Inspired by...

Because of all this blogging I'm doing, I'm getting NO sleep, but tons of ideas. Soon I'm going to have to catch up on the sleep thing, but for now...I blog!! I have decided to post on various projects I've found online that I decide to do myself. I'll link you to the orginals and we'll see how my versions turn out. :)

But my first ideas came from the recent Home-A-Rama. I'm going to attempt these on my own, on the cheap, with my own spin.

We do this quite often with client's window treatments, and I've actually seen it done better, but I've never tried it myself. I think it's time -- just have to figure out where?:

This is a Pottery Barn Kids piece, but I know I can do it cheaper on my own. ;) Love this idea!:

Umm, is this not caaauuuute?? It's a lamp, used as a ribbon holder. Darling. I will not do this with a lamp, but it has the wheels turning:

Seriously, how easy and fun is this? This one I think I will do soon...couple ideas floating around as to how I'll do it exactly:

I've seen this before but it was a good reminder of something I've been wanting to do:

I'd love to see if you've done anything similar to these, or if you decide to tackle these one your own! Have fun!

Up against a brick wall...

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above photo: source unknown

Exposed brick walls. How do I love these...? Let me count the ways:

• A good brick wall conjures up a sense of history in a home. The more aged the brick looks, the better.
• A brick wall needs no adornment. It stands alone, naked, and still looks great.
• A brick wall is the perfect feature wall. How can your eyes not be drawn to its strength and character?
• Warm colour is added to the room naturally. Brick warms up the space, so even an all white palette seems cozy.
  

  photo source: Country Living

• A brick feature wall makes a statement. Everything looks better against it, and it is the perfect backdrop for a great chandelier/lighting fixture, a stand-out piece of furniture, a great flooring material. Basically, it is the starting point to an amazing room.
• A brick wall naturally looks better uncluttered. It is the pattern, texture, colour - and it invites more, but in a restrained way. It can hold court with other great elements, but not too many. In essence, a textured wall - like brick- coaxes the eye to steer clear of visual clutter. It is our job to take the less is more cue.
  

  photos (above and below): Wish magazine

***Note to self: Add a brick wall to my dream home list. What's on your list?

A Few Updates...

Just wanted everyone to know that, although I mentioned I would be hosting another great give-away with Matthew Mead this week, we have had to postpone it until next week (technical difficulties). However, the contest will begin next week, and I will give you advance warning: trust me, you don't want to miss out on this one, as there a few extra goodies being thrown into the prize barrel. I also thought I'd let you know that today is the official release of his new book, Entertaining Simple. It's in bookstores everywhere, so check it out!!

Also, if you are wondering where all my blog links are, don't fret. I had so many that they were starting to take over! So, I have created a whole new page where I can fit as many as I like. Just look to my right sidebar for the blog button link, and it will take you there. Because I have more space, if you would like to be added just send me an email. Also, I try to visit as many blogs as I can, but have you seen that list? I think I am going to have to do a rotating schedule...I limit my blogging time to late evening, for the most part, so it gets tricky...

How do you manage to be a friendly blogger to all your favourites?

Window treatments - soft furnishing

Soft furnishing is a vital part of interior design and decoration. They add color, texture, softness and design to our spaces. Without soft furnishings, our rooms would be hard and noisy.

Fabrics are the major part of soft furnishings; we use these for making drapery, curtains, cushions, valances, tiebacks, wall panels and upholstering our furniture to make it more comfortable to sit on.

There are smaller items called passementere, these are the trims and braids that decorate the fabric we use on the drapes, blinds, curtains, cushions and throws.

Pouring rain. Too many people. Gorgeous homes. Heaven.

So tonight my decorating-loving pal and I went to the local Home-A-Rama. I can't get enough of the Ramas....and I am a sucker for model homes too. There's not a model home within a ten mile radius of our home that I haven't been through at least once.

This Home-A-Rama did not disappoint...for the most part. Love the houses, love the decorating, the ideas, the landscaping AND the bad decorating. Some are just. plain. bad. But there's more of that to come...first, a sampling of my 142 pictures. Yes. 142. Did I mention it was pouring rain? And that we didn't bring an umbrella? We didn't care -- beautiful homes don't judge.

Sorry the quality is bad... the battery was dying, wonder why??

I LOVE these windows:

This is the most unique window I've ever seen in a home. The picture doesn't do it justice:

Reminds me so much of Candice Olson!:

Choco-lucious:

Creamy cabinets were the rage:

Wow, none of these do the homes justice. I'll share more soon...and the home with the worst decorating I've ever seen. I feel awful saying that, but really, it was bad. You'll die. Just die. Die! Die! Die! (Jack McFarland anyone?).

Sweets!

Who doesn't love cupcakes? Especially, precious, cute, custom cupcakes? A friend of mine makes the most beautiful cupcakes I've ever seen. They are little works of art. And they are goooo-ooooood. I know, I've tried one (nine).

I know 99 percent of you don't live close enough to order from her, but you can still drool. Check out her out here:

http://www.happinessinabite.com/

A little ditty...

Well, I just received word via email that my blog has been nominated for a little something over at Divine Caroline, which is a great site devoted to sharing inspiration and stories for people like you and me. So, if you are so kind as to take the time to pop on over there and vote for me, I will blush pinker than I have in a long time. You can easily register, then vote away!

Thanks everyone!!

Sunday Dinner...

Ever since I was a young girl, Sunday dinner has been a tradition held close to my heart. With five siblings, mealtime was often served dine and dash, with little emphasis placed on the intricacies of setting a table or the Norman Rockwell image of a family gathering to slowly dine and reconnect over a meal. Indeed, protecting one's food from nipping brothers was more of a priority than sitting straight in one's chair and keeping elbows off tables.

Sundays, however, were the exception. I have many olfactory memories of roast beef cooking in its savoury juices, Yorkshire puddings bubbling away in muffin cups, and the distinctive scent of turnip and broccoli wafting through the kitchen. Whether tucked away in my room reading or outside, playing, the delicious scents would inevitably find me, and the rumblings within my belly would begin. One by one, my siblings and I would wander out to the kitchen, voicing the question, "Is supper almost ready, Mum?" Often we'd be sent back to where we came from so as not to be in the way or, conversely, given a job such as stirring the gravy, setting the table (one fork, one knife, paper napkin...), or of you were a strong boy, given the job of mashing the potatoes to creamy perfection.

photo source: wikipedia.org

As our mother served up our plates (which she always heated in the oven for us), we'd bellow to each other to come to the table. Manners were always minded a little more, conversation would extend beyond requests of "Are you going to eat that?", and although elbows still resided casually on the table, it felt special to me. I imagined that people driving by would glance in the window, smile and dub us very Norman Rockwell indeed. Sunday dinner and all its traditions were very important to us, and made us feel very civilized, almost refined, and definitely warmed us through and through. Sunday was even special enough to warrant dessert, a real treat in our home. Usually it was one of my mother's apple pies or crumbles, or sometimes it was simply sticky pudding cake straight from a box. Either way, the special nuances of the meal have remained with me, and Sunday dinner is a tradition that I carry on with my own family. Times may have changed and my own husband often assists with the meal and its preparation, but the meaning has remained the same: Sunday is a special day, deserving of a fine meal, and is a day where we come together as a family to eat, laugh, and sadly, are subjected to my husband's favourite radio show: classic country. Oh well, it can't all be perfect!

After all, our last name isn't Rockwell, is it?

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This post is dedicated to my "long-suffering mother" who has cooked more meals than she could ever count; and to my husband, who made the entire Sunday dinner today in all its glory. Dinner hasn't tasted that good in a long time...and I didn't once ask, "Is it ready yet?"

Lampshade tutorial.

I have a lampshade that has been bugging me for months -- I wanted to recover it but couldn't find the perfect fabric. Tonight, at ten minutes to closing, my Bub and I ran into Hobby Lobby (my second trip today, yikes!) and I found the PERFECT fabric! And trim! In less than ten minutes! Yayeeeee!


So I took pictures as I recovered this time just to prove how easy it is! Before:

You really don't need much fabric, just depends on the size of the shade. I lay mine out and trace it (using chalk) -- giving extra room so the fabric wraps around:

Use a hot glue gun to secure the fabric. You can cut little slits every couple inches so the fabric wraps easily:

Taadaa!! But it still needed something...

Trim! I found the perfect match:

If you've seen my family room, you'll understand how perfect the swirlys (swirlies?) are! I loved it so much, I did the little shade in the kitchen:

I'm so excited! My cat, however, is thoroughly unimpressed:

That looks says, "You add this crap to my food bowl and I will pee on your drapes, lady."

Fall is here? It's 84 degrees outside!

Ohhhh I love, adore, can't get enough of fall. Love it love it LOVE. IT. Usually, I get so excited about this season that I have pulled the bins of decorations out by August 31...or the 15th? Who's keeping track?

This year, fall alludes us here in the Midwest. We've just had approximately TEN STRAIGHT DAYS of 82+ degree weather. Fall, notsomuch. I know, 82 is nothing for those of you down south, but 82 is torture to me...fall is the most glorious time of the year around here and there is nothing better than a 68 degree day, fireplace roaring, my (new Lampchop) slippers and a mug of apple cider, in my opinion. Eighty outside does not lend itself to anything but sweat and bugs. Ugh.

So the weather is breaking and I finally started working on the fall decor over the past couple days and have had a blast. And spent money. Dang it, why can't I just be happy with what I already have?? Why must I finance Hobby Lobby's existence?

So, here you go, I'll take more tomorrow with better light. Enjoy the candlelight and sip some cider. (Yippee, I'm practically giddy!)

I'm going to have dead head all these blooms, aren't I? And that's only one of two. The pumpkins are sad, give me time. Yes, those are fake flowers on the door, looking goooo--oood!! (Clark!):

These need some water, I know. But I have to remember to feed cats and a child everyday. Pumpkins for cheap at Hobby Lobby!:

I love that our home already has so many of the fall colors in it -- hence my love for this time of year. I love green, rust and brown:

I needed a stand for these candles -- spend literally three hours this morning searching for something in three different stores. (Not that I didn't find anything else!) It hit me on the way home -- scrap wood and paint. Exactly what I wanted:

These little frames will have FALL spelled out in them, just need to find the right letters:

I've realized lately that this new obsession of blogging is keeping me from my very reason for blogging -- decorating! :) I love the new inspirations and the ideas are flowing...I hope I inspire you too!

The Wow Factor...

(my girlie wearing glittered glasses and chatting on the phone...oblivious to me!)

As you may know, I love to take the ordinary, and inexpensive, and make it extra special. I glean inspiration from magazines and decorating books, and often look at the ideas and think: a) how can I duplicate that on my budget and/or accessibility from my small town and b) how can I tweak it and make it better, or just my own?

Like many of you, I scour the Dollar Store, department stores, hardware stores and thrift shops to see what calls out to me as a potential project. Typically, I don't make things all that much, but what I do do, is wield a can of spray paint and glitter things with aplomb! As I type this, I have Martha Stewart's lovely silver glitter stuck between my fingers...a side-effect of my latest adventure with my two favourite mediums!

I spied this crown early in the summer at Winners/Homesense. I absolutely love the image of the crown, almost as much as the chandelier! Looking at it in its original form, it didn't hold a lot of appeal to me; however, visions of it sparkling with regal purpose inspired me to add it to my cart, for the royal price of $16.99. After carefully smuggling it inside (my dear husband would not have shared my enthusiasm for it), I hid it in my usual spot, and promptly forgot about it...until yesterday!! Out onto my ugly gravel front path I went, and added yet another colour to the stones. A finishing dusting of glitter, and this is the beauty I ended up with:

Another project I just completed was this drum shade. I also purchased it at Winners, for the grand price of $14.99. Now, it was pretty handsome to begin with, but like most women, I figured I could change it into something even better! So, after poking around in my crafting supplies kit (my junk drawer), I found what I was looking for: the fun, and always whimsical, pom pom fringe!! Just about everything looks better with that, so while I was cooking dinner, I was also heating up the glue gun, and embellishing...too bad dinner didn't turn out as fancy!!

Speaking of cooking, I made pancakes last Sunday (as I always do); and because I had spent part of the previous evening flipping through Matthew Mead's new book, Entertaining Simple, which he had just sent me (thanks Matthew!), I was inspired to try one of the many great ideas in the book. Now, I have to tell you, there are so many easy and creative ideas in this book, you'll be instantly party planning and making to-do lists!! I won't get into too many details yet, as the book won't officially be released until September 30 (mark your calendars, ladies!!), however, I will show you what Matthew inspired me to do with my pancakes that morning:

Seriously, who would have ever thought of that? Pancakes on a pedestal!!

How pretty is that??!! When you think about it, isn't that where a pancake should be? I mean, doesn't everyone love a delicious, moist pancake...dripping in maple syrup and butter...with yummy add-ins like tart blueberries, fresh apple slices, and chocolatey chips?? FYI: those are the kinds of pancakes I make each Sunday, the apple being my favourite.

Now, has anyone ever priced the Silver Sage silk drapes at Restoration Hardware? Well, they are a pretty penny indeed. But look what I found at our local Zellers (Cdn) store! They may be faux silk, but the package said colour: Silver Sage, and they are a perfect match to the wall colour in my dining area! And since I was due to take my summer curtains down, the price couldn't have been better either: I spent only $14 a panel! Made my heart do a flip-flop, I tell you!!

So, in case you need reminding, hunt, root, search, scour the most unexpected places for what you are looking for. If you find something that will almost do, think of ways to repurpose it and make it work for your home. Oh, and stock up on a little spray paint and glitter while you are at it. Now, I'm off to work some bargain magic in someone else's home!!

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***Look forward to another great, BIG giveaway involving Matthew Mead next week. It is bigger and better than the previous give-away with even more chances to win!!

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Now, what projects have you done lately on a dime??

Confessions of a self-made decorator.

OK, I need to come out of the closet with a few of my confessions when it comes to decorating. Flame me all you want -- BRING IT ON!! Nah, just kidding, it's late, I've had some wine, and I'm just talking smack.

Here we go:

1. Silk flowers/plants: Yessssssssss I have silk flowers and plants in my house. Actually, I think the only silk flowers are out on the front door, but really. I'm OK with them.******* (Notice the asterisks...) That is, as long as they look somewhat, close to, kinda REAL. You all know what I'm talking about -- there is surely a difference. (Imagine Dollar Store florals and Pottery Barn florals-- I'm too tired to dig up pictures.) I really am more on board with the faux greenery, but I have cut down on that quite a bit lately. I only buy what I think looks real and use it sparingly.

2. I'm going to lose some friends here...but...I don't think Candice Olson is the Decorator God: Lord knows she does fantabulous work, and she is FAR superior of a decorator than I could EVER been in my WILDEST dreams and is amazing, no question, no doubt...but. I think if each time she decorated a room and stood back at that final minute and removed 20 percent of the stuff in the room, then I'd bow down to her. Hands down. I love what she does!! I just think it could be simplified a bit. (Like Candice Olson gives a .... anyway!) :)

3. I don't think More is More: I work with some amazing women who can pull a gorgeous display together and it looks SO incredible. They have fabrics draping, layers of items, cascading pieces...you just stand there in awe. I envy their talent and try it on my own...and then it just looks wrong in my home. I have realized I am definitely a less is more kind of gal. I tried to force that on myself and finally understood I'm just not that kind of decorator. Heck, maybe it's just that I'm not good at that kind of decorating...very well could be. And that's OK with me!

Seasons Change...

Well, the boxes were finally cracked on my fall decorations, and the first place I addressed was my fireplace mantel. Considering I hadn't dressed it up for summer, a change was long over-due. My fireplace is visible from every corner and is truly the focal point of my living room (considering my puny television is hidden away in an armoire...sooo passé). Thus, the time was right for a little decorating make-over!

I have to say, I am pretty pleased with the outcome. I incorporated many of my favourite things: my vintage chemist's bottles, my new/old platter, my love of crows, apothecary vases, and nests, and stepped out of my usual colour palette, and injected a modest splash of autumn's signature colour:

Of course I kept a little blue in the mix...

My love of crows at this time of year is legendary, so I figured he deserved to be elevated on a sweet, little cake platter. I love cake platters...

I thought I'd show you another little fall vignette. Don't be too dazzled by my artistic skills. I can hook you up with an original drawing of that pumpkin if you like...