The Most Photographed Room In The House

I know you are probably sick of seeing this room, it is just seriously my favorite area of the house. I guess that should tell me to get going on the rest of the place, huh? I have made a few minor tweaks to this room in the last few weeks. I moved the spiral plant to the other side of the couch. Not sure I love it there but I really like it and there is nowhere else to put it, so for now it stays.

A few days ago I was the lucky recipient of this beautiful, antique mirror. It used to belong to my Grandmother and for a while it hung in my house growing up. It's been in storage for a few years and now it's mine. I am so beyond excited to have it in my home. I knew exactly where it was going the minute I got it. I love how it lets more light in the room and makes the space feel bigger. The only thing I dislike about it, is that now when you sit on the couch in the piano room you can see around the corner into the great room. No more keeping the messy part of the house a secret. Shoot.

But I think it will be worth the effort.

Some of the other changes are across the room. I changed out some of the accessories in here.
I found Nate's first set of scriptures from his childhood in a box out in the garage and a hymnal that was my family's when I was a child. I also found a beautiful magnifying glass with a mother of pearl handle at TJ Maxx, love it. I also framed the pressed olive branch my mom and Bob brought me back from the Garden of Gethsemane a couple of years ago.

A couple of weeks ago when I was digging through boxes in the garage I came across this gold leaf picture of the Ogden Temple. My mom made it when I was ten years old. It hung in our house til the day they sold our house. I immediately knew where it belonged.

I then added Nate's mission plaque next to it. I just love adding beautiful, sentimental things to our home. I keep teasing Nate that my inner old lady is really starting to speak her mind. I look around at other thirty-somethings homes and mine is definitely different. I don't mind though. To each their own.


The last change to the room is this little round table. It used to be in the great room, as well as the lamp and some of the accessories. I love the added warmth of another lamp in this space. I think the reason I am loving this room so much is because it has the most layering done to it. I love it.

For some reason there is still something I want to do to this small space. I REALLY want to add a small brass and glass cocktail table. Even though the room is super tiny and I want to keep it as open as possible I can't help thinking that I need something to tie it all together. It just feels like everything is floating and needs an anchor. I don't know, what do you think?

I think if I do, the spiral plant definitely has to find a new spot. But what do I know?

I am linking up to Wow Us Wednesdays

There's Been a Few Changes

I was looking through my photos the other day and realized that there had been some changes to this room since I last posted it. To be fair there have been changes throughout most of the house but this area is feeling more and more "finished" than the rest. Plus, it is one of my favorites, so I thought I would do an updated post on it. So let's check out more evolution of this space shall we?

The chair was here last time we visited this area. I still love it to pieces. I bought the little table for staging the Ogden house last year. I had intended on putting it on my downstairs landing but it just felt more right here, so that is where it has stayed. I absolutely love this room. It always feels warm and calm to me. It is one of my favorite places to sit when I feel hectic inside.I added the curtains last spring. At first they just hung on the ends, it wasn't long before I realized that they needed a little bit more. So I ran back to the store and luckily they still had them, and not only just on sale but on clearance! I grabbed the last one and did the dance of decorating joy all the way home. I had my super sewer friend Shawnee cut it in half and add them to each panel for a little more fullness. Then just this weekend Nate put up my tie-backs. Love it! Now they are perfect. Back in August I added the covering on the windows on Nate's office doors. He is a piler, so I start to get hives and a tick when it gets bad in there. Since we have that huge window into his office and I couldn't nag, er, persuade him to organize it, I did what any woman on the verge of a meltdown would do. I hid it.
Here is a close up of it, to give you a better idea. This area really hasn't changed much. I found those awesome blue urns a while ago and fell in love. I never really thought of myself as a blue person but I am definitely thinking about incorporating that hue into my house a bit more. It's an actual warm blue, in my naivete I honestly never thought that there could be a warm blue. I guess there is because that color melts me like butter!

Sorry for the crazy black circle around some of the photos. My wide angle lens adds those in, but now you can see the space better. For those of you who have never actually been here.

Another shot of the newly covered office doors. Luckily he wasn't offended, in fact he actually likes it a lot. Now whether that's because it is a pretty bamboo which hits his asian button or because it has gotten me off his back significantly I will never know. But, I can guess which one it is.

This shows the hallway that leads to the Cincesses room, a bathroom and my master bedroom suite.

Since the day we found this place and knew it would be ours I have dreamed about what to do with this space. I went back and forth on what to put here. Things that crossed my mind: a grandfather clock, some chairs and a small table, etc. Well, I finally landed on this table. It took me almost four years to find just the right piece. Not too big, not too small, plus the right color. I finally ended up with it around September I believe. I had a lot of people try to talk me out of putting anything here and keeping the walkway open. I am so glad I didn't listen. This area now feels so much more warm and cozy to me. More like a home. And we still have plenty of space to walk. In fact we have moved at least 3 pieces of fairly large furniture through here and we didn't even need to move it. We are currently playing another game of musical furniture around here. We have played this game before and I am sure it won't be the last.

I think it's funny I always seem to photograph this area when all of my fall decor is out. It's one of my absolute favorite times and since my home is mostly decorated in fall colors I guess it stands to reason.

I love this lampshade. Well, if I am being honest I love the whole lamp. I found it last spring at Target on clearance for like $15.oo. It hung out in a closet til about September when I finally got the table. This photo doesn't really do it justice. It has so many fun colors in it. Blue-ish grays, rusty maroon/reds, golds, etc. I love it! It looks so pretty all lit up too!

Well, thanks for going on another tour of this area. I promise there is more to my house than just this space, but I just love it! One of these days, hopefully soon, I will show you around a bit more. Since it's not the summer months and I am not all consumed with playing in the dirt. I am in over my head in room transformations and tweaking, although a bit behind schedule thanks to my Hysterectomy in October. I am working feverishly to get some things done inside before being lured back outside after the big thaw. Wish me luck!

Photo Shoot Sunday: November 2009

I have been just so out of blogging mode for about 7 weeks, actually maybe longer. Once the new school year began I really hit a speed bump, talk about having more time to myself to get things done! Yea right. Anyhow, I am back, I hope. So fasten your seat belt because I have some serious catching up to do. It's not even funny. So, to start us off I thought I would pull out a Photo Shoot Sunday from last November 2009.

Smelly Serendipity

Last Saturday on my way home from reupholstering my beloved chair I stopped at one of my new-found favorite consignment shops. Upon entering the store I was greeted with a plethora of eye candy. I was so busy taking it all in that I didn't even see these candlesticks. I actually felt them. Then I heard them. I guess I should clarify, I felt my purse feel them. Then I heard the concrete floor feel them. Ugh, are you kidding me!?! I turned around and saw the smaller of the two lying on the floor, in pieces. You know the old adage....you break it, you buy it. Ummm, yeah, that was me. To make matters worse they weren't even candlesticks I would EVER buy for my house. NICE! Now what do I do with it?

I picked up all of the pieces and CAREFULLY walked up to the register to confess and set them down to purchase. There were still a couple of pieces that were missing, but the head (?) of the candlestick was mostly intact. Well, looks like I could glue it together, might as well get the set. Oh well, I would rather have an ugly set than one lonely ugly candlestick. Grudgingly I bought them both and took them home. Where in the world am I gonna put these? They were a little too gaudy for my taste. It took a couple of days for me to pull them out of the bag and set about fixing the broken one. After some super glue it was almost good as new. A strange thing started to happen then, they were growing on me. It must have been the fluorescent lights at the store that initially turned me off of them. Plus the gaudiness, but even that was growing on me. I first thought about putting them by my master bath tub, then the actual thought of trying to keep them clean in a bathroom, ummmmm no thanks. Then I figured the most formal room in the house was where they would go the best, or atleast not stick out like a gaudy thumb the least. So, in they went. My sister Heidi showed up about now, she called me a stinking brat for breaking something I would normally hate and having it go perfectly in my decor, and ultimately loving it to boot. Ha, yeah, go figure.

So, then the hunt was on for the perfect candle. I kept my eye out when I was out and about running errands but none of the candles caught my eye. Finally I checked Tarjay and wouldn't you know it the old bullseye came through for me yet again. There they were. Chocolate brown on the bottom, rusty terracotta in the center and a pretty cream color on top. They even came with a pretty rusty ribbon and a metallic maple leaf. Perfection. My colors and the maple leaf matches the pattern of my entryway table runner. I try really hard to not get too matchy-matchy with my stuff. Or to have a theme, really. However sometimes, things just match. What are you gonna do?

I snatched them up and took em home. Once I unwrapped them I loved them even more. However, Nate arrived not long after and asked why the house smelled of baby wipes. I told him it was the new candles and that the smell would go down. I thought I was just smelling it because my hands smelled so strongly of the candle scent. WRONG! Those are some smelly candles. Atleast it is a good smell, it could smell like dog food or something. Plus, it will go down, right? Right? Considering they are in the front room and I can smell them when I come in from the garage, you can bet your britches, they are smelly!
I really had a difficult time taking photos of them, they aren't turning out in pictures the way they look in the room. They look a little washed out. Oh well.

Piano Room Project

I wanted to show you my new chair I got for the Piano Room. Isn't she gorgeous? I really love her. I have been looking for just the right chair for this space for quite some time. I think she really gives the room that POP that I was looking for. I especially love the stripes. Just the coordinating fabric this room needed. Don't you think? What? You don't agree? I would certainly hope not. I got this little beauty off of KSL back in February for $29.00. This was my secret little hush hush project I have been working on. I kept her a bit of a secret because this project was a first for me. I have never redone a piece of furniture before. I didn't want everyone to know I was doing this in case it was a complete and utter failure.

You can't tell in these photos but the wood has a splattered type of paint finish on it. Plus instead of it being creamy, it was more of a yellowed creamy. Not good. Also, the two tone orange stripe fabric had definitely seen better days. Like a long time ago, better days. We're talking the 60's here. Anyhow, I stripped the fabric off, sanded her down, primed her, painted her Heirloom White, distressed her and put on a mocha glaze, add a little polyurethane and she was ready to dress. I got the fabric on sale 50% off. SCORE! I ordered me up some DIY upholstery books, read about it online and got cold feet. Did you know that you actually have to SEW when you do upholstery? SEW! Sewing gives me hives. I don't sew. What in the world was I thinking when I ventured into this project? I really must be messing up my brain cells with all of the paint fumes I am around to even consider doing this. So, on Valentines day, we were out to dinner with Nate's parents (remember Love and Taggarts Grill?) and I actually pulled out my camera and (gasp) showed LaVere, my Father-in-Law, my secret hush hush project. I was explaining to him how nervous I was, that I didn't want to ruin the chair, but I really had no idea what I was going to do. THANK GOODNESS I DID! He told me how his home teacher is a retired upholsterer and maybe he could help me out! YES PLEASE! I called him the next day and he agreed to help me. WHEW! Only catch, he couldn't for a few weeks. Ugh, I hate being patient with projects I want done. right. now. So, I waited, then waited again, and yet again. About ten days ago he called me and we arranged for Saturday the 10th. YIPEE!
So Saturday morning I loaded up and headed to his garage to learn some upholstery lessons. HOW FUN WAS MY DAY!?! I loved every minute of it. Especially because he didn't make me get behind the sewing machine once! I am proud to admit that I was involved in every other aspect of the reuphostery job. He also offered to have me come back again and continue to learn! Um, HECK YEAH! I know eventually that I will be behind that sewing machine, but I am grateful it will be a gradual process. Until then I will work on smaller less intimidating sewing pojects to get me used to the hives, uh, I mean sewing. All in all it took us about 4 hours to get her done but it was worth it. I was actually amazed how much easier it was than I thought it would be. So, do you want to see her?

Isn't she lovely? I heart her. A LOT.

Doesn't she look great with my suede wall in the background?

By the time I bought the chair, the paint, the fabric and the miscellaneous materials needed for the reupholstery she ended up costing me less than $150.00! SCORE! Have you priced these kinds of chairs at RC Willey? Well over $400.00. The best part is that I got EXACTLY what I wanted! I am totally gonna get hooked on this reupholstery thing!


Stay tuned for more evolution of this space. Here I thought I would be done in here after the chair was completed, but three more projects have hit the list thanks to imspiration from this chair. Hopefully they will be done in the next ten days or less.

Evolution of a Room: Piano Room, Entryway, Stairwell

We have been in our home 3 1/2 years now and I still feel like there is so much to do. It is frustrating not having a room "done". Although are they ever really done, I mean, really? I think not. This post is a little photo heavy, but I wanted to show how far this room has come. I have been waiting to do this because I still have projects in the works for this space. They are taking longer than I anticipated, which is frustrating. I get impatient with this kind of stuff and my current projects I have to rely on someone else's help. Ugh. Anyhow, here is where the room started from the first time we saw it to this afternoon.



This photo was taken after we lived here over 2 years. I hadn't really done anything to this space except move in a couch, a piano and hang up a piece of art. For a while it also housed Nate's weight set.......I am so glad that has been evicted to the basement. I don't miss it at all. The entryway table was given to me by Nate our first christmas here.
Flash forward to the Fall of 2009. The room had definitely progressed. I had the room repainted, white ceilings and a faux finish on the walls. The large fern I got to go next to my railing but at this time it was hanging out in here, waiting for the holidays to be over.




This photo is a before of what the stairwell looked like til this last Novemeber.

This is the after. Let me tell you getting that wall done was intense. I worked on it when Nate was out of town, late at night while the kids were sleeping. Crazy, I know. That is insanely high to be perched on the top of a ladder without another person around to help hold it! It also took forever because I was constantly up and down getting more paint or readjusting the ladder. It was still fun though. I painted it in a Ralph Lauren suede finish. It has a cool texture to it. The pictures don't do it justice. I definitely still have plans for this area.
This is today, showing my fern where she normally resides.


At the end of February I found these window panels and fell in love. Of course it helped that they were on clearance! I also got the curtain rod for 70% off! Score! The room was feeling too gold to me and I felt like the couch was getting lost in tbe wall. There is the littlest bit of a rust color in the details of the pillows and I have been trying to pull that color into the room for a while. The paint job in the stairwell, the piano room, some of my accessories, my hallway rug all help to pull it out. It still needed a pop to help pull it though. The curtains were definitely part of the answer.

So were these pillows. The moment I saw them I knew they were what I was looking for. When people ask me what I am looking for I feel like my answer is alway, "I will know it when I see it." I wanted a solid color pillow because of the pattenr on the couch, but I loved how I still got a cool texture with the criss cross pattern sewn into the pillow.

Doesn't that make such a difference? I love it!

With our Ogden house finally going under contract a few weeks ago I got to bring home the things we took over there to "stage" it. I originally bought this to go in my downstairs. However when I brought it home two days ago I decided to put it here to see how I felt about a little table in this spot. Instantly I knew that this was where it was meant to be. I never thought that it would work there because the yellow of the table was more bold and I had a vision in my mind of what I thought I wanted. As soon as it was placed in the room though it was amazing to see how much the color transformed to fit into the space. Another awesome thing is that it works wonderfully with my current project for the space. What a happy coincidence. Seriously, if you were to see this table in a different space you would swear that I had painted it. Awesome. Then I had to set about rearranging the accessories in this space. What an adventure. Because of another room in the house undergoing a transformation I feel like EVERY accessory is finding a new home. It is fun but also disconcerting to have to find a perfect happy home for everything.


The piano has been one of those areas that I really struggle to decorate. It is constantly changing and I have yet to step back and say "Yes! That's it!" Still waiting for that to happen.



So there you have it. Atleast thus far. Stay tuned for more evolving to hit this area.