Totally Inspired.....

By these three thrift shopping, furniture saving, ladies!  I have been a fan of Knack and Spruce Austin for a while now....and was so happy to see them in Southern Living last month.  I was also excited to be introduced to a third inspiration.....Gardenhouse.

Amanda Brown Spruce Austin

Barb Blair Knack Studio

Cheryl Maeder-Antonio Gardenhouse

They are girls after my own heart for sure...You can read more of the Southern Living article here.  Or visit their inspiring blogs. (knack, spruceaustin)

You may have also seen Barb on Design Sponge...she has a weekly spot Before and After Basics where she gives us tips on refinishing furniture. 

And Amanda has a great blog, and has created Spruce TV which gives tips and tricks, but also follows the Sprucettes on their journey to find and revamp furniture one piece at a time!  Here is a little snippet....I have watched it about 10 times! (I can't wait for more installments!)



 And Cheryl, just go to her website and prepare to be inspired....Vintage Gone Modern for sure!

Now off to redo my own bit of furniture....we are hosting our Neighborhoods First Friday Party, so I will be a busy bee all week.

Snippets of Spring...

Camellias, Daffodils, and Winter Honeysuckle from my Yard.

 

ou have heard me moan and groan about the lack of cutting flowers in my new yard....well, I will groan no more! Being in the busy fog that I have been in, I almost forgot to look up and see what I really do have! Flowers, lots of them!!!!...Lucky for me, my bright eyed children gasped the other day
" MOMMY, LOOK AT ALL OF THE FLOWERS!!!!".  Camellias, and Daffodils, and Snowdrops, OH MY!!!  It seems like it is going to be a good spring after all:)

And keeping with the flower theme, her is a little snippet for My Little/Big Girl's room....I found this awesome fabric that I think will be the jumping off point.  It is painterly,(for my little artist) and bright,( for her personality) and screams Eliza to me.  (I am going to sit on it for a week to make sure I am not just having spring fever)...but I really think I can do alot with it.  Drapes and a Bedskirt....and all of the colors in between!!!

Hog Heaven!

Elevations, inspiration, lighting scheme.  All on tracing paper.  I LOVE tracing paper...and how it makes my hands black (and sometimes my nose too!)

inspiration, my client loves these cabinets.

Very similar in layout to the kitchen I am designing.

THIS is what makes me happy (aside from my family, friends, health...etc:)  I am in it, in it deep, and loving every minute of it...YES, I am talking about my client's kitchen renovation.  We are down to the studs....one of the most exciting times in renovating...although my client just says, "Put it back together, PALEEASE!!!"

This is when the house 'speaks to you'...tells you what needs to be done....like we HAVE to have coffered ceilings now...bummer:)  Or that we gained 6 inches on one wall (that we needed badly, because of where the coffers will lay out)....Marc (the cabinet guy) and I both just looked at each other and said "knew we would find it somehow!)

I created elevations about a month ago,  things have been tweeked a little bit, but are coming together quite nicely.

The stove wall, 2nd iteration....measurements have been tweeked.

I have been working with the cabinet builder, Marc, which is so much fun.   I mean he is on it....with his Ipad, CAD  and everything...talk about loving to work with someone in the twenty first century. We literally sat on the phone (while I was driving to my parent's house on Friday) and hashed out the design, one cabinet at a time.  I have found that I have my Dad's analytical mind (measurements and all), and had a snapshot of it in my head and just designed and tweeked while driving, pulling measurements from my head.... can we say multitasking!  Normally, I am on the other side, at the computer while some one else dictates what will be changed....kind of fun having the tables turned:):)

This is when I hit my magazines and the internet.  Seeing how others have solved a problem.   Yesterday, I was looking at only coffered ceilings and how they meet up with the cabinets...did you know there are so many ways to make this happen.  A picture really is worth a thousand words, and really helps the client and the contractor visualize what you were thinking.  (have I mentioned before I LOVE my magazines). 

just one example....without the decoration.
This photo is from a kitchen's magazine from 2 years ago!

We also came up with the lighting plan....this always makes me sweat a little bit....hands shake.  I think it is a little bit of nervous and a little bit of excitement.   We have had to do away with a window to make more room, so lighting is incredibly important....I have also found a way to maximize the window that we have.  So excited about this one...but, that my friends is for another post....gotta keep you interested!



Have a wonderful day...it is just gorgeous here!

Voila....and another decision!

the stairs

A few weeks ago we made the decision to put a runner on our stairs. Partly, because our poor old dog, Hampton, is having trouble getting down the stairs.  I mean the poor thing will sleep until 2:00, just so that he doesn't have to make the dreaded trip down the stairs of doom...more than a few times his poor legs have just slid out from under him and he has taken a not so graceful ride down.    The other part is, that I am sure it is just a matter of time before our kids take a tumble....(I fell down my parents stairs as a teenager with my baby brother on my hip and socks on my feet...socks no more on the stairs, and a runner went up in that case too!)

soooooo,

YAY!  I get to pick out something fantastic....Oh, NO....I have to make a decision, with all of the great options out there.  Luckily, I pretty much narrowed it down to one company, a go to, for me.  I mean they created rugs just for Dogs!  No brainer.  They have soooo many options, great colors, and pattern....Dash and Albert of course!  I love the DaBomb runner in my kitchen.

I narrowed it down to 3 options.  (A good rule of thumb when designing is keep your options to 3, much easier to decide) I know it looks like 4 options, the top green was an actual runner they had in stock to see how many I would need.

 

My local retailer, an amazing little shop Cottage and Vine, was so nice to let me take some samples to see what worked.

**(note, this is not the Cottage and Vine of my blogger friend Rene....that is actually how I found her!)**

Drumroll..... I chose option #1.  I wanted to keep with the black and white theme I have going on in the foyer.

Here are the details.

We chose the Indoor/outdoor diamond ivory pattern.

We had 3 runners (2.5' x8') installed for 14 stairs.  ($275 total).  A great return on a not so huge investment, and if we want to change (as will probably be the case in a few years, it is not like we spent a ton and would feel bad tearing it out!)

We DID have it professionally installed.  But after seeing the installation, I think it would be a good DIY project.  As a matter of fact, I there is a fantastic tutorial on the subject over at the blog.....What am I going to do when I grow up.  We had it installed upholstery style instead of waterfall. (upholstery is wrapped around the stair, a more finished look, and you don't have to clean behind the rug!)

On to the other decision.  I have had these brass stair rods for a while now, scored at an auction for $12!  (they retail for upwards of $30 apiece!)  I thought it would be a no brainer and we would install them, now I am having second thoughts...and would like your opinion on the subject.

                    With Stair Rods                                                                          Without Stair Rods

I think I have already made my decision, having seen the photos, but am stilll curious as to you alls opinions.

Oh and last of all.....

"Oh, you shouldn't have, a stair runner just for me?"

"Did you say breakfast was ready?"  See ya:)"

(it was after a little bit of cajoling, I think the pattern was getting to him!)

****(UPDATE)*****
We went with OUT the stair rods and have been loving it....and Hampton still loves them too:)

Coffee and a New Magazine....

Just another morning with a cup of jo and a magazine....

I just want to raise my cup of coffee to a new regional magazine that I found yesterday at Barnes and Noble.  Charleston Home.  The same publisher publishes Charleston Magazine and Charleston Weddings.  Unlike the other magazines from this publisher it is only published 2 times a year this issue being the Fall/Winter issue but the Spring/Summer issue has just hit newstands (evidently not here in Columbia yet:) !!!! The photography and styling is great, along with the overall design of the magazine.  It is rich on content and low on advertising.

From the Beautiful Home Nathalie Suzanne (from the cover) on Sullivan's Island

to the Modest Kitchen Redesign of Kitchen Designer Dylan Gilliam,

I am dying over the backsplash here....gorgeous!

not to mention the Feature of Louisa Moore and her amazing Mount Pleasant Property,

Those Beams were salvaged from Camden SC...and the floors are from Orangeburg. 
I just love how she infused a bit of South Carolina into the whole home!

There is a bit of something for everyone.
 Coupled with Tips and Tricks on decorating, gardening, and cooking, to features on local artisans....

I never get bored of this look!

always looking for gardening advice

Hand Carved by Local Artist Stacey Bradley of Perla Anne

it really hits the mark. Let's just say,  I am a fan,  and will be running out to get my copy of the Spring/Summer issue...or I can enjoy it online.

Digital Editions | Charleston Home Magazine

For those of you up north that need a little Lowcountry Fix, I highly recommend it!

It leaves me wishing that it wasn't only twice a year...and that they featured more of what the Midlands of South Carolina has to offer.

 Bravo to Editor Ellen McGauley on a job well done.

All photos via Charleston Home.

Happy Reading.

Onto the Girls Room.

I love this beddding by Serena and Lily....with that pop of purple rug.

Love alll of the color...and the pink, red and purple....
via the Lennox

I love the Victoria Hagan fabric....hmmmm, might need to get some.

By Robyn Karp

if you remove the teenager touches....I am realy liking the purple. 

I know I know, I completely didn't post on Valentines Day...One of my least favorite holidays, BTW. Unfulfilled expectations, yada,yada....so I am moving on....to My little girls bedroom.  Inspired by Valentines....red and pink AND purple.   I know the inspiration is all over the place but I am taking little bits from them all.

Now this little girl LOVEs her stuff (she comes by it naturally):):) She loves to collect things, and has been known to use anything and everything to make her imaginary world come to life.   She has more stuffed animals than I know what to do with, and plays with EVERY single one!  She loves animals, She is a budding artist and has an unbelievable imagination...she can spend hours in her room, creating, drawing, etc.  I don't even have to come up with projects for her, she comes up with them herself!!   I have found packing popcorn (and I mean the kind that sticks to EVERYTHING.... used all over the floor and her bureau as a winter wonderland scene...."Mom, I really needed snow!"  Anyway, I want a girly and creative space for her...with bold patterned fabrics but demure at the same time.  Hopefully I can pull it off!

Since we moved in April, all I did was paint the walls and move her furniture AND STUFF into the room.  Here are the before pics....taken this morning after the kids went to school.  All I did was make the bed...the good bad and the ugly

The child really needs a place to display all of her artwork. 
And I think the kitchen is going to go, tear:(

 Here is my plan of attack.

So I HAVE a Pink Room. (a really pretty light corally pink)
A Purple Velvet Chair! (thus all of the purple in the inspirations)
A red and white chenille bedspread. (that may need to be made into something else, ie pillows or bedskirt)

I NEED a bold patterned fabric,
to repaint the dresser or find a new one,
shelving, a big board to display all of the artwork
To rework the bedding, and make window treatments.


All I need is a little bit of energy to get it done.


Wish me luck!