp, Homegoods $20
TV and TV Stand: already had
Orange throw pillow, Target $17
Blue Peacock Pillow, TJ Maxx $17
Books: on hand
Woven Basket, Homegoods $6

Room Total: $1675

Yikes! It never seems like that much when the money’s being spent! But, since we started from scratch in here and had to buy furniture, I’m quite happy with how it turned out!

Gettin’ Down To Business

2010-03-15T18:07:00.001-05:00

I need to have parties more often… having people over for the baby shower I had this weekend means that I have two new clients to work with!

My friend Leslie has hired me to revamp her bathroom:

…and Mason’s cousin Jennifer is looking for some help with window treatments.

I’m doing this work free of charge since I want to help friends and also get a few clients under my belt should I ever want to charge for my services. Time to make the donuts!

Entry Table Revamp and my first glaze experience!

2010-03-15T12:53:00.001-05:00

A few years ago, we purchased this demilune table and mirror for our entryway. Here’s one of the most recent pictures when I had it decorated for Christmas:

This table just wasn’t doing it for me anymore. Time for a redo!

I didn’t think the before was too bad, but it needed something. Here’s the before, ready to be revamped:

First I started by painting the legs of the table (and the matching mirror) with my oil rubbed bronze spray paint.

For the top of the table, I chose Wood Smoke by Glidden. I painted on two coats.

I wasn’t thrilled with the finish… it just needed something extra. Enter porcelain crackle glaze by Valspar:

The instructions noted that the thicker the coat, the bigger the crackle. I wanted something visible but not huge, so I went with two coats. When I looked closely, I could see the crackle was there. Now it just needed something extra to highlight it.

After I let the glaze dry for 24 hours, I mixed up some Valspar Clear Mixing Glaze with some dark brown paint. I used a 6:1 ratio of glaze to paint. I used an old rag to wipe the glaze onto the table. After just a moment, this started to appear:

This was my first time working with glazes of any sort, so it was an experience! I used the rag to wipe on the glaze. Looking back, next time I will rub the glaze in circles as opposed to long strokes… but it’s all good! You live and learn. I was still happy with the way the table was shaping up.

Here’s a close up of how it looked when it dried. I love the outcome, I think it looks like the color of weathered wood.

It goes perfectly with my new set of keys that are on the other side of our entryway. And now, I am in love with glaze. I can’t believe I’d never used it before.

With a quick sweep through Homegoods and Hobby Lobby, I picked up a few accessories to create that earthy casual look with a pop of color that I just love.

Blue Vase from Homegoods $6.99
Lantern from Homegoods $19.99
Candle from Homegoods $6.99
Apple and Pear from Hobby Lobby, $1 each
Starfish from Hobby Lobby, $2.99
Orange berry stems from Hobby Lobby, on sale 50% off, $2.00 total

I love the softness of the gray with the added fun of the orange and blue.

Candle lanterns are one of my favorite accessories right now.

I also ordered this 3x5’ rug from Overstock, which should be arriving sometime this week.

All done!

Linking up with Thrifty Decor Chick’s Before & After Party!

A Party to Welcome Baby

2010-03-14T12:03:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of co-hosting a baby shower for my sister in law, who is expecting a baby boy this summer! I love hosting parties, and it had been awhile since I had hosted, so I was so excited for this!
I handled the invites, decor and dessert and my mother in law took care of all the food.
Here was my mood board. The invitation (top left) inspired the blue and orange color palette.
We had the party catered by Carrabba’s. I think this is one of the best decisions we made – not having the stress of cooking completely changes the host’s enjoyment of the day! The food was great – italian salad, chicken marsala, mostaccioli with chicken, mushrooms and peas and garlic broccoli rounded out our menu.
The decorations started with seven different sized paper lanterns, ordered from LunaBazaar.com.

A bowl of bright orange clementines served as the centerpiece for our sweets table.

I bought some kraft paper from Hobby Lobby for $2.99 a roll and hand painted a tablecloth with a few foam brushes and some acrylic paints I had on hand.

Tangerine Cream Sodas were a popular refreshment for the younger crowd.

Cakes by Combs created a beautiful cake for the event that echoed the invitation. Lemon cake with lemon mousse filling… mmm.

Here’s the sweets table as a whole!

My sweet husband, who brings me flowers every year to mark the anniversary of he day he proposed to me (March 10), made sure we had some beautiful white tulips for the event.

Mom-to-be and I getting ready to enjoy the party!

Mom and daughter:

Gabbin’ Gals:

Family from Columbia made a special visit, including Mason & Julie’s grandmother.

Julie’s dad made one of his special presentations to welcome his new grandson into the family. This presentation included the resurrection of several old friends – Snoopy for one.

Mason and his Grandmother Ann.

Favors for everyone were tins of Jelly Bellies in a mixture of flavors – orange, grapefruit, blueberry, coconut and french vanilla!

Welcome baby boy!

Linking up with Bird Crafts and Under The Table & Dreaming.

Deal of the Day

2010-03-08T10:22:00.001-06:00

Check out this gorgeous Nate Berkus mantlescape on sale for…. wait for it……. $10 dollars!

Was $69.95, on clearance for $10. Go get it!

Quick Entryway Project

2010-03-04T11:21:00.001-06:00

Hi folks! Busy busy around here! Last month I posted about ordering these keys from Pottery Barn. They arrived and I love them! I found the perfect spot for them in our entryway.

I bought a barn wood frame from Hobby Lobby and hung them up inside the frame. I love the way it turned out!

Closeup of frame:

Major Announcement!

2010-02-19T15:20:00.001-06:00

I am so excited to share with you all that our living room is going to be featured in the next issue of The Nest Magazine! The magazine publishes in April.

We are beyond thrilled about this and can’t wait to see our living room in lights :)

The Office Update

2010-02-17T21:36:00.001-06:00

Waaaaaaay back when I posted that we had begun a new project. A project which was daunting. A project which would test our abilities. A project of epic proportions!

Ok, maybe it wasn’t that dramatic, but on December 29, we started on Mason’s new office in the basement. This one was definitely going to try our skills, because the room we started with was a big gray stone box that looked like this:

Today is February 17.

I would be lying if I said we’ve been working away on it, slaving ‘til the wee hours. Truth be told, we have been working on it… just not as often as we should. What can I say, there’s lots to do around here! We probably have about 40-50 hours of work left on the office overall, and it’s hard to make a good dent in that doing things an hour at a time. But, I digress… the work must be done anyway.

So what has kept us Mason busy? Here’s a synopsis of the progress:

We’ve been insulating the walls:

Wiring up switches and dimmers:

Installing a total of 8 can lights:

Building a soffit to go around the cold air return:

And last but not least, wiring and installing outlets throughout the room.

I talked to my home decor fanatic buddy Ashley at Decorating Obsessed today, because she is the master of getting projects done at night, after the long work day. I had to know her secret. As it turns out, she’s not watching too much TV right now. Aha! I knew there had to be a culprit. Damn you Big Love, 24, Lost, Dexter, Burn Notice, The Office, Undercover Boss and American Idol! We shall overcome!

Next step is sheetrock. Then we’re going to do some concrete stain on the floor. We may be welcoming football season before this baby is signed sealed and delivered, but we’ll get there! Stay tuned :)

Baby Shower!

2010-02-17T14:31:00.003-06:00

We are so excited to be welcoming our first nephew into the family! Mason’s sister and her husband are bringing a little boy into the world this summer.

With babies, of course come baby showers. I love hosting parties, so the shower will be here!

Due to my Polyvore obsession, I couldn’t resist creating a mood board…

Happy 101

2010-02-16T11:02:00.001-06:00

“Most folks are about as happy as they make their minds up to be.” ~Abraham Lincoln

Thanks to Ashley from Decorating Obsessed for passing this award on to me! I’m having such a good time sharing our home improvement adventures with everyone.

Here are my 10 things that make me happy!

1. A happy marriage and a perfect-to-me husband

2. Sunnie

3. Red Wine

4. Packages in the mail from Amazon, Overstock, Etsy sellers… the list goes on

5. My iPhone

6. Michael Buble & John Mayer

7. The relaxation that comes with cooking a fine meal

8. Mad Men

9. Traveling the earth with Mason

10. Making our house into a home!

In the spirit of passing it on, here are my blogs of choice that hereby receive the highly-coveted, red-carpet-worthy Happy 101 Award!

1. The Seven Spot - Sarah’s back in blogland after a little hiatus. Her humor and wit always make my day.

2. Fabulous in the STL - Heidi is a supermom balancing a toddler, a hilarious husband and a family business. How she manages to do it all with charm and class is humbling to me.

3. Yay! DIY Domesticated city girl Erin is always quick with a joke or a crafty idea that won’t leave you broke! (ok that was a pathetic attempt at a rhyme, but I get credit for trying, right?)

4. Mod Podge Rocks - Amy’s projects are so easy and inspirational! If you are looking for a quick way to add color to your home, check out Amy’s blog.

5. Sarah @ Sarah Maxey Photography is a talent above all talents! Such an eye for color and the most gorgeous family and baby photography in KC.

6. Sarah @ Thrifty Decor Chick never ceases to amaze with her astounding ideas, all on a shoestring budget.

7. Probably my favorite DIY blog, Centsational Girl is a source of constant inspiration for me. Impeccable taste and always polished.

8. Fresh Nest Design is one of my favorite reads. I love their Monday Mood Boards!

9. Erica @ Feasting on Life always has some interesting insights on local restaurants, cooking and more!

Another sitting room mood board

2010-02-15T11:19:00.001-06:00

Here’s the latest on the sitting room mood board! I had incorporate my new furniture to play with some ideas.

One of the challenges I have is that this space is so close to the living room. To have continuity, I think that the design has to use simlar colors. Here’s a basic layout of our main living area:

The sitting area is just above the kitchen table. There is a two-sided fireplace that seperates the living room and the sitting room.

Back to the mood board though – this one uses the same orange from our living room and also incorporates some fun pops of turquoise as well. A soft white shag rug, a picture to go on the mantle and two rattan ottomans complete the room.

So, this is today’s thought. Of course, this could completely change by tomorrow!