Washington D.C. Color

This past weekend I was in Washington D.C. - visiting one of my best friend's & going to Lady Gaga concert!  Oh my gosh was it all so fun.  I saw Gaga in KC back in August and it was so fabulous, I had to see her again!  She did not disappoint, and this time having her new song, Born This Way as the finale.

I also spent a lot of time with friends, exploring the city, shopping, eating and taking pictures!  I found so much color in DC, even though the weekend was pretty overcast and windy!

My friend lived in a row of town homes (would you call these brown stones, or is that only a NYC term?), and these were part of her row.  I loved the colors and flaking in paint.

Does anyone recognize this butterfly wall?  It is at Bloomies.  I loved the neon butterflies against the white wall - almost as I love how my friend rocks a turban on her head!  Her bright silk scarf wrapped around her hair is a fun pop of color on any gray day.  I'll have more on this some other time...as I want to try this myself & also have a how-to!

We found a great home store near Logan Circle, call Reincarnations.  It was filled with vibrant home design & decor and I wanted to take it all home!  It was so well priced!  I left with a beautiful pillow that you'll see in my bedroom soon... But look at this teal room (love the double chandelier) and glass heads!

I entered DC in this outfit...and little did I know, that DC was not going to be as warm as I thought - so this stripe blazer (my only "jacket" I brought) was worn a lot, layered on top of the clothing I brought to try to keep me a little warm...

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Envious of Green Rooms

I'm so envious of these beautiful green rooms, that I am just going to go and make myself a green room!  That's right.  I see what I like and I am gonna do it. I have SO many home updates coming up, that I don't know even where to start.  You all have seen my Guest Bedroom mood boards, and how I'm going for Navy Walls with White & Orange accents.  That is still in the works, but we have another room.  One that you've not seen.  You haven't seen because it's hideous.

 Technically, it is a little green - but the sick kind, nothing to be envious over!

Well, we're doing a lot of work all at the same time!  Our floors were recently just finished (more on that to come) as you could see the hanging tarps in my Remix outfit day 1 post, and yet we're still living, breathing, sleeping & eating in our living room.  That's because now our painter is baaaaack to do white trim, doors, window panes (etc) in all 3 of our bedrooms and paint the Guest Bedroom walls Navy (see how it was before) & our 3rd room GREEN (our Master Bedroom already was painted blue - so just need the white trim/woodwork)!

Oh but what color green.  Here are some rooms I'm loving...and considering.

Citrusy Green {Erinn Valencich's room}

Kelly Green {Design Dazzle}

 Moss Green {Best Home Gallery}

Leaf Green {Fresh Design Interior}

What do you think about green rooms?  I think green is a very versatile room and can be transformed throughout the years...

DIY Wreath: Christmas or Not

I hope you all had a GREAT holiday!  I am still celebrating - but hope to be back to my normal blogging routine soon. :) I hope you all can continue to spend a little family time cozied up next to a fire or out doing something fun.  And if stuck inside, I have a DIY project you can make all year around!  A yarn wreath.

 It doesn't need to be Christmas to make this!  I made a couple that can be hung year around, or simply edit the yarn & felt colors to coordinate with any upcoming holidays.  I'm just LOVING my yarn wreaths, so thought I'd share what I made and how to make them for an easy, fun project.

To make something like this:

 or 

What you need:

Yarn - I used Jiffy sweater yarn (it's a little fuzzy)

Straw wreath (made a couple with various sizes) - keep plastic wrap on

Felt (for flowers to adorn the yarn wreath)

And a little muscle...

Get comfy and just wrap the yarn around and around and around the wreath.  You will use at least one package of yarn (for small - medium wreath sizes).  The fuzzier yarn helps to hide gaps - but use any kind you want. To start and finish, just wrap the yarn around and with the end, tie a knot.  The knot will blend in to the rest of the yard - but I put mine in the back.

Once the wreath is covered in yard, you can adorn anyway you want!  I chose with felt flowers. I added red ones in there to be a little festive, but mixed with white and gray and the green/teal yarn base can be hung year around!

I started with a cut square of felt and then trimmed the edges in a wave motion:

The bigger the square (or rectangle in my case), the bigger the flower.

Then I cut in a circular to make a long ribbon, leaving an "eye' or little round/oval part in the middle, like so:

Then you take the end (non-eye end) and start forming the center of the flower - just continue to roll the felt up! I found this tutorial and idea for the Yarn Wreath at Take Heart.

They seem a little Anthropologie to me!  Enjoy!

Orange Bedding... Guest Bedroom Transformation Part 1

So after a great response on this post through comments, twitter and email - I chose to go with the Navy and Orange Mood Board for my Guest Bedroom Transformation Project.

It'll be a slower project than anticipated (or hoped for ignorantly), as we have some BIG things to the room that has to be done first:
- Stain and refinish hardwood floors
- Remove wall paper
- Paint trim/woodwork white 
- Then, finally will I get to pain the walls Navy

In the meantime - I'm starting to collect the decor pieces!  Starting with the Orange Bedding.  I have been looking online and at stores for orange bedding for DAYS!  Orange bedding is not easy to come by.  But finally I found the perfect shade of orange (not too faded, not to melon, not to neon)...

ISAAC MIZRAHI LIVE! Solid Hemstitch 400TC Cotton Sheet Set in Burnt Orange, sold at QVC!

ISAAC MIZRAHI LIVE! Zebra Print Quilted 36"x9" Bolster Pillow in Burnt Orange, sold at QVC!

I think this bed set will look fab with the West Elm Duvet I've asked for from Santa for Xmas.... 

And the area rug that I've been drooling over for awhile now from Ballard Designs (and currently on back order...boo). 

Remember as you're making ANY online purchases to use Ebates!  Cash back for purchasing online.  I keep forgetting to sign in first and open the site through it to get credit, so just a reminder to all you. :)

Decking your Tables, Inspired by Anthro Store Displays

Your house is all decorated for the holidays, you have the tree up, wreath hung and stockings strung.  What about the table? I saw the coolest table decor and centerpiece ideas at Anthropologie and was instantly inspired!

Bringing in a bit of outdoorsy elements (can be fake) can keep your table decked even long after holidays are over!  I love the wood pieces Anthro used to style up a table in-store:

 Tree trunk centerpieces with candles on top (though be careful lighting them on top of wood) & wood place settings with a plate on top!

Don't have trees you can chop down to recreate this look? That's ok... some other options:

Foam (or something else) cylinder to the size of your choice with hot glued corrugated cardboard wrapped around.  Anthro had something of the sort in there store that got to the same point as the real trunks (and no wood was harmed):

To recreate the place settings, you can find several Etsy stores filled will reclaimed and recycled wood or purchase at any craft store or online at Hofcraft.  If you are feeling really crafty - you can make your own wood plaque!  I'm purchasing.... :)

Wood plaques as place settings - simply place a plate (festive or not) on top!

Another center piece idea: if you are for lower-than-eye-level table center pieces, use the wood plaques to place candles on in the center.  When looking for ideas for this portion - I stumbled upon an awesome DIY cake stand (or candle stand for the centerpiece) that anyone could do!

I love all the woodsy elements!  Perfect for home decor or a wedding (like a friend of mine! She is using wood plaques to hold candles at the center of her tables.).  I'll be making the wood cake stands soon... stay tuned!

With a Little Help from Pier 1

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pier 1 Imports. All opinions are 100% mine.

When it comes to decorating my humble abode, I like it to be unique, bold and use a mixture of patterns, colors & textures, but I also have a budget!  I love looking at magazines and decor books, big time home blogs and watching design shows - but rarely can I afford to go out and mimic those ideas.  So I absorb the inspiration and go out on my own.

With a lot of home projects & decorating yet to to do in my home, I stick to stores that fit my budget, but offer fun pieces, bright colored objects and lots of options!  Stores like Target, Marshall's, T.J. Maxx and Pier 1.

Pier 1 is representing my home style right now with some amazingly adorable, and affordable decor pieces & furniture:

This adorable, fun, multi colored upholstered chair would look fabulous in any corner of my house;  the Rustic Orange Ruffles Pillow will be great for that orange pop of color in my future navy guest bedroom; I love mirrored furniture (a la my mirrored side table in my living room), and this Vanity set would hold a lot of my getting ready stuff; and the ivory shag rug would be PERFECT for my living room - the final touch of softness!

And since it is tis the season for gift giving - Pier 1 is my multi reason stop for my own home needs and great holiday gifts:

  

  

 Perfect Perfect for a new home owner to keep warm in something luxe - a fuzzy throw blanket; for that baker in your life - a ruffle edge adds a fun spin to a casserole dish; turn an ongoing decor piece into a festive holiday gift by filling these glass jars with candy canes or ornament balls; make a fun, unique frame even more special by including a photo!

So from home decor & furniture to holiday gifts - where is your go to place?  Have you checked out Pier 1 lately?

 

And keep in mind that this holiday season during the months of November and December, you can support Toys for Tots by dropping off an unwrapped toy and/or making a cash donation at the register when you shopping for holiday gifts and home decor at Pier 1! Start your shopping, and saving now.

Guest Bedroom Mood Boards (WANTED: Navy Walls)

My guest bedroom is becoming the bane of my existence.  A major hidden embarrassment.  Undecorated, uninspiring and unorganized.  I love having guests and we do quite often...so this is just not going to cut it any longer!  And now I put my embarrassment out there...

Certainly not suited for a Guest...

So first step is developing my design plan - colors and ideas of patterns and textures.  I've been dreaming of doing navy walls ever since I saw this photo:

{Photo found on Bryn Alexanda's blog}

Navy walls with crisp white curtains, furniture and bedding with a pop of an accent color, like orange or lime green (or yellow in this photo's case, but I've got enough yellow going on).  I've been DREAMING about this inspiration for my own room design in my head.

Now I just have to get my husband to let me go for it.  His big objection - in the future it'll be hard to paint over navy walls (anyone know anything about that?).  I think primer has come a long way since the 80s. :)

Anyways, I created two mood boards to start this process and now you all can vote!  Please vote between these two mood boards based on what I should do for my guest bedroom space. Both contain inspiration I'd like to carry into my own space in one way or another...around navy walls of course:

Navy, white and lime green accents:

{Inspiration credits: Bryn Alexandra's own guest room, Navy wall of frames from Bryn's portfolio, RH ottoman, West Elm Mini Parsons Desk, West Elm pin-tucked white duvet, green floor rug, Crate & Barrel green vase, my own island antique maps picked up on my travels}

Navy, white and orange accents:

{Same Bryn Alexandra guest bedroom and Navy Inspiration Room, same West Elm Pin-Tucked white bedding, Ballard Design Eva Orange patterned rug, Target Orange tray, orange wall art and white frame}

So what do you say?  Mood Lime Green or Mood Orange accents with Navy Walls for the Guest Bedroom?  And any thoughts on the navy walls all together?  My ears are open - this is my winter project. :)

Favorite Tree Decorations!

My tree may or may not be up...yet.  So if you're still looking for some tree decoration inspirations - check out these amazing and unique ones!  I took a tour of some historic homes in a near by town.  The houses were all decked for the holidays and found my self loving the way the trees were decorated more than anything!  Which one is your favorite?

Flowers, Bird's Nests and Twigs mixed with lights:

 {Left: dried hydrangeas and fresh white roses tucked into this tree - probably my very favorite of all;

Right: Nests with robin eggs make this tree pretty outdoorsy and unique}

{Right: Berry Twigs mixed with traditional lights and ornaments; 
Left: A tree with only berry twigs and lights replace ornaments}

Minimalistic Trees:

 {Right: A metal tree with hanging glass ornaments for a modern look;

Left: A big traditional tree with all red bulb ornaments for a very simple look}

Glizy and Gold:

{Adorn with gold stars and reindeer, for lots of sparkle!}

My personal fav: the flowers on the tree! These were real flowers, a mix of dried and fresh - but you could easily purchase fake and be able to use year to year.  Do you have a uniquely decorated tree?