Judging a book by its cover

One of my favorite trends right now in nurseries and kids rooms is open shelving. It's not only a great way to keep books from collecting all over the floor, but I love that it's an opportunity to display pretty books like pieces of art.

Daffodil Design

Alisa Burke Redefine Creativity

decor pad

I'd love to incorporate this into Isla's room, showcasing some of her favorite books, and of course adding a few more. Here are my tops pics. Luckily these are not only lovely to look at, but the content is pretty good too ;) 

Flora and the Flamingo

This Little Piggy Went to Prada 

Birds of a Feather Shop Together

Miss Lina's Ballerinas and the Wicked Wish

I Had a Favorite Dress

Extra Yarn 

Olivia and the Fairy Princesses

IKEA sells these inexpensive picture ledges that look just like Pottery Barn's, making this a super simple and affordable way to create a reading nook for you and your babe. I think I'll add them to the list for my next IKEA run.

What are some of your favorite pretty books? There are so many out there- I could drop a few hundred dollars like that. Luckily someone I know has a birthday in a couple months :) 

Let's go shopping!

Isla has one of those little pink Fisher Price purses, and every time she slings it over her shoulder she exclaims, "Let's go shopping!" I almost always happily oblige. This time, we decided to take a trip to my favorite Swedish furniture store to check out the new summer line. Remember all the flamingo stuff last year? Yeah, I totally planned Isla's birthday party around the little $1.50 glasses. Do you remember them? So adorable! I might have 10 (and wish that was more like 15). This year, they did not disappoint. I want to throw on some seersucker pants, a white button down and throw a party. Check it out:

Need. These. Platters. 

Napkins for $1.50. Gimme! 

More napkins. I'll take 10 please. 

cute nautical display

Have you seen the Ranarp series? I am obsessed. The hit of brass is perfection and they're so affordable. The one below is $20 and would be perfect as a bedside light. 

The table lamp is $40 and there's a floor lamp  and pendant as well. Love love love love love love love. They've been popping up on blogs everywhere and tons of designers are singing their praises.

Emily Henderson

Kirsten Krason

This pretty milk glass pendant would be great above a kitchen sink, and at $20 you won't feel bad if you tire of it in a few years. 

I've had my eye on this canvas for months, but am just not sure where I'd put it. It's so cute though, right? 

This greenhouse is a steal at $20, and I think it'd be a great way to have fresh basil (my absolute fav) year round. I think I'll get it next trip.

I always wondered how designers managed to keep live orchids all over their homes, and then I read that one of my all time favorites Caitlin Wilson used faux. Throw it in a pretty pot with some moss, and this $15 looks pretty convincing.

A few more things- pretty baskets (a must for our front porch with some palms or a fiddle leaf fig), super comfortable $25 sling chairs (I have 2 from last year and they are awesome), and that hanging chair. I need to find a place for it. How gorgeous is the green stripe with the hot pink? Very Kate Spade, I think.

Now who's ready to brave IKEA this weekend?! I can't wait to hear what you get! 

A couple of porch updates

I think we're all itching for summer. At least I am. A few days of 50 degree temps has me ready to bust out the loungers and whip up some mojitos. Unfortunately, I live in Minnesota, so summer is still a ways out (we have quite a bit of snow left on the ground), but that hasn't stopped me from doing some serious porch planning.

First up, I swapped out the Pottery Barn Bettina pillows (really, really old but you can find similar here). I feel like I say this 50 times a day, but pillows make SUCH a difference and it is totally worth the splurge to throw a few really high end, designer ones in the mix. I am obsessed with my Schumacher Chiang Mai Dragon pillows I bought from an Etsy seller a few years ago (sadly that seller closed shop, but these are the same fabric) and love how they look with the pink Pottery Barn ones I found on super clearance last fall. After the swap, Sam even said, "Hey, I really like how the pillows on the porch look." This was completely unsolicited I might add. Such a small change really helped give me direction with the room. I'm thinking blue and pink with pops of greenery.

The round mirror below was found at Lowe's around 3 years ago for $18, and I'm thinking it needs a paint job. I like a mirror in every room because they toss around so much light and make the space feel much larger. Any ideas on color? I'm just not sure. Is white too boring? Or maybe gold? Help! I think I'll hang it on that wall by the couch.

I found this IKEA hack on Pinterest (where else?) and fell in love. I think this coffee table is the perfect size for the porch and it's only $50! The hit of gold would look amazing with the pink and blue and the glass won't take up much space visually-- always a plus when you aren't dealing with a large space. And did I mention it's only $50. Oh IKEA, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. 

Olive Lane Interiors

I found this super cute bamboo table on Craigslist for $35 (I'd paint the whole thing white) and thought it'd be great at the other end of the porch for the occasional dinner out there. Sadly, Sam nixed it and said we "weren't ready" for that yet. We aren't?! Maybe if enough people comment, I can convince him otherwise. Come on guys, I NEED YOU NOW! How perfect would it be? And again, $35! Also, faux bamboo!! Sigh…

On the wall behind the oh so perfect bamboo table, I want to put these gorgeous botanical prints  (that are totally free!!). I mean, awesome, right? Pop 'em in some RIBBA frames and you've got yourself a statement wall for around $75. 

Poppytalk

Yes, there's still flooring to replace and trim to paint, but I think just a few small changes will really help me enjoy the space more until we have the time, energy and funds for those bigger projects. What are you working on right now? Or are you totally engrossed in March madness? Sadly, my Hawkeyes are already out, but I won't let that keep me from a few lazy evenings in front of the couch with a cold Coors Light ;) 

Your comments make my day! I'd love to hear from you! 

Dining room wish list

I hope my last post didn't come across as super whiny and bratty. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this house and feel so lucky that something like this even fell within our budget. I just know it can be so much better. Do you ever feel that way about your own home? Maybe I'm crazy or perhaps I'm home too much, but I am constantly looking around and brainstorming how I can make things look magazine worthy for very little money. Thank God I'm 15 minutes from an IKEA ;)

Anyway, the next space I want to share with you is the dining room. I was immediately drawn to the built in buffet that spans the width of the space. It has leaded glass just like the living room built ins and lots of drawers for storage. You can never have too much storage!

Sorry for the crappy pictures. The dogs and Isla were in the other room, so I was scrambling to get a few pics without them. I just noticed one of the lights in the ugly chandelier is burned out too. Get it together, Garland! This is my life, you guys. 

This room is open to the living room, something we really loved. A lot of old homes are pretty choppy, but ours has a relatively open floor plan. It's great for entertaining, and Isla loves running laps around the dining table. Speaking of entertaining, we have dinner parties (thanks to our friend Jon, who suggested the idea, and comes over to prepare all the amazing food) fairly often, so I would be so so so happy to finally get this room decorated. I found an antique chandelier on Craiglist that I am in love with, but it's been listed since we moved in and the seller has only dropped the price $100. I did email to ask if there was any flexibility in the pricing, got an immediate "Yes, what are you thinking?" response, emailed back a low ball offer, and haven't heard anything since. That was back in December and it's still listed. Guess he or she isn't really that motivated. Bummer for me because it's gorgeous and would look perfect in the space.

I like making lists, so here's what we need to do: 

/ / replace chandlier (Craigslist seller, please please please if you're out there, COUNTER ME!)

/ / replace way-too-small rug (maybe living room rug??) 

/ / wallpaper (yes, MORE wallpaper!)

/ / scrape popcorn ceiling and coffer (I just made that a verb)

/ / add roman shades to windows

/ / either replace or paint/reupholster chairs (or maybe even replace the table all together if I find something I like better?)

/ / paint all the trim white except the buffet, allowing that piece to really stand out (a big if on this one since Sam is team dark trim), or maybe even paint the buffet too (but I pretty much know Sam will never go for that)

Here's the listing photo of the CL chandy I so badly want in the room:

Unfortunately, I haven't really found any pictures to serve as inspiration. I do love this dining room, from an amazing home listing my sister-in-law sent me: 

How amazing is the coffered ceiling, wallpaper, wainscoting, those white chairs…basically everything in the room? I search for Chippendale chairs nearly every day on Craigslist, but nothing ever pops up. I'm thinking maybe something like this would be more affordable (maybe I can find a rental supply company going out of business?) and would achieve a similar look: 

The table in the picture below reminds me of ours, and I love the upholstered chairs they paired with it. Not to mention that wallpaper…swoon. 

I'll end with some dining rooms I adore; hopefully I can add the elements I find attractive about each of these to our room. It'll be interesting to see where we end up. You know I'll keep you posted. 

(Shea McGee}

(Caitlin Wilson)

 {???}

{???}

Facing my fears

Ok, here goes, deep breath. I really really really don't want to share pictures of my living room and have been dreading it since I decided to start this blog. When you tell someone you're into interior design, I feel like there's a certain expectation that his or her house be decorated pretty awesome. Well, ours is far from that. I so want this to be a space that brings a smile to my face since we spend a decent amount of time here, but it's unfortunately one of my least favorite rooms. Yes, the woodwork is nice and I love the fireplace and built ins, but it is DARK. There's a lot of pretty, thick trim (one of my favorite things about old houses), but it's not in the best shape, and it's not white. My aesthetic is light, bright and happy. This room is serious and manly. It reminds me of a study or a library. Naturally, my husband loves it. We have a leather couch that worked great in our last house because it was in a white room, but here it's just dark on dark on dark. No contrast. Sadly, my husband is against getting a new couch (what is it with men and leather?!?!) and doesn't want me to paint the trim. I'm not left with a lot of options. How can I achieve my goal of making it light and bright? My first thought was to repaint the mauve-y walls cream (Benjamin Moore Seashell), channelling a British Colonial vibe. That helped some, but it's still really dark and heavy. I'll let the pictures do the talking:

(sorry for the lamp switcheroo)

I'm really stuck about what to do with the area above. It's right off the vestibule and is far from the tv (which is mounted above the fireplace--not my first preference but it was literally the only place we could put it). I had the idea to move the big brass sconce to the upstairs hall and create built ins around the stained glass window. Something like this: 

{via)

I like the idea of an overhead light fixture to define the area and have had a crush on this Pottery Barn fixture since I laid eyes on it at our wedding venue nearly 6 years ago. The one in the inspiration picture above is also really pretty. I haven't even run the built in idea by Sam yet, so he could totally veto it and we'd be back at square one again. I wonder how many times a day Pinterest creates these arguments between spouses?!

Here are pictures of the other side of the room (I'm cringing and holding my breath): 

quite possibly the world's uglies overhead light

so dark and difficult to photograph

The elephant in the room is the giant curved radiator that sits below the window. I feel kind of paralyzed until we replace it with a straight one that can sit up against the wall. Unfortunately, that will run about $700. Also, installation is not necessarily something we want to tackle, so it could be reaaaaaallllly expensive. Thumbs down. This room has such potential, but right now it's not looking too hot. Here's what we want to do:

/ / scrape popcorn ceiling, remove overhead fixture, and install recessed lighting and a coffered ceiling like this


/ / add WHITE (woo!) crown moulding

/ / replace radiator

/ / move couch under window where radiator currently sits and put chairs (currently digging these striped beauties) where couch is

/ / hang curtains (totally undecided on a fabric, but I've always loved this Kravet)

/ / hide tv cords (Sam's area, and he said he knows exactly what he needs to do)

/ / swap out rug with something indoor outdoor

/ / a few new pillows that coordinate with window treatments and rug, side tables, lamps, accessories and art (just a few small things- ha!)

I've been begging Sam to let me paint a little bit of the trim, like the baseboards and door frames, because I think it would make such a difference. I know it's a taboo topic, but if we're going to live here, I want to be happy, and white trim makes me happy. Also, it plays nicely with basically every color, making decorating far less challenging. I'm not sure where we'll end up, but I'd really like to get started soon. We spend a lot of time here in the summer because it stays pretty cool, so I can't wait for it to start feeling more like us.

What are your thoughts on the room? Any ideas? Are you team white trim or team dark trim? I'm telling you, people feel really strongly one way or another.

Happy weekend, everyone!

Zee vestibule

Moving right along with the never-ending house tour...step inside from the porch to the area we call the vestibule. Just saying it makes me feel very pinky-in-the-air fancy. It's basically just a small little space between the porch and the living room. Although this room is not very functional at all, it was one of the first things that sold me on the house. Something about walking into that space gives me the feel I wanted with our house. Is anyone else like that? I can make lists of 50 must-haves, but when I walk through the front door, it has to have that "yep, this is home" feeling. One of my nieces thought it was really strange that we essentially have 3 front doors. She couldn't understand the point. Well, Claudia, I guess it is pretty silly, but for some reason I like it :)

A few months after we moved in, I bought this little bamboo dresser (have I admitted to my obsession with white bamboo furniture yet?!) on Craigslist for $90 and plopped in in there. Otherwise, as you will see in the pictures below, I haven't done anything.

view from living room

I apologize for the super dark pictures. It's kind of a hard space to photograph since it's so small and has so much dark trim. The leaded glass is really pretty in person though, I promise. My idea for this space is wallpaper wallpaper wallpaper!!! Please don't roll your eyes and tell me that it's sooo 80s. Wallpaper is back in a huge way. Here are a couple of my favs (although I have an entire Pinterest board dedicated to wallpapers, so feel free to follow me and check those out too):

{Beverly Hills Wallpaper }

{Cole and Son }

{Designer's Guild}

{Osborne and Little}

{Cole and Son}

At this point, I'm sure you're questioning my sanity. I've obviously got a thing for palms and birds. Oh, and crazy florals. Most of these are really expensive and "to the trade" only, so I have been searching Ebay religiously for the past 10 months, hoping to find a great deal. Price always helps me to be more decisive. ;) I'm really excited to finish this space since it's the first room in the house and has the ability to set the tone for the rest of it. Also, it shouldn't take more than a weekend to revamp, once I decide on a bold (and budget friendly) paper. Those projects are always nice, especially when you have an energetic toddler running around. 

What are your thoughts on wallpaper? Love it? Hate it? Or what about my choices? Have I completely lost it?! That's not out of the realm of possibilities.