Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Everyone needs a little color in their life
I love color. It's funny how I am surrounded either by neutral rooms in my home, or rooms with lots of color. But I have been collecting images of color in nature and all around us that blew my socks off.
Here are some I want to share with you, to brighten your day!
Source: rustmouth.deviantart.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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Source: wishflowers.tumblr.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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Source: 2.bp.blogspot.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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Source: beyondthehumaneye.blogspot.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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| Source: xpocketfullofcloversx.tumblr.com via Nancy on Pinterest |
Wouldn't any of these make a phenomenal color scheme in a room! Ohhhh, especially the first one!!! What do you think?
Nancy
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Of all the sparkly things.....
Every girl loves some sparkle, as evident in the huge trend to use metallics, mirrored surfaces and glitter in fashion and decor. Who would've thought you can literally translate the trend to the outdoors? These delicious images capture a glittery world …
"Glowstone" mixed with pavement to illuminate a driveway!
"Glowstone" mixed with pavement to illuminate a driveway!
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Source: flickr.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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Floating lanterns do the same for the water's surface. Kind of like adding a mirror behind a light - it magnifies the total effect.
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Source: sunsurfer.tumblr.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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A sparkly hillside in Greece.
or the Eiffel tower.
What lights up your life?
-Nancy
Monday, February 27, 2012
My hallway is officially zhushed!
Remember this post on zhushing up my hallway?
I was finally ready to execute on this idea.
I started out with this 'inspiration pic' from Atlanta Homes Magazine.
I wanted to do wallpaper, but since we don't plan to stay in our house forever, I thought I'd better save it for the master bedroom. So mom and I got to work making a stencil. We made a pattern similar to the inspiration pic. We used acetate folders from Staples to make our stencil and some leftover paint from my office (you would be suprised how little paint this took up. We maybe used a half of a cup of paint). The project cost us a total of $2.
Since I wanted the walls to look more like handpainted wallpaper versus stencil-y, we painted it with a paintbrush following the stencil as a guide.
The stencil and the laser level kept us on the right track and made the pattern uniform. While our application of paint was very measured so it would looked handpainted.
Ta Da!
From a distance it looks like a unified design or even papered (if you really squint). But up close, the paint strokes and the amount of paint is very uneven. Being a perfectionist, it was actually kind of freeing to do this imperfectly. I love it so far! Now we are left to decide whether to do this to the other side of the hallway or not. I am worried it may feel like a maze if we box it in with both walls painted. Thoughts?
What did you get into this weekend?
-Bethany
Saturday, February 25, 2012
The Red Carpet this Sunday!
I love a good fashion show on the Red Carpet. Don't forget the OSCARS this Sunday night for some glamourous gowns and do's like these :
Source: oscar.go.com via Nancy on Pinterest
Source: oscar.go.com via Nancy on Pinterest
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| Source: oscar.go.com via Nancy on Pinterest |
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Source: net-a-porter.com via Nancy on Pinterest
These poor women haven't eaten anything that tastes good for months!
Here's to a lovely evening (for me in front of the TV with wine and chocolate ), and dreams of 1. being thin 2.wearing a dress like this and 3. being a 'star' in your own rite.
Enjoy!
Nancy
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Friday, February 24, 2012
Trend or Timeless?
I adore wood ceilings. Adore.
My namesake is a small beach town on the Delaware coast called Bethany Beach. Our family and extended family has a few homes in a neighborhood there - two of which were designed by my architect uncle. These two in particular have wood ceilings and that totally makes the house.
I would love to do my cathedral ceilings in wood in my home - despite adding warmth and nostalgia, it would keep the integrity of my small woodsy cottage. Our family home in Bethany is my favorite place in the world. I'd love to emulate it in my permanent home. People talk about far-off places and love affairs with foreign cities. My love affair with this quiet family-beach will always hold my heart captive. If only my mom and I could take over the decor - it would be perfect. But it's perfect anyways because it means more than just a shore. It means family and friends and salty air and long lazy mornings and fun shopping and cold-weather beach football and I could go on and on...
Back to wood ceilings. They are so versatile - they can be classy, add texture, they can make something feel more rustic, they can add warmth. Jack of all trades, those wood ceilings.
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| Source: georgianadesign.tumblr.com via Bethany on Pinterest |
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| Source: houseandhome.com via Bethany on Pinterest |
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| Source: sadieandstella.blogspot.com via Bethany on Pinterest |
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| Source: paloma81.blogspot.com via Bethany on Pinterest |
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| Source: myidealhome.tumblr.com via Bethany on Pinterest
How do you feel about wood ceilings -- trend or timeless?
-Bethany |
Thursday, February 23, 2012
What's on your list?
I must admit, before Bethany and I started our blog in November I really thought my house was well on it's way to being finished as far as decorating goes. Then I get to see what all the bloggers are doing, and all of a sudden I am uber-inspired! Everything I do leads to something else, as you well know..... once you add one thing, then another part of the decor needs tweaking..
I'm like a little tornado, undoing something in every room or changing something, and not quite finishing it.
[FOCUS Nancy!]
Projects on my list:
- Finish the (repurposed) chandelier I got from Habitat Restore. I painted it, and then put it on hold… possibly for my office?
- Paint the sunroom
- Redo the laundry room: paint and window treatment
- Paint the guest 1/2 bath ( My "equestrian" bathroom: love the theme, tired of the faux finish on the walls.)
- Get a new rug for the sunroom, and finish pulling that together, which of course will mean new pillows! YAY, I love pillows!
- Get rods and hang new drapes in the breakfast room, and pull that room together.. I may need to stencil the white drapes, but I want them up first to "visualize".
- Get matching rug for in front of the sink (Fallon by Jill Rosenwald) & new window valance.
- Make a new bedskirt for the king size MBR bed...( thinking drop cloths to match drapes)
- Get busy on art projects I have in my head, i.e. large drawings of our horses
Here are some rug ideas I'm mulling over for the sun room. The one I put in the picture belongs in the breakfast area, but I like how it looks with the new reupholstered sofa and art, so here are some choices:
Which of these do you think I should get?
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| Source: rugstudio.com via Nancy on Pinterest |
3.  |
| West Elm 4. |
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| Source: rugstudio.com via Nancy on Pinterest |
What do you think? What's on YOUR list?
-Nancy
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Custom Planter Boxes!
It's contagious! The decorating bug has attacked my husband. He has not been known for being fiercely creative, although his wood working skills are really awesome. He was in on the sofa reupholster and is getting more involved all the time, which is a total 360 for him. Here are the planter boxes he made me all from scrap wood he had in his shop.
I have been looking for planters that could make more of an impact from the street and taller than what I've found retail. These are 15" x 15" x 21".
I can't wait 'til the nurseries open in the spring to get a perfect pair of plants for these.
He is making Bethany some for her birthday... We may be taking orders in the future...what do you think?
Any size, any color, any adornment...CUSTOM to the core.
-Nancy
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Project Update : Curtains!
Mom and I set out on Saturday to get drapery hardware and get my curtains hung! We found something simple and modern, dark but not black.
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| I chose the gunmetal option at the bottom |
Here's a sneak peak.
If you look hard, you can see we've got a swatch of Greek key trim hanging on the inside of the panel to get a feel for it.
Since we LOVED the look (the gray in the trim ties in with my gray sofa) I arranged to drop off the drapes and trim with our upholstery guy to get started. I'm excited to show you the outcome. It's much more adult (eeeek).
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| Pewter and Taupe 60mm trim from M&J Trimmings |
-Bethany
Monday, February 20, 2012
My first sofa reupholster!
It is drop cloth month here at the Powell home. First I made some draperies for my Master Bed Room from bleached cotton off-white painters drop cloths. After a few weeks of them being hung, I must say I am happy with the way they look!
Now that my confidence is up I thought I'd tackle a sofa we've had for 15 years. It was a well made roll arm from Eddie Bauer Home years ago, but the Belgian linen was intolerant of stains, kids and pets.
Not wanting to invest in new furniture for the sunroom, I like the look of the gray cotton drop cloths (from Duron), and the size and price was too alluring to pass up. I spent $60 on two -- one is a 12' X 15' and the other for the cushions was 9' x 12'.
After washing them several times to remove the sizing and make them more pliable, I began by draping the fabric over the sofa, tucking it in the seat and arms to help me visualize the process. I really didn't have a plan other than to staple gun the fabric to the frame and make cushion slip covers. I am a fairly experienced seamstress, but have only made a slipcover for a Parsons Chair before...
I was afraid to make the first cut of fabric, since there was so much excess, but with my husband's help, we just went for it. He stapled the back and arms deep into the back of the seat and on the sides under the arms, and we cut big Vs of fabric away from where we tacked it temporarily....then we stapled the fabric to the underside of the frame both in the back and front. At this point we could see real progress.
I pleated the fabric as I rounded the back corners, tacking it in place. We will use nail heads to finish over the staples.
I had to cut away excess fabric as I went, and folded over the finishing seam , then stapled it in place.
Archimedes, the cat, loved to lay in the puddles of fabric and on the couch every step of the way.
Next I took one cushion apart with a seam ripper, saved the zipper to reuse, and used the pieces as a pattern to cut out a new cushion. I copied the old cushion exactly, although I did not do piping along the edges. I also made 2 extra cushions that I will hand-sew closed some time in the future, for easy swap-out if need be. This cushion project took an entire day.
Then I turned the sofa upside down and folded over all the seams and stapled them to the underside of the frame.
The final stage involved the front of the roll arms. This was very tricky. I consulted my sister who has upholstered a lot, and she told me to make a cardboard pattern, put tacks thru it stretch the fabric over the tacks and then hammer it onto the front of the sofa…
(cotton batting, cardboard pattern, fabric, paper pattern)
Viola! The finished product!
I will post more pictures later but for now project accomplished!! What a rewarding feeling... give it a try!
-Nancy
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