Chic Black & Teal

Happy Thursday! It has been a while since I have been able to post with all the crazy school closures and heavy snow falls. I found a little bit of time to sneak a way and make a Chic Black & Teal Living Room Inspiration Board. When I think about putting rooms together I love using different textures and materials because I think that is what makes a room unique. Sometimes its intimidating to pick different patterns to go with others but what I have found is that if you just jump in and commit to your crazy idea often times it pans out. What I have also learned is to not be afraid when something isn't working in a design to just say its not working. I choose to put a really fun patchwork ornate sitting chair on the board today to prove that crazy ideas can work if you commit.

I hope you feel inspired!

Now go and play!

Tranquil Linen

Happy Friday!!!

Today we are sharing a tranquil inspiration board that gives a little of the old country with chic upscaled pieces. When you think of color palettes staying within the same color scheme in every selection creates a soothing balanced design. Designs like the board below tend to carry a timeless feel that leaves you breathless every time.

Enjoy!

Vintage Chair + Annie Sloan + Patchwork

This week I have been working on a vintage set of chairs and table. I absolutely love all things vintage and combine that with some Annie Sloan paint and we get magical results. Some of you know that I wasn't sure about all this hype of Annie Sloan paint. I was a fan of not spending a ton of money to paint a piece but oh my how my heart has changed. What most people don't get is that you really don't spend more to use FANTASTIC paint! It costs less because the coverage is AMAZING!

I choose to use Graphite Annie Sloan Chalk paint over this set of two green chairs. I had picked this set up at the Melrose Flea Market in Los Angeles and so it had already been painted once. I had a different vision for the chair though. I started off with a thin coat of graphite and worked the paint thicker in areas that were not covering as well. I couldn't believe how little paint I actually had to use. Since this already had a layer of paint below the the coat I was painting, I was excited to try the two tone look. I tend to be pretty big on the heavy distressing and knew this chair was gonna just pop.

After I let the paint dry, I went and took my sander to it. As you can see below I allowed the wood to bleed through in areas and left a less distressed look in others. Than I wiped off the dust to reveal my outcome. I went back and forth a couple of times with the sander in different areas till it gave the look I wanted. The beautiful thing about Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is it melts away like butter so you don't need to press that hard during sanding. Since this was a dark color palette I choose to use Annie Sloan Clear Wax. I applied just enough to give it a vibrant sheen but not too much where it was over the top and too shiny.

For the seat I decided I wanted to try a mixture of fabrics I had picked up this summer and make a happy little patchwork seat. My sewing skills are not as great as my painting skills so a patchwork that didn't have to be perfect was right up my ally. As you can see below I think this new Vintage
chair has a lot of junk and chic. Perfect in my world.

Thanks for reading and see you next time!

Mint Mint Mint

It's 2014 and my resolution is to blog more and not get caught up in just my daily work! So here we go!!! Mint is an obsession I think that I have and it might be bleeding into my creativity. So to satisfy my urge to design with Mint in my house, I designed a bedroom that anyone of my readers could easily translate to your home. I find a balanced room doesn't come with a bunch of matchy match pieces but rather a well blend of styles, color and materials. Todays board features a blend of elegance and junk chic that makes a beautifully styled room. Too much of one thing can be one dimensional and boring but when you blend a combination of decor and styles together you get something unique and magazine worthy in your own home. Many of the pieces on todays board could be flea market finds and turned into a beautiful junk chic piece with a little of elbow grease. Don't be afraid of what seems out of date because every piece can always find a new life! If your afraid of doing it yourself you can find plenty of people like me to help you along the process:) Welcome 2014!

Shades of Grey

Grey is a really popular color these days. I find myself wanting to change my main living spaces to shades of grey. In todays board it carries a really clean streamlined feel with shades of grey off set with reflective pieces. You could either have a clean design or you could add accessories that make the room feel fuller and more layered if you should want. The great thing about a well designed base the foundation can easily be added to and make the room come alive in a different way. Great design doesn't pigeon hole you to one way but gives a foundation for many options.

Enjoy!

Timeless Nursery Design

Today we are posting a lovely design board that we did to inspire a timeless nursery for a sweet baby girl. I love designing nurseries that can transition into a toddler room without too much re-design. Keeping a timeless nursery can be challenging with all the fun themes out there but we believe in making your dollar go a long way and by designing a room that can play into many stages of a child's life we believe we are doing just that.

When you think baby girl most people think pink, pink, pink and more pink. I wanted to stay with a classic light pink but offer a palette that gave more than just pink everywhere but had a beautiful layered palette that could be swapped with just one piece or two to make a new design.

If you look at the board below you could easily change out the crib for a bed when the child is older and maybe change out some art and viola you have a new design with core pieces you already put your hard dollar too.

We choose a dresser that could easily be DIY if you choose. Finding those timeless pieces at estate sells or thrift stores can be a fun adventure along with some elbow grease and creativity that makes something that was cast off as junk to something simply chic.

For all those future mommies out there, don't be afraid of re-purposing in your design to make your dollar go further and you will still get a beautiful end result.

Feel Inspired!!

Four DIY Furniture Projects

Today we are featuring 4 projects that might help get your inner crafter to come out and play.
Each of these projects give a volume of helpful tips and step by step instructions on how to make these fabulous pieces. We have given each link for you to read up and become equipped to take on your next DIY project. We hope you enjoy!

1. http://www.diyncrafts.com/1035/home/great-step-by-step-furniture-diy-how-to-build-your-own-coffee-table

2. http://www.shanty-2-chic.com/2013/07/diy-furniture-dresser.html

3. http://www.thriftyinspirations.net/2012/02/21/how-to-spray-paint-furniture/

4. http://www.recapturedcharm.com/2011/04/jade-dresser.html