christmas mantel and bookcases...2013

Thanks so much for stopping by to check out my mantle today.

I've gone mad for plaid this year, along with my all-time favorite gold! 

I gathered up a few gold mirrors and layered them, along with a favorite 

ornament, and that little pine tree was a Home Depot steal last spring.

 

I knew I wanted to include tartan plaid with a fresh, modern spin this year, a

 few simple diy urchins were the ticket. But the real key was my fun paisley and

dot pillow from Therese Marie Designs new Etsy shop, which I highly recommend. The

quality is beautiful, and it would be a great gift. You guys know I love a bargain, but

there is nothing like a unique one-of-a-kind piece to give your your home a little pizzazz.

It's easy to pair a great statement pillow with lower-end pillows, the black and white from

 Ikea, and white fur from Walmart.

I found the tartan plaid wrapping paper at the The Container Store and backed my bookcases.

It ended up being a perfect spot for my favorite faux taxidermy from Homegoods

 that I made over.

What was I thinking, I should have had a fire in there!! 

  

Join me @ Holiday Cheer in the Blogosphere

with Michelle @ Ten June and Carmel @ Our Fifth House
to check out all the Merry Mantels

and

12 Days of Christmas Decorating Link Up @ Songbird

colorful and modern client reveal...

Do you all remember this client from back in July? They wanted a fresh infusion of

color and modern elements, and were on board for using a mix of high and low.

We included some furniture and accessories they had, new unique custom pieces, Craigslist

 and thrifted finds, Ikea, and they were awesome at knocking out diys I suggested.

LIVING ROOM

We used Benjamin Moore Cloud White on the walls and trim throughout, and in order to

 take advantage of the beautiful view from their golf course lot decided on a clean look

 of uncovered windows.

Flanking the fireplace we layered mirrors, the vintage lamps were a thrifting find. 

They chose a pair of love seats facing each other and we re-upholstered a tufted ottoman

in a luxurious raspberry velvet. The leopard X benches were one of our diys.

DINING ROOM

 Remember their amazing Sputnik? It's such statement, it extends from the 20 foot

 ceiling, and is visible throughout the first and second floors. We used their existing dining

table above, they did a great job painting it with Annie Sloan's Barcelona. 

(I had forgotten until seeing it now, but I think some gold highlights would be pretty on the

 raised detail).  We had the Parson chairs above reupholstered in the orange geometric and

used the ghost chairs previously in their kitchen. We loved how the rug brought in the pink

 and blue from the living room. 

We plan on trimming out the bookcases for a custom built in look. 

KITCHEN

We debated how much to do to the kitchen since they're hoping to do a remodel in the near

 future. Although it's far from their ideal, I always hate to suggest spending much if you're

 going to rip it out soon. We came up with a Roman shade, a new rug, an awesome fixture,

new barstools, and save for the remodel.  

FAMILY ROOM

They had great basics to work with, the gray sofa, love seat and rug,

we added a few new pillows and the custom ottoman was a one-of-a-kind

piece that was worth the splurge. It's super functional, all the toys

 go inside and it's soft and cushy construction and pattern are baby friendly. 

And, it gives the room a fun dose of pizzazz. 

I loved those felted taxidermy sheep and the open frames were a fun way to 

give them a little presence. 

ENTRY

One more amazing diy the Mister they completed when we were crunched for time. 

Do you recognize this pendant? Hours of spray painting each little flower and stem, 

and then the assembly! It gorgeous and looks great with the Sputnik across the way.  

You can read about the staircase update and diy glass finials here.

It makes me want to ditch all my neutrals! :)

Thanks so much to my awesome clients,

it was truly a pleasure and couldn't have been more fun!


Join me at Sarah's
 Thrifty Decor Chick January Before and After Party 

and at Cassie's with her friends for the
Be Bold Challenge

our spring mantel and bookcases...

My 'modern meets antique' post yesterday was inspired while I was updating my
mantel and bookcases. I wanted a sophisticated library look for the bookcases,
but needed something with a little edge to mix it up. Remember this
diy framed abstract fabric, it was in the dining room, and had the look I needed to keep
 the gold frames from looking too formal. Since every bud and blossom in our yard is
 buried in snow I resorted to Hobby Lobby for my forsythia branches.

I've always loved the look of artwork hanging on the frame of bookcases, these three
 pieces were cross-stitched years ago by mr. simple's mom and we love having them out.
The sunburst mirror is my all-time favorite thrifting find from a few years ago.
I had planned to line the back with a patterned paper, but decided it would have been a
 bit busy with all I had going on and opted for a clean, simple background.

Fingers crossed, 'Fifi' my Fiddle Leaf fig is still doing well after two months. :)
One leaf turned yellow and brown and dropped, I'm hoping that was because of the transition
from FL to CO. It gets a lot of light, I put it in the sink and give it a good soaking
about every 10 days or so. It's next to the window and fireplace...I'll let you know how it goes.

I think it could use a couple more modern accessories in the mix,
something with a fun jolt of color...maybe for summer. :)
Do you know before blogging I only changed my mantel and bookcases at Christmas.
Do you change yours up?

Come check out the inspiration at:
 Kim's @ Savvy Southern Style Wow Us Wednesdays

i'm taking your advice...

Thank you all so much for taking the time to give me your 2 cents yesterday!

You guys totally took me by surprise, 35 out of 56 said 'leave it as is.'
And, almost just as many thought the inside should be highlighted with a lighter color,
fabric or paper.  

The one comment that stood out was from Anonymous:

 I thought her suggestion was great...

use it 'as is' for a while, after that if you are itching to paint it, then go ahead.

So, for now I'm leaving it 'as is' which means:

 You saved me a lot of work (thank you!)

 and very soon you'll be seeing it all styled up

with my mom's beautiful accessories...I can't wait, it will be fun to play with new things!

I've decided there isn't a secretary desk I don't like...

thebungalow.blog.com

 Stanley Furniture

 Pottery Barn

 exuberanthome.com

 houzz.com

 Lonny Magazine

 Decorpad.com

   Decorpad.com

It was funny, Joanne asked what my mom would like, I did ask her, btw. 

She said, 'Surprise me, but not that green in your dining room!'  :)

Have the BEST weekend, friends!

A fun surprise is on the agenda for Monday, I was on the fence about a purchase,

 but I pulled the trigger and can't wait to share it with you!

client project

You guys are GREAT!!

Thank you for all your encouraging comments that the ugly, scary diy will work out.

 It truly does give me a much needed dose of confidence!

I have a quick post for you today to share a client project I'm starting.

We're working on their formal living room that doesn't get much use, my goal is to

create a cozy space where they can hang out. The plan is a casual and comfortable library,
 but since the space is visible from the front entry it needs to be somewhat sophisticated. 

We'll be using Ikea bookcases with added trim for a built-in look.

Wouldn't a library ladder be the coolest detail?

I haven't mentioned it to them yet, but they're usually on board for my suggestions.

Dillon Kyle Architecture

passiondecor-de-marieclaude.tumblr.com 

decorpad.com 

I'm thinking something rustic.

Do you love them as much as I do?

$6 diy bookcase makeover

Sorry for no post yesterday! I had some weird computer glitches and my favorite
IT guy (Detail Boy) was already in bed when I was in the middle of my post,
 fortunately all was fixed today.

I always thought my bookcases were the perfect candidate for a makeover with a patterned background. When I accidentally came across this print I knew it would work with my neutrals.
You guessed it Ange and Lori, my 'wallpaper' is actually wrapping paper I spied in
the Target Dollar Bins, a marketing genius whoever thought of those!

My favorite part of the makeover is that it's easily removable when I'm in the mood
to change the pattern, and of course, the major impact for the $6 price tag.

I still loved the neutral bookcase scheme that I used last spring,
but I edited it a bit so the patterned paper could take center stage for now.

That cute little Norfolk pine was a gift at Christmas,
I removed the ornaments and red container, and transplanted it into a clay pot.
You just can't beat the texture of nature.

I used 3 rolls of wrapping paper @ $1 each,
1 roll of Scotch Removable Poster tape $3 at Hobby Lobby (with coupon).
I tried removable double-sided scotch tape, but it didn't hold, so be sure to use Poster tape.

Before cutting I unrolled the wrap and re-rolled it in the opposite direction to
 loosen the tight roll. It will make it easier if you don't have to battle the paper rolling up
and the tape sticking where it's not supposed to...ask me how I know!

It's pretty straightforward, measure the length you need, cut the paper using scissors

and a straight edge. I used the double-sided tape at each corner and in the middle at both

 the top and bottom. This pattern was easy to match, you can see where I aligned the

 two pieces, the white line just above the text.  

I mentioned my bookcases could use some pattern when I styled them for
 Christmas back in 2011....here it is 2013 and I'm on it! :)

Happy weekend, friends!
Have fun,
 and knock something off your 2013 to-do list!

Joining Monday Funday