Kitchen is finished!

I finished painting the kitchen last weekend. I LOVE the color of the paint. It is exactly what I have been looking for.

Think Like A Decorator

For years I have collected pages from magazines, jotted down notes and taken pictures of decorating styles. I learned in school to make a portfolio of my dream home.

I have condensed my portfolio to a small notebook so that I can carry it with me.

I include paint colors, dimensions of my rooms and furniture pieces I need or want.

The internet is so helpful when looking for ideas too. I sometimes print pictures of ideas I like and tape them into my book.

Right now (thanks to my handy portfolio) I am starting to paint:

(Kitchen--Whole Wheat) (Bathroom--undecided)

Bedding mistreatments

I love, love, love The Nesting Place (see her blog link to the right). I especially love her motto: "I doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful". Over the weekend I dusted off my glue gun and went to work.

(Before)
I have been unhappy with my bedding ensemble. The more I thought about it the more changes I wanted to make.

It is still a work in progress but here's what I was able to do so far:

Bed skirt and decorative pillow using a glue gun.
I do own a sewing machine in case you were wondering.

Feeling very inspired..

The Bathroom Wall is finished! I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. My husband was a little surprised as well. Painting a "faux" technique is not as easy as you think. Tips to remember for next time: Cut cheese cloth in sections and work in sections. Paint glaze dries faster than you think! Ask for help, it's easier (and faster) with two people ;)

On another note I am LOVING the new Pottery Barn catalog. Mixing old and new styles is my favorite. My poor catalog has notes, and folded corners on almost every page. I use catalogs as a reference for furniture and accessory placement. I very seldom purchase anything from catalogs because I know if I look hard enough I can find something similar (and more unique) than what they have.

My next project:
Re-upholstering an old chair and re-painting an old head board.

Antique Aquarium

Many many years ago B.M. (Before Marriage) I had an idea to create an aquarium out of an old television set. My first T.V. was a 1950-60's Hoffman with doors that would close to hide the T.V. I bought it at Deseret Industries and had my boyfriend (now husband) remove the "guts" so that it would operate just the way I wanted.

Today, we have a Sylvania (don't ask me what year) I think maybe late 50's. Jay has been nudging me to get the tank up and running again. So for the last few weeks I have been running water cycles in my aquarium. I have it up in our living room. It makes for a really fun conversation piece.

Hopefully in a few weeks it will be ready for fish.

(side note-this television is big enough for a ten gallon tank, right now, I have a smaller tank.)

Interior wall design

For the last few months I have been working on creating a design technique in my bathroom. The cost of buying some of the really nice decorative wall paper just wasn't in my budget. So with a little help from Letter Express It, I went to work adding vinyl to my bathroom wall.

Here is the progress so far:

It probably looks complete, but it's not. I purchased a paint glaze that I plan on adding over top of the vinyl. My finished product should give the look of a patterned wall paper.

To be continued...

A little about me and my design

Have you ever just wanted to take the furniture you own and do a little re-arranging? I seem to do that at least every 3 to 6 months. It must be the change of seasons. During this time I also feel a little "adventurous" in my home designing and decorating whether it be just a simple wall hanging or a complete overhaul on some old furniture.

Re-designing has become really popular lately with the explosion of HGTV and with that comes the desire and motivation to Do It Yourself. Some people can and some people...well, CAN (with a little hand holding). That's where I come in. With some simple advice a few virtual drawings and an idea I can help you love the home you're in using the furniture and accessories you already have.