Cute Girls Room Idea

Good morning! It is nice to have a raing day to get some work done!

I was helping my friend with her daughter's room and decided it would be a nice topic for this week.

She has a wallpaper border which her 9 year old daughter insists on using. Afterall, it is her room! I am not a huge border fan, but it's not my room. We are playing off the colors in the border. As you can see, there are oranges, fuschia, purple, yellow, blue, lime green, etc, in the border. Many colors to pick from.

My friends daughter likes lime green and blue and had mentioned she wanted to possibly use one of those colors on the wall. When my friend brought the border over, I thought of using both the lime green and blue and then adding in a third color and here they are. I added the third color as a background for the border since it is a cutout. I did a quick sketch of the design idea as it is still in the planning phase. I will post photots once the project is finished.

Kids' rooms are a great place to let your creative juices flow. Don't hold back. Use the bright colors and add the fun accents. Even without the border this color scheme is a fun one. Happy Thursday!

Wood - To paint or not to paint?

Good morning all!

I had a conversation with a friend of mine this weekend while she showed me around her new home. She showed me the paint colors she had picked out for the walls, and said she wanted to paint the mantel around the fireplace as well. Her husband is not so inclined on this matter. So, I was prompted for todays topic of painting wood.

Basically, this is a very personal matter. Years back, when I was an intern and then design assistant, the designer I worked for was always painting wood work. I was kind of taken back by it. Ever since I can remember, it is taboo to paint any woodwork, furniture, trim, or otherwise. I am not even sure where that came from to be honest, but that was instilled in my head. Maybe it came from my grandpa who was a carpenter. Now, I have my own home, and guess what, I paint wood work. Shhhhhh! Don't tell!

I have painted floor trim, window trim, door frames, kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, and yes of course, furniture. You can look at it this way, do you want to spend $300 on a new dresser? or $30 on a gallon of semi-gloss paint? If you give it a coat of paint, can you breath new life into it? My answer is yes! What have you got to lose? A whoppin $30 and your time.

Many people are against painting wood work and I am not quite sure why. I am not saying run through your house with a paint brush and paint all the wood. However, if you don't absolutely love the dresser(or any other piece), and it is most likely going to sit in the garage for the next 5 years, then what do you have to lose? Is it doing any good sitting in the corner of the garage? Worst case scenario, you don't like the paint. So what? Then it goes in the corner of the garage anyway and waits for the next garage sale.

Wood trim, look in any magazine, design book, or at any design show, you will see painted trim, and woodwork. Like I said before, it is a personal decision. There is no right or wrong. So don't let anyone tell you differently. Actually, painting woodwork, and furniture is a better option of re-use than throwing it out and getting new! My philosophy, if you already don't like it, then what do you have to lose? Nothing, but you have everything to gain. Try it, you might like it!

This is a dresser I painted for my son about 7 years back, its over 40 years old. It was my brother's way back when and my mom was going to toss it. Well, guess what? I added paint distressed it a bit and new hardware and it will last several more years. It won't last forever, but it looks good and is practical and is serving its purpose.

This desk was free on the side of the road. Of course, I picked it up. The top was rotted and damaged, so I replaced the top with a new piece of plywood, painted it black and switched out the hardware. Voila! I have a desk straight out of one of the trendy home furnishings catalog. It cost me only $50 (that was with the hardware, paint, and plywood). It could have cost me less, if I hadn't switched out the hardware.

So, go ahead, paint the wood, furniture, trim, mantel, doors, if you would rather tear it out, or toss it rather than live with it, try painting it. You never know, you might love it!

Oh, and by the way, Abby, paint the mantel! :) Talk to you soon!

Artwork

Good Morning!

While standing at the top of my friend Pam's stairwell, I realized she had all these wonderful blank white walls. Our conversation prompted this post!

If you have blank walls, white or otherwise, I am going to help you fill them. If you are a saver like me, and you have kids, then you have art in OVER abundance. If you are sans kids, then you might have to do a little more work, but never the less, you still can get GREAT artwork on the cheap.

1- Make a photo gallery. Use family photos and make your own photo gallery. This can be done in a couple of different ways. Find a common denominator. i.e. Use the same color frame, all black and white photos, all the same size, etc. Once you have your common denominator, start grouping your photos. Hallways and stairwell walls are great for these arrangements because there are usually long walls and great for larger sized pieces. I am a more symmetrical kind of girl, (at least today), so I tend to position my gallery photos symmetrically. There is no right or wrong, it is a personal decision, depending on your personal preference.

I like to buy black frames at garage sales, and second hand stores such as Goodwill, I keep them on hand for when I need a frame for a new piece of art. I also keep a list of sizes that I am in need of. Then when I come accross them, I know what size I specifically need. Of course, you can always buy new. However, I try to reduce, re-use, and recycle as much as possible. Sustainable, green design!!!

2- Kids artwork. Frame your kids' artwork and use it as unique artwork. You can also buy inexpensive canvases at your local art supply store, ours is JoAnn's or Michael's (they usually have coupons in the Sunday paper for 40% off too). Give your kids the brushes, paints, and water, and let them create their own masterpiece. A helpful hint, make sure they paint the edges around the canvas. :)

If you don't have little kids, enlist your nieces and nephews or grandkids into creating a masterpiece for your blank wall.

3- Nostalgic pieces. Take that old calendar you have been saving. Take it apart and use the prints on your walls, again in frames of the same color. Remember those old theatre programs, frame those and use them in your guest room. How about that old sheet music you found cleaning your great grandma's house? Use that too! Nostalgic pieces make for great conversation starters too.

Good luck on your artwork search. We'll talk soon. Happy Monday!