New House: Project Fireplace

For those of you who don't know, we recently purchase a new home that i am absolutely thrilled about. Its a 4 level backsplit, so despite its small appearance in the photo there is more than enough room for all of us to grow. All 9 of us! 5 people, 4 pets to be exact.

The house is a cosmetic fixer upper. Structurally the house is sound but the 80's carpet, and melamine kitchen cabinets will slowly but surely have to go. One of the first projects I decided to tackle was the dated fireplace. I was so excited because I've been gathering ideas for fireplace decor long before I ever had one. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, no question about it...white! The bricks before were a dusty rose colour which i'm sure looked lovely with the matching dusty rose carpet we need to tackle soon. The insert was a dark brown and brass. Now I heard brass was coming back with a vengeance (house and home january edition) but the brass fireplace accents had to go as well.

If you are thinking about painting your bricks white too, let me give you a warning that I didn't really listen to. Bricks soak up paint like crazy, get yourself a gallon of good primer and be prepared that it may take a while. I'll be honest, I hated the priming and quit, handed over the job to my hubby. I added the much easier to apply coloured latex paint in a pearl finish. White down OC-131 by benjamin moore. I love this colour, I also have used it on my kitchen cabinets at our last place. Its just a touch warmer than the trim white. The fireplace insert we spray painted with a black paint typically used on bbq's so its good for high heat. And voila! I added a few off white ceramic pitchers from my collection and our "Family Rules" and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! What do you think?

Joy Blog...Olioboard

So I found this website, that is so much fun to let your creative juices flow or can also be used as a tool for inspiration for designers or people like me who just have a passion for design and decor. I had so much fun gathering items to put together this olioboard as posted above which tells a story of a fresh kitchen/dining room in green, white and blue. It is a fantastic way to get to know the things that you love and put them all together. If you are on a path of getting to know your true self, you'll notice that there are usually some themes in what speaks to you. Is the clean lines of the modern furniture, or like me are you drawn to white furniture, and chandeliers. The site offers the items to put on your olioboard however there is also the option to upload your own photos which I had a hard time figuring out. There were plenty of furniture and accessories to choose from, all from stores like crate and barrel and restoration hardware. The best thing is, like a collage, there is no right or wrong. It's whatever you want to put together, what inspires you?

www.olioboard.com

Happy Creating!

A home of ones own

Photo: My new throw pillows, loved the damask print in the center pillow mixed with the striped pattern

"If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."
William Morris

I went to visit my friend Kelly last night who just purchased her first home with her husband Dave. (exciting!) It's an adorable little bungalow and they purchased it knowing that it needed a lot of cosmetic touches to make it their own. A conversation came up about this built in bench at the door way of Kelly's new home, another friend there said if it were me "I'd rip it out." Kelly responded with something along the lines of "well I was planning on adding some baskets underneath and a nice fabric covered seat cover", "I think it adds character." I was like "Hooray! for character." So here they go, on the same journey I have seen many of my friends (myself included) go through over the past couple of years. Buying that older, "fixer upper", and starting from scratch. Now this can be a very stressful process. When we bought our house it was so dated, and old. We moved in ripped out all the carpet, painting every inch of walls, trims, baseboards and ceilings. Over the past couple of years we have renovated our bathroom and kitchen and ripped out a wall separating the kitchen from the living room to make it open concept. When we first moved in, like so many of my friends, we chose a neutral palette. This tends to be an easy route, especially when you are essentially starting from scratch. We chose a couple paint colours, similar to benjamin moores Shaker Beige throughout. Painted the cabinets: contractors white. Trim: contractors white. Couch: Beige sectional. Yes, I was guilty of this boring decorating "dilemma" as I like to call it. It's like many people of my generation have lost the ability to be creative and add all of those little touches that make a home a home. I see alot of brown or black leather couches, beige walls, not too much on the walls, stainless steel appliances. Each of these houses looking staged for an open house, but who lives here?

Photo: This is an example of this type of decorating so typical of people I know. Yes, its nice, but seems so typical.

Slowly over the past year or so, on my simple abundance journey I have realized some things about myself and the things that I feel make a house a home. What is character? It's the little touches. It's the cute little built in's that are original to the home. Many of the new houses that people buy today "cookie cutter" houses lack these little details that they have in older homes. However, it doesn't mean character can't be added to newer homes with accessories, paint and all the little details. Of course we all want our houses to be aesthetically pleasing, we like things to match and blend. We do need to listen to what makes our heart skip a beat, and think less about what matches. "Staged" homes are not for living in.

Photo: I loved these towels found on etsy (the shabby chic cottage)
I realized that I am drawn to the comforts and cozy feelings that the country/cottage bring to me. I like the character of vintage vases, weathered and distressed furniture, painted furniture, beautiful handmade quilts, patterns mixed with patterns; like stripes and florals combined. I like cute little whimsical decorations like my silver pear, and this new sign I bought for my bathroom door that is shabby chic looking and it says "Toilette." I love fancy perfume bottles, and fresh flowers in every corner. I love yellow, and pink, and turquoise. Chandaliers, wicker baskets, decorative birds, damask and toile.

Photo: These little beadboard birds are found at The Shabby Chic Cottage on etsy.com. I may order them for the shelf in my kitchen.

Take yourself on a creative excursion, and browse through a home decor store or second hand store. You don't need to buy. Take a notebook if you want. Take notes about what really calls to you. Listen to yourself, this takes practice. Have a browse on www.etsy.com and have a look at the beautiful handmade items or vintage housewares. I invite all of you to begin to make your home your own. I realize that the beadboard birds may be hideous to some, and I'm not suggesting that a shabby chic style is for everyone but you need to find out what is your style. Please join me in my revolution against living in a "staged home."

Photo: Love Love this Jadeite plate reproduced into a clock. www.etsy.com

Feeling inspired by....Breakfast Nooks

photos: better homes and gardens and kitchen bath ideas

For a long time I have been drawn to these quaint little dining spaces. In my searches for inspiration I stumbled across the phrase "breakfast nook" and knew that I needed to create one one in my home. What I love most is that usually the breakfast nook is tucked into a cozy corner close to the kitchen, and usually posed perfectly by a window. Much to my dismay, I searched my brain for ways to create one of these in my house and I don't happen to have a cozy little corner close to a window...however...I will tuck these images away into my "someday" file and when we buy our next house I will keep this in mind. I do have this one little corner I am eying down in my kitchen, and I wonder if I got just the tiniest table and chairs....